Destiny of A Few

Chapter 3: The Calm Before the Storm

"Wake up, lazy butts!" Nora shouted.

Grei quickly covered his ears and rolled over. "Aw, Nora, don't shout..."

"It's morning! It's morning! Iiiiit's mooooorniiing!!!" She sang.

Ren sat up and rubbed his head. "Sorry about the wakeup call, Grei. She's always like this when she's excited."

Looking to his right, Ren found Grei packing up his sleeping bag whilst still rolling.

"Oh? It's fine, Ren." Grei said after finally standing up. "Besides, a head start is what we need in preparation for what's to come."

"Right." Ren yawned. "Initiation's today..."

Brand had already changed into his combat clothes and was heading to the cafeteria for breakfast. For the entire morning, he avoided Ruby and her sister, Yang due to their little incident last night. What would they think of him if they knew he entered Beacon without finishing combat school?

Brand just brushed off the thought and entered the extravagant cafeteria. It was filled with different students eager to start their day. Brand figured that the initiation was most likely combat based. Grabbing a plate of hotcakes, he made his way to an empty table on the other side of the room.

'Looks like neither Ruby nor Yang's awake yet...'

"Hey, buddy!" Jaune said as he sat right beside Brand with another plate of hotcakes.

"Oh, hi Jaune. Sleep well?" Brand asked before stuffing his mouth.

"Not really... there was this guy who kept messing with my sleeping bag. I had to move to another room."

Brand eyed him. "Really now? Is that why I didn't see you in the ballroom last night?"

"Yeah... hey! Have you seen Ruby?"

Brand paused. "No."

"Eh, she's one of the only girls to enjoy their time with me. Well, besides my mom and my sisters..."

Brand just ate in silence.

"So, Brand. What do you think of the initiation?" Jaune asked.

"Probably just something to do with fighting."

"Well, I figured that much..." Jaune's eyes turned to the entrance of the cafeteria. "Oh! There she is!"

Right at the door stood Ruby and Yang who were eying the food.

"Huh, she's with another girl... we should invite them to our table!" Jaune looked at Brand. He had already cleaned his plate.

"Yeah, I'll see ya at the locker room. Bye." Brand said as he stood up and briskly walked out of the dining hall.

"Oh, that was good!" Sable yawned as he patted his stomach.

"You ate four plates..." Melo said with a concerned look.

"If I say I can handle it, I can handle it."

They walked out of the cafeteria and headed for the locker room where they kept their weapons.

"Number 626..." Sable browsed the lockers one by one before he came across his. "There we go!"

Sable pulled out Final Whisper and flicked it open. He then grabbed his extra packs of arrows along with his quiver and put them on.

"You know, it feels good to use these in combat again." Melo approached his friend with Vashta Nerada already attached to his back.

"Looking good, my friend!" Sable folded his bow and hung it on his shoulder. "Now, let's go kill stuff!"