Chapter 23: Information

He was running again; it had become his life. He thought back to earlier that day: That weird girl, what was her name? Penny! He had run into her and she wouldn't let him leave. As he had the thought, he felt himself hit something.

"Oof" He said as he crashed to the ground in a puff of purple smoke.

"I have been waiting for you." A childlike voice whispered beside him.

As he turned to face the voice he caught another cloud of purple smoke in the face.

"Who are you?" He called out in fright.

"I am someone who is more powerful than you, but have taken favor on you."

"What is that supposed to mean?" He continued to whip his head back and forth, trying to get a good look at his assailent.

"You will help me do something that I have been trying to do for a long, long time." The mysterious voice replied, slowly moving away.

He found himself following it as if in a daze. He didn't know how long he walked, but he eventually came upon a group of warehouses. Some seemed destroyed, but a couple were still intact. The voice led him into one of the few still standing.

"This is where it all begins." The voice suddenly appeared behind him and he spun around.

The owner of this voice turned out to be a small girl in a black combat suit festooned with purple smoke grenades. She had a black and purple toboggan on and purple leggings showing from under the combat suit. He thought that she had gone for too much black and purple.

"Done looking?" The girl asked with a smile that looked more like a snarl.

He brought his eyes up to the very young face and replied.

"Who exactly are you?"

"My name… is Vayla. I have plans for you."

"Aren't you a little-?" He started, before feeling a sharp pain in the back of his leg.

"I will forget that you ever mentioned it." Vayla turned and slipped through the door leading into one of the warehouses.

He got up slowly and limped inside behind her. Nothing could have prepared him for what he saw next. There were three bloody and beaten objects hanging by chains from the roof. With a start he realized that the "objects" were human. As he watched, one of them turned its head and whispered something.

"Help." The man said before giving into the solace of unconsciousness.

"I CAN'T WAIT!" Ruby was running ahead of her girlfriend, apparently really excited to get to Combat Training.

"Why is that Ruby?" Weiss replied, having to speed up just to keep a conversation going.

"BECAUSE GOODWITCH IS ANNOUNCING WHAT YEAR AND TEAM SIZE THE TOURNAMENT IS GOING TO HAVE!"

Weiss pondered this for a second, before speeding up again to walk beside Ruby.

"I guess that is a big deal."

They entered the auditorium and saw every student in the school sitting in there.

"I hope those are our last arrivals, because we need to start soon." Goodwitch sighed, knowing full well that there were at least two people who would be after Ruby and Weiss.

The doors barged open a minute later and admitted Krystal and Colton into the auditorium.

"Right on time." Goodwitch muttered as the two took their seats and looked attentively at her. "All right class, as you know, the Vytal Festival is going on right now and the tournament is only a few days away. The team size has already been decided, and teams of four will compete. It is traditional that there is only one year competing. It is Vale's turn to draw a random year and Beacon was chosen to do it. Without further ado, let's begin."

Goodwitch reached down into the glass ball with all the slips of paper and moved them around.

"Why are there so many?" Krystal asked out loud.

"Some of them have the same writing." Colton whispered to her.

Goodwitch pulled out a slip and opened it.

"First year students."

The sound of complaints filled the room and drowned out the cheers of the teams that were competing.

"Congratulations, there will be a dance for all first year students tonight. You will register for the tournament tonight at the dance. Remember, only eight teams can register and it will be a first come, first serve situation, so tell me as early as possible." Goodwitch walked off the stage.

"I'm really glad we're competing this year." Aurora said.

"I agree, I think it's going to be interesting." Sun replied, opening the door to their room.

"I wonder who all will sign up."

"Let's see, us, RWBY, JNPR, BOLT. I'm sure there will be others."

"What about CRDL?"

"I'm sure they will sign up too."

They finally stepped into their room and were greeted by a sight of wreckage.

"I really wish Colton and Krystal would clean up after themselves." Aurora said, picking up a bedsheet that had been thrown across the room.

"So do I."

Aurora looked around the room a little longer and finally walked out with a huff. Sun followed her out and they made their way to the library. Sun walked to the desk and laid a book on the counter while Aurora wandered through the shelves aimlessly.

"Find anything?" Sun asked as he walked over.

"Nothing really." She replied, but then her eyes lit up and she hurried to a book that had caught her eye.

"Slow down, there's no ru-" Sun started, before seeing the book Aurora had picked up.

"'Thus Kindly I Scatter', looks interesting." She flipped through the pages and went towards the front.

"I remember that book."

"How so?"

"It was the first book I ever checked out in a library."

"Really?"

"Yeah, it was that exact copy as well."

"Wow." She looked at the book in awe.

Aurora had come to look up to Sun, ever since he had comforted her that first day. They had become best friends, but Aurora thought something more.

"Sun?" She asked, rapidly trying to think of a way to tell him what she felt.

"Yes Aurora?"

"I just wanted to say, I-" Aurora was interrupted by the crash of the door opening.

"Yang, calm down." Blake whispered as she led her girlfriend towards the shelves.

"But I don't want to." Yang pouted.

Blake rolled her eyes and her gaze fell on Sun.

"Hello Sun. Hey Aurora." She said.

They both turned their gaze over and nodded, before moving to check out.

"Sun and Aurora are here? Where?" Yang asked.

"Over there, be quiet."

"They look like we came in the middle of something." Yang's perceptive eyes never missed anything, at least she had quieted enough for Sun and Aurora not to hear her.

"Maybe, just don't worry about it. There will be plenty of time at the dance tonight."

"I'm already looking at you."

Blake shot her a venomous look and grabbed a couple books before strolling to the counter.

"These two, please."

The librarian scanned them and handed them back.

"Enjoy!"

Sun was confused. Aurora had been about to tell him something, but she seemed to lose the courage to after Blake and Yang arrived. He had a feeling what she wanted to say, and he wished she would say it. There was the dance happening tonight, he would tell her what he felt then, he loved her.

Aurora was furious. She had been about to tell Sun the one thing she had been trying to tell him for a while. Blake and Yang had ruined everything, or had they? Aurora remembered what Goodwitch had said about the dance tonight. What time would be better to confess your love for somebody? Suddenly Aurora couldn't wait for tonight, it would be her night to shine.

"YOU SAID WE WOULD GO TO THE AMUSEMENT PARK!"

"I am aware that I said that."

"YOU PROMISED ME!"

"I know, but you do remember why we weren't able to go right?"

"NOTHING IS MORE IMPORTANT THAN AMUSEMENT PARKS!"

"Do you remember when we saved Weiss, one week ago?"

"I NEV- wait, yes I do remember that."

"That was the reason we didn't go to the Amusement Park."

"Oh."

"But look on the bright side."

"There's always a bright side."

"The dance is tonight, and I want to ask you something."

"What is it?"

"Do you want to go to the dance with me?"

"Wrong way again Krystal." Colton rolled his eyes and started off in the correct direction to their rooms.

"Life is a constant test, that's what I'm trying to prove to you." Krystal replied, catching up with him.

"What test are you trying to get me to beat?"

"I'm testing your ability to know when I'm going the wrong direction."

"It's not hard, I just have to see which direction you are going, then go in another one."

"You're no fun." Krystal pouted as they approached their door.

"That may be true, but at least I can get where I need to go without the help of someone else." Colton shot her a meaningful look and stepped inside.

The room was a disaster, but they both took it as a sign of previous happiness.

"Looks like we have some cleaning to do." Colton glanced at Krystal and picked up a pillow that had been slung across the room.

"I guess so." She replied, philosophically accepting her fate and picking up some sheets.

They finished quickly, leaving them with nothing to do for the next few hours before the dance. As soon as Goodwitch had mentioned the dance, they had both looked at each other and nodded, both excited at the prospect of going together.

"I'm bored." Krystal complained.

"We've been done for a total of seven seconds, and you're bored?"

"Yes."

"Well, do you want to go find something to do?"

"Sure."

They walked out the door and immediately ran into Ruby and Weiss, who were on their way to one of the numerous training rooms to spar against each other.

"Do you want to come along?" Ruby asked, seeming to bounce up and down with energy.

"I'm fine with it, you?" Colton asked Krystal.

"Let's go." She replied.

With that, the four started on their way together to train.

Author's Note:
If you have any questions, check my profile or PM me. Thank you all for reading and if you enjoyed, don't forget to follow, favorite, and review. Chas1881