SLVR

It happened all too quickly. It seemed as soon as they had just gotten into the rhythm of things, it was all over. Sylvia and Vance had to drop their limbs, panting as they watched Sora drop to the ground. It took a minute to respond, but Sylvia managed to give Sora a smile back. "Th-thanks... You... You did great too..." With that, they were being led away. Sylvia felt all too glad that the match was over. It all seemed far too surreal. Had they really won that match? All of the evidence pointed to yes, though Sylvia couldn't really feel it until she had her whole team in her sight once again.

Vance practically dragged behind Sylvia like a zombie, simply wishing to go to sleep after going through all of the energy of fighting. Once they were finished with the showers and getting patched up, Vance practically made a bee line for the half bed, stopped only for a moment as he vaguely tried to hug Lev back. Once he reached his destination, the wolf boy flopped onto the bed and let out a groan of relief. Finally, he could just sit and sleep! Now all he needed was Gabe to cuddle with and everything would be perfect.

While Sylvia would have loved to follow Vance's lead and settle down on the half bed, she had her team to take care of. After receiving Lev's hug with a small smile, Sylvia soaked up the atmosphere of the room. It was very peaceful. Perfect for the two teams to just relax... "Are you both okay?" Only to be broken by Sylvia's mother henning. The silverette fluttered around Lev and Reyna, frowning as she saw the bandages and bruises covering their bodies, though she was sporting a fair amount herself. "I'm so sorry, I thought you were right behind me, Reyna! I didn't think you were still stuck in there! Agh, I should have made sure you were out before we tried to set off all that dust! And Lev, I'm so sorry, I hadn't planned on you being alone so long! I mean, you're a terrific hunter, but you obviously needed some backup and I should have known that going against the team leader of all things would have left you stretched too thin!" The silverette frowned, her eyes drooping as she felt the sheer stabbing pain of seeing her teammates get to the point of a 'ring out' and 'aura depletion' hit her tenfold. "Are you both feeling better? Do you need anything?" The silverette knew she should be relaxing with her team, but she couldn't help the worry as she tried to think of ways it could have gone differently, ways her team could have all made it out without reaching the point of aura depletion.

Sylvia's mother henning forced Vance to sit up, the wolf boy sighing as he tried to think of a way to calm his leader down. He could just drag her to her designated bed. The wolf boy quickly shook off the thought. No way Sylvia would react well to that. She'd probably try to insist that she was fine and end up doing something to screw herself over. Maybe he could reassure her? But he was so tired. Huffing, the wolf boy pulled his legs up so he sat criss cross and decided that Reyna and Lev could calm their worry wart of a leader down.
 
Reyna's smile at seeing the rest of her team quickly turned into an exasperated frown at Sylvia's mothering. "Leevvv..." she groaned as the silverette flitted about. The ravenette simply nodded at the call from his pink haired teammate, picking himself up and patiently guiding Sylvia over to her own bed.

"Syv, you need to stop and take a seat before you give us all heart attacks." he chided, sitting his partner down with a shake of his head. "We can't relax and enjoy our win with you acting like something's still wrong. So how's about you help us by helping yourself. I mean, we won, Syv! That's more than most of us bargained for to begin with, so..." Lev folded his arms for a moment as he stood over his leader, but thought better of it and, with a sigh, uncurled his arms and placed a gentle hand on the silverette's head. "...so just enjoy it. You lead us to victory today, and I certainly expect you to do it tomorrow, too. Now relax, and stop being a killjoy. That's an order." With that said, Lev moved back to his bed once more, stretching out with a yawn and a smile. They really had done it! They won! It took him saying it a bunch to Sylvia for the fact to sink in entirely, but now that it had, it felt amazing. Even through all the soreness, Lev felt the tingly sensation of pride and accomplishment that came with the win.

A little while later, Sora picked himself up and strolled over to Sylvia. His arms and legs were covered in wraps, and he wore a large bandage on his head. Despite that, he smiled as he addressed SLVR's leader. Behind him, his team watched on, past the point of trying to stop him from being friendly to their past opponents. "Well, I hope we made it fun for ya." He began with a chuckle. "I didn't catch your name before the match started, though. Let me reintroduce myself; I'm Sora, SPHR's leader. I really enjoyed our battle." Despite holding his own against a duo of SLVR's strongest, Sora really didn't seem bothered. The man simply had no off-switch, smile and all. Even his stance held strong in the midst of his injuries. At the very least, he seemed very well trained.
 
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Sylvia frowned as Lev started to lead her to her bed, about to argue against it. She just wanted to make sure everyone was good! Though, as Lev repeated himself, Sylvia could feel herself relax. Everything was fine. They had won. They had won. They had won! Sparks of pride and joy ran up and down Sylvia's spine. As Lev finished, Sylvia rolled her eyes and responded, "Yes, dad. Though after this I'm checking all of you guys' weapons!" Despite her defiant tone, Sylvia couldn't help but smile. This was far more than she expected. Her team was relatively healthy, they had won their first round, and they beat a freaking giant bird to boot. Overall, this was a pretty good start to the whole tournament. She couldn't wait to hear what SAGE thought of the match. Hopefully, it was good enough to impress her classmates.

After a few minutes of relaxing, Sylvia noticed Sora walking over to her. She straightened herself out, tilting her head as she watched the boy. She had to chuckle with him as he joked, reintroducing himself to the silverette. Adjusting herself, Sylvia replied, "I'm Sylvia, leader of SLVR. I really enjoyed our battle too. You all made it really interesting and challenging. Honestly, I wasn't sure my team was going to make it through at some points!" She laughed, a strange relief fueling the joke. Her team had made it. They were going on to the next round. She hadn't disappointed anyone. Running a hand through her damp hair, Sylvia looked up at her fellow leader. "You guys definitely made the match fun." Sylvia could feel her eyes drifting to the chest piece that held a full suit of armor in its depths. "Hey, kinda off topic, but do you think I could possibly ask some questions about your weapon and maybe take a look?" Just thinking about getting her hands on the weapon got Sylvia excited. She could practically imagine how the metal would feel under her hands, smoothed out and molded into a collection of pieces that folded up so nicely to hide the armor she saw Sora use.
 
"Sylvia, right!" Sora snapped his fingers before pointing at the rest of SLVR, "That must mean that you're Reyna, and I'm gonna guess that you," he bit on his lip before pointing to Lev, "are Lev, and you must be Vance. Man, what a crew! To be honest, I didn't think you'd make it either! I could've sworn we had a strat on lock...of course, miss Reyna, we didn't factor in someone with a noggin as hard as yours. You were amazing out there!" The pinkette fought the smile that rose to her face, but failed, so she simply turned her head and feigned shyness for the time being. Reese scoffed from behind her leader, but didn't interject, leaving him to continue his comment spree. "And geez Lev, for a sniper, you sure do move!"

"Uh, sharpshooter, actually." Lev interjected with a smirk. "Big difference."

"Ah, gotcha! Well regardless, I didn't expect anyone with a rifle that big to move that fast. Shame about the matchup though. I'll bet Haku would have appreciated meeting your blade on the battlefield. Isn't that right, Hakushi?" Sora shot a smile back towards his teammate, who was refitting her wig at the time. A blush warmed on her face at the attention, but a scowl replaced the soft pink of her skin once her eyes met Lev's. Sora didn't seem to notice as he turned around once more. "And dude! Vance! I was tied up a bit with Lev, but I saw those hooks! That's some wild strength. I don't even know if I wanna know what your semblance does if you fight that recklessly." The SPHR leader grinned, openly admitting to seeing something more to the wolf boy than he let on in battle. Sora would have left the conversation at that, but Sylvia's request to see his armor caught him off guard. Where Sora failed to respond, Hakushi immediately took up the slack, standing from her seat with a look of frustration on her face.

"Enough from you!" the she-samurai barked with a stony-smooth voice, "We have already lost, yet you would pester our leader further? Fie, be silent and let us accept your breach of our pride with honor. Or if you would set your eyes on a weapon, let it be the tip of my blade, for it has not dulled yet!" Hakushi growled, taking her sheathed blade from the side of her bed. Luckily, Sora stopped his teammate from releasing her steel, placing a hand on hers to halt her movements. She quickly turned another shade of pink and backed away, looking off to the side to avoid any gazes of judgement. Lev, meanwhile, had his own weapon at the ready and by Sylvia's side the moment he saw a threat. Seeing Sora's hand allowed him to ease off his protective mode, but he remained standing regardless, uncomfortable with how quickly things had escalated. Sora better provide an explanation...

"S-Sorry about that." Sora chuckled, giving a small bow to Sylvia. "...but I'm gonna have to decline your request for now. See, it's still a bit of a prototype. There are a lot of chinks that I still need to work out, and...well, it's just a bit of a mess, no thanks to you fellas." After making sure Hakushi was seated once more, Sora relaxed and gave some thought to what he wanted to say next. "...if you give me some time to hammer out the dents you guys put in it, I'd be happy to show it off again! But, uh, please don't touch. It's a passion project of mine, and I really can't afford any more setbacks to it." Sora nodded with finality, and was about to settle back down when he caught Hakushi's eyes, still glaring at Sylvia. With a sigh, the leader dragged his stoic teammate from her seat and walked back to SLVR. With an arm hung around her shoulders, Sora began to speak once again, still smiling all the while. "Uh, so this is Hakushi! Seems she's having a hard time adjusting to Vale-"

"Cease at once! You embarrass me, Sora... I do not wish to socialize as you do..." Hakushi retaliated, still trying to hide away the pink in her face.

"Aw, come on! We could use some friends across the way, wouldn't you think? Matter of fact-" Sora turned to the rest of his team with a sly grin. SPHR gave off groans in response, not wanting to move from their beds, but his smirk seemed to prompt them all up eventually. Seeing that she had no choice in the matter any longer, Hakushi shrugged away her leader's shoulder and stepped forth, trying, and failing, to remove the stern expression from her face.

"Very well, but do not blame me if we experiance...the...th-the 'drama.'" Hakushi shuddered as she referenced something she didn't seem to have a very solid grasp of to begin with, then turned to SLVR, arms folded tight. "I am Hakushi Hiro! My blade is dedicated to SPHR and its leader. It is...nice to meet you...I suppose..." She bit back what would have been a more violent introduction for Sora's sake before backing up. Before the rest of SPHR could step up though, Lev took a step of his own.

"Let's take turns. My name's Lev. A sharpshooter."

Hiro's eyes imediately flew open, and forward she stepped again. "Your tone! You would disrespect our leader?" As soon as her hand could reach for the hilt of her blade, Sora caught it once more. He no longer smiled as he looked at his overreacting team member, causing her to take a deep, involuntary breath.

"Friends, Haku. We are here to make friends, not enemies... Lev, sorry about that. Please continue."

Lev paused, internally glad to see Sora establish real control over such a hot-blooded member. "N-No, it's fine, I shouldn't have been so snarky. Anyways, yeah, I'm a sharpshooter: The long-distance of the team. Nice to, eh, meet you all."

"The pleasure is mine, mister Lev," Reese grinned as she sauntered up, dusting away her dress before taking his hand in her own. "Quite the handsome fellow, aren't you? Lacking in style, but no shortage of workmanship. My name is Reese. Reese Andi. Perhaps you've heard of me?" The White Raven didn't let go of the ravenette's hand as she introduced herself, keeping her eyes locked on his with an oddly peaceful smile. Lev could only stutter at the unusual amount of attention along with the really, really off-putting honesty of the girl in front of him, but at hearing her name, Reyna's mouth was agape in awe.

"THE Reese Andi! Famous fashion icon of Atlas? The White Raven? You're at the height of all Faunus couture! Even my mom admires your work! You looked gorgeous in last Spring's album! Ohmygosh, I can't believe I'm meeting Reese Andi! I didn't even recognize you out there! Gosh, I have so many questions!"

"Save them, and tell me your name." Reese halted Reyna's progress with a similar smile, moving reluctantly from Lev to the pinkette. "It's always a pleasure to meet a fan, especially one with such superb taste. You must tell me who your mother is! Raleigh sounds familiar to me..."

"O-Oh, right!" Reyna responded with a bob of her head, incredibly eager despite being worn out from the fight. "My name is Reyna, and my mom's name is Marie! Oh, she loves browsing your work, she-"

"Hold it hold it hold it, you said faunus couture, right?" Lev interjected, causing Reese to immediately give up her spot with Reyna in order to grasp Lev's hand again. The immediate shift in her focus intimidated him, but Lev proceeded none-the-less. "...if you don't mind my asking, what kind are ya?" He bit his lip, unsure if his question was offensive, but Reese's laughter quickly put him at ease.

"Darling, it's all in the name! I am the White Raven of Atlas, after all...what? Still nothing? Oh posh, I'm a dove, dear. The dovliest sort, too." She chuckled at her play on words, and Lev couldn't hide his own entertainment at the girl's overt personality, so he chuckled along with her.

"Well, that's nice to know. I'll assume you've got feathers hiding under that dress of yours and leave it at that." Lev smirked before backing away and settling back down on his bed. A good thing too, because it was plain as day by the expression on her face that Reese was about to respond with, Would you like to see them? Instead, she turned back to Reyna with a hand on her hip and a fashionable grin, nodding her head to encourage the pinkette to continue.

"R-Right...uh, where was I? Oh, right! Reyna Raleigh, at your service! I'm pretty strong, if you couldn't tell!"

Reese humphed and brushed off the shoulder of her dress again. "Oh believe me, I am well aware. I hope you wash your weapon well...and speaking of washing!" Reese turned to Sylva with a much more threatening smile, "You're lucky I wasn't wearing a custom piece, or you'd be paying dry-cleaning expenses out your ears! I swear, nobody respects clean footwear these days." Reese finished her rant with a dramatic sigh, moving back to her seat as the last member of SPHR took his stand. The scar-faced coyote boy was struggling with keeping his tail still, but he eventually gave up.

"Th' name's Penn! Yer all real fun to fight! We should fight again soon!" Penn's voice was gruff and scratchy, and shot out of him like gunfire. Sora had to put a hand on his shoulder to get him to quiet down some. "Uh...sorry. I'm just psyched. Nobody really tries to hit me anymore because I'm always on Reese's back. But you! Sylvia! I like you! You've got spunk! I nearly bit you!"

"Oookayy! That's enough, Penn!" Sora laughed, tugging the enthusiastic faunus back to his seat before taking his own, waiting to either hear Vance introduce himself, or hear SLVR's reaction to his strange bunch as a whole. Either way, Sora seemed happy with everyone's introductions, strange as the interactions might have been.
 
Sylvia could tell she was going to get along just fine with Sora. Hearing him praise her team made her puff her chest out, the silverette smiling as someone else realized just how amazing the rest of SLVR was. However, once she made her request, she could feel the mood of the room shift. Suddenly Hakushi was getting ready to fight, defending her leader against whatever Sylvia said to slight him. Sylvia felt Lev move to her side, weapon at the ready. She threw her hand out in front of him, hoping to keep him at bay as Sora figured things out with his teammate. It only took a few moments, which Sylvia was grateful for. Sora quickly returned to respond to her request. Sylvia couldn't help the stab of disappointment at not being able to get her hands on Sora's weapon, but she understood his reasonings and reservations. "It's all right, I completely understand. Heck, I'd probably feel similarly if I was still hammering out kinks in these babies." The silverette smiled and knocked on her boots, enjoying the metallic ring they gave off as she continued. "I'm a bit of a weapons nerd so I got a little too excited when I saw what you had. I'd love to see what you've got once you've ironed out all the dents. I promise not to touch anything!" She held her hands up, hoping to show just how sincere she was before settling back. It seemed things would be going back to just sitting around quietly when Sora urged his team to introduce themselves.

Begrudgingly, SPHR got up to give their introductions. Sylvia couldn't help but chuckle as Hakushi warned of possible 'drama'. However, as the samurai's introduction went through, Sylvia found herself connecting some dots. Ah, so it seemed Hakushi had a bit of a thing for Sora. Were they dating? Probably. There was no way someone could be so dense as to not see how hard the teammate was pining for her leader. Either way, Sylvia filed the info away for later, content to see the rest of the introductions through.

The romance didn't stop at Hakushi. Reese seemed to have taken to Lev, openly flirting with him as she introduced herself. Sylvia raised an eyebrow as Reyna identified Reese as a famous fashion icon. The silverette wasn't sure what to do with this information. Sure, the dove girl seemed a lot more made up and fashion savy than most of the other hunters and huntresses in training, but she must be like everyone else, should she? Sylvia didn't have much more time to ponder as Reese rounded on her, threatening her over her 'unclean' footwear. Sylvia could only shrug and smile sheepishly. "I'm sorry, but I don't think I'll ever be able to keep my boots clean for too long. They're kinda my weapons, you know?" She leaned back, half tempted to tease Reese by showing off her blades and noting that she should have used those while she was fighting on top of her.

Penn rounded on Sylvia before she could try to tease Reese. The silverette blinked, unsure what to do with the information the coyote boy had just dumped on her. Chuckling awkwardly, Sylvia fidgeted on her bed as she tried to respond. "Ah, well you might have to wait a while on that fight. Besides! You might like fighting Vance a bit better than me. He definitely is more willing to grapple and throw a mean hook." The silverette looked over at Vance, hoping the wolf boy used it as a segway to introduce himself.

Vance had taken the time while SPHR and SLVR introduced themselves to try and rest up just a bit. He was tired and just wanted his boyfriend for pete's sake. However, once the turns got to him, he perked up a bit. Smiling, the wolf boy gave an energetic wave. "Hi! My name's Vance and I like to punch things!" Once he got that out of the way, Vance deflated once more and turned to Sylvia with a slight pout. "Sylvia, when do you think we're going to see SAGE again? I wanna go cuddle with Gabe!" The wolf boy knew he was whining a bit, but he had just finished an insane fight without being allowed to use his semblance! He definitely deserved some cuddles for that!

Sylvia chuckled, patting Vance's head. "Soon, Vance. For now, let's get to know our new friends a little more and relax? After that we can meet up with SAGE and start discussing what to do for next round." The wolf boy seemed somewhat satisfied with that answer, flopping back down on his bed to try and rest his weary muscles. "Oh, by the way, Hakushi, where did you get all your piercings done? And how many do you have? I'm kinda jealous. I'd love to be able to get that many piercings some day."
 
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With all the introductions out of the way, Sora gave a sigh of contentment. "It's great to meet you all." With that, he resigned himself to relaxing, letting the medical team's help sink in as much as he could. Reese and Penn, too, were all eager to rest their weary muscles. Hakushi was about to do the same when Sylvia asked her question. In response, at least at first, she looked at the silverette with a new expression; one filled with frustration, but the kind that held more regret than anger. Sora, too, raised his head up and looked at his teammate.

"Sora... I will shower now." Hakushi chose to ignore Sylvia, removing her wig as she asked her question.

"Oh, uh, sure. Do you want me to-"

"No. No, I will be fine. I just need some privacy..." Hakushi was quick to dissuade her leader from, for some reason, following her, taking a deep breath as if to bite back tears.

"Ah, then would you like Reese to-"

"Please...just privacy." The second plea was accompanied by tears, but before they could reach the bridge of her nose, Hakushi quietly turned away and made her way to the bathroom. Sora could only sigh and shake his head, smile bending to a more concerned expression before looking up at Sylvia.

"Hey, uh...look, you don't know, and I get that, but please don't bring up piercings around Haku." Sora spoke to SLVR as a whole. "She's not the biggest fan of hers. They bring up some...well, I think I should let her be the one to say. It's not my story to tell. That said, Sylvia, please make sure to apologize? I-I know you didn't do anything wrong, but Haku would appreciate it, and...and she just doesn't have many friends. Please?" Sora scratched his chin uneasily, hoping that Sylvia would have a bit of mercy on his unorthodox request. A little while later, Haku returned. She seemed more at ease, but was otherwise just as stoic, leaving the entire room in a palpable silence.
 
The reaction took Sylvia off guard. She hadn't thought something so simple would throw Hakushi off so much, but it seemed piercings were quite the sore subject. Gnawing at her lip, Sylvia observed the interaction carefully as the girl went off to get some alone time. While she didn't get a clear answer, Sylvia appreciated at least being told that she had done something to upset the other girl. Nodding at Sora's request, Sylvia started, "No, no of course. I honestly didn't mean to talk about something she's not comfortable with. I'll make sure to apologize as soon as she gets back." With that settled, Sylvia just had to wait. It didn't take long, but Hakushi was back and looking at least a bit more comfortable. Taking a deep breath, Sylvia dived right in, "Hey, Hakushi, I'm so sorry for asking about something you obviously weren't comfortable with. I didn't know and hope you can forgive me for being ignorant like that. I'll make sure not to bring it up again." She bowed her head, hoping to at least have her apology acknowledged.
 
Haku's stiff-faced facade melted away at Sylvia's apology, and she raised a hand to halt her. Sora couldn't help but smile at the interaction, knowing exactly what made his teammate tick.

"P-Please, do not apologize. You were not in the wrong... I...I should ask for your forgiveness, in truth. I have not been kind; I dishonor myself further still." Before speaking on, Hakushi turned to Sora and whispered a quick, "...may I?"

"It's your call." the leader responded with a nod. With that, Hakushi gave a small smile, and stood up, this time without a wig to cover the rest of her pierced face.

"My name is Hakushi Hiro! Solitary son, and only heir to the Hiro shogunate!" she reintroduced herself with gusto, but quickly deflated with a frown of remorse. "...at least, that is what I am supposed to say...but I am the son to no one anymore, and heir to no fiefdom. On the 16th year of my birth, I received these rings and rocks...rather, had them forced upon me, as a sign that I had come of age...a sign that I was a man, and that no pain would alter my face, or shake the honor I was bound to as liege to my family name. B-But I am not a man! I do not feel that call, nor do I heed its phantom visage over my birth...but my family would never understand." Hakushi drew a hand up to her face, brushing across each piercing. "These are the curses I must bare for bringing my family shame! I ran from my home with a promise to bring them honor with my blade as the last son! ...but rather than a symbol of strength, these mementos simply mark me a coward."

"Haku, you don't need to-" Sora begun to say, attempting to ease the samurai's grief, but was quickly cut off.

"Leave me speak! I would relieve myself of such a troublesome tale as many times as I must, if only to belay the suffering a moment longer." Once Sora was suppressed, Hakushi continued, tears beginning to show again. "I was born with all I should have wanted, but the only thing my father ever gave that I truly received is my skill with the blade...I discarded the rest, and paid homage to Atlas, a city that could give me what I...what I needed. But my wealth left me when I left my past, and I was turned away as street filth... Sora found me in an alleyway not a day past, and took me to his home away from the city. We were raised as siblings ever since... I owe him my life, forfeit as it-"

"That's enough, Haku!" Sora, for the first time, raised his voice, standing along with his elevated volume. "...that's enough. I think we're all ready to move out." Sora stretched himself out before looking over SLVR, smile slowly returning. "Hey, since you guys won, how about we go out for dinner? My treat, wherever ya like."

"He mean's my treat, but the offer still stands." Reese chimed in with a grin.

Lev was still reeling with Hakushi's tale, empathizing with her despite the difference in circumstances, but he spoke up anyways, if only to get rid of the weight in his chest. "We'd love to, but we need to meet up with some friends."

"Hah! Bring them along too! I'm always an advocate of feeding the masses, after all." Reese stood with pride, despite failing to see that she implied that SLVR and SAGE were "masses" to be "fed." Sora had to quickly correct her with a chuckle.

"Seriously, bring them along. We'll take company as long as we can get it."
 
The room fell silent as Hakushi started her story, explaining why the piercings were a touchy subject and how she had managed to get to where she was. Sylvia could only rub her stumps as Hakushi lamented the reminders the piercings held. She knew far too well how it felt to have something permanently remind you of your failures. She stayed quiet until the end of the tale, still somewhat reeling as she tried to sort out everything Hakushi had told them. Beside her, Vance looked a bit confused. He hesitated before turning to Sylvia and quietly asking, "So is Hakushi...?" He looked so afraid, not wishing to offend their new friends but also thoroughly confused by Hakushi's vocabulary and style of speech.

"Hakushi's a girl and her piercings remind her of her family and when they thought she was a boy. Her family doesn't accept her so she ran away. The piercings are a bit of a sore spot for her." Sylvia explained softly, watching as the wolf boy's eyes widened before nodding. The two didn't get much time to ask questions or even thank Hakushi for telling her story as Sora invited SLVR out for food. Sylvia could see just how tired all of SLVR was, and noted how Lev tried to get them out of it to no avail. Sighing, the silverette stood and responded to Sora's invite, "We'll have to ask our friends, and we have some team stuff to go over, so we'll see what they say and go from there." It was hard to deny free food, but Sylvia knew that their beds back in their dorm were sounding extremely tempting at the moment.

Once the teams started to head out, Sylvia managed to catch Hakushi and started to speak, "Hey, thanks for telling us all that. It took a lot of trust and I know it means a lot to my team." She fidgeted with her hands, unsure how the girl would take her next statement. "Um, I know I said I'd avoid the topic and all, but I just wanted to say my uncle works with piercings and if you ever wanna get yours checked out to make sure they aren't infected or anything like that then I'd be happy to show you his shop. He's really good with that kinda stuff and can show you how to properly take care of them and things like that." The silverette left out how her uncle could possibly remove the piercings for the girl next to her, not wanting to offend her after she had just gone through all the trouble of telling them her story.
 
"Ah, I gotcha! We'll catch you later today, then. We'll probably be hovering around the fairgrounds, so I'm sure we'll see each other again." Sora smiled, ignoring the tired groans of his team as they picked themselves up. Then everyone showered and left the comfort of the arena's medical bay, all but Sora plodding along in a desperate crawl to a real bed.

Upon seeing Sylvia approach, Hakushi took a breath and smiled warmly, finally coming to terms with a potential friend. At her thanks, along with her offer, the samurai girl hummed at the prospect for a moment. "I should thank you. I-In truth, I assumed that you and your team simply saw through me on the battlefield. I was quick to judge that you had judged me, so I...I owed you that trust. Again, I apologize. As for your offer, I am afraid I cannot offer compensation. If you say this will not be a problem, then, if we find the time, I would gladly accompany you. As careful as I am with these shackles, I know they lack the touch of one who sees their worth." Haku's expression darkened for a moment, but she quickly shook her head with a sigh. "Your friendship means much to me, Sylvia. Thank you again...oh, and do not worry about heeding Sora and his invitation. We are all tired. I will see that he understands this. Though, perhaps we could see each other on the morrow? If we would not be a burden, we would be honored with the company of your team." Hakushi gave a glance over at Reese and, in stark contrast to how she had been at the beginning of it all, gave a soft and humored giggle. "I know Reese would very much enjoy your raven-haired companion at her side as she spectates future matches. Even if he denies her, I wish him luck." With another giggle, Haku pressed on, eager to get to bed.

Before the two teams hit the docks, Hakushi took Sora aside and whispered something in his ear. With a nod of his head, he turned to SLVR and gave a wave goodbye before splitting off to find his own transport. Afterwards, it took little time for SLVR to find SAGE, who were waiting by a transport of their own for their sister-team. Before words could be exchanged, Seymour sensed the exhaustion in SLVR, and instructed his team to assist them onto the ship. Once they were all squared away, the chatter began.

"Sylvia, you delivered! It was certainly the most entertaining match of the evening. If only you could have heard our cheers." Seymour chuckled as he sat next to the silverette, his hand holding hers excitedly. "I never believed I would see another transformation semblance in my life after leaving Mistral, so it was a real treat to watch. And what planning! Your moves were so efficient, Sylvia. They had the showier semblances, but you had the wit to counter them! Tell me, Sylvia," Seymour's eyes were wide and glistening over his excitement, and his gaze quickly closed in on the silverette's as he made his request, "...how do you feel?"

Meanwhile, Reyna was dealing with Ellie on one side, and Abby leaning over her seat, both on a non-stop talking spree about how awesome and amazing she was when knocking Reese down, and how crazy the explosion in the mines was. Reyna may have been tired, and the explosion in the mines may have been accidental in the end, but she couldn't help but give an embarrassed beam at SAGE's praise. Lev, despite feeling inferior in the grand scheme of things, was happy the attention wasn't on him for once, using the ride back to Beacon to get some extra rest in.

Gabe and Vance were in their own little world, on the other hand, settled into each other as boyfriends would be. "...You held back, Vance." Gabe sighed, cuddling closer to the wolf faunus as he spoke. "You could have floored a girl like that, but you didn't. What's the matter, Vance? Getting tired of little ol' me? And here I thought I'd be your one and only, but you go off and take it easy on a girl like that..." the panther teased on, interspacing his verbal jabs with little pecks. "I'll just have to convince you tomorrow that I'm the only choice you've got, hmm? Then you can stop holding back, and really give your family something to watch."
 
Listening to Hakushi, Sylvia could feel her previous nervousness fall away. She smiled at the other girl, glad that the offer hadn't offended her. "No, no compensation needed. Uncle Rel's all about health first, pay later. He'd totally be willing to look at them for you for free." Hakushi's thanks brightened up Sylvia's smile, the silverette practically feeling happy butterflies at the thought of having a new friend. Listening to the girl's proposals, Sylvia could only nod vigorously. "Yeah, we'd love to see you guys tomorrow! We can even introduce you guys to our other friends! Though, I think Reese is gonna have a little competition. He's already got a girl who has her eyes on him." She winked, chuckling with her new friend before they split off.

As SAGE escorted them onto the ship, Sylvia couldn't help but feel grateful that this was the end of the day. She practically sunk into her seat, glad to finally be heading back to their room and back to her work bench. She blinked as Seymour started his praises, the vivaciousness bringing a tired smile to Sylvia's face. "I'm glad we could entertain you guys." She quieted down, ready to just listen when Seymour asked her how she felt, staring at Sylvia with bright eyes. The silverette squirmed a bit over the attention, but settled back down as she tried to think over the answer. "... tired, I guess? I mean, I'm still a little shocked that we won at all. I thought we were vastly unprepared and practically had to make up a new plan on the spot. It's still kinda sinking in that SLVR did it. Though, now I'm starting to feel nervous about the next rounds and how we'll do. I mean, just because we won the first round doesn't mean we'll advance farther. I mean, I'm proud of my team and they've all made leaps and bounds, but we're not just facing against grimm. I mean, at the very least I have a vague idea of who I want to go through, but I still need to talk to my team about that. It'll have to wait until after we all get a nice nap in. I guess, over all I kinda just feel proud." Looking over at Seymour, the silverette gave an embarrassed smile. "Ah, sorry if that wasn't really what you were looking for."

Vance had practically draped himself over Gabe once they were in range, ears drooping as he tried to just quietly cuddle for once. Instead, Gabe had to pick up on the fact that Vance hadn't used his semblance. While the kisses were nice, they didn't really ease the jabbing words and the bout of panic it started to stir in Vance. The wolf boy pouted, nuzzling himself closer and holding Gabe tighter whenever the panther boy suggested that Vance didn't care about him anymore. "No," He whined, almost trying desperately to convince Gabe otherwise with the word alone. "I couldn't use my semblance cause Sylvia said I should cause it needed to be a 'boon' or something! I'm not tired of you! I'd never get tired of you! I like you!" Vance's ears dropped until they were hiding, his eyes shining as tears started to crop up. Vance quickly tried to rub them away. Gabe was teasing, he told himself. This was all just a joke. He shouldn't be taking it so seriously. He knew Gabe would never truly feel that way. It didn't help the small bit of panic that was telling him otherwise.
 
"Good." Seymour gave his simple reply, pressing his horns against Sylvia's droopy head with a smile. "You're doing good." And with that, the gazelle faunus raised his horns and gazed out the window of the transport, giving the tired silverette a break from his praise so she could relax. Abby and Ellie seemed to have backed off too, as Reyna had fallen asleep in the middle of their hectic praise. That only left Gabe and Vance.

At his boyfriend's whines and protests, Gabe's smile grew catty, like he'd gotten an answer. "You don't have to explain anything." The panther boy chuckled, stroking his hands down Vance's hair and giving him a patient scratch behind his ear. "After all, I said I'd do the convincing, didn't I? So keep an eye out for me in the next round, 'kay?" Once finished, Gabe settled back in his seat, continuing to play with the wolf boy's hair until landing.

It felt like ages before SLVR got back to their dorm, especially since Reyna had to be woken up. By the time they reached the room, everyone felt the full brunt of their fight, emotions and all. Reyna, of course, was the first one down, snoozing on her bed like she was born there. Lev initially looked to be next down, but in catching Sylvia in his sights, his brows narrowed.

"You. Bed. Now." The ravenette demanded, pointing to Sylvia's mattress with a huff. As soon as her mouth opened, Lev cut his leader off. "You're going to bed before me, no buts. You'll need your rest for the second round. You too, Vance." Lev figured the wolf boy was already down and out by then, but figured he'd make sure the situation was clear. After their performance together against Sora, there was no way Lev would let one on the field without the other. So he waited, arms crossed, prepared to deal with any argument Sylvia made right then, right there.
 
Sylvia was glad the rest of the ride went quietly. As Seymour looked out of the window, she leaned on him and rested. While she gave herself time to just be, her mind was whirring trying to come up with the best combo for the next round. She already knew who she would send to the third round. Now she just needed to find a partner to go with him. Her thoughts wandered as she just waited out the ride. Vance, on the other hand, could feel his mind slow to a stop as Gabe reassured him. The wolf boy smiled as he nuzzled into his smaller boyfriend, using his body heat to help lull him into a nap. The ride seemed to take a while, and Vance had to be woken up along with Reyna, but the teams got to their rooms. Immediately, Vance flopped on his bed, not even bothering to take off his shoes before he was conked out.

Being the leader and anxious to make sure everything was in order before she slept, Sylvia took off Vance's shoes for him and started to gather everyone's weapons when Lev caught his sights on her. The silverette froze, about to argue that she was just going to do a quick check up and would be asleep before he knew it, but Lev beat her to it. Frowning at his reasoning, Sylvia sat down in her chair to take her legs and bra off. Throwing her bra off to the side to be picked up later, Sylvia started to respond. "I have a few issues with that, but we're going to discuss the second round after we take a nap." Now sufficiently comfortable to at least nap properly, Sylvia gently laid her prosthetics on her desk before handwalking over to her bed and flipping onto it. She shuffled into the middle, pulling her blanket around her like a cocoon. "Oh, and Lev?" The silverette started, "I'm proud of you. You did amazing in that fight today." With one last encouraging smile, Sylvia laid down and fell asleep.

The nap did SLVR a ton of good as once they awoke Sylvia and Vance looked much refreshed. Immediately, the silverette got started on checking over everyone's weapons for dents, scratches, and other problems. Vance simply sat on his bed, chattering with Reyna about how cool the fight was and how they were the best and totally had it from the start. Once Sylvia finished her weapon check up, she turned to her team and called their attention. "All right, first thing's first, I'm really proud of you guys. You all went in there and showed your stuff. I'm amazed at seeing how much you all have grown in such little time." Pausing to let the info sink in, Sylvia dropped her proud smile for a serious gaze. "Now, because we won we need to discuss who we're sending into the second round. I know I want Vance to go. He's got the biggest punch out of all of us with his semblance. Since we're only first year students, we need all the advantages we could get. I was struggling on who to send with him, but I feel Lev is the best choice since he covers Vance's weak points in long range and tactics." The silverette sat back, waiting for her team to discuss.

At first, the praise simply caused Vance to beam. However, Sylvia's next order of business had his ears perked and alert. He waited impatiently for her to announce the duo, blinking as he was chosen as her surefire go through. Hearing Lev be his partner though made the wolf boy look over to his teammate. What did Lev think about this? Surely, he'd be fired up and ready to get going into the next round of the tournament. After all, Sylvia said he was the best choice to go with him, right?
 
Lev remained standing, arms still crossed, as Sylvia readied herself for bed. A bright pink rose to his cheeks seeing her fling away her bra so casually, but his face remained unchanged; living with her this long taught him to deal with that much. However, at her last words before falling asleep, the pink drained from his face, and his expression clouded over. He kept a close watch on his team for a moment longer before turning to his own bed, muttering a quiet "thanks for noticing," before falling asleep himself.

The next morning was met with cheers and smiles as everyone shod their exhaustion and embraced their first victory in full. Lev was still mulling over the night before, but even he found it in himself to enjoy the moment with his team. Sylvia's little cheer was like the cherry on top of that morning's jovialities, but then her face shifted, and so did Lev's. She was awake now; sharp and stubborn. The ravenette could see what was coming next, but without the silverette being too tired to argue, this would become a much more difficult task.

"I'm not the best choice." Lev stated bluntly, earning a genuine gasp from Reyna. He ignored the surprised pinkette and continued. "Vance and I may have sparred plenty, but we've never fought a full match together in our training, or at least, not one where we're both going all out. We aren't as fine-tuned as a pair; I don't know what he can do, and he doesn't know what I can do."

"Well with that mindset, I'd be best for the job, right?" Reyna pointed out, sucking in her cheek in thought. "But I can't cover Vance nearly as well as you, and he can't do the same for me, either."

"You're right. That's why Sylvia should go." Once again, especially now that he was well-rested, Lev gave no room for interjection. "Think of it this way: Reyna, you know you can't handle everything that Vance might need on the field. Your weapon is made for heavy hits, and that's Vance's job this time around. That, and you aren't coordinated enough to keep pace with him. You've been too focused on your firepower."

"Yeah, I guess that's...wait, hey! I am not uncoordina-"

"I, on the other hand, can overtake Vance pretty easily, given it's my specialty. But if I end up too far ahead, or lag too far behind, I'll get picked off just like yesterday." Lev's lips tightened. He knew he sounded like he was throwing Sylvia's complement the night before onto the curb, but he couldn't help that it was true. "I'm still spending too much time thinking in-match. Sora pegged me down rather than the other way around, and I ended up dropping early because of it. It'll be even easier for that to happen in 2 on 2 since we have a whole field for half the players. I can't hold my own if I get pinned down. All I can do is...is stall for time."

With that, Lev turned strictly to Sylvia, letting out an exhale. "...I pick this stuff up because of how my head works, Syv. I'm the tactician here. You are the battlefield mind out of us. In the moment, you can handle the pressure, and you can hold your own while you're at it. And don't pretend like we didn't see you take down Mr. Super-Soldier-Sora alongside Vance. You have complementary fighting styles. If you hunted back to back, I don't know what could stop you. So...you're wrong, Syv."

Lev stood back, chewing on his lip as he thought through his words. He had spent a good bit of the night tossing and turning to make it sound just right, thought through every contingency, fought against every loophole...and he still couldn't find a reason that he should be in the ring along with either of them. "If you're really gonna be desperate about this, we can put it to a vote, right here, right now. You can even drag SAGE in, if ya like." He winked, finding his humor again in the midst of all the seriousness.
 
Vance could only gasp along with Reyna as Lev rejected his role. How could the other boy just straight up disregard what Sylvia had suggested? As he listened, the wolf boy could only gnaw at his lip before looking over at his leader. Lev was making very valid points. He really didn't know what Lev could truly do. In fact, Lev was probably the person he knew least on his team. Frowning, Vance vowed to get to know Lev better after this whole tournament was over. After all, they had been no home buddies! He couldn't just abandon him since his family had accepted him back into their folds. Looking over at Sylvia, he waited for her verdict on who he would be partnered with.

As Lev made his arguments, Sylvia listened carefully. She had to admit, he made some good points. If one looked at it logically, especially from the last battle, then sending in Vance and herself seemed the obvious choice. They had lasted the longest. Sylvia had the battlefield strategy while Vance had the firepower. They knew each other almost as well as Vance knew Reyna when fighting-a happy side effect of Sylvia trying to help each of her teammates train personally. Really, all of Lev's points were screaming for Sylvia to fight alongside Vance. Logically, she should defer to him. Logically, she would acknowledge her own strength and put herself into the ring for the second round. But logic didn't help the pit in her stomach of guilt over thinking herself so proud that she'd put herself into the next round. Logic didn't quiet the voice that told her she wasn't one of the strongest on her team. Logic certainly didn't apply to the thoughts and feelings running through her mind. So, Sylvia tried to think of the quickest way out of this.

Running a hand through her hair, Sylvia put her thoughts together. "You have some good points, Lev, however I can't cover Vance from a long distance standpoint. And while our fighting styles may work well, they're also pretty similar so it's hard to surprise or even vary our strategy enough for our opponents. No matter who we send in with Vance there's going to be draw backs. Yes, you pointed out a lot of things we need to work on-and we will be working on them after this tournament." She paused, gathering her thoughts as she pressed on. "I'd argue more, but we don't have that much time until we need to get going to the arena. So, yes, I'm going to be that desperate and put things to a vote. If we can't come to a majority rule after it then we'll bring in SAGE if we have to." Straightening in her seat, Sylvia started. "All right, all for me going in with Vance for the tournament." She watched her team, a feeling of dread starting to sit low in her stomach.

Vance looked between Lev and Reyna, unsure what they were thinking of this whole thing. Sylvia was their leader... but Lev made so many good arguments. If Sylvia fought with Vance like she had yesterday then they were almost guaranteed a win. As much as he liked Lev, he had to admit their chances were best pinned on Sylvia. So, he hesitantly raised his hand, looking to his teammates for their support.
 
On the surface, Lev thought his little jab about a vote wouldn't be necessary. Sylvia could see what he was saying, that much he knew. He hadn't tutored her for nothing, after all. Yet deep down, the ravenette kicked himself in the shins for being so unprepared for her denial. His smile fell as she demanded a vote, and he sat on his bed with a look of bewilderment. Reyna already had her hand up in the meantime, sucking on her cheek as she waited for Lev to raise his. It wasn't that she didn't trust Sylvia's judgement, but the silverette had simply proven to be more reliable. If they wanted to win, this was the way.

Lev had to grit his teeth to keep from making a scene. How she could simply stand in front of him and...and... "You don't need to cover Vance from a distance." the ravenette huffed, standing up with his hand raised. Once the vote was counted, Lev shook his head and gave Sylvia a nudge to the shoulder. He tried his best to smile, but his partner's stubbornness had already worn him down, even if he won the battle between them. Instead of saying something to lighten the mood, the option he usually deferred to when he couldn't force a smile, Lev let his hand drop, and he walked out the door, making his way to the transport ships. Sylvia's fate had been sealed, but it had been through the most backhanded method up Lev's sleeve. He already felt sick knowing that all the info in his head wasn't enough to sway his partner in the slightest.

Reyna stood for a moment longer, hand still hesitantly in the air as Lev exited the room. Slowly, she lowered it and put a hand on her leader's shoulder. "Well, looks like that's that. Sorry, but facts are facts, y'know?" the pinkette gave a smile, though it was hard to keep up after Lev's sudden departure, which left a heavy silence in the room. She, too, opted to say less and do more, seeing Sylvia out of the room so she and Vance could get to the Arena at a good time.

At the transport docks, there was no Lev. Rather, there was SAGE and SPHR, all hovering around a larger vehicle in wait as the three remaining members of SLVR approached. While everyone seemed to be getting along alright, Abby and Reese looked ready to duke it out. Then they both caught sight of Sylvia, and both stomped towards her at an equal pace. Abby had to push the dove faunus out of the way to get the first word in.

"Hey! Where's Rabbit?" She huffed, arms crossed, and face lightly dusted with pink.

"Posh, he's built much more like a raven, dear." Reese chided the lioness, then turned back to Sylvia with a much sweeter expression. "Could you please tell me where he might have gone? I had hoped to have his company today..."

"He got an early lift to the colosseum, girls." Gabe sighed, sauntering past the girls to relax at Vance's side. His statement surprised them both, and without another word, they were clamoring onto the transport. Seymour laughed alongside Sora, then gave Sylvia a wave. Sora accompanied his wave with an "all aboard!" and soon everyone was all piled in. Despite the number of friendly faces, there wasn't much talking to be done. Everyone seemed tensed for the second round, even SPHR, who had come eager to cheer for their new friends.
 
As the vote was counted, Sylvia could feel the dread in her stomach turn into a lead weight. She was sure it was dragging her down with it as Lev nudged her shoulder, not really speaking as he simply left. Reyna held a much more "devil may care" attitude about it, simply going with what went down and ushering Sylvia and Vance out. The wolf boy practically bounded out of the door, excited to get the day started now that the issue had been resolved. Sylvia tried to accept her fate, giving one last polish to her legs before letting her pants cover them up and heading out. Off to the chopping block they went.

While the silverette had hoped to meet up with Lev on the transport and ride in peaceful silence, she didn't get that chance. Before she could even blink, she had Lev's two admirers staring her down as they demanded to know where Lev had gone. "Ah-I thought-I mean-Uh-I just-" She stuttered out, thankful for Gabe's save as she processed this information. Lev had already gone ahead? She chewed on her lip, worry for her teammate starting to compound with her sense of dread and nervousness. Did this have something to do with the vote earlier? Or was it his performance in the previous fight? Whatever it was, she couldn't ask him as she settled into the transport, her own feelings amplified by the tension of everyone else.

Vance lit up as Gabe walked over to his side, quickly wrapping himself around his boyfriend. As he took note of SPHR, he subconsciously wrapped himself a little more around his boyfriend and nuzzled his nose into Gabe's hair, almost as if he were marking the other boy as his own.

The ride to the arena was quiet, something Sylvia was extremely grateful for and hated at the same time. While it let her just sit, it also left her to her own worried and nerve wracking thoughts. As they reached the arena, Sylvia's first priority was finding Lev and making sure the boy was all right. Focusing on her worry for Lev allowed her to ignore her own apprehension about fighting in the second round. She tried not to think about what she'd be left with once she found Lev and figured out what was wrong.
 
Once everyone got off the transport, Sylvia seemed to dash off. Reyna shook her head before explaining a bit of the situation to the other teams. Once everyone was filled in on how Lev was being a dunce and worrying Sylvia, SPHR and SAGE found some seats, making sure to reserve SLVR's spot too. Reyna, thanked them all before heading out herself. First she'd hit the concession stand, then she'd help Sylvia with her search. Of course, she just happened to kill two birds with one stone.

"Hey! Hey Lev!" The pinkette called out, taking Lev's shoulder and tugging him out of the concession line with a frown. "What do you think you're doing? Sylvia's got enough on her plate now that you forced her into this mess. You know she gets stressed when any of us are out of line."

"Hands off." Lev shrugged Reyna away. "I don't have a clue what's going on in her head anymore. I just want to get some snacks and watch this round. Maybe Sylvia doesn't need my help to make smart decisions, but I'd like to try and see something useful if she ever does."

Reyna looked hard at Lev for a moment, then poked him in the chest. "Are you saying you're grumpy because Sylvia didn't want to fight, even after all the junk you said? What's your deal?! You should just be happy she's going along with the vote!"

"It's not about that..."

"Bull, it's not about that! Just come back and-"

"I said it's not about that! Not just about that! Gods, Reyna, can you not just assume everything about me is wrong for once? Back in Signal I was a prodigy, and everyone said so. Now I'm here at Beacon, and I realize I've been pigeonholed into a niche that my own leader won't acknowledge! You know how fast I take notes, how good I am at reading situations from afar... I can handle this stuff, the logistics, but...listen, you just don't get it."

"...Lev..." Reyna began, taken aback at the rawness of her teammate's statement. Now that she thought about it, this was the first time since their first week that he had really snapped at her. "...I'm sorry. I've been on your tail since day one, and I keep forgetting to say it, so...so I'm sorry."

It was Lev's turn to be taken aback. "Th-That's it?" He cleared his throat and calmed down. From the expression he wore, it was clear that up until then he was ready for a shouting match. Now he was simply tired. "...I expected more from ya, Reyna."

"Dude, you can call me Rain. And believe me, I'll chew you out some other time. For now, just come back to the stands? Sylvia's still-"

"No, Rey....Rain. I'll pass. I just want some time to myself. Just tell her whatever she needs to hear. I'll find you guys before you head back to the campus."

Reyna stood with her arms crossed for a moment, but relaxed her stance with a shrug. "Fine, but you owe me."

"Done. Get in line; I'm buying."

-

Reyna arrived back at the seats with SAGE and SPHR, grinning wildly, as though she had just gotten away with murder. In truth, she might as well have: With the know-how her mother gifted her with as a child, she easily swindled Lev into buying enough food for twelve people, and then some. Once everything was passed out, the pinkette sat down with the last two servings of food, waiting for Sylvia to return. From the crowds starting to fill the stands, she'd probably start tiring of her search soon. Plus, by the big-screen displays, it looked like matches were about to be announced.
 
Despite her efforts, Sylvia couldn't find her raven haired teammate. No matter where she looked, she couldn't catch hide nor hair of him. As the countdown for the first match grew shorter, Sylvia finally left to take her seat with the rest of her team. She couldn't keep her mind off of Lev and trying to figure out what was going on with him. Was it something she said earlier? Was he frustrated with his abilities? Whatever was going on, Sylvia wanted to help. However, as she scanned the seats her team and friends occupied, Sylvia could feel her hopes of fixing this problem drop. Sighing, she maneuvered herself into one of the two open seats, running a hand through her hair as she tried to reassure herself that Lev was at least safe while waiting for the matches to start.
 
"S-Sylvia!" Reyna sat upright as her leader came back to her seat, offering her a few snacks with a smile. "Here, courtesy of our resident black-haired butthead. He wanted me to tell you that he wanted to be alone for a bit, but he'll make his way back to us when he's done...doing whatever he does." Reyna tried to keep the conversation light and casual. It probably wouldn't be such a simple matter for Sylvia to accept, but there wasn't much she could do to help that. At first, the pinkette was satisfied with where she left matters, but giving a hard look at Sylvia, she gnawed on her lip and spoke again. "...So give it your all out there. You know he's gonna be watching. I mean, we all will, but you know him. He's probably only interested in seeing you and Vance out there, tearing a new one for our team! ...He believes in you. I think that, even though he's gotten better about it, he doesn't believe in a lot of things, y'know? So...uh, yeah..." Reyna stumbled to find a clincher to wrap up her attempt at lifting her leader's spirits, but she seemed to run out of words, so she bit down on a hotdog to give herself a reason to shut up.

Seymour, as always, understood what Sylvia was feeling, so he kept Sora's focus while giving the silverette some privacy. Occasionally he'd give her a smile, or massage her hand to keep his own fingers busy, but otherwise, everyone was content to sit in anticipation of the day's announcements.

-

"It's Day 2, Dee!"

"Day 2 indeed, Dum! And it looks like we've got a full house! Yesterday's talent must have drummed up some new fans, wouldn't you say?"

"That it did, Dee! But let's not waste any time; here are the first fighters of Round 2!"

-

Once the announcers spoke, the colosseum was brought to life. Cheering doubled, roars from the crowd sounded like thunder, and the activity in the stands was off the charts. Then the first match was announced, AZUR versus a more novice team that had shown promise in the first round. Reyna immediately tensed up and clenched her teeth, squeezing the armrests of her chair to the point where they began to bend under her fingers. It wasn't hard to see why, too. AZUR sent in Azule and Uriah, and it was clear that Azule simply showed up as a formality. He wasn't even wielding his scythe, as though he viewed the round as a joke. Meanwhile, Uriah took presence at the center of the stage, positioned to take on both opponents.

When the buzzer sounded, Uriah held his hands out, weaponless, but confident. His two opponents lashed out in anger, knowing that they weren't being taken seriously, but that was their last mistake. At the base of Uriah's hands, two different-colored vortexes appeared. Where one opponent struck, the blow would go through one vortex and out the other, striking his teammate instead. It was like this that Uriah fought without breaking a sweat or taking a hit. He flung bullets back with ease, changed the trajectory of fists and blades, and eventually tired them out enough to pick up and toss off the edge of the field like one would take out trash. It may have taken longer than their first round, but it was still an unceremonious, unequivocal victory for Vale's strongest. Reyna looked pale as a sheet as she watched, evidently familiar with the whole song and dance that Uriah showed off.

A few more battles passed before the next friendly face was called to the field. SAGE was called up to verse a veteran team from Atlas. From Seymour's expression as he made his way down, anyone could tell that he was extremely confident. Sora, on the other hand, gave a hearty laugh, then turned to Sylvia.

"These guys are tough, sure, but I just got through gushing about them to Seymour. If the brackets weren't picked at random, I'd say the little guy just manipulated me!"

Gabe was slower, but eventually plucked himself from Vance's side and followed his leader, but not before whispering to his boyfriend, "Remember...watch me work. You won't go soft on any other guys and gals after this." With that, along with a teasing nip on Vance's ear, he walked away. Not long later, the panther and gazelle were on the field, weapons brandished. Gabe had his regular hook-swords, but Seymour was wielding a bo staff, unlike the tonfa he usually had when on campus.

Cameras gave an excellent view of the field for the massive display screens, which the nosebleed section appreciated. They even kept multi-angle viewpoints on specific fighters. Normally the crowd was too fixated on the whole field to really take these in, as was the case with the previous round, but when Gabe saw himself onscreen, his smile grew wide. It was a good thirty seconds before the round started, but without shame, the panther boy stripped away his shirt to reveal a ridiculously toned upper-body. From there, it was child's play to find the camera focused on him, lock eyes with the lens, stick out his tongue, and give a teasing wink.

The reaction was immediate. More than immediate. Reyna's nose was bleeding, and her cheeks were burning, but that was nothing in comparison to the thousands of shrieks and squeals of the ladies in the stands. Looking at individual faces made it very clear that Gabe turned the whole crowd red, and he kept it up until the match began, playing to the camera by stretching his arms, showing off his flexibility, and just being...well, being Gabe. Just as he was shameless to the crowd, plenty of the crowd were shameless right back, shouting sweet nothings down to the soundproof arena as if they'd have any effect. Of course, Seymour was losing his head with laughter at Gabe's side, and Sora's reaction in the stands was the exact same. Then the buzzer sounded, and both teams forgot about everything but the fight. Of course, even as he fought, Gabe found ways to show off his athleticism, using his blades to swing on the arms and legs of his opponents, harassing them as Seymour landed pinpoint strikes with jabs of his staff. As the fight drew on, Seymour garnered more attention through his effort and strength. He may have been small, but his staff was deadly accurate, pegging people by their throats, joints, and pressure points the second they let down their guard. With Gabe on the ball, it wasn't hard to find opportunities to strike. Their dance looked like two separate parts of a snake, with Seymour as the ever-watchful head, and Gabe as the ever-mobile body. By the end of the match, everyone was on their feet for the sake of the fight more than the sake of the flirt. SAGE was declared the victor, and that seemed to be the end of things...

But the panther wasn't done yet. Turning to Seymour, he gave a nod. Seymour responded by giving his staff a toss up to where Vance sat. Just as it made contact with the barrier separating the arena from the stands, Gabe teleported onto its base, and from there, teleported straight to his boyfriend. Of course the field cameras followed his every move, so when he stopped in front of the wolf faunus, a deep, awestruck silence fell over the whole colosseum. Gabe may have been sweaty, tired, and shirtless, but he didn't hesitate as he picked Vance up by his collar and pulled him into a deep kiss. The cameras had to cut halfway into the show of affection, but Gabe didn't seem to mind. The commentators tried to play it off with a straight face, but after taking a look at how red their faces were, they simply laughed about it before moving on to the next combatants. Gabe held the kiss for a little while longer, then sat his boyfriend down with a sly grin, saying nothing as he began the trek back down to the recuperation room. Seymour had already recovered their weapons from the field, making it that much clearer that the panther had plotted the whole thing out. And it was a good thing, too, because every girl and guy that had showed interest in the panther's teasing immediately backed down. Some tried to reason with their friends that it was just something he had done on a whim, but none of their arguments felt convincing. It was hard to deny that every bit of it had been directed at Vance, and Vance alone.

Seymour was still trying to stifle his laughter when he returned to the stands, and at seeing Sora, they both couldn't hold back any longer, and enjoyed a laugh over the whole thing together. Meanwhile, Gabe returned right behind his leader, soaked from a last-minute shower, and took his place next to Vance with a sigh, ready to hear the wolf boy out for his little prank.
 
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