[Heianu/Zedd] Fire and Lightning, Very, Very Frightening

[Sparky]

[Refs]

    Suddenly... snow. A lot of snow. Like, a whole metric fuckload of snow. Immediately the nice spring day switched to the dead of winter. Zedd contained his panic and followed after Heianu, looking out over the field with a sigh. "You know, usually with these kinds of spells, students are recommended to use the training rooms." His eyes glanced towards where many flowers had been blooming. Those were certainly going to wither and die in the cold. 

    "Must be one of the honors students." The lightning mage thought idly for a moment. This wide spread control would only really be possible for someone with proper mastery of their magic, but Zedd didn't exactly know who it could have been. The young man would have to take a look through the class roster at some point.

    Well, one of the teachers was surely to come out and give them a talking to soon enough.

    With a huff and a shrug, the young boy rapped his metal knuckles against Heianu's shoulder and motioned for the green-haired girl to follow. "C'mon, let's go grab something to eat from the cafeteria. No point in freezing our butts off, right?" 

    As a fire mage, Heianu could probably keep herself warm if she really wanted to try. Zedd, however, was not in the same boat. The boat he was in, however, was that similar mindset of not wanting to get sick because someone wanted to show off. Other groups of students began running to shelter, the only ones not moving or caring much being those who were unaffected by the cold itself. Water mages passively cooled, and fire mages keeping themselves warmed with the heat of their flames. 

    Of course, that didn't stop anyone from grumbling and complaining, but that much was obvious. There were a few names being tossed around in those complaints, though no one really held a definite answer to the exact person it was to start the blizzard. Zedd went down the list in his mind. Isaah is pure water, so if it was him it's more likely to be a rainstorm than snow. Kimi Larris is wind, so she's immediately out. Then the other ones like Triste or Damien and the like have elements that don't have any sort of range such as this. Gods, I need to learn more about people.

    What a mystery. 

    It was up to the lightning mage's green-haired companion whether or not she wanted to actually follow after Zedd. Regardless of whether or not she did, Zedd was headed to the cafeteria anyways, which apparently was becoming a bit busier as students became confined indoors to escape the snow. That being said, it wasn't extraordinarily busy, though. A few groups were paying board games off to the side, while others were actually sat down, eating and chatting. Anyone who actually came in for food either didn't stay long or just grabbed their food and left for their dorm. 

    While he wasn't exactly super hungry, Zedd at least needed a bit of a bite to eat after running all over the place. Besides, lunch was a good way to settle down and just relax while he talked to his new friend. Well, ok, "talk" was a relative term when it came to Heianu, but that's besides the point.

[Heianu]

In all honesty, Heianu wasn't too hungry but she guessed learning where the cafeteria was wouldn't be a bad idea. She didn't really seem to want to go much of anywhere, but would just tag along to humour Zedd for now. Her emotions seemed to go back under wraps, a noticeable wall hardening around her mind as they neared a more busy area than the last one.

Heianu took this as an opportunity to just explore the place more and just passively learn about the school at hand like the cuisine and the people around, just get a general reading of everything there. Maybe they'd brush past whoever it was they ran past, or someone else Zedd seemed to know.

For someone so talkative, it seemed like Zedd didn't really have someone to talk to. Which explained why he was chatting away every second he got with her. "So like... There anyone else here you know or are like... friends with?", she asked. Probably a touchy subject but something didn't seem to add up to much that someone this social would be alone at all.

[Sparky]

[Refs]

   Zedd almost immediately picked up on the change in attitude. Sure, yeah, Heianu wasn't super easy to read, and her state of being was easily described with the single word "EXISTING," but there was enough of a switch. She at least said something every so often, instead of going as silent as a ghost. Ahhh, so that's the reason. She's just really introverted. Zedd paused. Stunning observation, Zedd, good job at attaining your brand-new rank of Captain Obvious! Fighting the urge to punch his palm straight through his forehead, the young lightning mage grabbed himself a serving of fries. With a glance back towards Heianu, he gave a small thought as to what she might like... and grabbed her some teriyaki sticks. 
    
    The young man paid for the food, and then offered the beef sticks to Heianu. His expression broadcast that he would not take no for an answer. He was not going to take these, these are for the green-haired tinderbox so help him gods. And, of course, if she was super introverted, there's a good chance she wasn't going to want to make a scene, now would she?

    Regardless, Zedd decided sticking around the lunch room wasn't going to fly. She wasn't going to talk to him if there were all these people around, so it was probably a good idea to duck towards a separate portion of the school. "Maybe we can eat as we walk...?" he mused. "Head over to the library, it's nice and quiet over there." 

    In the background, some other students took notice of Zedd hanging around with Heianu. Or, really, rather Heianu hanging around Zedd. They made no attempt to hide their mutterings, but in response, the young man made no attempt to listen to them. He knew it was going to happen eventually. Heianu was eventually going to get some sort of bad rap for hanging around someone like him. A target had been painted on the lightning mage's back, that paint was still fresh. It didn't take much effort to stain whoever got close to him.

    Zedd hated the fact that things were like this. It's why he was so adamant about defeating Damien. That would finally clear his reputation. The second he did, the young man would finally not have to worry about anyone getting shit just for existing around him. That was a nice thought. 

    The young man perked up at Heianu's question, almost jumping a bit at the suddenness of it. The boy had gotten so used to her being silent that he didn't expect her to say anything until after they'd left. "I mean, like I said earlier, there really isn't anyone. Well, aside from you. That is if you, you know, want to be my friend. Otherwise, yeah, no. People kind of avoid me. I was on good terms with people before, at least. Now they avoid me more than anything."

    Metal fingers worked the back of his neck. "There was one guy before, but we had a falling out. Remember that empath stuff? Yeah, he was more closed off. Didn't like my ability to read people." Speak of the devil, as if on cue, Zedd halted, watching a tuft of brown hair and harsh green eyes drift past. It was hard to miss as people shifted out of Isaah's way. No one wanted to earn his ire. The lightning mage turned away. "Let's go check out that library. No reason to stick around here." 

[Heianu]

Heianu sat at a table that was near the windows. It was colder near them, especially with the still raging blizzard outside. The chill felt nice. She seemed to be lost in thought, staring at the palm of her hand and closing it, flicking it back open to light a green flame in the middle of her hand and closing it to stop the flame. It was akin to flicking open a lighter and closing it repeatedly, except that she was the lighter.

When a familiar gleam of metal took up her peripherals, Heianu straightened up a little so that she wasn't practically laying on the table. She took the meat sticks and nodded a thanks his way, but she didn't seem to dig into it immediately. She'd snack on it though, she wasn't wasteful or ungrateful and throwing it in the trash would just make her out to be someone who had no regard for others. She wasn't like that.

At the idea of moving somewhere else, she seemed to perk up though. Less people meant more fresh air and less noise. This was a good thing. As they walked down the hall, she carried her bit of food with her, plucking up a stick and nibbling away at the meat on it. Not bad. Real salty, needs a pinch more sugar to sweeten a bit better, but it was still good. "We're allowed to eat in the library?", she asked. Weird, libraries are typically against it for the sake of keeping stains off their aged pages and books to keep them pristine. Either way, she'd probably just finish up before going in there.

The boy seemed surprised for some reason. But his answer seemed to make no sense. He was an approachable person, so why are the people here avoiding him like some plague? Was he hiding some deep dark secret or mental illness or something that shifted his personality to make him unapproachable? Did he commit some kind of crime? Her brow furrowed as she tried to think what this socket charged ball of fur could do to get a whole school against him.

The fact that some students seemed to be rather loud about their ideas made Heianu stop. She placed the little paper boat of food down or handed it to Zedd and walked over to them. There was a hard shift in her attitude again, from closed up to something else. Zedd could read enough that she wasn't simply leaving him to socialise with others. It was something else. Her posture and walk didn't seem to change, remaining casual, but there was now a dangerous air around her that grew as she got closer to the students that decided they wanted to talk shit about a seemingly decent person.

Zedd was high energy, and a bit high energy for Heianu to take all the time. But he was tolerable and overall fairly nice. Whatever bad rep she'd get, she'll fight it and that was very clear she wouldn't just let people have their way with her. "You got a problem with me or something?", she growled right when she was in front of the students and blocking their way. Her hands were in her pockets, so she wasn't throwing them yet, but her glare was enough to show she was ready to fight the moment someone tried her. It almost felt like she was itching to fight them if they continued.

[Sparky]

[Refs]

    "Small snacks, sure. But by the time we actually get there, it'll be fine. We'll probably already be..." Zedd paused, watching as Heianu's entire tone shifted. Her aura went from a peaceful girl, happy to let Zedd exist around someone, to a threatening air of authority and dominance. The young lightning mage felt a shiver go up his spine, a bit of fear tinging his brain. D-did I upset her? What did I do... wrong...? Surprise painted itself over his expression as the now volatile fire mage turned from him, directing her fury towards... other students?

    And then it clicked. 

    Everything that had started being whispered about behind the duo's backs. The insults and mutterings that started growing in mixed volumes. Mostly to spit venom at Zedd, but Heianu had unfortunately gotten caught in the crossfire. Comments about how strange it was seeing someone hang around Zedd, what screws might be loose in their head or how long it'd last, repeated comments about how "the two looked soooo cute together" or how "Damien wasn't going to be happy seeing this." from any student who inherently recognized Heianu's strength as an honors student.

    For the duo Heianu approached, a half-faunus boy and a human girl. The boy was one of the ones snickering about how cute the new couple looked, but the girl... she was particularly vitriolic. She made no attempt at hiding her venom towards Zedd, insulting his control of his magic, and how much of a "brain-dead idiot" he was for challenging "THE Damien." How he deserved to be made a fool of during the match, how what Damien did to Zedd was warranted. Seeing Heianu around the lightning mage only sparked a toxic flow of vile sludge. The girl blatantly called Heianu a fool for being around Zedd, made claims that perhaps she was just "low-tier scum" just like him. Her elitist attitude was worn on her sleeve, down to the many... flavorful names she called the green-haired girl, directed towards her appearance and potential sexuality. Even the boy she was traveling with seemed stunned at her anger.

    It was a shame he was going to get caught in the crossfire. 

    Unsurprisingly, the half-faunus boy backed down almost immediately when Heianu confronted the duo, tail tucked between his legs and eyes wide as though he were a deer caught in the headlights. On the other side of the spectrum, however, towards the girl who had spit such venom. One would think she'd stand her ground, with how angry she was. However, Heianu was really fucking scary when she was pissed off. The young woman tried her damnedest to save face, to look intimidating, but when she tried to say something, to try and spit back at Heianu, all that came out were frightened, strangled squeaks. Well. No one could say she didn't at least try to get into a fight with the fire mage. 

    Metal fingers laced around one of Heianu's arms, gently tugging her back. "Heianu, please... it's not worth the effort." His voice was gentle, not sad, not somber. Tame. Sweet. His expression wasn't one of pain or of fear, but worry. Concern directed towards his green haired companion. "C'mon, the library's close, we can go over there and relax. You don't need to get into a fight the second you've gotten here."

[Heianu]

Heianu continued to stare the two down. The half faunus boy was smart to trail away. The other girl... well, if she was handed a really crappily cut gold star that said you tried, that was going to be her trophy from this. Heianu didn't move at all when Zedd grabbed her arm. Green flames burst around her arm where Zedd's fingers were, but it wasn't her consciously doing anything. Flames licked and latched around the metal, but Heianu herself stayed there watching the other girl quickly losing face. Instead of turning away she stepped closer to the girl, keeping an eerie calm on her person but the air around said otherwise.

"I don't know who this Damian person is, but they sound like absolute garbage to attract people like you.", she said with a clear snarl curled on her lips. Heianu leaned into the girl's face, close enough that her hair touched the girl's nose and it was practically singing her skin. "If you low lives have a problem with me, say it to my face instead of being hushed cowards." She leaned away from her girl. "If you're going to be nothing but bark, why are you even here? Just to shit on those you feel are below you?" Heianu's eyes narrowed at the girl. "People like you lack honour." People like them make me sick. One last glare towards her and then a short and quick turn to the faunus let him know he was also included in that bit of talk. For all they new, this new student was a shark in the water. Unknown and dangerous, and more than ready to fight in a full on frenzy.

She took a step and turned towards the direction of the library. She kept walking that way and some steps down she just passively mentioned without looking, or really needing to since there were still flames latching onto his hand while it was on her arm, said,"You can let go of my arm now."

[Sparky]

[Refs]

    Insulated and protecting, the flames barely made Zedd's fingers feel anything more than slightly warm. That techy who improved them really did his work when it came to reinforcing the materials. Zedd was happy he sent them in to the guy. They were so insulated that, honestly, the young lightning mage forgot he was even holding onto Heianu. At least until she mentioned it. With a small blush, the boy released her arm and patted the glove to cool the surface metal off. Even then, the heat dispersion was fucking fantastic. Even the surface metal wasn't even that hot.  

    Man, I really got my money's worth with these. Zedd mused. 

    His thoughts wouldn't last much longer, though. As even though the faunus was scared into submission, and even chased off. The girl who bore her fangs in the first place decided she wanted more. "Hey!" Zedd paused and looked back as the girl, flustered and face red with rage, practically charged towards Heianu. The girl jabbed a finger into the young fire mage's face, nails pampered and painted with glittering polish. "How dare you talk about Damien like that! How dare you insult me like that! You... you... you slut!"

    "Creative insult." Zedd mused, not trying to hide the sarcasm in his voice. In response, the girl flung her hand towards the lightning mage, a gust of wind sending him up and dropping him prone. 

    "And you, how can you even stand to show your face around here anymore! You're nothing but a fool. An oaf! You should have just shut up and stayed down in the dirt where you belong." The girl hissed, teeth bared. Hair frayed, the young mage staggered up. It was honestly just a little bit comedic with how his goggles were left crooked on his head. His only response to being knocked aside, however, was a simple muttering of "My fries..." as he longingly looked towards his scattered snacks. 

    She was a monster. 

    But the girl was no longer paying Zedd any mind, eyes locked back onto Heianu. She was furious. It seemed that the green haired girl wasn't the only one who was ready to fight in a frenzy. The young man sidled back up alongside Heianu, hands on his hips and brow cocked as he watched the wind mage fume. 

    "It always surpises me to see the cult of personality Damien's built around himse-AHFUCK!" The boy, unfortunately, didn't get to finish his statement as another burst of wind sent him back skittering. "Alright!? Guess I live on the floor now!?"

    The unknown girl growled and thrust a finger up into Heianu's face. "Listen here and listen good. Just because you think you're tough doesn't mean anything. Vyridel academy is for the elite. Not for ruffians and imbeciles like you two. So I suggest you get your shit straight and start learning how to respect your superiors. Because unlike us, an ape like you never even had honor to begin with. Now take your shitty excuse for a boy-toy and go back to whatever hole you crawled out of." 

[Heianu]

Heianu stopped and turned to stare at the girl. "If hanging out with decent people makes me a slut, I suppose that makes you a whore, does it not? Perhaps a bimbo?" She honestly didn't seem to care but wanted to clap back because look at this absolute tea pot. She was all steam and no heat. Just a glorified humidifier. It seemed like this, whatever this barbie-doll looking person was wasn't going to let them go so easily. Heianu was now fully facing this girl again and once again keeping her stance. "Because he lost a spar he shouldn't show his face around here? Is this really what you think?" She stepped closer to the girl once again, cracking her knuckles. "If that's really how you think, then let's have a little spar right now and see if you keep to that same tune yourself if you're so inclined to bark that at others." Even if this was a strong mage, something gave Heianu enough confidence to make this girl eat her own words as slowly and painfully as possible.

Heianu took the wind mage's rush to action and came at her in a swift motion, grabbing out a knife from a sheath on her leg and reaching out with her other hand to land it perfectly square on this girl's chest, driving her into a wall with an audible thud and keeping her pinned with the knife pressed against her throat. Heianu's hair was now alight like it was pure fire itself. "If this school is really for the elite, I wouldn't be seeing preppy garbage like you that cares more about polishing nails over polishing your skills. Let me make this very clear for you. Her voice was drenched with a venom more potent than whatever this Babrie-doll could muster.

"I will never look up to spoiled idiots like you. You have no merit other than what people will perceive as blessed talent. You step on those who make an effort that you feel you never needed. You are one of the problems with this world along with ideologies you seem to have." The pressure on this girl's chest was now hard enough to not only pin her but to start making her chest hurt along her bones. It didn't seem to help that Heianu's skin was superheated and likely starting to singe this girl's skin through her clothes. "Flaunting your superiority gives no reason for me to respect you. You want me to respect you? Treat you like you're hot shit? Then prove to me there's a reason other than existing longer." Heianu put her knife away and her hand pressed off the girl's chest only to wrap around her neck firmly, but not enough to choke her.

Before the girl could even try to make whatever pitiful clap back she could, Heianu stepped to the side, one foot turned around and she twisted hard enough to throw the wind mage a fair distance away and she was thrown in a way where she would have landed on her back after being flipped over. "If you're going to beg for more, I will have no problem fighting you to prove how useless you are right here and now.", Heianu said, knife back out and holding a wide stance with her hands balled into fists.

[Sparky]

[Refs]

    "Heianu no!" Zedd cried as the girl pulled out her weapon. Panic surged in both Zedd's mind and the girl's expression. The girl, because a weapon was drawn outside of sparring, and Zedd because that very same fact could be grounds for expulsion. The girl let out a shriek as she was unable to counter any of Heianu's movements, hurled aside like some forgotten toy. The girl whipped up, shaky, frightened, but still trying to hold her  ground as she launched a wind attack at Heianu... and missed. 

    Hands grabbed onto Heianu's knife arm as the girl whipped the weapon out again. "Stop!" He shouted, frantic. Eyes wide, expression panicked. The young woman across from Heianu studied him. Her expression calmed and a chuckle welled up in her throat. Even with her still frayed nerves, the girl was able to well up enough confidence to voice what Zedd had feared. The reason why he stopped his green haired companion in the first place. 

    "Directing a weapon at a fellow student outside of training and matches? You know, new girl, that'll get you kicked out of the school.~" The other girl bunched up her fists, eyes widening as  though insanity had taken hold of her. She was giggling and laughing like a maniac. "I could go straight to the headmaster and he'd get rid of you-" She snapped her fingers, a soft breeze brushing Heianu's hair playfully "-just like that. And all I'd get is suspension for fighting outside the arena."

    Fighting wasn't allowed, and both girls would have certainly gotten in trouble normally. But the school was very strict about its policies. Lethal magic and weaponry were not to be used unless the opponent had an aura protecting them. The school was critically aware of how fine a line it tread and how easily a life could be taken with the lessons they gave.
    
    The girl continued. "If you both get on your hands and knees and beg me for forgiveness, I may consider not telling Principle Valiant about this... transgression. Of course, as long as you kiss my shoes while doing it." 

    "You know, you're really sounding like a stereotypical villainess." Zedd shot at her. He really didn't like the way she was talking to Heianu, and it was showing in the sparks of electricity that had begun to arc off of his body. His grip on the girl still held firm, however.

    "And I care what you think, why? The opinions of dirt doesn't matter to me. Now kneel." The girl was spitting fury but Zedd was unphased. The young man narrowed his eyes at her. He could tell, Heianu wanted to fight. She was ready and raring to kick this dumb bitches ass. He looked to the green haired girl, then back towards the adversary spewing hot air.

    "Alternatively, if you think you're so much better than Heianu, why not just face her in the arena and prove it. If you're so obviously superior to us, then there's no way you would chicken out of an opportunity to prove it. I mean, you're not some sort of coward... are you?" Zedd was a sly one. The good thing about being able to read people, was knowing exactly what buttons to press to get them going. And it was working. The girl was spitting  and sputtering  at being called a coward. "If Heianu wins, you leave her alone and forget this ever happened and if you win-"

    "Then you'll become my servants and obey my every whim!" She stated proudly, really stroking that ego boner. 

    "Riiight... what do you think, Heianu? Wanna kick her ass?"

[Heianu]

Heianu reluctantly sheathed the blade. Thankfully the only people there were the two braincells, Heianu and Zedd. The moment the girl thought she had an edge on Heianu for drawing a weapon, Heianu just took a breath and the flames that lit her hair went out. The woman was just taunting them for the sake of being petty, trying to climb back onto her high horse. "I'd rather see you choke on an elder dragon cock.", Heianu said in response to this maniac trying to make them beg at her feet.

Zedd brought up a tasty idea. Fuck the library, this would be so much better. Heianu's face cracked with a grin. "Yeah. Show me where the new AC unit princess needs to be installed.", Heianu said.

[Sparky]

[Refs]

    "It looks like we have ourselves a wager, then." The girl said happily. She spun around and, before marching off, cast her gaze back towards Heianu, eyes burning with confidence. "I'll see you in the arena, you green haired bitch."

    Man. There were a lot of fights breaking out as of late, weren't there?

    Well, at least it was good entertainment. As Zedd led Heianu to the arena, rumor had already spread about a new girl challenging someone to her first match. And excitement built fast. Not only was everyone simply excited to witness a fight on an off-day, many students wanted to scope out the fresh meat, gauge her abilities and see her potential. It wasn't often that a new kid got themselves into a fight. They were either hotheaded, or they were really confident in their abilities. One was entertaining because it was funny, the other was entertaining because, well, who didn't like seeing an artist at work?

    Everyone liked seeing a new Isaah Gideon or Kimi Larris hit the field. It always meant some sort of shake up in the status quo. A change in the norm. Isaah's presence had shifted the entire hierarchy of the Honors Ten. Kimi was some girl from out in the sticks and she blew away everyone who came at her. Both shook up the school in ways that countered tradition and challenged long held stigma. 

    As much as the vocal minority of rich pricks liked to tote their perfect little world, the larger school population had more of a tendency to root for the underdogs. Change, for many, was usually a good thing. It either meant things got better for the masses, or it helped ease the sensation of stagnation.

    Zedd stopped at the door of the waiting room. The excitement could already be heard. The student body wanted to see something new, something exciting, they wanted to see a new contender to the long-held thrones. The young man turned his gaze towards his recently acquired companion. He felt a pang of guilt that all this started because of him. Had he never talked to Heianu in the first place, she wouldn't have been thrust into such a bullshit situation. And yet, the grin the young woman cracked was also the first real change in expression the lightning mage saw out of her. 

    "Well, the stage is set all for you. Make sure to give them one hell of a show, Heianu. I'll be watching from the stands. Oh, and... here." Zedd's metal gauntlets worked around the back of his neck, and with the quietest click, he unhooked the lightning bolt necklace he always wore, offering it to the green haired girl. "For good luck. Don't worry about melting it, it's built out of sturdy materials. Trust me, I used to super heat necklaces myself when I was younger and couldn't control my magic as well."

    If she took it or not, Zedd left her at the waiting room entrance. Inside was an assortment of various training equipment for those who needed it, as well as a screen up above the door, broadcasting the field. Usually, during team matches, anyone inside would spend their waiting time watching the screen. For Heianu, it gave her a good view of what the field was like. It was a mix of a desert and rocky crags. The terrain allowed for all kinds of combat, with open spaces and tight corridors. No underground sections in this one, but the rocky pillars were perfect vantage points for those who fought at range, while down blow, outcroppings provided cover against such tactics. 

    The field really emphasized adaptability in all forms, without giving any sort of advantage to either party.  Once Heianu had prepared herself, all she had to do was hit the pad on the door to let her out onto the playing field.

    It was her time to shine. 

[Heianu]

Heianu took the object by the chain and stared at it. Instead of putting it on her neck, she looped it around a belt look so it hung out to the side and was only a slight glimmer against a dark grey. "Yeah, thanks." Belief was luck. You didn't have to be a chaos mage to believe in raw luck, just needed to be one to actually put fabricated luck into something. Nah, belief was all Heianu needed.

Heianu made a quick check of her inventory. Thankfully the arenas and training rooms also seemed to have all sorts of stock for students should they need it. It was enchanted with a teleportation spell that would give them items that were not readily available in the rooms. A glass bottle of oil and some steel wool wiring appeared on a counterspace next to where she was selecting the items. Her opponent shown to be a wind mage, and prefered to stay at a distance. Wind mages were also notorious for deflection and keeping distances. Heianu also selected items that appeared to be oil bombs. They were small and round, the casing only strong enough to hold in the liquid and easy to puncture, which was the only thing important for making something explode.

She pocketed the items in a pouch connected to her knife's sheath, and then took out the knife, flipping in around and channeling only a small portion of mana to test the knife. Thankfully because of her element, she could just continuously charge the ignis crystal embedded in the blade. She sheathed the knife and then readied herself to the entrance of the arena. Her only disadvantage was that she was built for close range, but even then, with the view of the crags, she could use that for gained footing against winds. This mage didn't seem smart anyways. "It's go time."

[Sparky]

    The crowd roared in excitement as the two competitors came face to face on the field. Everyone wanted to know, wanted to see what would happen. Up on the board, the two names of the students fighting were broadcast. Heianu Vs. Laura Karn. The green haired girl was a complete mystery, a new first year challenging- wow, a third year. On the surface, it was a mismatched battle, but the cocky princess standing before Heianu was far from threatening. Hell, even in the hall when the two had a spat, it wasn't as though Laura even managed to hit the wily fire mage. 

    Still, the girl stood with a shit eating grin. "Are you ready to be humiliated infront of the entire student body? Because I'm ready to make you suffer. I'm going to love having you and your electric boy toy obey my every whim. Just like low-class trash deserves." Man oh man did she just love the sound of her own voice. It's a good thing that her rambling was, quite abruptly, cut short by the horn sounding off.

    The match had begun. 

    In a puff of dust, the wind mage launched upwards, using air to propel her jumps. The girl was looking for a height advantage on Heianu, and the crags served that purpose wonderfully. The second she reached the top of the tallest crag, the girl spun to face Heianu, down on the ground below. A gleam could be seen in her gaze, even from all the way up top. Laura slowly stuck out her thumb and drew it across her throat, ending the motion in a thumbs down. The crowd was eating it up on a silver platter. The only people that knew she had been a coward were Zedd, Heianu, and the unnamed wolf boy. 

    Laura thrust her hand aside, drawing in a mass of air as she swept her hand back towards the center. The bundle of wind collected forward, condensing, hardening. The other girl formed her hand into a finger-gun shape, holding it as such as she took aim at her bright, neon green target. Another fray of dust blasted backwards as the girl fired out a blast of wind, hardened into a projectile. Before the first one even had a chance to connect, the girl was firing off another one. blast after blast kicked up dust behind the young woman, and missed impacts on the ground kicked up their own bundles of sand. 

    Four shots were fired off before long, truly signalling the beginning of the match. Laura may have shown incredible cowardice in the hall, but now that she could let off shots without worrying about getting in trouble, it seemed the girl was as ballsy as ever. Or, at least, that's what she wanted Heianu to believe. As confident as she appeared, her technique had more flair than substance. Laura wanted to put on the air that she was in control, but whether or not that was the actual case... well... she did squeak in the hall.

SPOILER: Click to show

Spell name: Wind bullet
Spell Main Element: Wind
-Spell Sub Elements: N/A
Affinity Strength: 2
Function: The caster collects condensed air into a point, firing it off as a bullet shaped projectile towards its target. The caster can trade range for damage, increasing the effectiveness when fired point blank, or vice versa to allow for further ranged shots. Effective range and damage can increase with affinity score.
2: Effective damage equal to a slingshot, with equal range. (5m max)
5: Effective damage equal to a rubber bullet, 15m max
8: Effective damage equal to a small caliber bullet, 45m max
10: Effective damage equal to a rifle caliber bullet, 135m max
Availability: Open

[Heianu]

Heianu just stared the girl down as she made her move up. Okay so she could jump really high. Big deal. The girl's moves were an obvious read. Heianu crouched and sprung to the side as the girl shot and wasted most of her bullets. Only one bullet seemed to hit Heianu on the arm during her roll. She landed in a tumble, getting back onto her feet and making a dash towards the crag. Based on how it looked, there were plenty blind spots and this was perfect. The nice thing about these were the blind spots. What wind could that girl muster to hit something she couldn't see?

The panels showing footage of their match was only broadcasted outside so they couldn't cheat in the match. There was definitely something on Heianu right now. The question of what she was doing, what she did. Aside from Zedd and the wolf boy, no one was really aware of what elements she had. She reached into her pouch and took out two balls that were filled with oil. Heianu also plucked out her dagger and stabbed a small hole with the end of her dagger's blade.

Because it was lined with an ignis crystal, a small flame sparked up on the two balls of oil and she stepped out enough to avoid the crags and stay within the other girl's blind spot and threw one of the two balls up and towards her. Oh man did Heianu have an arm. She ran to another side and did the same thing with a second. The first, if anything, was a mere distraction from the second. The orbs when enveloped in flame would explode near the peak of their flight with Heianu timing her movements in accordance to the oil in the orbs themselves.

She made no waste of time climbing up the side and launched a third orb away from the second. Heianu kept climbing around the sides, not straight up, but making sure her angle was different every time. At the peak, she was at an angle very different from the third orb and popped open a container of oil, spilling some on the ground before grabbing the girl's ankle and tossing the rest of the oil out of the container to just drench her leg in oil and part of her hip.

"Burn.", she said simply. Her hand lit with a green flame that spread almost a nightmarish pace across her oil drenched body, the flames eating up the oil like a sweet nectar and slowly but hungrily creeping over the rest of Laura's body.

SPOILER: Click to show

Spell Name: Singe

Spell Main Element: Fire

Spell Sub Elements: N/A

Affinity Strength: 1

Function: The caster coats their hands in flames, attacking their target. If it connects, it can deal moderate Fire damage, and can ignite flammable objects. Close range.

Availability: Open

[Sparky]

    One after another, the explosive oil balls detonated in a vibrant display. The first one came no where close, but the smoke it kicked up was enough to distract Laura, obscuring Heianu's next move. The second oil ball came in hot, detonating almost directly alongside the girl's face, sending the cocky princess sprawling and coughing. The crowd in the stands erupted with roaring cheers. Still dazed from the hit, she barely had time to avoid the third oil ball, only to roll into Heianu's perfectly planned trap. 

    The girl's eyes widened as flames ignited against her body, consuming the fuel and spreading rapidly. Her shrill screams pierced the air, flailing desperately as she was engulfed in the bright green flames Heianu created. Within seconds, the aura shattered, dispelling the oil and flames. A final blast of the horn signaled the match end.

    Silence.

    Until finally the crowd broke into wild cheers and hollers for the new contender. Such a display didn't go unnoticed or unrewarded. Laura, panting and glaring daggers at the green-haired girl quietly hissed. "A deal's a deal then. Hmph." Shakily, the girl who had just seconds before been set ablaze stumbled a few feet away from the ledge where Heianu had hung... only for her legs to give out. Even with the aura protecting her, being set alight with flames so aggressive was enough to shake a person to their very core. 

    The winner had been decided. 

    Heianu had made her grand appearance. And it would not go without critical eyes noticing her performance. But, aside from those who saw a new challenger to the thrones, a notably excited Lightning mage rushed happily from the stands to meet his friend at the waiting rooms. Happy that for once something went right.

[Refs]

    Down at the entrance (exit?) Zedd bubbled with excitement as he awaited Heianu's exit. Very rarely did anyone new to the school make such an impression. And the young girl's explosive arrival and exposure to the rest of the student body was one of the best things to happen in a long time. Not only that, but she showed that she could hold her ground. As a close quarters fighter against a ranged adversary, no less. No doubt that earned the young woman a whole truckload of respect from anyone who originally doubted her. 

    Perhaps the lightning necklace really was lucky? Sure, the young man may have had his own share of misfortune with it, but thinking back- the boy literally got to meet a god and champion. Not many people could lay claim to that statement. Even if Zedd may have gotten his perky ass kicked by Damien, and his reputation ruined, things still managed to work out. 

    "Zedd?" And as if to prove that statement, the young man tensed as he heard a familiar voice from behind. Nervously, the young lightning mage turned, coming face to face with his old acquaintance. Isaah. "What're you doing here?"

    The tone was... shockingly, not hostile. In fact, it was more earnest if anything. Zedd rubbed the back of his neck awkwardly with a small chuckle. "Oh, well, uh, I guess you can call me and Heianu a bit of acquaintances? I mean, I'd like to hope that she's my friend, but who knows what's going on. She might just be tolerating me. You know how this school can be and all that. Eheh, it's nothing too serious. What're you doing here?" 

    Isaah stared at Zedd, green eyes never wavering. "I just wanted to speak to her briefly. Congratulate her." The spiky haired water mage nodded towards the currently sealed waiting room door. "She's piqued the interest of a lot of the Honor's Ten. Mine included. A few of us believe she may even be able to overtake one of the ranks. It'd be an interesting shake up." 

    There was a palpable silence that hung in the air for a beat. Before Zedd had a chance, Isaah broke it first. 
    
    "I'm... sorry about how I left things last time. You didn't deserve that." Isaah began. The water mage sucked in a deep breath, and let it out slowly. Zedd could tell that this was difficult for him to say. There was a lot of pride that the other young man had to try and swallow down. "Look... You're... not a bad guy. You get on my nerves, sure. But I don't... mind having you around. So... don't be afraid to approach me..." Isaah paused and pointed a finger in Zedd's face. "...as long as I'm in a good mood about it."

    "O-oh, right! Aye-aye captain!" A goofy smile returned to the young lightning mage's face. He was giddy and all warm and fuzzy inside. Isaah had, at least on the surface, accepted the boy's presence again. I guess this day isn't all that bad. I earned a new friend, and got one old one back. Well. Sort of. It's good enough progress for me!

    "Well, I'll leave you be. Just, let her know the good news." Isaah started to turn, then paused. "...And... Zedd..." The boy's green eyes met the young lightning mage's "Next time you fight Damien... make sure to bury his brown nose in the dirt where it belongs. Teach him to never touch you ever again. See you around." 
   
    Zedd watched Isaah exit, quietly thinking about how things have gone now. All things considered? Not a bad deal. Isaah was back, and Zedd could finally consider himself as having two friends instead of none! That's two whole friends! The young lightning mage had a wide, goofy smile the whole time he waited for Heianu.