A Wizards Misadventures

~~Level Twenty Three~~

AN: "Sorry again for late-ness and hopefully next week will be better" I said like a month ago. Shows how good I am at planning.

I took a break to deal with real life stuff. I'm actually moving tomorrow and I'm going to be off the grid, visiting some national parks as I travel across the country. I'm not much of a fan of the first interlude, at least the second half of it, but it's alright. The next chapter's ~90% done so that should be out in a week or two, whenever I get access to internet on my little trip.

[|||| =LEVEL 24= ||||]

[|| =!BONUS LEVEL!= ||]

A sign from above

Sweat ran down Ruby's face freely. She ignored it for the moment but knew that she'd need a shower later. Her uncle spun and kicked at the flat of Eclipse Rose's blade. He was lucky she didn't cleave off a foot, but then again, his maneuver worked.

A dash through her semblance and she stabbed with her weapon, a shortsword now. Uncle Qrow parried one blow aside and slashed sharply. Ruby's side-hand pushed at her uncle and-wait, no, she wasn't supposed to use magic he-

Her uncle's blade was poking her belly. Dangit. She'd gotten distracted. A small sigh left her lips and she holstered Eclipse Rose onto the back of her waist.

"No. Magic." The blade lightly poked her with each word.

"I'm used to it," she muttered.

"Yeah, yeah. Look, Beacon might be fine with you using magic in your spars but you have to learn how to fight without it too."

"I know." She nodded. Something flickered in her chest. She ignored it.

"You could use dust as a sort of 'pretend magic' but then-" The flicker bursted into a flame. Oh, that was anger.

"I know!" Uncle Qrow stopped and Ruby blushed as she looked down. It happened again.

She had been… lashing out lately. Little stuff that didn't bother her before suddenly started being irritating. Jaune's habit of scratching his chin, Pyrrha's depression after Abyss left, the mystery of whoever attacked Vale in what people were calling the Mountain Glen incident… it all just made her angry. She had never known real anger before but now everything she would have brushed off stung.

Maybe she was just becoming a teenager. Yang joked about it but that didn't seem like the answer.

"Want to stop the training session here?" her uncle offered. Ruby nodded silently and let loose a little magic. The sweat disappeared from her forehead and the air cooled pleasantly, the heat of summer disappearing into something like winter. Uncle Qrow shivered and wrapped his arms around himself. Oh, come on it wasn't that cold.

"Come on, Kiddo, I'm going to go make some sandwiches," he offered. Ruby smiled and nodded brightly. It was only a little faked. The two went inside and Ruby plopped herself on the couch. She glanced at the letter on the coffee table once more, one she'd gotten just a few days ago.

Ruby,

I know you're still mad at me and, honestly, I deserve it. What I did was self-