"If it's what you think is best, I'll take it in stride, but I don't understand why you would want to send me away from Atlas Academy," Titus explained as the airship slowly descended and made its landing along the side of the cliff. Winter stood slowly and guided him off, stepping off with him and adjusting his suit as he balanced himself, bag slung over his left arm. He wore the same uniform that Ironwood had worn years ago, with the exception of the red tie and white glove. Winter had allowed Titus to add a black cape, as he felt the uniform was missing that "something extra". He wore his green hair slicked back, his red eyes following birds that drifted past the tower.

"I don't want to send you away, I just think that you'll get a better overall education and training here at Beacon," she informed him. He stood at attention, looking over the top of her head at the school. It looked to be much larger than Atlas, but less organized, as he watched students chasing after each other, no uniformity to be found in their clothing either.

"Do they even have uniforms at this school?" He asked. Winter gave a stiff laugh and handed his swords to him. He nodded at her in thanks and sheathed them on each hip.

"I'll have you know that Weiss, President of the Schnee Dust Company, my sister mind you, attended Beacon Academy. And to answer your question, you'll be receiving your uniform by the end of the week. They may seem a little disorganized at times, but rest assured that this is one of the best schools that Remnant has to offer. Team RWBY attended this institute in addition to Pyrrha Nikos, who was one of the greatest Huntresses of her time," Winter explained to him. "I can understand if you're nervous Titus, it's really a normal feeling when these sort of things come about. Leaving your family, leaving Atlas, meeting new people, all of those things can create anxiety. Just keep trying your hardest and you'll make all of us at Atlas proud."

"It isn't any of that," he explained. She tilted her head slightly.

"What is it then?" She asked him.

"They all seem so juvenile. The fact that I have to train with the likes of these… children." He explained. She looked at the ground towards his boots for a long moment, before looking back up into his eyes. He looked down from the tower and met her gaze. She heard it now, the same over-inflated ego and flawed vain self-perception that Weiss had told her that every Atlas graduate shared.

"Exactly why Weiss wanted you to attend," She offered under her breath, inaudible to him. "Titus, just because these students know how to enjoy themselves, doesn't mean that they aren't disciplined on the battlefield. I think you'll come to find out that Huntsmen and Huntresses come in all varieties. Please, try and enjoy yourself while you are here." He knew she was right. Not all Huntsmen and Huntresses were the same. Some were better than others. He was better than the others.

"If that's what you want General Branwen, I'll do it for you." They nodded at each other and she stepped next to him so that they were shoulder to shoulder, facing in opposite directions.

"Do it for yourself, Titus." She nodded slightly again. "As you were Prasinos." She proceeded back onto her airship and Titus turned, watching it as it flew away and disappeared into the distance. He took a deep breath in and made his way towards the tower, assuming that it would be the best place to start amidst the chaos. A few of the other students stopped momentarily as he strode past them. He had no intention of introducing himself to any of them and didn't really care to know their names. He stopped in the middle of the first courtyard, staring up at the tower once again. Beacon Tower, it had once fallen under the attack planned by Salem and Cinder many years ago, when he was still just a child. Beacon would not fall again, not as long as he had a say in the matter.

The fall wind blew through the courtyard, tossing the leaves off of nearby trees and scattering them across the pathway. It chilled him for a moment and brought back memories of living in Mantle. He shuddered for a moment at the thought. In a few years, he'd be a full-blown Huntsman, and his family would have the life that they always dreamed of. The leaves crunched under his boots as he continued towards the tower once again. This was it, his first steps towards the last years of his training. He'd take them in stride, and all of Beacon would know the name Titus Prasinos. He was the best, and there was no way it could be disputed.

He stopped at the second courtyard, a statue stood in the middle. The members of RWBY stood back to back, all facing a different direction, all of them in battle poses, ready to attack.

"Before the statue of Team RWBY stood there, we had a statue of warriors from the Great War," someone spoke to him as they stopped beside him staring at the statue. "At the time of the Great War, each kingdom truly believed that they were the best warriors, but they soon came to find out that such a mindset would only bring about pain and destruction. They needed to come together under the idea that no matter who was truly the strongest, they could achieve an even greater strength if they worked together." She smiled at him and extended her hand. "Headmistress Goodwitch. You must be Mr. Prasinos. I've heard only amazing things about you and can't wait to see what you're truly capable of." He reached out and shook her hand.

"Thank you, Headmistress. I'll do my best," he replied. Glynda continued on her way with Blake still on her heels, trying to lecture her on what needed to get done before she gave the opening speech. Titus watched the two of them walk away for a moment before what she had told him had finally sunk in. Only through cooperation with his team would he be able to be as great as he wanted them to be? Maybe there was a truth to that, but at the moment, from the looks of his peers fooling off around him, he was more afraid that he'd be dragging his team to victory. He shook his head. Why couldn't they let him stay at Atlas?

He walked around the statue and quickly jogged up the stairs, reaching the top and looking back down the path towards the cliff. The school was so secluded, so free of danger. Though the initial idea of coming here may have seemed like a worst-case scenario, he decided that he would make the best of it. The dorms were less than a few blocks from the campus and the tower, which would give him plenty of time to train and study with little distractions. And while he was sure that there was no shortage of women to choose from on the school grounds, bettering himself came first. There would be no time for romancing or being romanced. He returned his thoughts to the current objective after a long moment and entered the tower, disappointed at what he found.

What he had witnessed just moments ago outside of the building was nothing short of a disorganized mess, but what he stepped into inside was an entirely new and even more chaotic happening. There were tables set up, labeled for each year of students to go to and find out where they needed to be next, but the kids were packed into the building so tight it was almost suffocating to think about. Titus pulled at his collar as he let the door close behind him and slowly made his way to the 1st year table. His saving grace at that moment was the fact that he was a little over six feet tall, and was able to see over the majority of the crowd. He bumped through students who had already been helped and were simply striking up conversations. Was there not a better place for them to do so? Surely anything that they were talking about was purely trivial and could wait at least until they made it to the cafeteria or the commons area.

As Titus reached the table, a girl who was being helped spun around and ran directly into him. The light glinted off of her green eyes and she took off in a flurry, leaving him with a view of purple hair scattering about as he watched her take off without apologizing.

"Neela! I just ran into somebody! Wait up!" The girl called out after her friend. He watched her walk away, still in disbelief until the woman sitting behind the table called out to him.

"I can help you, sir," she told him. He turned back around to face her and offered her a smile which she returned. She was a brunette, her eyes pink and kind. She wore a white blouse. She looked very friendly.

"Are you a huntress?" He asked. She laughed and took his application, looking it over before opening a filing cabinet under the table and thumbing through for his file.

"As a matter of fact I am," she replied. "If you can believe it, sometimes looking cute and innocent can really give you the upper hand in battle." He was caught in her eyes until she cleared her throat. He looked down, gently taking the files from her hands and chuckling lightly.

"I'd believe it," he replied. "What's all of this?"

"The top page is a map. Learn it, love it, live it. The next page is your schedule for the first semester. The next couple of pages after that is a little bit on the history of Remnant and the schools, and the last page will detail your itinerary for the rest of today and tomorrow," she explained to him. He thumbed through the pages and smiled at her nodding.

"Thanks."

"No problem. Welcome to Beacon. We're glad to have you." He left back the way he came and stepped back outside, inhaling deeply once again. Maybe he'd get used to it here. Maybe this could become a home away from home.

"Hey! Tall, handsome, and Atlas! Have a moment?!" Called out a girl's voice. He tensed up. Or not. He turned around to face the girl that had called him and discovered his worst fears had come true. Some rebellious punk wanted his assistance for some reason. He smirked slightly. Maybe this wasn't a bad thing. Of course, they'd come to him for help, he was from Atlas after all, and that made him the best of the best. She wore black knee high boots with a pair of blue jeans that hung loosely on her hips. She wore a white one piece that had one thick strap that slung over her left shoulder. Her left forearm had words tattooed all the way from the elbow to the wrist, her right arm tattooed with a Sea Dragon Grimm that wrapped around her arm, its tail starting at the inside of her wrist and it's head stopping on the front of her shoulder. On her right shoulder blade, she had a Beowolf tattooed, howling into the air.

Her black hair was in a ponytail, but still long enough that it came down to the middle of her back. Her blue eyes drew in her usual prey, no doubt, but it was going to take her more than a few looks of longing to fool him.

"May I help you?" He asked. She stopped in front of him and took him in. She chuckled, walking her long finger up his chest before coming to a stop at his chin.

"I think you're just the kind of man I'm looking for," she told him. He pulled his jaw away and took a step back, but this didn't seem to deter her. She cocked her hip, resting her right hand on it.

"I'm not looking for anything like that," he reassured her. Her face twisted slightly as she held back a laugh before losing it. She bent over, laughing hard as she wiped tears from her eyes. He didn't understand what she found so funny.

"You don't get out much do you? Either that or you're just extremely presumptuous," she told him in between her cackling and catching her breath. "Wait, you didn't really think…" She looked at him for a moment as she stopped laughing and he gave her a bewildered stare. "Oh God, you did, didn't you? Oh no, I'm so sorry. I just wondered if you had a map. It would seem that when I stepped into the restroom, some douchebag came by and stole my papers. I'll probably have to go back in and get another, but I just wanted to glance at someone's map quick to get an idea of where to go for food." He was slightly embarrassed. Why would he think that she was suggesting such a thing?

"Of course," he told her apologetically. "Here." He stepped to her and held the map out, showing it to her. She glanced over at him, looking him over again before returning her eyes to the map.

"But maybe once we get settled in if you still want to go a few rounds in the sack…" He slid away from her as he felt her grab his ass, he blushed immediately. She doubled over in laughter again, completely losing it. "Oh God! I'm so sorry! You are just too easy to mess with!" His eyes became narrow as he filled with rage.

"What the hell is wrong with you?!" He demanded. She regained her composure and shrugged.

"Listen… Titus was it?" She asked.

"Yes." He froze for a moment.

"The shorter list might be what's not wrong with me," she told him. He gave her a curious look that rewarded her with a moment of pause as she realized what had happened.

"I never told you my name," he said slowly, trying to figure her out. She smiled and tossed his wallet back to him.

"You got me. I grabbed it quickly and looked it over while I was laughing at you. Hope you won't be needing this." She held his credit card up above her head as she sprinted past him towards the dorms.

"Hey!" He shouted. He took off after her without wasting a single moment, chasing her as they weaved down the crowded sidewalk that led back towards the campus. He assumed that she was heading to the cafeteria, but figured that she was at least smart enough to try and throw him off of her trail. He brushed past people, apologizing as he barreled through some. Where was the staff at this school? Was there no one taking notice of this chase and noting that it should be stopped? He slammed through the cafeteria doors a few moments behind her, finding that the mess hall was in the same shape as the tower, packed from wall to wall. He came to a complete stop and glanced at the mass.

"Have you seen a girl with a few tattoos? She came running in here just a few seconds ago!" He called out. The students in the immediate area looked at him as though he was crazy and shook their heads. He moved further in and asked again, only to be greeted with the same confusion and head shakes. He began to move further in before bumping into a student that was roughly the same size as him. He pushed Titus back and Titus threw his hands out. "It was an accident, calm down."

"Don't tell me what to do!" The kid thundered back. "Look at this kid! Thinks he's better than the rest of us, just because he's from Atlas!" Titus shook his head, hands still raised.

"I never said that!" Titus shouted back.

"You didn't have to Titus, we all know that's how you losers from the north think!" The kid yelled again. Titus cocked his head. The kid's eyes grew wide looking back at Titus. "Dammit, I used your name again, didn't I?" The body hit the floor and there stood Ilia with his card still clutched in her hand. She chuckled and shrugged. "No hard feelings?"

"I don't think so," he told her holding his hand out for the card. She slapped his hand away and spun her body, kicking him in the left side where his ribs met his back. He stumbled away as she scrambled off again. All of the students watched in confusion as Titus looked out at them. She's forcing me into looking weak and she's making me out to be an asshole! He tore through them, spotting her running across the grass field that separated the cafeteria from the paths around the dorms. He quickly removed his kopides and slammed them into the ground, a shockwave tearing through the earth and caging the girl in a rock barrier. He slowly made his way towards her, knowing that he had her where he needed her. All that was left to do was to take back his card and contact Headmistress Goodwitch. This girl had clearly ended up here by mistake.

As Titus made his last few steps towards the dome and sheathed his blades, the dome shattered apart and she stood there, chest huffing as she glanced around paranoid. Titus noted an SMG attached to the bottom of each forearm so that they were fastened similar to tonfas, which must have hung from the hips of her pants before, but he hadn't noticed. She flicked her wrists inward, causing the trigger handles to drop down beside the guns and extend a two-foot-long blade from the end of each.

"Dammit! What the hell was that!?" She screamed. She spotted him and looked down at her weapons. She reached over towards each elbow and undid the straps, letting them fall to the ground as she sat in the middle of them. She held his card out to him and buried her head in her free hand. He took it from her and looked around her, trying to get a better view of her face. She glanced up at him, picking up her weapons and reattaching them to her hips. She leapt up. "What the hell are you looking at?! You want me to say I'm sorry? Is that it? Sure, fine, I'm sorry. Happy?!"

"Are you alright?" He asked.

"No. Screw you, I don't owe you an explanation." He scoffed. She was impossible.

"You're right, you don't. But if you tell me, it might make the trip to the Headmistress's office a bit less awkward," He told her. He grabbed her arm.

"You're not taking me there!" She exclaimed. She wrenched away and began walking away. "That's not happening!"

"Would you prefer being in my rock trap again?" He asked. She gritted her teeth. "What's your name anyway?" She walked back to him and folded her arms before gesturing back towards the campus.

"Lead the way… Titus," she told him. He looked at her before shaking his head in disbelief. He had never met anyone has hard headed as her, and honestly couldn't think of anything more perfect than the idea of her leaving on an airship, only to be pushed out above the middle of the ocean. It wouldn't kill her, but she would certainly learn her lesson then.

"I still don't have a name for you. A few come to mind, but I don't think that you'd care for them much," he told her. She stifled a chuckle.

"Trust me, whatever you can come up with, I was probably called worse at some point," she told him. She looked across at him. He was deep in thought and she shook her head. "Ilia. Ilia Cherny. Really though, we don't have to do this. Can't we just pretend that this never happened? I can show you a good time." She told him. He shot her disgusted look and she chuckled once again. "You really don't go for that at all, do you? I mean, your still human, and I'm sure you've gone through puberty since it looks like you've got a nick on your chin from shaving. High school guys are nothing but raging hormones, so let me guess, guys are your thing…"

"No!" He yelled stopping. She also stopped, his eyes intense and piercing. If looks were able to kill someone, Ilia would have been murdered on the spot. He was so serious and so intense. Why couldn't he try and lighten up just a bit?

"Methinks you protest too much," She stated sheepishly. He groaned and picked up the pace, forcing her to jog after him. "No?"

"So, what was with the panic attack back there?" He asked trying to change the subject.

"Deflection, I like it," she replied. He stopped again and grabbed her by the shoulders.

"Why do you care so much? Why does it matter if I don't care for women in a sexual way? Does that rub you the wrong way, that there might be one guy out there that's naturally immune to your tricks? Do you like for people the think of you as a whore?" He asked. She shook free, trying to shove him away but he didn't budge.

"Why does it matter that I had a panic attack back there?!" She demanded. "I was trying to make small talk, you dick! Maybe I have problems that I don't need people knowing about! Did you think about that?!" He began walking towards the administrations building again.

"Maybe I do too," he muttered under his breath. She chased after him once more until he finally led her into Glynda's secondary office, throwing the door open without waiting for a reply. "Please, for the love of God, get her away from me!" Glynda glanced up from her paperwork, as did Blake who stood alongside her reviewing a few last minute changes to one of the forms that needed to be filled out by the students at the end of their first week.

"I don't know how things work in Atlas, but would you mind knocking before you let yourself into my office Titus?" Glynda asked giving him a stern look. He flushed, suddenly feeling very embarrassed at his behavior. The last ten minutes of his day had been the most undignified moments of his life and he was ashamed. Beacon had already pulled him down to its level and dragged him through the mud. He trembled slightly as he focused on the floor in front of her desk. The tile pattern distracted him for a moment, just long enough for him to find the words to offer as an excuse.

"I'm sorry Headmistress. It'll never happen again. This girl… Ilia… She pickpocketed my wallet and stole my card. I chased her down and took it back, but I was hoping that you'd see to it that she gets what she deserves," Titus explained. Glynda nodded.

"I see. Thank you, Titus. I can take it from here." Glynda reassured him. He nodded and left the room, leaving the two women with Ilia who took the wooden seat across from Glynda's desk.

"Please, Ms. Goodwitch. Hear me out. I know that my name isn't on…" Ilia began.

"Ilia Cherny was it?" Glynda asked. Ilia looked up at her, perplexed as the woman stood. "I'm glad that you stopped by, I meant to come and find you. I have to say that I was impressed with your entrance exam results and I was equally impressed with your application."

"What…" Ilia began but was cut off. She glanced over at Blake who was smiling and nodded towards Glynda.

"Of course! There's always room for improvement, but I have to say after looking at your transcripts that Shade Academy sent over, I think that you'll fit in just fine here. Any other questions?" Glynda asked. She walked around her desk and Ilia stood, still not entirely sure of what just happened.

"I don't know what's going on here, to be honest," Ilia told her. "I never filled out an-"

"It's my way of telling you welcome to Beacon," Glynda reassured her. Glynda opened the door and Ilia stepped back out into the hallway. "Oh, and please stop pickpocketing your classmates." Glynda offered her a smile before shoving a folder into her chest and slamming the door close. Ilia stood motionless for a long moment, staring hard at the door before opening the folder. She brushed over the files, noting the map, schedule, and other packets, the same as all the other students had received. She shrugged as she shoved the contents back in and made her way towards the grand hall, where they would take the first roll call and give the welcome speech. She chuckled. Or she could head to the mess hall and enjoy lunch. The latter sounded far more appealing.

It seems that Titus and Ilia are off to a rough start with each other. Hopefully, they can mend things before they end of together on Team NITE. Next week, fan service, alcohol, and plot advancement meet in Chapter 5 - Barfights and Nosebleeds!

A special thanks once again to my co-creator OrganoidZero.

A big thank you to Diyaru4500, Demize00Zero, TheCipherNine, SketchHungry, Ookaminoki, Lightning-in-my-Hand, and Dishwasher1910. All of their artwork can be found at Deviantart, you can search Silent-Celica and under my favorites tab, I have a collection for NITE.

Until next week, have a happy and safe new year, and stay classy!