The Rise of Team's RAIN & RUBY
Volume 1, Episode 2: The Shining Beacon
"Um… Robin, you know I never doubt your orders," Niko said from his bed, but Robin didn't look up, biting his tongue in concentration as he painted. His friend, however, went on. "I know Ruby and Yang coming is a big deal and all but isn't the… glitter a little much?"
"No, they're not enough if you ask me," Robin said, finished the Y in Ruby's poster, painting her rose symbol on one of the corners. "Az agrees with me, right Az?"
Azure didn't answer, but when Robin looked over, sure enough he was hard at work with Yang's poster on his desk, yellow paint smudged on his face.
Robin smirked and looked up at Niko. "See?"
Niko sighed. "Well, Indigo agrees with me, right Indigo!"
A loud snore came from the bed behind Robin. "Uhhh… pancakes… syrup… popcorn."
"Syrup and… popcorn? What is he dreaming about," Niko muttered, sitting cross legged across from Robin on the ground before sighing. "Don't you think you may… embarrass them a little bit?"
"I have no idea why they would be embarrassed," Robin said, blowing on the paint and holding up Ruby's poster, with her name, rose emblem and splashes of red glitter. "Okay, so you all remember the plan when their ship lands right?"
"Got it!" Azure said, holding up Yang's poster.
"Uh… more… more popcorn!" Indigo muttered between snores.
Niko chuckled at them and shot to his feet. "Ha… okay, if you say so, I got the party poppers and… are you sure the mini-fireworks aren't over the top?"
Robin looked at Azure, then they both looked back at Nico. "No."
Niko sighed again, his wolf ears drooping, before the amused smile return. "Alright then, but… shouldn't we be heading to the auditorium? Ozpin wanted us there early to get ready for our speech."
Robin scoffed and waved his hand. "Oh, don't worry we have time," he said, pulling out his scroll to check the time, "We have plenty of time before-. OH MY GOD RUBY TEXTED ME ITS PULLING IN MOVE OUT!"
Niko sighed, but smiled in the end, as the entirety of Team Rain rushed from their room so fast it sent up a tailwind. Their dorm hadn't changed at all from the previous year, each corner decorated to one of their tastes. Niko had multiple pictures from his home in Menagerie, and a few plants that he said 'got rid of the city stink' their room had from being so close to Vale.
Near Azure's bed and desk sat only a picture from their first year, Robin knew he had no family back in Minstrel outside of his father, and they didn't really get along. It was the reason Azure had picked Beacon over Haven, to get away from the crabby old fisherman. Indigo's bed was messy all the time, seeing as he spent most of his free time napping with dreams of food, he had nothing up from his home back in Atlas.
Robin was different from them; his desk and part of their wall was littered with hanging and framed pictures from home on Patch. Multiple with him, Ruby and Yang, some where his dad was there. His favorite, however, was right next to his bed. It was a picture of him, Ruby and his Uncle Qrow, which Ruby had taken right after Ruby had killed her first grimm, she had only been thirteen, and Robin remembered it like it was yesterday. The three had been separated from Yang and dad, but a Beowulf had attacked the three of them.
And now her and Yang both will be here! This is amazing, gah I can't believe my luck, he thought as his team dashed out of the room behind me.
He turned and saw only Azure and Niko running behind him. "Huh?! Oh crap, we forgot him, where's Indigo-."
"Here," A voice said right next to him.
"GAHHH!" All three of him, Niko and Azure yelled, stumbling and falling over each other in the hall.
Sure enough, the shortest member of Team RAIN appeared out of the walls shadow yawning. Robin groaned as he sat up off of Niko and moved Azure's foot out of his face. Indigo was dressed as he normally was, a dark purple hoodie, white pants and shoes, his dark purple hair slicked back. He wore his normal tired look and had a bag of potato chips in his hand.
"Ind… where did you get those?" Niko asked as they all got up.
"Under your bed," Indigo said, meticulously eating one chip at a time.
"What?!" Niko said, his wolf ears and tail drooping. "I thought I had a lock on my trunk…"
"Yeah, had," Indigo said with a mouthful of chips.
"You'll need chains and magic to keep him out," Azure said, dusting off his long blue trench coat, and carefully making sure Yang's yellow poster wasn't ruined. "Especially if you're hiding food."
"He's right," Indigo said, pouring the crumbs of the bag into his mouth.
Niko's ears dropped and Robin bit his lip before pulling out his scroll, he saw a message from Yang on his screen.
From, Firecracker: Heyyyyy, so any chance you could meet us at the landing pad, so I can go meet up with my friends and not feel horrible about leaving Ruby?
"GAH! We need to hurry!" Robin said, turning with his team down the hallway. "Okay! Team RAIN, Operation: Sister Arrival is a go once again, move out-."
"Um…. Robin?" Niko said behind him.
Robin sighed. "Yes Niko?"
"Just got a message from Ozpin," He said, his eyes widening, his tail sticking up. "He's asking where we are! First years are already arriving in the auditorium!"
"Oh man…" Azure said, shivering. "I don't really wanna disappoint Ozpin."
Robin chewed at his lip again. Azure was right, the Professor had just started asking them to go on more dangerous assignments and missions, missions that mattered, missions that let them go and save people, let Robin do what his mother had always did, what his dad and Uncle did. And now, he didn't only have his reputation, but his sisters to look after! If he disappointed Oz, and turned into a misfit, it'd affect them too! He was aware of his team's popularity at Beacon, while he didn't really like all the attention, he still wanted to be something his sisters could be proud to look up too.
Ozpin also was incredibly scary when he was disappointed. He didn't get angry or shout like other Professors, but he simply got a disappointed look in his eye, which was somehow absolutely terrifying.
It was to the rest of his team as well, because Niko and Azure shivered at the idea. Indigo simply opened another bag of chips, which Robin also assumed was from Niko's stash. He made a mental note in his mind that they needed to refill Indigo's trunk before he ate them out of all their midnight snacks.
"Okay! I have a plan," Robin said, smacking his fist into his hand, his red cape shooting up behind him. He didn't want to disappoint Oz, but there was no way he'd miss Ruby and Yang. "Niko, you and Indigo head to the auditorium and stall Oz!"
"Oh man… why do I always have to stall people," Niko mumbled.
"Because of all of us, you talk the most," Robin pointed out, before Niko have an understanding nod. He turned to Azure and pointed to his sign. "Az, me and you will go meet up with Yang and Ruby! Team RAIN, move out!"
Everyone nodded, and Niko took off down the opposite way, and Indigo disappeared into the shadows of the wall to follow him. Robin smiled; you know I'm almost jealous of his semblance.
Indigo could control the darkness and shadows, he used it mostly to move quickly from point to point. Right now, Indigo was probably even further ahead of Niko as the wolf faunus ran off down the hall. In a fight, it was even more useful, Indigo may not have said much, but Robin knew like the rest of Team RAIN, Indigo was one of the best huntsmen in Beacon.
Next to his own semblance, he really thought Indigo's was one of the most powerful he'd seen.
"Robin! I can feel the airships, they're landing lets go!" Azure said, wiping off some of the excess glitter from Yang's poster.
He turned back to his blue-haired teammate with a smile, Robin loved Azure's semblance as well, it was helpful in a fight and everyday life, much like his own. Rushing, he scooped up Ruby's poster before the giddy smile came back to his face.
GO RUBY! That was what the poster said in big red paint, with glitter, and a red rose painted on the edge. Robin smiled, this year at Beacon was going to be even better then the last.
"Hurry!" Robin said, before him and Azure took off towards the landing pads.
XxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxX
Very few things could have made Weiss Schnee's day worse at that point. First, she was denied the chance to take all of her luggage by the stupid bag limit Beacon had, but now, due to all that luggage she had to land on the opposite side of the school that she needed. She had been forced to land on the left landing pad to unload her things and had to make her way back to the auditorium across the middle courtyard.
To top it all off her bags were falling! She only had one of her butlers helping her, but still, the man was old and spindly, and despite his best efforts he couldn't hold the trolley upright. It made things even worse with all the other first years rushing past, nearly knocking it over and scattering dust everywhere. Didn't people realize her family's logo when they say it? Didn't they realize they could explode at any minute if her luggage were to fall!
"Oh drat!" She said, finally sighing and rushing to the side of the trolley as they rounded a bend, and she could see it hobbling. "Careful!"
She tried to push up the wall of bags, just as two boys with… posters in their hands of all things rushed past her. That made her fumble even more, and just at that moment, she saw the trolleys wheel tilting. She had no time to summon a glyph to help her escape the cascade of bags but did all she could to scramble and grab one that was falling near her!
"AH!" She yelled when her heel got caught on one of the cobblestones. Things moved in slow motion as she saw her butler call out to her, but just when she had fallen back, thinking her day was about to get the worst it could possibly get, she felt someone grab onto her.
"Woah, hold on!" A boy's voice said, and Weiss saw he savior appear in a flash of red.
She yelped as just before he could fall, he sprinted towards her, caught her around the back with one of his arms, before catching her suitcase in the other. A few still of course fell to the ground, but the boy who'd saved her dropped one bag, caught another, dropped and caught another, as if he knew exactly what was going to happen. Across from him, she spotted a boy with dark blue hair and a long coat stopping the trolley from falling with her butler… and then Weiss spotted two posters in his hand! These were the two boys who had just run past her that made her trip!
How dare they! Couldn't they clearly see that I was walking?! Honestly how could this day get any worse! She still was held up by the boy who'd stopped her from falling, and despite his saving her, she was a second away from pulling herself up to give him a piece of her mind.
That was until he turned around and she saw him.
"Oh man, I'm sorry I wasn't quicker," He said, looking down, still holding her back up with one arm to stop her from falling. A smile came to his face as he looked down at her. "Are you okay?"
Weiss blinked, or… perhaps this is a lucky coincidence!
The boy was extremely cute. He had messy black hair, and a dark red unzipped jacket one over a white shirt. Around his neck he wore a small red pendant in the shape of a rose. The only odd thing was a tattered red cape that he wore flapping down his back, but Wiess could overlook that due to the handsomeness in his face. His eyes were mismatched, one was red, and the other was silver, it may have been off-putting for some… but Weiss found it oddly charming.
Suddenly, she was glad her bags fell. She was at Beacon to get away from her father, to remake the Schnee name, to restore it, to prove herself to her sister, and more importantly to herself. Most importantly she wanted to do great things to help people.
Still… if she met a cute boy or two along the way, she certainly wouldn't mind.
She chuckled, her confident smile returning. "Ha, oh I'm fine, there's no need to apologize. Thank you for rushing to my aid but… how did you get here so fast?"
He laughed back and helped her back to her feet until she was steady, before removing her arm from her back. Folding his arms, he chuckled himself, looking a bit more nervous then he had before.
"Call it dumb luck," He said, turning to her trolly with a smile, and helping the other boy who'd been running with him stack it back up. "Besides, I made you fall, it was the least I could do to help."
"Well, either way your help is much appreciated," Weiss said politely, as he finished stacking the bags back up. She smiled when he turned back and gave a polite curtsy. "Thank you very much again for your help. My name is Weiss Schnee… surely you've heard the name?"
He laughed now and nodded, still smiling, which was very cute.
"Ha, I've definitely heard of the Schnee's that's for sure," He said, holding out his hand to her. "Robin Rose, second-year, nice to meet you Weiss."
She paused and stuttered at how… non-chalant he was about hearing her name. She normally got varying reactions upon saying it, some looked on in admiration, some scowled and cursed her family. It was different how Robin reacted, no admiration, and no cursing looks… did he really just… not care?
Either way, she nodded and took his hand. "It is a pleasure to meet you, Robin."
"Likewise!" He said happily that smile returning before he chuckled and looked at the bags, just as his friend came up next to him. "Um… I hate to break it to you, but the dorms aren't that big, you may have a hard time fitting all of this."
Weiss scoffed and waved it off. "Oh, no worries, I've been told by multiple people I am very resourceful."
"I'm sure you are," He said with a smile, and Weiss's own smile grew at the compliment. Robin gestured to his friend. "Weiss, this is my teammate, Azure Acheron."
"Howdy," Azure said, holding the two posters under his arm while playing a game on his scroll.
Weiss felt slightly annoyed at the treatment, but it seemed Robin was as well. He sighed and elbowed his teammate, and Azure jumped, before sighing in disappointment and putting the scroll away. Weiss noticed both posters were covered in paint and glitter, one red, one yellow, she couldn't read the names, but she composed herself and bow towards Azure as well.
"A pleasure," She said, her chest thumping loudly as she turned back to Robin. "So, you're a second year? Which team are you a part of? I hear at Beacon, they have some of the best, that's the reason I'm here instead of Atlas academy."
A proud smile came to Robin's face as he smacked Azure on the back. "We're both second-years, I'm the leader of Team RAIN, R and A of team RAIN, at your service Ms. Schnee."
Weiss had to stop her jaw from dropping. "Wh…what!? You're the leader of Team RAIN?! Everyone who's coming to Beacon this year will know about Team RAIN, you all saved Vale last year!"
"Robin did most of the work," Azure said, checking the posters he carried.
Robin chuckled nervously, before shaking his head. "Don't see yourself short Az," he turned back to Weiss his smile returning. "I couldn't have done anything without my teammates, but to answer your question yes. Robin Rose, leader of Team RAIN, at your service Weiss. Please, I'm just a normal student like you, you can treat me like anyone else."
Just like a normal student?! How can he say that! She was flabbergasted, the news that a team of first year Beacon students had fought off a massive grimm that was ready to destroy Vale the year prior had been all over the news even in Atlas. She of course as well had done extensive research on Beacon before applying a few months prior, and when she learned of Team RAIN, she had been ecstatic. Not only at the prospect of her- undoubtedly the smartest girl in class- meeting and learning from them, but at the fact she already knew one of their members! That, combined with meeting Robin there today, it could surely lead to a partnership between them all!
She tried to hide her excitement and nodded. "Of course, I feel the same way as well. Surely you can guess people look at me differently for my last name as well."
"I'm sure they do," Robin said with a nod. "My Uncle always said, 'if it walks, whines, and has white hair, it's more then likely a Schnee.'… OH! You're not like that I'm sure, sorry, that's just all I heard about the name other then all the dust company stuff haha."
Wiess bit her tongue in her mouth and did her best to ignore that comment. She would be the one to change the perception her father had brought upon them.
"No offense taken…" She muttered, before crossing her arms and looking at Robin, before straightening up and smiling again. "I must say, I had hoped to meet a member of Team RAIN. They call you heroes, but I didn't expect you to wear a cape."
"We tell him all the time it's too on the nose," Azure muttered, wiping away a smudge on their posters.
Robin chuckled and looked behind him. "Yeah, it's… a little tattered, I've been meaning to get it repaired, but I don't know anyone who can sow. My… mom made this for me, she used to wear them all the time to for her missions, and when she trained me. She used to make them for me, this was the last one she made. Can't find it in me to part with it."
The cape was indeed tattered and Wiess knew she could probably sew it up in minutes. Still, she couldn't believe how lucky her day had turned out to be, running into arguably the most powerful huntsman at Beacon. If they were to join forces in a way, her possibilities were limitless!
"Well, that's a sweet gesture," She said, folding her arms and returning a confident smile to her face. "I'll consider myself lucky for today. I was hoping to meet Team RAIN, seeing as I am already very well acquainted with one of your teammates!"
Robin looked confused at that, he looked to Azure who finally looked up from the posters and looked just as confused. Weiss was worried for a minute; didn't they believe her?
"Well… me and Azure haven't met you until today," He asked. "So… you're friends with Niko?"
"Who? No, nobody named Niko. You mean he's never mentioned the Schnee name?" Weiss said, her worry increasing when Robin and Azure both looked more confused. She pursed her lips and sighed. "Indigo? Indigo Ignatian! His father happens to be the overseer for one of my family's largest dust mines! We grew up meeting each other at parties and other events! He's been to many of my performances singing growing up."
That didn't do anything except make Robin and Azure both look at each other. Weiss was worried she'd had the wrong person, but no, she had been sure it was Indigo who had listed and pictured as a member of Team RAIN. It was the same awkward boy she'd seen quietly standing in dark corners or at snack tables at events during her childhood.
She hadn't spoken to him in years of course, not since he'd started leaving home for long periods of time to who knows where. And of course, his father had been furious when Indigo went to Beacon instead of Atlas. She wondered if he still only spoke in short sentences and had an unhealthy obsession with popcorn.
Robin and Azure looked at each other, back at Weiss, then back at each other. Weiss thought they would finally say something, but instead they both sputtered into gut clenching laughter. Azure even fell backwards onto the ground grabbing his stomach as he did, and Robin would have been on his way as well had Weiss's annoyance not made her speak.
"Did I say something amusing?" She asked, crossing her arms again.
Azure laughed even harder, but Robin managed to stutter out words. "Haha… oh I… I'm sorry we… we're not laughing at you! Just… HA Indigo?! An aristocrat?! Are you sure we're talking about the same Indigo?"
"Short, purple hair, only says about six words at a time? Has an annoying habit of appearing out of the wall with no warning?" Weiss said.
Robin's eyes went wide, and his laughter stopped. "Oh my god we are talking about the same Indigo..."
Azure finished laughing and Robin helped him off the ground. "So, the guy who just stole Niko's chips this morning… is an aristocrats' son?"
Weiss looked at them oddly. "Yes, he is. Although I doubt, he ever particularly enjoyed that lifestyle, his father was furious when he went to Beacon. And I haven't seen him in over a year, he never returned home from his first year."
"That's because he stayed with me over the summer," Robin said, scratching his black hair and shaking his head. He scoffed and met Weiss's eyes. "You said you're friends? Has he well… always been this way?"
Weiss chuckled and stuttered. "I wouldn't call us… friends per say acquaintances is the more proper term. I was hoping to meet up with him again, and his now famous team as well. But… yes he's always been like that."
Robin still looked baffled by the revelation but shook off his confusion enough to smile at Weiss. That made her mood shift. It was working! All she had to do was show how brilliant she was, and she was sure that Robin and Team RAIN would take an interest in her and whichever team she would be on! With training from the most famous and skilled team at Beacon, surely, she'd excel even further then she already planned.
"Ha, well you met them. We'll let Indigo know we saw you," He said, an excited look coming to his face and Weiss was… a bit stunned to see him practically bouncing off his toes. She had no idea what he was so excited about, but in that moment, he seemed like a kid.
Still, he held out his hand for her again. "It was nice meeting you Weiss! This is actually amazing, you're a first year, that means my two sisters are going to be your classmates!"
Weiss's eyes widened. He had siblings. In her year?! This was even more perfect!
She nodded. "I am yes. I would be honored to be classmates or even on a team with your two sisters, they're twins then? If they're related to the leader of Team RAIN, they have to be talented."
A slightly smug look came to Robin's face, even Azure's as well. Robin crossed his arm, his head in the air and nodded. Weiss wondered if that's how she looked talking at times.
"Nope, one is seventeen yeah," He said looking back at her. "But the other is so talented, she got asked to attend Beacon two years early by Professor Ozpin himself. She is going to be even better than I am!"
Weiss's head already began forming a plan. She'd have a hard time forgetting the footage of Team RAIN fighting the massive grimm to save Vale. If she could find one of Robin's sisters and join up on a team with them, she'd be well on her way to advancing well beyond even what she thought possible!
She nodded and bowed with her hand on her chest. "Well, I would be honored to join a team with the siblings of Team RAIN's leader. You'll have to point them out to me. Hopefully that will mean that… the two of us can also get to-."
"Uh, Robin," Azure said, cutting her off and handing the red poster to Robin. "Speaking of them, the ships landing, I can feel it."
"Excuse me!" Weiss said, shaking her head. "I was trying to-."
"GAHHH WE GOTTA GO!" Robin said suddenly, grabbing Azure's arm and turning to Weiss. He waved and have her that smile he'd been giving her. "Nice meet you Weiss, we'll see you again later I'm sure! AZURE GO GO GO!"
"W…wait!" Weiss tried to say, sighing when a second later the two boys were kicking up dust and rushing towards the center landing pad. "Oh, drat!"
She sighed and looked to her butler again, who hurriedly got ready to push again. Weiss resigned herself to the fact that conversation could have gone better. She didn't even get the name of Robin's sisters so she could meet them! If she was going to accomplish her goals, and become the best she could be, she could use the assistance of people like Robin Rose and team RAIN. The fact he was a cute boy was just a bonus.
He had told her he'd see her again, and from the cute smile, kind words, and slightly goofy mannerisms, she didn't think she'd mind.
XxxxxxxxxxxxxxX
"Move, move, move, move!" Robin said, as he and Azure barreled down the courtyard, past all the first years that had already been dropped off. Ruby's sign blew in the wind, as he saw what had to be her and Yang's ship coming in.
"You know!" Azure said, huffing and puffing next to him with Yang's poster. "If you hadn't stopped to flirt with that white haired chick we would've been here by now!"
"I was not flirting! I saw her get trampled by bags, so I thought I'd help," Robin argued back, as they pulled to a stop both of them breathing heavy
Azure sucked in a breath and shook his head. "I still can't believe what she told us about Indigo. Who would have thought?"
"Nobody, it's kind of our fault," Robin said, as they both got closer to where the airship was landing. "We only ever knew he was from Atlas, we never asked about his family."
"That's because all Indigo talks about, is food, naps and… well that's it," Azure said, as the doors to the ship went to open.
Robin nodded; it was true. However, now he put all thoughts of Indigo, their previous mission from Ozpin, and the cute white-haired girl he just me out of his mind. None of that mattered! The most important thing was his two little sisters were both finally here.
"Go, go hold them up so they can see them!" He said, putting Ruby's sign up in the air, before Azure rolled his eyes and did the same for Yang's
The door closed and Robin finally exploded. "AHHH WELCOME TO BEACON RUBY AND YA-. Huh…. Oh gross!"
"Don't get it on me!" Azure yelled, both of them getting out of the way.
A very unfortunate boy with blonde hair had rushed passed them on the verge of puking his guts up. Robin was afraid of very few things but being covered in vomit was one of them. He dropped Ruby's poster onto the ground and scrambled to pick it up. A crowd of first years exited the airship, and it was almost stepped on, thankfully however, Azure caught it and brought him back up to his feet.
"Robin! Az!" A voice said, and Robin shot up to his feet. The courtyard had finally cleared, and Robin practically exploded when he saw Yang and Ruby.
"AHHHH FINALLY!" He yelled rushing across the courtyard, and before either of them could put up a fight he grabbed both Yang and Ruby to hug them, tears in his eyes. "I CAN'T BELIEVE BOTH MY BABY SISTERS ARE AT BEACON WITH MEEEEEE!"
"Gahhh… Robin you… you're… crushing me… ag…. again," Ruby croaked out with one of Robin's arms crushed around her waist.
Yang groaned and tried to wriggle away. "Robin you… you're only… only a year older than me."
"BUT YOU'RE STILL MY BABY SISTERRRR!" He cried, finally letting them both down, wiping the tears from his eyes. "Oh man, I… I can still remember all the training you did!"
"That's because you trained with us Robin," Yang said, smirking as she went to give him a less violent hug. "Because you know, you're only a year old than me? I missed you big bro, keeping the place warm for us?"
Yang and he had always gone off and trained together the most when they were younger. Robin had trained Ruby himself with Uncle Qrow more then he did Yang, he and Yang often trained together when they were younger. She had picked up more so their dads' way of fighting, while Robin had always taken more of an interest in swords, but still, they always trained together. The amount of combo attacks they had stored up were near limitless, he couldn't even name them all, but if either of them were to call one out he'd remember in a second.
He hugged her back, wiping his tears, he still couldn't believe his luck, as if his first year at Beacon hadn't gone as well as it could. Now, he'd get to train and be with his siblings at the place they'd all always dreamed of going, the place their parents had gone.
After pulling back from the hug, he did the handshake they both had together, an up and down fist-bump, a bang on their own chest before coming up with a high five on the other side.
"Kept it nice and warm for you, you like your signs?!" He said, holding Ruby's up while Azure held up Yang's. "Az made yours."
Yang laughed and went to hug Az too. "Love it, thanks Az! You ready for our next race soon?"
"Ready to win again you mean?" Azure said, hugging Yang back before smirking at her. "I'm always ready for that."
Yang scoffed. "Ha, we'll see how you're talking afterwards. Soooo…" She said, turning back and putting up a large smile at Ruby. "So, Ruby you're not alone, Robin's here so that means… I need to go see and see my friends they're here now bye!"
"Wait, Yang!" Ruby said, but by the time she could step, Yang was carried off by a group of other first-years down the courtyard.
Ruby sighed, clearly disappointed, which made Robin worry. She hadn't even said anything coming off the ship, she seemed very 'un-Ruby' far too much for his liking, and his older brother senses went off. However, before he could say anything to her, Azure chewed at his lip and looked at him.
"So… um… Robin," He said, sounding uncharacteristically nervous. "Can I well… you know…"
Robin scoffed but smiled. "Go ahead, meet up with Niko and Indigo when you're done."
Azure smiled and nodded, before darting off to where Yang had gone. Robin watched him as the sun was beginning to set on the beautiful day. Man…. It really is a beautiful day to start a semester. I hope it's as good tomorrow for their initiation, he thought with a smile.
"So… you think he still likes her?" Ruby asked from next to him.
Robin laughed. "Ha, oh yeah, without a doubt. Doubt he'd ask her out or anything though."
"Why do you say that?" She asked, her tone still nervous.
He smiled and looked at her. "Because, at first he probably saw you both as his sisters too. Remember, Azure… doesn't really have family back in Minstrel."
"And that's why he spent most of the summer with us…" She said, a small smile coming to her face. "What about Indigo? He spent all summer with us."
Robin laughed, recalling Weiss's revelation. "HA, you won't believe what I just learned about him… but that can wait…" His excitement got the better of him, and he saw Ruby finally smile as well. "GAHHH, welcome to Beacon little red!"
"Thanks, big red," She said, finally laughing and jumping up to cling onto him for a hug.
He laughed and hugged her back, messing up her hair before she let go of him and fell back to her feet. She was smiling now, which Robin always loved, he messed up her hair again and just couldn't contain my excitement.
"I can't believe you're here too! I must have thanked Professor Ozpin a dozen times now!" He said, matching her smile, it was amazing how alike they looked despite him being adopted. "Me and the guys already turned in you and Yang's luggage, how was dad when you left?"
"He was fine, just a bit upset he'll be on his own now," Ruby said with a wave of her hand. "But he has Zwei, and I'm sure Uncle Qrow will be around…"
Robin detected the hint of change in her voice. She did that often Ruby, when she was upset, or nervous she looked at her feet and shifted from one foot to the other. He had learned to spot these things over the years. The last conversation he ever remembered having with his mother before she left for her mission, was her asking and him promising to look after Ruby and Yang, and he took that job seriously, he would have anyway… but to him, that was the one official mission she ever gave him.
So, when his little sister was sad, he could tell!
"Hey… what's up, you alright?" He asked her, holding his hands out on her shoulders. She looked up at him and he smiled at her. "Something happen on the flight? Az and I had to dodge a vomiting guy after the ship landed."
Ruby chuckled, but still looked at the ground. "No, nothing happened I… I was talking to Yang about it, I guess you could say well… I'm nervous? Embarrassing I know…"
Robin scoffed and shook his head. "Hardly! You should have seen me when I showed up last year. The second you all put me on that ship it was like I forgot how to talk. I told you all the time, if not for me meeting Niko, I probably would've slept and ate lunch every day on the roof."
She laughed again and sighed. "Well… Dad always did say it was like we shared a brain."
"You could say that again," Robin said. "But the difference between us Ruby, is you're much better at making people smile then I am, you're like mom. We may be awkward and a bit uncoordinated at first-. Well… really uncoordinated in your case."
He laughed when she smiled, rolled her eyes and punched up at his arm.
"Haha… but in the end, it's like mom always said. When in doubt, be kind to everyone, being nice is never a bad thing!" He said, pumping his fist and keeping on hand on her shoulder. "It's okay to be nervous, but if you just be yourself, people will see how amazing you are."
She sighed, but a smile came to her face. She hugged around his waist. "Huh… thanks Robin. I… I just don't want people to treat me special. I skipped two years, and well…."
Robin winced but nodded. "And… you have the dubious honor of being my sister. I'm sorry… it annoys me too; I'd stop it if I could. At least Yang has an advantage, she doesn't look like me, on the other us… well-."
"We're basically twins?" Ruby said, a small smile coming to her face.
He chuckled and nodded. "Yeah… but don't worry, you're Ruby Rose, not Robin, you're going to carve out your own name. People will ask me in a few years 'hey aren't you Ruby Rose's brother?'"
She laughed again, and Robin joined in. Both of their dark red capes blew back in a gust of wind, and Robin checked his scroll for the time. He still had a few minutes before he'd get a lecture from Ms. Goodwich for being late for a meeting with Ozpin. He still had no idea what he'd say to an auditorium full of first years, but he knew it was an honor.
Ruby sucked in a breath and nodded. "Okay… I think I'm ready. Yang said I'd be the bee's knees, but I'm just going to go in there and be someone with regular knees!"
Robin laughed and unrolled the poster he made for her. "That sounds great… here, the guys and I made these for you and Yang. Put it up in your dorm if you want and well… if you start feeling nervous again, just look at it, and remember I'm here."
Ruby's eyes had stars in them, and he could tell she was trying to contain her excitement. She took it and bounced from one foot to another, just like he did when he was excited.
"Aww… thanks Big Red…" She said, gushing over it, before hugging his arm again.
He laughed and smiled at her. "You're welcome… you know you're lucky. You have me and Yang here, I was by myself. Come on, we need to get you too-."
"Hey! Robin, you got a minute?" A voice said, coming from near the airship.
Robin turned with Ruby, and he narrowed his eyes, shocked. "Coco? What are you doing here? I didn't think I'd see any other second-years out here."
Coco Adele and her team, Team CFVY, were the only team that ever gave Robin and Team RAIN any king of challenge in training. The truth was Team RAIN was still far ahead, but Coco and her team were some of the best Beacon had to offer, Robin knew. They had been the ones who saved them last year, after Team RAIN had defeated the Leviathan that almost attacked Vale. Team CFVY had helped his team fight off the stragglers until the police and professional huntsmen arrived.
Since then, Robin and Coco agreed to multiple joint training sessions, as well as a general partnership for any missions they needed in the future. Robin liked all four of them, but as team leaders he talked to Coco the most. Niko he also knew was particularly close to Velvet, so their teams had exchanged messages a few times over the summer break before that second semester.
Robin liked Coco, he really did, but he still gulped when she came over to him and Ruby, stiffened as he saw her deadly purse, and intimidating sunglasses. Coco had been… very forward trying to get Robin to go out with her a few times last year, which he would have done if he didn't find her a bit intimidating.
"Professor Goodwich asked me and my team to help keep an eye on the first years coming out of the airships. The others are at the other landing pads," She said, lowering her sunglasses and looking over at Ruby, who nearly jumped onto Robin's arm again. "Is this your little sister? I thought only the yellow haired one was coming this year."
Robin chuckled and gestured down at Ruby. "It was supposed to be at first, but Ruby here impressed Ozpin enough to get moved up two years. Ruby, this is my friend Coco Adele, Coco, this is my sister, Ruby Rose!"
"Ha… hi," Ruby said with a small wave.
"Nice to meet you," Coco said, crossing her arms, her dangerous handbag at the ready, which still scared Robin to that day. She looked back up at him next. "It's actually a good thing I ran into you, like I said, do you have a minute? In private?"
They both looked at Ruby who shrank down. Robin heard the tone in Coco's voice, he could tell it was serious. He nodded to Coco then looked at Ruby.
"Go on ahead to the auditorium Ruby, I'll catch up in a minute. I'll see you and Yang before you get ready to sleep tonight. Try not to explode on your first day," He joked, rubbing her head again.
Ruby let out a slow breath and nodded. "Okay… see you soon!"
He thought he saw her muttered, regular knees, to herself, as she went down the courtyard with her poster.
"You know, you both look really similar, down to that cute cape you wear," Coco teased him as she walked away. "But you told me you were adopted right?"
"Yeah… just a happy coincidence," Robin said with a shrug, turning back to her. "So, what's up? It… seems a bit excessive Professor Goodwich and Ozpin would task us to help guard the airships coming in."
Coco shrugged. "It's actually not that crazy when you think about it. It actually has to do with your little sister, I heard about it from Professor Goodwich."
"Ruby?" He said, a shot of worry running through him. "What's she got to do with Beacon increasing security?"
"Well, you heard she stopped a gang from robbing a dust shop in downtown Vale, right?" Coco said, leaning back on one leg with her purse. "Well… I overheard this from Goodwich and did some digging myself in town when I was shopping. It turns out, that's one of multiple dust shops to be hit this month. A string of robberies."
"Sounds like the police aren't doing their job," Robin said with a shrug. "What's that have to do with us?"
Coco scoffed. "You didn't hear? Even the thieves your sister stopped; they weren't after money. The one she stopped, and each one the last month. All the thieves have been after is dust."
"Just… dust?" He said wonderingly, thinking what a coincidence it was he met the Schnee family heiress a few minutes before this conversation. "Well… we would have a lot of dust, but what thieves would be stupid enough to try and rob Beacon?"
Coco shrugged. "I'm not sure, but Professor Goodwich and Ozpin wouldn't be worried for no reason. I believe there may be something a bit bigger going on."
"Or, it could all just be a coincidence," Robin said, his stomach churning. "And it's just some idiot thieves trying to screw over the Schnee's."
"It could be yes, but we wouldn't be doing our job as huntsmen and huntresses if we didn't take stuff like this seriously," She said, pushing her sunglasses back up. "I'm telling you because well… we did agree to work together, didn't we? Besides, your team with your combined semblances, are much better suited to lets say… recon in a large city? Then my team would be."
Robin's stomach continued to churn. Coco made good points, and the huntsman in him was screaming to check the problem out. Uncle Qrow always said, the best tool a huntsman had wasn't his semblance, weapon, or his aura, but his intuition. Robin's intuition was saying he'd sleep better at night, especially with Ruby and Yang here now, if he and his team checked this out.
Coco was also right saying his team was well suited for something like this. Indigo could morph into the shadows; Niko could call a multitude of animals to scout from above or below. After that, his celestial eyes would see just about anything, and with Azure's seismic sense, they would be able to sniff out anything unusual.
However, the problem was half of his brain was screaming at him to leave it be, to just enjoy what was set up to be a great year at Beacon. Yang and Ruby were there, his team was set to take on even more advanced missions, he had met a girl earlier that-while she seemed a bit snobbish- he found very cute and managed to hold a conversation with. Why risk that by getting tangled up into something bigger like they had done last year? It had almost gotten them killed last year.
He didn't know which side of his brain would win out, but still, he smiled and nodded at Coco.
"Thanks Coco, I'm sure I'll take the guys and go take a look," He said, holding out his hand for her. "I'm looking forward to year number two with you guys."
Coco chuckled and shook his hand. "Ha… me too Robin. Just be ready, I plan on having my team catch up to yours. Watch out, when the Vytal festival tournament comes around, we won't hold back."
Robin laughed. "Ha, we wouldn't want you too. I should get going, Ozpin wanted me to-."
A loud *BOOM* from close by cut him off, and he and Coco both turned around just as the airship went to pull out.
Coco's hand went to the button on her purse. "Was that an explosion?! What the heck could have caused that?
"I don't know…" Robin said, instinctively reaching to his waist, but forgetting both of his swords had already been put in his locker. "Maybe someone-."
"I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry!" He heard the very distinct voice of his little sister carry, and on instinct he flared his red aura and activated his semblance.
His eyes glowed a multitude of different colors, and he felt the blood in his body rush to the veins around his eyes. He looked further down the courtyard, and he saw every student, every stone on the bridge, ever latch on every bag, and most importantly the aura of every person walking, and the shadows of where they'd be in a few seconds.
Uncle Qrow had always told him his semblance had the possibility to be the most powerful one on all Remnant. No matter how skilled a fighter was, a grimm or another person, they were at a disadvantage since Robin could see what was to come. He saw the shadow of people's auras, and when fighting grimm, he saw their dark shadows of what was to come, so his semblance worked on both people and grimm, it was what saved him so many times in his life, that combined with the sword and fighting skills he learned from his dad and Uncle Qrow.
However, it also worked great for moments like this. It almost gave him a heart attack this time, because what he saw was a familiar white aura from a girl dressed in white, yelling at the familiar aura of his little sister, who was in the middle of a bunch of fallen bags, lingering dust in the air, as she stood above a blackened ground.
"Oh my god she really exploded…" Robin said, deactivating his semblance and turning to Coco, his panic setting in. "Coco I'll talk to you later, my sister exploded, I gotta go!"
Coco scoffed. "You know, oddly enough, considering how you are, I completely believe that she did."
Robin sighed again and turned to run down the courtyard.
XxxxxxxxxxxxxxX
Of course, Ruby… the minute you walk away from Robin you explode again, Ruby thought, cringing as the white-haired girl didn't stop.
"Unbelievable! This is exactly the kind of thing I was telling you about you dunce!" She yelled, her face and dress still blackened from the explosion.
"I… I'm really, really sorry…" Was all Ruby could say, her chest tingling as she poked her fingers together.
She internally sighed as she looked at the blackened ground. Was this really how she acted around people she didn't know? Robin had sworn up and down that he was just as nervous and uncoordinated as she was when he came last year, but Ruby thought that had to be a lie to make her feel better. She'd seen her brother lead his team and fight, there was no way he was like this.
So now, she wasn't only embarrassing herself, and Professor Ozpin, but her brother too.
"UGH! You complete dolt, and after this day looked so promising!" The girl said, wiping the ash from the explosion off her face, her blue eyes glaring. "What are you even doing here?! Aren't you a little young to be attending Beacon!"
Ruby stammered. "I… um… well… You see my… um… my brother-."
"This isn't your ordinary combat school you know! It's not just sparring and practice you know," She said, folding her arms, the ash finally falling off her white dress, but her hard eyes remained fixed on Ruby. "We're here to actually fight monsters you know so… just watch where you're going you dunce!"
Okay… come Ruby, you're the daughter of Taiyang Xao Long, Robin Rose's sister, don't let her push you around! Ruby thought, her annoyance finally starting to grow.
"Hey back off," She finally snapped, letting her hands finally fall to her side. "I said I was sorry princess! You don't even-."
"Don't you dare call me princess!" She said, stomping her foot indignantly. "You don't know me, and you're a hazard to my health, of all the people to meet after-."
"Ruby!" The saving voice of her brother said, and when Ruby turned, he was rushing towards her. The breath she'd been holding released… but she looked and noticed a girl with long black hair looked as if she'd been about to say something, a bottle of dust in her hand.
She saw Robin rush past her, and met Ruby's eyes, Ruby was going to say something, but before she could the girl tossed the dust back into one of the white-haired girl's opened bags and started walking away. She couldn't say anything, because Robin got there first and started fretting over her like he normally did.
"Robin!" She said, as he wiped the ash off her outfit, and even licked his finger to wipe the ash smudges off himself, which made Ruby groaned. "URGHHH, Robin that's gross stop!"
"You're the one who went and exploded!" He said with a sigh, looking down at her and wiping her face until Ruby pushed him off her. "Well, Uncle Qrow did always say where me and you go, explosions follow…"
"He did not say that!" Ruby protested, her face getting red, already embarrassed enough by the white-haired girl, who'd surprisingly hadn't left. She only looked between her and Robin, her mouth fallen open.
"Yes, he did, to me before he left on his last mission," He said, wiping her face one more time and finally turning. "Now what did you explode this… Oh, hey Weiss, fancy meeting you here again."
"What?!" Ruby said, looking from Robin-who was smiling like he always was somehow-back to the girl who'd screamed at her, apparently named Weiss. "Robin, you know her?!"
"We kinda just met a few minutes ago before I saw you," He said, chuckling and rubbing the back of his head. "I thought I recognized her aura from over at the ship, I saw you explode too."
"Stupid magic eyes…" Ruby mumbled, as Robin kept on smiling at Weiss.
"Ha, look at the luck of that Weiss," He said, throwing an arm around Ruby's shoulder and crushing her again as he squeezed. "It looks like I won't have to introduce you to my sister myself, who would've thought you'd meet like this!"
"Huh?!" Ruby said, trying to not look embarrassed. "You told her about me?!"
"Of course, I did, I tell everyone about you little red," He said with a goofy smile.
Ruby sighed and laughed nervously as she looked over at Weiss who was shaking her head, seemingly in disbelief. She loved Robin more than just about anything, Ruby really did, but at times he… well for lack of better words, embarrassed her. Of course, she loved hugs, being called 'little red', and doing everything she could with him, and if he was a first year with her, she'd be clamoring to be on his team and spend time with him as well as Yang. She was horrible with people, she had nobody at Beacon other than him and Yang, she wanted to stick close.
However, at times like then, when he was squeezing her in front of one of her new classmates she already wasn't on very good terms with… it was a bit embarrassing.
"Um… Weiss?" Robin said, waving his hand in front of the girl's face. "You, okay?"
Weiss stammered. "Th… This is your sister?! The one you were telling me about that moved up two years?"
"Yeah, Weiss, this is Ruby, although I'm sure she told you already!"
"I… didn't get to that part," Ruby mumbled.
Weiss scoffed again. "Seriously? The leader of Team RAIN is related to… oh god, you're both wearing a cape why didn't I see it sooner…"
Ruby chewed at her lip and grabbed at her hood. Robin, however, didn't seem to recognize the real meaning behind Weiss's words. He did that often, he always saw the best in people, like she did, however, he was much better now with people then she was.
"Ha, yeah," He said, tugging at his own clasped cape. "We get it from our mom, so I know we had a little explosion, but did you two-."
"You!" Weiss said, turning and glaring at Ruby again. "You're telling me you are related to the leader of Team RAIN?! H… how is that possible?! You're uncoordinated, he's elegant, how… how… UGH!"
"What's that supposed to mean?" Ruby said, finally finding her voice. "Of course, I'm his sister, he just said so, didn't he?!"
She groaned and shook her head "Of course it's inconceivable! How could he-."
"Woah, easy Weiss," Robin said, stepping between them, and looking at Weiss now. He wasn't smiling anymore but didn't look angry. "You two just got off on the wrong foot. Now, why doesn't Ruby apologize one more time for exploding, and you apologize for overreacting?"
"He's right, I'm sorry!" Ruby said, rushing to Robin's side, seeing the chance to get out of the situation without someone hating her. "I'll make it up to you I promise!"
Weiss stammered again and groaned. "I don't have time for stuff like this, she's shown she's a hazard to my health!"
Robin scoffed. "Ruby's only a hazard to your health if you're a grimm, or a fresh tray of cookies."
"Robin!" She said, her head snapping around to him, her face red.
Weiss looked like she wanted to say more, but she didn't. In the end, she just stomped her foot, sighed and turned to walk away, the butlers behind her clamoring to pick up all the bags Ruby had knocked over. Ruby didn't know how they met before, or what they had talked about, but Weiss's attitude had clearly changed the minute Robin had showed up.
Ruby chewed at her lip and sighed; Robin's reputation saves me again…
"Yikes," Robin said with a scoff, turning to Ruby with a laughed. "Ha, that certainly could have gone better."
"Of course, it could have gone better!" Ruby said, letting out a breath she'd been holding and looked at Weiss's back walking away. "How the heck did you meet her!"
Robin shrugged. "Az and I were on our way, I had my semblance on, and I saw her bags falling on top of her, so I stepped in to help. We talked for a bit before I came to see you… but I gotta admit, she wasn't well… like that when I talked to her."
"Of course, because she was talking to you!" She said, sighing again. "Of course, she'd be nicer talking to the famous leader of Team RAIN… I'm just a mess, that's already someone who hates me!"
Robin laughed and waved his hand. "Oh, don't worry I'm sure she doesn't hate you. She's probably not that bad, as soon as she gets to know you I'm sure she'll love you!"
Ruby shook her head. "You know… I normally share your boundless optimism."
He put a hand on her shoulder and smiled. "I'd rather hope and be disappointed, then just be all sad about things! Now, why don't we-."
A loud ringing went off on his scroll, and Ruby watched Robin pull it out. She peered over his shoulder and saw the message was from who she assumed was Niko.
From, Mooooooon, WE'RE STARTING, WHERE ARE YOU?! I'M NOT TAKING THE FALL, MS. GOODWICH HAS THAT LOOK IN HER EYE!
Ruby looked at him weirdly. "Um… what's Niko talking about?"
A panicked look came across Robin's face and he frantically turned to Ruby. "GAH I GOTTA GO! HEAD TO THE AUDITORIUM I'LL SEE YOU AND YANG WHEN YOU'RE DONE!"
"Wait, Robin!" Ruby yelled after him. "I don't know where… the auditorium is…"
Ruby sighed defeated as she could barely see her brother now, he was running so fast. Her head drooped and her heart started to race.
Well… this could have gone better.
"Hey… rough first day too?" A voice said behind her. She turned around, to see a nervous looking boy with blonde hair… the boy who had vomited after the flight.
Ruby sighed again, but managed to smile… well, I have to start somewhere.