A/N: Wow, what's it been, four months-ish? Holy Mother of Ashes, I never can get myself to sit down and type stuff out. So, my apologies for making you all wait.

Now before I get to the actual fun bit, I have a few announcements. If you have characters or teams you'd like to see in here, send me a message. Please keep the following in mind:

1: Names must be symbolic of something, like Blanc Argent makes me think of the color silver.

2: Team names must be four letters long, without vowels.

3: No perfect or overpowered characters, and make them HUMAN. What I mean is, give them quirks, habits, likes, dislikes, pasts. I can make those characters work. Flat characters, not so much.

Disclaimer: Okay, screw it, have you actually read the last few chapters? If so, you know what this says. If not, WHY ARE YOU READING THIS FIRST?!

-RWBYS-

-Chapter 6-

-Plural-

The eight new Hunters entered the courtyard of Beacon at a dead run, somehow not jarring their badly injured friend atop the makeshift stretcher they had created from a mix of swords, shields, and spears. Professor Ozpin and Goodwitch were already waiting, the bespectacled woman levitating a stretcher with her riding crop and a thin stream of Dust.

"Give us a hand here!" Jaune ordered the two frantically, checking Blanc to make certain his injuries hadn't broken open again. Ozpin's eyebrow rose at the normally awkward boy's command, but gestured for Glynda to transfer the injured boy to the less lethal stretcher. She did so with a half-scowl, carefully using a mixture of Dust and Glyphs to levitate the comatose boy.

"Take him to the infirmary. Now," the headmaster commanded, his voice unusually stern and flintlike as he half-glared at his assistant. She nodded and jogged towards the school's entrance, the stretcher floating behind her with nary a waver in its smooth glide. Ozpin turned his ttention to the eight Hunters remaining, his eyes dead serious and his coffee mug clenched in a white-knuckled fist. "What happened out there? Our surveillance wasn't working."

"We paired off soon after landing, sir, and proceeded to secure the items indicated, as ordered. We were then ambushed by a Death Stalker and a Nevermore, which we defeated with great effort. That left us exhausted, and Lie Ren unconscious," Pyrrha reported, standing at military attention in response to Ozpin's display of his serious side. "We began to return when Ruby Rose noticed the absence of Blanc Argent. While normally this would not be a cause for concern, given Blanc's speed and personality, it was worrying that he was not present. We decided to search for him and did so for roughly half an hour."

Blake took up the story, her stance just shy of matching the Amazonian girl's for rigidity. "I heard an odd pattern of vibrations in the air at that time, and called a halt so I could identify range and direction. It was a Nevermore, which flew over us."

"Argent was bleeding heavily from multiple lacerations, unconscious either from trauma or blood loss, and in the Nevermore's talons. We were unable to reach him with melee options, and the angle and wind were such that any attempt to hit the Grimm would have had a high chance of hitting Argent. Then..." Pyrrha trailed off in her narration, breaking her stance to glance at Ruby.

Ozpin followed her glance, then sighed in a mix of disbelief and 'I-already-know-but-will-ask-anyway' as a small smile appeared on his face. "Don't tell me, she screamed at him?" Ruby nodded, glancing longingly at the door Glynda had taken the injured sixteen-year-old through. Ozpin shook his head and took a drink from his coffee as though he were trying to drown himself. "He would wake up at that..." he muttered.

"Yeah, and then he woke up and started glowing this really bright silver color and got free, and then he jumped back up and started attacking the Nevermore and then he fell, and then he went back up and cut it in half," Ruby babbled rapidly, cutting into the conversation and trying to get a point across. "And then he fell again and we all ran towards where he hit the ground, and then the light went away, and then he started screaming like he was really hurting and then we found him and he was all curled up on the ground crying and then he said something really, really weird and fainted, then we brought him back here." Ruby stopped for breath, then launched back into her rapid-fire delivery. "So now we're really, REALLY worried about him and want to know if we can see him and if not when we can know if he's alright?"

"Calm down there, little sister," Yang cautioned, laying a comforting hand on the cloaked girl's shoulder with an encouraging smile. "Blanc's not gonna die."

"Sadly, she's right; that annoyance is far too irritating to give us any semblance of peace." Weiss' attempt at comforting, or whatever it was, failed in a horrible way as seven separate glares latched onto her.

"C'mon, Ruby! Your boyfriend's way, way too stubborn to leave you!" Nora cheered, ignoring the blush on Ruby's face and Yang's death glare as she shifted her partner's body from her back to the ground.

Blake simply smiled and nodded, Jaune's hand found Ruby's unoccupied shoulder and gave it a comforting squeeze, and Pyrrha lightly punched the smaller girl in the arm. Ozpin rolled his eyes, but in his head he was doing mental cartwheels at the group's excellent dynamic. "I've seen much stronger people die of far fewer injuries," he said flatly, drinking deeply from his mug. When it lowered, his troll smile was revealed. "But Mister Argent, I think, is far too independent to let anyone else make that sort of choice for him, much less a Grimm. Also, if he did die, they'd probably send him back."

Ruby glared at him for a moment, then gave a quiet half-sob, half-laugh. "Yeah, they would, wouldn't they?"

-Later-

Ozpin sighed as he pushed open the doors to the infirmary, walking towards the only occupied bed in the large room. "How is he?" he asked his assistant as he joined her at the boy's bedside.

"All things considered? He's in excellent health." Glynda took off her glasses and tiredly rubbed her eyes. "His Aura sealed up a lot of his injuries, and the rest we were able to deal with fairly easily. He'll be sore, but he'll be fully healed within a few days."

"Good; I doubt he'd be able to stay still even if he were down a leg." Ozpin frowned as he studied the teenager's face. Most of the tension he had when awake was missing, though it was clear he wasn't sleeping soundly. He turned back to Glynda. "I've asked the other professors to join us; I need their input on something."

Glynda sent her leader a long-suffering look which he deigned to ignore, but before she could speak the doors opened again and another pair of professors walked in. One was decidedly old, overweight, and... well, walrus-like. The other was younger, with messy green hair, round glasses, a coffee mug, and was moving fast enough to be related to Blanc. The older man waddled over to the two rulers of the school, looked at the unconscious boy with a raised eyebrow, and asked Professor Ozpin, "So this is the boy you were talking about? He looks a lot like you when you were younger."

"I hear he's fast, Oz, is that true? As in, faster than anyone else on record," the other said as he carelessly flung himself down on the next bed over and making a complete mess of the sheets but somehow not spilling a drop of his coffee.

Ozpin looked at his three colleagues, smirking. "Yes, Bartholomew, he is. He makes you look slow. No, like a statue, when he's motivated. As far as what this is about..." He looked each in the eye carefully, making sure they knew he was serious. "This boy has the potential to be a Hunter the likes of which we rarely see. I'm inclined to extend him an invitation to the school; he only failed because we had bad math. And because I threw him in at the last minute."

"I assume you have a reason past his speed and your sense of fair play?" the older man asked, his mustache twitching.

The headmaster nodded, setting down his cup on Blanc's bedside table. "Many. You mentioned his speed, but... I have never even heard of anything that fast. It defies logic. You can't keep up, but you might be able to react, but only the best. It would take an A or S Rank Hunter, once he's fully trained. As it is? I think he'd win without contest against anyone below B-Rank." He then reached down to where Blanc's twin weapons were leaning against his cot and picked them up. "He made these last night. They're nearly flawless in design, and the craftsmanship is what you'd expect from a master smith. I'm willing to bet the 'flaws' he made on purpose to help his fighting style. Look: the grips are perfectly suited for his sword style and motions, and the balance on the blades builds velocity very easily. The bullets he uses are custom made, I think, probably for close-range." He handed one to the old walrus.

The man looked it over with a critical eye, then nodded approvingly. "They are rather well-made."

"And he's very, very good with them." Ozpin's grin appeared, but this time with actual enthusiasm. "He's better than most of our graduates, and he's never had a formal lesson that we know of. I have no doubts that he'd be a blademaster within two years." The grin was ramped up to 'exultant.' "Between he and Miss Belladonna, I might have some students to teach this year!"

"Be that as it may, he still failed, sir. No amount of praise singing changes that," Glynda sharply reminded her superior, calling him back to reality.

"We had an odd number of applicants, again. We shouldn't penalize him for that. And..." Ozpin scowled worriedly, looking at the object of the deliberations for a moment. He took off his glasses, rubbing the bridge of his nose tiredly, seemingly decades older than he was. "This is just as much about keeping the world safe as it is recruiting a potential Hunter. Blanc Argent is, for lack of a better term, mildly sociopathic. Or at least, he doesn't care about much at heart. He does form attachments, and he does feel emotions, but..." The headmaster sighed again, holding up a Scroll. "This is our first record of him fighting. He seriously injured four men, to the point they could have died without proper medical care."

"He does seem a bit... crazy, sir."

"It's not that, really. He's dealing with the sort of mental issues we'd normally expect from the last survivor of a team, possibly worse. He is very damaged; I'd say he's been broken, actually. If we let him go, and he snaps, we'll have to deal with a borderline S-Ranked Hunter." The professors all looked at Ozpin in surprise, then back at Blanc with a bit more respect in their eyes.

"Are you certain, sir? I mean, he is good, but is he that good?" Glynda asked skeptically.

Ozpin nodded emphatically. "He's on the level of Miss Nikos and Miss Belladonna. They have talent, training whether it's formal or otherwise, a great deal of experience, and they are all very close to mastering a great deal of their skills. I'd put them all at low A right now, but they'll all bump up soon. Mister Argent? He'll hit S Rank once he gets his Aura under control and learns to use his Semblance."

"He can't use either? And you, you, speak so highly of him?!" The green-haired man shook his head from where he was reclined on the messy bed, then smiled. "He's got my vote, Oz. I'll run now, classes start in two days!" With that, the hyperactive man ran out of the room, leaving only a cloud of dust and an utterly mangled cot behind.

Ozpin rolled his eyes at his colleague's familiar antics, then turned to the two unconvinced staff members. "He needs something to stabilize him, something that makes certain he won't go to the Dark Side." Glynda rolled her eyes at the sci-fi reference while Ozpin continued undaunted. "He's lost a great deal, and I think he's afraid to care again. Closed himself off to keep that pain away. But Miss Rose has gotten inside that shell, and he's not pushing her away. She has a positive influence on him. If he loses her? I think we'd be paying out a LOT of insurance money."

Ozpin looked at the other two, preparing to launch his main suggestion. "I'm saying we keep him here, and put him on Miss Rose's team until we find a- No, until we can make a team he'll work well with. He's perfectly qualified to lead a team. Provided their goals align."

-Later Still-

"Hey big brother? Can you help me on this math work?"

"Brother, where are our parents? Aren't they coming back?"

"Who was that guy today with the swords? Why'd he give them to you?"

"Brother! I got an A on my test!"

"S_! There're weird things in the yard!"

"Brother! Help me with dinner please!"

Like an old film being played through a kaleidoscope, fragments of the past replayed in front of the swordsman.

A familiar home, shabby but neat and well-kept.

Rolling hills, blue skies, distant mountains.

The town a few miles away.

The pair of short swords set against a doorway.

A small table set for seven.

Grinning, cherub-like faces.

Warmth.

"Brother!"

Fire. Blood. Corpses. Shadows too dark for shadows.

Pain as a claw tore open his arm.

Rage as he took his first life, ripping out the Beowulf's throat with his teeth.

Agony as he looked back at his home from _'s shoulder.

The six small bodies littering the yard.

The faces of the orphans he'd promised to take care of.

The tears of the four Hunters.

The faces of his family.

'Noel. Dariam. Chloe. Alexander. Bianca. Argenti.'

'I failed them. They're all dead.'

'I promised they'd be safe, and THEY'RE DEAD BECAUSE OF ME!'

Fire and shadow swallowed him as he screamed his loss to the apathetic sky.

Blood drowned him as he broke.

Four Hunters watched with sorrow as the twelve year old boy sprinted away from them.

A pair of short swords in his hands, dripping Grimm blood.

A ragged grey trench coat on his back.

His red eyes overflowing with tears.

"Ow..."

Blanc groaned as awareness rushed back to him, along with the pain from his remaining bruises and abused muscles. He scowled and slowly opened his eyes then shut them again instantly as the afternoon sunlight hit them. "Too bright..." he muttered, shifting his stiff limbs. He ignored the pain as his mind automatically shut it away, and ran a quick self-check. "Nothing but bruises. Props to the profs."

With a grunt of discomfort, the red-eyed speedster sat up in bed and let his eyes slide open again.

"Welcome back to the world of the living, Mister Argent."

Blanc's trademark grin appeared at the greeting as he turned to look at the older silver haired man who'd spoken. " Thanks. I had a few grave problems at the border, but we buried those."

The old troll smirked in return. "I'm glad to hear your troubles were laid to rest. How do you feel?"

Blanc's grin turned to an overdramatic grimace. "Like I pissed off Yang, Nora, and the Goodwitch woman when I couldn't run."

"Sounds very painful," Ozpin deadpanned, handing Blanc an extra cup of coffee and holding up a Scroll. "Your evaluation." Clearing his throat, he began to read aloud. "'If only his jokes were as good as his sword work. I wish his brain moved a tenth as fast as his feet.' And, a personal favorite, 'For all his failings and annoying traits/habits, Blanc Argent is an exceptional combatant of at least A Rank.'" He set aside the electronic pad. "Glynda wrote those, by the way."

One of Blanc's dark silver eyebrows rose. "That must have hurt for her to write. But why bother telling me this? I failed your life-and-death matchmaking treasure hunt."

Ozpin nodded, though he rolled his eyes at the younger joker's description, taking a quick draft from his mug. "Yes, but there was no way for you to pass within the given parameters. We're inclined to make an exception."

Blanc scoffed. "Yeah right. I call bullshit. Let me guess: your nonexistent sense of fair play, my skill at fighting, and the fact that I'm a wild card who could probably kill a lot of people if I go loco, right?" Blanc's grin was evil.

"Three for three." Ozpin's face was blank as he peered at Blanc over the rims of his glasses. That piercing green stare unsettled even the glib swordsman, who shivered slightly. "I'm assuming you'd accept the offer, though?"

Blanc sat back against the cot's raised end, looking out the window as he pondered the offer. On the one hand, he valued his freedom, and accepting the offer would greatly limit that, at least for four years. He'd have to put up with a team, wear a uniform, and obey orders.

'On the other hand... The people are decent,' he thought to himself, thinking fondly of his new acquaintances. He looked back at Ozpin and nodded. "Sure, if only for the free food."

Ozpin's smirk was utterly evil. "And are you quite sure the adorable Miss Rose has nothng to do with your decision?"

Blanc's face turned red at tat, and his left eye twitched violently. Giving Ozpin a dark glare, he asked, "Are you a pedophile? You keep calling Red adorable, and she's way too young for you!" He flickered out of existence to dodge the geyser of coffee that Ozpin expelled amidst a fit of coughing, reappearing on the next bed over with an evil grin on his face.

Ozpin glared at the irreverent teen, then began to laugh sheepishly. "I didn't think of that. Well played..."

'Thank you! I do my best," Blanc joked. "So what now?"

Ozpin smiled benevolently. "As a token of my good will and infinite mercy, I have decided to place you on Team RWBY, now RWBYS. Your team leader is Ruby Rose, and-"

"Whoa whoa whoa, back up! Old troll says what now?!" Blanc demanded incredulously, his head pivoting so fast he gave himself minor whiplash.

Ozpin cracked up, his head thrown backwards. "Old troll?! Old troll?!"

Blanc scowled, then looked at his hospital gown. "Can I get some actual clothes? Or do I show up in this, because the GTSNP look I don't have the legs for."

Ozpin took a drink of his coffee as Blanc did the same, hiding his troll grin. "I think your teammate Weiss would approve of that conclusion." And then ducked to avoid the stream of caffeine as Blanc began to cough uncontrollably.

New Troll: 1

Old Troll: 2

Later, yet again

Blanc reviewed his appearance critically. After a few more puns, Ozpin had tossed Blanc a list of available gear. Blanc wound up wearing dark grey cargo pants, a light silver-grey false turtleneck with long sleeves, black Armorweave bracers and fingerless gloves, and a pair of light sabatons that came up to his kneecaps, close fitting and perfectly articulated, made of a light Dust-forged alloy (Silver, of course). TO replace his ruined coat, Blanc had found a long, dark silver vest.

"It'll do; I just wish I still had my coat." Blanc shrugged and pulled on his harness, fastening the twin magnums of Argent Ward to their respective holders.

Not Later, But Meanwhile

At Team RWBY's Dorm

"I really hope Blanc's alright..."

Weiss, Blake, and Yang looked at their team leader, who was sitting on her bed with her knees drawn up to her chest. The four girls were all in their sleepwear, getting ready to turn in for the night. Blake was on her bead reading, Weiss was writing something, and Yang was tinkering with a bangle.

"C'mon, sis. It's Blanc! Do yo think he'll let a Nevermore stop him?" Yang scolded, throwing a pillow at her leader.

"Yeah, but... I'm just worried about him," Ruby admitted, looking down at her feet sadly and sighing. She liked the strange silver swordsman. He was funny, even if he was sort of a jerk, and he was kind of cute in a very atypical way. Also comforting in the scary, overprotective way. 'Blanc'skind of strange, yeah; but he's a really good guy at heart. I like him.' Ruby smiled as she remembered the insane way she'd met the swordsman. 'How many people randomly jump into a fight for the fun of it? Well, Yang, maybe, but other than her? Nobody I know. And how many of them would mock a Hunter when they-' She blinked as she realized something. 'Wait, he wasn't the one she was lecturing. So why did he start to mock her?' After a few minutes pondering, she resolved to ask him the next time it was convenient.

Tink Tink Tink

The team all looked at the window as the series of three sharp taps disturbed the peace. "What was that?" Yang asked confusedly, glancing at the others.

"Ghost?" Ruby suggested, looking a bit frightened at the prospect.

Weiss rolled her eyes at her partner's immaturity. "Pressure change."

"Does it really matter?" was Blake's reasonable reply as she returned to her book.

Then the lights went out, and the window swung open. "That's not a normal thing, I hope," Ruby said as she slid off her bed and went to close the window.

"Depends on if I get a Scroll. Or if I get lost again."

"Just ask next time, Blanc." Ruby fastened the window and went back to her bed. "Wait, Blanc?!"

The lights came back on to reveal the silver haired boy leaning against the wall, his usual tricksters' grin in place. "Hey, Red! Fancy seeing you here!"His grin grew, revealing his white teeth as he walked towards the visibly stunned Ruby, his head tilted slightly to one side. "What, no hello? I'm hurt!" Standing in front of the younger Hunter, he frowned childishly and lay a hand on her forehead. "Well, ya don't have a fever, but you still look stunned. What, seen a ghost?"

"Blanc..." Ruby mumbled quietly, looking down at her knees.

"Yeah?" Seconds later the thin boy's eyes widened as his breath left him in a giant 'whoosh' as the small girl's left fist slammed into his stomach while her right latched onto his shoulder. 'Sweet Mother of Ashes! Is rage-strength a family thing? Ow! Please don't let my ribs be broken...' Blanc thought disjointedly as his knees buckled slightly from the impact, his body held up by the girl's arm (though low to the ground) as he reflexively tried to double up.

"You... You... YOU STUPID JERK!" Ruby screamed at her friend, grabbing him with her other hand by he collar and shaking him like a heavy, oversized rag doll. That was fairly impressive, considering he had a good three inches on her and she was kneeling on her bed.

Yang and Weiss were watching silently while Blake had a video camera rolling.

'She is... really, really pissed off,' Blanc decided with a wince.

Ruby continued to shake Blanc like a rattle , clenching her eyes shut and looking at the ground again. "YOU ALMOST DIED AND YOU'RE MAKING JOKES!? DO YOU HAVE ANY IDEA HOW WORRIED WE WERE?! I THOUGHT YOU WERE GOING TO DIE!" She let go of the well shaken male and shoved him, forcing him to stumble back until he hit the wall and slid down until he was sitting.

Yang's eyes narrowed slightly. 'Wait... He could have dodged that or stopped before he hit the wall. Actually, she shouldn't have caught him at all... So either he let her, or she's using her Semblance. Probably both, she's normally not that strong.'

Ruby shifted on her bed, drawing legs snug up against her chest and wrapping her arms around them, hugging herself tightly. Her shoulders were trembling.

Blanc rubbed the back of his head from his place sprawled against the wall. 'Well, now I remember why I'm a jerk: less painful.' He winced and looked up at his friend/captain/abuser *coughcough crush coughcough.* His eyes went wide in surprise, which quickly changed to sorrow. 'Is Ruby... crying? Did I make her cry?' His hands tightened into fists as he snarled at himself, 'Well done Blanc! Way to screw up!'

He was unaware of the death glare Weiss was sending him, and by some miracle didn't notice Yang picking up Ember Celica.

'Well, how do I fix this?'

The boy stood silently, unbuckling Argent Ward's harness and setting it beside his knapsack before quietly walking to the curled up Ruby. He paused for a moment, then sat down beside the upset girl. Feeling an odd deja vu, he tentatively laid an arm around Ruby's shaking shoulders and pulled her into a side hug. He sighed, half nervously and half sadly. "Sorry, Ruby... I didn't mean to upset you... I'm really bad at this sort of thing, and I didn't think about how you'd feel... I-I'm sorry."

Everyone in the room was in absolute, utter shock. Blanc Argent was sarcastic, callous, insensitive, and unapologetic, and a lot of other negative adjectives. Yet here was a new side to him, one that even Weiss liked a bit. Blanc's voice was quiet and gentle, its usual sarcastic tone replaced by warmth. It was humanizing to hear, because it was proof that the silver speedster had a heart.

Ruby had frozen as Blanc's arm fell across her shoulders, shivering as he pulled her to his side. She'd listened to his quiet apology in touched silence, waiting for him to finish. When he was done talking she looked up with a watery smile on her face, though her eyes stayed closed. "T-thanks, Blanc... S-sorry I hit you..."

"It's alright, Ruby."

Blanc's second use of her real name within five minutes was unusual enough to make her eyes open slightly as her smile grew. They slowly widened in minor disbelief at what she saw. Blanc's face had none of its usual sarcastic humor, utterly sincere for the first time she'd seen. Instead of a smile or a grin, Blanc's mouth was set in a gentle, worried frown. His eyes were missing their usual veil of caustic humor and cynicism, the ruby red irises somehow appearing warm and soft, like a crimson ember or a very red sunrise.

Blanc's heart fell as he saw the tears still leaking from Ruby's silver eyes, the sclera stained red from the crying. 'Dammit, I did make her cry,' he swore to himself sadly. His cheeks reddened slightly. 'Ash and Hellfire, how does she look so damned cute like this?' Somehow, she made puffy, tearstained silver eyes, slightly chapped lips, a blush, and a tank top look good. With a small smile that was really just one corner of his mouth raising a few millimeters, Blanc gently ran a finger over Ruby's cheeks to wipe away the remaining tears. "Thanks for caring so much, Ruby. I'm sorry I made you cry."

Ruby had predictably turned violently red as Blanc's hand brushed her face, and her smile turned into a giant, awkward grin. "I-it's okay; you didn't mean to and I overreacted, I alwa-"

"Silly Red, why do you always babble?" Blanc chuckled affectionately as he removed his finger from where he'd shushed her.

"This is like a soap opera," Yang whispered to Blake, offering her the bowl of popcorn she'd made with her Semblance.

"The good type, maybe," replied the other girl, taking a small handful of the junk food. "It's on camera, too."

"Mmhmm." Yang's response was muffled by her mouthful of popcorn.

Weiss scoffed and rolled her eyes, crushing the twinge of 'aww' that arose in her soul.

Blanc's smile faded as he returned to serious mode. "Ruby... I've gone a long time alone, without anything to live for. But now... I've got Jaune, and Pyrrha, and Yang, and Blake, and all of you... I've got you." Ruby blinked as Blanc's grip tightened around her shoulders and pulled her closer to him. The normally apathetic swordsman's red eyes slid shut as he shifted his position, then stopped with his face pressed lightly against Ruby's hair, his own bright silver hair falling to mix with her red-highlighted black. "I have something good in my life, finally, and I'm not leaving. I won't die now. I refuse to."

"I hate to break up this touching moment, but why are you here?"

Everyone in the room glared at Weiss. Yang was angry, Blake displeased, Ruby mildly annoyed, and Blanc was... himself. He pulled back from the hug, smirking slightly when he noticed Ruby's blush and smile. With a mischievous wink, he flickered off her bed and reappeared next to Weiss with his harness and gloves back in place. "What're ya talkin' about? I walked then climbed down tha' walls," he replied with feigned confusion. Aand an accent that made everyone sweatdrop.

Yang and Ruby exchanged long-suffering glances, then braced themselves for another of Blanc's crimes against sanity. Blake simply went back to reading.

Weiss' scowl deepened and she stood, which would have been far, far more intimidating if she wasn't five foot six and just as tall sitting as she was standing. "What I mean is, why are you still at Beacon?" she clarified with an unpleasant smirk that made her leader wince. "You failed the exam, so you should have been sent back with all the other unskilled louts to where you belong."

Instead of being angry, Blanc simply began to grin, but it wasn't his usual grin of humor and sarcasm. This grin was dark and malevolent, like he was wondering just how much blood would spill out if he slit Weiss' throat. "unskilled lout, eh? Well, pardon me while I ignore that, considering that I could probably have a gun pointed at your head or my messer through your heart before you could get your fancy glowing knitting needle out." Weiss made an outraged growl and grabbed for Myrtenaster's hilt, but before she could do more than grab the MADR's hilt, one of Argent Ward's magnum barrels was pointed right between her eyes from a few inches away. Blanc lifted the gun nonchalantly, returning it to its holder with a yawn. "Satisfied, Ice Witch?" He grinned at the others, shrugging. "As far as why I'm here? Ozpin offered to let me stay on; something about me depopulating a city or some such. Also, he said the test was rigged."

"Wait, so he put you on a team?!" Ruby demanded, jumping to her feet happily. Blanc nodded sklowly and she squealed in excitement. "Oh, this is so COOL! Which one, which one?! C'mon tell us we might know them! That would be really fun!"

Yang laughed at her little sister's exuberance, then glanced at Blanc. "Seriously, though, spill it," she ordered, punching him in the arm.

"Ouch!" Blanc winced from the heavy impact, then rolled his eyes. "Are you sure you want to know?"

"YES!"

Blanc cracked up inside as everyone stared at him. He calmly looked at Ruby and said, "Ruby."

Ruby looked at him askance and answered, "Ye-es?"

"I already told you, Red." Blanc winked at his still-unaware captain then burst out in helpless laughter. "Oh, you don't get it do you? Well, not Ruby, more like Rubies. Spelled R-W-B-Y-S!"

It was quiet for a second.

A second second.

A third.

"WHAAAT?!" Three of the girls screamed, while the fourth simply dropped her book in surprise. The widely differing reactions made Blanc break down laughing even harder than before.

Blake was just surprised, but not displeased. She knew enough about the slightly psychotic swordsman to realize he was a truly skilled ally and extremely protective friend. She had no personal dislike for him, though she didn't exactly appreciate his hellraising. She stared for a moment, shrugged, and went back to her book as she said, "Welcome to the team, then."

Yang was surprised and conflicted. On the one hand, Blanc was good. She didn't like it, but she knew he was a better fighter than she was, at least for the moment. He was the most amusing person at the school, and he made Ruby so much fun to tease. On the other hand, he was a male on a team with four women. She didn't trust him to sleep in the same room as her sister.

Weiss was just horrified, looking like she'd just been snogged by a Faunus [Ghostfire, I hear you laughing from here] out of the blue. "WHYYY?!" she wailed to the uncaring heavens, a.k.a. The ceiling.

Ruby was ecstatic. Hey best guy friend was on her team and he was alright! Squealing happily, she tackled the thin boy with a flying hug to the neck. Sadly, this was strong enough to force him off his feet and onto his back.

The resulting position forced Blake to tie Yang to her bed while she continued to take pictures. Ruby had let go as soon as Blanc began to fall, but hadn't managed to get clear. She wound up sitting on Blanc's chest, a leg on either side of his torso and her hands on either side of his head in an attempt to arrest her momentum.

At that moment Ozpin walked in, opening his mouth to say something. He took in the scene. Yang struggled to get free of Blake's hair ribbon, cursing through clenched teeth and reaching for her gauntlets. Blake had a camera in her hands and was silently documenting. Weiss was huddled in the corner chanting :it's just a nightmare" endlessly. And his two early admit students were both cherry red and looked like they were about to kiss.

Being the responsible and moral adult he was, Ozpin cleared his throat and sipped his coffee. A silver eyebrow rose as he commented, "I was going to say your bed is outside. But perhaps you and Miss Rose would prefer to share?"

"NO! And if you don't leave, I shall summon a beast so fearsome even you will run in terror!" Blanc threatened. Ozpin made a 'go ahead' gesture. "You asked for it." Blanc flickered over to Yang, comically dodging her attempt to punch him, and bent to whisper something to her. She gave him a skeptical look, but he simply nodded and grinned.

Taking a deep breath, the blonde thundered: "PROFESSOR GOODWITCH! OZPIN'S BEING A PERVERTED PEDOPHILE AGAIN!"

Blanc fell to the ground howling with laughter as Ozpi ngave him an injured look. "You didn't eed to do that, did you?" he complained as he began moving towards the door.

"Yes I did," Blanc said proudly in between laughs.

"OZPIN!"

"Well, shit. See you all later!"

"Bye-bye!"

Old Troll: 2

New Troll: 3

A/N: I'm awake, I'm alive!

Armor weave is the Hunter's equivalent of medium armor. It's prohibitively expensive due to the necessary materials' qualities. It is fairly rigid. Thinner variants are available, but cost more and are less protective. Pyrrha, Nora, Yang, and Blanc all use it.

I love you all in a nonromantic sense. Please review, those are my reason to keep writing. Also because I love these characters.