I approached the chair rather awkwardly. If there was one thing my life had a lot of, it would be needless meetings with important people.

"Hello, headmaster." I nodded my head towards the silver-haired man, pulling the chair across from the man out so I could sit.

"Hello, Mr. Dietrich." Ozpin said, giving me a small smile. "I imagine you're quite elated to get out of your classes."

"Only outmatched by the trepidation I feel, Sir." I tilt my head, sitting across from Ozpin. "It's not every day a student is called to meet with their headmaster."

Ozpin snorted. "But you're no ordinary student, are you?" He rhetorically asked, placing his mug of coffee on the desk. "But, have no worries, Nigel. I only called you here to conversate."

I blinked a few times, a bewildered look crossing my face. "To conversate?"

The headmaster wanted me to go to his office and talk to him…just because he wanted to talk to me. Amicably talk to me. That's…odd. Really odd. Mostly because, you know, I'm not his peer.

Adults, especially important ones, don't often have the trait of valuing youths' opinions.

Ozpin definitely saw the look on my face, given the fact he gave a small laugh. "You're an interesting person, Nigel. I'm curious to hear your thoughts."

"Thoughts on what?"

"That's the mystery, isn't it?" Ozpin elusively said, mirth bathing his voice.

If he was going for the secretive old man look, he certainly had it.

I sighed. "Lovely. Question me all you want, then."

Oz shook his head. "Conversate, Nigel, not interrogate." A look I couldn't decipher crossed his face. He was good at that, being unreadable. "But, I will give you one question first. Tell me, what is your favorite fairy tale?"

"...fairy tale?" I slowly blink my eyes, feeling slightly confused. "That's a weird conversation starter."

"Would you rather talk about the weather?" Ozpin asked me, gesturing to the window behind him.

Personally, I found the clear blue skies to be a boring point to talk about. You can only talk about so many shades of blue and how empty the heavens are before you get bored.

If it was rainy, maybe I'd be more open to the idea. Cloudy skies were much more interesting.

I sighed. "...I'm partial to the story of The Girl in the Tower."

It was a new favorite, if I'm to be honest. Something about it called to me.

"Somehow," Ozpin amusedly said, eyes curling upwards. "I am not surprised."

"Glad to be predictable." I mutter in annoyance. "So, I shared my favorite fairy tale. What's yours?"

The headmaster hummed in consideration. "It's been a long time since anyone asked me that. I'm fond of many of them, I must say." He stopped for a second, scratching his chin. "But I'd also have to go with The Girl in the Tower."

My eyebrows moved up in surprise. Mostly because it was shocking that we liked similar tales, really. "Why?" I couldn't help but ask.

"Hmm…" Ozpin considered. "I do have my reasons, but isn't it your turn to respond?"

"But I asked the question." I say, trying my best to avoid looking petulant—that is, to not pout. "Isn't it rude to not answer first?"

"And isn't it rude to ask two questions in a row?"

"..." I groaned. "Yes…I guess…" I groaned again. "Fine. I'll answer first."

Ozpin smiled and put his hands together. "Excellent." He waved his hand, beckoning me to speak.

"It's relatable, I guess. Or something like that." I murmur under my breath.

Oz nodded in understanding. "You relate to the hero."

I tapped my fingers against his desk. "Maybe? Kinda. It's the story that feels most real in my life—I mean, I don't feel like I'm some hero in a story, but still. The hero is relatable."

"You see yourself in the hero and you see Weiss in the princess." Ozpin said matter-of-factly.

"Hard not to." I say with a shrug. "She's essentially a modern-day princess who has her father shutting her in all the time. I'd like to think there's a happily-ever-after to that."

If there was no happily-ever-after to Weiss's tale, what was I doing anything for? To not be able to help my one and only friend out of her plights?

I'd never forgive myself.

The headmaster hummed in thought.

"You're a good man, Nigel." Ozpin says suddenly, taking a sip from his mug of coffee.

I blistered at that. "I wouldn't say tha—"

"—I would." Ozpin cuts in. "Tell me, Nigel, why did you decide to take Jacques' offer?"

Being kept on the backfoot was always fun.

"I thought it was rude to ask two questions in a row…" I say with no heat. Now is when the interrogation starts, I guess. "But I did it to get connections."

"Connections in order to do what?" Ozpin asks, seeing through me.

"To help society." I admit. It's all I have ever wanted to do. "Personal power is the weakest type of power. I need other people in order to make change."

"So how, exactly, are you not a good person? To want to help society, to be willing to help your friend…where exactly is this bad person you claim to be?" Ozpin pressures me, his eyes intense.

He was annoyingly persistent. That's what I hated most about the headmaster. He's persistent and perceptive, two very irritating traits to have in a person.

"Because," I begin, voice growing short, "just desiring a good thing doesn't make you good. Sometimes a good end needs bad means." I draw off there, going silent in contemplation. "And I'd always rather be a bad person if it means good ultimately happens then to be a good person but let the world grow worse."

"You speak of utilitarianism." Ozpin said, hands folded. His eyes had a familiarity in them that I couldn't describe. "Of the ends justifying the means."

"No," I shake my head, "not at all. A good end doesn't make a bad action good. But a bad action can lead to a good end. I'd rather be a bad person, doing evil actions, for a good end. The actions I'd do for the good end would never be good."

Ozpin's eyes met mine. There was something comforting in them, something relatable. Empathy, I suppose, laid in those eyes that looked as old as the mountains. "Then you are much more like me than I'd have ever thought."

My throat went dry. Like me? I didn't feel similar to him at all.

"How?" I bite off.

His eyes curled up. Heavy bags shadowed under them, the mirth contained within having a somber sheen to it. "Do you think I've never done a bad deed in my life?"

I didn't, not really.

Especially now that he was showing some of his soul to me.

"I've never thought about it, really." I shrug helplessly. My days usually weren't spent thinking of the depths of others. "But, you must've, I guess."

Ozpin nods slowly. "In my lifetime, I have done more evil than any person alive. My intent always, always has been good." The words were wound around something, keeping tight to Oz's heart. "I have caused much good with evil actions. But, the actions will have always been just that: evil."

"So…" I trail on, thoughtful. "You're calling me a good person because you don't want to consider yourself a bad person?"

It was rude of me and I immediately felt bad for saying it. I expected Ozpin to lash out at me in some way but, well…

He laughed. Deepily and from the chest. "I guess you could consider my words to be self reassurance, yes." Ozpin laughed again. "And there'd be some truth in there. But, tell me this, Nigel…" He paused, folding his hands against each other and leaning forward. "Is it not selfish to protect your own soul from darkening, letting people suffer as a result of your inaction? If a good person is selfless, no person of pure soul can be considered good, correct?"

That gave me pause to some level. I stayed silent for a moment.

There was, I suppose, some truth to his words. Selfishness is not a trait a good person has. But…neither is a darkened soul. A murderer can't be a good person, even if they kill for a good cause. But to not murder for that good cause, to let the world worsen…it'd be selfish, right?

To sacrifice your soul makes you bad…but to not sacrifice your soul makes you selfish,

"No one is good." I concluded. "They can't be. Inaction is selfish. To preserve your own light is selfish. And to darken yourself for the sake of others still requires you to darken yourself…no one can be a good person.

Ozpin gave me a considering look. "I can't say you're wrong. Not really. If you consider good to be perfect, then there is no way to be good." Ozpin hummed in contemplation. "But, perhaps it's better to use a looser definition of good?"

"A looser definition?" I murmur in thought. "How would that be defined, then?"

"Well," Ozpin began, "we can agree no one is perfect, right? But, we'd also agree there are good people." Ozpin waited for me to nod, which I did. I'd like to think some people were good in nature. "Good. So, how about we define a good person as a person trying their best to do the right thing."

My digits tap against the top of Oz's desk. "That…there's logic to that." I exhale deeply, thinking over what he said. There was one concept I was having trouble with. "But, Sir, what would you define as the right thing? How do we determine if an action is truly, undoubtedly right or wrong?"

The headmaster leaned back in his chair, giving me an appraising look. "And that's the real question, isn't it? What's right and what's wrong?" Ozpin huffed out a laugh. "I must say, that is a question I have thought of many times over my life."

I tilt my head to the side, feeling curious.

Ozpin was a lot like me. Scarily so.

Maybe that's why he frightened me so much.

"What answer did you come to?" I couldn't help but ask.

Oz smiled. "The answer I came to?" He chuckled, giving me a look filled with…pity? Sympathy? "Well, it's that we can't know if we are right or wrong. We just need to hope we are right."

"That's…disappointing." I complained. Surely there is a better answer.

"Well, do you have a better answer?"

I exhaled, looking down at my hands. Did I? Could I really confirm what is right or wrong? Truly determine that my action was absolutely, truly right?

What makes killing bad? What ultimately, truly confirms that killing another person is a bad act?

Nothing, absolutely nothing at all can definitively prove that killing is evil.

The gods say it's wrong? Well, you have to have faith that the gods are real. Your moral code says it's wrong? Well, how do you know your moral code is definitely correct? You can't…

You just need to have faith that it is.

"I can't say I have a better answer."

Ozpin looked slightly disappointed at my words. "Well, it'd have been nice if you had a solution…" The man snorted. "But, I suppose, you are too much like myself."

We sat in silence for a moment. I wonder if this is the direction he had planned on this conversation going. How often does he go into the deep questions of man with students?

For some reason, I rather doubt it's a common occurrence.

The headmaster rubbed his forehead and sighed. "It's a shame you weren't a couple years younger or that I weren't a couple years older…I'm sure you'd have been…" He cut himself off.

"Sorry, Sir? What do you mean by that?" I question him, feeling confused.

Why in the world would he have wished I were younger or he were older? It made no sense to me.

"Nothing important." Ozpin waved me off, shaking his head. "Just cursing my youth."

"Cursing your youth?" I ask him, giving the headmaster an odd look. "Isn't it usually the other way around?"

I'd hate to be old. Wrinkly, in chronic pain, and nearing death. Sounds miserable.

"For most, I imagine. But," Ozpin cryptically adds. "I have no reason to fear death."

"I can't say I feel the same." I slowly start. "I think there are very good reasons to fear death."

I couldn't understand death—not really. I mean, the soul exists. Aura exists as a manifestation of the soul. But, what happens when you die? Does your soul get destroyed? Is there an afterlife? Is it reincarnation?

"Fearing the unknown," I continue, "seems very rational."

"You're right." Ozpin says, fully agreeing with me. "It is rational to fear the unknown. Logical. "

"Yet, you don't fear death." I state in perplexedness. I cast him an odd look.

Ozpin shakes his head. "I do not."

"Huh." I breathe out.

This makes no sense to me.

Not at all.

Ozpin's lips quirk up. "But, you do fear death. Besides the obvious reasons, why?"

I cross my arms and lean back in rumination.

I'd thought of this before, obviously. I had many reasons to fear death. But, the simplest answer was, well…

"The options suck."

"Do they, now?" Ozpin asks me amusedly.

I'm glad he finds my fears to be funny.

"They do suck." I lift up three fingers, continuing my explanation. "When you die, there are three usual thoughts as to what happens. The first is, well, nothing. Some say that, when you die, you cease to exist." I huff, my chest tightening uncomfortably. "I'm not keen on suffering an ego death permanently. I like thinking, thank you very much."

The gray-haired man gave me a look of understanding. "A common fear, yes. And the other two?"

"The afterlife sucks." I answer. "You die and either go to some paradise, some kind of torture dimension, or some kind of nothingness dimension. Eternal pleasure sounds like it'd get droll. Think of it, all you feel are good things. That's not a way to live, I'd hate it. Humans are defined by their struggles, to not struggle is to not be human…"

To struggle is to change.

My voice grows impassioned. "Humans change. We adapt, we evolve, we metamorph in real time. The gods are perfect, to be perfect is to not change as perfection is an absolute state. The animals of nature can't think, they lack sapience; they can't understand struggle and so can't change…" I trail off, almost forgetting I was talking to someone in my mad soliloquy. "But man? Man is not perfect, yet we can think. We struggle to seek perfection, never reaching it, ever changing…"

Sighing deeply, I get back on track. "And the other afterlives suck for obvious reasons. I don't want to be tortured. Nothingness would get boring."

"Fair." Ozpin agrees with me. " I'm inclined to agree. Mankind changes, always seeking perfection. I think that, to some degree, there is something uniquely human about changing, something fundamental to people in their ability to evolve."

The headmaster leaves us in a comfortable silence before picking back up."Now, to the third option—reincarnation, I imagine?"

"Yeah." I nod, shaking myself back into the proper thoughts. "Reincarnation actually doesn't sound too bad. I wouldn't be fond of losing all my memories, but I'd still be aware. My consciousness would exist. It's less than ideal, but preferable when compared to the other two options."

"I'm inclined to agree. I find myself partial to reincarnation as well."

I lean back forward in my chair. "But it's still less than ideal. I'd rather just never die."

"Really?" That seemed to shock Ozpin. "Now-a-days, it's more common to view immortality as a curse—you see those you love die around you, you always outlive those you care for. To most, that is a curse."

"Sure." I agree with him fully. "There are downsides. You will see those you love die. And, obviously, I'd hate that. I'd hate never seeing my loved ones again. But, I can always make new loved ones. And, if I grow miserable, I have all of time to get over it. Or, I have all of time to figure out how to bring back my loved ones. No matter what, I'd pick immortality over death."

It didn't hurt that I only had three people I considered loved ones: my parents and Weiss making up that short list. The past couple of weeks at Beacon had helped endear me to my classmates, but I still didn't consider any of them to be more than acquaintances.

If my loved ones died, I'd want to bring them back, I think.

Ozpin exhaled deeply, speaking under his breath. "You'd have been perfect if I were just older…" He sighed and looked at his watch. "Well, Nigel, it seems it is time for you to get back to class. I believe you have Doctor Oobleck's class now."

I cast him a confused look, something I'd done a million times today. That was rather abrupt, but I could see when I was dismissed.

I started to slide my chair back. "It was good talking to you, Sir."

I stood and turned, approaching the elevator. Ozpin gave me a farewell as I got within the doors.

The doors closed as I began to move downwards. Sighing deeply, I leaned back against the elevator's walls.

Talking about life, the universe, and everything was not on my to-do list for the day. Talking about such matters always made my day ever so slightly worse.

And yet, I always found myself going back to them.

Such is life, I guess.

Speaking of life, there was much in life I had to do. Life was, well, busy,

And, in life, there were things I still wanted to do, yet couldn't…

Like calling my parents. I needed to do it. I really, really needed to. I wanted to do it, and I couldn't bring myself to do so.

I was such a terrible son.

Along with that, I wanted to breach the topic of Weiss's parents with my friend; or, more aptly, what I wanted to do with them.

And, yet again, I couldn't bring myself to do it.

I was such a coward.

The doors dinged. I let out a sigh and mindlessly walked out of the elevator, going towards my current-period class.

Time for less miserable thoughts.

Speaking of less terrible, sad thoughts, school at Beacon had, honestly, been enjoyable. The subjects weren't particularly hard, the people I regularly interacted with were interesting, and there were several competent fighters. It was a much more likable environment than my old school.

All in all, I'm happy that I chose to go to Beacon. I'd probably like going to school in Atlas a lot less.

I was pulled out of my musings as I reached Oobleck's lecture room.

Oobleck was, for lack of a better word, weird. The intense energy and passion the man had was a bit frightening, if I were to be honest.

Not to say I disliked the doctor…he was just odd.

With a turn and push, the door opened. Dozens of eyes were cast at me, and I was almost instantly absorbed in by the hyper professor.

"Mr. Dietrich! Good to see you, yes, very good." Oobleck exuberantly said, taking a swig of his infinite mug of coffee. He proceeded to rush on, "Ozpin had informed me you'd be late, yes indeed—it's always a shame when you aren't in my class."

Rapidly, I found myself getting pushed into an awaiting seat. Unshockingly, it was next to Weiss. Warms my heart that she'd keep my spot.

Weiss gave me a small smile, a worried light behind her eyes. "You can copy my notes later," she began in a whisper. "And you tell me what the headmaster wanted."

She gave me an expectant look, with no not being an answer.

I gave her a simple nod. The twinge of worry in her eyes seemed to fade away at that.

"Now, where were we—oh yes, that's it." Oobleck chugged some coffee and gestured to the board. He zipped onwards, blasting words at the class. "The Great War! Deadly times, truly deadly they were. Millions dead, Grimm running rampant, and the world itself at war…" Oobleck tapered off, a passionate fire in his eyes. "Which of you can tell me a cause of the Great War?"

The class remained silent. So silent, in fact, that it was shocking that crickets weren't heard.

Oobleck waited expectantly for someone to slip up.

Everyone stayed silent for their lives. Not because they didn't know an answer, but because no one wanted to give one.

Then again, some of my peers were morons. Some probably didn't know.

The doctor sighed disappointedly. "A shame, I never like having to hot call…" His eyes searched over the class before landing on me. "Mr. Dietrich! Since you showed up late to class today, how about you answer my question—what caused the Great War?"

I truly felt terrible for him, having to hot call people.

Really.

It wasn't worse to be randomly picked, not at all.

Well, whatever. It's not like I don't know the answer. "You should start about two hundred or so years ago, then." I begin. Oobleck's stare is intent. "Around that time, industrialization began to start up. This was a result of better mining techniques and refinements in steel allowing for deeper mining to occur, giving the kingdoms much easier access to Dust than ever before."

I stop for a breather. The professor is listening intently by this point.

There was something respectable about that, having such fire for a subject or topic. It's what made me like the man.

"Given the fact the kingdoms began to have access to more Dust than they ever did, entrepreneurs began to experiment with Dust, leading to improvements in weaponry, industry, and society. Industrialization began in earnest, kingdoms finally being able to reach beyond their tiny borders for the first time. The new weapons made felling Grimm easy, trains let travel be safe and swift, and mass production increased supplies to new colonies. Clashes began and new powers emerged, eventually resulting in the four kingdoms of today."

"Excellent!" Oobleck buzzed out. "And from this base, what led to the Great War?"

"Border skirmishes." I answer simply. "The four kingdoms felt strong and powerful, dominating their local regions. They began to grow, and grow, and grow till they began to grow within each other. Their different cultures, practices, and ideas met for the first time, all competing to bring their ideals to new lands. And so, when both Vale and Mistral tried to settle the eastern parts of Sanus, they clashed. The Great War began there."

Oobleck looked positively enthused, like I was the best thing since sliced bread. "Yes, yes! I couldn't have said it better myself." He beamed and then zoomed onwards. "With Mistral and Vale trying to settle the same lands, conflict ensued between the people native to Sanus, the Mistrali settlers, and the Valean settlers. War quickly broke out between the two continents; Vale refused to back out of Sanus, saying that the slavery Mistral practiced was barbaric and they couldn't let more land fall to slavery. Mistral, on the other hand, claimed that the eastern part of Sanus was naturally their land due to it being on their mainland."

"But," I speak up, Oobleck looking elated at that. "Vale only used that as a Casus Belli, right?" I rhetorically ask.

"Yes!" It seems I added gas to the fire. The doctor was buzzing with delight. Seems he needed his intellectual buds indulged more often. "Vale, unlike Mantle and Mistral, did not partake in slavery but did use immensely cheap labor within their factories. The war itself was not over slavery at all—Vale wanted control over the east coast of Sanus for its famously dense fishing grounds and immense underwater resources!"

From a couple seats besides me, a student raised their hand. That just seemed to make Oobleck vibrate more.

"Ms. Belladonna!" He enthusiastically called to her. "What question do you have?"

"Professor Oobleck," the girl began, her voice holding more energy than her usual monotone. That was a surprising fact in itself—she rarely emoted…except for hating me and being awkward around Weiss. "If the war was not over slavery, why is it that slavery was outlawed at the conclusion of the war?"

"Marvelous question!" Oobleck cheered. "You are absolutely right, slavery was banned at the end of the Great War…official slavery, that is." I could see Blake's look of understanding from a few seats down. "See, at the end of the war, Mistral and Mantle realized something—Vale and Vacuo used just as many slaves as they did! Oh, sure, they didn't call it slavery, no. They just paid their workers very little."

My eyes widened slightly. Not at what he was saying, but at the brilliance of the delegates from Mantle and Mistral. "They did it to get more from the negotiations." I breathe out, not having realized it before. It was a smart tactic, to pretend to sacrifice something that wasn't a sacrifice at all.

Weiss picked up where I left off, which was a surprise. She was usually quiet in class. "It's how Mantle, and so Atlas, got dominance over Dust in the treaty!"

"Yes!" Oobleck excitedly cheered. "Yes! Mantle was the superpower in its alliance, just as Vale was in its own alliance. Mistral was, and is, much less industrialized and dominant when compared to Atlas! See, the delegates of both sides had recognized this imbalance, which is why the treaty was so lopsided in favor of Atlas and Vale! It was really Atlas and Vale cutting things up, which is why Vacuo got the short end of, well, everything!"

Oobleck rapidly paced around the room, drinking his coffee in a rush. "Just look at the treaty—slavery was banned, Mistral got the Sanus coast, Vale got economically valuable islands, and Atlas got lucrative trade deals for Dust. The war was won by Mantle and Vale. Why, the only reason Mistral kept the coast was because it would have been impossible to manage for Vale to hold! It's why Vale took port cities and islands instead, allowing them to fish and mine in the ocean within that region."

It was hard not to feel some pity for Vacuo. Half of their country was desert, they were in the midst of a civil war, and they were the third least industrialized nation. All of this was a result of them being economically crippled in the Great War.

Before the Great War, Vacuo was the second biggest producer of Dust. After?

Well, it was hard to compete with Atlas when they had no tariffs placed on their Dust. It's why the SDC is so dominant—they won the Dust game in Atlas, and so they won the Dust game in the world. The only place competition could actually form would be from within Atlas, but the SDC had such a monopoly that it could never happen.

Oobleck continued to buzz on as I slowly started to tune him out.

Fortunately, I didn't need to tune out for long as the bell soon rang.

"Ah, and there goes the bell!" Oobleck disappointedly sighed. The students began to stand up. "Now, hold on. You still need to hear your homework! By next class, I wish for each of you to write three pages on what caused the Great War. To encourage future involvement, those few students who talked in class today are exempt."

The class groaned.

Less homework for me, I guess.

People began to shuffle out of the room after Oobleck's dismissal.

"What class do we have next?" I call out to Weiss, standing up in the process.

Weiss harrumphed. "You should remember by now. I'm not your keeper." She sighed, tempering a bit. Her eyes were fond. "And we have sparring."

"Thanks, Sunshine!" I brightly say, brightening even more as she flushes and bristles. I continue my ribbing. "And it's hard to keep track of myself when I am so busy keeping track of you! It's my job, after all."

She rolled her eyes and began to walk towards the door. "You have it so rough." She says sarcastically, leaving me behind her.

I open my mouth to speak and—

—huh…Beacon knew what they were doing when they picked the uniforms out. Weiss looked, well, really good in her uniform.

Not that I was checking her out or anything, that'd be absurd. But, well, the uniform fit her well. It looked nice.

She was really, really pretty. More so than when she wore her dress. She looked more, hm…down to earth?

Like she wasn't something unreachable. It made her more warm.

She was stunning.

What am I saying? I—ugh…

I shake my head and start to trail behind her.

Or, I would have. Had my eyes not been pulled away again.

I choked.

So, for the record, I'm a teenager. Teenagers do dumb things. Teenagers are fueled by annoying chemicals in the brain.

And, because I was a teenager, I had my eyes drawn away.

…there was more in the bakery than I recalled.

Since when did Weiss have that much—nope, nope. No. Do not think that, do not.

But…no. Bad brain. Do not think of the fact your friend has a nice—wow. No, no. Weiss was not attractive. Not at all. I did not find her attractive.

I do not know why my eyes are aimed down and forward whilst she is walking out the room. Pure coincidence.

Random chance.

"—hey, Nigel!" A cheerful voice snapped me out of my thoughts. "You'll be late if you keep standing there, and I really want to see you fight today!"

I rapidly looked up, trying desperately to stop myself from blushing. "Sorry, Ruby. I got distracted. Thanks."

"Hm?" She tilted her head quizzically, kind of like a dog. "Distracted? By what?"

I choked on saliva.

Luckily for me, Ruby made her own conclusions. "Oh! I bet you were thinking about the spars! It's gonna be so cool seeing you and Pyrrha fight again!"

I gave a muffled agreement.

To be honest, I was excited to fight Pyrrha again. We'd fought two times. The first time she beat me. The second time I beat her. I was honestly eager to see what she'd do in this fight.

The girl was skilled and pushed me farther than anyone besides Weiss. With how strong her semblance was, and with her now properly using it, she was a scary opponent.

Although, speaking of Pyrrha and Weiss, Weiss was currently three to zero with the girl. It was a bad match up. Pyrrha couldn't do much against just being launched outside of the ring.

I was, however, willing to bet that would change. Weiss could only dominate—

I choked again.

—nope. Don't think of Weiss with that word.

"And you're fighting Weiss today." I say, bringing myself out of my lesser thoughts. "You excited?"

"Mhm!" Ruby nodded enthusiastically. "Ice Queen might've beaten me the last two times, but I have a card up my sleeves to win!"

That got me curious. "Oh? And that is?"

Ruby grinned. "It's a secret! You'll see in the spars!"

"I'm excited, then." I give her a smile. Still, though, I have to support my team. "I'm ready to see you lose less badly this time." I playfully teased her.

"Hey! I didn't lose that badly!" She complained. "And I'm gonna blow that Snow Princess out of the water!"

"We'll see."

With that, I started walking to the changing rooms. I ignored her heatless shouts of defiance.

We'll see indeed.