Looking around and seeing the coast was clear, Pyrrha relaxed for a brief moment before...
"AHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!"
She looked up to see Jaune tumbling from the sky, wildly flailing his arms. Immediately Pyrrha's body moved into action, almost before her mind had given the command. Transforming her rifle into a spear, she raised her right thumb as an indicator. As she moved to throw her weapon, a chain shot from beneath the cover of trees towards the helpless student. Pyrrha watched as Jaune desperately grabbed onto the chain before swinging out of sight under the dense forest.
"Well..." Pyrrha owlishly blinked "That works too I suppose."
Tucking away her spear, she did an agile flip off of her branch before making her way towards Jaune, and the unknown student who saved him. Pyrrha moved carefully, but quickly. Who knew when a creature of grimm might try to take her by surprise. She wasn't here for a picnic after all. Though try as she might, Pyrrha found it hard to focus with a particular question on her mind.
'How did Aero know about the exam we were all going to undertake?'
This knowledge was always confidentially kept by the staff. It would be one thing if Aero gave vague and general predictions that covered most topics like the Barnum effect. However...
*"Unfortunately...we don't get to pick our teams so that's a moot point."*
*"The staff are just gonna chuck the students into some danger zone."*
*"Whoever you see first is on your team."*
*"You take your team and grab a 'relic' at the end of the area to pass."*
*"That is correct. Though, I used the word 'chucked' instead of placed for a reason."*
What Aero said seemed to be specifically tailored to EXACTLY what would happen. There was no mistake about it, this wasn't some lucky guess. "Could it be that there really is such a thing as psychics? Would it be alright if I asked him about it? Aero didn't seem to mind telling me and Weiss about-"
"MMMM! MHMMM!"
"What?"
Pyrrha immediately put herself on guard, drawing her weapon and turning her head to the sound of the disturbance...only to find a peculiar sight. Someone just ahead of her seemed to be planted head-first into the ground. Wearing a short black skirt with matching thick black boots, her legs wildly flailed about trying to dislodge herself.
"Um..." Pyrrha put away her weapon and approached the unusual girl. "Do you need a hand?"
"HMMMM? HM HM HM!"
"I'm going to take that as a yes." Wrapping her arms around the girl's thighs, she started pulling. With a pop, the girl was plucked from the ground, gasping for air.
"Haaaah...hahhhhh..." The girl had short rounded purple hair in a bob cut, and a thick pair of glasses on her face, which she nervously adjusted. "Thanks. I t-thought I was gonna die. I-I'm Jacey by the way."
Pyrrha smiled, extending a hand. "It's a pleasure to meet you Jacey, looks like we'll be on the same team, my name is-"
"Oh! I know who you are!" Jacey said excitedly. "You're PYRRHA!"
Pyrrha blinked in surprise. "Yes...you know me?"
"O-of course I do! I bet over half the school knows you! I mean, you're practically a celebrity."
"Well, I suppose a little..."
"A little?! Y-you won the Mistral Regional Tournament four years in a row! With you on our team, we're practically GUARANTEED to win the next-"
"Jacey." Pyrrha quietly interrupted.
"Y-yes?"
"We should get moving."
"Oh! R-right, you're right, s-sorry." She was about to start walking when she stopped. "Oh! I almost forgot." Jacey stooped down and poked a finger into the dirt leaving a small hole in the ground. "There, that ought to help us out if we're ever in a pinch." Pyrrha quirked a brow at the unusual action but otherwise said nothing. "So uh..." Jacey started. "Any idea where we should start looking for the abandoned temple?"
"I'm afraid not. As helpful as it might've been to use our fall as a vantage point to scout, I was too focused on my landing strategy rather than scoping the area."
"Yeah, me too. Even then, I wasn't doing a great job on the whole surviving part."
Pyrrha suddenly stopped, her eyes alert. "Be quiet."
"Sorry...I know I talk too much..."
Pyrrha's hand darted over her teammate's mouth and pulled her low behind a bush. There was a low growl behind the two of them as a large shadow loomed over them. It stayed in place for a moment and with a snort turned around and disappeared. Slowly rising up, the students saw a pack of five beowolves prowling around, unaware of their presence.
"How do you want to proceed?" Pyrrha whispered. "I can draw them to your location for a trap, or we can directly attack them."
"Why don't we just leave them alone?"
"Jacey. This is not the time to be scared."
"N-no, I'm not afraid to fight...well, maybe a little nervous...but think about it. Grimm are attracted to not just negative emotions but loud noises as well. If we fight those grimm over there, there is a small chance more will come. I mean..." she paused. "Aren't we here to just get a relic and make a team? Will facing more grimm make it easier for us?"
"I guess not." The two of them watched the wolf-like beasts lumber away. "It feels weird to just let them go, almost wrong even..."
"Yeah, but it does mean we got past this problem without lifting a finger. All because we didn't make a-"
"GOTCHA YOU FILTHY GRIMM MUTTS!"
"...Sound."
Pyrrha and Jacey looked up in surprised as two girls dropped down from above the canopy of trees. One of the girls with vibrant green hair and blazing orange eyes landed on one of the confused Beowolf, sinking a bladed tonfa into its neck. Pulling a trigger on the handle, a gunshot rang out, the force yanking the weapon to the side and tearing the grimm's head off. Before her victim had even dissipated, the dynamic girl had already made her way to two other grimm. Her companion, a girl with short muted grayish-brown hair stepped forward. Raising and crossing her arms, she threw two bladed discs, both of them hummed through the air, each striking a grimm who had planned on sneak attacking her partner before returning to the girl.
GRRRRR...
GRRROOWWWWWW...
The two grimm rushed over to the chakram girl, swiping at her. She flipped backward, placing her hand on the ground and using the momentum to land back on her feet to dodge the first grimm. She revealed a shocked expression seeing the other grimm sent a pair of claws tearing towards her while she had been distracted.
TING!
She opened her eyes to see Pyrrha right in front of her, having fended off the attack with her shield.
"It's alright, we'll cover you!"
The girl widened her eyes in surprise as Jacey ran past the two, and pulling out an oddly curved short sword and making quick work of the trapped grimm. The last remaining grimm took a hesitant step back before raising its head and letting out a loud howl, only for a tonfa to pierce its neck.
"Shut up..." the green-haired energetic girl muttered before a gunshot tore its head off. The beowolf collapsed onto its stomach before dissipating.
"Well fancy that." she said, twirling her weapons before putting them at her side with a grin. "Didn't expect to find our last two teammates so soon. She looked over Jacey and her teammate and nodded. When her eyes settled on Pyrrha, a small amount of disdain appeared on the girl's face. "Anyway, I'm Sophie, nice to meet you."
"It's nice to meet you too. I'm Jacey by the way."
"Pyrrha." Pyrrha said politely, inclining her head.
Sophie's eyes flickered over to the red-haired student. "We all know who YOU are..." she muttered.
An awkward silence fell over the group as the four of them stood there. "W-well!" Jacey said, trying to change the topic. "What's your name?" she asked, turning her attention to the last member of her group with grayish-brown hair. The girl for her part, just quietly stared back, causing Jacey to put on a nervous smile. "C-come on. Don't be shy."
"Don't bother." Sophie walked over, casually leaning an elbow on the quiet girl's shoulder. "She hasn't spoken a word since we found each other, I'm not sure even she can speak."
"Oh..."
"Come on daylight's burnin', wouldn't want to be the last team to the end do we?"
"Ah Sophie! Wait up!"
"Sweet hair by the way." Sophie commented as she and the team ran. "You dye your hair too huh?"
"Huh? N-no, it's actually just like this."
"No kiddin'? That's pretty cool. Anyway, hang tight, me and mute-mouth over there already found the temple."
"You did?!"
"Heh, it's nothin' special, we didn't grab our relics since we still needed two more teammates."
Under Sophie's guidance, the team of four made their way to the forest and found themselves in front of an eerie-looking cave. On the wall of the cave were primitive-looking pictures scrawled onto the surface of the rock, showing many humans engaged in a fight with what appeared to be a large insect-like creature.
"I'm...not sure I like the looks of this place..."
"Come on, don't tell me you're afraid of the dark or something."
Pyrrha moved forward, inspecting the mural on the wall and peering into the mouth of the cave. "Are you sure this is really the temple? Shouldn't it look a bit grander than this?"
"Are you callin' me a liar?"
"I didn't say that, I just think you might've made a mistake. A temple is built in worship or reverence to something, this just looks like a cave. Maybe we should give this more thought."
Sophie snorted. "What do you think Jay?"
"Jay?" Jacey, tilted her head before she realized. "O-oh, you mean me. Well...I think we should let Pyrrha decide."
"You're gonna let her decide for you? Come on, grow a backbone! What do YOU think?"
Pyrrha shook her head at the two of them and turned her head to the last of the teammates who had been silent all this time. "I don't suppose you have anything to add to this?" she asked. The girl just quietly looked at her. "I didn't think so..." Pyrrha turned back to Jacey and Sophie. "Well...I wouldn't call this a temple, but it's not like we have any other options. Might as well take a look since we're here."
"Alright, if you think so Pyrrha."
"About time. Come on, let's hope we're still the first ones to finish."
Sophie and the quiet teammate pushed into the dark cave without any problems, but Pyrrha and Jacey were still somewhat hesitant. And as expected, the cave was nearly pitch black.
"I can't see anything."
"Ow! Who stepped on my foot!?"
"Does anyone have a light?"
"No but...h-hold on, I think I see something..."
Jacey cautiously stepped forward towards a faint light being emitted. Keeping her hands on the walls so she wouldn't run into anything, she turned the corner, and saw a large gold tear-shaped object floating in the air and emitting a soft light.
"Th-this is it! Girls I found it! I found the relic!"
"Hah! I told ya I knew what I was doing." Sophie's smug voice came from around the corner before her face appeared in the dim light. "Hurry up and snag it so we can get out this dump."
"Right." Jacey reached out to the golden tear and taking a step forward. However right when her hands were about to touch it, the glowing object hovered faintly backward, causing her to miss it by a few centimeters. "Huh?" she took another step forward and tried again, only for the object to once more hover out of reach.
"What's the hold up already?"
"Jacey..." Pyrrha's voice came from behind. "Is everything alright?"
"O-oh, you don't need to trouble yourself Pyrrha, almost got it!" This time she quickly moved forward, the tear swayed a bit, but Jacey was prepared and managed to grab it. "Gotcha you little rascal, now to-huh?" The moment she grabbed onto the tear a warmth filled her hands. Jacey tried to pull the item with her, but it wouldn't budge. An odd clicking sound filled the cave. "G-guys..." Jacey said taking a step back. "I don't think this is the relic..." Eight sinister glowing red orbs appeared in front of her and the clicking grew louder. She turned around to run but felt two cold hard objects clamp around her midsection causing her to shriek. The rest of the team looked in shock as the glowing red eyes quickly moved towards them.
"RUN!"
The three of them barreled out of the cave as quickly as they could. Right behind them was an explosion, as a giant scorpion blasted through stone, sending rock and gravel everywhere. It let out an angry cry and fiercely waved its pincers, holding Jacey in one of them.
"Pyrrhaaaaaaaa! G-get me out of here!"
"Hold tight Jacey, we'll do what we can!"
Pyrrha immediately raised her shield, deflecting a claw swipe from the beast. Seeing the stinger coming in, she did a backhand spring, the impact of the stinger making the ground shake.
"RAAAAAH!"
Sophie twirled her tonfa into an upwards grip firing out of them like rifles. The bolts hit the large grimm causing it to turn its attention towards her instead. Sophie began to run forward but felt something grab onto her wrist. Whirling around, she found her mute teammate giving her a look and shaking her head.
"What? What is it?!" Her teammate stood there silently, still shaking her head. "If you're not gonna say anything, then don't waste my time!" She turned away from her teammate and sprinted towards the Deathstalker, rolling the side as the stinger fell at her, missing Sophie by inches. She whirled around, slashing the tail of the stinger to no effect, the only result being a flash of sparks. The grimm charged forward, clubbing the girl with one of its pincers sending her flying back. Sophie winced, bracing for impact on a rock behind her, but instead felt a cushion on her back at the moment of impact. Looking back, she found Pyrrha with a slightly strained expression.
"Are you alright Sophie?"
Sophie yanked herself out of Pyrrha's grip. "I'm fine, I don't need you to be the hero who saves me! I can handle myself!"
"You've been like this ever since we met. What exactly is your problem with me?" Pyrrha asked, her eyes bewildered.
"G-GIRLS!" Jacey shrieked, still in the clutches of the grimm. "Can we PLEASE save this for a better time?!"
The two of them glanced at each other before sharing a nod as they turned to the deathstalker. Once more, their silent teammate stepped in front of them, this time with her arms spread wide. Clearly attempting to stop them.
"What is it already?!"
The girl turned her back to them and walked towards the grimm which was now barreling towards the three of them.
"Hey!" Pyrrha and Sophie took a step forward, but the girl held up a hand to stop them before calmly walking forward. The grimm let out an angry cry, raising one of its pincers and bringing them down towards her.
"LOOK OUT!"
Right when it seemed their teammate was going to be smashed, the grimm halted all of the sudden. The two of them looked on in shock as the grimm came to a stop just before their silent teammate, slowly lowering its claw. The girl stopped as well, laying her hand on the creature's face.
"What in the world..."
The deathstalker let out a series of clicks, although they no longer seemed aggressive like before. Setting its other pincer to the ground, it released a frantic Jacey, who fell to her knees and fled over to her teammates, hiding behind Pyrrha. The large grimm gave the girl standing in front of her a few curious pokes with its pincer before swiveling around and scuttling off into the woods.
"How on Earth did you manage that?"
The quiet girl frowned and spoke in a voice just barely above a whisper. "Run."
Pyrrha blinked in surprise. "You can talk?"
"That's right you better run!" Sophie yelled after the retreating grimm. "Up top!" she said, motioning to give the girl a high five. The silent teammate frowned even harder, shaking her head and pointing in the opposite direction.
"What are you-"
SKRRRRRRRRAAAAAAAAAAAWWWWWW!
Everyone turned around and saw the deathstalker from before had suddenly become enraged again, charging back at them like before. "Oh...run..." They all turned around, sprinting for all they were worth.
"A fat lot of good THAT did us!" Sophie angrily yelled over the grimm's thunderous steps.
"Q-quick! Everyone take my hand!" Jacey extended her arm, grabbing onto one of her teammates.
"Take your hand? How is this going to-"
"Just do it!"
Sophie grumbled, grabbing onto her hand, with others following suit. By now, the deathstalker had nearly caught them and poised its stinger to attack.
"Checkpoint!" Jacey cried out. She and her teammates vanishing into thin air, the stinger striking the spot where they last were. Confused, the deathstalker looked around the area, trying to find where they might be, before angrily giving up and scuttling off to find other prey.
"Haaah...hahhh..."
"Where is it?! Where did it go?!" Sophie looked around bewildered. The large clearing she and her team had been in seemed to have disappeared, replaced by the wooded section of trees. The Deathstalker was nowhere in sight either. "You wanna tell me what the heck you just did?"
Pyrrha put a steadying hand onto the panting Jacey. "Are you alright? Can you tell us what happened?"
"Just...give me a moment."
Jacey wiped the sweat off of her brow and stood up. "Right...sorry about that. That was my semblance, Checkpoint. I determine a spot I want to return to and mark it, then I can come back to it later at any time."
"Is that why you poked the ground earlier?"
"Yeah." She pointed down into the ground where there was a familiar small hole right between where she was standing. "I can bring others too."
"That's kinda cool..." Sophie muttered. "Imagine if you went to Mistral or something, then you could go back there at any time and save on travel expenses..." She shrugged. "Anyway, send us back, the grimm has probably left by now."
Jacey was quiet for a moment. "I...can't..."
"What?"
"M-my semblance only lets me go to a place I've already marked. Taking all four of us here has used up most of my aura. After using my semblance, I have to physically mark another spot..."
"You mean we're stuck here back at the beginning?!" Sophie whirled around to the quiet girl. "This is all your fault!" she said jabbing a finger at her.
"Now hold on!" Pyrrha stepped in front of the girl. "That's going too far."
"If she could've talked, then she should've just spoken up from the beginning! Something like: 'Hey, I know how to rescue our teammate! Hey, I can pacify giant monsters! Or hey, my name is blank! Any one of those would've been nice."
"Well...that would have been helpful..." Pyrrha turned around to face the teammate behind her. The girl nervously bit her lip and then stooped down. Using her finger, she carved a single word into the dirt.
RAELIN
"Raelin?" Pyrrha asked tilting her head. Raelin gave a small nod and stood up back.
"Great." Sophie muttered. "Because knowing her name solves all our problems now huh?"
"Cut her some slack, Raelin saved one of our members from the deathstalker's grip."
"Whatever! Of course you'd stick up for her Ms. Perfect!"
Pyrrha was about to respond when Jacey walked between the two of them, holding her hands up. "Please! We're supposed to be a team remember? Arguing only makes it harder to work together and attracts more grimm."
"Fine...sorry..." Sophie muttered. "Where do you think we should go?"
Jacey turned to Pyrrha. "So...where do you think we should go?"
.
.
"Yikes..." I mindlessly tugged at the grass while Pyrrha continued. "So what happened next?"
"After that, we began looking for the temple again. We hardly said another word to each other. By the time we found the temple after having backtracked so much, we were the last ones to arrive. Sophie wasn't exactly happy about that. Next, during the ceremony, Jacey was named the leader. She began to desperately apologize to me, saying she'd somehow stolen the position that was rightfully mine. That I was far more qualified to take charge." Pyrrha sighed, placing one of her gloved hands on her forehead.
Wow. One of her teammates doesn't like Pyrrha, the other practically worships her, and the last one isn't really much of a team player. "Sounds like a headache."
"You could call it that, yes..."
"Listen..." I said rubbing the back of my head. "Maybe I could try and help? I mean, it is your team, but judging by your story I think I understand what's going on."
"That's quite alright Aero." Pyrrha stood up, brushing a few fallen leaves off of her waist. "I do appreciate the thought, but I think it would be better for us to try and work this out as a team."
"Are you sure?" Pyrrha being on team Jasper IS technically my fault after all... "You and your team need to sit down and have a talk, but that's not gonna go so well unless someone else gets involved."
"I am sure we'll find a way to work things out, thank you though. Honestly, I feel better after getting a chance to talk about this with you. Thank you for allowing me to vent a bit."
"Well...okay, if you're sure. If you change your mind, go ahead and give me a call. Anyway, I should be heading back to the dorm before the team starts wondering where I am."
"Alright Aero, I'll see you later then perhaps." I started to walk off when. "Um, Aero..."
"Yeah?" 'Did she change her mind about wanting help?'
Pyrrha paused for a moment, unconsciously tapping her hip. "Would you mind it too much if I were to accompany you on your walks every now and again? I understand we're not teammates, and if it'd be a bother then-"
"Hmm? No, that'd be fine. It's nice to have you around, do you wanna go on a walk with me when we both have time?"
Pyrrha smiled. "I would like that."
After returning to the dorm, I was left with a strange sight. "What the..." Nora and Jaune lay sprawled on the ground groaning, and smoke coming out of their ears. Ren sighed, impatiently tapping his foot at the two of them.
"Come now. We've barely covered half the topics for the exam."
"Unngh..."
"Uhhhhhh..."
I lightly cleared my throat causing Nora and Jaune to weakly glance in my direction. Immediately, the two of them were on their feet faster than I could blink and rushed over. "You're here! You're finally here!" Nora cried.
"Um, hi? How was your studying?"
"Ren constantly grilled us..." Jaune muttered. "It felt like a late-night cram session..."
"He made us take four tests!" Nora cried.
"Guys, I was only gone for an hour..."
"FOUR TESTS!" she repeated shaking me.
"Okay, okay!" I glanced at Ren, still calmly standing there with a smile like nothing was wrong. 'So, Ren's a tough teacher...you learn something new every day...' "Why don't we all take a small break from studying and get some exercise? Ren and Nora, go have fun. Jaune, you're with me."
"Huh? Oh, right. The three times a day battle thing."
"There's not much to do around Beacon, Aero." Nora said with a shrug. "Me and Ren are gonna watch you and Jaune at it."
Extending my arms out backward I grabbed my hands and pulled farther back until a light popping sound could be heard. 'Ho boy, that felt nice...' Continuing to stretch before the fight. Ren and Nora stood a few yards away, with Nora cheering from the sidelines.
"Hey, Aero?" Jaune said rubbing the back of his head. "Before we do this, I just wanted to say...thanks."
"For what?"
"For what? Come on, you know what I'm talking about. For taking this time and focusing on me to help make me a better huntsman. You could have picked Ren or Nora to train with, but you chose me, and are even tripling the regular amount of work with me. I mean, it's a little excessive to do all this just for me, but it's still nice."
What the heck is this guy talking about? "Jaune I don't know what you're misunderstanding but, I'm doing this for ME. You just so happen to be perfect for me to train with."
"Sure Aero." Jaune said letting out a small chuckle. "There no need to be so embarrassed, I'm flattered you're looking out for me."
You know what, forget it, if Jaune wants to think I'm being a nice guy, then he can do so...
"BEGIN!" Ren shouted, raising one of his pistols in the air and firing it to signal the start. I immediately sprinted forward raising my silver spear and meeting Jaune's sword midway, creating a small shower of sparks.
.
.
A car quietly hummed through the suburbs, in it were two people. One of them was lightly nodding to the tunes on the radio, the other was wistfully staring out the window. Watching cars and buildings pass by without a sound.
'I can't keep doing this...' Aero cast a glance at Cameron peacefully bobbing to a song on the radio. 'This isn't right...'
When Aero first arrived in this world, he was very much confused. However after that feeling passed, he felt an indescribable feeling of freedom and happiness. A simple life. One he was fully in control of. It was all his! Free to do whatever he pleased.
'Except this ISN'T mine." he bitterly thought. 'This life doesn't belong to me...' As great as it was to suddenly have everything he wanted, in truth, it was also terrifying. HeAeroalso how no idea how this happened in the first place. He had suddenly woken up, and had his life changed overnight. He could choose what to do with his life, he had a job, a house, a computer, and time to himself. But who was to say this would last? That he wouldn't fall asleep and wake up back in his old life in Vale, everything stripped from him like some sort of sick joke? This thought made it difficult to sleep at night.
Cameron noticed Aero's eyes on him and gave him an odd expression. "What?"
"Nothing..."
"Dude you've been acting weird lately. Well...weirder than usual anyway. You've cleaned the house, stopped pestering me so much, taken care of chores, continually being polite..." He stopped, casting a suspicious glance at the other. "You're not trying to butter me up so you can ask me for something, are you?"
Aero was quiet for a moment, as if still pondering some great question. "When we get home, we need to talk..."
Cameron groaned, leaning his head back and allowing it to hit the seat cushion behind him. "I knew it..."
The two of them rode in the vehicle without another word. A few minutes later, they pulled up on a small driveway with a withered lawn and an old basketball hoop beside it. Irritably muttering to himself and shutting the car door with a bit more force than necessary, Cameron led Aero into the house before tossing the keys onto the table and turning to him.
"Alright Nate, let's hear it. What is it this time?"
Aero sighed and shook his head. He wasn't really sure where to begin explaining what happened to Cameron's roommate. He barely understood it himself for that matter. "I'm not trying to get something out of you just...please sit."
Cameron raised a questioning brow, but reluctantly pulled up a chair and sat in it.
"I've been...lying to you for a little while now."
The blonde teen shifted uncomfortably in his seat. "Okay? How so?"
"I'm not...who you think I am."
Cameron's uneasiness became more apparent, as he looked the other way and coughed lightly. "Is this going where I think this is going?"
"Where do you think this is going Cameron?"
"Are you..." Cameron nervously shifted in his seat once more, avoiding eye contact with the other. " I mean..." He paused trying to find the right words to use without coming off as judgmental. "Are you...coming out as having...male preferences?"
Aero visibly blinked trying to process what he just heard. His mouth moved, but words eluded him for a brief moment. "W-what? No!"
"Not that there's anything wrong with that Nate." the other quickly replied in a placating tone. "I mean if you really feel-"
"I like women!" Aero barked.
Cameron let out a deep sigh of relief he didn't even realize he was holding, before grabbing a nearby pillow and pelting Aero in the face with it. "Don't scare me like that you idiot." he muttered. "It's stressful enough living with you as it is."
"Sorry?"
"Then what the hell are you talking about? What do you mean you're not who I think you are?"
"I mean, I'm literally not your roommate. I mean, well, I am...but I'm not."
"Ugh, look, I've had a long day and really not in the mood for this, so I'm just gonna make a snack and then call it a night." Cameron stood up and went to the kitchen. Grabbing a pot from the top left pantry, he filled it with water and turned a dial on the stove. With a few hisses and clicks, the stove caught the gas, producing a blue flame burning beneath the pot. Aero stood up and walked into the room just as his roommate was grabbing some sauce.
"Cameron."
"I already told you, I-"
"Watch." Aero quietly interrupted.
As Cameron went silent, Aero removed the pot from the stove and on the counter. Lifting a hand, he placed it directly on top of the fire, lightly wincing in pain.
"JESUS CHRIST!" Cameron immediately moved forward, grabbing Aero by the arm and pulling him back. "WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU-" He stopped as his gaze fell on his roommate's hand. The skin wasn't bubbling, or pink as he feared, nor were there any burns or deformations visible. In Aero's palm, a blue flame danced harmlessly before Aero closed his hand extinguishing it. A few small tendrils of gray smoke wafted from his closed fist.
"How did..." Cameron looked like he'd seen a ghost, his head whirled to face Aero. "How did you do that?"
"We need to talk..."