Author's Note: For anyone reading this for the first time, if you don't like the flow of this chapter, or you think the story starts off too boring, then skip to Chapter 5. The first few chapters were me kind of getting my bearings/working out where I wanted to go. Chapter 5 is when it everything kicks off. Thanks for reading!

Weiss

With an angry war cry and all the magnificence of a Huntress of legends, Ruby flew through the air with her scythe poised and aimed at the Nevermore's throat. I looked on in awe as she struck the cliff face, using my glyphs on the wall to keep her footing on the vertical surface. I couldn't believe it. That was Ruby. Ruby! She looked so confident, so determined; so unlike the Ruby I'd met yesterday.

Ever since we'd met, I'd thought of her as nothing but an overexcited child, too innocent to fathom the darkness in the world and too inexperienced to survive long enough to learn. I had to admit that she could handle herself in a fight, her speed alone was incredible, not to mention her scythe wielding. But she'd seemed so clueless, so air-headed and so immature; leaping into combat with no thought for the consequences, and without paying attention to anyone else.

But now, she took my breath away. I couldn't do anything but watch, and be amazed, as she took on a fully grown Nevermore and was winning. How could she be doing this? How could she actually be this capable? I felt a pang of jealousy; she was two years younger than us, she should be looking up to us, looking up to me. But, despite my jealousy towards her, she really was incredible.

She took off up the cliff face, firing her weapon for more momentum until she reached the top and severed the Nevermore's head from its neck. I gazed up at her as she turned back to face those of us down below, while the body of her fallen enemy fell down into the chasm below us. She posed a striking figure, standing atop a cliff face, over the body of her foe.

"Well, that was a thing." Yang said as she approached me from behind, I just continued to gaze up at Ruby. "Weiss? Are you okay?"

"What? Oh! Yes, yes. I'm fine." I said, snapping myself out of my reverie. "I was just…"

"Just what?"

"Never mi-"

"Hey!" I heard a voice call out from behind us. "Hey guys! Can you give us some help here? The bridge is kind of… Uh… Gone." We turned to look back at Jaune, who was standing on the other side of the chasm, where the bridge had been destroyed in their battle with the Death Stalker. I sighed, Jaune really couldn't do anything without someone helping him. I readied a glyph to launch myself across the gap as Yang leapt off the edge and shot herself across the gap towards them.

Yang and I landed as Nora launched herself towards Blake, carrying the barely conscious Ren. I grabbed Pyrrha around the waist before sending the two of us sailing back across the gap; there was no way I was going to touch Jaune. Yang called out to Blake as I landed, who then shot her ribbon-attached weapon across to Yang, who tied the ribbon around Jaune's waist before throwing him off the edge. Blake swung Jaune up onto the platform we'd gathered on as Yang made her way back. As I glanced back up at Ruby, I saw she was readying herself to jump back down the cliff face.

"Wait there Ruby!" I called out to her. "We'll come to you!"

"Okay!" She called back, after a moment's hesitation. I knew she'd have come running back down to help, despite the fact that we didn't need it, and despite the fact that it would only make things harder. She might be an amazing fighter and she might be trying to become more responsible, but she was still a child at heart.

I stood next to Ruby as we waited to head up on stage. Professor Ozpin was busy naming the teams and announcing the leaders, and Ruby, Yang, Blake and I appeared to be the last in line. I was still somewhat in awe of Ruby's actions earlier in the day, the way she'd taken leadership of the group, the way she'd planned out our battle strategy and the way that she had taken out the Nevermore in the end. Despite myself, despite how childish and annoying this girl was, I found myself grudgingly beginning to respect her, maybe even to admire her. Admiration was the only word I had to describe the faint stirring in my heart I felt whenever I looked at Ruby's face.

Ruby was all grins, which stirred my heart more, seeing her grinning, chatting with Yang about their adventures that day. I was content to stand and watch, I felt no particular desire to engage in a conversation with them. Blake was standing quietly, not talking to anyone, merely watching the proceedings on stage. She was an interesting character, very quiet and mysterious. I couldn't help but wonder if there was a reason for that.

"Oh that was so awesome!" Ruby exclaimed, snapping me out of my musings. I elbowed her in the ribs to shut her up.

"Shhh! Ruby! Why do you have to be so loud?" I whispered as she turned towards me. She blushed as she apologized sheepishly; I rolled my eyes in response. Still a child, I thought to myself, shaking my head. I felt so conflicted now; half of me admiring her, half of me wanting to beat her with a stick.

And that she definitely deserved the beating; despite her heroics earlier she had still more than earned a reprimand with her immaturity on our way to the temple. One act of heroism and smart planning was not enough the cancel out everything else she had done in the last day that had caused her to just be a nuisance. And while that one act might have been admirable, it wasn't enough to earn my complete respect straight away, or that of the faculty. Was it?

I was still pondering as Professor Ozpin called us up on stage, worrying over who would become our leader. I was convincing myself that it couldn't be Ruby, she was only fifteen, she was inexperienced, she was irresponsible and she was unreliable. I looked at her face again, forcing down that fluttering sense of admiration in my chest; she had not done enough to earn that admiration.

Just as I convinced myself of this, Professor Ozpin uttered the sentence that snapped me out of my thoughts: "Led by Ruby Rose." I gaped at Ruby in shock. Her! Our leader! How? Yang pushed past me before I could say anything, grabbing Ruby and telling her how proud she was. Blake and I stood on stage silently, watching the two of them, Blake in polite quietness, myself in complete shock.

I felt my admiration of her welling up, despite my outrage, mixing with the anger in my chest. How could that be? I'd convinced myself that she didn't deserve this, how could I be feeling pride right now? I should've been picked as the leader, not her! It should've been me! But I still felt… happy for her. I'd never felt more conflicted, more confused, in my life…