Dark Rose

Chapter 7: School Life

"Ugh, I hate uniforms..." Jett stated, sighing. He looked down at the black and red uniform they were given to wear, and gave a look of disgust. "It's not that bad." Eccon laughed, dressed in a similar fashion to Jett. "I do miss my hoodie, though.." Jett knocked on the bathroom door. "C'mon, girls! I need to use the bathroom!" He yelled. "You can't rush perfection!" Matilda stated cheerfully. After the ceremony, the newly formed Team JEMM was given a dorm to call their own. A co-ed dorm. Jett certainly wasn't used to this, being old-fashioned as he was. The door finally opened, revealing Matilda and Miranda in their school uniforms. "Skirts?" Eccon asked, confused. "I know, right?" Miranda groaned. "I wish they would just let me wear jeans!" The girls walked by Jett, and to their beds. "All yours!" Matilda chimed. "Finally!"

Jett walked into the bathroom, and closed the door behind him, locking it. Focusing on his reflection in the mirror, he fake flexed in front of it. "Hello, ladies!" He said to his reflection. Jett held his chin to the side to get a better look at his face. He ruffled his messy pink-streaked, black hair with his free hand. "I need a hair cut soon..." Jett mumbled to himself. He let go of his cheek, and looked at the rest of his face. Stubble had started to form around his mouth, giving him the barest whisper of a goatee on his face. Using his hand, he pulled the skin on his right cheekbone taut, bringing his scar on his right eye into view. "I could probably find someone to take care of this for me. Nahhh." He muttered. Jett looked into his eyes. He has heterochromia, or multi-coloured eyes. His left eye is an abyss black colour, while his right is light pink. Jett jumped, remembering that he had his contacts in the cabinet behind the mirror. He opened it and saw a plastic container. He screwed open the container, and a black right contact lens lie floating there in the solution. He attached the contact to his right index, and dropped it into the adjacent eye. Jett moved the eyes several times, then smiled.

"Jett, c'mon!" Eccon shouted, pounding on the door. "We're gonna be late for class!" "Coming!" He looked in the mirror one last time, ruffled his hair again, and then walked towards the door. He opened it in time to see Eccon going to knock on it again. "Good, you finis-" Eccon started, but stopped when he looked at Jett's face. "What?" Jett asked, confused. Eccon started to say something, but was cut off by a girl yelling across the hall. "WE'RE GOING TO BE LATE, YOU DUNCE!" Weiss? Jett raced to the door leading out into the hall, and caught a glimpse of Team RWBY sprinting down the hall. Jett looked down at his Scroll. 8:50am. "Classes are in 10 minutes!" Jett exclaimed. The girls jumped off their beds looking panicked. "After them!" Jett shouted. The team rushed out their dorm, and followed Team RWBY down the hall.

"How. Far. Is this. Class?" Jett gasped, doubling over to catch his breath before continuing to run after the girls. JEMM had been following RWBY ever since they left the dorms, ran their way through the courtyard towards the classrooms. Team RWBY finally stopped in front of two open, wooden door, and piled inside. "There it is!" Jett exclaimed, dashing inside the room. The rest of Team JEMM followed behind, closing the door behind them.

"Oh ho! New students!" a jolly voice exclaimed from the front of the classroom. Jett turned to see a jolly, middle-aged man in a waistcoat with grey hair and sculptured grey mustache standing at the front of the classroom with his hands on his stomach, letting out a hearty laugh. Must be the teacher. Jett thought. "Come in! Come in, and take a seat!" the teacher exclaimed. Jett heard a *whoosh* and looked to his teammates already in their seats in the front. "Ah." Jett strode over to where the rest of JEMM we're sitting, but was pushed back by another student, who was built like a linebacker. The student turned around, gave Jett a shit-eating grin, and sat down next to Miranda-where Jett was going to sit. Anger started to flood his face, when suddenly he felt a small hand on his shoulder. "Don't bother. That's Cardin Winchester." a feminine voice from behind exclaimed. He turned, and saw Ruby behind him. "So?" Jett asked, angrily. "Sooo, his family is influential, or something. Leave him alone." she explained. "Come sit with us: we have a seat open." Jett unclenched his fist, and sighed. "Fine.." Jett looked back at Cardin and Miranda. She gave a 'help me' look, but Jett just shrugged. He walked over to where Team RWBY was sitting, and sat down between Weiss and Ruby. "A pleasure to see you again, Jett." Weiss said. "Thank you. Likewise, Weiss. Yang, Blake." he said, nodding at the other two girls. Yang and Blake collectively said hello.

"Grimm." the professor started. Jett's focus was immediately on the man as he started his lecture. "The creatures of Grimm, the Monsters in the Dark, the Endless Night, the Neverending Black-these creatures go by many names! But I call them: prey! I am Professor Port, and soon you, future Hunters and Huntresses, will too!" he finished, adding a wink to Yang in the front row at the "Huntresses" part. Yang laughed and scratched her head uncomfortably. Geeze. Can this guy be any more grandiose? Jett thought, sighing. *blah blah blah* The professor started into a story about him fighting off Grimm. It was so boring that Jett could barely keep his eyes from closing. Jett looked to his right, and saw Weiss diligently taking notes on the lesson, paying close attention to the story. Jett looked to his left and saw Ruby dozing off, not taking notes. Jett had an idea. "Lesser of two evils.." he muttered, pulling out his Scroll. With a few taps, he brought up a recording feature. He smiled slightly, and placed the device on the table in front of him to record the lesson. Jett then pulled up his hood, and fell asleep. *blah blah blah* *blah blah blah* *blah blah blah* Suddenly, Jett could feel heat coming off of Weiss. Huh? Jett pulled off his hood, and saw her gritting her teeth, staring at an oblivious Ruby, who was balancing three books on her hand with her pencil. She dropped the books and the pencil on the table when the teacher looked her, and gave a sheepish grin. Ruby's pencil fell onto the floor near Jett's feet. He was about to reach down and get the utensil for her, when she dove under his chair, and grabbed it herself. Ruby popped up in between Jett's legs, and she looked up at him with a smile, her head cocked slightly to the side. Jett turned beet-red, grabbing his hood, forcing it over his face, and closing it tightly. Ruby climbed back up into her seat with a slightly confused expression.

"So, does anyone here think that they would make an excellent Hunter?" Professor Port asked, his voice booming. Jett's hand and Weiss' hand shot into the air. "Oh ho! Two eager students!" the professor announced. Jett took the hood off of his head, and saw that Professor Port was looking at the two them. Jett looked over at his team, and saw Eccon and Matilda giving him a thumbs-up. Jett sighed, but got up and made his way down to the front of the room.

...

15 minutes later, Professor Port came back with Weiss' and Jett's weapons. He gratefully snapped his holsters to his waist, and readied his swords. Weiss likewise readied herself, spinning the revolving chamber in the center of her rapier with her hand. "When the both of you are ready, we'll begin the challenge!" the Professor exclaimed, striding over to two cover cages, which exuded vicious snarling from inside. "Ready!" the two exclaimed simultaniously. "Start!" The professor, uncovered the cages and unlatched them in a single motion, revealing two enraged Boarbatusks. Jett and Weiss stiffened, anticipating the first move. The first Tusk charged at Jett, who rolled out of the way, transforming Ivory into a gun and opened fire on the Tusk targetting him.

Weiss likewise dodged the first attack from the second Tusk. She rolled the chamber on her rapier with her hand, letting it land on red. The blade glowed crimson. She focused, and fired a volley of fire at the first Tusk, which spun out of the way. Jett suddenly stood up straight, and put his guns away. The Tusk on the opposite side of the room noticed this, and went into an all-out roll attack headed for Jett. He closed his eyes, and slowly raised his hand to point it at the approaching creature. Time slowed to a stop. Jett opened his eyes, and they both were glowing pink, despite him having a contact in his right eye. "Die.." he whispered. He closed his fist, and time resumed. The approaching Tusk was suddenly hit with a hundred sword slashes at once, disintigrating into dust after so many hits at once. Jett fell to his knees, his Aura disappearing rapidly. Jett huffed, trying to catch his breath, his chest heaving. The remaining Tusk saw Jett in this state, and rolled towards him at full speed. Inches from Jett, a white snowflake glyph sprung into existence in front of him. "Hit it's belly! There's no armor-" Ruby started to yell from the sidelines. "Stop telling me how to fight!" Weiss shouted, looking enraged. Using her hand, Weiss flipped the glyph, turning it black. The change in the glyph repulsed the Grimm, making it land on it's back. She flipped into the air, and landed on a glyph she created above her, pushing herself off of it. She landed next to the Tusk, her rapier stabbed into it's chest. Weiss stood up, yanking her weapon from the dissolving Grimm, and walked over to where Jett was on the ground. She offered her hand, which Jett took wearily. She helped him to his feet with a groan.

"Ho ho! A valiant effort, children!" Professor Port exclaimed. "Well, that's all we have time for today! Remember to cover the assigned readings. You are dismissed." The professor strode back up to his desk in the front. Jett slipped his guns to their holsters, and walked back over to his team. Jett turned his head, and saw Weiss storm out of the room, while Ruby had a worried looked on her face. "That was awesome, Jett!" Matilda exclaimed, punching the air. Eccon strode over, and gave Jett a thumbs-up. "New power?" he asked. "Nah." Jett coughed. "One I had for a while, but hurts to use." He grimmaced, clutching his side. "I call it...Mirror Blade." Matilda rushed over to his side, and supported him with her body. "Why does it hurt to use that one? And why does it deplete your Aura completely, Jett?" Matilda asked, worried. "Because...of an injury I recieved when I learned to do that." he explained, gritting his teeth. Suddenly, hundreds of cuts appeared over his body. "When I use that power, I'm using what happened from an infinte loop I created a while ago. Unfortunately, I caught myself in the attack when I did it. So, whenever I use that power, I injure myself, as well." Jett groaned, but leaned against one of the tables. "You students shouldn't dally! Next class starts soon!" Professor Port exclaimed. "Yeah! Just give me a minute, Professor!" Jett exclaimed. He sighed, and focused. His Aura began to replenish itself, healing his cuts. Within seconds, all of his cuts were healed, and Jett was standing upright. "There, good as new." Jett stated. Matilda still gave him a worried look. "Let's just go. He's fine; I've had worse injuries than that." Miranda spoke up. "By the way, thanks for leaving me with that jerk, Jett." Jett gave a sheepish grin. "I really wanted to sit with Ruby..?" Jett gave a weak excuse. Miranda looked at him apprehensively, but quickly dismissed it. "Fine, let's go." Jett said, and JEMM headed out of the classroom and to the next.

...

The rest of the day was boringly uneventful, right from one class to another. Even lunch was boring, suprisingly. Classes were over for the day, so Jett decided to take the bulkhead into Vale and just walk the streets. "Want some company?" Eccon asked as Jett prepared to leave. Jett clipped on his holsters, his weapons inside them. Jett grabbed his jacket from a hook on the wall, pulling it on. He looked over at the girls. They were both helping each other study on their beds. "Yeah, I'm sure." I just need some fresh air." Jett answered, looking back to Eccon. "Well...okay." Eccon said, looking dejected. "I'll be back by 10pm, most likely. If you need, hit me up on the Scroll. Bye!" Jett waved to the girls, and walked out the door, closing it behind him. Walking down the hall, Jett noticed that Team RWBY's door was open, and he heard voices. Jett hugged the wall, and eased in to listen. "Where you going, sis?" Yang asked. "To go get some more supplies from Vale." Ruby answered. "But it's the beginning of the week?" Yang asked, sounding confused. "Yeah...Look, I want to show Weiss that I can be a good leader, so I'm going into Vale to buy a couple books that could help me." Jett heard a *smush*, and could hear a muffled cry. "That is so mature! Oh, my baby sister is growing up!" Yang squealed. "...help..." Ruby gasped. Yang let go, letting Ruby get out a few breaths before recovering. Jett laughed, hidden by the doorframe. "Hey, who's out there?" Ruby asked apprehensively. Jett walked out from where he was hidden. "Hello, ladies." he said, smoothly. He bowed slightly. "Oh! Hey there, J-Man!" Yang greeted, a smile starting to form on her face. "You're heading into Vale, Ruby?" he asked. "Yup! Gotta leader me up, so Weiss can take me seriously!" Ruby explained energetically. "Well...I"m heading into Vale, too. So, maybe we could go...together?" Yang went wide-eyed. "Are you asking my baby sister out on a date?" she gasped. "What? No, no, no, no, no. I just figured that since we're going to the same place, we could go together." Jett explained, his face turning a light shade of crimson. Yang squealed. "You are!" Yang exclaimed, bearhugging Ruby again. "PLEASE STOP..." Ruby gasped, stuggling to get out. Yang dropped her, and brushed her off. "Well, you two have fun on your "not-date"!" She pushed the two of them into the hall, and closed the door behind them. "Did you even want to go with me..?" Jett asked looking down at Ruby. He saw that she was blushing bright red, her face starting to blend in with her hood. "Y-yeah.." she stuttered. She pulled her hood up. "Well, let's go then." Jett said. He offered her his hand, and she grabbed onto his sleeve. "Okay..." he muttered, as he led her down the hall.