The sun beat down on the students as they stood at the edge of a cliff with Professor Ozpin pacing in front of them and Glynda Goodwitch standing off to the side. Ruby complained about the heat while Natsu didn't mind it at all. Gray was standing there, silently cursing at the professor for making them do this on such a hot day.
"For years you have trained to become warriors," Ozpin began. "And today, your abilities will be evaluated in the Emerald forest." His eyes flitted to the vast forest below, drawing the students' attention to it.
"Now, I'm sure many of you have heard rumors about the formation of teams." Glynda followed up. "So let us put an end to your confusion today. Today, each of you will be assigned teammates for the rest of your tenure at Beacon."
"Huh?" mumbled Ruby, her eyes widening.
"So, it would be in your favor to pair with someone you work well with," Ozpin said, looking at the students.
Ruby whimpered again. She didn't know anyone besides Yang and Erza that she could work well with!
"That being said, the first person you make eye-contact with will be your teammate for the next four years."
"What?!" Ruby exclaimed after he finished. This was the end of the world for her - she had no idea if she would end up with her sisters or not!
"See?" A orange-haired girl nudged a black-haired man next to her. "I told you, Ren."
Ren sighed in reply. "Yes you did, Nora."
"After you all find partners," Ozpin continued. "You will make your way to the northern end of the forest. Remember, this forest is wrought with peril. So, do not hesistate to destroy anything in your path... or you shall die."
Lucy smiled to herself. She was excited to show off her abilities... and to find a teammate. She was hoping for either Natsu or Pyrrha, since she already knew them. However, she was ready to be able to cooperrate with someone else.
Gray didn't like the thought of working with someone else... He never was good at that. He might end up destroying the person instead of a beast he might encounter. He let out a sigh, and told himself to be more controlled and be able to work together without causing problems.
Erza nodded to herself. Cool. Working with others to get to one destination. She glanced around, looking at the people, analyzing them. She smirked to herself, and waited for the next move.
Natsu smiled to himself. Finally, some action! This was one thing he was looking forward to: being able to use his abilities for something good. Maybe this would help him get rid of all the emptiness inside.
"You will be monitored and graded for the duration of your assignment. But, our instructors will not intervene on your behalf. At the end of the path you will find an abandoned temple containing several relics. Each pair will grab one and return to the top of the cliff. You will guard that item, as well as your standing, and we will grade you properly."
"Any questions?"
A boy with shaggy blonde hair raised his hand. "Uh, sir, I have a question-"
"Take your positions," Ozpin instructed, ignoring him completely.
"Sir, I have a question," the boy repeated.
Suddenly, Weiss was launched into the air in the direction of the Emerald forest.
"So, this landing strategy thing... Will you be drooping us off or something?..."
The next person launched was Gray. He smirked as he fell, saying, "Ice Make: Lance!" The arrows of ice shot at a tree, causing it to fall. He fell with it and grabbed onto a branch, landing on two feet before walking on.
"No," Ozpin finally replied. "You will be falling."
Blake was next to be launced, followed by Pyrrha.
"I see...," said the boy uneasily. "Um, so, did you prepare us parachutes or something?"
"No. You will be using your own landing stradegy."
Nora and Ren were launched next, the girl giving a cry of glee.
Yang put on a pair of sunglasses and smirked at Ruby, and then was launched into the air. "See you on the other side, sis!"
Lucy was launched next. She grapped the pouch that held her keys and gripped her whip. She waited for a bit before taking her whip out and she swung it at a tree, the whip wrapping around its trunk. She pulled it and tightened it, taking out a key and holding it out in front of her. "Open! Gate of the Bull! Taurus!"
A large bull appeared in the air, wielding an axe. With a loud "moo", he swung his axe at the tree and with ease sliced it in half. Lucy smiled at the bull and fell with the tree, pulling on her whip and flew towards the ground. She landed on both feet and untangled her whip from the trunk. "Thanks, Taurus!" She said to the bull, who smiled before disappearing.
Natsu was next. He smiled with glee while being launched, and his feet lit with fire. He landed on a tree branch, his flames diminishing for he leaped down again and landed on the ground. "That was too easy," he said cheerfully.
Erza was next. She flew into the air, and she changed her armor. She switched it to her Black Wing Armor, and with ease, flew down to the ground. She changed back to her former armor before continuing on.
Ruby was next. She sent a smile to the boy Jaune before launching off.
"So what is a landing strategy~!" Before he could finish his question, Jaune was launched into the air.
Professor Ozpin looked at his falling students and took a sip of his coffee. "Let's see how well they do, shall we?" Glynda nodded, watching the students as well. "Yes, sir."
All throughout the forest there was many people falling from the sky and using various tequniches for landing.
Weiss formed several glyphs and used them as platforms to safely make her descent. Ren used his Stormflower pistols from the sleeves of his coat, using the sickles to stick to a tree and let himself spiral down the tree. Yang used her Ember Cecilia gauntlets and fired them constantly into the air, boosting her speed. She fell through a canopy of trees and braced for impact. She rolled to the ground as she landed.
Pyrrha held her shield in front of her to block the trees as she passed through the thick canopy. She then landed on a branch and morphed her spear into a rifle form. She used a scope to look for falling classmates, seeing Jaune still screaming as he fell. She morphed the weapon back into a spear and launched it at him. The weapon caught him by the hood and he safely hung from a tree.
"Thank you!" He called.
Pyrrha smiled and jumped down from the tree, and headed off in Jaune's direction to retrieve her weapon.
Ruby changed her Crescent Rose into its rifle form and fired constantly, slowly herself down. She then morphed it back to its original form, managing to catch a tree branch with the blade. She used her momentum to swing herself around once, she let go, propelling herself further. When her feet finally touched ground, she took off running.
Gotta find Yang! Or Erza!
"Yang!" Ruby cried. "Er~za~!"
This is bad! This is really bad! What if I can't find either of them? Or worse, what if somebody else finds them first? Who would I partner with then?
Well, there's always Jaune! He seems nice... and funny, too. Although I don't think he's a very good fighter. Ruby tried to think of other people besides those three.
Oh, what about Blake? So mysterious, so calm. Plus, she likes reading! I like reading! The girl's positive thoughts went back down to negative again. But I don't think I could hold a conversation with her.
Weiss, maybe? She hates me and all, but I know her! Ruby continued thinking about alternatives before she skidded to a halt.
Weiss heard the sound of scuffing dirt behind her. She turned, just in time to see Ruby skid to a stop in front of her. Their eyes both met. They knew what this meant. But the two girls had two different reactions to their encounter.
Ruby's eyes widened and she was about to say something when the girl turned tail and stormed off.
"Weiss, wait!" Ruby called pleadingly.
Weiss ignored the silver-eyed girl and kept walking.
Ruby kicked at the dirt with disappointment and frustration. "We're supposed to be teammates."
Weiss winced as she nearly tripped over some bramble in brush she was passing through. She sighed irritably and brushed away the leaves from her sleeve. Suddenly she heard someone struggling in fidgeting above, so she looked up.
Jaune was hanging by his hood from Pyrrha's spear. He stopped squirming when he noticed Weiss staring up at him. He made a weak wave at her to get her attention, but she had already turned and walked off. "Wait!" Jaune called.
Weiss made her way back to where she had last seen Ruby, who was still standing in the same spot. She grabbed the girl by the hood and began walking off. "By no means does this make us friends," she growled.
"You came back!" Ruby cried happily, throwing her hands into the air.
Jaune began struggling again. "Hey! Come back! Who's gonna get me down from this tree?"
But Weiss and Ruby had already disappeared into the trees. Jaune let out a hopeless sigh, his arms flopping to his side. "Great. Just great."
Elsewhere, Lucy was walking about aimlessly. She wished inwardly that they would have provided a map of some sort, but then again, that would spoil the whole event. She let out a sigh and continued, her whip still in hand.
She heard a rustling in the leaves. Her ears perked to this, and she turned in the direction of the sound. She pulled out two keys and waited for a moment, listening again. Another rustle. She could see the bushes quivering from movement. She tensed and took stance. Thank goodness her Uncle Qrow had taken her out into Grimm-infested forests before.
A woman with scarlet hair stepped out into the area where Lucy was standing. Their eyes met, and Lucy let out a sigh of relief. "I thought you were a Grimm," she puffed, smiling at the woman. She returned the smile. "I guess this makes us teammates, then," she said, sheathing her sword. "I'm Erza Scarlet. Nice to meet you."
"Lucy Heartfilia," Lucy returned. "We should get moving now. I'm already headed north."
"As am I," the scarlet-haired woman returned, and began walking. Lucy followed, whip still in hand.
Gray ran through the forest. He really did not want to partner up and was trying to avoid finding anyone. A loud noise coming from within the forest caused him to slide to a halt, and look in the direction of the sound. A large Beowolf leapt out at him, snarling viciously. Gray took position, yelling, "Ice Make: Hammer!" He slammed his fist down on his palm, causing a large, ice hammer to crash down on the Beowolf's spine. With a loud crack, the creature was dead.
Gray smirked, and kept walking. Those creatures were too easy to defeat. They weren't as fast and witty and most things, making them easier to defeat. Another rustling in the bushes caused Gray to pinpoint the sound and yell, "Ice Make: Lance!"
"Ow! Hey! What was that for?!"
A man with cherry blossom-colored hair stepped out of the bushes, not looking too pleased. Gray sweat-dropped. "Uh, sorry. Thought you were a Grimm."
The man clenched his teeth. "Remember we have to find someone in these woods. It could've been anything."
"My point exactly, bubblegum head," Gray countered, beginning to walk off.
"Hold on a second, ice-brain, but we're teammates now. We gotta stick together."
Gray rolled his eyes. "Why didn't I think that, dumbass?"
"You wanna start somethin'? I've got energy to spare."
Gray turned, blood boiling. "I'm not wasting my energy on you, blossom hair. I don't like being teamed up with you, either. We just have to deal with it."
Natsu rolled his eyes. "I'm Natsu Dragneel."
"Gray Fullbuster. I'm not talking anymore."
"I don't care," Natsu hissed. "Let's just get this over with."
"Hello~? Anybody there? Hello~?"
Yang walked through the undergrowth, constantly looking around for any sign of life. For at least forty-five minutes she'd turned up empty-handed. The blonde gazed around for a moment, taking in her surrounds.
"This sucks," she sighed.
Hearing the rustling of leaves she turned and looked at a bush that was quivering. "Someone there?" She asked, approaching the bush. She peeked into them. "Ruby, is that you."
Hearing a loud, guttural growl, Yang looked upwards, seeing something that was definetely not her sister.
"Nope."
Yang dove to the left, dodgedly missing the Ursa Minor's swiping claws. She readied her Ember Cecilias just in time to dodge another Ursa Minor coming to attack.
The first Ursa lunged for the blonde, but she had been ready. She drew her fist back, firing her Ember Cecilias at the Ursa's exposed stomach, plunging her fist into it. She knocked it onto its back, and ducked from the other Ursa's dangerous claws.
"You guys haven't happened to see a girl with a red hood have you?"
The Ursai rose to their feet and roared in Yang's face. "Geez," she commented, whiping her face. "You could have just said no."
One Ursa charged for her again, and Yang ducked its first swipe. The Ursa then swung downward, but Yang used her feet and did a back handspring. Pleased at her ability to avoid the Ursai, she laughed.
"Wow. You guys couldn't hit the broad side of a..." She trailed off, her eyes focusing on something else. A strand of her hair fluttered to the ground right before her face.
"You..." Yang clenched her fists, her eyes blazing a harsh red instead of purple. "You monsters!" She rushed forward and attacked the Ursa that had cut her hair and gave it multiple blows. With one final blow, she sent the Ursa flying back in a violent trail of flames.
The other Ursa charged for her. She turned to it, her eyes still blazing red. "You want some too?!" She snarled. "Come on!"
Before it attacked her or Yang made a move, the Grimm creature froze for a moment and then fell to the ground. A weapon stuck up from its back.
Blake Belladonna tugged on a ribbon attached to the weapon and pulled it back, walking forward. She sheathed the weapon in her weapon plate, smirking.
"I could've taken him," Yang replied with a shrug.
"What's with the hurry?"
Ruby rushed after Weiss, who was moving at a surprisingly fast speed for walking.
"I will not let your sluggishness be the thing that makes me fail the initiation," Weiss quipped firmly, not looking back. "I swear, if I get a bad grade because of you, I'll-"
In a flurry of what seemed to be rose petals, Ruby appeared before Weiss. The ice themed girl blinked in surprise, stammering, "H-how did you-"
"See?" Ruby said cheekily. "I can be fast. You don't have to worry about me slowing you down."
Weiss looked behind herself again. "When did you-"
"Just because I don't exactly know how to deal with people doesn't mean I can't deal with monsters," Ruby stated. Weiss crossed her arms over her chest doubtfully but Ruby leaned and pulled her in.
"You're gonna see a whole different side of me today," Ruby exclaimed. "And when it's all said and done, you're gonna be like: 'Wow, that Ruby girl is really, really cool... And I want to be her friend." Before Weiss could reply, Ruby vanished again.
The icy girl waved away the scattered rose petals away from herself. "You may be fast, but you still excell at wasting time!" Nothing answered her witty remark. She felt an uneasy silence about her. "Ruby?" She called, fear beginning to rise in her.
"Ruby?!"
Still, no reply. Weiss looked frantically around, but there was no sign of the scythe-wielding girl. "Ruby, where are you?!"
A low, threatening growl met her pleas. Weiss drew her sword immediatly, looking around warily. As she did so, she came face-to-face with a Beowolf.
Pyrrha walked through the forest, looking for any sign of Jaune and her weapon. Occasionally she would call out for Jaune, but never got a reply. She was beginning to worry that a creature fo Grimm had gotten to him first. She kept moving, however, searching every tree in sight for the blonde boy.
"Pyrrha! Up here!"
The red-haired woman looked up immediately, pleased to see Jaune and her weapon hanging from a tree. She threw her sheild at the spear and knocked it down. "Wait!" Jaune cried, but he already plummetted to the ground.
"Ow," he muttered, as he landed on his behind. She chuckled lightly and helped him up, then retrieved her weapon.
"Let's go, then," the girl said, beginning to walk off.
"Now? Oh, okay. Let's go."