When I awake, I am one of the first to do so. On one side of the cafeteria, breakfast will be served soon. Ruby and her hopefully no longer sororicidal sister sleep next to me. On the one hand, they should be responsible for themselves, on the other… Ruby is now my 'friend'. Maybe it would be good to wake them up.

I wait until breakfast is served. Simple stuff, rice, and vegetables with a fried egg served over the top. I’m sure Atlas would approve. I wake Ruby up by nudging her with my boot until she jerks awake.

"Bwuh!?"

"Breakfast, Ruby."

"Oh, uh, thanks, Lily."

Everyone else slowly gets up and wanders around chatting and eating. After eating breakfast and sitting cross-legged on the ground, I get up and walk around until there's an announcement. A tall woman, Glynda Goodwitch, has walked into view. From what little I know of her, she is the headmistress of this academy. A true Warrior.

"Attention, students; If I may have a moment of your time."

"Before me, I see the next generation of hunters and huntresses. It warms my heart to see so many young people passionate about making a difference in times like these. However," Her tone grows serious, "If you think this will be easy, think again. If you think this will be something you can take lightly, think again. If you think for a single instant that wanting to be a hero is the same as walking the walk? Think. Again."

She gestures around her, encompassing the school. "This is Beacon. You are here to learn, but there will be no training wheels, understood? Each and every one of you is accountable for your successes," She pauses, looking across the room, "And your failures. That is all. If you will, please meet me in the main courtyard in ten minutes."

People around me scramble to pack up their things, and Ruby rushes to wrap up her sleeping bag. I don't have anything to pack up, so I just walk out to the courtyard in seven minutes. A minute after I arrive, Ruby appears next to me in a puff of rose petals. Other students run out of the school huffing and puffing as the clock nears the nine-minute twenty-second mark.

"I'm so nervous. Wait," Ruby looks me over, "You do have a weapon, right?"

"I do, friend. It is here, in this bag.”

Glynda clears her throat and calls for attention. "Now we will move to the base of the cliff on the outskirts of the Emerald Forest. It is there that initiation will begin. I will explain as we go, so try not to lag behind."

"Your objective is to move through the forest from one end to the other. Each of you will be given three patches, each with a symbol. These symbols are earth, water, and fire." She uses her semblance to levitate squares of cloth; one green, one blue, and the last red.

"You must have at least four of the same type in order to pass."

Murmuring breaks out among the crowd, and Glynda looks sharply over her shoulder, quieting the student body following her. The voices become silent once again. After a moment of silence, she continues.

"Yes. By default, every one of you will fail. Even if you exchange patches with another team, you will fail. That is why your goal for the duration of this test will be to acquire enough symbols to pass. There is no limit on how many you collect or limits to the manner in which you collect them. Only the symbols you carry at the end of the test will be considered valid, so hiding them will not do you any favors."

The group rounds another corner. "Any questions?"

Jaune raises his hand. "Yeah, uh, when you said 'no limits' as to how they're collected, does that mean-"

"That you may be expected to fight other applicants? Yes."

"Oh, ok." His voice becomes much smaller.

The group finally reaches a path that runs along the edge of the forest. Glynda turns to face the crowd and opens a bag at her hip. Dozens of neatly stacked squares of fabric rise into the air, arranging themselves in groups of three; one green, blue, and red square apiece. The squares drift outwards and into waiting hands.

"Raise your hand if you have not received squares yet. Keep in mind, I will check, and if you are trying to sneak a second set of symbols, I will disqualify you immediately."

No one raises their hand.

"Very good. The test will last for one hour. Begin."

I begin moving during the moment of confusion and look over at Jaune. He's staring dumbly at Glynda. I pluck all three cloths out of his slack fingers and run into the forest. I climb a tree and conceal myself, waiting until I see a blur of rose petals splitting off from the rapidly dispersing group. Wood splinters under my fingers as I launch out of the tree, tracking the blurry outline of my 'friend.'

I hit the ground running in a puff of leaves and dirt, carrying my momentum forward into a sprint that has me springing off trees and rocks. Ruby is actually hard to keep up with, something that no one has ever managed before. It's exhilarating, and I hope my new friend will agree to a friendly spar later.

A case of content theft: this narrative is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation.

I finally catch up to her a good way into the forest. She squeaks in surprise when I skid to a stop in front of her.

"Ack! Lily? What are you doing here?"

"You are my friend, yes? I was thinking that we should team up, Ruby. We'll be stronger together, and we can trade patches so that we both have a better chance to pass."

"Ooh! That's a great idea! Are we allowed to, though?"

"No limits, remember?"

"Oh yeah! Ok, Lily. Here, take the water one, and I'll take the fire."

We exchange patches and wander away together. I stare at the raven watching us both until it seems to get uncomfortable and leaves. I noticed it sitting there, and thought it seemed a bit nosy; but it is just a bird, correct? No need to attack it. Right? Now I’m wondering whether I should have attacked it. A semblance, perhaps?

I am pulled from my musings by Ruby talking animatedly.

"I wonder how they'll pick teams and partners! Do you think we'll be partners?"

"We might be."

"Who will be on our team? Will we get a dorm?"

"I do not know yet, and most likely."

"Will classes be-"

An arrow flies out of the woods, pinning Ruby to a tree by her cloak. I turn to face the direction the attack came from, and step to one side as a curved blade whirls through the air, missing me by inches, before curving back the way it came. Ruby struggles for a moment, before slipping out of her cloak.

A figure steps out of the trees and catches the blade. It's a student I recognize, but only in passing. Their bladed weapon snaps together, and a glowing white bowstring snaps into place, completing the ranged weapon.

"Sorry, you two, but I'm going to need those patches. Not just one, but all of them, thanks."

Ruby seems outraged. "What! Why? You only need four to pass!"

The young woman shrugs. "Look, it ain't personal, I just need those patches. Some friends of mine lost theirs and- hurk!"

She talks too much, I decide, as my fist buries itself in her gut before enough aura could pool there to fully protect her. She staggers back, coughing. I nearly overdid it and injured her, but thankfully she seems mostly unharmed.

"Alright, then, if that's how you wanna play it, then let's go."

"Agreed."

She pulls back the bowstring, and dust begins to ignite within the weapon. I dive to one side as a bolt of gravity-infused energy rather than an ordinary arrow smashes a crater in the ground where I stood. Ruby brings Crescent Rose around, and the young woman deflects it to one side with the bladed portion of her bow.

I dart forward, and suddenly she is not there anymore. I hear the hum of dust igniting nearby and turn my head in time for a bolt of energy to engulf my field of view. I find myself flying through the air, crashing into the ground, and skidding a few meters. The duffel bag’s strap snapped, and it flew away, crunching against a tree, my weapon probably broken. Useless.

Ruby's shout of alarm is followed by the other woman's voice. "She's a big girl, she can handle a tumble."

A semblance. Illusion? Possibly, but she was there for a moment, at least. Movement? Likely, but how did she get there without being seen between point A and point B? Teleportation? Uncommon and unlikely, but… Her eyes. They weren't focused on me when she disappeared. They were focused on the spot she hit me from. Line of sight?

I pick myself up off the ground. Line of sight. I grab a handful of dirt off the ground and make my way back to the fight. Ruby is holding up admirably against the other woman, but she needs assistance. The woman has split her bow into two blades instead of one. A relentless wave of strikes sparks off of Crescent Rose as Ruby takes another step back, losing ground.

I lean forward into a runner's stance before launching forward. The young woman hears my approach and disengages from a visibly strained Ruby. The bow wielder holds her two curved knives up in front of her face in a cross guard facing me. The handful of dirt flies right past them and into her face.

"Agh, you bitch! That stings!"

She stumbles, blinking. Blearily, she stumbles out of my way, looks off into the distance, blinks again, and curses. She turns her head to track me as I move past her. I jump and plant a foot on the tree behind her, bent knee absorbing my momentum like a spring. Her eyes widen as she realizes my intent, but it is too late. I push off, my elbow meeting her back between her shoulder blades.

She hits the ground, and I can hear the air leave her lungs. The metal of her weapons near her hands is visibly smoking where it touches leaves but without the use of dust. Heat-based semblance? Not movement-based, then. The line of sight was a diversion? The only possible explanation is a second semblance user. An accomplice. Somewhere nearby. Somewhere they could see the battlefield.

I crouch low before jumping directly up into the tree above me. Branches scrape at my aura, and a startled squawk precedes a green-haired woman falling out of the tree. She lands hard, but her aura flares around the impact site, protecting her.

I come down behind her in a crouch, and she scoots backward on the ground. I feel the ground drop out from underneath me, and suddenly I am falling into a pit, its bottom lined with teeth. This is impossible. An illusion. The illusion can make me see and hear and smell things, but it cannot alter my control over my body. I ignore the feeling of falling and gnashing teeth and force my legs to move, carrying me forward.

The lunge is clumsy, but the illusion shatters a moment later, leaving me staring down at the green-haired woman pinned underneath me. I meet her gaze, and she looks furious. There's a feeling like I am being cooked alive, but my nociceptors stop receiving input after less than a tenth of a second. I wince, but that's it.

The woman underneath me seems confused before anger takes over again. She brings a knee up between my legs in a vicious knee attack that would have reduced anyone else to tears. She seems dumbstruck when nothing happens. "What the fuck? What are you!?" In the background, Ruby is kicking the other woman's weapons away from her as the downed assailant groans pitifully.

"I am Lily Shepherd, and I am combat-ready."

She sneers up at me. "Smartass bitch."

When in doubt, follow the law. This is within mission parameters, but my choice here could result in 'trouble.' When the law is unclear, do what is right. When both are unclear, reach out. I do not know what is right, so I must reach out.

I turn to Ruby, who seems uncertain. "Ruby, what should I do?"

Ruby bites her lip for a moment, clearly thinking. "Uh, why don't we trade patches with them? That way, they won't have to fail. It would be kind of mean to make them fail just for playing by the rules."

How cunning. Trade enough patches that they are guaranteed a pass and have no reason to pursue us or hold a grudge. Excellent thinking from Ruby, I was correct to trust her judgment. The bow wielder and the green-haired one offer up their patches. A quick shuffling around of patches and all four of you are left with enough to pass. With that needlessly complicated game of musical patches over and done with we leave the two to their own devices and continue on our way.