SamG17 ´B-13:Oh I will…* laughs evilly* I will!
Dragonslasher20: Just a tiny bit, my friend. Just a small…tiny little…bit.
ONYX DATABASE VERIFICATION REQUEST. LEVEL 1 SECURITY REQUESTED
ACCES REQUEST: █████
Item: P. Nikos
Threat level: medium
Description: a typical "prodigy", Nikos hailed from the Kingdom of Mistral, where she graduated with optimal grades and a highly-diverse skillset. As evidenced by her four victories at the Mistral Regional Tournament, Nikos is a highly capable warrior when focused. Nikos has displayed below-average skills at social interaction, with a very high probability of isolation in Beacon Academy.
14:34 Beacon Dormitories
Pyrrha sat back in a small chair, watching the interaction in her new team. She had to admit that she was very content with the individuals around her; Ren was a calm and easy-going person, Nora was a genuine nice girl and Jaune…Jaune had not known who she was.
She didn't know what to do with that. It was the first time she had ever encountered anyone who hadn't known her name. Even Weiss Schnee, arguably the most famous person in Vale, knew who she was. It had greatly influenced her decision and desire to be partnered with her…unlike Jaune, who had just wanted to be in the same team as her for unimportant factors. It had been such a long time since anyone had treated her like just another person…like just an equal. It had been refreshing and invigorating.
At the moment, she could enjoy the calmness of a balanced team. Nora was watching a series on the small television that hung in the corner, while Ren was reading a book.
"So, where are all of you from?" Jaune asked after a while.
"The Mistral Kingdom," answered Pyrrha. "I went to Sanctum there."
"Vale," both Ren as Nora replied.
"You know what I don´t get?" he then asked. "If the Kingdoms are supposed to be isolated, how come the Pumpkin Pete's cornflakes are exported to Vale? Aren't they fabricated in Mistral?"
"We don't communicate with the other Kingdoms," Pyrrha clarified with a smile. "And that only concerns important political decisions. Export…import…travel, it's all still there."
"Oh. I knew that…sort of."
"Didn't you go to other Kingdoms for a vacation?" She asked, feeling surprised.
"No, not really. Back home, we often went to different cities, but we almost never left Vale. Civilian ships needing escorts and all that."
"But why-"
Nora interrupted her with a loud exclamation and Pyrrha fell quiet.
"Oh, look!"
She raised the volume of the television, where an emergency newscast had interrupted her show.
"-for a special newsflash. A small yet intense firefight has erupted around warehouse six of the commercial district in the city of Vale, best known for being the cause of several shady misconceptions concerning its activities. The reason for this firefight has yet to be determined, though the Police Department does its best to ensure everybody that there is no need to panic for/`
"Boring," Nora said, switching the channel again.
"What is 'Warehouse six'?" asked Jaune.
Pyrrha looked at him, once again surprised by his unorthodox amount of knowledge regarding things she regarded as normal. "Don't you know, Jaune? It is one of the best known warehouses along the borders of the commercial district, in the city of Vale?"
"Doesn't ring a bell."
"Did you…even look up any information regarding Vale in all the years you've lived here?" asked Ren.
"Not really."
Ren sighed and Nora merely giggled at Jaune's ignorance. It wasn't a funny situation, but the mere fact that the blonde didn't know anything about the place he was supposed to be residing in for four consequent years actually inspired some amusement in his team-mates.
It inspired concern in Pyrrha, though. The boy was seemingly untrained, uneducated and lacking a main bulk of information which could be deemed general knowledge. Perhaps it was just a coincidence or something…nobody could enter Beacon without having gone through at least ONE form of combat training. There was nothing to worry about…he was just being a bit naïve. And that was one of his better qualities, too.
"What is it known for?" he then asked. The two childhood friends looked at each other and Nora made a sound which could only be described as 'eesh!', while Ren merely muttered something about it being general knowledge.
"Well?" Pyrrha said, realizing that Jaune wasn't the only one who might be lacking certain information. "What is the Warehouse known for?"
"For being the cause of several shady misconceptions?" Nora tried, seemingly oblivious of the fact that her answer very closely resembled the previous newscast. Ren sighed and planted his hand on his face, giving up altogether.
"Very good…" Pyrrha replied, feeling a smug expression coming up. "Did you even look up information regarding Vale?"
"I get the message…" The boy replied and looked out the window.
"But now I am curious!" Nora yelled. "What is that thingy known for? Tell me please?"
Well…attracting her attention to that degree hadn't been her intention…still; she might be able to teach her team something. "The Warehouse…" She started, "is indeed known for several shady rumors. But not misconceptions; there is nothing misunderstood about the things that are being told about Six. I have heard some pretty accurate descriptions and I can honestly say that I find them to be true."
"But what are they?" Insisted Jaune. "What is said about that place?"
Pyrrha raised one eyebrow at her leader's newfound interest, but continued nonetheless. "People say that the term 'Warehouse' is merely a cover-up for what is really going on…which would be criminal activities."
"Crimes?" Ren said, his interest piqued.
"Yes. While the main bulk of Vale wants its citizens to believe that there is nothing to worry about concerning the commercial district, the main usage for that Warehouse is in fact completely unrelated to any form of business. It is occupied by criminals…savages and murderers."
Jaune whistled. "How can a group of criminals reside in a place like Vale? Doesn't the Police Department take any action?"
"No…" She sighed. "The people using that facility have…diplomatic immunity."
"Meaning?"
"Meaning that they can do everything they want and still not be punished for it. They are…above the law…according to the officials."
"But that is stupid!" Nora yelled. "If they are bad then they should be punished! Nobody is above the law!"
"I know!" Pyrrha calmly replied. She had not meant to get this deep into the subject, but her team needed to know about this one. "It does not make sence, but there is nothing we can do about it. If someone down there attacked Warehouse Six' occupants, he or she is in major trouble."
"Criminals won't let something like that slide…" Ren said.
"But we don't know for sure, right? I mean, they could have also been attacking each other right?"
"No." She replied. "They are too organized for that. And seeing as the Warehouse is sometimes used as a safehouse for some of the higher-ups in the district, there is little to no chance of criminals attacking each other. No, this was something else."
Nora was practically hanging at her lips, with giant eyes and her hands folded together.
"How do you know this!" She whispered – something which was very uncommon for the girl, seeing as she was the living embodiment of not-too-subtle.
"Well…" Pyrrha began. She wasn't eager to share the source of her knowledge so soon. "It can practically be concluded from merely watching the city. Try it sometimes?"
They were not buying her story, she realized. If Jaune were to ask something now, that would be very good timing-
"But we are students at Beacon! Surely those people won't dare to hurt us…right?"
"Wrong." Ren said and turned his attention to the all-too-interesting window. "Those people think they can do everything…that's diplomatic immunity for you. We have immunity to a certain degree, but it will cost Ozpin a lot of paperwork, I'll bet."
"But…I…" Jaune muttered.
"Oh don't worry!" Pyrrha quickly said, glad that the boy had managed to shift the attention away from her. "You won't have to face them for at least another two years."
"Yeah…" He replied. "No worries…"
"Oh look!" Nora screamed and grabbed the remote to the small television. "It is a cooking show!"
And then the room fell into a silent slumber, occasionally disturbed by the Valkyrie's giggles and small exclamations of "go food!"
Warehouse Six, 14:48
"What is going on?" Weiss yelled as yet another Police car raced past her. "What is happening!"
"People are shooting at each other again…" Blake muttered and crossed her arms. "And here I was thinking this would be a pleasant day…"
"Don't worry about one thing!" Ruby replied. "It is investigation time!"
"Are you serious?" her big sister asked, obviously surprised by her statement.
"Very serious!"
"But you can't be for real!" complained Weiss. "There are policemen investigating there! People have been shot; we can't just barge in there."
"Well…we ARE huntresses from Beacon Academy…I mean, we can help them right?"
"Uh…right?" Yang said and ran a hand through her hair. "But we don't even know what is going on, how can we help?"
"By finding out exactly WHAT is going on!" She cheerfully said and used her crescent rose to slice the large lock on the gate off. "Let's go!"
"Ruby! Wait up!" Weiss shouted, hastily following her. "You can't just barge in there! It might be dangerous!"
So cute, she thought, the little Heiress is worried. Ruby folded her weapon back when she was moving through the yard and briefly wondered why a simple warehouse –as people would like everyone to believe- was so extensively guarded by fences and armed people. What could possibly be so important?
"Hey sis, I think that the cops won't like it when we barge in here!" Yang yelled after her.
"Won't take long!" She shot back and smiled with satisfaction when the rest of her team followed her in, despite of their concerns.
There were bullet holes everywhere. The walls of the old building had been completely perforated and there was barely a window left that wasn't completely shattered. A bit further down the terrain, she could spot two police-cars parked next to each other. What had happened?
Increasing her speed, the redheaded girl ran towards the officers investigating the situation. If they had parked their cars there, they would have found something that interested them. And that meant a difference when compared to the usual patterns. But what had they seen?
There were at least five agents moving around the place; issuing orders, asking questions and investigating possible leads. Two of them were questioning several dark-clothed persons who didn't seem like the honest kind of people.
"And what happened after that?" The first cop asked his subject.
"We ran inside to check what was happening," the probable criminal replied with a heavy voice, "but by the time we could enter the building we had already discovered three of our friends…downed. One of them was dead and the two remaining ones had just been dumped on top of him…like a sack of potatoes."
Weird comparison… Ruby thought and moved past the two questioning officers. She could recognize some of the 'victims'; they were the gatekeepers who had wanted to keep them out.
"Halt!" Someone yelled and immediately three policemen ran up to her; two were holding handcuffs and the other one had pulled out a stun-baton.
"Wait!" She said and showed them her hands. "I'm not here for trouble, I just want to help!"
"We don't need help from a child, now scram!" The first one said. "Before we throw you out of here. This is a crime-scene!"
"I can see that…" She muttered. The rest of team RWBY ran up to join her and the three cops didn't seem to like it very much.
"What in the-" one started, but Ruby was faster.
"We are students from Beacon Academy; we are here to help." She said.
"Beacon?" One of the men said. "Oh crap, that is where the Professor is from!"
"He is?" his companion with the baton replied. "Is that true? Beacon? In that case we need to let them go."
"Alright girls!" One of the officers said as he pulled out a cigar. "You are free to investigate, but don't touch anything!"
"Yes sir…" Blake muttered and Weiss sighed.
"Deal." Ruby said and crossed her arms. Watching the agents move away, Ruby felt a sense of relief flooding her stomach. She had been right; the first decision she had made hadn't ended in failure and now she could take a proper look around. This Warehouse had been the subject of some pretty nasty rumors for quite a while now.
"So what now?" Yang said.
"Okay!" A male's voice suddenly said, causing the girls to jump with surprise. "Let me bring you up to speed! Couple of minutes ago, somebody triggered the alarm in this place. After we received the message, they started shooting! We have found at least twenty dead inside and six more outside. They have all been killed by headshots …" The officer brought his face closer to Ruby's until he had effectively breached her area of personal space. He only stopped when his head –adorned with black sunglasses- was hovering a mere two centimeters away from hers- "By gunfire…"
He spoke those last two sentences very slowly, like he was thinking about complicated philosophical matters.
"Ehm…thanks?" Ruby said, not knowing exactly how to respond to this unwanted form of attention. The cop simply turned around and walked away, leaving the four girls behind in confusion.
"Well…that was useful." Yang said and took the lead. "So twenty-six dead…I guess that there are several wounded as well. So why would anyone want to shoot up a warehouse?"
"So many people…" It was just plain wrong for so much lives to be lost in the middle of the day. How could something like that have possibly happened? Who would want to murder all these people…unless… "No idea." She replied and gave it some thought. Gunfire…gates and armed guards…alarm…many bullet holes…
Why were there so many bullet holes in the walls and windows wen all the dead had been killed with headshots? That spoke of an uncanny marksmanship…so why the stray fire? Had someone been fighting back…the armed guards had been fighting back! Why were they armed in the first place?
"Something is wrong here…" She said and looked around. Most of the cops had serious or solemn expressions on their faces, meaning that this wasn't just some everyday shooting. Mourning the dead or disturbed by crime-scene?
"What did they store here?" Weiss said.
Unknown cargo…armed guards…fence…important events for Police officers…
"I need to see one of the survivors!" She said and ran off again. Ignoring the cries of protest from her team-mates, she searched the area until she could see one of the still living men sitting against a car with a blanket around his shoulders.
She noticed how this one too looked like the goonies that Torchwick guy had brought with him.
"What do you want?" He bit at her. Aggressive responds indicates non-traumatic experiences…severe sense of anger due to guilt or feelings of failure…
"I just wanted to ask you something," she kindly told him. "Did you see who did this?"
"Why would you –forget it, doesn't matter. No, I did not."
"Why would anyone want to attack this place?"
The man averted his eyes. "I dunno."
Oh, he was lying. "Do you think you were attacked by criminals?"
"What the –beat it, kid!"
Ruby had everything she wanted to know. She thanked the man for his time and then regrouped with her confused teammates, thinking about what might have happened.
"What was that about?" snapped Weiss. "Making small-talk?"
"No. I think that this place was occupied by criminals."
"Ehm…what makes you think that?" asked Yang.
"Because he was lying to me about unimportant things, that's why. Besides; rumors, remember?"
Weiss groaned in frustration. "Why does that even matter?"
"Because criminals shouldn't be occupying a Warehouse." Blake replied instead. The four of them were now making their way back to the less disturbed part of the district, where they could talk without the risk of being disturbed.
"But if that's true…why did the police come running? Yeah, I know they are supposed to protect everyone," she quickly added when she saw Ruby's glare, "but they aren't bringing enough men to arrest anyone…do you think they don't know these people are criminals?"
"This is all crazy-talk!" Weiss yelled. "Just because you played some stupid game with a horribly confused and probably traumatized man doesn't mean that everyone here is a criminal!"
"It doesn't?" The redhead replied, confusion dripping into her voice. "I thought I was pretty clear?"
"Criminals or not, their deaths were still wrong." Blake quietly stated.
She was right. Even if they were criminals, nobody deserved to be killed just like that.
"So…" Weiss said and crossed her arms. Then she sighed and stared at her feet. "How…exactly…did you know he was lying? Is that another one of your tricks?"
Ruby smiled and turned towards the Schnee Heiress, feeling glad that she wasn't too angry with her to be curious. "Not a trick, Weiss. I just pay attention to little details. Important details. I still need to work on it and I don't do it a lot…but I think I can help people that way."
"Speaking about help," Yang suddenly said, "I'm starving. Let's get back to Beacon and grab some dinner."
That was a spontaneous change of thoughts that Ruby could appreciate.
14:45, Beacon Dormitories.
"I am hungry."
"Dinner is in fifteen minutes, just have patience."
Ever since the room had been properly decorated, time had been a major issue for team LACG. Not only because they had too much of it; they simply didn't know what to do with the large amounts available. It was the very first time that all the teams would be together to dine in the main dining hall and waiting for the remaining fifteen minutes to silently pass was just plain awful. "Can't we just move out and find the hall now instead of potentially getting lost?"
"You already took Grace to find the dining hall." Cho notified her. Damnit! She had forgotten about that; somewhere around fifteen minutes ago she had asked her friend to accompany her scouting the school and finding the hall where they would all have to go.
"Just be patient girl, it'll go fine eventually," Said Grace. "I don't know why you are getting so worked up; we're only going to meet the other teams. What's so special about that?"
"I'm not nervous or anything…" She sighed and tried to find the correct words. "It's just that I don't really know what is lying ahead. It's always such a big surprise when it comes to meeting other people, you know?"
"Well…" The demolitions expert started, "…I guess that is the charm about meeting new people: you never know what you get." Then the brown-haired girl turned towards the fourth member on their team; the female known as Alessa. "What do you think?"
The girl shrugged, much to Lisa' annoyance. "You can give a normal answer, you know?" She angrily said, hoping that her silent team-mate would indulge herself in at least some form of social interaction.
But alas; she remained silent and the blonde concluded that it would be useless to force her to speak.
"She'll come around." Grace merely said and lay back on her bed. "What do you make out of the dress code here?" She then asked. Was that aimed at everyone in their room in general, or specifically at her?
"I have to wear a tie." Cho replied, confirming her suspicious about the whole-room thing.
"And also some other clothes…" She said and unconsciously plucked at her brown vest. "It is very stupid: who wears these kinds of clothes anyway? Cho looks like a monkey in a club and these skirts don't make any kind of sense at all."
"It's Jason. And monkeys don't appear in clubs." The boy replied and started to search the desk next to his bed.
"Well, Ozpin saw fit to call our team LACG…as in Lisa, Alessa, Cho and Grace. I think it is safe to say that you have effectively been named Cho now," Her childhood friend said with a faint smug. "But I do know one thing about this attire: I can't wait to blow something up and feel the breeze under my clothes. These don't…ventilate enough."
That managed to create a smile on her face. "Yeah, you and virtually every single boy on Beacon! Did you not notice just how SHORT these skirts are?" If someone sneezed to close to you, the consequences would be quite dramatic."
"Did not think of it that way…" Miss Auburn thoughtfully said and then waved with her hand. "Nah, no worries. We'll see it when we get there."
And then the four members of team LACG silently continued their musings, until a sudden fountain of blue sparks caught their attention and the might-be-cop gave a startled cry of pain and quickly jumped up, holding a smoking hand. He grumbled and shook his wounded hand through the air, muttering several cursed under his breath
Lisa and Grace took a few seconds to take the image in, looked at each other and promptly burst into laughter. The girls fell on their individual beds and simply stayed there, unable to do anything else but laugh at the sheer stupidity of the Cho electrocuting himself with his own gear.
"Oh ha-ha!" He bit at them and clutched his hand.
Much to everyone's surprise, however, Auburn and Adamant weren't the only ones laughing at the male's predicament. Alessa was also giggling at him –even though she wasn't nearly as elated as her team-mates were, she still appeared amused by the sight. It didn't really occur to Cho though; he stayed in a foul mood for the several minutes that they waited for the clock to turn 15:00. Alessa hadn't given off any other signs of life since her 'outburst' of gigglity and neither had the girls attempted to communicate with her again. Eventually –actually completely timed- the clock hit three o'clock and all four of them jumped up from their occupations.
"Dinner time!"
"Socialize time!"
She and Grace simultaneously yelled their individual times and then looked at each other with a hint of confusion.
"Just move already…" The now left-handed boy sighed. "And get it over with."
Beacon dining hall, 15:02 hours
"I told you that we could make it!" Yang gleefully yelled, ignoring the sudden yelp of surprise that Weiss gave at her loud voice. "It is three o'clock and we made it to the dining hall!"
"Yes…" Her little sister panted. "Need…air…now…"
"We're not the first ones here." Blake said and subtly gestured at the four males sitting at a long table in the upmost left corner.
"That's team…CRDL, right?" Weiss said, looking equally exhausted as the redhead.
"That's them, in all their idiotic nonexistent glory!" Yang replied and shot an angry glare at the four guys. They didn't see her do that however, as they were all too busy with stuffing their faces with various forms of food, which all in all didn't seem like such a bad idea. "So what kind of food does this place serve anyway?" She mused while her little sister was looking for a proper place to sit. "I mean, it is still a few hours from dinner. So that means simple things like coffee and cake, or am I mistaken?"
"I wouldn't know…" Ruby whined. "I just want to eat…"
Why was she so tired? It had been HER idea to run the remaining distance to beacon in order to get back in time for lunch.
Yang quickly searched around and spotted a long line in the west part of the room, located below some windows. Multiple people were busy serving food on platters and she could already see four other people moving towards them.
"Hey! That's JNPR!" She said and considered waving at them. But she stopped herself from doing so when she remembered that her little sister was probably dying of sugar-deficiency. So instead of attracting their attention, Yang decided to simply walk over to them and retrieve some sustenance for the poor girl.
"Where are you going?" Blake asked her, but she simply ignored her and focused on the objective lying ahead.
When she was close enough for the friendly group to notice her, they all turned to face her and Jaune nervously waved at her.
"Hello Yang!" Pyrrha said. "It is good to see your team here too."
Well of course it is, she thought, we're nice people. "Nice to see you too!" She replied in earnest and subtly moved past their ranks in the line. "I take it you didn't encounter any drama with decorating the dorms?"
"Not at all!" Jaune replied and gestured with his hand, as if to wave her remark away. "My team is perfectly capable of decorating their room. They are independent like that."
"Uh-huh…" She muttered and looked over her shoulder, where Ruby had just slipped into a cookie-demanding coma and landed with her red-haired little head on Weiss' hand. The resulting chaos nearly caused Blake to fall from her chair, only to be saved by a strategically placed table behind her.
"I wonder what that feels like…" She replied and completed her overtaking maneuver. Now standing directly in front of team JNPR, she quickly ordered several cupcakes and a large cup of sugar with coffee, just like her sister liked best. "It was nice talking with you!" She smiled at them before taking her leave, moving back to team RWBY with the dinner-plate in her hands.
"And you never watch out where you place your limbs!" Weiss was just telling Ruby. Her scolding the redheaded girl was always a bit hard to watch, considering Yang's protective nature towards anyone she cared for –especially her little sister. But the way that the Schnee Heiress used to perform her little lesson was actually quite humorous.
Nobody watches out where they place their limbs. She set the platter down on the table and kicked back with a muffin. 'The mere scent of the provided sugar-rich prey was enough to enact a response from the nearly-sleeping-girl and she groggily opened one eye. It sighted in on the cupcakes lying on the platter and Yang could have sworn that the pupil dilated in response to the appearance of said food.
The next thing team RWBY knew, was Ruby savagely consuming the served cupcakes with a speed that could put a feeding Beowolf to shame. Within four seconds she had completely processed the collection of cupcakes that had been placed for her and then she started on her sugar with coffee.
It wasn't exactly the way that Yang liked her coffee –five pieces of sugar in one cup of coffee was WAY too sweet to her likings- but nothing refreshed the young Rose as much as her daily coffee.
When she was done, she unleashed a loud "aaah!" and knocked the cup down on the table. "That's better. Now, we need to-"
She was interrupted when both Weiss' and Yang's stomachs violently started to rumble.
"-wait until everyone is done with dinner…" She then muttered and her raised hand slowly dropped to the table. "Help yourselves girls!" She said and grabbed her plate.
Yang smiled at the innocence of her team-leader and was just about to walk back to the canteen-people to pick up some food for herself, when she noticed another team entering the room. She quickly identified them as team LACG and tried to remember the individual names of the members. There was the boy with the either serious or severely bored expression…the blonde girl with the camo pants and knee-guards…the girl with long hair and the blindfold…and the girl with pieces of armour strapped to her chest and shoulders. Technically they were wearing none of their signifying combat clothes right now. They too had been forced to change their appearance to adhere to Beacon's dress-code.
Now that Yang came to think about it, both team JNPR as team CRDL was wearing their uniforms. Perhaps they simply did so because they felt comfortable in them?
As team LACG walked past the table where RWBY was seated, the blonde started to feel an uncomfortable feeling in her gut. Why are they already wearing their uniforms? Did we miss something?
Fine. They had come to the dining hall to socialize and that was EXACTLY what she was going to do. "Hey, I got a question," she said, succeeding in attracting the attention of the four students.
"Good for you?" The girl who was supposed to be their leader said.
" I was wondering why you are wearing your school-uniforms already. The classes don't start until tomorrow, right?"
"That's true…" The brown-haired girl said.
"Our leader found it necessary to make us get used to the clothing." The boy replied without changing his expression as much as an inch. What was with guys and their emotionless stares?
"Indeed!" Miss leader said and proudly crossed her arms. That was actually a rather well-thought idea…if team RWBY were to walk around in a specific dress code then they might as well get used to it from the beginning.
"So you are actually wearing your uniforms prematurely?"
"Yes."
"Oh, well thanks. It sounds like a good idea I guess…" With that, Yang excused herself and made her way to the line-up where Weiss, Blake and Ruby were standing.
"Hey girls?" She said to her team-mates, while simultaneously checking the various assortments of available food. "I think that we might have missed something –"
"The fact that everyone seems to be wearing their uniforms already?" Ruby interrupted her. "Yeah, probably because they either wanted to feel what it felt like or because they mixed the timing up? Seeing as there are two teams wearing it, I can say that at least one of the teams wishes for the outfits to be worn merely because it will help them get used to it."
"Yeah…" She replied, not really knowing what else to say. There went her entire line of thought down the drain. "I was just wondering if you wanted to do something similar."
Blake and Weiss stopped moving at that sentence and were stuck gazing intricately at their food. Yang could have sworn that they had even stopped breathing to hear what was about to come.
"Well…" Ruby said, smiling faintly to signify that she was perfectly aware of her team-mates sudden interest in the mashed potatoes. "I haven't yet considered that…I thought that our team was very capable of getting used to the new dressing code. But you know, food for thought."
"Are you serious?" she replied, hoping that Ruby was just joking around. " You seriously don't consider letting us walk around in those silly little costumes anytime sooner than we need to, right?"
"I actually find them to be pretty cute!" Her sister replied. "But no, only when we need to go to the classes."
That was a big relief to her. And –if she was seeing it correctly- it was also a relief to the rest of the team.
"So no dress code until it is time?" Blake carefully asked.
"Nope!" Ruby responded cheerfully and filled her platter with another half dozen cupcakes.
The rest of team RWBY then proceeded to fill their individual plates with drinks and food, before returning to their table. Once they had seated themselves there, the dinner hall was slowly getting to life. Teams JNPR, CRDL and LACG were all chatting and eating and laughing, but none of the teams were actually communicating with each other. That needed to change, Yang decided.
"So!" The plotting girl said and turned around to face the four students sitting on the table next to them. "I haven't seen you guys since the Initiation! Did you manage to work things out during the decoration of your dorm-room?"
The four members of team LACG were virtually strangers to her; she might as well get started on them! It was technically not her place to initiate contact with another team, but seeing as they already sort of knew Jaune's team and Cardin Winchester's team seemed very unattractive to her; the only other team left to socialize with was that team.
"That depends on the official meaning of 'work things out'," said the blonde girl. What was her name again? Lisbeth? Lissete? Something like that… "There's not exactly enough room for four people worth of stuff, you know?"
"Depends on who does the 'rooming'. " Her male team-mate added.
"What is that supposed to mean?"
"Nothing."
It would seem that Ruby and Weiss weren't the only ones to keep on quarrying about.
"What about you then?" The other girl said, the one without the blindfold. "I heard that you ran into some trouble concerning a professor here?" At the mention of the professor the team-leader nervously shifted. Yang chose to ignore that, but she knew that Ruby would have picked up on it. "But where are our manners?" She then said. "We haven't even been properly introduced! My name is Grace…that there is Alessa-" the blindfolded girl raised a hand in her general direction- "This is Cho-"
"Jason." The male corrected her.
"-right, Jason…and this is our team-leader, Lisa."
"Sup?"
"How come we didn't see you guys in the Emerald forest?" Weiss then asked, deciding that she wanted to join the conversation too.
"We were late." The girl known as Lisa replied. "We had a little incident and…it took us a little longer to get to the temple."
"Or what was left of it." Grace grinned and took a sip from a stone mug. "Somebody messed that place up big time."
Ruby smiled and glanced at Weiss, but the pale girl didn't acknowledge her gaze and instead focused on the girl with the blindfold. "Why are you wearing that?" She snapped.
"I don't agree with it; but the tie is merely according to regulations." Cho said, misinterpreting the signal completely.
"I'm not talking to you!" the Schnee angrily stated. The guy looked behind him, spotted his teammate and probably decided that it was her who had attracted the attention and not him.
Alessa didn't reply to her –something which was both very smart and very stupid to do. Smart because she wouldn't say anything that could potentially tick Weiss off more and stupid because she was basically ignoring her.
Lisa looked at her teammate and then at Grace. "It's an inside thing." She replied for the girl and grabbed the sandwich which was lying on her plate.
It occurred to Yang that both Blake and Weiss had connected with the other team, but that her little sister still hadn't said a thing. That needed to change.
Quickly locating where Ruby's shins were supposed to be under the table, she lashed out with her leg and kicked the girl. Meanwhile she pulled her –talk-to-people-now face and confirmed that her sister actually saw it.
"Ouch! I mean…weapons!" She blurted out and then blushed when seven gazes flew her direction. "I mean…I'm curious to…your…weapons…"
Blake sighed and Weiss smacked herself against her forehead.
"Combat information. I can do with that." Cho said matter-of-factly and then turned to face his teamleader. "Intel for Intel?"
What is that supposed to mean, Yang thought.
"What is that supposed to mean?" Lisa said.
The Jason or Cho sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose for a few seconds. "Trading information for information?"
Oh
"Oh. Okay."
Grace snickered and Blake turned towards Yang. "You had to drag us into this didn't you?" She hissed.
"It's a good form of social development for Ruby!" She replied.
"I'll go first." Lisa stated and seemed thoughtful for a moment, probably thinking of the best way to formulate her next few words. "My weapon is the Type-25, a hip-firing rifle with a large blade at its rear. It fires high-explosive rounds which are fed into a small hole at its top; makes for easy reloading."
That actually sounded very cool. "How large is the blade?" Yang asked her.
The girl held her hands about two to three feet apart, causing Ruby to giggle.
"That must be as large as the gun itself!" She squealed happily, no longer looking awkward in the conversation. "How did you position it? Can it move? Where is it attached! Tell me tell me!"
While the blonde and the redhead continued their conversation, Yang merely looked with satisfaction at her little sister's sudden social skills.
"Alright, I'll bite." Blake said. "My weapon is Gambol Shroud. I don't want to go too deep in its design, but let's just say that it is a sword, a gun and a chained combination of the two."
"Chained?" Cho replied. "Metal combination?"
"Elastics, actually." The dark-haired girl said. "It is a highly elastic cord which can extend to long distances."
"Sounds handy. How did you overcome the switchback mechanics?"
"The cord is rolled over a metal frame which is supported in the hill of the sword; much like a roll of duct-tape. Only this design enables it to come right back into the weapon again. Why, having trouble with switchback yourself?"
What were those two talking about?
"Yes." The boy said, still not changing his expression an inch. His short, black hair was just as dark as Blake's was and judging by their manner of speaking, he was interested in the same sort of weapons as she was. It was good to see how team RWBY could get along with both JNPR and LACG without much incident; it would make their education at Beacon way easier.
"What do you use then?" Belladonna asked.
"I use a combination of a dust-fed electric stun-baton and a gauntlet-mounted electric synapse-launcher, close- and medium-range combat respectively."
"A synapse-launcher?" Blake said, suddenly sounding energetic. It looked like her interest was piqued. "Is that where you encounter the mechanics?"
"Yes. Up to now I have used a simple motion-sensitive design, but…" He opened his right hand and showed it to them, revealing some weird-looking scorch marks in the palm. "It has the habit of going off when I want to check on it."
Lisa snickered and Alessa smiled ever so slightly.
"Has that happened this day?" Blake said with a hint of concern. "How much power does it carry?"
While Cho shifted his position to make the conversation a little bit easier for him, Weiss simply kept gazing at the girl wearing a blindfold. It was easy to imagine how it could cause confusion amongst other people, but at least Yang had the decently to not stare at her and wonder in private. Didn't someone teach Weiss that it wasn't nice to stare at people with obvious handicaps?
"Does this mean it is my turn now?" She asked, hoping that she could somehow get the attention away from Alessa and let her eat in peace.
"Guess so." Grace said and emptied her mug. "Shoot."
"Funny way of speaking!" She replied. "Seeing as my weapons are shotgun-gauntlets!"
That got her attention alright. "Come again?"
"Ember Celica; the arm mounted gauntlet which can fire a high-powered shot contained in a shotgun shell. It's pretty wicked."
"You can say that." Grace said and glanced at Weiss for a second. Then she focused her attention on Yang again and placed her hands behind her head in a relaxing gesture. "All the way to your elbow?"
"When it is deployed it covers the area from my elbow to the tips of my fingers."
"That makes for some powerful close-combat techniques right?"
"Right!"
"Cool." The brown-haired girl said and took a bite from a muffin.
"So?" Yang replied, slightly frustrated that her conversational partner was stalling time. Just like Ruby, she was very curious about other weapons. But unlike her, she was also interested in the people who wielded them and the way they acted.
Also unlike her little sister, she was actually gifted in the way of asking for information, capable of forming entire sentences. "I think it is your turn to talk."
"So it is. Very well." She swallowed and moved a few inches closer to Yang. "My choice of weapon is Dragon's Foliage. A person might say that it is a flamethrower capable of reaching a distance up to twelve meters. And that person would be right."
A flamethrower? An actual flamethrower? That was…giving off mixed signals. Usually those kinds of weapons were wielded by mad people or psychopaths –this girl didn't seem like either of those two and she wouldn't have been permitted to Beacon had that been the case. But still…using fire to beat your enemy?
'Don't be a hypocrite, Yang…
Right.
"And when needed to I can deploy it into a melee weapon capable of dispensing sticky bombs."
"Isn't it a dangerous thing to combine explosives with fire? That sounds like a very bad idea to me, honestly."
Lisa and Ruby were done talking and apparently, they had been listening on in them. "I thought the exact same thing long ago, when we started our combat training. But Grace is…special."
"Special?" Ruby asked. "Does she have a sixth sense for fire or something?"
"Not for fire." Cho said, indicating that Blake and he were also finished with their conversation. "I think explosives."
"I don't actually have a sixth sense." The girl clarified and finished her muffin.
"No, she doesn't." Lisa said and smiled. Then she reared forward as if she wanted to tell a terrible secret. "Some say that Grace sold her soul to the devil in order to receive complete mastery over explosives!"
"What!?" Ruby exclaimed and immediately hid behind her big sister. It was an amusing sight for sure, seeing as even Weiss managed to crack a smile.
"I don't…I didn't sell my soul to the devil. I am just a good tinkerer," The brunette calmly said, speaking to Ruby to calm her down.
"Lucky my ass…" Lisa muttered. Then she reassumed her position on the table and spoke again, this time sounding excited and lifelike.
"It is story-time!" Ruby muttered softly.
"Some time ago we were on an assignment together; walk through a specially-prepared hall rigged with traps."
"It was my graduation assignment." Grace added.
"I'll bet…" Cho muttered and started on his cup of coffee.
"She could ask for a partner from both inside the school and outside the school and she called me for help. So here I am, sitting in my house and talking over the phone, not a single problem or doubt on my head, and the next thing I know I am stuck in a large building that is completely booby-trapped. We weren't the only ones; the rest of her class was also in there."
"A total of seven other people."
"Yes. It was three floors filled to the rim with traps and booby-traps and she managed to get us clear in five minutes! Five! It takes me longer to get out of my bed than that!"
"It is because of her devil-deal…" Ruby muttered.
"I would have gotten to the finish sooner, had someone not almost screwed up." Grace suddenly said, causing her childhood friend to chuckle.
"Three grenades, Grace. I was stuck with my feet in a cord attached to three grenades."
"You could have smelled them lying there…"
"YOU could have done so. You." Then Lisa turned to face team RWBY again and sighed. "And do you know what that crazy girl did? She actually reached out and disarmed the set of primed grenades."
"I received a major scolding for that from our Headmaster…something about not interfering with the traps…"
"You stuck your hands near a set of primed grenades when you had been specifically told to avoid them!" Lisa nearly shouted.
"I disagreed with their instructions. Besides, everything worked out in the end didn't it?"
"It did…" Lisa grumpily agreed.
"And that is the story of a crazed demolitions expert…" Cho muttered and started gathering the empty plates. "Tune in next time…"
"Oh shut it you two."
Back at the table of team CRDL, Yang spotted the bulky guy known as Cardin amusing his teammates very successfully. He was moving around while reaching with his arms in front of him and stumbling against the table, knocking several glasses over. Why was he imitating a blind person?
Wait a gun-talking minute…he was making fun of Alessa with her blindfold. What a cruel thing to do…
Yang hoped that she was wrong and that the brown-haired boy was merely being very awkward in his attempt to grab a glass of juice, but she knew that she wasn't.
Alessa's head shifted in the general direction of the male-table and sighed. Had she just seen what Cardin was doing? How did she do that while wearing a blindfold? Seriously, what was up with that!
"I think lunch-time is nearly over." Ruby stated and then wiped some crumbs off of her clothes. "Shouldn't we-"
The redhead was interrupted as a clear feminine voice cut through the happy atmosphere, sounding oddly muffled by the fact that she was speaking over the speakers.
"Will all first-year students report to college room A to receive their books? I repeat: all first-year students are to report to college room A to retrieve their books."
Yang sighed and got her feet. "Guess school starts early today, huh?"
College room A, 15:35
Ruby had to admit, the entire prospect of using schoolbooks in order to become a huntress wasn't exactly the most enticing one. But seeing as they were going to learn about fighting, they were bound to be filled with awesome images of using awesome techniques of awesomeness?
Right?
"Hurry up Ruby!" Weiss yelled at her, much to her despair.
"Coming!" She replied and quickly increased her pace. As eager to get to the dining hall as she was, Weiss was still more eager to get to the college room. Was she so fond of studying or something? Or was there perhaps something else that attracted her attention like that?
But then she remembered that she was the leader of team RWBY and that she was supposed to call the shots!
Then again; if Weiss was so eager to get to studying in a school, who was she to take that away from her? Besides…the schoolbooks had to be interesting. They simply had to be.
The Schnee girl was leading the team through various halls, seemingly oblivious to the multiple passages and intersections that could lead them to confusion and dead-ends.
'Where was she all the times that I got lost?' 'Ruby though while she ran after her. Had Weiss somehow managed to memorize the entire lay-out of Beacon Academy? That was impossible!
"Hurry up! I want our team to be the first one to get there!" She yelled and promptly stopped next to a large double set of doors.
"Thank you for allowing us to catch up with you." Yang sarcastically said.
"I'm not!" Weiss replied. "This is it: this is college room A!"
"How do you know?" Ruby said. She was about to declare some form of cheating when the white-haired girl angrily pointed up –at a large sign saying 'College room A' in big, red letters. "Oh…" She muttered and swallowed her words.
"What are we waiting for?" Blake said. "Just open it."
"Patience!" Weiss said and carefully opened the door. "You don't want to rush into a room where your future teachers are sitting!"
"How would you know?" said Ruby and dashed past Weiss. "You said it yourself; we are the first ones in here-"
She placed her foot in a place where there was only air and nearly tilted forwards to fall down the stairs when a hand quickly grabbed her hood and yanked her back. "Watch out!" Weiss said and managed to get her back on her feet. "College room! College! It is steep."
Ruby gulped when she realized that her very first appearance in front of the several professors sitting at a large table would have ended in a painful tumble down a set of stairs. And that Weiss of all people had saved her. What was up with that?
She sighed and carefully placed her foot in a place that did not result in her tumbling down the stairs.
"You should be more careful," Weiss berated her. Ruby was too glad that her partner still displayed that concerned attitude to worry about nearly falling down a flight of stairs.
"Is that Ozpin?" Yang whispered to Blake, who then shrugged.
Team RWBY took their place in the room and patiently waited until the rest of the teams arrived. Ruby could see Ozpin, Glynda Goodwitch and a slender Professor she did not know, sitting at the round table, together with several people she did not recognize.
"Who is the fat dude?" Yang asked, causing Weiss to give her a poke with her elbow.
"Be respectful!" She hissed.
By the time teams CRDL, LACG and JNPR had arrived it had gotten rather crowded. Various students were actively talking and whispering with each other, until Professor-slendy –whom she recognized as the man she had had a good conversation with about weapons -happily waved at someone in the back row. She couldn't see who it was, but Ruby quickly realized that his mere gesture of greeting had managed to silence the entire room.
His face was actually looking rather familiar right now…had she seen him before their first meeting? In the city or something?
"Now that you are all here…" Headmaster Ozpin stood and started to talk. "There are a few matters which must be discussed. First of all: all of you are obligated to follow each and every one of the courses and given assignments. There are five schooldays here at Beacon on which you must be present at the Academy, unless stated otherwise. You may wear your combat clothing during your free time, but when attentive at theory lessons, you are to wear your school uniform."
Glynda Goodwitch coughed and also stood. "During the weekends you may leave Beacon grounds and visit the city of Vale or other places, provided that you are back in time for the start of a new week. Furthermore, various colleges will be shared between two teachers in order for you to get familiar with different styles and methods. It is expected of students to cope with changes in the climate, as a future huntsman and huntress also must."
"Schedules of coming lessons will he handed to you after this gathering," Ozpin took over, "It is the task of your teamleader to get everyone to their destinations on time."
"We will expect a great many things from you!" The large-build and moustached 'professor' said. "But we will also teach you a great many things in order for you to do so. The coming days will be tough, but we know that you can do it!"
Another man spoke up. He wore strange round glasses and had green messy hair. In one hand he had a mug filled with coffee and the other hand he had clasped behind his back. "New-students-yes-yes-good -most-excellent-point-lessons-Headmaster-history-shared-professor-must-he."
"Uh…what?" Yang muttered and looked at her. Ruby merely shrugged and focused her attention back on the group of professors. The strange collection of garbled words that the man had spoken had created a lot of confusion in the room, but when the next professor rose from his table it immediately grew silent.
"I have no doubts about the coming time: you will all be amazing!" He beamed. "Funny little students, Faunus and human alike, training to protect Vale, it is just gorgeous! Remember to stick by your friends, trust each other and it will be wonderful. This place will become your home."
That last part of their shared speech was actually the best part, concerning Ruby's feelings of doubt and terror. She could feel how different Beacon was compared to Signal…and it was frightening her. But Matt and the fat-man were right: they were capable of doing so many things. It was the sole reason that she had been allowed at Beacon: because Ozpin had found her to be good enough to skip her remaining time at Signal.
"There are four books that you will receive over the course of this week," the Goodwitch continued, "The first one you will need tomorrow at Professor Port's lessons and shall therefore be supplied to you today."
With that, she made a small gesture and a light flickered on, in the corner of the room. A small table became visible with multiple stacks of books collected on it.
"How come we didn't see that until it was pointed out to us?" Yang asked. And she had a point.
"You will each take a book and study chapter One. Tomorrow morning we shall start my colleges!" Professor Porter said. Or rather his moustache said; his mouth never seemed to move seeing as it was completely obscured by the hairy appendage.
The teams all stood and moved towards the small –and seemingly unable to keep bearing the weight- table to pick up their book.
"AMG: Anatomy and Mentality of Grimm…" Weiss said. "An…amusing title for sure."
"It sounds completely boring!" Ruby nearly shouted. How could the words anatomy and mentality even be put in the same sentence as Grimm? It made no sense whatsoever! And what did those words even mean? And seriously, why were these books so large! "They are at least one-hundred and fifty pages long." She groaned and passed a copy to her big sister. "And we are supposed to read an ENTIRE chapter by tomorrow?"
"One chapter isn't even that much you know?" Blake answered. "It could be worse."
Ruby wanted to ask her exactly how it could be worse, but then she remembered that every time she did that, it somehow actually did get worse. So she would have to settle for simply saying that it was the worst already.
"Yes…you are right." She said and grabbed her own copy of the book.
"I vote for returning to our room and starting our study!" Weiss said and pressed the book close to her chest.
"Don't be ridiculous!" Yang replied and started walking towards the exit. "We could go outside and visit Beacon Cliffs! Or we can go to the Grounds and sit in the grass! We could find a cute little terrace and sit there! Why return to our dusty little room?"
"Uh…Yang?" Ruby said. "Have you looked out of the window since we returned to the Academy?"
"No? Why do you ask?" Her big sister replied. Oh that poor girl…she will be so disappointed.
Blake walked towards the nearest window and pulled at the curtain. "Because of this."
She revealed a window completely covered with water droplets and rain. "Because it has been raining ever since we came back to the dinner hall, that's why."
"What!" The blonde replied and pressed her body against the window. "How can that be? I felt the sun on my skin the entire time we were getting back to the Academy!"
"Maybe because we were running the entire way there!" Weiss snapped.
Maybe…probably…what's the difference?
"So it is raining? So what!" She responded. "We can still enjoy the fresh air-"
"No!" All three of them replied and Yang cringed at the sudden noise.
"Sorry…" She hastily said and smiled. "Guess not everyone is resistant to the cold right?"
Weiss groaned in frustration and Ruby could see how she was resisting the urge to smack the blonde with her book.
"No…" She said and smiled too. It was so cute how Weiss acted so cold to everyone and at the same time managed to get emotional with everything that happened. Even though the girl might hate her for her personality, Ruby still cared for her. "Nobody can resist the cold…"
As the students were leaving one by one, Ozpin looked over the last team to leave. It was intriguing to see how some leaders were already trying desperately to live up to their new tasks, while others were still goofing around in order to get used to them. The week had just started; tomorrow morning the first class would begin and then he would see a different side of his students.
"Chapter one of the book? Really?" Professor Adamant broke the silence which had been hanging in the air since the student's departing. "Couldn't you find something more boring for them to do? Like 'clean your room before you arrive' or 'do not think about awesome weapons until tomorrow'? What a way to ruin a perfectly awesome first day."
"Do not forget this young man!" Professor Port replied. "You may be completely mesmerized by having the honour of teaching in my classes, but that doesn't mean you can just start to decide things!"
"Now you sound like our government…" said Adamant. "First of all; I'm not mesmerized by anything –well, lots of things mesmerize me, really." He stopped talking and stared off into the distance with a dreamy expression on his face. After a few seconds of dreaming he returned to the present.
"But the only thing about YOU that mesmerizes me is your moustache. Seriously, how long did it take to grow that thing?" He took another break to tickle Peter's hairy upper lip. The older man huffed at that and brushed the finger away. "And secondly: who says that you aren't mesmerized by me? We get to share this class, so why don't you savor this moment and accept that it will be ME deciding things?"
Ozpin had to give it to the younger man; even though he was only twenty-three years old, he knew how to outtalk a senior professor. But that was one of the several core-reasons why he had been hired to Beacon in the first place: his ability to talk. And that was what Professor Adamant did: he talked and talked and it worked perfectly for him.
"Why…that is…the nerve!" The moustached man said.
"Now you two, don't fight over who gets to teach and how!" Glynda said before it could escalate. "The sole reason for this decision of two teachers in one class is to create changing variables which will present the students with ever-fluctuating scenarios. You have your way of doing things and you will have your own ways."
The two Grimm-studies teachers looked at each and then turned to face Goodwitch. "Yes Miss Goodwitch…" They both said.
"Now that this is out of the way, I think it is time to decide more important matters." Ozpin spoke up. He glared at the frustratingly strange cup of coffee in Oobleck's hand and resisted the urge to grab it out of the man's hands. "Our…foreign-student has disappeared and I need him back soon. Glynda? Will you go into Vale and find the young man?"
The professor clasped her hands behind her back and straightened her back. "It will be done."
"Good." Then he turned to face the youngest. "Also, keep an eye on Ruby Rose, will you?"
"I'm not even going to ask 'why' and simply obey like a good little professor!" The Adamant replied, much to Ozpin's relief. But still…he had a feeling that he didn't even need to know why he was given that particular assignment. The man seemed to be capable of…sniffing information right out of the air.
"Well then…I will go and make preparations. The rest of you…good luck."
"One could argue that Bonding is an outdated concept. That the war on Grimm itself is an outdated conflict. The Thesis "On Grimm" both solidifies as annihilates that concept though: war is ever-changing and never-changing. Even though the act of binding and pledging your very soul to another being is the most intimate deed one can imagine, very few people still take part in the act. Such is the responsibility, that even though the combat-boost is immense, the Bonding is now rarely used for war."