NOTE: I DON'T OWN THE RWBY UNIVERSE, EXCEPT FOR MY OWN CRAPPY OCS

This isn't really based on the recent events in RWBY (but if I write more they might be haha) since I wrote this a few years ago. Thought I should publish it when I dug this out of my drive.

Enjoy!

Xaris

I stared at the screen and pulled at my hair, resisting the urge to get up screaming while simultaneously flailing on the ground. Stomping my foot hard into the metal floor, I briskly turned away from the horrid sight and plopped down onto an equally hard metal chair.

Everything here was metal. Metal, metal, and more metal, every glance of the dull, grey gleam bringing back memories that made my hair stand on end. I shuddered and forced down my uneasiness, clamping down hard on the fear that I might be discovered here. It would be okay, I repeated over and over again.

But the static didn't leave my hair, or the ragged clothes I wore. It was such a stupid mission, but for the Lien I could get for getting a lick of the information in Atlas' military - I needed it. Desperately.

I exhaled slowly and opened my eyes again, the static leaving my body as my heart calmed down. I scowled at my current predicament. Being in the same team with the boy who sentenced me to a life of debt for the dust that he ruined - stupid. Stupid, stupid, stupid. I tapped my boot on the ground furiously. If I could pull this off, I'll get enough money to pay off the last bits of debt my father left me when he passed. And then start working on the debt that I somehow built up.

My thoughts worked their way to the the hole in the center of the room. It was large enough for 4 initiates to fall through together and complete initiation in the Grimm-infested Evergreen Forest. As if showing off our "talents" in front of a panel of grumpy judges wasn't enough.

A bunch of initiates were gathered in the center of the room, staring at the giant screen that encircled the dropoff zone. On it showed the students and their respective teams, all selected through balancing skills and whatnot. I'd much rather it be random, or choosing your own teammates yourself. But Atlas Academy just had to be different. My eyes searched for familiar figures around the screens, but there were none. I relaxed.

"Hah, glad I'm not the only person who looks extremely stressed."

I turned my head and squinted at the person who tried to start up a conversation with me. Some guy in a hazelnut coat decided to sit next to me, a grin plastered onto his face. He wore a bowler hat and a tie of a hideous eggshell blue. His hair swooped down dangerously close to his eyes, the tips dyed a bright orange. His fashion sense amounted to a negative 8. Yet, he still looked better than me.

"Yep. I'm more worried about the fall to the ground." I grinned at him, donning one of my "lively" personas that I used to get allies and information.

He smiled back at me. "L-C-R-S," he spelled out, enunciating the R. "I'm Reese."

I nodded. "I'm Xaris. Are you from Sky Academy?" His clothes had a somewhat coordinated look to it, with the scary looking crossbow strapped to his back. Definitely from Sky. Or another smaller academy.

"Yep. You?"

"I'm not from one." I gestured at my shabby clothes that was made up of a white t-shirt and khaki shorts. His eyes widened as he stared at my belt, adorned with all sorts of gadgets I had picked up from who knows where. And also the normal Atlas military gun, which I received from a grateful weapon shop. "You still look hella scary with all that going on," he replied.

I shrugged. "Not useful in combat."

"Doesn't really matter. You're probably just as good as me on the battlefield." He stood up, and motioned for me to follow suit. We made our way to the screens, and he scanned the teams and the members that followed each.

"So team...I, T…. Itoxic? Intoxicate?" His eyes moved down the screen. "Ignis Scorpio?" He sucked in a breath of air. "Ouch. Sorry you have to be with her."

"What about her?" I met his eyes, giving him a look of pure confusion.

"Not to be gossipy or anything, but I know her from Sky Academy. She always has this ominous feel to her… Can't believe she's your team leader."

"Oh, fantastic. I'll add that to my list of complaints about my team members." I muttered.

"Well, who else are you worried about?" I cursed under my breath for saying my thoughts a little too loudly. Reese's eyes scanned the screen again, and he sucked in another breath.

"Oh my gawsh, you're in a team with Conor Ironwood!" He exclaimed a little too loudly. All the nearby initiates turned and stared at me incredulously.

"Oh, now you've done it," I hissed.

"I'm sorry, I just don't quite understand why you're so downcast about the fact that he's on your team. All you have to do is slack off and let him fight all the Grimm for you!" He laughed.

I stared back at him, trying to figure out how to explain my hatred for him. "He… broke the heart of my best friend. He made her cry for a whole month!" I managed to exclaim. The tension in the room settled down. Girls who got rejected by Conor could circle the the lands of Remnant a thousand times. But somehow, after a few months or so, they got back on their feet to worship him again. Typical. Everyone was so used to it, a few hostile words to the Prince of Atlas for heartbreak- everyone just shrugged it away.

"Ouch. But still, being in a team with Conor is going to be awesome... I wish I were you!"

"Haha. It's alright- I'll catch you later okay?" I stood up as the screen flashed and beckoned my sorry soul to the black hole of death. My heart leapt into my throat as I heard the fangirls crowding around the entrance and screaming for an autograph. Seriously.

Reese nodded at me and said something through the frenzy. Probably good luck or something.

Finally, through the wave of initiates, appeared the boy who so frequently appeared in my nightmares. The very guy wore a midnight blue vest with the coat of the Special Ops Uniform draped around his shoulders. His hair was shaved at both sides, the top combed and gelled to give the effect of wind that was blowing his hair to the right at exactly 43 degrees. Most likely to generate some fangirl responses from his daily crowd.

I stared at him for a while, and jolted when his eyes settled on me. My heart hid behind my ribcage, dreading a spark of recognition. I was still worried; I was wearing a disguise when he last saw me, but you never know. I relaxed just a little when none came. He smiled at me, his gaze softening.

My gaze shifted to the two other initiates behind him. One wore a black sweater with golden snake in the middle and a red scarf curled up next to his neck. His golden hair was messily tied in some ponytail, and he wore a small smirk. He looked like an extremely arrogant person, with the way he held himself. But his green eyes were a soft, contradictory meadow green, making him look like an awfully nice person. But, looks can deceive. I would know so.

I glanced the other way, and caught the eye of the Reaper herself. Clad with a dark red cloak, she wore a handkerchief over her mouth. Her sunset eyes held my gaze, burning with a fire that sent shivers down my back. I dropped her gaze, gulping. Scary.

Mr. Everyone-Loves-Me, who cleared his throat very noisily, parted the Red Sea of initiates to the the dropoff zone. I glanced at the scraggly bunch of individuals- AKA my team. I shook my head in exasperation, taking the empty spot next to the lovely reaper girl. Things were not supposed to go like this.

The floor swung open, and we fell.

Tai

The wind rushed past my ears as I hurtled towards the earth. I flexed my fingers, the golden ring I wore glinting in the sunlight. My scarf billowed out behind me, and my eyes locked onto the girl wearing the white t-shirt. I grinned.

"Do you mind giving me a lift?" I shouted through the air, gesturing at the tiny backpack she was holding. A parachute.

She rolled her eyes. "You owe me," she shouted back, and held out her hand. I grabbed on, and she pulled the cord that extended from the bag. A whoosh, and my arm almost popped out of my socket. I cursed softly, and realized Xaris Fischer was doing the same. She glowered at me. The winds in my ear died down.

I glanced downwards, breathing in the cold mountain breeze. The evergreen trees below us had the tiniest bits of snow dusted on top. The scenery was beautiful, such a contrast to the giant city located several miles to the west.

It was an uncomfortable ride down, but at least we didn't splat onto the ground. I beamed at the girl when we hit the ground, but she just frowned at me and went to gather up the blown up parachute. I studied her. Her ocean-blue hair was messily cut, the jagged ends brushing her shoulders. She wore black gloves that cut off at her knuckles, with a normal looking t-shirt and uneven khaki shorts. The thing that interested me most were the array of devices that circled her belt. How much did those gadgets cost? I was so absorbed in my thoughts that I didn't notice when she turned to me and spoke.

"Let's go, Tai. I don't really want to get sniffed out by Grimm around here. The wind is blowing in the worst direction right now, so let's get moving."

I raised my eyebrows, noticing the slight shift of character. The icy cyan eyes were replaced with a soft sky blue. I smirked, enjoying this new treat to play with.

It were the ones with secrets that were the most interesting.

Xaris grabbed my arm and pulled me to the darkness of the forest.

"There's a Grimm in the shadows over there." I looked to where she was pointing, and saw absolutely nothing.

"What?"

"Run when I tell you to. Don't stop until you reach the cliff."

I watched as Xaris pulled out the gun that was also strapped to her belt. A normal Atlas gun. Did she even have any accuracy with that cheap model?

She aimed, then fired. A blast of pure lightning blew me back onto the tree behind me, a slight ringing resounding in my ears. I almost didn't catch the next command she gave.

"Run!"

I hated being told what to do, but I had no intentions of being left behind in some godforsaken forest. My legs throbbed from not running regularly, but I somehow pushed through and matched pace with Xaris, who was bounding through the forest like a deer.

Roars echoed through the forest, and I knew we had attracted a lot of attention. Too much. I cursed loudly when an Ursa crashed through the trees behind us. With a flick of my wrist, I sent poison-tipped darts into its body and continued running. Xaris now had glowing screens floating around her, the current screen on her looking like a map. She glanced back at me and shouted something I didn't pick up, and I was too out of breath to ask what it was.

I gasped for air when we reached the cliff. A ravine circled around a broken tower made of marble and granite, its former glory shattered into pieces. A few teams were scattered around the edge, trying to find a way to cross.

The Grimm following us appeared in the shadows. Five boarbatusks pawed the ground and snorted, their ivory tusks looking frightening as hell. Xaris was backing towards the edge, her gun pointed at one of them.

"Don't shoot," I said as I motioned for her to stay down. Her gun will probably blow us off the cliff and into the depths below. Not really what I had in mind.

I felt the aura sap out of me as I stared the five Grimm down. With a whirl, I hit three of them in the eyes with darts, their bodies spasming and falling to the ground. The remaining two reared and charged, and… fell at my feet.

Two harpoons protruded from their necks, the silver hooks glistening with Grimm blood. With a clicking sound, the harpoons retreated into the darkness of the forest. Conor Ironwood walked from the shadows, smiling.

"So it was you who made such a loud ruckus."

I grinned back at him. "Nah, it was Miss Fischer over there. Glad you could join the party."

But, in reality, I was not glad at all of his existence. I had a few bones to pick with him, especially for messing around with my crew. He had a notorious name in the mafia. I had never encountered him on the streets, but I did know a few individuals who were knocked about by his "heroic" antics. One of them was one of the top members, the caporegime. She had stuck with the Atlesian military for ten years now, ever since she was a child. Her father was the famous consigliere, who one day disappeared without a trace and left his daughter behind. Now, going by the alias Midnight, she was a lethal force in the mafia, someone who could get past the strongest firewalls and change video feeds in the blink of the eye. And, she was really pretty.

But besides the point. Conor strided up to me and patted me on the back, congratulating me for my competence. It took all of my strength to not scowl at him and push him off the cliff.

I turned to Xaris, who looked like she had a wisp of a plan to getting across the ravine. She had a screen displayed in front of her, a map that had a bunch of red and blue dots scattered on it.

She grinned. "Looks like someone in our team was smart enough to have a plan in mind."

I rolled my eyes. "So what's the pla-"

My words were cut short by the Nevermore that sailed across the sky and dived straight towards us.