So I'm a bit, no, extremely floored honestly. When I started writing the first chapter, I really didn't expect to get this much support so quickly. All the faves, follows, and reviews were so unexpected. I'm really thankful you all enjoy it so much.

Special thanks to those who complimented my portrayal of Jinx as well, because I was really nervous I'd mess her up and fail to actually get her to feel as she does in the show, if maybe a bit more chaotic.


The night had gone by agonizingly slow.

Partly because Jinx couldn't force herself to sleep without Fishbones or Pow-Pow by her side.

Mostly because it was just incredibly boring.

A TV hung on the wall continued to blare loudly with some random sitcom or drama or whatever channel Jinx had randomly found. It had been a bit surprising to have one in a room with her. It wasn't that she'd never heard of one before. Movies, TV and things like that were around, but only ever in Piltover, and only the wealthier individuals could afford something as expensive as a television. It wasn't particularly interesting and the gunner wouldn't be able to recall anything that was said or done in the show even just ten seconds ago. Pulling up her right arm to stretch it out, Jinx couldn't help but sigh in relief as her elbow and shoulder popped. Someone had come in and taken off her cuffs a little after the old man had left.

It had made Jinx wonder for a moment if she should just book it and find a way to get her weapons back. Ultimately, she decided to just follow through on her deal with Ozpin. Besides, no one said she wouldn't have chances to run away after getting to Beacon. If school and all that nonsense was as boring as she imagined it would be, she'd run off the first chance she got.

Her half-lidded eyes slid over to the clock on the wall. Ten in the morning and still no word from the teacher, headmaster or whatever he had called himself last night. The doctor and nurse in charge of taking care of her had already come in, cleared her and said she'd be free to go once her guardian came to pick her up.

Whatever nonsense that implied between her and Ozpin.

"Ten bucks says he adopted you. He seems like the type to pick up strays."

"I will shoot you." Her eyes narrowed dangerously as she glanced to the window where a figure loomed in her vision. One only she could see, but that was nothing new to her.

"Just saying, he definitely screamed creep to me."

Another voice chimed in. "Mylo. You're only saying that cause you hate any person that has authority."

"Yes! Because all people in power are messed up!"

A light growl left Jinx as she glanced away and tried to ignore the argument that now took place. Any time those two went against each other, it normally just meant a massive headache for the girl later.

A knock at the door sounded out and immediately Jinx couldn't hear the two arguing idiots anymore as a woman with blonde hair walked into the room. Glasses, white long sleeve shirt, black vest or corset thingy hugged her waist with a black pencil skirt, with black stockings that showed off her legs that ended in black high-heeled boots. That was enough to catch her attention, but what really caught Jinx's attention was the riding crop tucked under the woman's arm.

"Did someone get me a stripper?" It was all Jinx could say, the question going out to anyone in the room who could answer her.

"Excuse you?" The woman's sharp green eyes glared dangerously into Jinx's own eyes. The sheer cold that now reflected in those orbs almost made Jinx shiver.

Instead, the younger girl just stretched an arm out and gestured to the woman from head to toe, a night to adjust to her situation giving her back her usual playful attitude. "I mean, you're dressed like you're coming out of the red-light district."

Those emerald green eyes looked like they were trying to burn a hole through Jinx but she could only smile back in return. "My name is Glynda Goodwitch, I am a teacher at Beacon and the deputy headmistress of the academy young lady."

"Oooh. Why didn't you just say so?" Jinx cheered happily in her mind as she rocked where she sat before hopping out of bed. "I've been dying of boredom waiting for someone to show up and bust me out."

Glynda's eyes didn't lose their sharp edge but she didn't look like she was going to smack Jinx with that crop any time soon at least. "Yes, well, you'll need to let me put this on you first before we go." The woman pulled a small silver band out from under her arm the Zaunite hadn't noticed earlier. It was too small to be a collar, it looked more like some really boring bracelet.

"And what exactly is that?" Jinx just let out a sigh and shook her head. "I've never been a big fan of jewelry but I appreciate the offer. Plus, pretty sure you're too old for someone like me."

The intense anger burning behind the woman's eyes made the anarchist want to howl with laughter. If all of the teachers would be this fun to mess with and react like this, she'd at least have some fun in that school. "It is a tracking anklet. Also, you will refrain from making any more comments like that starting now. If not, you will have detention before the school year even officially starts."

"I think I'd be worried for my virtue if it was you overseeing my detention."

One eye twitched dangerously on Glynda's face. "Miss Jinx, one more word." That was all the woman said but the tone in her voice had actually managed to force a bit of fear into Jinx.

"Fine, fine." Stepping back a bit, Jinx sat down on the edge of the bed and popped her foot up high where it hovered in the air just a foot away from the teacher's face. "Do what you gotta do."

Quickly, and painfully, Glynda snapped the band on the girl's ankle. Judging from the look in her eyes, the woman had taken some pleasure at the pained yelp Jinx let out as the thing closed tightly on her leg. The Zaunite just pouted as she dropped her leg before rolling her ankle, trying to get used to the feeling of the thing there. "So, why am I wearing this?" Not that Jinx wasn't sure already, but it wouldn't hurt to get confirmation about it.

"It was part of the deal Ozpin had to make to allow you to attend Beacon. You will be wearing that tracker at all times and it will send a signal to the authorities if you make any move to leave Vale."

That was a bit surprising. "Vale? Not the school grounds?"

"The council had tried to limit you to only having freedom within Beacon, but the headmaster was able to extend that to Vale as a whole. You should thank him when you see him later this evening."

Jinx let out a small hum in thought. It was nice to know she'd have a bit more freedom to roam around. Didn't make it any less annoying that her movements would be watched though. That's when her mind picked up what Glynda had said. "Wait, this evening? We're not going there now?"

A sigh left the deputy's lips as she shook her head. "Do you believe it would be okay for you to walk around with your clothes in that state?"

Blinking, Jinx glanced down at her own body. Her pants were a bit dirty and had a tear or two that hadn't been there before but aside from that they were still fine. Her top was a bit worse for wear, the edges of it burned slightly from the explosion that had knocked her out and a few new holes were in it from shrapnel if Jinx had to guess, but it didn't show off any important bits.

"Uh, yeah? Not like I have any money for new clothes." She saw how Glynda opened her mouth, but Jinx continued first. "Besides, I like these. My dad gave me these clothes." And that meant, just like her weapons, there was no way she was going to get rid of the pieces of clothing.

Those words seemed to make the deputy pause before she let out a sigh. "Very well. However, you'll still need to buy a new combat uniform while those clothes are repaired."

"Fine. Can we just go then?" The bluenette pushed herself off the bed and motioned to the door. "I really want to get out of here and get away from the smell of sick people and disinfectant."

Nodding, Glynda moved to the door, pulling it open as Jinx slipped on her shoes and bounced on her feet for a moment. "Oh, wait. One more thing needs to be done before we leave."

"Ugh! What now?" Jinx couldn't help but feel incredibly annoyed. She just wanted out of this room, so she could have space to move and breathe and just not be in a box.

"We need to unlock your aura. After the tests yesterday, it says that you don't have it unlocked."

Aura? What was that? "I don't know whatever that stuff is but pretty sure I don't have any of it."

"Yes you do. Every person does. Aura is your soul."

"Yeaaah… Pretty sure I don't have one of those." A small bundle of nerves formed in Jinx's stomach at the thought. Not just because of she had no real clue what the woman was talking about, but because she'd never even heard of anything like it before back in Zaun, even when reading about other places like Ionia or Shurima and whatever weird powers or magic that resided in those places.

What if she actually didn't have a soul? Would that mean she'd be forced out of the academy without even getting a chance? Would that mean she'd lose Fishbones, Pow-Pow, Zap and all her lovely little chompers for good without a chance to get them back? A hand lightly touched her left arm, the woman before Jinx giving her the kindest smile she'd seen Glynda make since arriving. "There's no reason to be so nervous. I can promise you everything will be fine."

Jinx didn't believe her, but what choice did she really have? This seemed like something she didn't really get a say in. Steeling her nerves, Jinx bobbed her head quickly and forced the worries out of her mind. "Okay. Let's just get this over with already."

The woman took a small breath before closing her eyes. Her hand on Jinx's arm squeezing down a little tighter. "For it is in our struggles, we find meaning. Through this, we become a guiding light for the next generation to follow. Heralded as protectors and fearless of danger. I release your soul, and by my hand, lead thee."

Silly speech aside, Jinx was about to open her mouth and ask what all of that was about until it hit her.

A spark, a surge, an ember being lit inside of her body. One that began to burn strongly as it spread out through her limbs and bathed her in warmth. Her eyes went wide as she looked down to see a faint blue glow on her skin that slowly faded out. "What… What was that?"

"That is your aura." Jinx noticed that the woman's face had a small bit of strain in it now, a drop of sweat falling from her brow. "It seems it was a bit difficult to unlock but you definitely have it."

Well, at the very least, it was a comforting thought. Whenever she went back to Piltover, she'd need to hang a banner somewhere that says 'Jinx has a soul confirmed!'. "It feels kinda weird." Jinx flexed her right hand a few times, it felt like her aura was there but then it wasn't. Like it was something that exists but doesn't at the same time.

"It will take some time to adjust to, but you should have a decent bearing on it come initiation in the coming days."

Nodding, Jinx continued to stare at her palm, curling and uncurling her fingers. "Guess if that's all done, we can go now?"

"Yes, let's be on our way."

[-]

Never again would Jinx go shopping. Her eyes stared at the ground as she climbed out of some flying thing called a bullhead. It was a very advanced form of one of the airships from Piltover and if the Zaunite hadn't been run ragged while trying to find a 'suitable outfit', she would have loved to inspect the thing. After finally finding one that was okay, at least by Glynda's standards, the teacher had led her to the bullhead docks to take her to Beacon so she could look over the school that would be her home for the next few years.

The bags hanging from Jinx's fingers weren't heavy but she definitely wanted to get to wherever she'd be staying so she could dump the stupid things there and then go roam around. A small rumble from her stomach had the girl letting out a small moan.

Food, she'd also need to get some food. Anything would be better than whatever the slop was the hospital had given her to eat.

"Your temporary lodging will be dorm room number 113. I've already assigned this scroll to unlock the room." With that, Glynda held out her hand with a small white rectangular device in it for Jinx to take. Her eyes couldn't help but study the thing, especially how un-scrollike it was. "That scroll is also yours to use personally during your stay here in Beacon so please take good care of it."

Jinx nodded her head, letting out a small hum as she flipped the device around in her hand and continued to study every angle of it. "Anything else?"

"Yes. Your weapons have been stored in your own locker in the weapon's storage of Beacon." At those words, Jinx's head shot up and her now wide pink orbs were staring into emerald green ones.

"They're here? Can I get them now?" She tried to hold back her excitement but it was impossible. She needed to see them again and be able to hold them and fire them and cuddle them.

A sigh left the deputy's lips, her hundred and twenty-fourth one so far from Jinx's count. "Not today. You'll be allowed access to them on the day of initiation. After that, any day that you have combat training, or need to perform maintenance on them, you'll be granted access."

"I need to do maintenance on them now." She immediately said. Any excuse to make that would get her guns back.

"I'm sorry, but no matter what, you will only be allowed to wield them from initiation onward, no sooner."

Jinx wasn't one to curse. Not that she didn't know how but it just was something that never really stuck with her. But in that moment, she really wanted to scream and curse to the heavens. Her weapons were all so close and she still couldn't have them.

"Also, a uniform in your size has been left for you in your dorm room as well, along with textbooks, notebooks, and all other necessary supplies you'll need for the coming term."

That sounded like a lot. A question pulled at her mind at that thought. One she hadn't even really cared to ask but now it felt like it was one she needed to. "Why are you doing all this? Or Ozpin. Why go through the trouble for me? You don't even know me or anything about me."

"It is the job of any educator to guide those that need it onto the proper path." Glynda's eyes bore into hers, staring into her as she spoke those words so Jinx could see the meaning behind them.

"Want to stop me from becoming a dangerous criminal huh?" The irony in that question was clearly lost on the woman in front of her, but it still had small giggles bubbling up in Jinx's throat.

"That is what I want, at least." The deputy said with a shake of her head before continuing. "What Ozpin wants is for you to see your potential."

That cut off Jinx's giggling fast. "My potential?"

"When Ozpin heard of the accident on the train and of you, who had apparently caused it, he immediately became interested in the case. Someone as young as you with personally developed weapons and gear like yours is a very rare sight." Glynda took a moment to study the Zaunite's current expression. Jinx wasn't sure what kind of face she was making, but she had a feeling it might show how lost she was at hearing something like that. "He saw in that incident, that you were someone with potential to help and protect others. Either as a huntress yourself, or a weapon's designer."

Blinking, Jinx felt more than a bit lost. It had been a while since anyone had thought or said that about anything she made or did.

The last person that had was…

Static filled her ears, the sound of tiny voices crying out for her attention but she forced herself to ignore them all as she shook her head hard. Her twin braids flying in the air and smacking against Glynda who had gone silent in shock at the girl's sudden reaction.

"W-Well. I'm glad he thinks so highly of me." Jinx took a breath to steady herself. She needed to calm down and get back under control. "I'll make sure I make the old man proud."

The laugh she tried to force into her voice as she spoke those words came out broken and feeble. Her eyes caught the deputy's mouth open to speak but Jinx spoke up quickly, "So, that mean I'm free to go and drop of this junk then?"

"I… That is…" Glynda seemed at a loss for words, unsure of how to approach what had just happened, settling to just look over it for now. "Yes, you may retire to your dorm room now and explore the grounds as you wish."

"Great! See you later teacher!" Without another word, Jinx ran off to find her dorm. Hopefully a minute without anyone else around would help her settle down.

Though she had a feeling she wouldn't fully calm down until her guns were back in her hands.

Finding her dorm was easy after a few minutes of running through the halls. Storing away the clothes Glynda had purchased for her went by quick.

After that, Jinx went to work taking off all of the bandages the doctors had wrapped her arm and torso in. She was surprised that she had forgotten they were even on before she left the hospital but definitely felt a small sense of joy at feeling the cool air wash over the exposed skin of her arm and stomach. Another grumble from her stomach told Jinx that putting off food any longer would be a bad idea, so she quickly slipped out of the room, making a point to slip her scroll into her pants pocket so she'd be able to get back in later.

Now, the hunt for food could truly begin!

How long could it honestly take anyway to find a cafeteria or something?

[-]

Velvet had been having a lovely day as she lounged about in her team's dorm. Her team leader and partner Coco was currently out with the two male members of their team doing some last-minute shopping. The faunus girl was happy to not have to go along this time, mostly because she and Coco had gone the other day for a 'girl's day out', as her leader had put it.

Supposedly, today was supposed to be the boy's day out but Coco had still decided to go with them. If Velvet had to guess, even though she really didn't need to, the other female member of team CFVY had gone to ensure the two boys actually went shopping.

A small rumble in her stomach sounded out. A small flush coming to the brunette's cheeks. Even if no one else was around to hear her stomach growl, it didn't make her feel any better about it making noise. Her chocolate-colored eyes slid to the clock on the wall. A little after two in the afternoon so it was about the right time for lunch. Slipping off of her bed, Velvet slipped on a pair of shoes before exiting her dorm and moving towards the cafeteria.

A sudden yell that echoed throughout the halls stopped her.

"What is wrong with architects!? Why make every hallway look the exact same!?"

The scream was so unexpected that Velvet thought of fleeing in the opposite direction but ended up going toward the voice. Whoever that was sounded like they were having a really bad day, and maybe a small helping hand would keep them from yelling any more or potentially damaging the halls.

Turning round a corner, Velvet caught sight of the person who had yelled. Her eyes catching the two most notable things. Vibrant pink eyes, and her long blue hair done in twin braids that stopped near her ankles.

"Are uh… you lost?" Velvet called out softly, trying to make sure not to startle the clearly agitated girl.

Said girl's head immediately snapped in her direction, her eyes going wide before narrowing as if locking onto a target. Then, in a split second, the anger in those eyes seemed to fade as the girl stepped forward and grabbed onto one of Velvet's hands.

"Oh, thank gods. I thought I'd be cursed to wander this dumb labyrinth for the rest of eternity." The sheer relief in her voice made the faunus girl let out a giggle, though the fact her hand was being held in a rather firm and tight grip did unnerve her a little bit. "Think you could help a girl find her way to the foodstuffs?"

The sudden question disarmed Velvet a little bit more, but she managed to form a small smile as she nodded her head. "Y-Yeah, I can help you out. I'm heading to the cafeteria myself actually." Taking the small moment after speaking, the second year slipped her hand free of the other girl's grip and gestured down the opposite end of the hallway. "It's just down this way."

"Lead the way!" The girl cheered, a wide smile stretching across her face that was so infectious that Velvet couldn't help but return it. As the faunus turned and began to head to the cafeteria, her eyes slid to the person who was now walking beside her. Her appearance was so unique compared to anyone else she'd seen at Beacon so far.

Putting aside her hair and eye color, the girl's pale skin stood out against the color of her clothes. The tattoos on her body standing out even more, especially with just how much of her body seemed to be inked. If not for how almost ghostly pale the girl was, Velvet would have assumed she was from a place like Vacuo with how little her clothes covered her body.

Suddenly, a finger pressed on the underside of Velvet's chin. Her entire body froze as she was forced to look up a little bit until her eyes locked onto the girl's own pair. It was at this moment Velvet noticed the girl was also just a little bit shorter than she was, if not counting her ears. Velvet opened her mouth to speak and ask what was happening when the girl just poked the underside of her chin and let out a quiet, "Bang."

"Huh?" The sudden onomatopoeia left Velvet confused and lost on what just happened.

The girl next to her just moved her hand so that she now had her hand leveled at the Velvet's forehead, her pointer and middle finger extended out as she pantomimed a gun. The grin on her face spreading wide. "You let your guard down while staring at me. That's dangerous." As if to prove the point, she mimed shooting with her hand and even let out a little 'ptchoo' sound.

"Oh…" The faunus' face turned a few shades darker as a blush formed on her cheeks that felt impossible to control. She hadn't realized she had been staring that noticeably. "Sorry, I didn't mean to."

The girl suddenly broke down into giggles. "Kinda rude to check me out like that without even knowing my name."

If Velvet's face wasn't red before, it was burning now. "W-What is your name then?" Anything to shift this conversation away from the fact she had been caught staring so blatantly like that.

Once more, the smile on the bluenette's face grew even wider. "Jinx! Stands for jinx!"

That was definitely a unique name. Velvet tried to smile back while also forcing her blush back. "That's a nice name. I'm Velvet." She made to reach out and shake Jinx's hand but the girl just glanced down and stared at it.

For a moment, Velvet felt incredibly silly. Only for the girl standing across from her to suddenly reach out and grab onto her hand, with far more care than she had the first time, and gave it a quick shake. And then another soft rumbling sounded out from the faunus' stomach, making her blush all over again. Jinx only laughed and let go of her hand before tilting her head to the direction they were headed in before, her single blue bang bobbing with the movement of her head. "So, now that I know you and you know me and we know each other, we go get food?"

"Yes please." Anything to ignore how warm Velvet's cheeks currently felt. As the pair began making their way once again to the cafeteria, this time Velvet made a point not to look toward the other girl. Both because she didn't want to get caught staring again and also because she didn't want Jinx to see how flushed her cheeks still were.

Except her face continued to grow into deeper shades of red. Because Velvet could feel the girl's eyes staring at the side of her head. Maybe if she found something to talk about it, it would make this moment less embarrassing. The only issue was that the second-year student could not, for the life of her, think of anything.

The two reached the cafeteria shortly after, their walk remaining mostly in silence before they moved to wait in the small line to get food. Velvet was still struggling on what to say. She apparently had no reason to be so worried about it as Jinx suddenly spoke up and surprised her once more. "What's it like having four ears?"

The question was so abrupt that Velvet almost stumbled in her walk as the line moved forward and she glanced at Jinx. "Uh, I'm not sure what you're asking."

Jinx just rolled her eyes before letting out a sigh, as if what she had asked was clearly obvious. "You have four ears. Two human ones and two bunny ones."

"Uh… Yes, I'm aware."

"I'm asking what that's like. Like, do you hear things weirdly with four ear canals? Are the bunny ones or human ones just for show and not actually work? If you covered one set, would everything still sound muffled or would it sound clear because the other pair were still able to hear perfectly."

The rapid-fire questions threw the faunus girl. She'd been asked things similar to that before, but most people normally just avoided talking about her ears in fear of saying something offensive. Not that Jinx had. And from the way the other girl's eyes looked, all of her questions were coming from pure curiosity. Velvet licked her lips as she struggled to find a way to answer it all. "I've never really tried that whole ear muffling thing before. All four of them work though, and I wouldn't be able to really say if I hear things weirdly. To me, you hear things weirdly cause you only have two ears."

For a beat, Velvet wondered if her words had come off aggressive, that worry immediately evaporating as Jinx started laughing. "I guess it is pretty weird, huh? I guess I could ask Pow-Pow, but he only has his kitty ears and no human ones."

"Pow-Pow? Is that a friend or teammate of yours?"

"Friend? Hah! No, he's my gun. I painted him a little while ago to have a cute cat face on his front along with some ears a little behind his rotator." As Jinx described the weapon, Velvet tried to think about what it could possibly look like, and how big it could be.

"I'd love to see your weapon some time." Velvet smiled as the two moved forward once more in line while grabbing her camera from her pocket and lightly waving it in the air. "I have a hobby of taking pictures of cool weapons. Would it be okay to take some of yours?"

Jinx tilted her head at that, letting out a hum in thought. "I don't have a problem with it, but you'll have to ask them when I get access to them again."

Get access to them again? Had Jinx done something that had her weapon privileges revoked? That raised another question. Velvet had never seen the other girl at Beacon in the previous year here, but she hadn't figured out whether the bluenette was a new student or an older one she never noticed. "Are you one of the new students coming in this year?"

As the two made it to the front of the line, Jinx's eyes scanned across all the different options as she began piling food onto a tray. "Yep! Ozpin came and asked me personally to attend!"

Personally recruited by the headmaster too? Even more questions sprang up. Every answer Velvet got from her just led to more questions, everything she did made her seem like some wild force of nature that just went at her own pace and dragged others into it.

Velvet's thoughts on Jinx were cut off as a soft ringing sound came from her companion's hip. Balancing her stuffed tray on one hand, Jinx fished into her pants pocket and pulled out a scroll. Her one hand fumbling with the device and a crease forming on her brow. A small giggle left Velvet at the sight. Only fitting Jinx surprised her once more by seemingly not knowing how to use a scroll.

Reaching over while balancing her own tray, Velvet popped the scroll open and accepted the call for Jinx and offered her a small nod and a smile. In return, Jinx gave her a quick thanks before putting the device up to one ear.

"Uh… Hello?"

A quiet, muffled, feminine voice sounded from the other line.

"Oh, lady teach. What's up?"

More muffled words that Velvet could barely catch but unable to actually make out.

"You didn't say not to leave my dorm. You said I had free reign."

More words, coming out faster and with a little more volume.

"Oh, the old man needs me? Why didn't you just say so?"

A final few sentences spoken from the other end before the call ended and Jinx pulled the device away from her head to stare owlishly at the screen.

"Is everything okay?" Velvet couldn't help but wonder, she had partly caught the voice of Miss Goodwitch on the other line but was nervous about what the notoriously strict deputy had said.

"Yeah… Just gotta go meet Ol' Ozzy." From Jinx's expression, Velvet could tell the girl didn't want to go. For a second she thought it might be because she was in trouble until Jinx nodded at the food on her tray. "I didn't even get to eat yet." She said grumpily, as a pout formed on her face.

Oh, that definitely had to be rough. Especially since the girl seemed to be seriously hungry judging by the sheer amount of food she had stuffed on the metal tray in her hand. Before Velvet could suggest anything, suddenly Jinx started shoveling her food into her mouth, stuffing her cheeks with as much food as she could with each passing second.

The strangest part of it all to Velvet was that Jinx was practically inhaling all of that food at lightspeed and in what seemed like only a few seconds, the other girl's tray was completely free of food. Dropping the metal tray on the bar along the food stops, the bluenette sighed. "Welp, guess I better run."

"Oh, uh, right. I'll see you around then?" Velvet hadn't meant to make it sound like a question but she couldn't help but ask, wondering if the chaotic girl would make a point to speak to her again.

Jinx smiled wide, her eyes shining as she nodded her head quickly. "Sure thing, Bun-Bun! See you later!" Before Velvet could say anything about the nickname or add any more to the conversation, Jinx took off in a mad dash out of the cafeteria. Leaving the faunus suddenly alone and a little flabbergasted at the younger girl's actions.

As Velvet moved over to a table and set her own tray down to get started on her meal, her mind went back to one of the questions Jinx had asked her earlier.

Her hands raised up, cupping her human ears and pressing tightly to them until she couldn't hear the light hum of the crowd in the cafeteria through them. Her rabbit ears twitching, still perfectly picking up the noise, but now there was a light buzz in the background from her human ones being deafened.

"Huh. What do you know?"

[-]

Ruby let out a sigh as she finished preparing for the day. Her back letting out many loud popping sounds as she stretched again. Sleeping in a sleeping bag in a cramped hall filled with tons of other people was a little bit distressful.

Doesn't help I started the year out with an enemy.

Her mind went back to the white-haired girl she had accidentally blown up. It hadn't been Ruby's fault! Well… Not fully at least. Yes, she had sneezed and ignited the dust but the angry girl shouldn't have been waving a damaged vial of the stuff around like that.

Her eyes drifted to the side as she saw Jaune, the nice guy who had offered her a helping hand after said explosion, walking around the lockers in pursuit of getting his weapon. He had called them friends at the time, so at least she had one friend as well.

One friend and one enemy. Doesn't that set me at zero then? Another sigh left the girl as she found her locker and pulled undeployed weapon free. Her eyes stared down at the red and black weapon in her arms, her teeth chewing on her bottom lip. "What would you do? I don't really know how to make friends."

The question had been posed to her weapon. She hadn't expected a response, and when a voice sounded out behind her, she couldn't help but yelp in surprise.

"I've never been good with friends either. Much easier to just shoot'em all." Whirling around in shock, Ruby turned and stared with wide silver eyes at the girl stood behind her. Ruby couldn't help but stare at the girl as she floundered for what to say in response. The girl was, surprisingly to Ruby, about her height if maybe, possibly just shorter. The small cheer that the reaper wanted to let out at that fact was forced back as she realized she had just been caught talking to her weapon.

A small, nervous laugh left her lips as she looked anywhere but the girl in front of her. "Sorry. I uh… I was asking Crescent Rose so I wasn't expecting a response."

A look to the girl let Ruby see her big pink eyes look over the folded-up scythe currently cradled in her arms. "Did he give you an answer?" The girl's tone wasn't mocking or belittling, just curious as she continued to stare at Ruby's weapon.

"Uh… Not yet. He normally doesn't answer me."

"Shame, I'd love to hear what kind of answer he came up with." Ruby took that moment to take in the girl's appearance fully. The girl's clothes looked completely brand new, with the jacket the girl was wearing even having the price tag still hanging from it. A white t-shirt tucked into her pants, with a light blue long sleeved jacket that only really went down to just above where her belly button should be, with light pink lines detailing the piece of clothing. Black fingerless gloves on both hands with brass squares resting over each knuckle. Her eyes scanned down a little further to see the girl's black jeans and the myriad of brown belts that hung from her hips.

And then Ruby's eyes widened in excitement. The shining glint of steel in the light as she saw the girl's dark pink minigun that rested at her hip, the light blue-gray gun that was slung over her shoulder, and even a hand gun that currently hung in a holster.

"Oh my gosh, you have so many guns! They look so cool!" The silver eyed girl bounced on the spot, tilting and moving to try and see more of the weapons.

"They are cool. Well, except when Fishbones is in one of his moods." As the gun toting girl spoke, she moved the gun on her back onto one shoulder to show the shark styled face to Ruby. "Hey Fishbones, you ready to go out there and blow up some monsters?"

Then, without missing a beat, the girl bounced Fishbones on her shoulder, making the maw of the weapon bounce as she spoke in a deeper voice. "I think you should look inside yourself and figure out why you crave violence and destruction."

A fist bopped the weapon on its metal snout as the girl let out a huff. "Stupid rocket launcher, now's the time for fighting, not personal introspection!"

It was so sudden, and yet the girl seemed to make it seem so natural. Ruby couldn't help it as laughter bubbled up and spilled from her. Here she was, so nervous a few minutes ago and so embarrassed at talking to her own weapon. And here was a girl who actively sought conversation with her own weapon without a care for what anyone else thought. As Ruby got her laughing under control, she smiled brightly as she reached out a hand to the girl. "Hi, my name's Ruby Rose. It's nice to meet another weapon geek."

The girl let her launcher fall back into its previous position as she smiled in return and grabbed Ruby's hand, shaking it quickly. "Name's Jinx!" Jinx then shrugged her shoulder where her launcher hung and continued, "You've met Fishbones the buzzkill, and this is Pow-Pow." Leaning to the side, Jinx pulled up her pink minigun. "This one doesn't talk much so don't expect a hello back."

Ruby's eyes scanned over every inch of metal that she could see. The weapon just looked so unique, all of the weapons Jinx had seemed so unique that Ruby had to ask. "Did you design all of them yourself?"

"Yep! Made them all on my own." Jinx seemed to swell with pride at that, something Ruby could easily understand. She was proud of how she had designed and built Crescent Rose. Honestly, the reaper really really wanted to ask the blue-haired girl if she could inspect them and get a good look at how her guns worked.

Before she could ask, a loud bell toned out throughout the hall. Followed by the familiar and unmistakable voice of miss Goodwitch. "All new students, please make your way to the cliffs of the Emerald Forest. I repeat, all new student, please make your way to the cliffs of the Emerald Forest."

"Guess we gotta go." Ruby smiled to Jinx as she turned to the girl.

Jinx's smile that had been on her lips already seemed to stretch even further and nearly split her face as she bounced on the balls of her feet. "Hear that Fishbones? Time to go shoot stuff!" The smiling girl quickly moved to follow the crowd, only to stop for a moment and turn to Ruby. "You coming?"

"You want me to go with you?" Ruby asked, so caught off guard by Jinx asking her to come with her that she didn't even realize she needed to go either way.

"Well duh! If we're gun buddies, then I need to see yours in action, it's like, rule number one!"

"Oh! Right, you're completely right!" The excitement in Ruby's voice came out as she ran and caught up to her new friend, her smile just growing wider at the thought. "Let's go shoot stuff!"

[-]

When Jinx and her new friend arrived at the cliffs, they had been immediately instructed to find an open plate to stand on and face toward the cliff. At first, Jinx didn't fully get why until her mind pieced it all together. And Ozpin told me not to harm any other students. He's about to literally throw all of us off a cliff.

The thought would have made her laugh if not for the fact she had been dragged to his office the other day for him to go over all of the things she could and couldn't do.

'No hurting any of the other students Jinx, no damaging school property Jinx, no leaving Beacon to go into Vale without informing one of the staff Jinx'. Honestly, all the rules and limits were expected. Didn't make it any less irritating to be told all of them. One good thing had come of the meeting though, as Jinx pulled out her scroll and looked at the aura meter being displayed on the screen along with her name.

Her now complete name.

Ozpin had told her she needed to have both a given name and a surname for the records. She had been completely lost when thinking of one for herself.

Then it hit her like lightning. Her father had given not just a name to her, but one to the kingdom he had also wanted to create. Her eyes slid over the name on the screen once more, the smile and warmth she felt at reading it making her completely ignore everyone and everything around her.

JINX ZAUN.

It was her full name. And it was perfect.


Hope you all liked this chapter as well. It was gonna go a little into initiation here but I felt like it was more fitting to end on Jinx's last name reveal. That, and I'm also still pondering over who should be her partner, how the teams will pan out, and things like that.

I'll give another tentative release date at around Dec. 26th for the next chapter. Just because I know with the holidays coming up and having to visit family, I'll lose out on writing time so may not be able to release it for a little bit.

One more final note. I have been thinking about potential romance angles as well, as one PM asked, but at the moment don't have it planned. If it's something that would be nice to have included as a another theme that you all would enjoy reading, I'd be happy to see if I can make it work. I'd love to hear your input on it and if it's something you readers would want included.