Team COPR, freshman-level students at the world-reknowned Beacon Academy. Welcome to the official Team COPR tumblr! RPs not currently open at the moment, but stay tuned for the first Episode of their adventure! Click the dots below for important links!
A quick visual ref and bio for some side characters. These guys were all introduced in part one of Episode One. Here's Turk, Poppy, Peony, and Primrose.
Short bios under the cut!
Turk Tiffany
Age: 17
Gender: Male
Color: Blue
Character he's based off of: The Little Engine That Could
Weapon: TBA
Semblance: TBA
Personality: Turk is a generally docile dude. He tries to avoid conflict as much as possible, and keeps an upbeat personality. He tries to look on the bright side of things as much as he can, but can have a little trouble being positive sometimes. He's clumsy, goofy, and a bit of a chicken, but is working hard to become the person he wants to be.
History: Turk's mother and aunt were both Huntresses-in-training. They both attended Beacon, but due to his mother getting seriously injured, only his aunt graduated. Both are retired now, and have settled down. Turk's dad works with a train shipping company. His company has been working with the Schnee family for a while now, adding to Mr. Tiffany's discomfort with the rising White Fang attacks on shipping trains. Turk has always wanted to follow in his mother's shoes. However, Hunting doesn't take to him as easily as it did his mother. He attended Signal, then graduated and is now attending Beacon Academy.
Notes:
A big tech nerd.
Was pushed around and bullied a lot as he grew up, but has recently started to learn to cope and live happier.
Has terrible eyesight--used to have to wear glasses, but has since transitioned to contact lens.
Emblem is a stylized train.
Outfit based on old-timey train conductors.
Name recalls "Turquoise". Last name recalls Tiffany Blue, a shade of blue.
Poppy Gammon
Age: 17
Gender: Female
Color: Hot pink
Character she's based off of: The Three Little Pigs (Second pig--sticks)
Weapon: TBA
Semblance: TBA
Personality: Quiet and reserved, Poppy rarely speaks. She's a serious and determined young woman, but other than that, she's hard to read. Despite not being the best conversationalist, she lets her actions speak louder than her words, being very strong and very bold in everything she does. She obviously has a big heart, as she cares a lot for her sisters. Anything beyond that is unknown to anyone outside the Gammon Triplets.
History: Poppy was the first born of the Gammon Triplets, born two minutes before Peony. She is the second oldest of the Gammon children. The triplets have an older sister, Petunia, who is a full-fledged and world-travelling Huntress, having wild adventures with her team. The triplets rarely ever left each other's respective sides as they grew up, becoming very close. They attended school and clubs together, and have only recently started trying to do their own thing, with the knowledge that they may not be put on the same team. They all attended Signal, then graduated to Beacon Academy.
Notes:
Has one part of the powerful Gammon Armor, the greaves. Each Gammon child has a piece of the armor. When put in a full set, it's said to become "immensely powerful". No one outside of the Gammon family knows what this means.
The tallest sister. Has her father's stature and nose.
Listens to a TON of rap music.
Very invested in modern fashion. Knows how to sew really well.
Emblem is a heavily stylized pig's snout.
Outfit based on the first dress in this photoset.
Name based off of the Poppy flower. Gammon is a pork dish.
Peony Gammon
Age: 17
Gender: Female
Color: Pale pink
Character she's based off of: The Three Little Pigs (First pig--straw)
Weapon: TBA
Semblance: TBA
Personality: Shy and timid, Peony is a bashful girl. She's a little more outspoken than her tall and silent older sister, but personality-wise, is much more withdrawn than her younger sister. She tries to be outgoing and brave, but often finds herself unable to utter more than a tiny peep. She's not as fashionable or makeup-saavy as Poppy and Primrose, but tries her hardest to present herself in a way she likes. She's trying to teach herself to be more brave, but is constantly overshadowed by her bolder sisters.
History: Peony was the second born of the Gammon Triplets, born two minutes after Poppy, and three minutes before Primrose. She is the third oldest of the Gammon children. The triplets have an older sister, Petunia, who is a full-fledged and world-travelling Huntress, having wild adventures with her team. The triplets rarely ever left each other's respective sides as they grew up, becoming very close. They attended school and clubs together, and have only recently started trying to do their own thing, with the knowledge that they may not be put on the same team. They all attended Signal, then graduated to Beacon Academy.
Notes:
Has one part of the powerful Gammon Armor, the cuirass. Each Gammon child has a piece of the armor. When put in a full set, it's said to become "immensely powerful". No one outside of the Gammon family knows what this means.
Shortest sister. Has her mother's nose and facial structure.
Likes hoodies and coffee. She wants to live in a lighthouse one day. Likes books and fancies herself a writer.
Emblem is a pig's tail, surrounded by peony petals to make the entire thing look like a flower.
Outfit based on the little girl's cute-as-hell outfit in this video.
Named based off of the Peony flower. Gammon is a pork dish.
Primrose Gammon
Age: 17
Gender: Female
Color: Warm Pink
Character she's based off of: The Three Little Pigs (Third pig--brick)
Weapon: TBA
Semblance: TBA
Personality: Calculating and cynical, Primrose is usually seen as the meanest of the Gammon Triplets. She's confident and bold, very rarely taking bullshit from anyone. She's very confrontational, getting into fights and feuds with many people. But her cold glare and confident aura usually intimidates her foes. Many try to pigeonhole her as a fashion-oriented preppy bitch, but she makes sure to let them know that she finds confidence and power in the way she presents herself. Secretly, she's trying to be a bit more friendly and calm, like her sisters, but is too hotheaded to make much progress.
History: Primrose was the third born of the Gammon Triplets, born five minutes after Poppy, and three minutes after Peony. She is the youngest of the Gammon children (but don't underestimate her!). The triplets have an older sister, Petunia, who is a full-fledged and world-travelling Huntress, having wild adventures with her team. The triplets rarely ever left each other's respective sides as they grew up, becoming very close. They attended school and clubs together, and have only recently started trying to do their own thing, with the knowledge that they may not be put on the same team. They all attended Signal, then graduated to Beacon Academy.
Notes:
Has one part of the powerful Gammon Armor, the gauntlets. Each Gammon child has a piece of the armor. When put in a full set, it's said to become "immensely powerful". No one outside of the Gammon family knows what this means. The oldest sister, Petunia, has the final piece in the set, the helmet.
Middle-sized sister. She's taller than her older sister, Peony. Has her mother's nose, but her grandfather's facial structure.
Spends a lot of time blogging and vlogging.
Also has a passion for armor making. Can be seen metalworking in the Beacon armory.
Emblem is a stylized pig's head, with large tusks.
Outfit based on the eighth dress in this photoset.
Name based off of the Primrose flower. Gammon is a pork dish.
Hey all! This is the first part of the first "episode" of Team COPR's adventure. I plan on making this entire episode writing-only, but may do writing-drawing-comic hybrids in the future! Enjoy!
“Hello and welcome,” the calm, female voice crooned. “My name is Glynda Goodwitch, professor here at Beacon Academy.”
The voice emanated from a hologram of a middle-aged woman, with light skin and light hair. She wore a black dress and thin glasses, framing the beautiful face of the older woman.
“If you are hearing this, then you are among the privileged few who have received the honor of being selected to attend this prestigious academy.” The recording continued, addressing the small crowd of young students in the large, open metal room. People turned away from the windows of the airship to give the hologram their full attention, whilst others sat forward in their padded chairs to do the same.
“Our world is experiencing an incredible time of peace,” Professor Goodwitch’s hologram adjusted her glasses as she spoke. “And as future Huntsmen and Huntresses, it is your duty to uphold it. You have demonstrated the courage needed for such a task. And now it is our turn to provide you with the knowledge and the training to protect our world.
“So go forth, young fighters, young warriors and protectors. Go forth to the future, the future that you bring, and change the world. You have proven that you’re ready for Beacon Academy, and Beacon Academy is ready to welcome you with open arms.”
With that, the hologram zipped out of existence, leaving a short quiet in her wake. Within a moment, however, the previous din of the crowd returned, multiplied by the excited chatter about Professor Goodwitch’s speech.
A little ways away from the packed center of the crowd was a young man, sitting on one of the benches that lined the airship’s lobby. His back was to the window, but he would constantly look over his shoulder with excitement, hoping to soon spy the giant towers of Beacon.
The young man turned back toward the body of students, smiling. He was finally there! Or, almost there, really.
He had been looking forward to attending a Hunting school for years, and of all schools to attend, he had managed to make it to Beacon! The most prestigious, accomplished, and success-filled Hunting school in the entire continent!
The excitement was making this young man a little restless. His leg bounced impatiently, and his fingers fiddled with the folder in his hands. He realized he probably shouldn’t mess with this folder, lest he damaged the important documentation within. The label on the front was neat and clean, printed with his name: Caruss Shaba.
Caruss occupied his mind by taking in his surroundings. He was riding in one of the fanciest airships he’d ever been in. Which, in hindsight, might not mean very much considering he’d never been in any other airships before. But that was beside the point. The clean, metal floors looked blue as they reflected the sky through the large, room-sized windows. Outside those windows, the grand capital city of Vale sprawled to the horizon, filled with tall buildings and busy streets.
The people within the airship is what really interested Caruss, however. All young people about his age, not yet into their twenties and young adulthood, but not entirely in their young, teenage years either. They were all students, like him, excited to jumpstart their careers and new lives here at Beacon.
Caruss had never seen such a variety of people before. Tall, short, male and female, some packed with muscles and others lithe and lean. They wore all sorts of stylish and strange clothing, painting the room in a plethora of colors. However, even in this room filled with variety, Caruss still felt as though he stood out a bit, as there was no one who looked just like him.
He was dark-skinned, with long, dark dreadlocked hair. It was bound in two metal bands, pulling his dreads mostly out of his face. He wore his favorite orange halter, with his long orange gloves. Khaki-colored pants and a tan waistcloth sat in stark contrast to the red cushioning in the seats.
With his own appearance in mind, Caruss took another look at the crowd around him. There were so many different kinds of people, more than he had ever seen before back in his hometown. With all this variety, maybe he didn’t stand out too much after all?
With this in mind, he confidently sat up straighter, pressing his large, tawny wings against the warm glass behind him. The wings were easily the most noticeable part of the young Faunus man, especially consider how uncommon winged-Faunus were in this part of the world. Even when folded, they towered above his head and took up a lot of space to either side, despite him having pushed them as close to his body as possible. He didn’t want to make the people around him feel uncomfortable with his wings’ overbearing presence. He was also aware that people out of his hometown had terrible special awareness, and even on his short, two-day trip on this airship, the people around him constantly bumped and banged into his wings.
Caruss didn’t let this get him down, however. He was far too excited about finally attending Beacon! His dream of over three years was coming true right before his eyes. He remembered the day he decided he wanted to become a Hunter; the day he decided he wanted to dedicate his life to helping and inspiring others. The day he decided he wanted nothing less than to change the world.
It had been a long journey, since then. Dropping out of public school and dedicating his time to training to become a Hunter was an endeavor of all of three years. He sent in his application a few months back, and was called to take a rigorous two-week Hunting exam. That was the first time he ever ventured farther from his hometown than the nearby city, a mere hour’s drive from the Faunus Reservation he lived on. The day he left the Natura Reserve, and saw the bright lights of Dasos fade away in the rearview mirror, he knew his life was going to change forever.
Caruss was suddenly ripped from his thoughts when a commotion broke out in the crowd of students before him. People rushed to the windows, pointing and smiling excitedly.
“There it is!”
“Finally”
“Oh wow, Beacon’s so big!”
“Hey, guys, it’s true! You can still see Signal from here!”
Caruss whipped around in his seat, careful to not let his wings swing and hit any of the nearby students crowding the windows. Sure enough, the glistening, silver towers of Beacon shone white in the sunlight. They sat proudly and stoutly on their cliff, towering above the entire city of Vale.
Caruss couldn’t possibly contain his smile. This beautiful place was where he was going to live for the next four years! He couldn’t have chosen a more majestic place!
Caruss’ excitement only doubled when a voice on the loudspeakers began to give instructions to the students, to gather their things and prepare to disembark. The crowd dispersed, as people went to ready themselves to finally exit the airship.
Caruss merely clung to his folder. He carried no extra luggage, as all his belongings fit nicely into the small bag that was currently within the cargo compartment of the airship. The students had been informed upon boarding that any luggage they immediately needed for the trip was to be kept on their persons, as they wouldn’t see any of their other things until after they had their dorm room at Beacon.
Caruss watched eagerly as the airship began to descend upon the Academy. He saw the large stretch of road that extended beyond the cliff’s edge, knowing this was where the ship would eventually dock.
The entire process of deboarding the airship took another thirty minutes. The ship had to land, the students had to be sure they had all their belongings. Everyone filed out, performing a last-second ID check before they could leave. Finally, Caruss stepped out of the airship and into the Vale sun.
The crowd of students were then corralled down the airstrip and toward the Beacon campus. Caruss looked desperately around, trying to find a way to escape the busy throng. He had been on that airship for days, and keeping his wings tucked in the entire time had caused them to start cramping. He eagerly wanted to stretch them and relieve the muscles within.
“’Scuse me, pardon me!” Caruss said politely, pushing his way through. His deep voice was easily heard over the commotion. He got a lot of strange looks as he passed—but at this point, he was used to strange looks—and eventually made it through the bulk of the crowd. He stood by the edge of the pavement, by the bright green grass of the grounds around the school. Feeling confident, he unfurled his wings.
The warm sunlight felt good on his feathers, and his muscles seem to sigh in relief as he stretched them to their full span of fourteen feet. He pivoted his wings, flexing the muscles beneath. Their tawny color turned slightly golden in the sun.
The looks directed at Caruss were very prevalent now. He noticed dozens of people looking at him, some stopping completely in their tracks and staring. Caruss forced himself to ignore them, as usual.
He was used to getting strange looks. On the trips outside of his hometown, when he would go to the city with his mother, he used to get lots of strange looks. Despite the city having a large Faunus population, Faunus and Nonfaunus alike found him a strange sight. Winged Faunus were rare, with only a couple dozen communities of them across Remnant. The most common Faunus were of mammalian variety; cats, dogs, rabbits, wolves, and deer being the most prominent.
The looks Caruss got from Faunus were short and fleeting. They diverted their eyes quickly, out of respect. They knew how it felt to be gawked at.
The Nonfaunus, however, were a different story. They would stop and stare and gawk at Caruss constantly. When he was younger, he always had his like-winged mother with him, and she would reassure him that they were only interested in his wings, they wouldn’t hurt him.
As an adult, and especially when he began his trip to Beacon, he had to take the brunt of the stares all on his own. Every time he’d look up and take in his surroundings, at least three heads would guiltily dart down, looking away and trying to make it seem as though they weren’t staring. Every day there was at least two people who shamelessly continued to stare.
All things considered, though, Caruss didn’t mind it. Yes, they were being rude, but they honestly didn’t know any better. Caruss was always taught to assume the best, of any situation and any person. He knew the reason Nonfaunus would stare was because they didn’t understand him. They were entranced by his wings, things they’d never seen before, and considered him this strange, exotic person. Sometimes it got to be a bit too much, but he would take a thousand slack-jawed stares any day to the hateful, vindictive, and cruel glares that were directed at him sometimes.
Caruss always assumed the best in people, but when Nonfaunus looked at him like that—like he was a filthy criminal or an animal—his heart would fall. The majority of the people he’d see weren’t like that, but there were still a good number who were.
All these thoughts went through Caruss’ mind as he continued to stretch. Keeping his wings splayed behind him, he began to stretch his arms and legs, which were a little cramped as well. He had just finished a toe-touch when he gave his wings some final flaps before they would be tucked away again. He drew his wings back quickly, and suddenly felt a solid something smack into his left wing. A “THUD” jarred his wing, and a loud “D’OH!” resounded through the air, followed by another thud.
Dread rose in Caruss’ stomach. He had hit someone with his wing! He quickly whirred around and saw a crumpled, blue figure on the ground.
“Oh, no!” He cried. “I’m so sorry, I didn’t see you there! Are you alright?!”
The person on the ground was a young man about his age. He had light skin and vivid curly red hair. He wore a dark blue waistcoat, with a lighter blue shirt underneath, sleeves rolled to the elbows. His blue pants had grass stains on them now, along with his previously stark white gloves. The young man adjusted his red bandana, then looked up at Caruss.
“Oh wow!” A smile was splayed across the young man’s freckled face. “That’ll wake you up, that’s for sure!” He laughed, and rolled onto his backside.
Relief washed over Caruss. The guy wasn’t mad at him! Thank goodness!
Caruss reached a hand toward the redheaded boy. “You’re not hurt then?”
“Nah!” The guy took Caruss’ hand, using it to level himself as he stood up. “Believe me, dude, I’ve taken worse beatings than that!”
Caruss helped to pull him to his feet. “I’m sorry I hit you, though!” He said. “I should’ve been paying better attention to my surroundings.”
“Don’t worry about it!” The young man’s smile didn’t waver. Caruss was able to get a better look at his face now. Freckles dotted his cheeks and the bridge of his nose, and wiry red facial hair lined his chin and jaw. His eyes were a deep blue.
The young man drew back his hand and continued. “It was my fault for not watching where I was going. I mean, your wings are huge! I’m the dummy who ran into them! But let’s not worry about that, dude, it’s fine!”
“You sure?” Caruss asked politely.
“Positive, man!” The young man put out his hand again for a handshake. “The name’s Turk.”
“Same to you!” Turk looked down the runway, toward the Beacon campus. “Honestly, I’m just glad to finally be here! It feels like we were on that airship forever!”
Caruss nodded in agreement. “I was getting a little cramped in there. Erm, as you noticed.” He added sheepishly.
Turk chuckled. “So is this your first time in Vale?” He said as he began to walk toward Beacon, following the flow of the crowd.
Caruss fell into step beside him. “Yeah. I’ve actually never even been in the country before today. I’m originally from Mistral.”
“Mistral? Wow, you’ve had a pretty long trip then, huh?”
“You could say that. What about you? Are you from Vale?”
“Yeah! I’m from a little town a couple hours south of here: Devonshire. But I’ve lived here in the city Vale for the last four years now.” Turk pointed to his left, in the direction of the ocean. “I’m a student from Signal.”
Caruss had heard of Signal before. Something of a Hunting-high school, it acted as the prestigious private school that prepared students for attendance at professional-level hunting academies—namely Beacon. Upon graduating there, students had the necessary credits and experience to be accepted to a Hunting academy. The alternative to this is the arduous, two-week exam that tests whether someone has what it takes to be a Hunter or Huntress. This is the exam that Caruss took.
“Wow, Signal!” Caruss smiled. “What was that like?”
“Crowded, mainly.” Turk scratched the hair on his chin. “Not too different from here, really.”
The two were fully immersed in the crowd now, joining the throng of people as they passed through the first of many arches.
Up close, Beacon’s architecture was truly a sight to behold. Spires crowded around the center castle, with numerous arches and flying buttresses. The shortest tower could’ve been four stories, while the tallest soared like a skyscraper into the air. Numerous short dorms, observatories, gymnasium buildings and battle arenas sat much lower to the ground, rarely rising about a story or two. Clean, paved roads lay sprawled throughout the entire campus, weaving their way between buildings.
Before Turk and Caruss lay, by far, the largest set of buildings on the cliff. The grand central castle towered over them, casting a long shadow on the buildings behind it. Caruss saw at the very top a series of pendulums, almost like a massive grandfather clock. He made a mental note to fly up there and explore it if he got the chance.
“This place is incredible.” Caruss breathed.
“Yeah.” Turk nodded in agreement. “I’ve been looking at the towers of this place from all the way at Signal for years. It’s pretty cool to finally be inside it, yanno?”
The two found themselves being corralled into the main entrance of the largest castle. They walked past the soft, green grass and the big stone statue in the front and into the vast, main lobby of this building. A high ceiling and long windows made this place almost as bright as outside. Waiting at the top of a twin staircase was an old, bespectacled woman with dark skin and darker green hair.
“Greetings, students!” Her voiced boomed with surprising volume for one as elderly as herself, getting the attention of everyone in the room. “My name is Professor Evergreen. I’m here to start your orientation here at Beacon.”
Professor Evergreen began to descend the stairs as she continued. “Today, a group of thirty students will tour with each member of the staff. You will be taken around the campus, taught the appropriate emergency procedures, and become registered in our various databases. If you are standing between the first and third window to the north, you will be going with Professor Port…”
As Professor Evergreen announced the groups, the crowd began to move and throng with people walking to their respective tour guides. To Caruss’ delight, he and Turk were put in the same group.
The two young men shuffled through the crowd and close to their tour guide, a thin woman with light orange hair, Professor Peach. She wore pink trousers and a ruffled, white blouse. A serene smile played upon her lips. She looked over her group of students and said “Well, it seems like we have everyone then. If you’ll all follow me, we’re going to tour the eastern quarter of the campus first!”
She led the students out the door, and back out into the sun.
The group as a whole would stop by each important landmark, and Professor Peach would give a quick description of what resided within. They passed multiple arenas, dedicated to different kinds of weapons training. They passed a couple large, squat dorm buildings, and a taller red one reserved for Beacon staff members. They stopped by one of Beacon’s four food service locations and Beacon’s large, bustling CCT tower.
Between buildings, Caruss and Turk would chat to pass the time, as did the rest of the group. Caruss learned that Turk’s mother and aunt both attended Beacon, although only his aunt graduated, due to a debilitating injury his mother sustained. Turk talked about how his dad worked as a train conductor for the Dust manufacturing giant, the Schnee company.
“You know, I hear one of the Schnee children is actually here at Beacon.” Turk said after the tour guide stopped by the office of student services.
“Really?” Caruss imagined what kind of person the child of such a rich family could be like. “That’s interesting. Are they in our class?”
“Nah,” Turk said. “She’s in the semester ahead of us. Same age, but started here last year.”
“Huh.” Caruss was honestly shocked. Someone so rich and prosperous was attending the same academy as him. Beacon really did attract all sorts of people, with vastly different backgrounds.
“And this building here,” Professor Peach’s high, singsong voice caught Caruss’ attention. “Is one of the many labs dedicated to delicate research. This one in particular is for Grimm studies.”
The crowd muttered uncomfortably.
Honestly, Caruss felt a little uncomfortable himself. His experience with the vicious, bloodthirsty Creatures of Grimm was limited to a few encounters here and there. They were always small, stragglers from whatever main population may have existed in the darkness they all hail from. Caruss knew having a facility dedicated to Grimm research would be instrumental in the battle against them, but wondered if that meant live specimens would be brought on campus.
As if reading his thought, a high, female voice chimed from within the crowd “Do they bring any live specimens to these labs?”
Every face turned to the source of the voice, including Turk and Caruss.
A tan-skinned girl with dark brown hair stood proud. She was short, and somewhat fat, Caruss noted with a twinge of guilt. She was still very pretty, with clear skin, round legs and bright, confident green eyes. She wore a green dress and yellow armor, with darker green shorts, and a pair of pale yellow stockings.
“Live specimens?” Professor Peach repeated.
The girl nodded. “Like, for testing and dissections and whatnot.”
“Well, yes and no. We do occasionally bring live specimens here to Beacon—” The entire crowd tensed up. “However!” Peach interjected quickly. “They are all small, harmless, and de-clawed and de-toothed. Heavily tranquilized and heavily guarded, I assure you. However, these specimens are usually more often than not for Professor Port’s Grimm Studies class. Very rarely do we get to do any live tests in this lab. Besides, our options are very limited, as it’s impossible to dissect a Grimm—”
“No it’s not.” The girl said simply.
Professor Peach paused. “Yes it is.” She said back.
The girl shook her head. “No, it’s not. You can dissect a creature of Grimm.”
Professor Peach’s lips pursed. “I assure you, young lady, it is impossible.”
Every head in the crowd whipped between the professor and this girl. Professor Peach looked a little annoyed, but the girl stood straight and tall, a look of certainty on her face.
Peach continued. “You can’t dissect a creature of Grimm, because their blood congeals and their flesh disintegrates in under an hour. We wouldn’t have time to look at anything but their bone structure, and that’s only because it takes a week for that to decay.”
“That’s not necessarily true.” The girl’s confident gaze was unwavering. “If you inject the specimen with hydroxide and Dust you can stop the decaying process for almost four days, so long as it’s kept somewhere cold. If you make the internal chemistry of a Grimm more basic, the molecular structure of its blood and bodily functions slows down a lot.”
The crowd was dead silent. Caruss was incredibly impressed. This young woman was very intelligent!
As if on cue, the entire crowd looked over to Professor Peach for a rebuttal. The woman’s eyebrows were furrowed. Finally, she spoke.
“Well, whether it’s true or not isn’t my department. You can discuss this further with Professor Port or Professor Steele, if you’d like. But, to answer your question, yes, we do keep live specimens of Creature of Grimm here on campus. But I assure you, the students safety is our top priority.”
With that, Professor Peach ushered the students along, sending them back in the direction of the main castle, so they may get the final orientation speech from the headmaster.
Once more, Caruss found himself filing back into the main lobby from earlier. However, this time the crowd continued through the lobby into a busy auditorium. Here, a giant, rounded stage rose above the large crowd of students, the largest crowd by far. The walls of the theater were lined with seats, stretching all the way to the—
“The sky?” Caruss stared up at Vale’s bright blue sky above him. “This is an amphitheater? But I can feel the air conditioning.”
“It’s partially an amphitheater.” Turk said as he twisted through the crowd ahead of Caruss. “The roof retracts when it’s rainy or cold. There’s also some sort of Dust enchantment near the top that controls the temperature in here. Pretty cool huh?”
“Huh.” Caruss added another thing to explore when he gets a chance to take flight.
The two young men walked through the crowd, looking for a decent place to stand before the stage. While Turk had to bob and weave his way through the crowd, most people noticed Caruss and the large space he took up and stepped out of his way as he approached them.
“Yeah, Beacon’s an absolute wonderland for tech nerds like me.” Turk said to Caruss over his shoulder. “This place has some of the most high-tech toys in the entire country. Only the best for the next generation of Hunters and Huntresses, huh?”
Before Caruss could reply, he suddenly noticed Turk’s eyes widen as they settled on something. “Oh, hey!” He smiled. “I see some people from Signal that I know!”
“Do you?” Caruss tried to follow his gaze. He couldn’t pinpoint who Turk was looking at.
“Aw, I gotta say hi to ‘em!” Turk abruptly changed his course and started walking parallel to the stage. Caruss followed suit as Turk added “It’s awesome to see some familiar faces here!”
Turk broke through a particularly thick part of the crowd and called out “Hey! Gammons!!” He smiled and waved his arms through the air.
The only ones that reacted to Turk’s cry were three pink-haired girls. They stood for a moment, staring.
Turk started walking towards them.
“Gammons?” Caruss asked.
“Yeah!” Turk said. “The Gammon triplets! We were in the same graduating class back at Signal.”
As Turk approached the three girls, one that was wearing a pink and black dress said incredulously “Is that seriously Tiffany?”
Turk smiled as he approached. “Yep! Turk Tiffany!”
The three girls turned to face the approaching men, and Caruss got a chance to get a better look at them.
All three were very beautiful, with light skin and pale pink hair. They were obviously sisters, but looked very different.
The first towered above the other two. She wore a black dress with a stark, bright pink belt. Light-colored armor with a slight pinkish hue covered her legs. Her hair was neat and in a bun, but her bangs were long and completely concealed her eyes.
The second was slightly shorter, wearing a short hot pink dress with black accents. She wore armor on her arms, covering them from the fingertips up to her shoulders. Her pink hair was long and wavy. Her eyes were a light blue, and outlined by meticulous eyeliner.
The last was the shortest of the three. She wore a cream-color hoodie underneath a metal cuirass. Pteruges served as almost a skirt, as the girl wore tiny black shorts and pink stockings underneath. She wore her hair in pink, curly pigtails, and had blue eyes like her sister.
“Man, I haven’t seen you ladies since graduation!” Turk smiled at them. “How’ve you guys been?”
“Good enough.” The middle-sized one said flatly. “How did you get to Beacon? Didn’t you fail all your exams?”
Turk suddenly looked sheepish, something Caruss hadn’t seen of him yet. “Well, yeah… But I was given a chance to, well… yanno, get some extra credits and stuff…”
“Hm.” The middle sister’s eyes stayed on Turk for a moment, calculating. They then shifted to look at Caruss. She took a split second to look him up and down, then asked quickly “Who’s your friend?”
Turk immediately straightened up. “Ladies, this is Caruss! I met him on the airship today!”
Caruss dipped his head politely. “It’s a pleasure to meet you, ladies.”
“Caruss,” Turk said. “These are the Gammon sisters! The tall one is Poppy, the short one is Peony, and the youngest one is Primrose!”
The middle-sized one, Primrose apparently, sharpened her eyes to a glare at the mention of being the youngest.
“Nice to meet you, Caruss.” The tallest sister finally spoke up, with a husky, feminine voice.
“Nice to meet you, Caruss.” The shortest one, Peony, followed suit and spoke to Caruss with a soft, quiet voice.
Finally, Primrose gave a small, polite smile and said “Nice to meet you.” She looked over at Turk and added. “And I guess it’s cool to see you here, too, Tiffany. Glad you didn’t get stuck on that island.”
Turk shrugged and rubbed his neck.
“So Caruss,” Primrose looked back to the young Faunus man. “How did you end up with Turk?”
“Oh, I, ah…” Caruss decided to be honest. “I accidentally hit Turk when I was stretching today. With my wing.” He gave a nervous chuckle.
“Really?” Primrose had a noticeable scoff in her reply. “That doesn’t surprise me. Tiffany was always bumping into things back at Signal.”
“Hey!” Turk interjected. “Only sometimes I would bump in to things! I can see way better now that I got new contacts!”
“What about you ladies?” Caruss looked between the sisters. “Have you been friends with Turk for long?”
Caruss saw Primrose’s lips purse at the word “friends”. He noticed the smallest sister, Peony look away shyly. The tallest sister didn’t move, completely unreadable.
“Yeah.” Primrose said. “I guess you could say we’ve known him for a few years now.”
Caruss got the feeling that these girls weren’t exactly friends with Turk. They knew him, yes, but probably only as acquaintances. Realizing this, Caruss decided to try to keep the conversation going himself, so that the others wouldn’t have to feel awkward at all.
“I see.” Caruss smiled. “Where are you all from? Where’d you live before you went to Signal?”
“Western Vale.” Primrose crossed her arms. “We lived about two hours from the Atlesian border.”
“Ah, near Atlas! I hear the weather there gets pretty cold!”
“Yeah, we get a couple blizzards every now and again.” Primrose continued the conversation, more out of politeness than actual interest, it seemed. “We actually almost missed our train to the airship’s station because a pretty ugly blizzard hit right when we were leaving.”
“For real?” Turk said. “Damn, that sucks. Did you guys have to get your weapons specially outfitted like that one winter?”
“No, we actually did a couple of permanent adjustments to them this time around.” Primrose said.
Turk and Primrose continued to converse, to Caruss’ delight, with Peony bashfully joining in every now and again too. Caruss listened as the students recalled their time at Signal, recounting stories and even eliciting a nostalgic chuckle every now and again. Despite being somewhat chilly at the beginning, the girls warmed up to a familiar face the same way Turk did, and eventually Caruss felt like he was almost listening to an actual conversation.
About five minutes of chatter between the Signal students passed when Peony was mentioning some sort of incident with one of the teacher’s children. All of a sudden the group heard Turk say “Oh, you’ve got to be kidding me.”
Caruss and the sisters looked at Turk. He was looking rather exasperated at something behind him, off in the distance.
“What is it?” Peony questioned.
“You guys aren’t gonna believe who followed us here.” Turk quickly whipped around to face the rest of the group.
Primrose’s face contorted into that of absolute disgust. “Oh, hell. Don’t tell me.”
“Yep, it’s Triple-B.” Turk grumbled.
“Who?” Caruss was completely confused.
“She’s a nasty bitch from our old school.” Primrose said with no hesitation.
“She’s a big bully.” Peony almost looked afraid. “She was really mean to a lot of people.”
“We don’t exactly get along.” Poppy muttered.
Caruss was shocked. He thought these girls and Turk didn’t get along.
However, it seemed Turk shared in their displeasure. “I can’t believe she made it here. Who’d she kill to get in?”
“Kill?” Caruss looked at Turk, then looked behind him to try and find this “Triple-B”.
“Not literally, of course.” Primrose said. “But there’s no way she got accepted on regular terms with the grades she got.”
Turk looked over his shoulder again, then immediately recoiled. “Oh shittheresheis.” He spat as the whipped back around again. “By the wall! Don’t look at her! We don’t want her to know we know she’s here!”
The sisters all leaned in, diverting their eyes. Turk was pretty much hunched over in an attempt to avoid eye contact. But Caruss, determined to see this person, stood tall and looked on.
From a ways away, the crowd parted just enough for Caruss to see the far wall. And there, by that wall, he saw the girl who must’ve been “Triple-B.”
She was a tall, pale girl with dark hair cut short and spiked up. She wore all grey, with a few red belts strapped across her torso and legs. Pale-colored bandages were on her arms, which were thin and lean. The popped collar of a dark trench coat framed her angular jawline. A frown darkened her features, and thick, jagged eyebrows gave the girl an overall masculine appearance.
Caruss took this person in, not breaking his gaze. He felt Turk hit him in the arm, hissing “Dude look away! Don’t let her see you looking at her!” But Caruss ignored him.
The dark girl looked up and saw Caruss. She took a second to look at the company he kept, then took another second to look at him. After analyzing him, the two locked eyes. Hers were a deep crimson color.
The two held each other’s gazes for a split second. Then, without any warning, the girl looked away and walked on, disappearing from sight.
“Dude, what the hell?!” Turk looked at Caruss incredulously. “Why’d you stare at her?!”
Before Caruss could answer, he heard someone clear their throat over the loudspeakers in the room. The din of the crowd grew quiet.
On the stage, two figures had appeared. The first Caruss recognized from the hologram; Professor Goodwitch. The woman stood, rigid and straight-backed, carrying a clipboard. She seemed much more strict and much less good-natured in person.
The other person Caruss recognized from the news and television stations and other popular media sources.
It was none other than Beacon’s famous headmaster, the man named Ozpin. He was a tall man, lean and healthy looking, despite the cane he held. He wore mostly green, with tousled grey hair and tiny spectacles. His face gave away his age (seemingly reaching his late fourties), but his hazel eyes told otherwise. They were quick and sharp. And Caruss felt it was cliché to say, but he felt like those eyes looked like they were hiding a secret; like Ozpin knew more than he would admit.
Ozpin held his cane with both hands, and spoke proudly and clearly into the microphone.
“I’ll keep this brief.” He said simply, with a steady, even voice. “Today is the first day of something new. Today, a new set of talented and able people will join the ranks of revered protectors of this world. The future is bright, by all accounts, and is just within your reach.
“However…” a serious tone crept into his words. “The future is in no way set in stone. This may be a time of peace, but to truly be protectors of this world, we must be ready for anything and everything. Don’t become careless in your training. Use your time and skills wisely.”
There was a pause.
“That will be all.” The man turned and walked off the stage unceremoniously.
Everyone in the audience collectively whispered to their neighbor, creating a quiet buzz in the room. Caruss heard Turk mutter “That was kinda strange.”
He also saw a couple of older people, professors most likely, lean in and speak to each other. “Is it just me,” said a tall man. “Or is Coffee-breath’s speeches getting more and more pessimistic every semester?”
“I blame the dark coffee.” The other said. “That stuff can’t be good for you.”
Caruss looked back to the stage to see Professor Goodwitch walk up to the mic.
“You will gather in the ballroom tonight.” She said sternly. “Tomorrow, you initiation begins. Be ready.”
Her last words hung in the air a moment, loaded and ominous.
“You are dismissed.” She said. She turned, letting one of the other professors take the mic. This professor started giving orders to the students, telling them which door to exit and where to meet in order to start getting their living arrangements figured out.
“Damn, well I guess we’re going right into it then.” Primrose crossed her arms again. “Come on girls, we better get ready. We’ll see you, Caruss and Tiffany.”
“Bye Primrose. Bye Poppy and Peony.”
“Bye ladies.” Caruss said.
After they took their leave, Caruss looked up to the sky.
The ominous speech and the prospect of starting their initiation exam gave Caruss a feeling he hadn’t experienced all day.
Finally finished COPR’s bios! I celebrated by making a COPR version of the official RWBY reveal poster! It was a lot of fun to do!
Next up, I’m gonna work on the COPR tumblr a little, then put up a link when that’s done!
Since I had so much fun designing and writing about Caruss, I decided to finally buckle down and finish developing the rest of his team. Introducing the second member of Team COPR, Payne!
Once again, lots of info under the cut!
Lots of info about him under the cut. I’ve played with the idea of this character for some time now, and changed up his design quite a bit. A good portion of his design is still up for debate (namely his shoes and his weapon) so nothing’s set in stone. But this is him for now, and I’m pretty happy with him overall!
