Hey y'all! To my fellow Americans, Happy 4th. To everyone else, Happy Tuesday, I suppose. I was surprised to find yesterday that this story has reached 500 visitors, which is pretty good I reckon. I'll be celebrating that alongside our independence today. Thanks for reading!
Anyways, bit of a longer chapter than last time. Hope you all enjoy.
The elevator doors slid open with a gentle chime, revealing one very upset headmistress. She stormed through the doorway into Beacon's primary office, assistant headmistress and two floating students in tow. Scarlet had tried her best to stare daggers at the other girl initially but had given it up before they reached the elevator. Her face of regret was just too heartwrenching. It was adorable!
Besides, Scarlet had the feeling she would have greater concerns in a moment. Goodwitch unceremoniously dumped them in two chairs, while the red-haired woman scrambled to take up a position near the back of the room. Only then did Glynda sit herself down in her own chair, sighing deeply and starting the coffee machine that stood on the edge of her desk.
Scarlet took a minute to admire her surroundings. The office was surprisingly spacious, curving around in a large circle. The walls mostly consisted of glass, offering a brilliant view of their surroundings. Vale in particular stood out, sparkling gently in the distance. The parts of the wall that were not glass were covered in grinding clockwork gears, which Scarlet assumed powered the large clock face that stood directly behind the headmistress's desk. Outside of the desk, the room was entirely barren of comforts.
A chirp from the coffee machine pulled Scarlet from her thoughts. At that moment, the headmistress began to speak.
"Goose… Branwen. Yes?"
The girl across from Scarlet, apparently named Goose, sat forward quickly in her chair, nodding fervently and gesturing to the assistant that stood nervously behind Glynda.
"Ma'am, please I'm sure Professor Rose can–"
Goodwitch's crop slapped down on the table violently, making Scarlet wince and Goose shut her mouth. Mrs. Rose shot both of them a quick, apologetic look, but otherwise didn't speak.
"Just… give me a moment," Glynda practically growled the words at the two young huntresses. After a momentary pause, she took off her glasses, sighed again, rubbed her eyes, and retrieved a mug from some compartment on the desk. With a brief inspection to ensure clean porcelain, she placed it under the coffee machine. A solid minute of gurgling sounds filled the room as the machine wound up and spit its contents into the mug. Glynda took hold of the mug, sipped it once, added a touch of cream and sipped it once more. Only then did she replace her glasses and continue, this time much more calmly.
"Goose Branwen. And Scarlet…" A pause. A long one "Fall. Am I correct?"
Scarlet shrunk a little in her chair at the mention of her last name. She noticed that Glynda's assistant was now staring at her intently.
Very intently.
She forced herself to speak regardless. "Yes, ma'am." She attempted to meet eyes with Professor Rose but found she couldn't hold the other woman's gaze. Ironically, she found the famously harsh Glynda easier to look at and fixed her eyes there instead.
Glynda leaned back a little and crossed her legs, addressing the both of them for the first time.
"Look," she said, "I'd be lying if I were to say I wasn't upset."
Goose and Scarlet shared a nervous look.
"But," she continued, "I'm well aware of just how, unpredictable, your semblance can be, Ms. Branwen. I've heard plenty of stories from both your father and Ms. Rose. As long as these unfortunate incidents don't become commonplace, the occasional mishap can be overlooked."
She accompanied the last bit of her sentence with a glare, assuring the two students that there would be no more major incidents any time soon.
"An apology will do, Ms. Branwen. This was an accident, was it not?"
Goose nodded. Glynda, seeing this, motioned toward Scarlet, who Goose turned to face.
"Sorry," she mumbled, chin to chest and peeking towards Scarlet through the bundle of black hair that curtained her face. Really, she looked more like a chastised puppy than a formidable huntress. Scarlet's earlier thoughts were confirmed and she grinned internally to herself. Adorable!
With Professor Rose's eyes on her she found that the grin would not reach her face, however, and so she settled for a shrug.
"It's fine. Semblances can be tough. I get it." She stuck out her hand, and Goose took it delicately.
Scarlet turned to Glynda. "So that's it then? Scot free?"
Glynda pinched the bridge of her nose. "I'll need to make an announcement over the PA later to cover what was missed, but yes, that should be all. Frankly, the paperwork needed to punish either of you any further would be a pain, and I'll admit that Beacon's staff is a little stretched thin to start the year. Ensure it doesn't happen again, to the best of your ability," another pointed look towards Goose, "and you shouldn't see the interior of this office for a long while."
She took another long sip of her coffee, eyes drifting towards the grand windows that showed the Emerald Forest in the distance. Scarlet and Goose sat still, unsure of how to proceed, until she realized her lapse in concentration.
"You two may go."
Scarlet had always thought she was quick, but the way Goose spilled from her chair, nearly tipping it over in her haste, and bolted for the elevator doors outclassed even her. Scarlet stood, making to follow the spry Huntress, but was stopped by a voice she hadn't heard before.
"Ms. Fall. A quick word?"
Scarlet cringed a little and gave Goose, who was holding the elevator door for her, a little shooing motion. We'll catch up later, Scarlet tried to tell her with her eyes. Once the doors began to close, she turned once more, facing the silver-eyed woman she knew had addressed her.
Ms. (Professor?) Rose had taken a more aggressive stance, eyes hard as steel. Something about those eyes made Scarlet shiver. They didn't seem natural to her. Hoping to keep things courteous, Scarlet decided to address the issue directly.
"Uh, hiya, Professor Rose. Is there anyth–"
"Your mother killed my friend."
Those silver eyes grew even colder. Scarlet took a step back, suddenly realizing the potential danger this woman posed to her. She knew Adam and Scarlet had done some reprehensible things before they'd had her; they'd made sure to tell her when she had started attending Signal. The knowledge of who had been involved in the Fall of Beacon wasn't public, but if it had been she imagined she would have never been allowed near a Huntsman academy, let alone the very one her parents tried to destroy. She'd also been told by her parents that they had killed and injured people, people she might run into during her education. She had been assured that her parents had reached some form of peace with those involved over the years and that the majority of people wouldn't judge her based on the actions of her parents, but she had still been warned that some people may hold familial grudges due to her heritage. She just hadn't expected to be confronted about it so soon.
She took another step back. The silence in the room was deafening. Glynda remained seated, green eyes flicking between the two of them. Despite her trust in her apprentice, her hand rested on her crop. Just in case, she told herself. But just as the tension seemed to be reaching a boiling point, and just as Scarlet's foot began to slide back into a defensive stance, Ruby Rose's eyes softened just a touch.
"Try not to make the same mistakes as her, okay?"
Professor Rose took a step back and dropped her shoulders, relaxing her stance towards the young woman across from her. Scarlet couldn't believe her luck, and yet it did little to assuage her fears. She gave a quick nod, a frightened smile, and dashed for the elevator, almost tripping over herself as she tried to keep her eyes on Ruby and run in the right direction. After some difficulty with the elevator panel and an awkward moment of waiting, the elevator finally chimed and Scarlet slipped inside. The two professors could see her nervous golden eyes staring through the crack of the elevator as the two doors finally slid shut.
The second Scarlet departed, Ruby collapsed into one of the chairs where the students had previously sat, folded her arms upon the desk, and buried her head between them. She let out a muted groan.
"Being mean is hard, Glynda."
Glynda Goodwitch gave her former student a reassuring pat on the shoulder.
"I know, Ruby. I know."
Scarlet was known to be a little bit of a firecracker. Jet, in all his time as her best friend, had seen a fair amount of mischief from her, try as he might to dissuade her from such things. During that mischief, she'd inevitably gotten in big trouble a couple of times, and he could remember many days where he'd had to sit and wait for her outside an office while whatever authority gave her a stern word or two.
Jet, however, could scarcely remember a mess this bad.
Or a wait this awkward.
He glanced to his right, towards the other side of the bench that sat outside the headmistress's elevator. He'd been surprised to find someone else waiting outside when he had first arrived. The girl, who sat with a military-straight spine, had barely acknowledged his presence. He wasn't even sure she'd looked at him. And so he'd sat on the edge of the bench, as far away from her as he realistically could, and resolved himself to an uncomfortable time.
He took the opportunity to look her over now. His eyes, as they usually did, first fell to her weapon, or in the case of her, her two weapons. Coiled on her hip sat an incredibly complex-looking metal whip, covered in shining blades along its length. From the gears and other mechanisms that he could make out, it looked almost as if the various blades could lock together into one long, continuous cutting edge. So a sword-whip hybrid of some sort, he deduced. Not entirely unique, but still a brilliant design and he'd never seen one that looked as well-built as hers did. He stored that note away for combat class.
What was entirely unique, however, was what sat above the whip. Jet had seen his fair share of weapons and he'd taken it upon himself to memorize some of the more famous ones that caught his eye. Crescent Rose and Harbinger were two such weapons maintained at Beacon, wielded by staff members Ruby Rose and Qrow Branwen respectively. In the pantheon of Huntsman weapons, those two were legendary in a way that most weapons never achieved. To his amazement, Jet found himself staring at a weapon of the same fame. General Ironwood's Due.
He could hardly believe his eyes. He could also hardly stop himself from drooling. The black revolver, even at this distance, was gorgeous. Black metal blended seamlessly with shiny grey, reflecting the soft blue glow the cylinder of the weapon gently emitted. He could tell it was incredibly well-balanced, and yet the weapon was almost certainly incredibly heavy. The details of the weapon, which had been developed by Atlas's top R&D team, had been released after General Ironwood had retired from active service. He knew that revolver could punch a hole clean through a 3-foot thick concrete wall. It could execute an Ursa in a single blow. It was an incredibly powerful hand cannon, and Jet was honestly amazed a girl of her stature could even dream of wielding such an item.
Speaking of her stature, Jet tore his eyes away from her (incredible!) handgun and allowed himself to look at the woman herself. This was James's and Winter's daughter, he reckoned. It would be important to at least be able to recognize her.
She was short, incredibly so, to the point where he might have thought her younger than she was if not for her position at Beacon. She wore an open long blue coat, military style with epaulets, that sported golden buttons. Below that lay a simple white blouse, a blue tie that matched her jacket, and a white skirt adorned by a black belt. On her feet, she wore a simple pair of boots, which surprisingly were not Atlesian military issue. Altogether, it created an almost corporate, military dress uniform sort of look that he supposed suited the girl's origin well.
Glancing up, he took a second to look over her features. Her hair, the same color as her father's with the addition of a hint of navy blue, was done up in a pair of space buns that sat near the back of her head. Her eyes were blue like her father's.
And, he realized, they were staring right at him.
Jet jerked his head away, the deadpan look of disapproval she was giving him not going unnoticed. He looked straight forward, hands fiddling with his jacket out of discomfort. It was a little awkward, sure, but if he didn't look back at her, maybe she'd just ignore him!
"Were you checking me out?"
Jet cursed himself internally and turned back to face her. She had shifted a little farther away from him, turning herself to face him more directly. Her arms were crossed over her blue tie and she was still frowning. She was obviously not amused.
Luckily, Jet had an excuse.
"No. I mean, kind of?"
Her eyebrow rose and her frown deepened. Jet scrambled for words.
"W-wait! I mean, I wasn't checking you out. No, really! I was checking out that."
He pointed to Due. Her eyes followed his hand, and she let out a little sigh.
What followed next he would have never expected. The girl reached down and unclipped Due from its holster. A rush of panic went through him, as he figured at first she was planning on shooting him with it, but he was surprised to see her hand come forward in an underhand toss. In his surprised state he almost didn't react in time to receive it, but training as a Huntsman had kept his reactions sharp and he caught it near the muzzle as it reached him.
He had been right. It was heavy, but it was also incredibly well-balanced. He stared at it for a couple of seconds like it was the greatest gift he had ever received. In all fairness, it might have been.
After a few moments of examining it, he looked back at the girl. Her arms were still crossed, but her expression had noticeably softened. She shook her head a little.
"Don't worry. I get that a lot."
Jet blinked. "Do you toss it to just about anyone who wants it? Aren't you worried somebody's going to steal it?"
"Funny. Nobody's ever tried. I don't think it would end too well for them." She gave him an evil little smile.
Jet took as long as he reasonably could to examine the handgun. Satisfied with his experience, he scooted a little closer to the girl. When she didn't try to move away, he held Due back out to her. She took it carefully by the grip and holstered it once more.
Jet figured this was probably as good of a time as any to introduce himself.
"I'm Jet. Are you here because of the whole mix-up earlier?"
She gave a little snort.
"Elizabeth, or Liz. Whatever works best for you," she said. "And yes, I'm here for my friend Goose. I'm assuming you're here for the red-haired girl?"
Jet scratched the back of his head and chuckled nervously.
"Uh, yeah. Scarlet. Sorry about all that. She can be a little quick to jump to conclusions."
"It's fine. Goose has a semblance that interferes with probability. Chances are this whole debacle is a result of that."
Jet nodded. Well, that was a little reassuring. Maybe this whole disaster wasn't entirely Scarlet's fault.
They sat in silence, albeit a more comfortable one than before. A few moments later the elevator chimed, signaling that the dressing-down the two girls had been receiving was likely over. They both stood up, ready to greet their respective parties.
Jet was a little surprised to find that Goose was the only occupant. She was surprised too, judging by the way the relieved smile she was wearing disappeared upon sighting Elizabeth. She let off an indignant squawk as Elizabeth muscled her way past Jet and seized Goose by the arm, dragging her wholesale out of the elevator with a strength her small frame hid well. The doors closed behind her.
"Goose!" She practically yelled into the poor girl's face. "What the hell were you thinking? I know your semblance can be troublesome, but fighting back like that? No wonder Goodwitch dragged you–"
Elizabeth stopped when she noticed that Goose wasn't paying attention to her. Instead, she was staring at Jet with a questioning look. Liz glanced between the two.
"Goose, this is Jet. Jet, Goose."
She kept the introductions brief. Jet raised a hand in greeting, feeling a little awkward witnessing their spat. Goose responded in kind.
"Nice eyes." Goose shot him a small smile. Jet noticed that her eyes were much the same shade as his own. If not for the different hair and skin tone they could have been related.
"Thanks. You too?" He joked back, smiling a little. The tension had been defused a little. He thanked her mentally for the little joke.
Elizabeth, however, was not keen on letting that be the end of things. Sitting Goose down on the bench, she launched into a tirade about the responsibilities of a Huntsman and the risks of Goose's semblance. Goose didn't talk back, content to weather the storm with the occasional head nod and agreement. Jet could tell this wasn't the first time this had happened to her. He felt bad for the girl.
Elizabeth was interrupted by yet another chiming of the elevator. This time, the doors opened to reveal Scarlet, much to his relief. She gave him a quick smile upon seeing him and stepped out into the hallway.
Jet frowned. After being friends for so long, Jet knew how to read her well. Her smile was forced, and there was a little tremor that ran through her obviously tensed shoulders, try as she might to hide it. Something had upset her.
He gave her a quick hug.
"You alright?" He backed off, holding her by the shoulders.
She gave a quick nod. I'll tell you later, her eyes seemed to say. Jet decided not to press the issue.
Turning around, he found the other two girls looking at them. He was glad to see no signs of malice or contempt in Goose's eyes. Seems like the two of them have smoothed things over well enough, he thought. He figured now was as good a time as any to break the ice properly.
"So," he asked. "Anyone know where the dining hall is?"
Food, it seemed, was a good bonding tool. While it took the group of four some time to find the dining hall, the search proved to be worth it. Scarlet was absolutely amazed by the selection Beacon offered to students. Meats, seafood, cheeses, fresh vegetables, and everything else under the sun seemed to be on offer. She chose a dish and settled in next to Jet at the table they'd chosen.
Her choice of food didn't go unnoticed.
"Grilled cheese?" Scarlet could hear the dismay in Elizabeth's voice. Looking up from her meal, she found the girl staring at her incredulously, knife hand frozen halfway through the filet mignon she had selected. Scarlet raised an eyebrow.
"Is there a problem, Liz?" She asked sweetly. A little too sweetly.
Elizabeth blinked a few times.
"I-I mean," she stuttered, "it just seems like you're missing out on a lot of better–"
Scarlet's eyebrow rose higher. Elizabeth cleared her throat, buried her eyes in her steak, and resumed cutting.
Satisfied there would be no further issues, Scarlet scanned the rest of the room. It was lunchtime, so the room was packed. People were making friends and she could already start to see some groups beginning to form. However, two people who had just finished grabbing trays caught her eye in particular. It was the pair from the Bullhead! Scarlet scanned for the blonde man who had interrupted them but couldn't spot him. Maybe the two had killed him after they had disembarked. The thought made her chuckle and she turned back to the rest of the table.
And found Goose and Elizabeth waving frantically toward the two girls. Huh. Seems like they knew each other. She looked towards Jet, a questioning look in her eyes, but he just shrugged and went back to picking at his salad. Scarlet sighed. If the two girls' earlier argument was any indication, it seemed like their lunch was about to get a lot louder.
They reached the table and pulled up two chairs, sitting one on each side of Goose and Liz. With the four of them on one side of the table and Jet and Scarlet on the other, it felt more like an interrogation than anything else.
Elizabeth was the first to speak.
"Belka, Lumi, that's Jet and that's Scarlet," she said, pointing to the two friends in turn. Scarlet gave the two girls her best smile and a brief "hi". Jet waved, mouth full of salad. "Goose and Scarlet got into a little spat earlier."
Belka glanced towards Scarlet, cool purple eyes looking her up and down from across the table.
"We heard. Goose's semblance get you?"
Scarlet nodded. "That's what everybody keeps telling me," she said, turning to Goose. "How does your semblance work anyways?"
Goose swallowed a bite of her sandwich before speaking.
"Whenever I'm around, unlikely events become more likely. It usually flares up in high-stress situations." She shrugged. "Hard to tell you much more. It's a lot like my dad Qrow's, and the details of his semblance are still kind of a mystery even today."
Jet, suddenly, was paying attention. He looked up from his salad, eyes shining. "Qrow? Qrow Branwen?" Goose shifted in her seat, a little uncomfortable about the sudden enthusiasm, but nodded anyways.
Jet leaned forward over the table, grinning ear to ear. "No way! Head of security at Beacon? Have you ever handled Harbinger? Can I handle Harbinger? I've always–mmph!"
Scarlet pushed his face down into his salad before he could scare the poor girl more. Goose was currently leaning back out of her chair, looking desperately like she wanted to escape to another table.
"Sorry!" Scarlet laughed awkwardly, still holding Jet down to muffle his protests. "He likes his weapons. Harbinger is a favorite of his."
After a moment's hesitation, Goose leaned back forward and allowed a small smile to grace her features. Scarlet released her hold on Jet's head. "It's alright. Yeah, my dad's pretty cool. You'll get to meet him sometime. Just don't freak him out or he might kick you around a little."
Jet seemed pleased with the answer, if not with the current condition of his face. He set about wiping some salad dressing off his forehead, glaring at Scarlet and muttering to himself about how weapon appreciation was natural to a huntsman. Scarlet gave him an apologetic pat on the knee and turned her attention to the two new girls.
"So," she began, "how do you all know each other? Same combat school?"
The blonde girl, Lumi, responded this time.
"Belka and I were trained privately, so no. I'm afraid we're all parts of the Schnee family in one way or another. We've met each other before at family gatherings and the like."
At the mention of the Schnee family, the mood on the other side of the table immediately soured. Goose took a big bite of her sandwich, determined not to draw the attention of any of the other girls. Belka shot Lumi a look out of the corner of her eye but otherwise said nothing. Lumi turned her nose up a little and pointedly refused to look in Belka's direction. The only person who seemed mostly unaffected was Elizabeth, who was still hacking off small bits of her filet. Despite her mostly unbothered attitude, Scarlet did notice her shoulder tense a little, as if preparing for a fight.
Well, alright then.
"So whose parents are who? Pretty famous family, I bet I know their names," Scarlet suggested, trying to keep her voice kind. Maybe if she got them to open up about their families, they'd get a little more used to the idea of discussing them and it wouldn't be such a sore subject. And from there? Friends! She gave herself a mental pat on the back for the brilliant plan. She just needed each of them to–
Scarlet's scheming was rudely interrupted by an index finger being shoved in her face.
"Fine. Let me show you." Belka chirped, her purple eyes locked on Scarlet. She stabbed the index finger toward Lumi.
"Weiss Schnee and Jaune Arc." Lumi made to say something, but Belka's finger was already moving to the next.
"James Ironwood and Winter Schnee." Elizabeth didn't even acknowledge the finger suddenly shoved in her face.
"Willow Schnee and Qrow Branwen." Belka's finger poked Goose roughly in the ribs, eliciting a soft protest from the girl. She rubbed the spot where she'd been stabbed.
"Jacques Schnee and Robyn Gele-Hill." Belka finished with herself, stabbing the finger into her chest. Scarlet noticed a little look of contempt from Lumi at the mention of Belka's parents, but she let it slide for the moment. Belka looked at Scarlet for a few seconds more, considering her momentarily, and turned back to her food.
Scarlet sat there in silence, still processing the rundown. The whole thing had taken maybe five seconds, tops. One thing was clear: this was not Belka's first time breaking down the family history.
"W-well, hold on now," Scarlet stuttered out a response once her mind had finished processing. "Aren't you going to give me some detail? Break down what your family is like? Anything?"
All four Schnee children stopped eating, looked at her simultaneously, and responded.
"No."
Scarlet slumped back in her chair, defeated.
Great, she thought, I've been dropped in the middle of a family feud. She opened her mouth to speak, hoping to defuse the tension in some other way, but she was interrupted by a hand on her shoulder. A hand that was not Jet's, judging by the way Jet's hands were occupied with his machine pistol.
"Opened a can of worms there, didn't you?"
A tall, tan man slid into the seat to Scarlet's left. She recognized him immediately as the same man from the Bullhead. His long, blonde hair was done up in a ponytail, the golden color matching the monkey tail that swayed gently behind him. The black jacket he wore open to the world did little to hide his physique. His abs and chest were on full display, unrestrained by any clothing of any sort. A part of Scarlet deep down thanked the Gods that they were. The man was, in a word, shredded. He looked like he'd been chiseled from marble.
On his legs, he wore a simple pair of black sweatpants. The somewhat thin material made it obvious that the mystery man did not skip leg day. Finally, he wore a heavy-looking set of golden bracers that wrapped around both his shins and his forearms. He settled into his seat and looked over at her with purple eyes full of mischief.
Scarlet checked if her nose was bleeding.
Belka and Lumi were understandably less amused.
"What are you doing here?" Belka hissed, snatching up a grape and hurling it at the man's head.
"Zip up your jacket! That's indecent!" Lumi, meanwhile, had nearly tumbled out of her chair, face flushed and eyes locked very obviously below the Faunus's face. Scarlet made a quick mental note to tease the girl later about it.
The man responded by catching the incoming grape in his mouth, earning an exasperated sigh from Belka, and a nod towards Lumi.
"The only people who get to regulate my outfits are my mothers, and you're not my mother," he fired back. He stopped for a second and then grinned wider. "Well, unless you want me to call you momm–"
The man was interrupted by a noise that sounded like a choking bird. He leaned calmly to his right, effortlessly dodging the cafeteria tray that sailed past his head. Lumi buried her beet-red face in her now-empty hands.
While avoiding the rogue tray, the man happened to gently bump into Scarlet's shoulder. Seemingly noticing her, Goose, and Jet for the first time, he turned towards the three with a look of surprise and stuck out a hand.
"Hi. Jin Belladonna-Xiao Long. I know. It's a mouthful. You'll get used to it."
He reached down and crushed Scarlet's hand in a handshake, despite the fact that she hadn't offered it to him. Scarlet finally recovered enough from his intrusion to respond.
"Scarlet Fall. Hi."
He gave her a dazzling smile and reached across her, meeting Jet in a handshake of their own.
"Name's Jin."
"Jet Black. Nice to meet you."
That drew a response from the man. He paused momentarily.
"Your name is Jet Black?"
"Yeah."
"Like your legal name?"
"Yup."
"Cool." The two exchanged fistbumps. Scarlet snorted. Guys.
Finally, he turned his attention to Goose.
"And you?" he asked.
"Goose Branwen." She took his outstretched hand. Scarlet watched her wince from the firmness of the man's grip, but she hid it well enough. She gave him a brief smile, which he returned.
"Just one question," he asked. Goose cocked her head inquisitively.
Jin pointed at the remains of her sandwich.
"Are you gonna eat that?"
Scarlet slumped into her sleeping bag with a low groan. The dorms would only be accessible once they had teams, so the new students had been gathered for a big ol' sleepover in the auditorium. Being a naturally late sleeper, Scarlet found herself the last one awake from their little impromptu group, which had gathered in one corner of the room in a small circle.
She eyed them as they slept, a small smile on her face. When she had first gotten her letter of acceptance, she had dreaded coming here. She knew her parents had done bad things here. Professor Rose's words to her flashed through her mind. Her parents had killed here. A part of her, deep down, worried that she wouldn't be accepted. That because of her family, she would be turned away.
Now, with her friends lying around her, she knew that wasn't the case. It was early days, sure, but she knew now that she wasn't going to be chased out by the other students with pitchforks and torches. In fact, by the end of the day, she'd been getting along pretty well with everyone. There were issues and conflicts, but nothing she didn't feel they couldn't work through.
She put her head on her pillow and sighed, this time from relief. Things were looking up. Now all she had to do was pass initiation, and she knew she'd be just fine.
"Bring it on, Beacon."
She smiled softly and drifted off to sleep.
Maybe it was the warmth of the morning light hitting Scarlet's face that woke her. Maybe it was the chirping of birds or the rustling of leaves in the wind. Maybe it was the feeling of the dew on her skin.
Or maybe it was the blaring of an air raid siren.
Scarlet practically rocketed straight out of her sleeping bag, slamming her head into a branch on the way up. Cursing, she shimmied out of her sleeping bag and scrambled to her feet. Rubbing her head, she took in her surroundings.
She was in a forest. A massive forest. The sunlight was just beginning to peek over the trees, and she could see a deer dashing away from the clearing in which she now found herself. The area beyond her little opening in the trees looked dark and ominous.
Even more ominous? The other students, including her new friends, were nowhere to be found. She was alone.
Turning, she located the siren that had woken her. Or rather, the walkie-talkie. It was clipped to the outside of a standard-issue rocket locker. She stumbled over to it, still groggy from sleep, and threw the door open, finding Wilt and Bleed lying inside. A small canvas bag lay on the floor of the locker. She clipped the twin blades to their places on her waist and slung the bag over her shoulder. Slamming the door shut with a huff, she ripped the walkie-talkie from the outside of the locker, breaking the clip on the back of it in her frustration.
Sitting down on a nearby rock, she resolved to wait out the noise, taking a water bottle from the bag and sipping it leisurely. Finally, after what felt like ages, the loud, abrasive siren noise faded away, and a new noise took its place. One that was already familiar to Scarlet.
"Good morning, students."
Headmistress Goodwitch's voice crackled to life over the tiny speaker.
"Welcome to your initiation."
Not the initiation most of you were probably expecting.
Also, if you've been paying attention, there are now seven introduced characters. I wonder who the last kid could be?