Hours. That's how long it took for them to reach the castle. It hasn't been daylight for long, but when she saw the light washing over the horizon, the girl took a deep breath of relief and soaked in the feeling of warmth on her body. Qrow let her have her moment before urging her to move on.
When they finally arrived at the campus, she could hardly believe her eyes. Huge stone towers, acres upon acres of lush green grass, beautifully carved monuments and water fountains, and miles worth of sidewalks mapping the place. And Beacon Tower stood proudly in the center of campus.
It was…
"Breathtaking, huh?" Qrow asked, shaking her from her thoughts. "I remember my first time," he smirked.
Engines roared high above, and they looked up to see dozens of flying ships soaring through the sky and towards Beacon.
"What's going on?" she asked curiously.
"Well, Snowball," Qrow started, the amnesiac's eyes narrowing at his annoying nickname for her. "Today just happens to be the first day of the new semester at Beacon, and those ships have all of the new and returning students above them."
"This feels familiar, somehow…" she said, concentrating on that thought as if she thought hard enough, she'd remember something.
"Told you, you're probably a huntress in training. Now the real question is, are you a student here?" Qrow asked rhetorically.
"And you think your boss can tell you that?" she asked.
The huntsman smiled crookedly. "I know he'll know if you are or not—he's the headmaster of Beacon."
"Ah," she answered. "Makes sense."
"C'mon," he said. "Let's get up there and catch him before the ceremony starts."
"Up where?" she asked.
"The top of the tower," he pointed.
"You're kidding."
. . .
"That's her?" a blond woman asked.
"I believe so," a man with gray hair and small, circular glasses replied. They were standing side by side, looking down at the ground far below them.
"And you, what, got an anonymous tip that she would be in the forest?" the woman asked.
The headmaster smirked and took a sip from his coffee mug. "Something like that."
The blond woman sighed. "Are you ever going to give a straight answer?"
He said nothing at first, taking another sip from his mug before responding. "All in its own time, Glynda."
"Anyways," she rolled her eyes. "What's so special about this girl? There's got to a reason you'd be willing to send Qrow to go find her."
"I couldn't just leave her there. Something had to be done to get her out of Forever Fall."
"You're going to enroll her, aren't you? Just like you did with that Rose girl last night," Glynda asked.
Ozpin took a long sip from his coffee, hiding a sly smirk.
. . .
"You weren't kidding," she said. She and Qrow were riding in one of the many elevators in Beacon Tower, riding up to the top floor.
A smirk played on Qrow's face. "Now, when we get up there, remember your manners. He is the headmaster of one of the most prodigious huntsmen academies on the planet. And if you disrespect him, I'm obligated to kick your ass."
"Ha-ha," she rolled her eyes.
"I'm serious," he said. "One wrong move, I throw you off the top of the tower."
"I'd like to see you try, old man," she mumbled to herself. Qrow, hearing this, gave a wry chuckle and ruffled her hair. "Hey, stop that!" she exclaimed, pushing his hand away.
"You remind me of my niece," he told her.
"What, is she as ugly and annoying as you?" the girl crossed her arms.
"I'll have to remember that you have a mouth on you," Qrow sighed. "No, actually. Takes after her mom. You might meet her, her first day at Beacon is today."
Then the elevator doors opened, revealing a clean gray hallway with dozens of doors on either side. Without another word, Qrow led the amnesiac girl down the hallway until they came to a large double door at the far end of it. The huntsman pushed the doors open into an enormous office with tall windows that overlooked the campus. Sitting behind a wide desk was a bespectacled man with his elbows resting against the desk and his fingers interlaced in front of his face.
"Qrow," the headmaster announced, and a blond woman in a white blouse appeared at his side. Her green eyes bored right into the girl, sending a chill down her spine.
"Hey, Oz," Qrow entered the office, the white-haired girl following closely.
"This must be the girl you found in the forest," the headmaster guessed, resting his hands against his desk.
"That'd be me," the girl confirmed, and Ozpin gestured to the black leather chairs in front of the desk. She and Qrow sat, and Qrow pulled a silver flask out of his pocket and started to uncork it. After a sharp glare from the blond woman, Qrow groaned and put the flask away.
"So," Ozpin addressed the girl directly. "I hear you're having more than a few problems with your memory."
"That's underselling it," the girl raised her eyebrows.
Ozpin chuckled. "I see. Well, first things first: is there anything that you remember? Anything at all?"
"Besides everything after waking up in that red forest? Nothing."
"Forever Fall," Qrow told her. When she looked at him weird, he rolled his eyes. "Name of the forest."
"Right…" she turned her attention back to the headmaster.
"Any clues to your past?" Ozpin raised an eyebrow.
"Not any I could find," she answered. "I had a broken scroll, but uh…"
"What?"
Qrow rubbed the back of his neck. "She tossed it after she woke up. Didn't realize the data could be stripped from it."
"That's unfortunate," Ozpin exhaled through his nose. "Well, that's quite all right, it'll just take longer."
"Qrow thinks I might be a student," she offered.
"That very well may be, but if you are, you've never attended Beacon. I would've recognized you," Ozpin replied. "You look like a huntress, and I don't just mean your clothes; you've got that look about you."
"What kind of look?" she asked.
"There's a certain look in someone's eyes that gives them away. You've certainly seen combat," the headmaster explained. "Take Qrow, for example."
"Hold on, if you're saying I look like Qrow, then I might just have to take offense to that," she hooked her thumb at the huntsman. Qrow rolled his eyes but said nothing.
"Nothing like that," Ozpin chuckled. "Like I said, just a certain 'seasoned' look in a person's eyes. But I digress. Judging by your appearance and what I've seen of your personality, I doubt you're from Atlas either. But you never know."
She shrugged, completely clueless. Qrow cleared his throat and moved his finger in a circle. The classic "get on with it" gesture.
"Right," Ozpin sat up straighter. "Have you put any thought as to where you'd go?"
Her mind blanked. Truthfully, she hadn't even considered it. But she didn't want him to think she was brainless.
"Uh, a little, but—" she started.
"I thought as much," Ozpin chuckled. He glanced at the blond woman beside him, who had been strangely quiet this entire time. After a moment, she rolled her eyes with a sigh, and Ozpin returned her attention to the white-haired girl.
"I have a proposition for you," he told her warmly.
"Which is…?" she raised an eyebrow.
"In exchange for us working to figure out who you really are and the resources it'll take to accomplish that, you will attend my school. You'll go to class and live in the dorms, as well as hone your skills as a huntress. Free room and board, and all I ask for is your time and cooperation."
The amnesiac was speechless. But something told her there was more at work here. This "deal" was too good to be true.
"What's the catch?" she sat forward.
"No catch, just attend class and live as a Beacon student. I promise that you'll receive the highest quality education," Ozpin said.
"No, there's something else going on here. No one is just offered to attend one of the highest-ranking academies for FREE, unless there's a catch. Now, I'm the one in question being offered that, so I think I deserve to know," she crossed her arms and leaned back.
"Not bad, kid," Qrow murmured.
"Very well," Ozpin exhaled. "Truthfully, I want to get to the bottom as to why you were in Forever Fall Forest, alone. No offense, but we don't know who you are. For all I know, you could be lying about everything, and this is all an elaborate ploy to get within my school. I won't go into detail, but we are right to be suspicious."
"I get it," the girl interrupted. "You want to keep an eye on me, to make sure I'm not a 'threat' to you."
"Precisely. No offense," Ozpin nodded.
"None taken," she shrugged. "It's smart. I think I'd do the same thing. 'Keep your friends close' and all that."
"Exactly," the blond woman said, the first time she's spoken since the amnesiac girl arrived.
"Don't mind her," Qrow said. "She's had a stick up her ass for as long as I've known her."
The woman rolled her eyes and crossed her arms.
After a moment of uncomfortable silence, the girl cleared her throat. "So, where do we go from here?"
"Well," Ozpin sat forward and checked his watch. "In about ten minutes, I'm supposed to be welcoming the new students to the academy. I'd like you to come with me to that, and from there you can go through orientation with the rest of the students. I hope it goes without saying that once we get down there, I'd prefer that you act like we didn't know each other personally. At least for now."
"Whatever," she shrugged.
"Now, for your student license…" Ozpin began typing on a holographic keyboard, and a holographic screen appeared just above his desk. "I'm guessing you also don't remember your name."
The girl raised her eyebrows.
"I thought so," Ozpin rapidly typed on his keyboard. "I suppose we could assign you a name, at least until you remember yours or we discover your real identity. Now, for your alias name…"
"And what's that going to be?" she asked, her interest growing by the second.
"Well, typically, someone has a name that has to do with color, and they usually dress themselves in that color. Judging by the looks of you, your colors are white and purple," Qrow explained.
"I already have a list of names to do with each of those colors," Ozpin noted, his eyes scanning the holographic screen in front of him. He pressed a button and reversed the screen so that the girl and Qrow could see. "Take your pick."
. . .
The amnesiac girl stared down at the brand-new scroll that Professor Ozpin gave her. Her new Beacon Academy ID was on the screen. The picture of her didn't look too bad, but at least she could actually see what she looked like now. True to what Qrow had told her, she had violet eyes. Her snow-white hair almost touched her shoulders and was in a sort of spiked/bobbed style. Her bangs swept across her forehead but were parted enough on the side to keep her eyes visible.
Her violet eyes scanned her ID, memorizing all the details in case someone asked. According to the student license, she was from the city of Vale and coming to Beacon from Signal Academy. Ozpin even created a false file on her to justify it, but if any actual students from Signal found out she was also "from" Signal, there could be a problem.
"Sera Calypso, huh?" Professor Ozpin asked. He and the amnesiac were on their way to Beacon's auditorium so Ozpin could perform his speech for the new students. After she got her license and it was time to go, Qrow said a brief goodbye, then cleared out. "Keep an eye out for my nieces, you can't miss them," was the last thing he said to her. She wasn't sure what he meant, since he didn't even tell her what they looked like. Plus, she thought he had a niece, not two nieces.
Then, Ozpin pulled him aside to talk with him privately. Afterwards, she and Ozpin entered the elevator together to head down.
"Yeah, why not? I thought it sounded good," she crossed her arms.
"No, no, it's a fine name. "'Calypso' is an old name with a sad story."
Somewhere off to their right a red explosion shook the ground and made the girl and Ozpin turn their heads. Paying it no mind, Ozpin took a sip from his coffee mug and continued on.
"So," 'Sera' said. "What can I expect from this orientation of yours?"
"Well, after the opening ceremony, the students will be assigned lockers in the locker room, where you will place your belongings that you'll need for tomorrow morning. After that, you'll go with the other students to the ballroom, where all of you will sleep until you're assigned teams," he explained calmly.
"What's going to happen tomorrow morning?" she asked.
"Oh, you'll find out," Ozpin said smugly.
"Wait, it sounds like it's something combat-related," she said. "And I don't have a weapon. In fact, I'm not sure if I'll even be able to fight!"
"That's what tomorrow is for, to gauge just how well students can handle themselves. As for a weapon, Qrow is handling that as we speak," the headmaster gave a sly smile.
"What if he picks one that I'm not good with?" she asked.
"Good question," he responded. "I trust Qrow to choose something that compliments you. He can tell a lot about how you fight just by how you look, but I can't promise he'll know exactly what weapon fits you. If I know him, he'll likely choose a sword."
"What makes you say that?" Sera raised an eyebrow.
"You've got that sort of physique. A 'sword fighter's body,' if you will," Ozpin answered.
'Sera' looked down at her slightly tattered clothes and lightly toned abs on her bare stomach. "If you say so."
"We're almost there," Ozpin noted. Sure enough, just ahead of them, a crowd of students were streaming into the large entrance of a building. They all looked around the amnesiac's age, bustling around excitedly with grins on their faces. "Just to go over this one more time, what are you going to do?"
"Blend in and act like I'm supposed to be here," she answered. "And if anyone asks, I tell them what you told me to say about myself."
"Which is?"
She sighed. "I'm a student coming to Beacon from Signal, my name is Sera Calypso and I'm eighteen."
"Good enough," Ozpin said as they got closer to the auditorium. "Well, I guess this is goodbye for now, 'Sera.' I do hope you'll enjoy yourself here at Beacon," then Ozpin walked ahead of her and around the side of the auditorium.
"Yeah," she gave a two-fingered salute. "See ya, professor."
Following the rest of the students inside, the girl found a seat near the rear of the room to watch the presentation. The auditorium roared with the voices of hundreds of students who absolutely refused to quiet down. She crossed her arms and shut her eyes, waiting for the ceremony to begin.
"You look like serious business," someone beside her said. She cast her eyes to the side to see a girl in the seat beside her.
"What makes you say that?" the amnesiac looked over at her.
"I dunno, you just look like it. Sitting there all brood-y and stuff with your arms crossed and eyes closed.
"Well, I wouldn't classify myself as 'serious business,' but I'll take that as a compliment," she sat up.
The new girl stuck her hand out with a smile. "Cerulean Myst."
True to her name, Cerulean was blue. Well, her hair, eyes, and clothes were, at least. Her long, straight hair was dark blue, the color of sapphire, while her eyes were a brighter tone. Her skin was tanned, presumably from time in the water judging by her clothes. She wore white shorts and a blue sleeveless shirt with the design of waves woven into the cloth.
"Sera Calypso," the amnesiac shook her hand, then she added, "Call me Sera."
"Sera," she confirmed. "You a transfer student, too? Or are you from here?"
"Ah, from here. Vale. You said you were a transfer?" 'Sera' said.
"Yup, from Haven. Truthfully, I don't know anyone here. Not many students transferred from Haven, and the others that did aren't on the best of terms with me," Cerulean explained. Sera didn't know why this girl was explaining her whole life's story, but she smirked when something dawned on her.
"And that's why you started talking to me, huh?" she guessed.
"Pretty much," she chuckled nervously. "Might as well start making friends early, am I right?"
"Yeah," Sera agreed. "Can't blame you there."
"Blend in," she remembered Ozpin say. "Act like one of the students."
"Truth be told, I don't know anyone else here, either. I won't get into the details of me coming here from Signal Academy, but let's just say not many people would recognize me," Sera rubbed the back of her neck anxiously.
"That's fine," Cerulean held up her hands good naturedly. "I won't press you for details. We just met each other, after all,"
"So," the amnesiac said. "You wouldn't happen to know anything of what's going on tomorrow, would you?"
"I've heard a few people mention something about teams being assigned, but other than that? Not much," Cerulean admitted.
Sera sighed, "That's all I've heard, too. And something about lockers."
She heard a loud tapping noise coming from the many speakers in the auditorium, then every student there went quiet, and all attention went to the stage.
"Ahem," Professor Ozpin said. "I'll keep this brief. You have traveled here today in search of knowledge—to hone your craft and acquire new skills. And when you have finished, you plan to dedicate your life to the protection of the people. But I look amongst you, and all I see is wasted energy, in need of purpose—direction. You assume knowledge will free you of this, but your time at this school will prove that knowledge can only carry you so far. It is up to you to take the first step." Ozpin gave a curt nod, then exited the stage, leaving the students to reflect on his words.
"Well…" Sera blinked. "That was…deep."
"The man talked for like, a minute, but said a lot," Cerulean said.
Then that woman from Ozpin's office, Glynda something, took Ozpin's place on the stage.
"If all students would please follow me to the locker room to drop off your equipment, we can get you sorted out to prepare for initiation tomorrow morning," Glynda said. Then she exited the stage and walked up the center aisle towards the doors.
"Well, I guess that's our cue," Sera stood, stretching her arms wide. Then her new scroll beeped, and she brought it up to see a message on the screen.
Qrow: Your locker number is 1260. You'll find your new weapon and gear waiting inside. Don't worry, I think you'll like what I picked out.
Sera blinked twice before tucking the scroll into her pocket. That was fast, she thought.
"Coming?" Cerulean asked.
"Yeah, sorry," Sera followed her down the row of seats, and they joined the horde of students following Glynda Goodwitch.
Sera and Cerulean talked with each other more while they walked to wherever the locker room was, learning more about each other. It's not like Sera had much to tell about herself, though. The amnesiac mostly dodged questions or got Cerulean to tell more about herself rather than make up lies. If she had to lie about herself, she'd better make sure she could keep the lies straight in her head.
"You surf? What's that like?" Sera asked, genuinely curious.
"It's amazing," she replied. "There's nothing quite like it. My folks say I might as well have been born in the water with how much time I spend in it."
"Sounds incredible," the amnesiac said wistfully. She wished she could remember what hobbies she had. If she had any, that is.
Finally, they arrived inside of an enormously long room with rows upon rows of metal lockers lining the walls.
"Find any empty locker and place your weapons and equipment inside," Professor Goodwitch explained. "Don't worry about anyone messing with your belongings. When you choose a locker, simply link your scroll to it and set a passcode, and only you will be able to access the contents of your lockers. I'll wait here for you all to finish," Glynda pulled out a tablet and began typing on it.
Making it appear as if she was looking for a locker to choose, and in a way, she was, Sera wandered through the room, searching for locker 1260.
"You got a certain number you like or something? Please don't tell me it's 'sixty-nine,'" Cerulean joked.
Sera laughed. "No, I'm just looking for the right 'feel' of one, you know?" she lied.
"Whatever you say," the blue-haired girl said uncertainly.
"You go ahead and pick one, I'll be right behind you," she told her.
Cerulean looked unsure, but she shrugged and opened the nearest empty locker, setting her equipment bag and weapon inside. From what Sera could see of its collapsed form, it was a sapphire-colored metal shaft about a foot long, with grooves laid into the metal. She assumed that when it expanded, the weapon had some sort of design on its shaft.
Now that she was temporarily free of Cerulean, Sera hurried down the room until she arrived at the lockers numbering from twelve hundred and onward. Finally, she arrived at the locker that Qrow told her: 1260. Except there was one problem: someone else was already in front of it.
A short girl in a red cloak was reaching for the locker's handle, and Sera felt her heart drop. She had to do something, quick.
"Hey!" she shouted, and the girl jumped and turned to face her with an alarmed expression. "I, uh, think that's my locker."
The shorter girl's eyes narrowed slightly, "I got here first?" She looked younger than the other students. At least fifteen, maybe younger. Either she really was younger than the others, or she just looked like it.
"I know," Sera said. "But you see, uh…" she trailed off, trying to come up with an explanation. "I already put my stuff in that one."
"The thing says it's open," the girl pointed at the word "vacant" in green letters on the digital screen.
"I forgot to set a passcode," Sera explained. "That's why I was on my way back here. To set it." It sounded sensible to her.
"I see what you're doing the shorter girl said, getting defensive. "You're trying to push me around on the first day. You don't actually want this locker, you just want it now cause I was about to get it!" she said, her high-pitched voice beginning to annoy the amnesiac.
Sera crossed her arms. "Open it."
"Huh?" the girl blinked, taken by surprise.
"You heard me. You think I'm trying to give you a hard time or something, I'm telling you to find out for yourself. If that locker is empty, I'll leave right now. So open it."
They stared each other down for a few moments, violet eyes meeting silver ones. Sera silently prayed that her belongings were actually inside the locker and that Qrow hadn't made a mistake. She double checked to make sure that this was indeed locker twelve-sixty.
Finally, the shorter girl opened the locker. They both peered inside, and Sera silently breathed a sigh of relief when she saw a weapon and a couple of white and purple duffle bags within it.
"You weren't lying," the girl said. Then her eyes widened, and her mouth turned into a frown. "I'm so sorry!"
"See, I told you," Sera said, keeping her arms crossed. After a moment, her expression softened. She didn't want to immediately be known as a mean person, especially not to someone as innocent looking as this girl. "Hey, I'm sorry for that."
"For what?" the girl's expression puzzled.
"I really wasn't trying to push you around or anything like that, I just wasn't lying about forgetting to set a password."
"Well, I believe you now!" she said, exasperated. "The proof's right there," she gestured to the locker's contents. "That's okay, though!" her face turned cheerful. "I'll just take this locker!" she stepped back a few paces and stopped in front of the locker directly beside Sera's.
"That's fine with me," Sera shrugged. "I'm Sera, by the way."
"Oh!" the shorter girl suddenly appeared in front of her in a flurry of rose petals, her hand stuck out. "Ruby! Ruby Rose."
Sera remembered that all huntsmen and huntresses have their unique abilities called "semblances," and she realized that Ruby's semblance must be related to speed and those rose petals she leaves behind.
"Nice to meetcha," the amnesiac shook her hand, ignoring how fast the shorter girl was. "You seem a little antsy," she noticed.
"Do I?" Ruby's eyes cast down momentarily. "Sorry, I'm not exactly supposed to be here," she chuckled nervously.
Me, too, kid, Sera thought.
"Why's that?"
"Well, you see," Ruby started talking fast. Sera could only understand parts of what she said, but she managed to piece the important bits together. Basically, Headmaster Ozpin admitted her into Beacon a few years earlier than she was supposed to. Technically, she was still supposed to be going to Signal Academy, but due to something to do with some criminals and a Dust shop, Ruby Rose found herself face to face with Ozpin. Sera decided to hide that she "attended" Signal as well.
"Ruby!" another voice shouted, and the pair of girls turned to see a tall female student with long and thick locks of golden hair. She was grinning when she approached them, and her lilac eyes sized Sera up. "Making friends already, are you? That's my 'lil sis! I told you you'd meet people!"
"Actually, we met by mistake," Ruby pressed her index fingers together.
"So? You still met another student!"
Wow, Sera thought. She must be super introverted or something if her sister is freaking out this much.
"And you are…?" Sera asked the taller girl.
"Sera, this is my sister, Yang," Ruby introduced. "Yang, Sera. Sera, Yang."
"Well, hello," Yang said, then made a purring sound.
"Uh, hi?" Sera raised an eyebrow.
"And where did you pop up from?" she asked.
"Uh, you know. Around," Sera replied.
"Playing hard to get, huh?" the blond girl asked.
"What?"
"Yang, just get outta here!" Ruby shoved her away, her cheeks red.
"Fine, fine! I'll see you in the ballroom, Rubes," Yang walked away and left them alone.
"Sorry about that," Ruby said once she was gone.
"What was that all about?" Sera asked.
"My sister," the silver-eyed girl rolled her eyes. "She likes to flirt."
"Oh" Sera said. "She swings that way, huh?"
"Both ways, actually," Ruby chuckled nervously.
"Wow," she said. "Anyways, you better get to putting your stuff away."
"Right! Sorry, you have to set your passcode and stuff! I'll just get out of your way now," Ruby said, then went back to her locker beside Sera's.
Sera exhaled sharply when she was more alone. This is going to be an interesting time, she thought to herself while she opened her locker again. Now that she had a better opportunity to inspect the locker's contents, she picked up the weapon inside and wrapped her hand around its hilt.
It was a sword, just like Ozpin suspected. Not that she was complaining. Something about the weapon just felt…comfortable. It was nearly as tall as she was, with a double-edged blade and a narrow cross guard. The blade was leaf-shaped and white with its edges colored violet. The cross guard was simple and violet as well, with a white hilt and an amethyst in the pommel. She smiled as she ran her thumb along the edge. Not to her surprise, the blade left a shallow cut. She watched with a smirk as the wound slowly disappeared, and her finger looked as if the cut never happened.
She looked into the locker again and found a small scabbard with a note attached to it. The "scabbard" (it was more like a holster) was a simple narrow leather loop about four inches wide and at least five in length, and it looked like it fit onto her back. It was a simple black leather strap that would sit over her shoulder and across her torso, while the scabbard would rest between her shoulder blades.
Sera picked up the note and brought it to her face.
Snowball, (She rolled her eyes at the nickname)
I hope the gear I picked is to your liking. Unfortunately, I didn't have the time to give your sword all the bells and whistles of the average huntsman's weapon, it's just a normal sword—it doesn't turn into a gun or anything like that. You might be able to customize it if you like later on, but it should do just fine for now.
You'll find a couple sets of clothes in those bags, too. The bag on the right has some more suited for combat, and a whetstone to sharpen your sword and some tools, the one on the left is more of an overnight bag—take it with you, you'll need it for tonight.
Remember—every weapon needs a name. Make sure it's a good one.
Q
Sera folded up the letter and stuffed it into her pocket, then hung the sword inside of the locker. Grabbing the duffle bag on the left, she closed her locker. When the latch clicked shut, several words appeared on the digital screen.
"Waiting for sync…"
Bringing out her scroll, she clicked through the settings until she found the button she was looking for. After a moment, the screen flashed, then the words changed.
"Please enter passcode, then re-enter for confirmation."
The passcode needed to be at least four numbers long, but it didn't take her long to think of one. She remembered back to when Cerulean had joked about her searching for a certain locker. "Please don't tell me you're looking for sixty-nine," she'd said.
With a smirk, Sera typed sixty-nine twice to meet the length requirement, then she typed it again to confirm the passcode. The screen flashed green, then turned red with the picture of a lock on it. Just to make sure the passcode would work, Sera punched in the numbers, then the screen turned green and the picture of the lock "opened," and the locker door clicked open. She closed it, then grabbed her bag and headed back towards the entrance where Goodwitch was waiting.
She found Cerulean and joined her, and the blue-haired girl flashed a smile. When Sera met Glynda's eyes, she gave the older woman a quick nod and Goodwitch returned it in kind.
"Is that everyone? Good. Now, let's head to the ballroom, where you all will lay out your sleeping bags or bedrolls and get ready to turn in for the night," Professor Goodwitch explained.
"Turn in for the night?" a student asked. "It's still in the afternoon!"
"I didn't say you'd have to go to bed right then," she replied. "You're free to explore the campus in the meantime."
That seemed to calm the students down. Many grinned at each other excitedly until Glynda spoke again.
"But if you're not back in the ballroom by seven o'clock, don't bother coming back. The doors will be locked, and you'll be expelled."
Dang! Sera thought to herself. They really don't mess around in these huntsmen academies.
As expected, the students began to voice their opinions about the matter. The older woman simply held up her hand, and they quieted down. "Anymore complaints, and you can leave now. No? Good. Shall we?" she gestured towards the exit, and the large group of students followed her out of the locker room.
. . .
It took much longer than she expected it to, but finally, the students got their sleeping arrangements made. Sera watched many of them stream out of the ballroom in small groups, heading out to explore the campus for as long as they could.
She, however, she didn't intend to join them.
"You coming?" Cerulean asked. The blue-themed girl had laid out her sleeping bag, which was also blue, beside Sera's violet one.
"No, I don't think I will," the white-haired girl replied. She laid out on the sleeping bag and stretched, getting comfortable on the floor.
"Why's that?" Cerulean quirked an eyebrow.
Sera flashed a quick smile. "Let's just say I've had a long day, and I'm ready to chill out for a while."
"I get that," the blue-haired girl shrugged. "Well, I'll see you when I get back, I guess. If you're not asleep, I mean," Cerulean laughed.
"You go have fun while Goodwitch allows it," Sera smirked, sitting up on her elbows.
Cerulean waved while she walked away, leaving the white-haired girl alone. There were others still in the ballroom, but they were mostly far away. She spotted Ruby and Yang across the room, but she didn't intend on going over to join them. Not yet, at least.
Sera pulled out her scroll and rolled over to lay on her stomach. Her fingers flew across the screen, tapping on it as fast she could while she clicked through multiple websites.
Now, she thought to herself. Let's find out what we can about the world."