The opening ends with a view of several ships carrying students and docking at the entrance of the school. As soon as one lands, The vomit boy from the previous chapter emerges and goes over to the nearest trash can, hunching over it as he loses his lunch. He is a tall boy with fair skin, blond hair, and dark-blue eyes. He is quite toned, having strong muscles in his arms, shoulders, and upper chest. He wears a black short-sleeved hoodie with detached reddish-orange sleeves. Above that is a white diamond-shaped chest plate cut off above his lower abdomen, and placed over his shoulders is a pair of white spaulders with rerebraces set under them. Below, he wears blue jeans with a white patch placed on the left knee and black sneakers which have 'left' and 'right' written in black on the respective shoes' soles. He also has elbow guards with cords strung through them and he wears black high tops. He has two belts crisscrossing his waist, both different shades of brown, with a pair of small pouches on them. Jaune wears brown wrist-length gloves with exposed fingertips and small metal plates over the back. His sword is strapped to his left hip in a sheath that doubles as a collapsible shield.

As he's still hunched over, what he doesn't expect is a gentle and constant set of pats on his back followed by a voice.

"It's okay, let it all out."

The blonde boy then straightens up to see another boy who is roughly the same height as him, only that he's a bit more muscular, pale skinned, blonde hair, and orange eyes, "You're not a big fan of airships. Not that I've not seen it before. Motion sickness is tough, right?"

"Yeah, tell me about it," replies the blonde knight, "The name's Jaune Arc."

He offers a handshake which the other blonde accepts, "Name's Simon. Hopefully, with a name like that, you might catch their attention."

"Yeah, I hope so," said Jaune.

"Well, Jaune. I guess we'll see soon enough."

Meanwhile, Ruby and Yang, alongside several other students, walk out of the ship and head down the paved path to the front of the school.

"Wow…" they both say as they take in the entirety of Beacon Academy.

"The view from Vale's got nothing on this!" said Yang.

Suddenly, Ruby becomes a 2-D, starry-eyed, floating chibi in excitement, "Ohmygosh, sis! That kid's got a collapsible staff! And she's got a fire sword!"

She tries getting closer, but Yang pulls her sister by the hood back into realistic proportions, "Ow! Ooww!"

"Easy there, little sister. They're just weapons," said Yang.

Ruby stares at her, offended, "' Just weapons'? They're an extension of ourselves! They're a part of us! Oh, they're so cool!"

"Well, why can't you swoon over your weapon? Aren't you happy with it?" asked Yang.

Ruby brings out her weapon, transforming it into a scythe, "Of course, I'm happy with Crescent Rose! I just really like seeing new ones. It's like meeting new people, but better…"

She's then met with her hood being playfully pushed down over her face by her big sister, "Ruby, come on, why don't you go try and make some friends of your own?"

"But... why would I need friends if I have you?" said Ruby as she took off her hood.

"Well…," Yang starts when in a flash, a group of other students surrounds her, "Actually, my friends are here. Gotta go catch up. 'Kay, see ya, bye!"

And with that, they dashed down the road, leaving Ruby to spin uncontrollably.

"Wait, where are you going?! Are we supposed to go to our dorms? Where are our dorms? Do we have dorms?" She stops for a moment, still reeling, "I don't know what I'm doing…"

Ruby falls backward into a luggage cart, sending cases flying. Someone is standing over her, "What are you doing?!"

Looking up, she sees a pale-skinned young woman with pale blue eyes and long white hair that is often pulled back into an off-center ponytail or braid on the right side and pinned with a silver, icicle-shaped tiara and has a scar that runs vertically down her left eye and face. She wears a thigh-length strapless dress with a faint color gradation from white to pale blue at the hem. A small piece of black lace sits in the front of her neckline and the hem of the dress is scalloped and stitched to resemble snowflakes, with layers of white tulle under the skirt. Over this, she wears a bell-sleeved bolero with the same color gradation as her dress from shoulder to wrist, lined in red and with a ruffled collar. On the back of the bolero is the Schnee Crest. She also wears a small apple pendant on a silver chain and thin, rectangular silver earrings. Her boots are white, wedged-heeled, and higher at the back than the front. They have a small silver decoration across the top of the foot and are lined in red. A thin white sash is tied around her waist with a pouch attached to the back.

All in all, she doesn't look too happy at the moment.

"Uh, Sorry!" She said as she got up on her hands.

"Sorry?! Do you have any idea of the damage you could have caused?"

Ruby holds up a case, unsure of what to say.

"Give me that!" Said the Ice Queen as she snatches the luggage from Ruby and opens it to reveal its twinkling-sounding contents, "This is Dust - mined and purified from the Schnee quarry!"

"Uuuhhhh..."

"What are you, brain-dead?" she said, holding out a vial of red Dust and shutting the case, "Dust! Fire, water, lightning, energy!"

"I... I know…" she manages to say as she starts coughing from the Dust pouring into her face.

"Are you even listening to me? Is any of this sinking in? What do you have to say for yourself?!"

Ruby, who had been receiving more and more Dust to her face, finally sneezes, which erupts into a full-blown explosion of flame, snowflakes, and electricity right onto the white-haired noble. The bottle she had been holding flew over the courtyard and at the feet of a familiar brown-haired Wolf Faunus along with a girl next to him. She is fair-skinned with wavy black hair and amber eyes. She wears a black, buttoned vest with coattails and a single silver button on the front. Underneath this is a white, sleeveless, high necked, crop undershirt and white shorts with a zipper on the front of each leg, emblazoned with the YKK logo of the real-life Japanese zipper manufacturer. She also wears black low-heeled boots and full stockings with a color gradation of black to purple at her ankles. Her emblem is visible on the outside of both thighs just below her shorts in white. On her left arm is a black detached sleeve with a silver cuff around her bicep, and black ribbons are wrapped around both forearms. A small, loose, black scarf is wrapped around her neck, and a gray magnetic backpack is strapped to her back, hidden by her hair. She often keeps her weapon attached to the magnetic backpack when she is not using it. A black ribbon is tied with a large bow on the top of her head and she wears purple eyeshadow in cat eye style.

She then picks up the bottle and notices the Schnee Dust Company logo on the side as she reads from a book and looks over at the scene alongside her partner.

The Ice Queen is seen covered in soot, though it quickly disappears as she starts ranting, "Unbelievable! This is exactly the kind of thing I was talking about!"

"I'm sorry!" said Ruby apologetically, embarrassed.

"Ugh, you complete dolt! What are you even doing here? Aren't you a little young to be attending Beacon?"

"Well, I-I…"

"This isn't your ordinary combat school. It's not just sparring and practice, you know! We're here to fight monsters, so... watch where you're going!" The Ice Queen reprimands them.

"Hey, I said I was sorry, princess!" snaps Ruby, finally fed up.

"It's heiress."

Both girls look over as the two bystanders approach as the Faunus continues speaking, "Weiss Schnee, heiress to the Schnee Dust Company, one of the largest producers of energy propellant in the world."

The noble, identified as Weiss, beams smugly, "Finally! Some recognition!"

It is then that the amber-eyed girl who is still holding the bottle adds, "The same company infamous for its controversial labor forces and questionable business partners."

That statement causes Daruna to smirk and Ruby to chuckle at the side remark that annoys the Schnee.

"Wha- How dare- The nerve of... Ugh!" Weiss says as she gets up and takes the bottle from the emo girl, walking off in a huff as her helpers gather the luggage and follow.

"I promise I'll make this up to you!" Ruby yells as a storming Weiss. She then sighs, "I guess I'm not the only one having a rough first day… So, what's…" She turns to the two people only to see them walking off as well. Defeated and alone, she collapses to the ground on her back, "Welcome to Beacon…"

She remains this way until a shadow looms over her.

"It's already three minutes since setting foot on Beacon soil and you've already started bombing the courtyard," says Toby as he crouches down to face her, behind him is his twin sister.

"Yes, quite the performance," quips Nilak.

"Hey, It's you guys from the Dust shop robbery!" beams Ruby who tries to guess the names, "Uhh… the Twinkle Twins, right?"

They both recoil at the remark.

"What?!" They sputter, " Twinkle Tw-"

They both look at each other and back at her.

"No," Nilak says in disbelief.

"Please don't call us that," says Toby.

"So your name's Ruby, isn't it?" asked Nilak, quickly changing the subject.

"Yeah, It's Ruby Rose."

Nilak walks to Ruby's side as she offers her  hand, "Nilak Tungsten and this is my brother, Toby."

Ruby accepts her hand as she grabs Toby's hand with the other and with the combined strength, they both pull her up. That's when Jaune walks up to them.

"Hey, guys." Jaune greets.

"What's up?"

"Aren't you the guy that threw up on the ship?" asks Ruby.
______________________________________________

Beacon inside the walls is filled with scenic trees, arching architecture, and a winding road alongside a river, down which the four teens are walking.

"All I'm saying is that motion sickness is a much more common problem than people let on!" said Jaune.

Ruby let out a laugh, "Look, I'm sorry! Vomit Boy was the first thing that came to mind."

"Oh, yeah? What if I called you Crater Face?"

"He's got you there, buddy," says Nilak.

"Hey, that explosion was an accident!" Ruby says in her defense.

"Well, the name's Jaune Arc! Short, sweet, rolls off the tongue - ladies love it!" Jaune introduces himself.

"Do they?" Ruby asks skeptically.

"They will! Well, I-I hope they will. My mom always says that... Never mind."

"If it's any consolation, they really should," Toby said.

"Thanks, man," Jaune says, now having his confidence lifted.

An awkward silence then falls.

"So... I got this thing!" Ruby breaks the silence as she brings out Crescent Rose, and activates its melee mode that almost hits Nilak as she stabs the ground but Nilak has stepped back.

"Hey! This lady has only one head you know!" Nilak reprimands.

"Sorry," Ruby says, sheepishly.

"Whoa! Is that a scythe?" Jaune asks.

"It's also a customizable high-impact sniper rifle!" Ruby explains.

"A-what...?"

"It's also a gun." The twins say in unison.

"So what've you guys got?" says Ruby, looking at the three of them.

"I got these," Toby starts as he holds up a pair of seemingly slightly bulky vambraces, "Crimson Talons, easily portable and they both contain Hardlight Dust."

He demonstrates this by flicking his right arm forward, causing a hard light blade to activate, "And they also come with assault rifles each." As he says this, an assault rifle appears on the side of his left vambraces.

"Nice one," says Jaune

"It reminds me of my sister's Ember Celica."

Toby deactivates his weapons.

"My turn," Nilak steps up as she too is armed with vambraces that seem lightweight, slender, and less bulky than her brother's. She then demonstrates her weapons' functions, "Frostbite, each of these two equipped with a laser cannon and a hilt that projects an ice blade."

"You mean from Ice Dust?" asks Ruby.

"No, from my semblance," she says as she twirls an already-formed ice dagger before turning to Jaune, "Now, pretty boy. What's yours?"

"Oh! I, uh…" he unsheathes his sword, "I got this sword!"

"Oooooohh!"

"Yeah, and I've got a shield, too!" he says as he gets his scabbard, raises his arm, and expands the metal into his defense.

"So, what do they do?" says Ruby as she touches the shield.

Jaune fumbles with the shield as it retracts off his arm, expands, and retracts again before putting it back in place and finally shrinking it down for good, placing it on his belt, "The shield gets smaller, so when I get tired of carrying it, I can just... put it away…"

"But... wouldn't it weigh the same?" asks Nilak.

"Yeah, it does…" he admits dejectedly.

"Well, I'm kind of a dork when it comes to weapons, soon... I guess I did go a little overboard when designing it." Ruby says with a giggle.

"In my books, this isn't overboard," says Toby.

"Coming from the guy whose initial design was fitted with multiple anti-tank missiles," deadpans Nilak.

"It was a one-time thing," says Toby in defense.

"Wait - you all made those?!"

"Of course! All students at Signal forge their weapons! Didn't you make yours?"

"It's a hand-me-down. My great-great-grandfather used it to fight in the war." Jaune explains.

"Sounds more like a family heirloom to me!" Ruby says with a laugh, "Well, I like it! Not many people have an appreciation for the classics these days."

Jaune sheaths his sword, "Yeah, the classics…"

"Hmm." Ruby looks around, "Hey, where are we going?"

"Oh, I don't know! I was following you guys. Y-You think there might be a directory? Maybe a food court? Some sort of recognizable landmark? Is, uh... Is that a 'no'?"

"That's a 'no'."
______________________________________________

Later, the four teens enter Beacon Academy's giant auditorium, filled to the brim with people. Ruby looks over when she hears Yang's voice.

"Ruby! Over here! I saved you a spot!" exclaims Yang as she waves.

"Oh! Hey, I-I gotta go! I'll see you after the ceremony! Come on you guys." Ruby says as she drags the twins away, leaving Jaune behind.

"Hey, wait!" Jayne then sighs, "Ah, great. Where am I supposed to find another nice, hospitable company to talk to?!"

"Hey, Buddy!"

Jaune turns to the source of the voice only to see Simon waving at him. He then moves towards him, unaware of a red-haired girl in what appears to be spartan armor behind him as she watches him walk away.

Ruby stops in front of Yang as the Tungsten twins recompose themselves. Upon seeing them, Yang asks, "And who are you two?"

"Toby Tungsten," The younger twin says simply.

"I'm Nilak, his sister," says the older twin.

"So you're the twins Ruby won't shut up about? You don't look so bad yourselves."

"Thanks?" said Toby.

She then turns to her sister, "Speaking of, How's your first day going?"

"You mean since you ditched me and I exploded?" says Ruby, crossing her arms.

"Yikes! Meltdown already?"

"No, there was literally an explosion in front of the school," said Nilak, allowing Ruby to continue.

"Yeah! There was some fire, and I think some ice...?"

"Are you guys being sarcastic?" says Yang, smiling broadly.

Toby shakes his head, "Nope."

"I wish! I tripped over some crabby girl's luggage, and then she yelled at me, and then I sneezed, and then I exploded, and then she yelled at me again, and I felt really, really bad, and I just wanted her to stop yelling at me!"

As Ruby explains, she is unaware of Weiss standing behind her until she makes her presence known, "YOU!"

The outburst causes Ruby to jump into her sister's arms in fright, "Oh, God, it's happening again!"

"You're lucky we weren't blown off the side of the cliff!"

"Oh my God, you really exploded," Yang says in a deadpan tone.

"Ah Weiss," greets Nilak with a sneer, "I was wondering why it suddenly feels like someone let the cold in."

"Mind your business, Tungsten!" snaps Weiss.

Ruby then gets down, "Look, It was an accident!"

Weiss then holds up a pamphlet titled 'DUST for dummies and other Inadequate Individuals' to Ruby who asks, "What's this?"

The Schnee starts listing them off, "The Schnee Dust Company is not responsible for any injuries or damages sustained while operating a Schnee Dust Company product. Although not mandatory, the Schnee Family highly encourages their customers to read and familiarize themselves with this easy to follow guide to Dust applications and practices in the field."

"Uuhhh...?"

"You really wanna start making things up to me?"

"Absolutely?"

Weiss hands the pamphlet to her, "Read this, and don't ever speak to me again."

Yang speaks up, "Look, uh, it sounds like you two just got off on the wrong foot. Why don't you start over and try to be friends, okay?"

"Yeah! Great idea, sis!" Ruby says, putting the pamphlet away.

"Don't bother. She isn't worth anyone's space or time," mutters Nilak, shaking her head.

"Doesn't hurt to try," Ruby whispers back as she then holds out her hand while clearing her throat, "Hello, Weiss! I'm Ruby! Wanna hang out? We can go shopping for school supplies!"

"Yeah! And we can paint our nails and try on clothes and talk about cute boys, like tall, blonde, and scraggly  over there!" Weiss says, pointing at Jaune who was understandably dumbstruck with Simon next to him.

"Wow, really?!"

Weiss glares at her, "…No."

Nilak places her hand on Ruby's shoulder while saying to her, "Told you . Brothers, I feel bad for the poor souls that will end up in the same team as her, and even more so for her partner."

That remark somehow annoys Weiss.

"You sound like you know her personally." Yang observes.

Just as Nilak is about to explain to them, the girls' attention is drawn to the stage, where Professor Ozpin is readying the microphone, with Glynda beside him.

"I'll... keep this brief. You have traveled here today in search of knowledge, to hone your craft and acquire new skills, and when you have finished, you plan to dedicate your life to the protection of the people. But I look amongst you, and all I see is wasted energy, in need of purpose, direction. You assume knowledge will free you of this, but your time at this school will prove that knowledge can only carry you so far. It is up to you to take the first step."

As Ozpin finishes and leaves, Glynda steps up to talk, "You will gather in the ballroom tonight; tomorrow, your initiation begins. Be ready. You are dismissed."

"He seemed kind of... off," says Yang as they talk about Ozpin's speech.

"It's almost like he wasn't even there," Ruby agrees.

"It's best if you don't think about it for too long, you might get a headache," said Toby.

Weiss is then approached by Jaune from the side, "I'm a natural blond, you know!"

Weiss puts her hand to her face in exasperation.
______________________________________________

The first night at Beacon, we see Nilak in her pajamas outside, making her way to the ballroom. She slows her walk when she hears a howl reminiscent of a wolf coming from the rooftop and with given athleticism and stealth, she scales the wall up to the top only to see Daruna sitting on the edge of the roof facing Remnant's shattered moon wearing a purple shirt along with gray tracksuit pants as he let's out another howl to the moon…
…
…
…

"You know, it's very rude to spy on someone," he suddenly says without turning, startling her , "It doesn't matter how stealthy you are, I can still hear you no matter what."

"Sorry, I didn't mean to intrude," says Nilak, backing away.

"I didn't say you should leave," he says, turning to face her. As he pats on a space beside him, "You can join me if you want."

Nilak stares at him incredulously.

"What? I'm not gonna bite if that's what you're wondering."

"Okay," Nilak says as she walks to take a seat beside him.

"My name's Daruna," the faunus introduces himself, "And Nilak's yours, right?"

"Do I need to know how you know that?"

"It's either word goes around fast or I heard you say your name from a distance," Daruna replies.

"So you were eavesdropping on us," she accuses.

"It's not eavesdropping when you hear almost everything simultaneously," Daruna points out, "And you're the one to talk, You tried sneaking up on me."

"Well excuse me, elephant ears for being curious about what was singing on the rooftops."

Daruna chuckles, "It's wolf ears actually and it's sad  I didn't meet your expectations."

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"While you were climbing, I'm sure you must've imagined a muscular shirtless guy for you to ogle," teased Daruna with a smirk.

"No, I didn't!" Nilak almost yelled in disgust.

"Right," he drawls. He faces the moon and once again lets out a howl.

"Doesn't your vocal cords get strained from doing that every time?" Nilak asks.

"Nah, It hasn't stopped me."

"Okay. It's a pleasure meeting you, Daruna," says Nilak as she gets up.

"Likewise, Nilak."

With a wave, she leaves him to his routine.
______________________________________________

Meanwhile, inside the ballroom, students are splayed out in sleeping bags. Ruby, in her pajamas and with a sleeping mask around her head, is writing in a journal when Yang crashes next to her, similarly dressed.

"It's like a big slumber party!"

"I don't think Dad would approve of all the boys, though," Ruby said, not looking up.

"I know I do!" purrs Yang as she watches several muscular, shirtless guys, one of them including Simon, dressed in an open silver night coat and shorts who is staring, perplexed at Jaune who is dressed in footie pajamas. Yang, wanting to ignore the latter, returns her attention to Ruby, "What's that?"

"A letter to the gang back at Signal. I promised to tell them all about Beacon and how things are going."

"Aw, that's so cuuuute !" coos Yang, only to be knocked back as a pillow is launched at her face.

"Shut up! I didn't get to take my friends with me to school! It's weird not knowing anyone here!"

"What about Jaune? He's... nice, and so are the twins! There you go! Plus three friends in one day! That's like a three hundred percent increase!"

Ruby turns on her back, "Pretty sure Weiss counts as a negative friend. So I'm basically at two…"

"There's no such thing as negative friends! You just made three friends and one enemy!" Yang says, only to be hit again with another pillow, "Look, it's only been one day. Trust me; you've got friends all around you! You just haven't met them yet! I mean, Isn't that why you chose to sleep right next to Toby?"

Truth be told, their beds are seen right next to Toby's as its occupant is already out like a light with a few sparks emanating from his body every five minutes. His current apparel is a simple black sleeveless undershirt with matching cargo shorts.

"He makes a very good bug zapper, thank you very much!" says Ruby in defense.

"Are you sure that's the only reason?" Yang teases, "If you wanted to cuddle with him, why don't you just say so?"

"Yaaaaaaaang!" Ruby whines in embarrassment.

"See? I didn't hear a no. So I'm right."

As Ruby prepares another pillow to throw at her, she notices a candle being lit nearby, and the black haired, amber eyed emo from earlier is seen leaning against a wall, reading her book.

"That girl…"

"You know her?" Yang asks.

"Not really. She saw what happened this morning, but left with some other guy before I could say anything."

"Well, now's your chance!" says Yang as she grabs Ruby's arm and lifts her up.

"Wait! What are you doing?!"

The amber eyed girl looks over her book to see Ruby unsuccessfully struggling against Yang's grip as she leads her sister over before letting go.

"Hel-looooo! I believe you two may know each other?" singsongs Yang.

"Aren't you... that girl that exploded?"

"Uh, yeah! My name's Ruby! But you can just call me Crater… Actually, you can just call me Ruby."

"Okay," said the girl, not showing any sign of interest as she went back to her book.

"What are you doing?" Yang whispers.

"I don't know - help me!" Ruby whispers back.

Yang speaks up, "So... What's your name?"

The girl sighs as she's distracted yet again, "Blake."

"Well, Blake, I'm Yang, Ruby's older sister! I like your bow!"

"Thanks," Blake simply says, irritated.

"It goes great with your... pajamas!" Yang continues.

"Right…"

"Wait," Ruby says as she notices something, "Where's the other guy that was with you?"

"You mean Daruna? He's outside, moonbathing," Blake replies.

"Moonbathing?" They both say, confused.

"Don't ask," says Blake, who quickly adds in, "And before you start getting any ideas, we're not an item."

"Oooookaaaaayyyyyy," Ruby says with an uncomfortable laugh.

"Nice night, don't you think?" says Yang, deciding to change the topic.

"Yes - it's lovely. Almost as lovely as this book," Ruby and Yang stand there, " that I will continue to read," Ruby and Yang continue standing, " as soon as you leave."

"Yeah, this girl's a lost cause," Yang says to Ruby.

"What's it about?" Ruby says to Blake who is surprised, "Your book. Does it have a name?"

"Well... i-it's about a man with two souls, each fighting for control over his body," Blake explains.

"Oh, yeah... That's really lovely!" says Yang sarcastically.

"I love books. Yang used to read to me every night before bed. Stories of heroes and monsters... They're one of the reasons I want to be a Huntress!" says Ruby.

Blake laughs a little, "And why is that? Hoping you'll live happily ever after?"

"Well, I'm hoping we all will. As a girl, I wanted to be just like those heroes in the books... Someone who fought for what was right, and protected people who couldn't protect themselves!"

"That's... very ambitious for a child," says Blake with a smile which then turns into a frown, "Unfortunately, the real world isn't the same as a fairy tale."

"Well, that's why we're here! To make it better," says Ruby.

"Oh, I am so proud of my baby sister!" says Yang, who lifts Ruby into the air in a hug.

"Cut it out!"

Before you even know it, the forced sisterly bonding evolves into a dust cloud of fighting limbs and flying stars and one could even hear a cat meowing among other things. The whole scene causes Blake to laugh slightly.

"Well, Ruby, Yang, it's a pleasure to ha-"

"What in the world is going on over here?!" demands Weiss, storming onto the scene in her own pajamas as Ruby traps Yang's leg, "Don't you realize some of us are trying to sleep?"

"Oh, not you again!" exclaims both Weiss and Yang at the sight of each other.

"Shh! Guys, she's right! People are trying to sleep!" says Ruby.

"Oh, now you're on my side?"

"I was always on your side!"

"Yeah, what's your problem with my sister? She's only trying to be nice!" scolds Yang.

"She's a hazard to my health!"

Blake, who rolls her eyes at the fight, simply closes her book, reaches over to grab her candle, and blows it out, enveloping the scene in black.
______________________________________________