The next morning, Jenna quickly packed her things and made her way out of the ballroom, heading into the girl's bathroom. She got a shower, brushed her teeth and her hair - which was still a wild mess, in her opinion -, then she changed into her armor.
After packing her pajamas into her backpack, Jenna went down to the locker room, seeing Blake and Adam at the lockers next to hers. Quietly, the wolf-Faunus went over and opened her locker, looking down to avoid eye-contact.
She could smell them both. Blake had a scent like fruit and salt, indicating that she was probably from someplace tropical - maybe Mengerie. Adam's scent was like sun-dried earth, rose-petals, and stone, but Jenna could also detect a light tinge of something coppery. Blood?
"Hey." Blake greeted, and Jenna was shaken out of her thoughts. Her hands, which were closing around her weapon, twitched, and the metal she was holding suddenly became extremely cold. Jenna quickly looked up, forcing a small smile.
"Hey." She replied, drawing her weapon from her locker and swiftly placing it on her back. "Did you two sleep okay? I heard those girls talking to you."
"Yeah, we're fine." Blake answered, Jenna idly noticing Adam tilting his head up behind her - was he rolling his eyes, behind that crimson ribbon? "You?"
"Yeah." Jenna stood there for a moment, then shook her head, looking back at Blake with a smile. "Well, I like to be early, so I'll see you on the cliffs. Good luck in the initiation."
"You, too." Blake nodded, and Jenna turned and walked off, looking down at her hands once she was sure that she couldn't be seen. Her eyes slowly narrowed, and her fists clenched as she closed her eyes and bared gritted, slightly-fanged teeth.
'Damn you, Ozpin, for putting me up to this ridiculous task. You of all should know why it isn't safe.'
Some time later, all of Beacon's initiates stood on launching platforms at Beacon Cliff.
"For years, you have trained to become warriors." Professor Ozpin began, holding his mug of coffee. "Today, your abilities will be evaluated in the Emerald Forest."
"Now..." Professor Goodwitch continued for him. "I'm sure many of you have heard rumors about the assignment of teams. Well, allow us to put an end to your confusion. Each of you will be given teammates, today."
'Ozpin.' Jenna glared at te headmaster from her platform. 'This has gone on long enough. You better extract me from this class as soon as I hit the forest.' Almost like he could hear her, Ozpin's eyes flit over to her. He gazed at her for a moment, then he looked back at the initiates as a whole.
"These teammates will be with you for the rest of your time here at Beacon, so it is in your best interest to be paired with someone with whom you work well." He stated, and Jenna's eyes narrowed further. "That being said, the first person you make eye-contact with after landing will be your partner for the next four years. After you've partnered up, make your way to the northern end of the forest. You will meet opposition along the way. Do not hesitate to destroy everything in your path, or you will die. You will be monitored and graded for the duration of initiation, but our instructors will not intervene. You will find an abandoned temple at the end of the path containing several relics. Each pair must choose one and return to the top of the cliff. We will regard that item, as well as your standing, and grade you appropriately... Are there any questions?"
'Why are you such a jackass?'
"Uh..." A blonde kid who threw up on the ship from Signal, Jaune Arc, raised his hand. "Sir?"
"Good." Ozpin blatantly ignored the blonde. Jenna idly considered how she could sympathize with him. "Now, take your positions."
People began getting launched, and when Jenna was catapulted into the air, she let out a small sigh before quickly flipping to slow her momentum and drawing her weapon. The silver rectangle quickly shifted and expanded into a long, thin staff with a longer cone-shaped spear-tip, and it then changed into a a lasso - silver, with glowing-purple light shining between the shifted metal - that she twirled above her head before throwing it and catching the branch of a tree.
She swung, her fall coming to a stop, and the branch snapped, allowing the girl to hit the ground on her feet. She stood up straight, her lasso collapsing back into a spear-tipped staff, and the girl looked around, frowning.
"Hmm..." Her brown wolf ears perked up. There was something behind her. Jenna Elurra spun around to see three Gryphons glaring at her. The first roared in her face, blowing her hair back, and she blinked, surprised. "Well... Aren't you loud?"
Adam Taurus stabbed Wilt into a tree, grunting softly as he stopped his fall, then he looked up, his eyes narrowed behind his ribbon as he saw Blake fly overhead and land in a tree. He needed to get to her, before someone else did.
Jenna yelled and charged, slashing with her spear and leaving a large gash in a Gryphon's chest. The monsters all roared and tried to punch her all at once, but the agile girl dodged and allowed them to crash into each other.
Jenna stood up straight at they recovered, gripping her spear tightly, then she took a deep breath, closing her eyes, before opening them again and brandishing her spear, running straight forward as a Gryphon turned to her and piercing its heart with her silver weapon.
The other two Gryphons noticed this and shrieked in rage. Jenna looked up, her eyes wide, then she quickly ripped her blade out of the dead Gryphon's chest and readied go face the other two.
Adam ran into a clearing just in time to see Blake make eye-contact with Yang Xiao-Long over the body of an Ursa. He blinked, surprised, then he cursed and turned away, storming off.
'Great.' He thought to himself, genuinely pissed-off. 'Now, who am I going to partner up with? I doubt that I'd be able to work closely with a human, and without Blake, there's no-'
His nose twicthed, the bull-Faunus picking up a familiar scent. He blinked, hearing the screeches of Gryphons, then sighed and shook his head.
"Damn it."
Jenna yelped, flying back after a strike made contact with her back hitting a tree, and she fell to the ground in a heap. Slowly, she pushed herself up onto her hands and knees, and she looked up, her eyes wide, as she saw the Gryphons approaching.
The young wolf-Faunus grabbed her weapon and forced herself to her feet, glaring as she held the weapon out before her. A mechanism activated, the staff curving and separating with the purple energy leaving the staff and forming the string of a large bow, the bow flashing blue and brown as earth-Dust and ice-Dust was used to form a single arrow, notched on the energy-string.
A Gryphon lashed out, and Jenna released the string, putting the arrow in its skull. It hit the ground, starting to dissolve, the last Gryphon shrieking as it readied to attack.
The girl readied another arrow, baring gritted teeth as she let out a low growl, but suddenly a flash of Crimson and black darted past her. The Gryphon falling over, dead, with its body it in half at the horizontal at the chest.
Jenna lowered her how, her eyes wide, as Adam Taurus sheathed he blade. She considered moving or looking away, but he looked back before she could react, and whatever eyes were hidden beneath his ribbon met her own pair of brown.
Jenna blinked, her eyes widening further, then she sighed, shaking her head as her bow shifted back into a staff, the arrow falling to the ground and breaking. Ozpin had managed to get his way, after all - she was going to be a student.
"Well... I suppose that I should say thank you, partner." She announced, and Adam turned around to face her. "So... I guess-"
"By no means does this make us friends. I am only partnering with you because Blake is taken and you're the least annoying person here besides her. Is that clear?"
'Well, he's blunt.' Jenna thought to herself, placing her free hand on her hip as she gripped her spear tighter. 'I suppose that that's good. You can trust a blunt person to tell the truth.'
"Crystal."
Jenna and Adam walked side-by-side through the forest, and Adam noticed little things. The way she was moving and looking around at the trees, her brief gaze and careful glances analyzing the gaps between the trees. She was from a forest, alright.
"So." Adam looked over at her, raising an eyebrow. "What brings you here, anyway?" Jenna looked over at him, her eyebrow raising as well. "Why do you want to become a Huntress?"
"I'm following in my mother's footsteps." Jenna replied, looking forward. "You?"
"I want to be strong enough to bring about the change I want to see in the world." Adam replied curtly, and Jenna blinked, surprised, before nodding. She did not seem to understand, but she did not pry - something Adam was thankful for. Finally, the two arrived at the Temple, and they looked around at the so-called relics.
"Chess pieces?" Jenna noticed one and grinned. "I vote for the Black Knight." Adam's eyebrow twitched under his ribbon.
"Why?"
"Because it's badass."
"Whatever." Adam frowned, rolling his eyes. Jenna grabbed the relic, and she turned back to him. "You know, I can't really tell. Are you the battle-hardened warrior or the immature little girl who manages to steal that title from the class' actual immature, fifteen year-old girl?"
"Uh..." Jenna raised an eyebrow. "I'd like to think of myself as the cynical-but-playful chick who's probably going to be in the yearbook as 'Most Likely to Find a Way to Lick an Elbow While Face-Stabbing a Grimm'."
"... You are completely insane."
"I have to agree with you, there - but that just means that I'm not completely insane, as I am still sane enough to know that I am insane."
"Oh, gods. I should have taken my chances and partnered with a human-"
"Oh, so you're one of those." Jenna placed a hand on her hip, rolling her eyes. "Human-hater?" Adam did not reply. "Well, let's just get one thing straight: my father was a human, and I am perfectly fine with any human who is perfectly fine with me. Got it?"
"... Got it."
Jenna and Adam began making their way to Beacon Cliff in silence. Upon arriving, Jenna cringed at seeing Cardin Winchester, the boy who pulled her ear.
"Oh, look!" Cardin pointed, his three new goonish-friends laughing. "It's her, the one I told you about! The mutt!" Jenna gritted her teeth, warning herself to stay calm and holding back a growl. "Think fast, Fido!" Jenna looked up and quickly dodged a rock, her eyes widening.
"L... Leave me alone." She glared, raising her voice slightly, not noticing how angry Adam was becoming as he watched the scene from her side. "What did I ever do to you?" The next rock struck her head and bent her right wolf ear, and she winced, dropping to her knees and closing her eyes. Her ears rung, her head throbbed, and she took a deep breath. "I'm warning you... St-"
Jenna opened her eyes and blinked as she realized that all had gone silent, then her eyes widened. Adam stood there, between her and Cardin, his hand wrapped around the bully's wrist.
"... Drop it." He ordered quietly, and a rock fell from Cardin's hand. He looked up at Adam, his blue eyes wide, and Adam smirked darkly. "Now... You're going to run away, or you and my blade can become well-acquainted." Adam released Cardin's wrist, and the bully and his goons ran for it as Adam scoffed. "Bastards."
"Y-you didn't have to do that." Jenna stuttered, her eyes still wide. Adam turned to her, frowning slightly and looking... Disappointed.
"You didn't do anything to stop them." He stated simply, and Jenna looked down. "What? Too scared to stand up to humans when they travel in groups?
"I..." Jenna grimaced, closing her eyes. "I don't... I'm just... I'm sorry, I-"
"Hey!" A blonde girl walked over, waving as she looked at the two with bright blue eyes. She wore a purple t-shirt, a white hoodie covered in blotches of brightly-colored paint, jeans with tears in them, and black and white sneakers. Her hair was in pigtails, she wore a brown cross-body bag that made noise as she moved. Next to her was a boy with messy black hair and green eyes wearing what appeared to be grey karate-robes with dark blue trim and a dark blue belt, with grey shoes on his feet. On his back, there was a pair of sheathed katanas and a holder filled with crossbow-bolts. "I know you! Adam, right?"
"Yes." Adam replied stiffly, looking away from Jenna. "And you're Pandora and Samuel?"
"Actually, we like Dora and Sam better because those other names are long and boring and I hate boring things and I came up with Dora's nickname, isn't it cool?" Sam asked, speaking very fast. Adam and Jenna exchanged glances. "So, what chess pieces did you get? We got Black Knights because Black Knights are cool and- OH MY GOD, NEVERMORE!"
The four jolted, Jenna quickly getting to her feet, and they all spun around to see the remaining eight initiates fighting a huge Nevermore and Death Stalker. Among them was Blake.
Jenna could tell that Adam was focused on Blake, since he looked very worried. Several minutes passed, then they watched in awe as one group killed the Death Stalker, and a young girl in a red hood decapitated the Nevermore.
"Damn..." Jenna commented, stunned. "Looks like we've got one Hell of a class."
"... Took them long enough." Adam announced, and the others looked at him with wide eyes as he crossed his arms. "If I'd been down there, both of those things would have been dead in less than four minutes."
"Uh..." Jenna blinked, then she deadpanned. "This is my life, now. I'm surrounded by jackasses, psychos, and over-confident edge-lords. I am in Hell."
'Damn you, Ozpin.'
"What?" Adam asked, looking at her in surprise. Jenna blinked, then she looked away.
"Nothing."
/\
That night, at the final initiation ceremony...
"Jenna Elurra, Adam Taurus, Samuel Bidaiari, Pandora Caixa." Ozpin listed off four names, and all four stepped forward. "The four of you retrieved the Black Knight pieces. From this day forward, you will work together as Team AJCS, led by... Adam Taurus."
"... Ajax?" Dora asked, raising an eyebrow. "Like the soap?" All went silent, then Ozpin looked away, deadpanning.
"Acronyms pertaining to color are difficult things to make, children."
"Well." Jenna looked over at Adam, giving a light grin. "Looks like you're our fearless leader, Edge-Lord." Adam looked down at her, scoffing.
"Edge-Lord?"
"Damn straight, chief." Jenna crossed her arms, smirking lightly as she looked away. "Edge-Lord."
"... I fucking hate you."
After the ceremony, Team AJCS went to their room for the first time. It was right next to some Team JNPR's, which was right across from the dorm that belonged to Team RWBY - Blake's team. The Team AJCS dorm was bigger due to the mixed genders, and as soon as they were all inside, everyone began moving things around to suit their needs.
Dora positioned her bed in a strange way, centering it and placing the foot of it against the only wall in the room that had no halves, windows, or doors. She moved her desk so that a person sitting at it would be positioned facing the bed at the vertical and only able to look straight up and see wall. She prepared her uniform and textbooks for class in the morning, then she went to get changed into her pajamas in the team's bathroom.
Adam moved his bed and desk to a far corner of the room, out of everyone's way, and he plugged his scroll's charger into an outlet by his bedside and began texting Blake, seeming a little irked. He was glad to be the leader of a team, but he wasn't too pleased that Blake was not with him and that two of his teammates were humans while the one Faunus was pretty much a human-lover, in his eyes. This would be difficult...
Jenna moved her bed and desk to be positioned underneath the bookshelves, and she began unpacking her textbooks and some personal books, a small frown on her face. They only took up one of the many shelves, and not even all the way. The empty space left on the shelf was filled by a small picture in a silver frame and a tiny wolf figurine that appeared to be carved out of wood and had a small winder on the right breast. Could it make music?
Sam, strangely enough, did not move his bed from the center of the room or his desk from its position by the door. He did no unpacking or preparing at all, really. Instead, he elected to bounce up and down on his bed, chanting Beacon on a repeat and grinning like a hyperactive five year-old.
Dora came out in her pajamas, and Jenna briefly went into the bathroom to change into hers - including the green hoodie. Sam changed into his, and Adam sighed before standing up and going in to change as well. His "pajamas" were a simple black shirt and black sweat-pants - complete with his ribbon -, and when he came out of the bathroom, he found Dora pulling Sam off of his bed and scolding him for being so loud while Jenna watched with some amusement.
"Okay, I've had enough of you embarassing me." Dora deadpanned lightly, placing her hands on her hips as Sam giggled. "What do I have to do to make you calm down, you little shit?"
"Hmm... Kiss me." Sam smirked flirtatiously down on her, for he was pretty tall - second-tallest to Adam in the team, with Jenna being the smallest. Jenna let out a small snort of laughter as Dora scoffed, crossing her arms. Adam was just surprised at how quickly the boy could go from being as hyper as a child to being as flirty as the average teenage-boy stereotype.
"You wish." Dora replied, and Sam lightly rolled his eyes. "Pick something else."
"Fine!" Sam threw his arms up before crossing them and pouting, mumbling his next few words. "Maybe we should do a get-to-know-you game so that we can get to know our teammates, since we're stuck with each other for the next four years and they look like they think we're insane."
"Guilty." Adam said shamelessly as Dora looked back at him and Jenna. She blinked, surprised, then she deadpanned.
"Ugh... Fine."
"Okay!" Sam quickly sat down on his bed, Dora sitting next to him. Jenna was on her bed, and Adam remained standing. "We say our names, our combat schools, our favorite colors, our favorite foods, and biggest pet peeve!"
"Give you two guesses as to what mine is." Dora commented dryly, looking over at Sam. He looked over at her as well, grinning.
"You know you love me." He announced, and she looked away. "Now... I'm Sam Bidaiari, I went to Sanctum Academy, I like the colors grey and blue, I LOVE CHOCOLATE, and I hate it when people think I'm supposed to be depressed because of how I dress! Dora's the gloomy one!"
"I'm not gloomy!" Dora snapped, looking back at him, then she sighed and looked up at Jenna and Adam. "My name is Pandora Caixa. I went to Sanctum, I like purple and green, I enjoy drinking tea, and I dislike when this one goes on a sugar rush because then he's even more unmanageable."
"You know you-"
"Shut it."
"Well... That was enlightening." Adam stated simply, and Jenna snickered lightly. "My name is Adam Taurus. I was trained outside of normal combat schools, my favorite colors are red and blue, I don't have a favorite food, and I have a strong dislike for those who look down upon others for circumstances that cannot be changed and should rather be accepted with open arms." Adam looked over at Jenna, raising an eyebrow behind his ribbon. "And you?"
"... My name is Jenna Elurra." Jenna began somewhat-tensely, no longer smiling as she saw everyone's eyes in her. "I was also trained outside of combat schools, my favorite colors are blue and purple, I like bacon - don't make dog canine jokes, please - and croissants, and I don't like people who think that they're somehow superior to everyone else."
"Alrighty, then!" Sam laid down on his bed at the horizontal, his head and legs hanging off. "Now that that's settled, we can all hit the hay!"
"Finally." Dora commented, walking over to her bed and laying down. "We've got class first thing, tomorrow - and I refuse to be labeled as a tardy slacker on the first day." Jenna simply laid down on her bed silently, closing her eyes.
"Tch." Adam went over and sat down in his bed, checking his scroll. Blake had sent one final message.
I think I like Yang and Ruby. They're goofballs, but they're not bad people. Jury's still out on the Schnee, but I think that I can work with this team.
Goodnight, Adam.
Adam gave a light roll of the eyes, then he typed up one last message as well. He considered going into detail as Blake had in her previous messages, but he decided to be simple.
Lucky you.
Goodnight.
Okay, I wasn't sure about the others, but I am 100% certain that this was MUCH better than the original.
We've got more personality for Sam, Jenna, and Dora, along with a better idea of what Adam was thinking during all of this craziness.
Also: new weapons and clothing for Dora, a new weapon for Sam, and a new weapon for Jenna! I wanted to give them all better versions of these things that went along with their characters, and I think I did okay!
I only own my OCs. Please read, review, check out my other stories, etc. Thanks! :)