4 Chapter 4

Beacon Academy

Cole and Kyle entered and sat down in Professor Port's classroom next to each other. The two of them glanced to see who else had joined them.

Kyle spotted Blake and the rest of the team RWBY below him.

Cole saw Jaune talking to Pyrrha, which made him grin.

"Hmm, Grimm studies," Kyle said, looking down at his book. "We could learn some useful information here,"

"I just wanted to watch the fighting," Cole said honestly.

"Where's Liam and Petra?" Kyle asked.

"Dunno," Cole shrugged. "Maybe they're out smooching,"

"Doesn't that seem strange to you?" Kyle said, ignoring him.

"Not really," he replied. "They'll probably show up,"

"EH-HEM!" Port said, suddenly clearing his throat. "As you all man know...I am Professor Port," he began. "The Professor of Grimm studies here at Beacon Academy"

He looked to the whole class before speaking again.. "Please, turn your textbooks to page twenty-four for today's reading."

The lecture went on for quite a while, if not an hour.

"I..can't...do this," Cole moaned as his head slumped down unto his desk.

"Sit up," Kyle said. He had been following along with the lesson in the book.

"And now...for a demonstration," Professor Port said. "Any volunteers?"

"Wassat?" Cole said as his head shot up.

There was a large metal cage on the ground.

"He's going to open it," Kyle thought.

Whatever was in it, it couldn't be good, he surmised. A lock kept it tightly shut.

Kyle was contemplating whether to raise his hand or not and decided he would if no one else did.

Finally, a familiar girl with white hair stood up and walked in front of the whole class.

Weiss.

"Ah, " Port said. "Very well then."

"That girl.." Kyle thought.

"Haha... I remember her..." Cole thought to himself.

"Go, Weiss!" Yang cheered, raising her fist in the air.

"Fight well," Blake said as she waved a little flag.

"Yeah, represent team RWBY!" Ruby shouted.

"Ruby! I'm trying to focus!" Weiss snapped at her.

"Oh,uh..sorry..." she replied sheepishly.

"Alright!" Professor Port yelled, raising his Axe.

"Hey, nice! I also use an axe, too!!" Cole cheered.

"Let the match... begin!" Port replied.

He swung down his weapon and broke the lock on the cage, releasing the Grimm. It had been a Boarbatusk.

"HOLY -" Cole exclaimed, jumping back in his chair.

"I knew it," Kyle thought.

The Boarbatusk charged at Weiss as she dodged the beast by rolling to the side.

"Ha-ha! Wasn't expecting that, were you?" Port asked her.

"Hang in there, Weiss!" Ruby cheered.

The Boarbatusk charges at Weiss as she uses her Rapier-like sword to block its tusks. Her sword gets caught in its tusks as she begins trying to pry it free.

"Yikes," said Cole.

"Come on, Weiss, show it who's boss!" Ruby yelled.

Weiss turned to give her a dirty look, but only to have the Boarbatusk yank her weapon from her grasp.

"Oh-ho! Now, what will you do without your weapon?" Professor Port asked her.

The Boarbatusk charges again as Weiss avoids colliding at the last second and jumps away from it.

She grabs her sword and stands back up.

"Nicely done," Kyle whispered.

"Weiss! Go for its belly! There's no armor underne-" Ruby began.

"Stop telling me what to do!" Weiss shouted angrily at her.

The Boarbatusk suddenly began spinning into a ball until it launched itself at the huntress.

Weiss activated one of her circles, so she levitated in the air while the Grimm continued spinning towards her.

Cole and Kyle both watched as she timed it perfectly and launched herself diagonally at the Boarbatusk and pierced its belly.

"Impressive," Kyle had thought.

"Whoa!" Cole said aloud. "That was something else..."

"Bravo! Bravo! It appears we are indeed in the presence of a true huntress in training!" Professor Port said.

Weiss walked off with a stern look on her face.

"Sheesh, what's with her?" Jaune asked.

"I'm afraid that's all the time we have for today. Be sure to cover your assigned readings, and stay vigilant! Class dismissed!" Port told them.

Cole and Kyle got up and walked out with the crowd.

Cole saw the members of Team RWBY while Kyle saw Weiss standing next to him.

"Nicely done," Kyle said to her.

"I don't need your approval, The Schnees have set their own standards," Weiss said, looking him dead in the eye.

After that, she trotted down the hall without looking back.

Kyle sighed before turning around to walk off.

He looked around and saw team RWBY in the hall.

"Hey..." Cole began walking up to team RWBY.

Ruby simply looked away with a sad expression.

"Wha...what'd I do?" he thought to himself.

Ruby continued walking down the hall as if nothing had happened.

Kyle waved at Blake from behind Cole. She smiled as they both stood in silence.

"We'd like to stay around and chat, but we have to look for the rest of our team," Kyle said. "We haven't seen them since initiation night,"

"Okay... maybe some other time then," Blake replied.

The Next Day.

The teams had gathered in the battle hall around a large stage.

Kyle looked around, yet there was still no sign of either Liam or Petra.

"So much for the team," He thought.

He finally saw his brother and made his way towards him.

"Cole,...what's going on?" he asked.

"Remember that Jaune guy from intiation?" Cole said with a grin.

"Of course...why?" Kyle asked.

"He's fighting Cardin from team CRDL," he answered, turning around.

"Oh...." Kyle said weakly, trying to hide his shock.

They both looked on the platform above at the two figures fighting as everyone watched.

"This is the part where you lose." Cardin said smugly before swinging his mace at Jaune.

Jaune brought his sword up and blocked it.

"Over my dead!" he began before Cardin kneed him in the stomach.

"Cheap move," Kyle thought.

Jaune fell on the ground, and as he lay wincing in pain...Cardin raised his mace in the air.

"Cardin, that's enough!" yelled a woman's voice.

The lights dimmed, and a screen came on as Glynda Goodwitch walked onto the stage.

"Students, as you can see, Mr. Arc's Aura has now dropped into the red. In a tournament-styled duel, this would indicate that Jaune is no longer fit for battle and that the official may call the match." she said.

"Wait, so this whole demonstration was how to use Aura in battle!?" Cole exclaimed.

"Yes, what else did you think it was?" Kyle asked, giving him a strange look.

"Oh...I just wanted to see a good fight, is all. Guess I'm out of luck, " Cole shrugged.

"Mr. Arc, it's been weeks now. Please try to refer to your scroll during combat. Gauging your aura will help you decide when it's appropriate to attack, or when it is better to move to a more... defensive strategy. We wouldn't want you to be gobbled up by Beowolf now, would we?" Glynda said, showing the results through her tablet.

"Speak for yourself..." Cardin said under his breath.

Jaune lowered his head as he continued sulking on the ground.

"Wow, I can't imagine how he feels right now," Cole whispered.

"Alone," Kyle thought.

"Remember, everyone.....the Vytal Festival is only a few months away! It won't be long before students from the other kingdoms start arriving in Vale, so keep practicing! Those who choose to compete in the combat tournament will be representing all of Vale!" Glynda said in a remindful tone.

"Hell yes! I'll be more prepared for this than anything!" Cole said enthusiastically.

He turned to his brother as their eyes met.

"Hope you're ready, because I'm going to be training twice as hard now!"' Cole told Kyle.

"Stop yelling in my ear," Kyle thought to himself.

"Glad to hear it..." he mumbled.

"HA! Is that all you have to say!?" Cole scoffed. You aren't ever worried about me getting better, are you!?"

"Whatever," Kyle said, shrugging before walking off.

The bell rang as teams gathered for lunch in the dining hall.

"Any sign of Liam?" Cole asked, looking around constantly.

"No," Kyle said. "My guess is he is either listening to classes over a scroll or has a set schedule with fewer people to interact with."

"Ugh, we're supposed to be a team," sighed Cole said picking up his tray and walking off. "He'd make a great leader,"

"He has a lot more experience. Do you think he wants us to miss our chance of becoming huntsmen?" Kyle told him, cocking an eyebrow.

"Good point" Cole reminded him.

"They'll likely turn up, but I'm not sure I trust Petra completely" Kyle added.

"Or you just LIKE her" Cole mumbled.

They scanned the room looking for an open place to eat.

"Hello" said a soft voice.

Kyle looked down and soft a red-haired girl sitting at a table.

"You look a bit lost" she said.

"We're looking for our teammates" Cole said.

"I'm sorry....have we...met before?" Kyle asked giving a confused look.

"Well I sure hope not, I was the girl being chased by the giant Deathstalker during initiation." She said with a chuckle.

Kyle gave a nervous and forced laugh, but quickly stopped once his voice started cracking.

"Pyrrha...Pyrrha Nikos" she said as they shook hands.

"Kyle Voltio...and this is my brother Cole" he said.

"THE Pyrrha Nikos!?" Cole gasped. "I haven't eat Pumpkin Pete's in forever, but I've heard so many great things about you!" Cole said.

"Where's the rest of your team?" Pyrrha asked.

"I don't know" Kyle answered.

"Well....you guys are welcome to sit with us" Pyrrha said gingerly.

"A-Are You sure?" he said nervously.

"Yes, of course" Pyrrha affirmed with a smile.

They both moved to find a spot at the table by themselves.

"Don't sit over there, get closer you guys" Ruby said.

"I'm not sure where else I can sit" Cole told them.

Yang immediately moved over while looking up at him.

"Here" she said with a smile.

Kyle sat next to Ren across from Blake, and Cole sat in-between Blake and Yang.

"Hello again" Ren said looking at Cole.

"H-Hey" Cole stammered.

Ren took a swig of coffee before turning to his side to face Kyle.

"And who might you be?" He asked. "I don't think we've been properly introduced"

"I'm Kyle....Kyle Voltio.Cole's my younger brother" Kyle told him.

"YOU GUYS LIED DURING INTIATION!" Nora said crossing her arms

"Nora please...be quiet" Ren pleaded.

"Yes, but...we wanted a good team" Cole said.

"And how'd THAT turn out?" Blake said.

"Pretty decent, I guess" Kyle said smirking at her.

"Oh yeah, that reminds me...weren't you going to finish telling us about the story Nora?" Yang said.

Ren gave a sigh before Nora's eyes lit up.

"So! There we were, in the middle of the night..." Nora began.

"It was day." Ren corrected her.

"We were surrounded by Ursai..." Nora claimed boldy.

Weiss began filing her nails as Yang listened intently.

Kyle looked up and saw Blake with her head in a book.

"They were Beowolves." Ren replied.

"Dozens of them" she stated.

"Two of 'em." he said.

"But they were no match... and in the end, Ren and I took them down and made a boatload of Lien selling Ursa skin rugs!" Nora said smiling.

"She's been having this recurring dream for nearly a month now." Ren told everyone as he rolled his eyes.

"Wow, that sounded awesome" Cole said before taking a bite of food.

"Jaune? Are you okay?" Pyrrha suddenly asked.

Suddenly Jaune stopped playing with his food and came to attention.

"Huh? Oh, yeah! Why?" He asked innocently.

"It's just that you seem a little... not okay..." Ruby asked.

At this point everyone at the table began staring at him.

"Guys, I'm fine...seriously, look!" he assured everyone.

"Cardin's been picking on you since the first week of school!" Pyrrha said.

"Who? Cardin Winchester? Nah... He just likes to mess around! You know, practical jokes!" Jaune said.

"He's a bully." Ruby stated firmly.

"Oh, please! Name ONE time he's 'bullied' me." He said scoffing.

"Well..." Pyrrha began before exchanging glances from across the table. "There was that locker incident"

"I didn't land far from the school!" Jaune replied humbly.

"Sounds like a jerk," Cole told him. "Need a hand?"

"Jaune, you know if you ever need help, you can just ask." Pyrrha said soothingly.

"Ooooh!" Nora said standing up.

"We'll break his legs!" she yelled with a crazed look on her face.

Cole laughed as Kyle looked on in disbelief.

Ren's face remained neutral.

"I'm in" Cole said smirking.

"Whoa" Kyle thought.

"Guys really, it's fine!" Jaune said assuring them. "Besides, it's not like he's only a jerk to me, he's a jerk to everyone."

Everyone at the table looked around to see Cardin and his team teasing a rather cute, rabbit-eared Faunus girl.

"Ow! That hurts!" she cried.

Cardin was holding her tightly by the ears, as the poor girl was struggling to pull away from him.

"What a freak!" laughed one of his teammates.

"Please, stop..." she begged.

"Told you it was real!" Cardin said with a smile.

He finally released his grasp on her as she slipped free and quickly walked off.

"Atrocious" Pyrrha began. "I can't stand people like him." she said coldly.

"He's not the only one; It must be hard to be a Faunus." Yang affirmed with a sigh..

"Fau..nus?..." Cole asked as he watched the rabbit girl walk off. Further down Kyle spotted Petra sitting alone in a dark part of the cafeteria. "Why over there...?" He thought.

"There are some people who simply show no respect," Ren said.

"Agreed" Kyle replied with a nod.

"Who the hell does Cardin think he is!?" Cole said angrily as he began to swell up.

"Cole...relax." Kyle warned as he raised his hand up.

"NO" Cole said sternly, swatting his hand away.

He slammed down his stray, and stood up from the table.

"Oh man...." Ruby said in a worried tone.

"HEY!" Cole said yelling in team CRDL's direction. "YOU!"

Cardin paid him no mind as made no effort to turn around.

"CARDIN!"

At this point, most people had been drawn in and were watching in the dining hall.Further away, Petra paid no attention to her teammate, only looking down. Cardin paused for a moment, then turned around to face him.

"I like where this is going" Yang said with a devilish grin.

"OH PLEASE" Weiss interjected. "Huntsmen acting like such primitive creatures is not acceptable"

"Hey Russel, Let's see what this punk wants" Cardin said as Cole walked up to them.

"You need to leave everyone alone" Cole said aloud meeting eyes with him. "Quit bothering them"

"Hey look, it's the loser who doesn't have a team" Russel said.

Cole swung at Russel, only to stumble forward when he stepped back.

Cardin stepped forward and laughed to himself.

"Do your worst"

Enraged, Cole swung the strongest punch he had.

Cardin caught it, and began forcing it back slowly.

He shoved him to the ground as his team laughed.

Russel walked over to stand over him and chuckled.

"I think you deserve a good bea-

He was suddenly interrupted when Kyle leapt out of his seat and sweep kicked him onto the floor.

"UGH!" Russel cried hitting the ground.

Kyle put his leg on top of his chest and made a defensive stance.

Another member of team CRDL charged him.

Kyle spun around and kicked him in the leg, before tripping him.

"HMPH" Cardin snorted advancing towards him before stopping.

"Sky...don't" He warned raising his arm to stop his last teammate from losing in front of everyone.

"This isn't over" Cardin said with a smug grin.

Cardin and Sky quickly helped their two other teammates to their feet.

Team CRDL walked off slowly as they stared daggers back at Kyle and the others at the table.

There were several whoops and hollers around the dining hall.

"Showoff..." Cole muttered.

"You're a nervous wreck" Kyle told him.

Cole said nothing as he stood back up and angrily sat back down at the table.

"WOW, KYLE THAT WAS SO COOL!" Nora yelled.

"YOU WERE ALL LIKE HIYAH...YAHEE!"

"Thanks" Kyle said sitting back down.

"That looked more fun than breaking legs!" she added.

"Wow, you guys showed HIM " Jaune said. "T-Thanks"

"No problem" Kyle said. "He did mention it wasn't 'over' though"

"I'll make sure he stays away from us" Pyrrha said.

"I don't think anyone's actually ever stood up to Cardin before" Ruby said.

After lunch, everyone said their farewells as the teams departed for their afternoon classes.

Yang Xiao Long saw Cole walking alone down the hall and quickly caught up with him.

"Wow, I didn't think anyone had the guts to stand up to team CRDL" Yang said smiling.

"Yeah, well I hate to break it to you...but you have the wrong guy" Cole said turning around.

"What are you talking about? You almost had them back there...Cardin overpowered you with brute force!" she said.

"Kyle saved my ass ...why not go find him" he told her.

"Well I thought you gave it your best effort" Yang told him.

"LOOK, I'M FINE...JUST....BUTT OUT!" Cole snapped before turning away from her and quickly walking off.

"He's like that when he's angry" Kyle said behind her. He had been following them. "What class do you have next?"

"Does it matter?" Yang said angrily walking away as she turned down a hall and disappeared.

Kyle trailed behind Cole and walked into class.

He looked around and saw the familiar rows of seats that rose with each desk.

Kyle also spotted Weiss, Blake, Pyrrha, Jaune, Cardin, and Velvet.

He made his way up and approached the empty seat next to Blake

"Hey...Blake" he said setting his books down.

"Hello Kyle" she replied with a slight smile.

"Get into any more fights yet?" Weiss asked over her shoulder.

"I was only tryi-" Kyle began.

"I guess it doesn't matter then since you aren't on our team" she continued. "You might have been a useful member"

Kyle looked up to see Cardin glaring at him from across the room.

He quickly glanced away to see Cole making his way to sit next to Velvet.

"Mind if I sit here?" he said asking her quietly as he walked up.

"Huh?" she asked looking up at him. "Of course not....I MEAN YES, YOU CAN!"

"What's your name?" he asked with smile. "I don't think we've met before, but I promise I'm not a jerk like those guys."

"It's Velvet" she told him. "Velvet Scarlatina"

Cole offered his hand and Velvet shook it.

"Alright class, first....let us begin our lesson!" Oobleck shouted over the small talk. "Please turn to page 50 if you will!"

Kyle looked down at the textbook cover he had carried in.

Ah yes, History... A subject he had come to enjoy for many years.

He hadn't read a decent history book in quite some time.

"Yes, prior to the Faunus Rights Revolution more popularly known as the Faunus War!" Oobleck began as he started zipping around the room with his coffee.

"HOLY-" Cole exclaimed. "I knew coffee was helpful, but wow..."

Everyone's heads turned as they watched him move from one side of the classroom to another.

"Humankind was quite, quite adamant about centralizing Faunus population in Menagerie." Oobleck continued.

Kyle looked over at Blake, and saw her face was one of intrigue. He quickly looked away once her yellow eyes saw his green ones.

"Now! While this must feel like ancient history to many of you, it is imperative to remember that these are relatively RECENT events! Why, the repercussions of the uprising can still be seen to this day!" Oobleck stated.

"Now, Have any among you been subjugated or discriminated because of your Faunus heritage!?" he said looking around the room.

Several Faunus students began raising their hands.

Blake shifted uncomfortably in her seat.

"Well...go on, raise your hand" Cole said looking over at Velvet.

She slightly hesitated at first, but then slowly rose her hand up.

"Dreadful, simply dreadful!" Oobleck said. "Remember, students, it is PRECISELY this kind of ignorance that breeds violence...I mean just look at what happened to White Fang!"

Kyle looked over to Blake to see her expression had changed slightly.

"Now, which one of you young scholars can tell me what many theorize to be the turning point in the third year of the War?" Oobleck asked.

Weiss raised her hand almost instantly.

"YES?" Oobleck asked looking at her.

"The battle at Fort Castle!" she shouted confidently.

"Precisely! And, who can tell me the advantage the Faunus had over General Lagune's forces?" Oobleck continued.

Kyle looked over to see Jaune asleep across his desk. Behind him was Cardin aiming a paper triangle with his hand.

Suddenly, he flicked it as it flew and smacked Jaune in the back of the head.

"Hey!" he blurted waking up.

"Mr. Arc! Finally contributing to class! Excellent! What is the answer?" asked as he quickly sped to Jaune's desk.

"Uhhhh... The answer... " Jaune said. He looked to Pyrrha as she began signing the answer with motions

"The advantage... that the Faunus...had over that guy's stuff..." he tried to continued with Pyrrha's guidance.

"Poor guy" Cole thought to himself.

Kyle looked on as he watched Pyrrha try to help her team captain.

"What is it with these two?" he said thinking to himself.

Why was she always helping him? Why did she care so much?

Pyrrha had been so kind and helpful, she was always concerned about the well-being of others.

Especially Jaune Arc.

But there was no denying it, she WAS pretty.

"Uhh... Binoculars!" Jaune cried.

Almost the whole classroom broke out into laughter.

Kyle simply sighed and looked over to see Cardin laughing hysterically.

"Very funny, Mr. Arc! Cardin, perhaps you would care to share your thoughts on the subject?"

"Well, I know it's a lot easier to train an animal than a soldier." He said

Oobleck paused before shaking his head.

"You're not the most open-minded of individuals, are you, Cardin?" Pyrrha said suddenly.

"What? You got a problem?" Cardin asked before turning to face her in an irritated tone.

"No, I have the answer! It's night vision. Many Faunus are known to have nearly-perfect sight in the dark." Pyrrha said aloud to the class.

"Whoa....I didn't know that. That's pretty badass" Cole whispered to Velvet.

"I guess.." she replied with a nervous smile.

"General Lagune was inexperienced, and made the mistake of trying to ambush the Faunus in their sleep. His massive army was outmatched, and the general was captured." Blake added.

"Wow" Kyle thought to himself. Who would have guessed Blake knew this much about FAUNUS history. Then again, he wasn't too surprised. She seemed to be just as much of a bookworm as he was.

"Perhaps if he'd paid attention in class, he wouldn't have been remembered as such a failure." She directly at Cardin.

"You!-" Cardin uttered angrily as he quickly rose from his chair.

"Mr. Winchester! Please take your seat." Oobleck commanded Cardin before sipping his coffee.

Jaune let out a laugh as he turned his back from Cardin.

"You and Mr. Arc can both see me after class for additional readings" the doctor said.

"Ohhh..." Jaune said sadly, slumping his shoulders.

"Now! Moving on!"

When the bell rang at the end of class, Kyle wanted to walk out with Blake but found that she had already left.

He found himself distracted by the conversations around him. As he approached the door, he walked past team JNPR.

"You go on ahead. I'll wait for Jaune." Pyrrha assured Nora and Ren.

He walked to his locker to put his textbook up before an odd sight caught his eye.

Cole was at his locker talking to the rabbit-eared Faunus girl from class.

Deciding not to let it bother him, he quickly put away his book and walked off.