Team AERO: Chapter II

"Aero Swann and Crystal Eton."
Oh.
"Oliver Greene and Regalia Aracnera."
Oh!
"You will be Team AERO, under Ms. Swann."
Oh no.

The clapping of the other students fades in the back of your head as you try to take everything in.
(/I'm/ leading a team?
And /she/'s my partner?
This can't be right. She's so cold! How am I going to work with someone that-)

Your scroll buzzes, pulling you back to reality as you dig it out.

[Team AERO Dorm Assignment: Rm 105]

(Wait? Team dorm? But there's a boy on the team!)

"Looks like I misjudged you."

Huh? What?

You know that voice, though it doesn't sound quite as cold anymore. You look up from your scroll, finding Crystal at your side.

[What do you mean?]
[Yea, you did!]
*[We have to share a room with a boy!]

"We have to share a room with a boy!"

"I take it back. Guess this isn't a strong year." The slight thaw to her tone instantly freezes over again.

"What are you talking about?"

She sighs, "The dorms are co-ed."

Without another word, she turns and walks away.

You stand in silence as the rest of the teams are assigned, clapping halfheartedly.

"And with that, welcome to Shade. Classes will begin in the morning."

[Better go to the dorm.]
*[Explore the building?]

You look around as the students begin to file out of the hall and towards the dorms. Now would seem like a good time to familiarize yourself with the inside of the building.

You turn against the crowd, making your way towards the stairs that lead to the second level.

"Ms. Swann?"

You freeze in your tracks, turning to find Professor Alabaster staring at you.

"Now, where would you be off to? Don't you want to go meet your team?"

*[You're right, sorry.]
[I left my weapon upstairs when I was looking around before orientation. (Lie)]

"You're right, sorry."

"I'm sure they're just as eager to meet you. And you wouldn't want to start the semester by oversleeping, would you?"

Huh? You check your scroll quick.
[11:36]
Oh man, that ceremony took longer than you thought.

"Of course not!" You flash a smile before heading off to the dorm, trailing behind your fellow students.

It doesn't take long for you to exit the building and walk past the garden. You smile a bit, remembering the call you made to your parents earlier. It fills you with determination!


You stare at the door with "105" next to it.
Where's the handle?
How does it open?
Who built this dorm?!

[Knock.]
[Flail at it.]
[I don't know?!]
*[Scroll]

You take out your scroll, lifting it up to-
The door opens. What?

"Took you long enough." Her chilling words feel a bit colder when paired with the glare she gives you from the bed in the far right corner.

"S-sorry." You look down a moment before stepping in and taking in the rest of the room.

Two beds and a matching desk line the left and right walls, with a fairly large walk-in closet and a bathroom on the far wall. Fancy.

Oliver is laying on the near left bed, his scroll over his face. "Glad you make it. Now we can turn the lights off. We only have 8 hours until class."

You notice the last member of your team is already asleep in her bed. Lights be damned, you guess.

You turn back to the spare bed, finding a suitcase and duffle bag laying on the floor next to it. Your stuff!

*[Change into PJs.]
[Just jump into bed.]
["We should introduce ourselves first!"]


You quickly go through your belongings, digging out your sleepwear.

Time to change!

You put your hands under your shirt then stop.

[THERE'S A BOY IN THE ROOM!]
[J-just make it fast!]
[Bathroom!]

You let out a small "Eek!" before hastily grabbing your clothes and dashing to the bathroom, shutting the door behind you.

You lean against the door for a moment, hearing a faint "I told you. 10 Lien."

You exhale, quickly changing into your jammies; comfy sleep pants and a baggy t-shirt. Perfect.

You open the door, finding that they already turned the lights off. Lucky for you, your Faunus night vision kicks in, and you make your way to your bed.

You quickly set an alarm on your scroll before going to sleep.

[30 min before class.]
[1 hr before class.]
*[2 hr before class.]

---------
Your alarm goes off at 6 AM, prompting the room to fill with the groans of your team. Doesn't look like they had any intention on being early birds.

You turn it off and slip out of bed, trying to creep to the bathroom to start your day.

You freeze as Crystal sits up and reaches out to grab your fluffy tail.

"Tomorrow. Turn. The. Volume. Down." The icy words come in a half-whisper.

You nod, whispering a string of assurances until her firm grip removes itself and she plops back down.

She's already snoring. Damn, gurl.

You go into the bathroom and close the door before hitting the light.

Shower: *[Y/N]
Hair: *[Y/N](Tail)*
Teeth: *[Y/N]

You quickly strip before hopping into the shower, letting the warm water run over your skin. You do your hair, including your tail before washing the rest of your body. You turn the knob off and dry off.

You pull a pair of smaller towels from the supply closet inside the bathroom, wrapping one around your head and drapping the other on your tail.

You brush your teeth extra well and smile in the mirror.

You remove the towels, drying the hair and fur a bit. You comb your hair with a hairdryer before brushing your tail in the same manor. You give it a pat. Fluffy as always.

You switch off the light before opening the door, finding your team still asleep. You check your scroll.
[6:28]

They'll probably be asleep for a while.

[Wait for them.]
[Wake them.]
[Go over the class schedule.]
*[Breakfast?]

Your stomach gurgles a bit. You certainly have time to eat before class.

You sneak through the room and hold your scroll up. The door it opens and you slip through before making your way back to the main building.

You pass through the main hall into the corridor that leads to the cafeteria, noting how quiet it is. Doesn't seem like many students are awake, or at least not coming to breakfast.

You go through the line, filling your tray with a healthy assortment of breakfast items. Exiting, you find yourself faced with a nearly empty cafeteria.

You look around, not really seeing anyone you know. Hey, wait!
You look closer, seeing the same silken light purple hair that was asleep in your room last night on the back of the girl sitting with her back to you.

You didn't even notice she left the room.

*[Sit with her.]
[Sit by yourself.]

You make your way over to the other loner, sliding in across from her.

"Hi, I'm Ae-" You look her in the eyes.
No.
Eyeses.
-"ro." You squeak out.

If her pure red eyes weren't enough to throw you off, the fact that she has a second pair more than made up for it.

She sighs, noticing your reaction.
"Regalia."

[Oh shit, what do?!]

You quickly extend your hand.

"Nice to meet you! I'm sorry, I was just a little surprised is all."

You swish your tail to the side, hoping that she sees it and takes your words as sincere. Because they are.

She smiles a bit as she takes your hand in her long fingers, giving it a shake. It's hard to tell exactly where she's looking.

"It's alright. So, you're the leader of our team?"

*[I am. I hope we work well together!]
[Damn right!]
[Mhm. (eat)]


"I am. I hope we work well together!"

She raises her free hand to her mouth, stiffing a laugh. Hey, wait. She's laughing at you! Er, trying not to.

"I'm sure we will."

"I kinda already got a bad start with Crystal, though." You frown a bit, wondering what you did wrong with her.

She snorts, struggling to keep her laughter contained.

"I wouldn't worry about her, dear."

You nod, wondering why she's laughing at a time like this.
You turn to your food, trying to shove as much into your mouth as you can so that you don't say anything else to make her laugh.

Oh man, the food here is actually really goo-

You feel her hand come down softly on your head.

"You shouldn't rush when you eat. You might choke."

You look up at her bright smile.

*[Chew. Swallow. "Thank you."]
[Nod and keep eating.]

You slowly chew the mass of meal between your cheeks before forcing it down your throat.

"Thank you."

"You're welcome." She tilts her head slightly, watching you.

You go back to your food, but there really isn't much left. It doesn't take long to finish off before you stick the last bite in your mouth.

"We should head back to the dorm and get ready for class."

You nod as you swallow the last bit of breakfast.

The two of stand at the same time.

You blink, finding yourself staring the bottom of her bosom. You look up. She's at least a foot taller than you.

["Holy cow! You're huge!"]
*[Just take your trays back and head to the dorm.]

You won't let her appearance get the best of you this time!
The two of you drop your trays off before heading back towards the dorm.

[Say something? (What?)]
[Enjoy the early morning silence.]

"What did you mean by 'I wouldn't worry about her'? Do you and Crystal know each other already?"

Regalia shakes her head, "I hadn't met her before yesterday. But I'm sure you'll find a way to put that behind you too."

Well, that wasn't very helpful.

"Well, where did you come from?"

She pushes open the door to the dorm building, and the two of you move into the lobby.

"Originally, I'm from Menagerie. My parents wanted a better life for us, so we moved her over a decade ago."

You arrive at your dorm, and Regalia already has her scroll out, holding it up to the door.

"What's it like on Menager-"

The door opens at the same time as the bathroom door.

There's Oliver, with just a towel on.

[Panic.]
[Put some clothes on!]
[Seriously, fucking panic.]

You quickly cover your eyes, letting out a high pitched "Eek."

"G-good morning! Sorry for the alarm."

You can almost feel Crystal shaking your head as Oliver chuckles.

"It's alright. Hold on, let me just bring my clothes in the bathroom quick."

You stand awkwardly in the doorway for what seems like eternity.

"All set." You hear the bathroom door close and you lower your hands.

The soft touch falls on your hair again.

"You're going to have to get used to that."

*[I'll try.]
[Can't they just switch the rooms?!]

"I'll try."

You smile up at her before moving to your bed.

Crystal gets up the moment you enter, making her exit. You notice a baton-like thing hanging off her right hip with what looks to be a bladed ring on the end.

"Try not to miss class."

You pull out your scroll, wondering what time it is.
[7:34]
Either she's really into school, or she's going for breakfast.
You look over your schedule while you have your scroll out.

[Grimm Anatomy]
[History of Remnant]
[Lunch]
[Combat]

You dig around in your suitcase. Lucky for you, you have all your school supplies already in your backpack, which sits right on top of the rest of your clothes.
Hmm.. You'll need your weapon for Combat class..

*[Get it after lunch.]
[Take it with.]

You can always come back for it after lunch.

You slip the straps of your backpack on as the bathroom door opens.

Oliver strides out, fully dressed this time. He moves over to his bed and picks up some sort of gun and straps it to his back.

"Ladies." He waves before heading out.

You look over to Regalia. She's got some kind of long, purple silk jacket with what looks like fur around the neck. You wonder if it's her weapon or semblance.

"Ready to go?"

[Yep!]
*[Nope! (Why not? What do you need to do?)]

"Nope! I gotta grab my weapon quick."

You open the dufflebag and quickly locate the two feet long pole. You slip it in a ring on your backpack, the wider end of the pole keeping it from falling through.

*["Ready!"]
[?]

"Ready!"

"Then let's go." She smiles as she strides towards the door, scroll in hand.

You follow her out and head towards your first class.

[Anything else you want to talk about?]
[Silent trip.]

"So, what's that cool jacket? Is there dust in there or something?"

She tilts her head towards you before shaking it.

"Nope. It's just a jacket that I quite enjoy."

"Oh. Well, what did I say that was funny during breakfast?"

She covers her mouth again, holding the laughter back.

"Nothing."

Bah!

You realize you're inside and at the entrance to the lecture hall. You go in first.

There's already quite a lot of students here, despite the chairs being half empty. You look around for a place to sit before Regalia leans down and points out Oliver and Crystal.

*[Sit as a team.]
[Sit with Regalia, alone.]
[Sit alone-alone.]

You nod and walk down to where they are.

Crystal is sitting one seat in from the edge, with Oliver a seat over, leaving a gap between them.

You're not sure where you and Regalia should-uh!

Regalia slips past you, sitting between the two.

That only leaves you with..

*[Crystal]
[Oliver]
[Go sit in the back before they see you!]

You slip in next to Crystal, placing your backpack on the floor and pulling out your notebook and a pen for notes.

You can feel her looking at you, but when you glance at her, she looks away.

You still have a few minutes before class.

[Talk to her? (What?)]
[Ride out the silence.]
[Play on your scroll.]
[Talk to someone else past her? (What?)]

"Can we start over?"

She finally looks at you, her gaze as cold as her voice.

"What?"

"Ya know, start over. I think we got off on the wrong foot. And I'm sorry for this morning. But please, don't touch my tail without permission, okay?"

She sighs some, turning back to the front of the room with a slight shake to her head.

"Sure, whatever. Sorry for grabbing your tail."

You open your mouth-

"Good morning class."

-And close it back up.

The professor begins going over the syllabus.

*[Pay attention.]
[Whisper something else to Crystal?]
[??]

You pay attention, even take some notes! The rest of the class is pretty boring, though you did learn your professor once wrestled an ursa without a shirt. You don't know why it's important to know that the ursa wasn't wearing a shirt. Has a Grimm ever worn clothes?

Your team's packed up and starts to stand, ready to go to the next class. You hastily throw your things in your backpack and hop to your feet.

You have 15 minutes between class, and it should take about 5 minutes to get there.

*[Go straight there. (Talk on the way?)]
[Chill a minute. (Talk?)]

"So what class do we have next?"

You smile at the group, walking backwards out of the room. You turn around before what you think is the door and walk normally as your team exits the lecture hall to walk beside you.

"History." Crystal doesn't even look at you.

"Do you guys like History?"

Oliver shrugs. "It's alright."

Crystal shrugs, but doesn't answer.

Regalia smiles, "It's interesting, to say the least. What about you?"

[I love it!]
*[It's ok.]
[It's boring.]
[I hate it!]

"It's ok."

You quickly pick a new topic, "So; Oliver, Crystal. Where are you two from?"

Oliver is the first to respond.

"Vale. I went to one of the training schools there."

Everyone looks at Crystal, who looks around at everyone in turn before sighing.

"I'm from Mistral."

She looks down, burying her face in her scroll.

You soon arrive at your second class and enter the lecture hall.

[Same seating.]
[Sit alone with (?).]
[Sit by yourself.]

"We should sit together like that again."

You are met with a mix of nodding and indifferent shrugging, but your team finds it's way to an open section and claims four seats.

It doesn't take long for the professor to start class. You take a few notes, and soon enough, class is over. That means it's time for-

"Lunch!"

Oliver quickly stands, obviously eager.

You make your way through the building to the cafeteria. The line looks like it could take some time, but you have more than enough.

The rest of the team is with you, waiting.

*[Anything else you want to ask?]
[Silence.]

"Do you guys have any plans for later? I can show you guys around town if you want."

They all take a moment to think.

"No." As cold and direct as ever.

"I don't think so.." Oliver shrugs.

"Hmm. I don't believe I do, but I think that would be best to spend an entire day on. Perhaps this weekend?"

"Yea, that sounds like a good idea." Oliver nods to Regalia.

"Sure." You don't sound so sure..

*["It's a plan then!"]
["I'm actually busy." (You are? Are you lying??)]
[(??)]

"It's a plan then!" You punch the air before turning, realizing that the line was advnacing.

It doesn't take long for your team to get their food and secure a place to eat. You focus on your food, though some discussion of the earlier classes mixes in.

"But why was it important that the Ursa was shirtless?!" You still can't figure out that part of the story.

"It wasn't. Professor Marbel was just trying to show off." How can you be so sure Crystal!

"Do you really think he wrestled it?"

"Why would he lie?" How can you distrust our teacher, Oliver!

"To make a good impression? To make us strive to be better huntsmen?" Oh, good one, Regalia.

The time passes in that manor until you turn in your trays and head to your final class for the day.

Combat 101.

Your team files in, sitting together still. There aren't any desks like before. Instead, just rows of benches overlooking an empty arena that spans into the far wall.
Professor DeFleur is standing below the student overlook.

"Welcome to the most important class of your life. History.. Grimm studies.. None of it matters if you aren't competent in your abilities and clam under fire."

"Normally, I'd start you off by throwing your teams at each other, but after complaints at the last three years' parent-teacher conferences.."
She shakes her head, scowling.

"So for the first week, you'll showcase your individual skills and give me a baseline for your abilities, like so.."

She presses a button on her scroll. Hologram projectors spring to life, showing a dozen beowolves. A horn sounds, and the immediately charge your teacher!

She snaps her fingers and blades of wind rip through the air, ending the projections.

"Now. Who wants to start?"

[Volunteer!]
[Tell (?) they should volunteer.]
*[Just wait and watch.]

You decide it's probably best just to watch for now. Who knows, you might even get to see some of the other studen-

Crystal stands up. "I will."

DeFleur motions for her to come down. "Stairs to the arena can be found on either side of the view area."

Crystal nods to her and makes for the nearest one, your professor going for the opposite. It doesn't take long for them to effectively switch places.

"Ready?" DeFleur calls from the back of the room, finger hovering above her oversized scroll.

Crystal only nods in response. She crouches slightly, holding the baton before her. The ring at the top looks like it's got something in it now. In fact her weapon almost looks like..

"Begin."

The horn sounds as a half dozen beowolves spawn, instantly rushing at her from the far side of the arena. She takes a breath then blows as she brings the ring to her mouth. A torrent of bubbles fly forward before exploding in the air, removing all but one of the holograms.

It closes the gap quickly, aiming a slash at your partner. She back flips out of the way, pushing off the ground the moment her foot reconnects. She swings the baton, slashing the beowolf with the sharp ring on the end.

The horn sounds again, but is quickly replaced by the clapping of your fellow students.

She rejoins your team shortly.

["That was amazing!"]
*["Good job."]
["I've seen better."]
[Ignore her.]

"Good job." You smile at her and she nods before sitting down.

"Thanks."

"Can I call you Bubbles?"

"No." That one was totally absolute zero.

DeFleur finishes her assessment and begins scanning the room.

"Anyone else want to get it over with?"

*[Volunteer!]
[Tell (Oliver/Regalia) they should volunteer.]
[Just wait and watch.]

You slip the pole from your backpack and grip it before standing up. You're not even taller than most of the people sitting. Boo!

"I volunteer!"

DeFleur waves you toward the stairs.

You walk down the steps before exiting into the arena. You turn your weapon in your hand as it unfolds. The rear barrel extends outward as the main shaft extends up. The blades unfold as the trigger pops up.

"Ready?"

You nod, holding the spear before you.

The beowolves form just as the horn goes off.

*[Ranged attack.]
[Wait for them to get closer, then meele.]
[Throw your weapon.]
[Nothing.]

You twirl the weapon, pulling the trigger at just the right time. The single shot goes straight through the nearest beowolf, but you're not done there. You move your hand, changing the trajectory of the shot to cut through most of the remaining beowolves, the last having closed the distance between you.

The final one is quickly upon you, but with your reach advantage you can take it out first.

You spin your weapon around, pushing the button under your ring finger. Some of the dust used to fire your bullet burn, venting itself out of the  side of the spear handle, drastically increasing the speed of your swing and allowing you to close the distance and cut through the hologram.

[Semblance Revealed: Magic Bullet]

You flip your spear around again, using your semblance to reload with the shot on the far end of the arena. You only have a dozen at a time, can't afford to waste one.

You can hear the clapping pretty well from down here, but you quickly climb up the stairs to rejoin your team.

"Great job, Aero." Regalia smiles at you.

"Nice one." Oliver gives you a thumbs up.

"Seems I underestimated you." Would it kill her to give you a compliment?!

DeFleur finishes her assessment before looking at her scroll.

"We might as well stick with the current theme, er team. Which one of you wants to go next?"

She's looking at Regalia and Oliver.

[Whisper Regalia's name.]
[Whisper Oliver's name.]
*[Let them decide.]

You look at the two, not giving them any indication of who to pick.

Oliver smiles, "Ladies first."

Again, hard to tell with Regalia's eyes, but you're sure she just rolled them. But she smiles, "If you insist."

She stands, making her way to the arena with her hands in the pockets of her jacket. She said it wasn't her weapon, but she doesn't have one! What's she doing?!

She exits the stairway and takes her hands out of her pockets.

Her hands are inside a very unusual pair of gloves. The fingers look bladed, though they don't look very sturdy. You can't really tell much else from here, but there's a slight glint, like some sort of strand, if you tilt your head.

"Ready?"

She nods holding her hands out.

The horn sounds as the holograms activate.

Regalia moves her hands faster than you can follow then stops.

"What is she doing?" You hope she isn't trying to throw it.

"Just watch."

You do, and it becomes clear a moment later. The beowolves charge is immediately halted as they run straight through her trap. The wires reflect off the light from the holograms as the attackers fall to pieces, revealing a dense network of wires.

The sound of the wires being reeled back in echoes through the arena as the horn goes off.

Regalia rejoins the team a minute later.

["How did you do that?"]
*["That was awesome!"]
["Good job."]
[Ignore.]

"That was awesome!" You practically jump off the bench.

Her hand comes down gently on your hair.

"Thank you."

Crystal nods her approval to her as Oliver gets up to switch places with Regalia.


DeFleur finishes writing then looks up again, seeing Oliver has already made his way to the arena.

".. Ready?"

He nods, lifting his weapon.

The horn sounds, the Grimm reform once more.

Oliver quickly fires six shots, the bright blue projectile ending the match as soon as it began.

The horn sounds again, and he turns to rejoin your team.

*["That was fast!"]
["Good job."]
[Ignore.]

"That was fast!"

He grins as he sits down, "Not everyone needs to show off like you guys."

Regalia taps her chin, "Isn't the point to demonstrate our competence?"

"He's not wrong. Showing control and knowing exactly how much effort to put into eliminating the enemy is likely to score higher than our more impressive displays of excessive force." Lighten up, Crystal!

[Weigh in? (What?)]

"It's not just about showing the school what we're capable of, your team need to know too. We gotta know just how far we can push when we work together."

Regalia nods, "Well said."

Crystal closes her eyes a moment before responding. "That is also a good point. Perhaps it'd have been better if you had 'shown off, Oliver."

He shrugs, "I'm sure we'll get another chance to see what each other can do."

The rest of the class is uneventful, your fellow students showcasing their skills.

[Chapter II: End]