//------------------------------//
// Rosepetals at Beacon (New) 
// Story: SAPR 
// by Scipio Smith 
//------------------------------//


Rosepetals at Beacon


“Good morning, students!” Professor  Port boomed jovially as the first years took their seats in the lecture hall. “And a warm welcome to Grimm Studies for our Atlesian guests!”
The four members of Team RSPT came to attention, or tried to in Twilight’s case, on their way some seats above Team SAPR in the lecture theatre. 
“Thank you, sir,” Rainbow replied.
“Tell me, how is my old friend Major Kai these days?” Professor Port asked. “Does he still have the old trouble when the wind blows easterly?”
“Yes, sir.”
Professor Port groaned. “Poor fellow. I shall send him some of that Valish brandy he liked so much to keep him warm at nights.”
“I’m sure he will appreciate your generosity, sir,” Ciel said.
“Least I can do for an excellent fellow; why he ran me a close race during the one on one rounds in the Vytal Festival… but perhaps that is a story better suited for another time. Now, let me see if I have your names right: Rainbow Dash, Ciel Soleil, Penny Polendina, and Twilight Sparkle, yes?”
“Yes, sir,” Rainbow Dash replied.
“Excellent, excellent. Take your seats. As I was saying: good morning students and welcome back to another week here at Beacon. I’m sure you’re all eager to receive the results of your practical tests from Saturday: the good news is that every student here passed!”
A mixture of sighs of relief and muffled exclamations of pride and pleasure rippled through the hall. Sunset, who had never had any doubts that they were going to make it, said nothing, but Jaune was one of those who looked infinitely relieved. 
“That said,” Professor  Port continued, “not all of you did equally well.” He gestured to the large stack of papers on his desk. “I have here your written essays and my observations on your practicals. Will all team leaders please come to my desk and collect your papers?”
Team SAPR sat at the front of the lecture hall, which meant that Sunset was able to reach Professor  Port’s desk ahead of anyone else and start searching for SAPR’s results. Team BLBLs were at the top, and Sunset couldn’t help but notice that they had scored a C plus, although there wasn’t time to notice anything else without looking like she was prying into another team’s affairs. Sunset set the BLBL results aside, to find YRDN’s papers next in the pile which she handed to Yang, who was standing behind her waiting her turn. 
“A minus!” Yang exclaimed. “Professor, what’s the minus for?”
“Miss Valkyrie let those sulphur fish get far too close,” Professor Port exclaimed. “Why, if it hadn’t been for Mister Ren, she could have been in serious trouble.”
Nora laughed nervously. “But they looked so cute,” she explained. Ren sighed long-sufferingly.
Sunset moved the Team WWSR – who had gotten a flat B – to one side, to find the Team SAPR paper underneath. 
She picked it up, staring at the grade written on the first page. “Professor,” she said, “this says a B plus.”
“Yes, Miss Shimmer; considering Mister Arc’s performance, I’m afraid I couldn’t grade you any higher. Mister Arc, you still have a lot of room for improvement.”
“Yes, Professor,” Jaune said. “I’m well aware.”
Sunset pursed her lips and tried not to scowl as she made her way back to her seat. Jaune recoiled from her a little. 
“I’m sorry,” he offered.
“It’s fine,” Sunset sighed. It wasn’t like he wasn’t trying. She could yell at him some more, but it wouldn’t make him work harder; it would just cause trouble. She wasn’t happy about it, but it was what it was… unfortunately. 
Maybe there’s a spell to help him improve faster.
There probably is… but it would probably turn him evil or crazy or something. There’s always a catch with these things. 
“I expect you all to study the notes I’ve supplied in your own time,” Professor  Port said. “But now: a story. Twenty years ago, I was hunting dromedons on the outskirts of the western desert, when I…”
Sunset began taking notes. She wasn’t surprised to see that most of the class were more interested in studying the results of their quarter-terms, but, well, if they ever came face to face with a dromedon, wouldn’t they be sorry?
The sound of pens scratching on paper above made Sunset’s ears twitch. She risked a glance upwards – fortunately, Professor Port tended to get a bit too caught up in his own stories to pay much attention to whether the students were paying attention – to look at the row above where Team RSPT were sitting. Rainbow Dash looked half-asleep, but both Ciel and Twilight looked to be taking copious notes. Penny looked unsure of what she was supposed to be doing. 
As Sunset watched, Twilight stopped. She raised her hand. “Um, Professor Port?”
Professor Port stopped, appearing surprised to have been interrupted. “Uh, yes, Miss Sparkle?”
“Could you repeat that last part, please, sir? I didn’t quite catch it for my notes.”
“Of course, child,” Professor Port said warmly. “I was saying that these particular dromedons, being old and wise, knew to stake out the watering hole and wait for travellers to be drawn to it.”
“Right, thank you, sir,” Twilight said, scribbling that last part down.
“Not at all, Miss Sparkle, not at all. Now, as I was saying: Prabakhara was a pukka fellow in many ways, but not particularly observant, and he went to the watering hole without detecting the presence of the grimm nearby. Of course, he had left his rifle back at camp, and so, I was woken by the most dreadful scream as he came running with the dromedons in hot pursuit. Several of my gun bearers quaked in fear, but I was not perturbed…”
“Ciel,” Rainbow whispered, “are you writing down every single word?”
“Yes,” Ciel hissed.
“Why?”
“Because I can’t tell what’s important.”
Penny leaned down over the desk. “Ruby? Pyrrha? I don’t understand.”
“What don’t you understand, Penny?” Ruby asked.
“What is Professor  Port trying to tell us?”
“Nobody knows the answer to that, Penny,” Ruby replied.
“Shhh!” went Sunset and Twilight, at the exact same time. The two of them looked at one another, and then looked away, in silent mutual agreement never to mention it. 
Professor Port's class finished after an hour, and the first year students and their Atlesian guests proceeded to Modern History, where it was the turn of Doctor Oobleck to welcome the new Atlesian students.
"Remember!" he said. "Not much more than eighty years ago, it would have seemed incredible that four representatives of the Kingdom of Atlas should sit in a classroom in the Kingdom  of Vale, proudly wearing their Atlesian uniforms. And not just because there wasn't a Kingdom of Atlas at the time! It may seem commonplace to you, who sit in teams drawn from across the kingdoms, but I want you all to bear in mind that in historical terms this state of affairs is nothing short of a miracle! Treasure it and treat it with the appropriate degree of care." Doctor Oobleck paused only for long enough to sip some of his coffee. "Now, let me just hand back your quarter term papers." Doctor Oobleck began to zip around the room, handing out the quarter term papers. "Excellent work as always, Miss Schnee. Miss Valkyrie, your essays are always entertaining, but please try and cultivate a more academic style of prose in future. Miss Heartstrings, I'm afraid this paper is simply not up to scratch. I must ask you to come in for a detention on Friday afternoon to retake it, along with Miss Belladonna."
"And that is why I made you come and study every night," Sunset declared.
"So that we wouldn't fail the paper or so you wouldn't get in trouble for us failing?" Jaune asked.
"Both, obviously," Sunset replied.
"That being said," Doctor Oobleck continued. "Team Sapphire!" he suddenly appeared in front of them. "I take it that you and Miss Belladonna worked on your papers together."
"We had a study session in the library with her, Doctor, but nobody copied anybody else's work if that's what you're implying," Sunset said. It would be the worst luck in the world to get accused of copying now, after four weeks of writing Jaune's essays for him with nobody noticing.
"Fear not, Miss Shimmer; I'm not accusing your team of anything," Doctor Oobleck assured her. "In fact, I commend each and every one of you for an innovative approach to the question on the Faunus Rights Revolution. That being said," he added, as he rapidly handed back their papers, "Mister Arc, Miss Rose, I can't help but feel you overreached yourselves in the attempt; you evinced a lack of grasp on the factual detail and might have been better served with a more basic approach grounded in the content of these lessons. Miss Shimmer, I applaud your ambition, but a team leader must be aware of the limitations of her teammates as well as their strengths."
Sunset bowed her head. "Yes sir."
"And Miss Belladonna, your efforts might have been better served assisting your own team, rather than Team Sapphire."
"Yes, Doctor," Blake murmured.
Ruby started to say something but was silenced by a nudge from Sunset.
"But it wasn't Blake's fault," Ruby protested, as Doctor Oobleck turned away. "Her team ditched her."
"So? It's still her fault," Sunset replied, in a low voice. "Do you think I would have let you go to the movies?"
"You let us go to the arcade," Ruby pointed out.
"After you'd done your essay," Sunset reminded her.
"With that out of the way," Doctor Oobleck said, returning to the front of the lecture theatre. "Actually, one last note, Team Rosepetal, I don't know how far you got in the curriculum before arriving from Atlas, but any gaps in your learning, I will expect you to catch up on your own; the class cannot wait for you."
"We understand, sir," Rainbow said.
"Good, good," Doctor Oobleck replied. "In any case, let us continue. When last we left off, the faunus had just defeated General Lagune's forces at the Battle of Fort Castle, what would prove to be the final battle of the war. General Lagune was captured, and the majority of his forces were killed. Who can tell me what happened next?"
To the raised hands of Sunset, Weiss, Pyrrha, and Sky were added those of Twilight and Ciel.
Doctor Oobleck appeared to ponder for a moment, before deciding to call upon one of the new girls. "Miss Sparkle?"
"A dispute arose in the faunus camp between those who wished to march on Mistral and sack the city and those who believed that the human kingdoms would now surely negotiate peace terms," Twilight said.
"Indeed, Miss Sparklee," Doctor Oobleck said. "Unfortunately, history shows that the conflict between those who wish to seek reconciliation with humanity and those who seek vengeance upon it has continued to divide the faunus from that day to this. One might even go further and say that the arguments that erupted in the faunus camp that night prefigured those which led to the transformation of the White Fang. As you all know, the city of Mistral was not put to the sword; Ares Claudandus elected to send General Lagune back to Mistral to deliver his peace terms. What happened next?"
Ciel, Sunset, Pyrrha, and Weiss raised their hands.
"Miss Nikos."
"General Lagune returned to Mistral to find it in a state of panic, desperately preparing to withstand a siege," Pyrrha replied. "The general himself… betrayed his faunus captors and his solemn word and advised the people to continue the war. However… he was overruled and outvoted, and envoys were sent back to the faunus camp to negotiate an armistice, until a formal treaty with all four kingdoms could be negotiated."
Sunset could not help but note that Pyrrha had omitted the role played by her own great-great-grandfather in those events. When General Lagune had addressed the people on the subject of resistance to the knife, it had been Prometheus Nikos who had bodily hurled him from the rostrum and then – after apologising for his lack of political decorum, having not yet become wholly used to popular government – urged the people to seek peace while there was still a chance to do so.
I suppose she doesn't want even more people to connect the surnames.
"Correct, Miss Nikos, and I think it is fair to say that that was a decision both correct and humane on the part of Mistral," Doctor Oobleck said. "The consequences of yet more war scarcely bear thinking about. An armistice was agreed, and subsequently, representatives of the four kingdoms met with High Leader Claudandus to negotiate the Fair and Equal Accords. Who can name one of the key articles of the accords?"
It was fair to say that Doctor Oobleck did not get a huge number of volunteers to answer the questions that he threw out to the class; as a rule, it was only Sunset, Pyrrha, Weiss, and sometimes Sky Lark who would raise their hand to invite the doctor's attention. Which wasn't to say that everyone in the class was ignorant; Sunset was convinced after their little study session that Blake knew a lot of this stuff but simply didn't wish to draw attention to herself by speaking up in class. In any case, it swiftly became clear that neither Twilight or Ciel had any trouble with inviting the attention of their teacher. By the end of the lesson, they had established themselves as being as knowledgeable as the brightest and best informed of the class, and moreso than most.
When History finished, it was time for all the students to head down to the amphitheatre, passing through the courtyard and circling around the statue of the huntsman and huntress that dominated it, before reaching the tall, circular building that served as the arena for combat and important school announcements alike.
Team SAPR had special treatment as far as the locker rooms were concerned. In respect of Ruby's youth and the fact that it was kind of skeezy to make a fifteen-year old girl get undressed and showered where a bunch of men of dubious character like Flash and Cardin could see her, Team SAPR had their lockers in a different part of the building, where harmless Jaune was the only boy in sight. Today, however, it became apparent that they weren't the only ones getting special privileges, as Team RSPT also headed to a different part of the vast and spacious locker rooms to change out of their Atlas uniforms.
"I wonder what's up with Rosepetal?" Jaune asked, as the four members of Team SAPR changed out of their school uniforms and into their battle attire. “I mean, when the rest of the students from the other schools arrive, they’ll be getting changed in the first-year locker rooms, right?”
"It wouldn't surprise me if Twilight is self-conscious," Sunset mused, as she slid rounds into the chamber of Sol Invictus. "She is exactly the type to get flustered at the thought of the boys seeing her undressed."
"You say that as though it is a bad thing," Pyrrha replied in a reproachful tone. "I wouldn't have said anything under ordinary circumstances, but I was never thrilled by the idea of getting undressed and showered in front of all those boys. I don't blame Twilight for wanting to avoid that."
"You don't mind me being around here," Jaune pointed out. "I mean… not that I… there's a reason I'm all the way over here so that your locker doors are like screens, and in the shower-"
"I trust you, Jaune," Pyrrha said. "I know that you would never… take advantage in any way. Unfortunately, that's not something I can say about all of our classmates."
"If Ciel is a robot-" Ruby began.
"Ciel is not a robot," Sunset told her.
"Then she wouldn't want anybody to see her get changed because of her robo-joints," Ruby said.
"Ciel is not a robot," Sunset repeated.
"I haven't asked, but does anyone think that Penny seems rather young?" Pyrrha asked. "Closer to Ruby's age than ours. Might that have something to do with it? Perhaps Professor Ozpin and Professor Goodwitch have learned from what happened with Ruby?"
"She hasn't mentioned her age," Sunset pointed out.
"She isn't obliged to," Pyrrha answered.
Sunset could concede that, and also agree with Pyrrha that Penny did have a very youthful affect and countenance. She did look closer to Ruby's age.
I wonder what she did to get the kind of special treatment that even Rainbow Dash couldn't get?



"So, Penny," Rainbow asked. "How are you finding Beacon so far?"
Penny blinked. "Everyone is very welcoming," she answered.
"The teachers have been welcoming. I'm not so sure about all the students," Rainbow muttered.
Penny tilted her head to one side. "Are you still upset about what Blake said?"
"Okay, anyone who is not a faunus needs to stop talking to me like I overreacted," Rainbow declared, pulling her Undying Loyalty out of the locker and slinging it across her back. "Telling me that because I'm a faunus I ought to be some White Fang thug is every bit as racist as… you know what, it's just racist, and I don't care if she meant well or not. I'm an Atlesian, and I will love my kingdom if I want to."
"Atlas is not perfect," Ciel admitted, "but we strive for perfection. Whilst others are content to dwell amidst the dirt, we rise toward heaven, with our hands outstretched."
Rainbow grinned. "You know, if you talked like that more often, fewer people would think you're a robot."
Ciel scowled. "You mock me."
"No," Rainbow said. "Not now, that was… that was nice. Like poetry, but not boring."
"Poetry is not boring," Twilight protested. "Only bad poetry is boring."
"Then why is so much poetry bad?" Rainbow replied. "The point is, Penny… the point is that I was right, and I didn't overreact at all. Now, are you ready?"
"Combat ready," Penny declared.
"Awesome," Rainbow said. "Ciel?"
Ciel slapped a magazine into her monster of a rifle before collapsing it down to a more manageable length. "Ready," she announced.
"You know if you get called out to fight, that thing is going to be a liability, right?"
"I am resigned to the fact that my sparring scores will be underwhelming," Ciel replied calmly.
"Twilight?" Rainbow asked.
Twilight was encased inside a suit of lavender armour, metal plates interlocking to create a sleek casing that embraced her completely without seeming bulky or cumbersome. The joints glowed faintly with the dust she was using to power the suit, and the weapons systems concealed within the chubby gauntlets that were the only chunky part of the whole design. The visor rose, revealing Twilight's face, glasses and all, underneath. "I still prefer to let my drones do the work, but I'm as ready as I'll ever be. I'll try not to let you down."
"You couldn't," Rainbow declared. "No matter what happens in there. Did you give her a name yet?"
"Not yet."
"Come on, Twi, everybody names their weapons," Rainbow said. "They form part of our legends."
"You sound almost Mistralian," Ciel observed.
"Like your rifle doesn't have a name," Rainbow replied. "Even Penny's swords have a name. Just give it some thought, Twilight, and don't wait too long. But for now, let's go and show them what Atlas is made of."
The amphitheatre at Beacon was… well, it was a lot less impressive than the high tech training facilities at Atlas, where hard light could create simulations of all different kinds of terrain – terrain that always looked like it was made out of blocks stacked on top of one another, admittedly – and the whole room was a playground, with the observation gallery separate. By contrast, Beacon was a lot more primitive, with just a sparring ring – and not even a particularly huge sparring ring – at the back of the room, with benches on the ground floor and a gallery up above to watch from.
Beacon had a reputation as the best of the four Academies, but so far, Rainbow wasn't really seeing it.
Team RSPT sat in the upper gallery, not far from Team SAPR.
A mature blonde wearing half-moon glasses and carrying a riding crop strode out and onto the stage, her heels clicking upon the floor. "For the benefit of the newcomers amongst us, my name is Glynda Goodwitch, and amongst other duties, I am the combat instructor here at Beacon. The presence of our guests from Atlas, the first but by no means the last students to be joining us from the other three academies, should serve as a reminder to you all that the Vytal Festival is not as far off as it might seem. Those of you who wish to compete in the combat tournament will be representing not only the Kingdom of Vale, but more importantly the honour of Beacon  Academy.
"All of you have the potential to reach the point where you are ready to represent this prestigious institution in combat against representatives of Atlas, Haven, or Shade  Academies. Some of you are there already; others of you still have some work to do before you get there. Regardless, whether you wish to compete in the combat tournament or not, I will not tolerate anything less than your best efforts.
"Team Rosepetal, I'm sorry to disappoint any of you who were hoping to show your prowess this morning, but as it is the beginning of the fifth week since the semester, we'll be taking a milestone of the progress so far of our existing students. Team Sapphire, Team Iron, please make your way up onto the stage."
"Good luck Ruby!" Penny cheered. "Good luck Pyrrha!"
"Penny," Ciel said, "curb your enthusiasm."
"Is it wrong to cheer for my friends?"
"It is improper to behave like a soccer fan on the terraces," Ciel declared. "The purpose of this battle is to educate, not entertain."
That was why Rainbow leaned forward as the two teams made their way up onto the stage. She thought she knew who the winner of this fight was going to be, but while she'd already seen Pyrrha and Sunset in action, she didn't know anything about what Ruby, Jaune, or any of Team YRDN were capable of.
Now would be a good time to find out, in case she had to go up against any of them later.
Perhaps she could also see what Ozpin had been thinking making Sunset Shimmer of all people a team leader.
The two teams went into huddles at opposite sides of the stage. Professor Goodwitch seemed content to give them a few moments to come up with a plan. Rainbow tried to figure out what they were each planning as she watched them. Nora was waving her hammer, and Yang was shaking her head. Rainbow couldn't guess what it amounted to.
"Three," Professor Goodwitch announced, informing them that their time was almost up. The two teams squared off against one another, weapons at the ready.
"Two," Professor Goodwitch continued. "One. Begin!"
Rainbow was not prepared for what happened next, as Sunset dropped her gun, flung out her hands dramatically in front of her and then started shooting laser beams out of her fingertips.
Rainbow's eyes widened. Since when did Sunset Shimmer have that kind of firepower? She'd always had an energy redirection semblance, but she fired out of the palm, and not very often at that. Rainbow had certainly never seen her lay down a barrage like the one that Sunset was bombarding Team YRDN with, blasting their side of the stage of smithereens as they tried to avoid the blasts that erupted from Sunset's fingers.
While they were distracted and pinned down, the other members of Team SAPR charged in: Ruby against Nora, Pyrrha against Yang, and for a moment, Jaune against both the YRDN boys, Dove and Ren, although Sunset stopped spamming her semblance once the risk of hitting her own teammates started, picked up her weapon and teleported to the other side of the stage?
What the-? Rainbow thought as she watched Sunset appear behind Dove in a burst of green light, blast him with a bolt from her palm, and then start trying to smack him with the butt of her rifle. Could she always do that?
Team SAPR didn't have it all their own way. Ren had Jaune completely outclassed, so much so that he was able to break off from Jaune and go to Dove's aid, putting Sunset on the back foot for a second so that Dove, in turn, could finish off Jaune. Of course, by this point, Ruby had tossed Nora out of the ring, and Yang was having no luck at all against Pyrrha, unable to land so much as a glancing blow. Pyrrha took her aura into the red just as Sunset and Ruby together finished off Dove and Ren.
"Yay," Penny said softly. "Is that better, Ciel?"
"Much better, Penny, thank you," Ciel replied.
Rainbow glanced at Twilight. "Did you ever see anything like that from Sunset before?"
Twilight shook her head. "Do you think she's gotten stronger?"
"Or she was always that strong," Rainbow muttered.



At lunch, Sunset moved for Penny again, and Rainbow took the opportunity to sit down beside her. "You're a bit of a dark horse, huh?"
"That's racist," Sunset answered evasively as she forked a few salad leaves into her mouth.
"I'm a faunus too; I can't be racist, remember?" Rainbow replied, picking up a chip off her plate and placing it in her mouth. She chewed on it for a moment. "Seriously, since when could you do all that laser stuff?"
"Since I realised that having people know what I could do and respect me for it was more important than the chance to catch them off guard when the chips were down," Sunset replied.
Rainbow frowned. "So… you could do that the entire time; you were just hiding it?"
"Yep."
"And now you've decided to stop hiding it?"
"Yep."
Rainbow paused for a moment. "Okay, you and me need to have a match sooner or later. Hopefully sooner."
Sunset grinned. "What's the matter, Rainbow Dash? Do you have something to prove all of a sudden?"
Rainbow's eyes narrowed. "It's stuff like this is why you stopped hiding, isn't it?"
"Absolutely," Sunset confirmed. "And it's totally worth it."
"So, Atlas kids," Yang began. "How are you enjoying Beacon so far?"
"Is Grimm Studies always like that, or was that a special show he put on for us?" Rainbow asked.
Yang winced. "It's pretty much always like that."
Rainbow groaned. "How have you gotten through four weeks of that?"
"Don't pay any attention to any of these people," Sunset said, gesturing to Yang's team and the remainder of her own. "None of them get it despite my attempts to explain it to them."
"Are you honestly attempting to maintain that Professor Port's teaching style is efficient?" Ciel demanded incredulously.
"I wouldn't go that far, no," Sunset admitted, "but I understand what he's aiming for: it's a parable style in which each story contains a number of lessons embedded within it. In this case, there was a lot of detail about how to fight dromedons if you were listening for it."
"I understand, and I think I even picked up on most of them," Twilight said, "but that doesn't change the fact that if he wanted to tell us about dromedons, he could just… talk about dromedons?"
"So, Nora," Rainbow said, "what did the professor mean about the sulphur fish?"
Nora's cheeks reddened with embarrassment. It was Ren who answered for her. "She tried to pet them."
Rainbow's eyebrows. "You tried to pet the sulphur fish?"
"They're so small!" Nora cried. "Like baby turtles!"
"Okay, that's a new one," Rainbow said.
"At least history was pretty cool," Twilight said.
"If you can keep up with what Doctor Oobleck's saying, maybe," Yang said.
"What about you, Penny?" Ruby said. "How are you finding Beacon?"
"Wonderful," Penny declared. "Especially getting to watch you all fight. You and Pyrrha and Sunset were all incredible."
"Penny," Pyrrha said, in a tone of mild reproach.
"What?"
"It's okay," Jaune said.
"You are improving, Jaune; you proved that on Saturday," Pyrrha told him. "Don't let yourself be disheartened by this, I beg you."
"I'm not," Jaune assured her. "But I don't need Penny – or anyone else – to pretend I'm better or stronger than I am."
Then what are you doing here? Rainbow thought. There was no shame in not being a huntsman. Four of Rainbow's best friends in the world weren't huntresses – and she counted Twilight in that number – and she would never think any the less of them for that nor allow anyone else to speak any the less of them for that. There was nothing wrong in admitting that you had different talents, different dreams, that you weren't cut out for this, or that you just didn't want to do it. Rarity could have been a decent huntress, but there was no shame in her saying that she'd rather devote her life to beauty. Yes, somebody had to do this job and man the barricades, but there would always be somebody who wanted to. Somebody like Rainbow Dash.
There was no shame in turning your back on this life and finding another path, but to continue on it even though you weren't suited? Rainbow couldn't say whether Jaune Arc was improving or not, but she could say already that he was the weak link of the team. And that… that was something to be ashamed of, because at the end of the day, this wasn't a game. Lives were at stake here.
And Rainbow was surprised, very surprised, that Sunset didn't seem to see that.



Rainbow and Twilight sat on the roof of the Beacon dorm rooms, their legs dangling over the side, kicking in the air. 
It was the end of their first day at Beacon, and the sun was going down. It was a little cold. Winter was definitely on the way around here. Rainbow wouldn’t be surprised if they didn’t get some snow. 
“It’s weird that this place gets colder than Atlas, isn’t it?” Rainbow asked.
Twilight shrugged. “It makes perfect sense,” she said. “Thanks to the heating grid, Atlas is kept at a steady temperature higher than the surrounding tundra or the altitude would warrant in normal circumstances. Vale… doesn’t have that.”
“It still feels weird,” Rainbow replied. She looked at Twilight, the breeze blowing gently through her hair, making her bangs flutter back and forth. “Are you ready?”
“Sure,” Twilight said. “Go for it.”
Rainbow got out her scroll, and held it up at arm’s length while she and Twilight huddled close together so that both their faces appeared on the screen. Then she selected the call-group ‘Spectacular Six’.
Twilight had turned off her scroll, so one of the five boxes that appeared on the screen was black, with an ‘unable to connect’ message, even as the other five squares that made up her screen were blue, connecting icons flashing white upon the background. 
Rarity was the first to pick up, her hair in curlers as she sat in a pink fluffy nightgown. “Rainbow Dash! Twilight! How lovely to hear from you darlings, and about time, I daresay.”
Twilight laughed nervously. “Sorry about that, Rarity. We should have called sooner.”
“Oh, water under the bridge now, Twilight, pay it no mind at all,” Rarity said. “I see that you’re call-”
“Oh, hello girls,” Fluttershy murmured as her face, half-hidden behind her long, lilac hair, appeared in another box on the screen. 
Rainbow grinned. “Hey, Fluttershy, how’s it going?”
“Alright,” Fluttershy said. “Rarity’s taking me to the release party for the new Shadow Spade mystery.”
“Taking you or dragging you?” Rainbow asked.
“Rainbow Dash!” Rarity cried. “I do not drag Fluttershy anywhere. I sometimes suggest that she might like to expand her horizons.”
“I don’t mind,” Fluttershy said. “They’re very cosy mysteries once you get past the rough exterior.”
“Howdy, girls,” Applejack said, as her face appeared on the screen. She was without her usual Stetson, instead wearing a scarf wrapped around her head. “Sorry I’m late; I was helping Big Macintosh repaint the barn.” She frowned. “I ain’t the last one here? Now where is-”
“I had to get my cakes out of the oven,” Pinkie explained as her face appeared in the final box. “Hey Twilight, hey Rainbow Dash.”
“Now how in tarnation did you-”
“It’s a gift,” Pinkie said.
“It’s something else, I admit,” Applejack said. “Now, where exactly are you two callin’ from?”
“We’re at Beacon  Academy, in Vale,” Twilight said.
“'Beacon'?” Applejack repeated. “And what in the cider cask are you doing there so early?”
“Well, the person we were sent to bring home from Vale didn’t want to go, and so, we ended up staying here,” Rainbow explained.
Pinkie beamed. “So you chose to make someone else smile.”
Rainbow chuckled. “Yeah, I guess we did. And… it felt good to do it too.”
“So you’re not coming home?” Fluttershy asked anxiously.
“Not for a while, no,” Rainbow admitted. “Maybe for Spring Break, but maybe not. We’ll see how it goes.”
“Aww, it’s a pity you’re stuck in Vale,” Pinkie said. “But hey! It could be worse: Twilight could have ditched us all to run away to Vacuo with the Shadowbolts.”
Twilight frowned. “Why would I go to Vacuo with the Shadowbolts of all people?”
“I’m sure there’s a world out there where it makes sense,” Pinkie said.
Twilight glanced at Rainbow, who shrugged. Sometimes you just had to accept that Pinkie was… Pinkie. 
“You two gonna be okay down there in Vale?” Applejack asked. “All by yourselves till the rest of the students show up?”
Rainbow put her free hand around Twilight’s shoulder, hugging her close. “Don’t worry, I’ll take care of her.”
“Yeah, you’d better,” Applejack threatened good-naturedly.
“Applejack,” Twilight protested.
“No offence, Twilight, but you ain’t exactly the toughest nut in the… bag of nuts,” Applejack countered.
“She’ll be fine,” Rainbow insisted. “I promise I won’t let anything happen to Twilight.” She hugged Twilight even closer to her. “I promise I won’t let anything happen to you.” Rainbow kissed her on the forehead. “Nothing at all.” Twilight meant everything to all of them. Twilight was the one who had brought them all together at Canterlot and held them altogether afterwards. Twilight was a piece of all their hearts and held a piece of their hearts in turn. Twilight… Twilight was Rainbow’s hope.
She’d die for her, if she had to.
“Enough of such gloomy talk,” Rarity declared. “You should try and enjoy yourselves while you’re in Vale. I understand that The Mistralian Opera Ghost just opened in the West End, and it’s gotten such rave reviews, you really must try and see it.”
“It also has the largest public zoo in all of Remnant,” Fluttershy added.
“Uh, we’ll bear both of those in mind, thanks,” Rainbow said.
“If you could come home for spring vacation, that would be ideal, darlings,” Rarity went on. “That way, I can tailor your dresses for the Vytal Festival parties; if not, I’ll just have to rely on your measurements.” Rarity’s eyes widened. “That reminds me, I’ve heard that both Weiss Schnee and Pyrrha Nikos are attending Beacon this year.”
“That’s right,” Twilight said. “We’ve met both of them; they’re in our class.”
“Really?” Rarity cried, her blue eyes sparkling. “Why, darling, you must ask them if I might do them the honour of making them gowns for the Vytal dance. With that kind of publicity, I’m sure to-”
“Rarity, we’re not going to badger Weiss and Pyrrha into wearing your dresses,” Rainbow said.
“I didn’t ask you to badger anyone,” Rarity protested, “but if you could mention that I am, as it were, fashionably-inclined, then perhaps show them a few examples of my works – ooh, I’ll send you some of my best pictures.”
“Hold on, now, Rarity,” Applejack said. “Why don’t we let them get a little more settled in, first?”
“Oh, oh yes, of course, darlings, wouldn’t want to put any undue pressure on you, of course.”
“We’ll miss you both so much,” Fluttershy said, “but we’ll be waiting right here when you get back.”
“And then we can all go to Sugarcube Corner and have sundaes, and you can catch up on everything you’ve missed, and then, you can tell us all about your adventures,” Pinkie declared.
Rainbow’s smile was broad and bright. “That sounds great, Pinkie; I’m looking forward to it already. You okay to keep looking after Tank for me?”
“Sure thing,” Pinkie chirruped.
“And Applejack, Rarity, can you two look in on Scootaloo from time to time, make sure she’s doing okay?”
“Of course, dear.”
Applejack nodded. “You betcha. You’re gonna call her, right?”
“Yeah, I’ll do it now,” Rainbow said. “Or when we’re finished.”
“We’re really sorry about this,” Twilight said. “It’s just… duty calls, I guess.”
“We understand,” Applejack said. “We’ll miss you, but we understand.”
“We love you!” Pinkie cried.
“We love you too, Pinkie,” Twilight said. “We love all of you.”
A chorus of goodbyes echoed out of the scroll as, one by one, everyone hung up. The screen went dark as Rainbow looked at it. 
“They’ll be fine,” Twilight said. “And so will we, and we'll be together again before you know it.”
“I know,” Rainbow replied. “Now I’ve gotta call Scootaloo.”
“Right,” Twilight murmured. “Do you want me to stay for that?”
Rainbow shook her head. “No, you go back to the dorm room. I’ll be there before curfew.”
Twilight stood up. “You know, I don’t think they have a curfew here at Beacon.”
Rainbow looked up at her. “Really?”
“No,” Twilight said. “No curfew, no weekend passes; you just come and go as you please, so long as you show up to class.”
Rainbow frowned. “That’s a strange way to run an academy.”
“It seems to work for them,” Twilight replied. “I’ll leave you to it. Good luck.”
Rainbow snorted. “Thanks, Twi.”
She turned away and listened to the sound of Twilight’s footsteps on the roof, fading away as she descended the stairs.
Rainbow looked down at her scroll and sighed. “Hey, Scootaloo, I won’t be around much for a while… just like your parents. I’m sorry, but I can’t avoid it… again, just like your parents. Just like they say, anyway.” She sighed again. Scootaloo’s a good kid, she’ll understand.
Doesn’t mean she’ll like it, though.
Nevertheless, she deserved to know. Rainbow called Scootaloo.
It was only a few seconds before Scootaloo’s face appeared in the screen, her dark purple hair styled the same as Rainbow’s, her pony ears pricked up happily. “Rainbow Dash!”
Rainbow smiled. “Hey there, Scootaloo! How are you doing?”
“Oh, I’m okay. Just chilling in my room. Auntie Lofty made cookies.”
“Your aunt makes the best cookies,” Rainbow Dash said. “But don’t tell Pinkie I said that.”
Scootaloo giggled. “Your secret’s safe with me.”
“That is why you’re the best little sister I could hope for,” Rainbow said. She hesitated. “Listen, Scootaloo… I’m calling because… because I’m not going to be around much this year. Not at all for a few months at least.”
Scootaloo frowned. “Why? I thought you were going to come visit next weekend, and we were going to go camping.”
“Yeah, I know, that was the plan,” Rainbow admitted, “but… I’m in Vale now, and I’m going to be stuck here for a while. It’s not great, but…”
“Duty calls,” Scootaloo murmured.
“Yeah,” Rainbow said unhappily. “I’ll try and get back for Spring Break, but I don’t know if I’ll be able to.”
“But why are you in Vale so early?” Scootaloo asked. “You said you didn’t ship out until next semester.”
“That… things change sometimes,” Rainbow offered feebly. “I can’t explain it - like ‘can’t explain because it’s classified’ kind of can’t explain it - but I’ll be back after the Vytal Festival at the latest! And then we can hang out and do all kinds of awesome stuff together before the next year starts.”
“I’ve heard that before,” Scootaloo muttered.
“Not from me,” Rainbow said fiercely. “When I say I’m sorry, I mean it, and when I say that I’ll make it up to you, I mean that too!” She exhaled heavily. “You know that I do this for you, right? It’s a mean world out there, and someone has to defend it. And since… since that’s something I can do, then I… then I gotta do it.” It was the only thing that she could do. The only way that she could make herself useful to Twilight and the others. Gods knew they didn’t need her for her brains or her creative talents. But she had two good hands and some talent with her aura, so… so she could keep them safe. 
Them, and Scootaloo, and Ciel and Penny, and the whole of Atlas if she had to. 
Because she was their protector, the strong one.
Scootaloo stared up at her from out of her scroll. “I know,” she said quietly. “And I believe you.”
“Great,” Rainbow said, relief evident in her voice. “Because I will try and get back, and I will make it up to you. And hey, you’ll never guess who’s here at Beacon with me.”
Scootaloo pondered. “Applejack?”
“No, Twilight, but that’s not who I meant: Pyrrha Nikos.”
Scootaloo gasped. “From the hospital?”
“Yeah, she remembered you,” Rainbow said. It was kind of true. Close enough, and it seemed to make Scootaloo happy.
“Really?” she cried. “Do you think she’d mind if I recorded her a message or sent her an email or something?”
“I think she’d like that a lot,” Rainbow said, “but I’ll check to make sure and pass her address onto you.”
“Thanks, Rainbow Dash; she’s almost as cool as you are.”
Rainbow chuckled. “Listen, you take care of yourself, okay, and your aunts too.”
“I will. You’re going to call again, right?”
“Every week, if I can,” Rainbow replied. “Be good, and good luck out there.”
“Speak to you soon, Rainbow Dash!” Scootaloo cheered, as the call finished.
Rainbow stared down at the blank scroll in her hands for a moment before she put it away.
“Is that your sister?”
Rainbow looked around. Blake Belladonna was standing beside her, standing over her, looking down at her. Able to see her scroll.
Rainbow’s lip curled in contempt. “How long have you been standing there?”
“Not long,” Blake said. “I wasn’t eavesdropping.”
“What do you want?” Rainbow demanded.
“To talk to you,” Blake said. She hesitated. “I’m… sorry that we got off on the wrong foot on Saturday. I didn’t mean to offend you.”
“How was I supposed to take it?” Rainbow snapped. She growled wordlessly and remembered that Blake had come up here to apologise. Twilight would want me to play nice. “Sit down,” she gestured to the space on the rooftop beside her.
Blake sat down and looked out at the Vale CCT that rose up across the campus. “Quite a view from up here.”
“It’s not bad,” Rainbow replied. “It’s no Atlas, but it’s not bad.”
"Atlas," Blake murmured, "I've heard… it's beautiful."
"It's… sure, it's a nice place to look at," Rainbow acknowledged. "And on a clear day, if you get close to the city limits or the top of the academy tower, it feels like you can see the whole of Remnant from up there, but… it's the people that make it what it is. That make it the greatest place in the world."
Blake frowned.
Rainbow frowned right back at her. "What?"
"That's… not what I've heard," Blake replied. "Quite the opposite, actually."
Rainbow thought about what that meant. "You heard that the city is beautiful, but the people are… nice?"
"A little… less than nice," Blake admitted. "I… I had a friend, a faunus girl, a chameleon. She was born in Mantle, but her parents sent her to live in Atlas, and part time, she attended an exclusive prep school in Crystal  City."
"Crystal City – you mean she went to Crystal Prep?" Rainbow asked.
"She said it was terrible."
"You're basing everything you know about big bad Atlas on the word of someone who went to Crystal Prep?" Rainbow sputtered in disbelief. "Of course she got the wrong idea, it… it was Crystal Prep!" She paused. "Are we talking about Ilia Amitola, here?"
Blake's eyes widened. "You know her?"
"She was a Crystal Prep Shadowbolt; I met her at the Friendship Games," Rainbow explained. "Until she stopped showing up. Word was that she suddenly got outed as a faunus, freaked out, and started attacking people."
"Her parents died!" Blake cried. "Of course she was upset."
"You're right, I shouldn't have said it like that," Rainbow conceded. "But the point is: she left on her own. Even though she'd broken the jaws of other students, Principal Cinch wasn't going to kick her out. That's the kind of school she went to, and that's why she thinks that way about Atlas. Now, if Ilia's parents had sent her to Canterlot-"
"Then she'd be like you?" Blake asked, her tone making it clear how unconvinced she was.
"I know that Atlas isn't perfect," Rainbow replied. "But I also know that it's getting better. Since Cadance got elected to the Council, she and General Ironwood have been pushing to… you know it's illegal to bar faunus from anywhere now? They got the law changed two years ago."
"Are you telling me that no faunus is ever refused service?" Blake replied.
"No, I'm not saying that; I'm saying things can change for the better, and they will, eventually."
"How long is 'eventually'?"
"I don't know, and why do you care?" Rainbow snapped. "What else can we do but keep pushing? Atlas isn't perfect, but it's full of good people. Good, beautiful people with hearts that could open for a Low Town punk like me. And they're pushing, for me, and when I'm C in C, I'll keep pushing too, for the people who'll come after."
Blake was silent for a moment. "You don't have to pretend to me."
"What are you talking about?"
"Your teammates aren't here right now; we're all alone," Blake said. "You don't have to pretend; you can be honest for the first time-"
"If you want me to throw you off this roof, you can just ask," Rainbow growled, cutting Blake off. She got to her feet, so that she was looking down on this meddling busybody who presumed to know her and to judge her friends. "You don't know me, you don't know my team, and you don't know my friends."
"I know they're all human," Blake replied, as she too rose to her feet. "Sunset told me as much. She didn't name you - it was before you got here - but the implication was clear."
"Sunset Shimmer doesn't know me either," Rainbow growled, "and frankly, she's not nearly as perceptive as she thinks she is."
"Do you feel like you're one of them?" Blake demanded.
"I am one of them, in every way that matters," Rainbow replied heatedly.
"Do you join in when they insult faunus, when they call them dirty or liars?"
"My friends don't say things like that, and neither do Ciel or Penny."
"You will never be one of them," Blake declared, her voice tremulous and trembling, "and there will come a moment when you realise that you never were."
“You think they're really your friends? Do you really believe that? Open your eyes, Dash, you'll never be nothing but a faunus to them!”
Rainbow bared her teeth, both at Blake and at the memory of Gilda's words, some of the last words that her old friend had ever spoken to her. She took a step forward. Blake retreated a step.
"I don't know who you think you are," Rainbow snarled, "but I don't need you to save me from the awful Atlesians who are… whatever you think they're doing to me. I've been saved already, and I don't need some human who had a faunus friend once and thinks that we should all join the White Fang because that's not profiling at all to tell me what to think. I know who cares about me. I know who's got my back. I don't need you to do what my friends never did and act like a racist who can’t see beyond my ears. Now get out of my sight; we're done."
Blake hesitated, staring defiantly into Rainbow's face. She turned and walked away, her footsteps brisk as she departed from the roof.
Rainbow took a deep breath. And then another. Her shoulders heaved. It wasn't true, what Blake had said. It wasn't true any more than what Gilda had said was true.
Rainbow hoped it wasn't true.
A glow of light began to shine from beneath, beyond the edge of the rooftop. It was a white glyph, one of a series of glyphs which formed in the otherwise empty air, gleaming brightly even as the sky began to darken as the sun went down. Weiss Schnee lept deftly from glyph to glyph, a gleaming figure herself in her white bolero and glittering tiara, until she was standing in the air looking ever so slightly down upon Rainbow Dash.
"I wish," she said, "that people would learn that we can hear everything they say up here from our dorm room."
Rainbow Dash assumed an 'at ease' posture. "I apologise for disturbing you, Miss Schnee. It won't happen again."
Weiss sighed. "You don't need to do that."
"Do what, Miss Schnee?" Rainbow asked.
"Bow and scrape to my family name," Weiss informed her. "I'm not going to call my father and have him speak to General Ironwood just because you didn't offer to shine my shoes. I may be a Schnee, but more importantly, I'm a huntress in training and a student at this school. The expected courtesy from one student to another is all I ask."
Rainbow was silent for a moment. "Okay, Miss- Weiss. I didn't meant to-"
"You didn't," Weiss assured her. "Believe me, I understand why you did it."
Rainbow nodded. "Thank you," she said. She paused. "So, you heard everything, huh?"
"Hey, Rainbow Dash!" Flash called from down below.
Rainbow grinned. "Hey, Flash, how's it going?"
Flash hauled himself up onto the rooftop. "It's okay," he said. "Listen, don't pay attention to Blake. You're right; she doesn't know your friends, but I do. Just because I was wrong about Twilight doesn't mean I'm wrong when I say that those girls… there's no way that what you feel for one another isn't real. No way."
"I don't know what's gotten into Blake lately," Weiss declared. "She was always quiet and subdued, but she was also incredibly brave in the leadership field exercise. She never struck me as being the kind of person to interfere in other people's affairs or to be so militantly opposed to Atlas. I can't think what's caused this change."
"She thought she'd found someone who'd agree with her?" Rainbow suggested.
Weiss folded her arms. "Perhaps. It's… a little disappointing," she said. "I agree with you that Atlas isn't perfect, any more than the SDC is flawless, but as you put it, we have no choice but to keep pushing forward."
"Right," Rainbow said softly. "Listen, even if you are a student first and a Schnee second, you're still a daughter of Atlas, and so if there's anything that my team can help you with, you can still call on us to help you out. And that goes for you, too, Flash. There's… there's some old fancy words that General Ironwood said, began with a C."
"Civis Atlarus Sum?" Weiss suggested.
"Yeah, that's the one," Rainbow agreed. "Atlas has got you covered."
Weiss chuckled. "Good to know," she said. "Although I'm not sure how much of a huntress I'd be if I needed it."
"But if we do need it, we'll be glad to have it," Flash said.
"Quite," Weiss agreed. "And one more thing, Rainbow Dash: if your friend really wants to send me a dress, I'm certainly not about to refuse it."