Ray and Nova watched with eager eyes as the airship brought them closer to Beacon Academy. They could already see the first of the three airships arriving at Beacon, and it was already disembarking it's passengers.
"You ready?" Angel asked as she stood on Ray's other side, her hand on his shoulder.
"I'm as ready as I'll ever be." Ray said as he took a couple of deep breaths. "You'll do fine." Nova said as the airship docked with Beacon Academy.
"You're right." Ray said as the door opened. " Let's go."
Stepping forward, Ray set his first step on the docks of Beacon Academy and promptly slipped, causing him to fall on his face.
"Sorry, couldn't resist it." said a bubble voice as a young girl with bright orange hair, purple eyes and a jacket appeared in front of them. "Vixen. Never do that again" Shouted Nova as she hugged her friend.
Ray stood up on wobble feet, holding his nose to prevent it from moving to much. "Gee, thanks Vix, now I'll need to use the thing again." Ray said.
Holding his nose with his right hand, Ray seemed to mumble something and a small light surrounded his nose, before it faded again. Removing his hand from his nose, the three girls could see that Ray's nose was fixed again. A small explosion on one of the other docks brought their attention to the here and now.
"Come on. We wouldn't want to get looked at because we're late" Said Nova as she took Ray's hand and started to drag him towards the auditorium of Beacon. Both Angel and Nova smiled and followed the couple towards the auditorium of Beacon.
Just as they wanted to enter the auditorium, they were pushed aside by a slightly larger girl than themselves, with white hair, cold blue eyes and a white combat-skirt.
"Hey, watch it." Ray said as he caught Nova, who was pushed aside rudely by the girl.
The white girl turned around. Her whole appearance screamed wealth, and Ray could tell that this girl, called Weiss Schnee, had a massive ego.
"Oh great. More children." Weiss said as she looked at the quartet that looked back at her. Putting Nova on her feet, Ray stood in front of Weiss. "All we ask is that you watch where you're going." Said Ray as he led the three girls into the auditorium, each one bumping slightly to Weiss, making her almost fall over. "Watch where you're going." She shouted.
Ray and the others ignored her. While the future Weiss might be friendlier, this 'past' Weiss was just an icy bitch, who whined about everything.
Standing with the four of them in the auditorium Ray looked around. Weiss had moved on to stand with someone else, and looking from this distance, she stood near Yang Xiao Long. Seeing Yang waving at the entrance, Ray looked around and spotted Ruby and Jaune entering the auditorium. That was Ray's first target after Initiation. Making contact with Ruby Rose. Ray looked up as the microphone made a whining sound and saw Professor Ozpin and Professor Goodwitch standing on the stage.
"I'll keep this brief." Professor Ozpin said as he looked through the auditorium, at each and every face that showed hope, courage and even some nervousness. "You have traveled here today in search of knowledge, To hone your craft and acquire new skills." Harry agreed with the 'new skills' part. For him, he was here to learn more about being a huntsmen, and to prevent Cinder Fall from conquering Vale.
"When you have finished here, you plan to dedicate your skills and your life to the protection of the people. But I look around you, and all I see is waisted energy, in need of purpose. Direction."
Harry looked up to his father. Was this the speech that he gave this year? The speech that the future teams RWBY and JNPR would hear before they started their legendary huntsmen and huntresses career? It didn't gave him much hope.
"You assume that knowledge will free you of this, but your time at this school will prove that knowledge can only carry you so far. It's up to you to take the first step."
Professor Ozpin turned around, leaving the aspiring students thinking about his words. Before anyone could make a comment about it, Professor Goodwitch took the microphone to address the students. "You will gather in the ballroom tonight. Tomorrow, your initiation begins. Be ready. You're dismissed."
With nothing but a look over the students, Professor Goodwitch moved to follow Professor Ozpin to the elevator.
"Wow." Ray said as he looked around. The students were starting to mingle and Ray decided to lead his friends to a corner where they could talk without being overheard. Before he could say anything though, his scroll started to vibrate, signaling that he had received a message. Looking at his friends, they did all receive a message.
"What's your message?" Nova asked as she looked at her own scroll. Just like Ray, Angel and Vixen, Nova had received a special scroll with a blue and a yellow bar, with a green diamant in it with the logo of Beacon Academy engraved in it.
"Come to the elevator." Said Ray, Angel and Vixen in sync."Then let's go" Nova said as she walked to the elevator that brought them to the office of the headmaster.
Standing in the elevator, Ray looked around. Just like him, Angel, Vixen and Nova had positioned themselves with a good view of the elevator door, and if possible, could grab their weapons quickly. It was something that they had trained themselves in, to always expect trouble.
The elevator doors opened and with precise movement, did the quartet step out of the elevator into Headmaster Ozpin's office, that looked out over Beacon Academy. Said headmaster sat in his chair with Professor Goodwitch, who held a open scroll in her arms.
"Students. Please sit." Ozpin said, as he motioned to the four chairs that were in front of his desk.
"You all know that, in order to enter Beacon Academy, you need to undergo several rigorous tests, designed to see if you are capable to handle yourself in the field. Besides that, you need to be thoroughly checked to see if you have any records with the police departments of Remnant. We can't let anybody into this school, without a thorough background check. And finally. You need to be seventeen to enter a huntsmen Academy. Fortunately, for you four, we were able to give you some reasons to be here. How have you been?" Said Ozpin, as he looked at the four students who sat in the chairs in front of his desk.
Ray took a deep breath. "To be honest? I feel like one bundle of nerves. I thought that we were being found out before we even set a foot on Beacon. Not to mention the tension of excitement that was hanging in the air. Still, it's nice to talk to you, Dad."
Ozpin looked at the blond haired boy with the red streak in his hair. "I would prefer that you wouldn't call me that, Harry. We might call each other that here in the office, where there are no listening devises, but in the rest of the school, where students walk around, you must address me with headmaster and Glynda with Professor."
Ray nodded, before he took a deep breath, again. "How was the training?" Ozpin asked.
"It was FUBAR." Said Ray as he looked around. "I thought that I was assigned Duncan from Vacuo to train me in using Hope and Deliverance. Instead, I get pumped full of Dust and constantly attacked by Winter, who didn't even explained to me what she was going to do. She just attacked me, and I can count it a miracle that I'm still alive."
Ray started to remove his right boot and sock before he showed his feet to Ozpin and Goodwitch. "I don't know what she was smoking when she thought about her 'brilliant idea', but I can tell you that infusing twelve wind-based Dust crystals in your body, while she's attacking you is not a good idea."
Ray showed his feet to the girls, and each girl gasped as they say two green spots in Ray's feet.
"I was forced by her to absorb them into my body, and the nurse that was there told me that she was unable to remove them from my body. While I'm still working out how to use the crystals, I can tell you that there is one side-effect that I think I will like. Thanks to those twelve Crystals, I'm now able to jump long distances or even fly."
"Where?" Ozpin asked as he looked at the feet that Ray had placed upon his desk.
"Well, there are two in each of my feet. That's four already. Then the two near my hips, and one in each shoulder. Then she forcefully fused a crystal with each of my wrist. That's ten. The last two, I don't know where she placed them, but I was drugged when she went through with the procedure. She also gave me a white Dust crystal and infused it with my head. I still don't know what that was, but whatever she did, must have created some kind of power. The funny thing is, I don't know what that power is."
Ray sat in the chair, his hand holding his head.
"I'm so sorry you had to go through with that, Ray. But I need a answer."Ozpin said as he looked at Ray."Do you know how to handle Hope and Deliverance, safely and with restraint?
"If you want to know if I can fight with them, then the answer is yes. Yes, I can fight with them. Even though I will miss Child's Play, I've become quite good with the two." Ray said, as he looked at Ozpin, who nodded and focused on Angel. Harry took that as the point to put back his sock and boot.
"Miss Star. How are you?" Ozpin asked as Angel shook her head.
"Well, I haven't been threated as bad as Ray has, but it wasn't a walk in the park. At first, I had to learn how to fold my wings. Let me tell you, that it was a week before I could do it without a second thought. Then, grandmaster Jade of the Mistral Academy, with help from a technical student taught how to create my hard-light generator from my wings. I was then forced to train under harsh conditions, including the Grimm-pit, how to summon certain types of weapons. I can summon a short sword, a heavy handgun and a rifle."
"I see." Said Ozpin as he looked at Angel Star. The girl, who sat in front of him was certainly different than the girl he was going to meet, had met, will met? Ozpin shook his head to clear his thoughts. Time-travel was supposed to be a myth, yet in front of him, were four students, two of them who had made Beacon their home. The other two had become good friends with both Harry and Ginny.
Now, an older Harry Ozpin, under a fake name called Ray Star sat in front of him, while Ozpin knew that he had sent Harry on the Hogwarts express the day before yesterday. Next to him sat Hermione Granger, now called Angel Star, Ray's 'cousin'. Looking further, Ozpin came face to face with Vixen Jones, a disguised Nymphadora (Dora) Tonks.
"And you? Did you discover any difficulties during your training?" Ozpin asked he looked in Vixen's purple eyes.
"Not at first, but it got harder as time went on." Replied Vixen. "I've gotten used to Hammer-fell so much, that I started to miss my Sweetheart. However, I've made some improvements to the arrows for my bow. The first modification I made was a duplication charm on the arrows in the quiver, allowing me an infinite number of arrows. Second modification I made was to infuse the arrows with Dust. That allows me to carry four different arrow types. Adding a arrow with a rope attaching to it, I carry five arrow types with me." Vixen pulled from her right shoulder a long bladed sword and flicked a switch on the pommel of the blade, causing it to split in half, before it shaped itself as a bow.
"Nice" Said Angel as she looked at the bow.
"Yeah, and the bow can only be fired by me. I modified the bow that that it's blood bound to me. Anyone else who wants to fire that bow will come home from a cold Christmas, as the bow will automatically transport itself to me."
"I see." Ozpin said as he looked at the bow. Then his gaze was focused upon the last of the group. Nova Heart, or as she was known, Ginny Goodwitch.
"I know about your own progress with your weapons, miss Heart. After all, Professor Goodwitch herself taught you enough to know how to use your Rotating Dust Gloves."
Nova nodded as she twisted the small wheel on her gloves, each holding several types of Dust.
"That's so unfair. Both Angel and myself had to travel to our instructors, while Nova and Vixen could remain here at Beacon." Said Ray as he looked at the two students at the end.
"Fair it may not be, but their training was no walk in the park. Both of them had to work harder that I wanted them to. But they needed the extra training to get them ready." Ozpin said as he looked at Ray.
"Ray, do you remember the first fairytale I've ever told you?" Ozpin asked out of the blue.
"Eh, yeah. The one with the seasons." Ray said as he remembered that bedtime story.
"Please, tell it to all of us." Ozpin said, and watched as Ray dove in the story of the four maidens.
"Okay" Ray said as he looked at Professor Ozpin.
"The story begins with a callous old man sitting in the doorway of his own home on top of a small hill. He sees four young sisters walking towards him, and as they enter his property, he starts to shout to them to go away and leave him alone. The four girls look at each other, and the oldest sister tells the man that he should use the time he is alone to reflect upon his life and meditate. The second sister looks around and starts to tend to the man's garden, revitalizing it while she brings him fruits and vegetables. The third sister warms the man's heart and convince him to take the steps steps outside to embrace the world around him. The last and final sister tells the man to look around him and be thankful. As the man looks around, he feels the sun on his face, his garden growing delicious fruits and vegetables. He accepts the four girls gifts and in thanks, granted the four girls incredible powers. The four girls graciously accept these powers, and promise to share their gifts with the people of Remnant."
Ray takes a deep breath. "Winter, Spring, Summer and Fall. The four maidens. I always like that story."
"That was amazing" Vixen said, as she hasn't grown up with the Remnant fairy tales. "Those four girls being gifted amazing powers, for just being kind to an old man."
"What's more amazing is that that story has been around before I was born." Said Professor Ozpin, shocking them all.
"What?" Nova asked, as she looked at her headmaster.
"The story of the four seasons, or the story of the maidens, has been around for more than three millennia." Said Professor Goodwitch. The four children looked at her, shock in their faces. "The most amazing part of the story, is that it's completely true." Said Ozpin, as he looked each and everyone in the eyes.
"Why are you telling us this?" Vixen asked, surprise and fear in her face. If there were four girls in the world, with amazing powers, then they could destroy the whole planet if they wanted to. "I am telling you four this, because you know why." Ozpin said as he looked at Ray.
Before Ray could answer his father's statement, Ozpin stood up from his desk and walked towards the second elevator door. Holding his scroll to the keypad, the door opened.
"Are you coming?" Ozpin asked as he and Goodwitch stepped inside the elevator. Ray and Nova were the first to jump out of the chair they had been sitting in and moved to the elevator doors. "Come on. We'll be safe." Said Ray to Angel and Vixen. Both girls nodded and moved towards the elevator and stepped inside. The doors closed and the elevator started to decent. "Where are we going?" Vixen asked as she was leaning against the elevator.
"The vault. Under the school." was Ozpin's only reply. Vixen held her mouth for the rest of way as the group stayed silent.
After an elevator ride of almost two minutes, the doors opened up to a long green hall, illuminated by green flames.
"Come" Goodwitch ordered as she started to shepherd the four students through the hall.
"I's bigger than the Great Hall of Hogwarts." Vixen whispered to Nova, who nodded in return.
Ray looked at the Professor, who was leading them to the end of one of the halls, where a humming sound came from. Looking past Professor Ozpin, Ray saw a machine with two rectangular pods, one of them standing almost straight with someone in it.
"What the?" Ray said as he looked at the female who was in the pod.
"As they say. Seeing is believing." Ozpin said, as he stepped aside to allow the quartet a better view.
"Is?" Angel started, before Ozpin nodded. "The current Fall maiden. Amber."
The four children started to stand around the pod, shivering.
"Her power is enormous. How did she ended up here?" Asked Nova as she looked at the cuts and burns of the girl in the pod, dressed only in a white tube-top and a white skirt. Ray nodded, as he felt the power of Amber moving through his own body, searching for something.
"We don't know. All we know is that she was attacked, and for the first time ever, part of her power was stolen." Said Glynda Goodwitch as she held her hand on Nova's shoulder. While impersonating someone else, Nova Heart was still her daughter, Ginny Goodwitch.
Ray took a deep breath and placed his hand on the pod, over Amber's face. "She's still alive?" Ray asked as he looked Ozpin in the eyes. Ozpin nodded, placing his own hand on Ray's shoulder.
"For the moment. We're using state of the art technology from Atlas to keep her that way. But sooner or later, the Fall Maiden will die. We can only delay that event. And when she dies, we don't know what will happen with the power that is still within her."
"What do you want us to do?" Ray asked as he looked at his father/headmaster.
Ozpin sighed. "I want to ask you four to join me, Glynda, Qrow, Ironwood and the two other headmasters of the other academies. To join us to become a protector of the world."
Ray looked at Ozpin. Then he looked at Angel, Vixen and Nova. They all looked back at him, a certain type of look in their eyes. Ray had the same type of look. Ray nodded.
"We accept your request, and will stand in the line of defense for Remnant." Ray said as he crossed his arms and nodded. Nova, Vixen and Angel all crossed their arms to and nodded.
"We accept you with open arms in our group." said Ozpin as he held his arms apart. "may Remnant sleep peacefully under our care."
With the little ceremony over, and accepted into the group, Glynda Goodwitch brought the four students to the elevator to return them to the ballroom, where they would sleep with the other hopeful initiates. Ozpin stayed behind, as he looked at the Fall Maiden in her pod.
Clicking sounds were heard throughout the now mostly empty hall. "So you couldn't resist" Ozpin said as he kept staring at the pod, where the Fall Maiden was laying, kept alive by advanced technology.
"You know that to well." A female voice said. "Do you think that those four will bring a difference to the most possible outcome?"
"What I have seen, and what they create, is two different paths. We must believe that they, with their future knowledge, will create a better future than that is now waiting for us."
"But they are children. To young to be at Beacon. Nobody will take them serious." Said the woman again. Ozpin turned around to look straight in the eyes of the woman, who had covered her whole face with a mask. A mask that looked like the bone plates of a Nevermore.
"And that, is why they will succeed. Because nobody can believe that a group of children, fifteen years old, can hold their own with Huntresses and Huntsmen in training.
I believe that they hold the future of Remnant in their hands. And I will guide them to the best of my ability."
"Just make sure that they can fight Cinder and her followers. Even when my brother is at Beacon, they must be alert. Make sure that Qrow's arrival isn't noticed by the intruders."
With that message, the masked woman turned away, swung her large single sword and created a black and red portal where she walked through. The portal vanished without a trace.
"Just as charming as ever. Don't worry Raven. Your secret will be safe with me." Ozpin said to the empty hall.
As Ozpin nodded to the Fall Maiden in the pod, he started to walk towards the elevator. Pressing the button to bring him to his office, Ozpin watched the doors closing.
Shaking himself for a moment to remove the feeling of frost around him, Ozpin started to think.
'What could have possible happened to bring the Winter Maiden out of hiding?'
(A/N)
Hello Everyone.
Hope you enjoyed the second chapter of Harry Ozpin, Vale's Finest.
Please, Read, Follow, Favorite and review.