Chapter Text
“Alright! Now that the intro is over with, we can finally get to the stuff at Beacon!” Ruby was rather excited to finally see their time at Beacon be put to the big screen. So far most of what they’ve seen has been just a bunch of flash fights, and while those are awesome as heck, she wants a bit of substance to her style.
Penny was also very excited to see her friend’s life at Beacon, hoping to learn more about how the school operates. And she was also rather excited to see how well Ruby does in her classes. Maybe the two of them could study together sometime soon.
Weiss was a bit antsy, mostly because of Winter’s presence in the theater with them. She knows that she was…… how could she word this properly? Oh, right, Weiss knew that she was a stone cold bitch during her early days at Beacon, and she was concerned that Winter would be rather disappointed by her actions.
Jaune was just concerned about how much of his constant abuse that they would show…… and mildly worried about a certain secret he didn’t want Ozpin to find out about. Pyrrha was very much in the same boat as he was.
“CMON, LET’S START ALREADY!” Yang was getting a bit impatient, yelling at whoever the hell was playing the videos to play the next episode already.
Fortunately, her shouts to the Heaven’s were answered, as the screen began to start up again.
-The episode begins with a view of several ships carrying students and docking at the entrance of the school. As soon as one lands, Jaune Arc emerges and goes over to the nearest trash can, hunching over it as he loses his lunch.
Jaune immediately was getting a bit irked by how he was being portrayed. He knew it wasn’t inaccurate, but it was still very demeaning. Ruby and Yang on the other hand, couldn’t help but laugh a bit at the sight of everyone’s favorite “vomit boy”.
-Ruby and Yang, alongside several other students, walk out of the ship and head down the paved path to the front of the school. The sisters take in the entirety of Beacon ahead of them
-Ruby and Yang: Wow...
“Yeah, taking that all in for the first time was really something exciting.” Yang made her previous amazement at Beacon rather well known.
-Yang: The view from Vale's got nothing on this!
-Next to her, Ruby gets so excited that she turns into a 2D Chibi.
-Ruby: Ohmygosh, sis! That kid's got a collapsible staff! And she's got a fire sword!
Ruby shrinks in embarrassment at the sight of her cartoonish self, while most of the others laugh or at least chuckle at the sudden shift in Ruby’s artstyle. Penny meanwhile, is absolutely enamored with how adorable chibi Ruby is.
-Ruby tries getting closer, but Yang pulls her sister by the hood back into realistic proportions
-Ruby: Ow! Ooww!
-Yang: Easy there, little sister. They're just weapons!
-Ruby: 'Just weapons'? They're an extension of ourselves! They're a part of us! Oh, they're so cool!
-Yang: Well, why can't you swoon over your own weapon? Aren't you happy with it?
Ruby immediately took out Crescent Rose and clutched it tightly against her chest. “I will always be happy with my baby!” Weiss just stared at her partner with mild concerned.
-Ruby suddenly has Crescent Rose out in its scythe configuration
-Ruby: Of course I'm happy with Crescent Rose! I just really like seeing new ones. It's like meeting new people, but better...
“That’s sad if you think that.” Nora did not waste even a moment to tell Ruby what she thought. Ren elbowed her lightly in the side to get her to stop being rude.
-Yang: (playfully pushing her sister's hood down over her face) Ruby, come on, why don't you go try and make some friends of your own?
-Ruby: (taking off her hood) But... why would I need friends if I have you?
-Yang: Well... (in a flash, a group of other students surround Yang and they all dash down the road) Actually, my friends are here. Gotta go catch up. 'Kay, see ya, bye!
“TRAITOR! You abandoned me!” Ruby turns to Yang and aggressively points at her. Yang just whistled and turns away with a slightly guilty look.
-Ruby: (spinning and dizzy-eyed from Yang's sudden leaving) Wait, where are you going?! Are we supposed to go to our dorms? Where are our dorms? Do we have dorms? (stopping for a moment, still reeling) I don't know what I'm doing...
-Ruby falls backwards into a luggage cart, sending cases flying. Someone is standing over her.
-Weiss: What are you doing?!
-Ruby: (getting up on her hands) Uh, sorry!
-Weiss: Sorry?! Do you have any idea of the damage you could have caused?
Oh boy, here it comes. Weiss just had to hope Winter wouldn’t be TOO disappointed in her.
-Ruby: (holding a case) Uuhhh...
-Weiss: Give me that! (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!
-Ruby: Uuuhhhh...
-Weiss: What are you, brain-dead? (holding out a vial of red Dust and shutting the case) Dust! Fire, water, lightning, energy!
-Ruby: I... I know... (starts coughing from the Dust pouring into her face)
-Weiss: Are you even listening to me? Is any of this sinking in? What do you have to say for yourself?!
“And what do YOU have to say for YOURself dear sister?” Winter’s voice cut through the room like a sword through flesh. Weiss couldn’t even answer her, instead just shrinking into her seat.
-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 Weiss. The bottle she had been holding flies over the courtyard and at the feet of Blake Belladonna, who picks it up and notices the Schnee Dust Company logo on the side as she reads from a book and looks over at the scene.
“S-sorry about that Weiss.” Ruby rubbed the back of her head and turned to Weiss with a rather embarrassed expression. “I-it’s alright Ruby.” Weiss was a bit unfocused on reassuring her partner, as she was still in fear of catching any true ire from her sister.
Yang was just excited to finally see Blake in the show again, glad that her partner was finally getting the screentime she deserved.
-Weiss: (now covered in soot, though it quickly disappears) Unbelievable! This is exactly the kind of thing I was talking about!
-Ruby: (apologetic and embarrassed) I'm really, really sorry!
-Weiss: Ugh, you complete dolt! What are you even doing here? Aren't you a little young to be attending Beacon?
-Ruby: Well, I-I...
-Weiss: 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!
“Weiss, I believe I taught you to have better manners than this.” Once again, Weiss shrank back in horror at the sound of her irritated sister. “Please make sure not to put up such a poor display of attitude again in the future.”
-Ruby: (finally fed up) Hey, I said I was sorry, princess!
“Nice job standing up for yourself sis.” Yang reached her hand over Blake and Weiss, patting Ruby on the shoulder. Unfortunately, this resulted in the two being squashed together along with Yang in the process. Weiss was simply annoyed by Yang’s actions. Blake was desperately trying to keep the blush from being pressed up against Yang from getting to bright.
-Blake: (off screen, entering the conversation) It's heiress, actually. (Ruby and Weiss look over as Blake approaches with the bottle) Weiss Schnee, heiress to the Schnee Dust Company, one of the largest producers of energy propellant in the world.
-Weiss: (smiling smugly) Finally! Some recognition!
-Blake: The same company infamous for its controversial labor forces and questionable business partners.
“Damn, going for the throat with that one, eh Blake?” Yang, despite how she knew that was a low blow for Weiss, was a bit proud of her partner’s sass. “Well pardon me for being a bit biased against her at the time.” Yang supposed that was fair.
-Weiss: (getting angry again as Ruby chuckles) Wha- How dare- The nerve of... Ugh! (gets up in Blake's face and takes the bottle from her, walking off in a huff as her helpers gather the luggage and follow)
-Ruby: (to the storming Weiss, still sorry) I promise I'll make this up to you! (sighs) I guess I'm not the only one having a rough first day... So, what's... (sees Blake walking off as well, then collapses to the ground on her back) Welcome to Beacon... (she remains this way until a shadow comes over her)
“Dang Blake, why so cold?” Yang questioned her partner’s distant behavior, curious as to why she refused to interact beyond tearing Weiss a new one. “I just…… didn’t know if I could properly hold a conversation with her, ok.” Blake’s slow and unenthusiastic response kinda made Yang feel bad. She didn’t mean to upset Blake or anything, she was just curious.
-Jaune: (holding out his hand) Hey... I'm Jaune.
-Ruby: (taking his hand) Ruby. (stands up) Aren't you the guy that threw up on the ship?
“And thus, the two most awkward people ever had met, forging an unbreakable bond between two teams that shall persist until death!” Nora spoke of their friendship like it was some sort of ancient prophecy. Ren continued to be exasperated by his partner’s overenthusiasm.
“She’s right vomit boy, we totally created an unbreakable friendship between our teams!” Ruby enthusiastically agreed with Nora. “Yeah, I guess you’ve got a point crater face.” Jaune, despite how tired he was of the stupid nickname, couldn’t help but agree with her.
-Beacon inside the walls are filled with scenic trees, arching architecture, and a winding road alongside a river, down which Ruby and Jaune are walking.
-Jaune: All I'm saying is that motion sickness is a much more common problem than people let on!
“YEAH, WHY DO YOU ALL TREAT IT LIKE IT’S A ONE IN A MILLION FREAKING GENETIC DISEASE?!” Jaune clearly still had no care for his “vomit boy” moniker.
Nobody really had a good answer for his question except for Pyrrha. “I do not believe so at all. If anything, I believe that your nickname is actually rather disrespectful.” Jaune turned to his partner and placed an appreciative hand on her shoulder. “Thank you.” Fortunately for Pyrrha, Jaune turned back to the screen before he could notice how red in the face she had gotten.
-Ruby: (laughing) Look, I'm sorry! Vomit Boy was the first thing that came to mind.
-Jaune: Oh, yeah? What if I called you Crater Face?
-Ruby: Hey, that explosion was an accident!
-Jaune: Well, the name's Jaune Arc! Short, sweet, rolls off the tongue - ladies love it!
-Ruby: (skeptic) Do they?
Jaune immediately deflated at Ruby’s teasing. “They’re going to someday.” He quietly grumbled to himself, not at all appreciating the insinuations of what Ruby had said. He didn’t seem to pay any mind to the one lady who did actually love it trying to make him feel better by placing a hand on his shoulder.
-Jaune: They will! Well, I-I hope they will. My mom always says that... Never mind.
-Ruby: (giggles before a short, awkward silence falls) So... I got this thing! (she pulls out Crescent Rose and stabs it into the ground)
“Is that just how you introduce yourself?” Yang was trying not to laugh at her sister’s choice of conversation topic being to whip out her scythe. Ruby, meanwhile, was a bit peeved at the teasing.
-Jaune: Whoa! Is that a scythe?
-Ruby: It's also a customizable high-impact sniper rifle!
-Jaune: A-wha...?
-Ruby: (cocks it, smiling) It's also a gun.
-Jaune: Oh. That's cool!
“Hey, you ever realize how basically every melee weapon we see has a gun built into I?” Nora brought up a good point, basically every weapon they’ve seen is usually a gun in some way.
-Ruby: So what've you got?
-Jaune: Oh! I, uh... (unsheathes a blade) I got this sword!
-Ruby: Ooooohh!
-Jaune: Yeah, and I've got a shield, too! (he gets his scabbard, raises his arm and expands the metal into his defense)
“Well, except Jaune’s, he doesn’t get a gun sword.” Nora continued after Jaune displayed his own weapon. Jaune was secretly a bit envious of how much cooler his friends weapons were compared to his.
-Ruby: (touching the shield) So, what do they do?
-Jaune: (fumbling 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...
-Ruby: But... wouldn't it weigh the same?
-Jaune: (dejectedly) Yeah, it does...
“Despite the consistent weight, the smaller size should make the shield much less awkward to carry when not in combat. I for one think it’s a useful feature to have.” Pyrrha attempted to defend the shield’s compact mode. Jaune appreciate her defense.
-Ruby: (giggling) Well, I'm kind of a dork when it comes to weapons, sooo... I guess I did go a little overboard when designing it.
-Jaune: Wait - you made that?!
-Ruby: Of course! All students at Signal forge their own weapons! Didn't you make yours?
“I am an engineering genius, aren’t I?” Ruby was very obviously fishing for compliments. Fortunately, Penny was more than willing to give her some. “Indeed! Your mechanical skills in weapon design are absolutely spectacular! You may be one of the best engineers I’ve ever met!” Ruby slunk backwards in her chair, trying to ignore the heat rising to her cheeks at Penny’s words.
-Jaune: It's a hand-me-down. My great-great-grandfather used it to fight in the war.
Nora was a bit interested by the information about Jaune’s sword. “Oooooooh, lore!” She turned to Jaune. “I bet your double great gramps was a badass.”
-Ruby: Sounds more like a family heirloom to me! (laughs) Well, I like it! Not many people have an appreciation for the classics these days.
-Jaune: (sheathing his sword) Yeah, the classics...
-Ruby: (moving on again) So why'd you help me out back there? In the courtyard?
-Jaune: (walking alongside her) Eh, why not? My mom always says, 'Strangers are just friends you haven't met yet.'
“Mister Arc, I suggest you take that advice with a grain of salt. Sometimes strangers may have malicious intentions, other times they may have a personal quarrel with you. Not everybody you haven’t met yet is a possible acquaintance.” Ozpin decided to squash Jaune’s saying a bit. Jaune was a bit soured by that, but Oz wasn’t finished yet. “However, do not let that discourage you from trying your hand at making new friends along the way. Not everyone will get along with you, but that does not mean that nobody will. Your friends here are proof enough of that.”
“W-well, guess I can’t really argue with that.”
-Ruby: Hmm. (looks around) Hey, where are we going?
-Jaune: Oh, I don't know! I was following you. (as the scene fades to black) Y-You think there might be a directory? Maybe a food court? Some sort of recognizable landmark? Is, uh... Is that a 'no'?
-Ruby: (laughing) That's a 'no'.
“Alright, that was a bit bare bones compared to what I was expecting. And it was really short too, I was expecting full 20 minute TV episodes from this.” Nora was a bit disappointed by how short the episode was. Down the row to her right, Penny spoke up. “Given the calculated release date as well as the animation quality, I believe the overall budget for the show was rather insubstantial, meaning that they likely had to cut down on runtime in order to better animate the people and scenes. Notice how many of the background characters are simply silhouettes, another cost cutting measure.”
Ruby turned to her friend, very impressed. “Woah. How’d you figure all that out.” Penny eagerly gave Ruby her answer. “I have a vast array of media production knowledge. Television budgeting was one of my favorite aspects of it.”
Yang’s voice broke their conversation. “Who cares about the budget, let’s just get to the next episode already.”