Chapter 17: You can be Selfish-

~Yang’s POV~

If someone ended up asking Yang what is her favorite subject here at Beacon Academy, the girl would quickly supply with a swift reply.

The blonde loved Combat Training, there was no doubt about it as nothing came even close to allow her to find just the nice setting to let out her pent-up stress.

Only good sparring sessions against a resilient opponent offered her that opening, that access to the blissful world of simple brawling against each other, until one of the two contenders managed to gain victory over the other.

In fact, one of the first things she decided to once she was done with the initiation test was to check on whom would be the ideal sparring partner to have for the rest of the year, something that got her to carefully study all of the big shots here at Beacon.

A few candidates had popped up very quickly, and some proving to be actually some pushovers that were all appearance and no substance with their fighting prowess.

Much to her immense chagrin, only a single individual turned out to be a worthy partner as she was the only one capable of matching up with her fighting style and Semblance.

Pyrrha Nikos, the Invincible Girl for many and the ‘P-Money’ for Yang, was someone that had plenty of experience and training to equally fight against the blonde, if not win in certain cases.

It was like a friendly rivalry, one that both just enjoyed within their own means of finding entertainment in brawls, and one where the Xiao Long knew that she would always gain a sense of satisfaction even when losing.

The redhead was just so polite, never talking shit back when the heat got to the blonde’s head and got her to make some unpleasant comment that only her opponent could hear.

It was a rare occurrence, but the fellow girl was easily capable of noticing these foul comments and would reply with even politer remarks.

Normally, this would have gotten Yang to retaliate even harder, but the lack of joking mid-fight was more than enough to deprive her of the chances of accomplishing such plans.

Instead of enjoying the mere trash-talking, the brawler thrived in the delightful exchange of blows that would eventually force her to tap in her Semblance.

When she was in that state of raw anger, that furious moment within her mind… it was just oddly warm.

The use of her powerful berserk state would usually left her in a trance, a couple of seconds where her mind would lose focus over everything and everyone but her main target, her opponent.

It was a distinctive flaw, she had to admit, one that her father had chided her about more than once in the last few years.

A mindless brute, a very strong one to that.

But while her Semblance allowed her to have some edge over Pyrrha’s seemingly impenetrable defense, her control over speed and strength wavered to a point where the redhead would just switch to a more paced maneuvering so that she can beat the fellow student with quick strikes that dented at the blonde’s Aura.

It was a classic moment in their usual school day, yet this time the Mistralian girl wasn’t going to be the one that Yang has to face in a spar.

Lilac eyes showing a fair degree of uncertainty and discomfort, the young Xiao Long prepared for what was going to be a battle she herself was unsure of the possible results.

Blake was quiet as she adjusted the ribbons by her dark-colored weapon, her golden eyes studying the state of the hybrid gun as the countdown began its count.

Part of her had wanted to back away, just for the sake of not injuring her partner again after the ordeal she had to go through, even Weiss and Ruby mentioning that it was for the best for the two to not fight each other in this occasion.

It was too soon, the blonde had thought instantly as Ms. Goodwitch had allowed this to happen, the brawler’s mind facing some conflicting thoughts over the matter as she knew that just a moment of her control slipping away would warrant some heavy damage on her partner.

Yet it was also true that Blake had showed more than once that she had recovered fine from what had happened to her.

It wasn’t only the previous day’s spar, nor the fact that she had paid much more attention to class compared to before…

It had to do with the way she was actively taking notes of everything and everyone, the way she was making sure she had every single clue that could help to beat people and Grimm.

It was a surprise for sure, but considering the situation she had to go through up until now, it was understandable that the Belladonna had to develop a sense of paranoia over those around her.

It was barely perceivable by Yang, but the brawler could recognize the signs of an attentive individual over the world around her.

And Blake… was just that. Her attention was now on the school, on learning… on improving over what could have been her mistakes.

The sudden drive having stomped everyone in the team, but none actually went to try and understand what is going on with the cat-eared girl.

It was so raw, so intense and… it made Yang felt antiquate with her training’s pace. And that wasn’t something she was even thinking as a joke.

Training was something the young woman loved to do the most, to get stronger, faster, meaner, and perhaps even less hot-headed with proper stretching before and after her usual sessions.

But now? Blake looked confident, or as confident the Cat Faunus had ever showed before, with her eyes sporting an amount of conviction and determination that forced the Xiao Long to reluctantly adopt a stronger guard over that stare.

Her breathing slowed down, her eyes gaining more focus over her opponent and… the spar began.

There was just a little bit surprise in her mind when her partner had decided to rush towards her, blade ready to lunge at the blonde… but her eyes had ultimately widened when her faster punch crashed on Blake and caused the close to disperse.

Surprise that turned into shock when she felt pain emerging quickly by the side of her head.

It was just a blink, the clone dispersing in dark particles like an after-image to make way to the real Blake as the girl was already moving her leg to connect right by the brawler’s head.

The kick slammed right on its target with non-negligible power, and it served to remind Yang that she had never seen Blake make use of physical attacks before.

Perhaps a stunning kick or punch here and there as the beginning of close quarters, to push away her foes before drawing her blade and use it against them…

But more pain erupted in her head as the Belladonna followed up the first attack by slamming her right knee up to her chin.

Groaning in a mix of surprise and pain, Yang finally recovered from her early stunned moments and tightened her fists as she rushed out a quick jab at her opponent.

Blake noticed just in time, taking two steps back and letting the first counter find only air… only to be forced to further back away when the brawler gave a swifter pursuit.

Annoyance riddled the Xiao Long’s mind, as her Semblance was already trying to take over so early on… but she didn’t feel the need of using it yet.

It was just a second later in that rush that the young woman noticed a solid mistake, something she should have noticed way before making that sudden counter.

The two kicks that drew first blood had more reasons than just distract her… no, it was much more complicated than she had initially thought.

Her attention in delivering punches was sloppier than it was on a normal instance, unfocused even, and that made her activity easy to predict over her next few moves.

The Faunus wasn’t keen to show hesitation over this little discovery, promptly switching her weapon to its gun form and taking aim at her legs.

The pain was lessened by the Aura, but it was still there to put some duress over her steps and forcing the blonde to actually focus more on dodging the barrage of bullets trying to weaken her footing.

There was no doubt about it, Blake had ditched her usually calmer approach and had adopted a more aggressive one to keep up with her.

It was a surprise that she was enjoying, despite the beating she was getting in the mean time, as this meant that the Belladonna was no longer playing around.

And that also showed that she could take some punishment instead of getting a soft-touch from her.

Yang’s eyes flickered to red as she could feel some bits of her own Aura starting to reinforce her body, her Semblance starting to slowly diluting more energy in her system as she pressed on despite the lack of success.

It wasn’t a full deployment, knowing full well that her partner had more hidden plans instead of some little tricks.

Perhaps she should have taken a couple of steps back to properly evaluate the situation, but now her mind was hellbent to at least land something on her friend.

Blake was her friend, yes, they both were friends… but they had never spoken honestly about this. Never once Yang had tried to formulate anything with the cat-eared girl mentioned as a friend and now she was facing her in the best of environment.

There was no social basis, no standard, only fighting. It wasn’t mindless, it was primitive, it was simplified for the sake of making people understand despite any sort of barrier, from language to social, from silence to chaotic chatting.

It was endearing, it was enticing… but it was also quite dishonest sometime as messages through blows can be mistaken.

In fact, after having fought against many people, Yang couldn’t just catch on anything that Blake was ‘saying’.

Only quietness coating both in that state of heated exchanges of hits. There was no secrets… except when the other individual is quite the silent one, just like Blake was being.

Finally, the brawler snarled and proceed to rush even more at the Faunus, ready to even headbutt her all for the sake of a moment of pause away from the constant attacking from the bullets.

Her Semblance continued with its steady take over, transforming more damage into new energy for her to use and forcing Yang to adopt a faster pace to keep up with the higher momentum.

Yet the desire to land a hit on her partner seemed to go unanswered for sometime, with Blake more than happy to lead her around by using her own Semblance to deflect the blonde’s hit away from her while also sponging some of Ember Celica’s pellets from actually reaching the real target.

It was so simple, and so familiar to what she had used against Dove Bronzewing, yet it was also unique as the Belladonna was passively damaging more her opponent, tipping her more with the Semblance as her hair turned into fiery blazes.

“You are annoying me, kitty-cat,” Yang muttered in that state of pure fury, feeling even more incensed when she was met with a small smile.

“Just annoyed, Yang?” Blake replied with a little playful tone. “Don’t lie. Dishonesty doesn’t suit you.”

It doesn’t. But… what about you, partner?

But the Xiao Long didn’t mention this, her attention intensively given to the brawl, and only the brawl… and for a moment she forgot about her opponent.

It was a strange sensation to perceive in these circumstances, something that just offered her a sense of pleasant curiosity for what might happen at the next step.

There was giddiness within the anger she was perceiving for the lack of progress, perhaps driven by the fact that it wasn’t just some complicated issue that was keeping her from actually winning but that this was just a lengthy delay.

It was a surprise, she could already feel that the unexpected might be around the corner, just a couple of seconds after this was all done and…

It happened.

Her anger peaked at its zenith, a mane of golden fire replacing her locks as her red eyes fixedly remained at the dark-haired girl.

It was now or never.

A roar left her lips, her right feet pressing for one last time as she prepared to deliver the strongest punch she could muster at the time as this was meant to be her conclusive attack.

It had to work, there was no hesitation-

But then Blake stopped, her arms spread as the golden blur slammed her fist… through her.

Shock filled Yang’s mind, killing whatever anger was left in her mind at the sight as she felt her world crumble before her.

Just as she had initially feared, her anger had done the unthinkable… and beyond that.

She was shaking, caught in that state of pale-faced horror as she glanced at the smug smile on Blake’s face and… the lack of blood.

How odd-

The clone exploded in silver mist, taking over her body as it soon melted down from its initial state right over her clothes.

The blonde felt a sudden cold as she tensed up, her entire self drenched in cold water after it had melted a little from the Ice Dust mixed with the clone.

Her panic turned into annoyance, but now that her aura was drained from that use of her Semblance, she fell on her knees, starting to shiver quite actively at the chilling ‘wake up call’.

“It seems like you got an early shower,” The real Blake mused mirthfully as she started to approach her, with the voice of Ms. Goodwitch proclaiming her the victor in the background.

“F-Fuck off,” Yang wanted to really feel angry at her partner, but the current state of her body, so drained and tired, prevented her to do so, instead she accepted the helping hand from the Faunus… only to ‘accidentally’ trip on her.

Golden eyes widened as the Belladonna was forced to the floor, the water dripping from Yang’s clothes falling right onto hers and drenching her up too in that mix of simple water and sweat.

“Goddammit Yang...” The dark-haired girl muttered, yet a smile twitched by her lips much to her self-disappointment.

Yang giggled, at least she got a victory out of that nasty play.

And now she really needed some real shower out of this...

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~Blake’s POV~

“That was quite an impressive strategy you’ve employed against your partner, Ms. Belladonna,” Ozpin praised while taking a sip from his coffee. “To think you would have actually moved to find a way to disrupt Ms. Xiao Long’s Semblance without putting yourself in notable danger.”

Blake merely nodded at the flattering words, her distracted attention directed mostly at some of her own thoughts over the day.

It had been quite a gamble to have a spar with Yang, especially since she herself had been doubtful over the final stage of her plan to counter the brawler.

While using Dust in conjunction with her Cloning Semblance had been something she had already used quite a lot in the past, the real issue was created by the fact that she had to make a bet over the heat of Yang’s flaming aura.

Ice require a certain amount of heat to melt… and water could easily evaporate without proper attention to the substance.

The moment she had created that Ice Dust Clone, the Faunus had made a little prayer to see her plan come to fruition, to prove her once and for all that there was indeed some progress behind made by her renewed interest in improving her own body and mind to a better state of understanding.

She needed time, there was no fretting over that, but Blake was eager to see some results already as she was willing to take even more attention right into training any areas that she still lacked about.

Her Aura was slowly increasing, the process being a sluggish one as the difference between now and a couple of weeks ago was abysmal at best, but there was a high chance of ending up with a more acceptable level of energy to keep up with her Semblance much more than now.

Using her clones to carefully change the trajectory of some of Yang’s movements had severely dented over her own reserves back during the brawl, thus making that final task of defusing the Xiao Long imperative to succeed about to actually win the match.

It had been far closer than the blonde had made it appear, with her stamina too getting drained by dodging so many blows at once.

At least it wasn’t Adam’s sword, she thought absently as she concluded her trail of thoughts with a mere sigh.

“Is there anything you wish to talk about, sir?” Blake finally inquired back to the headmaster, causing the old man to hum and ponder over the question.

“I suppose you’ve heard about the crash of the current stocks of coffee, right?” The man asked back with a sigh. “To think that they would attack so many brands at once.”

“I’ve… heard of that… yes. But why-”

“Do you know why it happened?” Ozpin pressed on with a certain degree of sadness, confusing the Belladonna for a while. “Why the price has floated to almost double the usual?”

The girl blinked, contemplating over this little event with just some attention as she was still uncertain as to why coffee linked back to her situation.

“It something related to some strikes happening at work, most of them being led by Faunus-”

“That limited the production, delayed the accomplishment of some of the factories’ quotas, and urged many industrialists to increase the price of coffee to avoid a sudden rush to buy the currently limited product,” The headmaster commented quietly, concluding her explanation.

“And… that is important?”

The man snorted. “Of course it is important, Ms. Belladonna,” He muttered with a hint of annoyance. “Why, haven’t you thought about Ms. Tremaine’s job? What kind of strain it will warrant to the activity he is working for?”

The young woman hummed calmly about it. “Probably nothing since the owner keeps reserves of everything, so he will probably just experience more clients during this time of the year.”

There was some silence, then the man spoke once more.

“So you mean to tell me that the Morning Sip will not increase the prices of its coffee?”

… “Yes?”

“Interesting,” Ozpin hummed happily. “Now that little thing is settled… let us move to the topic of that I was trying to press onto. Blake, do you believe in destiny?”

Her eyes narrowed at that sudden question, but she merely shrugged at it.

“I… I actually don’t,” The cat-eared girl admitted with a nod. “I can understand some things happening because of some logical reasoning, but destiny is a step absurd to even think as real.”

The headmaster looked perplexed. “And why do you think so?”

“I’ve met people that have tried to blame some ordained path for their decisions, for their own actions,” Blake started to explain with a hint of uneasiness, her first example being Adam and his musings over his ‘unavoidable’ turning. “It’s hypocritical, to blame successes and failures on some entity beyond our understanding, to make it seem like it isn’t our fault to make stuff happens.”

“That’s honestly… one of the strongest arguments I’ve heard against this theory,” The old commented with an awed tone. “Still, I’ve to ask you a very simple, but quite unfair question.”

The girl frowned again at this… but nodded slowly at his silent query.

“What happens if you end up graduating from Beacon Academy?” Ozpin inquired calmly, yet pressing her with more details. “Hypothetically speaking, you and your team end up becoming Huntresses for Vale, you start doing missions with them within the Kingdom.”

“What are you really trying to ask me, sir? I think we both know that the question is just-”

“Too general?” The man interjected with a sigh. “I suppose I should be a little less restrained and offer you a clearer inquiry.”

…

“Would you really want to become a huntress with your team, or do you wish to truly retire once you are done with Beacon Academy?”

“I thought I’ve already answered that question,” Blake pointed out.

“You did?” The headmaster shot back quietly. “From what I can recall, you were actually mentioning that you planned to retire after the end of this year.”

“And the difference is-”

“Two more years here at Beacon, more knowledge and more experience in the field,” Ozpin interjected without hesitation. “You will have more time there to improve with your abilities, and perhaps learn some more about the students of your current school year and beyond.”

“So you are asking me what would happen if I keep lying to them and myself?” The Faunus asked back with a tense voice. “If I decide to just-”

“Think about your decision instead of planning your next ‘escape’, Ms. Belladonna,” The man stressed out with some irritation, causing the cat-eared woman to flinch at the tone. “What I’m asking you is hypothetical, and yet you are already bringing up leaving Beacon the very moment Vytal is over.”

“It would be dishonest of me to just keep this lie going. Despite them being so nice to me now that I’m back… it wouldn’t just work for what I feel about this situation.”

“And what do you feel, Ms. Belladonna?” Ozpin pressed on even more, seemingly growing interested by her words. “What makes you unwilling to pursue a career as a huntress?”

“I… I’m just-” The girl paused, her eyes closing down for a moment as she though how to best phrase her thoughts with words and… she sighed, eyes once more staring at the headmaster. “I’m tired of being selfless. I’m tired of not… just ditching everything and everyone, to just sleep and eat, perhaps even watch the TV and read a book during my free time.”

“You make it seem like you’ve never experienced the peace of being an individual, without having to make happy someone-”

“I’ve been born in a family that had one of the closest connection to the White Fang, I couldn’t just ignore the fact that it was ‘correct’ to do the ‘right thing’,” She replied with a little rant. “My only friends? All either indoctrinated within the Fang or dead by doing the ‘right thing’, their memory remembered just barely and if so used to press on this ideal. There isn’t never a moment of peace for me, never a moment that I can close my eye and not see the disappointment of those that wish more from me, that I’m actively ‘hiding’ my capacities and not doing my best to help people.”

…

“I care for people, I really do,” The girl continued quietly, her tone drained by much of her early energy. “But I also want a time that I can dedicate to only myself. To be selfish and not have to make up for someone’s mistake or problem.”

Silence ruled the room for a couple of minutes, with the Belladonna staring somberly at the table with half-closed eyes. She didn’t dare to stare up to Ozpin, knowing that her words might be easily misinterpreted so easily as of how she had exposed them.

“And I assume that… Mr. Tremaine represent that state of selfishness that you aspire to,” The headmaster questioned calmly. “Despite the fact he himself is a hard-worker with barely time for himself.”

…

“What?” Her throat was aching a little, her mind raptly listening to his words.

“He is a waiter for a bar, the schedule is sometime so unforgiving that he can barely take a moment to do any of his favorite hobbies without having to deprive himself of something else,” The old man started to explain with a certain understanding tone. “He has to make sacrifices to make space for things he likes, or even more work. Then you entered his life, and that would entail another mouth that would require food, so that would mean even more work on himself.”

“But I’ve worked there too,” She mentioned with a hint of nervousness. “I wasn’t leeching off from him or anything like that.”

…

“Were you, Ms. Belladonna?” Ozpin asked sarcastically. “But why would you need to work if you want to be ‘selfish’?”

“It’s not the same thing-”

“It actually is,” The headmaster pressed on again. “In fact, the only difference between a waiter and a huntsman is that the huntsman know how to use a gun.”

She frowned at that comment. “Sir, I don’t want to fight forever.”

“And I don’t recall asking you to do that, Ms. Belladonna, nor I will ever ask you to do so,” The old man muttered while leaning back on his chair. “Being a huntsman is not a burden, but a duty. You would still have the freedom and time of making your own personal decisions. Missions aren’t something that would occupy you on a daily basis and… I know two examples of people that have actually managed well in turning their experience in new work for themselves, becoming teachers.”

Perhaps some within Beacon’s staff? No, that would be easy to spot on but… then who was he referring to?

“There is also the fact that once outside of Beacon Academy, you wouldn’t have any reason to share the same home with your team. While many do this… it’s not something that is done nowadays,” The man continued with a sigh. “In fact, your wage as a Huntress would also help Mr. Tremaine to lessen up the need of working as hard as he does.”

“It sounds so easy,” Blake muttered quietly, only to be matched with a sigh from Ozpin.

“And yet it isn’t,” The man admitted. “In fact, killing Grimm is sometimes difficult and… you would have to make some important choices during your line of work. Choices that could end up haunting if you don’t feel like you have chosen properly, and you might end up with more nightmares to face at night… but I think there is actually something you should also know that teachers sometime tend to miss to explain.”

She blinked. “And… that is?”

“You mentioned your desire to be selfish once in a while,” He muttered with a frown. “That kind of emotions… I want you to always keep it around even during missions.”

…

“What- why?”

“Because too many people die just for the sake of glory, or to try and make it through their jobs successfully.” His voice turned somber, his eyes turned to the table as he thought about something sad. “I’ve seen so many of my former students put in graves because they never detached the fantastic nature of the Hunter’s dream from reality, latching their existence to the idyllic, and getting scattered by the unforgiving winds of the darkness around us.”

There was just something ominous from the words just uttered that Blake couldn’t just understand with what she knew. Something felt oddly familiar, yet she couldn’t help but fail to pinpoint the origin of this familiarity.

The words were so deep and heavy, so sad and truthful, like a bitter pill no one can avoid to take.

The world was already an ugly place, yet to see someone as hold and optimistic as Ozpin to appear this much… tired- It made the whole experience even worse than she wanted it to appear.

It was beyond the Fang, it was beyond the Grimm… Ozpin’s current struggle sounded so… unfair.

“So you wish for me to… be realistic. To never put too much of myself in doing the impossible if I know that I can’t do this?”

He nodded. “That would be correct, Ms. Belladonna.”

There was even more silence and… the headmaster finally sighed. “And I suppose this is a good point where to drop this conversation. Once again, I think we’re making progress and I hope you will pay some more thoughts over what you wish to do with your stay here at Beacon.”

“Only thinking? I thought that you-”

“I can never impose you to do anything like that, Ms. Belladonna,” Ozpin interjected one last time. “But I can advise you to ponder well over it, even with the help of Mr. Tremaine. In fact, I think he will offer quite the insight over the matter considering his own experiences.”

….

“I understand, Headmaster,” Blake muttered, nodding quietly as she stood up from her chair and started to make her way back to her dorm-room, confused as to why Ozpin had completely stopped sipping from his coffee and… why he had looked so much older than he had looked just an hour earlier.

But instead of musing mid-corridor, the Cat Faunus focused on reaching her bed, enjoy the best she could some rest lying there and… maybe Saturday will offer her the means to properly think about everything that is going on.

And surely, Sid would offer some good perspective over the matter… while also dealing with her parents.