Ilia walked in the back of the mass of students as they headed out towards the cliffside, led by Coco Adel as they trekked through the woods that grew denser as they continued on. There were about twenty of them altogether, a pretty sizable class, which would end up forming five teams. Ilia had tossed her packet away with the exception of the map of the school grounds and her schedule and wondered if there was anything that she should have read over before she haphazardly tossed it into the waste bin in the lunchroom. She was sure that they would tell them all again what they would be doing when they reached the cliff, but she felt ill-prepared and intimidated by the fact that all of her classmates had looks of determination. It wasn't that she didn't feel the same, but she normally felt better when she was on her own. Instead, she was preceded by nineteen other teenagers, all with their own stories, abilities, and determination to succeed.

Ilia didn't need to be the best, she just needed to be good enough to escape her demons. She took a deep breath, trying to let the fact sink in. I'm going to share a room with three other people. They aren't going to leave just because I want them to. This is how it has to be. Knowing this didn't settle her nerves, however, and she continued trudging along, doubting ever having decided that this was the best idea she had come up with. She could stop now. She could just turn around, return to running, and keep running until she had lived her complete life in constant fear of being caught. Or she could stay. She could train, learn how to properly fight, and she could overcome her past. Both options pulled at her as she continued with the group.

What if the group she was stuck with was a bunch of party animals and she wouldn't be able to get any studying done? What if she ended up on a team of really hot guys? The best case scenario that she could think of was if they were a bunch of bookworms. They'd all leave her alone, and she could probably get them to help her with math or history from time to time if she was lucky. She bumped into a few of the students in front of her who glanced back at her and she rubbed the back of her head.

"Sorry. Started daydreaming," she told them. They brushed her off and carried on with their conversation.

"See that cute girl up there in the blue?" One of the guys said in front of her gesturing ahead to a shorter student that had her black hair done up in a side braid that waterfalled down over her right shoulder. The girl in the blue looked over at another student that she had accidentally nudged and bowed her head in apology, allowing Ilia to make out her near-white eyes. It was easy to tell that the girl was from Mistral from the clothes that she wore.

A brown, one-shouldered tank top fit nicely on her slender frame, her right shoulder was partially concealed by a dull blue sleeve that came down to about her elbow, offset by a light blue, sheer sash that was wrapped over the same shoulder, coming down across her body at a diagonal where it wrapped back around her body just below her bosom and was pinned in place on her back. Her left arm was covered in copper colored bracelets, and a leather cord wrapped around her forearm. A similar sash with the same coloring appeared to be wrapped around her pelvis, protruding from the waistline of her pants to hug both hips and exiting on the side to form a hip cape. She wore dull blue matching harem pants that were more or less capris length and brown flats to complete her look, a total outsider. If she was trying to avoid being noticed by everyone else, she was failing in the worst of ways.

"Yeah, I see her," the other student replied. The first leaned in closed and Ilia looked at them for a moment, wondering what they were discussing and doing her best to eavesdrop.

"Her name's Bái Lung. They say that she's some kind of freak," the first told his friend. A wicked smile spread across the other's face and he rubbed his hands together.

"Really?" He asked, lust seething out with the words. The first grabbed him tight by the shoulder and he winced.

"Not like that. Like she has a semblance like the rest of us, but it's not natural," the first explained further.

"She's got a nice shape though. I'd like to know what she looks like under those clothes," the other replied. Ilia bumped into them on purpose this time, disgusted with their conversation and they turned back towards her again.

"Do you mind?" The first asked. She gave him a twisted smile and smashed his head against her knee, causing him to yelp as she grabbed him by the nape of his neck.

"If you two keep talking about her like that, we're gonna go a couple rounds, and you're gonna get way worse than a bloody nose, okay?" She asked. They both nodded at her and she threw him into his friend, putting distance between herself and them.

"Problem?" Coco asked calling towards the back. Ilia raised her hand up and shook her head.

"No problem here!" She replied. Coco smirked and continued on her way. Ilia fell back a touch further and thought over what she had heard. What did he mean by that? Who was to say that she didn't have a normal semblance, they were all different in some way. Ilia looked around at the forest around her and soaked it all in. Vacuo wasn't like that. It was desert towns and harsh unforgiving terrain that didn't give way to such lush and green scenery. She bent down, running her fingers through the grass. It wasn't as though she had never seen grass before, but somehow, for the first time, she realized just how much she appreciated where she was at. It was miles ahead of what she was used to looking at day after day and she welcomed it in stride.

"Hello students, for those of you who don't already know, my name is Coco Adel, and I will be one of the judges during the initiation. Yes, you will be graded on your performance today, so give it all you've got. First, let me lay down a few of the obvious ground rules that will get you expelled almost immediately. If you get into combat with another student, you will be sent home without a second chance. If you place one of your classmates in danger on purpose, you will also be sent packing. Lastly, if the initiation is called off for any reason and you choose to continue fighting instead of falling back as is requested of you in such a situation, you fight at your own risk and your survival is not guaranteed," She explained. She stopped and turned back to look at all of them. "No one has died during one of these yet, but let's try to keep this year from being the first. Any questions before we arrive at the ridge?"

"Is it true that the first person you look at is your teammate for the next four years," someone called out.

"Yes!" Coco replied. "You?" Titus cleared his throat.

"Is there any sort of appeals system that we can go through if we are dissatisfied with our teammate," Titus asked. Coco smirked and shook her head.

"Let me make this very clear! There are no appeals and no changing of teammates once your team is selected! You just have to grow a pair and learn to work with whoever you end up with! Your every move will be observed once you've landed!" Coco replied. She winked at Titus over her glasses and he gritted his teeth, mumbling under his breath to himself. "We've got time for a couple more! There is no such thing as a stupid question, just stupid people asking questions!"

"Are you single?" One of the two from before asked. The group broke out into a chuckle and Coco smiled.

"Not for you I'm not!" A few catcalls and wolf whistles sounded out above the crowd. "One more?!"

"Tell us a little about yourself!" Eliana called out, her eyes filled with stars, knowing full well who Coco was without having to be told. Eliana had an unhealthy obsession of sorts with everyone involved with the Fall of Beacon. Neela shook her head and took a step to the side, placing a gap between the two of them. "What?"

"That's not a question, but I'm more than happy to tell you kids a few things. I was on Team CFVY, a 2nd-year team that was here at the school the night the tower fell. I am married to my best friend, Velvet, and she has adorable bunny ears. We have one kid together at this point, but to be honest, I'd like to have another. That's it, for now, boys and girls, make sure not to shove and please proceed to the clearing ahead where you will find both Headmistress Goodwitch and Ms. Xiao Long waiting for you." Eliana looked at Neela with a smile, overwhelmed with excitement. "Good luck and I will see some of you in my class tomorrow."

"Your mom is here?" Eliana asked ecstatically. Neela nodded.

"You seem surprised, but she is the assistant to Headmistress Goodwitch. It would only make sense that she'd be anywhere that Glynda is," Neela replied. Eliana thought about it for a moment.

"Yeah, I guess you're right." Eliana agreed. The woods finally opened up, and the students found themselves on the edge of a cliff, Glynda and Blake standing nearby with scrolls in hand. Blake looked hers over, acknowledging Neela but trying to avoid distracting her daughter. She took a deep breath. Neela was about to begin her life without her and Yang. This initiation was the first step, and once she was in that forest, she would shine. Blake tried to maintain her nerves. You can do it Neela. This is it. This is the day I knew would cause my heart to swell. You've become such an amazing young woman. You'll do well, I know it.

"Please, take a place on one of the pads," Glynda told them, directing to stone panels that rested on the ground with the Beacon Academy Emblem chiseled into each. "As I'm sure you've already been instructed or have heard, the first person that you see after you have landed will be your partner. You will then need to proceed to the other end, where you will find an abandoned temple filled with relics. You and your partner must choose one of the relics and then decide on an exit strategy, leaving the forest below up any of the cliff sides is allowed and considered the end of your initiation. There are Grimm in the forest below so make sure that you are aware of your surroundings." Eliana looked at Neela who smiled at her and Eliana gave her a thumbs up.

"Find me?" Eliana asked.

"I'll do my best," Neela told her.

"Are you all ready?" Glynda asked. They all nodded and crouched slightly. "Then let's begin." Glynda activated something on her scroll and the furthest launch pad from her activated, throwing the first student into the forest. "I hope that you all planned a landing strategy ahead of time." Neela nodded for her own sake. She was ready. She looked at Eliana who looked concerned and Neela softened for a moment.

"What's wrong," asked Neela. The student three positions down from her launched.

"I don't really have a landing strategy," Eliana told her. Neela looked at her wide-eyed as she could hear the guy beside her being thrown into the air. She looked ahead.

"Good luck." Neela launched off with Eliana being the last, she'd be taking off in a little over five seconds. Ruby and Yang stepped up to the cliff as Eliana was sent airborne and peered out as they landed.

"Nervous?" Ruby asked Blake. Blake bit her lip and shook her head and cycled through her scroll to Neela's feed so that they could watch.

"Why would I need to be nervous?" Blake asked. Yang shook her head.

"She's nervous. Just give it a couple of minutes, you'll see," Yang told Ruby. Jaune, Pyrrha, and Velvet joined them. Glynda looked at the group.

"Are we ready?" She asked. Coco nodded as she handed them each a specialized scroll that was connected to the forest's feed.

"What are the relics this year?" Ruby asked. Blake smirked as she zoomed in on the feed.

"The chess pieces," she replied. Ruby's eyes lit up.

"The same ones that we had to bring back?!" Ruby asked. Blake nodded.

"Same as every year," Yang replied. Ruby glanced around at them confused for a moment.

"Ozpin said they were selected randomly!" Ruby exclaimed. None of them looked up from their scrolls to acknowledge her.

"Of course he said that. You wouldn't want the new first years being told by the upperclassmen what the trick is," Glynda explained.

Lykos Asimi came to a stop as he swung down from the branch of a tree, carrying his momentum as his feet hit the ground and running until he reached a small glade in the midst of the forest, only large enough for several Ursai to occupy if there had been some in the area. He stopped, looking around and listening hard for a moment before lying flat on his chest and placing his ear to the earth. He remained motionless, his body loose as he breathed slowly, trying to determine where he could feel it coming from. Grimm. Maybe it was the way he was raised, or perhaps it was part of his semblance, but Lykos had always had an innate sense of being able to detect where Grimm were at and where they were heading. He slowly drew everything in and closed his eyes, listening once again. He could feel them, and they were alarmingly close.

His eyes slowly opened as he determined that two Beowolves were less than a few feet from him and were coming from around the trees, curious as to what had made such a ruckus a moment ago. They lumbered towards him as he lied still, breathing slowly still as they were directly above him now and one of them bent down, smelling him. It was no use for them though, Lykos knew full well that the Grimm would not attack him because the pelt made it difficult for them to distinguish him as human and they could only smell fear. Lykos however, did not fear the Grimm monsters as most did. At least not such common ones that could be found anywhere around the outskirts of Vale.

He looked up for a moment, watching as they continued on their way, uninterested in Lykos and he watched as they turned their attention towards the north, the opposite direction from which he had come, leading him to wonder if there was someone else up ahead. Lykos took off running past them, stopping as he passed a tree and noted markings, the wood appeared to be freshly splintered on the side and he knew that this was the work of someone who had dropped into the forest only a few minutes ago. The Beowolves passed him again and he looked them over, feeling the same thing that they could and kneeling close to the ground as he listened closely. Up ahead, somebody was clearly yelling at someone and Lykos contemplating staying out of it for a moment.

What could they have to offer, and if they already had a partner, it more or less made them his competition. At the same time, they would be allies in the near future, and that was something that Lykos could use more of at some point. One of them was afraid and their fear was thick, the Beowolves had started to pick up their pace and Lykos stood as he grabbed the hilt attached to his hip, activating the switch. A series of shuriken that were magnetically held to the inside of his pelt lit up and began to spin quickly before they detached and came together to form a whip at the end of the bladeless handle using electromagnets. He swung it, catching a branch and pulling himself up. He lifted into the air and landed on a branch, free running through the trees across limbs and larger branches as he neared the destination of the Grimm's interest. He gripped the whip firmly as he found what was causing the fuss.

"You're that Bái that they were talking about before, aren't you?" The boy asked as he pushed her against a tree and held his dagger against her neck, licking his lips before moving to her ear and pressing the weapon against her skin. He shivered as she pushed her body as far back as she could into the trunk of the tree. "I'm gonna give you one last chance to show me that power of yours before I use my blade here to take these ridiculous looking clothes off of you and show you my 'secret power.' It's completely your choice. Simple really. Exciting, isn't it?"

"Someone will see you and they'll send you home! Haven't you worked hard to get here like the rest of us? You don't want to throw that all away just so that you can take advantage of me, do you?!" Bái cried as he pushed her harder, his blade slowly tracing down the middle of her neck and moving to her shoulder, stopping under the shoulder strap that held her tank top on. He chuckled and grabbed her by the jaw with his free hand. She struggled to break free, but he had a distinct size advantage.

"To be honest, this is the sort of thing I came for. Small, weak women that I could overpower and do what I wanted with. As far as them watching everything, they just want you to think that. No one can see us here, and if they can, I'll just use my semblance. It creates a vacuum kind of defense mechanism. No sound gets in or out, and the image behind is displayed on the front of the barrier. No one is going to hear or see a thing except for me and you, so unless you decide to be a good little girl and show me that semblance of yours, we're going to make a bad girl out of you," he told her. Tears swam in her eyes as she squirmed, trying to maintain her composure, Lykos could hear that she was trying to slow her breathing. Why was she trying to hold back on this jackass? Lykos reached back and slipped his hands into two fingerless leather gloves that had been magnetically attached to the inside of his pelt. They covered his forearms up to his elbows and had five magnets attached on the underside of each. He activated a switch on his whip and the shurikens jumped off, covering the inside of his forearms. He pulled three off of his right arm and held them in his left hand. "Just think. Now that we're teammates, we'll be sleeping in the same room together. Why wait to make it official, you know you'll want it at some point."

"Don't do this, please. Bad things will happen," She begged. His knife slightly tore the strap and he laughed in her ear, biting it lightly. She squealed, crying and pushing back against him. "Please…"

"Oh, I know. Because I'm going to do bad things to you," he told her. Lykos mind flashed back to his father grabbing his mother and throwing her onto the floor of their hut.

When I get home from drinking, I expect you to give it to me like a good bitch!

I'm the only reason that there is a roof over your head, and you can't even offer to make love to me as thanks?!

Why did I marry you if you won't even put out when I want you to?!

Lykos body trembled internally as his hands gripped tighter at the shurikens. He knew that below was that kid with Bái, but all that he could see was his parents in their places.

"Stop fighting me you little slut, you know you'll like it," he told Bái as he kissed her neck. She shoved him off of her for a moment and she made an attempt to run for it, but he planted her against the tree hard and held the dagger to her neck again. "You know it's what you want!"

"I don't want to! Stop!" She screamed at him.

Lykos, mommy is okay. I'll be okay Lykos, just go before daddy hurts you too.

I'll be okay…

Lykos eyes filled with a rage that he had long suppressed and he let out an animalistic yell, leaping to the ground and throwing the shurikens, two of them slicing the assailants arms and the third knocking the dagger out of his hand. He flicked the handle, the shurikens returning quickly and reforming his whip with the others. Lykos pulled his hood down to slightly conceal his face and his eyes turned red as he stared into the man's eyes, locking him into a trance. Before the student's eyes, Lykos transformed into a Beringel and terror filled him. He pointed, shaking as he fell onto his face trying to run and pointed at the beast.

"What the hell kind of ability is that?!" He demanded, his skin white as he trembled. Lykos bent down, looking at him for a long moment before roaring again and causing the student to take off into the woods, fleeing for his life. All that Bái had seen was Lykos whose eyes had become red, staring intensely into the eyes of her attacker whose eyes reflected Lykos' semblance. Lykos released his power and stood soundly in victory, watching his opponent fly through the forest as fast as his feet would carry him. His chest heaved and he turned to Bái who blushed but was out of breath herself.

"Thank you…" She began. She was cut off as he pulled her in with his whip, pulling her away from the tree and into his arms as it fell over, the Beowolves had arrived and decided that they were ready to feed off her fear. She stared up at him, slightly perplexed as he held on to her. He released her for a moment and sprinted out towards them, whipping the one to his right away and effectively deterring it for a moment as he pulled the second one down, kneeing it in the chin. He pried its mouth open, activating his whip and causing his projectiles to become rigid, shoving it into the Grimm's mouth as if it were a sword. He ejected the shuriken and leapt back, activating his weapon again. The throwing stars burst forth from the creature's chest, killing it but not leaving Lykos with enough time to defend from the other Beowolf. He closed his eyes and prepared for an impact that never came.

When he opened them again, the Grimm had been killed with several dozen ice projectiles that stuck out of its torso. It fell to the forest floor and dissipated as Lykos looked back at Bái. Her eyes lit up a light electric blue color and she waved her hands in front of her, as though she was manipulating some unseen object. Shards of ice levitated around her and he tilted his head slightly. Was this it? Was this what everyone was so terrified of? She dropped her hands to her side and the ice crashed to the ground, causing her to startle and she looked at her hands. She trembled slightly and fell to her knees as he walked over to her, steadying her.

"I'm sorry. I didn't hurt you, did I?" She asked. He shook his head. She was a curious one, and he wondered if she was aware of what was going on when she used her power.

"No, you saved me. Thank you," He told her. She looked up at him, caught in his eyes before blushing and standing quickly, pushing him away and brushing herself off. "Are you okay though?" She nodded. She looked at the strap of her dress, grabbing it and examining it closer. There was nothing that she could do about it now, she'd have to hope that it would hold together.

"I'm fine now, thank you for saving me…" She told him. "I guess I don't know your name." He smirked and extended his hand for her to shake.

"Lykos." She took it, looking at him as though she a watched him do something miraculous and she shook his hand, smiling and blushing all over again.

"Bái." They stood there in silence as Lykos looked around the immediate area for any threats. She kicked her foot in the dirt and looked around as well. "I guess that makes us teammates." He smirked again.

"I guess so." He took her hand and pulled her in again, using his whip to pull them both into the treetops, perching on the limb that they landed on and smelling the air. "Stay close, okay?" She nodded. She wasn't about to let him out of her sight.

Lykos. His name is Lykos and he saw my curse. What I noticed most above all though, is that he wasn't scared. He isn't scared of me. I think he's the first one to ever not run away from me in fear. I'm not sure what this feeling is inside of me, but I can't explain it. I need him to stay close. He isn't afraid…

Bái stayed close behind Lykos as they moved quickly through the trees and closer to their target at the north end of the Emerald Forest. When Bái had first landed a couple of minutes ago she was momentarily caught up in the beauty of her surroundings but was quickly distracted when that pervert showed up and demanded to see her powers. He said they all heard that she was some kind of monster. Bái felt a deep pain as she thought about it. That was what they called her back home, wasn't it? A monster. Just because she seemed different and no one would stay with her long enough to find out why or how. She owed Lykos a great debt. Had he shown up any later she might have lost her composure, and it would have been the end of her time at Beacon for sure.

Now she was worried that Lykos might not be allowed to stay just because he had decided to step in and help her, but it wasn't his fault! No, if they told Lykos that he had to leave for helping her, she would walk out that same day! Surely just this one time they would make an exception, that student would have raped her otherwise! No, the fact that they would expel him for such a heroic act was unthinkable. They wouldn't, would they?

"You don't think that they'll make you leave because you saved me, do you?" she asked. He gave a thoughtful chuckle and continued through the canopy.

"I couldn't stand by and let that happen to you. No one deserves that kind of treatment," he told her. He confirmed it. Though she had only known him for a few moments, and he was the only one who had ever not run from her in fear, she knew now that people could be compassionate. She only hoped that the rest of their team would treat her the same way that he was. Bái slipped as her mind drifted and she fell to the ground, landing hard and laying on the ground momentarily as her mind caught up with the situation. Lykos leapt down and checked on her. "Are you okay?"

"I'll be fine, I might need just a moment," she told him. Lykos heard a growling and removed his whip again, slowly circling and counting at least five Ursai. "They don't plan on making this very easy for us, do they?" Bái managed to find her feet and stood as they found themselves surrounded. He moved the shurikens to his arms and grabbed three in each hand, throwing them and taking out two of the Ursai as the other three charged in. Bái quickly threw her hands up, forming an ice wall between them and the beasts, giving Lykos a moment to draw his throwing stars back in and reattach them to the whip.

"Up?" Lykos shouted as he ran for the barrier she had created and leapt. She formed a temporary platform that shattered as he jumped off, tearing through the Ursai. She clenched her fists and threw them down, smashing the wall into pieces and forming an ice blade in her hand. She sliced through an Ursa as Lykos finished off the other two and watched her dispatch the last. She looked at him, hoping that he would give her some sign of approval, but she could tell that he was already prepared to move on. "We need to keep moving." She nodded to him, the blade in her hand cracking and shattering into fractals, dancing around her before completely disappearing.

"Right." The events from before tugged at the back of her mind as they kept moving towards their goal again. "You don't think that they'll make me be on a team with him, do you? They keep telling us that there are absolutely no exceptions to that rule, but I'm afraid that he might try something like that again." Lykos turned to her and grabbed her by the shoulders, looking deep into her eyes.

"I will not let that happen. Understand?" She nodded slowly. She understood completely. He released her and led her once again, satisfied with her answer and tracking towards their objective of finding the relics and bringing one back. She shivered as she looked out around her, curious about where the other students were at, and who the other two were that would be rounding out their team.

"What did you do to him anyway?" Bái asked. "If you don't mind me asking. I can be quiet if you'd like." He didn't reply for a moment and she assumed that he meant for her to be quiet but without warning he stopped, holding out his hand and pulling her to the ground, throwing himself on top of her. She landed on her chest, arms trapped beneath her as he pinned her there. His body heat on top of her was more than enough and she flushed, her heart beating at an abnormal rate at the thought of having him on top of her. "Is that a…"

"Shhhh. Wait a minute." He told her quietly. She could hear the breathing of a Grimm, able to smell its breath as the pressure of its nose against Lykos' back pushed them closer together, compressing them slightly. She tried not to move, but the idea of the monster ripping them limb from limb filled her mind and she squirmed. "Stay calm!" It was a command and she became rigid. It had been a long time since anyone had talked to her like that, but it was the first time that anyone meant it for her well-being. She steadied her breathing and the beast snorted, moving along and leaving them be. He leapt up and she gasped, rolling onto her back and sprawling out.

"That was way too close," she told him as he helped her up.

"We were fine," he told her. "And to answer your question, my semblance is the ability to make myself look like a Grimm to other Grimm and other people. I didn't use it on you, so he was the only one who saw it. It's really just a diversion and scare tactic, not the most useful, but it does the trick in a bind." She smiled and walked with him as they reached the clearing and were able to spot the old temple from where they stood. She pointed out at the meadow, directing his attention to the opposing tree line.

"Looks like we got here at the same time as some of the others," she told him.

Join us again next week as the excitement continues to build in Chapter 11 - Initiation (Part 2)!

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, stay classy!