The mug was warm in my hands. The sweet aroma of freshly poured tea hit my nostrils.

"Sugar?" Glynda offered.

I shook my head.

A metallic spoon clanged on porcelain. "You wanted to speak with me."

"Yes."

In truth, I wanted no such thing. "Stuck with the task" would have been more accurate description. You're Coco's partner, Fox. You're the best person to handle this, Fox. Please go convince our strictest professor to ease up on our team, Fox.

Glynda sipped her tea. "I'm listening."

"It's about the aftermath of our latest mission", I said. "The way it was handled does not seem completely… fair."

"Can you explain why you think that?" Glynda asked calmly. "Miss Adel got detention, which was quite frankly a lenient response to her behavior. The rest of you did not face any disciplinary consequences."

"But we still faced consequences."

Her voice remained completely neutral. "You are upset about your team's loss of rank?"

"Yes", I replied simply.

"Loss of rank" was an understatement. Sure, there was the published list of the first three highest-performing teams, where our name was now absent after having been on the top for weeks. This had resulted in people talking. Wondering. And that was annoying.

But it was far more serious than that. Our latest team evaluation had been scathing: criticizing everything from Coco's "disrespect of the chain of command" to, bizzarely enough, "communication problems that hinder the team's ability to function". I had no idea where that had even come from. Worse, the report concluded that if these issues weren't addressed, it would affect the level of trust our professors could put in us from now on. We'd be under constant scrutiny and would only be assigned the most basic tasks.

Yatsuhashi was trying to take it in stride. If he was here instead of me, he would probably have said that external validation was insignificant; that self-improvement and helping people were sufficient rewards, and anything else was a triviality unworthy of a Huntsman's mindset. Or something.

But for me, it was different.

"I put a lot of effort into what I do", I said. "I always have. But I was always underestimated. Where I'm from, you have to constantly prove yourself, or you're nothing. It's not anyone's fault. Life there makes people this way.

But here, for the first time, I felt like my talents were getting recognized. Like my hard work was finally paying off. It felt good. It felt motivating. And it's not like class rank is just a number. It's tied to tangible benefits, like access to advanced missions and extra training: opportunities I was looking forward to. I earned them. I earned my place. And now it's all taken away, even though I didn't do anything wrong."

Glynda set her cup on the table. "It's understandable that you feel this way", she said quietly. "But your mindset is too individualistic for Beacon."

"How so?"

"We assign you into teams because that's the model that has historically had the most success in training. It teaches students to work together, complementing each other's strengths and covering each other's weaknesses, and maximizing everyone's chances of survival while preparing you for a very dangerous profession. The natural result is that you succeed and fail as a team. I know it feels punitive in this case, but it is not intended to be so. It simply reflects the way things would work out in a real life scenario. In a real life-and-death situation, a single person acting irrationally can drag their entire team down. A chain is only as strong as its weakest link."

"Coco is not a weak link", I replied, a little more hotly than I'd intended. "She doesn't deserve this either. You're too harsh on her."

Glynda said nothing. She simply let the silence linger, forcing me to fill it with an explanation.

"She's upset about the people we lost", I said. "That should be understandable."

"Of course it is."

"Then it feels like you're punishing her for caring too much. I know she questioned you, but –"

"She didn't just question me. She was openly insubordinate in a situation where that could have had disastrous consequences. Mr Alistair, missions will never go perfectly. Sometimes, you will lose people. Sometimes, you will have to prioritize your own safety to ensure that you can continue to help people in the long run, instead of dying a pointless death while fighting a hopeless battle. If we had done as your leader suggested, make no mistake, it would have been effectively suicidal. And it would have made no difference to the people we were trying to save. There is a line between heroism and senselessness."

"It's not a very clear line", I said.

"No", she agreed. "But being Hunters means you will have to make these tough calls. It's part of what you signed up for. They will not be easy or pleasant. You will naturally have emotions about them, but you can't let these emotions overcome your judgement.

In our mission, I made the call for you. I did this as your instructor, and as a Huntress with years of experience in the profession you aim to enter. Mr Alistair, you mentioned questioning authority. By itself, that's a good thing to be doing. You should be critical of the people you follow. You should be evaluating their decisions, thinking about how their beliefs align with yours, considering ways to improve the way things are done. But there's context, and there's a time and a place. You have known me for almost a year now. Have I ever given you reason to doubt my competence or my judgement? Have I ever asked you to do anything unethical or stupid?"

I shook my head. "No."

"There is a difference between thinking critically and disregarding legitimate orders you happen to disagree with – especially in the middle of a mission, where a single misstep could cost lives. As a general rule, the chain of command exists for a reason. People with years of service in our profession are people who have survived things."

I remained silent for a while, thinking. "In the report, you mentioned communication problems", I said finally. "I've always felt like we were communicating great as a team. Like, we had some initial hiccups but they've long been resolved. So I'm curious what you meant by that."

"In the mission, when you tried to offer your perspective to your leader, she shut you down. And you accepted it."

I cringed a little remembering it. "We were all under a lot of stress", I said. "That's not how we normally communicate."

"No, but that was how you communicated under pressure. Perhaps it was the first time you had a major, real disagreement. A leader has to accept input from her teammates, even input she doesn't like. She doesn't have to follow it, but she has to be open to hearing it. Failing to do so is a weakness. And while I'm putting most of the responsibility on Miss Adel in this case, the rest of you also had some agency in the situation. You're supposed to be her teammates, not her minions. Miss Scarlatina especially seems too conflict averse for an aspiring Huntress.

But regardless of whose fault it is, this is a synergy issue that you have to acknowledge and work on fixing. Because it will hold your group back if it's allowed to fester."

She was making sense. I hated that.

"Okay. So Coco made a mistake", I conceded. "But it was her first mistake in a streak of consistently great leadership. And it resulted in losing all the privileges she had worked so hard to earn. That seems… disproportionate."

"The biggest issue is not that she made a mistake. The real problem is that she still refuses to acknowledge it as a mistake. She is not reacting particularly well to the feedback she received."

That was another understatement. Coco had been irritable and distant, refusing to speak to anyone aside from necessary interactions. And nobody dared talk to her about it, which… was kind of proving Glynda's point about communication.

However, Glynda's latest statement offered some room for hope.

"So then, would it make a difference if Coco took your feedback to heart?" I asked.

"Of course", Glynda said. "That is precisely why I gave it. Do not mistake my meaning: I think your team has a lot of potential. But that doesn't exempt you from working on your failings. Your loss of status is reversible, but that requires you to understand the issues I pointed out and commit to working on them. And, of course, your leader has to be on board with that. I will not force an apology on her side, since that would be pointless. But I do need to see some self-reflection, some kind of acknowledgement that my feedback got through to her. At the moment, she is doubling down on her stance instead of questioning it. That's not exactly a great basis for earning trust back."

I nodded. "I'll talk to Coco."

I was not feeling particularly hopeful, though.

"Good", Glynda said curtly. "Now, if you'll excuse me, I have to conclude our meeting. I have some work to do regarding the replacement of the headermaster's personal assistant."

"Why, what happened to Mr Bardot?"

She sighed. "Essentially, he is under investigation for alleged involvement in assisting terrorist attacks against faunus. Providing information and material support to hate groups."

"Huh?"

The guy had always seemed perfectly… inconsequential. Normal in a boring way. A bit overly talkative for my taste, but ultimately harmless. Certainly not the type you'd think would be involved in something like that.

"The key word here is 'alleged'", Glynda cautioned. "Nothing has been proven yet, so don't go talking about it as if it's certain. In any case, you don't have to worry about all that. As far as you students are concerned, Mr Bardot is unable to fulfil his duties and a search for a suitable replacement is ongoing."

I got up. "Thank you for your time."

The randomness of the news I'd just heard made them linger in my mind for a bit after I exited her office. But after a while, the surprise faded, and my thoughts turned back to the far more pressing matters I had to deal with. Specifically, Coco and my promise to "talk to her".

What did I just sign up for?

XXX

On my way to the dorms, I texted Velvet and Yatsuhashi to give them a brief summary of my meeting with Glynda. I ended my messages with a request.

I'm going to try talking to Coco. Can you give us the room for the half hour or so?

Velvet was the first to respond. Sure. Good luck.

Yatsuhashi's answer came soon after. If that is your decision, I will not attempt to make you stray from your chosen path. It has been an honor to call you my teammate.

Drama queen.

As I expected, I found Coco in our room, cleaning her weapon. She did not react to my entrance at all.

And I got it. I understood how she felt. Velvet had not been openly involved in the conflict. And of course Yatsuhashi would side with the professor: that was expected. But I was Coco's partner. Her brother. Up until that point, we'd shared a certain disregard for authority in favor of following our own judgement. She had expected me to take her side, and had felt undermined and hurt when I'd spoken up against her.

Which made my current task more difficult.

I walked closer to her. Stood by her side. "Hey", I said.

"Hey."

Her voice was gruff and monotone, but at least she was acknowledging my presence. This was going well so far.

"So, I just came back from a meeting with Glynda", I started.

"I don't want to hear it."

This was not going well so far.

"Well, I think you need to", I insisted. "I think your anger towards her is misguided. Right now you're basically mad at her for not allowing you to throw your life away."

"Fuck off."

"No", I said firmly. "We need to have a talk. All of us. We went through something big and traumatizing and we've all been affected. It would be beneficial to talk about it."

I wasn't as sure as I sounded. Offering to talk with Coco about her hurt feelings felt a bit like trying to give medical care to a wounded tiger.

But her next response showed me that my approach had worked. Perhaps a little too well.

"That boy could not have been older than thirteen." Her voice was carefully emotionless.

I winced. "Yeah."

Silence fell. Coco continued her meticulous work on her weapon.

"We saved most of the people we found", I said.

Coco placed her brush back into her cleaning kit and slammed it shut. "Huzzah."

"Look, everyone feels the same way you do. It was tragic, what happened. But it's the kind of thing we'll have to deal with in the profession we've chosen. And it will be easier if we deal with it together. Let your teammates share your burden with you. It's our burden too."

"No, it's not the same", she snapped. "You just don't get it. I'm the leader. If things go wrong, it's my responsibility."

"No, you don't get it. It's our collective responsibility. That's what I'm trying to tell you. We're a team, we're supposed to face these things together."

She transformed Gianduja back into a purse. "Whatever."

It was infuriating.

"Look, I've went through this before", I said, my voice gradually rising. "I'm from Vacuo, remember? Where settlements constantly have to move, not just due to the nature of life in the desert but also because of Grimm attacks? I've lost people I knew and cared about. You can't save everyone, okay? Sometimes, people die and you just have to cope."

I cringed at my last words as soon as they came out.

And Coco shared my reaction. "Sometimes, people die and you just have to cope?" she repeated incredulously.

"I'm sorry. I didn't mean –"

"What is wrong with you?" She held up a hand to stop my reply. "No, back off. I don't want to hear anything else. If you can't talk about these things with some basic empathy, then at least let me have my space and don't talk to me about them at all."

With that, she stormed off, slamming the door behind her. I let myself fall back on my bed, covering my eyes with my hand.

Nicely handled, dumbass.

XXX

A few minutes later, the door reopened. Velvet gingerly walked in and sat down on her bed.

"How did it go?" she asked cautiously.

"Terrific", I replied. I hadn't meant to snap, but my tone came out more abrupt than I'd intended.

Her ears drooped.

I sighed. "Sorry. I'm mad at myself, really. Things were going decently, and then I had to be an idiot and phrase things terribly."

"You tried", she said.

"Yeah, well. So much for that."

"But this whole situation feels wrong", Velvet continued in a voice that conveyed real distress. "Coco is our leader, and our friend. It feels like our role should be to support her."

"Support doesn't mean enablement. Sometimes, true support takes the form of opposition."

"How do you mean?"

"If your friend is acting in a way that hurts themselves or their loved ones – like Coco is doing at the moment, understandable as it may be – you gotta point it out. That's real friendship, because you're ultimately trying to help them. You're not benefiting them if you just unconditionally bow to their perspective. Support doesn't always mean agreement. Friendship doesn't mean no fights ever. And loyalty to a leader doesn't mean blind acceptance of everything they do."

After a pause, Velvet spoke again in a wistful tone. "You're probably right. But I still wish friendship meant no fights ever."

"Yes, well. That's not how the real world works."

Velvet said no more.