There are many words in the language man speaks to describe my point. Everything has an Opposite, but those Opposites, are only opposite in the sense that you could relate them by some means. Left and Right, are opposite directions, but they both remains directions. Good and Bad are Opposites, yet either could be applied to a situation, that's all a matter of perspective. So, what makes a person opposite? Do they remain themselves when their lives are Altered? Or are they but a Variation? A Variant? A Reflection? A Mirror? A Remodel? An Illusion? An Image? A mere Imitation? Are they Fake, or just Remnants of the Originals?
{Line Break.}
Under the full moon, on the southwest part of the continent of Danal, in the kingdom city of Vila, a young girl wearing a red hood was browsing magazines in a Dust shop, while listening to music. Until someone tapped her shoulder.
{Line break.}
Glynda Goodwitch, unofficial headmistress of Beacon Academy, walked up to a holding cell. Within this holding cell, sits a bored girl.
"Ruby Rose?" Glynda asked with a smile.
"Yes, ma'am?" The young rose replied calmly.
"You've done quite the job tonight, eight people sent to the hospital, three in critical condition, one confirmed death, a Dust shop destroyed, and you didn't even catch Neo Politan. Those are some serious charges."
"Self-defense."
"Ah, yes, self-defense. It's a shame no one will buy that." Glynda said gleefully.
"Miss Goodwitch, my Uncle has informed me on how the laws doesn't work and whose really in charge, so with all due respect, get to the fucking point already. I rather not spend the night here."
"Alright then. Do you want to attend Beacon?"
"No."
"Too bad."
{Line break.}
"And, that's why I'm here." Ruby finished telling her story to her elder half-sister, Yang Branwen.
"I. Am. So. Thrilled. You. Are. Coming. With. Me. To. Beacon." Yang's words were emphasied with hard fist pumps.
"Yeah, well it's a big school, we might not even see each other." Ruby said, staring out a window of the stationary Bullhead.
"What!? No! We have to stick together, thats a family rule, 'When going someplace new, stay with family, or someone expendable, Qrow qualifies for both.' Mom drilled that rule into me, mainly 'cuz I kept wandering off and ditching my guards at the camps or villages we visited most the time."
"How is Raven, nowadays?"
"Great! She's still searching for our bastard of a Dad, and The Tribe is doing swell, just last week I got to lead a raid on another group of Bandits. And you probably noticed something different about me... Like a new something... Something pretty cool... And sharp..." Yang trailed off, hinting at something.
"Oh, did you do something to your hair? 'Cuz it looks like you did something to your ha-"
"I got The Sword!" Yang shouted, drawing out a plain ōdachi from a sheath on her right hip, and holding it out to the light.
"I finally got It! I was this close to not getting it in time for Beacon, but I did! I had to work extra hard." Yang said, and continued in a more somber tone. "I know it's not cool like Full Blossom, Crescent Rose and Silver Thorns, or anything. To me though, it's a symbol of strength, a validation of growth. In The Tribe, you take what you want, but only if you earned it. It's confusing, but to me it makes sense. Mom thought I earned this, that's what makes it special, I don't need some mecha-shifting weapon of mass destruction, because I'm strong, and skilled. That's why I'll fight with this, no more just punching things till they fall." Yang finished put her weapon away.
"Hmm? That's right, Raven doesn't let you use actual weapons during raids. I remember when she took Crescent Rose from me when I visited. Wanna spar later?"
"Really!? Heck yeah! Better prepare to lose, Ruby! I'm gonna wipe the floor with you!"
"Yeah, sure you will, Yang. Sure you will."
{Line break.}
Jaune Arc wasn't happy.
Standing amongst the rest of the competi- peers. Amongst his peers, he was ignoring the whispers his presence always brought, he was -as his handmaid said he did from time to time- brooding. He never understand why she said that. Sometimes he was just lost in thought, in company he was only to speak if spoken to, it wasn't his fault that his resting face came off an unwelcoming.
Not that it was important anyways. No one would ever willingly talk to him.
He was trained by the best of Vila for combat since before he could talk, he was trained to follow orders, he never complained, never disobeyed, he always excelled at every task given to him. Won every match that mattered, be it a exhibition or tournament match. And yet here he was, on a Bullhead, armed with a relic of the past, enrolled in Beacon Academy for Hunters. No, not enrolled, Sold.
His parents, Sold him to Vila, and Beacon commandeered him for the War Against Grimm.
'Bullshit.' He thought.
He was sold by his family, told to uphold the Arc Name, on paper he volunteered to protect the kingdom.
'Maybe I should have ran away with Saphron "The Eldest Embarrassment of The Arcs." When I had the chance.'
He didn't think the title suited her, she only broke a marriage agreement with The Winchesters and ran south.
Uphold The Arc Honor. Respect The Name.
Preserve The Legacy.
That's the Mantra he grew up with, everything he has, he owes to his Name.
War Heroes, that's what the Name was built upon. Violence. Murder. Death. Destruction. And what has his family done since the Name was made? They've fought. Warriors. That's what Arcs are. They obey the Council. When told to Fight, they Fight. When told to Die, they Die. When told to Love, they Love. When told to Kill, they Kill. When told to Jump, they don't bother asking how high, they Jump as high they can.
Even him.
When he was fourteen, he got married, his wife was killed, he killed her assassin. All of it was orchestrated by the Council. Except the last part, he was also supposed to die.
Being a child of an affair, his mother hated him. Being the only Son, most of his sisters hated him. Being the Son of a Faunus servant, gained him the hatred from the Families of Vila.
In public and on papers, everything perfect, he's the Crowned Son Of Arc, but In private, behind closed doors, he's the disgrace.
What better way to get rid of a mistake, than a tragedy.
It wasn't the first time they tried, and it wasn't the last. Each time he got stronger, each time they trained him to not disappoint, but he did, by living, by learning.
The smell of Poisons, the faces and backgrounds of all the servants. When an 'accident' could occur.
It's no secret that Vila is the worst place for Faunus', The Families have always held antipathy for them since they took Occup, the sandy kingdom rich in resources on the northeastern end of Danal. An official ceasefire has been called since the Revolution, only because Vila was outnumbered and surrounded, with Menas in the South, Hazol in the West and Occup at the Northeast, they never stood a chance.
So, it's a prime target for the Red Fang, the terrorist remains of the peaceful White Fang, a group of Faunus who got equality everywhere else. The Red Fang, doesn't want Peace, they want Vengeance.
So, of course on his sixteenth birthday, when he was told to celebrate in Occup, the headquarters of the Red Fang, he wasn't surprised that his ride got shot down by them. He didn't bother putting up a fight when he was kidnapped and taken to a base. He didn't even feel guilty when he slaughtered them all on his way out, luckily the official investigators couldn't pin the claw marks and torn throats on him.
'I'm only thinking about politics, family, war, terrorism, death, and how every moment of my life I've been looking over my shoulder, searching for the person who'll try and put the knife in my back, before I kill them. That's not brooding, just... Contemplating my life.' He thought, his eyes never leaving the window, his guard open, yet never dropping. Throughout all his thoughts, he watched that cat Faunus glare at him in the reflection of the glass.
{Line break.}
Blake Belladonna was gonna be sick.
She wanted to get on the flight quick enough to find a spot away from the filthy humans, but they were fucking everywhere. And that fucking Arc was standing over there like he fucking owned this piece of shit Bullhead.
'If my parents didn't insist I go with the human garbage, I would've demanded my personal aircraft to take me.
But no, I'm the fucking Princess of Occup, and here I am, mingling with the peasants and scumbags.
I bet the fuckbag Arc, isn't that strong, one bullet, I bet that's all it take to kill him, one bullet to the back of his head, or to the stern face, or to his broad back.
Maybe he might try and fight back, he might wrap his rough hands around my slender neck and squeeze.
He'll probably do what his ancestor did and have his way with me, no matter how much I beg. Maybe I'll flip the tables on him, I'll pin him down, make him beg for his Sword to Sheath itself in me.
Gah! That fucking scumbag pile of garbage! Perverting my mind!'
Blake left her spot and rushed into the girls restroom to purge these thoughts from her mind and body.
{Line break}
Weiss Schnee was scared. No, not scared, just nervous. Really, really nervous.
Weiss applied for Beacon on a whim, her mother would never allow her to go to Atlas Academy, so she took a chance with Beacon.
And. She. Got. Accepted.
Weiss paced in the restroom on the Bullhead, destined for Beacon.
She ran away. Okay, technically she didn't, legal age for being an adult was seventeen, so, it shouldn't be a problem.
Weiss stopped pacing and went to the sinks and stared in the mirrors.
Her Blood Red eyes gazed deeply into each other.
"It's not a problem. We just decided to leave home, to fulfill our dreams. Without any previous combat training. With a stabby-sword-speary-thingy. That we having no training for. We bribed a pilot to fly us across the ocean to go to a school that teaches you to fight Monsters we could only see in nightmares. We didn't do anything wrong. Right?"
Weiss' vision became fuzzy as her heartbeat sped up.
'Maybe, I should've taken up Winter's offer to train me?' She wondered, before remembering the last few times she asked her for help.
{Flashback .1}
"Winter, can you get the cereal on the top? I can't reach."
"Sure, Weiss." Winter says, then she grabs the box, and walks away with it.
{Flashback .6}
"Winter, have you seen my hoodie?"
"Hallway closet."
Weiss opens the hallway closet, her hoodie is in there, right next to a flock of angry looking doves.
{Flashback .18}
"Winter! Help! I tied my shoelaces together and fell down the stairs! I'm in pain!
"I know! I'm recording!"
{Flashback .45}
"Winter! I think I'm allergic to this!"
"Cool."
{Flashback Fin.}
'Nah, I'm good.' Weiss thought.
Weiss took deep breath, and exhaled slowly, she clenched her fists then relaxed them, she repeated these action nine times.
She stood up, straighted her big white jacket, she threw her dulled white hair back, flipped up the hood on her black hoodie, fixed her hair down the back of it and pulled up her loose fitting pants.
"Everything is going to be okay, Weiss. Nobody aboard knows anything about you, it's time to be someone new. No more mistakes, no more random accidents." Weiss pointed her finger at her reflection. "So, Weiss." She jabbed her thumb behind her, towards the door. "Go out there and make a friend."
With her new found resolve, she turned around to walk out the restroom, and saw something odd.
'What's up with those wall toilets? I've never seen those before.'
When she was three feet away from the door, it flew open... and four boys walked in talking to themselves. Weiss -like any other moment she's caught off guard, or wasn't and just couldn't handle it- froze.
And through the still ajar door she saw a girl in a black dress with cat ears rush into another restroom. And like a hundred piece puzzle with one piece left, it fell into place and the image of white cat lying in snow was clear, only this time she didn't get a cute kitty. No. She got the image that she went into the wrong restroom... Again!
She ran out, with a fierce blush, thanking the Gods she was wearing her hood.
{Line break}
Pyrrha Nikos was called 'The Invincible Girl.' And 'The Goddess of Victory.' People thought she was leagues better then them, that they didn't deserve to be in her presence.
She would applaud them for being right, but it was so obvious how perfect she was, she didn't expect them to think anything else.
{Line break}
Lie Ren was having the newest time of his life, doing somersaults on the roof of a Bullhead, next stop Beacon.
Nora Vaklyrie was taking a nap on the center of the roof.