Greetings, prospective readers, and welcome back to Clockwork: Volume One! Well, the opening chapter got us off to a pretty decent start, and that gives me the drive I need to keep working on this thing. Before we start allow me to address something here and now. Yes, I am fully aware of certain spoilerific details regarding the events of Volume Seven's endgame, which I refuse to reveal on the off-chance that there are people out there who haven't seen it yet. Regardless of these events, one must remember that Oscar Pine is currently trying to pull a Barry Allen and rewrite history in order to destroy Salem, but make sure everyone gets out alive this time, including Ruby and himself, as opposed to his timeline where everyone goes down swinging against Salem. So, to that extent, I have decided to invoke the "it's time travel, I ain't gotta explain shit" card, also known as the "this happened as a result of timeline manipulation and/or alteration" card. That way, I can keep things going as planned without fear of having to basically throw everything I've written thus far out the window, while taking these new developments into consideration. Besides, I'm sure that Volumes Eight and Nine will be out and over with by the time I get to that installment, so I should have time to think of a workaround for that. Additionally, I know I said that Oscar would be in action in this chapter, but research into other RWBY stories and crossovers has indicated that might not be the best idea, as this thing would take much, much too long to write, so Oscar being a badass will have to wait until next chapter. Additionally, I plan on keeping things as close to the canon as possible, at least until we get to the Volume Two arc, where Cinder and her allies start making their move, so while the Volume One arc won't have much in terms of divergence, please be patient until Volume Two. Also, I need your thoughts on something for Volume Two. What would Oscar use during the food fight? Please leave your ideas in the reviews! All right, now that that's out of the way, let us start the game!
Chapter II: The Shining Beacon
Beacon Academy-Courtyard Entrance
As Oscar walked out of the airship and gazed upon the Academy before him, he couldn't help but let out an impressed whistle among the various "oohs" and "wows" of the other students as they stepped through the entrance, marveling at the sight of Beacon Academy. Oscar, for his part, had seen pictures of the academy before from books and photos, even before its Headmaster had moved into his mind and began to assimilate his soul into the conglomerate that made up his own. But, this was his first time not only seeing the prestigious academy in person for himself, but it was his first time setting foot on its campus while the school was in its prime.
As Oscar looked around, he saw that there were other ships docking, dropping more passengers. Like himself and the young men and women who would ultimately make up the members of Teams RWBY and JNPR, they were students who were also invited to attend the school. He looked at the teenagers walking through the entrance before he glanced back at Beacon. Oscar had to admit, for an academy specialized in training future Huntsmen and Huntresses, its students seemed very carefree.
But, that will change soon enough… especially if Cinder's plans for the Vytal Festival come to fruition like they did in my timeline, and the Second Great War begins again, thought Oscar, his grip on The Long Memory tightening as he remembered the screams and shouts of pain and fear of civilians, police officers, Huntsmen, Huntresses, and students at this very academy alike as Ozpin, Jaune Arc, and Pyrrha Nikos had dashed into the vault hidden underneath Beacon Academy, where the half-dead body of Amber Autumns slept as Grimm, rogue Atlesian Knights, and soldiers of the White Fang killed, injured, mangled, and tore them apart, be it literally or figuratively.
Oscar was pulled out of his thoughts by Jaune Arc losing his lunch once again nearby. Shaking his head, Oscar continued to walk towards Beacon's main entrance, but not before he caught sight of Yang and Ruby again. The younger version of his former girlfriend seemed to be as giddy as a schoolgirl, which she technically was now that she was a student at Beacon, as she looked at the other students, or more precisely, their various weapons and equipment.
Indeed, this version of Ruby Rose was a far cry from the battle-hardened, deadly skilled, beautiful warrior he had given his heart to, just as she had given him hers. But, he had to admit, she was infinitely more adorable. Or would that be adorkable?
Oscar shook his head to clear his mind of the thoughts that had surfaced from his memories. True, he and Ruby had been romantically involved in his timeline, even as Ozma slowly assimilated him into the conglomerate that the ancient warrior's soul had been made up off, despite having sealed himself off from Oscar's mind right until Salem had arrived at Atlas, and even after the fact, he was surprisingly dormant, only intervening when Oscar or those around him were in truly dire straits, before sealing himself off again, apparently still too ashamed and consumed by his regrets, mistakes, and outright failures to actually face the former allies that he had lied to and kept such a horrible secret about the truth behind his past from. Admittedly, Oscar, though he would forever deny such a thing, was thankful to the gods for that, as he and Ruby had been intimate with each other on more than one occasion. This, however, was a new timeline, which meant that this was a whole new ballgame, which meant that Ruby might be swept off her feet by someone else before he even had a shot at her.
Oscar was quickly pulled out of his inner turmoil when he caught sight of Yang dragging her sister away from one of the other students. It seemed as though the red reaper had been swooning over the student's weapon, which appeared to be a fire sword of some kind. The owner of the weapon could only blink in confusion as the strange girl was dragged away.
Well, I don't have anything better to do right now besides heading to the auditorium and wait for Ozpin to make his speech, so I might as well hang out here for the moment, thought Oscar, recalling the speech that Ozpin would soon deliver to the first years, with the confused and concerned whispers that had followed the Headmaster, apparently alarmed by his sudden personality shift, as he returned to his office after leaving the stage. And so, Oscar continued observing the sisters, doing his best to stay out of sight as he focused on their conversation.
"Easy there, little sister. They're just weapons," Yang said as she released Ruby from her grasp.
"'Just weapons?'" Ruby asked her older half-sister, seemingly alarmed by how dismissive she was towards the wide, wide range of instruments of death that was spread out before them. "They're an extension of ourselves! They're a part of us! Ooh, they're so cool…"
"Well, why can't you swoon over your own weapon? Aren't you happy with it?" asked Yang.
"Of course I'm happy with Crescent Rose!" said Ruby as she took her weapon and unfolded it, transforming the massive metal death machine into its scythe mode, snuggling her weapon as though it was her precious newborn child. "I just really like seeing new ones! It's like meeting new people, but better..."
Yang heaved a sigh. "Ruby, come on, Why don't you try and make some friends on your own?" the busty blonde said as she pulled Ruby's hood down over her head, only for the red reaper to pull it back off again.
"B-but… why would I need friends when I have you?" Ruby asked her sister, a pout evident in her voice as she looked up at her.
"Well..." Yang started to say before a large group of people appeared out of seemingly nowhere and surrounded Yang, clamouring and talking to the girl nonstop, making it difficult for Oscar and Ruby to actually understand or hear what they were saying.
"Actuallymyfriendsareheregottagocatchupokayseeyabye!" Yang shouted towards her younger sister as she and her friends took off to do their own thing, leaving Ruby not only quite literally in their dust, but spinning around in circles, completely and utterly dazed and confused.
"Wait, where are you going?! Aren't we supposed to go to our dorms?! Where are our dorms?! Do we have dorms?! Ha… I don't know what I'm doing..." Ruby said, her confusion rendering her oblivious to the fact that Yang was long gone before she fell over onto a set of luggage that bore an all-too-familiar snowflake emblem.
Oscar, meanwhile, blinked a few times, trying to process what had just unfolded. Well, that was rather irresponsible of Yang to leave her little sister all alone like that. And who the Hell are these friends of hers all of a sudden, and why did Yang never mention anything about them before? Did they have some kind of falling out because of what happened at the Vytal Festival? he thought as he began to approach Ruby, concerned for the red reaper. A concern that quickly increased when the owner of the luggage, a girl two years older than him with long, snow-white hair wearing a white jacket with the same snowflake emblem with a matching corset, what appeared to be a white combat skirt of some kind that had a belt that held a rapier with what looked like a revolver chamber built the crossguard, with the visible slots holding items that were colored like the rainbow, and white boots with heels. let out a very loud, very shrill scream that caused Oscar to cover both of his ears and scrunch up his face in agony.
"What are you doing?!" the white haired girl screeched at Ruby.
"Uh… S-sorry!" Ruby said nervously, as she looked up at the girl in white, an apologetic look on her face.
The girl in white gave her enraged, yet somehow snotty sort of look that seemed to be intended to imply that Ruby had just committed a great and unforgivable sin while she continued yelling at her. "Sorry?! Do you have any idea of the damage you could have caused?!"
Ruby winced as she was berated by the white-clothed stranger as she absentmindedly picked up one one of the cases.
Oscar began to feel a strong urge to smack the girl in white upside the head with The Long Memory. Poor Ruby had absolutely no clue as to why this girl was yelling at her like this. Sure, Ruby may have risked damaging something highly breakable, or considering who the luggage belonged to, highly volatile, by accidentally falling onto the cart, but there was absolutely no reason at all for Weiss Schnee to be such a bitch about it.
"Uh…" Ruby said completely helpless as this girl in white continued to berate her.
"Give me that!" Weiss barked at Ruby before she snatched the case from the red reaper's hands and opened it to reveal a rainbow of vials. "This is Dust, mined and purified from a Schnee quarry!"
"Uuuh…" Ruby groaned, still much too out of it to give a proper response to the girl in white.
"What are you, brain-dead?!" Weiss snarled at Ruby as she took out one of the vials and shook it in front of the other girl, unknowingly causing the Dust particles to leak from the bottle as she did so. "Dust! Fire, water, lightning, energy!"
"I… I know…" Ruby said, coughing as the Dust particles leaked onto her face while her nose started to feel itchy.
"Are you even listening to me?! Is any of this sinking in?! What have you got to say for yourself?!" Weiss yelled as more and more of the precious material clouded around them.
"This cannot end well…" muttered Oscar, having noticed what Weiss had not, namely the cloud of crimson Dust that had enshrouded them, and the fact that Ruby looked like she was right about to sneeze.
Not even a second after the words left his mouth, Ruby let out a mighty "ACHOO!"
The results were instantaneous. Ruby's sneeze agitated to the point of combustion. The flames, powdered snow, and lightning that were generated from the explosion hit Weiss in the face, causing her to throw the vial of Dust into the air.
When the cloud caused by the explosion dissipated, there was a small, barely noticeable, crater where the epicenter of the blast had been, from which a soot-covered Weiss emerged. From the looks of things, she was unharmed, but she looked beyond pissed off. From what Oscar could see from his position, either the Dust hadn't generated enough force for it to have been able to harm people or Weiss' Aura had absorbed the blast force. But, even if no one was hurt by the explosion, getting covered in soot was a sure-fire way to ruin someone's day.
Shaking off the soot, Weiss shot a look at Ruby that would've killed her a thousand times over if it could. "Unbelievable! This is exactly the kind of thing I was talking about!" she snarled at the red reaper.
Ruby fidgeted, looking embarrassed and apologetic. "I-I'm really, really sorry!" she squeaked out.
"Ugh, you complete dolt! What are you even doing here? Aren't you a little young to be attending Beacon?" Weiss asked, crossing her arms over her chest and glaring at Ruby suspiciously.
Oscar, for his part, had seen just about enough. With a furious look on his face, Oscar walked up to Weiss, The Long Memory held tightly in his grasp.
"Yes. Yes, she is. And so am I, as you can clearly see," Oscar said as he looked Weiss dead in the eye, causing the heiress to falter somewhat. "Ruby and I were invited to this academy two years in advance by personal invitation from Headmaster Ozpin himself, so clearly he thinks that we're skilled enough to keep up with the older students, regardless of what you or any of the other students here think," Oscar said, causing both Weiss and Ruby to go wide-eyed with shock and surprise at just how brutal the green-clad boy was with his words. "But, if you really want to bring someone's age into question, then what I'd like to know is aren't you a little old to be acting like a stuck-up, snotty, arrogant little brat, princess? Last time I checked, it was your younger brother's job to act his shoe size instead of his age."
At Oscar's cool, confident, and downright armor-piercing rebuke, Weiss found herself floundering, unable to form a coherent sentence in response while Ruby merely mouthed the words Holy… Cow...
Thankfully for Weiss, salvation came from another female voice. "It's heiress, actually."
Oscar, Ruby, and the white-clad girl turned to face the source of the new voice and found a girl in a black-and-white sleeveless outfit with a bow on top of her raven hair that Oscar instantly recognized as Blake Belladonna, the Faunus who had put the "B" in Team RWBY. Oscar supposed that the bow was meant to conceal her cat ears and thus her true nature as a Fanus, recalling how Ruby once told him that she had once been a member of the White Fang, having been, as Blake herself had put it, born into it, and had remained a member of it even after her father, who had been the group's founder and original leader, had stepped down, before becoming disillusioned with their far more violent methods under Sierna Khan's leadership, as well as her ex-boyfriend, Adam Taurus, becoming consumed by a desire for Faunus-kind to reign supreme over humanity, thanks in no small part due to the brand that the Schnee Dust Company had ruined his face with, hence why he wore that Grimm mask all the time.
As Blake approached the group, Oscar saw that she was holding a book and the vial of Dust that had been blown out of the white-haired girl's hands after the explosion.
"Weiss Schnee, heiress to the Schnee Dust Company. One of the largest producers of energy propellant in the world," Blake calmly continued.
Weiss gave a smug smile and crossed her arms together, a stance that seemed to positively ooze arrogance. "Finally! Some recognition!" Weiss said, smugness and superiority dripping from her voice as she spoke before glaring daggers at both Oscar and Ruby.
However, what Blake said next quickly took the wind out of Weiss' sails. "The same company that is infamous for its controversial labor forces and questionable business partners."
"Wha-" Weiss stammered, her arrogance quickly deserting her and leaving floundering helplessly while Ruby giggled and Oscar let out a hearty snicker, mainly because of Weiss' helpless floundering "How dare you-" She stammered as she glared at the new girl. "The nerve of… ugh!"
Weiss went to the girl and snatched the vial away from her hand, walking off with an arrogant huff while a few men in suits gathered her luggage and followed.
"I promise I'll make this up to you!" Ruby called after Weiss. "I guess I'm not the only one having a rough first day… So, what's-" Ruby started to say before she saw Blake walking off as well. With them gone, Ruby collapsed to the ground.
"Welcome to Beacon…" muttered Ruby, feeling completely helpless and dejected as she laid upon the ground.
"Hey, don't give up hope just yet," Oscar said as he retracted The Long Memory back into its handle and reattached it to his belt before he held his hand out to help Ruby up.
The red reaper looked at Oscar's face for a moment before she took his hand. After pulling her up, Oscar quickly realized how small the girl actually was as opposed to the version he had first met back in his timeline, and that her hand, despite being slightly callused from the use of Crescent Rose, was small and fragile enough that Oscar was afraid that he might break it with a squeeze. "I mean, that Schnee girl seemed like a total bitch, and that one girl… well, I'm not entirely sure what to make of her, but you still got two friends here at Beacon Academy," said Oscar as he looked down at the petite girl beside him.
Ruby tilted her head in confusion. "Two friends? What do you mean?" she asked the green-clad boy who gave her a gentle smile in response.
"Well, there's your sister Yang, which I'm pretty sure makes her a friend by default, and then there's me," Oscar listed off. "I mean, you and I did team up against that Torchwick guy and his men. Hard not to be friends after that, wouldn't you say?"
"I… umm…" stammered Ruby, thinking about what Oscar had said as her nerves started to get the better of her.
Oscar smiled gently as he held out his hand. "Look, I won't force you to be friends if you don't want to, but we both can't be alone forever, can we? So, why don't we be friends?" he said.
Ruby took a deep breath before she shook Oscar's hand. "Alright. L-let's… let's be friends," she said, smiling bashfully as her face turned as red as her cloak.
"All right, then," Oscar said, letting go of Ruby's hand as he pulled out his Scroll and checked the message Ozpin had sent him earlier that day. "Come on, Ruby. We need to go to the auditorium, that's where all the first-years are supposed to gather," Oscar said as he turned on his heel and started to walk away.
"Right!" said Ruby before she followed after Oscar, only for the both of them to stop dead in their tracks at the sound of a timid male voice.
"Uh-um, excuse me?" the voice said, causing Oscar and Ruby to turn around towards the source of the voice to see Jaune Arc, who still seemed to be slightly green around the gills, was walking towards them. "I, um, overheard you guys talking about how all the first-years at Beacon were supposed to meet up at the auditorium, but I… kinda left my map in my things, which I sent ahead of me. D-do you guys think I could tag along with you, maybe?"
"Not at all. My name's Oscar Pine, this is Ruby Rose," said Oscar, a small smile on his face as he introduced himself and Ruby.
"Hey," said Ruby before her face fell as she began to recognize the blonde before her. "Aren't you that guy who threw up on the ship?" she asked the boy, much to his embarrassment.
A Short While Later…
"All I'm saying is that motion sickness is a much more common problem than people let on!" Jaune said defensively as he, Ruby, and Oscar walked in what appeared to be a random direction.
"Look, I'm sorry, 'Vomit Boy' was the first thing that came to mind!" Ruby said apologetically.
"And I'm pretty sure that wasn't motion sickness, that was airsickness. There's a difference," Oscar said, a small smile on his face as he looked at Jaune.
"Whatever it was," Jaune said to Oscar before returning his attention to Ruby. "What if I called you 'Crater Face?'"
"Hey, that explosion was an accident!" Ruby said defensively.
"And it was mostly that Schnee girl's fault to begin with. She was so caught up in acting all superior to Ruby that she didn't even notice the Dust leaking out of vial to begin with," Oscar added in support of Ruby.
"Well, the name's Jaune Arc!" Jaune declared defiantly. "Short, sweet, rolls off the tongue, ladies love it!"
Oscar quirked an eyebrow as he looked at Jaune with an amused smile on his face. "Do they really?" he asked.
"They will!" Jaune said before his face started to fall. "At least, I hope they will… my Mom always says that…" he continued before heaving a sigh. "N-never mind."
Both Oscar and Ruby couldn't help but give a small chuckle at Jaune, namely because of how big of a dork he was being.
Silence reigned supreme for a few moments while the trio continued walking in a random direction until Ruby decided to break the silence. "So… I got this thing," she said before pulling out Crescent Rose and unfolding it into its scythe form, causing both Oscar and Jaune to jump back in surprise and fright as the tip of the weapon crashed into the ground.
"Holy Oum, Ruby! A little warning before you pull out that death machine next time, please!" Oscar cried out in terror.
"Yeah, no kidding! But, seriously, is that a scythe?" Jaune asked Ruby, alarm highly evident in his voice as he spoke.
"It's also a customizable high-impact sniper rifle," said Ruby as she cocked the rifle built into her massive death machine.
"Uh… wha?" Jaune asked, clearly confused by what Ruby was talking about.
"It's also a gun," Ruby summarized as she cocked her rifle again.
"Oh, that-that's cool!" Jaune said, nervousness still evident in his voice.
"So, what do you two have?" Ruby asked Jaune and Oscar.
"Well…" Jaune said before he drew a sword that Oscar immediately recognized as Crocea Mors.
"Oooooh…" Ruby said, her eyes lighting up in delight at the sword.
"Yeah, I've got a shield, too," said Jaune, pulling out the aforementioned shield as it mecha-shifted from its compact form.
"So, what do they do?" asked Ruby, reaching out for the weapons, only to leap back in right when Jaune's shield suddenly collapsed back into its portable form, forcing the blonde to unsuccessfully play hot potato with it until it fell to the ground, causing Oscar to roll his eyes.
By the Gods, how did anyone not figure out he cheated his way into Beacon BEFORE he flat-out said it? thought Oscar. Then again, he might be a pathetic excuse for a warrior of any type now, but that does change in something of a hurry thanks to Miss Nikos. The sooner those two get together, the better. Then again… if Pyrrha still dies in this timeline… it could be so much worse for Jaune if they actually get together for real…
Unaware of Oscar's inner monologue as he picked his shield up, Jaune proceeded to answer Ruby's question. "Uh, the shield gets smaller… so when I get tired of carrying it… I can just… put it away," he said, completely embarrassed by the turn of events.
Ruby tilted her head in confusion. "But… wouldn't it weigh the same?" she asked Jaune.
"Yeah, it does," Jaune admitted, sounding completely dejected.
"And, what about you?" Ruby asked Oscar.
"Well, I have this," said Oscar, removing The Long Memory from his belt and extending it. "It's called The Long Memory, the perfect weapon for the traditional Meister style of combat."
"'Meister?'" Ruby said, her head tilted in confusion before something clicked with her. "Hey, that's the same combat style my Uncle Qrow uses! Except, his version uses scythes and swords instead of canes."
Oscar chuckled. "Yes, I have been told that there are different variants of the Meister style of combat. I, however, am a practitioner of the old, traditional style of the Meister name. Mine is a fighting style that centers around fighting with a dull blade, yet still exemplifying grace and death. Sure, my cane might seem dull and primitive, but it packs on heck of a punch despite its age, and even more so thanks to the improvements I made to it."
"You see, The Long Memory has been passed down and around through my bloodline for at least several centuries, father to son, mother to daughter, and in the off-chance the current owner was childless, uncle to nephew, aunt to niece, cousin to cousin, brother to brother, and sister to sister," Oscar continued, his fabricated story of how he got his weapon coming to him as easily as he breathed, most likely because of Ozpin being as proficant of a liar as he had been. Then again, it wasn't exactly like Oscar could just straight-up tell them the truth about his weapon's origins anymore than he could reveal the truth behind who and what he was, at least, not without making himself look and sound like a total lunatic.
"By the time it came into my possession, it had been around the block quite a bit, and I was worried it would break in battle one day, so when my family and I were on a trip to Atlas, I took the opportunity to use some of their technology to help reinforce it and make it a bit more durable in battle, plus give it a few new tricks, like a grapple feature and the ability to fire plasma blasts," said Oscar as he held out The Long Memory for Ruby and Jaune to examine. "The handle is made from a mythril-orichalum-titainium-platinum hybrid alloy, so it's exceptionally sturdy, even more so than before it got the Atlas tech upgrade treatment. The shaft is made from the wood of an old Aura tree, refurbished and refined, as well as reinforced and enhanced by the same hybrid alloy as the handle, thanks to my trip to Atlas."
A grin crossed Oscar's face as he finished his explanation of The Long Memory's specifications and schematics. "Not bad for a glorified walking stick, eh? Plus, kinda completes the look, don't you think?" Oscar concluded as he struck a pose with The Long Memory, causing Ruby and Jaune to chuckle a little bit.
"Well… almost," Ruby said with a smile as she looked over Oscar's outfit with his cane. "All you need now is a top hat, then the look would really be complete."
Oscar chuckled. "Well, to be honest, I was considering getting one, but I couldn't really find any in a color that would really work with the outfit. All joking aside, though, I have to ask. Why the interest in our weapons?" he asked Ruby. It seemed as though this younger version of his former girlfriend was more interested in instruments of death than the people who actually wielded them, a stark contrast from the version he had met back in his timeline.
Ruby chuckled nervously. "Well… truth be told, I'm kinda a dork when it comes to weapons. I guess I did go a little overboard when designing Crescent Rose," the red reaper sheepishly admitted.
"Wait, you made that?!" both Oscar and Jaune exclaimed in shock, this tidbit of information coming as a legitimate surprise to the young time traveller.
"Of course! All students in Signal Academy forge their own weapons! I mean, Oscar said that his has been passed down through his bloodline, but I would've thought that you had made yours," Ruby said to Jaune.
"It's a hand-me-down," Jaune admitted, looking thoroughly dejected as he spoke. "My great-great grandfather used it to fight in the war."
"Sounds more like a family heirloom to me," Ruby said, a smile on her face. "Well, I like it. Not many people have an appreciation for the classics these days."
"Although, considering the fact that nearly every weapon here has a gun or some other form of projectile weapon incorporated into in some way, shape, or form, it's kinda easy to see why that would be the case," Oscar said matter-of-factly.
"Yeah… the classics…" Jaune said as he sheathed his sword.
As the three of them kept walking in their random direction, Ruby turned to look at Oscar before clearing her throat. "So, Oscar… why did you help me back there? In the courtyard?" she asked the green-clad young man.
"The same reason I helped you out against Torchwick and his goons. You looked like you could use a little help, especially after your sister ditched you like that and Schnee started yelling at you like that. Plus, that's what boyfri-er, I mean, friends are for, right? They help each other when they need it," Oscar said, silently praying that Ruby wouldn't notice his near slip-up, although judging from the expression on Ruby's face, it didn't seem like she did.
"And even if he hadn't been there, I definitely would've. After all, my mom always says, 'strangers are friends you haven't met yet,'" said Jaune.
A moment later, as the three warriors continued walking in their random direction, Ruby spoke up, apparently having realized something. "Hey, where are we going?" Ruby asked Jaune and Oscar.
"I dunno, I was just following you guys," Jaune sheepishly admitted.
"Great, we're lost, then," Oscar said before he caught sight of something nearby. "Well, considering the fact that all the first years are supposed to gather in the auditorium, might I suggest we follow that large crowd of people over there?"
Ruby and Jaune turned to look at the large crowd of people walking in the exact same direction, namely towards a particularly large building.
"Well, that's about as good a bet as any, so let's get over there and follow the crowd!" said Ruby before the three warriors made their way towards the massive herd of people nearby, in the hopes they would lead them to the Auditorium.
A Few Moments Later, At The Beacon Academy Auditorium…
As it turned out, Oscar's hunch was right. The crowd had led them directly to the Auditorium, where there was a massive crowd of people gathering near a massive stage. No sooner had the trio arrived than a familiar voice cut through the crowd.
"Ruby!" called Yang, waving her hand high in the air as she called for her younger sister. "Over here! I saved you a spot!"
"Oh! I gotta go! I'll see you guys after the ceremony!" Ruby called out over the crowd's racket before she departed to go and join her sister.
"Hey, wait!" Jaune called out to Ruby, but she was already out of ear shot, leaving Jaune to give a defeated sigh. "Great… now where am I gonna find a nice quirky girl to talk to?"
Oscar chuckled. "Well…" he said, having caught sight of Pyrrha Nikos standing nearby, grabbed ahold of Jaune.
"Huh? What're you doing-?" asked Jaune as Oscar turned him around to face Pyrrha.
"There's a nice quirky girl for you to talk to, right there," said Oscar, point at Pyrrha as he spoke.
"Whoa, damn, she's hot. You found me a good one, Oscar!" he exclaimed as he started to walk towards the girl in question while Oscar gave a small smile at the two of them.
Operation: Arkos, Step One: Mission Accomplished, Oscar thought to himself as he departed to go find his own place in the crowd, and ultimately ended up not too from where Ruby, Yang, and, unbeknownst to either of the sisters, Weiss Schnee, where currently standing.
From the sound of it, Oscar had arrived just in time to hear Ruby going on a rant about how she had just wanted Schnee to stop yelling at her, but before she could get to the part about how Oscar had stepped up to the plate to help her, Schnee decided to make her presence known.
"YOU!" Schnee snarled, causing Ruby to jump into her sister's arms.
"OH, GOD, IT'S HAPPENING AGAIN!" cried Ruby in sheer panic and terror.
"YOU WERE LUCKY WE WEREN'T BLOWN OFF THE SIDE OF THE CLIFF!" Schnee snarled at Ruby, fuming with anger as she spoke.
"Oh my God, you really exploded," was Yang's intelligent response to learning that Ruby had literally caused an explosion in front of the school.
"It was an accident!" Ruby said before Schnee shoved what appeared to be a pamphlet that read Dust For Dummies And Other Inadequate Individuals into her face. "What's this?"
Schnee then began reciting what sounded like some sort of disclaimer that had to have been written down somewhere seemed to start out understandable enough, but for some reason unknown to man and quite possibly fanus alike, quickly started sounding like a higher power had pressed the fast forward button on her voice.
Did… did I just activate my Semblance without realizing it? thought Oscar as he checked his form for any sign of the wild, ebbing, and flowing green shroud of power that usually accompanied his Aura whenever he manifested it, every single word that Schnee had just said flying completely over his head, and from the looks of things, Ruby wasn't much better off, as she could only give Weiss a confused "Uh…"
Schnee rolled her eyes in frustration. "You really want to start making things up to me?" she asked Ruby, irritation highly evident in her voice.
"Absolutely?" Ruby said, nervousness entering her voice once again.
"Read this and don't ever speak to me again," Weiss said as she stuffed the pamphlet into Ruby's hands.
"Look…" Yang said, rubbing the back of her neck in uncertainty. "Sounds like you just got off on the wrong foot. Why don't you just start over and try to be friends?"
"Sure! Great idea, Sis!" Ruby said as she held her hand out to shake Weiss'. "Hello, Weiss. I'm Ruby. You wanna hang out? We can go shopping for school supplies."
"Yeah, and we can try on clothes, and paint our nails, and talk about cute boys like tall, green and scraggly over there," said Weiss, her voice positively dripping with sarcasm as she pointed at Oscar, who rolled his eyes at Weiss. However, it appeared as though the sarcasm had flown directly over Ruby's head.
"Wow, really?!" the red reaper squealed excitedly.
Weiss just looked at Ruby as silenced reigned for a moment before Weiss gave her a rather blunt answer. "No," she said.
And here I thought Weiss was an Ice Queen when we first met back in my timeline, but compared to how she's acting now… I think it's safe to say that she might have actually defrosted a bit. Wonder if it was her team or Neptune who was responsible for that, thought Oscar before he returned his attention to the stage, where Ozpin was approaching the podium. From what Oscar could see of the headmaster and wizard, he seemed tired for some reason, like he hadn't gotten enough sleep or something. After tapping the microphone a couple of times, Ozpin cleared his throat and began his speech.
"I'll… keep this brief. 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..." Ozpin said, even as whispers broke out amongst the students. "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."
With that, Ozpin concluded his speech and departed the stage. Oscar, for his part, couldn't help but agree with what the old wizard had said, and the underlying message behind the speech. Ozpin may have seemed like he was giving his new students a speech on the reason they all sucked, but in truth, he was actually daring them all to be badasses. It was a dare that they couldn't afford to turn down if they wanted to survive in this profession that they had chosen for themselves. Reading a book, obtaining knowledge, and training to kill these monsters born from the darkness in a somewhat simulated and protected environment was one thing. Actually engaging these dark creatures in combat and putting them down like the abominations and demons they were in the unprotected and extremely dangerous real world where one false step, a single mistake, the smallest window of opportunity could lead to the deaths of innocents, the deaths of your allies, or even your own death, that was another beast entirely.
"You will gather in the ballroom tonight. Tomorrow, your Initiation begins. Be ready," Glynda said as she took the stage before adjusting her bifocals. "You are all dismissed."
As the other students began to depart the Auditorium, Yang, Ruby, and Weiss lingered a bit, all three of them rubbed the wrong way by Ozpin's demeanor during his welcoming speech.
"He seemed a little… off," said Yang. "It's almost like he wasn't even there…"
"Yeah…" said Ruby. Ozpin's demeanor did seem different from the night that she had meant him for the first time, but there was something else about Ozpin that was bugging her too.
The Headmaster's cane… it looked almost identical to Oscar Pine's weapon, The Long Memory just without the upgrades Oscar said he had given the weapon while he had been in Atlas.
And if there was one thing Ruby knew about weapons for an absolute, undeniable fact, it was that no two weapons were the exact same, at least, not as close as Ozpin and Oscar's canes came to being the same.
And thus concludes the second chapter! Man, I'm really feeling good about how this is going thus far, and I hope that it will only continue to get better! And what's this, I see? Ruby's starting to get suspicious because of the canes… oooh, I wonder how this will play out? In any case, if you liked what you saw here, then be sure to fav, follow, and review, and I'll see you all next time for The Initiation! For real, this time, I promise!