So, I realised when I went over my notes, and reviewing the rough draft of Episode 5, that I have been calling Pyrrha's weapons the wrong names. I have made edits to the chapters where this comes up. For those who want to know; Milo is her sword/javelin/rifle and Akouo is her hopolite shield.
Apologies for the error, I will work to not make that mistake again.
Hope you all enjoy this Episode, so let's hit PLAY!
Beacon Academy, Guest Dormitories – Currently assigned to Class 1-A
"So if you press here," Ruby explained to Izuku, "it should start recording. See?"
"Yes, thank you Rose." Izuku said happily nodding as he stared at his new scroll. Ruby bashfully brushed the back of her head.
"You can just call me Ruby, you know?" That got him briefly startled, as he apologised. Asui ribbited from across the room, somewhat amused. Midoriya was often like that with her, but he was getting better, with fewer slips.
"Okay then, let's do this." He set the scroll to record and, placed it up right on one of the writing desks in the room. He stepped back, and looked at the screen, happy to see the red dot to show that it was recording.
"Hello there! I've chosen to make a video diary as a private project, both as a chronological record of me and my classmates stay here on Remnant, and as a way of tracing our progress through training." As he gave his explanation, he was dimly aware of Ruby sneaking up behind him and teasingly putting 'bunny ears' behind his fluffy green hair. Asui and Uraraka giggled.
"As you can see we've been moved into Beacon Dorms now, though we are all still settling in, and figuring out how to make the shared space work. Ros...I mean Ruby! Ruby and the others have been very helpful in that regard!" Ruby smiled as she was name dropped, and waved to the camera.
"Hey Rubes!" Yang's voice called out catching everyone's attention, "do you have a minute? Kaminari and Shoji want to know how we put our bunk beds together!"
"Coming!" She called back, before patting Izuku on the shoulder, and then jogging off screen. Not long after she left Iida's voice could be heard.
"There should be no running in the halls!"
Izuku shook his head, somewhat amused, as he refocused and looked back at the camera. "Let's back track a bit and start from the beginning…"
[Cue Opening – Save The Day]
Episode 4: Moving into Beacon Dorms
Vale General Hospital – That Morning
"We're finally getting out today!" Cheered Kaminari and Ashido, the two full of energy as they celebrated. Iida lightly chastised them for making too much noise, but honestly he was feeling some relief as well.
"About damn time!" Bakugo scowled, leaning against a wall with his hands in his pockets. "Five days. It was only supposed to be three, dammit!"
"I can understand Kacchan being frustrated at the delay," Izuku said, standing next to Shoji and Kirishima, "but you can't blame the staff for their caution either."
"Yeah," Shoji said before manifesting a mouth on one of his arms. "Three days of quarantine, and then also observation to see if we have any issues with getting Aura."
"It's all good. Plus, RWBY and JNPR said they'd be helping shop for supplies for us, so we've got fresh clothes, and those phones of theirs." Kirishima added.
"I believe they called them scrolls here," Shoji corrected, "though, pretty much the same thing."
"I bet you asked for a bunch of notebooks, huh Deku?" Uraraka lightly teased from where she sat next to Jiro and Ojiro. Izuku lightly brushed, as while he hadn't asked for too many, he had asked for a least five. His reaction got a giggle from Uraraka and that made him blush more, and tried to hide his face.
"Honestly, I'll just be glad if they can find clothes that will work with my tail." Ojiro gave an anxious smile. "If they have clothing for Faunus with tails, I'd hope it'd be okay."
"I heard that some stuff has been ordered in special because of us." Jiro looked over. "We kind of already know that some of us are well outside the norm for what they're used to." Those that were listening nodded in agreement.
"So long as it doesn't affect my sparkle, I will have no complaints." Aoyama posed, glittering in the morning light. Nearby Yaoyorozu put a hand to her cheek.
"I do feel a little bad about the trouble they're going through just to look after us." She said. "Maybe I should talk to Mr Aizawa again about using my Quirk to try and provide some sort financial compensation. Solid gold would be simple enough." Uraraka did everything she could not to faint at the mere mention of casually making gold. There were times when she and the others forgot that Yaoyorozu came from a well-off family.
"I remember Aizawa talking to Goodwitch about it." Todoroki put in, his face set in casual dead pan. "Apparently, they've taken the radio set, and the cannon you made back in the woods as a form of payment. Since there was no Dust involved in it's creation or in the firing process, that's worth a lot in and of itself."
Sero nodded, sitting only a bed away from Todoroki. "Yeah, from what Schnee told us, Dust is a major part of their society and economy. For something like a cannon to be made without it, must be like... finding an alien spaceship inside an ancient pyramid! Of course they'd go crazy over it."
Headmaster's Office, Beacon Academy
"I can't say that we're crazy about this proposal of yours, Ozpin." The Head Councilman said, his hologram making him seem only 9" tall on Ozpin's desk. "I, certainly, am not. You're taking a very big risk."
"Perhaps," Ozpin allowed, making a pyramid with his fingers, "but I believe the group would be better located at Beacon, than anywhere else. If only because an academic environment will hopefully, be something that helps settle them. We can't keep them cooped up at the hospital indefinitely, after all." The Councilman shook his head.
"And how, exactly, do you intend to address the rumours of these 'Hero Students', to the people of Vale?"
"The truth." Ozpin replied simply. "Make no mistake, the rumour is probably already out there. If left unchecked, it will do a great deal of harm. Better to respond with the truth and set the record straight as soon as possible. People will be surprised, no doubt. Some will be sceptical. But the sooner we assure people of the truth and get them used to the idea of our guests, the better." He paused a moment, "Mr Aizawa, and Mr Yagi have also communicated with me that they would like to discuss with the Council, the possibility of assisting with the local law enforcement."
"Assisting?" The Councilman frowned.
"Where they are from, Heroes... forgive me, Pro-Heroes, are civil servants who work for the government, and work within a number of areas of specialisation; combat, evacuation, rescue. But, they don't have the authority to arrest people. They work alongside the police and other emergency services in order to keep the peace. Similar in some respects to Huntsmen and Huntresses." Ozpin noted the Councilman was less tense as he explained. A good sign. He decided to quickly conclude the point.
"The students, with the exception of two, are all with a provisional license to do Hero work. Though it may not be exactly a one-to-one match with Huntsman licenses, the teachers would like to continue the students training, whilst also giving back to the city that has so kindly taken them in."
"I see..." The man, looked away a moment, before sighing and then fixing a firm stare at Ozpin. "The Council, has agreed, at the very least, with your suggestion to house them at Beacon, and essentially treat them as if they were students at your academy. As for the rest... We'll meet with this Aizawa, and Yagi first before making a decision about assisting with police work."
Ozpin gave a dignified, and grateful bow of his head. The Councilman offered nothing else as they terminated the call. 'They'll be here today, within the next few hours at least.' He thought to himself. 'The student body has been appraised already thanks to Glynda. Now...we just have to see what fate brings…"
Vale General Hospital
"Gale!" A surprised, yet delighted reaction pulsed through the 1-A students, as the young Faunus girl came to visit them, a nurse nearby. They were careful enough not to crowd her, but the child did look to be happier than the last they'd seen. Her tail wagged excitedly behind her.
"Hi everyone." She said, clutching a mixture of papers to her chest as she smiled. Izuku, approached and knelt down before her.
"It's good to see you. I'm sorry we didn't come visit sooner." Gale shook her head, but she still had a smile on her face, and then she patted Izuku's head.
"Silly Bunny-Man. The doctors told me they had to make sure you and your friends were healed, and not sick, before they could let me see you."
"Oh, you are just the cutest, aren't you?" Hagakure cooed, Ashido and Asui nodding in agreement.
"How have you been Gale?" Kirishima came over and knelt down next to Izuku, only to suddenly realise something. "Oh right, we didn't get introduced before. I'm…"
"Crying-Rock!" Gale cheerfully exclaimed. This resulted in a near repeat of when she had named Aizawa 'Grumpy Cloud'. "I know you! You are solid and protect people by being a rock. But you have a soft centre, so you often cry."
'Well, she's not entirely wrong..." Kirishima thought, but he still maintained his smile. Even as some of the other boys tried hard to stifle their giggles. Bakugo had turned away completely so no one could see his face.
'Pretty sure if it wasn't for Aura, I'd have broken my ribs again. This Dog-eared brat is hysterical.'
"I drew you all some pictures," Gale said, bringing everybody back. She shifted the papers in her hands and pulled one out to show. "This is King Explosion Murder throwing Super-Strong-Bunny-Man at the Grimm." It was a crayon representation of Bakugo while surrounded by a green circle, while in the corner was the head of a Grimm with a thought bubble. Inside the bubble were the words; I'm doomed!
Bakugo pulled himself away from the wall, and tried to look a little disinterested as he moved to examine the kids artwork. Izuku looked at it with a warm smile, before showing it to Bakugo. "See this Kacchan, she drew a picture of both of us."
"I can see that, Deku." He narrowed his eyes. Normally he would deride something like this. It was just a kids scribbles, and they hadn't even drawn arms for him.
But... it was kind of funny how Deku was just a green blur. You couldn't even make out a body. And the brat had made it for him so…
"Hey... kid. It's not bad." Gale beamed, and pushed it at him to take. He gently took it and gave her a nod of thanks before walking away. As he did, he shot a silent growl at his 'Baku-squad' who all looked back with shit-eating grins.
'Not one word, shitty extras. Not one damn word. Every major hero gets fan mail. This is mine, so don't you dare joke about it, or you're dead!'
"This one right here.." Gale continued after he left, "is Icy-Hot freezing everything." Todoroki looked surprised that he had been included (ignoring the snort of laughter from Bakugo at the nickname she gave him), but he had a small and warm smile for her as he graciously accepted his picture. "And this one is of Battery-Boy…"
"...Seriously...?" Kaminari kept his words under his breath, but his head sank a little. 'I'm never living this down. Especially since I'm the one everyone uses as a phone charger.'
"...being super cool and shocking the Grimm along with Mega-Tail and Songbird!" Kaminari did feel better after being called 'super cool', and both Ojiro and Jiro had proud blushes, both at the names they'd been given and the fact they had their first fan-art.
"Hey-hey!" Came a call from behind and everyone turned to see teams RWBY and JNPR coming towards them, arms carrying bags of shopping. Most were happy and cheerful, like Yang who waved and called out to them, but Jaune looked exhausted, as he was apparently the one member of the group designated as 'pack-mule'. The fact he hadn't fallen over whilst carrying so much, was actually impressive. "What's happening heroes?"
"Hey Xiao Long," Kirishima stood up, while the group parted a little so that the Hunters could see Gale. "The kid came by to visit us, and drew a load of pictures of how manly we all were against the Grimm."
"Why does he keep calling us 'manly'?" Weiss grumbled, but Yang grinned and slapped her on the back.
"It's just his way of saying we're awesome, 'Ice-Queen'," The nickname earned her a grumpy scowl, but the blonde was unfazed, she looked back at the others as she walked forwards. "Yo Kirishima! There's no need to be formal with most of us. Outside of Ren, you can call us by our first names. Since we fought side by side, you can just call me Yang."
"Heh, thanks." He rubbed his head, whilst grinning. Meanwhile Izuku checked on Gale to see if she was okay with the extra people. She didn't look daunted or afraid.
"Gale," his voice brought her attention back to him. He smiled. "I don't suppose you made any drawings of Teams RWBY and JNPR at all did you?" She blushed and nodded. "Is it okay to show them?" She handed over a pair of pictures from the half dozen she had left.
"What's this?" Ruby asked, setting down the heavy bags she'd been carrying before walking over. The other's echoed her and followed behind.
"I can't remember if you guys properly met during the whole battle, or after for that matter," Izuku said, "but this is Gale. Gale, meet teams RWBY and JNPR."
The young Faunus bowed. "Nice to meet you."
"Nice to meet you too Gale. I'm Ruby." The red themed huntress, knelt herself before Gale and extended a hand, which Gale took. Her tail continued to wag happily behind her. "What would you like to show us?"
"...I drew these, of you saving Bunny-Man and friends from the Grimm." Heads swivelled to regard Izuku.
"Bunny-Man?" They asked unison. Izuku laughed, embarrassed by both the attention, and the name.
"She thinks we're all her heroes come to life from her drawings." He explained. "And my costume's hood does have...flaps, that could be confused for bunny ears... so…"
"Mr Aizawa apparently is 'Mr Grumpy Cloud'." Mineta added, which had all the teens giggling, and spared Izuku anymore attention. Ruby getting herself under control, looked at the drawings that Izuku handed over.
"Oh wow, this so cool!" The first was a representation of how her team had arrived, complete with dead Nevermore (you could tell it was dead by the fact that it's detached head had red Xs through the eyes). The second picture was of JNPR, with Nora beating down a Beowolf with her hammer, Pyrrha standing amid a pile of dead Grimm, Ren... (was he somersaulting?) and finally Jaune.
The real Jaune blinked as he looked at the picture of him and his friends. Gale had depicted the moment he had helped up Yaoyorozu, and there was... little pink hearts... floating around the pair. He blushed and made an awkward laugh, only to catch the real Yaoyorozu's eye. She had seen it as well, and had a blush as well, hand over her mouth. They quickly looked away, but not before Ashido had noticed.
'Wait... does Yaomomo have a crush on Jaune?' The Queen of ships had a steadily growing shit-eating grin at the prospect.
Pyrrha had also noticed, but hid her own reaction well. Her smile did have a bit of a strain at the edges.
"These are great, Gale," Ruby said offering them back, but Gale pushed them away.
"For you." She insisted. Ruby smiled, and rubbed the little girl's head. The tail wagged more.
'I wonder if this is what it's like being a big sister?' Ruby thought to herself.
'Oh, she is so cute!' Thought Weiss, her eyes wide and adoring. 'And she drew me in perfect form too!'
The cuteness overload ceased at the sound of a perpetually tired man. "Good. You're here." Aizawa was back in his hero outfit, fresh and clean from laundry. Despite being clean, the Hunter's guiltily thought he still looked like a homeless man. "Huntsmen, Huntresses, would you mind helping sort out the clothes for the class?"
"Aww, do we have to?" Nora pouted, and was largely unaffected by his stare in her direction. As far as she was concerned, Aizawa was a permanent 'Grump'.
"It does make sense, given that you would know, which bags contain clothes for a particular person." Iida piped in. Nora just turned her angry pout on him in response.
…
It didn't take that long for everyone to get changed overall. During the time they were changing, Aizawa stopped to talk a little with Gale. Ruby noticed whilst delivering bags (and gained a small smile) Aizawa accept a drawing from the young girl, and pat her head.
Soon everyone was coming out in their new casual outfits. A few showed off, like they were models on a catwalk, before Bakugo growled at them to cut it out. He was still feeling impatient to leave. His words and actions had Yang, who was nearby, frown.
Yaoyorozu was very happy with the dress that Weiss had picked out for her, but was also distracted by Jaune who was trying his best to keep some distance, without seeming rude.
Ojiro was satisfied with what they found for him, as was Koda and Shoji, the latter two, had been given ponchos for their big bodies. The Huntsmen had apologised for not being to find more items, but they had waved the apology away. What they had was more than workable, for the time being, and if necessary, Yaoyorozu could use her Quirk to make clothing that fit them.
Mineta was pleasantly surprised to find they'd found and bought clothes that fit his small stature. Though he was a little annoyed when he heard Ruby refer to part of his hero costume as a diaper.
"It's not a diaper." He stated firmly. "It's a bowl. I'm the fresh picked hero: Grape Juice."
"Sooo, you're supposed to be a bowl of grapes then?" Ruby asked. Mineta nodded. The Hunters looked at each other before looking back at Mineta, apologetic looks on their faces.
"Sorry Mineta," Jaune rubbed the back of his neck, feeling awkward, "but even knowing that, now, it still looked like diaper." There were a range of nods from the others, and even a few of Mineta's classmates. Mineta slumped in depressed defeat.
Izuku came out in black jeans, a plain white t-shirt, and a green jacket. He was very happy with what their new friends had picked out for him. All they'd given was measurements, preferred colour sets, and materials, and Ruby and the others had delivered. He made his way over to Gale.
"Are you going now?" Gale asked her ears drooped. Izuku smiled to reassure her.
"We'll be off to Beacon, since they've been kind enough to let us stay. But we'll see each other again soon."
"You promise?" She held out her right hand, pinky extended. Izuku mirrored her and linked his pinky with hers.
"I promise, Gale." Her tail wagged happily enough at that.
Beacon Academy, 1 Hour later
"You're doing good Jaune, we're almost there." Pyrrha whispered into Jaune's ear, as he did what he could to hold his stomach in. On board the Vale Air-Bus, five minutes out from Beacon, he was having flashbacks to his first day.
It was where he earned the teasing nickname, "Vomit Boy". He was grateful at least that it was only ever used by Ruby and Yang.
They'd left the hospital behind, after a group bow to thank the staff for their care (Hagakure had personally sought out the Faunus doctor who had helped examine her on the first day, to thank them for looking after her), and now they were all above the City of Vale. Ruby was excitedly pointing out her old combat school, 'Signal', and describing it to All Might, Izuku, Kirishima, and a few others. Bakugo had chosen a spot where he could look out the window but not interact with anyone. Weiss was having a discussion with Iida about how Pro-Hero agencies were run, Nora was, once again, trying to pull off All Might's buff look, just by flexing. Ren and Blake watched bemused next to Tokoyami in a shadowy corner. Yang had delightedly found a kindred spirit, when it came to puns, in Kaminari, which led to almost everyone else giving them a wide berth.
Mineta was hanging from the ceiling by Sero's tape, wrapped up in a cocoon, after unwisely speaking out loud about visiting team RWBY's dorms. Given how the Huntresses generally kept their gear within easy reach, he probably got off light.
Jaune and Pyrrha had found a spot that was semi-private, and didn't make Jaune look out the window. He was super grateful for his partner. She rubbed his back soothingly, and kept on whispering encouragements.
He heard footsteps approach, and dared a look up from the floor. Yaoyorozu was looking at him with sympathy.
"I heard you get air sick, and... I thought this at least might help." She held out three brown paper bags, meant for people to barf into.
"Thanks, uh... where did you...?"
"I made them. For some reason, there was none that seemed available to passengers," Yaoyorozu said with a smile. "At least, none that I could find within easy reach."
"Well...Thank you, Yaoyorozu." He took the bags, and with heroic effort, did not let himself ruin the moment by throwing up then and there. And certainly not over the lovely red and white dress she had just got today.
"...We appreciate it. Thank you." Pyrrha said, after a seconds hesitation. Yaoyorozu didn't notice, but gave both of them a smile and bow, before walking away back to her friend Jiro.
"Pyrrha?" The red head looked at Jaune, who looked particularly pained. "You're pinching my shoulder... a little tight!" She blushed and a hand came up to her mouth as she released her hold on the blonde.
"I'm sorry!"
…
The first view of Beacon was spectacular. A white walled castle with grey-green towers, beautifully kept grounds lined with marble columns and a mixture of green leaf and red leaf trees. As the pilots set the Air-Bus down, and the doors opened. The class wandered out and gazed in wonder.
Bakugo and Aizawa were the exceptions. While the latter was impressed with the building, he wasn't here to sight-see, and was more focused on getting used to this new environment, and getting his students settled. As for the former…
"So it's a castle, big whoop." Some of the Hunters looked at him with a frown at that, and even his classmates seemed unhappy.
"Could you let us enjoy ourselves for five minutes? How many times in our lives are going to see something like this?" Ashido asked, hands on hips of her blue skirt.
"Shut up Raccoon eyes." Blake's glare in his direction intensified, but he ignored it. "We're not here on some vacation. This is a hold over until we can somehow find a way back home."
"Young Bakugo," All Might spoke up, getting everybody else's attention while he was at it. "You're not necessarily wrong. However, consider that after everything you and classmates went through upon our arrival, there's no harm in taking the time to enjoying the moment, as Young Ashido and the others are doing. And remember that the Grimm…"
"...are attracted by negative emotions. All right, I got it." The explosive blonde looked away, accepting the point of the former number one. The air was still a little tense though.
During their time in the hospital, Bakugo was probably the only member of Class 1-A the Hunters could unequivocally say, they weren't friends with. Even Mineta had largely kept his perverted behaviour down, having been watched carefully by his fellows and Aizawa alike, and had made some kind of positive impact.
Bakugo however was rude, aggressive and made it clear that he thought of pretty much everyone as 'extras'. While he was more respectful around the teachers and staff members, it was only ever to a point. He also made it clear he didn't want 'Pink-stripe' to get near him to use his Semblance again.
"Welcome to Beacon," Glynda's voice caught their attention, the Deputy Headmistress was walking towards them from the main building, her scroll in hand. "Apologies for not being here immediately when you arrived. Some students needed a sharp reprimand for fighting outside of class."
"We understand," Aizawa said. He then turned to Iida who was just a few steps behind him. The Class Rep nodded, understanding immediately what Aizawa expected.
"Miss Goodwitch, friends from Beacon, we of UA Academy thank you for your kindness and generosity in letting us stay here. Please take care of us." He bowed deeply, followed by everyone, bar Bakugo.
"Thank you very much." The class said. Goodwitch returned a short bow, before turning to her students who stood together and off to the side.
"Miss Rose, perhaps you would care to aid me in giving our guests a brief tour. I trust the rest of teams RWBY and JNPR will be sufficient to carry 1-A's extra luggage to the dorms." Ruby looked surprised to be singled out, while the others gave a slight groan (Jaune however was starting to feel better now that he was off the Air-Bus).
"Um, okay," Ruby felt her social anxiety build up a bit, briefly looking her team in the eye. Weiss and Blake gave her a smile and a nod in encouragement, while Yang gave her a big grin and thumbs up.
This settled her enough that she smiled and turned around, walking over to Professor Goodwitch. She then turned around, one hand behind her back, as she cleared her throat into her fist.
"Ahem! So... Let's start the tour!" She emphatically raised her right hand, finger pointing up as she said this. "And what better way but with a personal story of my first day. Just like you, I arrived at Beacon via Airship, along with my sister, and my future friends and team-mates. And if you look to your left," She pointed out a spot on the white paved courtyard, everyone looking quizzically, as there was no real noticeable feature that stood out. "... You will see the very spot I exploded."
"…"
"…"
"…"
"WHAT?!"
'Oh right...' Jiro thought as everyone else looked confused, '...she mentioned this briefly back at the hospital…'
…
Yang had abandoned her, and at such speed, she was dizzy. Ruby toppled and crashed into a collection of luggage. She received a sharp scolding from the owner; Weiss.
The heiress in white, would continue to berate whilst holding a vial of fire dust in her hands. Unwisely shoving it in Ruby's face as the poor younger girl struggled to get a word in, and the dust so close made her nostril's twitch.
It was ironic, that the girl explaining how delicate and volatile Dust could be when mishandled, was in fact in the process of doing so when Ruby sneezed…
…
"Thankfully it was only a minor explosion, with no injuries or real damage (though some still call me 'crater-face' because of it). It just took everyone by surprise." Ruby explained with an embarrassed smile. Class 1-A just stared in stunned silence, while Aizawa resisted the urge to face-palm. Bakugo just looked annoyed.
"With that done, let's move on... to the Main Hall!" Ruby pointed the way, dramatically.
As the girl in red, led the students on, Aizawa and All Might moved closer to the Deputy Headmistress. "Goodwitch... where is Ozpin?" Goodwitch, peered over her glasses at the pair.
"He sends his apologies," she replied, "but he has his hands full with a number of matters. Between the paperwork and meetings with the Council to approve your coming here to Beacon, as well as preparing a budget for helping with new replacement 'hero' outfits and 'support gear', and on top of catching up with other matters regarding the running of Beacon, and the organisation of Huntsmen and Huntresses in Vale..." She pushed her glasses up her nose as she looked forward, taking a breath. "...He's still working out the details of looking after Gale as well, for when she is released from the Hospital."
"Has he found someone to be a guardian for her?" All Might asked. Glynda gave him a gentle look and a nod.
"We've asked a former student to help in that regard. They do very little Huntsmen work these days, mostly teaching at Signal. It's just a case of finding what works for everyone. I've done my share of the paperwork, but Ozpin insists on handling this personally."
Aizawa nodded. Ozpin choosing to join them in quarantine, certainly allowed him to get a feel for the man. And he understood his reasoning, putting off needless back and forth discussions between politicians, but the amount of paperwork he would have likely had waiting just for running the school would have been sizeable.
Aizawa had come to a few early conclusions about Ozpin, and Goodwitch over the course of their stay so far. Both were highly intelligent and competent, and Ozpin seemed possessed with a great deal of patience and wisdom. He also genuinely believed that the pair wanted to help them. He could definitely imagine the duo as being Pro-Heroes at one time back on Earth, and probably would've taken up teaching the next generation there too.
But... there was also something about Ozpin that he was cautious about. He couldn't really define it, not even to himself, but he always felt a little guarded when he was around the Professor. Goodwitch on the other hand, he felt comfortable working with, and if someone as smart and as rational as her trusted Ozpin, then he'd be willing to give him the benefit of the doubt.
"So here..." Ruby declared opening the large doors before her, "...is the Main Hall." There was a joint gasp of awe as Class 1-A beheld the space, a massive amphitheatre with tiered seating gallery looking down, hard-light barriers acting as safety rails, glowing blue. It was almost like walking into a coliseum. The windows around the Hall allowed light to illuminate the space clearly, and at the end of the hall was a slightly raised platform. There were students lingering around, some in their Huntsmen outfits, while others were in the black blazer and pants, red tie, tartan skirt uniform, similar to the uniform of UA, only theirs was grey blazers and green skirt/pants.
The Beacon Students were either coming and going between classes, or watching holographic feeds, luminescent mission boards that they scrolled through. When Class 1-A entered there were more than a few people who took notice, but their looks were simple curiosity. One group led by a fashionably dressed woman in a black beret, sunglasses, and brown top, waved at Ruby and walked over.
"Hey Ruby!"
"Hey Coco!" Ruby waved back, as Coco walked up with her team in tow. A Faunus team-mate with bunny ears, and long brown hair, and two boys, one with bright orange red hair and dark skin, and the other was a giant, short shaved dark hair on his head and carrying a massive sword on his back. Ruby looked at her 'tour group'. "Everyone, meet our Upper-classmen. This is Coco Adel, Velvet Scarlatina, Fox Alistair and Yatsuhashi Daichi."
"I love your outfit!" Ashido burst out, "you look like a model!" Some of the other girls made polite comments in a similar vein. Coco took off the glasses and smiled back.
"Thanks, I like your outfits too," She gave them an appraising look. "Miss Goodwitch told the whole school about you coming. Don't be too surprised if people come up with questions. The whole of Beacon is kinda buzzing."
"It's like we're celebrities!" Kaminari excitedly said. Jiro looked at him with raised eyebrows.
'Is he aware of how often he says that...?'
"Miss Rose..." Goodwitch looked at the young Huntress.
"Right, right." Ruby nodded at the gentle reminder of what they were supposed to be doing. "Sorry Coco, but I've got to finish the tour. We'll talk later."
"Sure, no problem." Coco pulled her shades back on. "Catch you later. As for you guys," She said turning her head to address the group, "See you around. And welcome to Beacon."
…
"This place has some serious 'School for Wizards and Witchcraft' energy going on." Sero said as they left the Dining Hall. Sato nodded, wondering if he could use the kitchens at all for his own baking whilst they stayed there.
Ruby looked back at them with curious eyes. "Do you have wizards and witches? Is magic real where you're from?" Yaoyorozu shook her head.
"Only in fiction. Though most of that comes from the Pre-Quirk era. There's still some literature and anime that revolves around magic." She put a hand to her chin as she thought for a moment. "We do have magicians, and even some Pro's who combine their Quirks with illusionist talents to give off the impression of such things."
"Like the Magic Hero: Majestic!" Yaoyorozu nodded at Izuku's example. Ruby gave an 'oh' of understanding.
"Well... magicians exist here too, but we don't have magic. Plenty of our legends and Fairy Tales speak or make mention of it, but that's as far as it goes." She lead them to a cliff overlooking a verdant forest, before turning round to address them all once again.
"So here we are, overlooking the Emerald Forest. As part of Initiation, we descend into the forest to find a ruined temple, collect relics and then return as quickly as we can, slaying or escaping any Grimm we come across."
"That sounds super dangerous!" Mineta stated. Iida almost agreed straight away, but a sudden thought had him pause.
"Perhaps, but we must remember that we also had to pass a strenuous physical test in order to enter UA."
Tokoyami nodded. "Indeed. While the staff of UA would no doubt intervene had an applicants life truly been in danger, the general exam came with it's own challenges of fighting the robotic faux villains, as well as the threat the Zero Pointers represented."
Uraraka was briefly reminded of what happened during her test, of how she ended up meeting some of her best friends, and how one of them saved her from the previously mentioned Zero Pointer.
"Ribbit. Excuse me?" Asui put her hand up to get Ruby's attention, as well as her classmates. "What were the relics you had to collect? Did they have any special significance?"
"The 'relics' are simply an objective to collect. They are changed every year." Goodwitch answered. "For this year, Ozpin, used chess pieces." Ruby nodded, recalling what she and her friends went through.
"Yeah, after we were flung into the Forest, the first person we locked eyes with would be our partner for the rest of our time at Beacon, and those who picked the same 'relic' ended up being put into teams together. CRDL grabbed the black bishop, JNPR the white rook, and my team, we picked up the white knight." Ruby noticed another hand raised in question. She nodded at Todoroki.
"What did you mean by 'flung into the forest'?" He asked. Ruby tilted her head in confusion.
"Uh, as in we were flung one at a time off the cliff, from these pads you see here." She gestured to said pads, clean square patches of red against the green grass. "We were all told to come up with our own landing strategy, right before it started." Everyone eyed the pads with distrust and took a step away. All Might leaned in to Aizawa to whisper in his ear.
"When we get back, we're not going to mention this part to Principal Nezu, right?" Aizawa simply nodded. He was reminded of how he and the Wild, Wild, Pussycats had set Class 1-A off a cliff, but Pixie Bob knew how to use her Quirk without risking serious injury to them. This... felt a little more extreme, and it would probably be for the best if the Mustelid was not inspired for terrifying new ways to test the children.
…
The tour took them through lecture rooms, one of a number of combat theatres that Goodwitch was largely in charge of, a massive and extensive library, and workshops for students to repair, maintain and modify their gear. After returning to the dining hall for a spot of lunch, they finally came to the guest dormitories.
"Finally, I'm beat!" Ashido said, Hagakure next to her in a green dress made motions that suggested she was nodding.
"I'm looking forward to seeing what my room is going to be like."
"Before that happens," Aizawa stated, which grabbed the students attention, "I have some news in regard to your room assignments." He fixed them all with one of his penetrating stares so they knew to pay attention. "Your dorm rooms won't be for each of you individually. Beacon can't afford to do that, especially since they're expecting guests from other kingdoms for this Vytal Festival coming up. So you'll be sharing rooms, as teams." The class gasped quietly.
"Sir," Yaoyorozu stepped forward, "do you mean to say that we'll be adopting Beacons method of putting students together as teams?"
"Exactly," Aizawa looked over his problem children. "While we won't be using the random nature of throwing you off a cliff and seeing who meets up with who, after heavy discussion with Ozpin and Goodwitch, we figured that this would be a good chance to get everyone more used to co-operating with others on a more regular basis. There are some Hero agencies, such as Endeavour's for example, that have living quarters at their main building."
"Wait a minute, Mr Aizawa!" Iida raised a hand, suddenly very agitated. "If what you're suggesting is that we separate into four man teams, that still leaves a glaring issue! We have six girls in our class! Are you saying that we'll be sharing sleeping quarters with them?" When Iida pointed it out, suddenly everybody else realised it as well.
Mineta's mind went perverted, imagining himself in a sexy pillow fight with Yaoyorozu, Ashido and Asui. The girls in nothing but skimpy night wear. Everyone else however wondered if such a thing was truly okay. Back at UA they all had their individual room, their own private space. Midoriya and Uraraka were having blushing panic attacks, imagining sharing a room and seeing the other in just a towel after they came out of the shower…
'Bad thoughts! Bad thoughts! Begone! Purge!' They thought.
All Might used a whistle hanging around his neck to get their attention. "Settle down. I know this might be awkward, however, both myself and your homeroom teacher were convinced enough to give this a try."
"Right," Aizawa agreed. "I understand where your concerns are coming from, so if this doesn't work out, we'll modify teams and rooms accordingly. If we have to, the girls will share a room all to themselves."
"That being said, Beacon has mixed gender teams who have to work together for the entirety of their stay here, and some teams stay together even after graduating." All Might paused as he noticed, behind the students the presence of Team JNPR, and the rest of Team RWBY, emerging from the rooms. "This is a good chance to better bond with your classmates, as well as prepare for the future. And I'm sure our new friends here can give some ideas how to make things work with mixed genders." He nodded at Jaune, who smiled as the students briefly turned around and noticed him and the others for the first time since arriving.
"Yeah, It's true, me, and Ren share our room with our partners. Almost immediately after being made a team, one of the first things I did was sit down with them all and discussed how we were going to make the living together situation work."
"It's been working out pretty well so far." Pyrrha put in proudly, and Jaune turned his smile on her, grateful for the support.
"Yep, we got set rules that we keep to. No awkward stuff happening here!" Nora declared.
"Though I want to make very clear," Aizawa said in a tone that brooked no argument, "that I expect all of you to be on your best behaviour whilst living like this. Understood?"
"Yes Mr Aizawa!" Came the collective response. Aizawa turned to look at Goodwitch and gave her a nod. She stepped forward capturing everyone's attention.
"After talking with your teachers, we've decided to keep you in the teams you were put together in for the exercises you were performing prior to arriving at Remnant." She said, pulling out her scroll, and pulling out a file. "In accordance to Remnant tradition, you've been assigned a team name based on your initials, and we've selected a team leader for each group."
"To begin; Izuku Midoriya, Ochaco Uraraka, Tsuyu Asui, and Fumikage Tokoyami. You will be Team MOAT." There was a look of pleasant surprise from the named students, who all exchanged glances with each other. "You'll be led by; Izuku Midoriya."
Izuku looked surprised, but quickly settled, with a look of determination. It was that or let his anxiety take over at the thought of him and Uraraka sharing a room. Little did he realise that his best friend was similarly doing her best to focus on being happy to be on a team with people she got on with, and not blush up a storm.
"Next; Katsuki Bakugo, Eijiro Kirishima, Mina Ashido, and Hanta Sero. You four will be Team BEAS. Led by... Katsuki Bakugo."
"Omigosh, I love the name. Team BEAS..." Ashido gushed, "...it sounds cute."
"Yeah, we can totally make this work, right?" Kirishima rhetorically asked. "We all worked well together at the Sports Festival after all."
"We are not a team of dumb bees, you idiots!" Bakugo snapped. "We're not calling ourselves something stupid like that!" He plaintively ignored the stare Yang was giving him. "Deku and the other extras may be fine with the dumb colour names, but if I'm the leader, I say we call ourselves something else!"
Sero sighed, and shared a look of exasperation with his new teammates. Ashido had a cross pout, unwilling to give ground on the team name. Kirishima, was left wondering how things were going to be if this how they were starting.
Goodwitch arched an eyebrow at Bakugo's response, but otherwise ignored it and moved on. "... Next, we have... Momo Yaoyorozu, Mashiro Ojiro, Yuga Aoyama, and Toru Hagakure. You will be Team MMAT. And your leader will be Momo Yaoyorozu."
"Oh that's great!" Hagakure exclaimed, turning to her announced team excitedly. "I'm sure we'll get along just fine, especially with Yaomomo in charge."
Yaoyorozu put a hand to her chest, and smiled. "I'll do my best, for all of you." The boys nodded, though Ojiro had a look of mild confusion.
'Team MMAT? Like Matte paintings? I guess that could work, though it sounds kinda plain…'
'It isn't the sparkling name I hoped for...' Aoyama thought.
"Moving on. Shoto Todoroki, Tenya Iida, Rikido Sato, and Minoru Mineta. You will be Team STRM, and your leader will be Shoto Todoroki."
"HEY!" Bakugo angrily yelled, "how come Icy-Hot's group gets to be Team Storm, while my group gets something lame like Bees!"
"Dude, settle down!" Kirishima did what he could to keep Bakugo from further arguing. "It's not manly to act like this Bakugo."
"Grrr! Damn it!" Yang had folded her arms while watching Bakugo. She wasn't the only person looking at the explosive blonde disapprovingly, but she probably had the most intensity. Her eyes flashed from their normal lilac, to red.
"Excuse me." Todoroki held up a hand, getting everyone's attention. "I'm just curious as to why I was made team leader over Iida. He's the Class Rep, wouldn't it make more sense for him to be in charge? Or is it tradition for the person with the starting initials for the team be leader?" Goodwitch appreciated the more level volume he spoke at, compared to Bakugo's.
"It isn't a tradition, though it does tend to be the case more often than not." She answered. "As for why Iida wasn't chosen..." She looked to Aizawa to answer, which he promptly did.
"It's because he's Class Rep that we decided to not make him team leader." This got a quizzical look from the boy in question. "We'll be looking to Iida, and of course Yaoyorozu, to co-ordinate the class as a whole, still. However, we figured it would be good for him to remember to give others a chance to lead. You did a pretty good job of leading your team through the cavalry battle segment of the Sport's festival, Todoroki," the two toned boy, remembered at the mention. The people he had picked, and how he had largely directed them to victory of that stage of the competition. "but you've been largely keeping yourself back from taking the initiative in group activities since then."
"We figured this would be a good opportunity for you to learn from a leadership position once again." All Might finished. "This is also a good chance for you and Young Bakugo to put to use what you've learnt from your make up classes."
"I see," Todoroki, nodded his thanks, before looking over at Iida. The glasses boy met his gaze and gave him a reassuring smile.
"If you need assistance, I'll be more than happy to give advice. Otherwise, I'll happily follow your lead and support you Todoroki."
"Yeah," Sato agreed. Meanwhile Mineta was privately fuming at the fact that he was on a team with absolutely no girls.
"Finally," Goodwitch stated getting everyone to pay attention once more. "Mezo Shoji, Kyoka Jiro, Koji Koda, and Denki Kaminari. You four will be Team MJKK, and your leader will be Mezo Shoji."
"Hey congrats on being made team leader," Jiro turned to her friend, who thanked her, and Koda who also came over to congratulate. Then they realised that Kaminari was silent. They looked at the electric student to see him staring off into space.
"Kaminari?" Shoji gently put a hand on his shoulder, "are you okay?"
"...This is going to be awesome... I can totally see it..." Kaminari whispered. The three others exchanged looks, before looking back.
"Okay... Jamming-yayy, did you make yourself dumb again or what?" Jiro asked. Nora looked at her confused.
"Jamming-yayy?"
"I call him that for the fact he often jams his brain when he goes overboard." Jiro explained. Before anybody else could say anything though, the boy was suddenly spinning round to face his new, official, teammates.
"Guys, we should totally start an agency together... and get some magic inspired outfits! We'll be like the Wild, Wild Pussycats! Just picture it…
Kaminari's Imagination
"Villains beware, and prepare for trouble!" Shoji declared, dramatically revealing his many bare arms from beneath his magician's cape, multiple playing cards being shuffled between his hands.
"Don't make us repeat it, because we're quadruple!" Jiro tilted her hat whilst wearing a sultry smile, looking stylish in her magicians outfit, with tight black pants, and sleek shiny boots. Tiny wands dangled from her Jacks.
"To protect the world from devastation, we won't let evil stand!" Koda whipped off his top hat, allowing doves to fly out, followed by his own pet rabbit poking it's head out.
"Have no fear people... for Team MJKK is here to lend a hand!" Kaminari finished, bolts of electricity dancing between his fingers of both hands, his magician's outfit having catchy yellow lightning bolt emblems, down by the cuffs.
The entire foursome stood on a stage beneath a spotlight posing even as Koda's doves fluttered around.
The Real World (Beacon Dorms)
"... what do you think? Pretty cool right?" He looked between his classmates excitedly. There was a moments pause, and then a wave of giggles overtook the majority of the corridor.
"You stole that from Pokemon's Team Rocket, you damn Pikachu!" Bakugo yelled. Kaminari looked very affronted.
"It's not stealing! It's a direct homage! Besides the Pussycats had their own intro!" Kaminari was very put out at the fact no one was taking his idea seriously. Shoji smiled behind his mask and patted Kaminari's shoulder.
"I... appreciate the fact that you're excited to be a part of the group," the youngest member of Class 1-A said diplomatically. "I'm glad we have you, and the energy you bring."
Koda was silently wondering if it would be a good idea to actually have a cuddly critter on hand when he went pro. While he probably wouldn't endanger his pet rabbit, it might not be a bad idea to have maybe a trained rescue dog perhaps, if he wanted to help people after they'd been through something traumatic.
Jiro was laughing hard at what a total dork Kaminari was, though she appreciated that his image of her didn't immediately put her in fishnet tights like some stereotypical female magicians.
'I thought it sounded pretty cool.' Ruby thought, even as she giggled herself. Weiss was one of those not laughing, simply wearing a look of bafflement at the whole thing. Blake had an eyebrow raised, while Yang tittered behind a hand.
Jaune shared Ruby's sentiment, and really empathised with Kaminari's predicament, Pyrrha simply smiled politely. Ren looked around, confused at what exactly was so funny, while Nora was having a giggle fit alongside Ashido and Hagakure.
"Okay, that's enough." Aizawa said tiredly, clapping his hands to get them to settle. "Teams RWBY and JNPR will show which rooms are yours and will be helping you all adjust. Woe betide anyone who causes a fuss that I have to break up." He had his eyes on Bakugo as he said this, and not just him. He'd noted Yang's general response to Bakugo's behaviour, and he was certain that there was going to be trouble…
5 mins later
"Okay, so while we didn't go for this idea ourselves, I had a thought about curtains that people could use to maybe hang around their beds." Jaune explained to a very interested mix of 1-A students. There were some nodding their heads, and arm chops from Iida, approving of the idea. "Me and Pyrrha picked out some, just in case anyone went with this option."
"We appreciate that, both you," Yaoyorozu said. "I can use my Quirk to help make the rails as well for everyone." There was a chorus of thanks from everyone at that.
"Also," Yang put in, "You could go the route me and my team did, and make bunk beds freeing up more space!"
"T-that sounds interesting," Koda said, looking at Shoji for his thoughts. He gave a small nod in response.
"We could see if it could work at the very least I guess…"
20 mins later
"Guys, I just thought... we should have a second in command. What do you think?" Izuku spoke to his friends, gathered around his bed. Tokoyami folded his arms and bowed his head in contemplation.
"That would seem wise," he said solemnly. The two girls nodded in agreement. "Did you have anyone in mind?"
"I thought we could put it to a vote," Izuku said whilst tapping a pencil on a newly acquired notebook. "However... if I thought about who I would vote for, I'd probably go with Tsu."
"Ribbit? You'd pick me, Midoriya?" Asui pointed at herself in surprise. Uraraka however had cupped her chin with her hand and was nodding to herself.
"I agree, I'd vote for you too, Tsu." She smiled at the frog Quirked girl. "You're always reliable and smart. You keep calm under pressure, and that helps everyone around you."
"I concur." Tokoyami wore a smile as he regarded Asui. "You were a great help during our match against Ectoplasm, without your quick thinking, we would most likely have failed the exam."
"You don't have to if you don't want to though!" Izuku had a mild panic, waving his hands about. "No one will force you if you don't feel comfortable!"
Asui looked down a moment as she considered what everyone had said, before looking back up. "I probably would've voted for Uraraka personally, but if you all believe in me this much, I'll do my best."
"I know you will Tsu!" Uraraka cheered, a big smile on her face. Tokoyami offered his own congratulations.
"Well with that settled..." Izuku gave a relieved smile, and made a note in his book, "is there anything you think we could do today as a team beyond setting up the room? Any issues that need to be addressed?"
"... the only thing I can immediately think of, is to ask for assistance in how to use these scrolls that were given to us." Asui held up her own brand new scroll as she brought up the point.
"That's a good idea," Izuku said nodding. "I was thinking of doing a recorded diary of sorts, but I don't know if the scrolls have that kind of capability. Let's get Rose in here and ask her, shall we?"
"Sure, ribbit."
Team MMAT's room
"Here," Blake offered a small pile of books to Yaoyorozu. "You said you wanted some more reading material, so I picked out some books I thought you might like."
Yaoyorozu smiled gratefully as she accepted the gift. "Thank you Belladonna…"
"You can call me Blake," The dark haired Huntress replied kindly.
"...Thank you Blake, this is really generous of you. Also you and the rest of Team RWBY can call me Momo, or Yaomomo if you'd like." Yaoyorozu's words put a gentle smile on Blake's face.
"Thanks... Momo. Would you like a recommendation out of the pile?"
"Certainly. What did you have in mind?"
"A book I'm currently reading myself... it's called 'The Man with Two Souls'"
Team BEAS' room, 5 mins later
"You're okay with having the curtains Ashido?" Kirishima asked. The horned, pink skinned girl looked at the rails and curtains set up that she, Kirishima and Sero, had worked to put up around her chosen bed. She tilted her head to the side as she considered before she answered.
"I don't mind the set up, but I might look into getting a different pattern of curtains later." She nodded to herself. The curtains were a deep purple, a colour she didn't mind, but her personal fashion tastes had her itching to find some leopard print, to go with her Hero costume. "Thanks for the help though."
"It's no problem." Kirishima smiled, while rubbing the back of his head, a small blush on his cheeks. He hoped Ashido didn't pick up on that.
"Will you damn extras shut up, already?!" Bakugo was sitting on the edge of his bed, dressed in a black sleeveless shirt and dark green shorts. He turned his annoyed red eyes on his 'team'. "If you're going to have a conversation, do it somewhere else!"
"That's not exactly the best way to talk to your team-mates Bakugo," Yang said leaning on her side against the door frame, her arms folded. "they're just trying to find what works for them with this set up, something you, could be helping with."
"They can figure that stuff out themselves!" Bakugo turned his gaze on Yang. "I keep a tight sleep schedule as part of my own personal training, and that's going to get messed up if they're just hanging out gossiping!"
"While I can understand wanting to keep a routine..." Sero said slowly, "...it's still pretty early in the evening. We still have supper to…"
"Shut up, Tape-Arms!" Bakugo growled at the boy hanging out by the massive window, before returning his attention to Yang. "And it's none of your business how I run my team, Goldilocks! Go with Dumb Knight and Red-Tips, and bother one of the other extras."
"Bakugo!" Kirishima scolded, "She and the others are here to help. Would it kill you to be polite for five minutes?"
"Yeah!" Ashido agreed, pumping her fist, while angrily pouting. "Quit being such a jerk…"
"What did you call my sister?" Yang's voice cut off any more indignant arguing. She was scowling at Bakugo, her arms no longer folded, but the tension in her body was aggressive. Completely at odds with how she calmly spoke. Everyone bar Bakugo flinched.
"I called her Red-Tips, so what?" Bakugo's eyes narrowed. 'what's this blonde extra's big deal?'
Yang's eyes went red, as a memory briefly flashed in her mind. 'Hey Red-Tips! Where's your mommy, huh? Oh that's right, you don't have one!' Her fists clenched, and she marched all of two steps forward, Bakugo instinctively stood up, his palms open and ready to explode…
The fight didn't have a chance to start. A grey scarf had both wrapped up in a second, and held tight. "I believe I warned you to behave." Aizawa held the scarf with both hands, whilst his hair rose up, exposing his gleaming red eyes as he locked his gaze on the pair. Yang looked both surprised, and a little outraged, while Bakugo mentally cursed himself for setting off his teacher.
"Xiao Long, I may not be one of your instructors here at Beacon, but that doesn't mean I'll tolerate you attacking my students, outside of any joint training Goodwitch and I come up with." Aizawa released her first, when he was satisfied she wasn't going to do anything else. Yang gave Bakugo a quick glance before turning back and nodding.
"Understood," was all she said. Aizawa could tell she was keeping her temper in check...barely. He made a small, silent, gesture with his head, and she took the hint, walking away. Aizawa released Bakugo and turned off his Quirk.
"Bakugo," he began, the boy giving him a disgruntled look, but was clearly listening, "I'm guessing that you're frustrated at the fact that we don't have an immediate way back home. That, I can understand. You're not alone in that feeling. But antagonising both your classmates, and our hosts isn't going to make things better." Bakugo looked away, angry at himself as much as anyone else. Aizawa wasn't done though.
"All Might was the one to suggest making you team leader. I didn't argue it, as I know you can do it well in combat, but you have to learn to compromise outside of fighting. Everyone, will have to make changes in order to get along under the circumstances. Keep up the attitude you have been displaying so far, and I will remove you from leadership. As it is, since I had to intervene before you and Xiao Long started fighting, I will expect five laps around Beacon campus." Bakugo didn't complain. He looked back up and gave a nod of acknowledgement, before walking out the door.
'Better get this done and over with…'
After Bakugo had left the room, Aizawa gave a tired look at the other three occupants of the room. "I know Bakugo can be difficult, but I meant what I said." He needed this to be clear, and was glad to see that the students were paying attention. "You will all have to learn how to live with one another under these conditions. Compromise where you can. If this really isn't working, not just for yourselves but for the others, then we'll rethink the teams and reorganise the rooms. Are we clear?" They nodded. Aizawa turned and started to leave. He knew Bakugo would go through with the laps, but as his teacher, he should be there to supervise.
He'd stayed close to Bakugo's team because he could see something like this happening. He'd hoped that this would be the last time this issue came up. And then there was Xiao Long…
In so many ways she was different from Bakugo, and yet in others, so much alike…
Somewhere Else, Vale, Late Evening
Inside a makeshift office, Roman Torchwick went over some maps and shipping schedules, a table lamp providing all the illumination he needed. Meanwhile a radio played music behind him.
Roman wasn't really one for music usually when he worked on his plans for a heist, but his partner Neo seemed to enjoy it, so he'd developed a tolerance for the background noise. So long as the volume wasn't too high that it got distracting.
Neo was sitting on the counter a metre or so away, sipping tea from a cup, her ever present smile on her face, as she sat, one leg over the other.
The song finished, and a news broadcast followed it. Roman tuned that out too for the most part, while he chewed on an unlit cigar. But then, something about the broadcast drew his attention. He turned, eyebrow raised as he recognised the voice of one of the members of Vale's Council.
"...Citizens of Vale, we understand that there has been some rumours of late that we need to be addressed."
"Rumours...?" He glanced at Neo, removing his cigar, but his partner looked curiously confused, and offered a simple shrug.
"... five days ago, two teams of students from Beacon, along with professional Huntsmen and Huntresses, encountered a group of strangers fighting the Grimm. These people... say that they are human, but not from Remnant. Staff from Vale's General Hospital confirmed that many had unique abilities not caused by Aura or Semblance, and many sport mutations that would be.. unusual in the extreme if they were of the Faunus…"
"...I don't know what to make of this..." Roman admitted, as he took out a lighter and lit his cigar. He inhaled and exhaled before removing his most pleasurable vice. "...I do know that I don't like it. I'll need to contact our patron. She's probably heard this herself, but better to be sure than Grimm-bait." Neo nodded, her confident smirk returning.
Roman returned his attention to the broadcast, frowning at the mention of how these strangers were essentially the same as Huntsmen-in-training and operation. 'Now, that, I REALLY don't like. Their presence could be a real complication, if we're not careful.' He blew a smoke ring, leaning back against the desk. ' I hope the animals, our patron has allied us with, will be more reliable than Junior's men. I'm really looking forward to making a profit here, after all.'
The Council was now taking reporters questions, but Roman had heard enough. He walked the two steps needed to put the radio in reach, as he shut it off. He sighed as he put out his cigar, and then pulled out his own scroll. 'Time to make a call…'
Class 1-A Guest Dorms, Late Evening
The sun had gone down, and everyone was adjusting to their new shared rooms. Ashido, Kirishima and Sero decided to give Bakugo some space after his five laps, so they were hanging out with some of the others in their rooms. This allowed Bakugo to go to bed in peace. He fell to sleep pretty quickly.
Ashido was talking to Momo and Blake about some of the books the Huntress had brought, Hagakure not far away, organising her new assortment of outfits. Kirishima went with Aoyama and Ojiro to Team STRM's room, where Sato was hosting a card game. Sero meanwhile stopped by Team MJKK's room, and admired their bunk beds (built, far more safely and reliably than the Team RWBY method).
As for Team MOAT, Jaune had dropped by and after a long, fanboyish, discussion with Izuku about heroes, had accepted a challenge to a chess game against Tokoyami. He wasn't the only visitor, as Ruby had also stopped by, and had also gotten sucked into the exhaustive, yet fascinating, discussion between Jaune and Midoriya. While Jaune played a strong game against the bird-headed boy, watched by both Asui and Dark Shadow, Ruby sat on Uraraka's bed next to the gravity girl, talking to Izuku about All Might.
"...It's just so hard to imagine," she said, "someone doing so much good to be known worldwide, and single-handedly reducing an entire country's crime rate. Professor Ozpin has a lot of influence sure, but I can't think off the top of my head any major battles he was part of." She scratched the back of her head, awkwardly. "Well, admittedly I probably paid more attention to stories involving my Uncle…"
"From an outside perspective, that does make sense." Uraraka nodded whilst drinking hot chocolate. "I mean, if you tried to tell someone in the past, before Quirk's came to be, what the world would be like, they'd probably compare it to a comic book for sure."
Izuku nodded, notebook in his hand. He turned a page, even as he looked at Ruby with joyful curiosity. "Is your Uncle famous?" He asked. Ruby grinned back.
"Maybe not All Might famous, but definitely well known in certain circles. He taught me and Yang at Signal for a time. In fact," she leaned forward, "when I built Crescent Rose, I took more than a little inspiration from his weapon!"
"So he wields a scythe too?" Uraraka gave a nervous smile. As comfortable as she was getting around Ruby, she couldn't help comparing the girl's love of weapons with a certain pink haired engineer from the support course.
"Scythe wielders are rare on Remnant," came Yang's voice, making everyone turn to find Yang leaning on the door frame. "The weapon, and the method of wielding it are so dangerous, few ever try. Uncle Qrow and Rubes, are the only people I know who use the weapon, and they're both very proficient with it."
"I see, so you learnt how to wield your weapon from your Uncle. Impressive..." Izuku descended into a quiet mutter as he wrote down the information, as well as any thoughts pertaining to the subject. Ruby looked at Uraraka quizzically, but she waved away her concerns.
"Don't mind Deku. He gets like this when he starts analysing people's powers sometimes. We're used to it by now." Ruby nodded and looked back at Yang.
"Anything you needed Sis?" Yang nodded, and jerked a thumb over her shoulder.
"Weiss asked if you and Blake could get back to our own room, especially if you want her help with that last bit of homework that Oobleck gave us." Ruby sighed exasperatedly, but the young girl knew that if she wanted to keep up her grades, then getting some assistance from Weiss with studying, would definitely help. Plus she did promise to be more a pro-active and responsible team leader.
"Fine. I guess we'll head back and get our own homework done before turning in." She stood up. The movement snapping Izuku out of his muttering, as he caught up to what was going on. "Thanks for having me here guys. Midoriya, we'll definitely need to do a sit down and discuss 'support gear' for everyone at some point."
"O-oh! Sure!" Midoriya agreed. Jaune at that point stood up too.
"I'd better head back as well. I've got a... new training regimen that I've started, and I want to keep to it. I humbly concede, Tokoyami."
"It was a good game. You are strong opponent on the chess board, Arc." Tokoyami respectfully bowed, while Dark Shadow decided to flick Jaune's white King over. Truly, there were very few pieces left on the board between the pair. Tokoyami still had his Queen though, while Jaune had a Knight and a Rook to combat that powerful piece and a pair of bishops.
As Ruby and Jaune made their goodbyes, Izuku caught Yang giving him a curious look. Uraraka picked up on it too. "Something wrong, Yang?" She asked. Yang checked to see if Ruby was listening, but she had already moved to next door to call Blake, and Jaune was sending his good-nights to everyone else. She looked back, with a contemplative look.
"There's something... I would like to ask the two of you, quickly if you don't mind. In private?"
Uraraka and Izuku exchanged a look of uncertainty before agreeing. Leaving both the notebook, and the hot chocolate, they followed Yang to a corridor a little away from the rooms, giving them a measure of privacy.
"I'll try and keep this brief," Yang said before looking both of them in the eye, leaning back against the wall. "You know Bakugo better than I do. How did someone like him, get on the Hero course?"
"Well..." Uraraka exchanged another look with Izuku, before answering, her eyebrows frowning. "...I haven't known Bakugo as long as Deku, but for all of his aggressive attitude, he's a natural talent. He scored the highest in the practical portion of the entrance exam, and won the 1st Years Sports Festival. His attitude is a pain, but he's... definitely been getting better, a little easier to get along with. Especially after he got kidnapped and then rescued." Yang simply nodded at that, absorbing the information, but not properly processing it. Not just yet anyway. She turned to Izuku.
"I remember something Uraraka said back at the hospital. How she changed the meaning of the name 'Deku' for you, but before that, Bakugo called you that. Am I right?" Izuku looked down a moment. A host of unpleasant memories pulsing briefly through his mind.
Aldera... The Sludge Villain incident... The first combat trial... their final exam... and finally, the last big fight the two of them had, where Bakugo said he'd believed that Izuku had always looked down on him.
"Kacchan... and I have a complicated relationship," he began. "We used to be friends... once. Then when his quirk came in, teachers and people around us just constantly praised what a powerful Quirk he got. And yeah," He looked up, his eyes and voice all serious, but not aggressive or defensive, " he was the one who started calling me 'Deku'. There's parts about him I hated sure, he can be a real jerk at times. But I always, always, believed in his ability to become a great hero. Since coming to UA, our relationship has gotten better. I wouldn't say we've completely resolved everything, but we can now speak to each other now somewhat easier than before. Our relationship has been reset. Does that make sense?" Yang listened with mild surprise, not expecting... well, this, as an answer. But her frown returned and she shook her head.
"Maybe. I don't know." She then got off the wall. "Thanks for speaking to me about this." Izuku raised a hand, as if to stop her from going but he stopped himself from actually grabbing her.
"You're not going to try and fight Kacchan? Are you?" He asked. Yang looked back with her eyes suddenly blue, instead of lilac.
"When me and Ruby were little... there were some kids on Patch that would pick on her just because she was younger and smaller. They'd taunt her about our Mom... the fact she was gone. And they'd always, always, called her 'Deku' behind her back when they thought no-one else was listening." Uraraka and Izuku gasped. Yang looked away briefly before looking back. "I want to believe that Bakugo has some kind of heroic quality to him that's more than just combat, more than just power. But the things he says... how he says them, and how he seems to look down on others... All I can see and hear, is the same kind of bullies I used to protect my little sister from."
"Yang..." Uraraka was at a lost for words, as was Izuku. What could either of them say at that moment?
"I won't go picking a fight with him in the corridors or anything, I promise." Yang gave a sad smile, "but if I get a chance to fight him in one of Goodwitch's combat sessions? I'm going to show him to have more respect for others, from my fist to his face!" Her eyes flashed red for a moment before returning to their normal lilac colour. Her demeanour shifted, returning to the cocky personality they knew from the first moment they met, a smirk on her lips.
"You two have a goodnight, I'll see you and everyone else tomorrow." And with that Yang turned and walked away, leaving a silent corridor, as Uraraka and Izuku once again exchanged nervous looks, their thoughts on possible conflict between their classmates, and the new friends they had just started to make.
[Cue Outro]
1st Outro for Season 1 – Part 3: Ruby
[A baby Ruby is held in the arms of her mother, though the facial details are left hidden.]
[A young Yang supervises Ruby as she plays with a toy sword in the green grass of their home on Patch.]
[Taiyang Xiao Long reads both girls a bedtime story, though Yang is fast asleep, while Ruby kneels on the bed, looking enraptured in the tale.]
[Ruby laughs as she is first greeted by a certain grey Corgi, who happily licks her face.]
[We see an older Ruby, closer to the point she attends Beacon, standing before the memorial for her mother. Brief flickers replace Ruby with a white robed Summer who disintegrates into white petals while a ghost like face of Salem becomes more visible in the background looking disdainfully at the 'camera'.]
[Ruby runs through darkness, head down, Crescent Rose folded up and attached to her back. As she raises her head to see where she's going, she sees her Team, waiting for her, along with JNPR, Izuku, Uraraka, Koda, and Iida. After a moment of staring, Ruby smiles and laughs, running towards her friends. As red petals fall off her, so does the scene become brighter, the darkness replaced with a blue skies and green hill.]
Next Time on Paragons of Virtue and Glory:
[Ruby: Today doing the preview, will be myself, and my fellow warrior in red; Kirishima!]
[Kirishima: I proudly accept the challenge!]
[Ruby: Next episode we get to see students from each academy fighting each other!]
[Kirishima: Manly! And the main match up to look forward to, will be my bro, Bakugo, vs your golden girl, Yang!]
[Ruby: Oh boy... I think I'm picking up some of Midoriya's nerves... I hope things don't get too out of hand.]
[Kirishima: Don't you worry! It'll be an awesome fight, and I think Bakugo will surprise you all at how manly he can be!]
[Ruby: Next time; "Burnin' Sparks! Yang Vs Bakugo!"]
[Kirishima: We'll also get to see Mineta in action, and in a manly way, no less!]
[Ruby: You say 'Manly' a lot... Ahem! Go Beyond...!]
[Ruby & Kirishima: PLUS ULTRA!]
NOTES:
Ooh I'm so looking forward to what's coming…
This Episode was necessary for a few reasons:
1) The Teams. From the very beginning of planning this story, I knew that the 1-A students should get the Beacon Team treatment. Other Authors have done the same, though few that I can recall that had more than four members of 1-A in the story. Figuring out the combos was hard, as well as the names based of Initials. I hope you all enjoyed what I ultimately came up with.
2) The set up for Yang Vs Bakugo. These two being set against each other has been one of those popular match ups that is practically demanded. I'll probably get into more of my thoughts on this, next Episode, but I hope the set up here made sense. For clarification, Bakugo is acting a little more testy because of frustration. He'd rather be back at UA, than wasting time in Remnant. The others are still very curious and happy to explore for now, but that frustration will be something that will build for everyone across the first few Seasons.
3) The Council and Gale's caretaker. These needed some addressing. We do see that Ozpin's standing with the Council takes a hit in Vol 2 of RWBY, and while I won't be focusing too much on the politics of running a Kingdom, it is something that will play in the background. Especially if 1-A are going to go walkabout in the streets of Vale.
That of course, has lead to the Villains of Remnant to take note. A stone has been cast into the pond, and now we watch the ripples spread and widen.
And Gale will be coming to Beacon soon. Some of you may have already guessed at who I have in mind for her caretaker. That will be fun to write…
I hope to have Episode 5 up before the end of April. Until then, here on Fanfiction, Time Sees You Next!
EDIT: This chapter has been edited since release to correct mistakes missed previously, to better improve the story, and reading experience - (Last edit 30th July 2023)