Chapter 12 - Initiation Day
Ten. Zero, eight. Twelve.
After inputting my passcode, the locker door swings open to reveal Warbreaker along with my ammo bag safely nestled inside. I let out a little sigh of relief. They're still there. They're both still there. My head keeps telling me that there'd be no logical reason for anybody else on the campus to take it but a gun is a gun after all. Even if mine is nowhere near as impressive looking as everyone else's, someone is bound to find some value in stealing it.
People have taken less.
As I go to work collecting everything together, I let out a stifling yawn.
"Sleep well?" Yang asks wryly from her locker. I mumble a weak reply and shake my head. Something must've heard my silent plea on the airship because I've never felt deader in my life. Yesterday wasn't even particularly trying either., I've had far more busy days with Qrow before. There was the Induction speech from Professor Ozpin which was... strange. The three of us stored our weapons in the locker room for the night, we grabbed a few things from our bags, had ourselves a bite to eat and...
Oh, we were forced to sleep in the Ballroom instead of being designated dorm rooms like we thought. It was dreadful, I buried myself as far into my sleeping bag as I could but I still couldn't fall asleep.
"Maybe it's because you were overheated from wearing your hoodie?" Yang suggests.
Or maybe it was because of the very abundant amount of people sleeping in the same room as us. It's troubling enough trying to sleep normally but having several pairs of eyes in the same room as you, watching every move you make, doesn't make that experience any better.
Though, yeah. She may have a point about the hoodie. I wouldn't have been so boiled if I sat out in the sun for six hours straight. Well, at least we only had to sleep in there once.
Today's the Initiation: the last hurdle in our way from officially becoming Beacon students. It's something the three of us have heard about from before we were even accepted into Beacon. Well, when I say, 'Heard about' I mean none of actually know what the Initiation entails. We've been given a place and a time, Beacon Cliff at nine o'clock sharp, but that's about it. It's a complete mystery.
Speaking of which, "Hey, Yang?" I start drowsily. "Have you heard back from Tai yet?" She turns around, bumping her locker door shut with her hip.
"Yeah. Didn't get anything out of him, though. He just told me 'I'll see,' and then started laughing evilly," she huffs, leaning against her locker door. "The dork. Didn't even tell me anything about the teams." I hum in response. She looks over at Ruby. "What about you, Ruby? Got anything good?"
"Nope," she answers. "I did hear somebody mention something about there being five members on a team?" We both raise an eyebrow. "Yeah, I know. That doesn't sound right. Five's pretty big. I think that guy meant to say four? Maybe?" she shrugs. "I dunno." Neither of us object to that theory. Five people on a team seems rather excessive. "What about you, Eren? Did you hear anything?" I shake my head, surprising no one.
"Not really," I respond, fastening the ammo bag around my waist. "Everyone was talking about some girl in the boys toilets stalking this one guy, though." The pair of them balk at my answer.
"What?!" Ruby screeches.
"That's so weird! Who does that?!" Yang exclaims. I open my mouth to answer when my droopy eyes flicker to a couple of students passing through, one of them giggling as she skips merrily by. I sigh a little. Some people just have all the energy in the world.
"I wouldn't know," I admit. "So..."
"Basically, we still don't know crap about this initiation," Yang says out loud. That's essentially the gist of it, yeah. We don't even know why we've been designated at the top of a cliff, let alone what we're supposed to be doing and how we're supposed to form our teams. Part of me is hoping that we're allowed to choose but, I highly doubt that's the case.
Huntsman sure like keeping their traditions secret, don't they?
"Well, it doesn't matter if we don't know," Ruby perks up, setting Crescent Rose on her back. "Whatever this initiation thing is, we're gonna kick its butt!"
"Yeah we are!" Yang cheers with a fist pump.
"Yay..." I chime in weakly, propping my weary head on my locker door. Nothing seems to keep these two down for long, that's for sure.
"And after we've passed," Ruby continues. "We're going to form the most awesomest team to attend Beacon ever!" A pause. "Of all time!" It's a rather lofty goal, I'd say it's more for hyperbole than a true goal really but, I feel the sentiment nonetheless. Despite the major jump in years, Ruby doesn't seem to be faring too badly. If I were in her shoes, I'd be freaking out right about now. Having to leave all your friends behind to attend a school that's supposed to be far too advanced for you? It's a wonder she isn't a wreck right about now.
I have to wonder why though.
"Uh, what team is that?" Yang asks suddenly. Ruby and I share a look, mouths agape. If it were Ruby or myself asking such a question, nobody would be surprised but Yang? Not Yang. She's way smarter socially than the pair of us combined. She should know exactly what we're talking about.
"You know? It's our team!" Ruby answers for the pair of us. "You. Me. Eren, and... some other person," she says the last part with a dismissing tone. "Wasn't that obvious?"
"Well, yeah. It is but, you know guys. Maybe..." Yang replies, playing with her hair. "Maybe it's an idea for us to be on separate teams?"
"What?! No!" Ruby shrieks.
"W-why would we do that?" I splutter. After so many years of being a hopeless straggler in class groups, I finally have people I know well enough to form a proper team with. Why in the world would she want us to separate? Ruby turns to me.
"She's embarrassed by us!" She exclaims, pointing a finger at her older sister. Yang reels back slightly, holding up her hands.
"No! No, that's not it at all. I just think that, well, it'd be a good idea if we had our own social circles," she answers. We stare blankly at her response. "Exclusively." Our stares intensify. "Away from each other," she clarifies needlessly. It doesn't matter how many ways she words it: the idea's never going to sit well with either of us. Certainly not me, anyway.
"She's totally embarrassed by us," Ruby whispers in, shaking her head like a disapproving old gossip.
"Tsk. Tsk. Shameful," I join in. Well, if she's doing it, I don't think it'll harm anyone if I played along a little. If they do it first, it must be just a joke.
"Look," Yang grumbles, rubbing her eyes. "All I'm saying is: it'd be way healthier if you two made some friends of your own. Learning how to deal with new people is a very valuable skill to have."
"What th- I know how to make friends!" Ruby yells back indignantly. She points a thumb towards me as she continues. "I made friends with Eren!" The older sister folds her arms.
"We both know he doesn't count, Ruby," she replies, prompting me to raise an eyebrow.
"I don't?" I ask quizzically. Shouldn't I count? You did approach me first after all. Looking back, Ruby was far more interested in becoming friends than I was truly worth. Honestly: with her upbeat attitude, cheerful demeanor and just generally being pleasant to be around, I'd never guess that she's as anti-social as a rugged hermit. Yang turns, giving me her attention.
"You're, uh... different," she says with slight difficulty. What does she mean by...
Oh. Yeah. When I stop and think about it, it does make sense. Ruby and I didn't exactly meet in the most typical of circumstances. It's not like Ruby normally makes friends by saving them when they first meet. Though, I wouldn't put it past her.
"Oh, come on!" Ruby groans loudly. "That's so-"
"Ridiculous!" A tall lanky blonde guy shouts as he passes us by. His head darting from locker to locker, occasionally back to the note in his hand as he continues walking. I think I hear him murmur about locker six-three-six or something. My eyes narrow slightly. Isn't that the same guy from yesterday? I do a quick scrounge around in my head for that name we called him. What was it? Hurlguy? No. Vomitboy. That's it.
Jarringly, Vomitboy's pace come to a halt as his eyes land on a familiar cold figure sorting through her locker. The girl in white from yesterday.
The girl he threw up yesterday, thanks to my clumsiness. He clearly hasn't forgotten that little incident, skittering behind the wall dividing the sections of lockers. It doesn't look like he's running, not exactly. As he disappears, he peeks out from behind his hiding spot like a wannabe secret-agent. He's not running, he's just hiding.
Meanwhile, the girl in white is currently talking eagerly to one of our other classmates. Looking over, I see a- Oh wow, she's tall. She's taller than Yang and she already dwarfs me. What do they feed these girls? And where do I find them?
What was I talking about? Oh, right. As I was saying, I see a very tall and muscular redheaded girl fully adorned in what looks to be some sort of centurion armor? No, that's not quite right. It looks like it takes some inspiration from B.C. Greek times which is... questionable but, it's no more confusing than everything else I've encountered on this world so far.
Suddenly, the 'Greek Girl,' moves her head slightly. Just as she's about to swivel around, I avert my gaze and pretend to be searching for the remainder of my stuff, daring not to give her a second glance Was I staring? Crap. I was musing for far too long again. Why do I have to be such an airhead? Moron! I must look like a total creep now.
"You!" A shrill voice shrieks venomously. I jump with a girly "Eep!". As a searing hot pain shoots through my skull and the sharp bounding sound of the locker rings through my ears, I quickly regret it with a yelp. Shooting out the door, I tenderly massage my head. Damn, that stings!
"Eren! Are you okay?!" Ruby gasps.
"That sounded like it had to hurt," Yang concurs. Both shoot me worried looks.
"I-I-I'm alright! L-locker's, ow, smaller than I thought," I reply with a wave. Well, I certainly can't feel any dumber right now. I hurt myself even before the Initiation's begun. I look back to the girl who shrieked, somehow proving myself wrong as her attention is currently directed towards the blonde Vomitboy.
"H-hey!" He starts nervously, suddenly having the idea to lean casually against the locker. "You." He shoots her a smirk as suave as a dead fish. I can hear Yang cringe a little behind me.
"What do you want? I thought I made it very clear yesterday that I didn't want to see your face ever again?" The girl replies with a fierce scowl. Vomitboy's eyes briefly flutters wide before relaxing again. He continues.
"Well, I just so happened to be passing by and-"
"Go. Away," She interrupts bluntly, spinning around to grab some stuff from her locker.
"W-wait!" He stutters, his 'charming,' demeanor faltering slightly. He recovers with a steady cough. "Ahem. I mean, we don't know each other's names yet. I'll go first. The name's Jaune Arc, sweet cheeks," he winks at her. A cold shiver runs up my back.
"Ouch. Rookie mistake," Yang comments from behind, sharing my sentiment with a hiss. Despite the horrible attempt at a pick-up line, Greek Girl steps beside Weiss and waves at 'Jaune.'
"It's nice to meet you, Jaune. I'm Pyrrha," 'Pyrrha' greets cheerfully.
"Hey, how ya doing?" He replies, barely giving her a glance of acknowledgement before focusing on the other girl again. "So, what's your name, Snow Angel?"
"Snow Angel? Seriously?" Yang sniggers, holding in her childish guffaws as well as a punctured balloon holds air. "He has no idea what he's doing!"
"Yang, shush!" Ruby reprimands her sister with a nudge. It's only dawns on me now how awkwardly the three of us must look right now, watching the two of them struggle with their dispute like an afternoon of one of my Mother's terrible soap opera programs. I feel the urge to bring up how nosy we're being right now but... I don't want to stop watching.
Am I weird? I think I'm weird.
"My name is none of your business!" The other girl bites out. Hello, 'None of your Business.' I'm Eren!
...I need to stop hanging out with Tai.
She raises a hand, ready to cuss him out again when it stops in mid-air. Slowly, her molten red face starts to cool, her posture softens. With a gentle cough clearing her throat, she speaks delicately.
"Okay, Jaune. You're clearly not getting the message here so, I'll speak plainly and clearly so you'll understand me." She leans in closer, wearing a smile so sickly sweet that it's as transparent as glass. "If you don't get out of my sight in the next five seconds, I'll make good on my promise yesterday..." Her smile drops and her voice turns deathly cold. "And freeze you to the ceiling."
A chilly wind passes through my heart. Suddenly, I feel like thanking Yang for stopping me yesterday. I don't know if she truly possesses the ability to freeze people. All I know is, I really wouldn't want to be Jaune right now.
"Heh... Uh, are you being serious?" Jaune asks nervously.
"Five," she starts counting, diving into her locker and pulling out some sort of modified rapier as white as her dress. I think that's clear enough an answer.
"Oh god, you're actually going to do it," he says, eyes widening as the realization finally dawns on him. This girl isn't screwing around here.
"Four," she glides a finger down her rapier's blade. Little droplets of sweat start popping up on Jaune's forehead.
"L-look! I-I didn't mean for yesterday to happen! I j-just wanted to say-"
"Three," she takes her finger off the blade and rubs it against her thumb.
"Iwanttomakeituptoyoupleasedon'tturnmeintoahumanpopsicle!" He blurts out, shielding his face with his arms.
"You want to make it up to me?" She glares intensely. "You humiliated me! You ruined my favorite dress! I had to have it rinsed by my finest butlers no less than thirty times before the stains finally came out! And you want me to just forgive you like it's nothing!?"
"Uh... yes?" He says, grinning unironically.
"...Okay then," she nods. Wait, what? The energy in the rapier slowly recedes as she holsters it. Her glare hasn't disappeared, not entirely, but her tone isn't quite as aggressive as it was before. She's... not really going to forgive him just like that, is she? "There's one little problem that I need dealt with and I think you're perfect for the job."
"Uh, sure! Your wish is my command, my lady," he says, bowing overtly like he's parodying a proper knight. The girl makes a gagging noise from her throat.
"Augh... Just turn around," she commands, mimicking a twirling motion with her finger. Without complaint, the knight shifts around exactly as ordered. "Now, all you need to do, is walk a hundred paces in that direction."
"Away from you?" He asks carefully.
"Exactly," she grumbles, folding her arms. Furling his eyebrows, Jaune blinks at the answer.
"What does that-"
"Do you want to end up on the ceiling?" She growls, holding up her rapier for emphasis.
"No, ma'am!" He screeches, straightening his back at her stern tone.
"Good. Then walk!" She bellows. Jumping slightly, Jaune begins power-walking like a man set alight.
"Walking! I'm walking!" He cries, not once turning his gaze as he walks past us. Under his breath, I can hear him count the paces. "One, two, three, five. No, that's four. Six, seven-" His voice slowly quietens as he walks away. She certainly didn't have to tell him twice, nor did he want to give her any reason to.
I do feel a tinge of sympathy for the guy. It really wasn't his fault what happened on the ship, if anything, the blame resides with me for being a clumsy sod. He's just unlucky that he just so happened to throw up on the angriest girl this side of Remnant.
Still, why did he think that acting like a James Bond wannabe was going to help in convincing her to forgive him? I don't know the first thing about flirting but, even I can tell that was atrocious.
That Jaune's a strange guy.
"Wasn't that a little harsh, Weiss?" Pyrrha speaks up, rubbing her arm awkwardly. As if putting on an entirely new face, Weiss' glaring form completely disappears, replaced with a pleasant mild-mannered smile.
"Oh, it's nothing Pyrrha! Those kinds of people are just a pain to deal with. Luckily, I know how to give them a firm hand. Trust me, he deserved it," she replies, tilting her head up to the ceiling and smiling proudly. Rather too proud of herself for elaborately telling someone to piss off.
Did she intend to just scare him off or, was she seriously going to freeze him like she promised? I seriously can't tell. Scratch that, I don't want to know.
This girl terrifies me.
"Right..." Pyrrha gives the faraway Jaune a second glance, his counting barely audible as he continues pacing away from us. Hope he comes back, the Initiation's supposed to start in a little bit. Wouldn't want to miss that.
"That was fun," Yang says drily. It was certainly... interesting. I suppose.
"That girl's crabby," says Ruby, shaking her head. Her elder sister nods.
"Yeah. I wouldn't want her stuck on my team," she states, speaking on behalf of the three of us. That Weiss is one girl I would not like to cross anytime soon.
Suddenly, a voice booms through the locker-room speakers.
"Would all first-year students please report to Beacon Cliff for initiation? Again, all first-year students report to-" I recognize the voice. Miss Goodwitch, the woman from the airship yesterday. She was also at the Induction speech too. Poor woman must be buried in work, thanks to being the Headmasters second-in-command after all.
"Well, time for us to rock and roll!" Yang grins wildly, knocking her fists together in a fiery gesture.
"Yeah! Let's do this thing!" Ruby cheers. I give them both an affirming hum, pulling my gloves further down my wrist in a tightening motion.
Beacon Cliff, huh? I wonder what's so special about it that it warrants holding the Initiation there?
The three of us arrive at the designated Beacon Cliff, luckily not situated over the jagged rock-filled coastline but rather, overlooking the sprawling green-infested forest spanning out far into the horizon. I can certainly say it lives up to the 'Cliff' part of its name, it's so steep that I can't even see the bottom. If a normal person fell from this height, they'd be sure to turn into a fine red paste upon impact.
I shudder slightly. I think I'm developing acrophobia.
Then, I spot these strange looking platforms, all emblazoned with the school emblem on them, all lined up around the cliff's edge.
"Uh, guys?" I ask, uneasy. "What are those things?"
"Uncle Qrow never taught you about these?" Yang raises an eyebrow. I shake my head, humming my answer. Am I supposed to know? Qrow had a fair share of weird training methods that he employed but, none of them included metallic platforms at the side of a cliff.
"They're launching pads. We had a few of them back at Signal," Ruby answers. My eyes bulge. Launching pads?! But... but they're pointing at the cliff! Why would...
There's no way. That's crazy. No, I take that back. Crazy is Ruby ingesting so many sweets at once that it'd give a normal person diabetes twice. Crazy is Yang punching that machine so hard that it burst into a thousand pieces like a metallic piñata. Crazy is Tai using the bathtub once to fill up a river of sauce for chili night!
That isn't crazy; that's suicidal! I doubt even if I had twice the Aura capacity that I'd survive the fall without breaking every single bone in my body.
"Hey, don't worry about it! Landing strategies are easy," Yang pats, more like smacks, me on the shoulder. "You're good with Warbreaker. All you've got to do is use it to land yourself a spot on the ground."
I know she's trying to be helpful and all, but that little bit of advice deserves a weak glare. Warbreaker is a gun. It was intended to be a gun: it was built as a gun, it shoots bullets like a gun, it's a gun. Not a parachute. I let out a small sigh.
"It's okay. I'll... figure it out." 'Figure it out' isn't one of my better ideas but, it's not like I can back out now when I've come so far.
We each take our places on the launch pads. The metal clunking, cranking and clanking they make causes me to shiver slightly. The paranoid part of my brain tells me that this thing could go off at any moment, hurling me into the air prematurely. I hold my arm tightly, trying to shake the idea out of my head. It'll be fine. I'll be fine. It'll all be fine.
"Wait up!" A familiar voice cries out. We, myself and the rest of my classmates, turn our heads to see a blonde boy with white armour running ragged towards us. "Don't start without me!" With his chest heaving and his face an unattractive red, Jaune patters to a stop on the very last pad next to me just in the nick of time. Finally granted time to rest, Jaune bends over and sucks in some much-needed fresh air. "Oh geez... Oh man..." He grumbles. "Stupid... Heavy... Armour..."
It's at times like these that I'm glad I prefer to travel light.
"Mister Arc, is it? Very glad you decided to join us," Professor Ozpin says drily, Miss Goodwitch flanking him. "Now that we're all here, we can now begin your Initiation." He takes a sip of his coffee, his posture not slacking once since we arrived. As he goes to speak, I brace my chest. "Now then, for years, you have trained to become warriors, and today, your abilities will be evaluated in the Emerald Forest." We look over his shoulder, towards the 'Emerald Forest.'
Grimm roam freely in this land. If the Entrance Exam was created to rigorously test our abilities, then this Initiation must be the application of these skills on the battlefield. I can see the logic; being able to hit a target extremely hard is all fine and good but, it won't mean anything if a Grimm gets the better of you.
I'm ready this time.
Miss Goodwitch continues for the Professor, branching us into the much talked about subject this morning: teams. When will we be forming them?
Today.
Murmurs start popping up within the crowd. I give Ruby a glance and she greets me with a very confident smile. I return the smile, albeit not nearly as confidently, and give her an acknowledging nod.
Professor Ozpin takes over once again, pressing the importance the formation is and how vital it is that we find someone we can work with.
Ruby grins brightly, flashing me a peace sign. My own smile doesn't brighten but I do work up the courage to flex my index finger and pinky in a 'Rock on' gesture. Haven't broken that one out in a while. We both know what we're doing. We're on the same wavelength.
"The first person you make eye contact with after landing will be your partner for the next four years."
Something inside of us breaks, we can see it in the other's eyes. Ruby looks like she just seen a nuclear explosion first hand, staring into a fiery blaze. I feel like a spiked five-foot hammer has been thrust into my gullet, preventing me from breathing. The partners are random. There's no choice in the matter.
Our plan has fallen apart.
"Oh, crud!" She cries, falling to her knees in disbelief. A squeal barely makes its way out of my mouth before I slap a hand over to keep it shut.
The Professor and teacher continue to explain the rules. My mind's still whirling from the bomb that was just dropped on us but I still understand the gist of it. Meet partner: kill everything in your way, find relic, come back, try not to die. Easy enough to understand. He asks us if there are any questions.
Just one: how did everything suddenly go so wrong?
The launching begins. One by one, all the students furthest to the left of the cliff are tossed right into the air with just a few seconds thrown in-between launches. We're the furthest to the right. We still have time. Ruby bounds up to her feet.
"Okay! Okay! This is fine. We can handle this. Uh..." She starts snapping her fingers, like the answer will magically appear if she does it hard enough. "Oh! Eren, remember those flares we put in Violet Vigil? We could use those to find each other in the forest!" Sounds like a solid idea. Except...
"Uh, Ruby? We didn't put in those flares, remember? There wasn't enough room because of the bayonet mechanism," I reply, sheepishly scratching my neck. Really starting to regret that decision right about now. Her smile falters slightly but she remains undeterred. The line of launching students draws closer. As my blood starts pumping, I recall something from three months back.
"Wait, what about that radar you were planning on installing into Crescent Rose? So, you'd always be able to find her?" I jostle slightly, time slowly withering away. "What happened to that?"
"Oh, yeah! That thing," she smiles fondly. "Yeah... It blew up." Her expression deadpans faster than a sardonic dentist.
"Ah. Crap," I say simply. So it did. None of us have any idea how she managed to pull it off, either. Of all the rotten luck.
"Don't want to rush either of you two but," Yang announces from her side. Ember Celica pops from its bracelet form as Yang puts on her aviators and rolls her neck. "It's show time!" She seems far too happy about what's going on here! The line's almost here. We're running out of time!
"Oh boy, oh geez, oh man," Ruby scrambles around desperately, chapping her knuckles against her skull. "Think! Think! Think! Think! Uh..." She turns towards me, her speech replaced with severe gnawing at her lips, a plan just barely within arm's reach. "You... You follow me!" She declares snappily. "You go after me in the line. Just watch where I go and... we'll try meeting up that way!"
"O... okay!" I nod briskly. It's not exactly the brightest plan we've ever come up with but, it's better than nothing. I twist my body towards the forest, trying my best to mimic my fighting form without my rifle. Letting out a huge cheer, Yang is thrown out into the distance. I count the time gap in my head. One. Two. Three.
"Find me!" Ruby shouts as the pad hurls her away. It's only myself and Jaune now. He's chattering to the Professor about something or other but, I'm not in the position to care too much. Under my breath, I start counting down.
"Three..." My knees are shaking terribly. "Two..." My heart is pumping madly. "O... One!" Oh god. I shut my eyes, taking a deep breath for what's to come next.
The mechanism clicks and I'm flung forward.
A/N: I think the running theme with this story is going to be 'That scene took longer than expected.' I was originally planning to have Eren meet his partner this chapter but, with how long it turned out to be, I decided to push it to the next chapter. I am such scum~
Not much to say about this one to be honest. The main focus has been on trying to get the Weiss, Jaune and to a lesser extent Pyrrha characters right as well as displaying the altered dynamic from that whole debacle. Unfortunately, as much as I want to, I can't immediately just jump into the new stuff quite yet. Eren is just a stupid teenager who doesn't have much in the ways of influence so, I have to alter things slowly and start some kind of snowball effect.
Hopefully with the way these scenes are being written, they feel fresh and easy to read. Frankly though, I feel far more comfortable when I'm writing my own original scenes. Once the Initiation portion's over and the new teams have been established, I can go back to doing my own thing.
Also, for those curious as to why Eren knows nothing about RWBY, I have left a few hints in the first chapter as well as this one. I don't have any intentions of having Eren find out about RWBY as it would pointlessly break immersion but, if you think you figured it out, shoot me a PM and see if you got it right.
Thank you very much for reading! What do you think of the story so far? Good? Bad? Leave a review and tell me how you feel. Constructive criticism is encouraged.