Sorry for the long wait everyone. Sometimes life hits too hard and you need to focus on the big things instead of the little ones. I didn't mean to wait over a year update. But let's hope the wait was worth it.


Everyone was trapped between two, large Grimm. The Deathstalker was advancing on them, its' pincers snapping together eagerly, it's stinger at the ready. The Nevermore was rapidly descending from the sky to divebomb the group.

"Everyone!" Harry yelled. "If you have a long-distance weapon, focus all of your firepower on the Nevermore! Try to deflect it away from us."

Ruby, Yang, Weiss, Pyrrha and Nora got into position. They switched their weapons to Gun/Dust mode and took aim at the Nevermore.

"Aim for the eyes," said Ruby. She was focused down the small scope on Crescent rose.

"And us?" asked Ren. Jaune was beside him, waiting on Harry.

"We're going to distract the Deathstalker."

"I was afraid of that," Jaune whined. But he still got his shield in front of him and his sword ready.

The three charged to the giant scorpion. Behind them, Harry began to hear the first shots from the girl's weapons. Harry loaded a Dust crystal into the pommel of Ember Rose.

"Ren, Jaune, I'm going to charge the Deathstalker and keep its' focus on me. You two flank it and try to disable it," Harry ordered.

"How?" asked Jaune.

"Go for the legs," Ren said. "They'll be the weakest part of the Grimm and not armored. Especially the joints."

"Avoid the claws," added Harry. "When I say so, break away and join the others."

"Roger," said both boys.

The Grimm screeched to them, ready to attack. Harry charged faster while Ren and Jaune separated. Ren did pepper the front of the Grimm's eyes with SMG bullets, causing the monster to slightly halt its charge.

Harry leapt forward and sliced at the Deathstalker's face. He succeeded in slicing one of the mandibles off. His blade connected between the armor and the body. Black smoke began to seep from the wound, but the monster hardly made a motion to notice the damage. Harry also felt severe resistance when the unarmored appendage was cut, which showed him how tough the Grimm was.

I'm not going to be able to take this one my own. I would have to switch to Phoenix Fire just to injure it. That would leave me vulnerable.

The Deathstalker finally recovered and arched the stinger, striking directly at Harry's face. He dodged to the right and deflected the stinger with his sword. It took all his strength to block it. The point buried into the ground with great impact. But just as quick, it pulled back and attacked again.

Harry dodged to the left and deflected the stinger again. But this time, the scorpion's pincer came hurtling out of nowhere at his head. Harry ducked and just managed to avoid being decapitated as the sharp claw snapped over him. He would imagine he might have lost a few feathers though.

He kicked the pincer. His super strength helped drive the appendage away and giving him a chance to leap over the tail still buried in the ground. Harry slashed at the tail, aiming at the unprotected flesh underneath the tail. This time, he cut deeply into the flesh and causing the wound to smoke more heavily than the mandible. The Deathstalker screeched loudly and pulled its tail back. It retreated slightly, but then stumbled. Harry saw Ren hacking with his daggers at a leg joint, while one was already gone at a joint. He turned to the other side and saw Jaune swing his sword and sever another leg joined at the body.

Suddenly, a loud bird call echoed around them and the Nevermore flew over him. The crow's feathers were smoking, and several were falling off. It was flapping wildly, trying to gain altitude and stay above the trees.

Harry grinned. The others were able to divert the Nevermore away from them.

"Ren! Jaune! Disengage!" Harry yelled.

Immediately, the boys ran away from the Deathstalker. Harry deactivated his Aura and focused his Phoenix Fire into his hands. The Fire reacted to the Dust in Ember Rose's pommel and turned the sword into an inferno. Harry slashed the sword diagonally into the ground from the giant Grimm's left side. A line of fire burned along the path for about 100 feet. Harry did the same thing in the other direction on the Deathstalker's right side.

Finally, Harry stuck Ember Rose into the ground where the two lines met. Pushing as much Fire he could into the pommel, the walls of fire grew to be nearly 20 feet high. Over the roar of the fire, Harry heard the Deathstalker screech horribly at the fire in front of it. Through the slightest break in the fire, He could see the Grimm back away from the wall he created. Then it turned and hurried back into the forest.

Harry pulled his sword from the ground and disengaged his Phoenix Fire. The wall of fire remained burning, but severely diminished to no bigger than a campfire. The moment his sword extinguished, he fell to one knee, panting. He never used his Fire that much and this ordeal left him exhausted. Harry had used the trick before but not for something as large as a Deathstalker. He checked the pommel on Ember Rose and saw the Fire crystal was used up.

Jaune hurried to him and held out a hand. "Are you okay?"

"Yeah," said Harry as he let Jaune pull him back onto his slightly unstable feet. "That just took too much energy out of me."

"Impressive," said Ren as he joined them. He looked the wall of flames as the slowly burned out. "How long will that last?"

"Not long. Maybe 5 minutes," explained Harry. "Which means we shouldn't be here when it burns out."

"Agreed. Let's join the others."

The boys quickly met back with the girls, who were quickly reloading their weapons.

"I'm about out of ammo," said Pyrrha as she loaded rifle cartridges into her weapon. The other girls made similar announcements.

"If you don't have a relic, grab one now. We need to leave," said Harry.

"He's right," said Weiss. "Our job is to return with the relics, not fight the Grimm."

"There's no reason why we should stay here," added Ruby.

Ruby and Weiss both went to the temple and grabbed a relic each. Everyone did a quick check on their Auras. Harry was at 43%. He also placed his last Fire Dust crystal into Ember Rose's pommel. Then he sheathed it over his shoulder. When Ruby and Weiss returned, Harry used Seeker to find out where the clifftops where.

"Let's move out," said Harry. Everybody started a quick jog to leave the area.

"Hey, Harry! Can we-"

"No, Nora," both Harry and Ren said together.

"But you didn't even-"

"You wanted to find a Grimm to ride back to the clifftops," said Ren.

"The answer is no," finished Harry.

"Aaawww!"

"What is she talking about?" asked Weiss.

"Nothing."

"Hey, Harry, why don't you fly there?" asked Yang.

"I'm not leaving everyone alone."

"What is she talking about?" repeated Weiss.

"Nothing!"

To be honest, Harry was trying to fly since the left the Ruins. He was trying to recreate the emotion he felt when freefalling by pushing both his Aura and Phoenix Fire into his shoulder blades. But it wasn't working. Unlike confidence or courage, it seemed like engaging his wings required a different emotion.

It took about 15 minutes of running through the forest before the group reached the clifftops where they started from. Somehow, a dense fog had encased the area and made visibility difficult. Unknown to everyone, there was another set of ruins just below the cliffs. There were several crumbling walls and ancient columns leading to the cliffs. Furthermore, the only way to reach the cliffs was to cross an old, stone bridge over a large canyon. Connected to the bridge was a large tower and dozens of smaller towers connected to give the bridge stability.

The Ruins looked surprisingly like Beacon's buildings at campus.

But before everyone could celebrate, a large shadow fell across the group along with a loud shriek. The Nevermore had return. With several loud flaps of its wings, it settled itself on the cliffs. It screeched and flared its wings, as if the challenge all of them to try and pass.

"Are you kidding me?!" yelled Yang.

"It's like the final boss in a video game," said Ruby.

As if to answer, the Nevermore flapped its wings and shot more feathers towards them. Everyone took cover behind several tower ruins that were perched in front of the chasm. They weren't strong enough to penetrate the rock, but the teens were forced to stay put. Harry shared his tower with Ruby.

"Crap!" yelled Nora.

"We can take it!" yelled Yang. "There's only one this time!"

"Does anyone have any ideas?" asked Pyrrha.

"Thinkthinkthink!" Ruby muttered to herself, lightly banging her head on Crescent Rose.

And then, to complete their nightmare, another loud screech filled them with dread as the turned to see the Deathstalker quickly approaching them from the forest. Its pincers were clicking madly and its stinger at the ready.

"Double Crap!" yelled Nora.

"What do we do now?" Jaune screamed out

Everybody was beginning to panic; even Harry. The familiar feeling of hopelessness was starting to engulf him. Just like in the Chamber of Secrets, Little Hangleton cemetery, and the Department of Mysteries. He was trying to figure out what he could do to escape, but no Sorting Hat, magic sword, portkey, or Order of the Phoenix members were here to help them.

"And so ends the great Harry Potter," young Riddle mocked. "I'm sure you'll be back with your dead, mudblood mother soon."

"Don't turn you back to me, Harry!" yelled Voldemort. "I want to see you die! I want to see the life leave your eyes!"

No! Harry suddenly thought. We are NOT dying today!

As he finished his thought, Harry felt a swelling grow inside his chest like a large balloon. It traveled up his throat like a cough. But instead of a cough, a piercing cry erupted from his mouth. It echoed around the entire area, bouncing off the cliff walls and through the forest. Both the Nevermore and Deathstalker started shrieking. The scorpion stumbled in a circle, flailing his pincers around while the raven tucked its head under the wings.

"Wha…what the?" said Jaune. He was holding a hand to his chest.

"That was…beautiful," Weiss whispered. She had a hand to her throat.

Harry thought so, too. Because what emerged from his lungs was the same song that Fawkes used to sing. A Phoenix song. Any doubt or dread he had earlier was gone. And judging by everyone's faces, they felt it as well.

Ruby smiled at him. "Singing to lift our spirits again?" she asked.

"What was that?" Pyrrha asked. She and the others were looking at him with question.

"I'll explain later," Harry insisted as he pulled Ember Rose and switched it to rifle mode. "Right now, we to go now."

"Right!" everyone yelled.

The group left the safety the columns and ran towards the bridge. The Deathstalker finally shook itself clear of whatever Harry's song had done. It once again scuttled towards them. The Nevermore also shook free from its daze and took flight, aiming right towards them. The narrow bridge was only capable of being crossed one behind the other. Ruby and Ren were already across. Jaune, Weiss, Pyrrha and Yang were crossing together while everyone else was waiting their turn.

However, the Nevermore flew towards the group. Yang and Jaune hurried across while Weiss and Pyrrha hurried back to the cliffs. The Nevermore screeched and flew its body through the stone bridge, sending debris throughout the canyon. Weiss and Pyrrha had to finish jumping to the cliffs to avoid falling. Harry caught Weiss while Nora caught Pyrrha.

"It took out the bridge," muttered Weiss as she stared in disbelief at the wreckage.

"Smart bugger," said Harry.

"Well it has been said that Grimm can learn as they get older, so that means it must be very-"

"Later Weiss," Pyrrha interrupted. She recovered and was standing with weapons ready behind them. "We got bigger problems."

Harry raised his rifle at the approaching Deathstalker. Weiss pulled her rapier and spun the dust dial on the hilt.

"Let's smash it to pieces!" yelled Nora. She switched her weapon to hammer mode.

"No. We need to retreat," Weiss countered. "We are running low on dust and ammunition."
Harry was agreeing with the both of them. But they didn't have anywhere to retreat. So, they only had one option. Attack.

"I'll take it on," Harry said. "I'll keep its attention on me. Nora, I want you to topple every stone tower around us. Try to make them land on that giant bug."

"You got it," Nora saluted and ran to the nearest ruin.

"Pyrrha, Weiss, pick a side on that Grimm and focus on the legs and stinger. If we can cripple those, it will be helpless.

"Understood," Pyrrha answered. She switched her sword to a spear and gave herself some room to Harry's left.

"Can you take it on?" asked Weiss as she moved farther away to Harry's right.

"I did earlier. I can do it again for a short time," Harry answered. "Just disable it quickly."

"We will," Weiss said.

Harry switched Ember Rose back to sword mode and rushed forward to meet the Grimm. Taking a risk, he disengaged his Aura and focused his Phoenix Fire into his sword. It turned into a flaming weapon, as well as a warning. He remembered what Weiss said about Grimm learning as it ages and hoped it learned Harry's Fire was dangerous from their encounter earlier.

It worked. Once the Deathstalker saw Harry's gold-red flames, it halted its charge. Harry waved his sword in front of the Grimm's face. It hissed loudly, snapping claws at the sword and keeping its stinger ready. But it didn't advance, no doubt remembering the flames earlier.

Suddenly, a tower of stones fell on its' right pincer. The heavy stones pinned it down for a moment, giving Harry the opportunity to attack the eyes. But the Death Stalker protected its face with the other pincer. Harry's sword sliced off the tip of the pincer. Black smoke began to grow from the wound.

The Grimm pulled its right pincer from the rubble and attacked Harry. He brought his sword to block, disengaging his Fire and bringing his Aura back up. The sword and pincer clashed with a shower of red sparks. The weight kept Harry pinned to the ground. Then, the tail appeared over the Grimm's head to strike down.

But a white light suddenly engulfed the tail and knocked it off course. It hit the ground beside Harry, who noticed the entire stinger was covered in ice. A split second later, a round shield clashed into the base of the stinger. The ice shattered and the tail reared back, now missing the stinger that was once attached to it. Another stone tower fell on the Grimm, pinning it. The Death Stalker screeched in frustration, waving its pincers in the air.

Now! Harry thought.

He focused on his Phoenix Fire into the pummel of his sword, using his last Dust Crystal for one final attack. His sword became a raging inferno. Harry charged forward, thrusting the sword right between the many eyes of the Death Stalker. The Grimm instantly froze, then burst into a large swirl of gold dust that floated into the sky.

Harry, exhausted, fell onto his butt, grasping his sword and trying to catch his breath. Nora rushed to him, a mad grin on her face. Pyrrha followed, putting her weapons behind her back. Weiss was slowly walking towards them, watching what remained of the gold dust float into the sky.

"Great job, partner!" crowed Nora. She held a hand up for a high-five, which Harry shakily met.

"I couldn't have done it with everyone's help," said Harry. "I owe all of you a pizza later."

"Make it pancakes," said Nora.

Harry chuckled. "Okay. Fair enough." He turned to Pyrrha. "That okay with you?"

Pyrrha giggled and nodded. "Sounds grand."

"What was that?" Weiss asked suddenly.

"What was what?" said Harry.

"That." Weiss pointed at the sky. "Grimm are supposed to turn into black smoke. Why did that one turn into gold dust?"

"I don't know why. They just do when I kill them with my Fire?"

Weiss tried to press the question, but Pyrrha interrupted.

"We can find out later." She pointed across the chasm to the tower, where the others were still fighting the Nevermore. "We should probably to help them."

Harry got back to his feet and walked to the edge of the canyon. The only bridge to the tower was destroyed. "You girls got a way to get across?"

Nora grinned mischievously and flipped her hammer upside down. She then took a running leap off the cliff. Before Harry could yell, a loud explosion erupted from Nora's hammer and shot her across the canyon like a rocket. Nora was cheering madly as she stood on her flying weapon.

Weiss rolled her eyes with a huff. She then took her rapier and made several white symbols float in the air. She then leapt onto one, then the other as she hopscotched her way to the tower.

Pyrrha and Harry looked at each other.

"Do you have a way?" asked Harry.

"I do. Are you going to fly over there?" she asked.

"I will. I'll meet you there."

Pyrrha nodded and smiled. She then took her shield and made it float on midair. Harry could see her shield was covered with some black aura. Pyrrha grabbed the handle, which then lifted her up and floated her towards the tower.

Harry sighed and looked down into the foggy abyss below him. It seems like most of skills, his wings could only be produced by emotion. He couldn't recreate the emotions he felt when flying earlier, so the only option was to leap and hope. This time, it wasn't by a launching platform and a friend's hammer. It was going to have to be his decision.

That decision was quickly made for him.

Because a loud shriek split the air and the giant Nevermore crashed into the tower. Rocks broke apart and began to fall. Harry watched as his teammates begin to leap from rock to rock or use their semblances to escape the falling debris. He saw everyone leap onto several of the remaining, smaller towers or braces.

Everyone except one.

Harry's eyes widened when he saw Jaune fall. He was wailing his arms around and yelling for help.

"Jaune!" yelled Harry. He took a flying leap of the cliffs and angled his body toward the falling teen.

Despite the fear Harry felt, his body soon flooded with weightlessness and joy at freefalling. Harry tightened his shoulder blades, feeling a familiar warmth envelope him. Without much though, he was soon flying again.

Harry reached Jaune quickly and grabbed one of the teen's hands. There was a swift jerk and Harry almost lost his grip. But his wings began beating more furiously. The two boys hovered in midair, then started to rise back to ruins and their friends.

Harry looked down at Jaune, who was looking amazed at Harry's wings. "Let's not let this become a habit."

"I'll try," said Jaune sheepishly. His expression became horrified and he suddenly pulled his sword from his sheath. "Look out!"

Harry looked back to see the Nevermore dive-bombing them with its beak opened wide. Harry instinctively felt his wings tuck in and roll himself in a circle. With Jaune swinging wildly from his roll, the boys avoided the Grimm's beak and flew under its wing. Harry heard a sword whip throw the air. He looked to see several of the Nevermore's flight feathers from the wing sliced off and fluttering in the air.

"Nice job!" Harry yelled.

"Thanks," Jaune said. "I'm surprised I actually got him."

Harry felt his wing open and the boys turned to watch the Nevermore fall from the sky. It flapped its wings furiously, trying to stay in the air. Soon, it crashed into the canyon wall.

As Harry flew back to others, he saw Ren and Yang leap onto the monster's back. Ren ran along the wing and used his daggers to clip the other flight feathers. Yang, her hair burning bright, buried her fist into the Grimm's head. The head bashed into the canyon wall. There was a horrible cracking noise and a muffled shriek. Harry saw that the Nevermore had broken its beak on the canyon wall.

The injured, but furious bird swung its wings around and tried to attack. Yang and Ren leapt clear and avoided the attack. There was a blur of red rose petals and Ruby flew through the air, her scythe at the ready. With a mighty swing, she severed the Nevermore's head.

Harry landed on a small tower, nearly collapsing as his wings disappeared. The others were cheering for Ruby. Except Jaune. As soon as he landed, he crouched over the edge, green in the face, and barfed into the canyon.


"Cardin Winchester, Russell Thrush, Sky Lark, and Dove Bronezwing. Together, the four of you brought back the two black bishop pieces. Now, the four of you will be known as Team CRDL. Led by Cardin Winchester."

Everyone in the room burst into applause. Harry was beginning to see the pattern. Two partners who picked one relic would be paired with another group who picked the same one. A combination of the first letter of the first or last name would label their team, in which the first letter of the team was the leader. Each team would be named after a color or a colorful meaning.

This seem to be the norm in Beacon for the past 50 years. Ever since the Great War.

Right now, it was down to him and others he fought with earlier. Once they reached the top of the cliffs, they were airlifted back to Beacon and checked for injuries. Then they were made to wait until the evening when the other potential candidates finished their assignments. When it was time, all the first years were brought to the auditorium, where the 2nd years and above were in the stands to watch.

First, Headmaster Ozpin welcomed everyone to Beacon and presented the new first years to the school. He then sadly said that three students were killed during initiation. Their names would be marked on the student memorial on the statue of the Huntsman and Huntress statue in front of the school.

Next, he showed everyone the videos of the success of the new First Years students.

Harry was amazed how many cameras were in the forest watching their progress. They were able to watch how each partnership was formed. He discovered that Pyrrha used her spear to catch Jaune as he was falling to the forest. It didn't look like he had any kind of landing strategy at all. When Pyrrha went to retrieve her spear, she ran into Weiss, who looked excited to paired with Pyrrha. The duo then found Jaune, pinned to a tree, and Ruby, trying to pull the spear out.

Yang and Ren paired up when she helped him fight a dual-headed King Taijitu. And of course, they showed him, and Nora paired up. Then they showed Harry and Nora's trek to the ruins on the back of an Ursa. It sent the whole auditorium into laughing fits. Harry covered his face in his hands.

A twitch developed on his face when he saw it was Weiss who woke up the giant Death Stalker when she and Pyrrha went into its den.

But when the showed the final fights, the whole auditorium was in awe at their display. And Harry was able to finally get a good look at his wings. Each wing was about seven feet across and made of both his aura and his Phoenix Fire. When they disappeared, the seamed to fold back into his back, then disperse into flaming feathers to the wind. (1)

"Ruby Rose, Li Ren, Yang Xiao-Long, and Jaune Arc." The four of them climbed onstage and stood at attention in front of Ozpin. "The four of you picked the two white Rook pieces. Together the four of will be known as Team RXAR(2), led by Ruby Rose.

Ruby's mouth dropped in surprise. Yang rushed Ruby and engulfed her in a hug while Jaune and Ren smiled at the sisters. Soon, they were ushered off the stage by Professor Goodwitch. Harry took a deep breath as he waited for his name to be called up.

"Harry Potter, Weiss Schnee, Pyrrha Nikos, and Nora Valkyrie. The four of you found the white Knight pieces. Today, the four of you shall be known as Team HPVS (3), led by Harry Potter."

Harry blanched. Flashes of the Department of Mysteries echoed in his mind. Even when Nora jumped on his back and giggled. Pyrrha patted a hand on his shoulder. Weiss didn't do anything.

Why me? Harry thought.

"Looks this is going to be an interesting year," said Ozpin. He then turned to the stands. "That's all for the evening. Everyone, please welcome your new classmates. Refreshments will be provided. Remember, classes start tomorrow at 9 so be sure to get a good night's rest."

With that, the other students made their way on the auditorium floor while others brought a table with drinks and snacks. Ruby and the others made their way to the floor with their new classmates. Harry, who was still in shock at being made leader, was pulled by Nora onto the floor.

"I'll get us some punch, partner," Nora said and gambled off to the refreshments. Pyrrha stood beside him, gazing at him with concern.

"Are you okay?" asked Pyrrha.

"Just still in shock at being made leader," Harry answered. "I didn't think I would."

"I think you would make a great leader."

"You do?"

"Of course," smiled Pyrrha. "Your commands during our encounters with the large Grimm were simple and did not lead to any injury or deaths. You stood in front of the Grimm to protect us, stayed behind when you could have flown ahead, and encouraged us with whatever semblance you had earlier."

"Speaking of which," Weiss started, moving to stand in front of him. "What exactly what was that?"

Harry was about to speak, when Nora appeared with the punch.
"Here you go!" Nora thrust the glass of punch into Naruto's hands. "Fresh from the fruit. Oh! And this girl said she wanted to meet you!"

A girl, likely a second year, was pushed in front of Harry. She was the same height as him, but it was hard to look into her eyes because of her sunglasses. She was wearing a dark beret, a leather jacket, and tight brown pants. At her side was a small handbag. She tilted her glasses down and looked at Harry above the rims.

"Nice job there, hot stuff," she said. She stuck out a hand. "Coco Adel. Second year and leader of team CFVY. That was an impressive showing out there."

"Thank you," said Harry.

"And a cute accent as well," Coco smiled. "You're a nice package."

Harry blushed while Nora and Pyrrha giggled. He though he heard Weiss scoff, though.

Coco pulled Harry's arm closer to her. She ran a finger of the feathers that covered his forearm. "That is a real beautiful color. Can't tell if it's red with gold highlights or gold with red highlights. What kind of Faunus are you?"

"Phoenix," Harry answered. This caused everyone listening to look at Harry with a questioning gaze.

"Really?" An eyebrow rose over Coco's glasses. "Never heard of a Phoenix Faunus. Can you prove it?"

"You mean my wings earlier on the video weren't enough?" Harry sighed and put his free hand in front of her. "Very well."

A small amount of his fire cupped the palm of his hand. Like his feathers, it was a gold-red color. Coco watched the flame, then ran a hand over it.

"It's warm," she said. "Not hot, but warm."

"You mean to tell me it wasn't Fire Dust?" asked Weiss.

"No," answered Harry. He closed his fist, quenching the flames. "Just part of my abilities as a Faunus."

"Well, you just became a lot more interesting," Coco smiled. She poked him on the nose with a manicured nail. "If you ever need any advice on how to be a leader, feel free to ring me up. Professor Goodwitch has my number."

With that she turned away and melted back into the crowd. Harry couldn't help but stare at her swinging hips as she walked away.

"You do know she's gay, right?" said Yang as she walked up to team HPVS. Ruby and the boys were right behind her.

"She is?" Harry asked. He noticed Nora, Weiss, and Pyrrha nodding along.

"Yep. It's easier to tell with girls than it is guys. At least for me." She grinned and threw an arm around Harry's shoulders. "Disappointed?"

"A little." Coco was attractive, especially in those jeans. "But I'll get over it."

"Congrats on making leader," said Ruby as she held a cup of punch to Harry.

"You, too," said Harry as he toasted Ruby's glass with his own. "You were amazing finishing off the Nevermore."

"And thank you for saving my life," Jaune said. "I owe for that."

"Don't worry about it," smiled Harry.


Later that evening, Team HPVS got the code for the new bedroom. They also got their class schedules, interactive maps of campus, and three sets of new uniforms. Team RXAR were settled into the room across from them, much to Nora's delight. She hugged Ren goodnight before she joined her team in their room.

Inside their room was four, single beds with four desks against the wall. Two large closets were on opposite sides of the room. A large window showed the grounds on wall opposite of the door. Their luggage littered the floor. Most of it was white and had a snowflake on it.

"Dibs!" yelled Nora as she leapt onto the bed farthest on their left.

"I guess I'm taking this one," said Harry as he sat on the bed in the middle next to Nora's.

"Why not," added Pyrrha. She took the bed beside Harry.

Weiss, however, didn't move. She crossed her arms, her gaze slowly taking in the room.

"Something wrong, Weiss?" asked Pyrrha.

"No. It's just not what I was expecting," Weiss answered. "A little simple, isn't it?"

"It's paradise compared to the dumps I've stayed in," said Nora. She got up and started bouncing on the bed like a little kid.

"I like it," said Harry. He laid down to see how soft his bed was.

Weiss' gaze fell on Harry. "I hope you will be on your best behavior."

Harry sat up. "What do you mean by that?"
Nora hopped off the bed and stood in front of Weiss. A small scowl was on her face. "You got a problem with my partner?"

"I'm just saying he needs to accept the boundaries of living with three girls. If I find him peeking in my underwear drawer, I'm going to skewer him."

Harry blanched at the thought. "I'm not going to do that."

"Yeah, why would he do that?" defended Nora. "I saw you in the locker room this morning. Your panties ain't worth stealing."

"Nora!" yelled Harry and Pyrrha.

"How dare you," said Weiss. She pinned her skirt close to her legs with her arms. "My undergarments are from Victoria's Whispers and are worth more than anything you have worn. And by the way, 'ain't' is not a word, you uncouth barbarian."

"Everyone stop!" yelled Harry. Nora looked ready to brawl with Weiss while Pyrrha was about to get up and stop them. Everyone looked towards him. "Okay, we need to calm down. It's our first night here. We just got done fighting for our lives earlier today and were still probably a little high strung. Let's take a deep breath, release it, and get to know one another. Savvy?"

Everyone slowly nodded. Harry pulled Nora onto his bed while Pyrrha led Weiss to hers. Everyone sat for a moment, trying not stare at each other. Feeling something needed to break the ice, Harry took a deep breath.

"My name is Harry Potter. I grew up on Patch, orphaned at a young age. I don't remember my parents at all. I was taken in by a distant family who really didn't like having me around. So as soon as I could, I joined Signal academy to become a Huntsman. I became good friends with Ruby and Yang, who helped through some tough times. When my aura was unlocked, my feathers grew, and I discovered I was a Faunus. Something my relatives didn't bother telling me when I left. I know it's hard to believe, but I am a phoenix Faunus. I do have certain abilities that over Faunus don't, like generating fire that specifically targets Grimm."

Harry stopped there. He gazed at the other girls, who were watching him with a variety of expressions. Pity, wonder, confusion. Harry decided to change his story of his origins. Everyone who knew Harry's secret was also in on his new origins. Even his paperwork placed him on Patch

"Anybody else?" he asked.

"I'll go!" Nora said while holding her hand up. "I'm Nora Valkyrie. I'm an orphan, too. I was raised in a village in Mistral. While alone, I ran into my best friend, Lie Ren. He had just been orphaned as well. Together, we trekked across Mistral, blazing a trail of glory as we kicked ass and took names. Bandits ran from us while Grimm cowered in fear at our awesomeness. Our presence was so great that we decided to attend Beacon so others would have a chance to shine."

Indeed, Harry's partner was insane. He was shocked to learn she was an orphan like him. It would explain a lot about her behavior if she had raised herself. But she was strong and was very likeable.

"My name is Pyrrha Nikos. I'm from Argus. I grew up helping my mom, who raised me by herself. Very early on I discovered I had a talent for fighting. I was able to earn money fighting in tournaments and was able to get a scholarship to Sanctum academy. I was very successful, earning sponsorships with several companies. For the past four years, I've been champion of the Mistral Regional Tournaments."

"I love Pumpkin Pete's," said Nora.

"Thanks. Sadly, the cereal isn't very good for your health."

"Don't care."

Weiss sighs. "My name is Weiss Schnee. I am the heiress to the Schnee Dust Corporation. And unless you've been living under a rock, the corporation the largest supplier of Dust energy in Remnant. I come from Atlas, wanting to prove my worth by attending Beacon. Which I hope my teammates will share with me."

Harry frowned, but didn't say anything. He wanted to keep tensions down tonight. If they had any problems later, they would deal with them. It seemed like Weiss had a superiority complex. Growing up as an heir to the richest company in the world probably enforced that. It was most likely why she said the rooms looked simple.

She reminded Harry too much of Malfoy.

Harry stood and clapped his hands together. "All right, then. We got to know one another. Let's get ready for bed. We have got classes tomorrow. I want to get up early enough to get a run in before they begin."

"May I join you?" asked Pyrrha.

"Sure thing," Harry smiled. "Nora? Weiss? You two want to join?"

"I'm fine," Weiss simply said. She was digging through her bag.

"No thanks," answered Nora. "I want as much sleep as I can."

Harry nodded and grabbed his overnight bag. He had a shower earlier after initiation, so he just grabbed his toothbrush and headed to the bathrooms down the hall. The men's room was large bathroom with toilets, showers and baths. A dozen sinks lined the walls that several boys were already using, including Jaune and Ren.

Jaune, who was still wearing his blue onesie, waved at Harry.

"Hey. You guys get settled okay?" he asked.

"For now," Harry answered.

"Problems?" asked Ren as he rinsed his toothbrush.

"Just Weiss telling me to behave myself."

"Ah," said Jaune. "Yang said something similar. She said if I peeked in on her or Ruby changing, I better hope to get a good look before she sends me to the afterlife."

Harry chuckled. "I'm more worried about her snoring. Seriously, I think I dodged a bullet not being partnered with her just on her sleeping habits alone."

Jaune's face fell. "Great," he drawled.

"I should warn you. Nora is probably just as bad," countered Ren.

"Really?" Harry whined.

Ren smiled. "Yes. One inn we stayed in Mistral charged us extra the next day for a snoring bill."

Harry and Jaune laughed at Ren's tale. Their fun was interrupted when a shoulder slammed Harry into his sink.

"Having fun, are we?" said the kid who towered over all of them.

It was Cardin Winchester. The big guy who became leader of team CRDL. He already had a sneer on his face as he addressed the three but keeping his eyes on Harry.

"Problem?" Harry growled back.

"Yeah. I want you to know that I don't want feathers littering the shower floors after you're done showering. You molt, you better pick it up."

"What are you, the shower monitor?" asked Jaune. He tried to stand tall to Cardin. But it wasn't very intimidating while wearing a onesie.

Carding gripped Jaune's onesie, lifting the blond on his toes. "I am now. Everyone knows those filthy animals don't care about the feeling of others. I give it a week before bird boy completely trashes this place."

Harry's rage almost completely broke. He gripped his fist, emblazing it with his fire. But before he could attack, a hand gripped his shoulder. At once, all his rage just disappeared. He soon couldn't feel any emotion at all. He turned to see Ren holding onto him, his eyes closed, and his body covered with a gray semblance.

Cardin released Jaune and walked out of the bathroom, slamming the door behind him. Jaune brushed his clothes off.

"What a jerk," he said.

Ren released Harry. His emotions came back. His rage had quelled, but it was still there.

"What did you do?" Harry asked.

"My semblance, Tranquility, allows me to mask negative emotions. I use it to hide myself and others from Grimm."

"That's so cool," Jaune whispered.

"Thanks for that. I don't know what I would have done if you didn't interfere," thanked Harry.

"You're welcome," said Ren. He turned to Jaune. "Can you give us a moment?"

Jaune's eyebrow rose, but he did nod. "Sure. I'll meet back in our room."

"What's wrong?" Harry asked Ren as soon as Jaune left.

Ren looked at Harry with a serious expression on his face. "Do Nora tell you about me and her? Our origins?"

"She mentioned you both were orphans and traveled through Mistral together. Anything other than that, it should be her business to tell me."

Ren nodded. "You're right. It's her business to tell you. However, I should warn you that sometimes, Nora has nightmares."

Harry frowned. "She does?"

"Nora will probably flatten me with her hammer if told you this, but you need to know." Ren placed a hand on the sink, as if to steady himself. "Nora doesn't know what happened to her father. But her mother abandoned her."

"What?" gasped Harry.

"When their village was attacked by Grimm, Nora's mother grabbed her and ran. But she tripped and lost her grip on Nora. She kept running. She didn't turn around. She didn't even look back."

Harry felt numb. Nora, the always cheerful, slightly insane, girl that became Harry's partner. His life story about losing his parents might as well be a lifetime movie compared to the tragedy that Nora grew up with. His parents gave their lives to protect him. But to have them abandon him…?

"What do I need to do if she has a nightmare?" asked Harry.

"Just hug her. She responds to physical touch and that will calm her down," answered Ren.

Harry nodded. "Okay, then. Thanks for telling me."

Ren and Harry shook hands, then Ren went back to his dorm. Harry got dressed into his sleeping clothes, brushed his teeth, and washed his face. Afterwards, we went back to his dorm and gently knocked on the door.

"Come in," came Pyrrha's voice.

Harry unlocked the door with his scroll and walked in. Nora was sitting on her bed, wearing a pair of short, pink shorts and a black shirt with the word 'boop' on it. Pyrrha was wearing a set of bronze pajamas and her hair was in a messy bun. Weiss was wearing a blue nightgown that fell to her knees. Her ponytail was undone, and she was brushing her hair.

He walked towards his bed and got underneath the sheets.

"Ready for tomorrow?" asked Pyrrha.

"I hope so," Harry said. "I am a little nervous."

"Don't be!" said Nora. "I'm looking forward to it."

"Me, too," said Pyrrha.

And with that, the lights were turned off and the went to sleep. Ten minutes later, Harry realized Nora's snoring was just as bad as Yang's.


1 The best visual reference I can use to describe Harry's wings is comparing them to Lilith's from Borderlands 3. I drew inspiration from her design.

2 (RXAR) Rockstar. Believe or not, Rockstar is a color. It's a dark brown color.

3 (HPVS) Harvest. I tried hard to find a color with H or P. But I guess I just cheated and figured Pyrrha's name could look like an unfinished R.