"Ah, great. Where am I supposed to find another nice, quirky girl to talk to?!" The tall, scraggly blond said as he walked into the crowd.
'Please, don't let him speak to me.' A brunette girl thought as she kept her attention on the stage ahead of her. She was wearing a white shirt with the collar turned up, a brown jacket that reached her thighs, brown trousers and boots and some kind of sword in a scabbard attached to her belt. The sword seemed to be fairly mundane except for the fact that it appeared to have a microphone attached to the end of its hilt. However, that wasn't the case. The microphone WAS the hilt. Her bright yellow eyes locked onto her gloves as she adjusted them and checked the speaker-like device attached to the palm of her left glove. When she was satisfied with her attire, she turned to see a girl standing next to her, shaking like a dog in winter. The most outright thing she noticed about the girl was the fact that she was at good number of inches shorter than her.
The girl had short blonde hair in a neat bun and black eyes. She was wearing a yellow-beige thick woollen sweater with a long skirt the reached all the way to her feet that was that same colour as the sweater. It didn't seem like the kind of clothing a huntress would wear, but then she noticed that the skirt was pleated, which would avoid the skirt from impeding her movement, but they did seem to hide her figure. She was also wearing a brown pair of boots and a brown headband. She also had two very large, blunt gauntlets on both of her wrists that looked like they could extend passed her hands in a moment's notice. They also looked like they were too heavy for anyone with the girl's small stature to lift, let alone wield; yet the blonde didn't seem at all fazed by them. The blonde turned to look hesitantly over to the brunette and tried and failed to start a conversation as the words seemed to die in her throat. The brunette sighed and spoke.
"Sonata Melody." Sonata said as she extended her hand. The blonde slowly reached over with a shaky hand and grabbed Sonata's as they shook hands.
"O-Ophelia Sky." Ophelia said nervously as they let go of each other's hand.
"So, what is it you wanted to say?" Sonata asked.
"Oh! Um… I-is this the right p-place for new students to be?" Ophelia asked timidly.
"Well, considering that everyone else is here right now, I'd say it's kinda obvious." Sonata replied, sounding harsher than she intended.
"R-right… sorry…" Ophelia mumble pathetically. Sonata playfully slugged her in the arm in a friendly manner.
"Hey, don't look so down! There's no need for that." Sonata said, causing Ophelia to smile at her, but then she looked behind Sonata with wide, scared eyes. Sonata turned around to see a figure that was head to toe in black. She couldn't see anything the figure was wearing or what it looked like due to the long coat it was wearing. It was a full length black leather zip-up coat that reached its feet and a hood draped all the way over its head, hiding their face completely. They were also wearing black leather gloves and boots. The figure also had some form of mechanical naginata on its back. Needless to say, Sonata understood why Ophelia was spooked.
"Uh… Hey, there?" Sonata said, trying to catch its attention. The figure kept its arms crossed as the hood moved to show that it was now looking at her.
"Yes?" A distinct male voice said. But, the voice sounded… normal. Nothing scary or threatening about it.
"Who're you?" Sonata asked.
"…Uh… Why do you want to know? We've never met before." The male replied.
"Well, because we haven't met yet. Isn't that why people tell others their names?" Sonata asked, Ophelia still cowering behind her.
"…Heh. Can't argue with that. Name's Gnash. Gnash Saurian." Gnash replied with a hint of amusement.
"I'm Sonata Melody, and the shivering girl behind me is Ophelia Sky." Sonata said, causing Ophelia to squeak at the mention of her name and hide behind Sonata, not unlike how a young child would to their parent or sibling when they meet someone new. The conversation ended however, when the headmaster of Beacon, Professor Ozpin took the stage.
"I'll... keep this brief. You have travelled here today in search of knowledge, to hone your craft and acquire new skills, and when you have finished, you plan to dedicate your life to the protection of the people. But I look amongst you, and all I see is wasted energy, in need of purpose, direction… You assume knowledge will free you of this, but your time at this school will prove that knowledge can only carry you so far. It is up to you to take the first step." Ozpin said before leaving, allowing the woman who appeared as a hologram on the ship ride known as Professor Goodwitch to take the stage.
"You will gather in the ballroom tonight; tomorrow, your initiation begins. Be ready. You are dismissed." Glynda said before leaving herself. Gnash leaned over to the girls slightly.
"Well, those two were a barrel o' laughs." Gnash said sarcastically, causing Ophelia to gain a small smile and Sonata to chuckle.
"Laughs don't come in barrels. They come from inside you as your body's response to delight." A new voice said monotonously. The three looked over to it to see another boy with neatly combed light grey hair, green eyes and a rigid posture. He was wearing something akin to a white military uniform right down to the epaulettes on his shoulders, to the white beret on his head and the white gloves on his hands. His trousers were royal blue and his shoes were jet black. He had a long, jagged sword strapped to his back lengthways, but it seemed to be attached to some sort of string which had its other end attached to his back. Even among the interestingly garbed individuals in the hall, he still stood out. As the boy was starting to walk away, Gnash spoke out to him.
"And you are?" The boy stopped. He turned his entire body, not unlike a soldier or a robot.
"I am Nickel." Nickel replied before he turned around and walked away in his robotic manner.
Everyone present then began to walk and gather in the Beacon ballroom and immediately discovered the large amount of sleeping bags. A few brave people walked forwards immediately and picked a bag, giving everyone else the courage to do the same. Ophelia stuck to Sonata like glue as they picked bags next to each other. Sonata didn't seem to mind though, as Ophelia was quiet and timid. Sonata did label her as quite clingy, but not annoying by any means. As all of the sleeping bags were picked and night fell, everybody was ready to get to sleep. Sonata laid in her bag trying to go to sleep.
"Um… So-Sonata?" Ophelia's quiet, timid voice filled the air. Sonata turned around to look at her.
"Yeah?" Sonata asked, slightly annoyed at being asked something so late, but she didn't show that feeling.
"…Do you… think we're going to be alright? Do you think we can all make it here?" Ophelia asked with small, frightened tears in her eyes. Sonata looked into her eyes and knew that she had to give a serious answer, as she saw that she was completely serious and scared about the question.
"…We can try. We'll just have to see." Sonata replied, lowering her head and closing her eyes. Ophelia watched her for a moment before doing the same. Sleep didn't come easily, but it came nonetheless.
