Author's note: The beginning of this chapter was too long and repetitive, so I trimmed it and rewrote it multiple times. I hope the final product is good. Please review and favorite/follow. Please give constructive criticism.
The excitement of forming teams and battling Grimm tuckered everyone. After the team-forming and naming ceremony, everyone headed to their new dorms to relax and unpack their things—well, most teams. "I can't believe we're here. I can't believe I'm here," Eugene said, still slightly shocked, putting away his clothes. "You and me both, Eugene. We got lucky. I was close to not getting in until Waldo revealed himself, wherever he is now," said Ben while putting up a poster. "Luck is part of it, but remember that we had to pull our weight to get in," responded Gray while putting away books, textbooks, booklets, and study guides. Everyone finished putting away their things. "Hmm, things are getting a bit cramped in here. I found these small metal poles in one of the drawers, and it looks like we can use these to connect the beds and make bunk beds instead?" suggested Ben to everyone. "I like that idea, more space for our things," commented Eugene. "Yeah, that sounds good," responded Gray. "All right, I'll lift the beds while guys put in the poles and help me align them to make them fit," directed Ben. Afterward, the four beds became two bunk beds, and the room had more space. "Man, I think I'm done for the night," yawned Ben. "Me too," yawned back Eugene. "It is getting late, so we should all sleep," responded Gray, with exhaustion. They all agreed and went to sleep.
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Team GART was putting away their things in their room when Rowan mentioned bunk beds: "Hey, we should make bunk beds. I found some metal poles that connect the beds." "Nope, I'm too tall for them. Regardless of whether I'm in either bunk, I'll be bumping my head. So, sadly, there are no bunks unless Gogo and Teddy want one." "I'm good," responded Gogo, lying on his bed playing on his scroll. "Ok, I'm game for one," said Teddy. "Ok, Rowan, help me with the bed while Gogo and Teddy put in the poles," directed Gerard. And so a bunk bed was made. "There you two go, a bunk bed," said Gerard. "Top bunk," said Teddy as he immediately jumped on the top of the bunk. "Well, let's head to sleep, guys. It's getting late, and classes begin tomorrow," said Gerard. The rest agreed, and they all went to bed.
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Morning came, and while some barely woke, others were already long awake. Gray, for example, woke up at 5:30 a.m. Then, he spent his early morning accordingly. He went to the bathroom, commenced business, showered, dressed, and studied for his upcoming classes. Eugene woke up at 7:30 and noticed Gray was already awake. Eugene stared at Gray, looking at the person he now partners with, 'I don't know anything about his character. Already studying before classes even started. He's a little shorter than me and looks like nothing but bone. Plus, the way he looks, anyone would be surprised he's not a girl at first glance. I still can't believe someone like that could fight so cunningly well.'
"What got something to say?" asked Gray as he noticed Eugene watching him. Eugene sputtered but responded, "No, I'm just surprised you're all ready and already studying before the first day of classes." "It's better to study ahead of time to be better prepared for what's to come," said Gray. "Urgh, morning guys," groggily said Ben. "Morning," Gray and Eugene responded in unison. The rest of the morning went peacefully and quietly as Ben, Eugene, and Waldo followed their morning routines.
When team GART woke up, their only struggle was who would get into the bathroom first. "Out of the way, I need the bathroom first!" yelled Teddy. "I'm the leader, so I get to go first!" loudly responded Gerard. "Screw that I need to go first!" screamed Gogo. "Not before I get in first!" roared Rowan. In the end, Teddy slipped in as he was the most agile and smallest in the group. Afterward, they put on their uniforms, and Teddy put a hoodie underneath and unbuttoned his uniform.
Team BWGE ate breakfast with team GART; as they ate, Gray finished quicker than the others and left to enter their first class thirty minutes early. Teddy ditched them but ate with team PCMN as he wanted in with Phillip Kim, as did other students who also hoped to join The Union.
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It was the day's first class, and everyone watched as Team RWBY and JNPR arrived late and tired from running. Throughout each class, Gray and Weiss fought a silent, one-sided war. It was one-sided on Weiss's part, as Gray didn't notice it. Weiss tried to prove to herself that she was more knowledgeable than him in each class. Gray effortlessly made himself look smarter by always preparing for every class beforehand. 'He's doing it again. Making me look bad compared to him; why can't I get one over him? This is one of the reasons why I chose to go to Beacon. To no longer be compared to HIM!' angrily thought Weiss while writing notes. Nobody noticed Weiss's growing anger. And sitting next to Ruby, a person Weiss considers unfit to lead, did not help her mood.
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Lunch came; this time, teams BWGE and GART were joined by teams RWBY and JNPR. And once again, Teddy ditched them for Phillip Kim. RWBY sat across BWGE and JNPR across GART. This made Weiss feel uncomfortable being so close to her cousin, and Gray felt the same, as he and Weiss weren't close by any means. Yang chose to sit across Gray, finding him fascinating. "Why's Teddy ditching us again to sit with that ass Phillip Kim?" asked Ben with a frown biting into his lunch. "Teddy's friend is in Phillip's team," answered Rowan. "Plus, Phillip likes to flaunt his wealth around, so that's probably another reason," comments Eugene. "If I may ask, why do you consider Phillip Kim bad?" asked Pyrrha, confused about the whole situation. "Yeah, the rest of us are wondering about that too. Is there bad blood or something?" added Jaune. Team Rwby and JNPR had varying interest levels, but interest nonetheless. "Well, for us Vale locals from the public schools, Phillip Kim conquered his high school, Imdo High, and the prick thinks he's all that. Honestly, it was the weakest high school out there, not worth bragging about," Ben looked over towards the table Phillip sat at, surrounded by other students and teams like team CRDL, "Plus, he's nothing but a bully picking on the weak to make himself feel superior." "Wow, he is bad news," commented Ruby. "But enough about him," Ben then smirked, "It was funny watching you guys running into class late. What was that all about." Jaune spoke on behalf of team JNPR, "Well, honestly, we lost track of time in making our room pleasant. Until we heard Team RWBY start freaking out across the hall in their room." "As the leader of team RWBY, I wanted to start the day off early and do a team-building exercise to decorate our room. Then we realized our room was too small for all our things, so we decided to make bunkbeds, which was a whole crazy thing, as our beds weren't meant to be bunks, but we did. It might look like a mess, but those beds are stable. After that, we checked the time and realized it was five minutes before class, so we were late," Ruby said proudly. "Wait, didn't you guys find the metal pins for your beds," asked Eugene. "What pins?" questioned Yang. "The pins for the beds which allow them to be bunk beds," answered Gray coolly while reading a booklet. "Wait, there were pins!" exclaimed Weiss. "Yeah, they were in one of the drawers," said Ben with his mouth full. "Even we found them and made a single bunk bed," said Rowan. "Urgh, I can't believe this," said Weiss as she slammed her hand onto her face with frustration. "Well, look on the bright side," said Yang. "What bright side?" chimed Blake. "I honestly don't know. I thought someone else would come up with something," replied Yang. "Perhaps one bright side is that your room looks unique now compared to other rooms," commented Gray. "Thanks, Gray, you're right. Our room is unique," Yang happily said as she attempted to high-five Gray, something he awkwardly returned. 'Unique, yeah, right. He's just ridiculing us in a way that'll fly over their heads but not mine. I know your game, Gray,' thought Wiess, angered at what she perceived was a slight from Gray as she angrily looked at her meal and ate. Lunch eventually ended, and everyone headed towards their next class.
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Ben and Gogo walked through the hallways towards their next class when Ben started a conversation, "Hey, Gogo, we should play pool by the underpass at that new pool hall." "Ben. Do you even have money for it? Or do you expect me to pay for you?" "Don't worry about it, I got money. Plus, the guys played pool the other day and said the girl working there is supermodel hot. So we should go to check it out." "Wait! You better not be lying." "I'm not, so you're in?" "Yeah, I'm in." "Sweet, I can't wait."
Overhearing their conversation was Phillip Kim, who messaged Jack Kang with the information. "Jimmy Bae and Jack Kang. Those fucking idiots will take care of Ben Park for me," quietly laughed Phillip, "And all I have to do is sit back, relax, eat popcorn, and enjoy the show." With that, Phillip decided to ditch class, feeling confident in his plan.
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"Let's roll out. We're going to get Ben Park," said Jack as his posse, including Helmet, left to get Ben. 'The bridge underpass closest near Beacon …' thought Jack as he followed the directions to catch Ben Park early. Helmet looked so unhappy that they had to follow along with Jimmy's difficult task.
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"Hey, let's go now as word spread rapidly about that hottie, and there might not be tables left if we leave after the last class. So, let's skip class. I heard that Professor Port doesn't care who's there and who isn't since he's too busy talking about himself," said Ben with some urgency. Gogo was in "deep" thought, mulling it over. Ben had a spaced-out look while looking at Gogo wondering what his response would be. "ALL RIGHT, LET'S GO!" excitedly said Gogo as both he and Ben laughingly ran along.
Once they got there, the nerves got to them. "Man, the underpass is kind of scary," said Ben in faux fear. They walked up the side stairway to the building. Both were nervous and excited, acting like little school boys. As they walked in, they felt a little disappointed as no one was there, until they were star-struck by the beauty of the woman working there. And so they tried to make themselves look as cool as possible. "We'll be playing three-ball, and I'll have a coffee," said Ben, trying to act sauve while readying his pool cue. "I'll have the same," said Gogo, trying to pose coolly on a pool table. The worker goes to make their drinks while smiling slightly at the fact that they're gushing over her.
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Back in Beacon, two of Cardin's teammates were angry at Gray. They couldn't stand Cardin acting so meekly and weak whenever Gray was around. It was noticeable if Gray just so happened to look in their direction; Cardin did his best to look small. During lunch, Cardin made sure to make no peep or cause a stir due to the trauma Gray inflicted on him. They couldn't believe that such a fragile and small-looking guy could take down Cardin. When they heard Ben was leaving, they saw their chance and told Cardin about it. "Honestly, Cardin, it's pretty easy to see what we need to do if we want to crush that shrimp," said Dove Bronzewing. "I don't know that fucker is dirty when it comes to fighting. What the hell do guys even have in mind?" Questioned Cardin. "Don't worry, Dove will go in first while we watch his back," replied Sky Lark. "Yeah! Even if he's in Ben's team, taking him out now will leave no consequences as long as we make sure that little fucker stays quiet. Plus, his other teammate will be too worried, making sure not to piss himself. That guy is no fighter. And if we pull this off, there's a great chance we can get on Phillip Kim's side, and once he gets in the union, we'll get in, too," added Russel Thrush. Cardin thought this over, 'Gray, with my two fights against him, wasn't strong and only beat me by surprise and using dirty tricks. Now that I know how he works, it is possible to take him down. It should be possible with their help and my prior experience. This is my only chance to get payback and impress Phillip Kim since Ben Park is leaving,' he then spoke, "Alright, I'll wait for the cue and then join in."
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Gray left for the restroom during the passing time before the last class, and as he washed his hands after finishing, he was bumped away from the sink by a rude upperclassman. 'I can crush him alongside other annoyances, but these small transgressions are getting annoying,' Gray left the restroom, 'People are slaves to image, and I look like the easiest target to people like him and those fuckers,' Gray pictured Phillip Kim and Cardin Winchester with their respective posses, 'But there's no need for what happened to repeat.' *Flash Back, "Gray… I'm Fine," said a voice with his back facing Gray. "Stephan…," Gray said shakily, reaching his hand forward as if trying to grab him, "I. I …" - Flash Back ends* 'Not anymore …' thought Gray as he looked a bit solemn.
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Gray walked into the lecture hall and sat next to Eugene. "Ben said to cover for him since he was going to play pool with Gogo." "He's the leader, and he's skipping class on the first day?" said Gray, stunned at Ben leaving. Eugene tried to defend Ben but quickly stopped when he noticed Gray's annoyance, "Well, it is the first day, but yeah, he shouldn't be skipping." 'How could someone like him be made leader? If he's not taking anything seriously, then what's the point? Did Professor Ozpin make a mistake by choosing Ben,' thought Gray as he readied his notebook when suddenly he felt something hit his leg. Spit. He looked up and noticed Dove smirking evilly, "Oops, sorry," he sneered as he and the rest of the team of CRDL walked away toward their seats before anything else could happen. Cardin tiptoed, trying not to look at Gray, still afraid of him. 'What the! What are they trying to pull,' thought Eugene in shock, 'I wonder if Gray is ok,' Eugene looked at Gray and became slightly scared, 'That face is not the face of calm; it's the face of pure rage.' 'What more do I have to do? These bastards are getting full of themselves. I guess Cardin hadn't learned his lesson,' seethed Gray as he cleaned his pants with a tissue. He calmed himself and prepared for the lesson from Professor Port. Team RWBY sat to the left of them, and only Yang noticed, as she looked over Gray, finding him attractive over the fact that someone as meek looking as he took down three people at once, 'What the hell are those jerks trying to pull? Cardin already got beat by Gray, so can't he control his team?' She tripped Dove and glared at team CRDL, daring them to confront her, but all they did was walk away, not wanting to take on the blonde berserker. The rest of team RWBY wondered what happened but returned their attention to the front of the room as Professor Port readied himself. Team GART walked in and sat behind Gray and Eugene, not noticing what was happening. The class went without interruptions except when Rowan tried to skip class, which earned him detention for three weeks. Professor Port then gave a long-winded story about himself, which was supposed to be his lesson, which quickly drained the energy of just about everyone. Gray, Weiss, Ren, and Pyrrha were the only people who could keep themselves focused, as everyone else either barely paid attention, fell asleep, or did something else. Then Professor Port brought out a cage containing a Boarbatusk and asked who had the traits of a true huntsman. Weiss eagerly volunteered as she wished to vent against it due to Ruby getting on her nerves and Gray making her feel inadequate. During the fight, Ruby yelled advice towards her when Weiss didn't want any help, which made Weiss angry and snap at her mid-fight, causing her to get knocked back by the Boarbatusk and lose her Myrtenaster. She was able to kill it after getting her weapon just in time. After killing the Grimm, class ended, and Weiss stormed off angrily with Ruby in tow, trying to talk to her. Professor Port followed them, seeing that one might need his sage advice.
As most began to leave, Gray and Eugene sat. Gray looked over his textbook, marking what he'd have to study and focus on while Eugene stayed with him so that he wasn't alone. Dove walked toward him, facing him, and spat in the middle of his textbook. "Oh, did I do that? Sorry, I can't stop drooling. I'm craving something sweet," mocked Dove as Sky, Russel Cardin stood behind him. Eugene looked uncomfortable and too afraid to do something. Gray looked at them impassively and then looked at Cardin, 'Cardin already knows better and has lost the will to fight. Evident at the fact he's willingly standing behind those three cowering,' Gray looks at Dove, 'Though this one refuses to acknowledge me. Though the moment has finally shown itself to make them regret that, though I didn't expect it to happen this fast.'
Gray cleans his textbook with a tissue. "You must think you're hot shit by winning by a fluke. Fighting fucking dirty," Dove spoke, and then he grew angry as Gray ignored him, choosing to continue cleaning his textbook, "Don't ignore me, you fucking bitch!" Dove hits Gray across the face with a hard slap. Gray is slightly stunned by the slap but thinks as he calmly looks towards Dove, 'Staying alert all the time is … undoubtedly exhausting. My cause is just, and Cardin won't make any rash moves. If you think one moment ahead and take bold actions. You'll catch your opponent in a trap.'
As Dove begins to speak again, Gray's textbook horizontally smacks him. A move so unexpected he didn't have time to bring up his aura. 'I don't care if they call me cheap or dirty,' thought Gray as he stood up. 'The only thing that matters to me,' he slaps him in the face with the textbook and knocks him down, 'is winning.'
Sky rushes in when, the moment he does, Gray throws the textbook right at his face, causing Sky to block it with his hand. But that's what Gray was planning, a minor distraction that Sky would overlook. Gray jumped, kneed him in the face with all his might, and knocked him down. Cardin and Russel looked in shock and were stunned by the swiftness of the attack. Gray grabbed his textbook and began to beat Dove in the face brutally, 'I Gray Yeon on that late summer day in my final year of high school,' A picture flashes through his mind of his private high school, a window from the outside, as he continues beating Dove, 'I swore,' another memory flashes, him overlooking someone with bandages covering his entire head in a hospital bed and on a respirator, 'To never lose again.'
Author's Endnote: More of an inside look at Gray's and Weiss' relationship. She doesn't like him. More will be explained along the way.
