The Burning Rose

Chapter 20: The right thing

"You know who I am?" Cinder asked, confused. She was suspicious of who this girl was as she hadn't remembered having seen or heard of her before. And after her previous encounter, she found it hard to believe it was pure chance.

"I'm a history nerd." Amber explained. "I've heard about the girl who killed the Werewolf of Patch. You've earned yourself quite a reputation. That thing had killed plenty of full grown huntsmen and huntresses. Yet a fifteen year old killed it all by herself. That's going to draw some attention."

Immediately, Cinder felt her distrust melt away as she purred with pride on the inside. It felt good to get the acknowledgement she deserved.

"Technically, I was fourteen. But I appreciated how close you were." Cinder approached the girl as she spoke. "So did you want an autograph or something? Unfortunately, I still have an exam to complete, so if you can keep up, I'll consider it."

Amber's smile twitched and her hand dropped, but she pushed on without comment. "You do understand we're now partners, right? Because that means WE have an exam to complete. There's no I's team, after all!" Amber still held her bright demeanor as Cinder rolled her eyes.

"Oh please. Don't act like you did anything to help me get here." Cinder said as she stepped forward, trying to look down on Amber, but failing as said girl was an inch or so taller. "I'm the one how got here and took the piece. I don't appreciate someone just latching onto my success without contributing to it. Go find someone else to partner with, I've got to get back before they can ship me off to Atlas with the rest of the rejects. I have so many more important things to do than-."

"You shouldn't speak about others like that." Amber cut in. Her expression becoming much more serious. "Everyone here passed their school's exam. Just because you got extra training doesn't mean you can talk like that about them. Everyone here is trying their best, and that really all someone can ask."

Cinder rolled her eyes at the girl. "Oh please, don't get started on that sentimental crap. You saw them last night. Half the people here are just here to goof off. People like me are held back by people like them, like you." Cinder didn't know why she felt the need to justify herself to this girl, but she was going to make it clear that Amber wasn't good enough to partner with her.

"People like that who aren't serious will just cause more problems in the future. Better get rid of them here and now before they fail later. That way, great people won't be dragged down by their stupidity. It's simple logic."

Amber raised an eyebrow. "People like you, you mean?" She asked and Cinder smirked. She seemed to be getting the message.

"You are very confident in your abilities. I must say it's a bit disconcerting for me. I don't think I've met anyone who's so completely confident they can win against anyone even without knowing what they can do." Cinder eyebrow twitched at Amber's observation. She didn't really like the way she said it, but her opinion wasn't completely off center.

"I don't think I'm better than everyone else. Just most people here." Cinder said, while waving her hand in a large circle to enclose everyone around. "Like I said, most people just mess around and do nothing. They shouldn't even be allowed to try the exam. I've worked my ass off to get this far, as well as paid my dues in blood, sweat and tears. I think it's more than fair to say I should have a spot at Beacon, not those other talentless losers."

Amber narrowed her eyes at Cinder, her lips pressed into a thin line. "That's extremely arrogant of you." She stated, taking a step forward. "Everyone's worked hard to get into Beacon. Just because they don't display it like you do, doesn't mean they're less than you."

Cinder rolled her eyes in annoyance. Brothers, could this girl get anymore cliché? "They're less than me because I've put in the work. They very clearly haven't." She explained, trying to keep her irritation out of her voice. "If they wanted to be treated as my equal, then they should have trained harder. They had more than enough opportunities to catch up to me and they didn't. They don't have anyone but themselves to-"