Sorry for taking a bit to post this one. Unfortunately, some IRL stuff has kept me away from writing and midterms are about to destroy my life. But, I managed to get this one out for all of you to enjoy once again. This chapter will have parts rewritten that I don't like, but that won't be until after midterms are finished. I didn't want to leave you all on too long a break so here you go! This is rated M as a reminder.
Ruby and Yang woke up to find Weiss and Blake, not in their sleeping bags. Shrugging, the two barely managed to escape the weight of their sleeping bags as they trudged their sleepy bodies towards the bathroom. They watched confused as an eccentric orange-haired girl followed a tired-looking black-haired boy in a green Chinese style robe out of the men's bathroom before heading towards the direction of the mess hall. "Any idea what that was about?" Ruby asked as they both brushed their teeth before getting ready for the day. "No clue, baby sister, some people are just weird," Yang replied.
The two of them went to the mess hall and got breakfast consisting of milk and cookies for Ruby, and eggs, toast, and apple juice for Yang. As they ate, they watched as the pair from before sat after them, most likely because of the large plate of pancakes the orange-haired girl was scarfing down like water while somehow still talking. Both finished at the same time and headed towards the locker, the orange-haired girl still going on about Sloths and teams and secret signals. Thankfully, the pairs went to separate ends while looking for their lockers.
Ruby let out a relieved sigh at having her precious Crescent Rose in her precious arms once again. Even the sounds of the loud orange-haired girl quickly approaching couldn't put a damper on her mood no matter how loud she was. Turning around she saw Yang carefully making sure her Ember Celica's were ready for whatever this crazy school was going to throw at them.
"I'm so ready for today Yang! No more awkward small talk or getting to know you. Today, I get to let my sweetheart do the talking." She purred at the collapsed form of her War Scythe.
Yang was worried about her sister's trouble, or better, lack of social skills, and hearing about teams genuinely got her worried. What would her sister do if Yang wasn't there to bail her out of awkward social situations, or even worse if there was a boy on her team?
"Well… just remember Ruby. You're not the only one going through initiation, if you want to grow up you're gonna have to meet new people and learn to work together.'' She said partly to show she wasn't worried, partly to convince herself that even if they weren't on a team together, she'd be fine. After all, she did make it into Beacon…
Still, Yang could only smile at how cute her baby sister was like her older sister's skills tuned out the not needing friends and drinking milk part. She nodded along and couldn't help but tease Ruby about not being on a team together, though if she didn't she'd march straight up to Ozpin and force him to put her on her team. Just as she snapped back to reality, Vomit Boy walked by and the two decided now was as good of a time as ever to navigate their way out of the locker rooms. But not before watching Jaun fly through the air via spear before slamming into a locker.
Ruby and Yang will both deny laughing, but Yang couldn't hold back a chuckle as Ruby bent down to help him.
Weiss was grossed out thoroughly. In the back of her mind logic tried to tell her that she was a girl and eventually she'd be hit on by guys, but still, this was too much and her logical brain was getting tied to a target post by the creep outside who was using her as target practice. Weiss shook her head to clear her mind of the two sides of her brain duking it out as she began walking towards the cliffside after Glynda's voice came over the loudspeakers. She was happy to meet new people, but she couldn't resist making fun of the new geni- students. A pang of regret and nostalgia shot through her watching them interact as they all made their way to the beacon cliffs.
Standing on her platform, she could practically see the energy surrounding her potential teammates as they were practically vibrating, wait, the orange-haired girl was actually vibrating.
"For years you have trained to become warriors, and today your abilities will be evaluated in the Emerald Forest."
Glynda stepped forward with a large scroll in hand. "Now I'm sure many of you have heard rumors about the assignment of teams. Well, allow us to put an end to your confusion. Each of you will be given teammates. Today."
"These teammates will be with you for the rest of your time here at Beacon. So it is in your best interest to be paired with someone with whom you can work well… That being said, the first person you make eye contact with after landing will be your partner for the next 4 years. After you've partnered up, make your way to the northern end of the forest. You will meet opposition along the way, do not hesitate to destroy everything in your path, or you will die. You will be monitored and graded for the duration of your initiation, but our instructors will not intervene. You will find an abandoned temple at the end of the path containing several relics. Each pair must choose one and return to the top of the cliff. We will regard that item as well as your standing and grade you appropriately. Are there any questions?" With that Ozpin took a sip from his mug and ignored Jaune as the platforms underneath them began to come to life.
Weiss stood perfectly relaxed and began watching as from left to right, people were launched into the forest. She gave an eye smile to the person next to her as she bent her legs and timed it with the launching of the pad to soar ahead. She congratulated herself for remembering to wear black leggings so no one would get a flash of her panties beforehand as the large trees began to come closer into view.
Kakashi had grown up in a land where secrets were hoarded, and techniques were kept under tighter lock than even the Hokage. Even with his old nickname of "Copy Ninja Kakashi," people were still always caught off guard by the sheer amount of Jutsu he could perform. The greatest weapon you can have is one that the enemy doesn't even know you have and that mentality carried over to Weiss.
So as she began to fall, she decided to only use what she had already shown to the world or common knowledge. A blue glyph formed around her feet which she used to jump off of and aimed for a large cluster of trees. Another blue circle formed around her hands before water from the air condensed and froze into a blue kunai which she used to rappel down one of the thicker trees. Taking a second to do a bow for the camera watching her, she shoved her hand into her pocket before taking out her scroll and reading one of the many raunchy novels she had downloaded.
Glynda and Ozpin back on the cliff watched each student as they landed, Ruby using her scythe to slow herself down as well as channel the extra momentum before landing and letting her aura take the brunt of her force. Yang continued to blast further ahead with her gauntlets before doing a less elegant but still effective strategy. Pyrrha landed perfectly and Ozpin took a sip and raised an eyebrow when a spear slammed into the falling Jaune Arc. Glynda watched impressed as Ren and Weiss made their way skillfully down the tree, but then confusion came across her features. Ozpin looked over her shoulder to see Lie Ren begin running towards the north and watched equally confused as Weiss first turned directly towards the hidden camera to bow before stretching and beginning a slow walk with her scroll in hand.
"Ozpin?"
"Yes, Glynda?"
"What's she reading?"
"Dust, Fire, and Passion. A novel which I believe is about a dust seller meeting a huntress with a fire semblance. The two eventually fall in love and I believe there multiple times the author goes into very explicit detail."
"... I see. How do you know that sir?"
"Oh look, Pyrrha and Jaune are our first team."
-X-
Weiss continued her leisurely walk, seeming to stop at random to look at nature or harvest sap from the trees. At some point, she had tossed a stick in the air and walked in the direction the stick landed, humming the entire time.
After walking a bit further, she heard Jaune's voice and immediately turned around to see Ruby crashing out of the underbrush and stumbling to a stop in front of her. "Oh, hey…" she said with a small wave. Weiss smiled back and waved her hand to let her lead on. "Yo."
Weiss began to seriously doubt the young huntress in front of her, she didn't seem to have any awareness even as she could sense the beowolves slowly beginning to circle the two of them. Weiss shushed Ruby as she began explaining the mechanizations of Crimson Rose.
"Fascinating, but there's a group of Beowolves approaching us at the moment," she said while stopping and forming a tanto made of ice. Ruby starred starry-eyed as the beautifully crafted blade formed out of thin air.
"Oh my gosh, that's so coo- Wait, did you say Beowolves are circling us?" She asked as her brain processed what she was just told.
"Yup," Weiss says before jumping and throwing 3 kunais of ice into the skull of a large beowolf that comes bursting out of the underbrush.
-X-
Ruby shakes her head to turn around and see the already decaying corpse of a beowolf before clicking her scythe open. This was her time to shine and she had to impress Weiss. She was really happy that her new friend? Teammate? Hopefully both… She didn't treat her like a child. Well, she did treat her like a kid, but Ruby could tell there was no malice intended. Still, she wanted to prove to herself that she was ready for this school. Looking around at the 5 Beowolves that had encircled the two of them, she watched as Weiss used the tanto to easily slash out the neck of another Beowolf and without missing a beat, throwing another 3 of those daggers into the eyes and throat of another Grimm.
Ruby sprung into action and using her semblance, disappeared into roses before appearing behind 2 more Beowolves who begin to disincorporate from the two large slashes separating their heads from their bodies. Rising back up and admiring her work, she watches as Weiss walks away from the last one, dusting her hands off as she smiles at Ruby through the mask.
"Nice job Red," Weiss says with an eye smile. "So then, which way is next?" She asks Ruby when her scythe is sheathed. Weiss still couldn't get over how such a huge scythe managed to collapse into something the small girl could wear on her back. Storage seals made sense to Kakashi since chakra created something akin to a separate dimension in which ninja tools could be stored. It was still a shame that she longer had access to storage seals, but she circumvented that problem by creating her own kunais and shurikens made by freezing the molecules in the air. Still, in the chance that she didn't have access to her glyphs, a white fang blade was strapped to her legs. She had suffered almost 3 days' worth of beatings from when the White Fang had committed a raid on one of the more profitable mines. On a whim, she had grabbed it from her father's desk after he had passed out and she had deposited him onto the bed. The knife itself was sturdy with a sharp edge and would be a perfect substitute if she ever needed it.
Ruby looked around the battlefield and shrugged her shoulders. "Umm, I'm not really sure where to go either… Any ideas Weiss?"
Weiss hid a shit-eating grin underneath her mask and took a long look at the forest around them. "I think I have an idea, follow me." It was time to indoctrinate Ruby to the joys of being constantly late.
Nearly 4 and a half hours later, a very irritated and tired Ruby and extremely amused Weiss made it back to the cliff face with the white knight piece in hand. As they approach Ozpin stands waiting for them, hearing Ruby's voice long before seeing the two huntresses in training.
"How did it take an hour to get from the temple to the cliffside? All we had to do was go in a straight line, and you still managed to get us lost for nearly 45 minutes!" Ruby shouts while waving her arms.
"Well, it's not entirely my fault, I was almost certain I saw a double rainbow and I couldn't let the leprechaun at the end of it get away with all the gold could I?" Weiss answered back evenly.
"What?! That makes no sense! There wasn't even any rain and Leprechauns aren't real! Are they?" She questions at the end
"Oh young naive Ruby, you have so much to learn. And I shall be happy to teach you. Weiss said, shaking her head before the headmaster stopped them.
"Ahem, Ruby Rose and Weiss Schnee, you are the final team to arrive, though almost 2 hours later than the last ones. The rest of your classmates are waiting for you in the auditorium, please wait there as we have announcements to give." Ozpin explained with a straight face. He knew that Glynda and the rest of the students would be quite peeved at having to wait so long but Ozpin had been watching the entire time and was stunned by just how well Weiss managed to get Ruby to follow her. It seemed that every time they were about to reach the correct path, Weiss would turn double back and had watched for almost 15 minutes as she had led Ruby in a complete circle. Needless to say, he'd keep an eye out for this unlikely duo. Taking one final sip from his mug, he followed to two of them, where Ruby was dragging Weiss along before they were even later.
Ruby shuffled along as all the eyes stared down at her while cursing the fact that she couldn't hide behind a mask and eyepatch. Weiss meanwhile was chuckling behind her mask as she was led to stand next to Blake while Yang began to interrogate Ruby in a loud whisper.
"Ruby! What took you guys so long? We had to fight off a freaking Deathstalker! Do you have any idea how long we've been just standing here? They didn't even give us seats! Can you believe it?!" Yang stopped for air and looked down at the cowering Ruby who was touching her fingers together.
"Heh, well umm… we kinda got lost?" Ruby said in her best imitation of Weiss though it came out more as a question than a statement.
"You… got lost?" Yang's eyes flashed red before Ozpin stepped up to the microphone.
"Now that the last group has arrived let us begin."
"Russel Thrush, Cardin Winchester, Dove Bronzewing, Sky Lark. The four of you retrieved the Black Bishop pieces. From this day forward, you will work together as… Team CRDL, led by Cardin Winchester."
The headmaster continued as the golden dusk began to slip into the evening. Ruby stood still and watched the 4 line up with their arms behind their back as they marched off the raised platform. Blinking, she applauded as Jaune and his group began to get up.
"Jaune Arc, Lie Ren, Pyrrha Nikos, Nora Valkyrie. The four of you retrieved the White Rook pieces. From this day forward, you will work together as… Team JNPR, led by Jaune Arc."
Ruby clapped and giggled when Nora glomped on Ren. Jaune stood there with a blank expression before Pyrrha punched him onto his butt. Giggling, she stood up as the headmaster announced the final team.
"And finally, Blake Belladonna, Ruby Rose, Weiss Schnee, and Yang Xiao Long. The four of you retrieved the White Knight pieces. From this day forward, you will work together as… Team RWBY, led by Ruby Rose."
Weiss smiled and nodded at Ruby seconds before Yang glomped her sister. The headmaster had made a good decision putting Ruby as the leader. She was optimistic and her attitude would help to bring up her team when things got tough. Not to say that Weiss would follow Ruby's word as law, she was green and had no idea how the world worked, but for now, she was happy to take a step back from leading and congratulated Ruby.
The four of them stepped down from the stage after the applause died down to see Glynda stepping up to the microphone. "If you all check your scrolls, it will lead you to where your dorms are. Classes begin tomorrow and we encourage you to not… be… late." Weiss couldn't help but notice how the professor seemed to narrow her eyes ever so briefly in her direction before walking off the platform.
Weiss trailed behind the rest of her new team as she suddenly forgot how to breathe. Yang was congratulating Ruby wholeheartedly, and Blake was content to walk beside them quietly. Passing by a restroom, she quickly tapped Blake's shoulder and pointed before rushing in. Thankfully, it was empty and she quickly collapsed into one of the stalls, choking on perfectly good oxygen as the panic of having to share a room with 3 other people pushed her to a brink. She looked down at her hands, clenched so hard her nails would've broken through if not for the aura surrounding her, and again she realized that this was not the world she was meant to be in. She was supposed to be in retirement as Naruto, Sasuke, and Sakura began to teach the new generation, she was meant to be in Anbu, shaking hands gulping down disgusting soldier pills to ensure information was passed along, she was supposed to be with his father Sakumo Hatake with a dazzling smile and kind heart. Gasping as specks of blackness began to appear in her vision, she raised up her fist and slammed into her diaphragm, knocking the air out of herself and unblocking the phantom clog as she greedily gulped in the fresh air. A minute later, she came out of the bathroom, having wiped off the cold sweat and spit that lined the inside of her mask. She brought out her own scroll to see a group chat had already been formed aptly named, OH MY GOD WE'RE ALL AT BEACON WHOO! She let out a smile before opening it.
Ruby Rose has created a new closed Group Chat
Ruby Rose has renamed the group chat to OH MY GOD WE'RE ALL AT BEACON WHOO!
Ruby Rose: And tada! Now we can message each other more easily!
Yang Xiao Long: Jeez Ruby, that's a long name for our group.
Ruby Rose: Well, I think it sums up my feeling pretty well. After all. WE MADE IT TO BEACON!
Blake Belladonna: Hey Weiss, we're in room 204 and Team JNPR is in room 205.
Weiss closed her scroll and began walking. Following the signs, she finally made her way to her room where the rest of them had already begun their evening routines.
"Yo, I'm back," She said with a wave.
"Welcome back Weiss," Ruby said. She had been the first to brush her teeth and now was in her favorite pair of pajamas. Weiss chuckled at the childish-looking teddy bear stitched to the front of her tank top and the white pants with polka dots on them. She even had a sleep mask on but had it up as she scrolled on her scroll.
Yang was dressed in a similar style but had a yellow tank top on it with what looked like a flaming heart on it. Also differentiating the two sisters was that while Ruby wore pants, Yang had on a pair of short pants and was playing a game on her scroll.
Lastly, Blake had on a comfortable-looking yukata that was primarily grey but had white edges. She kept her bow on and seemed to have no problem keeping it here as she read a book.
Weiss grabbed her small suitcase and went into the bathroom to take a shower, after which, she put back on leggings and a nightgown that covered her arms. It was still slightly see-through, but with the other preparing to go to sleep, she could take a risk though she would eventually have to work out another option.
Exiting the bathroom, she saw Ruby had already gone to bed, her covers pulled up to her chin with the sleep mask firmly in place, Yang was putting away her scroll and gave her a wave when she walked out before falling backward onto the pillow, ignoring the blanket altogether. Blake had put up a candle and seemed content to continue reading for a while longer before going to bed. Walking over to the far left bed, she quickly got under the covers and evened out her breathing. It would only be for a bit, she told herself, before you can ask Ozpin or Glynda for a separate room. There's no reason to give them a reason, and hopefully, they wouldn't ask too many questions. All she had to do was hope that the lizard part of her brain could stay calm for just a few days, that was all she needed.
When Blake finished her reading it was almost 12, and Weiss had seemingly fallen asleep as well. She quickly put away her book and gingerly unwrapped the bow that kept her Faunus heritage hidden away. Taking one last look at it, she put it to the side and went to sleep, an alarm set well before anyone else would wake up.
With that, she blew out her candle and bathed the room in darkness, but not before Weiss' eye opened again and she slipped quietly out of her bed.
Hey, hope you enjoyed it. PS, if anyone would like to beta-read these for me, I would be eternally grateful.