Jae felt at peace for the morning; no one was yelling or complaining about snoring or arguing about who gets the bathroom first, he could almost mistake it all for a dre- "WAAAAAAKE UP LAZY BUTT!" an upbeat and shockingly enthusiastic voice broke the quiet as Nora was acting as Ren's alarm clock….from across the hall. Suffice to say this woke up a ton of other people too including Jae who was shaking the lingering fatigue out of his body and groaned; "How the hell does someone have that much energy in the morning?" was a question that Jae, Yang and pretty much anyone else who was within hearing range of Nora asked themselves as preparations began to dress, eat some breakfast and grab their weapons as the announcement from Glynda reminded everyone that they would be attending their first test soon.
Jae however was on the somewhat luckier side of things as anxiety was settling on him pretty hard; he barely ate much and the impending test kept him pacing around the locker room, the only solace he had was that most everyone else seemed to be worrying about it too. However his thoughts were shaken loose as he heard a familiar voice talking about teams and getting someone on their's…which so happened to be Weiss talking to a taller redheaded girl in armour. "Finally, once we get on a team together we will be unstoppable….The Strongest girl in class paired up with the smartest, there will be no stopping us from getting to the top of the hierarchy! we'll be classroom celebrities and the most popula-" she would be monologuing before getting taken out of her ambitious mood as she saw the one person who she did NOT want near her, let alone on a team. "You know, I'm gonna assume that it's the teachers that decide the teams, not us, so I wouldn't celebrate just yet…." Jae would say bluntly as Weiss paled when she realised he had heard her; "You….how long were you listening to our conversation?!" Weiss would snap at him as he threw her off of her tangent and in front of a similarly popular girl too.
"Weiss, I think everyone could hear you." Jae would point out to her as he noticed the redhead glance at him too; "In fairness, you were talking kind of loudly." she would say politely as she closed her locker door, "Be that as it may." Weiss would say to him through grit teeth as she didn't want to give off the wrong impression, "It's hardly polite to eavesdrop...Besides, the teams will be suited accordingly with complimentary skills to match each other…." Weiss would say as she played off his comment. Jae rolled his eyes a little as he listened to her talk; "And they will be teams that have the right person assigned to be a leader, which is why I am certain that you'll be made into something fitting with your attitude." Weiss would haughtily gloat as Jae sighed; "If I do then that's how it'll be, Teams are normally more then just the leaders." He mentioned before the redhead spoke up; "That is a good point, I've planned to let fate decide on whichever team I'm a part of." The redhead would say with a small smile which made Jae feel warm and a little embarrassed inside as he smiled a little back at her.
"Hehe, thanks….I'm sure you'd do great." He would say as he wasn't used to people responding to his comments positively let alone acknowledging him at all, "No, she really doesn't need your support…do you know who she is at all?" Weiss would say to him, not wanting to miss a chance to put Jae back in his supposed place; "This, is Pyrrha Nikos…she's one of the highest graded students to come out of Sanctum Academy." Weiss would announce as Pyrrha smiled politely and prepared herself for the inevitable 180 that came with the instant recognition of her status, "Sorry, but I don't think I've really heard about that." Jae would apologise to Weiss's shock and Pyrrha's surprise, "She's been renowned for tournament bouts and has set new records." She tried again to see if this would spark something.
Only to see Jae's confusion; "Look, I'm sorry but I don't know much about that kind of thing….I've been busy with trying to train up and earn money for the Entrance exams." Jae explained in all honesty; by the time he was old enough to earn a wage, he took what he could and trained when he had free time. Weiss was dumbstruck; how could someone NOT know who Pyrrha was? she was a well known talent and an incredibly gifted fighter. "She's on the front of every single Pumpkin Pete's Marshmallow Flakes Box! How can you seriously have no clue?!" She would start up a rant but noticed the glint of recognition in his eyes as he glanced to Pyrrha; "Wait, that's you? I always thought those were only for star athletes and cartoon characters." Jae would smile widely; he remembered where he saw her from back when he was still in a foster home and the parents had often gave them Pumpkin Petes.
Pyrrha chuckled a little as she thought back, "Yeah, it was pretty cool that they wanted me for it….but sadly that cereal isn't very good for you." She would admit as Weiss then glowered at Jae; "So now you know who she is, do you really think that you have any kind of shot with her as a teammate or a leader?" She would say to him as he deflated a little; "I guess you're right but that's still not gonna stop me from doing my best regardless." He would say to fight back with Pyrrha inching closer to him; "Actually Jae, I think someone with your kind of drive would be a great leader." she would say with a small smile and pat his arm, though noticing how baggy the hoody was before stepping back.
"Heh, you don't mean that." he would say and unconsciously downplayed the compliment as Weiss was still shocked that he was getting the attention she should have been getting, "Seriously, she doesn't….so don't get a big head." Weiss would remark. "Look, if you're so insistent on being on a team with someone like her, then maybe act like a good team player, you might actually get genuine help that way." Jae would snap back at Weiss as she was starting to sour on him, but thankfully before anything else could be said, Glynda's announcement for all of the first years came on the tannoy before feeling Weiss shuffle past Jae and Pyrrha soon following; "It was nice meeting you." she would say to him as she left.
Jae smiled a little; "Yeah….likewise…." he would then sigh as he sat on one of the benches before hearing two sets of steps coming towards him; "Trouble with the ladies there?" Yang would ask him as her and Ruby pat his shoulder supportively; "It's nothing new in all honesty but I don't really know what her problem with me is." Jae grumbled with Yang giving him a lighthearted slap on the back. "I wouldn't try to figure out how the ice queen's head works yet….let's just focus on getting through this test first of all." Yang would say to help him as they made their way to the cliffside to see Ozpin holding a tablet and Glynda on standby next to him.
"Welcome students, to your first test at Beacon and your official Team assembly exercise." Ozpin would declare as Ruby got more and more nervous, "Each one of you has been told you will be given teams and it appears that the information got muddled the more it was spread, so allow us to put this simply: Each one of you will be given teammates and a leader...Today." Glynda would explain as Jae noticed that everyone seemed on edge; "To explain the rules; you will be sent into the Emerald Forest where you will fight your way through to the temple and obtain a relic before coming back again...in regards to your teams; The teams will be comprised of 3 teammates and a leader each...and the first 3 people you make eye contact with will be a part of your team for the next four years." Ozpin would follow on as both Jae and Ruby both felt the anxiety build at the prospect of being given their teams so suddenly.
"Now, are there any questions?" Ozpin would ask but before anyone else could ask anything, Ozpin pressed some buttons on the tablet as one by one; the podiums they were standing on were catapulting people into the trees; "Um...actually sir, I did have a question...what exactly is the plan, are you going to be airdropping us into the forest?" Jae would ask as the line slowly got closer and closer. "No...you and the others will be falling and you will be making your own landing strategy." Ozpin would mention like he wasn't springboarding children into a forest, "I...see, so what exactly is a landing strategEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!" Jae would start his question but his platform quickly went into action and was set on answering for him.
The wind battered his face as Jae tried to steady himself as the distance between him and the and the trees got closer, he took some deep breaths to clear his head and grabbed his gun from his jacket pocket; loading a round with Gravity dust in there and aimed towards the ground...however before he could fire and get some stability; he saw a flash of gold shoot past and catch his hoody before both pinning him to the nearest tree and knocking the wind out of him.
A few minutes prior
Pyrrha was one of the first to get her footing on the treeline as she landed and aimed her rifle around in the branches to watch for anyone who was about to crash when she saw Jae careening towards a tree, concerned that he would hurt himself and wanting to try again with a good impression, she converted her rifle into a spear before throwing it like a javelin into the trees towards him and there was the sound of a distant "Thank you!".
Meanwhile in the undergrowth, Ruby was rushing through with one thought in mind: "Gotta find Yang!", while she called out for her older sister; she thought to whoever could also be a potential teammate for her and her mind made up this particular Mapping process;
Jae: He's pretty cool, he's funny but she had yet to see what he could do in a fight besides his sword.
Blake: Always so mysterious and calm, books being common ground but long conversations would collapse pretty easy.
"Come on there has to be someone...there's Jae, Yang...Blake and..." she would try thinking of one other person she knows but after tumbling through a bush, she came face to face with Said person; Weiss Schnee...and after a few seconds of eye contact, Weiss turned and walked in the other direction before seeing the other person that would technically be her other teammate currently pinned to a tree and trying to pull out a spear; "Cielo." she would say curtly to him as she grimaced; "Schnee..." Jae would respond back and not hiding the disdain she held; "No...that's all I have to say...No..." she would grumble before turning back around and walking towards Ruby; "And by no means at all does this make us friends." Weiss would mutter as she grabbed Ruby by her hood and took her deeper in.
"Okay, I'm stuck but I can help myself out...I still have that Grav round so if I tug the spear loose, I can cushion the fall." he would say, ready to pull Pyrrha's spear out before hearing someone coming out of the brush; speak of the devil. "Jae?" she would call out before noticing him up in the tree; "I see you've made your landing...have any spots left on your team?" she would ask as she chuckled; to which Jae laughed at himself a little and crossed his arms; "Very funn-" he would start to say but then blushed red when he realised he could stare right down Pyrrha's top...but she either didn't seem to notice...or didn't seem to mind.