Apologies are in order, since I'm still unable to reliably update weekly, but just know that I do want to keep writing this out and sharing it with you all.

Thank you again everyone for the support. That being said, I do see some questionable reviews so I'll try to explain my reasoning for the choices I have made as best as I can. Jaune is going to be shield and sword, cause even if the increased amount of aura Jaune has, in the show he still goes down fairly quickly against Cardin, who presumably hits just as hard as any of our tanker fronliners. He will, however, get to have a more threatening position in combat due to his now learned experience using the weapons after his dad taught him. He will probably match up against some of the top students in terms of skill and fighting, but will definitely not be beating anyone straight out the gate. And no, Ruby did not have just 1 year of training. She has been training since she was old enough to fight in the first place, and is 15 years old in canon when she joins Beacon, no idea where you got that idea from.

Anyways, here's more.

Ruby gave a quick wave, hopping further into the auditorium towards a taller blonde woman. Jaune gave a wave back, smiling as he looked around the mass of bodies. It was easy to feel the excitement in the air, a smile forming onto his lips as he moved past some people who had formed groups quickly. He wondered for a second if he would be amongst a group of his own, had he gone to a primary school like signal. He made his way to a more open area, trying to get a better view of the stage as the same woman from the air bus stood, watching each student sternly. Quickly swallowing at her gaze, he quickly looked away and around his surroundings, feeling as though she wouldn't hesitate to give him detention before he was even accepted.

Jaune shook his thoughts out, his eyes landing over to where a couple seemed to be animatedly chatting to each other. Well at least half of the couple, the other half would normally look rude to just idly stand there and not respond, were it not for the soft smile he wore as she spoke. Moving on, he noticed a group of guys that seemed to be roughhousing one another as they laughed and joked. He instinctively continued looking beyond them. He had his fair share of bullies growing up, and a small part of him still hadn't gotten past the fear of such groups. He took a deep breath, remembering his father's words once again before continuing to look around some more until the speech began.

"- and we can talk about cute boys like tall, blond, and lost over there." A voice had pierced through his thoughts as he noticed some white haired girl that seemed to be speaking with ruby and a blonde. He blinked twice, tracing the thumb being pointed towards him a few times before he fully registered that she had been talking about him.

Now over the past few years, Jaune had definitely benefited from training with his dad. He had gotten stronger and his body built more muscles. He gained a bit more confidence in himself which let him open up to some new friends.

What he hadn't expected was for some random girl to call him cute when they hadn't even spoken to each other.

And, if he was honest, he didn't think she was too bad looking either.

Just before he could start taking note of the others within the room, a voice echoed out as the woman he had seen on the bus walked onto the stage. Her presence and demeanor showed just how much discipline she could readily enforce, and would likely enforce, on those that became students. Her white long sleeve top held firmly against her form and gave her the appearance of a strict librarian, with a black skirt to go with her boots. All in all, her presence made Jaune want to shrink all the more smaller with the glare she seemed to pierce each individual, as she then stood to introduce the man just behind her.

The man was older, a black cane with a round orb atop some mechanisms positioned in front of him. He wore a green sweater underneath a black jacket, a darker green vest with bronze buttons holding it all together as he peered past small black lens glasses perched onto his nose. Gray hair fell in a moppy mess not too dissimilar to Jaune's own as his gray eyes looked over the crowd in the auditorium.

"I'll...keep this brief." He started, his voice carrying through the silence. "You have traveled here today in search of knowledge-to hone your craft and acquire new skills. And when you have finished, you plan to dedicate your life to the protection of the people." He paused as he let the words sink in, once more his gaze turning to look amongst the crowd. "But I look amongst you, and all I see is wasted energy, in need of purpose – direction. You assume knowledge will free you of this, but your time at this school will prove that knowledge can only carry you so far. It is up to you to take the first step."

He let his words settle in the crowd as he stepped away, the woman from before, Goodwitch if he remembered correctly, stepped up once more, directing the students to where they would be going along with instructing them briefly on what to expect in the next few days.

Jaune approached the stage to the side, waiting until most of the students left before quickly and discreetly getting the attention of the older woman. Her head looked back over towards another man, one who was quite larger than what he expected out of a huntsman, giving a quick nod for him to go on before her, she turned to the blonde with a stern yet patient glare. "Yes? Did you need something more?"

"Y-yeah I was wondering if it could be possible to gain access to a training room or somewhere to practice a bit more before initiation tomorrow?" He asked, scratching the back of his head. The woman's lips seemed to perk up slightly before returning back to the neutral look she held.

"I apologize, Mr. Arc, but unfortunately that will not be possible. While we do appreciate our students striving for their best, should something occur between now and our test that would prevent you from participating, we would be unable to accommodate you and as a result, fail you before you even began. Despite his words earlier, it would not be the headmaster's wishes to prevent the potential of a student from growing." Her reply was detailed, which made Jaune think that maybe he wasn't the only one who had asked. He nodded his head to her, apologizing for disturbing her and running off to where he was instructed to.

|·|

Jaune exited the bathrooms rubbing a towel over his head as he made his way to where his sleepwear was located. He noticed a few people looking over at him, which brought a small amount of anxiety to him as he followed the ever gaze to where they were looking at on him.

Across his torso in a deep jagged scar that cut through him from his left shoulder past where his shirt would thankfully cut off to his navel. He passively traced a small bit of the scar as he thought about it once more. The tremendously overwhelming pressure of the ursa towering over him just as he had pushed his sister down. Nightmares had been a recurring thing for a while afterwards. Always a bit too late or even a bit too slow, often it was just not strong enough. Those were the ones that shook him the hardest. His training helped keeping his mind occupied and push through his initial fears, and it wasn't long before he managed to hold down his fear over the monsters that he was to fight.

When he was starting out, his dad seemed to have noticed it, focusing quickly on training up his body first before he felt he could run some patrols with him. Truthfully, even then, Jaune was still terrified of ending up in the same spot he was in before, but with his dad around, it had brought him a bit more comfort that led to him going on a patrol with his dad each day until he found, fought, and slain his first grimm alone. His dad had nodded and told him how he had messed up but assured him that there was plenty more to learn. His grip on his shirt tightened as he shook the thoughts out of his head, pulling the shirt over him and covering his scarring.

Jaune moved out of the locker room, heading back to the dance hall as he looked around the room at the many groups setting up for the night. It had reminded him of his sisters whenever they would vacation; how almost every trip he spent his first night with them chatting about the things they'd seen around or on the way there. A painful pull tugged against his chest, absentmindedly pulling his scroll out. He thumbed down to his mother's number, sending her a quick good night text before he found an open spot towards the side of the ballroom.

He sat down onto his mat when someone raised their voice in whatever conversation they were having. Looking over to the source of the voice, he noticed the white haired beauty that had called him cute before having a discussion with Ruby, another girl with long, and quite honestly wild blonde hair, and a reluctant 4th party that kept glancing between her book and the three above her arguing. He wondered, briefly, if things just transitioned the same as when he was in public schools. Rosa had been the only other kid in Ansel at the time who he had known was also training to be a huntsman, and that was due to the spars his dad had set up with her's. He looked around more, feeling a little out of place with all the groups that had set up between each other, no doubt planning on partnering up for initiation and teams.

Jaune's thoughts were broken as the arguing seemed to pick up more, the girl in the nightgown and the blonde haired one getting agitated by one another. The girl in black sitting down had brought the candle she was using to read in front of her face, casually blowing it out and ceasing her involvement in the argument. He looked over at poor Ruby, caught like a deer in headlights even in the dark between the two girls. He tried to muster a wave for his new friend to come by until the fighting died down. Just as he rose his hand out though, the click clacking of heels on tile promptly shut down his attempt to aid her and made Jaune dive down to his sleeping bag, already fearful of bothering Ms. Goodwitch twice already. Closing his eyes, Jaune only had one thought stay in his head.

Would other people notice his lack of experience?

|·|

A man walked ahead of the young boy, staying vigilant as they got further and further into an endless sea of vibrant trees. The boy held fear in him, jumping out of his skin at each noise that surrounded the two in the wilderness. The man noticed his discomfort and gave his warmth to the young boy. His warmth was strength, filling the boy's body with an incredible feeling of power and safety. He reached back out towards the warmth, pulling along a feeling of search and hunting, for vigilance and lessons. The boy, confused by the influx, took it as his deeper emotions, and used them to overcome his trial. The man smiled and the boy smiled, turning back, they returned to their shelter, a family of hugs and comfort adding to the boy's current filling.

|·|

Ruby had no intentions of sticking out at all, mainly due to her awkwardness with others. How did that go, one might ask? Well, she accidentally blew up some mean girl's stuff which caused said mean girl to be, well mean. She then got lost while talking to the guy who helped her up, embarrassing herself more so than being found on the ground in a crater. To top it all off, when she had tried to make friends with someone who had tried helping her with the mean girl, said mean girl came up to her and Yang and then proceeded to be even more mean; which made Yang get mad, which blew the conversation up further, which then caused Ms. Goodwitch came up and scolded all three of them for being loud when they should be trying to sleep, which once again made the mean girl mean to her because obviously it was her fault.

She took another deep breath as she stared down at her things. She had woken up after all that feeling a lot less chipper but still just as determined. After all, the test was here and chances were, being in a huntsman academy and all, that they'd get a chance to go kill grimm out in the emerald forest, and she would be able to show her stuff. She triple double checked her weapon two more times, nodding her approval before closing her locker shut, running out to wake Yang up before she slept through initiation. She peaked her head back out towards the ballroom as more people started to get up and go about their morning routines. She saw her sister still curled up asleep as the mess of blonde was still on the ground over by where they had slept, far from the stark white hair of the mean girl as she quickly made her way to her blonde sister.

Looking back though, things didn't seem too terrible. Sure all that happened in the first day, but she also got to meet and befriend someone almost just as fast as she made an enemy. Her thoughts were brought to Jaune as well, his composed nature bringing her a bit of familiar comfort, something like what Yang would do whenever she was down at signal. Even then, Jaune was not the only positive to the day's events. She was finally here, at Beacon, becoming a huntress two years earlier due to her ability. She could finally live the dream she had been holding since she was young. Her hands grasped the hood for a second as she smiled and finally came to sit by her older sister, who looked to be just now waking up.

"Yang! Come on, we gotta go get our stuff from our locker before they call us for initiation!" She whined to her older sibling. The groggy boxer yawned and stretched before letting her hand rest on top of her head.

"Okay okay, Ruby, I'm up I'm up." She managed to say. Yang stood up, Ruby smiling pleasantly at her sister looking up at the long yellow hair she always took care of. Stretching out her limbs and checking for any surprise knots in her hair from last night, they both made their way to the locker rooms to retrieve their gear and make sure they were ready. As Yang took the lead between the two girls, Ruby couldn't help but look forward to impressing more people with her skills, hopefully to the point that no one would doubt her like Weiss did last night.

Who knows, maybe it won't be so bad.

|·|

This is going to be bad, this is going to go so poorly.

Jaune knee bounced up and down as he glanced back up at the two girls casually chatting in front of some lockers… in front of his locker. The same locker that held the device of which had zero minutes of practical usage and training and all he had done was read a manual on which buttons did what. He wanted to ask about getting by to grab his things, but both girls seemed to exude an aura of some kind that just bubbled them into their own world. Jaune kept glancing over at a nearby clock, watching as time ticked by, unchanging. Defeated and unable to wait longer, Jaune walked up to the two that seemed to be in the midst of discussing teams.

"... and with your skills and my intellect, we could become the greatest huntresses to graduate from Beacon Academy!" The white haired girl spoke to another with red hair. While both were undeniably beautiful to Jaune, he couldn't help but pick up the smaller details about their physique that drew Jaune to examine them. The one in white, while shorter, was more lithe and agile. Her conversation partner was definitely more built and muscular, hinting at a level of training that was more than likely far past his own. His thoughts came back to some of the lessons his dad had given him, instructing of making sure to not focus on only one aspect of his fighting style.

"There's two ways you can develop from your basics, you either continue as an all-rounder, and keep options open, or you specialize yourself and focus on improving that specialization. If you limit yourself to just one style, it becomes easier to understand and predict." His father had once told him after Jaune had asked him about his fighting style. His thoughts soon turned back to the two girls in front of his locker as they had seemed to reach a pause in their conversation, which Jaune took full advantage of.

"Excuse me, just gotta get into my locker really quick." He interjected, gesturing to the locker the two girls were in front of. They both took a second to look at him, both having differing expressions that were annoyance and disgust to indifference and acknowledgement from the white- and red-haired girls respectively. He felt slightly belittled, shrugging it off as simply being 'homeschooled' essentially, and as such not having proven himself to others as far as his capabilities were concerned. The two stepped away slightly as he opened and rummaged through and collected his belongings as the two continued their chat.

"Just consider the proposition Pyrrha. We are both very skilled huntresses and could bring each other's potential incredibly far if we were partners." Something in her voice seemed familiar for Jaune, thinking to himself quietly for a second as he tried to recall why that was.

"It is not a displeasing offer, but we'll have to see where the cards fall." The other voice was unfamiliar, but sounded almost… forced? He couldn't tell, but it reminded him of when he had once asked an old classmate if she would like to hang out with him after school once. Needless to say, he spent that day alone in his room playing his games once again. He turned back to the girls, smiling as he closed his locker, his new gear safely attached to the back of his chest plate. While he would love nothing more than to sulk off until initiation, He still didn't have a good enough idea on what to expect for Initiation, as his father had chosen to let Jaune 'learn by adapting'. Most of the culture surrounding huntsman lifestyle was still new to him and, even though he tried to research about it, Jaune wasn't really expecting a team to be formed right off the bat for initiation. His eyes widened slightly as he remembered the groups that had been talking between each other during the speech as he realized that they all, more than likely, were planning on gathering into teams themselves.

This left Jaune with a very uncomfortable predicament as he still had yet to even really talk much to anyone besides Ruby, who would likely partner up with her sister she had quickly abandoned him for earlier. Swallowing his nerves, as well as the buildup of embarrassment at still somehow being behind the class, he turned back to the girls and opened his mouth.

"If you two are looking for a team still, I got a spot or two still open." He smiled at the two as they both stopped and turned, giving him a confused look before the white haired one quickly shifted to anger.

"Excuse me? Do you have any idea who I am? Who either of us are?" Her voice was filled with a certain bite that made Jaune cringe internally, but he was panicking, so he swallowed that too.

"A cool beauty and her friend looking to be the best? But you are right, I didn't get your names. Mine's Jaune Arc, short, sweet, and rolls off the tongue. I just so happen to be your lucky gem, Snow Angel." He tried again, remembering his dad's message of confidence when it came to women.

"Oh, are you now?" The white haired one rolled her eyes, crossing her arms and giving him a strong look of annoyance and frustration. Something about it caught Jaune's attention. She was underestimating him, something he knew he could take advantage of if it came down to it. "Well, Arc, if you are as big as your tales tell, then perhaps you would care to explain how you would, in the first place, even be considered equal to her." She opened her hand palm upwards, gesturing to the redhead the girl seemed to glance over at him as well, analyzing him. Their eyes only locked onto each other for half a second but in that time they both understood what each were doing, taking a read on the other and, to be fair, even Jaune felt lower chances against her.

He looked for a few more seconds, gesturing to her back where her weapons were sheathed and then back to his. "My shield is bigger; I have a better reach." If he thought she had wanted a difference in their combat potential, that was apparently the wrong thing to say if her unamused stare at him was anything to go by. The redhead seemed surprised for a second, now looking at him with a hint of curiosity, which was strange to him.

"You're… not kidding are you? You really are that much of a buffoon?" The white haired girl seemed even more annoyed by this fact, pinching the bridge of her nose slightly and mumbling under her breath. Jaune looked to the redhead who simply shrugged her shoulders at his questioning look. She snapped her head to his, glare piercing through as she walked up and poked at his chest. "Listen well, you bumbling blond idiot. I'm not sure what rock you managed to crawl out of to get here, but this will be the only time I explain this to you. I am Weiss Schnee, heiress to the Schnee Dust Company!" She waited half a beat for a reaction, which only seemed to irritate her more as Jaune simply waited for her to continue.

"Grr. and SHE," She pointed to the redhead to her side, who raised her hand with a small smile on her face. "Is Pyrrha Nikos!" Pausing once again, her agitation just continued to grow as Jaune felt a certain shame at being so clueless as to Hunter Society. Though looking at her again she did seem familiar. Pyrrha, to her credit, gave Jaune a cheery 'Hello!' as he thought carefully to put a face to the name as Weiss continued on. "Four time regional Mistral champion!?" Still not ringing any alarms and bells in Jaune's head. "She's on the box of every Pumpkin Pete's Cereal Box!" She added once again. Finally clicking the connection in his head, Jaune put the pieces together on where he had seen her before.

"You're on my friend's wall!" Immediately blushing, he slapped a hand over his mouth as Pyrrha, stunned for a second, laughed wholly at the interaction. Weiss, indignantly, saw this as a useless endeavor, stating out to Pyrrha that she hopes to see her out there, shoving past him with a glare as Pyrrha came down from the laughing fit she had found herself in.

Embarrassed, Jaune scratched the back of his head as he looked back to Pyrrha. "Sorry, I didn't have a lot of time to watch much T.V. I-I swear I didn't mean to upset either of you for being well… dumb." He spoke honestly at her. She finished out a few chuckles before she smiled, this time a lot more warmly at him than before. Oddly, seeing this one seemed to only highlight to himself just how indifferent the other smile she had given was.

"It is quite alright Jaune, my experience is just that, experiences. I am no more different from anyone else and am glad you can at least see me that way." She said as she saw Weiss exit the locker rooms. "I should get going though, good luck with initiation!" With that, she left, following Weiss out as Jaune all but slammed his hand into the free spot that was his face.

"Ugh, I'm such an idiot." He groaned into his gauntlet.

"That you are, Vomitboy, or maybe I should start calling you Loverboy." Another voice called out beside him making him look up. He saw the blonde girl from earlier, Ruby's sister if he remembered.

"No, please, neither is fine." He managed to get out, crestfallen at having failed to find people to form a team with.

"Aww don't be like that pal, I mean c'mon there was snow way you were going to get through to Ice Queen over there, trust me, you actually dodged the bullet there." She patted his back in a comforting manner, reminding him of Sable strangely. He mentally reminded himself to give them a call when he finished Initiation to let them know the results as Ruby came up with her scythe attached to her gun hook on her belt.

"Thanks, really means a lo-" He paused, slowly turning his head to see a shit eating grin plastered over the blondes face as he processed what was said. "Did you just-"

"Attention Initiates. Please report over to the cliffside overseeing the Emerald Forest for initiation… Now!" The voice of Glynda broadcasted over the speakers, interrupting Jaune's sentence as the blonde chose that time to head out.

"Yang Xaio-Long. Thanks for looking after my sis yesterday, see ya there slowpoke!" She called out, making her exit as Jaune just looked to Ruby, whose head was in her own hands.

"I want a new sister…" She said, looking up at Jaune who shrugged back at her.

"Don't look at me, I already have seven."

Phew! Okay so yeah that took WAY longer than I thought it would. Been having life happen and between this and the 5 other things I try and get done in between work, streaming, writing, and outside life, this hopefully makes up for me being gone for so long. I also made some more progress on another story that I will slowly start putting more work into to at least make it feel more presentable. Would be utilizing something that I am hoping to first introduce here and make some changes on based on what people say. But besides that, thank you again for reading and please tell me what you think. Are some people too ooc? Is there something I'm doing that I should look into doing better? Beyond that, hope you all have a good day!