(July 29, 2015)

Chapter 6. The Badge and the Burden

It was the morning after the initiation: the start of the third day at Beacon. Team BRNZ was sleeping soundly in their beds. Well, most of them. Nicandra woke up rather early and went through the usual morning toilette routine.

When she returned to her team's dorm, Zelony was already up and dressed. Rouge was sitting on her bed, sleepy and with her hair messed up.

"Good morning," Nicandra greeted the two. "How was your sleep?"
"Slept like a log," Zelony said.
"The beds aaa~re," Rouge yawned, "comfy. I should sleep more often."
"Let's wake our leader, shall we? I don't suppose we would want to be late on the first day," the blue-haired girl suggested.
"I take it you wanna do it since you just volunteered and all," the green-haired boy commented.
"Really? It should be his role to make sure we'll up in the morning, not us," the girl scoffed.
"But you just—"
"Today's a first day so that's different," Nicandra interrupted him. "Starting tomorrow he better work on his sleeping schedule and start to take responsibility for the team."
"Right now it sounds like you're taking the responsibility for this team," Rouge commented. "I'm going to wash myself," she said and left for the bathrooms.

Nicandra rolled her eyes and approached Bruin's bed. She considered a few options of how to wake him up and decided to go with the standard method.

She poked him at the side a few times and with a serious voice said, "Wake up, Bruin."

However the boy just mumbled something under his breath and rolled up in a ball. Annoyed, Nicandra pressed her temples and sighed deeply. These were going to be four hard years for her. Out of frustration she smacked him across the face and the boy suddenly woke up.

"What was that for!?" he pouted.

Nicandra grabbed her bag and left the room leaving confused boys alone.

"Eh, don't mind her," Zelony waved it off. "Come on, get up now. It's the first day of classes. Dress up and let's get some food."
"Okay."

Zelony left the dorm, probably for the cafeteria. Bruin on the other hand tied his hair in a bun, and changed his pajamas for something casual. He then went to the bathroom to somehow get more alive with a splash of cold water to his face, brushing his teeth by chance.

After he returned to the dorm, he grabbed his bag and left for the cafeteria. As he was turning at a corner he bumped into someone and fell. When he looked up he noticed a bipedal Grimm creature.

"G-Grimm—"

He then quickly crouched away behind the corner with fear in his eyes. How a Grimm made it to school? It was a Hunter academy, they were trained to kill these creatures, so why one of them was roaming its halls?

"Ace, you scared the poor guy," Bruin heard a male voice from behind the corner.
"You know that wasn't my intention," he heard another male voice from the same direction.

Then the Grimm from before appeared in front of Bruin with its paw extended. The boy tried to back down, but hit something with his back. He looked up and noticed a boy around his age with a grin on his face. Bruin then lowered his head and noticed that the Grimm before him appeared to have human features: like its paw was a hand and lower part of the head was human.

"I am sorry I startled you," the 'Grimm' spoke.
"W-what are you?" the brown-haired boy stuttered. The 'thing' before him was truly frightening.
"I am a human just like you," he replied. "Are you... planning on getting up?"

The boy hesitated for a moment but took the stranger's hand.

"I am Ace Wolfblade, leader of Team AZRE," he introduced himself.
"I'm Matthew Erthanos, but you can call me 'Matt'," the boy who was a moment ago behind him was now standing next to Ace. "I'm a member of Ace's team."
"It's not my team, it's our team," the other boy corrected him. Then he turned to the shaken boy, "What's your name?"
"B-Bruin. Bruin Brown, of Team BRNZ, its leader actually," he introduced himself.
"It seems that the 'team leader meeting' was destined for you two," Matt teased the two to which Ace replied with a poke to his friend's side.
"Um... What time is it?" Bruin asked.

Ace looked at his Scroll. Scrolls were portable devices with a myriad of functions. They were a part of Beacon's standard student equipment which was given to new students after the team announcements. The boy's expression turned into a shocked one.

"It's eight fifty-five!" he exclaimed. "We have Grimm studies with Professor Port!"

"You too!?" Bruin asked surprised.

"Let's just get going!" Matt said and took the two boys by arms and started to run hoping they would make it on time.

Bruin, Ace, and Matt somehow made it on time and entered the lecture hall. The three split up and went to their respective teams. Rouge who was the closest to him grinned at him and patted a seat next to her. The brown-haired boy sat down next to the girl, thinking about her vicious-looking smile.

In front of the class was a rather tall, bulky man with big mustache wearing mostly dark red and black. He introduced himself as "Professor Port" and immediately began teaching his subject: Grimm Studies.

"Monsters! Deeemons... Prowlers of the night! Yes, the creatures of Grimm have many names, but I merely refer to them as prey! Ha-ha!"

Professor Port's description of Grimm wasn't well received by the students. Rouge and Zelony had a bored expression, same as Bruin. Nicandra was the only member of their team to pay any real attention to the teacher.

"Uhhhh... And you shall too, upon graduating from this prestigious academy! Now, as I was saying: Vale, as well as the other three kingdoms, are safe havens in an otherwise treacherous world! Our planet is absolutely teeming with creatures that would love nothing more than to tear you to pieces! And that's where we come in. Huntsmen! Huntresses..." Professor Port winked at Yang who was sitting in the first row. The blonde laughed uncomfortably, the teacher's 'charm' wasn't working as much as he thought so. "Individuals who have sworn to protect those who cannot protect themselves! From what, you ask? Why, the very world!"

"Ayyy-yep!" Bruin shot out from his seat all of a sudden, hand raised high above him.

He received strange looks from the class. Then Rouge's hand tucked him down, the girl barely hid her giggles. The boy sat down embarrassed of his own behavior.

"Bruin, haven't you forgotten about something?" Zelony asked him. The boy looks at him confused and Nicandra also noticed something off about their leader.
"Where's your uniform?" she asks him bluntly.
"My what?" Bruin asked confused.
"Un-believable." Nicandra was about to slap him across the face, but simply resorted to a facepalm.
"Look at your outfit," the green-haired boy suggested.

The boy looked down and noticed he was wearing a dark green shirt and brown pants. He gasped and Rouge once again could barely contain her giggles.

He forgot to put on the uniform: black suits lined with gold and black pants, accompanied by a blue vest, and a white shirt with a red tie. How he didn't notice he stood out with his outfit? He thought that it had to be connected with this Ace fellow and his grim attire. He and his friend didn't notice his casual clothes, but then again they weren't the most uniformed themselves.

Bruin was sitting in silence as Professor Port was rambling. Then in the front of the class a white-haired girl shoot her hand high into the air.

"I do, sir!"
"Well, then, let's find out! Step forward, and face your opponent," the Professor gestures to the dark cage with Grimm imprisoned inside it.

Then Port sent Weiss to the armory to get her gear. She returned five minutes later, complete with her casual clothes.

She positioned herself several yards away from the cage and assumed a battle-ready pose.

"Did she just change her outfit?" Bruin muttered under his breath with a rather angry face.
"Gooo, Weiss!" Yang encouraged her teammate.
"Fight well!" Blake waved a small flag with "RWBY" written on it.
"Yeah, represent teeeam RWBY!" cheered Ruby.
However, Weiss was growing angry, "Ruby! I'm trying to focus!"

Ruby apologized. Professor Port followed it with a lock-breaking slash on the cage and released the Grimm: a Boarbatusk.

The battle started, although it wasn't an easy match for the girl in white. She was constantly yelling at her young team leader which appeared to drive Weiss mad. Professor Port was also hindering her concentration with his unrelenting series of unnecessary comments. After a minute the battle was over, Weiss panting heavily.

Port then finished the lesson, relaying homework to the students and dismissing the class. After it, Bruin quickly went back to his team dorm and changed into school uniform. Despite that, Nicandra was still glowering at him and the poor boy was trying his best to avoid her gaze.

The lessons where over, the last being Dueling with Goodwitch at the Amphitheater.

As the students where leaving the building after their last lesson that day, Bruin stumbled upon a step. His fall was broken by a tall man wearing heavy silver armor and a blue surcoat.

"Th-Thanks, big guy," Bruin said with a sheepish smile.
"No worries, but please be careful as you walk," he advised the other boy. "My name is Zweii Dragos, of Team AZRE."
"Team AZRE!?" the brown-haired boy's eyes lightened up.
"Y-Yes?" Zweii was confused with the other boy's reaction.
"Bruin, it's dinner time," Zelony appeared behind his partner. "The girls already went ahead."
"Oh, right! See you, Zweii!" Bruin said his farewells to the man. "Say 'hi' to Ace and Matt for me!" he added from the distance, confusing Zweii further.

The dinner went as Bruin expected, with Nicandra still sometimes glaring at him. Her interactions with the two other teammates were much better, even shedding a small smile or two at Zelony's jokes. Somewhat out of pity, Rouge was talking with her team leader and discussing their first day at Beacon.

After the meal, the group disbanded and went on their own. Bruin went to the gardens to get a break from Nicandra, homework had to wait until evening. Well, he could go to the library, but there was a slim chance that she could be there. Nicandra seemed like a studious, no-nonsense person so it was unlikely for her to not study hard from the very first day.

Much to his surprise, Nicandra appeared before him with a crossed look on her face.

"Um, hi," Bruin started, although he didn't expect much from her.
"Why Professor Ozpin chose you as the team leader?" she asked him with a slightly angry voice.
"Don't know, ask him. I'm just doing what I was tasked with."

Out of nowhere Nicandra slapped him across his face.

"What was that for!?" he cried out, a tear escaping his eye.
"You both don't know what you're doing. That much is certain," she scoffed. "You do absolutely nothing that would prove you're cut out for this job. Zelony would be better. Gosh, Rouge would be better. You are nothing more than a pain in the neck." She then turned on her heel. "I'm going to talk with Professor Ozpin. I can't deal with such an ignoramus."

The boy sat down on the grass and blankly stared into distance. They barely knew each other. How could she demand from him to be Nicandra's dream-come-true team leader? That's just not fair.

"Hello," an unknown voice appeared. "Hello?" Bruin felt a hand on his shoulder and flinched.
"Huh? Yes?" the brown-haired boy looked up and noticed a purple-haired one standing above him.
"Are you all right?" The boy's face was painted with worry.
"Don't pay attention to me," Bruin replied and curled.
"I'm Thistle, and you?" the other boy introduced himself.
"Bruin."

An awkward silence fell between the two boys. Neither said anything. Thistle just sat down next to Bruin and was looking at him with great curiosity. The saddened boy felt the other man's eyes on himself and slowly lifted his head. He glanced at Thistle with a questioning look.

"Something on my face?" Bruin asked without emotion.
"No, I'm just worried," came the other boy's reply. "You look very down. You're sure you don't want to talk about it?"

Bruin contemplated telling Thistle about his argument with Nicandra, although without explicitly naming her. He wanted to talk about it with someone, but his teammates didn't seem interested. Perhaps this stranger would help him relieve some of his worries.

"I had a fight with a teammate," he finally admitted.
"Whose weapon proved more effective?" Thistle asked.

Bruin looked at the boy with a surprised face. Doesn't he know idioms?, a thought crossed his mind. Somehow he smiled, much to his own astonishment.

"N-Not like that. We discussed myself, my role as a leader, or more how I fail to be one," he looked down.
"Fail? How so?"
"I don't live to her image of a team leader. She imagines it to be 'Mr. Perfect' in every way possible. It's really... annoying."
"Don't mind her, be yourself," an advice came from Thistle. "I'm still discovering who I am too. Let's not try to be a 'template person'."
"You're... really something, you know?" Bruin brightened up a bit and stood up, brushing off some dirt from his clothes. "Thanks for the talk, Thistle. I'll see you around."

The brown-haired boy rushed into the direction of courtyard, leaving the purple-haired boy alone. Thistle was a bit confused by the whole situation, but he made light of it. After all, he seemed to make someone happy. That's all that counted for him.

Nicandra was taking quickening steps towards the largest tower of Beacon: Professor Ozpin's office. She wanted to convince him to change the team leader in her team. Her current one was downward stupid in her opinion and she didn't want to put up with him.

As she was passing by the courtyard statue, she was noticed by a staff member.

"Miss Nepal," a female voice called out. "Miss Nepal! Miss Nepal! Stop right this instance!"

After several moments Nicandra registered that someone was calling her. She was too focused on her thoughts to pay attention to her surroundings.

"P-Professor Goodwitch?" the girl was surprised: what did the teacher wanted with her? "Yes?"
"You seem to be in a great distraught," Goodwitch noted. "Maybe you want to talk about it?"
"I was actually on my way to Professor Ozpin's office in regards to what you just called 'distraught'."
"Professor Ozpin? The school year has started just a few days ago. What could make you so worried this early?"
"My team leader," Nicandra replied, earning a questioning look from the professor.
"How come?"

Nicandra explained the whole situation to her, the teacher not interrupting her even once. Once she was done, Goodwitch merely sighed. The girl just looked at the professor with a confused face.

"What is it, Professor?" she finally broke the awkward silence.
"There are other people this year who are also not convinced with Professor Ozpin's choices for team leaders," Goodwitch explained. "He might be a peculiar principal, but I believe that Professor Ozpin chose wisely."
"Excuse me? After all he's done today, do you still believe Bruin is a good choice to lead a team?"
"Mister Brown is a young man, he is still growing. The same goes to you, Miss Nepal," Goodwitch looked at Nicandra with a slightly crossed face. "Instead of focusing to bring downfall to your team mate, you should focus on helping him to become a better leader. Everyone needs guidance."
"But—!" Nicandra started but was interrupted by the teacher:
"Take this as an opportunity to learn more about your leader."

Nicandra just stood there, silent. She didn't know how to respond. Professor Goodwitch was making some good points. Maybe she was being too hard on him? Might as well try getting to know him.

"Now I believe you should find Mister Brown and help each other. I'll see you tomorrow during the combat practices."

Professor Goodwitch left the girl and went towards the faculty rooms. Nicandra just sighed and sat on the nearest bench. She allowed the teacher's words to slowly sink in.

Author's Notes

No, I'm not dead as evidenced by this chapter!

I finally got to some good parts and trust me: there'll be more in the first semester than it was shown on the show because the first volume felt like time skip a few times and that was unnecessary in my opinion.

Also, most members of Team AZRE appear with the exception of Dezaryl because I couldn't find a way to fit him, the same goes to Team BLZE. I hope to fix it in the next chapter.

Now I should return to writing a certain crossover (Once Upon a Time×Lightning Returns: Final Fantasy XIII) I left hanging in March because I couldn't really think of anything, but now I'm getting off topic. ;P

Let's hope that the next update at some unspecified point in the future will be any good. ;P