Authors Note (Updated as of Feb 1st 2022): This story has been a project of mine for over a year now and its something I've put a lot of time and work into, that being said the first 7-8 chapters are far below the standard I now aim to keep. I have considered going back to fix this and redo them, or just replace them since entirely with one chapter, but I have decided against it. I don't want to run into the problem where I go back and try to prefect everything and thus the story as a whole suffers for it. I plan to learn from this and do better in the future, let this serve as a reminder of that.

Try to think of the opening 8 chapters as a sort of epilogue. Its not perfect but if you can stick through past that the story does get significantly better, and is a fairly original idea if I say so myself. Hopefully you'll be able to stick through, let me know how can improve though. Even if you decided to drop the story.

Sincerely, SardonicEffigy

Authors Note (Original): So this is the new story set to replace A Simple Bet Between Friends. I hope you enjoy and I highly encourage you to review and let me know your thoughts once you've finished. Regardless of whether you liked it or hated it, I love to hear your impressions.

Pyrrha gasped, air filling her lungs, as she lunged forward towards an enemy that was no longer there. Panic set in before her mind could fully find itself. After a minute the world around her slowly came back into view, the fear or adrenaline from her dream finally wearing off. She panted heavily as she brought a hand to her forehead. It came away wet and she finally became aware that she was covered in a cold sweat.

The phantom smell of ash slowly slipping from her memory.

It had easily been the most intense dream she had ever had but… the details began to blur. A fog settling over her making it difficult to think as she felt just how tired she was.

It had been more a nightmare than a dream, but thankfully the memories had already started to fade. The more she tried to think about it the farther it seemed away.

She hadn't had nightmares like that since she was a child. A distant memory of her sister humming a song to help her fall asleep. She laughed softly to herself, twisting her body and setting her feet gently on the floor. She couldn't say it was something she missed but it was still amusing.

The Invincible Girl defeated by a dream. The idea was laughable, or at least the media's responses would have been. Standing and moving towards the bathroom. Her legs were surprisingly weak for a moment and she nearly fell over, only just catching herself on her bed frame.

She hadn't realized how tired she was… or how sore. Had she strained herself too much during sparring? She couldn't think of any reasons for why her body would feel so stiff and alien.

Shaking her head she dispelled such thoughts. She must have just slept in an awkward position. She made it to the bathroom doorway with relative ease, careful to remain silent and not wake up her team. She didn't know what time it was but she didn't want to be a bother.

She didn't turn the bathroom light on until she had fully closed the door, stopping any light from spilling out into their room. When she did turn the light on she winced at how bright it was, squinting her eyes to the point she could barely see. The light hurt more than she thought it should have.

Was she coming down with something? She hadn't thought so… she'd just have to see in the morning.

Leaning her weight on the counter she took a deep breath and the pain lessened somewhat. She turned the tap and splashed some water on her face, enjoying the cool feeling. She looked up into the mirror and was startled by what she saw.

There staring back at her was her reflection but… something was wrong with it. She couldn't tell what but something seemed off. She moved her hand and the reflection didn't move with her. She jumped back from the mirror rubbing her eyes with her fists before looking again.

Her reflection was back to normal. Had… had she imagined it? That was the only thing that made sense. Her heartbeat heavy in her chest and her hands shook. She swallowed nervously.

Of course she had imagined it.

Why was she so jumpy? She felt on edge, like she had been in a fight…

The dream, it had to have been the dream. She laughed a little uneasily and clenched her fists in an attempt to stop them from shaking. She swallowed and looked back to her reflection. The same as always and yet it somehow felt alien.

She turned the light off and backed out of the bathroom and back into their dorm. Slowly she made her way towards her bed, sparing a glance to her friends to make sure she hadn't woken them up by accident. None of them made a sound as they slept and she sighed in relief.

Slipping beneath her blanket she tried to go back to sleep and the room seemed to grow darker as she slipped into unconsciousness.

Pyrrha sat down next to Jaune with a groan.

"You look tired." Her partner said.

"Yeah, I didn't get much sleep last night." She set her head down onto her hand and felt her head dip a little before she caught herself.

"Well, at least you'll be able to sleep over the weekend." Jaune said before turning back to the center of the room.

The weekend? She could have sworn it was still early in the week. She pulled out her scroll to check the day and sure enough, it was Friday. The week had gone by fast, they had been busy doing… what had they spent the week doing? She couldn't quite remember. They had classes with Port, Oobleck, and Miss Goodwitch but… what had they actually done in those classes?

Her headache intensified the more she tried to think. She really must have come down with something, she'd been feeling ill since she woke up last night. She groaned again as she set her head down on the table. The weekend would be just what she needed to relax, even if it required her to stay in the whole time.

In the meantime she could take a short nap before the class was over.

"Miss Nikos!" Pyrrha jumped at the sudden volume. "I apologize if you can't see the importance of the Faunus Wars on modern day politics but I must insist that you stay awake." Prof-Dr. Oobleck said.

Oobleck… wasn't Port's class the first of the day? Hadn't they been sitting in his class? Her headache pulsed, forcing her to wince. "S-sorry Doctor, it won't happen again."

"See that it doesn't." He nodded to her before continuing on with his lecture.

Jaune nudged her side to get her attention, careful to keep his voice low enough to not be noticed. "Maybe you should see the nurse."

She had considered doing that earlier but shrugged it off, expecting things to get better before lunch. Clearly it hadn't, if anything it had only gotten worse. She was spacing out and flipping between exhausted and on edge, much like she had been last night. She couldn't shake the feeling like she was in danger.

"Y-yeah… I'll go right after class." Pyrrha brought her hands to her temple, attempting to massage away some of the pain. "Can you let Miss Goodwitch know for me?"

"Sure thing Pyr." Jaune smiled and turned back to the lesson.

Pyrrha brought a hand to her temples, attempting to massage away the aching there. The light was just so bright. She closed her eyes for a moment, finally getting a short moment of relief from the pain. The next thing she knew the bell rang.

"Ah, it appears we are out of time. A shame." Oobleck muttered to himself, seemingly unaware of how utterly disinterested the rest of the class was. "Don't forget to read the assigned sections by Monday, there will be a test on it."

Class was already over? Hadn't she just sat down? Had she fallen asleep when she closed her eyes? That was hard to believe, it had only been a few seconds and even if it had been longer Professor Oob-

Her headache spiked in intensity and she winced. It didn't go unnoticed.

"Do you want me to help you to the nurse's office?" Jaune offered.

"No, no, I'll be fine." Pyrrha stood slowly. "Go ahead and go to Miss Goodwitch's class, I'll message you what the nurse decided."

She stepped out of the class and down the hall. She stopped at a water fountain for a moment in the hopes it would help her headache. Sadly not.

What is wrong with me?

She felt tired, depleted, drained. It was difficult to explain. She had gone through her fair share of difficult fights, and this reminded her of it, but it felt so much worse. She felt like she was going to collapse any second now but by some miracle she never did.

She stood and started back down the hall. Her headache grew even worse. She clenched her eyes shut as it spiked. She kept walking for a few seconds before stopping in the middle of the hall. She brought her hands back up to her temples and for a second the pain went away.

She opened her eyes to find she had arrived at the nurse's office. She pushed the door open and entered, trying to push past the pain in her head.

"Can I help you?" A sudden voice came from one of the rooms as Beacons resident nurse stepped out, a short female with a brown furry tail swaying behind her.

"I-I have a headache an-" Pyrrha winced as it spiked once more.

"Oh dear, why don't you take a seat?" The nurse gestured towards a chair set up next to a desk at the end of the hall. She guided her over and sat her down gently. "When did this all start?"

Pyrrha clenched her jaw and spoke through her teeth. "Sometime last night. I woke up in the middle of the night but… i-it wasn't this bad. Its only gotten worse throughout the day."

"Hmm," The nurse moved over to a cabinet on the wall. "Are there any other symptoms?"

Pyrrha thought carefully. "I've had difficulty focusing a-and I've been a little confused today."

"Confused? How so?"

"Forgetting where I am, not noticing my surroundings." Pyrrha winced as her headache spiked again, this time eliciting a soft whimper from her.

The nurse came back with a bottle of water and a couple pills in her hands.

"It sounds like the headaches are the root cause, everything else being a symptom. Take these and some time to rest, that should help."

Pyrrha took them from her hands, popping the pills in her mouth and taking a drink of water.

"I recommend you stay here for an hour or so before going back to your room." The nurse gestured to a side room. "If you need anything feel free to ask, I'll either be at my desk or tending to one of the other students."

"Thanks Doctor." She rose from her chair and entered the small room the nurse had gestured to. A bed, night stand, and small window were all that greeted her. She closed the blinds to block out some of the natural light before sitting down on the bed.

The pain in her head finally seemed to dim. Had the pills started working already? It seemed so but she decided to take Tsune's advice and lay down for a time. She pulled out her scroll and prepared to send her team a message when a thought accrued to her.

How had she known the nurses name?

A sudden pain like a nail being driven into the side of her head was all she could focus on a second later as her whole body jolted. Her hands shook and she nearly dropped her scroll. After a moment it began to subside.

She just had to jinx it with that pills comment hadn't she?

Either way, she shook her head softly, making sure to avoid any sudden movements, as she prepared to punch in the message to her team only to find she had already sent one. Their responses came a moment later and they all wished her well, or well, Jaune and Ren did. Nora offered to make enough pancakes to cure her illness.

She smiled at the idea, knowing that Ren would likely be the one making them if she said yes. She was tempted but decided that might be a bit too cruel and so declined her offer.

Pyrrha sat back in the bed draping a hand over her eyes to block out the light that, even though dim, was still too bright.

What was wrong with her? She was never this spacy or forgetful before. She tried to lean back and sleep, as she began to doze off she felt like she was falling but… it felt different. The same sense of wrongness filled her but it wasn't like what she remembered from her dreams. It wasn't uncommon to be on the verge of sleep only to jolt suddenly but this?

It… reminded her of how she felt in the early days of her tournament career, when she wasn't sure if she had a chance of victory or not. When she wasn't sure if everything would be alright, but it felt so much… worse. It felt like a blending of falling in a dream, just before the moment you hit the ground, and the nervousness she used to feel.

It felt like her entire being was wrapped in it… not that that made any sense. Pyrrha sighed at the confusing feeling. Thankfully it subsided and she was finally able to relax, the door opened a moment later, Tsune leaned in.

"How are you feeling?"

"It hasn't b-" Pyrrha looked down to her scroll to see that an hour had passed. "Oh, um, I-I feel about the same."

"Hmm, before you leave make sure to come grab some medication. I'll see about getting something a little stronger." Tsune brought a hand to her chin. "I'm sure it'll pass in only a few days."

Pyrrha sagged slightly. She had been hoping the doctor would have something a little better than speculation but she supposed it was only fair. Students got sick all the time but, this being a combat school, they also got injured in ways that would be considered far more serious. In comparison to a broken leg, her headaches were likely not a very high concern.

"Do you mind if I rest for just a bit longer?"

"Hm? No, by all means, take all the time you need." Tsune nodded. "If you decide to stay overnight however I would ask that you let me know in advance, so that I don't try to give somebody else the room."

"That shouldn't be a problem, I just need a bit more time to relax is all."

"In that case, I shall leave you to it." Tsune closed the door softly. After a moment Pyrrha sagged back down onto the bed. Slipping into a dreamless sleep.

Pyrrha stepped out of the medical wing, shutting the door softly behind her, careful to not distract the doctor from her work. Once she was a few steps away from the door she looked at the bottle in her hands.

She didn't recognize the name but Tsune had insisted that it was significantly stronger than what she had been given previously. She had advised waiting to take it until she was ready to go to sleep due to the side effects creating drowsiness. Aside from that the only side effect was strange dreams.

Pyrrha looked up from the bottle to find that she was no longer heading the right direction. In fact, she wasn't entirely certain where she had gone. She thought she had gone down the right hallway to head to her dorm but clearly she had been wrong.

She'd never even seen this hallway… and yet, she felt like she recognized it.

Her eyes fell on a space of wall that felt wrong, though she couldn't describe why. She stared at it for a moment and felt her headache begin to return. She stepped closer to the wall and it grew stronger. She wanted to pull away but something was telling her to keep going. A moment later her hand touched the wall.

It was perfectly normal.

Her headache began to subside.

What had she been expecting? It was a wall. She laughed softly to herself and turned to step away. She saw something move to her side and she flinched, a second later she realized it was just her reflection off the window.

She stepped away and started to turn from the window, laughing nervously to herself, when she bumped into somebody. She tried to catch herself but the surprise and her throbbing head made it impossible, causing her to fall to the floor.

"It is rather late to be wandering the school grounds, don't you agree Miss Nikos?" The Headmaster offered her a hand.

"I am so sorry!" She jumped up without his assistance. "I wasn't paying attention sir, it won't happen again!"

"No harm done." His smile failed to reach his eyes. "But it is rather late, perhaps you should turn in for the evening."

Late? It wasn't-

Pyrrha looked back out the window behind her to see that it was dark. Hadn't it just been day time?

"S-sorry, sir. I was just on my way back to my room when I got turned around."

"It has been known to happen from time to time, Beacon is rather large after all." The headmaster turned and gestured down a hallway. "Why don't I help guide you back to your room?"

"Oh, that won't be needed." Pyrrha waved her hands in front of her body. "I wouldn't want to impose-"

"Nonsense, it would be no trouble at all." His smile was disarming. "I'm never too busy for my students."

Unable to deny him, she nodded. "Lead the way, Sir."

"Ozpin, please. 'Sir' makes me feel so old."

Pyrrha nodded but didn't say anything. She once again brought her hands to her head in an attempt to rub away the pain. She opened her eyes to see the headmaster looking over his shoulder at her.

"I-I've had a headache all day." Pyrrha explained. "I went to see Tsune and she gave me some pills, sadly they didn't help." She lifted the bottle in her hand to show the professor. "She said these are a bit stronger and should work better."

"It seems that a disease of some kind or another does usually float around the school whenever the festival approaches." The headmaster didn't seem to be talking to her so much as to fill the awkward silence. "Let us hope it's nothing contagious."

"Tsune didn't seem to think so." Pyrrha appreciated it if only because it served as a distraction from the pain in her head.

"I doubt we have any cause for concern," The headmaster chuckled softly. "A young maiden such as yourself should have no issue fighting off a simple virus."

Pyrrha stumbled at his words, her headache once again driving into her skull. Ozpin noticed but didn't comment and after a moment it went away. She brought a hand to her forehead to wipe the sweat and she looked to the side in embarrassment.

Her eyes fell on their reflections in the glass which acted more as a mirror due to the pure darkness outside. She didn't know why but she couldn't pull her eyes away from it. Her reflection copied her perfectly, just as it should have.

Then why did it look wrong?

She tilted her head to the right, and the reflection moved left. Her eyes widened in surprise before wincing closed as her headache once again grew worse. By the time she opened her eyes they were no longer by the windows, infact, they were standing outside the main entrance of the school.

"I trust you can find your way from here?" Ozpin smiled softly.

"Y-yes, thank you sir." Pyrrha nodded and walked past him.

"Enjoy your weekend, Miss Nikos." Ozpin nodded, his smile faltering for the briefest of seconds. "You'll be very busy in the coming weeks."

Pyrrha's face twisted in confusion. "Busy?"

"The festival is often a hectic time for students."

Her blood ran cold with the reminder, but she didn't understand why.

"O-of course, I look forward to it." She didn't know why she was lying, nor why her words were even lies.

"I'm sure you do." His voice was neutral as he spoke. "Good evening, Miss Nikos." Ozpin nodded and turned, disappearing into the school just as quickly as he had appeared.

Pyrrha turned and started off towards her dorm, sparing a glance for the pills still in her hand.

I really hope you work, I don't think I can put up with this for multiple days.

By the time she made it back to the room her team was asleep, the hour already late. She hoped she hadn't worried them but decided to apologise in the morning. They could have reached her if anything was wrong.

After changing into her sleepwear she eyed the bottle one last time, taking two small pills out of the container. Laying in bed she was asleep only a few moments later.

Author's Note: I hope you've enjoyed this new story, and I hope to see you review and follow along for the ride. I still need to hammer out the last of the plot but it's fairly solid at this point, that being said, I'd love to hear anybody's theory on what's happening to our dear champion protagonist.

I just wanna take this chance to say I've brought on a new editor to work along with General Mayhem in that department. He's a very talented author and I look forward to having him on board.

As always don't forget to review and let me know your thoughts.
Sincerely SardonicEffigy