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  Editors/Beta: Lonestar, SurvivorSam, Reiter.

  “Welcome to Pharos Academy. My name is Lie Ren, and I shall act as your guide today.”

  Their guide was a Mistralian boy their age of above average height, yet taller than Weiss like everyone else here, with long bck hair that had a curious pink streak on the left side. His impassive face looked slightly aggrieved and his pink eyes twitched terribly.

  “Good Morning. My name is Weiss Schnee and I believe Professor Goodwitch notified you of our arrival? I hope I am not intruding.”

  Weiss could not help but emphasize that st dig, no matter how childish. This was supposed to be the professor's finest student, yet he looked like he would rather be anywhere but here.

  To his credit, the boy cocked his head in confusion before his eyes widening in understanding and bowed his head. “Ah, my apologies. I meant no offense, it is just I was expecting a friend to help me but she seems to have gotten… distracted.”

  An awkward silence fell upon them as Weiss busied herself with inspecting the grounds of the school. Pharos Academy was designed as a rge high school with plenty of extracurricur buildings provided for the students. It almost felt like the noble schools of Ats, yet less ostentatious and luxurious. It appeared the Academy was built to cater for the richer people of Vale, where it focused on the finer arts and sports just as much as it did on Huntsman training.

  Yet it was not always a school.

  From the nding port for aircraft, to the cobbled pathway leading to the elegantly designed school buildings, one would think it was a high society’s social retreat if not for the nding port itself being part of a military base. Then there was what the academy was named after.

  The Great Lighthouse that was constructed over a thousand years ago in the time of the Old Empire. Standing at an impressive 178 meters tall, yet towering over all of Vale and the coastline due to its location on top of a hill that was over a kilometer above sea level; this was perhaps the most important reason for Vale’s long-lived prosperity. The lighthouse provided light to many ships and even today, it had been refurbished to act as one of three main rey towers for the CCTS in Vale City, as well as a control tower for Vale’s busy airport, along with the newly constructed skyport to service the massive airships the city was known for.

  Truly a marvel of engineering that Weiss would love to visit and explore. Was it truly powered by Dust? Did the ancient Valeans know how to work Dust? So many things she could learn to satisfy her intellectual curiosity. Still, she had far more important things to do.

  Such as passing the entrance exams.

  As the silence extended for longer than she expected, with Lie Ren, (or was it Ren Lie? Didn't Mistralians give their surnames first? Then she remembered Yang and shrugged), coughing as he kept gncing around him, clearly searching for his assistant, and muttering under his voice. All Weiss got was something about a pancake monster.

  Jaune yawned loudly beside her, “Will this take long?”

  “I’m sorry, may I ask who you might be?” Lie Ren slightly narrowed his eyes at Jaune. “I do not believe Professor Goodwitch mentioned more than one examinee.”

  Her blonde friend gazed at Lie Ren with a bored look, “Just escorting my friend here for the exams and wishing her luck,” shrugging and pcing a hand on her shoulder. “You don't have a cafeteria here or something, do ya?”

  “Ah, yes, of course.” Lie Ren coughed before sighing and turning to the gate, “I don't think she will be here anytime soon, anyway. If you would follow me, please.”

  As they followed the young man through the rge metal gate and got them guest passes from the security checkpoint, Weiss listened idly as he gave them a proper tour. The Academy grounds used to be the summer pace of the Kings of Vale, then repurposed into a vast military compound, before finally becoming Pharos Academy. The design was certainly elegant as she inspected the trimmed bushes and fruit trees open to anyone to grab a snack. Once they entered a building, Weiss felt like she entered a mansion from the Oswaldian era; old yet comfortable furnishings, colorful portraits, and rich wooden flooring were everywhere.

  The school grounds were not as crowded as it should be, passing by only a dozen students or so, owing to it being the summer holidays. Those who they found were members of clubs and associations. There was a massive swimming pool where a few boys and girls were pying some sport with a ball and two goals, and a gymnasium with many basketball courts and what appeared to be a theater.

  It was all very lovely, and Weiss truly believed she could have had a wonderful time here instead of the boring homeschool tutoring she had to endure. And yet…

  “Listen, man. I will admit, this pce is freaking awesome, and makes me wish I wasn't homeschooled and had to endure all those boring and brutal lessons from gramps.” Weiss covered her mouth in an attempt to disguise her snort into a cough - she and Jaune were more alike than she thought. “But we aren't enrolling here, so… Cafeteria? I'm hungry.”

  Lie Ren’s brows twitched before sighing in a way that had her thinking he was more than used to dealing with impatient gluttons. “…Fine. Follow me.”

  As the young man led them out of the theater and back to the expansive grounds, Weiss decided to be polite and engage with their guide in conversation. “So, Mr Ren. Or is it Mr Lie?”

  “You may call me Ren. And no Mr.”

  “Very well, Ren. Would you mind if I ask you to tell us a bit about yourself? Are you still a student here, or have you graduated and enrolling in Beacon? Where are you from? Your accent tells me it's from Mistral, and so does your clothing.”

  If the boy was taken aback by her sudden interest and many questions, he did not show it. He still sighed lightly before answering.

  “No, I would not mind. No, I have graduated, but I work here part-time as a teacher assistant along with my friend… who is not much of either but just hangs around as my assistant. Yes, I am enrolling in Beacon. I am originally from a little town called Kuroyuri in Mistral, not that many would know where it was on the map or even pronounce its name. The town was destroyed by Grimm, leaving us as the only survivors and after wandering Mistral for a few years, we were approached by Professor Goodwitch and offered to move here as huntsmen a couple of years ago.”

  The deadpan way that Ren delivered his answers was more jarring than learning about the loss of his home. Jaune, who so far looked bored, suddenly looked interested.

  “How young were you when that happened?”

  “Too young.”

  Jaune nodded seriously before reaching out a hand. “My condolences. I am Jaune Arc of Arcade. It's some town in the Vytal mountains that I'm sure you would not be able to find on the map. I'm homeschooled, but got special permission from Ozpin to enroll in Beacon.”

  Ren accepted Jaune's offered hand, his eyes suddenly widening before a bit of sweat formed on his brows. “I was about to ask what kind of special permission, but judging by your Aura, I believe it's unnecessary.”

  “Oh yeah, Jaune here has pretty rge reserves, so much so that–”

  “I was not talking about that.”

  Weiss was struck silent by the simple line, and she gulped as she recalled what her blonde friend told her.

  Jaune, on the other hand, merely nodded as he retracted his hand, “You’re not too bad yourself. This peaceful city hasn't killed your instincts.”

  Weiss nearly scoffed at the idea of Vale being peaceful at all. She had lived in Mantle for a whole week, the city with the worst reputation when it came to security, and yet did not face any troubles at all. In the first twenty four hours since she set foot in Vale, Weiss had been scammed, chased by thugs, got brutally assaulted, and nearly killed a dozen times within a span of one minute. And Jaune considered Vale safe?!

  “I keep myself busy with training and joining expeditions to Forever Fall and other pces in the frontier nds.”

  Ren gazed at the other boy as he hummed, and Weiss was starting to feel irked at being sidelined from the conversation she herself started. And yet, looking at the two of them sizing each other up was quite interesting. Almost like two wolves meeting for the first time in the wild and deciding how well the other would do in a fight.

  “Body count?” Ren asked suddenly, causing Weiss to stiffen and turn to Jaune in worry but he looked as cool as, well, ice.

  “A fair few. You?”

  “A few.”

  “I see. Whatever you are doing to keep yourself sane… I would love to learn it.”

  “Perhaps. We shall see if you make it through initiation, first.”

  “Touché, but sure. Anyway, is this the cafeteria?”

  Weiss did not even notice when they started walking again until Ren stopped before what looked like a quaint building by a ke. “Better. It's a private cafe that offers different kinds of good food and drinks. Unless you would rather somewhere cheaper?”

  “Nah, that suits me fine,” Jaune turned to her and patted her on the shoulder. “Good luck, Weiss. Give me a call when you're done.”

  Weiss hesitantly nodded, her blonde friend patting her shoulder once again with a grin before sauntering off to the cafe.

  “Interesting man. Have you known him for long?”

  Weiss turned back to her guide and mimicked a hand gesture she saw Becky use to indicate so-so, “Known about him for a long time but only met him in person yesterday. I would like to say he is a friend, though.”

  “Hmm, a terrible enemy to have yet a good friend to make.” Ren muttered, causing her to raise an eyebrow. The Mistralian shrugged, turned away, and continued their tour. “My turn, are you the same Weiss Schnee as in from the SDC? Why aren't you enrolling in Ats? I would think someone of your station would have an army of attendants and bodyguards at her beck and call.”

  Weiss groaned.

  T*A*M*S

  An orange-haired girl ravenously ate her pte of pancakes as she sat opposite a dark-haired girl in a certain cafe.

  “…And then Renny said that it was all a dream! Can you believe the gall of this dude?!”

  The other occupant of the table barely twitched as the girl waved her fork erratically, sending a dollop of syrup flying and nearly striking her bck hair if she had not blocked it with a napkin. Bke decided that it would be safer to put away her book, lest the girl damaged it somehow.

  “I am sure Renny, wherever he is, deeply regrets any perceived insult and would love to make amends.”

  The other girl nearly choked on her pancake before gulping it hurriedly, “R-Ren? L-Love? W-Well, if he wants to, I don't mind…”

  Bke ignored the bubbly girl who was holding her red cheeks as she muttered inane matters with a dreamy smile. She found her gaze drawn to the door as it opened with a chime. A tall blonde man entered, his blue eyes zily inspecting the cafe’s interior, frowning slightly at a group of loud students in one corner, before his eyes stopped on her. Bke suddenly felt trepidation as the man’s blue eyes almost seemed to shine and she felt a chill crawl up her spine, but as soon as it started, it went away and the man walked to the counter to order, sitting next to a dispy case full of pastries.

  “…So yeah! Ren and I have been here for a couple of years and we are so stoked to enroll in Beacon. What about you, Bkey? Now that we’re done with your entrance exam, wanna hang out afterwards? I’ll introduce you to Renny, he’s just as cool and calm as you are, but no touching! He’s mine!!”

  Bke’s left eye twitched at the girl’s exuberant shouting that drew some attention from the group of jocks nearby. One of them had been eyeing her since she arrived, even approaching her before changing tracks when this bundle of energy grinned at him and mentioned something about broken legs.

  Nora Valkyrie… To be honest, Bke was not sure why she decided to entertain the lightning user. She met her during the physical examination of the entrance exam; aside from a series of physical exercises, Bke was required to duel a student. She was not required to win, but to simply show that she could hold herself well against an experienced opponent.

  To her great shame, Bke had underestimated the lightning girl, and was nearly defeated on the first strike. Thankfully, she persevered and gave a good enough showing against the way too aggressive girl that did not seem to tire, until the examiner, some green-haired middle-aged smoke addict with eyes that would make a dead fish seem more alive, stopped them and decred she passed.

  “Hey, that was so much fun! Wanna go have breakfast? I’m supposed to meet Renny for another examinee, but that can wait, so let’s Go Go GO!”

  Before she knew it, Nora had grabbed her tired self and dragged her to this quaint cafe. At least the food was good, and the milkshake was tasty. Not to mention, the electric girl offered to pay for her, and Bke barely had any money these days unless Tukson had another odd job or two for her.

  And boy could the girl eat! Despite being only five feet tall, she just kept eating! Nora must have eaten at least five ptes of jumbo stacked pancakes. Just where did all that fat go? A gnce at the girl's prodigious chest told her all she needed to know.

  “You can keep Renny, whoever he is, all to yourself.” Bke sipped from her milkshake, humming as the smooth taste of strawberry and vanil filled her taste buds. “Where else would you go? I have to catch the train in a few hours, though.”

  “Oh yeah, you live like, hours, from here. In the Commercial district? We also live there but…blegh, that pce used to be so nice when we first moved here, but it quickly became a stupid hub for gangs and other scum.” Bke raised an eyebrow as the bubbly girl swallowed the st of her pancake and scowled at the mention of her area of residence, before her eyes grew wide. “And what do you mean you don’t know Ren? I told you about him… didn’t I?”

  “Nope, you did mention that you needed to meet him somewhere but you still have time… you do, right?”

  For a moment, Nora froze and Bke stared at her worriedly as rivulets of sweat poured down her forehead before slowly turning to the clock on the wall that had just coincidentally chimed noon. Even slower, Nora pulled out her scroll which showed the time, for some reason, was eleven–ah, it turned twelve, pancakes…what kind of interface was she using? It did not seem to have minutes or seconds. Oh, and there were about twenty missed calls and texts.

  Nora jumped as if she received an electric shock. “OH MY GOSH!!! I WAS SUPPOSED TO MEET HIM TWO HOURS AGO!!!!!”

  The loud shriek caused multiple people to flinch and grated on Bke’s sensitive ears so much that she had to close her eyes, barely listening to the girl as she dashed out of the store with a trailing, “IT WAS FUN BLAKEY BUT I GOTTA GOOoooooo….”

  The cat faunus could only gawk as the girl dashed away leaving behind a table full of empty ptes and mugs.

  “B-But the payment…” Bke moaned as she raised her hand in the direction Nora had run off to.

  “Excuse me…” Slowly, robotically, Bke turned at the sound of a cough to find the waiter standing behind her with a stiff smile. “Will you be ordering something else? Or will that be all?”

  “A-Actually, my friend promised to pay for–”

  “Your friend is not here, and this is not her first offense yet someone usually covers her tab after we compin to the faculty.” The waiter’s smile, if possible, turned even more wooden. “Now will that be all? Or would you like to order dessert?”

  A few snickers came from that table of jocks nearby yet Bke ignored them. She looked around, as if searching for an escape before biting her tongue to control her flight or fight instincts. She would not be running away, especially when that could severely impact her record.

  A clean ste, was what Headmaster Ozpin told her when she approached him, begging him for a chance to make something out of her life.

  “I can certainly give you preferential treatment, but I shall not. You must prove yourself to me first. I will help you bypass some of the red tape but if you truly desire to become a Huntsman, then you must py by the same rules as everyone else. Consider this your new lease on life.”

  Bke could remember the man’s heavy gaze as she stood in front of him that same day she arrived in Vale only to be summarily apprehended and brought to him - so much for sneaking into the massive city, but the man had clearly been forewarned about her arrival.

  Her talk with a certain white-haired cat-faunus echoed in her mind. An Aura user can do a lot more good as a Huntsman than any other profession. Wealth, power, influence… all of that would be avaible for her to use for the good of Remnant. And the Faunus.

  “...how much do I owe?”

  “￡141.61.” The words were like death knell - Bke only had a hundred Lien and most of it would go to transportation, but even if she had the money– “Would you be paying in cash or card?”

  “What?!” Bke finally recovered her wits as she stood up with a growl, “How the hell is it so expensive?! I only ordered a tuna sad and two salmon croissants! And a milkshake!”

  “And your friend ordered six ptes of jumbo pancakes along with three mugs of hot cocoa as well as three bottles of our special Red Syrup made from Forever Fall tree sap.”

  “Still, over a hundred and forty Lien for all that? It would hardly cost a quarter of that anywhere else in Vale!”

  “My dear, this is not ‘anywhere else’ in Vale.” Bke nearly hissed at the patronizing tone of the waiter, but he was clearly far too used to dealing with aura users as he barely twitched - in fact, his tone got even more snooty. “This is Café Feuille Rouge; founded by Queen Madeleine nearly a hundred years ago for the commoners to experience a taste of royal life.”

  The waiter waved dramatically at an ostentatious portrait of a blonde noblewoman with blue eyes wearing a golden crown and an intricate dress with diagrams that Bke could not care about.

  “No common man could afford such ridiculous prices!”

  “How tragic; for such a hot babe to be destitute.” She grimaced as their raised voices clearly grabbed everyone else's attention. A particurly cocky looking fellow stood and approached the table. “Since you're so pretty, I can be convinced to pay for your bill, provided you go on a date with me.”

  Wolf whistles and hollers came from the other table while Bke seethed in her seat. If she wasn't wearing her bow tie, her ears would have been twitching madly by now. She dearly wished she could just flip the arrogant meathead off, especially when he had the gall to stand over her seat and lean heavily on the chair as he leered at her.

  But it all came down to the fact she had no fucking money for this insanely high bill!

  It was all Nora’s fault. Oh, when she got her hands on that airheaded, big-titted, bimbo there would be hell to–

  “Haaaah, this was a good meal. Garcon? The cheque, please.”

  A baritone voice called out from the counter, where several stacks of ptes were set aside while the cashier seemed to be staring in shock at the blonde man. Her low mutters could not be heard by anyone aside from her sensitive ears as her wide eyes flew from the man to the empty dispy case.

  “Where did it all go? It all just… disappeared with a wave of your hand!”

  “I shall be with you momentarily, sir. Just as soon as I've finished with–”

  “You misunderstand. I already paid.” The blonde waved to the cashier who nodded rapidly as the man turned the swivel stool around and gazed at her. “The cheque, please.”

  “… Very well, sir.” The waiter walked to the man and handed over the bill where the blonde promptly handed him ￡150.

  “Keep the change.”

  Bke did not understand what was going on, but she would not look a gift horse in the mouth.

  “Hey, what the hell, dude?” The jock from earlier strutted towards the still seated blonde - Bke had forgotten he was even there. “You just cockblocked me. Uncool.”

  “Not my fault you needed to pay for a date.” The blonde shrugged even as the rest of the jocks ughed at the first one’s expense. “These days, girls require a lot more than just money to be impressed.”

  “And? I'm plenty rich, strong, and handsome - hell, I practically own this campus. Who the hell are you anyway?” The jerk grabbed the blonde man's shoulder and Bke stood up - she was not about to let someone who helped her get in trouble because of her.

  “Yeah, you show him Cardin.” One of those sitting by the table hollered.

  “Careful buddy, Cardin here is the star of the rugby team as well as one of the top three in the Huntsmen curriculum.”

  “He's strong enough to beat you with one hand tied behind his back!”

  “Is that so?” The blonde suddenly stood, causing the other boy to flinch backwards as they both sized each other up. Both aspiring huntsmen were tall; the blonde had an inch or two on the ginger yet the jock was stockier, with broader shoulders. “I am Jaune Arc. You?”

  “Cardin Winchester.” Cardin had taken a step back yet still grinned with a bravado that Bke felt he did not truly feel but had to keep up with after what his friends said. “What, want a fight?”

  Jaune Arc, and for some reason, Bke felt like she should know that name, tilted his head as his eyes seemed to glow. “Are you offering?”

  Suddenly, the air seemed to grow heavy, and Bke's eyes widened as she recognized the technique being used. Aura pressure. A way for an Aura user to flood their aura in an area, usually only used as a sacrificial method to grab the Grimm’s attention. While it could be used as an intimidation tactic against people, not many would be foolish enough to do it owing to how fast one's Aura reserves would plummet.

  Yet, even as Bke watched everyone in the cafe shudder, in the case of non-aura users, or grip their seats in terror, in the case of the aspiring huntsmen, the Aura did not let up. In fact, as Cardin Winchester did not answer, Jaune Arc merely raised a hand upwards, causing him to flinch… until it simply patted him on the shoulder.

  “Apologies, I just remembered this is not the time nor pce for a fight.” Jaune Arc smiled gently as the aura pressure receded and everyone could breathe again, yet none was foolish enough to underestimate the blonde menace. “Perhaps we shall meet during initiation?”

  “Y-Yeah, sounds like a pn. I look forward to it.”

  Winchester turned aside as Arc walked past him, nodding to her, and walked towards the door before stopping and turning around with a curious face. “Any retion to Henry Winchester?”

  Cardin scowled before adopting a neutral expression, all signs of bravado and mischief gone from his face as he folded his arms. “He’s my eldest brother.”

  “I see,” For a moment, Arc looked like he wanted to say more before deciding otherwise. “I'll see you at Beacon.”

  As the blonde shut the door behind him, several loud sighs of relief sounded out.

  “What the hell was he?”

  “Some kind of monster, I reckon.”

  “Arc… why do I feel like I should know that name?”

  “Maybe some celebrity?”

  “Nah, I think I heard it in history css or something.”

  Bke did not stay around in case Winchester decided to try his luck with her once more, though judging by how he colpsed back in his seat with a grimace, she doubted he would have bothered. Nevertheless, the former White Fang operative hurried out of the cafe and chased after Jaune Arc, finding him strolling leisurely a short distance away.

  “Wait up.” Arc turned to her questioningly as she walked beside him down the cobbled path. “You can't just help a girl out and walk away all cool like that.”

  “Oh? Is there a rule against being cool around here?”

  “No– I mean, ugh,” For some reason, Bke felt the blonde was teasing her - scratch that, judging by his little smirk, he was definitely teasing her. “What I mean is, you didn’t have to help me.”

  Jaune Arc narrowed his eyes in confusion before they widened in understanding. “Ah, sorry, I didn't realize you were pining after Winchester for that date. We can turn back around and–”

  “NO!” She nearly shrieked at the boy’s thickness, for there was no way he did not realize his teasing. “I mean… Fine, thank you for helping me out but I do not want to be in your debt.”

  “Hmmm, sure, whatever. Consider any debt owed to me gone.” Infuriatingly, Jaune Arc shrugged as he continued strolling off the path and through the freshly mowed wn, seemingly walking in a random direction.

  “Good, I mean, no, I refuse to accept charity.” Bke hurried after him, even as they jumped over fences and walked around garden sheds. “Why did you help me out anyway?”

  “Because I don't need a reason to help someone?”

  The line was given in such a matter of fact way, especially with the questioning tone in the end as if Arc was confused she would even ask such a seemingly obvious question. It both struck a chord with Bke yet also annoyed her.

  “Fine, whatever. Where are you going anyway? You mentioned you are enrolling in Beacon but those jocks back there didn't recognize you so you can't be a student here - and that guest pass around your neck doesn’t help. Especially with the amount of Aura you were throwing around. Are you taking the entrance exams?”

  “Nope.”

  They stopped in front of a building with no walls, causing Arc to frown as he looked around until he noticed a window that was an inch open a couple of floors up. Before she could stop him, he jumped and seemingly grabbed the smooth surface without leaving a dent, then climbed up to the window, opened it, and looked down at her questioningly. Grumbling to herself, Bke climbed after him with much more feline grace, grabbed his offered hand and they both entered the building.

  Only to come face to face with a familiar bored-looking older man with green hair and eyes that screamed ‘Too tired to deal with this shit,’ as he reviewed a bundle of papers that Bke recognized as the theoretical part of the entrance exam.

  “Instructor Bertram!”

  “Hn, Beldonna, yeah?” At her nod, the man took a deep drag from his cigarette before blowing it towards the window, and making her gag. “I thought I already passed you.”

  “Y-You–cough– you did, sir.” Bke moved away from the window as she noticed a duel going on in the ring below - there were also several younger students watching on in silence while one girl with bright green hair looked curiously at them until instructor Bertram waved her off. Now she realized where she was, an examination room simir to the one she was in this morning. “I was just… uh, taking a walk?”

  “Mhmm, walked right up the wall, sure. Whatever, it happens.” Bertram deadpanned at her, causing her to grimace. Still, he shrugged and turned to her companion, “And who might you be?”

  Before Jaune could introduce himself, the examiner interrupted, “Ah, nevermind. Blonde hair, blue eyes, enough Aura to risk a Grimm horde if you throw a tantrum. You must be an Arc. Considering the Lance Maiden only has one son… Jaune Arc, I presume?”

  “My reputation precedes me, it seems.” Arc raised an eyebrow, “As does my mother’s.”

  “Lianne Arc wasn't always a housewife, or rather, some fancy lordly type. Until a couple of decades ago, she used to visit Pharos and Signal regurly as a guest Huntsman instructor.” Bertram yawned loudly before turning his attention back to the high-speed duel in the ring. “Name’s Bertram Altheim. You made quite the waves yesterday, Mr Arc.” Bke looked confusedly at Jaune who did not even blink causing the instructor to sigh and turn away. “Regardless, we're approaching the climax here.”

  She followed his gaze despite her interest in learning more about Jaune Arc - to think he was a noble, yet he still helped her out for no reason other than he could.

  ‘As if it cost him anything to throw some money around.’ A treacherous voice in her mind whispered but she shook it aside as she watched the duel.

  A dark haired young man was jumping around as he fired his automatic pistols at a familiar looking girl who used Dust to block the bullets with an ice wall that surrounded her like a suit of armor. Once the young man ran out of ammo, the girl formed a gravity glyph around him in an attempt to slow him down but she was not fast enough as he formed a small, compact propulsion glyph to bst away from the effects. The girl sent a spear of ice at him that he dodged, and dashed at her, his guns stowed away as his hands glowed with aura as he struck through her ice armor, seemingly failing to deal any damage yet the girl yelped in pain regardless. The Mistralian boy used that moment of distraction to grab her by the neck in a chokehold before pointing his bded pistol at her throat.

  “Alright, that's enough.” Mr Altheim called out loudly, causing both combatants to freeze and separate before stowing away their weapons and bowing, “Thanks for the help, Lie Ren. Schnee, come up here for a proper judgment. As for the rest of you, show's over, now get.”

  A few students groaned but most looked excited as they chatted about the fight on their way out of the hall, except for the green-haired girl that looked suspiciously like the examiner, who approached him with a scroll expanded into a data pad.

  Bke, however, had her eyes wide in shock as she recognized the girl. How could she not, when the White Fang had files on all Schnee. She bit her lips in anger; what the hell was Weiss Schnee doing here?!

  “Here you go, Doctor.” The girl politely handed him the scroll and Bertram Altheim looked through it for a couple of seconds before closing it. “Do you need anything else?”

  The examiner blew out the st of his cigarette before stabbing it in a portable ashtray, a dry little smile on his lips. “Only for my daughter to call me Papa.”

  “Mama said not to call you that in school.”

  “Mama isn't here.”

  “Mama’s orders are absolute.” The girl tilted her head sideways, “Would you like me to call her and ask permission?”

  “Ugh, forget it.” Instructor Bertram patted her head and ruffled her hair out of its two buns, causing the girl to smile for a moment before frowning at her loose hair. “Go take a break, Mint.”

  “Yes, Papa.”

  The girl rushed away as Mr Altheim muttered about cheeky brats before lighting up another cigarette, much to Bke's dismay. Also just in time for Lie Ren to arrive with Weiss freaking Schnee who merely gnced at her before smiling at Arc and turning back to Instructor Bertram.

  “How did I do?” Weiss asked hesitantly as she rubbed the spot on her ribs where Lie Ren had struck her. “I didn’t fail, did I? Please give me another chance, I can keep fighting–”

  “Calm down, girl. First off, let me give you a proper assessment. It’s an unfortunate part of my job,” Bertram inhaled his cigarette as he stared at the Schnee girl thoughtfully, before blowing out the smoke above them, though still inundating them with an acrid stench. “You have a good grasp on the basics, as well as in-depth knowledge of glyphs. Yet, your execution is too slow, giving your opponent time to react and identify the glyph. You did not bother to mask the glyph as it formed, do you know how to disguise the sigils?”

  Weiss Schnee shook her head, “I haven’t gotten that far in my studies.”

  “No matter, what you already know is impressive enough - I think I saw you use a dozen different glyphs.” Mr Altheim nodded to the girl, whose eyes seemed to shine brighter at the praise. “Lie Ren here only knows a couple of glyphs and he is the top student of his year. Don’t feel bad about losing to him, though, the kid is used to fighting humans.”

  “Yes, he did mention that.” Weiss Schnee nodded to the Mistralian boy, “Thank you for the duel, I have learned a lot from it, but know that if we spar again in the future, the outcome will be different.”

  Bke scoffed at the sheer arrogance, but shrank into herself when everyone turned to look at her. Thankfully, Lie Ren did not mind her.

  “I look forward to it. You are very good with your Dust casting, though I recommend not over relying on it.”

  “Yeah, good point, Lie.” The examiner took a final drag from his cigarette before extinguishing it in his ashtray. “Dust is expensive, and when out in the field, you would be expected to conserve it for emergencies only. How much have you used in this duel?”

  Weiss Schnee opened her weapon’s Dust canisters before grimacing, “More than I pnned.”

  “Mhmm, I suggest stocking up on Dust for Initiation. You will need it a lot more in the Emerald Forest, for even though it’s been a couple of months since the war, the Grimm have already multiplied back enough to warrant eradication teams… not to mention Ozpin has the habit of canceling those missions a month before Initiation, the mad man.”

  “I see, I will need to be careful with what I have, especially as Dust is too expensive for me now.” Schnee bit her thumb in thought as she muttered about financial solutions on how to alleviate her money problems.

  Which made absolutely no sense to Bke, causing her to blurt out, “Why would you care about money? You are Weiss freaking Schnee! Your family practically holds all of Remnant hostage when it comes to Dust, and you are worried about it getting expensive?!”

  Once again, everyone stared at her weirdly, and, once again, Bke felt herself shrinking at her ck of self-control. Worse, why the hell was Weiss Schnee looking… despondent? No, wait, that couldn’t be, yep, now she was gring at her before turning to Arc.

  “Who’s she?”

  “Some scaredy-cat I picked up.”

  Bke froze, fear and terror gripping her heart at the uttered words that only one other had called her. Instantly, her flight instincts went haywire and she was about to jump out of the window if not for the heavy hand that held her shoulder. Slowly, the cat-faunus turned to the blonde who merely shook his head, and Bke immediately knew that there was no escape.

  “Gee, Jaune, picking up girls when you’re supposed to be helping out your cute cousin?”

  Cousin?!

  “Huh, cute and cousin? Where? Ouch!” Cue, the white haired girl kicking the blonde in the shin. “Alright, alright, she’s a friend of a friend and I helped her out of a predicament. Anyway,” Arc turned to the bored Mr Altheim who was staring glumly at his empty cigarette pack. “I take it you passed her? You did advise her to stock up on Dust for initiation.”

  “Yeah, she passes.” Weiss Schnee fist bumped in joy before hugging Arc for a moment then jumping away with a red face. “Good work, Schnee, though a word of advice: Work on your csswork. I don’t know what your home tutors told you, but writing a paragraph of your thoughts to justify every single multiple choice question is not how regur school works - you nearly ran out of time.”

  Before anyone could utter another word, the double doors leading into the hall banged off their hinges and a familiar orange haired menace burst in, gasping for breath, with wide eyes as she searched the stands until her eyes fell on the dark-haired boy. “RENNYYYY I’VE BEEN LOOKING FOR YOU EVERYWHERE! I’M SO SORRY I’M LAAAAATTTTE!!”

  ‘Ah, so this is Renny…’ Was Bke’s only thought as the bimbo zapped across the hall to crash into a resigned looking Lie Ren in a crushing hug.

  “You’re too te, Nora. The exam’s already over. Where have you been anyway?” Lie Ren finally said after a minute of the girl babbling about how sorry she was for standing him up for their date, to which the boy kept repeating it was not a date. “Anyway, am I free to go, instructor?”

  “Yeah, yeah, just take this nuisance with you.” Mr Altheim looked completely done with the world as he walked down the steps to the broken doors, clicking his tongue at the sight before shouting a final, “Repairs coming out of your paycheck, Valkyrie.”

  “What?! B-But my pancakes…”

  “You!” Now that everything calmed down, Bke felt indignation at the sheer gall of the girl to show up out of nowhere and dare mention the word pancakes in front of her. “Do you have any idea what you did to me?!”

  “Oh, hi, Bkey! Didn’t see you there.” Nora Valkyrie perked up as she jumped away from her friend and waved at her with a grin before turning back to Ren. “Oh, this is my new friend, Bke Bell-a-something or another.”

  “It’s Bke Beldonna, you dimwitted bimbo! Did all those pancakes you eat go to your boobs instead of your brain? You promised to pay for my meal, but instead ran off on me to foot your bill! A bill that I could not pay and nearly sold myself to some jackass to cover for it!”

  Nora gasped loudly and flinched backwards, “I did? I thought they would put it under my tab like usual. Someone always pays it off anyway.”

  Lie Ren interrupted with a karate chop to the girl’s head, “That someone is me.” The boy sighed aggrievedly before pulling out his wallet, “How much did you have to pay?”

  “Nothing, thanks to Jaune here.” Bke turned to find Arc and Schnee discussing something but then turned at the mention of his name. “He paid it off for me.”

  Bke was still freaked out how Jaune Arc knew she was a cat faunus, but now her knee-jerk reaction of running had faded away, she decided to wait and see what he wanted. She did not believe he would help her purely out of the goodness of–

  “Ah, don’t worry about it. Think of it as my good act of the day or something.” And of course he would wave it off before turning to her, “Sorry about holding you back. Seeing as we are all going to Beacon, I was going to ask you if you want to hang out but if you want to leave…”

  Now how was she supposed to react to that?! Bke felt aggrieved. First, she misjudged Weiss Schnee for a spoiled and bratty princess, when she seemed more down to earth than she had any right to. Now, she also misjudged a man who helped her for no other reason than to feel good about helping others.

  “How about this?” Lie Ren chimed in, interrupting her morose thoughts. “We’re done for the day, and will be heading back to our home in the commercial district. We can hang out at a nice pce I know, or if you have a better pce in mind, then we can also go there.”

  Jaune turned to Weiss who shrugged, “Sounds good to me. Weiss needs Dust, and I also need to stock up on supplies. I know a good pce for the stuff, and I’m sure they would appreciate any business.”

  “Sounds like a pn. Meet you at the front entrance in half an hour while we grab our stuff. Let’s go, Nora.”

  “M’Kay!!”

  All of a sudden, Bke found herself once again alone with two people that seemed to both intrigue and annoy her. At least she won’t have to worry about–

  “Alright, now that we are alone, how about you expin why you keep hiding your ears, Bke?”

  God damn it!

  This was a fun chapter to write. I introduced two more members of the main cast, as well as connected Bke into the narrative.

  For the Trails fans, I'm sure you will notice two other characters that introduced and took the liberty in changing their background to suit the narrative.

  The lighthouse is naturally based on Pharos Lighthouse of Alexandria, but taller and rger. The lore just wrote itself, lol.

  Now, why are Ren and Nora in Pharos? Because I don’t see why not. They lost their homes when young, in the middle of Anima, yet for some reason, instead of joining Haven as would be logical, they made the trek to Beacon. This is my expnation: Goodwitch found them on a mission and poached them. I already implied that she has a habit of scouting potential new students in her povs when she mentioned Maya and Bleu Arc, as well as Jasper’s potential.

  Cardin Winchester is a character the fandom loves to hate simply because he’s the schoolyard bully who is also a racist. So very convenient to hate, amirite? I mean, come on! Couldn’t RT make a proper school rival or something?

  He’s still a racist asshole, I’m not going to change his personality for that’s what makes him interesting, yet he is also an aspiring huntsman and should have his priorities right… for the most part.