The Shining Beacon
Sam and I watched the screen intently, waiting...
A shorter version of the theme song played, hyping us up. Then...
Several ships carrying students docked. As soon as one landed, Jaune ran out and vomited into the nearest trash-can.
"Thus, Vomit Boy is born!" I grinned. Sam let out a laugh.
"I almost feel sorry for the kid."
Ruby and Yang, alongside several other students, walked out of the ship and headed down a paved path.
That's when Beacon, in all of its glory, was revealed.
"Whoa." Sam gaped. Even I was impressed by the enormous school.
"Wow..." Ruby and Yang stared. Yang smiled.
"The view from Vale's got nothing on this!"
That's when Ruby evolved into some little chibi, 2D character.
"Ohmygosh, sis! That kid's got a collapsible staff! And she's got a fire sword!"
"Okay..." I raised an eyebrow. Sam looked just as confused. "Well, this show is designed like an anime."
"Yeah... It's kinda weird, seeing them as cartoons."
"Yeah..."
Yang reached over and pulled Ruby back into reality.
"Ow! Ooww!"
"Easy there, little sister. They're just weapons!"
"Oh no." I face-palmed, Sam doing the sign of the cross.
"Just weapons? They're an extension of ourselves! They're a part of us! They're so cool!"
"Well, why can't you swoon over your own weapon? Aren't you happy with it?"
"Of course I'm happy with Crescent Rose! I just really like seeing new ones. It's like meeting new people, but better..."
Yang playfully pushed her sister's hood down over her face.
"Ruby, come on, why don't you go try and make some friends of your own?"
Ruby removed her hood.
"But... Why would I need friends when I have you?"
"Well..." In a flash, a group of other students surrounded Yang and they all ran down the road. "Actually, my friends are here. Gotta go catch up. 'Kay, see ya, bye!"
"Come on, Yang!" Sam complained. "Not cool." I shrugged.
"We older siblings have lives too, little brother."
Ruby was left spinning and dizzy-eyed from Yang's sudden departure.
"Wait, where are you going?! Are we supposed to go to our dorms? Where are our dorms? Do we have dorms? I don't know what I'm doing..."
Ruby fell backwards into a luggage cart, sending white cases flying. Someone in white stood over her.
"What are you doing?!"
"Oh no." I winced. "I've got a really, REALLY bad feeling about this."
Ruby got up on her hands.
"Sorry!"
"Sorry?!" Weiss asked. "Do you have any idea of the damage you could have caused?!"
Ruby held a case up.
"Uuhhh..."
"Give me that!" Weiss snatched the luggage from Ruby and opened it to reveal its contents: vials of colored powder. "This is Dust, mined and purified from the Schnee Quarry!"
"Uuuhhhh..."
"What are you, brain-dead? Dust! Fire, water, lightning, energy!"
The Heiress was sending Dust flying directly into Ruby's face, making the girl cough.
"I... I know..."
"This is not good." Sam cringed. "Remember when we messed with Ruby's Dust-rounds a few years back?"
"And blew up that bus-stop? Yeah, I remember."
"At least we took that Phantom Hitchhiker out by destroying that pocket-watch."
"Yeah, but Ruby was pissed."
We both shuddered at the memory of the enraged Rose.
"Are you even listening to me? Is any of this sinking in? What do you have to say for yourself?!"
Ruby sneezed, which caused an explosion of flames, snowflakes, and electricity to fly right onto Weiss. The bottle she had been holding flew over the courtyard and landed at the Blake's feet, the girl picking it up and noticing the Schnee Dust Company logo on the side as she read from a book and looked over at the scene.
Weiss was covered in soot, but she quickly shook it off and got angry.
"Unbelievable! This is exactly the kind of thing I was talking about!"
"I'm really, really sorry!"
"Ugh, you complete dolt! What are you even doing here? Aren't you a little young to be attending Beacon?"
"Yeah!" Sam shouted. "Stop acting high and mighty and start taking notes, Ice-Bitch!" I gave a small smirk.
"It's so cute to see a guy defending his girlfriend."
"RUBY IS NOT MY GIRLFRIEND!"
"Okay, okay! Geez... You know, the Camaro is right next to us. They'll hear you."
"Well, I-I..."
"This isn't your ordinary combat school. It's not just sparring and practice, you know! We're here to fight monsters, so watch where you're going!"
"Where the Hell is Yang?!" Sam asked. "She should be looking out for Ruby! Not socializing with those weird silhouette-guys!" I raised an eyebrow.
"What's up with them, anyway?"
"I don't know... They're kinda creepy."
"Yeah..."
"Hey! I said I was sorry, Princess!"
"That a girl, Rubes!" I smiled. "You tell the Ice-Bitch!"
"It's Heiress, actually." Blake walked over, frowning. "Weiss Schnee, heiress to the Schnee Dust Company: one of the largest producers of energy propellant in the world."
"Finally!" Weiss smiled smugly. "Some recognition!" Blake's golden eyes narrowed.
"The same company infamous for its controversial labor forces and questionable business partners."
"OHHHHHHHHHH!" Sam and I started laughing. That was perfect! I grinned.
"TAKE THE ICE-BITCH DOWN!"
Ruby laughed as Weiss got angry.
"Wha-?! How dare you-?! The nerve of..! Ugh!"
Weiss got up in Blake's face and took the bottle from her, walking off in a huff as her helpers gathered the luggage and followed.
"I promise I'll make this up to you!" Ruby shouted, then sighed. "I guess I'm not the only one having a rough first day... So, what's-?" Ruby turned to see Blake walking off as well, then collapsed to the ground on her back. "Welcome to Beacon..."
"Poor kid." I crossed my arms. "Baby-Ruby was so socially awkward." Sam rolled his eyes, smiling.
"She still is."
Ruby was covered by a shadow.
"Hey." A voice greeted. Ruby looked up to see a blonde boy holding his hand out, blue eyes filled with pity. "I'm Jaune."
Ruby took his hand and was helped to her feet.
"Ruby... Aren't you the guy who threw up on the ship?"
Sam and I started laughing again as the scene changed and time-skipped.
Ruby and Jaune walked along a path.
"All I'm saying is that motion sickness is a much more common problem than people let on!" Jaune argued. Ruby laughed.
"Look, I'm sorry! Vomit Boy was the first thing that came to mind."
"Oh, yeah? What if I called you Crater Face?"
"We've gotta use that!" I insisted, Sam rolling his eyes. "If she asks, it's because of where we found her."
"Hey, that explosion was an accident!"
"Well, the name's Jaune Arc! Short, sweet, rolls off the tongue! Ladies love it!"
"Kid..." I put my face in my hands. "Just don't..."
"Do they?" Ruby asked skeptically. Jaune was immediately put into defense-mode.
"They will! Well, I-I hope they will. My mom always says that... Never mind."
Sam and I gazed at the screen, then I pulled out a gun and aimed it at the blonde boy's face. Sam quickly wrestled it from my hands, leaving me crossing my arms and sulking.
Ruby giggled for a minute before falling into away ward silence. Then...
"So... I got this thing!" Ruby whipped out Crescent Rose and stabbed it into the ground. Jaune recoiled, eyes wide.
"Whoa! Is that a scythe?!"
"It's also a customizable high impact-velocity sniper rifle!"
"A wha..?"
Ruby smiled deviously, priming the weapon.
"It's also a gun." Sam and I said in sync, voices monotone. I rolled my eyes, counting down on my fingers.
"It's also a gun."
"Oh. That's cool!"
"So, what've you got?"
"Oh! I, uh..." Jaune pulled a simple sword out of a sheath. "I got this sword!"
Sam and I raised eyebrows.
"That's the weapon of the so-called natural-born leader?" I asked. "A sword?! RUBY HAS A GUN-SCYTHE! YANG HAS HER GUN-GAUNTLETS! BLAKE HAS A GUN ON A RIBBON! EVEN WEISS' WEAPON IS MORE BADASS THAN THAT!"
Ruby tried to look impressed.
"Oooooh!"
"Yeah, and I've got a shield, too!" Jaune removed his scabbard from his belt and raised his arm. The sheath expanded into a shield. Ruby poked it.
"So, what do they do?"
Jaune fumbled with the shield as it retracted off his arm, expanded, and retracted again before putting it back in place and finally shrinking it down for good, placing it back on his belt.
"The shield gets smaller, so when I get tired of carrying it, I can just... Put it away..."
"But... Wouldn't it weigh the same?"
"Yeah, it does..." Jaune looked down dejectedly. Ruby giggled, then looked up at Crescent Rose.
"Well, I'm kind of a dork when it comes to weapons, sooo... I guess I did go a little overboard when I was designing it."
"Wait, you made that?!"
"See?!" I asked. "Perfectly reasonable to be surprised!"
"Of course! All of the students at Signal forge their own weapons! ... Didn't you make yours?"
"It's a hand-me-down." Jaune looked down. "My great-great-grandfather used it to fight in the war."
"War?" Sam asked. "What war?"
"All worlds have wars, Sammy."
"Sounds more like a family heirloom to me!" Ruby laughed awkwardly. "Well, I like it! Not many people have an appreciation for the classics these days." Jaune sheathed his sword, looking down.
"Yeah, the classics..."
"So why'd you help me out back there? In the courtyard?"
"Why not? My mom always says strangers are just friends you haven't met yet."
"STOP TALKING ABOUT YOUR MOTHER!" I whipped out another gun, and Sam desperately tried to wrestle the weapon away from me. "YOU STUPID, IDIOTIC, HOPELESS MORON!" Sam finally wrestled the gun away, then raised an eyebrow as he looked at the screen.
"Didn't Ruby say something about Pyrrha crushing on that guy?"
"Hmm." Ruby looked around. "Hey, where are we going?"
"I don't know! I was following you." The scene faded to black. "Y-You think there might be a directory? Maybe a food court? Some kind of recognizable landmark?" Ruby started giggling. "Is, uh... Is that a no?"
"That's a no."
We gazed at the screen as a song started playing.
"I may fall!
But not like this! It won't be by your hand!"
Sam and I exchanged glances once it was over.
"... Jaune had better get his shit together." I stated. "Or we might have to hold an intervention for Pyrrha." Sam nodded.
"Agreed."
HAHAHAHAHAHAHA! Dean's reaction to Jaune's ladies-man antics! Sam's reaction to Ruby's first day! I own nothing! Please read, review, check out my other stories, etc. Thanks!
