Kallen had never been so angry.
She'd felt worse, sure. Terrified in the fall of Nihon, the horror of the Grimm and the Britannian boot that followed. Hollow with her brother's death—losing Naoto had left a hole in her heart that could never be filled.
Maybe she'd been this angry once, when her ex-father discarded her mother. At least his betrayal should have been expected; he was a Britannian and a pampered coward. Vile.
Suzaku was supposed to be better than that. He had a responsibility to be better, more than anyone else. He was a Kururugi, goddamn it—son of Genbo, a man who failed but at least had the decency to choose death over dishonor. The Kururugi house more than any other were supposed to be the protectors of Nihon. Symbols of the nation.
When she'd found Suzaku at the school her ex-father had forced her attend, had even been paired with him as new combat school partners, it had seemed like the spirits were finally smiling down on her. She'd had no idea why he'd joined a school that only allowed Britannians or the odd traitorous Honorary Britannian to attend, but she'd hoped he had the same sort of plan she did—infiltrating their society, finding weak points, and reporting back to the resistance.
Then she got to know the guy better. She'd noticed how well they worked together. He was so easy to trust, with his damned open face and sad smiles. So damned strong, too. Reliable. Kind. A true and noble person. And not a member of any resistance group.
That hadn't been a disappointment, though. At the time it felt more like an opportunity. The guy was trying to survive and do good, but needed some direction. She'd bring him into the fold—with him on their side, with the two of them working together, how could anyone stand in their way?
She'd been a fool. As soon as the Britannian prince showed up, she'd started to notice things she didn't want to notice. Suzaku being in favor of the Honorary Britannian system, voicing opposition to the resistance—she'd assumed it was a front. There was no way a Kururugi could have bought into that, could believe in submission to Britannia. He had to be upholding it for the sake of winning more power for the Nihonese, power that could be used to free their homeland when the time came. But the proof was right in front of her eyes. Suzaku was friends—old, best friends—with one of the emperor's devil-spawn.
Betraying her was one thing. But her own partner, her closest friend, betraying Nihon? Their homeland? Traitor didn't even cover it.
He'd hurt her more than words could express. So, Kallen was going to let her fists do the talking.
She activated her semblance almost as soon as she finished changing in the locker room. It was always good to feel its energy—the Crimson Lotus—humming through her veins. She could feel its tempo speeding up as it built off of the power of her fury. With her Tigerclaw gauntlet on one hand and her long dagger Lotus Thorn in the other, she was ready.
Kallen strode out into the arena, teeth bared, relishing in the rising strength of her semblance in every step. Her eyes locked with Suzaku's as he emerged from the other doorway, and for a moment she felt a horrible pang of anguish at the expression of outrage and sheer hurt in them. But then that pain blossomed into greater fury. He had no right to be hurt. How could he stand there, proud and pained and disappointed, when he'd betrayed everything? Betrayed her?
Kallen barely heard the countdown. Everything was focused on Suzaku—his face, now hardened into a scowl, brows furrowed as he drew Kusanagi. She could already feel the winds rising across the arena; she would need everything she had for this fight.
It was so ironic it seemed like a bad joke—here she was, avenging the honor of Nihon, and the traitor prince of it would be fighting her with the Nihonese sword of heroes and the sacred Kururugi semblance, the Kamikaze. The strongest version in generations, no less. That thought made Kallen even angrier, somehow, something she hadn't thought possible. She could feel the reverberations of her Crimson Lotus growing stronger as her heart pounded for vengeance.
The countdown ended. Kallen launched herself forward, roaring out her hate.
"Shit shit shiii—" Kallen yelped, barreling through the doors to the Ashford Academy training room. Milly Ashford turned from where she'd been standing, talking with someone, and put her hands on her hips.
"Sorry!" She gasped, leaning on her knees. "Didn't… mean… to be late." She said, trying to smile at Milly. The class president was not amused.
"Fifteen minutes late, Ms. Kozuki? I could give you detention." Milly said, her sinister tone managing to freak Kallen out a little.
"It won't happen again, ma'am! I promise!" Kallen squeaked, bowing her head in fear. Then she heard someone chuckle, and glanced up—
Kururugi Suzaku. The mysterious partner Milly had wanted Kallen to meet was Kururugi. Suzaku. And she'd managed to look like an absolute fool. She'd noticed his picture in the list of first years, but she'd never expected to run into him like this. Kallen felt a blush unwillingly begin to creep across her face and resisted the urge to bow—that would not be the Britannian thing to do. What would the Britannian thing to do? Handshake? Kneel?
"I, uh, I am, so, so sorry—" Kallen began—when it hit her that he was smiling at her. "Uh… sorry! I mean, I'm sorry, for being, late? I had the wrong time, in my planner I mean, I have no idea how it happened."
"Well of course you did. I changed the practice time this morning." Milly said. Kallen took a moment to process this.
"But then… why did you just text me about it ten minutes ago?" Kallen asked, bewildered. Then she got a good look at the grin on Milly's face.
"I shouldn't have to remind you of your own practice times. A good club member always checks the corkboard." Milly said, shaking a finger in her direction.
"What corkboard?! I got here yesterday! How would you expect me to know that?" Kallen said.
"A good student does her research. Fifteen points from you and detention on Tuesday." Milly scolded.
"WHAT? That's so unfair—and why are there points all of a sudden?" She caught a glimpse of Milly's suddenly severe expression and blanched. "Uh, ma'am." She tried. Milly poked her in the forehead.
"Ten more points for insubordination, and two hundred pushups. You'll never win the house cup this way." Milly said. Kallen stared at her, and Milly stared back.
"What, are you deaf? Two hundred push-ups!" Milly commanded, undeniable as a thunderstorm. Kallen gulped.
"Yes ma'am." She squeaked, starting to get down.
"I think it's time you let her off the hook, Milly." Suzaku said. Kallen froze.
"Oh, you're probably right. I just wanted to see how far she'd go." Milly said. Kallen stood back up, slowly.
"You mean… you…" She tried.
"Were pranking you, yes. Introductions are usually so dull, don't you think?" Milly said, smiling brightly. "You can call me Milly, by the way—none of those 'ma'ams', 'Ms. Ashfords', or 'madam presidents'. We're all friends here—formalities like that are for business partners, subordinates, strangers, and the bedroom. So, seeing as you're none of the first three and I assume you aren't trying to seduce me, call me Milly—understood?" Milly said.
"Yes ma—Milly." Kallen said. Kururugi chuckled, then abruptly stopped.
"Wait, does Shirley know that calling you madam president—" Kururugi began.
"Not yet, the silly goose. Still working on her. Some day she'll fall for my charms." Milly said, sighing dramatically. Kallen stared at her, then at Kururugi, who just shook his head.
"Anyway, we're off topic. I'm Milly, this is Suzaku, and Suzaku, this is Kallen. You two will be working together for the next year, at least, unless something goes horribly wrong or you two turn out to be incompatible. And, let me say, I really don't think that's going to be a problem." Milly said, winking. Kallen felt a blush rise to her cheeks as she glanced at Suzaku and saw him pointedly looking at the cieling. Milly leaned closer to him.
"You should really thank me, you know—she's quite the looker, and based on the vids, she's veeeery flexible." Milly whispered, loudly enough that Kallen could easily hear every word.
"Well, I'll leave you two to it! I've got presidential duties to handle—don't have too much fun, the mats only get cleaned at the end of the week. Make good choices!" Milly continued, sweeping out of the doorway. Kallen could only stare after her, completely at a loss for words.
"I am, so, so sorry." Suzaku said. Kallen looked back over at him—the guy was rubbing the back of his neck, looking absolutely mortified. Just how Kallen felt.
"Yeah, well… not your fault." Kallen struggled for something to say. "Is she always like this?"
"She seemed a bit excited today. Said something about finding me the perfect partner, and I guess she means you—it's been a bit hard. No one really wants to be paired with the Honorary Britannian, but she said you checked the box on the application—" He paused, looking up at her, "that is alright with you, right? I'd hate to force you into this, especially after…" He waved at the door.
"Wha—oh no, no, that's not on you. You seem like a good guy. She said something about you being the only one who could kick—" Kallen abruptly remembered that the exact wording of the text had not been 'kick' but 'smash' her ass, and struggled not to blush, "m-my, uh, face. Er, beat me in a fight, I mean. I saw your numbers, and I heard about your semblance. I guess it makes sense now why the Honorary Britannian question was the last one—it's not a problem for me at all." She finished. Suzaku, mercifully, nodded.
"I can promise you I will not disappoint—hm. Excuse me. I will be a capable partner—no. Damn it Milly… I think we would make a great combat team. I'd be honored to work with you." Suzaku managed. Kallen smiled.
"I'd be honored to work with you, too. Let's shake on it." She said, offering her hand. Suzaku took it with a genuine grin.
"You know, I have a feeling we're going to get along really well." Suzaku said.
Suzaku Kururugi had never been so angry.
Not at one person, at least. He'd hated Britannia. He'd been disappointed when his family cast him out. He'd been terrified by his father, in the last days of the war. But this anger was new. The betrayal cut deep. If it had only been him, maybe it would have felt earned, a just reward. He certainly would not begrudge such a poetic fate as his trusted friend trying to kill him. But it was worse than that.
Kallen, who had been his best friend, his partner, had tried to murder his oldest friend. Because she was a terrorist. She'd always been a terrorist. Everything he knew about her was a lie, and she'd used him to get to his friend. Maybe she'd always planned on using him, in the end—trying to set him up as a figurehead for some sort of stupid, doomed effort that would bring down even worse suffering upon the Nihonese for nothing more than pride. It was remarkable beyond words to know that courageous, kind, noble Kallen was one of his people, yet also the absolute worst kind. In hindsight, it made sense.
He'd known that she knew Nihonese. He'd known that she spent a lot of time with her brother, before he died, and afterwards a lot of time 'grieving' with his friends. He'd never been clear on the circumstances of her brother's death. It wasn't hard to guess now exactly what they'd been doing.
It was only fair she kept her own secrets. He certainly had his own. But this was more than bad memories and a troubled past—this was her entire life. The Kallen he knew didn't exist. The friend he'd thought he had was gone, just the shell for the murderous zealot underneath. It was horrifying, it cut deeply into his heart, but most of all if filled Suzaku with a cold and righteous fury that stirred up a literal tempest from his rage.
Whatever else, he still knew this Kozuki's fighting style. Even that might have been a lie, but as soon as she burst through the doors, he knew it was the same. He recognized the hatred on her face—he'd seen it once before, in a very different time, on a very different face. It was almost enough to jar him, but Suzaku would not waver in this battle. If this wretch wanted a fight, he'd give her one.
The countdown ended, and Kallen shot at him like a cannonball. Suzaku knew better than to try and stop her. He embraced his fury, and with great concentration, became the wind.
It had been a long day. Ashford was always a difficult place to live as an honorary Britannian, but today had been the worst so far. Founding Day.
That 'founding' being the day the peace negotiations had concluded, and the land of Nihon had officially become Area 11. It was an official Area 11 holiday, celebrated enthusiastically by the Britannian colonists and with considerable strain by occupied populace. An Eleven avoiding the mandatory Founding Day festivals or showing any sign of protest could be punished with imprisonment or death; any lack of enthusiasm on the part of an eleven could result in an unofficial beating. The guards would not intervene. The Britannian nationalists were out for blood and out in numbers on Founding Day. Most Nihonese had learned how to succeed at pretending to have a good time. The ones that couldn't, learned how to hide. The ones that couldn't do either hadn't lasted long.
Suzaku had worked, very, very hard to seem enthusiastic about the proceedings. It hadn't helped. Honorary Britannians were technically exempt from attending the grand festival, but dissent could still be punished. No one would begrudge a patriotic Britannian the right to put a 'disrespectful' eleven in their place, Honorary Britannian status or no.
The crude drawings and insults that had been scrawled on his locker were a weekly occurance, and didn't exactly bother Suzaku so much at this point. He'd actually gotten some sympathetic looks along with the mockery, as Milly had worked hard to help introduce him to the less zealous Britannians. He'd made some friends, gotten some general goodwill by helping with tests and generally making good relations.
No, the locker art wasn't so much the problem, or the quaint attempt to slip tacks onto his chair, the mustard sprayed onto the back of his uniform during lunch, or the dung slipped into his backpack when he wasn't looking.
There had been two events that had pushed beyond Suzaku's limits. The first had been during the Founding Day assembly.
Somewhere mid-way through the film with its dramatic shots of Britannian knights and Princess Cornelia on the Morrigan, a clutch of firecrackers went off. They lit the podium where they'd been hidden on fire, as well as the projector screen. The sprinklers handled that, but the whole school had been drenched.
The representatives of the military police who had been present had immediately tackled Suzaku and bodily hauled him out of the assembly, even though he hadn't tried to resist. They'd almost choked him to death.
He'd spent hours at the station. He'd been strip-searched, hosed down with freezing water, beaten and interrogated. Then, Milly Ashford had called; a member of the Circus club had admitted to the crime, after he was found in the act of planting more firecrackers underneath the president's window. Being the son of a duke, the police decided to give him a pass; Suzaku had been thrown out onto the street and left to find his own way back to Ashford. It had been a few miles, several hours of walking. By the end he was more tired than he ever remembered being.
Suzaku had walked into his room, ready to fall onto his bed and sleep for hours, only to find that his quarters had been absolutely trashed. Every item of clothing he owned had been torn, his books soaked in cooking oil. The mattress he'd worked three weeks to buy had been ripped open and stuffed with garbage. Someone had urinated on his chair and desk. The walls had been painted with vile messages and death threats, including some fairly graphic art. The tea set he'd owned since childhood, the last thing he owned from home, had been smashed to bits. The shards had been rearranged into a message telling him to kill himself.
He'd been staring at the mess for awhile now, wondering what to do.
Then he heard footsteps in the corridor. The sound shocked him out of his stupor, and he turned to face the door. Normally he wouldn't fight, but this had just been too much. Drained as he was, another beating might have genuinely maimed or killed him, and his survival instincts jumped to the forefront. Kusanagi was safe but out of reach in the fingerprint-sealed weapon locker in the gym, so Suzaku fell into a hand-to-hand combat stance as someone pushed the door open.
"Suzaku, are you in here? Are you all… right…" Kallen said, pushing open the door. Kallen. A sight for sore eyes—well, eye. His left was a bit too swollen to see at the moment.
"Hey, Kallen…" He managed, letting his fists down and trying for a smile. She stared at his mouth for a moment, and Suzaku realized there was probably still blood on his face. She looked horrified.
"What… who…" Words failed Kallen. She shook her head, and strode into the room. Right up to Suzaku, actually. He didn't have the energy to be surprised when she took his face in her hands and examined it, staring into his eyes.
"No concussion. That's good—here, let me just," Kallen took the corner of her uniform, spit on it, and proceeded to wipe the worst of the blood off of Suzaku's face.
"There we go. Can you walk?" Kallen asked. "I… think so." Suzaku asked. Kallen glared at him.
"Can you or can't you? If you can't I'm going to carry you." Kallen said.
"I can walk." Suzaku said, nodding. "Uh, where to?"
"My room." Kallen said, turning towards the door. Suzaku stared at her.
"What?" Suzaku said. He must have misheard. Kallen checked both ways for passing students—it was well into the evening, though, and most were out of the dorms.
"Come on, we're getting you out of here." Kallen said, beckoning him over. "Well? Let's go?"
Suzaku had never been to Kallen's room. He'd never been invited, to be sure, but he'd certainly never invited himself. They spent enough time practicing and eating lunch together as it was. Suzaku didn't want to cause her the kind of scandal inviting an eleven to her room would bring, making the existing rumors even worse. Besides, they'd never hear the end of it from Milly. Kallen's room wasn't a place he'd ever expected to go.
Suzaku followed her through the halls and passages of Ashford in a bit of a haze. At last they came to her doorway, and Suzaku followed her inside. Or, he tried to. His shoe caught on the doorstep, and he fell forward. He didn't even have the strength to put out his arms as the ground rushed up—but Kallen leapt over and caught him.
"Whoa, there! Stay with me. let's get you somewhere to lie down." Kallen said, voice firm and reassuring. She put Suzaku's arm over her shoulder and guided him to her bed.
"No, wait…" Suzaku said.
"What is it? What's wrong?" Kallen said.
"I don't want to mess up your sheets… there's… blood and dirt on my uniform." Suzaku managed.
Kallen looked into his eyes, and sighed.
"Well, I'll get you out of it, then." Kallen said.
"WHAT?" Suzaku said, staring. Kallen blushed and looked away.
"Look, I'm not trying anything, but you shouldn't have to stay in those clothes anyways. You're getting in this bed." Kallen said.
"Wait—" Suzaku said, but Kallen ignored him, slipping off his jacket and then his pants with surprising speed. Suzaku didn't really have the strength to resist, but he was too shocked to do so. Embarrassment blushed deeply across his skin, but Kallen was already pushing him under the covers and tucking him in. It was the most comfortable bed he'd ever been in, and he was exhausted… immediately he began to drift into sleep. He heard Kallen snap open her phone, and was surprised at her cold, murderous tone.
"Milly, we have a situation." Kallen said, and then Suzaku closed his eyes.
When he woke again, it was deep into the night. The room was dark, but he could read the time from Kallen's alarm clock. Kallen wasn't there, and he was tired. He was about to go back to sleep when the door creaked open and Kallen crept into the room. Suzaku sat up as she eased the door closed.
"Hey, Kallen." He said. Kallen jumped, spinning around to face him.
"Oh! Oh, you're awake. I was hoping you'd still be asleep. It's only been a few hours." She said.
"No, please—it's fine, I should be rested enough. I don't want to take your bed from you." Suzaku said, starting to pull the covers off-only for Kallen to walk over and push him back down.
"Bullshit. You and I both know you're nowhere near recovered enough to go walking around." Kallen said. It was true—they'd trained together for months. She knew his limits.
"I'll just… find somewhere to sleep." Suzaku said.
"What, in the halls? A bench somewhere? I don't think so." Kallen said.
"I don't want to be a burden—" Suzaku tried.
"Tough. You're staying in the bed. Deal with it." Kallen said. Suzaku frowned, but sighed in defeat.
"So demanding. Where are you going to sleep, then?" He asked. Kallen pulled over her desk chair. it didn't look that comfortable.
"That can't be good for you." Suzaku said, a bit concerned. Kallen laughed.
"Hey, don't forget who's looking after who, here." Kallen said. Her smile faded a bit as she looked down at him.
"We got them, by the way. Nina got security camera footage—some guys from a few floors down. They stole a janitorial key, and had a bunch of sake on them when we found them. I was all set on breaking in their faces, but Milly managed to sweet-talk one of them into confessing and then they all started fighting. Turns out breaking into a room, committing vandalism, getting drunk and stealing from faculty are actions unbecoming of Ashford students. And… we may have 'happened' to stumble across a couple dozen syringes of refrain in their room, hidden under a mattress. Cops have been cracking down on drug dealing lately, and weren't too happy to hear about it on campus with all these impressionable young scions around. The bastards will be out on their asses in the morning." Kallen said.
"I… you didn't have to do that." Suzaku said.
"Of course I did. Nobody messes with my partner and gets away with it." Kallen said, flashing him a brief grin. "And, what they did to you… it's horrible. I'm so sorry."
"It's… how it is, for now. It was worse today, but this sort of thing happens a lot." Suzaku said. Kallen scowled.
"It shouldn't. It's pathetic, and cruel. It makes me sick." Kallen looked down at him then, and Suzaku felt as if he was seeing her for the first time.
"I don't care if this is how it is. It's wrong, and it needs to change. The Nihonese shouldn't have to suffer like this in their own homeland." She said, quietly.
Suzaku stared at her, in wonder. Kallen, a Britannian noble, outraged on behalf of an eleven. All elevens. Set against the system, against everything she'd been taught—not just for his sake, but for the sake of his people. She reminded him, then, of his old friends. The two children he'd fought through those hellish nights of war with, outrunning and outwitting Grimm and Britannian alike.
If Britannians like Kallen existed, there was still hope for the future. For his people's future. The realization overwhelmed Suzaku, and suddenly, he began to cry.
"Hey, woah there! What's wrong? Are you okay?" Kallen said. Suzaku wiped away the tears.
"Y-yes, Kallen. I'm fine. Just… thank you. Thank you so much." Suzaku said, smiling through the tears. Kallen smiled back.
"Anytime, Suzaku. I've got your back, no matter what." Kallen said.
Kallen's claws ripped through where Suzaku's back should have been. He'd disappeared, the slippery little fucker, but she'd predicted that. She skidded to a stop, and whipped her knife over her back.
Just in time, it caught Kusanagi's blade as Suzaku whirled back out of the wind, slashing at Kallen's shoulders. She ducked under the sword and kicked out at Suzaku's legs, but Suzaku leapt over her strike.
His sword came down again, slicing at her head. Kallen smacked that out of the way too and charged him with her knife. He let her get close before smashing Kusanagi's hilt up into her knife-holding wrist and then slammed her hip with a roundhouse kick.
Kallen got launched across the arena space, but quickly rolled back up into a ready stance. She grimaced at the pain. With the Crimson Lotus running hot and roiling through her, she focused on it and slammed her foot into the ground in Suzaku's general direction. Waves of force rolled through her into the ground, sending a shockwave towards Suzaku. He leapt over the wave as it reached him and kicked out in Kallen's general direction, launching a blast of wind at her. Kallen spun out of its way and rushed forward again, claws and dagger forward. Suzaku landed and charged as well.
Moments before their clash Suzaku leapt, slashing down at her from above. Kallen ducked and slid, grabbing Kusanagi's blade with her clawed gauntlet and smashing Suzaku to the ground with it. She lunged at him with her dagger but Suzaku was quicker, slamming a boot into Kallen's face with an unexpected kick and sending her tumbling back.
"Fuck!" Kallen cursed, finding balance again. "You'll pay for that one, you piece of shit!" She said, roaring out her words as she focused her semblance into her gauntlet and thrust it forwards, hurling a shockwave through the air. Suzaku ducked under it, but Kallen was already charging. She caught his slash with Kusanagi on her dagger and grabbed Suzaku's face with her gauntlet, breaking his stance and slamming his head into the ground. Suzaku dissolved into wind again, and before Kallen could react an enormous gust slammed into her back and smashed her flat against the floor, blasting the breath out of her lungs. She gasped for breath, trying to recover.
"Slow as usual, Stadfeldt. Or should I say Kozuki? I'm sorry, it's so hard to tell who you are." Suzaku's voice rang out, a cold and contemptuous tone Kallen had never heard him use. She scrambled to her feet, growling.
"Shut up and show yourself, coward!" Kallen roared.
"Fine." Suzaku said. The air seemed to go still for a moment. Then, it exploded outwards in a monumental blast. Kallen jammed her dagger into the ground and held on as the whirlwind roared around her. It was hard to see with the air tearing at her eyes, but she made out Suzaku spinning at her from the corner of her gaze. One of his stupid fucking spin-kicks. She kicked out before he could do the same, slamming her boot into his gut. Suzaku tumbled back, gasping for breath, and the wind died down for a moment.
"You yellow-bellied ass. You think you can beat me with cheap tricks, traitor?" Kallen growled, rushing him. She tried to catch Kusanagi on her dagger again but it was a feint—Suzaku slammed the pommel into her forehead and then slashed at her side with a strike she only barely managed to block with her gauntlet.
"Oh, I'm sorry, I'm tricking you? It must be hard being on the receiving end of it for once." Suzaku said, feinting with Kusanagi to distract her before kicking Kallen in the head with another roundhouse and sending her skidding across the stadium floor.
Kallen rolled to her feet, breathing hard and growling with fury. Suzaku rushed at her, but with a roar, she slammed her gauntlet into the ground. The floor lurched and quaked, tripping Suzaku up mid-charge. As he fell, Kallen's boot slammed into his head and she punted him across the stadium.
"Don't you dare try and take the moral high ground with me, you slimy, selfish bastard!" Kallen shouted, racing after him. Suzaku stood back up, glared at Kallen, took a deep breath, and slammed his palms together. Kallen felt herself pushing through more and more resistance as the wind sped up, growing stronger and stronger, picking up debris from across the room. A lunchbox whirled out of the tempest and slammed into Kallen's side, sending her tumbling.
"Fuck!" She shouted again, stabbing her dagger into the floor again and bracing against the ground. Crimson Lotus was building again, and she drew back her hand, preparing to unleash it against the ground.
"What's wrong Kallen? Can't handle a little breeze? Maybe you'd be harder to sway if you had an ounce of honor in you." Suzaku shouted.
"You of all people have no right to lecture me about honor, Honorary Britannian! Let's see how you handle it!" Kallen cried out. Concentrating harder than she'd ever done before, she pushed all of the pink-glowing essence of her semblance into her gauntlet and let her hatred flow. The Tigerclaw was practically glowing with heat as she punched it in Suzaku's direction.
The enormous shockwave slammed into Suzaku's whirlwind. Some of the force exploded back across the arena, almost wrenching Kallen from her spot. The rest slammed into Suzaku—or where Suzaku should have been. At the last minute he'd turned into air again. The shockwave smashed into the edge of the stadium, blasting through the wall and buckling the support beams beyond. The lights above flickered as the entire building shook.
Suzaku reappeared. Kallen stumbled to her feet, charging him again.
"Stop." A voice said. Kallen barely heard it, but Suzaku did. He stabbed out with Kusanagi as Kallen closed range, catching it with her gauntlet an stabbing at his hateful face with her dagger—
"I said, STOP." And Kallen was floating, suddenly, dagger blade just inches away from Suzaku. Too late Kallen looked over at Glinda Goodwitch, who was levitating Kallen slightly off of the ground with her riding crop. Even enraged as she was, Kallen quailed at the cold fury in the professor's eyes.
"This fight is over." Professor Goodwitch said. Kallen glared at Suzaku, then at the professor.
"I still need to—" Kallen tried, but the look in Goodwitch's eyes made her close her mouth with a squeak.
"This fight. Is. Over. I will be seeing both of you in my office this evening, and if I hear any word of combat outside of class, you will be severely punished. Is that clear?" Professor Goodwitch said.
"Yes, professor." Suzaku said, bowing. Then he turned and began to walk back to the locker room, without another word.
"Hey, you fucking coward, we aren't done!" Kallen shouted, only to be dropped to the ground with a thud in front of professor Goodwitch. Any protest died in Kallen's throat as the professor stared down at her.
"Yes, you are. Return to your locker room, Miss Stadfeldt, or I will deliver you there personally." Professor Goodwitch said, smacking her riding crop into her hand. Cursing under her breath, Kallen scrambled to her feet, and stormed back towards the locker room doors. She did her best to brush away the tears that had begun to fall from her eyes.