At dawn the following morning, Glynda tracked me down to escort me to a temporary living quarters for me to stay in until the students arrived, which also happened to be in view of Ozpin's office in the tower. When I asked her why, she explained rather bluntly that she and Ozpin didn't like the idea of me just wandering around without supervision at night, which made sense to me. However, while she was talking I located several cameras and microphones hidden in various places all over the room and retrieved them in the span of a blink. When she finished speaking I presented them to her before crushing them all to powder in my hands, startling her.
I understood that they were still wary of me, but that didn't mean I was going to completely forfeit my privacy.
She contacted Ozpin immediately after I'd done the deed, informing him of what transpired. The headmaster was displeased, for sure, but was willing to make a compromise. So for the next three days, I shadowed Glynda as she reported to each of the other staff members to check on their progress in preparing the school for the student's arrival. This gave me a chance to meet with some of the teachers, like Port and Doctor Ooblek (who was very happy to hear me address him as such), and even Professor Peach, and given the fact that we never saw her in-person during the first four volumes of the show, I felt genuinely honored to meet her, but more on her later.
Glynda assigned me various tasks pertaining to what each of the teachers needed to get done, from organizing textbooks alphabetically to more mundane things like sweeping and mopping the floors, the speed, and efficiency at which I accomplished these things stunning them all.
At the end of each day, Glynda would escort me back to my room before leaving to go meet with Ozpin personally and report on her observations of my activities, the real reason why I was partnered up with her. I didn't mind, though; her reports were always positive, if not a bit amusing when she described my feats of speed and supply management with such awe. My alone time then gave me and Liv a chance to go over each and every speck of information about RWBY (the show) to work on our plan to bring Cinder and Salem down.
Oh yeah, I should probably mention that; I downloaded the first four seasons of the show and all the available info from the wiki onto my omni-tool during my visit to an alternate Earth that was very similar to mine, minus a few key differences.
One of them being that Monty was still alive there.
R.I.P. you magnificent man.
Anyway, on the day when the students were meant to show up, I was reading in the library late in the morning, engrossed in a history book about Remnant's Great War. History was one of my two favorite subjects in school, the other being English, and some of my favorite historical periods to study were, in fact, war times. Not because I'm a sadist or anything, but because I enjoy learning the stories of the brave souls who gave everything they had fighting for what they believe in, even if they were on the wrong side.
But back to the book. I was halfway through the section detailing the minor skirmishes that occurred at the halfway point in the conflict when I suddenly heard Glynda approaching. I had already memorized her heartbeat and figured it was her without even looking, so I set my book down and stood up from the table.
"Morning Glynda," I greeted as I turned around to face her. "How can I help you?"
"I was told to inform you that the first-year students have just arrived," she explained. "They are gathering in the auditorium for Ozpin's introduction, and you are to join them."
A frustrated frown then crossed her face. "Of course, I would have been saved the trouble of walking all the way down here if not for…"
"Right; no scroll."
"Yes. We would appreciate it if you would rectify that as soon as possible."
"Trust me, I will. But first..."
I turned away from Glynda and activated my x-ray and telescopic vision. The walls became transparent in my sight as I zeroed in on the docks where the airships were just taking off after depositing their cargo: the first-years. But by that point, the docks had almost completely cleared off except for two individuals: Ruby Rose and Weiss Schnee. The sight of the two of them made me smile, but then I noticed something.
Weiss was angrily waving a bottle of red dust around while clearly shouting something at the little red reaper, her actions causing said dust to leak from its container and accumulate in-between her and Ruby in the form of a cloud. Ruby then made the mistake of breathing the cloud in through her nose and was now about ready to sneeze.
"Uh-oh. Gotta go, Glynda."
"Wh-?"
WHOOSH
I didn't give her a chance to finish as I sped towards the docks, eager to see Ruby again as well as meet the Weiss Schnee in person. Although considering the attitude she was now in, I was a little concerned about how she'd react to my first impression. In the end, though, I decided that it wasn't really important enough to get worked up over, and besides, I still had a disaster to avert.
Priorities, ya know?
By the time I got there everything appeared to be frozen in place due to how fast I was moving. I could see Ruby literally half a second away from sneezing and setting off the dust cloud, Weiss glaring at her and completely oblivious to what was about to happen.
I noticed the cases of dust still strewn about Ruby's feet and decided to deal with those first. I quickly stacked them neatly on the trolley one by one and then pushed it a safe distance away, but that's when I noticed none other than Blake Belladonna with her nose stuck in a book as she walked towards the Ice Flower Duo. I cast a quick glance up to the bow on her head and sighed before getting back to the task at hand. Next thing I did was take the bottle of red dust out of Weiss' hand and then move her behind Ruby, and at that point, everything seemed to be in place to avoid any potential problems.
But then I decided to have a bit of fun.
I had noticed Jaune standing idly by watching the whole debacle, his attention focused mainly on Weiss (c'mon dude). Shaking my head I grabbed hold of his shoulders and then began slowing myself down until time resumed at a normal pace, at least from my perspective.
"AA-CHOO!"
BOOM
The dust cloud ignited in a dazzling display of fire, ice, and lightning, and when it had dissipated into a harmless cloud of smoke, I moved Jaune so he was standing in the midst of it. I then stood back and watched as Ruby opened her eyes and saw not a white-haired girl standing in front of her, but a very confused scraggly-haired blonde guy.
"Oh my gosh," she gasped. "I turned you into a boy!"
Heh heh heh.
"Wh-what?" Jaune stammered. "No, I've always been one."
"I'm right here," Weiss said, causing Ruby to turn around.
"Huh?" She looked back and forth between Weiss and Jaune, trying to process what had just occurred. "B-but…what…how…?"
"It was me," I said at last.
All three of them turned to look at me at once as I waved "hello". When Weiss saw me her gaze became questioning, Jaune was mildly surprised, but Ruby smiled and ran over to me.
"Kent," she beamed. "You got accepted into Beacon!"
"Yep, and so did you. Congrats," I held out my fist so she could bump hers against it.
"Excuse me?"
It was then that Weiss strut on over to us, Ruby moving out of the way to give her room to walk right up to me. She narrowed her eyes as she studied me, while I looked down at her with a raised eyebrow.
"Are you telling me that you were the one behind that switcheroo?" She asked while pointing behind herself.
"Yes, I was," I answered.
"How did you do that?" Ruby inquired with a tilt of her head.
"I'm also very, very fast Ruby," I then looked past Weiss to see Jaune still covered with a thin layer of soot. "Sorry if I startled you, man; I just wanted to make a little joke. You weren't in any danger, I promise."
"N-no no, it's alright," he said before he began brushing himself off. "It's just…that was the last thing I expected to happen today, let alone being called a girl."
Ruby and I shared a laugh at that, but Weiss' shouting stopped us prematurely.
"Unbelievable! This is exactly the kind of thing I was talking about!"
Ruby shrank away and pushed her fingertips together. "I'm really, really sorry."
"Ugh, you complete dolt! What're you even doing here? Aren't you a little young to be attending Beacon?"
"Well, I-I…"
Okay, I know Weiss has a heart of gold underneath and all that, but I wasn't going to let her get away with being so condescending when she wasn't completely in the right either.
"Aren't you being hypocritical calling her that?" I growled at her.
She and Ruby both turned to me, both of them surprised at my accusation, Weiss especially. A moment later she scowled at me, her icy blue eyes filled with a steadily growing fury, but I remained unmoving.
"What did you just say?"
"I said you're being a hypocrite," I then lifted the vial of red dust for her to see. "YOU were the one hauling dust around in unmarked cases, and then you just decide to pull one out and wave it around in an angry tirade? The seal on this one is broken, by the way. Did you even check before you stored it? Ruby should've been more aware of her surroundings, sure, but YOU should've been more mindful of people's safety, Weiss."
She stared at me mouth agape, trying her best to work her jaw to no avail. After a few seconds though, she sneered and pulled out Myrtenaster, pointing the tip at my throat.
"How dare you say that to me?! Do you even know who you're dealing with?!"
Heh heh heh.
Faster than anyone nearby could notice, I snatched her weapon from her hand and pointed it at her instead. By the time she realized what happened, she was shocked to see that the tables had turned and recoiled when she noticed that the tip was half an inch away from her jugular.
"Do you?" I warned.
Ruby looked back and forth between us worriedly and felt compelled to break the ice. "Um, sorry but…'Weiss' who?"
"Weiss Schnee," came a new voice, that of Blake who finally decided to join us. I didn't turn to look at her as she walked over, neither did Weiss. "Heiress to the Schnee Dust Company, one of the largest producers of energy propellant in the world."
Weiss finally looked away from me to roll her eyes. "Finally, some recognition."
Seriously? Your own sword is pointed at your throat and that's what you're focused on?
"The same company infamous for its controversial labor forces and questionable business partners."
Weiss scowled once again while Ruby let out an audible "Oh", but that was when two men in suits (Weiss' assistants I assumed) came rushing over with panicked looks on their faces.
"Miss Schnee," one of them almost yelled. "What is going on here? Are you alright?"
Weiss opened her mouth to speak, but I beat her to it, turning towards them with a smile while Ruby, Blake, and Jaune all observed with baited breath.
"Forgive me for frightening you gentlemen, but Miss Schnee and I were merely resolving a minor altercation."
"A minor altercation?"
"Yes," I then turned back to the heiress and stared right into her eyes. "I was simply demonstrating that this isn't your typical combat school; it's not just sparring and practice. We're here to fight monsters of all kinds, not just the Grimm, so she should be mindful of whatever crosses her path and think before she reacts. It would save her a lot of trouble."
A beat of silence followed before I pulled Myrtenaster back, flipped it around, and offered her its handle. Weiss looked back and forth between me and her weapon before scoffing and yanking it from my hand before storming off. Everyone watched her go, and then I made sure to toss the dust vial to one of the suits before they took off after her, one of them making sure to grab the trolley and bring it with them.
"I promise I'll make this up to you," Ruby called after the heiress, receiving no response. "I guess I'm not the only one having a rough day. So…what's…?"
She turned to see Blake walking away as well, and so promptly collapsed to her knees before falling onto her back.
"Welcome to Beacon," she moaned.
Jaune took the opportunity to approach her and offered his hand. "Hey, I'm Jaune."
She took it and allowed him to pull her up. "Ruby. Oh, and this is my new friend Kent."
"Nice to meet you, Jaune," I greeted before we shook hands, and when we finished Ruby let out a giggle.
"I'm sorry," she said to the knight. "But aren't you the guy that threw up on the ship?"
Heh heh heh.
(X)
En route to the auditorium…
A few minutes later we were walking along a winding road next to a river. Jaune was going on about the seriousness of motion sickness while Ruby listened, and I was simply content to watch them interact. Having a front row seat to something like watching two beloved not-so-fictional characters simply talk was a privilege not to be taken lightly. It was at times like these where I had to refrain from geeking out and making things awkward.
The two were now in the process of presenting their iconic weapons, and I suppressed a chuckle when Jaune fumbled with his collapsible shield. I then helped guide them to the auditorium once it became clear that they had no real idea where they were going. But right as I was about to follow them inside, I felt a pulse travel up my arm to my head, a signal that Liv wanted to speak with me.
"Oh, sorry guys, I just remembered that I had to go speak to my friend really quick. I'll see ya in a sec."
Ruby gave me a thumbs up before she and Jaune disappeared into the crowd. When they were gone I sped off to the nearest tree and hid behind it, and after making sure that the coast was clear I raised my bracelet to eye level.
"'Sup, Liv?"
She materialized above my wrist. "Oh, nothing much. Just thought I'd let you know that while you were making friends and messing around I took the liberty of solving your little scroll problem."
My face lit up; Liv was just awesome like that, always working in the background and coming up with quick solutions to problems while I was busy being a hero.
"Awesome. What d'ya got?"
"Hold out your other hand."
I obliged, and then a river of energy particles flowed out of the omni-tool before coalescing above my left palm. The shape they took on was small and rectangular, and a few seconds later a transparent device with two solid white grips on either end came into being before falling into my open hand.
"Hmm, light as a feather," I observed. I turned it over and pressed the yellow diamond on one side to switch it on, a white S-shield greeting me on the screen.
"And as hard as kryptonium-reinforced dragon scales," Liv added, crossing her arms smugly.
"What about the software?"
"It contains all the basic features you'd find in such a device here in this world, but beneath that lies a veritable web of quantum entanglement that, from my estimates, no soul on Remnant will be able to crack."
"Nice," I commended her as I pocketed the device inside my jacket. "At least Oz and Glynda will be happy."
"Indeed. Now," she then shooed me away with a flick of her hand. "Away with you; you don't want to be late."
"Am I ever?"
"Occasionally."
I made a face, she stuck her tongue out at me, and we both shared a laugh before she dived back into her home and I ran back to the auditorium. Just like earlier, I was moving so fast that everyone else appeared frozen in place as I made my way through the crowd. Unlike in the actual episode, though, each and every student looked like an actual person instead of a human-shaped black mass. I got so invested in admiring the unique details pertaining to every individual, from armor sets to hair colors and styles, that I barely avoided bumping into a golden-armored girl with scarlet red hair and…green…eyes…
Holy crap.
"Pyrrha."
She stood there with one hand on her hip and looking at Jaune from a distance, a look of clear interest in her eyes. And poor Vomit Boy was busy focusing solely on the Ice Queen as she was in the middle of arguing with Ruby again. Looking back to the prodigy, my mind replayed all the events leading to her tragic end, the image of an arrow lodged in her chest at the forefront as the same question repeated over and over again.
"Do you believe in destiny?"
My teeth and fists clenched at the thought of what happened after that moment, of the woman responsible for ending her life way too soon. But just when my eyes began to heat up, I took a deep, calming breath before leaning down to speak something into her ear as non-creepily as possible. She wouldn't be able to hear it, but that didn't make it any less important for me to say.
"You. Will. Live. I promise."
I then walked away and moved to stand behind Weiss, having a good idea what she was going on about. Once I was in position, I dropped back down to normal speed and waited for the fireworks to go off.
"…and talk about cute boys, like tall, blonde and scraggly over there!"
She pointed her thumb over her shoulder, expecting only Jaune to be standing back there instead of yours truly. Ruby's eyes widened when she saw me; from her point of view, I probably looked like I literally appeared out of nowhere. When her eyes widened I gave her a wink, at which point she covered her mouth with her hands to stifle a giggle.
"What is so funny?" Weiss demanded.
Ruby let out a snort before pointing behind the heiress. "I think you might want to look again."
Weiss scoffed and turned around, only to come face-to-face with me, causing her to let out a small yelp in response.
"You?!"
"Me," I smirked.
Before she could get another word out, however, the screech of a microphone activating coupled with the sound of someone clearing their throat drew everyone's attention to the stage, where Ozpin was preparing to give his introductory speech with Glynda beside him.
"I'll…keep this brief," he began as he adjusted his glasses.
Weiss took that pause as a chance to step away from me, even if it meant standing closer to Ruby who gave her a friendly smile that she rolled her eyes at.
"You have traveled 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…"
There was something in Ozpin's tone that made it seem as though the mere act of saying that made him weary and tired. My theory was that after training up so many huntsmen and huntresses only for them to either die or lose their way (Team STRQ at the forefront), the weight was taking its toll.
"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."
I interpreted that as a challenge to the students to "go above and beyond" as my mother would always say. Even as Ozpin stepped off the stage, he managed to single me out in the crowd and lock eyes with me. All I gave him was a nod and then he disappeared behind a door leading out of the auditorium. By that point Glynda had finished informing the students of where they'd be sleeping for the night, and as they filed out, I pulled out my scroll thinking I'd be funny to call Glynda and let her know I had one now and see her reaction, but then I noticed Glynda approaching with a serious look on her face.
"Hey, Glynda. I was just about to go see if any of the students needed help moving their stuff to the ballroom."
"See that you do." I nodded and turned to leave, but her voice stopped me in my tracks. "Kent?"
"Something the matter?"
"I just wanted to make something clear before you ran off again."
"Shoot."
She crossed her arms and her glare intensified. "This information you're carrying had better be worth our time. Don't make Ozpin and I regret trusting you."
"It will, and I won't; you have my word," I declared as I turned around fully to face her. "But I am curious as to why you two were so quick to even give me a chance at all, really."
"Ozpin and our colleagues have gone to great lengths to keep what you know hidden from the world. What you know matters to us just as much as how you know it, as well. We are very much looking forward to your explanation."
"So am I," I chuckled, causing her to narrow her eyes even further. "I'll be going now."
WHOOSH
After I left, Glynda huffed before straightening her skirt and tucking a loose strand of hair behind her ear.
"I'm not sure I'll ever get used to that," she murmured, but then she heard her scroll ring and answered it. She recoiled when she saw my grinning face on the screen.
"You will eventually, it just takes a while."
"W-what…how," she stammered.
"Also, I just texted you my number right before this. Please make sure to share it with Ozpin. Peace out."
I waved goodbye and then the screen went blank after that. All Glynda could do was stare at her reflection in surprise for several moments, wondering how I managed to procure a scroll so quickly and how I got her number. When she composed herself she growled at how frustrating I was being before stomping away, probably to meet up with Ozpin again but fuming all the while.
I thought it best to avoid her the rest of the day for both our sakes.
(X)
Ballroom, later that night…
After everyone had gotten settled, the staff served everyone dinner in the cafeteria before we were told to retire for the evening and save our energy for tomorrow. While the other first years were setting up their sleeping bags and pillows, I retreated to the nearest bathroom so I could shower and then change into my sleepwear: a simple pair of plaid cotton pants and a white t-shirt. Now I was resting my back against the base of one of the large windows watching the students mingle about, but then I heard a commotion off to the side.
"What in the world is going on over here?! Don't you realize some of us are trying to sleep?"
"Oh, not you again!"
"Shh! Guys, she's right! People are trying to sleep!"
The last one was undoubtedly Ruby's voice. I gazed across the room to try and sneak a peek of her and her future team bickering back and forth, but then my scroll rang again. It was a text from Ozpin checking up on me, so I quickly answered back.
-Evening Ozpin. How was your day?-
-Interesting to say the least. Glynda gave me the number to your new scroll, although I find it odd that you were able to procure one so quickly despite never leaving the school grounds. Care to explain?-
-Yes; I had my friend make it for me.-
-Who?-
-Her name is Olivia; she's my partner and traveling companion.-
-Strange how you didn't mention her earlier.-
-She likes to keep a low profile, but know that she will be an invaluable asset to taking down the Queen and her pawns, and I will introduce you to her at the upcoming meeting. You gave me a chance, but she needs one too.-
It took him an extra moment to reply, which he no doubt used to consider my words.
-Fine. Qrow will be here the day after tomorrow. Be ready.-
-I always am.-
"Excuse me."
The voice was soft, friendly and undoubtedly feminine, and one that I recognized instantly. A twang of nervousness shot through my stomach at meeting her in person for the first time as she was one of my favorite characters from the show, but I swallowed it down. Quickly pocketing my scroll, I turned to her with a friendly smile and prepared to say "hello".
But my breath was stolen away at the sight of her.
It was one thing to see the RWBY characters as 3D models for a web series, it was something else entirely to see them in-person with actual physical bodies. From what I'd seen so far, their likenesses carried over from their animated counterparts and were even somewhat amplified now that they were flesh and blood: Ruby was still adorable, Weiss was admittedly very pretty, and Blake was striking in a sort of dark and mysterious way.
Yang Xiao Long, however, was absolutely beautiful, and as I took in her visage time appeared to slow down again, except I wasn't using my super speed.
The first thing I noticed was her long, shapely and bare legs that led up to a pair of tight black boyshorts. Above that I could see her exposed midriff, naval included, and next up was her orange tank top that concealed her voluptuous breasts. Her hands were resting on her hips, allowing me to see how toned her arms were, just like the rest of her body. All of it was framed by her long, flowing and golden hair, but the moment my eyes locked with her lilac ones, I was instantly captivated and found it very difficult to look away.
"H-hey," I managed to get out, shaking my head to regain my focus. "What's up?"
"Your name is Kent, right?" I nodded. "I'm Yang, Ruby's big sister."
"Oh yeah, " I said, feigning surprise. "She mentioned you."
"Yup. She also mentioned how you stood up for her against Ice Queen over there." She pointed over her shoulder at Weiss who was almost done tucking herself in. And then, without warning, the blonde bombshell plopped down next to me and made herself comfortable. "I just wanted to say thanks. Normally it's my job to watch out for her but I appreciate you going out of your way like that."
"N-no problem," I raised my hands in defense. "And I don't plan on taking your place; I just like helping people."
"That's neat," she then glared in the heiress's direction again. "I just wish some people were more appreciative."
"Don't be too mad at her; she's just got a lot on her plate with her company and reputation and whatnot."
And getting away from her awful father.
But when Yang turned back to me, there was a sparkle of mirth in her eyes, and her smile was back again, but bigger than before. I had seen this expression on people plenty of times already to know that she had cooked up some sort of joke or teasing remark in her head, something involving me and Weiss.
This ought to be good.
"Y'know, she began playfully. "With the way you two interact, some would think that you have a thing for each other but don't want to admit it."
"Oh c'mon, really?" She started giggling. "Look, Weiss is cool and all…" She laughed even harder, wrapping her arms around her stomach. "No pun intended! Look, my point is that she simply isn't my type."
She finally pulled herself out of her reverie and wiped a small tear from her eye.
"Well if you're not into silver-haired brats with sticks up their butts, then what is your type?"
"Blondes," I blurted out.
I said it sincerely and quickly, so quickly, in fact, that it took me a moment to realize what I'd done before my eyes widened in horror at what just came out of my mouth. Yang was surprised as well, but after a brief moment of silence between us, her radiantly amused grin returned.
"Really~?"
"Um…"
"Relax," she giggled before punching me in the shoulder. "I'm just messin' with ya."
I stared at her incredulously as she got back up and brushed her shirt to smooth it out, her actions stretching the fabric and making her bust a little more pronounced in the process. I felt my face grow warm and began rubbing my chin nervously out of habit again.
"Well, I'm off to get my beauty sleep," she declared. "Got to be ready for tomorrow, ya know?"
"Y-yeah," I agreed.
"See ya then, Kent. Don't be late."
"Goodnight, Yang."
"Goodnight, Boy Scout."
I watched her go as she strut away, but halfway between me and her bed she looked over her shoulder and caught me staring. My face grew warm as I awkwardly waved goodbye, and after she winked back I noticed that she added a little more sway to her hips before she made it back to Ruby and lied down. I didn't blink at all the entire time until I heard my scroll ringing, retrieved it from my jacket pocket and hit "answer."
It was my AI companion grinning knowingly at me.
"What's up, Liv?"
"…"
"…Stop that."
"…"
"I'm serious!"
"So am I," she said. "You're not a captain, but you couldn't have been more obvious. Same goes for her."
"Look," I sighed. "We were just talking and getting to know each other. That was it."
"C'mon, Boy Scout…" she whined.
"Yang was just being Yang," I pressed. "She's naturally flirty like that with everybody."
"You're sure? Those hips of hers told no lies, pal."
"Again, she was just playing around. Okay?"
She gave me a disappointed frown before shrugging. "Suit yourself. Night pal."
"Night."
I ended the call right there and fell back against the wall again. Liv and I had had several exchanges like that in the past, and they all usually ended in similar fashions to that one. She loved to play matchmaker and try to set me up with people she believed I would be perfect for and vice versa, but it never went anywhere beyond close friendship. Heck, before I even got my powers I had yet to go on an actual date at all, and becoming a hero made it even worse as I was always busy moving from one crisis to the next. Then I began jumping across dimensions and any thought that I would be able to pursue a romantic relationship with a woman went out the window.
That's what I kept telling myself the reason was, anyway.
But I couldn't dwell on that knowing what awaited me in the morning, so I closed my eyes and willed myself to go to sleep for the first time in ages, at least that's how it felt. My last thoughts drifted to Yang, her attractiveness and what an overall amazing person she was (RWBY itself had proven that), but also her depression and loneliness after suffering one too many personal losses. The devastation wrought on her life and those closest to her thanks to you-know-who.
I would save her from that. I would save them all.
Tomorrow's gonna rock.
And then it was all peaceful silence and otherworldly dreams.
A/N:
Chapter 3. What do you think?
Sorry, this took a while to get out. I'm working on a few other projects of my own and a couple more with my friends, but thanks for sticking around.
Constructive criticism is welcome and appreciated.
Until next time!