All was quiet in the ballroom, save for the snoring, when a loud cry rang out.
"Wake up lazy butt!".
Most of those who were still asleep woke at the cry and looked around.
"It's morning, it's morning, it's morning! IT'S MORNING!" An orange haired girl sang while moving about a black haired boy in green who looked like he wanted nothing more than the sweet sound of silence.
"WAKE UP NATSU!".
The boy looked past his friend at the shout "Nora! Get down!".
He dragged the girl down as a pink haired boy went flying over his head and though a wall.
Lucy shook her head "Erza" she said "was it really necessary to kick Natsu though the wall, couldn't you have shook him awake?".
Erza looked at her like she was crazy "This was quicker" she said before she walked off to get changed, A.K.A. hiding her re-quip magic.
Lucy sigh groaned and gathered up her clothes as Natsu staggered back into the ballroom.
"I CAN'T FEEL MY FACE!".
—
In the locker rooms the wizards and students taking their weapons from lockers, Gray took his compacted arm blades, Silver and Ur, from his storage and mounted them on his leg armour.
Lucy took her new blade-whip, Layla, from her locker and carefully put it on her waist, she then grabbed various Dust vials that Ruby said could be inserted into the handle and put them on her belt as well, she looked at her Celestial Spirit Keys 'I see you soon I hope friends' she thought.
Natsu was eagerly donning his gun boots and gauntlets, Inferno Dragon King, the red metal gleaming against his clothes.
'Alright' he thought 'this is going to be fun!'.
Erza smiled as she looked over her new weapon, Gladius Gigas, Erza had been excited to receive a simple shifting weapon but Ruby had told this weapon could shift between a sword, spear, axe, halberd, glaive and something Ruby called a 'buster sword', Erza was eager to try out the last one, she turned when she heard a conversation.
"Do you have any idea who you're talking to?".
"Not in the slightest snow angel".
Erza rolled her eyes but kept listening.
"This is Pyrrha".
"Hello again".
"She graduated top of her class at Sanctum".
Erza was impressed but apparently Jaune wasn't.
"Never heard of it".
"She's won the Mistral regional tournament four years in a row, a new record".
Once more Erza was impressed and Jaune was clueless.
"The what?".
Now Weiss lost her temper "She's on the front of every Pumpkin Pete's Marshmallow Flakes Box!".
Now Jaune was impressed "That's you!" He gasped "they only do that for star athletes and cartoon characters!".
Erza sighed and went over "Pyrrha was it?" The warrior turned around, she was an armoured red-head female, Erza approved.
"Hello" Pyrrha said cheerfully.
"I am Erza Scarlett" she introduced herself and offered her hand.
"Pyrrha Nikos" they shook hands.
"Your accomplishments sound impressive".
"Than-".
"If they are not exaggerated" Erza interrupted "I shall enjoy finding out" she said with a challenging smile.
Pyrrha stood for a moment then returned the smile.
"So hot stuff, how abo-".
Jaune couldn't finish flirting because Erza had punched him full on in the face, sending him flying into a wall.
—
When Jaune came too, he was being dragged along grass.
"What happened" he moaned.
He was helped to his feet by Natsu.
"Word of advice friend" he said "don't hit on Erza if you want to live".
"Noted" Jaune staggered forward and took his place on some sort of pad on the edge of a cliff.
Ozpin addressed them all "For years you have trained to become warriors and today your abilities will be evaluated in the Emerald Forest".
"Now" said Goodwitch "I'm sure many of you have heard rumours about the assignment of teams, well allow us to put an end to your confusion, each of you will given teammates… today".
"What, ooh" Ruby whined.
"These teammates will be with you for the rest of your time here at Beacon" Ozpin said calmly "so it is in your best interest to be paired with someone with whom you can work well".
Ruby whined more.
"That being said, the first person you make eye contact with after landing will be your partner for the next four years.
"What!" Ruby's world shattered.
Further up the line the wizards started to panic, they could be separated.
"Guys don't worry" Lucy whispered to them all "when we land we just have to hide until Natsu can track us down, avoid everyone else and make sure we all get partnered up to each other".
They all started to calm down "You up to pull that off Flame-brain?" Gray asked him.
"You bet, you icy perv" Natsu responded.
Gray smiled as him was flung off the cliff, Natsu cheered as he went flying, Lucy screamed and Erza stayed quiet as they quickly ascended towards the heavens.
—
Gray looked around as he fell, when he was just below the tree line and out of sight he put has fist to his palm "ICE MAKE: SLIDE" an icy slide appeared under him and allowed him to slide onto the ground and calmly walk into a nearby cave.
—
Lucy was still screaming as she fell, when she pulled herself together for long enough she pulled out her blade-whip and swung it onto a nearby branch and swung back and forth till she stopped moving, she then let herself down gently on a lower branch then settled down to wait .
—
Erza calmly sailed through the air and simply planted her feet in the nearest tree and it broke as she rode it down then walked away to find a hiding spot.
—
Natsu fell towards earth, he flung his fists in front of him and fired his gauntlets, his forward momentum not only stopped completely but he went backwards a small distance then he landed and he looked at his weapons 'Damn, these are powerful' he thought with a smile, he raised his head and sniffed, he caught the scent of his friends, he looked down at his boots and smiled again, he leapt forwards, firing his boots and gauntlets he flew far upwards and covered a huge amount of ground quickly, as he landed he let out a whoop and leapt forward again, when he landed he smelt someone else nearby so he ducked down and listened.
"By no means does this make us friends".
He thought he recognised that voice but couldn't place it.
"You came back!".
He smiled as he heard Ruby's voice and snuck by as they and the other two he smelt nearby had left and made his way to the cave Gray was hiding in.
"Yo strip-boy you in there?" He asked.
"Yeah" he wandered out and groaned "why did you have to find me first?".
"You were closer" Natsu responded confusedly.
"And now" Gray sighed "WE are partners".
Natsu held his head as he figured it out "NOOOOO!" He screamed.
Gray shushed him "Keep it down, others will hear you".
"So" said Natsu "we've partnered up so we're fine until we find Lucy or Erza".
Gray was stunned for a moment at the fact Natsu remembered something correctly, then he said "Which is closer?".
Natsu sniffed around "Lucy, this way" he led Gray off to find the Celestial Wizard.
They had only made it a short distance when they were set upon by a group of Ursa Grimm, Natsu shot forward and began blasting the Ursa in front of them and Gray turned around and equipped his arm blades Silver on his left arm extended forward and Ur on his right extended backwards, Gray quickly tested the weight of the weapons then leapt forward and swung his blades, they were weighted perfectly for him, he grinned as he spun and drove his bladed elbow into the underside of an Ursa's jaw, he ducked under the dissolving monster and dived under another while spinning anti-clockwise landing a barrage of slashes underneath the beast, felling it instantly, Gray raised his head and saw several more Ursa he got into his fighting stance and smirked at the monsters.
—
Natsu had defeated the Ursa he was facing and just left the rest to Gray, he was sniffing around for some time then he stopped by a bush with someone's red hair sticking out of the top.
"Um… Erza?" Natsu spoke up.
Erza shot up from out of the bush "Natsu!" She sounded shocked "how could you penetrate the defences of such perfect concealment?".
Natsu stared at Erza for a full minute wondering if he should tell her how bad her hiding spot was, he was also wondering if he would survive saying that, after another minute he finally spoke up.
"Lucy is this way" he said as he walked off.
Erza followed him grumbling slightly 'It must have been that nose of his' she thought 'no way could anyone have found me otherwise'.
—
Five minutes earlier.
Jaune leant other to his partner.
"Should we we do something?" He gestured to Erza's head sticking out of the bush.
"I don't know" Pyrrha said uneasily "there are Grimm about".
"But what if she's… you know… going to the toilet, or something?".
"Maybe we should go".
Jaune and Pyrrha walked away.
—
Natsu stopped at the base of a tree, he sniffed as he walked around the tree, then he looked up.
"Hey Lucy! Get down here!" He called out.
Lucy peaked over the branch then jumped out of the tree, Natsu rushed forward and caught her.
"Why do you keep making me catch you Lucy?" Natsu asked her.
"Because I know you won't drop me" she responded earnestly.
Natsu smiled and let her down "Well" he said "looks like you and Erza are partners".
"Cool" said Lucy "wait, where's Gray?".
"Someone left me behind" Gray emerged from the trees.
"Eh, you were fine" Natsu casually responded.
The wizards grinned, they were still together.
—
The young man knelt down in front of small log house, his hand trembling as he reached forward, he slowly cupped the sunflower in his hand and it didn't die, he gasped as tears of happiness started to leak for his eyes.
This world was different, his curse held no sway here, here he was free.
"You need something friend?" a voice rang out.
The black garbed boy turned and saw a blonde man at the door.
"You okay?" The man had spotted his tears.
"I'm okay" he wiped the tears away "I've just… been on my own for a while".
"The name's Tai" he held out his hand "what's yours?".
Hesitantly the boy shook his hand and smiled before answering.
"Zeref".
—
—
Author's Note: That's another chapter done, thank you for reading and showing support and thank you to k1lleraz8, darkvampirekisses and alduin for their team name suggestions, it was a great help.
As you have seen another denizen of Earthland has made his way to Remnant and there might be more.
On that topic, quick question, should their dark guild enemies show up or should it be the truly evil scoundrels, the dreaded BUTT JIGGLE GANG!
…
…
…
or both.
Well I'll see you next chapter folks!