SLVR

Seymour's reassurances helped Sylvia relax, leaving the silverette to smile as he noted the desire to see her up and around sooner rather than later. The introduction of Mr. Dorian and his almost magic in cleaning up their room left Sylvia wondering before chuckling at Lev's reaction. Everything seemed to be returning to normal when Seymour decided to leave Sylvia with a hug and a tap of his horns. The silverette froze after the hug had ended, a faint blush worming its way up her neck and to her cheeks. She quickly focused on putting everything away and getting to her lesson with Lev before she had time to ponder more on what the butterflies she got from the sweet action meant or when they had become such close friends.

The next day had gone swimmingly for Sylvia. She had noticed the absence of Reyna, but filed that into a worry for later if she didn't show up by the end of the day. The silverette had been in the middle of welding two pieces of metal together when Reyna walked in, tear stained and holding a bag. Sylvia nearly threw the torch she held aside to dash to Reyna's side, but thought better of it and safely finished what she needed to do, setting everything aside before pushing away from her desk. It took a bit of finagling, but Sylvia managed to roll her wheelchair over to the pinkette, worry etched clearly across her face.

"Hey Reyna, you're back!" Sylvia greeted, starting off with a light tone to try and ease the clearly distressed pinkette into discussing what had happened to make her so distraught. "I was starting to get a bit worried. I thought you would be in class about now. Did something happen? Are you okay?" She moved to rest a hand on Reyna's arm, her maternal instincts going into overdrive as she tried to figure out what was wrong and how to make it better for the younger girl.

~~~

Vance had been trying to pay attention and failing when he got the note. Curiosity took the better of him and he read it over quickly before returning his attention to where he was needed. Immediately questions gnawed at the back of his mind. What did Reyna's parents need to talk to him for? Was it something to do with where she went last night? Or maybe it was to deal with Reyna's whole "being eaten" problem? He wished Reyner hadn't stopped Marie when writing to him so he could actually know what he was getting into. The note came at the worst possible time as now Vance couldn't stop thinking about it which meant he couldn't focus which meant he fidgeted more which meant he might get in trouble which meant he might fail out of the school entirely which meant he would never be a hunter and Gabe would hate him and he'd never be able to do anything ever again! ...Okay maybe that was a little extreme, but Vance still had trouble sitting still even without the questions bothering him in class. These new mysteries just doubled his need to fidget and fuss.

Once classes ended, Vance headed straight for the Beacon Garden, nerves and curiosity running circles in his head as he tried to anticipate why the Raleighs would want to meet with him. If it was something to do with Reyna then surely they should be meeting with the whole team, right? Why would they only want to meet with Vance? He hoped his questions would be answered as he got to the Garden, his ears twitching every which way.
 
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Reyna stood in the doorway of the room, allowing Sylvia to come to her. The pinkette sniffed loudly in response to her leader's greeting, and was about to speak before Sylvia put her hand on her arm. Involuntarily, she flinched violently away, but quickly realized and corrected the action by practically falling into the silverette's lap, sobbing and sniffling like a child afraid of the dark.

"G-Gods, Sylvia! G-G-Gods..." She blubbered her exclamations, trying to fill the quiet levity that Sylvia's voice attempted to fill the room with. "I-I don't remember being th-that scared..." she finally got out, pulling an arm away from the embrace to clutch at her side. Reyna shook her head though, unsatisfied with her statement. Standing from her hold on Sylvia, she lifted the side of her shirt to reveal a massive amount of scarred flesh, just a bit above her hip. "I d-don't remember this! S-Sylvia! I shower every morning, and I still can't r-remember seeing this!"

Before she could grow too loud for the room, Reyna caught herself and unzipped her bag, accidentally spilling out the contents: A stress ball, a leather keychain, a few packs of gum, a bottle of pills, and a packet of tissues. Quickly, Reyna ducked down and swept everything back into the purse except the tissues and the keychain, the former she began to use liberally, the latter she began to gnaw on in a panic as she made her way to her bed.

"G-Gods, Sylvia..." she began again, her teeth chattering as she forced herself to breath slowly, "th-they...gods, they had me h-hypnotized! I remember e-e-everything now!" Reyna curled into a shivering ball on her bed, pulling her pillow close for support. After a minute in that position, there was a loud ripping sound. The pinkette threw her pillow, now torn apart by her desperately clawing fingers, to the ground, unzipped her bag once more, and grabbed the stress ball instead. She remained as curled as possible, but her eyes were wide open and locked on Sylvia, as if pleading to be kept awake.

-

"Vance! Yoo-hoo!" Called the familiarly flowery voice of Marie. Reyner stood at her side, as towering and stoic as ever, arms folded and brows scrunched. As the wolf boy made his way over, the black bearded man leaned down to ask something of his wife. Her response was to give him a chop to the head before sending him forth to meet his daughter's teammate.

"Uh, listen Vance. I'm sorry I...uh, assumed you were dating my daughter. Saw ya with your...uh, b-boyfriend back in the hospital, and Reyna gave me an earful when I asked, so, uh... Uh..........-"

"Anyways!" Marie stepped forward to stop her husband before he could make anything too awkward, "It's so nice to see you again, dear! I suppose it hasn't been that long, but I just enjoy seeing my daughter's friends so much and I-"

"Marie..."

"Oh, right right!" Marie smoothed out her hair and took a deep breath at her husband's prompting, preparing to get to the point of the meeting. All of a sudden, her flowery voice became serious: Not so demanding, but nearing desperation. "Vance...here, please sit down with us for a moment." She made the request, leading him over to a nearby bench before continuing. Her eyes flitted about every once in a while, as if trying to distract herself from what she wanted to say.

"We've told you how Reyna is afraid of being eaten, right? Right...well, back when the trauma was still very strong in her, Reyner and I were desperate to find someone to help. We didn't live in an area with many doctors that could help, you see. Vacuo can be a very harsh place, especially for hunters. W-We thought we could keep Reyna safe, you see! It was just that-"

"Marie..."

"R-Right! Silly me, I need to stay on track...hum, let's see...Yes, so when a fellow hunter offered to help, we took him up immediately. He was only in the area a short time, so we...we did what we had to, t-to make sure Reyna had a full, a-and happy life! We just wanted t-to be good parents! We j-just wanted-"

"...Marie..."

"O-Oh! Ahem, p-pardon me! A-Anyways, our friend, you see, his semblance was hypnotism. Reyna, young girl as she was, could still have her whole memory altered according to our friend...f-forgotten, I mean, so we did it. We had her forget everything about t-the incident. We thought that'd be the end of it, but when she started showing reactions at mentions of anything like...like..."

"Marie?"

Marie's pent up strain at trying to stay on topic fell apart at Reyner's interjection. "Don't 'Marie' me, Reyner! You know how hard this is for me! If you're so damn impatient, why don't you tell him!" She stood angrily against her husband, but he, in turn, simply pulled her into a hug, then continued where his wife left off, looking down at Vance with somber eyes.

"The hypnosis wasn't a cure. It's what we wanted it to be, and thought it could be, but we were wrong..." His deep, gravely voice sank low with the grim reality. "Having a fear you can't face...as a hunter or huntress, that's unaffordable. It can get a squad killed faster than anything else. It nearly happened to us with Set, and it nearly happened to you kids on your first class mission thanks to Reyna, or so I gathered." Reyner, after making sure his wife was sufficiently comforted, took a seat next to Vance in her place, looking him dead in the eye.

"Our friend from back then was in town this week. We made the decision, after you all told us your story, to undo the hypnosis today. The hospital wasn't in the plan, and I wish it didn't pan out like it did...but we couldn't let Reyna go on without bona-fide help. So we had everything lined up, got her all the help we could last night and this morning...the works. She should be back in her room now, hopefully spillin' her guts out to your leader just to get it off her chest." The purple eyed man took a deep breath, his chest puffing out wide with oxygen, and let it out slow, as though he expected smoke to come out with it.

"We've got a request for ya, Vance." He began, scratching his beard. "Make sure she stays on track with all of this. She has pills that she's got to take once a day, and she's got to meet with her doc every month...Marie, am I forgetting anything?"

Marie sniffed away her tears before answering. "Yes, you oaf...before we had her hypnotized, Reyna was responsive to touch stimulants. She...She loves to squeeze, darling. Reyner was the only one who could handle it, but I can only assume she's gotten stronger since. She's such a big girl...oh, but yes, she loves to squeeze anything she can get her hands on when she's nervous. We got her a few things to help with that, but just...just keep that in mind, please! We can pay for any medical bills, and-"

"Marie, now you're being the scary one." Reyner chided before turning back to the wolf faunus. "Listen, Vance. We bought a haul of pillows just for her. She tends to tear through regular ones, so we found a custom manufacturer while you were all in the hospital, got her a whole bunch, and had 'em delivered to your room. Just make sure she has one on hand, see? If she starts having a moment, give her a pillow and help her ride it out...please, Vance. From what she's told us, you sound like the best person for the job...and thank the gods, too. That Uriah kid's just-"

"Just dating our daughter?" Marie chimed in with renewed glee. "Yes, and you'll have to get used to it while it lasts! He seems like a sweetheart, if not a bit distant...oh, but please, Vance, we really need your help to keep our little girl safe. If we could stay at Reyna's side 24/7, we would, but we're actually leaving on an assignment this afternoon... Please, will you help us?"

The couple, for once, went quiet as they waited for Vance's response. Marie's face said what Reyner's didn't: That they were truly desperate for someone to keep her on the right track in their absence.

Meanwhile, Lev stood in front of the door to his room. Obstructing his path was a closet-size delivery box addressed to Reyna with the tag, "Industrial Grade," on it. He should've been surprised, but after the past few days, the only emotion this new obstacle brought to his face was slight irritation. So the ravenette stood back with a sigh, and began to think of some way to move the massive thing.
 
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Sylvia blinked as Reyna seemed to flinch only to throw herself into the silverette's lap. She tried to comfort the poor girl, but wasn't able to get a word in edgewise as Reyna sobbed and hiccupped, trying to talk to Sylvia through broken sentences and lots of stuttering. Sylvia had barely started to pet Reyna's hair when the girl pulled away to show the scar, lamenting how she should have noticed it before since she saw it every day in the shower. The leader wasn't sure what to do. Reyna seemed to notice how loud she was getting and rushed to her bed. The contents of her bag spilled out, revealing a plethora of coping items. It seems Reyna's parents had made sure she went to go get something to help her cope with her traumatic memories. Sylvia watched for a moment as Reyna curled up on her bed, tearing apart her pillow far too easily. Faintly, Sylvia was glad she wasn't the thing Reyna had been clutching onto. Seeing Reyna's desperate stare spurred Sylvia into action.

As much as she wanted to just dash over to the pinkette and hold her, Sylvia was restricted by her broken arm and wheelchair. Huffing out a frustrated sigh, the silverette started to fidget and work her way slowly over to the pinkette's bed. The whole process was unwieldy and slow, and getting onto the bed was even worse. Yet, Sylvia managed to settle herself on Reyna's bed, running one hand through Reyna's hair and the other up and down her arm. "Hey, hey, everything's okay. We're all here. Now, Reyna I want you to tell me 5 things you can see." The request seemed strange, but Sylvia seemed to know what she was doing as she patiently waited for the information from Reyna. "Good, now I need you to tell me 4 things you can hear... That's great, now tell me 3 things you can touch... 2 things you can smell... 1 thing you can taste..." The silverette waited for Reyna's responses, working to ground Reyna firmly in reality and not the memories that haunted her or the realization that she had been hypnotized.

~~~

Vance could feel his nerves spike as he was invited to sit with the two adults. As Reyner was sent to greet him, Vance tensed up only to have his nerves be quickly replaced by embarrassment as Reyner apologized for assuming he had been dating Reyna after seeing him with Gabe. The wolf boy had been about to reply, to try and ease Reyner's embarrassment and his own but was cut off by Marie quickly starting to talk. Quickly it seemed Vance wasn't going to get a chance to talk any time soon so he simply sat down and listened to the Raleigh's requests. He could practically feel their desperation as they explained, trying to convince him that they truly wanted what was best for their daughter. The faunus boy chewed his lip, feeling the pressure start to mount on his shoulders. Remind her of pills every day? A doctor's appointment every month? Helping her when she gets freaked out? The faunus boy wasn't good with remembering things, but he knew he wanted to help his friend.

Taking a deep breath, the wolf boy started to respond. "I'm not sure I'll be able to always remember her pills or her appointments... B-but, I know Sylvia and Lev could help me cause they're both really good with remembering stuff like that. And, I'll do my best to help her out! I may not understand things like that, and I know she's already really, REALLY strong, but she's my partner so it's my job to watch her back! I promise I'll look out for her for you!" Vance looked up at the couple, his eyes glittering with determination to prove to them that he could help their daughter out. He started to fidget with his shirt, unsure what to do or how to react now that he had this new (yet not really new) responsibility on his shoulders.
 
Reyna's eyes opened wide as Sylva began to move towards her bed. "N-No, Sylvia please-" but it was too late. The silverette had begun the tedious struggle to be with her teammate, and Reyna could only watch in complete silence, waiting for her leader to continue comforting her. She squeezed her stress ball tight in anticipation, and at Sylvia's touch, she let out a breath she didn't know she was holding. The tears came slower than before as Reyna listened to her leader's request.

"Um... Y-You..." She sniffed, starting off slowly with the first question. "Vance's bed...it's a mess. And I s-see my cat, and the w-window we threw Ellie out of..." Reyna snorted in an attempt to hold back a chuckle from the memory, quickly coming to a better mindset thanks to her leader's strategy. "...and m-my posters, I guess."

Then it was on to the next thing. Something began to click with Reyna as she gave her answers. "I hear you, and me..." she responded with further clarity as she remembered where she had heard this procession of questions before. "My sheets are all wrinkly, so I...I can't really move without hearing them. And, I guess I can hear some people outside..." And just like that, she was in her bedroom back at home in Vacuo, her father rehearsing the five simple questions to calm her down. It had become a game between the two, and Reyna let a smile slip onto her face as she received one good memory in the midst of all the bad.

"My bed, my ball...um, y-you." She went through the next question with greater ease, and continued on with that progression. "I smell my mom's crazy-expensive shampoo and the cologne that she forces my dad to wear." She chuckled again, feeling pressure leave her chest and face. She had almost stopped crying, and wasn't squeezing the stress ball near as hard as before. All that was left was the one taste. Easy. She'd used to tell Reyner, I taste spit! And he'd laugh before responding, Then it's time to brush your teeth! And they'd laugh together. They always left off laughing. Reyna smiled in anticipation for it, the satisfaction of that memory, but when she focused on what she tasted, it was...off. She paused a moment, and rubbed her tongue up against her cheek, feeling the fleshy inside part away and sting.

"...I taste blood..." Reyna's voice quivered, tears gathered once more, her knuckles turned white from the sudden squeeze of her ball, and her smile dropped. "Damnit...I was doing so well..." She whimpered, turning her back to Sylvia. It was just another habit. Biting her inner cheek. It wasn't even caused by stress, it was just something to keep her jaw busy. Once her face was hidden away, Reyna began to cry again, quietly, this time.

-

Marie inhaled sharply at Vance's answer to her and Reyner's request, doing her best not to cry. Instead she gave the wolf boy a hug. "Oh, thank you darling! That's all we want. Just someone to look after her for us." She let go to rub her eyes, but her hair, in all the emotions, had embraced Vance too, and wasn't letting go as easily. Marie took little notice as she went on another tangent. "Really, she is quite the big girl. No doubt she'll take care of herself just fine, what with how much she still wants to be a huntress. That kind of determination tends to overwrite anything these days, wouldn't you say, Reyner?"

Unlike his wife, Reyner did take notice of the silky indigo rivulets that caressed Vance, and was taking great pains to remove each ribbon of hair before they tangled themselves too much. "Mhm, a one-track mind, she's got. Just like her mother...speaking of, it'd be nice if you could let Vance go, now that he's agreed to help."

Marie looked at the wolf faunus with a start, giggling an apology before using her semblance to free her unintended prisoner. With that cleared away, Reyner gave the boy a hearty pat on the back. "Sorry we dumped all of that on you at once. The medicine and stuff is all essential, sure, but we just...we really wanna be there for our little girl. Maybe that Lev-kid and Sylvia can take care of the reminders, but...heck, Vance, I just trust you a bit more to actually be there. You seem like you can handle yourself just fine, and Reyna...well, she needs that sort of stability in a friend, no offense to the rest of your team."

"Absolutely! We couldn't be happier to see Reyna with such amazing friends. Ah, but we should be going. Our flight needs to leave soon." And with that, Marie and Reyner went off to their next destination, giving a final wave to Vance before leaving sight.

-

Lev had given up on moving the massive delivery away from the door. Instead, he sat crosslegged next to it, listening to the feint conversation going on inside. It may have been eavesdropping, but considering the circumstances tied to the conversation happening in the room, Lev was glad to know what was going on without having to ask. Now he just had to hope that Vance would return with a better understanding of the whole ordeal, and with some way to move the cardboard blockade that stuck Lev outside in the first place.
 
Sylvia smiled as Reyna seemed to respond well to her grounding technique, listing things off and calming down. It seemed like she would be good to start talking again when she noted that she tasted blood. As Reyna squeezed her stress ball and turned away from the silverette, Sylvia sighed and adjusted herself so she was sitting a bit closer to the pinkette. She continued to run her hand through Reyna's hair, working to try and comfort her teammate. "Hey, no, you're still doing good. You're here, you're fine, we're here, we're fine, and everything's going to be all right, okay?" For a moment, Sylvia struggled on what else to say to possibly soothe her teammate. Reyna was definitely calmer than before, but the fact that she was still crying and refusing to look at Sylvia told the leader that there was still some comforting to be done.

Taking a deep breath, the silverette spoke again. "We're all here for you, you know that? Vance, Lev, and I are all going to help you out with whatever you need. That's what teammates are for, right? So don't worry. If you've got a bad habit to break, we'll help you out with it. And I promise one of us will always be around to help you out if you just need someone to ground you. So if you ever need someone then you've got us." At this point, Sylvia had no clue what she was supposed to say or if it had any affect on Reyna, but she continued to try and comfort and soothe her younger teammate.

~~~

Vance froze as Marie decided to just up and hug him. While he was relieved that his partner's parents had deemed him most fitting to help out, he was starting to get a bit worried as Marie's hair didn't seem to want to let him go. When Reyner finally reminded his wife to let Vance go, the wolf boy sent a thankful look his way. With their final goodbyes out of the way, Vance headed back to his room, ready to tell his teammates what they needed to know on how to properly care for their youngest teammate. He had been prepared to just walk back into the room and talk with his teammates. Really, he hadn't expected to see Lev sitting in front of a closet sized box in front of their room. That must've been the pillows the Raleighs had been talking about.

Taking a deep breath, Vance simply walked over to the box and lifted it fairly easily, stepping back with the box and sending a pleading look over at Lev. "Open the door, please?" He asked. Once the raven haired boy had done so, Vance awkwardly made his way into their dorm, setting the box down near Reyna's bed and letting out a relieved sigh. He looked up to see Reyna crying and Sylvia trying desperately to comfort her. Moving faster than he thought possible, Vance knelt next to Reyna and quickly moved to try and get in on the cuddling, his ears flipping back in worry. For the rest of the night, Vance kept a vigilant stance at Reyna's side, explaining what the Raleigh's had told him and comforting Reyna whenever needed. Afterwards SLVR's schedule seemed to return to normal, Vance hanging out with his teammates or stealing away to cuddle with his boyfriend and Sylvia enduring more of Lev's tutoring.

It took a week and a half, but Sylvia finally managed to finish her new prosthetics. While the general design seemed to be exactly the same as her first pair, the silverette had added a bullet system that basically turned her prosthetics and boots into a giant gun system. She had managed to upgrade her blades and reinforce some iffy areas in her previous design. It seemed with all of this, the silverette had quite a few new tricks up her sleeves. She couldn't properly test out all of her new additions, however, because of her casted arm. Despite this set back, Sylvia was still far too glad to get rid of the wheelchair and get back to classes, having written up a report for the Headmistress and gotten all of her missing homework in. Even with the clunkiness of her cast, Sylvia reveled the freedom she now had and the ability to finally go to breakfast with her teammates and train with them. After another week Sylvia finally got her cast off, glad to get back to real training and having full use of both of her arms.
 
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Sylvia's presence was a nice sentiment, but that was it at that point. Reyna remained tightly drawn in her own personal space as her leader continued to speak. It wasn't all bad though. For the first time since morning, the pinkette wasn't crying over her fears, and in that momentary shift into something other than hysterics, she closed her eyes and allowed emotional exhaustion to force sleep on her.

It wasn't a long nap, what with Vance and Lev finally returning, but it seemed Reyna preferred it that way. "N-No, don't apologize." she responded to Lev upon waking, "Less chance of having a nightmare, am I right?" The pinkette joked, though it was clear she wasn't as plucky as she had once been. The return of Vance, the gift of new pillows, and the short nap had a collectively strong impact on her though, and it wasn't long before she was chatting normally again. Over the next week and a half, Reyna was sporadically in and out of the room. Some days saw her out shopping, having a good time like she used to, but other days made it very clear that she wasn't the same. Reyna would be laid up in bed, quivering, crying, sleeping, sobbing, and going in a constant loop of almost-okay and almost-not, as though her head couldn't settle. Nightmares also became a plague to the pinkette. She would wake up earlier than Vance some days, jolting up with a suffocating silence, eyes wide and mouth open in preparation to scream. It never came to that though, so she'd simply lay back down and wait. Even with these setbacks, Reyna still found a way through it, whether it was through her teammates, or sheer willpower alone.

Lev was a bit of a different story. About the only time he seemed to focus was in class and during his lessons with Sylvia. All other moments were dedicated to his scroll. Even training had a tendency to take a backseat to the constant barrage of messages he seemed to be getting. They reached their peak a few days after Sylvia got her cast off, and by then, even Reyna was getting frustrated with all the unexplained interruptions. "Lev, if you're going to keep responding to your phone, I'm going to start taking swings at your knees. What's going on?" Even with Reyna's additional pressure, Lev was hesitant. It wasn't until the next afternoon that the ravenette broke his uneasy silence.

"So..." he began once his team was present, "y'know how tomorrow is reserved for visiting Signal students and stuff? M-My sis...she's gonna be a part of that whole thing. Uh, but the thing is...and I guess I shoulda said something earlier, but I didn't think it was too important, she stopped texting me about a week after I was...well, after my mom sorta let me go." Lev rubbed his knuckles uneasily, thinking through the circumstances himself before continuing on. "...They must've cut her off once they realized she was still talking to me, and because of the contract, I'm not allowed to get in touch with her myself. But now she's texting me out of the blue with a new number! So we've just been catching up...and now I'm not so sure it was a good idea."

Lev didn't even bother looking up from the ground, sure that his statement earned a confused glance or two. "I...I-I don't know if it's her, y'know? I don't know who's side she's on... I don't even know if I'm actually texting her! It could be my mother for all I know, trying to find a reason to take more away from me! It...it's stupid, I know." He sighed, letting the smile he was forcing for his friends fade out. The whole ordeal was taxing, to say the least, and his expression, for the first time in a while, said it in full. He was downtrodden, and well past panic at that point.

"If it is her, then she's looking forward to meeting you...but I think I'm gonna skip classes tomorrow and just...I dunno, not take the risk. I'm not legally allowed to talk to her anyways."
 
Sylvia had started to notice Lev's habits as Reyna had, half tempted to do something when the pinkette scolded Lev for her. The team had to wait another day for the explanation, but it was worth it as Sylvia waited patiently for Lev to finish his explanation. The room fell into a state of quiet for a few moments, the team members all most likely thinking of how they were to respond. Sylvia was about to speak up when Vance cut in, determined eyes staring Lev down.

"Nope. You're not going to skip tomorrow. That's not allowed." The wolf boy crossed his arms, looking at Lev with a stern face. Over the week and a half, Vance had picked up some protective tendencies for his teammates. Whenever Reyna needed someone, the wolf boy would drop everything to help. If Sylvia had trouble carrying things, Vance was right there. If Lev was going to run into a wall because of his constant texting, Vance was there to pull him out of the way. The wolf boy had started to exude a bit of a protective and brotherly aura when around his teammates. This definitely applied as he seemed determined not to let his fellow teammate punish himself. "You can't just skip tomorrow. We'll be down a member if we do that, and we need everyone! Besides, this is your sister right? You gotta care about her a lot if how you've been stuck with your scroll tells us anything. It's gonna hurt you worse if you had a chance to see her at the very least and don't take it. So you're not allowed to skip! You gotta come with us!" Vance nodded his head, almost as if he had just settled the argument right then and there.

For a moment, Sylvia wasn't sure how to respond. Taking a deep breath and running a hand through her hair, she turned to Lev. "While I understand your reservations, Lev, I kinda have to agree with Vance here. I don't think you should skip out tomorrow. You obviously care a huge amount about your sister. If it was really your mom texting you then we'll find a way to deal with that. Though, from the... brief interaction we had I doubt it was her. Though concerning the legality issue, you've already technically crossed the line there, Lev. Anyway, we've seen how focused you were when she was texting you. You care about your sister-a lot. I say take the risk. You don't know when you're going to see her next, so take every chance you can get." The silverette felt her throat clog up as she gave the advice, quickly clearing it to continue. "And if it turns out she's on your parents' side or something else happens, then you've got us to fall back on. We're your team. We're here to help you out and give you support." Determined to get off the mushy and sad topics, Sylvia leaned back and threw a smirk Lev's way. "Besides, you can't just leave us out there to meet your sister all alone! What kind of big brother doesn't properly introduce his team to his siblings, especially siblings that are excited to meet them." She left it at that, ready to argue with Lev to try and convince him not to skip out and miss the opportunity of possibly bonding with his sister.
 
Lev bit his lip at the remarks of his friends. It made him happy to hear of their support, but it didn't address what he wasn't telling them. Really, he was just trying to take what he could, no matter the cost. He would have answered any text, any call, anywhere, any time, if it meant that he still had a family to turn to. His sister was the last link in his chain, and by the gods he was going to hold onto her until his hands bled. Yet, after everything that had happened up up till then, he didn't have much in terms of hope, and there was nothing Lev hated more than clinging to something that would inevitably let him down in the end. He already dealt with that enough in the hospital...

"Thanks guys..." Lev put on a smile again, leaving the conversation as it was rather than going into it further. He gave one last look at Vance, then at Sylvia, before returning his attention to his scroll. A palpable quiet settled in amongst the team for the rest of the night, with the ravenette almost outright refusing to answer any more questions about his younger sibling. "You'll just have to wait and see..." He'd respond.

Then the day came. It took continuous prodding to move Lev throughout the day. His face was almost glued to his scroll, he frequently broke into cold sweats out of nerves. For the first time, he was called out in class for not paying attention, and one of the teachers was so concerned with the behavior shift that he took the ravenette aside after class for a small chat. The day was going awry before anything even got started. Then, once classes ended, the Signal students began pouring out of the woodworks. from various orientation groups.

"Ah, well I don't see her. C'mon, let's get back to our room!" Lev spoke up almost immediately after taking a quick glance around the campus, clearly wanting to throw in the towel before he had to commit to anything.

"Heck no, hedgehog!" Reyna responded, linking a muscly arm around his neck and bringing him down to her level. "You're gonna sit here and introduce us to your baby sister, or I'mma pile-drive you into the dirt!" The pinkette grinned, though she had grown irritated enough with Lev's vague and unhelpful information over the past few days to make her threat sound plenty serious. Lev squirmed out of her headlock and was about to say something when the sound of a young girl's yell began to echo from across the campus.

"LEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEVVVVVVV!!!!!!"

What careened into sight was a mass of black. Long black hair, a long black cloak, black boots, black nails, a black v-neck, black jeans, and extremely wide-open black eyes.

"Hey Vi-GHA!!" Lev attempted a greeting, but before he could even raise a hand to wave at the rapidly approaching figure, she was already on him, catapulting from all fours straight into the raven haired boy.

"LEV! Oh my gods I missed you so much! SO much! It's been ages, and mom took away my phone, and dad won't let me send stuff, and he didn't let me come- *gasp* HE DIDN'T LET ME COME TO THE HOSPITAL! And I was so worried, like, what if you DIED? WHAT IF YOU DIED, LEV? You're not supposed to do that! I heard about the attack on the news, and I was FREAKING OUT, but mom told me to chill or else she'd ground me, and- *gasp* LEV, YOUR ROOM IS SO EMPTY NOW THAT YOU'RE GONE! I miss you, big bro! I miss my perfect big brother!!! Waaaaahhhhhh..."

Lev just sat on the ground as the girl smothered him with hugs, words, and tears, paralyzed in shock. About halfway through the girl's rambling, he felt his entire body relax at once. The effect was visible too, as he openly warmed up to the familiar feeling of being clung to by his younger sister. He began to play with her hair as she whined, and looked up to his teammates with the most genuinely warm smile he'd ever warn.

"This is Vivian, my sister."

The word out of her brother's mouth made Vivian screech to a halt in her emotional rambling and stand straight up. Aside from the red on her cheeks from coming close to crying, she was the picture of confidence. Her hair was as wild as her brothers, though a bit shorter, but it was very obviously in better condition overall. Her eyes were dead-bolted on whoever she decided to focus on, and the way she carried herself gave off the sense that she only had one speed: Really, really fast.

"Heya, call me Viv!" She almost shouted with enthusiasm. Lev tugged at her sleeve in response, and she covered her mouth sheepishly before lowering her volume to a more acceptable level. "Heh, well anyways I've heard a lot about you guys. Mom just said you were all pointless hacks, but she says that about all hunters, so I just go off of what Lev's been telling me. So...pink hair! Reyna, right? Gosh, you're pretty thick! Like jeez, you must be able to bench a ton! How much do you eat? What's your diet? Is all that muscle, or is some of it-"

Lev's eyes shot open in shock as soon as his sister began to clamor on, as did Reyna's, and before Vivian could finish her next statement, her brother had his arm wrapped tight around her mouth.

"I'm...I'm soooo sorry." He sighed, giving Vivian a quick squeeze before releasing her. As if she understood exactly what was happening, she stood by her brother's side with her hands clasped in front of her and head bowed shamefully, ready to apologize at a moment's notice. "Viv doesn't hold her tongue. It's something she picked up from our mother...I'm sure you understand based on that alone, so please, cut her a bit of slack." Lev bowed involuntarily, as though he had said the same thing hundreds of times before, and Vivian followed suit before stepping back up.

"S-Sorry about that. Umm, but yeah, you look really strong, Reyna. I didn't mean to...yeah, I'm sorry." The ravenette girl's confidence, though still somewhat present, took a major hit, and was replaced with a sheepish embarrassment instead. By the glances she gave her brother every other second, it was clear she didn't want to make a fool of him in the slightest, especially in front of his team. "So, right! Um, ummm... Oh! Puppy! You're Vance! Wow, your ears are really cute!" Lev caught her shoulder before she could go further, but she was confused rather than the previous embarrassed. "W-What? What'd I say?"

"Viv, don't call him that please."

"What...puppy? B-But he's really cute! Isn't that a good thing?"

"Maybe, but Vance is Vance, alright?"

"...Okay... sorry Vance. I really do like your ears though." Vivian kicked the dirt with a strike-two sort of feel. Looking at Sylvia, she opened her mouth to confirm, but quickly shut it and looked back at Lev for guidance. Lev stood firm for a moment before taking pity on his poor sister, wrapping an arm around her shoulder and motioning to Sylvia.

"This is Sylvia. She's the leader of the team, and my partner." Lev smiled as he spoke, but he looked at the silverette with the sort of expression that pled, Please engage the conversation, for her sake!
 
Once the time finally came, Vance couldn't hold in his excitement, bouncing eagerly and laughing as Reyna quickly wound Lev into a headlock when he tried to escape. Sylvia couldn't help her chuckles, feeling a pang of sympathy for her partner. Everyone was quickly interrupted by a black ball hurtling itself toward Lev, clinging to him and ranting ten miles an hour. Blinking, Sylvia watched as the black ball quickly revealed herself to be Viv, Lev's sister. Their resemblance was uncanny, the two looking almost like twins in both looks and style. That was where the resemblance stopped as Vivian proceeded to energetically introduce herself. At first, it seemed like the girl was absolutely nothing like her parents, somehow kept pure in the storm that was her upbringing. Of course, there was still a little bit that had to fall out.

At first, Sylvia were torn between laughing and scolding the young girl. She seemed to have no control over her mouth as she nearly insulted Reyna. Then she moved to Vance and the feeling of laughing stopped in its tracks, Sylvia turning to Vance in concern. She knew how those kinds of nicknames affected the boy. Even if it was meant in an innocent context, she could still feel the semblance of an insult that laid below the surface. While Vivian had set her sights on the pinkette, Vance sent Reyna a sympathetic look though he had trouble keeping in his giggles. It seemed the younger girl had trouble controlling her mouth with these kinds of things. However, this turned against him as the girl called him a "puppy". The wolf boy stood up straight, tense as he waited for the girl to insult him like her mother had. His ears swiveled, hiding in his fluffy mass of hair. He had prepared himself for her to spout off some racist opinion.

Yet he didn't need it. Lev quickly came to his rescue, telling his sister not to call him something as degrading as "puppy". The faunus boy relaxed as the young ravenette apologized. "It's all right. I'm glad you like my ears. They can do some really cool things." He smiled, though he was still a bit rattled from the comment. As he caught Lev's eye, he sent him a grateful smile and a mouthed "thank you" to try to let the boy know how much he appreciated the intervention.

Once it got to Sylvia's turn, the leader was glad that Lev took the initiative to introduce her instead of letting Viv spout off whatever opinion she had. Catching Lev's pleading expression, Sylvia jumped into action. "It's great to meet you, Viv! We were all really excited to finally meet you. Lev couldn't get off of his scroll the whole week, so we knew you had to be pretty cool. You look like a mini version of Lev! From the hair to the outfit, you two could practically be twins!" She smiled, seemingly standing casually as she spoke to the younger Castor. While to Viv she was as cool as a cucumber, Sylvia's teammates could see exactly how nervous she was to meet Lev's sister. From her constant tapping on her leg to her stiffer than usual posture, the girl was clearly nervous. She wanted to impress her partner's little sister, gosh darn it! Looking over the girl's hair, the silverette could see how much better she took care of it and smiled. "Maybe later today you could come check out our dorm room, or even watch us train. I'm sure you'd love to see your big bro in action." The silverette wasn't entirely sure how the Signal field trip worked, but she'd love to show the girl around if she could. Besides, she hadn't had time to go through a test run with her new additions and what better time than when Lev's sister was there! She could show off a bit and get some practice in all at once!
 
Lev nodded in response to Vance's mouthed thanks, happy he did right by his teammate. Then he turned his attention to Sylvia to see how she'd handle his loud-mouth of a sister. The strange mix of enthusiasm and nervousness she showed in interacting with Vivian was a surprise to the ravenette boy though, so he listened on with greater interest, subconsciously eager to see the two girls react to each other.

Vivian, meanwhile, smiled wide at the openness that Sylvia seemed to engage her with. "Nice to meet you too! I..." She began to speak, but her past strikes made her look to her brother for guidance. The unspoken connection between the two prompted a cautious nod from Lev, and Viv turned back with a shyer confidence than before. "Um, Lev told me about your legs, and I just...I really think that's cool! I'm sorry if I'm not supposed to know about them, but...I dunno, it's really inspiring! I mean, aside from Lev, you're kinda my role-model. Like, you're a girl too, and you got picked over my brother to be leader! He's perfect, so that must make you, like, double perfect!"

Lev cringed at hearing himself referred to as "perfect," but he let it slide with a chuckle. "Yeah, yeah, just as long as I'm still number-one to you." He shifted the conversation tone quickly, eager not to dwell on the past. "Now what's up with the field trip? What are you supposed to be doing?"

"Well, we were supposed to go sit in on a lecture or something, then go visit all the facilities, but I don't caaare! I wanna hang out with you!" Vivian exclaimed with a shake of her head. "Besides, I brought all my stuff just so I could play with you!" She wiggled a duffle-bag off of her shoulder and onto the ground with a grin, unzipping it to reveal an impressive-looking sub-machine gun and what looked to be a compact aspis. "C'mon! I wanna play!"

Lev shook his head in mock exasperation. "You can at least wait until we change out of our uniforms and get our stuff too, Viv." Then to his team, the ravenette shrugged his shoulders with a smirk. "Think you can handle my baby sister?"

Vivian didn't need any further confirmation than that, and quickly grabbed her brother's hand to tug him along to the building that looked most like a dorm, giggling the whole way. Lev was forced to quickly readjust her course before they walked too far astray from the actual dorm. It didn't take long for everyone to get ready for sparring practice, and soon they were all out in the field, equipment at the ready.

"Lev! What's under the turf?" Vivian asked as she dug into the ground with her boot. "Feels like asphalt. Do you think I could maybe-"

"Don't go crazy, Viv. We're just gonna go until you hit 50%, for safety. As long as you don't push yourself too hard, anything goes." Lev responded with a sigh before turning to his team. "That goes for you guys as well. You better not take it easy on her just 'cuz she's my sister. She can floor half of our classmates, easy."

Vivian ran over and gave Lev a hug as he spoke. "Daww, big bro, you're gonna make me blush! So who do I get to play with first?"

At this, Lev simply looked to his teammates, waiting for a volunteer as he plopped an elbow on his sibling's head.
 
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Sylvia was a bit shocked at first when Viv started to mention her legs. Sure, she really shouldn't have been all things considered. Of course Lev was going to mention her legs to his sister. It wasn't like she put a ban on her teammates from speaking about it. Either way, she had braced herself to hear some sort of negative comment and was pleasantly surprised by what she got instead. Hearing that she was this girl's role model absolutely shocked Sylvia, leaving her with a large, warm feeling in her heart. She could feel herself relax just a bit as the young Castor girl basically stated that she had made a good impression. "Ah, geeze, I wouldn't go so far as to say that Lev's perfect or I'm double perfect... but I'm glad you feel that way. Though, I'm gonna have to ask you to keep quiet about my legs around here. Most people don't really know outside of my team and a few others, so it's kinda hush-hush." Sylvia winked, smiling as Lev asked about the field trip.

After the explanation, Viv quickly decided she wanted to discard that plan and "play" with the team, Sylvia's eyes widening as she took in the machine gun with glee. Oh how she'd love to just take a few hours to dissect it! But, the rest of her team was already heading off to change into workout clothes and get started sparring with Lev's sister. At Lev's taunt, Vance had puffed himself up and quickly retorted, "Of course I can!" With that, he started to run ahead of the team, eager to get to the field and start the fight. Once they all had their weapons and work out clothes ready, Lev set down the rules, leaving Vivian to look over her possible opponents gleefully.

Viv's statement didn't get past Sylvia, the silverette's mind already running trying to figure out what the girl had been about to ask. Was it something to do with a semblance? Possibly. There was only one way to find out. Before Vance could pounce on the idea, Sylvia stepped forward. "I guess I'll go. I've been meaning to test out my latest additions anyways. This seems like the perfect time." Going against someone so much younger than her put the silverette on edge at first, but knowing they would only go until Viv's aura was halfway down gave her a little bit of reprieve. At least she didn't have to worry about hurting Viv too much. Besides, if she was as good as Lev said then this spoke for a great fight.
 
"Yeeesssss!!!" Vivian jumped out of her brother's grip with glee as Sylvia stepped up to the plate. "It had to be you! Oh my gods, I'm so excited, this is gonna be awesome! I hope you're ready, because I'm gonna-"

"Viv!" Lev interrupted his sister as she readied her weapon. She whirled around in confusion, sure she hadn't said anything wrong, but none-the-less concerned. However, before she could ask what she did wrong, Lev motioned to his lower body. "No hitting below the waist! This is just a spar."

Vivian continued to look confused a moment longer, then looked at Sylvia, then back at Lev. Then a lightbulb seemed to click on, her face lighting up in a serious understanding. A quick thumbs up to her brother, and she was back into position, ready to take on the silverette. "Don't take it easy on me, okay? Let's do this!"

With the callout, she immediately began the battle, rushing forward with her shield braced, firing her gun around the circumference as she closed in. Once in melee range, her gun rapidly shifted to a gladius. With the transformation of her gun, Vivian showed off her true colors as a young spartan, meeting Sylvia with brutality and strategy in quick succession. As soon as Sylvia made contact with her shield, the ravenette girl put all her weight into shoving the leg away, coupling her blade swings along with the defensive lunges of her aspis to keep Sylvia's stance spread out and off-balance. Despite Sylvia's desire to use her new gun system, Vivian wouldn't give an inch without overtaking by another mile. She remained up close and personal by hopping straight towards her opponent's center of gravity any time she attempted to move away. That, coupled with vicious growls and grunts from the berserk 14 year-old, made for a non-stop pressure in the heat of the fight.
 
Lev's final warning confused the silverette. It seemed obvious to her that one didn't use dirty tactics in a spar, but there seemed to be something else in his warning. She couldn't quite get it, but she'd have to wait until later to find out. Smiling at the younger girl's enthusiasm, Sylvia rolled her shoulders and settled into a fighting stance. "Don't worry, don't worry, I won't." With the callout, the fighting began.

Immediately, Sylvia was pushed into the action as she worked to dodge the young girls' gunfire. She didn't have time to reciprocate as Viv was in melee range, pulling out a gladius and leaving no room to get away. Sylvia was forced to dance and dodge, her kicks being met with either the girl's blade or her shield. The silverette frowned as she used the close up battle to observe the young girl's strategy. She twisted, aiming a leg at the girl's head only to be blocked by a sword. Lev wasn't kidding when he spoke of his sister's prowess. While Sylvia was comfortable in the CQC range, she had wanted to try her bullet system out at least once during the fight. Flipping out of the way of a lunge, Sylvia brought her only blade up to try and get a hit in, flipping right side up only to have Viv on her once again, trying to keep her from getting to far away.

It seemed she'd just have to be creative with this. At Viv's next lunge, Sylvia jumped, bringing both her feet in front of her before activating her newly created bullet system. Within seconds she was shot away from her opponent, the silverette landing into a carwheel. She used the extra momentum to fire a few more shots at Viv before ending right side up again. Immediately, the silverette started to run straight at Viv, a strange tactic considering what she had done to try and get away from the younger girl. Sylvia used her running start to propel her into a series of round offs towards her opponent. Each time her legs were aimed toward Viv, a series of shots fired. This continued until the last one, ending in Sylvia pulling her blades out to try and slice down on her opponent.
 
Vivian didn't flinch at the fluidity and shift of Sylvia's combat range. If anything, it fueled her fire even more. Her shield repelled Sylvia's bullets with ease, and her blade was back into a sub-machine gun in the next second, firing right back. Once the silverette began her round offs, Viv went on the defensive, holstering her gun and getting down low with her aspis, forcing it along the ground on approach to Sylvia's constantly attacking form. The shield's bottom scraped along the ground, digging up the top layer of turf to reveal the asphalt beneath, all while keeping her body protected from the storm of bullets Sylvia leveled at her.

Once the silverette was above her with blades extended, the game changed. Vivian bent back until her spine touched the ground and covered herself with her aspis, letting the spread of the ground take most of the kinetic energy behind Sylvia's bladed kick, leaving Vivian free to retaliate rather than suffer through the stun of the massive kick. Viv flipped herself up while shoving her opponent away, but with her free hand she seemed to dig into the asphalt. With a sharp flash, she raised with her a javelin that seemed to be cut straight out of the ground. Without hesitation, Vivian proceeded to shove Sylvia further away, then tossed the weapon at her with deadly accuracy. As the projectile flew, the ravenette unholstered her gun and began to fire once more. Despite the sweat shimmering on her skin, Vivian worked like a machine, rushing Sylvia down with the same passion she had at the start of the fight. However, with asphalt exposed, her tactics changed. As she covered her rush with gunfire, she dug her shield into the ground. Upon bringing it back up, an edge of the aspis was lined with asphalt spikes. The offensive that followed was nothing like the first, Vivian using her shield just as aggressively as her gladius. Any time her aspis would hit the ground, it would surface with newer, longer spikes, and any time Sylvia found some distance, Vivian would uproot another weapon from the asphalt underfoot, making sure it was different every time. Tomahawks, knives, sets of shuriken; at one point, she even forwent the tossable weaponry and pulled up a new ammo clip for her gun.

However, the fight was clearly taking a toll on Vivian. The fact that she was forcing herself forward with the same gusto no matter the situation was wearing her out more and more as her body screamed at her to slow down. Keeping up with Sylvia's blazing kick speed, constantly pulling out new weapons to change the game with, and keeping up with her own expectations almost made her gag with stress, but she kept going. "Never slow down. Never slow down! Never slow down!!!" She grunted at herself, forcing the mantra out any time she seemed to be slipping. Then she'd take a breath and soldier on, same speed, same energy.

Lev could only bite his lip as he watched, witnessing the effect of his parents expectations on his sister first-hand. In all his time spent sparring with her, she had never pushed so hard. He still saw the same weaknesses as always, but this wasn't the kid-sister Viv that he had fought in childhood, where she always accepted living in his shadow, always seemed to give up before their fights started, and always sat safe at second-best. Now the expectations were on her... Lev grimaced at the thought.
 
Sylvia had to admit, Vivian was good. Of course, the young girl was Lev's sister, so she had to have at least some talent in fighting. With her and Lev's parents, it was no surprise she pushed herself to be the best and succeeded. Though, if Sylvia had it her way both Lev and his sister would be out of the Castor's custody and part of a family that actually loved them instead of abusing them. Hearing the girl's mantra made Sylvia frown, the girl losing her concentration for a few moments which allowed the younger to get a couple shots in. Despite how much she wished to correct the girl's way of thinking, she had to focus on finishing up this spar.

As the turf tore away to reveal the asphalt beneath, Sylvia got to see exactly why the younger had been asking about what was beneath the turf. Sylvia dodged the various weapons thrown at her, impressed with the diversity and various uses of Viv's semblance. Finding time to retaliate grew scarce as Viv seemed to throw everything but the kitchen sink at her. It seemed as soon as Sylvia had managed to get some ground, Vivian would retaliate just as quickly and passionately as when they first started the fight. Every jab Sylvia got in was met with a volley of bullets or a swipe of her gladius and shield.

Though Viv was determined to keep going, Sylvia could see the girl was starting to slow down. She could use this to her advantage, Besides, they were just going until Viv's aura was at 50%. Keeping this in mind, Sylvia ran with a new burst of energy. She switched from the defensive dodging to offensive, retaliating just as passionately as Viv was. She was back in her element, getting back in close range and grappling to get her kicks in, parrying away Viv's blade and shield when she could.
 
Vivian fought tooth and claw to keep her momentum, but once Sylvia found her steam, Viv finally lost hers. A hitch of her breath caused her rhythm to fail, and in the next moment, Sylvia had parried her sword, kicked away her shield, and dropped her on the ground with her aura just short of 50%

"Alright, that's enough!" Lev called the match there, eyeing both aura counts on his scroll.

"Wh-What? Nooo! I can keep going! I can still-" Vivian picked herself up with full intent to keep the match going, but she began to cough and retch, cutting herself off as she collapsed to her knees on the hacked away turf. "I...I can-" she tried again, but once more she found herself lacking the breath to speak further. Lev was quick to run to his sister's aid, helping her through her coughing fit before scooping her up in his arms.

"I told you not to push yourself, Vivian..." Lev sighed, giving her a kiss to the forehead as she instinctively cuddled into him.

"You said not to go crazy." She responded with a shaky voice, cheeks puffed out in obstinance, before looking to Sylvia, her face already decorated with tears at her loss. "Hey...y-you're really strong. Did I do good? Was I strong too?"

"Viv, you were-" Lev tried to ease his sister's worries, but she dug her head into his chest to shut him up.

"No! She's gotta say it!" She corrected her brother before looking once more at the silverette, determined to lock eyes with her opponent despite how red her face was. "You gotta say it." Viv repeated, "You're Lev's partner, and you're a girl, so that makes us rivals now! ...I've never had a rival before, so if you think I'm strong, then I'll be a huntress in no time!" The girl stretched her limbs out as if to jump, but quickly remembered she was still in her brothers arms, and so redoubled her grip on him with a grin. Lev simply rolled his eyes with a chuckle.
 
Once Lev called the match, Sylvia quickly backed up and looked over her opponent. The silverette searched for any injuries or anything that could possibly need fixing. She could hear Vance whooping in the background and getting ready to congratulate Sylvia when Viv started her coughing fit. Immediately, Sylvia started to move to help, but Lev got to Viv first. She didn't have time to ask what was wrong, the two's conversation immediately taking up any room she had to speak. Soon eyes were turned on the silverette as Viv declared her her rival, asking if she had done well in the spar.

Sylvia blinked, unsure how to take this new development. She hadn't really expected to gain a rival when going to Beacon, especially one that was still in Signal. Sighing, the silverette ran a hand through her hair and started to respond. "You were absolutely strong too. You gave me quite the run for my money there. The way you pulled out your semblance to enhance your fighting style, and your energy really make you a great fighter. I think you did really, insanely well especially against someone older than you." Sylvia smiled at the younger Castor, "however, I'm a little worried. Are you all right? You sounded like you were hacking up a lung!"

"Maybe we can take her back to our dorm room?" Vance suggested, looking between his teammates for some kind of approval or disapproval. "Just to make sure she's all right before we send her back to her field trip group." The wolf boy glanced at Vivian, worry coloring his features.
 
Vivian beamed at Sylvia's compliments, but lost it at her rival's concern. "I'm fine! I said I could-" She tried to be insistent, but once again, she broke into a cough. Despite doing her best to stifle it, Viv eventually had to turn away from the silverette, hacking roughly into Lev's shirt. After making sure she was okay, Lev looked to hear out Vance's suggestion. After mulling it over, he nodded his head with a sigh.

"Yeah, that'd probably be best. If we take her to the nurse, someone might start asking questions. If word got back to the Signal staff about her getting in a fight, it'd probably reach our parents, and...well, you know." At Lev's mention of his parents, Vivian simply clutched at his shirt, catching a fist full of fabric to kneed between her fingers. Lev sighed again, then led the way back to the dorm. It didn't take long for him to have Vivian situated on his bed. She stayed quiet for the most part, a distinct shift in her usual tone, seeming to be deep in thought as Lev doted on her.

"Lev, can I talk to Sylvia alone?" Vivian finally broke her odd silence, once again making eye contact with the silverette in the hopes that she'd even want to talk in the first place. Lev opened his mouth to object, but Viv beat him to the punch. "Don't get in the way of girl talk!"

The desperation in Vivian's voice immediately caught Reyna's attention, and without another moment's hesitation, she had both Lev and Vance by the arms, urging them all into the hall with an understanding smile. Vivian returned Reyna's gesture with a mouthed thanks before turning back to Sylvia. Despite her statement, Viv kicked her feet and pursed her lips in an unsure frown, as if daring Sylvia to read her mind. At the very least, it seemed like she wasn't going to start the conversation on her own, leaving the silverette to make the first move just as she had when they met.
 
Sylvia frowned as Viv continued to cough, following Lev's lead as they all headed back to the dorm. The silverette had started to open her mouth to ask what was wrong when Viv requested she talk to Sylvia alone. The idea shocked the silverette. Blinking, Sylvia watched as her male teammates were pulled away by Reyna, leaving her alone with Lev's sister. Fidgeting, the silverette wasn't sure what to do as she waited for Viv to start the conversation. After all, she wanted to speak to Sylvia alone. It seemed only natural to have her start the conversation. Yet, Viv sat demurely on Lev's bed and waited for Sylvia to initiate the conversation. For a few minutes, the two females sat in tense and unsure silence.

Seeing she was going to have to take the first step to initiate a conversation, Sylvia sighed and pulled up her desk chair, sitting down in it. "I'm kinda glad you'd like to talk to me, Viv, because I wanted to talk to you about some things too." Running a hand over her face, Sylvia heaved another sigh and started. "First of all, I want to ask what's up? Please, don't lie and say you're fine because I can clearly see that something happened back there. If you're sick and you need something then you need to tell us otherwise you'll just get worse. Lev loves you, and I'm sure he would want you to tell him if something was wrong or if you weren't feeling well so he could help you fix it." The silverette could tell she was starting to go into motherly lecture mode at this point, and quickly tried to force herself to change the topic.

Taking a moment to think through her words, Sylvia started once again. "Viv, I noticed during our spar that you kept pushing yourself to try and keep up with an insane type of energy and power. While, it's great to try and build up stamina like that, the way you were going about it... worried me. I heard you saying something like 'Never slow down' or something similar. That worried me because that's not a healthy way to go about learning to be a huntress." She was starting to get back into a lecture, but Sylvia couldn't let this opportunity slide. She'd have to deal with repercussions later. "I don't know if it's your parents who are pressuring you to work like that-though from what I've seen of them, I wouldn't put it past them... but that's not the right way to work as a huntress or as any kind of career. If you just keep going and going and don't listen to what your body is saying then you'll end up seriously hurt, or worse, dead."

A pregnant pause filled the room, Sylvia letting the implication sink in for a moment before continuing. "That kind of thinking, that can get you killed out on the battlefield. Not only can it get you killed, but it can get everyone you care about killed too. I know this probably won't do much, but please try to slow down just a bit and listen when your body says enough. If you just keep pushing and pushing and pushing, eventually you'll wear yourself too thin." Biting her lip, Sylvia tried to figure out how to approach the next topic on her mind. "... I can't understand what your relationship with your parents is like or know exactly how they treat you. From what I've seen with Lev, however, it's not right. You and Lev are people, not machines. You guys can't be perfect all the time, and expecting perfection is an impossible standard that sets you up for failure. Putting this much pressure on you guys isn't healthy. I don't know what your home life is like, but if you ever-and I mean ever-feel unsafe or need somewhere to go then you can call me or Lev or Reyna or Vance and we'll get you set up somewhere, okay?" Sylvia felt her gut twist and turn, unsure how the younger would react to her concerns and lectures. If she reacted anything like Lev did then she needed to be prepared for some insults before Vivian actually got it.
 
Vivian twiddled her thumbs and rubbed the toes of her boots together as Sylvia began to talk. Hints of a lecture forming in the silverette's tone and direction caused the ravenette girl to look away, sucking on the inside of her cheek in shame. She knew she went a bit overboard; she was already feeling it in her limbs, but she didn't want to admit it.

"I'm a lot tougher than I look." Vivian began after clearing her throat. "I just...got carried away. We don't fight like that at Signal, and we only get to use training gear for major spars, a-and...and you're so strong! Every time I swung at you, my hand hurt! Lookit!" Viv exclaimed, raising her violently shivering sword hand for a moment to let the quaking set in. "...they don't put us through the real stuff until we're upperclassmen. When I was talking with Lev and heard about you, I-I made a promise to myself. I'd fight you with everything I had, and then some." Viv paused for a moment to look at herself, bedridden out of sheer exhaustion, and smiled with satisfaction.

Then Sylvia brought up her mantra and her parents. "...Um, I mean, my parents can be strict, but they aren't hunters. They know it, so I kinda do my own thing, Sylvia. That's my mantra, not theirs. If I miss a beat, then I'm not doing my best. I never want to do worse than my best! I know it's not the most healthy thing, but...but I just gotta! I gotta be like my brother! I mean...h-he's perfect!

It wasn't until the second mention Sylvia made of her parents that Vivian caught on to what she was trying to imply. Her hopeful smile quickly turned into an angrier expression as a result. "Hey, I know my mom and dad aren't the perfect parents, but they've never made me feel unsafe. And of course we can't be perfect all the time! I mean, Lev could, but that'd ware anyone out. I'm just trying to meet my own expectations here. My parents love me, and they loved Lev too...and they'll love him again! That's why I'm fighting so hard!" Vivian sighed after getting the heat out of her system, then sat up to make herself clearer.

"Thank you for the offer of whatever it is, but my home is a-okay. I really don't know what you're talking about." Viv nodded her head in finality before moving straight onto her real reason for wanting to chat. "Now, how is he? Is he still using a rifle? What happened in the hospital? Dad wouldn't tell me anything! Does he have a girlfriend? I-Is she cute? Is it- *gasp* IS IT YOU? Because, ohmygods if it's you, then I-" Vivian eventually tripped on her own words, stumbling into another less intense coughing fit before recovering and settling back with a blush. "...I mean, I just want to know, y'know? He doesn't tell me a lot so I won't worry, but...Sylvia, how is my brother?"
 
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