RWBY: Grimm Walker

Chapter 5: Warm Welcome

  Ruby sat in the Amphitheater, her mouth agape. The broadcast had just concluded, and the other students that had stayed were now filing out. The whole room was talking excitedly about what they had just seen, everyone sharing their opinions on the boy. Ruby heard things like "I cant believe he did it!", "Whats with the helmet?" and "I hope he's cute!" Ruby herself was still blown away with the whole thing, already dying to tell her friends about it.

  "That was amazing!" She thought to herself as she left. "I wonder if anyone else saw anything."  She could barely contain her excitement when she found her way back to the dorm room. Her room mates looked up as she burst through the door, wide eyed.

  Yang smiled at he sister. "Hey Rube, how was the broadcast?"

  "It was, like, the coolest thing ever!" She exclaimed. "There were these four Grimm that he fought but he didn't have weapons then he did have weapons and then a bigger one showed up and he was like jumping and-." Ruby fell back and lay on the floor. "Ugh, you should have seen it."

  Blake chuckled. "Well, we did see part of it, but none of that."

  "See, I knew he was gona be fine." Yang piped in. Weiss, however, was still uninterested. She looked up from her magazine.

  "Yay, some boy managed to do the same exact thing everyone at Beacon did," She said sarcastically. "Can we please stop going on about it? I would like to spend my Saturday in peace."

  That last part got Ruby's attention. She shot up and looked at the clock, which now read 11:00. "Oh no, I totally forgot! Luckily there's still time!" She grabbed Weiss by her wrist and ran out the door, dragging the girl behind her.

  "Wait, time for what? Where are we going?"

   Ruby's voice echoed down the hall over her protests. "To have the best Saturday ever, silly!"

  Yang and Blake looked at each other and laughed, then rushed out of the dorm to catch their runaway companions.

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  The welcoming ceremony was held that night, the Amphitheater again packed with students. Ruby stood with the rest of her friends anxious to see their newest student in person. She turned to her sister. "I cant wait to finally meet him!" She said, which drew a laugh from Yang.

  "I can see that. He looks pretty cool huh?"

  "Totally cool! I wonder what team he'll be put in."

  To her left, Weiss stood with folded arms, a look of annoyance on her face. "I still don't see what the big deal is. He made it through the forest just like we did, and nobody came running to see us when we came back."

  Yang smiled slyly. "Well, that's because they were afraid of getting burned by the Ice Queen."

  Weiss threw her arms down. "Why does everyone keep calling me that?!"

  The other girls laughed as the lights began to dim, the stage being the only surface still lit. The room fell silent as Headmaster Ozpin walked out into the spotlight.

"Good evening students." He began, his voice ringing throughout the whole room. "It is with my great pleasure that we welcome a new student into our ranks today, one that has passed the Emerald forest initiation with flying colors." He held an arm out to a darkened side of the stage. "Young man, please present your relic."

  Heads turned as a figure walked out of the shadows. He still wore his body armor, and Ruby could now get a close up look at it. It was made of not of metal, but an incredibly durable ceramic material. The suit was various shades of black with silver trim, his helmet a shining silver. It was covered in signs of wear and age, which implied he had worn it for many years. The boy approached the Headmaster and produced his relic from the compartment on his belt. He placed it on a small table in front of him and a large image of it appeared on a screen above the stage, allowing everyone to see it clearly. The boy stepped back a few paces and Ozpin began to address the room again.

  "Nix Spherule. You have selected the black Rook as your totem. Normally, we would be putting you in a team for your time here, but being a late starter you will not have one assigned until next semester." This brought whispers through the crowd, but Nix nodded in understanding. "With that being said, it is with great honor that I welcome you to Beacon Academy. Congratulations."

  The Headmaster began to applaud, and the crowd followed suit, the room filling with the sound of hundreds of clapping hands. Nix looked out at the audience and waved, overwhelmed with a feeling of pride at his accomplishment. Ruby cheered the boy on, excited to have a new face around the campus.

"This is so cool! I wonder where his room will be." She said to Yang.  Yang answered in a joking tone. "I wonder what his face looks like." Weiss looked over her shoulder at the to girls, not sharing their enthusiasm. "I swear, you two are boy crazy. If you get your hopes up you'll just be disa..." Her words trailed off as she looked back at the stage. The boy was reaching up to his helmet, and with a pop-hissss, pulled it off. He had short black hair brushed lazily to the left side. His black eyes burned with determination, yet had a softness to them, and a small scar ran across his right cheek, adding a touch of ruggedness to his overall handsome face. Yang glanced over at Weiss, who was clearly taken aback by her eairlier judgments. She nudged the girl with her elbow, snapping her out of her trance with a start. "What were you saying about getting our hopes up?"

  Weiss's cheeks went a little red and she folded her arms again.  "OK, so he has a nice face, its not like he's that cute."

  Yang continued to tease her as the applause died down and light now returned to the whole room. Ozpin stepped forward and gave his closing statement.

  "That will be all for tonight, you may now return to your dorms for lights out. Dismissed." He turned to Nix. "If you follow me young man, we can gather your things and show you your dorm." With that, they walked out, and the students returned to their rooms, who were still buzzing with excitement with the new arrival. Ruby couldn't wait to talk to him, her head already full of questions. Besides, a chance to make a new friend should never go to waste.

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  Ozpin led Nix through the halls all the way to his dorm. Some students greeted Nix as they passed, but he was told he would meet the bulk of them once class started on Monday. They walked through a hall of doors until coming to a stop in the middle. Ozpin pulled out a key and opened the door on the right side of the hall.

  "Here you are young man, your own personal room." The dorm was originally meant for four students, but Nix would be staying here alone for the remaining semester, which suited him just fine. Ozpin handed him a small tablet which powered on at his touch. "This is your Scroll, it has all the information you need to get started. Class starts on Monday, so I suggest you head into town and pick up any supplies you may be missing." He put a hand on the boy's shoulder. "I have high hopes for you. Now get some rest." The Headmaster walked out, leaving Nix to get settled. He changed into his sleep wear and fell onto the bed exhausted. Sleep soon overtook him, his thoughts of home as he driffted off.

"Ill make things right. I promise."