A/N: Chapter 3 of REKT. Enjoy!
Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters or teams of RWBY, they belong to Rooster Teeth and Monty Oum. What I do own are the characters of my OC teams: REKT, GTSY, KACE and DAZE.
Special thanks to the reviewers and to the readers who Fav/Alert this story, I really appreciate it.
Chapter 3: The First Step
The next morning...
"Wake up lazy butt!" A girl's voice floated through my head followed by a male's groan, totally interrupting my fabulous dream. "It's morning! It's morning! It's m-o-r-n-i-n-g! I can't believe we've been at Beacon for a full 24 hours, not that we'd be kicked out of anything , I mean you're the perfect student and I'm well..." She giggled. "I'm me! But it's just crazy you know? We've been friends for sooooo long what are the odds that we'll still be together?"
Oh...my..god...I rolled over in the sleeping bag and buried my head underneath my pillow in hopes to muffle out the sound. That poor fellow, that girl might just be the new and improve chatter box.
"She's not wrong you know...about the waking up part." A slightly gruff voice spoke as a hand removed the pillow from my head and I felt the blanket being pulled off my body. "C'mon. Breakfast is starting soon."
"Still tired though..." I mumbled just as my stomach decided to chime in protest, letting out a loud grumble that anyone within a 1 mile radius could hear as plain as day.
"Heh, you hear that?" The same voice asked teasingly as my face turned scarlet red from embarrassment. "Even your stomach betrayed you."
"...god damn it..." Covering my eyes with an arm I counted to 10 before forcing myself to get up, stretching my arms as far as they could reach before hearing a satisfying pop. Waking up so early was so inconvenient for me, it's like I never have enough rest.
"I'm gonna head off first, I'm starving. Hopefully we'll run into each other soon."
"Uh...okay!" I replied, listening to the sound of her feet disappear down the hallway as I rolled up my sleeping bag. On second thought, I never asked for her name. Oh whatever, I'll run into her again at some point during my time at Beacon. Tying up the loose ends I navigated my way to the restroom and freshened up for the long day ahead. The pancakes were great, fluffy like a cloud with just a hint of sugar sprinkled on top and it just melted in my mouth.
"Make sure to get your gear from the locker room." I head another person speak when I deposited the silverware into the kitchen. I hurried to the locker room and switched out my pajamas for my normal gear. As I was wrapping my scarf around my neck I picked up sounds of other people, similar to the ones I heard this morning. Then another voice spoke up, a familiar voice.
"Wonder what those two are so hyped up about." Ruby mused as she watched the two newcomers leaving the locker room with a questioning look on her face.
"Oh, who knows..." A voice I have never heard of before spoke up, obviously female and probably older than I. "So! You seem awfully chipper this morning."
"Yep!" Ruby replied, rummaging around a locker to find what she was looking for. "No more awkward small talk or 'getting to know you' stuff. Today I get to let my sweetheart do the talking."
"Well, remember Ruby, you're not the only one going through initiation." Yang reminded her. "If you want to grow up, you're going to have to meet new people and learn to work together."
"Ugh, you sound like Dad!" Ruby groaned irritably, putting her weapon back into the locker for a split second. "Okay, first of all what does meeting people have to do with fighting? And secondly, I don't need people to help me grow up. I drink milk!"
"Ha!" I inadvertently snickered out of the blue before slapping both hands over my mouth when I realized that I had given my position away.
"Reina!" Ruby squealed when she spotted me. I felt the vibrations from her boots before sensing her running up to me and flinging her arms around my neck in a death hug. "Where have you been!? I was looking for you last night but I couldn't find you so I ended up sleeping with my sister...speaking of which have you met Yang?"
"You mean your older sister?" I asked, hearing another set of footsteps approaching us and turned my head to face that direction.
"I've heard a lot about you from Ruby." Yang said when she stood in front of me with a wide grin on her face, extending a hand. "Thanks for hanging out with my sister when I wasn't around."
"More like when she decided to ditch me." Ruby whispered into my ear as I shook Yang's hand.
"I said I was sorry didn't I?" Yang asked her sister with a pout. "By the way, what about when we form teams? You're gonna have to communicate with new people."
"Uh, I don't know..." Ruby responded hesitantly as she let me go, crossing her arms over her chest. "I'll just be on your team or maybe Reina's team...or something..."
"Maybe it wouldn't be so bad if you did end up on Reina's team but there are a lot of other nice people who would be willing to let you in." Yang suggested, combing her fingers through her hair and avoided Ruby's glare.
"My dearest sister Yang," The younger of the two stormed up and pointed a finger at the eldest in accusation. "are you implying that you do not wish to be on the same team as me?"
"W-what? No!" Yang replied hotly, waving her arms in denial. "Of course I do, I just thought...I don't know, maybe it would help you break out of your shell!"
"What the!?" Ruby took a step back, her voice rising up dramatically. "I don't need to break out of my shell, that's absolutely-"
"Ridiculous!" At that moment, Jaune walked right through their heated argument with a piece of paper in his hand. I thought another person was approaching by the sounds of the footsteps and I guessed right. "There's no way I put my gear in locker 636 yesterday. I would've remembered having to count that high!" He groaned, passing by another set of lockers with disappointment. "Ugh, why does this have to happen today?"
Sometimes he has such great timing but he doesn't even realize it. I smiled to myself as Ruby and Yang continued to argue among one another.
"So, Pyrrha, have you given any thought to who's team you would like to be on?" Weiss asked after checking to make sure she had everything she wanted. "I'm sure everyone must be eager to unite with such a strong, well known individual such as yourself."
"Hmm...I'm not quite sure." The one known as Pyrrha replied in a doubtful manner. "I was planning on letting the chips fall where they may." Her red hair could be seen up in a ponytail and reached down to her waist, curled slightly into a loose ringlet. The most attracting feature about her was her vivid green eyes.
Her top consists of two layers instead of one. The top layer is a light-brown, strapless top split divided vertically with some bronze patterns. This may be a piece of leather or metal armor as it appears to be quite stiff, maintaining its shape without support; this layer also seems to have some kind of riveting or small, round embroidery on the sides, which may also be heavy stitching. The bottom layer is a low bronze V-neck. Pyrrha also has on an elastic, red, A-line miniskirt and brown cut-off sleeves on both arms. A red ankle-length drapery was firmly wrapped around her skirt.
There is a small circular bronze plate by her right hip opposite a pouch with both connected to a belt. The plate bears her "shield and spear" symbol. She has on a bronze circlet headpiece that can be seen above her ear and under her bangs. A pair of small, green, teardrop-shaped emeralds hang from her circlet on thin chains. She also sports a large bronze gorget around her neck, and a bronze bracelet on the upper half of her left arm.
Unlike the rest of the females, Pyrrha wears armor. She has elaborate bronze greaves that start below her mid-thigh, continuing downwards into her boots and a pair of cuisses that begin mid-thigh and end slightly above her knees. She also dons a bronze bracer on top of the sleeve on her left arm, which appears to be able to connect and disconnect from her shield easily. Her boots are brown with bronze trim, matching her skirt and sleeves, and reach up to mid-calf.
"Well I was thinking maybe we could be on a team together." offered Weiss in a calm manner, almost like a suggestion.
"That sounds grand!" Pyrrha said with a smile before looking off to the side.
"Great!" Weiss stated cheerfully. This is perfect! The smartest girl in class combined with the strongest girl in class. Together we will be unstoppable! She chuckled to herself. I can see it now: We'll be popular, we'll be celebrities, we'll get perfect grades! Nothing could come between us now!
"You know what else is great?" A voice said, cutting through her inner monologue with herself. "Me, Jaune Arc. Nice to meet you."
"You again?" The ice princess said without amusement, crossing her arms over her chest.
"Nice to meet you Jaune." Pyrrha said in an insouciant manner.
"Yeah, yeah." The blond spoke quickly, pushing the red-head aside so that he could get closer to Weiss, much to the ice princess's disappointment. "So, Weiss! Couldn't help but overhear your fondness of me the other day."
"Oh, you've got to be kidding me." She shook her head in disbelief as Jaune pretended to flex his right bicep in an attempt to woo her.
"Don't worry, no need to be embarrassed." Jaune continued. "So, been hearin' rumors about teams! I was thinking you and me would make a good one." He even copied her body language, crossing his arms over his chest much like her. "What do you say?"
"Actually, I think the teams are comprised of 4 students each so-" Pyrrha spoke from the sideline, getting both of them to look at her.
"You don't say." Once again, Jaune interrupts her. "Well, hotstuff, play your cards right and maybe you could join up with the winning team."
"Jaune, is it?" Weiss said as she intervened quickly, popping up between the two of them to stop any signs of a fight from backing out. "Do you have any idea who you are talking to?"
"Not in the slightest, Snow Angel." Jaune said in complete honesty.
"This is Pyrrha." Weiss introduced him to her, the latter waving a hand in hello. "Pyrrha graduated top of her class at Sanctum."
"Never heard of it." said Jaune, shrugging his shoulders to emphasize his point.
"Ah, she's won the Mistral Regional Tournament 4 years in a row...a new record!"
"The what?"
"She's on the front of every Pumpkin Pete's Marshmallow Flakes box." Enraged by his lack of knowledge, Weiss threw a fit, lifting up both arms and stomping a foot. This time she got a better reaction out of him.
"That's you?" Jaune gasped and pointed like any fan would. "They only do that for star athletes and cartoon characters!"
"Yeah, it was pretty cool." Pyrrha agreed. "Sadly, the cereal isn't very good for you."
"So, after hearing all of this, do you really think you're in a position to ask her to be on your team?" asked Weiss.
"I guess not..." Jaune said as he hung his head. "Sorry."
"Actually Jaune, I think you'd make a great leader." Pyrrha patted his shoulder in encouragement.
"D'oh, stop it!" Feeling some confidence coming back into his body, he went back to his childish ways, even looking at her with sparkling eyes.
"Seriously, please stop it." said Weiss. " This kind of behavior should not be encouraged!"
"With that authoritative attitude, I would assume it would be from someone of higher rank." The three of them turned to see Ruby, Yang and I walking towards them. "Nope, it's definitely the sound of some elite princess looking down upon others..."
"Y-You...!" Weiss glared ice daggers at me for that comment but I just smiled back at her politely. "Who are you to judge?!"
"And besides, sounds like Pyrrha's on board for team Jaune." He added. "Spots are filing up quick. Now I'm not supposed to do this, but maybe I could pull some strings. Find a place for you. What do you say?"
"Bruh, she isn't interested in you at all." I said in a courteous manner, knowing that it would only hurt his pride a little.
"Reina that's quite cruel of you to say." He turned and tried to do the puppy-dog eyes technique but realized that it doesn't work on me. "Snow Angel's just playin hard to get."
"That's a bit too close!" Weiss said, shooing Jaune away when he leaned close towards her face. "Pyrrha, a little help please?"
"Oooh, I love this scarf. Where did you get it?" The said red-head was currently fawning over my red scarf, feeling the soft material between her fingers. At the sound of her name, she looked up and took her spear in hand. Adjusting the weight between her fingers, she took aim and threw it.
"Ahhh!" Jaune yelled when the spear slammed into him, pegging him to the nearest wall like a decor by the hood of his jacket.
"I'm sorry." Pyrrha apologized.
"Would all first year students please report to Beacon Cliff for initiation?" Glynda's voice spoke up from one of the monitors in the locker room. "Again, all first year students report to Beacon Cliff immediately."
"It was nice meeting you!" Pyrrha said, grabbing her spear and followed Weiss out the door.
"Likewise." replied Jaune as he sat on the ground in defeat.
"Havin' some trouble there, Ladykiller?" Yang asked as we walked up to him.
"I don't understand." He said, allowing Ruby to pull him up to his feet. "My dad said all women look for is confidence. Where did I go wrong?"
"'Snow Angel' probably wasn't the best start." Yang and I said simultaneously, glancing at each other and let out a few laughs.
"Come on, Jaune. Let's go." Ruby said, allowing him to lean on her as we walked through the double doors to the outside.
Outside in the middle of nowhere...
We made it just in time for the initiation process and stood on the cliff like Glynda told us along with a couple of other first years in a single file line. The weather was quite nice so that was something I actually appreciated.
"For years you have trained to become warriors. And today, your abilities will be evaluated in the Emerald Forest." The man, whose name was Ozpin, spoke to us. Others have described him to me as a middle-aged man with tousled gray hair and thin brown eyes. He has a light complexion, and sharp facial features. He wore shaded glass spectacles and a dark-green scarf with a small, purple, cross-shaped emblem on it. His outfit mainly consists of an unzipped black suit over a buttoned vest, with a green undershirt. He also has on black trouser shoes and long, dark-green pants.
"Now I'm sure many of you have head rumors about the assignment of teams." Glynda said as she looked at each and every one of us behind her spectacles. "Well, allow us to put an end to your confusion. Each of you will be given teammates...today."
"What?" Ruby whispered, making a scared noise in the back of her throat.
"These teammates will be with you for the rest of your time here at Beacon." Ozpin continued speaking. "So it is in your best interest to be paired with someone with whom you can work well together. That being said, the first person you make eye contact with after landing will be your partner for the next 4 years."
"Eye contact...pah." I commented under my breath.
"After you've partnered up, make your way to the northern end of the forest. You will meet opposition along the way. Do not hesitate to destroy everything in your path, or you will die."
"Sounds like a hoot." Jaune whispered to me but gulped in nervousness.
"You will be monitored and graded for the duration of your initiation. But our instructors will not intervene." said Ozpin after he had given out the important information. "You will find an abandoned temple at the end of the path containing several relics. Each pair must choose 1, and return to the top of the cliff. We will regard that item, as well as your standing, and grade you appropriately. Are there any questions?"
"Yeah, um, sir-"
"Good! Now, take your positions." Ozpin totally ignored Jaune and the first years got ready on the launch pads, each of them calculating how they were going to land upon impact.
"Uh, sir? I've got, um, a question." Jaune was still hoping to get his question answered. At that moment, Weiss was the first to get launched, her body soaring through the air over the forest.
"So this landing strategy thing, uh, w-what is it?" The blond continued to ask as one by one the launch pads were sending first years into the forest in different directions. "You're like, dropping us off or something?"
"No." Ozpin took a sip of his drink from his favorite mug very slowly before explaining further. "You will be falling."
"Oh, I see." Jaune scratched his head in nervousness. "So, like, did you hand out parachutes for us?"
"No. You will be using your own landing strategy."
"Uhhuh...yeah." Jaune said as he watched his turn approaching very soon. Yang gave Ruby a quick eye wink and put on some bad-ass shade, bunching her leg muscles tight in anticipation for her turn.
"Don't worry about it Jaune." I told him as I was soon launched into the air right after Ruby was sent flying.
"So, um, what exactly is a landing strateGYYYYY!" Jaune barely got his question out before he was sent flying too. Ozpin turned to watch the bodies of flying first years without batting an eyebrow, lifting his mug close to his lip for another sip of his drink.
