Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

The Forever Fall Forest was a place of mystery. Lauded for its ethereal appearance, feared for its roaming beasts, but never given anything less than praise. The dreamer found such sights to see in the red petal forest, imagining a world beyond the one he or she stood in. Such ideas for the thinker, conjuring a hundred and one reasons for the trees to never bare their branches, the leaves to never flood the ground, and for the beasts to never tire in the woods. It was a place for many visits, by tourists and Hunters alike, a place full of wonder and danger.

It was a place where the strong would see their flaws, reflected by the petals around them. It was a place where the weak could see their strength, blessed by the trees that never tired of their shedding. It was a place where the impossibilities of reality found their refuge, with the Grimm Beasts roaming endlessly yet life continuing just as easily. In the Forever Fall Forest, near anything could happen, so anything could change.

So it was of no consequence when the eternally falling leaves began to sway, finding themselves trapped in a sudden wind. It was not a gentle breeze sifting through the trees, but a vortex, a cyclone, that sudden grew and formed within the red forest. The leaves, spun about far faster than their normal graceful allowed, some tearing to pieces with others flying above the trees they fell from. Like a cannon into water, or an axe through wood, the wind destroyed the little peace the forest leaves had.

But then just as quickly as the vortex had come, it ended. And just as quickly, the leaves began to fall again, headless to any change that may have come. The trees continued to shed their leaves, the same blood-red greeneries that betrayed the laws of nature. And in the distance, far from the vortex that had come and gone, Grimm continued to end, sifting and searching for emotions of pain.

So no one noticed the new figure standing in the Forever Fall. The figure that stood to its tallest, head tilted down and arms curled up, holding a precious item to its lips. The figure was as still as the trees, green clothes waving like the red leaves. Blonde hair fell down from beneath a green hat, long and pointed, covering blue eyes that were hung in a half gaze.

Slowly, the figure retracted the item, staring at its light as if in adoration for the first time. An ocarina, carefully carved and blue in covered, yet free of any paint. Made from what could not be described in words, etched with a metal band upon its windpipe, and further detailed with a small trio of golden triangles. The figure let out a small breath of air before placing the item away, letting it vanish from sight.

"Whoa, where are we?" The figure turned slightly to see a fairy above him, dark in color with wings glassy and transparent. The fairy was glowing, like a floating ball of light, ringing as it twirled about the figure. "Everything's so… red."

"It's a forest Tael, we've seen them before." The figure turned to see another fairy now, far lighter in color than the aforementioned one. This fairy had the same glowing appearance, hiding its true body beneath the bright light, with wings just as glassy allowing it to float just as easily. "But the red's new. Think the trees are bleeding?"

"Don't say that, sis!" The other fairy whined, ringing lightly in the air. "That would mean that they were in pain, bleeding like that!" As if to demonstrate the point, the dark light creature flew across a few of the falling leaves. They waved at his approach, but made not a word of complaint. "It'd be like they're crying…"

"Alright, calm down, calm down." The lighter fairy half cajoled half soothed, flying over to her brother, leaves parting lightly as she passed. They touched one another, lights mixing into a soothing gray. Though their aura was blinding enough to leave their forms hidden, it was no stretch of the mind to see one embracing the other. "Geeze, the trees are alright, just something new to see. It's alright."

"Sorry Tatl," the younger fairy whined, though making no move to leave the embrace. Rather, the elder of the two rung lightly before making a return.

"You don't need to apologize," Tael's sister spoke easily, the falling leaves avoiding the floating fairies. "Just gotta relax, okay. The trees aren't in pain, we're just somewhere new, but we're altogether, alright?" The dark fairy's wings dropped, the only physical sign that he was heading his sister's words.

"Yeah, alright." Tael rang like a small bell, transparent wings shaking as he assumingly corrected himself. "I'm good. It's just… the most we had to deal with before were poisonous swamps and dry canyons. This just seems… different."

"Not bad though," his sister spoke on, the two splitting their embrace. The elder ball of light twirled amongst the falling leaves, a few of the red petals flipping to avoid her small wind. She rang at each one. "Kinda cool to watch. Think there's a song that goes with it? Like, a forest song or something? I don't know, feels like there should be something."

The fairy floated down to the figure in green, still standing in the small patch of land they had appeared in. The figure had blue eyes gazing upwards, looking at the fairy that floated down to them. The petals were headless of the figure, standing still in the small clearing of trees. Tatl twirled about the green clad figure, stopping only when she was staring into blue eyes. The figure stared back into her bright luminescence, used to the glow.

"Got any ideas, Link?" Tatl asked, bobbing lightly as she spoke.

The green figure raised a hand to his chin, lightly gripping it as his eyes looked upwards. He stared beyond the canopy of the trees, through the falling red leaves and the branches of trees that never showed. Link had a soft smile as he watched them move. But then, after a pregnant silence, he shook his head, shrugging his shoulders in dismissal of their ideas. Tatl rang in annoyance.

"Oh c'mon, you grew up in the forest. Don't you have something? I mean, really?" Her small tirade earned only small laughter from Link, his eyes lightly shutting at his friend's usual antics. Tael floating down next to him, floating above Link's shoulder as they watched Tatl ring with annoyance, her transparent wings vibrating. "That's just stupid! It's like saying I don't know any games to play. It's all we do!"

"Well, you did help save the world before… twice…" Tael spoke meekly from Link's shoulder. The green clad Hylian nodded towards the younger fairy, small still just as present. Tatl, however, was less amused.

"Those were special circumstances and you know that," she pitifully defended. "Besides, we're here now to get away from that." The sudden shift in topics was enough for Link to lose the small but still smile he had. "We got things to do here, things to find and people to see, I think. Who are we looking for again?" She directed the question towards the pair.

"Uh, what did he tell us?" Tatl asked aloud, voice betraying his nerviness. "Three of threes, right? Mind, body, and soul?" Tatl rang aloud at her brothers words, something clicking. Link only felt himself nodding at the words.

"Yeah, that's right!" The elder fairy agreed. "He said that we had to look for them in a place where they were forgotten. So here we are… now we just have to… look for them…" Tatl's voice fell with each word, becoming progressively quieter and quieter. Link only stared at her, silent as he always was. It was Tael that spoke up for his sister.

"So… where do we start?"

A roar was his answer.

In hardly a moment's time, Link spun on his heel, tall posture shifting into a practiced crouch. In the same motion, his right arm drew forth a crystal shield, red and gleaming with light. He placed it between himself and the noise, preparing himself for any sudden assault. His left drew forth a sword from its sheath, etched with ruby red diamonds. He held it behind his body, in a strong grip and flexed arm, already prepared to deliver a vicious blow. Both glowed with a faint light, their strength obvious to even the untrained. It took little time for either Link or his fairies to see the source of the noise.

A great black beast, standing easily to twice Link's height. It had an open maw, drool pouring from its impressive jaw and to the red leaves coating the forest floor. Fur thick as a trees bark was lined across its hide, interrupted only occasionally by large protrusions of white. To Link's trained eye, they almost appeared to be bone. But even those were not the most striking part about the figure. It was not its size, its mass, or its nightmarish shape.

It was the mask it adorned.

The white and red lined mask that hung from its snout. It was an unnatural item, a thing the beast wore like its face. It hide poorly the red eyes of the creature, alight and beady, staring at the young green clad figure with menacing intent. Link's position did not waver, neither did his shield or sword falter.

"Whoa!" Tael shouted, quickly flying behind Link in a panic. The Hylian could feel the dark light fairy shivering behind him. He kept his own blue eyes on the dark beast, hearing it growl with his sharp ears. "W-What is that? A-A wolfo? No no, a… a what?"

"No idea," Tatl answered her brother. Though she did not flee like her younger sibling, she was not keen to fly around the thing so readily. "But it doesn't look too bright, screaming like that before it attacked." Her senses worked, body ringing as she looked the creature over from a distance, no further away than Link stood battle ready. When she started to speak again, it was only too obvious to whom she was speaking to.

"It's got a lot of muscle, and those bony things aren't going to be easy to cut. But the rest of it should be like butter with a sword. Just gotta watch out for it to attack." Link nodded at her words, heeding her advice as he had countless times before. The grip on his sword tightened, the light aura it gave of flickering briefly.

The creature seemed to sense the green-clothed warrior's intent, growling as it fell into a low crouch. Even with majority of its body against the ground, impressive claws digging at the leaf covered forest floor, it still stood taller than Link. The warrior found no reason to be intimidated by such a fact.

He tilted his blade, seeing ahead of what would come. The beast would strike, a strong and vicious blow that would leave no time to counter should he chose to block. But it would leave the creature wide open, the beast likely assuming it would knock the green clothed figure away. That would be his opportunity to strike. A slice across the neck, maybe a draw down his exposed stomach, either would be possible for Link.

And as expected, the creature drew back one of its mighty claws, angled and beating away the falling leaves as it did so. Link gripped his shield tightly, already positioning his feet for a quick escape. Tael shivered behind him, Tatl hovering close above him, the beast let its claw begin to fall.

It stopped mid strike.

Link stared at it, confused and wary. His shield was now positioned towards the swing, aware that if it moved it would be too quick for him to dodge, his window of opportunity forgone in place of curiosity. He watched the beast's red eyes… watching as they lost track of him. Beneath the monster's white mask, the beady eyes began to dull, their focus fade, and fierceness dim. Link had seen it often enough to recognize what was happening. Life was leaving the creature.

No sooner did the thought pass by Link's mind than did the black monstrosity fall to the ground. It made an audible boom as it hit the red-leaf covered floor, its weight forcing many of the already fallen petals to flitter about once more, settling faster than before. Link didn't lower his shield, but he judged the beast as far less of a threat than before. Tatl spoke as much.

"What was that?" The yellow fairy asked critically. "Did it die of fright or something? Decide to have a nap before dinner? What?" She flew in front of the white mask, staring through the sockets at the fading red beneath. They were now almost as dark as the coat of the creature. "Or is it seriously dead? I mean, I'm not complaining, but what the heck?" Tatl flew back to Link, stopping in front of him as she had done many times before. "Did you do something? Anything? Like cast a spell or throw a knife?"

Link stared past Tatl to the dark creature, his blonde brow furrowed in thought as well. His shield was now relaxed against his arm, his sword held in much the same manner. Tael flew out from behind him, cautiously, staring at the fallen beast as a child would.

"Well… I don't mind," the dark fairy honestly spoke. "As long as it's dead. That's good, right?" Link didn't respond, eyes still focused on the creature. He began to walk towards, steps full of caution, but pace far from slow. Tatl, however, felt no hesitation in answering her brother.

"Well, duh, of course it's good!" Her sister critically noted. "We're alive, it's not, and we can keep moving forward. What's more there to think of, right Link?" The warrior didn't respond. He was too busy inspecting the fallen monstrosity. "Link, what's up?"

The warrior did not answer her. He was staring down at the back of the beast, the long white spines of the creature more than strong enough of a hold for him to climb on. His sharp blue eyes were looking towards the creature, lightly brushing away the red leaves that fell in his way. He saw nothing that he had not already noticed. A light coating but dark colored fur, now confirmed to be bony protrusions along its hide, a mask that seemed as set on its face as Link's own face, but nothing that would tell why it had died. Not at first.

It was small, almost unnoticed by even his eyes, but a bit of focus made it obvious. Putting his shield and sword to their homes on his back, crouching down soon after. His fingerless gloves pushed away the fur of the beast, feeling for something, anything that he could tell didn't belong. He noticed it from above, but kneeling down atop of the creature, it become more obvious.

There was a hole in the back of its head. Small, just large enough for him to fit the base of his thumb into, but no larger than that. It was pierced deep enough into the beast for Link to feel the vulnerable inside, whatever they were, beyond any protection of bone or muscle. But he could not feel any tool for the job, neither shaft nor arrow head. It bemused him.

"Link," Tatl's voice came again. He turned to her this time, looking up from the beast he stood on. The light fairy had flown over to him again. "What happened to it?" He only shrugged in response, unsure himself. The wound that finished the beast was obvious, but the tool that made it was a mystery. He retracted his gloved hand, certain there was nothing else to find.

He jumped from its back, landing on the ground with little effort. He turned back to it, staring at the honestly intimidating white mask. The red eyes that once sat beneath it were already faded to darkness, a color matching the creature's thin fur, a clear sign that it was dead.

"Look," Tael spoke up, more in awe than notice. Even with a dark light illuminating him, it was still too bright to spot and hand the fairy may have used to point towards the object of interest. It was of little need, however. It was obvious already to Link and Tatl what was so interesting, at least to the youngest among them.

Thin wisps of smoke were beginning to rise off the beast, dissipating into the air near as quickly as they formed. They appeared almost like the remains of the fire, but Link was not fooled. It became obvious after only a moment's notice that the beast was dissolving, returning to whatever void it came from. Little different than many of the monster he had slain before, though far slower to leave than those of his past.

"Think we should get moving?" Tatl suddenly spoke up, taking attention away from the dead monstrosity. "I mean, yeah it's big and dead, but something killed it without us seeing it, and I don't want to be next on the hit-list." The words had no apparent effect on the green clad warrior. They did, however, have an almost immediate clout on the fairy's younger brother.

"W-Wait, you mean… w-we might be in danger? Like, our life is going t-to end danger!" Link's sharp ears picked up Tatl's sigh easily. That, and the way her wings sagged made it painfully obvious she was more annoyed by her brother's antics. Repetition had that result on most things.

"Tael, we're fine." She spoke matter-of-factly as she flew to her brother's side. The dark fairy was quick to embrace the shining ball of light. Neither moved away. "I'm here, Link's here, and nothing else is here. Don't worry. Besides, if anything really wanted to hurt us, we'd have at least heard it by now."

"Hello!"

The suddenness of the feminine voice had an immediate impact on the three.

Both of the fairies began to shake, likely out of surprise. Their transparent wings shook as quickly as their illuminating bodies. Link turned as well, hands on his sword and shield, though remaining undrawn. His eyes were furrowed, searching the leaf falling forest for the owner of the voice. Trained blue eyes saw past the many petals, ignoring the stiff shapes of the trees. The two put aside, the speaker became obvious.

She was running towards them, waving with one of her hands in the air. It was a she, assumingly, her short stature, thin frame, and high voice were all rather clear signs. But where it not enough, she also wore a black dress, frilled at the ends with red laces. Boots of equal design were on her jogging feet, reaching easily to her knees, and black in color with red laces. A long red hood and cape also hung from her neck, but was only partially seen due to the girl's quick approach.

The long red scythe she held, however, was a bit easier to see. It put any trepidation the black beast had to shame.

Link finally drew his crystal sword and shield at the sight of the weapon, so large that it dwarfed the girl that carried it. A long sharp crescent blade, guarded by metal that was red as blood; it sat on an equally crimson rod, stretching the length of the girl that held it. Only the angle that it was titled at kept it from dragging across the leaf-covered ground.

Various objects hung from the scythe, some obvious and some less so. The counterbalance to the blade was easy to spot by Link's sharp blue eyes, hanging from the opposite side of the intimidating crescent. The sharp tip at the opposite end of the pole served as clear a purpose as the blade itself. The odd pumps, weights, and what appeared to be boxes lining the frame of the scythe, however, were not things Link had seen on a weapon such as this before.

The green clad warrior gripped his shield a bit tighter, putting it between himself and the girl, already near approach. He felt Tatl and Tael fly behind him, both as skeptical of the child as he was. He put the falling leaves of the forest aside as the girl stopped in front of him.

"Whoa hey, no need to worry," the girl was quick to speak, her silver eyes flashing towards his drawn weapons. "No need to get those out, seriously. I just wanted to make sure you were okay. I mean, that Ursa Major was really close to you." The girl motioned towards the fallen beast, majority of it faded away already, only little wisps of smoke remaining of the creature's existence.

Link eyed her critically, assuming she was the one to kill the beast. He had few ideas for how she could manage such a feat with a weapon such as hers. The girl, however, saw him staring at it. He did not miss the clear delight that shown in her eyes.

"Oh! Curious about my baby here?" The girl pulled the scythe in front of her, flipping it around with masterful grace. Link didn't budge in his posture, but he could feel his fairy friends shiver behind him, if only lightly so. "This here Crescent Rose, an HCSS, High-Caliber Sniper Rifle capable of firing Dust .50 caliber rounds over 20 times per minute without over-heating. Built for easy storage and transportation, so I can carry it wherever I want!" It almost unnerved Link how she beamed about her weapon. He would swear later he saw stars twinkling behind her.

She didn't appear too threatening; were the weapon gone Link rationalized that she wouldn't be at all. She was a good head shorter than him, appeared free of any scars of battle, and spoke as if they were meeting in a tavern. But… she did kill the beast, or so she said. He pointed his sword at her weapon, Crescent Rose, lightly lowering his shield as he did so. She followed his direction, her silver eyes looking from one to the other. Then, when he pointed back at himself, he could see the fear in her eyes. She was poor to conceal her emotions, at least.

"What!?" She all but shrieked, the forest nearly shaking with her voice. Link, himself, flinched lightly at the loud question. "You thought I was going to… when I was running me… Oh no, no, no, no, no, no, NO! Her head was shaking rapidly left and right, the black bob cut that was her hair thrashing at the speed.

With a dexterity that gave Link pause, the girl rapidly began to fold her weapon away. The shaft pulling in on itself; the blade sliding into the red guard around it; the counter balance falling into the pole; everything fell into place until only a small red box remained, held in the girls hands by an equally blood red pole. She shifted the… sheathed weapon behind her back, to the space between her black dress and red robe. Her hands immediately lifted up as she finished.

"See? Non-threatening, completely safe. No reason to think anything suspicious of me." That was suspicious, but the girl appeared to realize it. "No, wait, that sounds worse! Um… this, okay, I got it!" She straightened herself out, putting her open palms above her chest, just beneath the nape of her neck.

"My name is Ruby Rose. I'm a student at Beacon, Huntress in training, and first year team leader of RWBY." That was something.

Link let out a small breath of air. He smiled as he did so, concluding that this girl was truly no threat. Skilled perhaps, as she still claimed to have slain the creature in a way he knew not possible, but not after his life. He spun his crystal sword about his hand, stopping when the tip sat in its sheath. He let it slide down as he clicked his shield back into its holster. He stood to his tallest as well, looking down at her with a grin. She seemed to return it.

"Okay, so, I'll take that as you trust me?" He nodded towards her, amused at her clear sign of relief, sagging arms and torso curling over towards ground. "Oh thank the Dust, I thought I made a huge mistake." Just as quickly as her relief, the girl straightened herself up, puffing out her chest, perhaps in some show of bravado. Link couldn't be sure.

"Alright, now, new meetings. I told you who I was, but now who are you?" It was dizzying, really, how quickly the girl went from worried about a ruined relationship to critical and analyzing. Her silver eyes were screwed in a way that emphasized some form of analysis, tilting her head back as she did so. "You have a sword and shield like Jaune, but clearly more elaborate than his. But you also have blonde hair like Jaune. And blue eyes like Jaune… and you look about as tall as Jaune…" Her head fell to the side as her words turned inwards.

"Would you… happen to be related to Jaune?" Link honestly shook his head from side to side, green hat swaying with the force. He was rather confident any name she spoke he would know little of. He was used to being the stranger in strange lands. "Huh. Well, you might want to look out for him. You two look a lot alike. But then who are you? Are you a Hunter with that sword? Maybe a merchant looking to collect the sap of the trees. Could you be lost? I mean, this is a dangerous part of the Foreverfall Forest."

"What's the Foreverfall?" It was Tatl that spoke. Ruby did not know that. Her silver eyes were alight in some form of wonder.

"Wow!" she spoke aloud, blinking lightly. "You have a really high voice. Are… are you a girl?" She spoke with a bit of hesitation.

Link could not suppress his chuckles of laughter.

One of his gloved hands rose to his face, gripping his jaw as if to stifle the amusement. It had little effect. He shook his head from left to right, the memories of his numerous gender confusions coming to the fore front of his mind. This was, however, the first time someone confused him for female based upon his fairy's voice.

"Oh, I guess not." Ruby concluded. "I mean, you wouldn't find it that funny otherwise. I mean even, most guys would be insulted but… maybe you hear that a lot, with a voice that high." Link felt his laughter return doubly.

"Okay, yeah, no, that's not him talking." Link heard the ringing of the fairies as they flew from behind his back, light and dark bodies glowing as they hung in the air above him. Ruby Rose, Huntress in training, blinked as she stared up at them. It was not an act that was missed by the observant fairies.

"Impressed, huh?" Tatl spoke in a tone of clear mirth. "Can't say you shouldn't be. I'm Tatl, and this is my brother Tael." The darker of the fairies hovered lightly, bobbing in the air a bit longer, perhaps in the form of a bow. It was hard for Link to tell, given how small they were. "The big guy you're talking to is Link and, for that other question, guess you could call us lost."

Ruby didn't say a word in response. Instead, she only continued to stare at the fairies, hovering in midair with their translucent wings and illuminating bodies. Link attributed the expression on her face as memorized, like one would act upon seeing an object of their desire. That did not sit well with Link. It was, unfortunately, a correct feeling on his part.

No sooner did he have the thought than did Ruby grab Tatl out of the air. The fairy gave a frightened yelp as she found herself caught by the girl's small hands, held like some sort of doll. Her brother was quick to yell as well. Ruby, however, was either heedless of their fright or too entranced by the fairy she was holding. Likely both.

"Oh my gosh! You're actually a fairy! I've never seen a fairy before! I thought you only existed in fairy tales! Wait, do you have tails? I can't tell with all that light." Ruby's thumbs reached into the bright illumination of Tatl, past the translucent wings that hung from the creature. She felt something soft, supple, and fragile.

Then she felt something hard, stiff, and unforgiving. That feeling, however, was focused on her upper arm. She turned in time to see Link glaring at her, his sharp blues suddenly a humbling sight. Ruby let out a grimace as he tightened his grip, her hand already feeling numb. She released her hand immediately, the fairy flying up and out of her grip. At the sight, and objections Ruby had at the actions of Link were left on the roadside. He did not, however, let go of her arm.

"How rude of you!" Tatl yelled as she flew into Ruby's face, the young girl assaulted by the bright light that literally beat at her forehead. It was mostly painless, like being hit with a pillow. It was still enough to make the grip the green-clad warrior had on her a bit more uncomfortable, however. "Here I am introducing myself and you have the nerve to just… suddenly up and grab me like that! Seriously, what were you thinking!?"

"I-I wasn't!" Ruby quickly admitted, her free hand gripping Link's, trying to remove the steel-like grasp. She didn't even get his glove to move. "Can you please let go?" She asked him, silver eyes pleading up to him. "You're like… really strong. A-And it hurts."

"How do you think being felt up by some teenage girl feels?!" The bright colored fairy yelled at her again, earning Ruby's attention, albeit pained. "I mean c'mon! We are lost here and you were just about to offer us help, but then you basically try and kidnap me?"

"N-No!" Ruby shouted back in defense at that. "I-I was just curious, really! I grew up with fairy tales, all the time! Fairies are supposed to be kind, and gentle, and soft, and wise. I-I just thought… I wasn't thinking!"

"Well, can't say you're wrong there," Tatl said back in a tone that oozed disdain. Ruby would have been hurt, were her arm not taking the majority of that front. She bit her lip, wondering what she could say. She looked back up at Link, the Jaune-look-alike suddenly far more intimidating that her blonde friend likely ever could be. Was she… was she going to be hurt by them?

"Wait Link, you can stop now," a new voice suddenly spoke up, though Link's lips didn't move. Ruby turned to see the dark colored fairy floating in between them. It was impossible for her to judge the direction the ball was facing. "I mean… she did scare Tatl, but she was just curious. We act like that a lot. She didn't mean it, really! She just said that like four times." Ruby didn't know the exact number herself.

She did, however feel Link release his grip on her.

She immediately put her free hand around her arm, grimacing as she touched it. It would likely bruise, the blood beneath her skin being stifled for too long, but no real damage that would hinder her. She looked back up to see the fairy floating towards her. Ruby took a step back, the consequences of touching a fairy already too clear in her mind.

"Um, I'm sorry about my sister, a-and how Link acted," the dark fairy responded, Tael if Ruby recalled correctly. She hoped she did, as forgetting his name would be pretty ungrateful. "We're just… a little protective of one another. A-And my sister and I are small, especially compared to you. That makes us fragile, in a sense. So… can you forgive Link for that? I mean, he really is a nice guy, I promise! He did save me and my sister before."

Ruby looked past Tael, to Link who was still looking at her. The small glee he had at her confusion for his gender was gone, replaced only with what she thought was close to an empty canvas. That was how Yang had described a statue once to her at least, and the green-clad man looked every bit the part.

"U-Uh, yeah," she spoke, a little hesitantly. "It was my fault anyways. Just… well, I've been called grabby since I was little. But back then I was grabby and crabby." She giggled at her own joke, hoping to earn some sort of humor.

To her fortune, the dark fairy did laugh with her, ringing like a bell as he did so. It sounded nice to Ruby, letting what little unease she still had melt away, bit by bit.

"So um… do you know where we are?" Tael asked her, his voice full of embarrassment; or was it curiosity? Ruby couldn't be sure. She did, however, know the answer to his question.

"Yeah, you're in the Forever Fall Forest, FF for short!" Ruby said the words with more cheer than Tael had been expecting. "I was here training against some of the Grimm. With the tournament postponed and all, there's a lot more free time. I didn't want to get rusty, so I thought that killing a few of them would be a good way to stay in shape! Made sure to stay close to Beacon though."

"O-Okay, um…" Tael suddenly found himself a lot more intimidated with the rush of information being thrown at him. This wasn't his strong suit, talking that was, especially not to strangers. Fortunately, his sister more than made up for that flaw.

"Alright, loads of more questions," Tatl spoke aloud as she flew to Ruby, lightly pushing her brother aside. "Go wait next to the hired muscle, Tael. I got this." Link spoke not a word either for or against the statement.

"So," the light fairy spoke again, earning Ruby's immediate attention. The young Huntress felt like she was about to be scolded by Goodwitch, given the tone of the ringing fairy. "Sounds like we're not far from wherever you stay at, is that right?" Ruby nodded her head in affirmation. "Cool, so does that mean you can take us there?" Ruby was more hesitant to answer that.

Her silver eyes looked from Tatl, to Tael, to Link, then back. Each one was gazing at her patiently, but she could only see the eyes of one of the three, and he looked more curious than dangerous. The sore spot on her arm, however, told her he was far from that. She was still curious about those weapons of his…

"Well," she started out. "Beacon is supposed to be restricted; safety, security and all that." Ruby spoke the words as if she didn't believe them, or didn't care about them. "So bringing strangers in from the forest would be kinda hard, especially after the attacks and all."

"Attacks?" Tatl asked curiously, flowing with the conversation as easily as she did fly through the air. "Who attacked who?" At the nearly insulted expression Ruby gave her, Tatl scoffed. "Oh c'mon, do we look like we're from around here? None of us even know the name of this forest, and given how weird it is, I'm sure that's rare enough." Ruby pouted her lower lip and nodded. There was truth to that.

"I guess, but the attacks were like all over the news. Tournament postponed until the coliseum's safety could be secured, White Fang threats, that's not exactly stuff people can just ignore, especially now." Tatl didn't miss the way the girl's voice dropped as she spoke, clearly loathing the words she spoke. That wasn't something to push.

"Okay, but just for a little more reference, don't have a clue what the White Fang is or what tournament you're talking about. And, just to make sure you know, don't know anything about Beacon or Grimm either. Think you mentioned something about Dust, but unless you were talking about cleaning, that's news too." The fairy's words made Ruby stare at the creature little differently than when she had first lain eyes on her. It made Tatl a bit nervous, not prepared to be handled roughly by the small girl again. Fortunately, it appeared that the youth was able to control herself.

"I-I…" She tried and fail to speak aloud, not knowing what to say. "You don't… not even Dust? Then… where are you from?" Her eyes looked from the fairies to Link, the darker of the two floating balls lightly hiding behind the much taller green-clothed figure. Ruby stared at him for a bit longer, noticing something about him she didn't before.

He had green clothes; that she knew. He had unique weapons; that she knew as well. He had a strong gaze and what appeared to be a strong sense of loyalty; that she picked up on more from his handling of her. But what she just noticed now were what hung from the sides of his head. Specifically, growing from them.

"And you're a Faunus," She lightly pointed at him, motioning towards his ears. Link blinked at the title, not having heard it before. He raised one of his hands to his ears, feeling down the long point he was so accustomed to. He heard Tael ring next to him, sounding just as confused as he was. Ruby seemed to see the confusion in his gaze. "Wait… you don't even know what a Faunus is even?" It was hard to tell if she was insulted or shocked, both was more likely.

"Where we're from, he's called a Hylian," Tatl spoke matter-of-factly to Ruby, floating above the girl's pointing hand. She retracted it as the fairy approached. "Care to tell us what the rest of those things you mentioned are?"

"Uh…" Ruby let out, thinking about what to start with, eyes looked about the Forever Fall as if to find an answer. She saw one rather quickly. "Well, that's a Grimm," she waved her hand towards the fallen black beast, nearly nothing remaining of it now. "Don't suppose you have a name for that?"

"Nah," Tatl let out easily. "We just call them monsters, lots of different kinds though. Ya got wolfos, dodongos, keese, chu chus, and couple of rare ones too, but you probably wouldn't know their names."

"Oh, okay," Ruby started to nod her head, seeing where this was going. She couldn't tell from the fairy's bright light, but she appeared to be seeing the pattern as well. The red hooded girl began to smile at the realization. "So like, you must come from some far off place, right? Like, did you sail here, or fly… Oh! Or did you use magic?"

It was only too obvious that the girl's eagerness and curiosity were returning in spades, her trepidation from her earlier actions near forgotten. It was enough for Tatl to back away in the air, trying to put herself higher above the ground, further out of the girl's reach. It only made her look like a love-sick puppy staring up at her, stars shimmering in her silver eyes.

"We uh…" Tatl started, unsure of what to say to that. This was, however, where her brother excelled.

"We came from an island, far off the shore." Tael spoke easily, flying to the spot his sister had vacated. The red leaves bothered him little as he flew forwards. "It was a magical island, called Hyrule. We're here on a journey, looking for a friend of ours. She left a long time ago, and we thought that maybe she found somewhere else to live. Honestly, none of know anything about this place or anywhere else but Hyrule."

"Really?" Ruby asked, lightly sucking in a gasp. A part of her couldn't believe what the fairy was saying. That was what made it all the more exciting to hear. "That sounds amazing, but really dangerous. I mean, that's really awesome! But… like… don't you have someone who can help you?"

"Well, we're not entirely unprepared." Tael admitted, his wings drooping as he admitted the feeling. "I mean, I'll admit I can't fight, at all, ever." Every word he spoke made him droop closer and closer to the ground. Ruby almost felt the small fairy's pain. "B-But Link is really good at fighting!" The fairy perked up immediately, flying over to his green-clad friend.

Link blinked, suddenly finding himself the center of the conversation. Tael flew around him, the dark fairy leaving a trail of light behind him as he did so. He was used to such acts, the sibling fairies doing the dance often, usually as a sign of their connection to him. Ruby, however, new to fairies entirely, was mesmerized by the sight.

"Link's like one of the best fighters in all of Hyrule! No one can beat him with a sword and shield, a-and he can learn how to use any weapon like really fast, too! He's slain just about every kind of monster in Hyrule at least once, sometimes twice!" Link began to blush a red that rivaled the hood Ruby wore. His left hand scratched at his forehead, either not enjoying the praise or feeling light headed from it. Ruby only quirked her head.

He was strong, as his grip on her was proof of, but the Huntress in training found it difficult that he would be able to kill a lot of Grimm with only a sword and shield. They were effective, as her years at Signal Academy had taught her the evolution of weapons. It helped that she was a prodigy with their design as well. But that only told her that mankind's improvement against fighting Grimm jumped bounds when they were able to channel dust through their weapons effectively. Swords and Shields didn't really do that. That was unless…

"So, you're a Hunter then?" She asked aloud, walking up to the blushing Faunus. Link blinked back at her, confused by the term. She saw it immediately. "Sorry, it means, um… you kill Grimm, or monsters, to keep other people safe, right?" At the explanation, Link nodded lightly, smiling as he did so. Ruby smiled in return.

"He's probably one of the best 'Hunters' you'll ever meet," Tatl spoke up now, flying around Ruby as she did so. The girl only squeaked lightly, head trying to keep track of the small ball of light. "Most of the things Link's had to kill were monsters most other people couldn't take. He's as serious as a sword mid-swing, if you catch my drift." Ruby wasn't sure if she did, but she hoped she assumed correctly.

"Well, that's great!" She cheered at the confirmation, earning another confused blink from Link. The dark and light fairy siblings joined him on either side of his head, each ringing with their own bells of confusion. "It means that I can probably bring you to Beacon then! I mean, yeah you're not a student, or from Vale, or the country even, but if anyone can help you out, there's gotta be someone at Beacon who can. It's not like you're going to get much further just walking through the forest."

The trio were quiet for a moment, but stopped when Tatl flew next to Link's long ear, whispering into it. Only a moment later did Tael join her, making for a gray light source hovering aside the Faunus. Ruby stared, watching as the green-clad warrior stared at the two from his side. She knew he still had her in his sights, a cautionary act, one that she had been trained to do when confronted with multiple Grimm. Maybe he really was a Hunter.

"Okay!" Tatl suddenly spoke up, shaking Ruby from any reverie she had. "We'll go with you to this Beacon place. But just so we're clear, we're going because you say someone there might be able to help us. If anything goes south, we're gone, got it?" Ruby got it, but she didn't want to accept it.

"Wait, what?" She asked, raising her hands as if suddenly threatened. She felt that way at least. "No one at Beacon is going to hurt you! I mean, yeah, classes can get out of hand sometimes, but it's really a safe place. Safe enough that most of the military doesn't even bother parking there cause of all the Hunters."

"I only got half of what you said, but I'm just gonna assume you're honestly trying to help us out, that right?" Ruby nodded her head, hoping to make that clear. "Well, it's better than nothing." That hit a small nerve with Ruby.

"Hey! I know I was rude before, but that doesn't give you the excuse to keep being rude to me!" Ruby pouted her lips as she finished, putting her hands on her hips as she glared at the ball of light. Behind Tatl, she could see Link staring at her, blinking with what appeared to be a bit of surprise. The dark fairy beside him, however, just wilted.

"Until you prove that you're gonna help us, it kinda does actually!" Tatl fired back, bouncing off of Ruby's head. The Huntress-in-training was more prepared for the blow this time, however, causing the fairy to bounce back painlessly. She watched as the eldest of the fairy siblings began to shake, her translucent wings rising as well. Judging by the quick series of bell rings she was making, she sounded upset. Ruby took a small amount of pleasure in that. Maybe Weiss was wearing off on her.

That was when Link finally intervened.

Ruby watched him approach, her eyes keeping their glare on the light illuminated fairy. He walked towards them with his hands raised, lips parted but not uttering a word. It took little time for him to get between the pair of them, forcing the crimson dressed girl to straighten herself, else she put her head against his back.

He was facing the eldest of the fairy siblings, making motions with his hands as the little ball of light rang in pitches high and low, flying about his face. He made no motion to move away from her, likely used to her antics. Ruby looked behind them just long enough to see Tael approaching as well, but far slower than their green-clad companion.

"U-Um," the dark fairy spoke when he was finally close enough, his wings telling Ruby that he was talking to her. She hoped she was imagining them correctly. "I know my sister can be… rude sometimes, but she's really a nice person. That means, um, I mean, I hope you can forgive her. We are a little lost, so she's not in her best of moods. So um, can you forgive her?" Ruby watched the younger of the fairies for a moment, before a small grin took over her face.

"Yeah, I guess I can, but only because you asked nicely." Ruby extended her finger out towards the dark fairy, though not daring to poke at him. She didn't want to get both siblings against her. Plus, the fairy seemed as skittish as Jaune. That wasn't to forget Link looked like her fellow leader in near every detail, all the way down to height and eye-color. She would really have to introduce them, maybe switch clothes and play guess who. She giggled at the ideas.

"Th-Thank you," Tael spoke kindly, wings extending outwards in what Ruby could only assume was some sort of bow. It must have been hard with people only being able to see your wings. "You're, um… you're very nice for a stranger."

"Eh, it's like my friend says, strangers are just friends you haven't met yet." Ruby couldn't hide the giggle that came from her lips, quoting her blonde friend when his supposed doppelganger was just in front of him. Speaking of, Link had turned back to face her, looking back down at her with a small smile on his face. Not a smirk, but a gentle curve of his lips, nothing mocking or insinuating about it. He looked behind himself, motioning with his head.

"Fine," she heard Tatl let out in a tone that oozed of disappointment. The yellow fairy flew out, from behind the green clad blonde, stopping only when she was beside her brother. She looked up at the young girl, wings moving only to keep her in the air. "I'm sorry for being rude to you and I would really appreciate your help."

Ruby beamed.

"Oh that's alright, it's all in the past, literally." Ruby giggled lightly again before raising her hands. She gripped Link by the shoulders, looking into his blue eyes with her own silver ones. He didn't appear as unnerved by her contact as his fairy friends did, but he did blink at her in a bit of confusion. "So are you ready to go to Beacon?" She asked in a falsely critical tone. "Home to some of the greatest Hunters in training?"

He shrugged in response, nodding his head. Ruby smiled bright enough to show all her teeth.

"Well then let's go!"

She turned around and began to pull Link behind her, the green-clad warrior stumbling momentarily before joining behind her, hunched over to make up for their difference in height. Behind them, the two fairies followed, easily keeping pace even with the ever falling red leaves.

He sighed, an action that was becoming frequent in number. It was not something he was proud of. Usually a sigh indicated some sort of lack of energy or disappointment. Neither were good qualities for a man of his position. Lifting his favorite mug to his lips, he drank from it again, hoping the caffeinated beverage inside would give him the energy to fight back next time.

As another slow sigh left his lips, he knew it was not the case.

His hand moved up to adjust the small spectacles across his nose, pushing them until they sat more comfortable along his bridge, still behind the silver hair that lightly hang down over his eyes. Their emerald lenses turned the blue skyline of Beacon a majestic cyan, something he often found easing to his nerves to watch. Many a time he could recall the simple sight of Vale surrounded in such a peaceful and regal color to be able to settle any worrying matters of his mind. It was easy to see the world as more peaceful when it was made of brighter hues. But now that was no longer the case.

The green scarf held around his neck seemed tighter as the reminders of the present came back. Where he would stare out and see hope for tomorrow, he saw only disappointments for his past, decisions he had made and fell through any faith he had. Terrorist attacks increasing, White Fang numbers rising, Vytal Tournament postponed, civilians scared, and worse of all, students whispering. Whispers were rumors, and often times very little was more damning than a rumor wound up to great portions.

He sighed again.

"You once told me that sighing was a sign of old age." The voice was one he recognized very well, from a woman he entrusted many of his secrets to. He let a small smile take his lips, pleased that it was different from the depressive frown he had worn for the past few hours. He turned around, looking to see his companion walking towards him, Scroll in hand and riding crop in the other.

"Glynda," he returned with a small raise of his mug, bowing his head lightly. The woman repeated the action, without a mug, however. "It is good to see you. But shouldn't you be preparing the students for their sparring tomorrow? I hear Cardin has a lot of ground to cover with his team."

His longtime partner and friend had little patience for his words. A pity, really. Students seemed to enjoy it. Glynda Goodwitch, however, with a white low-cut blouse and long blonde hair, was the very definition of law-abiding. Even her lavender cape, long and hanging just past her knees, moved only as the wind and gravity commanded it. All despite being worn by a woman capable of extreme telekinesis.

"Those preparations were finished an hour and a half ago," his partner returned easily, tapping something on the pad in her hand, maybe a reminder to send him notifications about such events. He certainly hoped not, but he knew better. "I came here to inquire why you are the boundaries of Beacon and not up in your office. Don't say the view is superior from here, but I can know well enough that it is not." He had to chuckle at that, her superior knowledge of him and his habits.

"Just, reminiscing I suppose," he simply said, gaze turning back to the city across the water, illuminated by the sky and sun. "Decisions I should have made, actions I shouldn't have done, the past in general. And don't say it, I know how bad a habit it is."

"I was going to comment that I expected you to be planning your next move, not worrying over your last." Glynda returned his words as easily as he had hers. She took the few extra steps necessary to be by his side, staring across the same body of water to the same city across the way. "But you give yourself too little credit." Those words made him turn.

"Really?" He asked in an amused tone, not used to this rare sight before him. "Do go on." He sipped at the dark beverage in his mug as the woman beside him sighed deeply.

"Perhaps you could not prevent the actions that occurred, but your decisions reduced the possible damage to a minimum most people tend to ignore." She tapped a few items on her pad, outside of his sight. "The army tends to show enough force to make the enemies worried, but don't consider how the people are usually wary of such actions. Most of the politicians and council don't even believe a problem exists until it had blown down their door and started eating their food. You, however, took the middle ground."

"It is a habit of mine, isn't it?" He spoke the rhetorical question as he turned his gaze back to the school. To him, it was the embodiment of the 'middle ground."

Beacon. It was one of the most prestigious schools in the entire world for aspiring Hunters and Huntresses. Applications from across the globe coming to his desk every day, from schools as close as Signal to as far away as Atlas. It stood proudly tall, between the badlands where Grimm roamed and the bustling town of Vale where humans lived. A sign, if ever there were one, of those would want to defend the good from the bad.

It was a middle road, to him at least. Training Hunters to fight against the Grimm rather than forcing a marching order. Allowing civility and fun to be the major part of the students' lives, not drills and tactic trainings. But it also allowed constant reminders of the threats just over the horizons, rather than hiding them beneath neon lights and eternal festivities. There was little ignorance to be had at his school, and that was an achievement in itself.

But one achievement was all it was, and one he had succeeded in long ago. Now Ozpin was faced with the failures of the present, similar decisions leading to different outcomes. Remembering the definition of insanity, it brought a chuckle to his lips.

"Expecting change with similar methods," he chuckled at the words, knowing that they made his friend scowl at him briefly. That was a game he enjoyed to play. "It's hard to see the events of late any other way with the Vytal Festival postponed."

"That is only temporary, and no matter what your actions, the festival would have been delayed," Glynda returned easily, it was a habit of hers. "You can I can both agree that delaying the festival is one of the wiser moves the Military has made, ensuring safety without a blatant show of arms."

"That remains to be seen," Ozpin noted again, eyes swerving toward Vale. "They hope to protect the coliseum, but I can't help but imagine they hope to turn it into some flying fortress of power." He chuckled at his own words, imagining the Council ruling from the cloud tops with barrels aiming down. It truthfully wasn't far different than where they already were.

"I'm being serious Ozpin." She returned in a cold tone. "Or do you believe that I would be following you as I am did I think you were making the wrong decisions?" He blinked once before turning towards her.

She was staring at him with a hard gaze, one she often wore. Her lips were puckered, drawn in a small frown, sitting beneath her sharp green eyes. The lavender of her cape swayed behind her, cut into the shape of arrows she seemed so eager to wear. He looked back at her, for once, unable to think of a proper response. He settled for simply looking at her, hoping she would glance away first. He really should have known better.

There was no denying in any facet of the word that Glynda was loyal to him. A friend since their younger years, a comrade of arms that he was proud to call a partner. She was the embodiment of duty and civility, one who would conquer the unruly truth before even thinking of settling for a comforting lie. Were there any words he could trust, they would be hers. He was just able to stop another sigh from escaping his lips.

It was at that time that he saw something else nearly escape his vision.

From just behind Glynda, an airship was docking. Not a strictly unusual sight, except that he knew of no scheduled times for one to be appearing now. His partner turned to see what had captured his vision, taking note of the ship the same way he had. She began tapping on her pad again, likely looking up an inquiry as to who was on the vessel.

The question was quickly answered, as one Ruby Rose jumped from the door, lifting her hands into the air in a small cheer. It was enough to make Ozpin smile. A Huntress though she was, in training or not, she was still a child, and small acts like that only made it all the more obvious. It was a wonder that Qrow had been able to teach her so well at such a young age.

All musings about the young Huntress vanished, however, when she motioned for someone else inside the air ship. Her arms were making loops, encouraging someone else to come forward. Perhaps it was her sister, or more likely Jaune Arc, as the young team JNPR leader needed a bit of help following his rides on mobile devices.

Those thoughts died as well when another figure came forward, appearing far more curious than pained.

By appearance alone and at a distance, Ruby's companion did appear to look strikingly similar to one Jaune Arc, at least to Ozpin, but there were enough significant differences to make it clear they were not the same. Jaune did not often wear a garb of green nor a pointed hat. He did not have his sword and shield attached to his back. He did not have a couple balls of lighting floating about himself. And, if there was ever one significant detail, Jaune Arc was not a Faunus, which the long pointed ears of Ruby's companion clearly indicated he was. And if all of that was not enough, Jaune had been to his school enough to not be so impressed in the sight as this boy clearly was.

The slack jaw and wide gaze of this new Faunus was a clear a sign of surprise and wonder that Ozpin had ever seen. It was true he had seen the expression often, especially amongst new students or potential attendees. The prestigious name of Beacon and size of the school were not things easily looked over. He turned to ask Glynda if she was aware of who the individual was, but found her now longer there. Ozpin turned, quickly finding where she was.

Glynda was moving towards the pair before Ozpin, her high heels clicking across the stone and shoulders squared. For one who criticized the military so easily, she took up the posture and stance of a soldier very quickly. From the distance, Ozpin saw Ruby notice Glynda, nearly jumping at the teacher's approach. The figure next to her, wearing an impressive emerald green, only look a bit more curious. He had a good taste in color, if nothing else, Ozpin concluded before making his way to the pair.

"Um, hello Professor Goodwitch," Ruby meekly addressed the approaching blonde, waving her hand from side to side in a weak greeting. The taller woman spoke not a word, instead making her way in a beeline for the mysterious figure beside the girl. Ruby noticed it quickly. "W-Wait! This is a friend I just made! He got lost in the Foreverfall and I told him someone here could probably help him!"

"Ruby Rose," Ozpin heard his partner address critically, a tone most assumed was her natural voice by now. "Are you to tell me you brought a complete stranger to Beacon, during a time of heightened security, simply because he said he was lost?" The girl shrunk under the woman's gaze, forcing Glynda to turn head to the mysterious Faunus, who was looking at her with a curious expression and blinking eyes. "And who are you?" The figure blinked again, as if unsure of how to answer. He raised his hands, motioning towards himself then Ruby, likely trying to draw some sort of conclusion with his motions. Ozpin chuckled lightly. He knew Glynda would have none of that. "Speak up!" The professor ordered, her riding crop singing through the air at the command. That was when something truly unexpected happened.

The small balls of lights talked.

"Hey, back off!" The high voice cried out, ringing like bells. Ozpin stared at the floating light ball, noticing now the translucent wings that seemed to nearly vibrate around it. Said ball flew into Glynda's face, all but completely obscuring the woman's vision. "We're just following little red hood over here. You got a problem with that!?"

"Wait, sis!" The other more darkly colored ball of light spoke up then, flying next to his assumed sibling. He pushed against her, light and dark lights turning a soothing gray as they hovered inches away from Professor Goodwitch's face. Ozpin likely sipped at his coffee as he watched the exchange. "I-I'm really sorry about my sister. We were just lost a-and Ruby said we could come here for help. If we have to leave, we can, promise! J-Just don't like… hurt us or anything…"

"Hmph," Glynda snorted out as she waved her hand in front of her face, forcing the small balls of light to take flight away from her. Ozpin crooked a brow as he noticed the emerald colored figure furrow his own. He was defensive about those objects. Interesting. "I don't know who or what you are, but you need to have secured permission before setting foot on Beacon. I suggest securing a means of transport back to Vale promptly."

"What's Vale?" The younger and darker of the two lights asked, earning a chuckle from Ozpin, still standing on the sideline. Lost in deed. "S-Sorry, but we're not from around here… or near here… or like… anywhere."

"How very convenient," Glynda noted, her face twisting into a condemning scowl. She turned said expression on Ruby, who appeared to be shrinking into her red hood and cape. "And I suppose you have a valid reason for bringing them here, Ms. Rose?"

"U-Uh, yeah!" The girl spoke up, doing her utmost to appear confident. "His name's Link, a-and he's from some island place called Hyrule. He's never heard of Vale, or Foreverfall, or Beacon, or any place around here. He also calls everything different, like Hunters and Grimm and Dust are different for him and stuff… B-But he's looking for his friend! So I thought that someone here might be able to… ya know… help him." Ozpin saw his window.

"And I believe that is an excellent idea, Ms. Rose." All eyes turned to him as he finally spoke for the first time. He made a small show of his can and mug, holding himself high in both poise and dignity. Best to let actions speak more than his words. "Helping a young man such as this is what it means to be a Huntress, and you have shown good judgement in bringing him here. What's more, saying to hail from an island of no record. At the very least it is deeply intriguing." Ruby beamed at the headmaster. Glynda did not.

"Excuse me Ozpin," said woman returned. "But I believe that the police in Vale are more qualified to deal with a lost child than we are." Stifled laughter brought her attention back to the floating balls of light. Specifically, the light colored feminine one that was now twisting in the air, as if spinning. "And what is so funny to you?"

"You calling Link a child, duh!" The ball of light didn't even try to hide it. "If you think he's a child, then that makes you toddlers. No wait, that's too kind, babies!" Ozpin was fortunate to see Link appearing nervous by the ball of light's antics, hands raised as if debating to pluck them from the air. It was with just as much fortune that Glynda did as well.

"You may want to have a repairman do maintenance on those drones of yours," the professor supplied to Link, earning a bemused expression from the Faunus, ears dropping at the command. Ruby, however, seemed to pick up what he did not.

"No, wait, professor, that's why I know Link is telling the truth, or a good part of it, or more than a good lie," she rambled as she got her superior's attention. "Those aren't machines! Those are real fairies!" Ozpin took a slow sip of his coffee, enjoying this exchange more and more with every passing word.

"Fairies?" Glynda returned in question, looking at the pair of flying objects. One appeared to be taking pride in the title, ringing loudly with translucent wings flared. The other seemed to bow, as if embarrassed. They acted human enough, at least to Ozpin, but even he was skeptical of seeing the creatures of fairy tales. Skeptical, but not disbelieving.

He watched Glynda reach a hand up, presuming to grasp at one of the floating balls. Ozpin noticed out of the crook of his eyes a frightened expression on Ruby, earning his curiosity. That wonder was settled in the next moment.

Link, the now name green garbed Faunus, grabbed Glynda's hand, stopping her.

Ozpin stopped sipping his coffee, staring at what he was sure was a dead man. Ruby apparently had a similar expression, her hands cupped over her face, perhaps to hide her slack jaw. The pair of opposing colored fairies were ringing, both flying behind Link's head. Link, however, only glared at Glynda, his blue eyes suddenly far sharper than before. Glynda, however, had a green gaze full of just as much venom.

"Release my hand, now," the Huntress ordered in a low tone. Ozpin watched as his partner tightened the grip on her crop, the leather beneath letting out a small cry at the strain. Link, however, appeared determined not to let go until… Ozpin wasn't sure what he was waiting for. What he did know, however, was that it was time to intervene again.

"Right, why don't we settle down?" He spoke easily as he waved his cane in front of the two, forcing Link to step back, thereby releasing Glynda's hand. The professor rubbed her appendage in a way that looked as if it was sore. Intriguing indeed. "I believe this was just a poor form of communication on both of our parts. Why don't we mediate that, hmm?"

He smiled as he looked towards Link, the green garbed Faunus looking up to him. It became obvious now how short the boy was, likely barley scrapping below six feet if he was lucky, but more likely a good five foot eight. Short, but he knew better than to judge based upon appearance. Said boy looked up at him with a curious expression, not uttering a word.

"Ruby?" A new voice spoke up, earning a few twist of the heads.

Ozpin was one of the first to see a fellow member of team RWBY approaching. Garbed in tin materials of black and white, all complimenting the slit girl's slit golden eyes, Blake Belladonna was figure that exuded experience. With high heel boots clicking across the pavement, long strands of dark hair waving in the wind, and, of course, she was still wearing her now signature black bow on her head. The headmaster knew well what lay beneath the thin material, but he was more interested now in the way the girl's golden eyes stared at Link's ears. He smiled lightly at the small exchange.

"Blake! I'm so glad you're here!" Ruby spoke her teammate's name with cheer. The quietest member of the group had only a moment's time before her young leader grabbed her arm, pulling her forward. She stumbled lightly before catching herself. "You won't believe what happened! I was in the Foreverfall practicing with Crescent Rose when I suddenly saw an Ursa Major trying to attack Link here, so I shot at it and then I met him and he's a Faunus who's from some far off land! He's got magical fairies and other Grimm that he just calls monsters and… and well he needs our help but I'm not sure how to help him yet."

"A problem I am sure we will mediate," Ozpin decided to interject. He enjoyed watching conversations often, but he knew the importance of time. There were enough clocks in his office to prove it. "Ms. Belladonna," he spoke as he nodded towards the Faunus in hiding. "I'd like you to meet Link, a young Faunus we have just met." Link blinked lightly before facing the new girl, who stood only just under his own height. He smiled at her, easily so, bowing towards her. Blake stopped, confused momentarily, before bowing in response. They both rose, Link smiling friendly at her.

Ozpin, the ever-observant headmaster, could see the gears turning in the young girl's sharp eyes. Though only a few years Ruby's senior, Blake had seen far more cruelty in the world than he ever would wish upon a soul. It replaced trust with caution, joy with trepidation, and hope with fear. He loathed the last most of all.

"It is… a pleasure to meet you," Blake spoke uneasily, not sure of what to think of the new Faunus. Given her history, Ozpin was far to blame her. "But what is going on?"

"I was hoping that Link would explain that, as so far we have heard only testimony from Ms. Rose and his two fairy companions." Ozpin nodded politely at the two fairies, both ringing at their addressing. He saw the dark fairy quickly fly into the brightly colored one, perhaps to stifle a comment she was close to screaming. It seemed plausible, if not likely. "So, Link, may you perhaps tell us why you are here?" Link looked at him for a moment, eyes looking up to the two fairies. Ozpin followed his gaze, but was quick to hold up a hand to the pair.

"I apologize, but I would like to hear from Link why he is here. I appreciate the companionship, truly, but he can only go so far with saying so little." He lowered his hand, both fairies remaining quiet out of respect. Perhaps there was more civility to the lighter colored one than he thought. The dark did not surprise him. "So, Link," he looked back to the emerald colored Faunus. "Can you tell us why you are here?"

He watched Link's mouth move, hands making small motions as he spoke, but he heard not a word.

Ozpin's face quickly fell into a frown, thinking he was being mocked by the sword bearing Faunus. He looked to his side to see Glynda carrying a similar expression, the usual visage of annoyance that came so easily and naturally to her. Ruby appeared just as confused, head tilted and lips slightly parted. Blake… Blake appeared to be listening? Truly fascinating.

"A noble goal," the dark girl spoke. Yes, definitely listening, Ozpin concluded.

"Wait, what?" Ruby asked as she faced her teammate. "What's noble? What happened? I didn't hear anything! Is there something wrong with my ears? I made sure to wear my guards before I shot Crescent Rose!" The young girl put her fingers to her ears, twisting them back and forth. Ozpin had a far more likely theory.

"Ms. Belladonna," he started, earning the bow-adorned girl's attention. "May you please inform us what Link said?" She blinked for a moment, unsure as to why. Link also looked towards her, almost expectantly. She nodded before continuing.

"He said he left his home to search for a friend that left him a long time ago," she began, looking towards Link as he spoke. He smiled softly and nodded, confirming the words. It was also confirmation of Ozpin's unspoken assumption about Link's ability to speak and be heard. "She was someone who had helped him through an important part of his life, but was forced to leave for a reason he doesn't know. Now that there is peace in his land, he wants to look for her, but decided to leave his home to do so."

"Extraordinary," Ozpin muttered softly, a smile of his own across his lips. He took a slow gulp of coffee from his mug, letting the others muse upon the word. Thoughts gave conversation, and he hated to be the only one talking. "I'll be the first to confirm that you may have been the only one to hear anything Link spoke, Ms. Belladonna."

"I… thought as much, but I don't know why." She quickly began to defend herself, holding up her hands as if in said defense. "He was just… quiet is all." Ozpin hide his growing smile behind his mug, letting the aroma of the slowly vanishing liquid fill his lungs. He noticed the fairies above ringing next to one another, likely carrying their own quiet conversation. He was sure at least one was as observant as him.

"Yes, quiet," the headmaster repeated. "So quiet that we couldn't hear a word. I wonder why that is."

"It's because you all have such short ears." It appeared that Tatl finally broke her vow of silence, no matter how short it was. It earned a few confused brows from the group, but only a nod from Ozpin, who had thought as much. He could not tell for the hearing of these fairies, but he knew little to nothing of them. Stories had more information than he did. "Seriously, all your ears are so short and stubby. Reminds me of the Gerudo almost, but at least they knew how to listen. Good thing dark and brooding over here knows how to pay attention." The headmaster saw the Faunus in hiding blush at the name, likely more insulted than complimented. Tael, the dark fairy as Ozpin reminded himself, seemed to wilt at his sister's words. It was likely a form of embarrassment as well.

"I am not familiar with the term Gerudo, but I suspect it is similar to your interpretation of our word for Faunus," Ozpin returned to the fairy easily, hoping to move this conversation into the territory of fruition. They were already very close. "So, may I ask what you call yourself?" He asked the question towards Link, who silently moved his lips again. Ozpin found humor in that, speaking so softly he needed the sharpest of ears to hear him.

"A Hylian?" Blake spoke the word he spoke. "That's your term for a faunus?" Link shrugged in response, the green garb he wore rising and falling with the action. He appeared rather passive of the situation. Ozpin wasn't quite sure how to see that yet. It could be to their benefit, easily accepting what was around him, or a negative, hiding his true motives carefully. He hoped for the former.

"Hylians are the native people to the kingdom of Hyrule." It was the darker fairy that spoke this time, earning a confused look from Blake. Ozpin noticed Glynda pout her lips as she crossed her arms, lightly poking at her pad as Tael spoke. "They're said to have long ears to allow them to hear the goddesses, the length usually being assigned to those of royalty. Gerudo are… Gerudo are a race of thieves of the desert, all female but with ears shorter than those of Hylians. It's said in tales that they lost their long ears to the desert sands, whipping them away." Ozpin made note of the goddesses, a religion of his land doubtlessly.

"So you claim to hail from a kingdom of all Faunus?" Glynda asked the question with ease, something that Ozpin was sure not many could do. There was a lot of weight to such an insinuation, a kingdom free of any prejudice against the Faunus people, sitting out there in water, yet to be found. He sipped his coffee in thought of it. Link looked unready to agree to the term, waving his head lightly as he shifted his shoulders. With a shrug again, he nodded. Perhaps he was used to being unheard, given how little he attempted to speak. "Interesting. Only four kingdoms have been established throughout Remnant over the course of the eons of Dust's discovery. A new land is not impossible, but it is highly improbable."

"Oh no, it's real," the golden fairy spoke up again. Ozpin was starting to relate her to the head of the small trio. Though, by mere observation of sight, Link was clearly the muscle of them. "Trust me on that one. We've been all around it, from the high mountains of Snow Head to the low plains of the Gerudo Valley. Right now, it's more real than this training ground of yours." Ozpin hid his smile behind his mug. This creature, this fairy, he found appeal in it. It was interesting and forthcoming.

"That's… that sound incredible." Ozpin held no surprise at the amount of awe Blake had in her voice. He shifted his eyes to see the hidden Faunus staring at Link, her curious gaze now one of wonder. "You… you left a kingdom full of faunus…" The headmaster saw the next question coming a mile away. "Where is it? Can you take me to it? I'd… I-I'd like to see a place where Faunus live like that."

"Blake…" Ruby spoke from aside her teammate. There wasn't reprimand in the young girl's tone, more like sympathy. Ruby Rose was an empathetic leader if ever there was one. Ozpin half suspected the B of RWBY didn't even notice her folded hands, imitating a prayer of sorts.

Attention turned to Link, seemingly awaiting confirmation of such a task. Instead, however, they saw only the blonde Faunus put a hand behind his head, beneath the sharp green cap he wore. He scratched at it, pushing the brim of his hat down and over his eyes. A thin line was drawn over his lips. Tatl flew up to him, hovering beside his head. She made contact with him, and Ozpin noticed the small inclination he made towards here.

"We can't…" It was Tael to answer, sounding pitiful in tone. That never came with good reason.

"Why?" Blake was quick to return. "Is it about protecting your home? I-I assure that I can keep secrets well. No one will ever know where it is." Ozpin knew she was just as honest with such an examination of herself. The dark fairy, however, only shook in the air, almost sadly.

"No it's… w-we don't know where it is." A pregnant pause followed the statement. "Remember how we said we were lost? Like, actually lost?" Ruby nodded up to him, not enjoying where this was going. "There was a storm out in the ocean. It… it threw us off. We lost our map, our compass… even the sail. We… we have no idea how to get back."

A sad tale indeed, Ozpin recognized, earning at least a pause from Glynda as she tapped on her pad, likely noting all the details of this meeting. He watched Link carefully, however, noticing how he avoided contact with any of them, focusing only on the light fairy against his cheek. It could be seen as a sign of regret, knowing one so young would never return home. But another… well, everyone had a tell. He couldn't be sure which it was yet.

"Oh." It was all the response that came from Blake. Ruby was far more detailed.

"I'm… I'm so sorry to hear that," the young team leader spoke as kindly as she could, but Ozpin could nearly hear the constraint in her voice. "I-I mean, you must be very brave to still want to find your friend. Maybe… maybe we can help you find your way home! Like, we can find your friend then help you find your home! That'll work, right?"

Link looked up at her, pulling back the brim of his hat to do so. He looked at her for a moment before adopting what Ozpin could only describe as a side-ways grin, one full of acceptance, thanks, but more than anything else, consolation. That was not what he would expect from an individual told only recently he would never be able to return home. But again, he was not sure if it was because of an exceptional level of acceptance, or something else… He sipped is coffee in thought.

"Be that as it may, there is little we can do for you here," Glynda made herself known with her words, her own green eyes focused on the screen in her arms. Ozpin had given up long ago attempting to read the device as she wrote on it. The machinations of the mind were easier to understand than Glynda's writing patterns. "This is a school dedicated to the training of Hunters and Huntresses, dedicated to defending the lives from the threats of the natural and ill-natural world. There is little to nothing we can do for helping you locate a friend you have lost."

Ozpin made it a point to keep his mug against his lips, hiding his reaction as he observed the expressions of the others. Ruby looked pained, as he suspected she would, one to quickly connect and empathize with others. Blake appeared the same, but was far gentler with hers, settling with a short sigh. He half suspected she was still regretting not seeing this kingdom Link supposedly hailed from. The fairies drooped a little, but spoke not a word. It was Link that surprised him.

He gave the same sad smile, then nodded.

No arguments against it, no action to try and change the professor's mind, only calm acceptance, sad as it was. That was a significant point. Where many others given even a chance to stay at his school, humility aside, they would do their utmost to make any excuse to do so. Link's quick denial for such an act meant again, one of two things. He either truly did not care for his school or he did not know about it. They were not exclusive, but neither gave room for a supposed liar or spy to worm his way in.

"Perhaps you're speaking too quickly, Glynda," Ozpin spoke now, lowering his mug as he did so. He gave them a moment to adjust to him, again letting a few thoughts form in their minds. "It may be beyond our current boundaries of operations to assist you in searching for a friend Link, but I see no reason to simply throw you from our grounds and wish you luck. Tell me, how skilled are you with that sword?" His can lifted and pointed towards the jeweled object on Link's back.

Link looked behind himself briefly before raising his hand. He slowly withdrew the items, wisely at that. A quick display could easily be seen as a show of force. He was used to suspicion, at the very least. But with sword and shield drawn, Ozpin was suddenly much more critical of tools.

Though made of metal and well-shaped at that, they appeared to be encrusted with gems and Dust to a degree that he was not used to. A simple piece of decoration in the past, loaded and unloaded as need be, those were the common uses for such material. Link's weapons appeared to be loaded over and out with the material, shining with the sun's light like holy relics. Ozpin half suspected they were.

"Like them?" He heard Tatl say in a sort of sing-song voice. The light fairy flew around the objects Link held, coating them in a trail of luminescent dust. The headmaster had to admit, it gave a very ethereal feel to them. "Meet the Magical Sword and Shield. Forged and enchanted long ago during the time of the First Hero of Hyrule. The blade is enchanted to never lose its edge no matter what it is beaten against. It can channel magic as well as any rod or staff. The shield is able to block just about anything between heavy hammers and balls of fire. No luck getting through his defense." Magic… likely their term for Dust. It made sense they had different words for the same thing. Sharing a language was blessing enough.

Ozpin noted silently Glynda typing out on her keypad, likely snapping a few pictures with her ever-present mini-drones while taking down the fairies words. Ruby, however, had sparkles in her eyes. The weapon enthusiast that she was, it hardly surprised him. It was actually Link that earned the title for oddest expression at that moment. Rather than appearing humbled or proud for the weapons he carried, he appeared almost… embarrassed. Perhaps that wasn't the right words, maybe uneasy or something close to it. Interesting nonetheless.

"And as for his skill," Tatl went on, laughing a little before she did so. It almost unnerved the headmaster, almost. "Link's been called the greatest swordsman in all of Hyrule. Before we left, there was no one who could take him on in a fair fight, and even unfair ones he'd come out on top. Take on a whole cave full of monsters and come out without a bead of sweat, but some new treasure to boot." Ozpin smiled as the fairy finished.

"That sounds quite amazing," he admitted aloud, honest with his words. "Then, perhaps, we may be able to strike a deal of sorts." While the children around him appeared between confused and curious, with brows furrowed and lips puckered, Glynda only gave him a warning glare. He saw Link return his weapons to their sheath, likely uncomfortable holding them out amongst others. That was normal.

"Ozpin," Glynda spoke his name darkly. "Remember what we talked about. It was only minutes ago, so I won't believe you've already forgotten." He doubted she'd ever let him forget a single conversation they had shared, if he was being asked under oath.

"Link," he spoke the Faunus's name again, watching as he stiffened as if expecting orders. Ozpin briefly wondered what his role was in this kingdom he hailed from. "While we are not able to readily help you find your friend now; that does not mean we lack the resources to do so. In fact, it is likely we are more capable of this than the authorities in Vale at the moment. However, we cannot allow someone incapable of fighting the Grimm onto Beacon. It is a policy that we all abide by. A practical tradition really, given our purpose and standing in the world. So, here is my offer." He took a slow sip of the mug he was waving before. Then, lifting his cane, he pointed it towards Link. He noticed with a small amount of glee the way Link tensed at the action. Caution.

"If you can slay a Grimm of my choosing before night's fall, I'll allow you stay on my campus." Ozpin could feel the joy emanating from Ruby as readily as he felt the rage roll off Glynda. It was weird ground to stand on. Link, however, didn't appear ready to jump on the offer. Rather, he lifted one of his hands to his chin, as if in thought.

Both fairies flew down to him, floating by one of his long ears. He made small motions with his head as they doubtlessly spoke, whispering to him a voice already softer than a warm spring's breeze. He smirked lightly at that.

"Ms. Belladonna," he called lightly to Blake. The girl turned to him. "Would you happen to tell me what they are saying?" There was obvious hesitation on her part, likely seeing the fellow Faunus as more potential ally. However, it appeared that the actions of her former comrades had allowed Ozpin's request to win out.

"They're talking about if it's a good idea. Tatl, the light one, keeps saying it's better than nothing, and her brother is agreeing. But…" She bit her lip with one of her fangs before she went on. "But it sounds like Link is actual the more cautious. He… I think he's saying he wants to be alone." Now that was surprising.

If there was any doubt left Ozpin had that Link was truly a foreign Faunus, it was gone now.

"Alright," Tatl spoke up, flying away from Link and up to Ozpin. The headmaster stared at the ball of light as it floated in front of him. "We'll do it, but on one condition." Ozpin felt himself smile, even as he could nearly feel Glynda imagine his skin being peeled away.

"And that is?" The fairy rung lightly before speaking, lightly her way of clearing her throat.

"Link's an equal while he's here." That… was not what Ozpin was expecting. His brows rose questioningly at the statement. He didn't have to look to know that the others present had similar expressions. "That means no special treatment or unfair treatment. He's not some new kid to pick on or war hero to drool over. We're just looking for his friend and you're helping us find a place to start. Simple as that."

Ozpin looked over to Glynda, who appeared to have tapped out the message already. She was nodding at the pad, thought with a scowl on her features. She did not, however, have a word of reprimand for them. That was quite the turnaround. Perhaps that condition was to ease the burden her? Yes, it would but… what purpose did it serve Link? Was that how he was treated back at Hyrule? But which one then, the prince or the pauper? It was not something he could simply ask.

He looked towards Blake, noting how she nodded approvingly at the statement. With her arms crossed and a smile across her lips, it was the fastest he had seen anyone gain the young student's trust, let alone approval. Ruby seemed all that and doubly so, likely for she was given the same kind of attention, being the junior of near everyone by at least two years. Link looked at Ozpin, but not expectantly. It was as if… he had already made a decision, no matter what the headmaster decided. It made the headmaster smile.

Perhaps he had made errors when it came to his school in the past, but that didn't mean he should pass on new opportunities in the present.

"Very well," he spoke to the fairy, extending his hand outwards towards Link. "I accept." Link smiled back at him, gripping his hand with a firm shake. Ozpin noted immediately the strength behind it, higher than he initially thought for someone of Link's stature. That was, again, a thought he filed away for later.

"This is highly irregular Ozpin," Glynda scolded again from the side, but he noted that the flare he expected form her was gone. Perhaps she was just as interested in the outcome of this test as he was. "Usually new entries to Beacon must perform an evaluation test, and only then after completing a test of competency." He chuckled at her usual demeanor. "Sad as his tale may be, it isn't ethically possible to allow every case such as his to be admitted."

"That's why we're doing the test," Ozpin countered lightly, the cheer in his voice unchanging as he answered his partner. "That aside, I doubt there are any other cases like Link here, isn't that right?" He grinned lightly towards the green clad Faunus, raising his mug to lips as he did so. The warrior didn't blink as he gazed back at him.

"Well that's awesome!" Ruby shattered the tense atmosphere with her usual cheer. She jumped in front of Link, her hands clasped to her chest with a beaming smile aimed up at him. He blinked as he looked back at her, clearly unused to the level of energy the child had. "That means you can actually be a student here Link! You can have breakfast with us, go to class with us, do training with us, have lunch with us, watch movies with us, go to Vale with us, and then have dinner with us! Can't sleep with us though, four in a room is crowded enough." Ozpin chuckled as Link looked at her with a bemused expression, complete with a light blush. It appeared he wasn't ignorant of the insinuations either.

"Please forgive Ruby," Blake spoke up instead, putting a hand on Link's shoulder. He turned to her, not appearing offended by the gesture in the least. She smiled at him for it. "But I would like to see you enter the school as well. Your home… I'd like to hear about it."

"You seem pretty eager to talk about that," Tatl flew up to her as she spoke, causing the dark girl to pull her hand away. "Can't say I blame you for being curious about Link. He is an amazing guy. But you seem pretty interested in just Hyrule. Why is that?" Ozpin hid his smile well behind his mug, even as Blake appeared to have her stomach drop to the earth.

"S-She's just a history buff!" Ozpin had little surprise to see the young team leader jumping to her friend's rescue. "I mean, like, she's read almost every book about faunus in the school and Vale, always looking for something new to do and stuff like that. I-It's just a hobby for her, really!" The red cloaked girl nearly bounded as she spoke. She was not the most skilled liar.

"Whoa, whoa, take it easy Red," Tatl followed up, with a new nick-name for the young girl at that. It made Ruby blink. "I was just asking. Geez, no reason to act like I'm gonna burn down the town or something." The fairy rang as she flew away from the duo of girls, circling about link with a trail of gold, before settling in front of Glynda.

While it was obvious to the headmaster that his partner was glaring at the fairy, her own fingers resting above her pad, he could only assume Tatl was doing the same. Given the stiffness of the fairy's wings, it was a likely expression, though the blinding amount of light she gave off did make it rather difficult to judge.

"So, um…" Ozpin turned his attention back to Link, only to find Tael floating up to him. He assumed it was a meeker version of flight, given that the fairy moved at only a fraction of his sister's speed, wings drooping as he did so. "What kind of monster are we fighting? Y-You said Grimm, but Ruby said Grimm are monsters, but like, are they all the same or… what?" An interesting deduction.

"Though Grimm all have similar hunger and needs, they vary about as readily as you and I," Ozpin spoke plainly and honestly to the fairy. He hoped his good nature would ease any discomfort in the floating companion. "It is interesting that you call them simply monsters, but I suppose that is hardly the most interesting difference we have found. But besides that, I am getting away from myself."

He waved his cane as he spoke, metaphorically brushing away his rogue thoughts. Ozpin turned his attention back to Link, who looked at him expectantly, arms crossed and eyes forward.

"You came from the Foreverfall Forest, is that correct?" He watched Link glance to Ruby, who vigorously nodded her head. Link returned the expression to Ozpin. "Well, there is another woods call the Emerald Forest. I believe you will find it closer to your typical trek through wooded lands, with trees of green and grounds covered with light foliage and dirt. However, it is also home to a few more impressive species of Grimm." He gave another moment of silence to gauge Link's reaction. Not a muscle on his face had twitched. He was poised, if nothing else.

"Of those numbers, there is an impressive beast called the Nevermore." He heard a light gasp from Ruby, the memory of the monster that required her team's cooperative effort to slay still fresh in her mind. Link gave her only a glance before looking back towards the headmaster. "It is a Grimm with wing spans longer than the ship your rode in on, flying to deathly heights, and capable of catastrophic damage. It is among one of the more deadly forms of Grimm, especially to the untrained. If you can slay a beast such as this, I will allow you to stay on my campus, with the condition Tatl has specified." The fairy rung at the agreement.

It took not a moment for Link to nod his head. Ozpin made careful note of the Faunus's smile. It was much more confident now than it was before. Interesting in all ways.

"Alright!" Tatl finally let out, flying away from Glynda and back around Link. She stopped when she hovered over his right shoulder, the green-clad warrior grinning at her as she lightly bounced against his cheek. It was clear to see it was out of affection. "Looks like we got a monster to slay, just like old times!"

"Nearly, but I have a stipulation of my own," Glynda let out, earning the collective attention. She tapped at her keypad, giving Link a meaningful glare. He only appeared confused by it. "The test as specified is meant to be a solo mission, done to prove your individual worth for the school."

Ozpin raised his mug to hide his frown of disapproval. He knew well where this was going.

"As such, Tatl and Tael will wait here." The reaction was instantaneous.

"Wait, what!?" The lightly illuminated fairy let out, flying back over to Glynda in a blink of an eye. She rang like a child was shaking a bell, loud and unfaltering. "You seriously expect us to just split up like that! No way! Isn't happening!"

"It will if you want this test to proceed," Glynda continued, unfaltering in the fairy's presence. "Normally Huntresses and Hunters in training must work together to complete these tasks, but the deal was set only for Link's admittance into Beacon." Ozpin was only partially surprised by his partner's actions.

He should have seen it coming, in all honesty. She was not one to simply act from the sideline, especially while her rules were being circumvented for the sake of curiosity. That was his fault, Ozpin supposed. What was worse, he knew there was little way to stop it, aside from another rule. He knew better than most that no such rule existed.

"Th-Then what about us?" Tael asked the question now. The headmaster deduced the fairy's tone as being on the verge of tears. "D-Does that mean we can't stay here? No matter what? A-Are we gonna have to leave Link?" The fairy flew back to said warrior, landing on his shoulder and shaking lightly.

That was when Ozpin noted Link's expression. It was hard, focused, like that of a Hunter seeing his prey. The blue eyes that were looking about in curiosity now focused on Glynda with a deathly stare. It was beneficial to no one.

"Now now, that is not the case," Ozpin quickly amended. "The rules at stipulated in such a manner in order to prevent harm to non-competitors. Rest assured that should Link pass this test, I will in no way force you or your sister to leave his side." He saw Tael visibly sag at the words, likely out of relief. Tatl did not.

"We've been through hundreds of fights with Link before! You think this is any different?!" She flew at Ozpin with those words, lightly kicking his glass frames as she approached. He leaned back to adjust them, avoiding blindness with the intensity of the fairy's light.

"Not at all," he admitted, doing his utmost to hide his smirk as he spoke next. "I am only trying to treat Link as fairly as I would any other student. No restrictions or handouts being offered."

The fairy froze at his words. Check.

"It is?" The simple question came from Blake and Ozpin moved his spectacled gaze to see her. She was looking towards Link with a curious expression. The conclusion to be made was simple enough. It was only made more obvious when Link nodded towards her.

He lifted his hand up towards his shoulder, touching at the dark fairy that rest there. Tael rung as contact was made; Link's finger was being hidden beneath the dark light of the fairy. Ozpin watched as Link brought his hand back up to his gaze, likely making eye-contact with the younger of the sibling fairies. More mute conversation was shared between them, only the fairies light rings being heard. Ozpin sipped his coffee, watching Blake as the conversation proceeded. She saw it easily enough.

"Words of confidence," she spoke simply. "Promising he'll come back."

"He better come back!" Tatl shouted as she flew up to Link. This time, however, the green-clad Faunus had to move his head back as the fairy bounced against his forehead. He didn't lose his comforting smile, even as the brighter of the fairies rang loudly in front of him. "I'm trusting you on this cause you seem so confident. But mark my words Link, you get yourself hurt or lost without me and I'll be sure to chase you to whatever new world you find yourself stumbling into!" Ozpin felt himself grin as Link laughed at the fairy's comments. Companions indeed.

"Don't worry about him being lost," Glynda spoke again, her eyes on the pad as she spoke. "The test is strictly a feasibility test for his skills as a Hunter, not a navigator. Ruby and Blake will accompany him to the forest and locating the Nevermore. They will not, however, help with its fight." She made very clear eye contact with both girls as she finished her statement, silently forcing an order upon them. Ozpin knew that look well, terrifyingly so.

"Sounds good to me!" Ruby cheered exuberantly, arms held up and out into the air. She was nearly bouncing in front of Link, the Faunus looking back at her with amused confusion. "I can't wait to see you in action! I'm sure you're gonna be all like slice and dice and all BAM BAM against it!" Ozpin didn't need sharp ears to hear Blake laughing humorously at her young superior's mindset. She ruffled Ruby's hair, earning a puff of annoyance from the crimson colored leader.

"Perhaps we should leave now then?" She suggested earnestly to Ruby before facing Link. Her fellow Faunus blinked at her once before opening his mouth. He nodded in understanding, turning to look at the sun as he did so. Ozpin supposed it was the constant presence of his bright companions that allowed him to stare into celestial orb so easily. "Alright, the forest isn't far. C'mon." She motioned with her hand, already turning as she did.

Link nodded towards her before looking towards his fairy companions. Ozpin observed him make more mute conversation, the subtlest twitches of his lips accompanied by the fairies' ringing. It was odd, to be sure, but such a thing was a wonder to see. He only hoped that Link would prove Tatl's boasts of his skills. If he did… there might yet still be something he could do for Vale.

"Just be safe, okay?" Her heard Tatl finally speak, lightly bouncing off of the green-clad Faunus's head. It only made him grin before offering a quick nod. Then, without another word, he began walking towards Ruby and Blake, the two girls waiting patiently for him. Ozpin sipped his cup as he took his place beside them.

He watched Ruby, quick to jump up next to Link. She was talking to him, as much was obvious by the attention she was being given by the green-clad warrior. The headmaster hoped the team leader knew better than to ask questions, as only Blake would be able to hear the responses.

"So how long is this going to take?" He turned his attention back to the ball of light beside him, floating between him and Glynda. Tatl's younger brother Tael was immediately next to her, turning their shared light and dark light into a soothing gray. He supposed that was them embracing. It was almost annoying how many assumptions were needed for things he could not see. "Cause you know, I'm not a fan of this, being split up and all."

"Link does not seem to mind," Glynda spoke cold as ever to the fairy, typing away at her pad. She was likely now assigning drones to spy on the test as it occurred. It was logical, if predictable, to Ozpin. "Perhaps until he is finished with this examination you can mimic his mindset."

"Yeah, sure, I'll do that." The sarcasm in Tatl's voice could have drowned a man. "Right after you take a page out of Big Green's book here and actually crack a smile." Ironically at that, Ozpin felt himself smile at the comment, doubly so when Glynda furrowed her brow at the fairy. At least he wouldn't be bored with them.

Before they took more than step towards his office, the professor turned a hard glare towards him, an expression he was very well aware of, but not too keen to be at this end of. He stopped, waiting for her to approach. She did so with haste.

"Are you sure this is wise, Ozpin?" She asked critically, voice in a low whisper. "In the midst of the White Fang panic, bringing a new student that has all the signs of a spy?"

"He is too far and away an anomaly to possible be any tool of the White Fang," Ozpin easily countered. "They would not risk well-trained agents on such ludicrous grounds, no. If nothing else, those same agents would not offer to so easily leave, least of all while they don't know we're listening. Link is odd, far more unique than any student I have seen through these grounds, but a member of the White Fang? That I cannot see him to be."

"And what of anything else?" Glynda posed in return. "We can already confirm humans are working with the White Fang. Perhaps Link is a mole for a pro-human group. Perhaps he is a lone agent with a vendetta. We do not know what he is."

"And we cannot know until he is here to stay." The words were spoken harsher than he intended.

Unfortunate. Most unfortunate.

"Believe me, Glynda," Ozpin slowly sighed as he finished. He loathed to think of the darker truth of Remnant. "Though I would prefer to never have to make special cases or bends of the rules, we live in a world where our enemies see their own code as mere guidelines to their end game. In truth, I do believe Link. I believe him and his fairy companions. And it is because of that faith that we must have him at Beacon."

"I do not understand." He could always count on his partner to speak honestly and bluntly. He was much the opposite, preferring truth riddled in hints and mystery. Now was not to speak in such a way. Not to someone he needed to understand his motives now.

"If Link truly is a Faunus of foreign lands, and if he truly is as strong as his fairies make him out to be, it would be too easy and too damning for the wrong group to turn him into a weapon."

Nothing more had to be said of the matter.

"Now, perhaps we should gather the remainder of Ruby Roses' team," Ozpin suggested. "I am sure them meeting our new fairy friends will prevent a great many of issues."

"I said I was sorry!" Weiss would hear none of what the dark overly bright mini-drone had to say. "I-It was an accident, I promise. The door was open a-and I thought I could come in."

"You're an overly eager and improperly programed droid!" Weiss shouted back at the mini-drone. It rang with her words, translucent wings shirking at her voice. Excellent voice recognition software, deplorable tracking algorithms. "You violated our privacy in the worst of ways!"

"B-But I didn't even mean to do it!" It shouted back almost desperately. Weiss could only sneer at the cowardly machine. "I couldn't… I really didn't mean anything by it."

"Aw, now we aren't good enough for the Peeping Tom?" Yang took charge of scolding the dark mini-drone. Scolding with her usual brand of teasing mixed in. It had the same effect on the mini-drone, assumingly by its outwards reaction. It was satisfactory. "Here I was hoping you'd at least be eager to try again, but it turns out you regret what you saw."

"Y-Yeah, I do b-because I didn't mean to scare you, or insult you, or… o-or anything else." Its speech programming was horribly inefficient, stuttering like some broken records. Whose ever they were, they needed better upkeep of their products, right after Weiss trashed them for their perverse nature. "I-I really didn't mean anything by it, at all, honest!"

"Whatever your intentions were, they are secondary to what you actually did," Weiss corrected the defective machine. "And what you have done is thoroughly shame me and my teammate, make us have to follow behind the headmaster and professor to meeting, and keep in your company for infinitely longer than I would ever wish to."

"Oh back off princess!" Weiss felt herself groan as the other imperfect mini-drone flew front and center. It rang with an unlawfully loud ring, making her ears strain as much as her patience. "You already knocked my brother across the room and the only thing keeping me from doing the same to you is knowing that it'll probably ruin Link's chances of staying at your stupid Academy."

Oh yes, Link, this now mysterious faunus benefactor that Headmaster Ozpin and Professor Goodwitch have seemingly given an unorthodox test to, in some vain hope that the barbaric and uneducated individual would have any luck of entering their school. His companions, these poorly designed floating machines, being requested to remain behind to prevent any tampering with the testing parameters.

A wise move on Ms. Goodwitch's part, unsurprising given the professor's prodigious history, it ensured that whatever the Faunus's abilities, they were his own and not the hand of some trickery. Given these mini-drones and their attitudes, Weiss already found herself loathe to understand how a foreign barbarian had managed to talk his way in with the headmaster far enough to even gain chance at this test.

It all made only an unfortunate amount of sense when her partner's name came to the front.

"I believe that my height, training, and stature are more than enough to prevent you from sending me anywhere," Weiss addressed the golden ball of light, determine to squint through the veil to see the mechanics beneath. She could not. "And be aware that I am not doing the same to you is the agreement to follow Ms. Goodwitch's and Ozpin's orders." She saw this mini-drones wings flare with the words.

"Oh is that how you want to play it?" She asked, her golden light damningly bright. "Just stomp around and act all high and mighty without knowing a thing about us? You're a real piece of work and I'm saying that after seeing monsters rip though villages." Weiss could feel her lungs fill with a scream.

"Sis, sh-she's right," the darker of the robot's cut in. "I-I should have waited or… done something else. I only made things worse by j-just flying into their room. B-But don't make her made. We don't want her to get mad at Link." The breath she had taken in was slowly released. It was difficult to scream at even robots that recognized their shortcomings.

"Oh come off it Tael, you didn't do jack wrong," the golden mini-drone, unfortunately, kept it up. "I'm gonna keep blaming these two for having a door half way open, that Triple B women telling us they were a kind bunch, only to have you get thrown across the room like a Deku Nut!"

"Eh, so we forgot to close the door," Yang took in again. "Doesn't exactly give you a lot of right to just fly into our room. That's what makes you a Peeping Tom, trying to catch a glimpse of the girls while we were 'exposed'." Weiss was well aware she was not one of the 'girls' Yang was referring to, not while she handled her chest like some sort of cushion. Her point, however still stood.

"Now I'm really starting to wonder on why we need you two here!" Tatl began to shout again. "Ruby Rose may have been grabby, that Blake girl asking one too many questions, but you two are just insult after insult and I'm about ready to just call it quits!"

"Sis!" The darker drone cut in again. Must have been a recursive function on his part. "You know that'll disappoint Link, a-and he promised he'd come back so... we should keep our promise that we'll stay." They appeared loyal to their master. Good thing that was still functional.

A blessed pocket of silence came following the malfunctioning drone's words. It gave time for Weiss to appreciate where they were, marching through Beacon grounds towards Ozpin's office. The CCTS was already behind them, The Emerald Tower well within eye-shot. It thankfully wouldn't be long before they reached it and would be able to receive more than the usual cryptic reasoning of their headmaster.

Dust bless him for his ability to manage a school of hunters in training against Grimm, but would it truly be such a bother to simply spell out the purpose of some of their actions? Weiss felt herself scoff to herself, easily conjuring the innumerable excuses that could be made in justification of the loose answer. Training, higher level thinking, and preparation being the three that came first and foremost to her mind. Patience was next, after she was reminded of the malfunctioning drones she was stuck with.

She let out a controlled sigh. It didn't matter in the long run. The drones were preferable, in truth, to some loose student making their way into their dorm. Yang would have to be properly criticized later for her inability to command a door to shut, but that was the furthest this incident would reach at most, with any amount of luck. Given the events of the day thus far, she felt she was entitled to that much at least.

Besides, she could see Ozpin waiting for them ahead.

"I've see you've made it," he spoke to them with his mug raised, cane in opposite hand. "I'm glad to see you are all properly dressed now. Apologies for the sudden interruption before." Weiss turned her head to hide her flush. Ozpin was the headmaster, he deserved respect.

"It's cool," Yang started. "Wasn't you who barged into the room anyway. 'Least you knocked instead of getting a look at the knockers." And now no amount of tilting her head could hide Weiss's growing flush. At least now there was an appropriate target.

"Yang!" She bellowed out. "I appreciate your ability to take every situation in stride, but can you please have some amount of decency?" The smile she got in return said there would be none. So much for her well due luck.

"Can we please hurry this up?" The golden mini-drone let out. "You said we could see Link from wherever we're going and I think that's far more important than whatever these two teens have to argue about." It was only the presence of Ms. Goodwitch and Ozpin that kept from slapping the drone out of the air like her 'brother'.

"Of course," Ozpin returned. Of course he was calm. He'd be calm in the face of an Ancient Grimm. "Please follow us. I have an intuition you do not have in Hyrule what we are about to show you." Weiss had the utmost confidence they did not.

"Yeah yeah, heard it all before. 'What you see you will never believe', 'Gaze in awe at the power of Time.'" the golden mini-drone was mocking, mocking the headmaster. "Why don't you actually show us this amazing technology?"

"Sis," The darker of the two whined now. A terrifying parallel between him and Ruby shot to Weiss mind. She batted it away with precision. "You know that's not fair, a-and they're being kind to us. Give them a chance, for Link, please?"

Weiss heard the two communicate in rings for a moment, maybe some high frequency channel communication or low byte information transfer. It didn't matter which, the end result was that Weiss, and likely everyone else, couldn't hear what they were saying. That didn't mean they stopped moving.

The group stepped into the metallic elevator of the headmaster's tower, Weiss doing her utmost to leave room for her professor and said headmaster. Yang, predictably, felt the need to stretch along the wall. Neither Ozpin nor Professor Goodwitch seemed to pay her any mind. The 'fairies' hardly took up any room at all, at worst only making the small structure too bright.

It didn't matter. In a short amount of time, Weiss would watch this 'Link' perform his test, likely fail, and then they would all be on their way. Such was reality.

Blake often thought of herself as a realist, never as the dreamer.

She saw the hopelessness in a situation before most others, knowing practically the odds of defeat over those of victory. She was aware of the limitations of man and Faunus alike, both physically and mentally, never assuming either could do more. She didn't believe mankind would turn around and embrace the Faunus any more than she thought Faunus would forgive them for the terrible actions of the past.

To think otherwise drifted too far into the territory of optimism. She was told by Ruby, as a jest, that it was a nice place to visit. Hoping and believing every day that the most impossible of situations would come true, never stopping to worry about failure, always moving towards that mythical ground called success. Such a mindset was bordered closely by cynicism. Those that thought that nothing was possible, everything being forbidden. No hope for a future, no chance of success, no reason to dream, only waiting pitifully until the end. Blake belonged to neither of them.

She saw success in many actions, but just as often she saw failure. She had dreams she longed to see made reality, but she knew the impossibility of their parts. Such were the thoughts of a realist, and those thoughts, that recognition, is what allowed her to survive as long as she had.

But now here came Link.

A Faunus dressed unlike many she had seen before, hailing from a land that only he and his fairy companions knew. A land where Faunus ruled, where they were hailed as rulers and royalty for the same traits that were damned in Vale. A far off mystical kingdom, untouched by the terrors that man forced upon her kind. It was too impossible to believe, she knew this as a realist.

And yet, his very companions were proof that it was more than a tale. Fairies, the things from stories told to children at night, flying about them with ease. Ruby had told her with a blushing face about how she had grabbed the lighter of the two, Tatl. She felt that it was no android or robot, felt it to be as alive as they were, and knew from Link's defensive nature that he valued their safety. If they were real, then this kingdom, Hyrule very well could be as well.

The realist in her said it was impossible, but looking at Link, she wanted to dare to chase the dream of the optimist.

She wanted to see his kingdom, walk the streets he did, speak to the people he lived with, converse and bow to a ruler who was a Faunus like her. No reason to hide under a bow, no reason to attack wearing a mask, no reason to be anything but what she was. Those were dreams; realists didn't have dreams.

"Blake, Blake!" The sudden shouting of her name drew the dark girl from her reverie. She blinked towards the person calling her name, holding no surprise to see Ruby staring at her, eyes screwed as she bent over her. "You okay there? You looked like you were ready to pass out."

"I'm fine," she replied easily, and it was honestly. "I was simply… thinking about his kingdom." She motioned towards Link with her hand, the green-clad warrior sitting in his seat patiently. He twisted his head at her mentioning of him, his curiosity peaked. Ruby looked at him as well, donning an equally confused expression.

A small rumble shook the bullhead that were in, momentarily making Blake rise. Ruby, however, let out a yelp as she tumbled forward, her position compromised. She splayed out the floor, looking up at Blake with an expression of cheer. Blake returned it, though subdued in size. Her leader really was a child, but one full of skill and loyalty. She looked back up towards Link, seeing him blink as he gazed forward with an expression of clear confusion.

"Turbulence," Blake said simply, earning his attention. His blue eyes fixed on her, showing easily enough that he did not understand. "It's a change in air flow or pressure at given altitudes. Since we're moving through it, it forces the bullhead to shake." Link's expression didn't even flinch. She gave a short sigh before elaborating. "It's like hitting a wave with a ship."

Now his head bobbed up and down in understanding. He turned his attention to the side, looking out the back of the bullhead. It was easy for Blake's sharp eyes to see his gaze relax, enjoying what he saw. She turned to look as well.

Her eyes met the canopy of the Emerald Forest. Every hue of green shining off of the leaves, reflecting the warm rays of the sun. The woods would have been a paradise were they not home to so many Grimm, powerful ones at that. Blake recalled her first journey through them, when she met Yang and took the actions that landed her with her first true group of friends. It brought a smile to her lips.

"Now what are you thinking about?" Blake's grin fell as she looked back down at Ruby. The crimson garbed girl was pointing one of her hands up at her, the rest of her flat against the hard steel of the bullhead. "And don't say nothing, because I know you don't smile like that unless you're thinking of something."

"I wasn't going to," Blake answered easily and honestly. "I was thinking of the forest, of how this was where we made our team. It was where I was partnered with your sister, you were partnered with Weiss, and we started everything." She couldn't help but smile now as Ruby all but beamed up at her. "Isn't that worth smiling about?"

"Duh! Of course it is!" The girl spun on the ground, having little difficulty maintaining her balance as the ship continued to fly. It wouldn't be long before the reached their destination now. "This is, like, where it all began! I mean, yeah, it began way back when I decided to be a Huntress and Uncle Qrow started to train me and you were trying to help the Whi-"

Ruby stopped talking as Blake held her hand over the girl's mouth. She heard muffled grunts of confusion vibrate over her fingers, the young girl protesting the muffling. Blake didn't answer her. Instead, she turned her golden gaze over to Link, who was now looking at them with a dubious expression. Thankfully for Blake, Ruby picked up quickly.

"It's nothing," Blake answered his unspoken question. "Just a part of my past I'd rather not speak of. I hope you do not mind." It was as honest as she could allow herself to be. She would not lie to a fellow Faunus, especially one that hailed from a kingdom like Hyrule, but… he was still a stranger.

She was only partially surprised when his curious gaze turned into a warm smile, muscles relaxing up his cheeks as he focused his blue eyes upon her. He nodded towards her, one of understanding. There was only one-way Blake was aware of that someone could understand, and that alone spoke volumes for Link's past. Any questions she may have had for Link, however, were cut short as the bullhead began to slow.

Blake felt herself pull in her seat, the momentum of the craft descending in altitude just as quickly as he slowed in velocity. She stood up, gripping Gambol Shroud on the back of her hip. This may have been a test for Link, but that did not mean she was any safer through inaction. Ruby was standing next to her quickly, as her semblance so often allowed her to do. Link was quick to join them.

"The Nevermore doesn't perch often," Blake told him carefully, making sure she had his eye contact when she did. "It flies high in the sky and tends to impale its prey before it descends. You'll have to find a way to lure it down before you can slay it. Do you understand?" Link gave her a confident grin. Blake returned it. "Then I wish you luck, Link of Hyrule."

"Yeah, me too!" Ruby spoke loudly as she gripped his arm, stars in her eyes as she looked up at him. "I wanna spend a lot of time talking to you later, so you better be able to kill this thing, alright?" He nodded towards her, blonde bangs lightly mixing with her dark locks, given the lack of space Ruby had left between the two.

"Alright, let's go." Blake moved to the open back of the bullhead, jumping from the low height they hung from. It was a short fall, a dozen feet at best, but still enough to cause pain for the untrained. She landed gracefully, the subtlest of her feline features aiding her. She heard the grace impact beside her Ruby's light frame doing her favors from the jump. She heard a much heavier impact just behind her. She turned to see Link, rising to his full height. The bullhead was quick to depart above them, leaving them alone in the woods.

Blake gave him one more critical eye, looking him over as he stood there, staring past them and into the woods. He was short for most of the males they were around, just barely above her own height. His blue eyes were sharper now than they were in the bullhead, the eyes of a Hunter looking for prey. His ears were no different, but she knew he was using them as any Faunus would, listening for the uneven sounds of the forest.

He began to walk forwards, past them with a gaze that never lingered. It took little time for him to move into the foliage of the trees, the canopy shading him from above. Blake looked at Ruby, who nodded towards her as well. The pair moved behind him at a distance, each holding their weapons ready for any kind of strike.

"So what do you think is going to happen?" Ruby asked as the followed the Faunus, their pace a mild walk at best. "I mean, Tatl was really confident Link could do this, but how?" Blake shrugged her shoulders, focusing more on the green-clad warrior in front of her. Though she paid attention to his minor movements, kept record of his form, she found herself more often coming back to his ears.

He carefully stepped over a log, all which remained of the corpse of a tree. Despite the chainmail he wore, he made hardly a sound, settling over the light vegetation on the other side. He placed his hand on a tree, looking about the forest at the same time, eyes always half drawn. Carefully, he brushed a branch away, ducking beneath instead of pushing harshly against it. The forest, large as it was, hardly noticed his presence.

"Bla-a-ake," her leader whined beside her. It earned a low sigh from the feline Faunus, shutting her eyes to remember just who her leader was.

"I think he's tracking it now," Blake honestly to Ruby, though never taking her golden gaze off of Link. "He knows how to move through the woods, leaving a weak path behind him. It's the best way for a predator to move. Plus, he knows it's a bird, so he's not looking for things like broken twigs." She watched him carefully, his ears twitching lightly, head moving towards a far off sound. It made her grin with pride.

"So then, what's he looking for?" Ruby asked the question in a whisper, either catching on to the sensitivity of sounds or being polite to the tracker. Either were possible for the young Huntress.

"Sounds," Blake replied knowingly. "He's using his ears to listen. He's not afraid to let his Faunus heritage guide him." She really was proud of him.

"You mean like you?" Ruby whispered the words again, even lighter than before.

Link turned to look at them.

Both girls froze, staring at the green-clad warrior who had also stopped his trek. He was staring at them, his soft eyes looking at them with a mixture of confusion, a perhaps a bit of interest. Blake clenched her teeth, trying to decide on what was a more appropriate emotion to feel, betrayal or anger. Her fist clenched at her side to the point that her muscles cramped. Looked like anger.

"I'm sorry I'm sorry I'm sorry I'm sorry I'm sorry," Ruby was professing the apology repeatedly in a whisper, ducking into her red hood in a pitiful attempt to hide. Blake couldn't think of what to say to her. Link only continued to stare at them. What was he going to do, ask her what she meant? Accuse her for hiding from him? Slowly, however, Link drew his sword. That was not what she was expecting.

"Link," she spoke his name imploringly. "I understand you may be upset, but…" her voice trailed off as she focused on him, or more specifically, his eyes. They were looking towards her, but they weren't looking at her. In fact, the longer she stared, the more she began to notice his detachment from her and Ruby. It was looking beyond them, his seeing only what he sought. Blake turned around as well.

She came nose to nose with a beowolf.

In all of a blink of an eye, she stabbed upwards with Gambol Shroud, instantly killing the beast with a low whine. It was only after that when Ruby caught on.

"Whoa!" The younger leader let out, startled more by the action of her teammate than the kill. Just as quickly, however, she recovered, her instincts as a Huntress coming on full force. She pulled at the rod that was Crescent Rose, letting it unfold to its full length, kneeling down upon the floor of the forest. Blake was beside her in a moment, pulling her weapon free of the wolf.

The faunus-in-hiding let her golden eyes scan the trees around them, watching with some small amount of disdain as Grimm began to peak out from behind the massive columns of trees. Nearly all were beowolves, a fact that surprised Blake little. They were the most likely of Grimm to hunt in packs, the most communicative by far. Blake bit her lip in annoyance, not noticing them until they were literally on top of them. It only served to remind her that Link had.

"Blake," she heard Ruby ask her name lightly, earning only a quick glance of the Faunus's golden eyes. She couldn't afford to look away from the Grimm for long. Their numbers were already over a dozen, and the forest seemed content to allow more to grow form its woodwork. "Do… do you think we should help Link fight them?"

That was actually an excellent question.

Blake spared a longer glance to her fellow Faunus, turning to see him in a defensive crouch. His feet slowly drew over the light ground cover of the forest, twisting in place to keep an eye on the Grimm that surrounded them. His red crystal shield was held in front of him, always between him and a Beowulf, his sword extended to his side, a different kind of guard. He never allowed himself a movement that complicated his stance.

"It is up to you," Blake responded honestly. "I believe we both would like to help him." She felt the girl nod, making the action vigorously enough to be felt through the air. "But it is a question if Goodwitch will see that as compromising his test." The whine that came from Ruby was just as easy to read.

"That's not fair though." She was sure her leader would have stomped her foot in a pout were they not being circled by dark beasts. Blake was counting to high twenties now, though by favor none of them appeared to be any older than a few years in age. "We at least had partners for our test."

"But it was a test assigned by Professor Goodwitch and Ozpin, as is this," Blake corrected easily. "We cannot risk Link's dismissal from Beacon simply because we wanted to help." She hated the words she spoke, she truly did. To her, it felt like turning a back on a member of her kind.

"Do… well… b-but what if we… no… hng!" Even with her feline ears wrapped beneath the dark bow on her head, Blake could hear her leader's teeth grind annoyance. In honesty, she wasn't far behind, but she knew better than to express negative emotions before the Grimm. "F-Fine, but we're gonna help him if anything goes wrong at all! Promise, right!"

"You are my leader Ruby," Blake spoke with a hint of amusement to her voice, though never turning away from the ever-emerging beowolves. There were easily over thirty now. Where were they all coming from? She wasn't aware there were any packs of such size in the Emerald Forest. "Though I do urge you to make a decision soon."

"Y-Yeah," Ruby hesitantly replied, gripping her weapon until her knuckles turned white. Her cape billowed as she turned to and fro, likely deciding vigorously on what to do. It was always difficult to choose between wants and needs.

She did, however, come to a decision.

"Link!" She called the Faunus's name. Blake offered only a quick glance to see the swordsman turn towards her, shield to his right and sword raised before him. His stance was still solid on the ground, neither foot out of place. "We… We gotta let you fight these guys alone! So that Goodwitch doesn't say we helped you! We'll be right here though! So don't let anything happen to you, okay!?" She pointed her scythe to the air as she spoke, likely indicating the higher canopy of the trees. Blake nodded, naming it a fine place to observe Link without interfering.

Not a moment later did the crimson leader jump into the trees, rose petals following her ascent. Blake watched her, flexing in a nervous fashion. She was sure the beowolves would charge upon such a quick motion, their growls evident that they were close to doing so. It was not a wise move to think without moving, not in front of the Grimm.

She stopped only long enough to see Link give her a wondering look, likely out of confusion for their departure. But just as quickly was it replaced with a relaxed smile, out of place between his sword and shield, framed by the dark figures of the Grimm. But Blake, nonetheless, silently hoping that he delivered everything his fairy had promised.

Blake jumped to a nearby tree's large trunk, burying Gambol Shroud in it. A moment later, she fired it, sending her up into the canopy. Her body twirled lithely around a large branch, stopping only when she felt her heels securely on top of the protruding limb. She held her dark weapon to her side, unsure if the beowolves would follow her, the same for Ruby.

Yet they still did not. Looking down, her sharp eyes saw only a few offer her glances of curiosity, but the vast majority focusing on Link, no solo and alone upon the ground. Their collective bravery must have grown, for they began to circle him with haste. Blake swallowed on a ball in her throat.

"If… If he gets hit once, we're jumping in" Blake heard Ruby whisper behind her. She didn't bother to wonder when the girl had made it next to her, already well aware that Ruby was far faster on her feet than the feline Faunus ever would be. "There are too many Grimm to risk it, and the woods… we can't be sure how many there are. So no chances, okay?" Even if it was spoken with a youthful form of fear, Blake could appreciate the wisdom in the words.

"Agreed," she nodded, focusing her eyes on Link.

Her fellow Faunus was standing now, no longer crouched upon the ground, likely realizing the situation he was in. His ears twitched as often as his eyes moved, counting and sizing up the monsters that surrounded him. Blake watched him spin the sword in his hands, gripping and ungrasping the handle of his shield. Then she saw something unique.

Link stilled, leaning back as he shut his eyes. Confusion took her momentarily, until she saw his chest expanding, the clearest sign she had that he was taking in a deep breath of air. He held it for a moment, releasing it as easily as he had taken it in. When it was gone, he smiled. Blake knew what that meant.

He was ready and the Grimm knew it.

Weiss was never one for dishonesty, at least not when it came to opinions. Lying about such things was tactless and needless, as it portrayed no falsity of information and protected no lives. It gave unfair judgment of situations and likely jeopardized people.

As her father had told her, you should never lie about the situation of a battlefield, the capability of an employee, or the state of your own mind. Her honesty of such things often had her labeled with terms of social isolation and superiority, Ice Queen being far from the first time such a title was given to her. And yet, she did not change.

Her opinions may have changed, and by consequence her words, but she never changed her method of speaking, no matter how many poisonous eyes she may have been given. So, it certainly didn't stop her now.

"He's going to die."

She said the sentence tactlessly, her eyes on the screen with her arms folded in front of her. She didn't need to turn to know the fairies were soured by her words.

"Excuse me!?" She heard the now painfully familiar yellow fairy screech at her. "What kind of stupid, stuck-up, broad of a princess says that?!" Weiss could hear the mini-drone ringing like chime with every word she yelled. She responded to the short tirade with a finger in her ear, mockingly assessing the damage the obnoxious ball of light had done.

"An intelligent one, and far more so than you if you can't see the situation he's in." She nodded her head towards the screen. It adjusted every so often, taking a different angle of the green-clad Faunus, holding gem encrusted weapons again Grimm that now numbered near forty. "He is using inadequate weapons against a large herd of beowolves within their own territory. They are going to have superior knowledge of the layout of the forest and use it accordingly amongst each other. In combination with their pack size, he is at a severe disadvantage."

"Very good Ms. Schnee," Goodwitch complimented her from the side. The white-haired heiress did not even attempt to hide her satisfied grin, titling her nose into the air for good measure. "Your assessment of the situation is valid on all accounts, except for one." Her smile faltered.

She turned towards her blonde professor, seeing the green eyed woman taping on her pad, raising her eyes only to see the screen projecting the image of the Emerald Forest. She didn't once face Weiss. Neither did she speak on about the detail the heiress had supposedly made. Her once confident smirk was now a confused frown.

"What am I missing, professor?" She asked the trained Huntress with carefully concealed agitation. If there was ever one thing her upbringing had taught her, it was hiding her emotions, especially upon her words.

Goodwitch's hard glare told her that she had made a mistake.

"You are not accounting for Link's abilities." The answer came from the headmaster, sitting behind his desk. Weiss turned to him, only to see his expression hidden behind a mug of coffee. She could only assume he was grinning as he drank the hot beverage.

"H-He's right," Weiss turned now to the other drone, darker in color than his elder 'sibling'. All the turning and spinning was making the young Schnee dizzy. "Link grew up the forest, f-for most of his life. The Kokiri, the one's he grew up with… they taught him how to listen to the woods, move in them, fight in them, everything."

"What does everything entail?" Weiss asked, confident that a bit of force in her words would earn further answers. He rang lightly at her question, backing up in mid-air. It was the most obvious sign she had that he was intimidated by her. This time, she hid her satisfactory smirk.

"The place he grew up in, L-Link that is, was called the Lost Woods." Weiss saw Yang put her hands on hips, raising her eye brows as she listened to the fairy talk. She could only assume that the headmaster and professor behind her were doing much of the same. "I-It was called that because anyone who traveled into them were lost forever, unable to find their way out. A-And those that were lost…" the malfunctioning robot went silent for a moment, dipping in the air lowly. Weiss attributed to the action to someone taking a deep breath of air, preparing themselves. "Those that were lost became monsters of the woods, losing their soul forever."

"Whoa, that's kinda creepy." Despite her words, Weiss could only describe Yang's tone of voice as excited, perhaps a bit envious. The blonde was a thrill seeker if ever there was one, and this seemed to be the very definition of playing chicken. "So like he grew in a forest of the dead? That's cool."

"Wow. No," Tatl flew up the buxom blonde, floating in front of her as trails of dust fell from her. Weiss wondered for not the first time if the fairy's shimmering trail could be harvested in some way. It would be a unique was to collect and harvest more Dust.

Then again, it was unlikely it was dust at all.

"Growing up in the Lost Woods was not cool for Link," Tatl spoke on. "We weren't there, but he told us that every day he was warned about what would happen, living with the idea that if he took one wrong step, he would lose his life forever. You think that's cool?" Yang, to her credit, didn't appear to be losing any face.

"Can't be much different than living in a forest filled with Grimm," she countered, putting on a smirk that Weiss dared to call signature now. "Wanna guess where me and Ruby grew up?"

"Probably with someone to take care of you, right?" Tatl fired right back. Silence returned from Yang, for a reason Weiss was very well aware of. "Yeah, Link didn't have those. Instead, he survived by doing two things. One, always paying attention, never seeing anything in just one way. He looked at a tree, and he saw a ladder, a bridge, a swing, and even a house." He sounded practical, but Weiss could not imagine living in a tree even if her life was dependent on it.

"And the second one?" The heiress found herself asking, her brows furrowed as well. Tatl turned to face her, wings being the only indication of her doing so. The luminescent drone let the silence hang for a moment, kept away only by the light rings she and her brother made. When she did speak, it was an uncharacteristic few words.

"Never show your fears."

Blake watched the first beowolf charge, predictably from behind Link. She had her own hand gripped into the bark of the branch she stood on, watching with grit teeth as it approached. Specifically, she did so because her golden eyes didn't see any change in Link. The Grimm was close to him, closer with every moment, but he still stood with a relaxed posture, a small grin facing away from the beowolf.

When the monster finally jumped, rearing back its claw for deathly strike, Blake found the nails of her hands dragging down the bark of the tree up. She heard Ruby pull in a gasp of air, likely lining up a shot with Crescent Rose. But she was thankful to see it was unnecessary.

With what could have only been practiced ease, Link swung his blade backwards, the dust encrusted steel stabbing into the head of the pouncing beowolf, killing it instantly. Its arms fell at its sides, held up only by Link's impaled weapon. It was good, a great strike, but he need to repeat such an act a few dozen times for this fight to be over.

But judging by the roar of the Grimm around him, Link was going to have to do a lot more than that. Blake tensed against the branch she stood on, readying herself to pounce the moment something went wrong.

Another beowolf charged at Link from the side, this one with jaws open and ready to bite through him. Instead of striking it, he side-stepped the dark beast letting it pass by him as harmlessly as the wind. Another was going in for a strike as well, at the same time as beast that had just tried to bite into him. Blake watched, impressed, as Link use the momentum of his deft dodge to impale his blade into the beast's skull, splitting it like butter. It fell dead on the ground. That was when they began to charge in mass.

The dozens of beowolves roared together, each one making the other sound that much more terrifying, more nightmarish. Their claws dug into the green earth as they charged forwards, their full weight going into their attacks. Others were leaping off of the trees, trying to tackle Link from every angle they could. Red eyes were fixed on the warrior in green, jaws drooling with idea of a meal, and throats bellowing with promises of death.

Blake was both humored and curious to see Link completely unperturbed by the significant threat.

He raised his shield at the first beowolf to reach him, angling the red steel to push the creature off in the direction of his choice. It worked. By Blake's eye the dark beast's claw swung wide of Link, leaving nothing to stop the warrior's sword from piercing into the monster's chest. It wasn't enough to kill it, however, but Link appeared to know that. He twisted his footing, turning his back to face the Grimm he impaled. A moment later, he swung the blade forward, ripping it up the Grimm's torso, over his head, and then down the arm of another beowolf. The beast he injured howled in pain, drowned out by the furious cries of its brethren. The monster Link impaled first was already dead.

Link started to jump then. First to the side, narrowly avoiding the descent of the beowolves that jumped from the tree trunks above. Then it was forwards, rolling across the ground as another Grimm jumped from the side, its claws indenting where Link stood a moment before. His shield blocked another, spinning with the force it gave to barely avoid the jaw of another beowolf, this one jumping from atop its pack to get to Link.

Blake found her tense grip on the branch strengthening with every move he made. There were too many Grimm in too disadvantageous a space. This wasn't an open plain where he could divide them up. This was a forest, where the beowolves could attack from any angle, high or low, leaving little room for Link to escape to.

She watched him strike again, letting out a grunt of effort as the red steel of his blade impaled itself into the throat of another Grimm, and its howl silenced as blood flowed from the wound. Link didn't stop, pulling the sword and swinging with the back of pommel. It slammed into the mask of another beowolf, cracking the bony encasing with the force, making the creature retreat in pain. That was when Link surprised her.

He jumped backwards, flipping over the Grimm he had injured, rolling over its body like it was nothing but a log, disregarding the clear intent it had to kill him. When his feet hit the ground again, he put his shield against the injured Grimm, effectively immobilizing it. The rest of the wolves joined in mass to tackle him, their injured companion anything but brethren when it stood between them and a meal. Blake heard Ruby suck in a breath, nervously. Blake herself, however, only watched his sword. It was glowing.

She blinked her eyes the few moments the speed of the battle would allow, ensuring that she was not merely tricked by the little light that peaked through the canopy above. But for every subsequent flash of her eyes, it appeared the light was becoming brighter. She didn't have much more time to think on it. With a high battle cry, Link sliced his sword in front of him, essentially cutting the beowolf he had injured in half. That was the unremarkable part.

What was amazing was the beam of light that came from the sword.

Blake watched, silently captivated as the glowing slash of his sword flew through the air, cutting every Grimm it came into contact with, reducing the intimidating herd into dismembered parts or mortally wounded beasts. It sang as it flew, like metal ringing upon impact. Only now, it didn't dull with time. She heard Ruby give an excited gasp from beside her, nearly bouncing on the tree branch with delight. Her hidden feline ears also heard the girl's exuberant whispering, very likely muttering the 'awesomeness' of Link. Blake, this time, was hard to disagree.

The Grimm seemed to see the larger threat that Link was now, those that were not injured by his flying slash or impaled by his red steel backing off. They growled lowly to one another, communicating in a tongue no one present understood. Link pulled his sword back to his side, holding his shield in front of him. His eyes shifted, ears twitching, both counting the number of the monsters left. Blake already knew the number, thirty-one. He still had work to do. Fortunately, he knew it.

She saw his sword pointing skywards again, held up as he crouched behind his shield. Then she heard a ringing come through the forest, low at first, but slowly increasing in volume. Blake looked to Ruby judging her quickly to see if she heard what she did. The young teen's focused gaze on Link said she didn't. Blake looked down just in time to see her fellow Faunus's next move.

He ran towards a collection of Grimm, the bunch huddling between several trees as an impromptu defense. They barked at him as he charged, though not running to meet him. That was bad. She knew what they were doing, trying to tempt him to sink his blade into one of the thick tree trunks, limiting his movement.

Beowolves were much smarter as a pack. Either Link didn't know or didn't care. To his benefit, it was the latter. Link swung his blade as he had before, Blake expecting it to fire another of the magical slashes. It did not. Instead, Link only held the blade tighter, quickly adjusting his feet, altering his movement, and doing something Blake knew Ruby was gleeful to see.

Link spun with his sword. He made a literal Spin Attack with his blade.

He looked like a top almost, spinning towards the group of Grimm with a speed that normally didn't befit such an attack. The beowolves were just as unprepared for the strike, whining amongst one another as they again attempted to back away, harder against the trees that were their defense. Those trees did little to nothing.

Link's sword, spinning with him, sliced through the thick tree trunks with all the strength of an axe and speed of the wind. He continued through them, slicing and dicing the dark monsters that hid behind them, not stopping. He only did when he was a good distance away, easily twice his own body length beyond, by Blake's quick numbers. Her calculations were interrupted when she saw the aftermath of his attack.

With a groan, one of the forest giants fell over, crying all the way to the emerald floor.

The Grimm on the ground scurried away, avoiding the falling monstrosity. It hit the floor with a dull boom, shaking everything else around it. Blake heard Ruby 'eep' as she gripped the tree tighter. Blake reached a hand for her leader's shoulder, holding her in place. She heard her offer a thanks, to which she replied with a nod. Keeping her eyes focused downwards, she was glad she didn't take her eyes off of Link.

As expected, the monsters behind the trees were dead, cut into halves, thirds, and quarters by the unorthodox attack the green-clad Faunus had done. With the strength to slice through the tree as he had done, she was anything but surprised. What did catch her attention was what he did next. Specifically, how he sheathed his sword. It was quick, in the midst of a sprint forwards, but she could tell his main weapon was definitely put away. She couldn't think of why.

That was until he grabbed the other tree he had sliced through, still standing thanks to its impressively large width. Blake nodded in understanding, seeing the many Grimm that were still scurrying away from the other tree, not to mention the few that had been caught by its fall. He was going to push it onto the others.

She was only half right, Blake soon found out.

To push the tree over required placing palms against the trunk, pushing forwards with the usually superior leg muscles, feet usually secured to the ground. The trunk and arms were reserved for holding the force in place, but usually lacked any significant strength when compared to a person's lower extremities. Link, once again, either didn't know or didn't care. And, once again, it was the later.

Blake watched as he dug his fingers into the trunk of the tree, squatting just beside it. It took her a full moment to realize he was not trying to push it, but lift it. She questioned his sanity for the first time, her evidence being the Grimm that were now rapidly approaching him, likely communicating the image of him still and now unarmed. Blake felt her legs tense again, preparing to jump.

Said muscles drooped when Link managed to lift the forest giant above his head.

She watched, captivated and awe-struck, as the green-clad warrior lifted what was easily hundreds of tons of solid wood and bark over his head, giving out a low growl of effort on his part. The tree above made much the same sound, clearly not used to being moved in such away. The Grimm around him were the stillest things in the forest now, suddenly very mindful of the threat their prey now carried. Blake heard Ruby mutter a 'wow' next to her, the sight likely taking a lot of energy out of her. Link's gloves, which Blake now identified as gauntlets given their slick golden and metallic exterior, were glowing little differently than his sword had before. What was more, Blake's equally golden eyes now noticed the red jewel on of his gauntlets shimmering.

The large tree held above Link's head began to groan again, the only sign it gave before it started to fall, all by Link's command. Teeth grit with the effort, Blake watched as Link forced his arms down, letting the massive weight of bark and wood come tumbling down. The beowolves ran where they could, but the terrain of the Emerald forest was now working against them, too many trees blocking their already few means of escape.

With the same dull boom as before, the tree came crashing down, the forest shivering at the impact. Blake felt bark come up at her fingers. She looked at the destruction; the broken claws, arms, and necks that protruded from beneath the fallen giant. She followed it all the way back to the base, seeing Link taking out his weapons again, looking unfazed by the effort.

The number of beowolves was lower now for sure, but the numbers were still in the double digits. Now, however, the feline Faunus had little doubt that Link could handle it. She looked to Ruby, seeing her young leader gripping the tree with just as much strength, letting her lean over how ever far she could. Blake was right, there were stars in the young teen's eyes.

Blake looked back down to see Link charging at another small pack of Grimm, now knowing that the numbers were on his side, the advantage his to hold. As soon as he was in reach of the beowolves, he sliced forward, aiming for the one closest to his left. He missed, swinging too early. It took Blake a moment to realize that was the intention. The Grimm had back pedaled to avoid the blow, only to find itself against a tree. Link moved forward without restraint.

His previous swing had carried him around, turning into a full circle at only a fraction of the speed his previous Spin Attack had mustered. He did, however, now use the carried strength to his advantage. Link sliced upwards, jumping with the strike, letting out another battle cry as he did so. The strength of his arms, sharpness of his blade, and lack of defense on the Grimm made for a brutal scene. He sliced the beowolf cleanly in two, both halves traveling to opposite sides of the forest. Link still hung in the air, hovering.

From his place in the air, he sliced downwards, sword glowing as it had the first time he had impressed half of team RWBY above. And just as before, beams of light, arcs from his sword, came out. Each one tore into the hides of the Grimm, mercilessly turning them into ribbons. Once, twice, thrice, quarce, then quince. His airtime was done, feet hitting the light emerald colored vegetation on the ground. The beowolves he struck out at hit the ground as well, each with missing limbs or heads, but all dead.

It was fortunate Link didn't let his advantage give him over-confidence. No sooner did he land than did he twist backwards, raising his shield at the same time. A particularly wise beowolf had struck out at him, hoping to hit him in the midst of his offense. It instead found the red jewel of the red shield and no ground to gain. As he had before, Link altered the angle of his shield slightly, forcing the wolf to slide off if it in the worst way. Link stabbed forwards to finish the unfortunate beast.

That left only one beowolf as far as Blake's feline ears and golden eyes could see. Her instincts were good and she knew that number to be final. Judging by Link's glare at the lone creature, his sword pulled free of the last beast he slain and shield held forwards, he realized the same as well. The Grimm growled at him, clearly thinking better than striking out at the Faunus that had so easily killed his pack. Link appeared unprepared to allow it to escape, shaking its head at the creature as if in a silent command. Blake didn't know if Grimm could feel fear, but judging by the way the creature shifted on its hind legs, claws moving over the ground as if attempting to flee, she suspected it felt something akin to it.

But then it made up its mind, seeing it chance of survival to be higher in fight than flight. That action alone proved to Blake the beast was no older than a few years at best. Link stood still as it charged, roaring with every stride it made, tearing up the ground with its claws. He waited for it, shield at the ready and sword behind him.

When it was close enough, arm pulled back to strike, Link jumped.

It wasn't an impressive height, far lower than either Ruby or Blake could pounce and with less time at that, but it was high enough to pass over the beowolf, the creature striking at only air. Fortunately, Link's intention was not to dodge. With brutal accuracy, Link stabbed his sword downwards with a battle cry, decimating the beowolf's head with the strike. It was dead instantly, head literally cleaved in two, both ends still attached to the creature's neck, uselessly.

"That was awesome," Blake heard Ruby whisper next to her. The Faunus had a suspicion that if she were to look at her young leader, she'd see stars dancing out of the young girl's eyes. "I mean, he just killed all of them like it was nothing! You think we could convince Ms. Goodwitch to let him in for that?" Blake, unfortunately, had to shake her head at the comment.

"You and I both know, Ruby, that Ms. Goodwitch would sooner break her scroll than bend the rules in such a way." The disappointed whine that came from Ruby reminded Blake too much of an injured dog. She looked over at her leader, the crimson-donned girl predictably wearing an expression that matched. If she was a Faunus, she was she her ears would be drooping.

"But this is a good thing," Ruby marched on, just like Blake knew she would. "It means Tatl was telling the truth about him, or at least a lot of it. I mean, I don't think Jaune could have done all of that, right?" Blake couldn't hide her mirthful smile. She was fortunate to see that Ruby couldn't hide her blush. "Yeah, that was a bad comparison." Blake chuckled lightly, ruffling the girl's head affectionately. It was an odd quirk she had picked up from her blonde partner, but one she enjoyed committing, especially when Ruby futilely beat of the older girl's hand.

"Come on," she spoke with amusement as she took her hand off of the younger girl's dark hair. She heard Ruby huff in annoyance. "Let's see how Link is doing." She jumped off of the tree, feeling the air rush past her as she quickly made it to the ground. Her feline half allowed her to land gracefully, legs extending out to soften the blow, hands touching down to reduce the stress.

She stood slowly, stalking towards Link with her arms at her sides. Her fellow Faunus was cleaning his blade, slicing the gemmed weapon through the air before quickly stopping it, letting momentum carry wet blood off the weapon. He repeated the action twice before spinning it in his hand, lifting it above his head. When the tip sat at the hole of his sheath, he released it, letting it fall down and back into its home with a satisfying shink.

His shield was reattached with much less flare, a simply twist and click on his back. He turned to face the pair, Blake well aware that Ruby had come up from behind her, the stars likely still in her eyes. Blake offered him only a smile, still more than she gave the random stranger. Though he was still only slightly beyond that, only the broad details about him being known, he did enough to prove he was a tribute to the Faunus race. That was plenty enough for her.

"You're really good!" Ruby cheered for him, quickly approaching his side.

Blake saw the tell-tale sign of the young girl's rose petals, the only sign she had before Ruby was just beside Link. The dark girl hid her chuckle of amusement, brought on by Link's suddenly shocked expression. He tumbled back slightly by the sudden appearance of the young girl. Blake mused that it was some sort of initiation, to be startled by Ruby's semblance.

"I mean, like, Pyrrha and Jaune are the only other Hunters I know that use swords, but you're like just as good as Pyrrha with yours. You look like Jaune, like a lot, but you're like Pyrrha with how you fight. But then you picked up that tree and slammed it down, it was like watching a wrestling match! Oh! But you're little attack when you spun, a-and the way you're sword shot out dust when you struck. That easily makes it a Class-2 bladed type. I thought it was Class-1, you know, because it was just a sword, but you were hiding yours like a pro!" Blake often forget Ruby was a weapon expert, until she started talking about it.

She watched the young fifteen year old stare up at Link, her expression shifting seamlessly from excited to bemused, complete with her putting a hand to her chin and leaning into Link, comically so. The Faunus didn't seem to understand the gesture, talking steps back to avoid being pushed over. He was blinking at her, turning his gaze to Blake in the confusion. She only slightly shook her head, waiting to see what he would do. But then, Ruby decided to talk again.

"Are you their son from the future?"

Of all the things Blake thought Ruby could ask, that was far and away the last on her list. The feline Faunus blinked, slowly, her jaw open and muscles slack. Link seemed to mimic her expression, though with an added twist of his head, still backing away from the girl who so readily invaded his space.

"Yeah I know it sounds silly, but I mean, you look almost just like Jaune, but Pyrrha is like one of the best sword users out there. I mean, yeah, she uses Milo more as a spear, but still. It's kinda hard not to see." Blake watched Link look towards, his expression far more pleading than it was before. She nodded this time, knowing this was a little beyond even her leader's normal behavior.

"Ruby," she spoke the young girl's name. "I think you may be… reaching a little." She chose the word carefully as the silver-eyed youth looked back at her. "Time travel isn't possible and there are few more important things to worry about now." The young girl puckered her lips in childish annoyance, huffing as she lowered her head. It was her sign of defeat.

"However," Blake began again, turning her attention to Link. He blinked his cerulean eyes at her attention. "I would like to hear about your training when this is done. Especially in regards to those skills you used." She offered him her smile again, her golden eyes focused on his. "I'm sure you have as many questions for us as we do for you."

She watched his gaze shift from her to Ruby, face still, caught with the expression of curiosity. Perhaps it was closer to though, with his head straightened and eyes shifting with thought. She didn't miss his ears slightly bob, not with her sharp eyes. It took only a moment later for him to sigh, looking up to her a lop-sided grin.

Not a moment later did a loud squall roar above them.

Blake knew it would, as all Nevermore did. They were birds of prey, seeing anything that occupied the sky as a potential challenger, little different then beowolves amongst foreign packs. She turned her eyes to the sky, seeing the great bird above them.

It appeared little different than the first one she had killed, with the aid of Ruby and the rest of her team. Its wings were easily long enough to wrap around the bullhead they had flown in own, body long enough to dwarf any of them individually. Sharp talons hung beneath it, pulled against its body as it sailed in the air. It would have been majestic were it not a Grimm.

"So what are ya gonna do?" Blake heard Ruby ask. She turned to see Link eyeing the bird as well, a hand to his chin. At least he didn't look afraid. "Are you going to try and kill something? Give it some bait before you jump on it? Or are you gonna try and make it attack you? That's what me and Weiss did, don't recommend it. Oh! Or you could try and catch it in the air, but… that seems kinda hard."

"Ruby," Blake spoke the girl's name softly. "Maybe you should let him decide. It is his test." The girl looked frightened for a moment, likely remembering Goodwitch's unveiled threat towards their interference. Any words she had to say, however were left unspoken.

Link was moving already, past them and into the forest. His head was craned, following the bird as he did. It was smart, Blake realized, as he couldn't very well plan to kill something he didn't see. Ruby and Blake followed him into the foliage of the woods. The first thing Blake noted was that he was slow. Not troubling so, but enough so that he would be the dead weight on any team in charge of tracking and capturing. His footfalls were heavy, gait swing slow, and overall likely bogged down with weight. Chainmail would do that.

"What do you think he's gonna do?" Ruby, poorly, whispered to Blake, neither of the girls having to strain themselves to keep up with the green-clad Faunus. "He's gotta do something, or I'm never gonna be able to help him find his friend!" It didn't bother Blake for a moment the reason for Ruby's worry. It was simply what optimists tended to worry about.

"He's still thinking," Blake concluded, watching Link's gaze switch from the Nevermore high above to the trees that they passed, none of them in a hurry. The bird, however, was gaining ground away from them. "But he has to think faster than that."

They emptied out into another small clearing; fall smaller than the one the bullhead had dropped them off in. It was only enough to allow a small view of the sky, and the Nevermore's tail feathers just peaking from one of the edges. Ruby watched the bird, biting her lip in worry. Blake watched Link.

He was biting his own lip, likely out of thought. His knuckles twitched at his sides, each digit moving as if to grab something different. She wasn't sure why. Maybe that was his method of thinking. Maybe… but Blake didn't honestly think so.

It wasn't how he appeared when he faced the beowolves before. Then, he had a more sure appearance, eyes looking for new things and ears listening for any signs. Now, however, he did none of that. He was more vacant in his gaze, as far as her golden eyes could tell, looking into the sky only because it was the direction his head was aimed. Neither did his ears twitch at the bellowing caws of the Nevermore; instead drooping downwards, almost as if in regret.

"Link?" She heard Ruby say his name, the urgency in his voice clear. Just as clear was her reason for it. "Link, you if your gonna do something, please do it. I mean, you've been awesome so far, but you gotta get that Nevermore. I know you can do it!" Blake was well aware that Ruby possessed no such information. It was just optimist talking again.

She watched her fellow Faunus, watched Link, lower his head. He was scowling at something, scowling at the ground with his eyes shut and teeth set in a hard grind. Even his fists were clenched. His every action now only brought upon more confusion. But then, just as she had the thought, Link decided to act.

He stood to his tallest again, taking a deep breath as he had before, just before fighting the pack of beowolves. That was good. That meant he was getting ready for something. But unlike before, he didn't have a small grin to his lips. That was bad, for most other people at least.

Then, slowly, she watched Link reach into the folds of his tunic.

He was pulling out an item; that was good. It would be difficult for him to attract the Nevermore with only his sword and shield. When he produced it, however, her opinion changed entirely.

It was a mask.

She stared at it, shocked, confused. She expected a grappling tool of some kind, daggers if need be, preferably a gun, but no. All her fellow Faunus had was a mask. A mask that reminded her too much of what she was running away from.

"Link?" She heard Ruby question his name again. He turned to the younger girl, mask still grasped in his hand. "What's that for?" There was no room for confusion for what she was referring to.

The mask was elegant, if Blake were to be honest. It appeared to be made of porcelain, completely smooth and free of blemish. It had hollow sockets for the eyes, oval shaped to fit over a face, and long yellow feathers rising over the top of it. The mask itself was completely yellow, a beak over where the mouth should be. She saw simple yet perfectly drawn blue lines rising up from the corners of the eyes, disappearing into the feathers above.

But it was still a mask. And everything that Blake now hated wore masks. She nearly hissed at it.

Link, however, pulled it towards himself.

He held it beneath him, grasping the sides with both hands turned towards him. His blond bangs hid most of his face, hiding whatever his eyes were showing. But Blake's own golden gaze was sharp enough to see the smile that curled at his lips, a gentle one, one that she now questioned. It took only the Faunus looking up for Blake to realize she had misjudged him again.

There was no reverie or joy in his eyes, no mad glint for evil deeds. There was no sharp gaze of a warrior, of any kind of freedom fighter or self-proclaimed savior. There was only one expression Blake could use to summarize what she saw, and it made her stop.

Peace. He felt amity while holding the mask.

He spun it in his grasp, turning it so the immaculate side faced the duo of team RWBY again. He held it proudly, as one would the memorabilia of a happier time. He gazed at Ruby for a moment, making the melancholy in his gaze clear, before turning to her. Instead of offering her his gaze, Link gave Blake a word, a word he knew she would hear. It was one she almost knew he would say.

'A Friend'

Link put on the mask.

Then he started to scream.

Blake jumped back, completely unprepared for the cry of pain Link gave off. A quick gasp tore through her throat as a yelp of surprise came from Ruby. She watched, horror stricken, as Link clenched his hands against the mask on his face, holding tightly as he continued to yell. His cries were echoing, their volume growing. Blake pulled her hands to the top of her head, the shrill pitch making her ears pain.

"Link!" She heard Ruby scream. She was running for him, Blake didn't need to look to know that, going to help someone she so quickly called a friend. "Link! Take it-" But twice within an hour, Ruby was stopped by the actions of another. This time, however, nothing physical gripped her.

A blinding light poured from Link, blinding Blake eyes as he screams muted her ears. She was stuck in a state of numbness, a terrifying state of lost senses. She couldn't hear anything, not even Link's cries. She couldn't see anything, the light too bright to make out even the arms in front of her face.

But then, with a dull ring, it faded. Blake released a breath of air she wasn't aware she was holding, relieved to be able to hear again, eyes blinking away tears as well. She lowered her arms slowly, careful as if Link would begin to scream again. They fell away, allowing her to focus her golden eyes on the faunus that now so completely baffled her.

He was no longer there. Or rather, something else now stood in his place.

Blake's jaw fell as her neck craned upwards, staring at the creature that was now before. It towered over her, dwarfing her in height. It was coated in feathers, running down the figures form, each blade appearing as long as Blake's own forearm. Each one was colored at their respective tips, green upon gold, one fading gently into the other. They ran down far enough that the last set billowed across the ground. It was only a tangential thought, but Blake thought the feathers made the figure appear to wear a robe.

She gazed at the figure's head again, watching it as it gazed back down at her. Long feathers came from the back of its head, stretching down the figure's back as if hair, colored in vibrant hues of green that Blake had not seen before, not even in the Emerald Forest. They matched well with the jade markings that ran up the figure's face. Its face was what Blake focused on most.

It had the sharpest of blue eyes, looking down at her with an expression she couldn't read. It had a beak, making it incredibly difficult for Blake to tell if the figure was giving an expression at all. The muscles of its face were hidden beneath its feathers, making it even more difficult to tell what it was thinking. But thought Blake could pinpoint easily all the mysteries of the creature, there was one similarity she could not move around.

Its face was that of the mask Link had donned. The same color, the same beak, and the same feathers flowing over its head. Blake swallowed on nothing, unsure of what to do.

"Do not worry. It is still me."

Blake fell to the ground at the voice, her muscles refusing to work. She stared up at the figure, slack jawed and golden eyes wide enough to rival the sun. The figure giggled at her lightly, ducking its long beak into the folds of its feathers, an expression the feline Faunus had seen birds do often, though then as a means for warmth. This was not that.

"L-Link?" She heard Ruby ask from aside her. Her young leader didn't appear to be faring any better than she was. The figure turned its avian head towards the younger girl, eyes sharp yet full of an empathy that Blake hadn't seen before. It looked almost… abject. Its beak opened, perhaps to respond Ruby's call.

A loud caw from above, however, silenced any words that would have been said.

Blake felt the Nevermore's challenging call rumble through her, near no different to the first time she had fought such a creature. She looked up, managing to avert her gaze from the newly appeared, golden, avian figure to see a familiar dark one high above. Its great wings beat against the sky, gliding it through the air as the clouds dissipated beneath its force.

"Please hold," the creature before her spoke again, earning Blake's attention. It was staring up into the sky as well, as focused on the avian monstrosity high above. "I will not be long."

"Long for-" Blake cut off her own question, for the avian figure exploded.

No… that wasn't the right term, but the hidden-faunus could think of few other words to properly describe it. The robe of feathers the creature wore unfolded in a glorious fashion, faster than she thought something of such size could move, every blade moving elegantly with one another. She was blinded with hues of gold and green momentarily, the colors weaving together like water. When the figure stopped, her robe was open, showing what truly lay beneath.

Her robe of feathers had become a magnificent pair of wings, stretching well past the small clearing's allowance. Coverts of feathers fell from them, each one longer than the next, ending only when the primary blades fell far enough to nearly drag on the ground. The light shined off of them, turning the already golden figure into a beacon. The only relief Blake had was the clothes it wore, hiding what were doubtlessly more feathers beneath. Clothes that appeared so much like Link's. A green dress not far in design from Link's tunic.

Then, with a flash it was gone.

Blake looked skyward, catching the golden figure soar into the blue. It became nothing but a dot in the sky exceedingly quickly, a testament to its wings and proof of its strength. It was only when the figure was gone that Blake was aware of her deep breathing, heavy breaths that forced her chest to rise and fall. She licked her lips, feeling the bumps of her tongue roll over the thin layer of skin.

"What…" She looked over to see Ruby, standing with Crescent Rose. She wasn't aware when the young girl had drawn the weapon, likely though when Link started to scream in pain. Ruby was leaning on her weapon like a stilt, the only reason she wasn't on the ground like Blake was. "What was that?"

Blake had no answer.

"That… was not what I expected." It was one of the highest forms of praise Glynda had ever given.

She stared at the screen mutely, her fingers hovering over her data pad, her attention utterly detached from the device. Her Emerald gaze was transfixed on the screen, on her mini-drones that now seemed unable to fly fast enough to catch up with the rapidly departing figure of the Nevermore and newly appeared golden bird.

"What in all manners of Dust was that!?" Ms. Schnee, it predictably appeared, was much more vocal in volume with her surprise. Though one of her hands aimed at the screen, pointing at is as if it were a blemish upon Remnant, her eyes were fixed coldly on the blonde fairy hovering high in air above her. Glynda offered it a small glance, noting that the lazy way it pirouetted through the air gave it only one kind of appearance. Arrogant.

"Oh, that?" Tatl replied easily, her voice as mockingly curious as any language would allow. "Nothing too major, just a simple trick that Link learned a long time ago. Still a little sour that Link proved you wrong? A little worried that he's doing what you can never do?" Glynda was mindful enough to know there was not truly steam rising from Ms. Schnee's alabaster hair… but the similarities were uncanny. She made note of it in the meeting cliff-notes of her data pad.

"Sis…" she heard Tael droningly call to his sibling. "Don't lie like that." Said sister fairy rung highly, likely a little offset that her brother of all people called her out. But her wings drooped just as quickly, shaking left and right as if straightening herself. Her darker brother never appeared to do more than float next to her.

"Fine. It's actually a pretty big deal," Tatl admitted with an utterly detached tone. It was quite the reversal from her teasing just a sentence prior. "It's… it's like asking the biggest favor from a friend, and said friend agreeing to do so without hesitation. You're glad, and you accept, but… it's still a huge deal. Point is though, it's not my story to tell how he did it."

"Yeah, and why not?" Glynda was honestly a little surprised to hear Ms. Xia Long calling out the fairy now. Putting aside the irony of the term, it wasn't like the brawler to start a fight, not without flirting or threats from the opposing party. "You've seem pretty keen on telling us just about everything else about him. Why is this suddenly so bad to talk about? Can't talk about something unless you're gonna brag about it?"

"H-Hey, that's not fair," Tael, weakly, argued against the blonde. Glynda tapped on her pad, noting that the darker fairy was defensive upon insults issued towards his sister, but lacked authority to his tone. If he had any more words to say, however, there were stopped by his sister, flying into his side. Their mixed lights made the lulling dark and harsh light into a soothing gray. She made note of that, too.

"I'm not talking about it," Tatl began, her tone lower than before, lacking the argumentative tone she seemed content to eternally adopt. "For the same that you probably don't want to talk about why you and your sister having different last names, Xio Long."

Glynda hesitated over her pad, noting the speed at which Ms. Xia Long's eyes flared red, teeth grimaced as well. The fairy wasn't done, however, turning her body and wings towards Ms. Schnee. "Or where you got that pretty little scar from." Ms. Schnee seemed to turn into her namesake, an Ice Queen, before scowling at the fairy with the heat of the sun. It was quite the switch.

"That is enough," Ozpin finally spoke up, waving his cane from across the desk he sat at. Eyes turned to him, but only briefly. Glynda didn't move hers. She was used to any tactic he may ploy in the following exchange. "I believe the more immediate matter at hand is how Link intends to use this… new item."

Silently, the rest turned back to the screen, seeing Glynda's mini-drones still flying at their fullest speed to catch up with the avian figures, the large black Nevermore against the speedy nimble golden figure. They were circling one another, neither flying forwards to gain distance any more.

From what they could see, the Nevermore was cawing loudly as it challenged the golden intruder, masked beak opening and screaming across the sky. Its long wings seemed to sharpen, the large blades that were its feathers fully prepared to launch forward without a moment's hesitation. The golden figure did not a thing, at least not a thing that mini-drones could possibly see.

But amidst the tension of the room, focused upon the aerial fight, Glynda heard something else. Her drones were quite versatile, able to perform many different functions, but never to hear a sound. It was a poor truth in their design, but to capture video and stream it to her pad too much from the small and nigh-unseeable drones. Too much information would destroy them. But with her own ears, she could hear much of what happened in the room. It is why she heard the dark fairy speak.

"She's not an item." Glynda made careful note of that.

Link knew this was a Nevermore. Elrora agreed with his thoughts.

He hadn't seen a monster like it before, but he knew enough about the creatures of madness to know it was a threat. Coupled with the words Ruby and Blake had told him, Link knew this was the monstrosity he was mean to kill. Elrora knew by its flight it was a monster meant to rule the skies. Kill this, and Link would have a place to stay, people to talk to, and a perhaps a source of reprieve. Those were all important things to have if he was going to search this strange land, for his companions in the very least.

Elrora pushed her wings, feeling her feathers catch at the air and propel her forwards. She whispered to Link on what to do, asking him on how to strike. She could fly without equal, but she was a chick when it came to battle. Linke was the master of combat. For now, they were the same.

They sky was clear, making mobility less of an issue. Little headwind interfered with the ascent towards the beast. Its size was its disadvantage, making flight around it simple, if a bit acrobatic. Link remembered Blake's words of warning well, the creature's sharp feathers like blades, its mask strong, talons more so. Even with Elrora's help, her memories to aid him, a blow from a creature of such size would be detrimental.

Her strength, however, meant Link would need only one careful strike to fell the beast. Elrora promised him as much, and he entrusted them with his life. Using her instincts, imprinted well into her mind, he increased his speed.

The air was colder the higher Elrora ascended, making the feathers that weren't propelling him forward grip his body tighter. He knew they would, knew from his friend's memories. She promised him they would be okay, that the chill of the air was no more dangerous than the heat of the sun. He knew she was right.

In little time Elrora was just beside the Nevermore, her eyes staring harshly into the large creature's red orbs. It looked little different than the first of these monsters Link had faced, the large creature Ruby had called an Ursa. This bird was larger than that beast, and it flew through the air with the same ease as a Watarara did. But Elrora was smaller, lighter, faster, and very likely smarter. All were the greatest advantages to have in the air.

The monster yelled at him, screeching the air in what could be seen as a promise for death. No sooner did it do so than did it descend, falling through the sky like a dropped rock, wings stuck to its sides. Link followed behind it carefully at a distance, unaware of the monster's intent. Its size was the problem, as a single smack of one of its wings would make flight difficult. Elrora agreed, her memories showing many monster she had taken from the air, though none like the Nevermore, one so like herself.

The black beast turned in midair, its underbelly facing upwards to the sky, its red eyes focusing on the golden figure that was Link. It gave another squawk to him, either a challenge or a warning, he could not tell, neither could the memories of Elrora. What they both knew was the way the creature folded back its wings, feathers extending outwards as its muscles extended. Blake's warnings came to his mind.

Now was the time to act.

Elrora ducked her wings, diving down like falling arrows towards the creature. She spun with the force, her memories telling Link that this would make them faster, sharper, and more importantly, deadlier. All were good when striking first. Link was close to the great avian now, closing the gap with a speed that clearly startled the monster. It gave another screech, faster than the first, more terrified. It was for good reason.

He heard the air rush as the Nevermore flapped its wings towards him. Feathers began to fly at him. They were longer than Elrora's, sharp as a newly forged sword, and moving at the same speed he was, in the opposite direction.

All of that mattered little when Link was already upon the creature's neck.

A moment later, he was beyond it, the force of the impact already moving past him.

Elrora's memories told Link to extend the wings, to let the air catch him before the ground met them. They were still so high, but he did not ignore his friend's words. He did so, finding his speed plummet as his altitude settled, the force of the sudden breaking doing little to him, the form of his friend far more than used to the act.

The creature rushed past them, a massive wound upon its neck and red eyes already dulling. Link knew it was dead, already far before it would hit the Emerald Forest below. Elrora knew if it was not, the impact would do the job. Creatures of the air, monster or not, were not heavy in mass. But they kept their distance, well aware of the instinct of many monsters to kill its killer in their final moments. Link would offer no such chance. Instead, as the large black avian fell to the forest below, Elrora and Link both appreciated the scope of the woods from above.

It was a large forest, carrying over most of his vision and settling into the horizon before he saw any patch of land, aside from the odd small clearing. The canopy was tall and thick, hiding much of the sun that wished to feed the trees below the line. Elrora knew this after seeing it from above and below. Link knew she was right. He turned with Elrora's tail-feathers, seeing the large structure of Beacon in the distance, the castle that Ruby and Blake called him.

Beacon, Link repeated the name in his own memories, Elrora having no memory or thought of the place. It was both harshly familiar and completely foreign. The way it towered over a city in the distance, collected only the strongest of individuals, shined with a green light like its namesake… it all seemed to hauntingly familiar to Hyrule Castle, a place he also once called home.

Elrora shook her head at the thought.

Link looked back down, seeing the creature impact the forest far below. The canopy of the trees did little to soften the fall of the might beast, its weight greater than the trees could endure. But it was surely dead now, no monster able to survive the fall of its own weight, not from such a height. Elrora could not think of any creature in history that could have done so.

Her descent was quick, but with no intention to cause further harm. The forest was already partially ruined by the fall of the mighty beast, and he had no desire to continue the act. Link wished now only to prove that he was a warrior, aided by skills and friends alike. Elrora was more than happy to aid. She flapped her wings as she neared the black bird, seeing the red eyes behind the creature's white mask already a dull crimson red, soon to be taken as absolute darkness. Dead indeed.

Elrora's talons settled on the corpse of the great monster, flexing to secure a patch of it to stand on. It was not the greatest of perches, but it was far suited for the display. If this test was like the hunts of Hyrule, searching for game in the Lost Woods, Link would be better seen atop the creature than beside it. Elrora was the one who would find surer footing. Link could only know, however, once the two girls found him.

They would come soon, Link knew this. If not to see if he was alright, then to judge what he had done. Elrora agreed that younglings were keen to see the aftermath of a hunt.

So far the girls were nice to him, kind with words and actions, offering the exchange of information and services for his own efforts, efforts so far that had been labeled a test. It was among some of his easier exploits if he were to be honest, a thing he always was. Elrora chuckled inwardly at the ease of the notion.

The young girl Link had met first, Ruby, he could already tell he enjoyed her company, and she did his. She reminded him much of Saria, in both size and appearance, though exchanging the red for green and silver for blue. Ruby just as honest as his childhood friend, something he was hoping he was right about. She reminded Elrora of her child, of the boy that refused to let limitations keep him from his future. Elrora whispered that Link was right to be friendly with her.

Link wondered briefly of Blake, of the dark girl that wore a bow of the same color. She was not an enigma to him, but neither was she easy to read. Her every action seemed to be that of someone in hiding, concealing her emotions for fear that they would be used against her. Elrora agreed, her memories telling him of the Watarara of the past who had done much the same. But they were not sneaky, they were injured, not in their body, but of their mind. Link knew of those warriors as well.

Link nodded at the thought, thanking Elrora for the information. Link could not be sure, but he knew that Elrora… showing her had done something to Blake and Ruby. Both of the girls were excited upon seeing his swordsmanship, appreciating the strength he had. Blake seemed to emphasize often his heritage to it, 'Faunus' as she was keen to call him. Perhaps she was one as well, appreciating another of her race who had strength. It was not a possibility he could easily throw away. Elrora, however, no sign she was anything but a dark-haired Gerudo.

But her aghast expression at his Elrora's mask, the sharpness of her golden eyes. They were not the expressions that offered peace. They were the same Link would give to many foes of the past, many insignias he now deplored. This was all thought though, and Link knew that. All he could do now was wait. Elrora would not let him wait alone.

Link was thankful to her, and so, Link decided to let the memories of his friend speak. Elrora, the former queen, was more than willing to do so.

It was the least she could do for the hero of her people.

"Almost there, almost there, almost there," Ruby chanted the phrase repeatedly. For every leap she took in her gait, semblance pushing her forward, she repeated the phrase. She was barreling through the forest, dodging easily the stray limbs and branches that protruded from the large trunks of the trees around her, making her way to the site of the Nevermore's crash.

Ruby pumped her arms to move faster, pushing to make herself to the Nevermore as quickly as she could. She trees were a blurred as she past, the greens of the forest blending together. She didn't care. She only had one destination on her mind.

The deeper she made it into the Emerald Forest, the closer she came to where the Nevermore went down, the quieter it became. Ruby thought at first it might have been just her focusing on Link… focusing on whatever it was that had brought down the giant bird. But the further she went in the less she heard. For every fallen log she jumped, she heard less bird cries. For every tree she rounded, she heard fewer twigs snapping.

It didn't take long before the air was near silent, broken only by the air that rushed past her ears, semblance pushing her forward. She knew the emerald green of the forest was going to be dribbled with red, her petals leaving a clear a trail as any for where she was and where she was going. She didn't care, not really. She only needed to make sure her friend was okay.

Then, all at once, she came into a clearing.

Just as quickly, Ruby had to raise her arms, the sun blinding her. Without a canopy above the clearing, there was nothing to filter the bright rays of light. She let out a quick grimace of pain, eyes constricting to block out the numerous rays. White spots came and left her vision as her silver eyes adjusted. Slowly, she lowered her arms, squinting to see into the clearing.

At first, all she could see were the blurred shapes and colors, nothing more detailed than a cloud. She could see a lot of green in the distance, doubtlessly where the Emerald Forest continued on, the edge of the clearing. In front, she saw almost just as much black, a dark void that seemed utterly and completely out of place in the forest. But she also saw a small ball of gold, atop the darkness.

And as Ruby's eyes adjusted, it became only too clear what she was looking at.

The Nevermore was dead on the ground. Its head was sliced cleanly off, beak still opened as if it were letting out a cry. Its wings were bent horribly, the crash likely doing that damage to it. Dark blood seeped out onto the green of the forest floor, making a horrible contrast of color. It was, however, near definite proof that the deed was done. And atop the Nevermore was its slayer.

Ruby eyed the golden creature for not the first time. And yet, she felt just as marveled as before. A distance thought told her it was because it was because it was a pretty bird twice her own size, something that she almost desperately wanted to snuggle up and sleep against like a pillow. But the leader in her, hardened by fights with the White Fang and team combatants, told her it was the obvious. Specifically, how it was perched over the Nevermore like the Hunter that it was.

Ruby dully made out the tapping of feet behind her, doubtlessly Blake approaching. It was easy to hear when the rest of the forest was quite as the dead. She heard those same foot falls slow as they came to rest beside her. Never once did the crimson wearing leader look to confirm her thoughts. The bird… she was too captivating.

Even with the dark wisps of smoke rising from the dead Nevermore, the yellow of the bird appeared to shin like gold, stopped only by the lime tips of the feathers and green dress it wore. It looked into the sky, eyes shut as if in thought. But then, slowly, it lowered its gaze, staring back down at Ruby. Their eyes met for a moment, the creature showing nothing but empathy and kindness in the gaze. With just as much speed, its head turned slight, looking at whom Ruby assumed to be Blake. It expression didn't change.

"Who are you?"

Ruby felt as if she were talking to same famed Hunter as she asked the question. She wasn't convinced she wasn't. The creature giggled lightly, ducking its beak into this chest again. With its wings unfolded, it ducked into the cleavage of its chest, into the emerald dress it wore. She watched as the avian curved her beak, showing a smile towards the two.

Then it bowed, lowly, standing atop the corpse of a Nevermore, a kill that it had made hundreds of feet in the air, without showing so much as even a breath of effort for the deed. One wing folded behind its back, allowing its distal feathers to fold down its talon-like legs. The other held itself over its chest, giving again the appearance that the creature was wearing a robe of feathers.

"My name is Elrora," it spoke with kindness. "I am the past queen of the Watarara Tribe, Immigrants of Hyrule and natives to no land. In memory, that is who I am."

The creature stood to its tallest again, its beak still curved in a gentle smile, eyes showing the same amount of kindness. Ruby saw Blake tighten her grip on Gambol Shroud, unsure of what to do. Just as quickly, she saw Elrora, the now named avian, slack her smile. The hard material of her beak managed to fall into a disappointed frown. Kindness didn't flow from the blue eyes then. Sadness did.

"You're scared," the Watarara spoke simply, conclusively. "And I understand why. The magic that has brought me here is not common upon my land. I am sure it is lost in yours." Ruby felt her heart twist.

"I-It's not that!" Ruby answered earnestly, quickly making her way in front of Blake. "She's just… well… we don't know what's going on, a-and you, or Link, put on a mask to make this happen. Masks are what… the Grimm where masks, and they're monsters." Ruby watched as Elrora's beak opened and closed, nodding slowly in understanding. That was good, right?

"I see," she spoke easily, her voice smooth as the air she flew in on. "I am a reminder to that painful past." Again the queen bowed, halving her height as she addressed the girls. "I offer you my apologies then. In no way did I hope to stir unpleasant thoughts. I merely thought this was the most effective way to deal with a monster of the sky. I beg your forgiveness for my actions." Yeah, that was really good.

Ruby turned around to face Blake, letting her silver eyes give the hiding-faunus a pleading look, complete with a bit lip and tears at the corner of her gaze. Blake shook on her already uneven ground, eyes clouding as she looked from her team leader to the enigma behind her. With a slow breath, she withdrew her hand from her weapon, earning a relieved sigh from Ruby.

"You're forgiven," Blake spoke to Elrora, looking past Ruby to do so. "You had no way of knowing." The golden bird rose again, her smile thankful with eyes full of simple joy. "But now I have to ask a question, if you're going to answer."

The queen bowed her head, one that Ruby immediately remembered Link doing, a dozen times before. Maybe… maybe he really was in there… somehow.

"How are you here now? When Link put on that mask, why did you suddenly appear? Are you his semblance or something?" The annoyance on Blake's voice was as clear as the curiosity. But those were good questions. Ruby looked back to Elrora, the bird, and saw that she was standing again, her wings wrapped about her body. She was wearing the robes of feathers, reflecting gold, as the beast beneath her dissipated into darkness.

"It is a fair question," she spoke, nodding her head with shut eyes. But before she spoke on, she jumped from the corpse she stood on, landing with grace upon the ground. Only her feathers billowed as she landed, the rest of the forest undisturbed. "What you see, what I am now, is but a collection of memories, emotions, and things I have left behind to this world. Left for the changing winds… as my soul ascended for the Forever Sky."

Ruby wasn't the wisest of Huntresses, let alone in training. It usually came back to her age, being two years the junior of even the youngest member of the first year class. It was something she was reminded of constantly, but something she worked just as hard to improve on. Her age usually meant small words of gossip would be lost on her, conversations that would make Yang giggle or Weiss grimace only make her tilt her head in confusion. This felt like one of those conversations, to her at least.

She left behind her memories and emotions, for the winds she said. The crimson wearing girl knew well enough that no winds were ever entirely constant, so that meant she left on Remnant. That made sense. But… her soul ascended for this… Forever Sky? That was… oh… oooooh.

"Y-You're dead?" Her voice shook as she asked the question, suddenly much more fearful of the supposed ghost in front of her. She could see Blake give her a curious eye, only before turning back towards the tall avian that stood before them. The rising smoke of the slain Nevermore did little to make offer her a kind light to stand in. Neither did melancholy smile.

"Yes," Elrora answered. It made Ruby's eyes bug. "My soul has gone, but my body remains. But I… Link… offered me peace in my final moments." Ruby didn't understand at all.

"What does that mean?" Blake asked beside her, her patience clearly being eroded much faster than the team leader's. Ruby hoped it was because she afraid for Link, that would make sense. Blake always did care about other Faunus. But… something told her she was wrong, that it was something else. "Did he kill you? Did he do something to… hurt you?"

Ruby couldn't remember a time where she was so thankful for seeing such a pained expression on someone. Elrora had pulled her head, her beak twisting into an aghast frown. Her avian eyes were wide, focused on Blake with came across only as disbelief. That was good… right?

"Link did nothing to harm me," Elrora began, voice firm. She sounded honest at least, to Ruby. "He saved my son when he was lost. He guided our people to the Immigrant Winds. He saved my people in our time of need. But I could not be saved, not by what had claimed me."

Her head turned towards, her figure hunching as her head waved left and right. But the movement was stiff, forced, not… not what Ruby had seen others do before. Something was wrong, she could feel it. She took a step forward, leaning down to get a better look of Elrora, to see if she was alright. Maybe it would be better to ask.

"Are you okay?" Ruby asked carefully, very carefully. She wasn't scared of Elrora, couldn't be. She was just a giant golden bird that was kept in a mask… able to outfly a Nevermore, and cut through it like paper… and was looking actually kinda sad.

Ruby felt feathers surround her, slowly. It took her a second to realize that the avian was surrounding her, encapsulating her with her wing. But where she normally would have felt a jolt of fear at such an action, she felt only warmth. It took her just as long to figure out why. Link, Elrora, whoever, was wrapping her in a tight hug.

"I'm well, at least as well as I can be in strange lands, flying in a strange sky," Elrora spoke with a peaceful voice. She sounded really calm, something Ruby was starting to get a little jealous of. But… it was a good thing she was calm. "I thank you for your concern, young one. But I am well."

The crimson leader of team RWBY listened intently to Elrora, her body taking long deep breaths. The feathers along her back began to pull away, the creature rising up as she released Ruby from the quick embrace she had wrapped her in. The smile across Elrora's beak was clear.

"Thank you," the golden bird replied. "I apologize deeply and immensely for my previous actions. I just… believed Elrora was best suited for the sky." Was that Link talking? That was actually pretty weird. "It is difficult for me to think of any other more suited to duel a monster in the air." Ruby smiled up at her, empathy to her gaze.

"How did Link help you?" She turned, almost in shock, as Blake as the question. She stared at her teammate, silver eyes looking into Blake's golden ones. Ruby had tears in her gaze still, even as her eyes bulged in shock. Blake had no emotion in her, eyes slit and focused upon the avian creature. Gambol Shroud was still gripped tightly in her hands.

"Blake!" Ruby yelled at her teammate with reprimand. "Now isn't a good time for that! We still gotta get back to Beacon and-" She was stopped by a large hand on her shoulder. It was a very large hand, part of a much larger wing.

"It is alright, Ruby," Elrora spoke from above and behind her, causing Ruby to spin again, crimson cape billowing at the action. "Blake has every reason to be suspicious of me. Link's actions can just as easily be seen as cruel as they are kind."

Elrora focused her gaze on Blake, her beak betraying no emotion of scorn or hate. There was only pity in her blue eyes, as far as Ruby could see. She knew that was all there was.

"I was dying when Link found me," Elrora spoke, her voice addressing the faunus-in-hiding. "He had saved my son from a fall in the skies, leading my people to the Immigrant Winds. Those winds, which chances through lands over decades, were our means to see new lands, to find new homes. If we had lost them, my people would have died into nothing. Link risked his life to find these currents, allowing my people to find their way home." Just as Elrora betrayed little emotion when she spoke to Blake, so too did the darkly dressed team member speak.

"And what of you?" She asked with a nod of her head. "You keep saying your soul is gone, your memories behind, but what did Link do to you?"

"He saved my soul," Elrora replied, saying the weighty phrase with what felt like practiced ease. It made Ruby stifle a ball in her throat.

The great bird didn't speak for a time, instead turning her head to the sky. Ruby did the same, wondering if she had seen something. But all her silver eyes witnessed was the endless blue that she had come to known. Clouds high above, tree leaves much further down, but nothing warranting a longing gaze. Nothing as far as she could see.

"I had searched for the winds before Link had found my people," Elrora spoke on. "But in my search, I was taken by a monster, one that rend my wings from my body and tore into me like a corpse. I knew I was dying before it had even struck its second blow."

Ruby felt herself bunch a few of the long feathers of the bird with her fist, gripping the creature. Elrora looked down to her with a somber expression. Ruby hated it.

"But Link found me before the final blow was thrown. With a great hammer, he destroyed the beast. But he could not save me. It was a fact he and I both knew well. I was… I was in pain, mourning. I would not see my people again, our journey to our homes, or even my son grow."

Finally, after all of the responses, Ruby saw Blake stiffen at the last one given. The bow-wearing girl, lowered her weapon slightly, lips relaxing as her eyes softened, all only by a hair's width.

"One of my last memories, of me to her, were the tears she had, mourning for others as she passed, asking only for peace of mind. Even amongst her final moments, she was a queen, thinking of her people above herself. My near to last memory is of him pulling out a small instrument, blue in color, hollow, and full of holes." Ruby continued to stare at Elrora, listening intently to the story.

She didn't think of it as anything less than a most precious secret. It deserved her full attention. The silence from Blake, she assumed, meant the same.

"Then he played a song." The small perk of joy in the bird's voice was impossible to miss, especially amongst the silence of the woods. "It was simple, a slow melody that didn't befit my people, we so used to singing songs of grand pitch and volume. But… it carried upon the still air as if wind, moving through wounds like a caring mother's touch. It brought forth my last memory."

Ruby leant against Elrora, looking up with her neck craned, as absorbed into the story as she was into the golden feathers of the queen. She didn't look back, but Ruby hoped she knew Blake well enough to guess that she had put her weapon away. Or, at the very least, no longer held it in defense. She was usually right about those things. Elrora took in a long breath of air before speaking again.

"My memory was a dream, but it was one that I am glad to have," she began, her beak undoubtedly curving upwards as she spoke. "I was flying in the air, high above the lands below, riding a wind that my people would have spent their lives searching for. Yet, I was not their leader then. None followed me and none flew before me. Rather, I was above, looking at them below. Below me, yet still in the air with me. They flew with all the grace that befit our people, the young to elderly all flying through the sky with the ease and grace of a cloud upon gentle air. The wind… it lifted them up, their wings were strong and helped them forward. But they had a new leader, one that was not me, yet one that brought tears to my eyes to see."

"My son, Rouru," the queen spoke with love in her voice. "He was no longer the young chick I had last seen him to be. He was… he was taller than me, with a wingspan that would have put my own to disgrace. His feathers were of the sun, his stained colors that of the setting moon. He ruled the sky of day and night, and led our people to prosperity. He was king, a king that my people followed not for lineage, but for belief. They believed in him, and for it, they were strong. And all the while, Link's music played."

Her eyes shut as she finished speaking, looking skyward still.

"Then I felt the winds beneath me strengthen, and I felt myself being lifted to the Forever Sky." Elrora's eyes opened slowly, her smile fading with the same speed. "My soul left peacefully, content with what I had seen. I left behind all that the music had taken from me; my regrets, my sadness, and my fears."

The queen looked down now, facing Blake with unreadable expression. Ruby looked, then back, then up again, only to turn towards Blake once more. She wasn't afraid, as she was happy to see she was correct before, Blake's weapons at her side in a relaxed arm, her gaze open and lined with empathy.

"The mask," Elrora began again, "It is my… it is what she left behind. There was no body, no corpse, nothing to show the passing of her life. I had given her peace, and in return, I sealed all that she was within the mask, letting her soul be free." The queen, or perhaps Link, bowed again, causing a small 'eep' to escape Ruby. She ducked out and away from the golden bird, afraid she'd be crushed by the much larger figure.

"I apologize again for giving you discomfort with my display. But I can assure you that was not my intention." Blake had not a word of response, and the genuflected bird didn't even twitch. "Elrora… she was my friend, and I dislike having to borrow her strength for such tasks. But she promised me, implored me, to use her strength for when it was needed, her token of thanks for freeing her from her misery."

The Watarara Queen stood again, towering over them with her height. She offered a somber expression to the pair, a look that showed empathy and sadness. Ruby could only see regret. Then she watched her hands raise, carrying her massive wings up with her. They settled on her face, grasping at the feathers lining the edges of her features. Gently, with a breath of air, she pulled.

Ruby let out a small yelp as light suddenly blinded her.

It was obvious where it came from and just as obvious what caused it, but the speed at which it happened left her eyes pained, no different than when she had run into the sun. Her arms covered her gaze instantly, though she still stall spots of white with her eyes firmly shut and concealed. But then just as quickly as it had come, the light was gone.

Ruby still saw spots of light, blinking them away painfully with her arms slowly falling. She moved her hands to her eyes, rubbing them painfully to get the few remaining white spots out of her vision. Shaking her head, staring forward intently, she saw what she expected, and still what immensely surprised her.

Link was there again, the same Faunus she had met in the forest only this morning. The same green clothes, the same crystal sword and shield, the same hair, and the same eyes. And in his hands he had the same mask he had pulled out before, following the attack of the beowolves and just preceding the chase of the Nevermore. With hollow eyes and long feathers, Ruby now understood why Link held the mask so close. It was only made painfully more obvious by the longing gaze he gave the mask.

He pocketed the item away, putting it inside his tunic, and as far as Ruby could tell, seemingly out of sight. She watched him take a deep breath of air, ears lightly rising and falling. His eyes were shut, listening. Sound was returning to the Emerald Forest.

Ruby knew, without a doubt, there was going to be a lot to talk about back at Beacon.

Chapter Text

"Wait here, Link."

It was far from the first time he had heard those words. He was under no illusion he would never hear them again. He heard them spoken often in Hyrule, and just as often in the surrounding kingdoms.

Sometimes they were spoken so that the other party could finish an activity. He remembered the old maiden of Kakariko Village finishing the fabled blue potion, muttering the same words. But he remembered just as well the guardians of the Royal Families saying those things, fetching the parties with whom he had to speak. Then, in a few rare times, he was told those same words while a meeting was held, a meeting without his say.

Standing outside the improbably tall tower of Beacon, alight with emerald colors and spinning gears, Link knew the reason for those words know was most definitely the latter of the three.

He was stopped shortly after coming back in the odd ship, the one that sailed on the wind. Ruby and Blake had uttered barely a word to him all the way back. He honestly expected as much. Ruby saw him as a kind of oddity, one that she was hoping would shine the way she was expecting. It made sense that the colors he truly showed irked her into silence. Refusal of contact was likely next.

Blake was the odder of the two, but no less surprising in her silence. Quieter before, but utterly silent now, she had avoided so much as eye contact with him, at least as long as Link looked towards her. He wondered why that was. She spoke to him as an equal, but not in the sense of skill. Her words so often came back to his Hylian lineage, a Faunus as she was often to name, that it was odd for her to suddenly stop. He shrugged his shoulders, knowing it was not his place to think of a reason why.

It was when they arrived and met with Goodwitch, the tall woman with emerald eyes of steel, he was told to wait outside the tower, alone. Again, it was not surprising, not given his actions and now with the words she had spoken. They were all very familiar with swords and magic, though by names he did not recognize.

But to take the form of another, to bear the face of his lost friends…

Link shook his head. He knew their actions were right, at least wise. He wouldn't trust a stranger who so easily changed shape. It made little sense that they would as well. For now though, he could only wait, staring up at the clock tower that pecked away at the minutes. Tatl and Tael were up there still, the former likely screaming and the latter doing his best to speak clearly. He smiled.

They were his friends, friends he could depend on. He knew that they would do what he needed, pushing him only when he had no other reason to move. Tatl was best at that. Her brother, he told some of the best stories to Link, other times telling others stories about Link. It was a funny irony to the emerald-clad warrior.

But instead of laughing, he sighed. He lowered his heard, realizing the futility of watching a pot boil. They would come back eventually, sooner or later as it was. If nothing else, he had to wait for the fairy siblings to come swooping down at any moment. He knew they would, either with cheers or threats. Link briefly thought it would be both, given their special dynamic of speaking.

Link's back hit the side of the building, his body slumping until he was leaning against the tall tower behind him. He faced the rest of this… campus, as Goodwitch had called it. It seemed more like a courtyard than anything else, complete with the light foliage of a garden but dotted with important buildings for work and study. He was far from saying which one was for what.

But again, that mattered little now. For now, all he had to do was pass the time. And that, thankfully, was a skill he had learned all on his own. Link reached behind himself, pulling out a possession he both prized and cherished.

The Ocarina of Time, symbol of the Royal Family Messenger.

The title made him sigh, memories of better days skipping through his mind. He lightly brushed them away. He brought the ocarina to his lips, holding the mouthpiece steady as he positioned his fingers about the holes.

Gently breathing, he began to play to play the song of his friend.

"So we're letting him in, right?" Yang said the words with all the grace she was known for. None. Fortunately for the buxom blonde, there was a new addition to the small party who seemed to practice an equal amount of tact.

"You better," Tatl spoke as she nodded towards Yang, her translucent wings waving with a high ring. "He did exactly as you asked, killed a Nevermore by himself way before the end of the day. Link's finished his side of the deal, are you gonna try and weasel your way out of yours?" The last question was posed to Ozpin, who Yang noticed had his hands folded over his desk, his head ducking just beneath them.

It was almost an unnerving sight by itself, only because the blonde brawler was so used to the headmaster walking with a coffee mug in hand, grinning with a smile caught between mischievous and benevolent. It was only the latter half that she trusted, the former she thought was just kinda cool. Right now, however, she was pretty sure he had no smile. Goodwitch didn't at least.

"In Link's own words," Goodwitch began to speak to the bright colored fairy. "He borrowed the strength of his friend when he knew his own was not sufficient. I might also want to add he said those words with the help of his friend as well. His friend, whom I have made careful not of, is also deceased for reasons unknown."

"Oh that's bull!" Tatl fired back, to Yang's utter amusement. The elbow in her side told her she must have grinned. She gave Ruby a harsh glare anyways. "First off, Elrora died from a Molgera biting her wing off. If you're colorful little tool could remind you, she also said that as well, nothing really unknown about it. Second of all, getting help from a friend like that is no different than saying you're not allowed to train with anyone else. We might not have been her for long, but I've heard enough talk about partners and teams to know that you guys preach cooperation."

"True," Goodwitch spoke back easily. "But Link spoke that he borrowed the memories and body of this… Watarara Queen. That is well and beyond simple encouragement or training exercises."

"To you maybe, but that's far and away what it is to Link!" The fairy was ringing in Goodwitch's face now. Yang felt another elbow in her gut, this one from Blake. She stuck her tongue out at the hiding Faunus. "Elrora traded Link her body and memories for peace, which Link gave her. You might also recall this in your cute little device, but with how high your nose is stuck in the air, I'm surprised you're able to read it at all."

Yang couldn't help it now. She snickered.

Instantaneously, three pairs of elbows shot into her gut. Now she yelped.

"Yang!" Her sister whispered harshly to her, fingers clenched at her side. "Please calm down!"

"Sorry, sorry," she waved her partner off, her other hand rubbing at the sore spot in her gut. Brawler though she was, that didn't mean Yang's team was inferior to her in strength. Still, she hoped it didn't bruise. Good looks was part of her charm, and distraction technique.

"Is there a problem, Ms. Xia Long, Ms. Belladonna?" The inquiry came from Glynda Goodwitch, staring at the two from across her data pad. Even Tatl had diverted her attention away to stare at the group. Yang put her lower lip between her teeth. This was not a good place. Rocks and hard places offered more padding than Glynda's temper and the earth a good few hundred feet below.

"Nah, nothing's wrong," she waved off, hand pushing against the air as she spoke. "I just… well, okay, I am kind of confused."

"Yang, what are you doing?" The blonde gave a glance sideways to see her sister looking up at her, pleading like a dog freshly kicked. The look made her want to kick whoever made up that look. Seriously, always did more damage than good. She put a hand on her sister's head, rubbing away the expression and replacing it with muffled protests.

"See, here's the thing," Yang began to speak again, addressing the fairies and professor plus headmaster. "It looks like the big trouble is that Link used a 'friend's' help to complete the test, but said friend has kinda kicked the bucket, no offense or anything." When no objections were raised, she continued. "But as far as I could tell, he just put on a mask and got cracking. Yeah, bonus points for being just about the weirdest thing I've seen to date, but it's not that much higher than Professor Oobleck launching Zwei like a cannonball at mechs." She chuckled lightly at the memory, or the retelling that Ruby had given her once they were all safe at Beacon. She laughed alone, not unusual given her jokes. "Okay, look, if the big deal is that we're thinking his masks are his literal friends, why don't we just clarify that they're not? I mean, not like the dead are helping Link, right?"

"But they are." Yang almost missed the timid voice that spoke up. She wasn't alone, as far as the blonde could tell. She turned her head to see the darker of the two fairies, Tael the peeper, title assigned by hers-truly.

"He gave a mediocre explanation of exactly what that meant in the forest," Weiss finally spoke up, putting her hands on her hips and approaching the dark fairy, the latter shirking away as she did so. Leave it to the Ice Queen to feel pride in scaring a fly. "Maybe you would care to give us a bit more detail on this mask of his. What exactly is it?"

"Th-They are-" He was stopped almost immediately.

"Wait, 'they'?" Yang looked to see her sister asking the question seriously, leaning over fall enough that by all rights she should have tumbled over. "You mean he has more masks than just Elrora's?" Yang knew her sister well enough to hear the excitement in her voice. Oh yeah, there was definitely the eager Ruby sitting comfortably in that voice, it was just buried beneath a pile of doubt and worry.

Before Tael could answer, Tatl flew into him. They rang together, quickly and against one another. Likely another conversation that was spoken either too quickly or too lightly for Yang to hear it. She had only seen it once before, but she already loathed it. She did, however, see Blake blink next to her, hands tightening as they spoke. She'd have to ask about that later. Later, for sure.

"Um… yeah, there are." Tael nervously spoke again, his sister flittering around him protectively. Yang couldn't help but see a little of herself in the golden ball of light. A little, but clearly she was the bigger woman. She smirked at her joke, but promptly lost it when the darker of the two fairies continued to speak. "He, Link I mean, he's… he met a lot of people who needed his help. None of them… well, all of them wanted to help him, for Link helping them I mean."

"And what is the number of these 'masks' he has?" Goodwitch asked the question now, typing out on her pad before letting her hand hover. Yang realized she was preparing for the answer.

"E-"

"Nine," Tatl spoke up, interrupting her brother. The two rang at one another, likely another conversation that Yang couldn't hear, before the elder of the two continued to speak. "He has nine. He has nine masks because he helped nine people on their deathbeds."

"Nine." She'd never admit it aloud, but Yang got a chill with the voice Blake used. Her partner had a knack for being creepy when she wanted to be. Still, she had to wonder if masks were that big a deal to her. Must have been more of that past she hated to talk about. "And who, pray tell, do these masks belong to."

"Some of his closest friends," The Peeper answered back easier than Yang though the dark fairy capable of. He waved lightly in the air, swinging back and forth as if in thought. It likely was. "A Goron Hero, a Zora Warrior, a Watarara Queen, a Shiekah Guardian, a Hylian ranch hand, a Gerudo Chief, a Kokiri Sage, a Witch's goodness, and even a Spirit's Regret."

His swaying stopped, listing off the ten people for whom the ten masks came. Yang honestly wanted to see these things, hearing about them only doing so little justice. Blake, however, Yang could tell wanted to break them. She could hold her back though, hopefully.

"And how many of them appreciated Link's 'help'? Kind of hard for the dead to talk against you." Yang thought she was used to Weiss tactless questions. Clearly the princess was upping her game. Yang's fairy double rang loudly at the accusation, flying into the alabaster Huntress's face.

"How dare you!" The fairy all but screeched into the young girl's face. "Do you have any idea what Link risked to help them!? Do you know what they are to him?!" Weiss's expression flickered from proud to worried, clearly seeing the line she crossed. Yang saw her sister raising a hand to help her partner, but she put up her own to stop her younger kin. She only shook her head when Ruby gave her a confused look. Sometimes harsh lessons had to be learned with harsh words.

"No, bu-" Weiss was given no chance to defend herself, Tatl clearly on a mission.

"They are his friends!" The golden fairy continued to shout, ringing with every word she screamed. "Every time he puts on one of their masks, every time, he lives their entire lives! You wanna know why he screamed, why he always screams? It's cause he was literally becoming all that they were, up to and including their death!"

Yang felt her mouth dry at thought. She felt Ruby shake next to her as well, shivering against the hand Yang still had on her shoulder. She gripped it tightly.

"That's… but why does he-" Once more, Weiss wasn't even given time to ask her question. It was kinda obvious where it was going, at least in Yang's personal opinion. No time to speak it though when Tatl was giving the Schnee heiress an earful.

"Why does he use them at all?" The fairy laughed as she asked the question. Yang figured she was used to hearing it. From whom, she had no idea. "Cause Link's a lot of things. Stupid is pretty high on the list, foolish right beneath it." That wasn't what Yang was expecting. Clearly not others as well, judging by the few tilted heads and screwed eyes she saw.

"But he's brave." Yang turned to see the darker fairy speaking, Tael hovering beside his sister. "Link… nothing really scares him. It doesn't matter if it's exploring the depths of a volcano… or the bottom of a monster infested lake. To Link, there is never anything to be afraid of." That sounded pretty stupid to Yang alright.

"Perhaps we are getting off track." The buxom blonde and her team turned slightly to see Ozpin finally speak up, setting his arms across his desk as he stared at the group in his office. He took a deep breath, likely still thinking as he spoke. Yang couldn't deal with that. She always preferred to just throw out there what she thought. No need to be clever. "I believe the question at the moment is not Link's character, but of his means to complete the task set before him."

The headmaster stood up, picking up his cane as he did so. Seven pairs of eyes watched him round the desk, at least Yang assumed it was that number. She couldn't be too sure about how the fairies watched anything. It must have been hard with how bright they were.

"Ruby and Blake," he spoke her teammates names, grabbing the attention. "Link did explicitly tell you that this… mask of his was the aid of a friend, correct?" Yang looked to her partner, watching the dark suck in a deep breath of air with eyes closed. Poor girl, must have been torn, another Faunus looking to get into Beacon, but one that also enjoyed wearing masks. Talk about bad luck.

"Yes," Blake spoke up finally, nodding her head. "If not even by his own words, he transitioned frequently in his speech between his own mindset and that of Elrora." Really bad luck.

"B-But it was him in control!" Yang was anything but surprised when she heard her little sister fire back quickly. "I-I mean he did say that Elrora is gone, and he was just using her memories to help him! That's not the same as getting a friend's help, is it?"

"I'm goin' with my sis on this one," Yang decided to speak up. She wrapped her younger sibling in a one-arm hug, dragging the smaller teen close. She 'eeped' in response. "All I'm hearin' is that Link used a bit of advice and information from his bird friend to get the job done. Isn't that like the whole purpose of school and stuff?" She heard Ozpin chuckle, all the sign she needed to put on her own triumphant grin. But, unfortunately, Goodwitch made sure it was short lived.

"If it were memories alone, then I would have little issue. Ms. Rose and Ms. Belladonna also shared as much with him regarding the Nevermore." Yang felt her sister shift in her grasp, but she saw Blake scoff and turn away. What was with that? They really needed to talk later. "The issue is that he borrowed their forms as well, their skills which are not his own and he was unable to retain. Disturbing implications of such a transformation aside, that is little different than if your teammates assisted him."

"And both of you are insist that these masks are not merely tools, correct?" Yang didn't need to look to know that Ozpin was talking to the fairies. They rang lightly against one another, the shared light momentarily turning into a nice gray. She preferred the gold, personally, no biasness at all.

"That ain't gonna happen," Tatl spoke up, though with some clearly restrained fury. "We're not gonna just throw the masks away and say they're just things. They… they're all Link's got of his friends. They remind him of who they were, what they meant to him. Sorry, but those aren't just things, there are his friends, or all that's left of them."

"Then for failing to abide by the rules set for the examination, Link has failed his entrance exam into Beacon." It surprised Yang sometimes, just how cruel Goodwitch could make herself sound. Added a little too much irony to the name.

"Does… Does that mean he has to leave?" Yang felt a familiar part of her heart get tugged by her sister's tone of voice. It was the same one she used when she found out that they were going to separate schools for the first time. It wasn't good for her health to hear. Fortunately, it looked like Ozpin wasn't too fond of it either.

"Not quite yet," the headmaster spoke with a few taps of his cane, emphasizing his words. "I feel that this is less of a violation of the rules and more of a… miscommunication of the boundaries."

"Ignorance of the rules is not an excuse to bend or break them, headmaster." Yang was wrong before, Goodwitch could sound outright evil with the right words. She almost shivered as the professor spoke.

"And I have no reason to say you are wrong, Glynda," Ozpin held up his hands at her words. Looks like even the headmaster was wary of the Wicked Witch of Beacon. "But I find it a bit too harsh to deny Link entrance to the school on a technicality, especially one that could easily be attributed to his status as a foreign member of society, foreign in the strongest sense of the word."

"Then… what does that mean?" Just as before, Yang heard hopeful tunes playing across her sister's voice. While her pity may be a leading cause of manic depression, her hope and joy was just as liable to cause diabetes. "Does Link have to take the test again?"

"Hardly," she heard Weiss speak up. "It serves little purpose to have any individual take the same test twice, especially after you have offered them the answers." The princess finished her little lesson with a flick of her hand, moving her long braid over her shoulders and out of her eye-sight. "Although, a new test wouldn't be far out of the question, would it?" That… wait, what?

"Excellent deduction again," Ozpin congratulated the alabaster member of the team. "Those were my thoughts exactly. It only has to be clear that Link must rely on his own abilities and not those of his friends. Is that possible for him?" The final question was posed for the fairy siblings.

"Does a moblin stink like your professor's attitude?" Yang had no idea what that meant.

"Y-Yes," The Peeper followed his sister, clearly uncomfortable with the metaphor she made. Yang would have to ask them about it later, hopefully. "Yes, Link… he can handle it. Promise, just… let us talk to him, okay?"

"But of course," Ozpin offered with a nod of his head. "Right now you are guests on my campus, and I hope you will soon be residents. Please do not presume to think I am keeping you anywhere. I only wish to have these discussions in private, as gossip can be a cruel tool, especially among the young." Leave it to the headmaster of a school of teenagers to know the importance of privacy. Made a lot of sense to Yang actually.

"Awesome!" Tatl, let out, ringing in the air as she ascended upwards. She spun about while doing so, like she was running up a slide. "We just gotta get Link to kick another monster's butt, then we can finally start working on something useful."

"He will not be hunting another Grimm." That one got even Yang by surprise.

"I beg your pardon?" Weiss, of all people, asked incredulously. "Forgive me professor, but I believe that the proper test for the Beacon entrance exam merits a test of cunning and strength. Grimm have always been used for the entrance exam, the school records show it."

"But not for re-tests, of which I can only name two on file in the school's history." Goodwitch never raised her emerald eyes from the data pad as she typed. That irked Yang in a way she didn't like to admit. "Though rare, there is a set-test offered to re-entries to Beacon, outside of the usual year-lapse." Yang didn't miss the glare she gave the headmaster. He seemed either utterly passive to it, or unknowing. The former seemed a bit more likely.

"So what does he have to do?" Yang finally heard her partner speak up. She was the mysterious member of the group, ninja in all but name. Goodwitch didn't answer immediately, however. Instead, she continued to tap and scroll through her pad, likely looking up the impertinent information. Details and all those other fun things.

"Ah," she spoke lightly, indicating her find. "Re-entries to Beacon may pass a supplementary examination when given permission by an administrative head." Ozpin bowed as the sentence, making Yang chuckle in an all but subtle manner. "If the prospective student is able to best a currently attending student at Beacon, he or she may gain entrance to the school. The student must be chosen by an authority different than the one who requested the examinee's re-entry. Limitations of the match are to the discretion of the judge, but is concluded when either the current or prospective student reach's a dangerous aura level."

Goodwitch looked up from her pad, eye betraying no emotion or appearance of displeasure. Actually, to Yang, she looked rather pleased. She was used to that meaning a fairly bad thing. Ozpin's thin line of a smile didn't help

"So he still has a chance then?" Yang looked to see Blake asking the rhetorical question. It was followed quickly by a say. It almost sounded like one of relief. "That's good." Definitely relief.

"What the hell Blake?" Yang whispered to her partner, finally releasing her sister from the side-ways hug she had wrapped her in. "You were like ready to curse Link's name all of a few minutes ago. What changed?" Now, almost humorously, Blake gave her a confused look.

"What?" She asked honestly in return. "I do want Link to be admitted into Beacon. He is a capable warrior and a hails from a land I'd love to hear more about. And…" her golden eyes looked to the fairies before she spoke on. Yang didn't miss it. "I am glad that we have clarified the meaning of those masks."

Oh yeah, definitely that ever-so mysterious past.

"Almost everything in my past has worn a mask." The sudden admittance nearly made Yang shake her head. She did anyways, if only to make sure she hadn't asked the question aloud in the few times she'd thought of hit. Blake's eyes on hers, however, said she hadn't. It was just more of people reading her like a book. "The White Fang, Adam, protests, police, even the military. Everything that has ever tried to hurt me at one point or another has worn a mask. Forgive me if I don't like them."

"I hesitate to say this, but I suppose you are fortuned by the experience they apparently inflict upon Link." Yang turned to see Weiss addressing the dark member of their group. Truthfully the tall blonde loved looking at the two when they talked. It was like a pair of chess pieces arguing. "But I suppose it is improper to spite a blessing and ask for a curse." Absolutely none of that made sense, none.

"Wait, what just happened?" Yang asked, her head swiveling between the two. Ruby, right beside her, mimicked the action. Yang and Weiss looked to them both, grinning like the cats they loved to be. Only one was literally half-feline, however.

"I believe Ms. Schnee is pleased to see that Link has another chance to enter Beacon," Goodwitch clarified from beyond the two. The fairies were dancing over her shoulders. Yang presumed they were looking at potential matches for Link. Probably. "The sentiment that it also causes no harm to Ms. Belladonna mentally is another reason for her thanks."

"So you do want him here, Weiss?" Ruby eagerly asked her partner, breaking away from Yang to ask the question. Yang couldn't see her younger sis's eyes, but she knew there were stars dancing in them. "I mean, I do too, but you were really against it before." The Schnee heiress huffed at the comment.

"I was not against his entry," she defended. "I was opposed to an unqualified individual entering Beacon through questionable means. However, it appears that there have been attempts in the past using the same method, so I can hardly call it unjustified. He truly is very skilled with a blade, not to mention exceptionally strong." Yang had to nod her head at that. Even she was strained to lift and throw a tree like that. Still, cool to watch.

"I am glad to see there are no votes against Link entering the Academy," Ozpin spoke for the group again. Now he had a coffee mug, again. How does he drink all that and not bounce off the walls? Must be all the thinking. "Well, aside from his reassessment, correct?"

"That is correct," Goodwitch spoke in response, though without ever looking at the headmaster. Seriously, last time Yang tried that, her dad told her she was dumb and rude. "And I believe that we may already have a match to observe Link's skills." Well that was good; pretty fast, too.

"Really?" Ozpin asked, raising a curious brow at the professor. "And who might you have in mind."

"Well, see, when you say who, you mean one person," Tatl spoke over Goodwitch's shoulder. That almost made Yang snicker, the speed at which the two went from bickering to agreement. Kinda reminded her of a couple of people. "Buuuuut, it looks like Link's gonna be takin on one of your oh-so-special teams." Wait, hold on.

"Um, what?" Yang asked aloud. She put a pinky to her ear, scrapping out anything that might have been blocking the channel. Her hair did get in the way sometimes. "Um, sorry, must have missed something, but it sounded you said Link was fighting a team."

"He is." Goodwitch responded, easily as ever. "According to both Tatl and Tael here, we have come to an agreed conclusion that the swiftest way to prove Link's admittance into Beacon through the re-admission procedures will be to fight a first-year team, of moderate standing of course."

"S-Sorry," Tael of all people spoke. Yang watched as he his translucent wings dropped mid-speech. "B-But it just seemed the most appropriate…"

"Appropriate?" Weiss repeated with a huff. Yang saw Blake cross her arms, clearly annoyed. "Ms. Goodwitch, I appreciate the thoroughness in your work, but don't you believe this is excessive?"

"Not at all." Yang was seriously beginning to wonder how she could talk about these kinds of things without any emotion. Must have been painful on some level. "As said, another figure of authority within Beacon is allowed to choose the match for the prospective student. Link demonstrated exceptional abilities within the Emerald Forest. As such, a match with a single student would be unfair."

"But having a single Faunus go up against a team of Hunters is alright?" Blake fired back easily. Yang held her tongue. She really wanted to say 'the kitty has claws.' Blake would have maimed her if she did say that.

"H-Hey, i-it's more than that." Once again, the Peeper spoke up when Yang least expected it, at least as much as she could for the little guy. "I-I mean, Link's already about to fight a team back in the garden, s-so…"

"He's what?" Ruby asked from aside Yang. That was all she did from there. A moment later and in a flash of petals, the youngest member of team RWBY was peering over Goodwitch's shoulder, spying on her pad. She put her hands to her lips, probably in shock maybe in horror. Either way, it wasn't an expression that Yang enjoyed her sister wearing.

"Wait, what's going on?" Weiss spoke up now, a tone of concern in her voice. She was staring at her partner, concerned as evident on her face as it was in her voice. Ruby gave her an empathetic look in response.

"It appears that Link is demonstrating an excellent form of self-control." Yang had to turn to see Ozpin, who was now looking over the professor's shoulder as well. He sipped his coffee as if he were just watching the morning news. Yang, however, knew that whatever they were watching was a bit more extreme than a weather update. "Glynda, you may want place this on the upper screen again. If my presumptions are correct, and you agree to the manner in which this has been set up, we may have Link's re-admission test already prepared."

"I was already working out the details with Tatl and Tael," Goodwitch spoke without ever offering an eye to the headmaster. "I will need to be present in order for the test to be sanctioned, but this otherwise meets all of the pre-set criteria." As she spoke, her hand made more sweeping motions over the pad, causing the screen above to flicker lightly.

When it came to life, it showed Link. It showed Link beneath the Emerald Tower, standing in front of an approaching team Yang was quickly starting to loathe.

"Is that… CRDL?" Blake nearly hissed at the screen, golden eyes focused on the screen as if it were prey.

This time, Yang could not help herself.

"Looks like the kitty's got claws," She snickered at her words, pulling her hand up to lightly knock her partner. She was rewarded with glare that would have made steel boil. "Whoa, easy there." Yang held up her hands in defense. She couldn't lose the smile if she tried.

"But what's happening?" Weiss asked incredulously. Hands on the flares hips of her dress and lips puckered, she looked every bit ready to pout. "I can assume the most despicable team at Beacon is making trouble again for another Faunus, but surely this meets the criteria more for faculty intervention than student testing."

"Okay, I missed a few words in there, but let me make it simple for you," Tatl spoke up as she few over to the Schnee Heiress. "Link was waiting for us, like Triple B over here asked. The other team came up making fun of him. Link isn't saying a word back. And now, thanks to a bit of convenience and a little more of coincidence, Link's is going to have your headmaster's approval to beat them half to death."

"He won't kill them, sis…" Tael spoke again from behind his sister. His wings were drooping again. Yang honestly thought that a little odd, a pervert with a part of him always drooping. Strike that, it was freaking hilarious. "But… yeah, he doesn't like bullies."

"So, he's like a hero?" Ruby asked next, staring at the screen only to quickly turn back to the fairies. She had her hands clasped over her chest. "Saving the damsel from monsters?" Yang couldn't tell if she was hopeful or excited. Knowing her sister, it was probably equal parts both.

"Don't be silly, Ruby." Weiss spoke to her partner. "A hero is a manufactured term to describe and individual who has-"

"You bet he's a hero!" Tatl interrupted Weiss in the best of ways, at least in Yang's opinion. She and her sister's partners raised brows at the golden fairy, more critical than confused she guessed. "What? You think he got to be called the greatest swordsman in Hyrule by just winning a few contests? What good is that? Doesn't matter how good you are with a weapon if all you can fight is other people. Monsters rarely come at you unless their twice your size and three times as strong." Words of wisdom. Yang really wanted to talk to Tatl later. She was sure they would be able to have a good time.

"But… h-he really is a hero." The darker of the two spoke up again. Finally, Yang saw his translucent wings perk. Good to know what he enjoyed. She held no surprise to see stars dancing around her sister's eyes. The silver made it easy to see. "Link… he's killed monsters that have threatened Hyrule for centuries, evil things that were sealed away, breaking free only by convenience. A dragon in the depths of a mountain, a spider that feasts on forest giants, soldiers of the dead brought forth to kill the living. They were all monsters that had lived for centuries, easily, some longer! But, Link fought all of them and won."

"He was made a hero because he killed a few impressive beasts?" Weiss could not keep her mouth shut. "Sorry to disappoint, but a Huntress does not accept praise for completing tasks set before her. It is a part of our sworn duty to protect those around us from the Grimm, so he-"

"- Was ten."

That derailed any words the Schnee was going to say. Come to think of it, Yang was having a pretty hard time thinking after that as well.

"Ten?" Ozpin repeated the number now, clearly showing a bit of surprise of his own. Yang looked at him briefly, coffee mug lowered and staring at the golden ball of light. "He accomplished the slaying of these elder Grimm… ancient monsters… when he was ten? Interesting."

"Like I said," Tatl continued briefly. "He's a hero. Age doesn't matter to him. Monsters were hurting people, he had a sword, and he had more courage than an entire army, so he fought them. But more importantly, he won."

Yang wasn't sure how to respond. She hated that.

Yeah, it was great, awesome even, having someone fighting Grimm like that when they were barely talking, but… geez, didn't that seem a little dangerous? Then again, she reasoned, he was from a different land. Maybe she was biased… the beowolves of her forest back home still sitting wrong to her. She had to remember to thank Uncle Qrow again next time she saw him. That, and buy Ruby that stuffed dog she wanted.

The buxom blonde looked over at her partner, a little curious how the fellow Faunus would appreciate hearing about this guy's heroics. She wasn't disappointed, not with the pointed smile and positively glowing look her eyes had. Seriously, Yang thought, put her in a dark room and she'll light it up. Weiss was… different. By Yang's quick judgement, she looked more ready flip a table than give praise. Ruby wasn't far off from the rest of their team, but far closer to Blake than Weiss. If Yang put Blake in a dark room right now, she'd glow. If same sister threw her younger counterpart into the air, she'd probably float there like cloud nine. Would be fun to try later.

"Ah, it appears they are nearly ready." Those words got to Yang.

She looked back up at the screen, an action she was sure the rest of her team repeated. And, sure enough, she saw the same downright cowardly team standing amongst each other, facing a single Faunus, one which Yang had a new level of respect for. But between them stood Goodwitch typing on her pad as if it were a lifeline of sorts. There wasn't a word she could hear, but just by the look of it, she was going to make good on her word and have Link fight that team of losers.

Yang was glad. She had faith Link would turn the match into a sanctioned slaughter.

"Perhaps it would be better to watch the match in person." Ozpin mused, already walking to the elevator. "It has been sometime since I've actively sought out a student's match." His cane tapped across his glass floor as he moved past the team and fairies.

The group looked amongst themselves only briefly before running to join him.

"Seriously, who're you supposed to be?" Link stared up at the tall boy, towering over him.

He was easily several heads length taller than Link was, seemingly built of muscle and pride. An oddly cruel was drawn over his lips, out of place given the rather cheerful nature of the Academy so far. It was foolish to not call his frame imposing, made grander by his crossed arms and titled head.

"Are you even allowed to be here, Faunus brat?" Faunus? Oh, that was what Ruby had referred to him as. It was the term these Gerudo used for the Hylians. A bit confusing, but nothing Link couldn't wrap his head around. "Your kind's been causing a lot of trouble recently."

"Can say that again," a much smaller boy said next to the imposing boy. Where the first boy was tall and imposing, if seemingly a bit slow, this smaller boy was his opposite. An oddly gruff haircut, missing sleeves, and likely just beneath Link in height. His grin looked undeserved. "Pretty big crime breaking into Beacon. But actin' like you aren't doin' a thing wrong? That's just insulting."

Link only noted the two boys behind the first two when the chuckled, despite no jokes being made. He was far from unused to such acts though. It was common across all of Hyrule, prevalent in power gaps. Simply, bullying. A shame, really, that these children assumed they were his better.

He pocketed his Ocarina, keeping his eyes on the boys in front of him. It was unfortunate he was sitting down. Experience taught him that trying to stand would only result in them pushing him back down. It wasn't even worth entertaining the idea that he could talk to them. They wouldn't listen to him.

"Quiet one, huh?" The tallest of the boy spoke again. It was rather obvious he was the leader of the others, in some fashion. "Guess that makes sense. Can't expect every criminal to be the talkative type." Criminal now, huh? It was odd to be called that without reason.

"You think we should throw him out ourselves?" The gruff boy spoke again, blonde Mohawk waving with the action. He appeared rather excited by his own question, wide grin and beaming eyes. "We'd double up our training and show we're the real deal." By that admission, it wasn't difficult to see they were in bad standing.

"I'm game for that. Beats training on dummies."

"Me, too. It'll be fun fighting for real."

Both of the boys behind the tall one spoke up one after the other. Their grins were full of a sense of pride Link could not see. Their posture showed little experience in battle. They're mannerisms showed little respect for others. And even worse, it appeared that they wholly depended upon the tall red-head before making a decision. It was odd, seeing Gerudos behaving so weakly, males at that.

"Well, guess that means we're gonna have to take you out, huh? Bein' the good students that we are." Link doubted both parts of the boy's speech. "You know what this means? You got no hope and no way out."

"Way out of what, Mr. Winchester?" Link followed the voice to see the Gerudo woman from before approaching.

He turned to see the professor marching towards them, metallic pad in her hand and green eyes sharper than any sword. She glared at the boys, who all retreated back into a single group, though not moving away. Link adopted a small grin as he saw the group of boys shy away at her. His previous assumptions of her strength were clearly spot on. Power naturally bred fear.

"Just a disagreement we had, professor," the boy, Mr. Winchester as he was called, replied easily to Ms. Goodwitch's inquiry. It was almost amazing how easily the boy lied. Almost, but little else surprised Link now. "Don't know who this fella is, but he was looking pretty suspicious, so we thought the best thing to do was figure out who he was. Can't have weird people like this fella on campus, right?"

It was wondrous, almost, how easily the boy turned his actions into that of appearing pious. The sneer he had on his face had shifted into a calm smile very quickly, fast enough to make Link believe it was a practiced motion. That, or he had a natural talent for lying about his actions. The boys around him seemed rather keen to agree to his words.

The Gerudo woman, Glynda if Link remembered correctly, looked towards him, expression unchanging. He didn't bother to speak, knowing she couldn't hear him. Focused in all the wrong areas to do so. But if she was here, it was unlikely he was trapped. As such, Link rose to his feet in the silence.

"This… 'fella', is Link. He is a prospective student, looking to attend Beacon Academy," Ms. Goodwitch easily listed off to the group of bullies. Link watched the boys' collective attention shift towards him and back again. It was difficult to tell if they were fuller of surprise or apprehension. Saria would know, Impa as well. "There was an unexpected complication during his initial testing. As such, he is being offered a chance for re-admittance, set forward by Ozpin and agreed by me."

"Lucky faunus," The head of the team spoke, crossing his arms as he did so. "So I guess that means we'll have to watch him take this test then? Probably gonna realize just how hard it is to be at this school." The gruff boy behind Cardin grinned at the words. Link hadn't a clue why.

"Perhaps," Goodwitch answered easily. "However, the test may very well settle this… issue you appear to have regarding Link." Link shifted at that statement. He didn't know what said issue was. Perhaps it was the name, Faunus, or merely his instrument. Then again, bullies rarely needed a reason to commit their acts.

"Yeah, how's that?" It was almost impossible to tell if it was curiosity, annoyance, or eagerness that was most apparent in the leader's voice. Link wished he knew his name beyond Mr. Winchester.

"If Link is able to defeat a current student at Beacon, of my choosing, he is admitted into the Academy." Link did his best to not show a grateful smile at the statement. Humility aside, that would not be a too difficult a task. "Pass and failure will be judged by me. This test has been conducted only thrice before, but the headmaster has approved all aspects to it."

"Huh, sounds like he's a really lucky guy," Winchester emphasized. He barked with laughter, like a dog being told of a treat. If he was a dog, then the boys surrounding him where hyenas, laughing at some unheard joke. "So who's gonna be lucky enough to get the beat down on him?"

"You. Or, to be more precise, you and your team."

Link failed to hide his grin. This was almost good enough to make him believe in fate once more. He wanted to fight them. He was doing this because he wanted to. Link wanted to fight them because, no matter how strong a bully may be, their credibility was nothing once they were weaker than a peer. If he was to a student, the same as this boy, then his defeat would be a precious stone to stand on.

The boy must have seen his grin, or taken note of some confident aura Link was giving. It was obvious by the quick twisting of the boy's lips, turning into an annoyed scowl. It was one that was worn by many politicians and captains who had bargained and cheated their way to the top. It was an expression that no one deserved to wear. The boy, Mr. Winchester, dropped it quickly. A fool that he was, he was smart enough to at least know the consequences of his appearance.

"Are you serious about this?" Mr. Winchester asked. The good nature of his tone sounded to have died down. A little, not a lot, but enough to show it was a façade, at least to Link. He doubted Glynda was any less perceptive. "I'm pretty sure him takin' on all of us is a pretty bad idea."

"It was agreed upon by all parties, including Ozpin himself." All parties doubtlessly meant Tatl and Tael. He'd have to thank them when he saw the fairies again. Maybe if he was able to find a spring nearby, he could enjoy the night with them. He'd have to ask the Green Man, Ozpin, if there was one. "Your disdain aside, I must still state the conditions for the match, merits for defeat, and restrictions you must be aware of."'

"Is it at least the same as combat practice?" Cardin asked the question about as smoothly as an ocean in a hailstorm. The look the blonde Gerudo woman gave him offered no respite. It did make Link grin though. Perhaps Tael was right to trust these people, for now at least.

"Perhaps you aren't aware, Mr. Winchester, but Link is not a full-time student at the Academy. He already passed his last test, but due to unfortunate miscommunications, it was required to be revoked. The purpose of this test is to both allow a second attempt without such a problem. Is that clear?" It was to Link, so hopefully it was for the boy that at least attended this Academy.

"Clear as crystal," he responded. That was all the warning he gave before he hefted a large mace off his back. It practically made a boom when he set it against his other hand. Link blinked at the sight.

He honestly had not seen a tool like it before. Similar, without doubt, as the long shaft attached to the pronged end of a mace was a popular design amongst the Darknuts and Salford Lords of Hyrule's darkest dungeons. What he did not recognize was the way it appeared.

It unfolded itself, extended from end to end and growing in length. The spikes had jutted out moments before the boy had slammed the weapon into the earth, creating what was doubtlessly supposed to be a threatening thud. Link was more focused on the design of the weapon than any weight it had.

"Good. Thank you Cardin. Now Link," Glynda spoke, turning her attention to the Hylian. It jerked Link from his musings of the weapons. "There are normally no restrictions in terms of abilities you are allowed to use. All weapons, semblances, and forms of Dust are perfectly allowed within the match. In your case, however, you may not ask your 'friends' for help. Do you understand?" How could he not?

He gave a sure nod, staring her in the eyes. If she was as honorable as she appeared, it would be enough. It thankfully was.

"Excellent," she began. "I will call a victor when one of three conditions are met. One party forfeits, is knocked unconscious, or reaches critical levels of aura. There is no time limit to the length of the match, but I do ask you keep this within the boundaries of the garden. No entering the headmaster's tower or the nearby offices. Leaving the boundaries or entering any buildings will be considered forfeiting the match. Now, please prepare."

With those words, Goodwitch turned around, likely to walk to some unspecified boundary. The team of boys exchanged looks with one another. Or, more accurately, they looked towards the large boy, Cardin as his name was now known. The grip on his mace was taught, his muscles tight and prepared to swing, but even a bully knew better than to act in front of their superiors.

"This is gonna be fun," he sneered at Link, likely once he was sure Glynda was out of ear-shot. Gerudo had bad hearing, so the distance made sense. His words were like a sign for the other boys around him, all preparing their weapons now. Theirs were simpler, swords and daggers that came from sheaths. "Can't wait to see what that green suit you're wearing looks like red." If he was honestly curious, Link could oblige him.

But the boy turned, the rest of his group with him. They were swinging their weapons as they moved, testing their swing and loosening their muscles. It all poor form, but better they did that then assume they were ready cold. Link had the advantage of fighting monsters only scant hours ago. This would be nothing in comparison.

"Link!" The call of his name made him turn. He saw a familiar shade of red run running towards him, or more specifically barreling towards him at unrealistic speeds. Not a moment later did said blur slam into the Hylian, earning an expulsion of air for the effort. "I'm so sorry you have to take this re-test! I thought for sure that you would be all set for Beacon, but Ms. Goodwitch said that Elrora counted as a friend's help so now you have to fight them and I'm sorry that you have to-" Ruby stopped when Link placed his hand on her head.

He smiled down at her, chuckling lightly as he ruffled her hair. Link could tell the girl fought away the action, hand brushing away at his. She needed more muscle to succeed. But Link relented, letting his arm fall as Ruby positioned herself a little further away. But not a moment later did a new individual speak up.

"So, you're Link." Link turned to see another blonde Gerudo walking towards them, but far more wild than Glynda.

She was taller than Ruby, clothed scantily, and showing off muscles that easily signified her choice of combat. Muscles like hers were meant for beating, not swinging or lifting. Simply, she was a brawler. The grin she had made her a confident one. He watched the brawler walk up, matching him in height, maybe overtaking him by a small margin.

"Good to finally meet ya! Being honest though, I saw your show on the big screen up in Ozpin's office, but still, whole other kind of experience meeting you face-to-face." The brawler held out her hand to Link, open for him to take. Carefully, Link moved his own hand to grasp her, flexing around it when he did so. Her grin broadened at the action. "Strong grip, that's great!"

"He lifted a tree, Yang. I'm sure he's going to have a stiff handshake." They had seen that? Interesting. But more curious was the voice who had spoken.

Link looked towards Ruby now, seeing another girl standing by her. They matched in height, but was gowned in white that matched a winter's new snowfall. An unfortunate scar marred her otherwise porcelain features, covered in make-up that made her appear more elegant than either of the girls by her. Perhaps she was of royalty, or at least of a royal family.

"Don't worry, I'm on your side here." The alabaster girl explained with a wave of her hand. Why would he think she was not? "From what we've been hearing, you are a highly successful Hunter back from your home land. Having you barred from Beacon due to a technicality would be an insult to anyone's skills." That was… good, Link supposed. He still did not know her name.

"Link!" Said Hylian felt his lips pull. He knew that voice.

His head turned in time to see two fairies buzz around him, the pale and dark duet of siblings flying around him. His eyes trailed one than the other, grin still broadening with thanks to see them again. Any amount of time away from them was far too long. Link lifted his hands, holding them in front of his face like a perch. Tatl and Tael took the places easily.

"Thank Time you got through that, huh?" Tatl spoke first unsurprisingly. "Didn't expect these guys to get so uptight over you having a little back up." Link did not either. But it was hardly a shocker. Merely unexpected.

"Y-Yeah," the Tael responded uneasily. "Not really worked out yet… b-but we're close. I-I mean, you just have to beat these guys and we're all set. It'll be a win-win, right. You get into Beacon, and, well, you stop those kids from… um, making trouble for you, right?" Link gave the dark fairy a kind smile. The more he spoke, the better he would become. That was important.

The fairies rang in his hands, their warmth gentle and welcome even through his leathery gauntlet. They were not apart for long, but that didn't mean the reunion had to be anything less than heartfelt.

"Heh, looks like we gotta a party starting here," Link heard the blonde speak, Yang if the alabaster girl was honest. He looked up from his fairy friends, trying to see what the boxer had meant. The answer became almost instantaneously obvious.

Children, coming by the dozens, were lining up around the group. Each one wore the Academy uniform, likely approaching from their lessons. Their hands were pointing towards them, talking to each other as they came closer the Green Tower, looking to see who this new and oddly dressed Hylian was, doubtlessly. The Unknown was often the source of much attention.

The well-dressed students had given a wide berth to the area Link stood in, turning it into a sort of ring. However, despite their number, Glynda seemed to pay no mind to them, only occasionally swatting her hand in a motion for the students to stay back. Perhaps this was a usual event? No, she was merely focused and disciplined. Academies were commonly led by the most skilled and well-versed of Knights.

Given their numbers now, Link was prone to kick himself for his lack of attention. How had he not noticed their numbers before they had arrived? They were talking in a volume that was all but as loud as a Dodongo's approach. It was a shame to the Kokiri that raised him, ignoring the sound as if he ignored the forest. But… how did they even know something was happening here?

"This was you're doing, wasn't it Yang?" The question surprised Link, but she saw the alabaster girl turn towards the blonde brawler, said girl grinning mischievously with a hand in her long mane. Ruby and Blake looked at her curiously. It momentarily surprised Link that he just realized Blake was present. Perhaps he was more exhausted than he thought.

"Ya got me Weiss," she responded easily, like a child knowing they wouldn't be punished. Reaching into her satchel along her waist, she produced some clear glass, smaller than the pad Glynda held. She flipped it between her fingers, showing off the tool. Link would need to learn of the device. It looked… convenient. "Figured the best way to spread the word about Link is to show of what he can do. I mean c'mon, who wants to talk tell the same story a hundred times over." Link could feel Tael blush in his hand.

"Ms. Xia Long," Glynda spoke up now, approaching the fellow blonde. Their matching hair style did not appear to foster goodwill, not by the glare the taller of the two was giving. "I appreciate your desire to be efficient with distributing information, but I refuse to believe you are immature enough to not realize the poor ethics of making a prospective student's test public." Link felt his grin pull at his lips. So that was the issue. Odd, it was the opposite when he needed to duel Impa…

"Well… here's the thing," Yang began to poorly demonstrate. "There's something you should know about me. I'm not exactly the most… mature student on campus."

"Your actions have clearly demonstrated that," Goodwitch fire back easily, making the buxom brawler shiver. "Though it is too late now to excuse the students, and any announcement of privacy will only bolster the desire to see the match. If there is ever any one skill you students have, its ingenuity to get what you want." Once more, Yang averted her eyes from the professor, rubbing the back of her head through her golden hair.

Link turned his attention to the crowd again, letting a slow breath of air through his nose. There were so many of them now, more than he thought would normally show up for a simple duel. What had Yang told them? Was there more to this than he was aware of? Possible, but Tatl would have told him such swiftly if there was.

It was difficult to hear through the cacophony the children made, their numbers likely in the high dozens by now, but there were a few words he heard repeated, from different directions in the crowd. 'Jaune', 'look-a-like', 'unfair', 'fairies', and 'bet'. Link could only assume they were associating him with another one of their numbers. Similar appearances were likely given the likely dozen of them that populated the yard. The fairies was no wonder as well. The betting… he was just as familiar with. There was little doubt what those bets were.

"Everyone!"

The voice earned Link's immediate attention. He blinked as he looked up, ears shaking from the sudden boom. He looked to the center of the ring of students, not far from where he stood. Glynda stood tall with her arm out and glass pad at her front. Her sharp green eyes looking about the students, glaring even. Link did not break contact when those eyes swept over him. It reminded him of many leaders in Hyrule, capable ones. That was a good sign. She was definitely one of them. The crowd thought much the same.

"Let me make this clear. At no point was this meant to be a public event. This was meant to test a new student's entry into Beacon, following a technicality during his first examination." A murmur ran through the silent crowd. "The boundaries have already been set as the garden itself. If you wish to observe, you must move to outside these boundaries. Be that within the nearby buildings or atop, I do not care. However, if anyone interferes with this reassessment, the punishment will be quick and decisive." Link jumped as Goodwitch cracked her riding crop. That was surprising.

Like the horses at the race, the students scattered. He watched, impressed, as the students scattered. The few familiar faces he saw were gone in them, a long blonde mane bouncing away next to a dark haired bow. The boys he was to challenge had not retreated, but instead were standing some new distance away with a gleam in their eyes. Link pitied the yard that stood between them. But his attention was shifted when he felt something tug at his arm.

He looked down to see Ruby staring up at him, one of her hands gripping the sleeve of his tunic. Her silver eyes were focused on him, as intently as he believed his were the first time he saw the Hyrule Field.

"You got this, right?" She asked, obviously not sure herself. "These guys are… okay, they kinda suck. But if you're too tired, maybe we can postpone this or something. I-I don't want to see you get denied entry cause you were tired fighting Grimm like a Master Hunter. That'd be the worst thing-"

"He'll be fine," Tatl spoke up, thankfully. Link could always count on the golden member of their small party to either calm a nervous member or excite a bored crowd. She was working the former this time. Link lowered his hands as she took flight, her brother quickly joining her. "Sides, we gotta hit the stands, too, at least if we want to make sure the Triple B doesn't have any more excuses for screwing us over." Triple B… Tatl and her names.

"Really? You're sure?" Ruby asked again. It was difficult to tell if she was dotting or nervous. It was likely a mixture of both. Regardless of how much of either, it was a warm feeling, one Link was glad to have found. Kindness was sometimes a rare commodity among Knights. Hopefully she did not lose that fire as she grew. "I-I can see if we can get an extension or."

"Nah, we're good," Tatl answered. She flittered about Tael, the darker of the two siblings spinning to follow his sister. "We'll join you up there and then we can talk about how many bones Link broke in those brats. Sound good?" It was enough to make the red robed girl smile.

She looked at Link then, and he knew she was waiting for his confirmation. He was the one who would be fighting. He made sure to smile, as smiles were something that no culture he came across ever mistook. It was either made out of confidence or glee. It was rare for either of those to be in poor taste. But the bright grin she returned him told him it was appreciated.

With another sure nod towards Ruby, he turned back to Glynda and the team of bullies. It was amazing how quickly the yard had cleared out, though Link did not need his trained eyes to see the numerous children lining the buildings around them. Neither did he need them to see Goodwitch's pointed look towards Ruby.

The insinuation was obvious, and apparently the young girl saw and thought the same thing. That meant she'd leave soon. But before she did, Ruby hugged him, speaking against his chest as she did so.

"Alright, see you then."

She turned and ran for the nearby building. Looks like he had to win now.

Link watched her scale to the building, taking enormous strides forwards to do so. Her strides were nearly hops, each one far exceeding the speed at which he could run. In little time, she was facing the side of the building. She only surprised him again by climbing the wall, jumping along the wall and to the roof at a speed he couldn't match. He smiled when she reached the top, her cloak spinning around her.

With a small twist of his head, Link saw Tatl and Tael close by. They were circling above Ruby, the small crimson garbed reaper staring down at him. She had her lips in her teeth now, likely a mixture of worry and excitement. Her sister, Yang as she had told him, was right beside her. He assumed that the alabaster girl between the blonde and Blake was their other mentioned teammate, Weiss. Their collective focus was all on him.

Link turned slowly, seeing the many others students that now lined the buildings around them. There were no less than a dozen buildings surrounding the garden, and it appeared that every one of them were filled with students, eyes pressed over the edges of roofs or against windows to watch. They appeared like Kokiri peaking from the tree tops to Hyrule Field, curious of what they would see. It made him smile, thinking upon better times. Link shook his head. Those time were best thought at other times. For now, he needed to think of how to fight.

He turned back to the bullies he was mean to fight. They regarded him from the short distance with smugness and pride, common traits for people like them. No matter the number of bullies he faced, they always appeared to appear the same. The same smug grin, the same lifted head, the same shameless display of strength, but most importantly, the entitlement.

Oh how lucky he was to be able to fight them now.

No, more than that. He was most fortunate to be expecting a reward for defeating them. So many times before he would have feared upsetting nobles or citizens, maiming otherwise believed to be respectful individuals. Jail or loss of rupees were his rewards before. Now? A guaranteed place of stay at this… academy. He knew little of what it truly was, but from description alone, it sounded akin to the training for knights. It was as good place for him to rest as any. His instinct said it was likely better.

All he had to do was face the four men before him. No, boys was the more accurate term. They used a mace, a sword, daggers, and a halberd. That placed immediately their positions on the battlefield, especially during a joint attack, as this would likely be.

The boy with the mace, Cardin, he would lead them. His stature and weapon made it clear he focused on brutal victories, taking blows as needed. It would be best to either isolate or hold him off to defeat the others. The daggers, however, meant that particular boy was more likely to sneak an attack. His light clothing, sleeves cut, made it only more obvious.

The swordsman was a difficult one. It was likely with his heavier armor he would join Cardin in an assault, but it was not guaranteed. He might be a back-up, to defend when an attack missed. He would not be far from any confrontation, but his role was hard to label. Link would have to observe to make it clear. The halberd was slightly more obvious, a weapon best at mid-range. He would likely attack when Link dodged away from Cardin's attacks, cornering him.

It would have worked well, if Link were anyone but an experienced knight.

There were two ways in which Link could best them in this fight. Either one-by-one, or all together. One involved congregating them into a tight group, delivering a brutal blow then, but the other required great speed and timing, something he wasn't confident in doing against and unknown enemy. And though they appeared every bit the same as the bullies of his past, Link knew better than to assume all accounts were equal.

They all held their weapons oddly, aiming the tips towards him rather than pulled back. During a charge, that would be effective, but it reduced any force they would likely be able to give, a well-placed swing knocking their weapons away easily. But the manner in which the headmaster and professor spoke of the school, it meant that even these tormentors had skill. They would not use their weapons improperly.

No, there must be a trick to them that he wasn't aware of. It was likely similar to what Ruby spoke of in the Red Forest. She spoke of shooting the great monster, but had no bow or arrows on her. It was likely then that they used magic through their weapons, in a manner he was admittedly foreign to.

Unfortunately, that meant that splitting them up would be non-ideal, as timing would be reduced from just a few second to none at all. He was going to have to beat them all at once.

But a sword would not be best for this. No. It would work, doubtlessly, but it would not give the force of impact he wished to force on this team of bullies. They needed to know they were not just beaten, but outmatched. They needed to fear approaching him again. A slight victory would not do that.

A shield was required, his Magic one at that. He needed to be protected from all angles, not dangerous attacks. It was required if he was going to force them back, and especially in case one slipped loose. The ward of his shield would serve that purpose and more.

To move them together, however, allowed for several different tactics.

Bombs may work, forcing the group of enemies to dodge the explosions, but they were unvaried in the length of time to explode. He couldn't possibly light them all simultaneously, let alone surround the bullies. They were out as an option.

If he used his Pegasus boots, he would be able to push them in, holding them together. But that would be playing too heavy a hand to early in his stay here. They valued him for his mystery… and mysteries, like courage, were best when seen only in the barest of light.

The unknown always had the advantage.

That left his Gale Boomerang, enchanted by the Fairy of Winds. It was far larger than his old one, gathered from the inside of Jabu Jabu, but it made up for it with its great whirlwinds. He recalled only the heaviest of foes being immune to it. Of the four boys in front of him, only one fit the category, and likely by a hair. This would work.

The only concern then was what to deliver the mighty blow with. It had to be heavy, large, and unwilling to bend against most forces. Link knew a weapon that fit the bill to the letter. He knew what he had to do.

Link reached behind his back, pulling out his shield with his right hand, holding it tightly to allow the gem to glow. The shield was ready. He reached behind his back again, reaching into his belt pockets. He found the Gale Boomerang just as easily, sliding it up his sleeve, hiding it from view. He reached into another pocket, one that held much deeper magic in it. He grasped a handle within the pocket, pulling on it until he felt the familiar weight of a heavy weapon.

Link leaned on his foot to offset the weight of the object, letting it emerge from behind his back. It swung with the momentum, rising forward before falling back down to his side. It reached nearly to his knee, but held by a hard leather handle, and secured with bolts forged in a mountain's fire. But what Link was more concerned with, and what he had better hold of, was the weapon itself.

The thick and heavy metal of the Megaton Hammer in his hand, crystal shield in his other, he stared across the field to team CRDL. He was happy to see unsure expressions across their features, the blonde Goodwitch raising a brow herself. That was good. It meant he was an unknown. Thus, he had the advantage.

He was ready.

"Whoa!" Ruby all but shouted. It was nearly muted out among the many shouts of shock and surprise, some more vulgar than others. Blake could hardly blame her or them. She felt a similar word nearly come from her throat, in high volume as well. Her fingers were gripped to the edge of the professors' building, staring at the coming fight below.

She recognized Link's look of assessment, seeing him already don the gaze when faced with the Beowolves and Nevermore. It was not a far shot to assume he was planning, nor was it one to think he was naming his targets. What was, however, was his drawing of a weapon from seemingly nowhere. No, that needed a restatement. Drawing a weapon that appeared to be several feet in volume and heavier than any conventional weapon. That was even compared to Nora's usual hammer launcher.

"Like it?" She heard the teasing tone of Tatl from behind her. She turned to see the golden fairy floating above her team, dust lightly billowing down about them. "It's a sacred weapon to the Goron People. Link used it to kill the Subterranean Lava Dragon, Volvagia." Blake had no idea what more than half of that meant.

"Volvagia was an infamous dragon to the Goron People," Tael spoke up, following his sister. Blake saw Weiss and Yang hang on his words. That was likely due to whatever brief history they shared. She did, however, notice many other students listening in. "It… The dragon was capable of taking a blow from any weapon without fear of harm. The sharpest swords couldn't cut its hide and the swiftest arrows couldn't do more than annoy it. It lived in the magma of the mountain, emerging only to eat the Gorons… alive." That… sounded pretty bad. Must have been one of those ancient Grimm Link supposedly killed.

"That's awesome," Yang said with a tone that implied her mind was elsewhere. "But how did Link use that beast of a weapon to kill this super dragon?" Blake was far more than used to Yang's manner of naming things oddly.

"By hitting it, duh?" Tatl mocked the blonde, earning a glare from Yang. The fairy rung in response, likely getting ready to elaborate. "The Megaton Hammer was enchanted by the First Gorons, used to crush rocks of any size, shape, or solidity, forged from the boiling steel of Death Mountain. With a single good hit, it can turn a castle's walls into rubble and dust." That… seemed unlikely. Hopefully the fairy was exaggerating. "Link fought Volvagia with it, slamming the creature's head into the ground with the hammer."

"What did that do?" Blake resisted giving Ruby an indifferent look. She was a child, and just an eager one at that. Tatl, however, had no such restrictions.

"What do you think?" She asked. "It split the thing's head open!"

The fairy rang as she said those words. They carried an… ominous tone to them. "But now, Link's gonna put that weapon to good use and crush those wannabe knights." Knights? Oh, Blake realized, it must have been the synonymous term for Hunter. Tatl likely figured it out a while ago, given the frequency the word was likely used in Ozpin's Office.

But… crushing those Faunus bigots with a hammer designed to kill Elder Grimm… Blake smiled faintly as she looked back at the match. Goodwitch was starting to talk again.

"Wait, hold on a minute," Weiss interrupted the talk. "I believe that Link is a swordsman. You said so yourself, calling him the greatest one in all of Hyrule. Why is he now using a hammer of all things? That is a completely different method to fighting." That, was actually a good question.

"Heh, tell you what, if Link gets hit twice during the match, anywhere but his shield, I'll tell you." And those… were actually pretty good odds.

"Sis!" The shocked address of Tael made the unfavorable odds only all the clearer. Blake looked back in time to see Weiss grinning up at Tatl, a smile she had only when she knew victory was certain. It was hard to not see it, given the number of duels she participated in.

"I accept," Weiss spoke with an air of confidence only she was capable of. Blake was remiss to say it, but she did hope the Schnee heiress won the wager. Any little bit she learned about Link was to their benefit.

The small matter settled, bickering fairies aside, Blake turned her golden eyes back to the pseudo-ring.

"Are both teams prepared?" Goodwitch announced. She looked to Cardin and his team. He gave a tough and affirmative nod before looking back at Link. The Hylian adjusted his shield, holding it in front of him, hammer to his side, swinging from his extended arm. This match was going to be all about timing. Looking towards the blonde judge, nodding to her in approval. She gave one in return before looking down at her pad again.

"On my mark, you may commence!" Her voice echoed over the open garden. Link watched the team of bullies across from him, looking smugly as they eyed him. That was good. Overconfidence was usually the greatest reason for one's downfall.

Link lightly touched at the gem tucked in his sleeve, already aware of his plan. He only needed to be quick, and most importantly, accurate. A good solid throw of his boomerang and he would collect the team, but he knew they would begin to… fire at him quickly. He wasn't quite sure what that meant, but Ruby seemed to imply that it had great speed and power, done mostly from long range. Link tightened the hold on his shield, loosening his grip on the Hammer.

"In three!"

He let the Megaton hammer slid to the edge of his fingers, leaning back on his foot. The team across from him seemed to straighten their weapons on him. They were definitely going to fire.

"Two!"

There could be no hesitation. A single throw, the bullies his targets, and he his shield would protect them until they were in the air.

"One!"

Now or Never.

"Begin!"

Link dropped the Megaton Hammer, lifting his Magic Shield to block whatever the foes across from him aimed to use. Not a breath later did he feel explosions ripple across the ward of the shield.

His footing faltered slightly, forcing him back against the dirt. It felt as if bombs were erupting over his ward, straining him from the very beginning. He grunted, holding firm with his legs. Link didn't even think about letting the shield lower as he shook his sleeve, letting the Gale Boomerang fall out. He caught it deftly in his left hand, holding it up behind the ward of blows.

It was time to show his hand. Freeze them with shock and, hopefully, awe. The final trump card before the advantage of the unknown was lost.

Link swung his shield to his right, holding it tightly in his gasp. He kept the ward up, allowed the magic to flow through the gem-encrusted shield whilst throwing away the illusion of its protection alone. He watched as explosions were thrown from the weapons of the boys, hitting the unseen wall in front of Link. The Hylian made careful note of the weapons. It was impressive, but hardly a game changer. He also noted their appearance.

Judging by the expressions they gave him, however, as their weapons dropped lightly in the air, this was the first time they had seen his form of magic. It was a rare tool, one he had not used often before.

The unknown always had the advantage, so long as it remained unknown.

He didn't wait, however, to let reality ensue. Link reared back only slightly before throwing the Gale Boomerang forward.

Instantly, its magic came to light.

A small tornado formed around the curved color wood, spinning far faster than the instrument did. Link felt his feet rise slightly as he left his hand, but settled when it traveled further away. The grass of the small garden, however, was not so lucky. Nearly every blade of grass beneath the wind of the boomerang was pulled up from its roots, spun in the cyclone with little mercy or remorse. It howled as it traveled, the wind screaming as it was pulled by the force.

Link watched as the judge pulled her pad to her chest, free hand pushing her blonde locks from her vision. He watched with no small part of satisfaction as the bullies cowered at the approaching cyclone. He watched the dagger wielder drop his weapons, staring at the boomerang in fright. The halberd user was little different, already turning to run. He ran into the swordsman, who had enough courage to stare at the cyclone. His face was far and away from peaceful. Distressed was a more accurate term.

It was the largest of the bullies Link was interested in, and he was not disappointed to see a grimace of hate cross his features. He was, however, impressed by his actions.

Cardin had thrown up his arms, holding them like a shield as he crouched to the ground. He was heavy and he knew it, setting himself low to the ground. It made it hard for the cyclone to pick up him. The rest of his friends were not so lucky.

The Gale Boomerang spun into the group, stopping its thrown arc to instead circle them. The enchanted tool commanded with winds to spin in greater force, turning the mini-tornado into a giant's grasp, pulling mercilessly at those caught within. Three of the four, the dagger, the sword, and the halberd wielders, were all pulled into the air, their cries of fright drowned out by the wind's roar. Only Cardin held his ground, too heavy for the wind to take control of.

Removing the team from the battle, however, was a decision Link could easily make. Even as the boomerang continued to spin, he holstered his shield, grabbed the Megaton Hammer, and hefted it into the air. He stood sideways, holding the great Goron Weapon behind him. For good measure, he clicked his boots, letting the iron surround them.

All he needed now was patience and one good swing.

"That is…." Weiss began, her voice trailing and dying off.

Or, more accurately, drowned out beneath the roar of students. It wasn't hard to guess why they were shouting.

Her cold blue eyes stared at the site before her, marveling at the display of power on the pseudo-battlefield below. Whereas every other student around her was gawking or screaming their current emotions, the Schnee heiress chose silent observation instead, no matter how extraordinary the sight was. She chose to silently watch with her jaw slack and eyes wide enough to double as mirrors.

"Amazing, right?" Tatl sarcastically questioned next to her. Weiss looked up to the blonde fairy, seeing her trail of dust fall at a noticeably increased angle. Strong as it was, the twister still had to pull the air from somewhere. "It's the Gale Boomerang. A weapon made by A Fairy of Winds."

Weiss bit her tongue to stave off her questions. Oh, she had questions to ask, more than a single piece of paper could possibly contain. She wanted to know where it had come from, how it was made, who designed it, when it had been forged, but most importantly, what amount of dust powered such a simple yet powerful tool.

"That's no gale, that's a tornado!" Her partner yelled from another part of the roof. Weiss couldn't blame her for the yelling, not when every other student their year and above was making as much noise and more. It was even harder when she saw what a miniature twister in the garden was. It was only another small miracle she felt only the faintest whips of the wind, likely the distance at play.

"It is, and a strong one at that." Weiss would have missed the words were Blake not standing just next to her. She looked to see the hidden Faunus eyeing the field closely. She also noticed just as quickly the proud grin on the black cat's features. Not a hard question to figure out the answer. Very few of the questions she was posing were hard.

It was easy for to understand the excitement of the crowd of students, watching an entire team being lifted into the air like rag dolls. Watching Russell, Dove, and Sky being dragged upwards by the twister was as amazing as it was humorous; the simpleton boys flailing in the air, dropping their weapons and very likely screaming in fright. It was hard to hear above the tornado and crowd.

Weiss focused her attention on Link, seeing him standing with a low crouch and his hammer held behind him. For one who had displayed such prowess with a sword before, it was almost odd to see him standing with a brutal weapon, and in an unrefined pose as well. The stance he had, however, was only another easy question for her to answer.

He was standing with his right towards the tornado, the Megaton Hammer behind him in both hands. It waved lightly as Link adjusted his grip, likely looking for the best hold to swing with. Yes, swing, Weiss reminded herself. He was going to swing the hammer with likely all the force he could bear, right into the boys when the boomerang came back. She assumed it would, as boomerangs always did. There was, however, something new on Link as well.

Specifically, the layer of metal that now surrounded his large boots. Those were most certainly not there before.

"Iron Boots." Weiss almost jumped when she heard the voice of the dark fairy above her. She looked up to see him near his sister, unsurprisingly. His dark dust was also being pulled towards the field, no different than his elder sibling. "They're made by the Zora People. Even though they are made of iron… they weigh enough to make Link heavier than most objects. I mean, he mostly used to use them to explore the bottom of lakes, but they help against strong winds, too." One question answered, a million more to go. Later, of course.

"There he goes!" Tatl rang loudly next to her brother. It made Weiss look back at the field, seeing the source of the fairy's excitement.

The twister made by the boomerang was returning to Link now, just as she had predicted, but without reducing in size. It still tore up a greater part of the ground it traveled over, the teens inside the winds screaming as they were, for all intents and purposes, whipped through the air. Weiss watched Link watch it approach, staring at the mysterious Faunus. He pulled back his arms, hammer leveling with the ground as the boomerang came closer. He didn't lift, not even flinch, likely due to the heavy boots he wore. Weiss knew what was coming next.

When the Gale Boomerang was only feet in front of him, Link let out what Weiss assumed was a battle cry, though it was heavily dulled by the wind. At the same time, he swung forward with his hammer, swinging it with a weight that just appeared to be tremendous. It moved into the tornado, its path undirected by the strong winds.

It made an audible and almost sickening boom when it hit the three teens.

Time seemed to stop for a moment, held still long enough for the Schnee heiress to appreciate the sight. Link had caught three-quarters of team CRDL all at once, the hammer slamming into Dove, who was right in front of Sky, who was collapsed over Russell. Weiss watched as a very clear image of pain washed over the boys one-by-one, each feeling the force of the blow travel through them. It was horrifyingly fascinating.

When time had enough, and began to move again, the three boys shot across the garden. That was the only word that Weiss could use to describe the speed and force at which they were propelled by the blow. Like the ignition of a gun, a boom from the impact, the trio of Hunters-in-training sped through the air. With a blink of Weiss's eyes, they were well above the already high roofs of the buildings. A breath later, they were hardly dots running further and further from her vision. A few heartbeats and a released breath after that, Weiss made out the faintest images of water splashing in the distance.

She swung her head back to see Link, already pulling his hammer back from the blow. He appeared to not have the slightest appearance of fatigue. More than that, the twister that had carried the three teens to their unfortunate fate was gone. The tool for which was currently being held by Link. She did not miss his grin towards the tool before pocketing it away.

The silence that settled over the crowd was almost eerie to her, likely induced by the same thing that had those cheering only moments ago. The Faunus in the garden either didn't notice or cared little, he himself already pocketing away the hammer in whatever Dust Container he had for it. The air was fragile as the glass of a mirror. It took only a single shout from Yang, the brute of brutes, to shatter it.

"Homerun!"

The buxom blonde shouted, throwing her hands up into the air at the action. The students around her screamed in agreement, letting out whoops and hollers of cheer. Weiss felt herself give a complimentary puff of air, grin modestly. She noticed Blake smiling most immodestly. It nearly made her double take. Ruby, her every active partner, dancing across the roof with her sister, did not. It was new, however, to see the two fairies circling with them, coating the sisters in dark and light Dust.

"Impressive as that was, it isn't over yet." Weiss spoke the words, an instinct of sorts to get her mind back on track. It had an effect on the few who heard, eyes already looking back down the field. Specifically, the last member of Team CRDL. She heard Yang scoff.

"Yeah, cause after delivering a one-shot to the rest of those suckers, Link's gonna have a real hard time with muscle head." The sarcasm in her voice was thick enough to wade through. If it wasn't enough, she blew at her hair, running a hand through her long locks. "Seriously though, this is in the bag. Only thing I wanna see now is how he's gonna put the beat down on this fool."

Weiss wasn't inclined to disagree with either statement.

Link smirked at Cardin, staring at him from across the garden. It was in minor ruin, the Gale Boomerang doing its job twice over, just as the Fairy of Winds promised it always would. It had aided immensely in removing the halberd, dagger, and sword user from the battle. It left only the heaviest, and likely the strongest, member of the group. Link added leader to the list, just to be safe.

Said boy was staring at him with a heavy scowl, arms flexed at his sides and holding his mace with a white-knuckle grip. His rage was easy to see. So were his weaknesses. He was heavy, so likely slow. It would be simple to either dodge and strike or perform quick parries. It would be an issue to try and block a direct swing, as his weight was doubtlessly proportional to his strength.

But Link had fought warriors and monsters leagues above this bully. This boy was just another self-righteous fool.

He drew his sword, letting the crystal-encrusted weapon sing from its sheath. There was a small amount of pride drawn from the flinch Cardin made, clearly expecting another surprise attack. He wasn't entirely wrong.

Link sliced the sword in front of him, making an arc before pulling it into a small spin around his hand. He pulled back with it, swinging the blade around his body before releasing it in mid-swing. It twirled behind him only briefly, his other hand deftly catching it and continuing the flow of the sword. It ended when he grasped the handle with both hands, holding the weapon aimed at Cardin, parallel to the ground, and hilt near his head. He could see the bully shaking, even better.

"You… You think I'm scared of you?" Actually, Link did. He smiled lightly at the poor attempt to boast. "I don't care what kind of fancy tools you got. I've trained to be a Hunter for years, building myself up to be stronger than anyone else. I can take down a Beowolf with my bare hands and blow a borboratusk in half with my mace." Moderate achievements at best, Link thought.

"I don't care if this is just a test for you. It's pretty clear you brought everything you got against my team and me. We didn't have anything but a few minutes to get ready to fight you." Link lightly tilted his head. The boy was half-right. "But I know that without your fancy Dust weapons, you wouldn't stand a chance against me." Then Cardin surprised him.

He surprised Link by throwing away his mace.

Link watched the heavy metal object thunk against the ground, rolling barely a turn before the large spikes of the device held it against steady. He looked back to Cardin, seeing him raising his arms. Link narrowed his gaze, knowing exactly what the boy was asking. He unhooked his shield with his right hand, watching Cardin's face became an even deeper snarl, likely thinking Link was going to charge regardless. He didn't know who Link was.

Link swung his sword twice, spun it around his hand thrice, and then impaled it into the ground. The grasp of his shield was held firm in place by the steel of the blade. Now he watched Cardin's snarl became the expression of shock, body freezing as if in disbelief. It likely was, just as likely as the grin that took his face being that of confidence. Link smiled back.

Anger may be a great weakness in enemies, but just as high was pride.

This was going to be slightly more difficult, but no more than he was used to.

Cardin had muscle, lots of it just by looks alone. That meant weight and might. Link was smaller by nearly a foot and, unfortunately, usually the slower one of any duels he participated in. Here, he would have to depend on his size and agility to take down the boy.

It wouldn't be too hard, not really. The boy still exuded confidence after seeing the Hylian disarm. That was an advantage to Link. He could use that; make it tip Cardin into another fitful state of anger. When that happened, he only needed to place a well-timed blow to the head, preferably against the momentum Cardin developed. That would allow him to…

Link's thinking trailed off as he watched Cardin. Slowly pull his arms back, hissing as he did so, the muscles of the boy's face began to strain, a sign of effort. From what, Link did not know. Bit still slowly, Cardin raised his arms over his head, still flexed at the elbow as if lifting some great weight. His proud smirk, however, never faltered.

Then, he threw down his arms, and Link felt a great force emanate from him. He widened his eyes in realization. Cardin wasn't going to find him in a fairy hand-to-hand match. He was going to his magic to do so. The boy raised his foot in the air, slamming it down with a great force as well. Now the ground shook, nearly knocking Link off balance. Magic that apparently made him either heavier or stronger, Link determined. He suspected the former, given the boy's already heavy frame. Magic usually bolstered an individual, not compensated.

"Like it?" The boy asked from across the way. "Now I'm gonna show you why it's a bad idea to think low of me!"

And as predicted, the boy roared to summon his courage. He yelled as he charged at Link feet beating across the ground to assault the Hylian with what he thought would be a decisive blow. With the magic practically pouring off the boy, now looking more like a murderer than a bully. Link knew that he needed to show another trick. Fortunately, it wasn't too new.

He kneeled to the ground, grabbing at the bare dirt, bare from the Gale Boomerang he had thrown before. He dug his fingers into it, feeling his gauntlets surge with his own magic, red gems glowing an ominous tint. He loathed and loved the appearance. His magic flowed into the dirt, lacing it with what he could as quick as possible.

Cardin's cries became louder in Link's long ears, but still too far away for the trick to work. Link looked up, watching the screaming boy with furrowed eyes. Every step he took made a dull boom. He was heavier, a lot more so than before, but Link had fought against beasts that shook mountains. He was more of a threat, but still hardly one at all.

Within a moment, Cardin was only feet away from him, pulling back his arm in preparation for a strike. It was one of the most telegraphed moves Link had ever seen. He didn't care, it just made the next part easier.

Link let out quick battle cry of his own, pulling with his legs as his gauntlets dragged the earth up with him.

In a flash of a moment, Link was holding a minor chunk of the garden in his arms, held up by the strength of his gauntlets. It towered to easily four times his own height, likely double that number in pounds as well. Loose dirt fell from it, dug up in the span of a heartbeat and held like pebble. Link didn't once look at it. He had his eyes trained on Cardin.

The boy was currently at the bottom of the pseudo-hole Link had pulled, his weight now working against him. The fall had made a small crater within the crater, the boy moaning aloud. Link smirked momentarily. It was weight indeed, as strength would make the fall pitifully simple to take. Only weight, however, meant that it was only that much more force his muscles had to bear. But this wasn't the end, at least not yet.

Link looked over to the blonde judge, noticing how the woman watched from a distance, tapping on her pad ever few seconds. When she caught his eyes, he angled his head down to the hole, Cardin just starting to turn over onto his side, getting ready to stand up. Goodwitch looked down at her data pad quickly, looking up and shaking her head. Link nodded his own.

Without so much as a warning, Link slammed the dirt back over the hole he created, Cardin still within it.

He looked back towards Goodwitch now, the woman still shook her head. Link sighed, knowing that he was at least close. He lifted the rock again, seeing Cardin lying once more in the freshly pulled hole. He moaned as the dirt was lifted off of him, hand brushing against his face. Link noticed the lines action made across his flesh, like unused to the extreme weight his magic brought to the surface. Another consequence of improper knowledge of one's own skills.

The thought did not drive Link away from his task at hand, however. With another grunt from his lips and glow from the gems on his gauntlets, he slammed the dirt down again. It made another rumbling boom. This time, however, Link did not look to the judge for confirmation of a knockout. Her checking her pad meant she was monitoring them in some way other than eye-sight. She would know when he had won.

Link lifted the dirt and slammed it down again. And again.

And again.

And again.

And again.

It wasn't until a dozen of the slams latter did he lift the dirt up to observe Cardin again. He groaned at the pause in the assault, surprising Link momentarily. Perhaps that magic of his did bolster his endurance. There were few other reasons he would be able to take the assault Link was delivering.

It mattered little though. If Link was to make a place to stay here, he had to beat this bully. It was a fairer trade than he could have ever asked for. He grunted again, gauntlets glowing as he prepared to bring the mass of earth down again. But he was stopped before he could.

"That is enough." He turned to see the judge approaching him, raising the rider's crop towards him. He blinked at it curiously, before realizing it was aimed at the large mass above his head. Link looked up to see an ethereal aura over the dirt, turning the normal brown earth into a dark shade of lavender. It appears that she was an experienced mage. It removed a blanket of mystery from her.

But, she did say it was enough, likely indicating the match was over. He nodded towards her, tossing the large amount of dirt to the side. He felt his boots momentarily leave the ground, the force of the dirt making its weight known. Goodwitch sent him a stern look, likely of disapproval. That was… not his intention. He held up his hand shaking his head in apology.

"Better," Goodwitch spoke, though never indicating what it was that was better. He thought it better than to ask. The blonde looked at her pad again, tapping at things he couldn't see. He wondered for not the first time exactly what the purpose of the hard surface was.

She walked over to the hole he had pulled from the ground, his magic making it clear that he dug nothing. She looked over the edge of the pit, seeing the largest of the bullies at the bottom of the hole. He was moaning painfully, head rolling side to side in clear discomfort. Goodwitch squinted her emerald eyes, tapping on her pad again.

"It appears that Mr. Winchester has reached a critical aura level, though his semblance drastically reduced the effectiveness of your attacks." Many of those words went right over Link's head. "That is a sign for his disqualification from the match. Furthermore, your effective method of removing the rest of his team has set them outside the pre-ordained boundaries, disqualifying them as well." He only understood the bottom of line of the statement. The blonde gave him a small smile as she finished speaking.

"Congratulations, Link. You are officially a student of Beacon Academy."

Link ducked his head and raised his hands to his ears as a roar of applause came from the building tops around him.

"He did it!" Ruby shouted the phrase as she jumped from the roof, hands clenched in victory over her head. Her smile only grew the further she fell the ground, nearly splitting her face by the time her feet touched down. She powered her semblance through her legs, feeling the familiar weightlessness as she powered forward.

She felt a familiar trail of rose petals follow her as she ran, coating the green grass beneath her as she made her way to Link. Quick as the wind in the boomerang he threw, she was upon him, jumping when she was several feet away. As soon as she felt herself slam into him, she wrapped her arms around him, hugging him with all her might.

It was almost enough to knock him off his feet, almost. He did stumble though, which was satisfactory to Ruby. Yang might have been a little miffed. It did help to hear Link an 'oof' from her hug. That was usually a good sign. She titled her head up from his chest, beaming up at him with silver eyes as he looked back down at her with his wide blue eyes.

"You really did it!" she cheered again, only tightening her hug with the declaration. "You beat the crap out of those snobs like it was nothing! And the way you threw your boomerang and it went 'Shoooow'." Ruby had to release her hug to swing her arm to the side, demonstrating as best she could the mini-tornado Link had made. "Oh! Or when you swung that hammer and it went WHAM!" She made sure to emphasize the swing, spinning around with the force of her effort.

She grinned broadly as the green-clad Faunus scratched the back of his head, chuckling in what sounded like unease. Wonder why that was?

"Told ya he could do it!" Ruby looked up just in time to see Tatl flying over her head, the golden fairy spinning about Link once before landing on his shoulder. She saw her wings facing him as she spoke on. "There's no such thing as a fair fight when it comes to Link, cause this guy is ready for anything!" The fairy bobbed against Link, the Faunus leaning back from the blow, but grinning all the while.

"He really is something else," Ruby her heard Blake say. It took only a glance to see a satisfactory smile across the feline Faunus's lips. It took Ruby literally no time to figure out why that was there. "Tools, skill, and humility. All things a great Hunter needs."

"You forgot badassary!" And there was her sister. Ruby had just enough time to see her elder sibling all but tackle Blake from behind. The shorter of the two leaned down as a significant amount of weight suddenly attached itself to her back. Grunts of effort and likely pain shortly followed. Yang herself only grinned from atop her partner.

"Seriously, he basically did a Grand Slam with Team Bigot over there. Takes more than a bit of a cool edge to make that happen." The buxom blonde pointed at Link, winking as she did so. Ruby watched Link blink in response, only to point at himself. His confusion was clear enough to the point that it was palpable. "You and me, we gotta duke it out sometime, mono-y-mono." Yup, her sister indeed.

"You think you can take him still, Goldie?" A high voice asked mockingly above the group. It had to take Ruby a moment to realize that Tatl was talking about Yang. "After he just beat the crap out of those guys with all of two swings? Seriously? Maybe your skull's as thick as your chest." Ruby felt herself grimacing.

"Eh, that's the best you got? The girls can handle a few words, trust me." As if to show her point, Yang bowed her back, showing over her well-endowed chest. It helped little that she was still laying on Blake's back, the hidden-faunus likely only moments away from clawing at the blonde. "And Cardin's team? Please, I'd call it nothing less than a miracle that they're still at Beacon."

"Mockery aside, Yang is correct." Ruby heard her partner chime in now. "Team CRDL has displayed sub satisfactory scores in most areas they are drilled in. Pyrrha Nikos was also able to duel the team alone, and she won without ring outs. I don't believe Link accomplished that."

"Now you're just sour cause you lost our bet." It took a great deal of control on Ruby's part to stifle her chuckling when Weiss's face went from confident smirk to insulted scowl at lightning speeds. Seriously, the young girl deserved a medal of some kind. "Plus you're just upset he did what you didn't think of. Which, by the way, is how he always fights. Find the most obscured method for winning, then take it."

"So he cheats, is that it?" Ruby recognized Weiss's insulted tone a mile away. Unfortunately, she was less than a few feet from her partner's side, near smack in the middle of the quickly escalating argument. "That shouldn't surprise me too much, given the absolute barbaric tunic he is still wearing. Clear a sign as any for the development of his home country, Hyrule."

"While I do enjoy the bonding of students after activities such as tests and exams, I believe these… 'celebrations' can be performed later," Ms. Goodwitch spoke up, completely destroying the atmosphere, at least in Ruby's opinion. "For now, we need to move Link to his temporary living quarters, at least until he can be assigned to a team."

"Oh! He can be on our team!" Ruby didn't hesitate a moment before locking her arms with the green-clad Faunus, saluting to her professor proudly. She just knew if she looked over, he would have a similar expression, doubtlessly eager to join her. "As captain of team RWBY, I authorize Link to become an official member of our team!"

"Declined, Ms. Rose." It was sometimes amazing how easily Goodwitch shot her down. Ruby's arms dropped in melancholy defeat, her eyes looking up towards the blonde with the best pout she could manage. It usually worked on Yang and Weiss. The cold glare from the professor, however, told her she was out of luck. "Enough rules and regulations have been bent with Link's very entry. If he is to join a team, it will be under careful advisement of a suitable council after a set period of time. Until then, he will remain in a neutral position."

"Eh, works for me." Ruby almost felt betrayed when Tatl spoke up, ringing with her answer. The young team leader turned her expression to the floating fairy, hoping it would have more effect on her. She even made sure to tear up a little for emphasis. That usually helped her dad cave. The fairy looked at her, assumingly, before ringing some more. "H-Hey! Quit it with that look! I'm just agreeing that throwing Link against the wall until he sticks is the worst kind of idea. We're already here, no reason to rush anything else." Oh how Ruby hated that logic stuff.

"Makes sense," she heard Weiss agree next to her. Of course she would agree, she loved logic and all that other stuff. "It's difficult to place him on a team until you have suitably tested his other areas of Grimm Hunting. No use adding him to a team that already is strong in his core areas."

"Precisely," Goodwitch returned, lightly tapping on her pad again. Her eyes looked up to scan something behind the group, likely the rows of students still waiting at the top of the buildings. Ruby turned around to see them, too. She had to admit, it was kind of weird they were still there. Wonder what they were waiting for?

"You think now would be a good idea to leave?" Yang asked the group, motioning her hand over head as she spoke. "Ya know, before they all decide it's safe to charge the field and making our exit anything but quick?" That made sense, too. Ruby almost cursed how everyone was being so logical. Why couldn't they just stop and have fun for a moment? Link was in! Link was in Beacon!

"That is wise, Ms. Xia Long," Goodwitch agreed with Ruby's sister. There wasn't a lot there to get upset about. "Thankfully I have already procured a room for Link, located on the first floor of the freshman dormitories. It is already furnished with a single bed, desk, and dresser. The rest Link will have to find a way to provide."

"Wait, hold on," Ruby spoke up, earning the small group's attention. "You got that all set up for Link just now? That was pretty quick." Even for her standards it was. She remembered the process to being assigned a room taking at least a few days. Yeah, that was with a whole student body moving in, but still. A few minutes?

"That is because I started working on this during the duel between Link and Team CRDL." The ease of which Goodwitch spoke that statement was seconded only by the rogue smile she gave the short Faunus. Ruby looked between them quickly, seeing Link appear just as surprised as she was. "I had little doubt that you would succeed, and I am glad you have not disappointed thus far." When Ruby saw a smile slowly form over Link's features, she felt one grow on her own.

"Um, thank you," Ruby saw Tael fly in front of Goodwitch as he spoke, the dark fairy ringing softly as he did so. "Thanks for, uh, helping Link. I-It means a lot, really."

"I did nothing more than I would for any other student," the professor, unsurprisingly, brushed off the words of thanks. "You should only be so glad that the rest of the girls here believe in you as much as Ozpin does. I have a good mind to believe you will need their help during your time at Beacon."

"And he'll have it." No words could describe how disappointed Ruby was to hear Blake speak up before her, the sneaky little cat. She saw the dark member of her team staring at with a gleam to her golden eyes. "He's a credit to Faunus everywhere, and there is nothing I wouldn't do to help him. I mean that." She nodded towards him as she spoke, making her message clear as… well, air, Ruby supposed. Link, maybe seeing the significance of the words, nodded towards her, smile brightening as he did so.

"Of course we'll help him!" Ruby finally shot in before anyone else could. If she couldn't be first, second was just as good. "We'll make sure he knows where all the classes are, what's there to do around Vale, all the sweet weapons we can design, oh! And of course we gotta introduce you to everyone else! You seriously look a lot like Jaune, have I said that?"

"Only about a dozen times, Red," Tatl spoke, golden dust falling from her as she twirled around Ruby. "But… yeah, that'll help a lot actually. Gotta learn about where we are staying, right?"

"Y-Yeah! Of course!" Tael easily joined his sister, ringing higher than before in agreement. Ruby watched as Link looked between them, nodding his head as silent as ever.

"Excellent, then let us make our way to your room, Link." Goodwitch gave no time for pause as she marched through the group, likely the best way to grab the most attention. That was Grimm tactics. Something told Ruby that just her voice alone would have served well enough.

But still, one by one, the girls began to follow her. Yang was first, her hands knitted together behind her head, pushing her already embarrassingly huge chest forwards. That was her sister through and through. Weiss and Blake followed, nodding to one another. Ruby didn't know about what, but as team leader, she would find out. She followed behind them, taking up the back as it was called.

But joining her behind the group was Link this time, following by her side. Well… and his fairy companions, whom all the while were circling Link, coating him in dark and gold dust. The smile he had while they did so was unmistakable. Ruby felt herself grinning at the sight.

It was perfect. Link was a student, now a member of Beacon! It could hardly get any better than this!

Glynda was well aware of the many students eyeing them as they made their way to the freshman dormitories. She was as aware of them as was the feline ears beneath Ms. Belladonna's bow and bullying nature of team CRDL. It took only a glance and moment of thought to put them together. She treated the many curious gazes above the same way she treated most everything else. With indifference.

She offered not a gaze up nor even a word of reprimand. There were far more important things for her to concern herself with than a student's eagerness to see a fight. For example, though she had been successful in procuring Link's room, she still had to order his uniform and develop a scroll identity for him. One process she could easily complete by the time they made it to the door room. The other would only take a few minutes after that. Repetition did build efficiency, and she had done this for thousands of students in the past.

It was not hard for her to hear the whispers and eager mutters of team RWBY behind her, complete with the golden fairy Tatl offering her own flaunts, usually of Link's exploits. Glynda made not to find his surname out soon, as it was incredibly rude of her to continue to refer to him as his first name. He was a student at Beacon now. That meant he deserved the merits of adulthood, just like any other student.

Even as her hand tapped across the pad in her hands, identifying Link's student ID number, previous occupation, place of study, and weapon of choice (needing several more addendums for length at that), Glynda could hear Ms. Rose talking to Tael, most likely about what they would be able to do for the rest of the day. The eager team leader of the girls was a social butterfly, if not a hummingbird. Butterflies were quite slow creatures. But just as clear she could hear the low mutterings and bickering between the remainder of the group, specifically Tatl, Ms. Schnee, Ms. Xia Long, and Ms. Belladonna. Their conversation switched constantly, but usually came back to 'who was better'. Near adults, but children still, as Ozpin was always fond to remind her.

What Glynda did not hear, even as they made their way past the many students high above and into a quieter portion of the campus was Link. It was hardly surprising. She had yet to hear the green-clad Faunus utter a word, anything more than grunts of effort. It was merely soemthign she was going to have to become ccustomed to. Nothing more and nothing less.

Still, this was by far on one of Ozpin's most ludicrous of plans. Glynda had no doubt there was one, but like of his little games, he wouldn't tell her a thing until it was necessary. No one knew the board by him. Him, and whoever the figure was he was playing against. Itw as a piece of knowledge she was reluctant to learn. She was also just as aware that would not last forever.

"Here we are," Glynda spoke as she ceased her musings, lowering her pad to gaze at the door in front of her. The footfalls behind her came to a steady stop, the members of their small group crowding around the entrance. She stared at the number on the door, 135, the thirty-fifth room on the first floor. It was likely a sin to be forget such a simple number. She produced a key from her blouse, opening the door with ease. She stepped aside as the students gazed in.

"As stated, it comes with a single bed, dresser, and desk; the basic requirements for attending school here. The bathroom is communal and is shared at the end of the hall." She pointed over her shoulder as she spoke, gazing at Link with her equally green eyes. It took a moment, but he did look up at her, blinking lightly before turning to look down the wide hallway. He nodded in understanding, which was good.

"Uniforms for the school year will be provided to you, though will likely be unavailable until the following week. Consequences of gaining admission to the academy so quickly. I will develop a schedule for you and deliver it by day's end." She heard Tatl ring at the words.

"Perfect, means we can start showing off to all the amateurs quick as possible!" Glynda only needed to glance at Link to see the clear disdain for the fairy's words, emphasized by his averting of the eyes and low groan of annoyance. Tael seemed to have similar feelings towards his sister's actions, wings drooping as the golden fairy rang the words. "Kinda hurts the room is so small. I mean, yeah, we can fit in it, but it's like smaller than the hall. What's up with that?" Glynda watched the fairy fly into the room, presumably to prove her point.

"Well, um, I-I think it's pretty nice." The blonde professor turned her attention to Tael as he spoke, the younger of the fairies as nervous as ever. She had known him for hardly a day and she could already tell he spoke more cautiously than a politician on trial. "I mean, it's better than sleeping in the woods. Monsters probably don't attack here often, do they?" That one question told Glynda so much.

"Oh, no way!" Ms. Rose was quick to emphasize. "The Grimm stay in the woods where they belong. No getting past the security of daily hunts and class trips." Glynda was glad, she supposed, that Ms. Schnee was able to explain more properly Ms. Rose's assurances of safety.

"What Ruby is trying to say is that the Grimm are isolated to either the Emerald or Forever Fall Forests." The W of team RWBY crossed her arms as she spoke up to the dark fairy, her studied knowledge pouring from her lips as easily as water from a river. "The only instances where Grimm have made it onto Beacon's grounds were under controlled circumstances meant to test the security of the campus or ability of the students. There is a literal zero chance of you being assaulted by any monsters in this room." She finished her statement swinging her arm into said area, displaying more like a realtor than a student. Glynda spoke no word of her thought.

"It is kinda small though," Ms. Xia Long spoke up, to Glynda's complete lack of surprise. It appeared that gold was a common color for those who were boisterous in nature, the brawler and fairy so much alike in that record. "Least we can fit four beds in our room, have enough space to even a good pillow fight. Most your gonna do in here is sleep and study. Two words meaning boring."

Glynda looked at Link, seeing his lightly shaking his hands in front of himself as their comments. She watched his moves lips move, lightly at that, but uttering not a sound that she could hear. Ms. Belladonna, on the other hand, appeared to hear him just fine, given her slowly nodding head. Thankfully, Ms. Belladona noticed Glynda's curious gaze first, likely her social shyness making her over-observant.

"He said that he doesn't mind. He's just really glad to be able to stay here." The first-year student spoke to Glynda, nodding her head as she spoke. Link, next to her, nodded his head as well, though finishing by bowing towards the blonde professor. He was polite, which was also good.

"Thanks are unneeded, though appreciated," Glynda spoke the line with thousands of times of practice. "As said, Link, you are officially a student of Beacon Academy, and as a professor at this school, it is my duty to make sure you succeed during your time here." There was no need for her to restate that was all she was here for. She and Ozpin had made it clear as glass that they were to treat Link as a student, not as detectives trying to find his missing friend. Short of felonies, what a student did on their own time was their business, not hers.

"Now, I'll leave you to situate yourself. I have to procure a scroll for you and instructions on its use. I assume you do not have such a device back in your home, do you?" Glynda lightly held up her pad for emphasis, raising a brow as she spoke to him. She watched Link shake his head in denial, long pointed hat flailing lightly with the action. He had a wide variety of expressions, which was good for those who could not her him.

"Good. I will be back later today. If you decide to explore the campus, I only ask that you do so with a current student's help. Beacon is a large campus and it would be difficult to find you should you lose your way." Link nodded at her words again, staring up at her with wide blue eyes. The Huntress did not miss the thankful smile that pulled at his lips, showing his thanks through actions alone. She felt herself returning the gesture in kind.

"Excellent," she spoke easily. "I will speak to you later than. Girls." She spoke the small word as farewell to the four young woman surrounding the room. Just as quickly, she made her way back down the hall, already tapping on her pad the last of the details necessary to establish Link's scroll. It would be ready within a few hours' time, which was perfect.

"So, um, what happens now?" Tael spoke once Glynda was out of sight, exiting the same doorway they had come in from. Link looked up to the dark fairy, seeing him shift uncomfortably in the air. It wasn't uncommon, not when they were in strange situations. It was unfortunate that happened so often. "I-I mean. Do we just sit here and wait… or-"

"Now I show you the rest of Beacon!" Link was slightly more prepared this time for Ruby's assault, given it was the third time she had tackled him in such a way. Her speed was incredible, even in such a short distance. "I'll be able to show you rest of the dorms and the classrooms, too! Wait until you see the Communication Tower, oh! Or when you get inside the library. Seriously, it's like bigger than every room here put together!"

"Alright Rubes, why don't you chill for a moment." Link watched as the sister of Ruby placed her elbow over her younger sibling's head. Ruby gave a small sound of discomfort, not surprisingly, but which Yang only appeared to passively note. Sister's indeed, if Romani and Cremia were close to the norm. "It's all good to want to take Link out for a run around campus, but why don't we give the guy a break. He did just go a round with team CRDL after hunting a few dozen Grimm. If that's not worth a break, we don't even deserve sleep."

Link heard Ruby give another mutter of agreement, though with a clearly sour tone. It reminded him of Mido, almost, being corrected by Saria about his treatment of the other Kokiri. He usually grumbled when he knew he was being told the right way to do things. It made Link pull a small smile, happy with the memory.

"Do you want a break, Link?" The Hylian turned to see Blake, the shorter golden eyed girl looking up at him curiously. She reminded him insistently of a cat. "You have done a lot today. There will be plenty of time tomorrow to show you around."

"Aw, but it still bright outside," Link heard Ruby whine. It was definitely a whine, the same way he heard many young children whine before. "Do we really have to wait until tomorrow?"

"No, you're not." Link felt himself grimacing before he even turned his head, knowing exactly where Tatl was going. It was as easy to predict now as the sun's cycle in the sky. "You're gonna show me and Tael around campus. Link here is gonna catch a few z's while we do that."

That was… not what Link was expecting.

He gave the golden fairy a tilt of his head, staring at her with one of his eyes more lidded than the other. He heard his companion ring indigently at the look, clearly not pleased with it.

"What? Got a problem with that?" She asked as she flew up Link's face, hovering only breaths away from his eyes. The frequency at which she closed the distance allowed Link's eyes to adjust readily, expectant now of it to happen. "I just don't see the use in dragging you around this place only to plop back down here when you're done. Someone needs to wait for Triple B to come back, might as well be the guy that she needs to talk to."

"But… then why are we leaving him?" Tael asked the question now, unsurprisingly. Link knew the fairies for years, and he knew that the younger and darker of the two siblings loathed to be apart from either of them.

"Cuase we're gonna be the ones doing all the talking. Might as well get a crash course in what to expect. With Red's super speed here, it might just literally be that." Link heard a groan come from the young girl before any words.

"That was just one time…" She drawled the words out, thinking of something that Link had no idea about. He knew it was embarrassing to her in the least, given her red blush and wide grin on her elder sibling. Sisters indeed.

"So what?" Link turned to see the white one approaching. She was… Weiss, if he recalled correctly. It was a rushed introduction, he rationalized. She had her lips in a pout and arms crossed, likely ready to give a quick condemning lecture. Somethings did cross social boundaries, apparently. "Link just stays here and sleeps while the rest of us show his fairies around campus? Why? Won't we just have to explain this all again to Link tomorrow?"

"Not if we tell Link about it, duh?" Tatl mockingly returned to Weiss, to Link's utter lack of surprise. He was mildly interested to see the alabaster haired girl fume at the words. She raised her hand, pointing a dainty finger at Tatl. But before she could utter a word, Link saw Blake rest her hand over the other girl's hand, lowering it gently.

"Maybe we should give Link a chance to rest," Blake began, looking at Weiss pointedly before turning her golden gaze to Link. He did not miss the subtle lift in her lips when she did so. He assumed it had to do with the Faunus term she loved to refer to him as. "If a few hours alone can allow him to recuperate before Ms. Goodwitch returns, then we should let him. I have a strong feeling we'll see him again soon."

"But don't classes start tomorrow?" That Yang, though Link realized she sounded strikingly like her younger sister.

"It's Saturday, Yang." The darker of the girls spoke. Link could hear the dryness in her voice. "Classes start on Monday. That means you can spend as much time as you want tomorrow doing whatever it is you want to do for fun at the time. I suggest that you make it more appropriate than teasing the boys again." Link… rubbed a finger in his ear. He had to have misheard that. But when he did, he felt a very light touch on his shoulder, though not nearly enough to stop him. He still followed the motion, looking to Ruby's silver gaze.

"You didn't mishear," she spoke without asking a single question. Link watched her eyes droop slightly before speaking on. "Yang is… my sis likes to hang out a lot of people. Probably because she's so strong."

"The word you're looking for is tough, Ruby." Link watched a momentary expression of panic was across the young girl's gaze, only before she buried her head in her hands. It caught him off-guard for a completely different reason than Ruby's own hug. "The tougher you are the more energy you got. C'mon, that's kind of a basic thing right. Unless you were thinking about something else? Huh, were ya sis?" The teasing tone coming from the blond was literally impossible to miss.

Just as difficult to misplace was the groan that came from Ruby Rose. Tatl rang above Link's head, clearing laughing at the young girl's expense. Tael only hid himself beneath Link's cap. He didn't enjoy other people's embarrassment. Link, however, was between the two.

He put his hand on the young girl's head, rubbing her dark hair lightly. It got her to jerk, looking up at him with a light blush. He smiled down at her, the same expression he gave plenty of children in Hyrule. Link was fortuned to see a similar smile grow over Ruby's lips.

"Okay, new plan," he heard Tatl say. "You three are gonna show me and my brother around campus, and Ruby is going to help Link get situated with his room. Anything new to complain about?" Link heard a small round of silence. It was quickly broken, however by Tatl's high ringing. "I swear Goldie! I haven't known you for a freaking day and I can already tell you're about say something that'll make me want to stuff your face with dirt!" He heard chuckling at those words, oddly enough. Odder still was the cocky grin she wore. It fit her, but not in a way Link enjoyed.

"Aw, you know me so well." Apparently Tatl had called Yang out appropriately. Link was thankful for that, but not entirely surprised. The golden fairy did have a knack for seeing the unobvious. It was what made her so helpful against the unknowns. And unknowns always did have the advantage.

"Fine," he heard Weiss say, an obvious tone of annoyance in her voice. He wasn't sure she could speak without it. "But we'll be smart about this, arriving back her to help Link with whatever Ms. Goodwitch brings. Ask your questions when we're done, not before, is that clear?" She sounded like an instructor in the knight's academy. Appropriate, given that this beacon was likely synonymous with that.

"Yes, ma'am." Link had to fight a chuckle. Tael always was one to agree with orders.

"Alright! Tour Guides for the Fairies!" Link had already thought it many times before, but it was almost comforting how fast he was becoming used to Yang's exuberant nature. It was only a short time, but appeared she would do nothing short of grin at every new thing.

"Yeah, yeah, keep your shirt on if you can," Tatl fired back. Her words made Link chuckle, but he heard an indigent sound come from Weiss. It was of little wonder why. "We'll see ya back here soon Link. Get your rest and we'll have a nice long talk, kay."

"We'll make sure they're safe," Blake joined in now, looking at Tatl before gazing at him. She had a softer smile, but a smile nonetheless. "Beacon is fairly large, but there are only a few areas to get used to. It won't take long to show them around." Link gave her a small nod of appreciation.

"Then let's hurry and be done with this." Link had to blink now as Weiss waltzed by him, hand pushing her ponytail aside. Tael was flying quickly behind her. "This has been one of the single most unexpected delays to my schedule I have ever witnessed and I would like to have it concluded promptly." She didn't leave room for interjection, walking away on her high-heels promptly. She truly did act like a princess.

"Well then wait up princess!" It was comforting to know Tatl thought the same way. Link suppressed his chuckle, but he couldn't contain his smile. "And you guys better keep up! No way am I trusting any of you alone." Yang and Blake followed close behind, the former winking at Ruby Rose. Link was not entirely sure why.

However, it didn't long before they were out of earshot, gone back outside to explore this new place, to see the sights of Beacon Academy. He knew Tael would love to hear all about it. He was not a vocal about a lot of things, but he was a great listener. And, if nothing else, he loved to hear about the tales and history of even the smallest of things. Tatl, if nothing else, would just like to know about things enough to point out their faults. Those thoughts made him grin.

"So… yeah," Ruby spoke up, earning Link's attention. She had escaped his hand on her head, looking up at him with her arms linked behind her. She had the grin of a child, full of energy and excitement. "Guess that means we're classmates now. Guess that means that everything's worked out, right?"

It was hard to say no to that conclusion. Link doubted, highly, that there was much the Academy could teach him in the ways of fighting. But for the world around him, this Beacon and the land that surrounded it, it would be invaluable. He smiled down at Ruby, nodding towards her.

"Well, that's a great thing then!" She raised her arms, spinning around with her cape. Link could hear her giggling as well. "Guess all that's left now is to make sure you're ready to start learning. Aaaaand, the best way to do that is to tell you all about Remnant!" Remnant… was that a thing or a place? It sounded like both.

Link's light musings were cut off as Ruby put both hands to his shoulders, holding him in place. He blinked down at her, confused, but saw nothing but joy in her expression. It was only heightened by what he believed he could only call stars in her eyes.

"You can count on me Link!" Ruby announced proudly. "I'll help you no matter what."

Even if it wasn't true, the words made Link smile.

"Oh those Faunus brats," he muttered the curse with a hand to his fore head, massaging his sore and throbbing temples. He bushed up a black bowler cap to reach up higher, hoping that enough force would allow him to massage his brain, or kill himself. Honestly, that wasn't the worst outcome right now.

"I told them to wait a few months. I told them several times to wait a few months. I told, wrote, mailed, and left little post-it notes for them to wait a few months." He continued to grumble, pushing his digits harder against his skull. He almost felt it crack. The pressure was really helping.

"But no, of course not, don't listen to Torchwick, go off and do your own merry thing and just plan on me to jump through Grimm jaws to make the whole thing work out in the end!" He slammed his fists on the table with the scream.

The many books and catalogues of paper rumbled at the jolt of force, settling just as quickly. He left his hands curled in fists, sitting on the tabletop as he stared downwards at them. Not them specifically, of course not. What he was actually staring at where the many large forms and papers he had lain out across the hard surface.

The papers were full of scrawled notes and instructions, crossed off words on the margins, and just as many lines detailing intricate maps as there were paragraphs of text. There wasn't just one big piece of paper. Too simple. There were dozens, ranging in detail from a macroscopic view of the four kingdoms to a microscopic comparison of street businesses up and down Vale.

There was detail, tons of detail. Opening and closing hours for each store, the average number of patrons, the type of Dust they carried, the time of their shipments and arrivals, the cost of each, everything. He had it all planned out, knowledge on how to rob each and every one of them across the entire city.

And they had done he, he had done it. He had manage to steal literally ever speck of Dust short of the Military's private supply from the populous, hoarded it all in White Fang Vaults, and left not even a trace of his human side behind. But then… the inevitable happened.

A couple of teens with more hormones than brains decided to break him out of jail. Gold star.

Torchwick's hands uncurled enough for his digits to be pressed down on the papers. With how much force he was putting on them, it might have looked like he was getting ready to claw the paper. The thought was a better one to him than any he'd had in the past few weeks.

"New patrols because of my 'escape', known information on what to look out for, upgrade to the security of dust depots across the kingdom, and of course, the cream of the crop, delaying of the Vytal Festival." He snarled the final words, lowering his head as he did so. The black cap on his head slipped down, concealing his eyes from the paper beneath him.

Didn't take away the knowledge that it was still there. Neither did it offer any plan, new idea, epiphany, or grace of god or Satan to fix this little problem. Quite frankly, because of the pubescent teens, there was nothing they could do. At all. Nadda. Zip. Zilch. Zero. And every other Z meaning screwed.

"God DAMMIT!" Now Torchwick clawed the paper, ripping up a dozen maps into nothing but confetti. He continued to growl through a clenched jaw as he grabbed, pulled, and ripped every spare shred of the paper that dared to float in the air. By the time he was done, the floor was a brand new color. Just like his face too, wearing a shade of red to match his hair. How cute.

"Okay, okay, deep breaths, long pause." He put a hand to his face as he cited the short mantra, following it with shut eyes.

He let lung-fulls of cool air enter and leave him, taking up a majority of his focus now. In and out, in and out, like a game he played when he was a kid. Course it involved a few more players and a dame, but same end goal. Get rid of stress.

*BZZZZT*

The vibration came from his jacket pocket. His scroll doubtlessly. He reached into it with his free hand, pulling it out and opening it without removing his other hand from his face. He wasn't calm yet and he couldn't risk breaking his scroll. Not unless there was someone nearby ever so willing to donate theirs.

No one was speaking to him. Meant it was a text message. Good, he didn't feel like he could come up with his best insults right now. Couldn't have a conversation unless he made the other person feel like crap at the end of it. Reading though, that he could do. Torchwick let out one more sigh as he lowered his land, looking at the scroll he produced.

His look turned into a stare, the stare into a gawk, and the gawk into delight. What he saw on the screen of his scroll, the single image sitting atop the holographic display, was literally the skeleton key to the doors he was trying to open.

"Well well," he spoke up, grin fresh on his face as the morning sun. "Guess there is such thing as Karma after all." Sitting on the screen, staring back unknowingly, was a Faunus boy clothed in green. A hat long and pointed, the hilt of a crystal sword poking up from behind him, and even two stray dots of color circling above him.

This was perfect. This was magnificent. This was like asking for Dust and getting a tank. Three tanks. Three tanks with dust charges! Oh it was so beautiful he could almost kiss the screen. But he wouldn't, that would be weird.

Instead, he settled for a bit of a laugh, setting the scroll down atop the table he so recently vacated. It was the first piece to a new plan, after all, a plan that he knew would be unstoppable by its end. One that children and eager animals wouldn't screw up.

"So," he spoke down to the screen, more excited than he'd been in weeks. "I guess queenie was on point with you coming here, wasn't she?"

Chapter Text

Link pulled at his collar.

It wasn't his collar, not the collar to the tunics he comfortably wore. It wasn't green like his tunic, loose like his tunic, or even weathered like his tunic. Quite simply, he wasn't wearing his tunic at all. He was wearing clothes given to him by Glynda. Clothes that he now loathed.

This collar was attached to a plaid shirt, freshly made, freshly pressed, and tighter than a full knight's belt. The plaid made his eyes burn, the tightness made his muscles twitch, and all together it was, quite simply, unbearable. He gave another hard pull at the color, just failing bit back his groan of disgust.

"Link, would you quit grabbing at that thing?" His long ears heard Tatl's sharp criticism, ordering more than asking him to stop. He gave a short huff before giving the tight fabric one more pull, letting his arm drop in dissatisfaction. His grimace of annoyance did not fall. "Just pretend you're wearing it for one of those festivals or something. Kinda feels like that in this place anyways."

Link honestly couldn't call the golden fairy wrong.

He was currently sitting an amphitheater of sorts, differentiated from those in Hyrule only by the desks that appeared to wrap around every row of seats. Seats which were made of solid wood and not carved stone. Several other knights-in-training were seated around these seats, writing on paper with inkless quills and looking at the speaker on the theatre floor below.

Said speaker was quite large to be a knight, at least by his Hylian standards. He wore a jacket not far different from the one Link was forced to wear, though of a solid red collar and appearing far more forgiving around the collar. This speaker also had a large mustache pulled around his upper lip, seemingly and completely hiding his mouth from view. Link could only tell he was speaking because he had yet to stop.

"-est way to make it atop a Nevermore, I deftly decided was to lure the beast down with some rancid feelings of disgust. Luckily for me, I was able to conjure enough loathing for the thing that it suddenly thought me a delectable treat! Well, it would soon find that I was more than it could chew! So when it started to dive, I-" Link found the voice drowned out again.

His name was Professor Port, at least that was how Ruby and Blake had introduced him. He was roughly a few inches taller Link and appeared happy to meet each other as well. When they shook hands, Link knew that he was made a knight, assumingly, because of his strength. It wasn't abnormal, but it was enough for Link to feel the grip through his gauntlets. He may have been forced to remove his tunic and chain-mail, but he would be a fool to remove all of who he was.

At the thought of the girls, Link looked to see the team of four sitting just beside him. Ruby, unsurprisingly, was sitting the closest to him, so close that he was sure he could swing his head quickly enough to have his hat hit her face. He refused to remove that as well, or hit Ruby intentionally. He liked his hat, and she had been nice to him. Ruby, however, was appearing more focused on him, smiling when he turned and looked at her. He smiled at her, nodding his head with the action. She giggled, repeating his gesture. He wasn't sure what to do.

Behind her, however, was Weiss. The alabaster girl seemed solely focused on the class, looking up from her papers only to listen to what Port was saying. He didn't know what she was getting out of the stories. But then, this was her academy, not his. There was likely a method to learning here he had yet to understand. At least, that was what he hoped. Yang seemed to dispel that theory.

Sitting beside the Weiss, the blonde had her dull quill sitting atop her upper lips, balancing it with a puckered expression. She was leaning back in her chair, feet up and on the desk in front of her. She looked about as uninterested in the class as was possible. A complete foil to the smaller girl next to her. But then last in the line, and last in the team, was Blake.

Blake appeared to be doing nothing, at least as far as Link could hear or see. She was simply looking down at Port with her slit gold eyes, watching him without moving any papers on her desk or playing with any devices in her hand. She was simply doing nothing. But, Link though, perhaps she was listening to the story. He turned his attention to Port again.

"-id, 'Mongrel! I am the great Professor Port! You will sooner strike me down than the wind will tear a mountain apart!' That blasted boarbatusk only seemed to enjoy my great declaration, rolling itself into a ball as it prepared to charge me. Well, I concluded easily, two could play at that game. So I readied my blunderaxe as the Grimm began to charge, deciding on just the right moment to strike. When it was just close enough, my-" Link turned his attention away again. He simply couldn't follow the story.

Instead he looked in front of himself, down a row of chairs and curved desks. He saw four more students, two looking back at him with the remaining two shifting their attention from the papers on their desks to him. Either way, he was more interesting than Port's speech. He was not surprised. He was an unknown. The students in front of him, however, were only names away from being just that to him.

One of the students was Jaune Arc. Ruby had made many comparisons between the boy and Link. And in honest, he could see why. Wearing the same uniform, Link could tell they looked a great deal alike. Hair color, eye color, facial structure, nearly in height as well. The most obvious difference to Link was that Jaune appeared to by Gerudo, much like the majority of students, lacking the long ears of the Hylians. He did smile though, even as Link heard him mutter that it was freaky seeing a Faunus version of himself. Link didn't entirely disagree with the statement, as he found it odd seeing a Gerudo like copy of who he was.

The other of the four to continuously stare at him was Nora Valkyrie, sitting beside the blond student. She made no attempt to hide her excitement of curiosity for him, much like Ruby. Unlike Ruby, Nora appeared to have no filter or thought for what she did around others. She was waving her head as she stared at him, oblivious of any discomfort she may have caused. Her orange hair was short enough to stop it from swaying too much, but that was where the comforts ended.

Beside her was Pyrrha Nikos, a young woman who appeared to truly take to heart the meaning of a knight. She wore a golden regalia upon her head, long red hair pulled back to prevent any interference with her action. He posture was straight and eyes focused on the papers on her desk. It didn't stop her from occasional shifting her gaze to Link, usually before just as quickly averting them again. There was little else Link could tell of her, again, a clear sign of her abilities. The man after her was much the same, and yet not.

Lie Ren, a tall and seemingly silent boy, appeared totally apathetic to the events around him. He looked towards Port long enough to grow bored, before looking down at his papers, seemingly just as bored, all before looking at Link, until he grew bored of that. It was odd, but only the sense that he appeared to be politely detached from the events around him. A sign of a knight entering battle, but not of a teammate you wished to join in war.

"-kes more than a few blows from an over grown hog to throw me to the ground. Now a good gentleman may not boast, but neither does he lie. You will do well to remember that when discussing your own exploits one day. A prime example would be during one of my hunts for a rare form of prey. An elusive Creeper. Common only when spotted amongst hundreds of Grimm. The nasty beasts are a force to be reckoned with, why even-" Link's attention for the old knight's lecture quickly fled again.

He instead, looked down at the odd device Glynda had given him. She referred to is a scroll, but all he could see was glass framed in metal. It had lights dancing inside of it, making shapes and symbols he hardly recognized. It felt like he was holding a wasted source of metal, but Glynda had assured him it was one of the most useful tools Beacon had.

Glynda, she was a mystery if ever there was any. She had much in common with Impa, appearance aside, but had intelligence to back it up. That much was obvious. What was even clearer, however, was the level of control she had over the trainees of the Academy, in the best of way. Right now though, he focused on the former. The latter would explain itself in time. She told him much of the world he was in. The obvious facts he should not be without knowing.

He was a Faunus in their culture. It was one of the first things she had explained to him. The term for those with traits other than Gerudo were called faunus, not Hylian. It was interesting to know, and definetly something he had to be aware of. Not knowing key facts was not something he could afford. But that was one. One part of the discussion.

The other was the mistreatement of the faunus. She made no secret of it. Faunus were were thought of unfairly by Gerudo, humans as they called themselves here. They were often given poorer tasks, harder ends to meet, and more unfair treatement in other such areas. His foreign status aside, his very ability to get into the school as a faunus was something of an accomplishment. He would have to watch out for others.

But that let to the White Fang. As Glynda had described them, they were the faunus who fought back in the wrong way. The best intentions but with worst of methods. An unfortunate mistake history was tend to repeat. It didn't surprise Link, but again, it was good he knew. It would have been detrimental if he didn't.

Their goal was to harm others to make their path right. Unfortunately, Link knew what that was similar to, as well. Just as well as he knew what it would inevitably lead to.

"-umph was so nearly in that beast's maw, but did I falter? Nay! I instead braced myself against my beloved weapon and stared into the prey's eyes, seeing the promise of death. I spoke nothing but the same in return to it. I can remember the great snake hissing at me in response while I snarled back. Far be it from a true gentleman's nature, but in times of great peril, it is important to remember we have survived for not only our intelligence, but also our instinct! In that time, I knew that-" Link knew he didn't care more for the story.

He instead looked to his other side, seeing many more faces staring back at him. It was of little surprise to see just as many turn away as he did so. He was new here, brand new in fact.

He recalled his introduction to the class by Port was like one Tatl would give, were she much larger and more masculine. Link shivered at the thought. The many other knights-in-training… students, Link corrected… appeared to already be aware of him. Wary as well. He could hear their murmurs even now about his duel with the team from before, the bullies.

It was not difficult for Link to hear them, his sharp ears picking up the soft whispers. They were mostly filled with questions about him. Who he really was, what he could really do, why he was really here, all things he would answer if asked, but he knew he wouldn't be by them. Perhaps Glynda might ask, or the girls, or by the few other students he had been told of, but not by these students whispering like children in the market streets. They feared him.

They feared him because he was the unknown. Link was all right with that.

He was not happy with it. He gained no great amount of joy at the thought. He thought as much of it as he did the request to leave the Kokiri Forest, to return to his childhood after his fight through seven years of time, or of his return to Hyrule from Termina. It was there, it was beyond his control, so he thought nothing of it, not when there was more to worry about. After all, the unknown had the advantage.

His only wish now, however, was to know how this old knight's tale served to teach the current student's the art of protecting people? If this was truly what this Academy was renowned for, he had little reason to believe he would learn much of anything here.

"-clusion, when you have a beast twice as large as yourself corned against a shear cliff with only a few rounds of dust left to take the monster art, never charge at him as I did. A gentleman should know his mistakes, and I will be the first to admit that I-"

Link nearly jumped from his seat as a loud bell shattered the air.

"Oh hobblecock," Port let out in a disappointed and gruff tone. "It appears I've run out of time again. Be sure to brush up on you classifications of Grimm texts. We will be having a quiz next week. Link," the elder knight spoke, earning the new entry's quick attention. "Be sure to borrow notes from one of the students. I'll need to know where you stand with your system of Grimm. Can't test you on what you don't know, can I?"

He laughed at the question, jovially at that. Link wasn't sure what to do, seeing no humor in the words. He felt only slightly better to see that no other student joined the old knight. And so, after a dejected sigh, the knight waved his hand.

"Never mind, you are all dismissed." With those words, the other knights-in… Hunters-in-training began to rise, collecting the paper in front of them and stuffing them in bags beneath them. Link rose as well, seeing no point in sitting still. He did not, however, have any bags or papers to carry. Only the small scroll Glynda had given him. He still had no means to understand why it was called a scroll.

"Oh geez!" He heard Tatl all but cuss atop of him. "Is it over? Can I open my eyes now?"

Link felt the weight of the small fairy lift off of his head, flittering around to stretch her wings. She showered light trails behind her, shaking as she readjusted to the air again. He just as easily saw more than a few students watching the small balls of light with endless curiosity. Seeing the reactions of Ruby, her friends, and even Glynda, Link no longer wondered why.

"Yup! You're all set for now!" Link saw Ruby nearly jump as she answered the golden fairy, thankfully not reaching for her. He still found himself smiling, seeing how easily the younger girl had adjusted to speaking to his golden companion. "Sorry if Professor Port's class was kind of… winded. He just kinda likes to talk a lot, usually about himself… always about himself."

"Wait, that was normal?" Tatl had asked, swinging in front of Ruby's features. "I thought he was trying to show off to Link or something, talking about all those monsters he killed."

"Professor Port's teaching methods are unorthodox, but of high enough quality to earn him a place at Beacon Academy," Link looked behind the fairy and small girl to see Weiss standing, already wearing a small satchel at her side, presumably with the papers she was writing on inside. "Students who are unable to see the value of his lessons are better spent daydreaming."

"Did you have fun dreams, too?" Link had to turn his head to see Nora jumping over the table. He didn't have to keep his head tilted long, the rather energetic girl literally standing on the desk her was sitting at only moments before. He wondered if that was normal. By reactions, for her at least, it was. "I usually dream of fighting really big Grimm! But for some reason, I kept imaging what you would look like fighting really big Grimm!" The energetic girl thrust her finger at Link as she spoke, or more appropriately shouted.

Link took a step back at the sudden direction towards him, blinking confused at the girl. He could hear a lot of other students behind him slowing their retreat from the classroom, likely to see or hear any more about him. Unknowns had the advantage, but they were also the source of a lot of curiosity.

"Okay Nora, I think that's enough." Link saw Jaune, his apparent Gerudo-double, motioning towards the orange-haired girl. She only turned to him with a smile, making no other motion otherwise. Jaune, however, looked to Link. "I'm sorry about her. She just likes to shout what she's thinking. All the time. Constantly."

"Yeah, he's not kidding." Link heard Ruby say. He looked to her just as Jaune started to talk again.

"But hey! Um, it's kinda hard not to wonder about you." He said the words with a hand behind his head and the other towards Link, palm up. It didn't take him long to see some error in his words. "In a good way, I mean. You're, um, mini-drone…"

"Fairy!" Tatl rung high in correction. Link couldn't blame her.

"Right, fairy, sorry," Jaune apologized before continuing. "Your fairy said you did a lot of crazy stuff, like killing ancient Grimm by yourself." Monsters, but Link felt confident he could relate the two terms easily enough. "I mean, I'll admit I wonder how you did it. By yourself. Not that you couldn't, just… Grimm are usually best fought with other Hunters, so…" Link watched Jaune bite his lip and avert his gaze, not sure of where else to go. He couldn't help but wonder if he looked like that when he was put in odd situations.

"Sorry to bust your theory Not-Link," Tatl called down to boy. Link found himself blinking at the fairy's new nickname, looking up at her curiously. She didn't return the gesture. He pulled at his collar again. "Link's a one-man army. Only partners he's had have been on the training ground."

"Too bad they weren't in bed."

If he were moving, Link was sure he would have tripped.

"Yang!" He heard Weiss yell her the girl's name crossly. "Have some respect in a conversation!" Said blonde only chuckle as she stressed, leaning back with the motion. "But Jaune does have a point, rare as that is. I find it highly unlikely that you fought anything more than a pack of beowulves without a partner behind you. Besides, weren't you looking for a friend around here?"

"Said friend is 'me' size," Tatl spoke down the alabaster girl. "And for the record, he did have to kill one of those huge birds for you just to get into this school."

"That is something I wanted to ask about, actually." Link looked down a row of seats again to see the red-haired girl speaking up to him, Pyrrha. She had her hand half raised, as if prepared to point to something. It slowly lowered when Link's attention was on her. "Sorry, but I was curious how you were able to slay the Nevermore while it was still in the air. Blake said you don't have any long-range weapons, so… how did you do it?"

Link wasn't sure what to say.

He knew what happened, but judging by the reactions of those around him both at the time and when he returned to the Academy Grounds, it was not the wisest of moves to announce the aid of his friends. Apparently the idea of magic to such a degree was in odd content with them, little different than convincing Zora to leave the rivers or Gorons the mountains. Perhaps it was common for the Gerudo to avoid magic. He could think of few cases in the past in which that happened.

"Maybe we should discuss this over lunch?" Blake interrupted the group, walking her way past them as she spoke. Link managed to catch a glint in her golden eyes as she passed them. She continued to speak even as she was to the stairs. "I don't want to hear another story in this classroom."

"Oh! Are they serving cake for lunch today?" Link only had enough time to turn around before Nora jumped to the stairs, running up them with hands clenched over her head. "Cause I call the chocolate cake!"

"Hey, I want the chocolate cake!" Ruby was gone next, a petals of red falling behind her. Link grabbed one in mid-air, musing where it came from, especially given the girl's absence.

"Don't bother asking," he heard Weiss say, the girl walking past him with satchel on her hip. Yang was just beside her, giving him a wink as well. He only looked at the flower petal for a moment longer before dropping it, listening the words he thought were wise.

"We'd better go get Nora before something bad happens," Jaune spoke up, clumsily moving his way to the stairs. Link saw him nearly trip twice, despite there being no one in the way and no obstacles aside from a chair. He tilted his head in confusion. But before he could ask anything, the boy was already to the steps, traversing them to the exit. Ren was just behind him, saying not a word to Link.

"I'm sorry," Pyrrha spoke up now, the only other student in the room. She had her hands folded in front of her as she spoke. He did not know why. "I hope I didn't offend you with my question. I am only curious how you were able to pull off such a feet. But we can discuss it later! Maybe during lunch?" Her head tilted slightly, one screwing itself as she awaited his response.

"Sure, why not," Link hear Tatl say, as the first to speak up for him. It was only because he felt his muscles stiffen that he didn't look up at her. "But let's eat first. Been a long day and all that." Link saw a small smile pull at the knight-in-training's lips.

"Oh, thank you! I look forward to hearing it. I'll see you at lunch then." She took only two steps up the stairs before turning back to him. "Um, I'm sorry, but do you know how to get to the cafeteria?"

"You mean that big place with tables that hands out lots of food?" Pyrrha nodded at Tatl's overly specific question. "Yup, got that one covered. We'll meet you there."

The girl smiled again, nodding towards them both before walking up the stairs. Link noticed that even her gait was well-practiced, controlled in every way that mattered. Among the many trainees he had seen, she was easily the most dedicated to the craft. When she was out the door, however, he turned his attention to the fairy above him, letting one brow raise as he stared at her.

"What? They're gonna find out anyway." Well, Link knew she wasn't entirely wrong. "Besides, Red, Black, and Yellow all said that they were good friends. With the black cat, that must mean they won't think too much about anything you can do." That was… black cat? He gave the fairy another curious look, earning a ring from the elder of his two companions.

"Didn't notice that, did ya?" She asked with a jovial tone. Link snorted in response, knowing what was coming next. "C'mon, it's not hard to figure out. What with the way she was gushing over Hyrule and all that, wondering every little thing about this 'faunus' country. She either is one or wants to be, but no one wears a bow like that unless their ten or hiding something." Link didn't bother to point out they weren't in Hyrule anymore.

He knew they weren't, and Tatl did, too. They were all a long way from home.

"Hey," Tatl spoke, easily breaking Link out of his quick dip into melancholy memories. "Wake up Tael so we can get something to eat. I know the way." She swung around him as she spoke, dotting him with dust. It made Link smile up at her, thankful for her antics. It was a comfort amongst the unknown.

Link poked at his hat, making the darker fairy stir inside. He felt the weight shift over his hair, moving to the edge of his cap. With a small shift, he felt the young fairy crawl out, dipping momentarily before lifting himself into the air. His wings stretched as he rang, the usual ceremony for rising.

"Wagh," Tael let out. "That felt nice."

"Yeah, sleeping away the day while Link and I bear the weight of attention." Link gave the fairy another soft glare. "Well, alright, mostly you, but hey! Time to eat!" Without another word, the fairy began to flitter through the air, leaving the usual trail of dust for him to follow.

Link let out a small chuckle as he did so, walking up the stairs to follow her. He felt Tael settle on his shoulder, likely still groggy from his nap. He could not fault the fairy any more than he could his elder sister.

But Link did pull at his collar again, wondering if he was allowed to rip it off.

"I'm just saying, a faunus coming to the school in the literal middle of the semester is just weird! How do we know he isn't a spy or something? Maybe they postponed the tournament to check him out."

"Cause Goodwitch and Ozpin let him in? Seriously, what kind of spy would sneak in as the center of attention? And the festival, seriously? That was all the military man, them and the White Fang."

"A good spy is the one who did get in. Do you think he's just the "super" Hunter his glowing mini-drone made him out to be?"

"No way! Sides', I don't believe any mini-drone that thinks it's anything but a mini-drone."

"And Hyrule? Who does that thing think is gonna believe that? Even that aside, he looks like one of Arc's brothers."

"Yeah, they do look like twins, ya know, without the massive ears."

"There is that, but hey, Arc's dad is a hero. Maybe he's had more than one lay. That faunus does seem crazy enough. Maybe he got more than the ears from his mom."

Pyrrha turned away with a scoff when she heard the implications. Her red hair tumbled as she shook her head, heels clicking as she quickly made her way down the hall. She pushed more than a few students away as she did. She justified the action with her anger.

Who were they to insult Link like that? True, she knew no more about him than they did, but all they did was doubt and mock him. Because he was strong? Because his mini-drones… fairies were proud of him? That wasn't fair, especially given the quite nature he had.

It only took small observations to know that Link was humble, if at least just quiet. He didn't boast or declare what he was, appearing more embarrassed then proud when Tatl had spoken. His posture was straight and controlled, if maybe a little uncomfortable in the outfit he wore. Those were all common problems with many students. Yet, he was already being mocked and ridiculed by her fellow students, being called everything from a liar to a bastard, likely just because he was a faunus.

Pyrrha flexed her fists to control herself, sure that if she didn't she would strike out at the next student she heard speak ill of him. It did little good. So instead, she focused her attention on what was to come. Specifically, the cafeteria she had just entered.

It was packed, as was usual for the lunch crowd. Many eager students ready to get their fill before they were stuck between a choice of cold leftovers or vending machines. This far into the year, most of the younger students had wised up to being on top of their three meals a day. Pyrrha herself was already trained to be, knowing first had the effects of eating at odd hours, especially before any rigorous training.

She could already see her team and RWBY sitting at the usual table, two seats still open between them. One was doubtlessly for her, the other just as surely for Link. She smiled, glad that she could trust her friends to be welcome to the new student. Then again, she would have been nothing short of shocked to see Blake do otherwise for another faunus.

Pyrrha turned, entering the line for the cafeteria food, grabbing a tray as she did. There was nothing spectacular to eat today, mashed potatoes with a choice of either hamburgers or chicken salad. Still, it was good to have a full meal. It was not possible to be at the peak of performance if she didn't not eat a proper balance of protein and carbohydrates, muscle building and energy storing macromolecules.

Only a few minutes later did she find her way to the team's usual table, tray in hand with a bun-less hamburger and a small serving of mash potatoes. Nora, to her complete lack of surprise, was whining to Ren about the lack of cake, the near-ever silent boy gently consoling her. Yang and Jaune were having a conversation, though by the way her partner was leaning away from the buxom blonde, she was sure there was more teasing than conversing actually occurring.

"-ell me that you don't think he's not related to you. Sure you wouldn't mind having a brother like him?" Apparently it wasn't the kind of teasing Pyrrha thought it was. Setting her tray down beside Jaune, she heard the conversation take a pause for attention to be turned to her. She was far more than used to it.

"Hey Pyrrha," Yang spoke up easily to her, diverting her conversation away from Jaune as easily water did against a rock. "So what do you think about Link? See anything you like about him?" Pyrrha turned an emerald eye to the brawler of team RWBY, seeing only a cheshire like grin splitting the eldest member's features.

"I believe that he does not deserve the many assumptions that are being made about him." She nodded at the words, speaking honestly to what she felt. She always did. Well… almost always did. "As for similarities, I saw him use a hammer and boomerang against team CRDL. I fail to see Jaune using such an unconventionally heavy weapon."

"I'm gonna take that as a compliment." Pyrrha grinned at Jaune's words, the boy pointedly looking down at the table as he spoke them. "But, didn't that mi-fairy, say that he was a swordsman, killing ancient Grimm, regularly." All true points.

"Oh! Trust me, I believe he can!" Pyrrha picked up a fork as she turned to look at Ruby, the young team leader grinning like her sister. The difference now was that the younger of the two did it with earnest glee, while the elder did it for cruel satisfaction. "You should have seen him going to town on the beowulves in the Emerald Forest. He was taking them without so much as a thought! He cut and slashed and stabbed, oh! And they he shot freaking beams out of his swords!"

"Those were likely a form of dust manipulation he and his faunus brethren developed back in his homeland." Pyrrha heard Weiss respond, but the dueling master was just as focused on the harsh glare Blake sent the heiress. No surprise as to why. It was just as surprising to see Weiss ignore her, taking a bit of her potatoes before speaking again. "I'm more impressed with his strength, lifting trees and large portions of the earth as a means to attack."

"When did he use a tree?" Nora, of all people, asked. "I remember him going BAM BAM BAM on Cardin before, like squashing a mean bug. But I never saw him pick up a tree. Was I sleeping?"

"Yeah, sorry, that was during his first test, the one where Goodwitch got a little anal and said he broke the rules." Pyrrha saw Yang take a large bit of her hamburger as she finished. By large, she meant a good quarter of the patty. It was as impressive as it was disturbing. "Unless you want the nitty gritty details, He basically chopped a tree down with his sword, picked up, and then slammed it down on the beowolves too stupid to get out of the way."

Pyrrha had to admit, that was a significant level of strength, well beyond what she thought someone of Link's stature was capable of.

"Wow that is kinda… insane? Yeah, that's a good word for it. Definitely insane." Jaune spoke from aside Pyrrha again, spinning his potatoes with his fork. "He kills Grimm with trees and beats up Cardin with the earth itself. Talk about overkill." Beowolves and CRDL, but Pyrrha still didn't know about one more of Link's supposed foes.

"So, how was he able to kill the Nevermore?"

The famed duelist found herself blinking when every member of team RWBY stared at her, frozen like deer in track lights. She looked left and right, assuring herself that she hadn't spoken out of turn. It was entirely possible. But to her relief, both Jaune and Ren looked equally confused, Nora looking more annoyed than anything else.

"Um," Ruby hummed, suddenly looking much smaller than before. "He, uh… Link decided to… to…"

"He asked a friend for help." That voice didn't belong to any of the girls.

Pyrrha turned to see a dark mini-drone flying above her, hovering with translucent wings and a dark trail of dust behind it. It took her a full-moment to remember the thing's name, just long enough for her to remember it was a fairy, not a drone. It took just as long for the creature to hover over and sit cautiously on Blake's shoulder, leaning close to the dark faunus.

"Well, the peeping-tom returns." Pyrrha gave Weiss an odd look when she spoke the name. She only doubled it when she noticed Yang making a similar expression as the Schnee heiress.

"I told you it was an accident, and I'm still really sorry." Tael, as Pyrrha remembered the dark fairy's name to be, seemed to shiver and sink deeper against Blake's shoulder. The faunus lightly held up her hand, perhaps to comfort the dark creature. It rang in what she assumed was approval. She couldn't help but relate the sight to a bird and its caretaker.

"Yeah, cause a few apologies makes everything better," Yang retuned the dark creature, leaning over Blake to get a better view of it. Pyrrha swore she could hear the dark fairy shivering, or perhaps she just heard him ringing.

"Something tells me I really don't want to know what happened." It took Pyrrha a moment to realize it was Jaune talking to her, whispering at that. She leaned into his voice, grateful for his confidence in her. She nodded at his words, likely thinking the same thing. Besides, there was something else she was far more curious of.

"Um, Tael?" She spoke the fairy's name for the first time. She couldn't see him per say, due to the bright illumination he gave off, but she could just as well make out his translucent wings rising at her voice. Thankfully, Yang seemed to back off as well. "What did you mean by Link asking a… 'friend' for help? I thought he was new here."

"He is," the fairy admitted easily, though Pyrrha did not miss the stiffness in the other girls of RWBY still. What was going on? She hated unknowns or secrets. "But he brought his friends with him. He'd never leave them alone."

"A remarkable feat." Ren spoke for the first time. Pyrrha could tell without looking he was nodding in satisfaction.

"But… where are they now?" Jaune spoke up this time, leaning across the table to do so. Pyrrha remembered to tell him later he just got mashed potatoes over his uniform. Specifically after the question was answered.

She could tell the fairy was getting ready to answer, wings lightly perking and dark light flashing. But before he could, Blake chose to speak up as she raised her hand to the Tael again.

"Perhaps it would be best for Link to show you." She answered in one of the most vague responses Pyrrha had ever heard. "Trust me, you won't believe us if we told you."

"Where is Link anyway?" Yang asked, perhaps in a slightly wise decision on her part to diver the conversation. Wise for her, but less so for Pyrrha. "I mean, the perv's here, but where's the rest of the little trio."

"They're coming," Tael spoke up. "They're just in line getting food. I… I didn't like everyone staring at us." Pyrrha raised a brow at the statement.

"Staring…" she repeated before looking to the food line. Sure enough, despite the large number of students present, nearly all had their attention focused on only one student in the line, complete with a golden fairy floating above his head.

Link was holding a tray of food near the end of the food court, staring at something that Pyrrha couldn't see. She knew the rest of her team and team RWBY were watching him now as well, likely curious about what would happen. Link, however, despite the many eyes on him, didn't appear to feel uncomfortable at all.

He wasn't shaking in his boots, looking curiously left or right, trying to hunch over and make himself smaller, or anything else of the sort. He simply appeared to be appraising the food in front of him, Tatl above waving with her bright golden light. In an anti-climatic fashion, he lifted his tray and left the line, either not noticing or not paying attention to the many students who watched him. Given his supposed experience in combat, it was very likely the latter.

Pyrrha's emerald eyes saw Link as he spotted them, smile noticeably brightening when he did. For a moment, she had to remind herself that he wasn't Jaune, and that the smile wasn't cheerful for seeing her. She still felt a light blush upon her cheeks.

With a still surprising level of apathy for the gazes focused on him, Link sat down at the table, just beside Blake and Ruby. Tael picked himself off of the dark girl, flying around her before perching himself on Link's hat. The faunus looked up, grinning at the dark creature. Pyrrha, meanwhile, noticed what Link was eating.

Chicken Salad. Lots and lots of chicken salad. It took up the whole tray.

"Wow! You must be hungry," Nora was the first to comment on the food. She did so while leaning over Ren and onto the table, the boy being amazingly passive about the action. Likely a result of frequency. "Are you gonna eat all of that right now? Maybe you're gonna save some for later. I know I would! The hard part is figuring out where to hide it all! Oh! Maybe you can use one of your super deep pockets, like the hammer!" And in the insanity of the response, wisdom managed to shine through.

"I am also curious how you were able to fit such large items into that belt. I find it difficult to believe they were simply folded away." That was Blake, leaning next to Link as she spoke.

"Yeah, tell us about the magic belt!" Ruby this time, eager as the child she truly was.

"Whoa whoa! Hey, we just sat down, can't we eat first?" Tatl spoke up as she flew between the group, gold dust trailing behind her as she spoke. Pyrrha wondered for not the first time since seeing the odd ball of light if the dust was truly Dust or merely a convenient comparison.

Her words worked, earning a disappointed huff from Ruby, whine from Nora, and only the usual silence from Blake. Pyrrha watched it all passively. She knew when it was time to act and time to watch. This was most definitely the latter.

Link only picked up his fork, hiding beneath his mountain of food, using it to puncture the greens and meat with ease. While he may not have eaten the food with grace, he didn't slobber it nor shove it into his mouth by the handful, per Nora's usual response to cupcakes or other sugary treats. He did, however, seem to eat the large quantity with ease. Maybe he really did intend to eat it all.

"I'm surprised you eat with grace," Weiss spoke up, earning a small look from Link as he chewed. "I assumed you would try and eat with your hands." Pyrrha could blame Blake little for the harsh glare she sent the heiress.

"Yeah, because you can totally eat in a castle without manners." For such a small creature, Pyrrha couldn't help but be impressed by the retort coming from Tatl. "No, seriously though, maybe he didn't grow up with them, but Link knows how to eat like a noble. Does that suit your needs, princess? Or would you prefer he eats some cheese with your wine." This time, the red-haired duelist couldn't hold back her smirk. She heard Jaune give a short snort of laughter. Yang had that without restraint. It only worsened when Weiss scrunched her nose and pouted at the Tatl.

"Excuse me?" The heiress responded. "I'll have you know that I do not whine. I only offer constructive criticism for the behavior of others, in hopes that they will be able to improve themselves justly."

"Unless all you're doing is criticizing," Tatl fired back. "Because then, you know, it's whining." Weiss was starting to fume. Pyrrha counted the seconds until Ruby intervened.

"Okay, um, let's talk about something else!" She didn't even make it to two. It was hard to say Ruby was anything but dedicated to her partner and team. "Like, um… how we have Oobleck's class next, right?" Not the best of diversions, not in Pyrrha's mind, but it was satisfactory.

"Yeah, Doctor Oobleck," Jaune agreed, nodding his head. Pyrrha also noticed the roll of his eyes. That and the mash potatoes and gravy on the front of his shirt. "I have ten lien saying he's going to talk about the significance of the White Fang attack. I-I mean, yeah, that's important and all, but I'm pretty sure we know why it happened. Half the reason is right across from us."

"Uh, don't remind me about that," Yang drolled out, dropping her burger in assumed annoyance. She put her hand to her head, likely to keep her precious locks from falling into the burger. But what Pyrrha also noticed was Link. Specifically, how he had finally shown a sign of listening to the conversation. His eyes were on the girls beside him, ears momentarily twitching.

"Why? Get your butt handed to you?" Tatl asked from above. Or maybe it was taunted. It was hard for Pyrrha to tell. The glare Yang returned, however, was rather impressive. And here she was thinking Blake was the best with the silent stare. "Oh, so you really did get taken down, huh? Tough break."

"What, that's it?" The blonde accused. "No mockery of how great Link would have done. No insults or nitpicks?" That was… probably a bit too far, at least Pyrrha thought so. The golden fairy only rang lightly, shaking as she did so. It seemed she dropped a bit more of the usual golden dust when she did.

"Hey, I'm not gonna poke fun at you when you're already on the bottom," Tatl returned, though with a clear lack of empathy in her voice. Pyrrha took a bite of her hamburger as she listened. She heard Jaune take a sip of milk as well. "There's no fun in kicking something when it's already down. The real thrill is pushing someone off of their high-and-mighty pedestal. Like, say, a spoiled little girl who thinks she's better than someone she's never met." Now Pyrrha heard Jaune spit milk out of his nose, fruitlessly wiping up the mess. She couldn't blame him, not while she was choking on her burger. She could even make out Ren's sudden surprise from the corner of her gaze.

"Are you calling me a brat?" Weiss seethed at the fairy.

"I'm not calling you saint!" Tatl was only hair width's away from the alabaster girl's face.

Pyrrha just knew one of them was going to be slapped. The deathly silence that followed their question and accusation told her she wasn't the only one who thought so.

"Perhaps… now would be a good time for Link to discuss his friends?" Of all the voices she thought would cut through the tense air, Ren's was surely the last. Ironically, Nora's was the first. "He is finished eating." Pyrrha looked down at the faunus's plate, sure that Ren was mistaken.

But where once a mountain of chicken salad, there was nothing but a plastic tray and metal fork. Link wasn't even chewing the last of it.

"Whoa!" Nora, now predictably shouted. "That was really fast! Do you do everything fast? I mean you got into Beacon fast, you built of Cardin and Bully Gang fast, you ate fast… does that mean in bed you're also-"

"Let's… talk about the friends." Once more Pyrrha was reminded why she was thankful for Jaune's leadership, even with potatoes over his shirt and blushing in his cheeks. "I… really want to know who your friends are. They sound like good guys."

Attention now turned to Link, Pyrrha noticed how relax he appeared. There was no hesitation or trepidation to his gaze. She would have recognized either of those from her many battles against unfairly matched opponents. No, if anything he was… calm? Maybe, at least calmer with the way his ears slightly dropped as if loosing tension. He even adjusted his pointed hat slightly, moving the dark fairy atop it.

Pyrrha waited for him to say something, anything really. Dueling may have taught her patience, but in her experience thus far, people were far more willing to speak or at least give signs that they weren't going to. Link had neither of those. Instead, he only lifted his hand, pulling at the collar of his shirt. That must have been really bothering him. But before she could say as such, his hand dipped into his jacket, reaching for something she couldn't see.

When he pulled it out, he was holding a mask.

Pyrrha would admit first she was not the most social of butterflies, but she knew a mask when she saw one. She knew it because of its slightly-oval but open shape, of the empty sockets where likely belonged the eyes, the thin lines that were supposedly the mask, and of course, the near exact size it was to a head. That was where all the similar qualities to a mask ended.

This mask was blue as a cloudless sky, trimming to white along the bridge of the nose and edges near the ears. At least, where Pyrrha assumed the ears would be. Where ears would normally sit were instead two fin like projections, dotted darker shades of blue and curving until they were at points. Only a thin trace of a line made up what was assumedly the mouth. To Pyrrha, it almost appeared like… a fish.

"Okay, now I'm confused." She was glad Jaune was more vocal with his weaknesses than she was. "I mean, don't get me wrong, please. It's a cool mask but… that's a mask. Made of wood. Not alive."

"Oh no no no no no," Yang spoke up, shaking her head with the words. She stopped only to chuckle, which did no favors to Pyrrha's rising tension. This honestly felt like she was in the midst of a horror story. She prayed that was untrue. "Just goin' off of what his last little… friend did, this is puppy is anything but a 'wooden mask'." Pyrrha only noticed the stall in Yang's voice when Tatl began to ring highly.

She really was missing something rather important here.

"Can… someone please explain, what we're missing?" Pyrrha looked over her shoulder as she asked the question. There were a few odd looks, though they were mostly directed at the obvious suspect. "I'm sorry, but I don't understand."

"The mask holds the memories of Link's friends." All eyes went to Blake as she spoke. Pyrrha watched her golden gaze stare transfixed on the wooden mask. The duelist recognized the ire in the stare, one she had directed at her many times through many meets. But just as easily, she recognized the longing. Those mostly came from colleagues looking for advice. "It's… different to watch."

"A Philospher Stone?" Pyrrha turned her attention to Ren, the boy seemingly impassive to the object in their midst, but his speech alone was indication of more than simply inert attention. It was easy to miss with the talk and clambering of the cafeteria around them. "An object that records and stores memories for others to see at a later date. They are… extremely rare."

"Yeah, well, they're still rare," Tatl spoke up from above Link's head, waving above both the green-hatted faunus and her dark light brother. "This mask is more than just a 'recording' of memories. It is their memories. And by memories, I mean emotions, feelings, thoughts, and even the body they came in."

Now Pyrrha was lost in a void of confusion she had no hope of escaping. It didn't feel nice.

"She is not joking," Weiss spoke up now, crossing her arms and pointedly avoiding eye contact with the mask. She appeared to be assessing the crowd of students around them, all giving only passive looks to Link before looking away. "We all watched Link wear another mask like that, one that was far more avian than amphibian. And, I assure you my next statement is made with absolute clarity, Link transformed."

"Wait, there are more of those?" Now Pyrrha was reminded of why she sometimes felt sorry for Jaune. His lips moved when they weren't supposed to. He laughed uncomfortable at the heated glare Tatl gave him. At least, Pyrrha thought it was that, given the way she nearly slammed into him. "Heh heh, sorry. U-Um… I-I mean he has more friend's here, right?"

"Yeah, eight more." Oh, that was a lot.

Pyrrha's emerald eyes looked back at the mask, staring at it with what she could think was only a mix of horror and confusion. Link, however, by only a quick glance, was gazing on it sensibly. No different, the red-haired duelist realized, than she might for Jaune, Ren, or Nora.

What was going on?

"How does-"

"Look, I'd really like to explain for the fourth time how Link's friends end up in pieces of wood, but I think once a day is often enough for me." Tatl bobbed as she cut off Pyrrha, seemingly done with any further questions. "You want to know how they work, ask Team Ruby Red over here about that." The fairy floated above each of the girls as she spoke, dotting them with little trails of gold dust. Only Weiss attempted to wave the tiny creature away.

"But, if you're curious…" Tael spoke up now, still sitting atop Link's hat. His dark light made it impossible to see if he was actually sitting, standing, or floating above the point of perch. "The mask was made from the memories of a Zora Musician, Mikau." Pyrrha glanced quickly at the five visible faces across from her.

Ruby looked excited, a child listening to a story, Weiss and Blake both looked curious, likely for polarizing reasons, and Yang looked like she was getting ready to watch a Scroll Show, burger in hand even. Only Link appeared any different, looking upwards at his fairy only a moment before looking back down at the blue mask in his hand. She really wanted to talk to him alone sometime.

"Mikau was the guitarist, from a collection of Zora in the Great Bay. Um… in case you don't know, Zora's are fish-like people, living underwater and usually isolated from others. Mikau, a-and his band, however, played for a lot of different people across the land. He played with other Zoras, Evan, Japas, Tijo, and Lulu, the main singer of the band. They were called the Indigo-go's." Pyrrha heard the blonde across from her snort. She was thankful Blake gave Yang a swift slap over the head. Apparently Link was, too, by the way he looked at the blonde accusingly. He did, however, pocket the mask again, looking up at Tael, after pulling at his collar again.

"If I remember correctly," Yang was talking, one of her hands pinching the bridge of her nose. "You said Deku Butler's son, Goron Hero, and Zora Warrior. There were like, I don't know six more after that-"

"Five."

"Five, what I said," Yang carried on without missing a beat. "But now you're saying Mikau is a musician?"

"Mikau was descended from a line of Zora warriors, b-but he never actually fought. Trained, yeah, apparently, but not against others. He instead, just played instruments and made music, enjoying it more to make others smile, no matter if they were Zora, Goron, Gerudo, Deku, Hylian, or anything else." Pyrrha had to wonder what else there was. She knew just human, faunus, and Grimm.

"But… one-day… a-a group of pirates attacked his home." Pyrrha already knew what was going to happen. Stories like this never had a good ending. "They only stole one thing. Lulu's eggs." She wasn't the only one who gasped. She heard Yang crush something, the same with Nora.

"Y-You see, Mikau and Lulu, they were… um…" If possible, Pyrrha thought she saw the little ball of darkness flash a shade of red. "Together… alone… a lot…"

"They were a couple," Blake kindly added. Odd to Pyrrha, only because the dark faunus lacked the usual apathy to her voice. Apathy that was present in all matters but the White Fang.

"Y-Yeah, but… that meant the eggs weren't just Lulu's… they were Mikau's, too." Pyrrha was right before; she hated where this was going. "So… when he found out, he went after them. It didn't matter to him that they were better trained… or stronger… or more prepared. He… He just wanted his family back."

Pyrrha felt an uncomfortable silence settle over the small group. True silence was kept away by the talk of student's around them, complete with laughter and good cheer. She suddenly wished deeply that some of that would come to her friends, because the duelist had no idea how to fight of the sudden melancholy Tael's story had brought.

She could feel Jaune slouching next to her, just as easily as she could sense Nora leaning heavily on Ren. The most passive member of their group appeared to take his title seriously, crossing his arms and staring at his half-finished plate of greens. He made not a move otherwise.

Team RWBY across from them was faring less as well. Ruby looked as if tears were on the edge of her vision, hands likely wringing her skirt beneath the table. Yang had her gaze hidden with her locks, completely spun around in her seat to avoid any kind of eye-contact with the group. Even Blake and Weiss, the two most collected members of the team, appeared affected by the story. Though Pyrrha couldn't read them at all.

Even Link, the faunus at the center of all of this, had his hands folded on the table in front of him, staring at them coldly with his blue eyes. They were noticeably sharper, like a competitor she might meet in the ring, sizing her up to decide how to strike. This could not have been a pleasant memory for him. And Tael was telling a story about it… like it was normal… oh by the Dust.

"H-He saved them, r-right?" A bit of Pyrrha's heart broke at the voice of RWBY's team leader. It didn't help to hear Yang whisper her sister's name brokenly. It certainly didn't help to see the tears starting to fall down her face.

"He… Y-Yeah, h-h-he didn't make it. B-But he saved them, right? Right?" Ruby wasn't looking at Tael.

She was looking at Link.

The faunus, stared back at her, the subtle joy in his eyes from when he stared at the mask gone. Now there was only a stare met with his long ears drooping, lips as silent as Pyrrha had heard them so far. His hands were flexing and unflexing on the table, clearly as unsure of what to say as the rest of them.

"Link saved them." Tael's voice was like a hammer to the void.

Ruby looked up at the dark creature, watching as the younger of the two fairies softly floated to just in front of the young girl's silver gaze. He didn't say a word. No one did.

"Link saved them… with Mikau's help." Ruby was starting to sniffle again, tears continuing to fall. Her body was shaking, shivering almost. It took Pyrrha no time to imagine why.

"I-I'm sorry." The fairy spoke in a softer tone. Pyrrha almost missed it with the cacophony of noise from the students around them. She didn't miss for a moment Tael hovering closer to Ruby, stopping only when he sat on the bridge of her nose. The way small girl leaned into the touch, arms curling up, it almost appeared to be... like a hug.

"I… I-I shouldn't have said all that. I-I'm sorry. I'm… I'm so sorry. I'm-"

"Hey, hey, Tael," Tatl spoke to her younger sibling. Pyrrha, even through the clear blanket of sorrow lain over them now, could tell her voice lacked any of the pride or power she usually spoke with. That, and the way the golden fairy hovered to the darker of the two. "It's alright. Hey, c'mon. Relax. It's okay."

At that point, Pyrrha put her head in her hands.

Everything she was taught about social interactions and dueling told her it was a foolish move to make. It either made it impossible to follow your opponent, limited your senses, or made it appear that you were detached from the conversation. But, in honesty, she didn't want to be a part of this anymore. She wanted to know more about Link. She wanted to hear where he had come from, what he was doing here, why he was so dedicated to his friend, not… she didn't want to hear how someone died for their family, died trying to save… those closest to them.

For Pyrrha there was no mystery about the dangers of being a Huntress. A single mistake in a Grimm hunt was far different than that of dueling a fellow combatant. The latter would back off, take a point in a match and have the advantage. The former would kill her, leave nothing but blood stained armor behind. She knew that when she first dedicated herself to be a Huntress and she knew it just as well now.

But… listening to a story about it. Hearing about someone who couldn't help their family… Wait… Tael said that Mikau did help, didn't he?

"H-How did-" She raised her head from her hands, ready to ask her question. But, she found no one to ask it to.

Link, Tatl, and Tael were all gone. An empty seat in the cafeteria all the sign that they were there.

Pyrrha's eyes quickly scanned the quartet in front of her, seeing only the same somber faces and avoiding stares. She looked beyond them, seeing neither the pointed ears of the faunus, his long green hat, or even the fairies who accompanied him. She turned then, scanning around herself as well. She saw Jaune leaning back, hand over his eyes as if in thought. She saw Nora leaning on Ren, hugging him with likely more strength than was necessary, and the boy she held looked impassive as ever, eyes shut and mouth tight. But no Link.

"Where did he go?" She asked aloud, but received no answer. Not immediately, anyway.

Weiss looked at her, the stunning blue of her eyes lightly outline in red, unshed tears attempting to fall. Pyrrha did not want, and frankly refused, to imagine the reason why a girl would find the story of a man failing to save his family, as tear worthy. Yang looked over her shoulder at the duelist, the lavender of her eyes not outlined in red, but rather hinting towards a shade of it. Pyrrha already knew the answer to why there.

"I think… we should go to class early." It was Jaune's voice that broke the melancholy, to Pyrrha's immense relief. Though when she looked at him, his posture had not changed. "At least… I don't want to be here anymore. That was way… way more than I wanted to hear." He slouched forward as he finished, hand finally falling from his face.

"Yeah," she hard Yang's gruff reply. There was no patience in her tone now. "Right after we answer the obvious question."

"Y-Yang?" It was Ruby that called her sister's name miserably. Pyrrha was loathe to say it, but she was the best one to do so.

The brawler looked at her sister for a moment, letting the silence return. But not a moment later did she stand, walking around her two other teammates to sit beside her sister. Instantaneously, Ruby fell against her elder sibling's shoulder, hiding herself in the long golden locks. Yang put a hand around her, pulling her in close. No one said anything, Pyrrha feeling her mouth dry.

"You should know, now at least." It was Blake that spoke up this time. Her long dark locks had fallen over the gold of her gaze, making it even further improbable for Pyrrha to see what she was feeling. "You kept me a secret. Link… or Tael I guess, probably wouldn't have told you if he didn't trust you."

"Are… we getting sworn into some… big… secret or something?" Jaune sounded completely exhausted. Pyrrha couldn't blame him. "Cause that's what this feels like. Feels like we're about to be told some grand secret… or mystery… or both."

"It's both," Weiss answered curtly. Just as quickly she dapped at napkin at her eyes, likely being careful of the make-up she wore. "Believe me, it is definitely a secret worth keeping, because it is a mystery."

Pyrrha swallowed heavily on nothing as she leaned in closer, careful to move her food away.

"We told them. We actually told them."

"They were bound to find out anyway."

"I-I know but… won't Link be mad?"

"I think Link and his fairies are far more upset with themselves than us. After all, Tael did tell that… tale about Mikau."

Blake could nearly hear the somberness return to the air.

They were alone, just the four of them, walking the halls to Oobleck's class early of all things. It was something she was sure would never happen with teammates like Ruby and Yang. If anything, she could usually trust Weiss to replace any other emotion in the group with rage or aggravation. Yet, none of that mattered now.

Blake knew as well as almost anything else in her life that stories of the dead were never an easy thing to tell, not when they were so recently related to the living. Tales of heroes from centuries ago? Those were the kind of stories she grew up on, listening to them as she moved from orphanage to White Fang base. Stories about White Fang members beaten to death? Those were reminders handed out that they were seen as far from equal. One brought hope, the other only misery.

Yang had told her before about her mother, about Ruby's mother as well. She knew they were well and familiar with loss. But maybe that was the problem. Ruby was always so happy, always trying to do what would make others happy. She didn't have to be a member of the team the young girl led to know that she actively looked for the best in things. To hear about a faunus… assumingly… that died trying to save his family, from pirates at that… they could not have been good.

She felt the familiar detail-oriented part of her mind remind her that Tael said nothing about death, at least not when it came. But the four of them, they knew by the dark fairy's words exactly what he meant 'with Mikau's help.' Link took on the memories of the deceased musician, a warrior only in blood and training, to save what he could not. Another strike for nobility, another cross to bear. Link didn't appear any more thrilled with the story.

So why tell them?

Blake could tell he was not a faunus that acted out of pure instinct, not when decisions were made out of battle. He conversed with his fairies, he actively weighed pros and cons. Those were the markings of a weathered life, not an eager and happy faunus. But then again, he didn't tell them. Tael did.

But Tael was never once stopped by Link. He was literally sitting on the foreign faunus's head, but never made a move to stop him. At most, Link only soured his expression and put away the remains of his friend, a concept she could still not look up easily. He either wanted them to know, or trusted them to know. Either meant he might now regret his decision.

Still… where her past taught her masks were a means to hide the evil of one's self, Link wore them to bring out the best of his long gone friends. With time, hopefully she could some to see it that way.

Blake looked back at her team, somber as ever and looking in direction varying from the ground to the ceiling. They were not people she would have normally thought of as friends. Quite in fact, a year ago she might have said they were the example of all the White Fang stood against, not in the least including Weiss on the list. Yet now… they were people she would trust her life to, and already had.

Yes, change was possible. Too bad memories didn't fade as easily.

Blake's thoughts ceased as she reached the double doors to Dr. Oobleck's class, putting her hand on the large doors. She turned back to see her teammates, all stopping and waiting for her. Their expressions were on her, but they had changed little from before. She smiled at them still, hoping to gain something from this.

Only Ruby smiled back at her, face still stained with the trails of her tears. Weiss and Yang only scoffed. It was something, and that was more than nothing. Blake knew the emptiness that brought. She opened the door and walked into the expectedly empty room.

All except the now familiar faunus and his two fairies.

Blake saw him first, staring at him carefully as she made her way down the steps and to the familiar row of seats. She didn't turn around to judge her teammates, already sure they wearing their own masks of welcome. Link, however, smiled lightly when he saw them, almost shyly. It took Blake a moment to correct herself. It was more nervous than shy, likely from being self-aware of his mistake.

"H-Hey Ruby…" Now Blake turned around to see Tael floating above her team leader. His wings were noticeably dipped, far more than before. Clearly he felt guilty about what he had done. That was… something. "I'm… I'm really sorry again. I-I didn't know that telling you about Mikau would-"

"I-It's alright," Ruby returned, tripping over her first word as she attempted to wave her hand dismissively. It didn't work. "I-I mean, yeah that story was sad and… h-he didn't get to say goodbye and… a-and…" Yang put a hand on her sister's shoulder, stopping her from speaking further.

"No offense Tael, but maybe you should give her a bit of time." There was the elder sister Blake knew well. Well from constant threats against anyone with a grudge on Ruby at least. "Just… that wasn't the best story to tell us. Coulda' used some forewarning there."

"I-I know, or I-I know now." The latter was more likely, in Blake's opinion. "But… I really don't want you to avoid Link." That… got Blake's attention.

"Link?" Blake spoke up. She turned her head to the faunus, him looking at them with an unchanging expression of nervous greeting. Nervous for what now, she wondered. "You were the one who told us about Mikau."

"Y-Yeah, but he's the one who calls Mikau a friend." The fairy dipped as he spoke, probably just keeping himself from falling to the floor.

Now that Blake thought about it, it was rather surprising that his sister wasn't flying to his rescue, much like Yang to Ruby. That meant she either thought he had to deal with this himself, probably but unlikely given her reaction in the cafeteria. Or… this was something that they talked about doing. But that was unlikely due to the short amount of time between Link leaving and them arriving. The third option was… likely, actually.

"This has happened before, hasn't it?" Blake ignored the looks her teammates gave her. She would have to explain later that the White Fang taught her how to do more than simply fight. You had to know how to read someone just as well as a crowd a when you were crossing blades, scythes, or even fists.

"Yeah," Tael admitted, confirming her theory. "B-But… don't blame him. I-I screwed up. I thought that… you guys have been so nice to us… maybe you'd want to know more about them. I mean… I-I guess… I was wrong, wasn't I?"

There was a very pregnant silence that followed. Blake found herself staring at the dark fairy, wings dropping like the ears of a faunus in pain. She found herself at a massive disadvantage, unable to read him but at the complete mercy of being read. She didn't like it, so she changed to look at Link.

He was watching them still, twisted in his seat. His expression had changed though, the tight smile and fidgeting hands replaced with a melancholy one and lax arms. Tael confirmed this had happened before and, judging by Link's reaction, it usually went wrong. People would walk away from him, fearful of such a thing, unable to cope with a lost one likely. But it also meant something else.

Whatever the mask truly was, whatever song Link played to give Elrora, Mikau, and the other souls of his friends peace, it was just as uncommon in Hyrule as it was here.

A fearful thought Blake that it was his Semblance at work, but she dismissed it. A semblance did not require items to work. They needed only concentration and recognition of who you were. But then, at that, she dismissed analyzing the faunus as well. There was really no need to in the moment. Link was someone who did trust them. Someone that took a leap of faith and told them more of his friends who passed away, even while knowing what one consequence of that was. Even now, he was anticipating avoidance, of them actively seeking excuse from him.

But if there was one thing Blake would never do, it was turn away from a fellow faunus looking for friendship.

With little hesitation, she walked the few steps necessary to stand beside Link. He looked up at her, likely curious for her next action, smiling dropping and eyes blinking. She only smiled down at him. Then, with as much grace as the creature she shared DNA with, she sat herself down next to him. She rested her head on her hand, looking at him as he stared back at her, still blinking.

"I'm not going to fault you for trusting us." She explained, voice showing none of the emotion she fought with just before. "You're kind, selfless, and at worse trying too hard to fit in. There's no reason for you to rush anything. Talk to us about who you are, about the friend you're looking for. Don't try and talk about something unpleasant to show us your good faith."

Blake watched Link curiously, watching as his slightly parted slips slipped into an easy smile, relaxed in every way. His blue eyes softened, blonde locks falling lightly as he dipped his head in the motion. She heard him breath slightly heavier, likely as much of a chuckle as she would hear from her silent brethren. Looking back up at her, he moved his lips, forming a few words she heard readily as any other.

Thank You

She nodded towards him, thankful he so easily reciprocated her efforts. Better that then self-loathing. Blake looked beyond him then, seeing her fellow team members watching. At her gaze, two turned away. The last, Ruby for course, continued to stare. Her face was no less of a mess, but she was no longer sniffling on unshed tears.

Slowly, far slower than Blake thought possible for the energetic young girl, she made her way to Link's side as well, opposite side. He turned to look at her, hiding his expressions form the curious feline faunus.

"Um… I… may have over-reacted," Ruby began, voice like a child caught with a guilty conscious. "I just… I don't like hearing about things like that. I'd rather-" her voice cut off as Link put his hand on her head.

In a far more audible laugh, light and full of cheer, he rubbed the top of her head. Ruby was frozen for a moment, but only that. Just as quickly she recovered.

"H-Hey, stop that!" she pitifully responded, swatting at his hands as she attempted to back up. Link must have relented faster than Ruby intended, as Blake her quickly stumbling backwards, Link's hand in the air.

When Blake saw the familiar pout on her young leader's face, she knew all was forgiven.

Ruby, on the other hand, didn't have much time to respond before another hand was placed on her hand, the dark haired girl giving a quick but audible noise of protest. Yang was far less likely to relent to her younger sibling. If history wasn't enough, the Cheshire grin on the elder sibling's face said it all. Blake hid hers beneath her hand, giving the look of deep thought.

"Looks like your back to normal," the elder of the sisters spoke up, starting to shake the mop of a girl's head with her hand. Ruby gave out a noise Blake could only place between a cough and snarl before she ducked away from contact. Yang chuckled all the while Ruby combed her hair.

"Please, she could bounce back from a trip to the hospital if you gave her enough attention." Weiss responded to the blonde, hands on her hips and smirking ever-so proudly at Ruby. "She lives off of the stuff." Ruby only stuck her tongue out her partner.

"That was… fast." Tatl spoke up behind Blake. The hidden-faunus turned to see the small golden ball of light, floating with only light waves of her translucent wings. "Trust me, I'm not complaining. Just… Tael and I have seen plenty more than a few people start to avoid or outright insult Link before. Honestly didn't expect you guys to turn around so quickly."

"We do have the advantage of having seen Elrora," Blake pointed out, looking back at Link once more. His back was still to her, him watching her trio of friends. "Most of us just aren't used to stories like that yet. On some level, we all recognize it's possible, but knowing what could happen and what did happen are two different things."

Blake turned to look at Tatl again, assuring herself almost that the golden fairy hadn't flown away. But she was still there, listening to the feline girl speak. Blake let her golden slit eyes stare at the odd creature for a moment longer before continuing, all in a voice no louder than a pin's drop.

"Ruby lost her mother in a hunt. Yang's mom left without a word when she was a young girl. Weiss never knew her mother. Mine was killed with my father, trying to defend faunus rights." She felt it was rather unneeded to explain why her voice was so low. These were not things that needed to be said in grand volume. "We've all lost someone who was close to us, all at ages when we were supposed to feel invincible. Listening to stories about someone else who is gone… it doesn't do anything but remind us of what we've lost."

Blake heard the fairy behind her ring, but not a word was spoken. Instead, she felt the golden creature settle on her head, likely sitting just in front of her bow. Her keen senses could feel something lightly playing at her long bangs, still as silent as before.

"We were upset, there is no denying that," she went on. "But we didn't blame Link, or your brother. We just… needed to think. The hardest things to think about are the things you want to forget."

"Why would you want to forget?" Blake was thankful for the softness of the fairy's voice, but that was all.

"Because they're painful to think about. There's not use in remembering pain." It was supposed to be obvious, a lesson many learned at a young age.

"But those memories brought you here." Blake had to remind herself she was talking to a fairy that almost so nearly embodied Yang. Because at this very moment, she sounded almost uncannily like Ozpin. "You're right, you shouldn't be glad for bad memories, but you're wrong to want to forget them. As bad as they are, they are a part of you, just as much as the good ones."

Her words were lightly interrupted by a light squeal from in front of them. Blake looked up to see Ruby holding Tael in her hands, the younger of the two fairies having his wings pointing into the air, likely meaning he was lying down or crouched over in the young girl's palms. Link was just beside her, his own hands lightly outstretched. She didn't know what brought about such a sight, but she knew it was no more important than the words Tatl was speaking, was continuing to speak.

"Bad memories aren't great, but they make us who we are. Take away those, and you wouldn't act like you. It's… not right to say that bad things make you a bad person. Sometimes they make you a better one." She gave a very low and drawn out ring with her words. Blake could only assume that was similar to sigh. She didn't speak a word as the fairy continued, kicking the black locks of her hair.

"Maybe you've already figure it out, but Link's looking for his friend because of all of his bad memories." Tatl let the thought stew in Blake's mind, the faunus knew it. "He's lost… so many friends over the years, even from a young age. People he grew up with, friends he loved to play with, even other warriors he fought with, all gone. His friend… he's looking for her because she might still alive. So do you get it? He's looking for her, because of all the bad memories. He just… forgot about them, he might forget about her."

Blake understood well and wholly what the fairy meant with that.

"Bad memories suck," Tatl spoke in a voice Blake recognized her using far more than before. "But they're there for a reason. Don't throw them out, just live in them. Besides, if things go right, Link might give you another good memory to think about." That… was… what?

"Huh?" Blake was able to let out. But in the same breath of air, the fairy jumped from her dark locks, flapping her translucent wings and flittering in place.

"Don't worry," Tatl spoke up in a tone that sounded remarkably like Yang again. She assumed that meant the quick dialogue was finished. "Just something the three of us thought up after the tears in the dining hall. Could be good, could be bad, but it'll probably be awesome."

Blake had just enough time to raise her hand, ready to voice a question, when the doors to the classroom opened up. She looked up the stairs, seeing the first of she knew would be many students coming to class. Her golden eyes looked up to the clock hanging above the white board, twelve-fifty.

It was almost class time.

She sighed, knowing that any other questions or conversations with the fairy would have to wait until later. Blake scotched herself closer to the desk in front of her, giving room for her teammates to shuffle by. One-by-one, they lined the familiar row of chairs, sitting together and preparing for another super-fast-crash-course in faunus and human relations, an area Blake loathed to love.

Out of the corner of her eye, she saw equally familiar shades of gold and black flitter over Link's hat. One climbed into his cap, the faunus lifting the brim for it to enter. The other settled atop, sitting on the green fabric like a seat. Blake watched Link gaze up, looking at the golden light perched on his head. She heard Tatl ring down to him, likely a sign they had developed together. The smile only made it clear to see.

She turned to her right, seeing Ruby, Weiss, and Yang all staring back at her. More appropriately, to her and Link, all wearing their own signature expressions of satisfaction. From Ruby's beaming expression of joy to Weiss's subtle nods, Blake appreciated them all. She nodded to them, thankful that they were here teammates once more.

Her sharp ears, even through the fabric of her bow, heard the seats in the row behind them moving. She turned, seeing Team JNPR taking their seats. They appeared to be… stable. That was the best word the Ex-White Fang member could conjure.

Blake did not expect fine or great, not after the tale she and her teammates had told them over lunch. She needed a bullhead ride back to Beacon and a lecture from Tatl and Tael to be able to understand the depth of power in Link's masks. She needed days after that to justify their use. Then again, she could admit her bias.

Jaune appeared to be nervous, which was not unusual. He laughed lightly, a lop-sided expression with a weak raise of his hand. Pyrrha, just beside him, only nodded her head politely, a petite smile on her muscled features. Ren did much the same, though with far less movement and without the smile. Nora… she was simply bobbing in her seat, staring at the ceiling, then the desk, then her, then the rest of her teammates. Not unusual for the energetic valkyrie. They all looked stable, but all with one unifying similarity.

All of them avoided eye looking at Link. That she loathed.

Blake looked to Link, seeing him staring ahead with his hands neatly folded on the table in front of him, for a moment anyway. He played with his collar again, pulling at it, before assuming a stiff posture again. His long ears twitched, likely listening to the students around him. Blake did, too.

"That's the new guy, right?"

"Yeah, that mini-drone on his head is all you need. That and the stupid hat."

"Or of course, you know, the ears. Not many faunus get into Beacon."

"There's a reason for that you know. Most faunus aren't spies for the White Fang."

"You think he's with them?"

"How else could he beat an entire team like that? Better yet, who else would know the rules better than a spy?"

"I'm gonna shoot the moon and say someone who works here, how's that?"

"Decent, except that the best way to fake being something is to know enough about it. He just has to act surprised, take a few of these 'rare' tests, and boom, he's in."

"Yeah, just like that, only had to get past Glynda, Ozpin, and one of the biggest anti-faunus families in Beacon. Wouldn't a spy be, oh what's the word for it, covert?"

"You never read the 'Art of War', did you? It's reverse psychology. He gets a lot of attention now, vets that he's legit, then any problems later will just slide off of him, cause he's clean."

"You think that will happen?"

"The White Fang blew up a good quarter of Vale with that train. I don't think slipping a student is beyond them."

"I don't know, I think he's kinda cool. Haven't heard him say a word yet."

"What, you like the strong, quiet, evil types? Go crawl in an alley, I'm sure the rats will be good company to you."

"With those ears he could be part rat."

Blake listened to every subtle whisper as passively as she could. Beneath the table, she clenched her hands into fists, doing her utmost to not snap at any of the voices speaking around her. She looked to her right, unsurprised to see the rest of her team relaxing until Doctor Oobleck's entrance. They couldn't hear what the others were saying. If they could, she knew Yang and Ruby would be all over it.

But the only other soul she knew could hear the voices, the very faunus all their mockery and suspicion was centered around, didn't appear even slightly perturbed. He was stiff, yes, even an amateur eye could see that, but Blake saw only nervousness, not rage. Even Tatl atop Link's head did little more than bob up and down ever so slightly, jumping on the fabric she was on.

Where… they used to this? Mockery of being a faunus Blake could understand, but Link hailed from a kingdom of all faunus. Why was this familiar to him? What painful memory was this all akin to in his mind?

A sudden slamming of a door jarred Blake's thoughts. Her questions would have to wait for later. Doctor Oobleck had entered the classroom.

"Greetings! Welcome back! All of you! It is great to see you all here." Weiss had just finished setting out her paper and pen when Doctor Oobleck entered the classroom. She looked up long enough to see him in the familiar posture of frazzled green hair, improperly tied tie, and coffee mug steaming with liquid. It would likely be refilled thrice over during his lecture.

As soon as her thought finished, she watched the doctor take a long swallow of his beverage, only to immediately place it under the roaster, refilling it with the caffeinated liquid. Thrice just became quadric. Weiss blew a stray strange of alabaster hair out of her eyes. Typical.

"Now! Where do we begin? A good question. One that needs immediate answering." If it was a question they were supposed to answer, they didn't have time. No sooner did the doctor speak in his usual hurried pattern than did he produce a set of papers from his desk. "A lot of anger in recent weeks. A lot of pain. A lot of suffering. Why? Why is that?"

Weiss raised her hand, knowing the question well. The doctor pointed at her with his mug. Weiss knew from prior events she had only a second to respond now.

"Tensions are high throughout Vale due to the White Fang attack and subsequent postponing of the Vale Festival." The heiress watched the doctor's green hair bob with his nod.

"Excellent! Exactly right!" He nodded his a few more times, all at a speed Weiss would be uncomfortable to mimic. "White Fang are pro-rights faunus group. Began with noble goals, noble means. Marches, speeches, proposals, all done very well, large turnouts across all four kingdoms. But things changed quickly, far too quickly."

As the Doctor Oobleck sped over the board, picking up the chalk with one hand as he continued to drink with the other. Weiss took the moment to sneak a glance over to Blake, fully aware of how this subject might affect her. She saw her teammate staring coldly at the board, golden eyes slit. Just behind her, Weiss saw Link, staring at the board as well. He, however, appeared far more relaxed than his faunus counterpart. Likely a benefit of his ignorance. That would soon be fixed here.

"Recent years have shown the White Fang to devolve in their tactics for pro-rights. Marches became riots, speeches turned to lectures, proposals to theft, unfortunate, all of it." As he spoke, Weiss jotted down what little she felt important to look up later. There was no use trying to keep pace with a man running on pitchers worth of caffeine. So far she had White Fang past and de-evolution. It didn't take a wise mind to see how that would spark a few flares.

"White Fang attacks are horrible, bad for humans and other faunus." He sipped his coffee, continuing to write across the board as he did so. "Humans are hurt often by thefts, riots, and such. Faunus are hurt by backlash. Humans in fear assume other faunus are in White Fang. Breeds distrust. Distrust breeds hate. The cycle grows, the gap between us widens."

Now the doctor turned around, staring at the amphitheater once more. Weiss couldn't follow his eyes, not behind the thick glasses he wore, but she knew from her field trip he was watching them, likely thinking who would be the best student to call on. It had taken her only two classes with him to pick up on his usual teaching method.

"Mr. Winchester," he called, earning the brute of brute's attention. Weiss hoped whatever the question, he failed miserably. "Why do you suppose the White Fang continue to use these methods? Assume they must also see the effects on faunus not in their group. It is a safe assumption."

Weiss watched as the large teen crossed his arms, staring down at the professor from the highest row of seats. It made sense he sat away from the front of the room, an ogre like him leaving the benefit of study to proper minds. He scrunched his nose, twisting his eyes before answering.

"Cause their idiots?" Not a spectacular failure, but definitely D worth. Weiss could satisfy herself with that.

"Incorrect!" Doctor Oobleck let out. "Anyone else care to correct Mr. Winchester?"

Weiss knew the silence would hang for a moment, then she would answer. It was impolite to show off her knowledge. Unfortunately, she only learned that lesson after Ruby had spoken to her following their first week of classes. Still, she was fully capable of answering, once-

"They're fighting now because the peaceful way didn't work."

Weiss heard Yang curse. That wasn't because of who spoke, it was because the heiress had whipped he head so fast her long alabaster hair had slammed into the brawler's face. She wasn't about to apologize now, however. The room was too quiet, all eyes focused on a single entity. She was both horrified and nervous by who it was.

Little Tatl, sitting on Link's head. The faunus didn't appear in love with his mini-drone's words, even as she continued to speak on.

"You said they spent years marching, protesting, and all the other kind words for making change without violence. That probably did some good, but when it wasn't enough, a few probably turned to violence, beat up a shop keep or something. When they saw the respect that came with it, the rest of the group probably started following suit. With enough hate and reason, anyone turns to violence. Way they probably figure it, once enough people are scared, they'll be able to make the rules equal, or whatever they'll want then."

Even as she finished, ringing with her words, the room was deathly silent. Weiss carefully looked between the small golden ball and Doctor Oobleck. Their teacher was staring towards Link, his mouth partially open and cup lightly steaming in his hand. There was not even a single jitter as far as the heiress could see. That was either really good or really bad.

Then, fast as a bullet, Oobleck was right next to Link.

"Gah!" Weiss heard the fairy cry, jumping off of Link's hat at the professor's sudden intrusion to his space, spectacles staring down at the faunus. Link was now leaning far over his seat, probably only a few good hair width's away from falling right out of it. "Geez! Give us some warning next time!"

The Doctor's eyes shot to Tatl now, staring the mini-drone floating in mid-air.

"Remarkable!" He suddenly shouted. He stood up only to drag Link with him, setting the faunus back down in his seat proper. Weiss was just able to spy the clear look of unease on the foreign student's face, blue eyes wide and mouth parted. "You're mini-drone has an excellent ability to extrapolate information from a single lecture! Why, you must-"

"Hey Super-Buzz!" Tatl shouted at the doctor. Shouted, Weiss made sure to note. This was going to end with remedial lessons or expulsion. "I'm not a freaking mini-drone! You're like the tenth person to call me that and I'm really starting to get peeved about it! My name is Tatl and I'm a fairy."

The room was silent as ever when Doctor Oobleck slowly lowered his glasses, the only motion throughout his entire body. His eyes looked from Tatl, the mini-drone named fairy, to Link, the faunus appearing stiffer than stone.

"Your name is Tatl," he repeated, only the brevity in his voice being the common denominator to his usual attitude. His eyes shifted to the faunus beneath him. "And you are new. Who are you?"

"His name is Link," Tatl spoke up again, flying back to said faunus's side. She trailed gold dust as she did so, stopping only when she was right between the doctor and the new student. "Is something wrong here?"

"Nothing wrong. Possibly." The doctor repeated, looking past Tatl to stare at Link. He had yet to say a word to Weiss's complete lack of surprise. "Not aware of new students. Or fairies. Both new. Not bad, just different. Your answer was correct."

Weiss wasn't sure if that was the sign to relax or not. Judging by Ruby and Blake in front of her and all of JNPR beside her, the answer was very likely no. Tatl, however, only rang with what sounded like pleasure. Big egos enjoyed that.

"Link," Doctor Oobleck repeated again, talking a long sip of his coffee. "I give you my apologies. Didn't mean to surprise you. Or put immediate attention on you. Both accidental, I assure." Weiss believed him. "Where are you from? Vale? Atlas? Faunus colony?"

"Hyrule," Tatl spoke up again. "Long story short, it's a kingdom of Hylians apparently off of the map you guys have. Trust me, Big Green and Big Blonde checked more than once. Oh, and in case you're even more curious, they gave the test to get him. Had to beat the crap out of your 'star student' up there." Weiss could practically hear Cardin growl at the words. Such like an ogre to make rude sounds at such a simple taunt.

"Remarkable!" Doctor Oobleck shouted, nearly making the heiress jump in fright. "Stupendous! A kingdom of faunus located off known land masses? Endless possibilities! Mr. Link, you must tell me all that you can of your kingdom! Its age, history, geography, culture, belief system, Dust Mechanics, local Grimm, all of it!"

Weiss only saw Link pull at his collar, silent as ever. She could sympathize now, however. She wasn't aware should would have been able to speak with a professor screaming at her in class. It wasn't ideal by almost anyone's ideals.

"Loooook," Tatl drew out the word, maybe to capture Doctor Oobleck's attention. "Yeah, I get it. Link is a special subject for you to study. Something special cause he's not the same as everyone else. I already gave the quick talk to all the knight trainee's in Portly's class, half of them are in this room." Did… did Tatl just insult Professor Port? Weiss was almost positive she did. "Wouldn't it make more sense for you to teach your class and talk to Link later?"

"Not at all!" Weiss almost missed the speed at which Doctor Oobleck shot down the idea. It was only thanks to her watching Ruby so often that she was able to see it. "Studying a foreign faunus culture is exactly the kind of lesson this class needs! Too many pollutants and variables. Too easy to see wrongs between clashing classes. A foreign sample, however, is pure, untainted. It can be a lesson to all; an immense value to all of us!"

"No," Tatl spoke with more force. "I get your curious, congrats. But if you're thinking is that Link is going to parade himself in front of the trainees just so you can learn a bit about him, you are clearly so far out of your skull that-"

"If Link talks to the class, I will personally see to it he never has to wear his offensive collar again."

Link stopped mid-pull at said collar. Hesitation meant thought, meant Link was considering the bargain, meant he was willing to talk about his home, a place he would never see again, to satisfy a doctor's curiosity. Was his collar that annoying?

Tatl noticed it now, Weiss noted. She only just now realized she was writing all of this down. Maybe Ruby was right about her studying habits. Then again, this was hardly something the heiress ever wanted to forget.

She, and the rest of the class, watched Link stare at Tatl, the golden mini-drone looking back. She began to ring at him, making motions in bobs and swings that Weiss could just barely follow. Link's lips were moving with her, silent as always. They were talking again, talking in a way she couldn't hear. She sneaked a glance at Doctor Oobleck to notice that he wasn't aware of the conversation either, or doing a marvelous job at hiding any sign of it.

Murmurs began to swim around the room the longer the silent conversation was drawn out, likely students making guesses at what was being said. Not inappropriate, expectedly actually. Weiss was doing much the same, only with a far larger pool of knowledge regarding the faunus and his mini-drones.

"Alright," Tatl finally spoke up, her tone full of egotistical cheer. "He'll talk, but only if you swear that he doesn't have to wear the uniform anymore." Doctor Oobleck just opened his mouth when Tatl went on. "That means that he can wear some other article of clothing of his choosing, kinda like you're doing. Academy appropriate, like the rest of the trainees, what Link wants to wear. You agree?"

"Completely!" Once more Weiss was reminded that Doctor Oobleck likely acted more out of instinct than thought. Fast as Ruby on a sugar high, the doctor took Link's hand, shaking the golden gauntleted arm with a quick force. She gave Link credit for only nearly falling out of his chair. "Now then, where to begin? History is good, but lengthy. Perhaps a comparisons of cultures. A discussion of differences between-"

"How about Link gets ready first, okay?" Tatl interrupted the doctor. As she did Link stood up, walking a few steps away before bowing to him. Weiss watched Oobleck nod in acknowledgement. Then he looked to her, or more specifically her team. It wasn't a far guess to know why.

The way he smiled cheerfully and patted his chest, however, told her more than she wanted to know.

"Whoa! Hey! Wait a minute," Yang spoke up from behind Weiss, to her unspoken thanks. "Link, buddy, I get your eager to show off, but maybe you could do something else?"

"Is there a problem Ms. Xia Long?" Doctor Oobleck asked Weiss's blonde team member. To her equally unspoken horror, Link was already walking down the stairs to the center of the amphitheater. "No wait! Better question! Are you already aware of Link's history?"

"Yes, we all are." Now Blake spoke up, to Weiss's lack of surprise. She would have been shocked to see Blake not defend a fellow faunus. "Ruby and I aided Ms. Goodwitch in administering Link's entrance exam." As Blake talked, Weiss watched Link lift at his hat, Tael flying out of it, ringing in a lower volume than his sister did. He wasn't stopping for them.

"Don't worry, they're not lying," Tatl spoke up now, which was either excellent or horrific. "They're just a little scared cause Link's about to do something pretty cool. Best way to teach is through example after all." Definitely horrific.

"Tatl!" Weiss now found herself yelling, rising from her seat. The murmur of students was getting louder. Link was already on center stage, reaching into his jacket. "I believe you are more than capable of speaking for Link! Can you please refrain from making a spectacle of this?!"

"Spectacles are awesome though!" Weiss nearly pulled out her hair. Tatl rang at the expression she was doubtlessly watching the heiress make, her brother flying up beside her as she did. "Besides, we're doing this to make up for lunch. It was gonna happen later today, you know when it was just us, but this is faster."

"W-Wait, th-this is about that story?" The Schnee heiress honesty did not expect Jaune to speak up now. She was hardly surprised to see he was diverting attention away from the faunus now standing center stage, holding a now horribly familiar item. "H-He's gonna put that on, now?"

"It's alright," Tael, of all things, spoke in a calm voice. They really had decided this before! "My story made you all sad. So… Link's gonna show you it's alright."

"Confusion!" Doctor Oobleck spoke up, likely speaking for near three quarters of the class. "How is-"

His question was interrupted by a scream.

Weiss turned again to see Link wearing the mask, the once still-wooden mask now warped in pain.

The murmurs of the other students became mixed with screams and cries of fright. She could hardly blame them, what with her own hands to her mouth in shock. She saw this once over a video screen, now she was watching without a filter. Something was crackling through the air, and Weiss wasn't sure if it was whatever force was coming from the mask or the wood of the desk being shattered.

A flash took over then, blinding her and likely the rest of the room. Cries of fright grew in volume before dying off, students likely ducking for cover. She would have, too. If she were not already aware that she was in no danger.

Then just as easily as it did over Ms. Goodwitch's mini-drones, the light faded. The screams of the students were reduced to terrified whispers and talk. But they quickly one by one changed to gasps and stunned silence. When Weiss was able to adjust her eyes on the amphitheater center, she understood why readily.

Where once was Link there was no more, at least not the green-hatted foreign faunus. Now there stood a creature in scales of blue. Literal blue scales, not clothing in the slightest. It couldn't be clothing, because the seven foot tall thing was already wearing a green skirt, boots, gauntlets, and jeweled choker!

Weiss knew it was a fish, it had to be a fish; it was a fish with legs that stood taller than almost anyone she had ever met before. It had a long appendage extending from the back of its head, shifting into a green color the further it went. Further extended to the creature's waist! Oh and the waist! Those muscles! She could see everything!

She could make out every subtle curve of the creature's multi-muscular body. She could count the abdominal muscles beneath its well defined pectoral ones sitting between very well-proportioned arms and doubtlessly hiding the likely equally impressive fascia muscles and Weiss was suddenly very hot under her collar. She pulled at it as Link had done just moments ago.

"What's up?"

It spoke. The highly attractive creature spoke.

Its voice vibrated like it was being spoken through a twisting fan, choppy and coming out in different octaves. But it was amazing. Only now was she able to conjure an excuse to look away from its muscles. That was to stare into its eyes.

Eyes weren't meant to be so completely blue! It was like staring into a crystal ocean, endlessly deep and full of life everlasting. They looked as if they belonged within an artists' interpretive painting, not in the skull of some amphibian creature born of Link's meddling and a wooden mask and Weiss really had to sit down now. Her legs were beginning to feel weak.

"Whoa…" she finally heard Yang speak, or anyone for that matter. It was more than the heiress could manage right now.

"L-Link?" Now Ruby spoke up. It made sense she would recover amongst the first of students. This was the second time she had seen this. Weiss correctly assumed it was well beyond the hundredth for Link or his fairies. "Um… a-are you alright?"

"Yeah, I'm cool," the amphibian waved away, grinning like self-absorbed rocker. "Sorry 'bout that scare. Shoulda warned the rest of the groopers what was gonna happen. That's my bad." Its English was atrocious, but the voice made up for every word.

"O-Oh Dust. Dust, Grimm, Hunters, Beacon…" Weiss heard Jaune's voice begin with the normal curses, but then dissolve into far more expletive ones. She could hardly fault the boy, for once. She turned around long enough to see that the remaining members of JNPR were ferrying just as well, if not worse.

Weiss could at least credit Jaune for some action, whereas Pyrrha Nikos was apparently stuck in stunned horror, hands clenched over her mouth as if to resist regurgitation of her meal. Seeing as Weiss was sitting directly in front of her, she hoped that was not going to happen.

"That actually happened. Oh Dust I'm not dreaming. Oh, this is weird, maybe bad. Oh, what's going on?" And now the second child leader of Beacon Academy was starting to rock himself into a terrified coma. Brilliant on all fronts.

"Okay, seriously, you all gotta relax." Weiss's attention was on the creature again in a moment, staring at it as it so easily spoke, waving its leather bound hands with a relaxed grin. But Dust! Weiss couldn't tell where those eyes were looking. "No reason ta start cursin' Time or callin' the guards. I'm here, it's safe, take your potions and then take a seat."

It was a little terrifying, honestly, how easily a great majority of the class responded. She was already sitting, legs still weak from staring at the creature's flawless amphibian body, but she heard a great many of chairs move and scratch against the floor, seats being taken and notes doubtlessly prepared.

There was no way anyone was going to forget about this lecture.

"Incredible!" Doctor Oobleck apparently recovered. Running to the stage floor just as fast as Weiss knew him capable of. He was standing in front of the creature, only reaching up to its mid-chest now. If Weiss recalled, Link had a similar height comparison to the doctor before. "You have somehow made a complete metamorphosis! No lesions of any kind! No Dust residue! However, a waxy exterior, wait! That's for your amphibious nature to more easily repel water and create less friction. Of course! Evolutionary advantage at its best!"

"Dude." The creature spoke, putting its hands on Doctor Oobleck. The doctor stared up at the amphibian thing, clearly on a high of some sort. Weiss wasn't in a capable mind to be sure. "Relax. Chill. Take a seat then take a load off. That's the best order."

"Yes! Of course! I'll be able to retain more information if I have focused attention. Brilliant deduction!" Weiss made out the creature's choppy voice sighing as Oobleck rushed to Link's previously occupied seat. He downed all the contents of his mug before staring forward, fingers locked together and appearing like a student admitted to Beacon a decade late.

Then again, the creature didn't exactly appear young. Again and again, Weiss wasn't sure what young was to that hot thing.

"Kay, sweet, now where to start?" The creature put one hand on its hip as the other scratched the top of its head. Its beautiful eyes never changed. Weiss was just fine with that. "Oh, I got it. Can't rock a set till you know whose playin' can you?" Weiss didn't know and she didn't care. Not so long as it kept talking in that octave changing voice.

The creature stared straight at Ruby. Weiss knew it was Ruby, knew by the directness of its body posture and by the way it waved to her. She heard some noise come from beside her, but she didn't bother to look into it. Now while the creature was speaking.

"The name's Mikau, guitarist for the Indigo-go's and all around chillaxed dude." Weiss knew that name well. She recognized the next noise as one of a sudden gasp, the one behind her of someone falling out of their chair.

This was the creature, Link's friend, that had died trying to save its… his family.

"Case you're curious, or just don't know, I'm here, too. Link that is. We're both here, both got our own minds, memories, and feelings. Keep up if you can. Understand if you can't. This is going up stream fast." He chuckled at his joke, one Weiss had absolutely no context or knowledge of. But she nearly felt herself giggle at his voice as well. Why was her face so warm?

"Course, that means you probably don't got too many clues 'bout what I am. So, breakin' it down easy for ya. I'm a Zora. We Zoras like to kick it easy in the ocean, under it really. Land's cool, but feels weird to feel so dry all the time. Don't know how you guys stand it. Wait, yes I do, Link that is." Weiss was sure that if her mind wasn't addled by the sights before her, she would have committed herself to a hospital. She was listening to two people talk in one body.

"This might knock ya down a bit, but we eat fish. Smaller fish, kinda like you most of ya eat other animals. I know you like chicken." Weiss would agree with anything he said. "If you gotta curious itch 'bout it, most other people don't get to see where we Zoras hang out. Kinda hard to appreciate a home underwater." He laughed again. This time, so did Weiss.

"Excuse me! Yes, a question!" Never before had Weiss wished so dearly to light a teacher on fire. "How fares your coexistence with other forms of faunus or life in your homeland? Are there ever reasons for fear or misconduct?"

"Dude, you're usin' a lot of big words ta basically ask if we hate each other." The Zora, Mikau, the very attractive amphibian-like faunus, spoke back to the professor. "But we get along pretty good. I ain't gonna go climb Snowhead ta hang out with the Gorons, but that's cause the cold would make my blood freeze. Pretty tough for them ta make it to us either, ya know, with whole breathing thing." He motioned up and down his throat as he spoke.

It was only then that she noticed the gills peaking out above and below his leather choker. That explained the vibration of his voice. His words were being pushed through the multiple openings all at once. It wasn't a fan, but it was choppy, in only the best of ways. Maybe she should get some water. That usually cooled things down. Weiss noticed how thirsty she was.

She noticed that and the jeweled amulet on his choker. Apparently she wasn't the only one.

"What's on your throat?" Some other student asked. Her voice didn't sound familiar to the Schnee heiress. "The jewel I mean. The one on your collar."

"This?" Mikau, hopefully not Link, responded. One of his amphibian digits pushed at the amulet, holding it away from his chiseled chest. It had three jewels on it, specifically. Three ocean blue sapphires sitting in a triangular pattern. They were held together by a gleaming band of gold, well-defined and likely very strong. "It's called the Zora Sapphire. Not gonna say it's a holy relic or somethin' like that, but it kinda is."

"Fascinating!" Doctor Oobleck shot up again. "Please, what is the religious significance for this relic? Does it allow communication with spirits or other supernatural entities?"

"Dude, I'll keep sayin' it till ya get it. Relax, chill…" Mikau leaned back as he spoke, stopping only when his lower thighs were leaning against the table. Were Weiss up there, and she almost wished she was, the same position would have had the desk against her rear. "It's like a wedding band, er somethin' like that. Isn't worth much ta a bunch of Gerudo or Hylians aside from bein' a pretty stone."

"So then… you got that when you were married?" Another unknown student, this one male. Weiss still never took her eyes off of Mikau. He only grinned at the response.

"Was before, ain't no more." Weiss reasoned she was watching him closely to catch the small changes in his muscled features. Her evidence for such a claim was the dip in Mikau's smile. "She didn't give this beauty to me though. S'pposed to belong to royalty and stuff, but when they're no more kings and queens, the waves spread everything evenly."

"Did it hurt?" Weiss knew immediately that it was Ruby.

She turned away from Mikau, regrettably, to see her young partner staring forward. Tael sat on her head, almost unseen with the similar shades of black they were. The ball on her head and translucent wings gave him away. Ruby herself, however, looked to be fighting tears again. She heard the multi-octave voice of Mikau sigh. He likely knew why Ruby asked that question, or Link did. Weiss wasn't sure who.

"Yeah, figured this was gonna come up." One of his hands rested on the desk behind him. He had to lean back further for it to touch down. His other hand rubbed the top of his head. The way he bent, however, showed off every muscle in his body. Weiss crossed her legs. "Probably gonna get asked a hundred and one questions about somethin' I really don't like to think about. Ah well, least I won't have to wear that damn collar if I do."

Weiss watched, carefully, as Mikau pushed himself off of the table. He began to walk towards Ruby, his long and very well-muscled legs carrying him up several stairs with each individual step. His endless blue eyes were looking at the young girl, who Weiss knew was looking back at him. The fairy on her head lightly rang, maybe speaking something for only the Zora's non-existent ears, maybe just a sign of motion. She didn't know and quite honestly didn't care, not when Mikau was just that much closer to her.

They were separated by only two students and a professor when he stopped. Weiss missed when Ruby had stood up from her chair, standing by the stairs of the amphitheater now. It was likely while she was transfixed by the marvelous creature walking towards them. That didn't matter now, however.

He was standing aside Ruby, every pair of eyes in the classroom focused on him. Mikau stood well above Ruby, towering over her. Seven feet of pure muscle made it an easy feet. Carefully, likely due to his height, Mikau moved to kneel, still standing well above Weiss's young partner when he did. She couldn't clearly see Ruby's expression, but she knew it must have been heartfelt.

"Yeah, it did hurt." His melodic voice spoke the damning words. "But you of all people should know that me bein' here means that it wasn't the end. I helped him… sorry, Link saved me, and played the song he usually does to give peace."

"W-What did you see?" Weiss knew what Ruby wanted to hear. She found herself hoping for the same thing. Mikau grinned, of all things, before he responded.

"I saw Lulu," he spoke with an almost heart-breaking sincerity, made only worse by the way his voice almost sang. "I saw her drifting in a void just beneath me, nothing there but me and her. When I looked into her eyes, she was smilin' at me, like nothing was wrong. I can remember Link's song playin' through the void, that same peaceful tune. Had a good feelin' ta it." His head was nodding, making the long protrusion from his head wave with him. With the silence of the room around them, she could hear it swish through the air.

"One by one, like chords on a fretboard, I saw all my band members pop into the void. Evan, Japas, Tito, they were all there. Lulu gave me her hand, smilin' like we were gettin' ready for a set. Kinda were actually. I took it, and we walked together. I was so freakin' happy." Weiss watched as the gills along Mikau's neck opened up, far more than before. He was likely taking a deep breath of air.

To Ruby, he put a hand on her shoulder, grinning like he had before. Weiss counted his teeth, noting the fangs along them. He really did eat fish, probably raw with teeth like that.

"I told you this… sorry, Link told ya this with Elrora. He helped us, but we're not here anymore. I gave him my thoughts and memories, he gave my soul peace in the Ceaseless Sea. If anything, I got the better deal."

"Are you happy?" Weiss wouldn't have expected any other question for the young girl.

"Last thing I remember in my own body is playin' with the people I love. Link saved my family after that, rest of the Zoras, too. Kinda be weird if I wasn't." He chuckled, standing up once more, towering over the rest of them as he did. Mikau put his hands to his hips, just above the leather belt that held up that thin obstructive piece of green fabric. "You're a good girl, Ruby. Make sure you never change that."

"She won't." Weiss had to look away from Mikau to see the dark fairy atop Ruby's head talking. "S-She's been nothing but worried. I could feel it." He could do that? Weiss supposed it was a possible function for mini-drones. She cut off any of her musings when Mikau began to laugh again, that heavenly sound.

"I believe it." He rubbed the top of her head, the fairy jumping off long enough for the action. Weiss heard her partner make an indignant sound, but only before she started laughing. Mikau joined her. The rest of the class, by Weiss's ears, were only muttering amongst one another.

"Well that's enough of the blues for me," the Zora spoke up again, Weiss reminded herself of the species of faunus the tall muscled figure belonged to. "I brought him out ta answer some questions, not make the room depressed. Seriously, it's nothin' short of irritating. I'm ready for more questions if ya got them." Mikau held out his long arms, as he spoke, walking down the stairs again to the front of the classroom. It was the very gesture of inviting.

"Too many questions." She heard Doctor Oobleck mumble. Ruby settled back in her seat, Weiss spying the girl's expression far more cheerful than before. "So many unknowns. Not enough time to have them all answered. Wondrous. Perplexing. Confusing."

"I got a question!" Weiss turned around completely to see, of all people, Jaune with his hand up. He was going to screw this up. The heiress didn't have to process a single other thought to now the certainty of her deduction. The failure of an Arc was going to colossal ruin the conversation with this rare and majestic faunus. "You, um… Link said that you were musician, a-and a warrior, too. By blood, I mean, you said, no, he said by blood. So, um… which is it?"

Weiss was correct. Jaune had just ruined everything.

"Ah, finally someone asked a good question!" Wiess's jaw dropped.

Perhaps she was wrong. Mikau had his hands in the airs, stretching to what was likely an impressive ten feet into the air. He was standing just in front of the desk again, smiling at the question of all things. "The wait was startin' ta dry my gills." His arms fell, swinging at his sides and well above the desk behind him. His endless blue eyes were looking at Jaune, grinning like the fanged smirk he had. Weiss was staring again.

"Wait, you… want to talk about that?" Jaune was apparently just as shocked as the heiress. Given his track record, it wasn't hard to guess why.

"Duh!" Mikau let out in an incredible fashion. "I hate talkin' about history and junk like that. No real use in thinkin' 'bout things that aren't there anymore. It's more fun ta talk about what I enjoy. That sound weird to you?" It certainly didn't to Weiss.

"Oh, uh, that's good." The Arc descendant returned with a bit more confidence. It was only then Weiss was aware of the silence of the room. That, and something she caught by the frequent twisting of her head, were the number of Scrolls out, likely taking pictures of Mikau. Amateurs. "So, which is it?"

"Before anything else," Mikau began, reaching behind him for something. Weiss had no idea what, given his glorious lack of clothing. "I'm a musician."

He pulled out of nowhere the skeleton of a large fish.

That was simply it. He produced from likely thin air the remains of a fish with impressive size. It was nothing but bones, complete with the long vertebrae and branching ribs. Its tail sat between Mikau's shoulder and neck, its head hanging nearly to his knees. It was dry, as she suspected anything like it would be, but tall enough to likely match the heiress in height.

"This baby," Mikau began to speak, earning Weiss's immediate attention. "Is the Guitar of Waves." He spoke about it lovingly, hand tracing down the spine as he spoke. "I know 'nough 'bout Hylians and Gerudos to know that this probably looks like nothin' but old fish bones. But it is so much more than that." Instead of saying more, Mikau showed more. Weiss watched, raptured, as he pushed down on different ribs of the fish, strumming at the sternum of the deceased creature as he did.

She was almost shocked to hear perfect notes coming from the corpse.

She looked up, seeing the Zora grin as he continued to adjust his fingers along the spine of the long dead fish, picking at its sternum to produce different notes. He played chords across the corpse, letting the acoustic sound echo through the air, each note lifting the other up. It was a harmonic balance between them, Weiss knew as a singer. Notes played from two different sources but echoing along the same frequency. It kept one from distorting the other, strengthening them instead.

Mikau was playing across his Guitar of Waves in such a way that the notes were actually coming out louder than any one note could. But more than that, he played different notes, entire chords, melodies from his homeland for all she knew. They sounded like waves to the heiress, lifting her up and gently rocking her back down, drawing her further out to sea and deeper into the melody he played. She was leaning over desk, chin on her hands as she engrossed herself in the music.

"New Wave Bossa Nova," she heard him whisper lovingly, playing more notes to a song she had never heard before. "Lulu and I wrote this up a long time ago. S'pposed to be played with a bit of jazz and pipes. But sometimes, a guitar is all you need."

She heard him pluck at the sternum of the fish, fingers quickly moving down the spine to deepen the notes as he did. When the vibration of the bones was gone, he plucked it again, this time ascending the vertebrae. The notes carried by eight and half notes, a lingering half note to only be quickly followed by three eighth notes. They were not even a breath off in meter.

Every time she believed she had caught onto the pattern of the song, he twisted his hand, adding a new note or pitch to an otherwise unimportant chord. The subtle changes made all the difference in the world. Though the music was every bit of a soothing lullaby to Weiss, she had been taught since her early days in theatre and singing practice to always be aware of the audience. Now was no different to her. She turned around, lightly judging with the corner of her vision her fellow students and teammates.

It was of little surprise to see Blake and Ruby both enraptured in the song. The former was waving her head left and right, slowly rocking herself with the music that emanated from Mikau's guitar. As a fellow faunus, she likely heard the dips in pitch even Weiss's trained ears couldn't follow. Ruby simply had her arms embraced around her own torso, absorbing herself to the music. She could make out Tael atop her partner's head, rolling as if rocking himself.

She turned to see Yang making the most motion out of their group, hands pointing into the air with each note Mikau played. It was as if she were attempting to be an amateur conductor, eyes shut and lips twisted into her usual cheerful grin. Now, however, Weiss didn't have a single suspicion about the blonde brawler's motives. Just behind her, a row back, Nora seemed to be doing the same thing. But, where Yang was simply pointing in the air, the energetic girl was waving her hands about in an almost flail like fashion.

Ren beside her was his usual calm self. His head nodded to the half notes, ignoring the eight notes in only motion. Even with only the slightest glances of her eyes, Weiss could tell he was grinning in pleasure. Pyrrha, whom Weiss had to turn around to see better, made far more elaborate motions. Her head was weaving through the air, shoulders rising and falling with her movements. It took Weiss a moment, but she could easily see what the duelist was doing. Dancing.

Jaune, leaning far back in his chair, appeared to be imitating the masterful skill of Mikau. Where he truly holding his guitar, Weiss knew it would be to poor effect. She would not, however, dare speak now and interrupt the ballad. Of the many students in the room, Weiss could see they were all making some small motion, some gentle movement to show their interest in the song. None, as far as her subtle gaze could see, ignored the acoustic tune from Mikau's Guitar of Waves.

Only Doctor Oobleck appeared impassive, oddly still, with a steaming mug in hand. She could, however, see him grinning at the music, likely savoring it in a way only he was custom to. Weiss was a proper judge for many things, but she never considered herself the dictator for how art should be felt. That was always dependent upon the individual alone.

But then, with a final strum, the song was done. Weiss looked down to see Mikau holding his strumming hand was held out to his side, bones of the fish still lightly vibrating as the notes it produced tapered off and died. She could not and thankfully did not miss the complete look of satisfaction that was adorned on his face.

Weiss was amongst the first to applaud the performance.

She clapped her hands together, a truly approving gesture for the flawless performance Mikau had done. It took little time for others to join in, many others whooping aloud with their hands. Whistles soon accompanied them, one coming from Ruby just aside Weiss, and a few more from behind her. She watched carefully as Mikau grinned at the applause, taking it like a musician would. With equal mix pride and humility, shown through his grin and elegant bow.

"Oh yeah, missed this sound," he spoke up, just barely heard over the applause. "Didn't think you'd be that impressed with a solo performance. Most places ask fer the whole band or nothin' at all."

"Foolishness!" Wiess heard Doctor Oobleck protest. She turned just in time to see him wave his cup in the air. It miraculously didn't spill a drop. Practice likely. "Your performance showed excellent motor skills and training! Creativity as well! Using the remains of an above average marine animal as an instrument? Not unheard, but difficult. Success in doing so shows great skill alone! On that, congratulations!"

"Right back at ya," Mikau spoke with a point of his hand, grinning like Weiss knew Yang would given such compliments. That rogue thought was gone as quick as it came. "But yeah, this is what I do. Can't say I know a lot 'bout other people, but I do know no one hates music. Just gotta find the right song, then bam! Harmony." Weiss appreciated the simplicity of his logic.

"Then what about that 'warrior blood'?" Weiss almost snapped at Yang, the question she voiced almost as insulting as Jaune's. Maybe the hair color really was related to lack of tact. If Jaune and Yang were not enough, Tatl seemed to fit the mold as well. "Don't get me wrong. That was a wicked song. Record that later. Buuut, Tatl tattled that you had warrior blood, line of fighters I'm guessing. You don't seem desperate for a fight, so what's that do?" Weiss retracted her former statement. That was actually a rather insightful question.

"Two for two over here," Mikau let out, pointing to their general direction. "Well, for starters, Zora are pretty different dependin' on the blood we have. Don't know how easy it is ta tell, but we aren't exactly big in the whole clothing scene." Weiss saw and had no complaints. "Thing is, our blood is a little… stronger, I guess, for how we look when we grow out of tadpoles." Grow out of what?

"This baby," Mikau began, stroking the long appendage extending from the back of his head down to his hip. "Is my superior dorsal fin. It looks the way it does cause my blood says it has to. Japas, the bassist in our band, he had something similar, but his grew over eyes too. Ta the rest of you Gerudo and Hylians, guess it would look like he had long bangs. Difference is, we can't cut or change ourselves with scissors or dye. Ocean's a harsh mistress on that front." Weiss could vaguely see where this was going.

"So, when it comes down ta what my warrior's line of blood does, basically means I got the body of one. No barbs ta get in my way and plenty of muscle ta spare. Only skill I have is thanks to a bit of training and experience. Well… that experience is Link's not mine, which makes it mine too now. Fun stuff." Weiss felt the urge to agree, though another side told her to slap herself if she did so.

"Body of a warrior, huh?" Oh no. Weiss grimaced as she heard Cardin's voice once more. She was very near the idea of committing murder to remove his stain from Beacon. "Takes more than some muscle and good looks to be worth anything in a fight. If all your 'warrior blood' gave you was that, you should probably stick with just guitarist schtick and get off the stage."

Weiss wasn't sure what she loathed more. The words Cardin spoke or the gruff agreements from a few rogue students in the crowd. She was the heiress to the Schnee dynasty, by merits someone who should be one of the most cynical and self-centered individuals on all of Remnant, yet these fools seemed to prove that their intelligence was lower than sea level.

"That all you think I got?" Mikau asked in return. Weiss watched him, carefully watching the way his muscles moved as he lowered his guitar, head of the fish sitting on the ground as he held it up by the tail. They could make statues of him. "Well, I already covered 'the tell', guess now I can do 'the show'." Weiss watched as Mikau lifted his free arm, holding the long and muscular appendage outwards. She wished she could record a video of it.

"See my fin?" His multi-octave voice asked, arm bending at the elbow. In honesty, Weiss did not. Not at first. She saw his smooth blue scales flow from dark blue to ocean white, stopping only when the met the dark brown of his gloves. She saw a single band of red about said leather, likely to keep said article of clothing from slipping off.

But just to the right of it, small as a frill on Weiss's own dress, was a protrusion. She thought it part of the gauntlets until she took note of the silvery color and gleaming cover. It was partially oval in shape, very likely attached to Mikau's arm at the apex of each curve. To her, the well-studied Huntress-in-training, it was very likely the fin Mikau referred to.

"Got it?" He called out, assumingly to Cardin, waving his arm as if to show the tiny fin. Weiss only found her attention constantly drawn to the muscles that held the arm. Those well-defined and proportioned muscles. "Now watch this." In a fluid and majestic fashion, Mikau flexed his arm, making the already defined muscles push against the smooth silver scales of his body. That wasn't what caught the room's immediate attention.

It was the spontaneous growth of his fin.

Weiss sucked in a breath of air while several of her fellow students shot out a few more appropriate expletives, for good reason. The fin, now immediately obvious, wasn't simply longer or a bit wider. By just rough numbers in the heiress's mind, it appeared to be ten fold larger in volume, now nearly as long as Mikau's entire arm, doubtlessly much wider as well. It curved as well as any other part of his body, but now with the find ending at a sharp yellow point that glistened like the rest of his toned body. By all rights, it looked like a blade.

"Not many Zora get these babies," Mikau spoke up now, slowly twisting his arm as if appraising his own fin for the first time. Weiss highly doubted such a possibility. "Sharp as scales, light as foam, and if I can take the awe of the crowd for anythin', none of ya saw this coming." Mikau's grin sharpened like his fin, pulling at the smooth surface of his face. He drew his arm back, pulling it over his chest as if to hug his guitar closer. No student in the room had time to voice a question as to why.

"Catch," Mikau called.

Throwing his arm forward, the fin detached itself, flying through the air.

"Oh cra-" Weiss heard Cardin yell before ducking away. She saw that because she was following Mikau's fin with rapt attention. It flew through the air with a cyclic pattern, cutting the air as easily as the blades of a fan. A trail of silver followed it, likely an illusion created by the glimmering surface of the fin. No matter what it was, Weiss could tell the flying fin was deadly, most easily discernable with its sharp tip.

But then, it diverted mid-flight. Simply, it was traveling straight, but then it twisted about, as if following the curve of a road. Its angle increased, making it spin around and back towards Mikau. It flew back to him with as much speed as its departure, though he showed no fear of its sharp return. Instead, he only held up his now finless arm, following the fin back down.

He caught it on his forearm again with a light grunt of effort, smile never faltering. All of this occurred well above the head of the class, far out of the way of any one student's harm. It appeared that the well-muscled Zora was also equally wise.

"Fascinating…" Weiss heard Doctor Oobleck mumble. She had many more kinds words to say that simply that. "Mikau! Another question! Request first, truthfully. Do not endanger students with your weapons. Very poor teaching method." Weiss saw Mikau nod his head, agreeing with the words. Weiss didn't agree with them, mostly because she enjoyed the growl of anger Cardin made. "Secondly! Blood is euphemism for genetics, assumingly, likely. Therefore, speculation! You have more than simply detachable aerodynamic fins, correct?"

"Man you gotta quit it with the big words," Mikau let out, stretching his arm as he spoke. Weiss enjoyed the sight. "But I'm pretty sure what your askin' is if I can do more than what I've shown, right?"

"Yes! Correct! Also speculation of similarities between genetics and blood! Blood simply over-simplification for the former, latter refers only to-"

"Alright, alright, man, it's like you really can't help yourself, can ya?" Mikau grinned cheekly as he asked the question, leaning in towards Doctor Oobleck as he spoke. A flight of stairs and several rows of chairs away, the effect was rather lost. Weiss, however, wouldn't mind if he leaned closer to her. "But yeah, guess those big words of yours mean ya gotta big brain. Problem is, can't really show off anymore here."

"Curious. Why not? Space available too minimal? No, room enough to throw large boomerang fins. Nervousness, perhaps?" Doctor Oobleck speculated as he spoke, asking Mikau a question only when he could not surmise and answer himself. Weiss would have been annoyed, if the words didn't somehow get the Zora to laugh. With a voice that shifted in octaves and rumbled from a body crafted by the sea, she felt anything but ungrateful.

"Nah man, lots simpler than that." Mikau had his arm sway over his body, waving from the top of his perfectly smooth and shimmering face, down his muscled chest, over the Guitar of Waves, before settling back to his side again. "I'm just a fish outta water right now. Doesn't hurt too bad, but can't really do a lot more till I feel water in my gills again."

"I have water!" Weiss wished she was the one to make such a declaration.

Instead, she saw another female student, one she recognized only as a face in a crowd. The girl was a head shorter than Weiss, brown hair truncated at the neck and curled to a ridiculous amount. She was nearly skipping down the stairs to hand the bottle over to Mikau. Even three rows of desks away, Weiss could see that she was fidgeting nervously in front of the much much taller Zora.

"Hey, thanks sea breeze," Mikau spoke to the young girl, a woman Weiss now found a suitable reason to loathe. He took the water bottle from her gratefully, grinning with his fanged smile. "I was talkin' about a pool of water, but this helps a lot."

Without waiting another moment, he poured the contents of the bottle over his head.

The water simply cascaded down his slippery body, making every small dip and curve on his scales only that much more prevalent and easy to see. Weiss traced each and every drop of water that slipped down his scales, past his leather choker, down his pectoral muscles, over his abdomen, and seeping into the green fabric of his skirt.

They dripped from him tauntingly, the water at least. It almost mocked her with how it covered Mikau's body, hugging against him desperately. She heard him released a pleasured sigh, no doubt enjoying the feeling of the cool water over his smooth scales and curvy muscles.

Weiss crossed her legs, hunched over the desk, and bit her lip to keep a very awkward sound from escaping her lips.

"Might wanna wait until we get back to our room before you start doing that princess." Weiss pushed her head harder against the desk when she heard Yang whisper to her. It only became worse when the blonde started chuckling. "Not that I can blame you. Not with those muscles he's got."

"Ah yeah, that hits the spot." Weiss wanted to know desperately where that spot was. Her thirst for that knowledge only increased when Mikau waved his head, pushing off the drops of water across the ground. His shimmering scales now glistened. "With those kind of eyes on me, feels like I'm gettin' ready for another encore. It's nice."

He opened his eyes to look down at the short-cut haired girl, who Weiss swore nearly squealed upon said eye contact. She wished it was a snort instead. Her wish only grew in intensity when Mikau put his hand on her shoulder, smiling sweetly down to her.

"Thanks for the liquid, but do ya know where there's a lot more of it. A pool'd be good, if ya got those." The girl started to open and shut her jaw, speaking with all the intelligence she possessed; none.

"Alright, that's it." Of all the voices Weiss expected to speak next, she had honestly not considered Tatl. Though, that was likely because she had forgotten near all about the blonde mini-drone. Quick as the fly she was likely modeled after, the minie-drone flittered down to the stage, circling about the girl and Zora before speaking again. "You can sit down sweetheart, Link's pulling your chain. He likes to do that whenever Mikau gets too much attention."

"Aw, you're ruinin' the fun Tatl," Mikau complained with a grin across his face. He lifted his guitar over his head and around his back, letting it vanish from sight again. Weiss was okay with that, so long as she could continue to start at his muscles' stretches. "Sides, it's an honest question. Been a while since I caught a dip in anythin' but moat water, and if they're willin' ta see more, no reason we can't catch two fish with one net."

"I'm not against showing them too much more, I just think the musician on you is willing to give more than he properly bargained for." Weiss watched, raptured, as Mikau's soft grin began to widen, the smooth scales across his face seemingly weaving into one another to allow the large expression to show. She was thankful to any god above for the sight, especially when his fangs showed.

"There is a reason I'm always the knight and never the king." He chuckled at the words, but… they didn't sound like Mikau's voice. Yes, Weiss recognized his beautiful multi-octave voice, but the words were… different. It sounded like Ruby trying to recite old literature. It just came off… wrong.

Maybe… that was Link talking?

"Hey, Super Buzz!" Weiss was almost as shocked that Tatl used the name for the doctor as she was to him responding to it.

"Yes! A point to be made?"

"More like negotiation," The mini-drone let out as she flew back up to Doctor Oobleck. She stopped when she floated maybe hand's length away from the doctor. He took a long sip of coffee as she spoke. "Not that hard to see you're hooked on what Link has to show, Mikau's help of course. Buuuut this is coming out to be worth a bit more than a change in uniform, if you catch my drift."

"Caught and analyzed!" Doctor Oobleck returned, slamming his mug down on the table. It was, unsurprisingly to Weiss, empty, that made three and class was not even half way done. "And yes! Agreement! A dizzying depth of information, in exchange for a simple favor on my part. Unequal in the worst of ways. What is your remedy? Money, perhaps?"

"Pass." As far as Weiss was concerned, Tatl may have been the only creature to ever forgo money payment from a teacher of Beacon in exchange for teaching. It was likely a result of her programming. "But I got an idea. See, we're looking for a friend of Link's. Long story short, she left a while ago, wasn't anywhere in Hyrule, think she might be around here, staying at Beacon while we search. Understand so far? Good, now. You're a history buff, am I right?"

"Positively correct! Head research in several areas, useful for determining future problems. History repeats and-"

"Okay, yeah, answer's yes." Weiss was no more curious how the golden mini-drone hadn't been swatted before. Mikau's multi-octave chuckle, however, told her there were more important things to worry about, such as his muscles in action again. "Point is, you might be a guy who can help us. Ya know, places you think someone might hide in, someone like me or my brother I mean. Think you can do that?"

"Exchange of information is simple, tedious as worst," the doctor responded. He quickly raised his free hand to his chin, tilting his head in thought. "However, would require information regarding you and sibling. Collection of information to search my knowledge of geographical areas. Intriguing, challenging, but highly rewarding. Very well!"

Doctor Oobleck shot up with his declaration. It was of little surprise to see his chair fall down at the motion. In a blur of green and white, he was in front of Mikau, rising to only chin level of the Zora. Neither appeared even slightly perturbed by the other. Oobleck to Mikau's height or Mikau to the doctor's speed.

"Link, or Mikau, whichever preferred currently, I accept this deal! Conditionally, however, you must demonstrate this final part to your lecture. Agreed?" Quick as the wind, his hand was up for a shake, held out to Mikau as he had Link before. The Zora, by Weiss's measure and her absolute glee, didn't even hesitate.

"You got it," he spoke as he took the doctor's hand. They shook their hands, or more appropriately, Doctor Oobleck shook Mikau's entire arm, the amphibian donning a momentary look of shock as he bent over at the effort of the simple gesture. However, the doctor released the arm before he could go any further.

"Splendid! To the pool then! With haste!" That was all the warning Doctor Oobleck gave before he ran from the room. Weiss, at least, assumed he ran. At the break neck speed both he and her partner normally moved at, it was hard to tell if they were running or flying.

"Cool. Hey Tatl," Mikau called to his golden fairy, currently flying about Jaune's head. The boy had either grown used to the display amazingly quickly, or he was still stuck in the stupor from Mikau. Weiss would not be able to blame him for the latter. "Do ya remember how to get to the pool?"

"Sure do," the golden fairy ran in reply. Though… she wasn't done. "Buuuut, I'm gonna fly on ahead and make sure Professor Super Buzz isn't going to make a show outta you. Gotta make sure we have an even trade and all. See ya there!" Weiss watched Mikau all but raise a hand at Tatl as she rang and zipped out of the room. Come to think of it, the mini-drone was able to move impressively quickly as well.

"Whoa, huh? Sis! Wait for me?" The pervy Tael quickly took off after the golden fairy, darkness chasing light and all those poetic metaphors that came to the heiress's mind. Her eyes, however, were still easily more attracted to the now lone Zora's figure.

"Of course, gotta have your fun too, huh?" Mikau dipped his head and chuckled, a joke that Weiss had no knowledge of, those plenty of assumptions for. They were left on the wayside as the well-muscled guitarist looked up again. "Anybody show me how ta get to the pool? I can't be late for my set."

"I can!" To Weiss's absolute horror, Ruby shot up first.

Fast as always, the young teen was standing in front of Mikau, already grabbing his one of his arms and pulling him up the steps. She didn't appear the least bit intimated despite being only slightly above naval high to the warrior Zora.

"C'mon!" Ruby spoke simply and childishly as she pulled at Mikau's arm. "I know the quickest way there! So fast you'll be able to swim a dozen laps in the pool before anyone else shows up!" He'll do what?

"Awesome. Lead the way then sea foam." He called her what?!

"On it!" Then, to Weiss's mounting horror, Ruby took off.

Her semblance ran as close to rampant as she could describe, pulling the magnificent example of a statuesque figure out of the room and out of sight. She felt breath leave her body. A stillness settled over the air, leaving every student, herself included frozen to the spot. There was no doctor to teach them, no magnificent figure to stare and listen to, but only the promise to see something incredible in some off part of Beacon.

A part of her mind, every considerate to the many possibilities in a plan, reasoned that she could use the time to study in other areas. By all rights, this was early dismissal from class. She could catch up on translating Dr. Port's speech for the flaws he found in Grimm behavior. She could ready her Dust supply for Ms. Goodwitch's training session. She could even practice her vocal work for a performance.

But in all honestly, there was only one place Weiss Schnee wanted to be.

She didn't even have to be the one to say it.

"To the pool!" Came the battle cry behind her.

Like stampede of starved beowolves, Doctor Oobleck's class took off after Mikau and Ruby Rose, two individuals in dire need of two very different conversations with the heiress.

"This is gonna be sick!" Yang yelled out the phrase without any filter to her excitement. She'd never put one on before and now hardly seemed like the time to wear it. It was the same way how she didn't bother to apologize for the large number of students she balled over mid-sprint. "I bet he's gonna make a tidal wave outta the water. No wait, better yet, he's gonna make a freakin' vortex! Oh, that would be killer!"

"In more ways than one, but I doubt any of those possibilities," Yang wasn't even remotely surprised to see Blake running next to her, keeping pace without even a bead of sweat. She chalked it up to the feline heritage. Good for a foot race, she guessed. "Manipulation of Aristotle's Four Elements seems rather beyond the capabilities of any hereditary trait. Though it would be useful."

"Oh c'mon," Yang teased her partner as they both made a swing around a corner. She pushed a student out of her way, him screaming at her to be more careful. She didn't listen. "Don't tell me you don't wanna see the Big-Blue Link mess with some water. I bet he'd make a real splash with moves like that." The cheeky grin the blonde offered her dark counterpart was returned only with a flat stare. Moderately impressive, given the pace they were running at.

"Jokes aside, do you not believe there are far more reaching consequences to Mikau?" Blake spoke with an air of mystery again. Yang blew a stray strand of hair out of her eyes. Sometimes her partner could be a real pain. "It means that there are more faunus from Link's homeland, so different from one another, but still all living together. Elrora from the sky, Mikau from the sea…" Blake took in a breath of air. Yang couldn't tell if it was from the pace they were running at or her to be being deep again. She hoped it was the former.

"Yeah, well, maybe we should to him about it before thinking too much about it," Yang attempted to sway her partner. For the better, of course. "Kinda useless to think about something when you can just ask someone for the answer, right?" Silence was the response she was given. At least, silence from Blake. Actual silence was kept far and large away by the trampling line of students that seemed to grow in number behind them.

It wasn't too surprising, given that anyone who saw an entire class's worth of students running would probably be a little more than curious. Where she not a part of the stampede, she probably would have joined it herself. Having said that, it did kinda feel like she was being chased by a mob at this point. Oh the good old days… for her at least. Blake probably didn't share that sentiment. Then again from there, neither did Weiss.

"Hey Weiss?" Yang yelled to her alabaster teammate. The Schnee heiress looked to her only for a moment before diverting her attention forward again. Good enough for the brawler. "You used to running after guys like this? Would've thought you preferred them chasing after you." Yang tallied a point in her favor when the young Huntresses gave her a snarling look.

"Oh come off it you brute!" Weiss yelled aloud as she blasted through a pair of doors, the crowd of students following her. Good word for it in Yang's mind, given how she could swear she heard them splinter. "I am not about to waste one of the must intellectual stimulating moments Dr. Oobleck has ever offered us. Besides, I do believe your sister was the one who dragged Mikau from the room."

Yang dropped the conversation only long enough to take note of where they were. Outside, specifically, thanks to Weiss's charge through the doors. But they had to loop around the cafeteria to get to the aquatic center. Loop around it, as in run most of the perimeter of the building just to get around it. That was an option. Or they could be more practical about it.

The blonde brawler gave herself a boost of speed, sprinting hard towards the cafeteria. When she was feet away, she powered her legs with a crouch, but only for a moment. In the next second, she was taking off into the air, clearing easily half the height of the large building. Half was good, but it wasn't enough. Good thing she was prepared.

Her hands dug into the side of the building, years of training showing off as she scaled up the remainder of the building's height with one good solid pull. The muscles able to pull of thousands of pull-ups with relative ease, giving half of their all in a single flex. She made it to the roof of the building with a smirk and perhaps a single bead of sweat, if it was an off day. Good thing it wasn't.

Yang didn't waste a moment to power over the roof of the building, able to see the aquatic center with ease. Her legs took off in another jolt of energy, sprinting across the roof of the building without pause. It took her no time to hear feet racing behind her again, catching up in just as much time.

"Now look who's in a rush," she heard Weiss speak proudly beside her. "And you have the gall to say that I'm chasing some… well-muscled ruffian." Yang couldn't have hidden her grin even if she tried.

"Oh yeah, cause I'm totally the only one who's thinkin' about pecs and ass right now, right?" She gave a quick eye to her sister's alabaster partner, more than simply pleased to see her avoiding eye-sight. "Score one for team Yang!" She called out as she gave another sprint forwards. It was just enough to power off of the roof of the building.

"She did call him Mikau as well, not Link," Blake spoke to Yang in the midst of their short flight down, straight down in fact. Yang chuckled at her partner. Sometimes annoying, sometimes fantastic.

"I know, right?" Yang yelled back, moments before they both slammed into the ground, creating chunks of earth and stone at the impact. Weiss landed beside them not a second later, far more daintily with her glyphs beneath her. Didn't matter, cause they were all running again just after that. "It's almost as if she wants to spend a pleasant evening with him. Forget Link, she probably wants to run that mask all over her-"

"If you two don't stop speaking this instant I'll freeze you and force you to arrive late!" Yang would have chuckled, if she didn't see Weiss pull out Myrtenaster, making a show to point it at the pair. It was slightly amazing how her pace didn't waver despite the clear show of force. Then again, neither did Yang or Blake slow down.

"Alright, chill it princess," Yang waved her hand at Weiss. Alas, she could not resist to tease the young heiress. She blamed the instincts of being an elder sister. "I'm just sayin, you were making some pretty funny noises when Link was talking about the fish dude. Especially when he poured water all over his body. It almost sounded like you-" Yang let out a startled scream, stumbling forward she did.

It made sense why she did, given her left arm was encased in ice.

She hit the ground, tumbling lightly. It was far from a bad fall. Her right hand clutching her literally frozen solid left, however, that was the primary focus of her attention.

"I'm a Huntress of my word, Yang Xia Long!" Weiss yelled ahead of her, already swiftly pulling open the doors to the aquatic center, disappearing inside. Blake was not far behind the heiress. If there was one quality Yang could attribute to her dark partner, it was being realistic. And, realistically, Yang did realize she might have prodded too far.

That didn't help the ice encapsulating her arm or the rumbling of students running up behind her. They might have gotten a head start by jumping the cafeteria, but falling didn't exactly speed things up. The blonde brawler cursed her luck as she picked herself up and started forward again. She clenched her fists, seething through her teeth as she activated what she could of her semblance.

And, as predicated, the ice around her arm began to drip into water, leaving a clear trail along the stone she ran across. Yang mental a small mental note to remember to note make Weiss that made during a duel. It was a note she made and then just as easily she forgot about, like many others. Besides, there were far more important things to think about, like the hunk of a fish attached to a wonder of a faunus currently waiting for them in the pool.

Yang pulled open the doors to the aquatic center, hearing the hoard of students not far behind her. Way larger than just their class now. She shut the doors just as quickly, pushing against them to get the speed boost she need to run for the pool. It was clear as air the sudden rampage of students that slammed into the entryway. A cheap, but temporarily effective, way to block the entrance. Can't pull open a door when everyone is pushing.

There were a few voices yelling at her to slow down, more than one cursing her. They only made her grin. Just needed to have a few sirens and it would be exactly like the old times.

She turned another corner, then two, followed by three. She forwent the locker rooms. Too much space to cover with too close a goal. There was only one door she needed to open, and she could see it along the wall straight ahead of herself. A few more powerful lunges forward, and a few broken tiles behind her, and she was there.

Yang threw open the doors, ready to scream her victory of arrival far before the rest of the class. But when she opened the doors, seeing the large pool that made up the Beacon aquatic center, she stopped. It wasn't because she saw something amazing, or at least something breathtaking. It was because she heard something. Something that was… nice.

It was singing.

"-rst light, second chance, no child could ever dance they way… you do."

Yang heard the voice echoing around the pool deck, something she was used to hearing. A note she'd long forgotten told her that it was because of the tiles, making the acoustics easier. A more dominant part didn't care. That part only cared about what she was hearing.

Specifically, she was hearing a guitar strum acoustically in the air, filling the air with lazy sways across the strings. She heard the pitch change, turning the notes higher and lower, but rarely more than that. But the voice that sang with those notes… Yang couldn't honestly tell if it was because the pool deck was making the voice sound great, or if it naturally echoed like that.

"Oh, tear down, the prison walls. Don't start the curtain call. Your chains will never fall… until… you do…"

The blonde stepped across the pool deck, following the voice up and around her. It was honestly hard for her to tell where it was coming from. Any other time, she might have guessed it was from the speakers. Heck, any real normal time she would have been clapping along to the beat. It did have a nice one.

But right now, she was searching the deck for the singer. She had little surprise to see her sister standing along the side of the pool, her favorite red cape billowing behind her. This time, however, Yang thought it was doing so because of the way she was dancing, swaying left to right with the music. Her little sis had the right idea. Yang's own head was bobbing to the music.

"Cause if you never leave home, never let go… You'll never make it to the great unknown, till you keep. Your. EyeeEEees, open my love."

Yang looked around, continuing to look for the singer, though already having a good idea who it was. She saw Blake and Weiss instead, both of devious teammates standing by the door. Took little imagination on the blonde's part to know what they were thinking. Probably figured a dip in the pool was good for her. Good thing the music was working its magic on them, too.

Weiss was leaning against the pool wall, arms at her sides and lightly pressing against the solid surface behind her. Her fingers were tapping at the tile, likely keeping beat with the song. Blake, however, had her arms crossed, and was all but screaming to the world that she was a faunus. The black bow on her head, twitching with the song's measures, kinda made it obvious.

"So show me your shell, show me your heart! You know I'll never let you fall apart if you keep. Your EyeeEEees, open my love!"

But then Yang tilted her head a little more and saw Professor Oobleck, standing on the far side of pool. He looked little different than usual, one arm behind his back and the other holding his likely coffee filled mug. What was different, at least by Yang's quick eyes, was the way his mug seemed to dipping and rising to the beat of the song. That was the only part of him moving, oddly enough as that was.

Next to him was a slightly more unexpected face,. The second-year and probably cripplingly shy faunus was next to the professor, staring up the high dives with her hands folded over her chest. Her long rabbit ears were leaning back, probably enjoying the sound as well as everyone else was. The young faunus did look a bit happier than usual, but Yang guessed that was because Cardin wasn't anywhere near her at the moment.

But if they were by the high dive…

"Oooooopen up… Oooooooopen up…. Open up your eyes! The weight is unbroken."

Yang looked up the tall platforms, specifically to their open ends that extended out and over the pool water. There were three here, one more than at Signal and taller at that. The smallest was at thirty feet, which was empty. Another was at fifty feet, also empty. The last one, standing far above the rest at seventy feet, however, had a now familiar blue figure sitting on it. Yang grinned as she put her hands to her hips.

Link, or Yang guessed more appropriately Mikau now, was sitting on the edge of the high dive, one leg hanging off the edge and other perched almost precariously next to it. He had that fishbone Guitar of Waves out hands strumming across it as he continued to sing. The brawler already knew he could play a tune, what was with that something Nova song from earlier. But with this, apparently he could sing, too.

Go figure that.

"Ooooooopen up... Ooooooopen up… Open up your eyes! Keep your eyes open…"

His hand fell from the guitar, letting the strings, bones, whatever was making the sound vibrate through the air. It was hard to tell what else he was doing from so high up. Just about everything but his legs was impossible for her to see.

That changed when he leaned further over the high dive, his smooth fish body looking out at the pool beneath him. Up so high, a lot of his features did kinda blur together. Yang blamed the chlorine in the air for that. She could at least make out his head, given how long that fin thing he had was.

"Oh hey," his vibrating voice spoke out to down below. Guess it really did echo. "Looks like the audience finally arrived." The what?

Yang turned around, blinking as she saw the rest of the students behind her. When did they get in here? No wait, she scratched that question. Where did the extra few dozen students pop in from? She could believe six or seven, but it looked like there were, like, three extra classes behind her. What was this?

"Is that Glynda?"

What did the fish boy say?

"Yup, that's the Triple B down there." The amphibian up on the high dive pointed his hand into the group. Yang was almost fearful to look to where he was pointing. Almost. Thankfully or not, however, the figure he was addressing was more than happy to speak up. Happy was probably the worst word for it, actually.

"Link, I presume." The venom in Ms. Goodwitch's voice was more toxic than anything a spider could make up. It didn't help that the professor was slapping her riding crop on her free hand, marching across the wet tiles with high heels like she was getting ready to lay the smack down on someone. Probably was, Yang realized. Problem was she didn't know who. "One of your friends helping you up there?"

"Yup, glad you catch on fast." Came the voice from up above. "Kidna worried I'd have ta explain the whole thing again. Don't get me wrong, I love a crowd… well Mikau does, but no likes repeat performances."

"My concern at the moment is who authorized you to have this little… performance." Yang could hear the leather of the crop twist and cry out in pain, a result of the blonde professor twisting the material in her hand. Kinda helped the pool was about as quiet as a mouse right now. "The rush of students making their way here has disrupted several activities about campus, including several tours and inspections by the Military."

"Can't blame the artist for drawing a crowd." Yang didn't know if she wanted drop to her knees with laughter or jump in the pool to avoid the slaughter. She was smart enough to at least back away to a wall. More support there. "Sides, I'm just holdin' up my end of the bargain with Oobleck. I show off what Mikau can do, with Link's help, and he'll help me find my friend. Double victory, right?"

Ms. Goodwitch didn't respond. Instead, Yang saw her turn an even and probably deadly glare towards the bottom of the high dive. Specifically, right to the professor Link had sold out. This was gonna be either awesome or horrifying. Actually, probably both. Horror movies were fun to watch.

"Doctor Oobleck," Glynda spoke the teacher's name with a neutral tone. "Is this true?"

"Yes!" Only Oobleck could respond so quickly to what was, at least metaphorically, a near-death situation. It kinda helped that he raced over to his fellow professor's side. "Magnificent find, Link is! Mikau as well, his friend in the mask. Wasn't aware of entry. But! His fairy, Tatl, answered question in class! Many things happened. Quick discussion. Proposal was made and reached. Link shared of his home, I help him search for his friend. Fairy says they live in certain areas. Currently unaware of where. And yet, archeology is my specialty, training, and doctorate. A combination of quick study in geology and, with luck, possible locations can be reached! Great gain on all sides!"

"You forgot about the part where I wouldn't have to wear the uniform anymore!" Yang was certain at this point that laughter was going to win out.

She put her hands over her mouth, stifling the chuckles that came when Glynda gave a glare colder than ice towards Oobleck. Even he seemed nervous now, swallowing on something despite his mug not moving. His mug was shaking now. Like… like really shaking. Oh, this was awesome in so many ways.

"You promised a student he would be given unique permission to not abide by the dress code?" Yup, story of the week. Nothing was gonna top it.

"Hey hey, in Super Buzz's defense, it wasn't like Link is going to walk around shirtless or anything." And in came Yang's mini-drone double, flittering around the pair of professors with a well-practiced amount of apathy. Yang was almost jealous, almost. She did still value her life. "That collar on the uniform is just bothering the crap out of Link. SB here noticed that, made a deal, and we took it. What's the harm in that?"

"Were you not the one who asked that Link be treated as all other students while here?" Glynda turned her harsh glare to the fairy. Yang heard the small ball ring, but she couldn't be sure if that was terror or just a normal sound. She kinda suspected the former. "Do you truly believe this is, in any facet of the word, the same as other students?"

"Oh yeah. Red-hair over there is wearing a tiara," Yang noticed Pyrrha grab at her golden regalia, blush included. Nice. "A brute of a thing basically trying to show off his chest." Who was that? Oh, Sun apparently. He was waving, too. Yup, definitely Sun. "That's not even mentioning Little Red literally wearing a long red cape." Okay, that was getting close to home… even if her little sister only grinned as she hugged her favorite accessory around her uniform. "If anything, I thought we were being pretty reasonable, making a trade for this kinda thing. Better than just doing what we want and saying 'tough luck'. I can still try that, though, if you like?"

Yang was already several feet away, her mind only vaguely aware of the further distance she had placed between herself and the professors plus fairy. Out of the corner of her eyes, she saw a lot of the students doing the same. She even felt Ruby run up behind her, semblance as crazy useful as ever. Guess she wasn't alone in being a little wary at least.

Ms. Goodwitch settled for staring coldly at the fairy and professor, the riding crop in her hands nearly bent backwards by the silent fury of her mind. The leather of the crop was letting a small cry for help, one heard clear as shattering glass over the silent pool deck. It was probably more terrifying than a Creeper's shriek. Really, Yang felt like she was in the middle of some Hi-Def action movie, waiting for a bomb to go off.

"Hey!" The sudden shout almost made her jump. "Hold on a sec, I'll be right down!" Her eyes immediately looked up to see Link, in fish boy form, standing atop the high dive. His guitar was gone, back to whatever magical dimension he sent the thing to. He was leaning over the edge of the board, looking down at them. It was hard for Yang to tell much else other than that, given how smooth his scaly body was and how far away he was. Kinda made it hard to read a person.

Him falling off the high dive was easy to see.

No one gasped or screamed. Why would they? They were thrown from higher heights during their examination test. Swim team did it just about every day, too. Yang was, honestly, unimpressed. If the fish boy wanted to get a few more aww's out of the crowd, he'd have to up his game. He did manage to turn his fall into a well-ducked dive, at least as far as the brawler could judge. She wasn't an expert in the sport. She just knew short splashes were a good thing. Didn't keep her from judging.

"Eh, 'C' Minus" she spoke up, shrugging her shoulders. Ruby didn't mutter a word behind her. That usually meant she agreed, at least close enough that she didn't pout. She knew they were both staring at the water, watching the only blue figure along the deep floor of the pool to rise again. Thing was, he was taking his sweet time about it.

It was hard to judge given the depth, angle not helping either, but Yang could swear she saw the tall shape of the Zora step down on the bottom of pool. At the very least he was right side up, that long protrusion coming off the back of his head parallel with the bottom of the water. The word Yang wanted to use was buoyancy. That seemed right. Her swear for him stepping on the bottom of the pool became fact when she saw him moving along the bottom, arms, probably, making a big show about swinging them as he moved. Really, moving towards the wall of the pool, what was the point of that? He was part fish, so couldn't he just swim up and pull himself out of the pool?

Yang's musings stopped when Link eventually walked out of sight. The fifty foot deep wall, covered by water, made it a little difficult to see him. She still wasn't sure he wasn't just going to splash the first person to look over the edge. It was what she'd do. That thought kept her from peaking over the edge. Ruby, however, seemed content to peek over her shoulder. That was cool.

"Sometimes I hate how easily Link listens to others," the drawn voice of Tatl came out, ringing in the air as she floated between the pair of professors. Yang looked at her long enough to see her wings dipping. Though, with the way her rings were coming, it looked kinda like she was sighing.

Musings stopped when Link exploded from the water.

That was the best word Yang had for it. Exploded. Erupted worked, but it didn't really capture the way the water just kind of blew up around him. Probably literally. His body just kinda flew out of the water, his long arms and insanely large fins out front, rest of his well-built body following up behind him. The water rose in arcs around him, some coming off like rain and the others kind of chopped like waves. Hence, in Yang's mind exploded.

The fish boy in question landed in a kneel on the pool deck, water rushing down his scaly body and onto the tiled floor. He rose above it, standing to his impressive height with hands on his hips and fins still very much extended. Yang guessed a look at Weiss, barely visible beyond the wall of students. She was not disappointed to see the white heiress looking about as easy on her feet as a frog in the streets.

"Sorry," the vibrating voice of Link's friend spoke up. "Haven't had a good dip in a while. Water's kinda deluded, don't know with what, but still better than stale moat streams." He held out his hand towards Ms. Goodwitch, fin still unretracted. "Name's Mikau, good ta meet ya."

Yang spared a glance at the wall of students, noting the number of whispers and wide eyes that were staring at him. She smirked at it. It was kinda funny really. She had gotten an almost literal front row seat to Link's little water show, but the rest of the students were getting about the same as sloppy seconds. She definetly used the right metaphor there, especially with the way a few of the female eyes were looking at the big blue mystery fish.

However, it took all her time to judge the crowd to realize that Ms. Goodwitch had yet to even make a move towards Link, Mikau, whoever. She was just staring at him, seriously, green eyes practically turning red behind those glasses of hers. Maybe she was trying to cook him. Wouldn't be impossible given how ferocious she could be, at least per the freshman rumors. Those were always fun to listen to.

"Link?" Ms. Goodwitch finally spoke, questioningly at that. The fish boy nodded, leading the professor to continue. "I appreciate your desire to introduce your friends to your now fellow colleagues and students, but I would ask that you practice more restraint in your show and boasting." The professor made a point to twist her crop in a new direction, making the leather cry in a new way. Still like nails on a very far away chalk board.

"Whoa hey, chill it with the ice," Mikau spoke up, holding up both his hands now. Yang watched him ball them in to quick fists. His large fins almost disappeared in a flash with how fast they were gone. She still wasn't entirely convinced that they weren't some kind of add on to his gloves. "I wasn't tryin' to give ya a hard time. Really, I just wanted ta give a good show to the crowd. Seem to like what they see so far." His hand waved towards the students, Ms. Goodwitch and Oobleck's eyes looking towards them.

Sure enough, when Yang looked over, all she saw were curious eyes and ears of maybe four or five dozen students all staring at the trio. It wasn't hard to figure out who was the real center of attention. It only helped when Link waved, and more than a few students started giggling. Had to be Mikau who did that. Yang just couldn't see the little faunus boy doing something like that, not when he was shy to the point of being unable to speak.

"That is a poor excuse and I refuse to believe it is thought highly of in your kingdom." Wow, Yang was actually kind impressed with the artillery Ms. Goodwitch was bringing out. Already aiming for the home base. "While assisting a professor or doctor in her or his lecture is perfectly within reason and actively encouraged, creating spontaneous stampedes through the academy grounds is nothing if not highly disrespectful to the environment we are attempting to foster."

"Did you read that off a poster or something?" Tatl asked between the group. "Cause that sounded like something I'd expect a store clerk to say. Seriously, might want to tone it back a bit." Yang almost saw fire come from Ms. Goodwitch's eyes. The way Ruby gripped her shoulders, she knew she wasn't the only one.

"Peace! Parlay! A moment of silence!" Oobleck finally shouted, to Yang's lack of shock. "A misunderstanding has occurred. Tragic, perhaps, but possibly beneficial! A possibility to teach foreign faunus traits to multiple students! Superior to a remedial lesson, offering more than simply review." With a zoom almost like her sister's Oobleck shot to Link's front, making the fish boy lean back a little. Yang couldn't blame him. "Link, Mikau, to you both! I suspect you suspect most students would discover this joint ability of yours. Am I correct?"

"Right in the reef," Mikau spoke up with a point to the floor. "Really, Ruby and Blake already knew about Elrora, and the rest of the girls, plus I did kinda tell Goodwitch and Ozpin 'bout the rest of my friends. Didn't know when it would happen, but past lessons kinda show that better plans come from better knowledge."

Link. That was definitely Link. All Link. There was no laid-back machismo or groovy wave talk the fish boy usual spoke with. That had to be Link talking, front and center.

"An excellent deduction at that!" Oobleck waved his mug at the fish, who seemed wholly used to the display already. At least Yang assumed so. It was kind of hard when she was looking at his back. "Free share of information to bolster communication and teamwork. Key in a team, necessity for victory, brave to volunteer."

"Yeah, that I know." The words came from Link's mouth before Yang enough knew what to do with them. She saw a look form on Ms. Goodwitch's face, probably thinking the same thing. Too bad Tatl had to but in.

"Wait, hold on, are you saying Link shouldn't have done this?" The little golden mini-drone did a pretty good job on trying to turn the question back on the professor. At least an 'A' for effort. Too bad Ms. Goodwitch was like the final boss of some super hard RPG.

"I-It wasn't just Link's idea…" Up came the voice of the Peeping Tom. Yang looked for the dark ball of light, the shifting behind her telling her Ruby was doing the same. They found him landing on Mikau's shoulder, looking like an unfortunately large zit against the fish boy's blue scales.

"I, um… I-I told Ruby and her friends about Mikau, well… the him before, when he was alive… just himself." Yang raised her hand and put it on her shoulder, lightly cupping her sister's own. She felt the grip beneath it grow stronger. "It… didn't go well. So, ah, Link and I, and sis, w-we decided to show them Mikau. To, ya know, show a happy ending." Wow, the peeper had some wisdom. Yang puckered her lips as she nodded.

"And so you decided to simply show off your abilities in front of a classroom?" Too bad Ms. Goodwitch had that fire power still raining down.

"Try made-a-deal-to-make-a-win-win-situation," Tatl drew out the comeback, complete with flying around Ms. Goodwitch tauntingly. It was nothing short of a marvel to Yang that the golden mini-drone wasn't already scrap at the bottom of some heap. "No, but seriously, basically everyone won from this. Heck, only reason we did it for the newbies was because Super Buzz here said it was a good idea. We've got the skill, but we're not stupid enough to just throw it around and call it a day."

"Happy as I am to hear your recognize the foolishness of un-thought action, I have yet to see a suitable reason for you to leave Oobleck's classroom and come to the aquatic center. If your desire was simply to swim, there was no need for the disruption of class." Ms. Goodwitch's gaze shifted from the fairy to the Zora, one that had yet to simmer down from the high heat. Yang was almost afraid Link was gonna get cooked. Already looked like he was being grilled.

"Actually, kinda did," Mikau spoke up. Yang couldn't tell if there was nervousness in his voice, mostly because it was vibrating so much. "Got into a bit of talk 'bout what it means to have a warrior's blood. Some heckler was sayin' that my fins weren't enough to make me fighter." He rotated his arm, said fin still only a fraction of the size Yang knew it could grow to. Probably a good idea to not try and spook one of the strongest professors at Beacon. "Buuuuuut, I can do more, just needed some swimmin' room to show of what I can do."

Ms. Goodwitch was silent for a moment, lips still puckered as she stared at Link. Yang almost wanted to run around see what kinda look the fish faunus was making, but her instincts told her better. Running now would only get a lot of attention from the students and professors. Not a good thing, at least not without something to show off.

"Doctor Oobleck," Ms. Goodwitch finally spoke, eyes still on the tall fish boy. "Have Link's lessons so far been satisfactory?"

"Absolutely!" He responded back. "A whole new heritage and culture of faunus to explore! Very in depth, full of curiosities. Raises many questions regarding the vary cultural and political implications between multiple fauni races, no strictly human and faunus. Varying terms for similar things, adaptability to new environments, all critical for higher level learning." Oobleck almost pumped his arm into the air as he finished, clearly happy with he was talking about. He was always excited.

"Hmm," was all the response Ms. Goodwitch returned. Probably wouldn't have been able to hear it if the pool deck wasn't so quiet. "And you Link. I assume your friend is the reason you are so much more… talkative."

"Mikau does love to perform," was the response Link gave. "There isn't much more to enjoy than making a crowd happy with what you do best. Just helps that puttin' on a show is what I do best." Yang was loosing track of how much Link and Mikau flipped back and forth. She would have to ask Ruby later if that was what Elrora was like. Too bad her sister wasn't too talkative about the giant bird.

"Right, and you are perfectly accepting of showing your unique abilities? I was under the impression, by Tatl's admission, that you preferred to be treated no differently than the others." Mikau started to laugh, least Yang was pretty sure it was Mikau. She couldn't see Link laughing at Ms. Goodwitch. Too obedient.

"C'mon, do you really think I'd be able to stay here for too long without having to show it at some point?" He shrugged as he spoke. Yang remembered Link doing that a lot. "Like I said earlier. I'll need my friends' help eventually. Better to get rid of the shock now and just leave the awe." Yang grinned at that.

"I see, and to a degree I do approve." Now that was a bit surprising. Didn't expect Ms. Goodwitch to turn over and admit someone else had a good counterpoint. "But your method in doing so has only caused a major disruption around the Academy grounds. As per the student rulebook and regulations, disruption of activities along campus grounds will result in the need of remedial action on the student's part."

"Oh you have got to be kidding me!" Tatl nearly screamed as she rang. It did at least sound like someone was ringing a bell right next to Yang's ears. "This is what we get for doing your Super Buzz Knight a favor?"

"And Doctor Oobleck should know better than to cause major disturbances himself, especially regarding prior incidents." Ms. Goodwitch turned her gaze to the eccentric teacher who, for one of the first times in Yang's short time at Beacon, looked a bit embarrassed.

It was pretty weird. Then again, none of this was normal. Cool, awesome even, but normal was about as faraway as Atlas right now.

"Ah yes, the geology. Unregulated dig. Most unfortunate." That was a story Yang wanted to hear about later. Emphasis on the later. She wanted to see what was going to happen now. "Resolved though! No problems currently, all is well. But, I see point. Repeat offense, troubling."

"Indeed it is," Ms. Goodwitch spoke as she started to poke at her pad again. Yang just realized it was the first time she had done so since she came into the pool. Guess intimidation took priority. You couldn't make leather cry with one hand, after all. "Normally, Link's remedial actions are specified as a choice of either cleaning a large portion of the school grounds or assisting in the activities of another professor."

"And so I volunteer to take on such a task!" Oobleck's hand shot up into the air as he let out the declaration. Yang just crossed her arms. Didn't seem like the time to volunteer. "Assistance in faunus research, foreign cultures, very time consuming. His assistance will allow great acceleration. Required even."

"Perhaps you have already forgotten that you are also in need of some discipline as well, Oobleck." Glynda snapped her riding crop as she spoke. Yang felt a shiver that time. Here's hoping there was something left of the teach' later. Be kinda hard to go on another 'above level' mission without him.

"As explained during your last failed venture, damages upon Beacon grounds or properties is permissible only when significant results pertaining to Grimm Research or historical findings are made. You have demonstrated neither, and as such, are liable for similar responsibilities as Link. Only more… severe." Another crack of the whip meant another man was put in his place. Classy.

"W-Wait," a timid voice spoke up. Yang recognized it as Tael, but she honestly thought it would be the robot's older sibling that would handle the talking, or at least the interrupting. "Um… w-what if the doctor was able to prove, um… that? What you said." Ms. Goodwitch gave the young faunus a raised eye. Yang could hear water dripping across the entire pool it was so quiet.

"I do not follow," Ms. Goodwitch's tone was neutral, but a true neutral, like multiplied by zero neutral. Scary.

"U-Um… I… I-I…" Yeah, Yang couldn't blame the drone for cracking under that kind of pressure. Military robots gave out under less.

"She's asking what if Doctor Oobleck did produce those results, or whatever." Less surprising to see Tatl speak up now. The golden mini-drone flew around the group before hovering above Ms. Goodwitch. "You said he couldn't do Link's remedial lessons thing, which is bull, because he was in trouble too, which is also bull. But, what if Super Buzz wasn't in trouble. Couldn't he just be in charge of those lessons again?"

"Perhaps, yes," Ms. Goodwitch spoke back. "But he would have to show a significant portion of data that currently has no research or standing in the fields Beacon is current to contribute in. Link's demonstration of his abilities, while impressive, have already been documented by myself during his entrance exam. We will speak of that later." Oh yeah, documented. That was probably bad.

"So like, if I were to finally get to show off what I can do, would that count?" It was kinda funny actually, at least to Yang, the way all heads turned to Link. "I mean I hate cleaning, me and Link both. Besides that, we already made a deal with Doctor Oobleck to help us look for my friend. Be kinda mean to suddenly say we can't do that cause I broke a rule I didn't know about."

"This is your first mark on your record," Ms. Goodwitch admitted. "However, the timing, after only a single day of class, is remarkable in its own right, and not in a proper sense at that." She tapped on her pad a few more times, eyes averting only long enough to punch something in. Yang hoped it was good news.

"However… if new data can be obtained in regards to your friend's abilities, beyond that which is currently in either fields, your proposed deal can be struck." The blonde professor adjusted her shades before she continued. "That is, Doctor Oobleck will be placed in charge of your remedial lessons, meaning you are at his disposal for one week's time to aid him in his research." The blond brawler pumped an arm, the same time she felt Ruby jump up and down behind her. Yup, good news!

"Cool, so like, we're right back to where started," Tatl sounded far more annoyed than pleased. Heck, even her ringing sounded lite it was out of patience. "That was a good use of time. Really, happy to be a part of it."

"Sis… calm down," Peeping Tom spoke up from Mikau's shoulder. "I-It's alright. I mean, we have permission now. That's good, right?"

"We had it before," the golden of the two balls of light fired back. "Now Link's just gotta really show them what it means to be from Hyrule. We're given away all the eggs for the basket. Oh in the name of Time, it's one of the stupidest things I've heard of in a good long while!" That was not how you ended a negotiation, not by insulting the other side. Yang had seen enough deals go south to know that much.

"Your complaints are noted, but irrelevant in the moment," Then again, Ms. Goodwitch was definitely more in control of her emotions than some street thug. "Making deals without the authorization or approval of authority figures means it is nothing more than a word of mouth promise, completely irrelevant against institutional rules set in place long before any of us were born."

"Oh, you think so?" That was brave, like petting a lion.

Yang couldn't help but grin. She could, however, take a wary step back. Her sister moved with her. So did the entire crowd of students. Their collective noise was far higher than anything the sisters made, seeing as there were a dozens of feet shuffling across tile, all a little scared of what would happen. Yang was too, but mostly excited. Yeah, excited was right.

"I know so, Tatl," Ms. Goodwitch spoke as she lowered her pad and riding crop. Bad sign. "I know as well as I know everything that comes through Beacon. I know it likely as well as you know Link. Do not attempt to think that you are any better than the rules. You, in fact, specifically asked to be treated in accordance with the rules."

"I asked to be seen as an equal, not to have a hawk watch over us like some kind of dying rodent." More like decaying fish, but both were good. The fairy was dropping golden dust as she bobbed in the air, wings shaking with rage. "I mean, we didn't even cause that freaking damage or whatever! Why don't you blame that circus troupe behind you? They're the ones that apparently ran screaming from the classroom to here."

"If you prefer, I can simply excuse you from Beacon entirely. That will sort out this mess far swifter." Yang felt a small weight drop in her gut.

That was bad.

Like, that was really bad.

She could feel Ruby gasp and grab at her uniform, looking for a familiar wall to lean on. Yang even heard the muttering of the crowd go up, probably hiding a few more shocked statements.

"Whoa whoa, hey, everyone calm down. It's a clear day, no need for a stormy sea," Link, the tall fish boy right now, held up his arms and shushed the crowd, waving his long muscled appendages like fans. All eyes turned to him, but he didn't appear anymore disturbed than before. That Zora must have been keen to crowds or something. Probably would brag about it, too. Yang still couldn't see Link doing that. "Geez, we were just having a little fun, doing a bit of show and tell along the way. No reason for everyone to treat this like some kinda monsoon. Just a choppy wave at worst." Yup, fish boy indeed.

"Then perhaps you can demonstrate this 'rare' and unseen ability. Put all this to rest and stop this disruption of classes." Ms. Goodwitch tightened her hold on her riding crop again. Given the abuse it was taking, she must have had extras.

"Okay seriously! Why don't you-"

"Yeah, that sounds good," Link pointedly interrupted his fairy companion. Probably the best move, to stop anymore arguing. Good idea. "Well, just so we're not gonna waste anymore time, how possible is it fer one of your trainees to have some kind of magical shield?"

"Semblances are able to be formed into a variety of uses, including the manipulation and increase of strength, agility, or endurance. So yes, very plausible." Strike one, Yang counted.

"Alright, well about being able to control water. Ya know, like pullin' it out of a moat and beating stone into sand? That's rare, right?" He shrugged again, leaving Yang unable to place if it was Link or Mikau talking. Kinda fun to play guess who. Too bad she couldn't get an answer.

"Controlling of elements is a rare trait, but students in the past have been shown it to be possible to move forms of metal, deadwood, and even stone. Water is not to be unconsidered from there." Strike two. C'mon Mikau.

"Dang, that was a clincher," the Zora let out with a sigh. Yang heard Ruby suck in a breath at the same time. Same thought, different reactions. "Eh, better to show the deepest cove then to offer the whole reef." That sounded like an expression that Yang could follow. Not a good thing, cause she saw Weiss nodding at it. Then again, maybe the heiress was just trying to fall in love.

"And what would this… cove be?" Ms. Goodwitch's foot was tapping. Was that good? Yang didn't know. Some of the others students in the crowd did, however. She saw a few step back, eyes a bit wider and mouths drawn. That meant it was bad.

"Oh no, cove's an expression, like… oh what would Gerudo call it, size of the bounty I guess." Mikau rolled his hand as he spoke. "The real show is this baby here." The same hand he was rolling reached for his throat, stopping on something Yang couldn't see. She had a pretty good guess though.

"Is he talking about that stone?" She heard her younger sister whisper into her ear. She got onto her tiptoes to reach that high. "Didn't he say that was for the, um, royals or something?"

"Curious, question. You made a point that this Zora Sapphire, as you named it, was insignificant before. How has its importance changed?" Oobleck spoke at the usual million words a minute, head twisted as he did so. Yang, however, was more focused on the way the fish boy seemed to laugh. That was probably good.

"Oh c'mon, did you really think I was gonna tell a class of tadpoles that I was carryin' somethin' worth a lot?" His other hand motioned at the class of students. A lot of them starting looking at one another. Yang actually turned around to gaze at her sister. She saw only a curious silver gaze looking back at her. Least she wasn't the only one confused. "I'm still tryin' ta figure out all the name changes and stuff, but I think you call magic somethin' like Aura, am I right? Or was it Dust?"

"Per our previous conversations, between you alone that is, we have reached a similar conclusion. That being Aura." Ms. Goodwitch nodded. Okay, things were improving. No more weight in Yang's gut. Hopefully that expulsion was off the table. Please. This guy was too awesome to lose in a crowd.

"Cool, so like, can I guess you don't have something that gives you super Aura?"

Wait… what?

"What did he say?" Yang heard Ruby harshly whisper behind her. She turned to answer, only to find that she was being pushed forward across the tile. If the ground wasn't wet, she might have been impressed. Still didn't stop the fact that was sliding towards the fish boy and professors.

The rest of the students, however, seemed to be following her little sister's mindset. The crowd of students suddenly started to move forward, indefinitely curious of the little thing Mikau had just said. Yang was able to just see Weiss and Blake at the front of the group, both of them staring at the Zora with wide eyes. Yang was pretty sure hers were just as large.

"Whoa, hey! The crowd's rushin' the stage!" Mikau let out as he turned around, probably for the first time taking notice of their approach. Yang saw him raise his arms, still standing well above most of the students. That was the last thing Yang saw before she felt herself being pushed back, back against Ruby that is.

Even though she had yet to move her feet, she was suddenly being forced backwards across the wet tile. She wasn't alone. The entire crowd of students had the same occurring to them. A few frightened cries and expletives made that abundantly clear. That, and the fact that a good portion of them were sliding across the ground now, probably because they fell. Yeah, that was it.

"Everyone stay back," came Ms. Goodwitch's controlled but demanding voice. She had her crop pointed forwards, doubtlessly now what was pushing them all back. Her semblance at least. "Your eagerness is noted, but only hampering our questions. And you, Link," the professor turned to Mikau, not lowering her arm as she did so. "This is qualifying to allow this expedition of Dr. Oobleck, in accordance with uncovering unique data and documenting it. However, I must now ask you to explain it."

"Does it really work?" Yang looked to see Weiss ask the question, her petite form still pushing against the invisible barricade Ms. Goodwitch had erected with surprising strength. Enough to push back the students around her at least. She saw said professor give the smaller girl a cold look. "If it does, that could tremendously help with the research being done at the Schnee Company. It could help us develop new forms of medical Aura devices and-"

"Sorry seafoam, Zora only," Mikau spoke with a definite smirk. Yang watched him flick the jewel on his neck, it ringing with the force. "And by that, I mean only a Zora knows how to use it. Trust me, all Link could do with it was open a door. Got from a reliable source that this beauty hasn't been made for you guys. Again, trust me, Link woulda found it otherwise." Yang kinda doubted that. She couldn't help but entertain the idea of being on fire forever. Sort of.

"Incredible! Truly astounding!" Now it was Oobleck's turn to rush Mikau. Wasn't much ground to cover, but he was still looking at the jewel sitting across the Zora's neck, eyes only a breath apart from it. The fish boy didn't look too thrilled about it. "An enchantment of Dust perhaps? No, impossible. Undermines entropy increase. Semblance specific? Perhaps, allots for more variability, but still difficult to reach infinite."

"Had to shatter your well thought out talk, but it was your first choice," Mikau pointed out the doctor. Pointed it out as he put a finger to the eccentric Oobleck's forehead and pushed him back. The doctor only puckered his lips as looked back up at the fish boy, who was grinning back down at him. Oh that confidence. "But I'm gonna let Tael take this one. He loves telling the stories more than I do. Not gonna take away someone's pride and joy, am I?" He chuckled at his words, that vibrating sound that seemed to make Weiss weak in the knees. Yang wish she could have recorded it. Unfortunately, reaching for her phone right now would only push Ruby away. Not worth it.

"U-Um…" The Peeping Tom spoke up from Mikau's shoulder. Not a comfort zone for most people. Thankfully, the dark mini-drone took flight, ringing lightly as he did so. "The, um… the Zora Sapphire i-is a Spiritual Stone, given to the Zora's as one of three keys to p-protect the Door of Time. The Door of Time guarded… guarded an ancient treasure, so to make sure th-that no one was able to abuse it, the three Spiritual Stones were given to three different Royal Families, to guard. The Zora Queen, the Goron Chief, and the Great Deku Tree of the Kokiri."

"Hey, didn't Link grow with the Kokiri?" Ruby whispered behind Yang again. She bit her lips before nodding. "Does that mean he's got one of the other ones?"

"Let's ask later." That wasn't Yang. Said blonde boxer looked to her left to see Blake standing there, far apart from the crowd. The sneaky little cat. "I would rather hear more history before assuming anymore." And the wisdom again!

"No one knows how long ago the stones were created, b-but it was at least centuries, maybe longer. Long enough for their initial purpose to be almost forgotten entirely. L-Like Mikau said earlier, it was used as a wedding band for the Zora tribes before. But not only that, it was used in meditation by a lot of their leaders because… um…" Stumbling, not good. "B-because descendants of Royal Blood could meditate, a-and the stone allowed them to meditate for long periods of time. S-So the stone started to be used as a sign of trust between the Royal Families, showing that they are offering a key to endless wisdom."

"Intriguing," Ms. Goodwitch spoke up. Little surprise to Yang to see her tapping and swipping on her pad again. This time, she was probably recording this with her mini-drones. That would make sense at least. It was what Yang would have done. "But I fail to see how this relates back to a increased supply of Aura. At the moment, it sounds merely like a specifically formed dust sapphire for allowing ease of mind."

"That's cause it was kept to the royal families," the Peeping Tom spoke up again. Good on him to show a bit of courage, at least in the right area this time. "A-and the royal families had the same blood, so… they all similar abilities. But… um… ah…" What Yang thought was going to be another exposition was cut off as the mini-drone's words dribbled and died. Then she saw the dark ball of light turn and look up at Mikau, its wings the clearest indicator. She saw the fish boy grin.

"Found it in some ruins a while ago." The simultaneous twisting of heads was almost audible across the pool deck. Great acoustics. "Mikau's memories… I remember hearing stories about the stone since my ears grew in." His what grew in? "When you hear about it enough, kinda hard to not recognize it. Glad I found it though. Makes turning my Guitar of Waves into a real jam instrument easy as low tide."

There was a lot to filter through in those statements, and Yang knew she wasn't the girl to do it. On no, she could tell the obvious, mostly how freaky easy it was for Mikau to talk to a crowd, but trying to figure out what half those words were? Nope, not for her. Let the faunus experts handle that. Her partner and teacher were both just that.

"Amazing! Simply unheard of!" Oobleck swung his mug as he spoke. She saw Mikau take a very deliberate step out of the way and both the fairies ringing as they avoided the path. "But how does this differ for you? Altering an instrument, unique! But vague, unclear of meaning. A demonstration! Logical deduction through observable results."

"I feel that is the next proper step." Ms. Goodwitch spoke up. She was still tapping on her keypad like she wasn't just told some great secret. Kinda funny, cause that was exactly what she asked for, at least to Yang it was. "I'm sure you are more than willing to do such?"

"Course I am!" Mikau spoke up proudly as she extended his arms. With his height it had impressive reach. "Anything I need to know before I start though? Hate to get handed another broken scroll for following a request." Why would he break a scroll? Oh, he must have meant those really old pieces of paper. Guess Weiss had one thing right, that was kinda old fashioned. Too old for the brawler.

"So long as you cause no damage to any students or the facility, you should be within the Academy's regulations." Kay, good, that meant she couldn't bring up another rule, otherwise that'd be lying. Elder sister logic always ruled. Mikau seemed okay with it.

"Sweet, then give me a sec," the fish boy spoke up as began to reach for the back of his choker. Wait, was he taking it off? Why was he doing that?

"Oh yeah, real low key, no reason for anyone to suddenly think badly of us now." Yang wasn't sure she'd ever heard anyone, mini-drone, human, or faunus, whine in such anger like Tatl was now. "Nope, just showin' off everything we got. Forget the unknowns, let's just give a freakin' speech and let 'em see every little thing we've ever done! In the name of Time, we don't know anything about this place except the school and we're here talking about everything from our monsters to magic!" It was cute, really, the way the fairy was bobbing up and down in the air. It kinda looked like someone raging. Actually, come to think of it, that was exactly what it was.

"Tatl, you gotta relax, seriously," Link, or more likely Mikau, spoke up again. The choker was off of his neck, the long leathery brown piece of fabric. He was holding it out almost like a rag. But he was grinning at it, fangs and all visible. "Hey Jaune, can ya hold onto this for me?"

Yang then watched one of her favorite shows on Remnant. Timid people being asked to do huge things. It was a hit every episode.

The bumbling leader stuttered with a trembling jaw, his eyes rapidly switching from the now extremely precious gem in his hand back up this eyes, eyes that were solid blue and foot-and-a-half above him. It was hard to tell if Jaune was talking or whimpering. Yang didn't care it was still an 'A+' reaction. Too bad Link seemed to notice.

"Whoa, calm down," he spoke as he dropped his smile, placing is other hand on Vomit Boy's shoulder. "Just need ya to hold it for a little bit. I'm gonna need back in a sec, just can't really show how it works unless you know what to compare it to. Can't call a lake small until you see the ocean, right?" That metaphor actually made sense. Seemed to have an effect on Jaune at least.

The JNPR leader swallowed on nothing before reaching a tentative hand towards the fabric, taking a hold of it tightly. When Mikau released it, grinning softly again down at the blonde, Juane held it to his side. His fingers were white with the effort, to the boy's credit. Yang looked over just in time to see Weiss seething. If nothing else was gained today, Yang had blackmail material for three new people. Solid gold wasn't worth as much.

"Thanks, now, let's do a quick show," Mikau spoke as he stood to his tallest again. Rather than looking out over the crowd like a professor would do, he turned to face the pool. Probably why he wasn't made a professor over a student. That and Ms. Goodwitch would have probably straight up murdered Ozpin.

That was Yang's last thought before Mikau was suddenly surrounded by electricity.

She heard a few startled cries, rightfully so, at the sight. There was a literal shell of blue light lightening arcing around the fish boy. That was about as much as Yang could think of to say. There were literal tiny arcs of lightening jumping around the Zora, all of them crackling across his surface. It was like a giant cone of blue light, threatening anyone who dared approach.

Ms. Goodwitch didn't need her semblance to push her back. Yang was pushing Ruby back with an arm in front of Blake, making sure they were both making a retreat. She blatantly ignored the small protests coming from her younger sister, Yang's superior knowledge and elderly instincts telling her to keep her sis away. Blake seemed to understand wholly well, make no argument at the contact.

Staring at the lightning, Yang was reminded of when she was a kid. There was an electric fence on one side of their house, supposed to keep away the Grimm that lurked in the woods. She touched it once, putting her hand right on it. It shot through her painfully, numbing her entire arm and making her cry for the rest of the day. She could remember her dad trying to calm her down as much as Ruby, her younger sister afraid of losing her big sis.

With the blue electricity stumbling across the surface of the Zora, making his already smooth scales glow with power, it was pretty clear that his little display of power wasn't meant of defense. One bad touch would set any creature howling in pain.

"Good to see you're all payin' attention." Link, of all things, smirked as he spoke. "Just in case it's not obvious to the slower thinkers, this is me using my abilities. Talked' earlier about it, other part to my warrior bloodline. Well, this is it. I think a few of ya called it a semblance or something, so we'll just go with that."

"Astounding nonetheless," Oobleck spoke from aside Mikau. He, the fairies, and Ms. Goodwitch were probably the only people on the pool deck not backing up from Mikau now. She could see the blonde professor, however, readying a finger over her pad. Yang didn't want to know exactly what that was. "Many conveniences for such a skill. Many tools dependent upon electricity. Make for easy recharge or quick battery supply. Many field uses." The only thing Yang heard was how passive Oobleck was. Probably expecting something more.

"Don't know what electricity is, but yeah, lightning is pretty cool." He didn't know what electricity was? Oh, the poor soul. "Helps keep me safe when I'm pushin' through the ocean, keeping the Like-Like's and skullfishes away. No deep sea swimmer likes bein' fried." Mikau held up his arm as he spoke, flexing it with the blue electricity still coursing over him. It only seemed to hum at his effort.

But then, it stopped.

Just as fast as it has appeared, it was gone, returning the pool deck to a moderately safe environment. Link was still standing tall in front of the, scales no wetter or bluer than before. No spare arc of electricity were chasing along the water. Just like flipping a switch, the electricity was gone. If it weren't for the fact that Yang had her arm still in front of Blake and another on the sister currently on her back, she would have thought the whole thing a chlorine induced fever dream. At least Link looked tired, too. Wait a minute…

"Exhaustion." Oobleck noted the appearance of Link swifter than the others. It was only impressive because Mikau, or Link, whoever, put his hands to his knees after the word was spoken. "Heavy use of your semblance results in great expenditure of your own energy. Momentarily advantageous, but crippling during long term use."

"You… You like to use a lot a… lot of… big words, don't ya?" The Zora was panting as he spoke. Guess that meant the doctor was right again. He was starting to act like a fish out of water… heh. "But… If I got your memo… right at least… you're not wrong…" Mikau sucked in a deep breath of air, standing to his tallest as he did so. Maybe he was doing that for a show. He was a musician after all, always trying to show off what they got. At least that was Yang's impression of the group, Weiss only enforcing it.

"Are you well?" Came Ms. Goodwitch's question. Yang had to search the words to find the empathy in the voice. "Perhaps you overestimated the strength of your semblance."

"Okay, I'm getting serious now," Tatl spoke up. She looked a little different, almost like she was ringing a balled fist. Or more accurately, Yang realized, she was the balled fist. It made her give a swift chuckle. "If you want to sit there and continue to mock Link like he's some kind of training dummy, I'll take it as an invitation to jump through your head and scramble your brains!"

Laughter was gone. Happy thoughts with it.

Yang felt her own jaw fall a little at the threat the tiny ball of light had thrown. Staring from Tatl to Ms. Goodwitch, the brawler felt her every muscle freeze like ice. Her sister, still clutched tightly to her back, was stiller than any other moment Yang could recall in her life.

For all accounts, it was like watching two ancient Grimm having a staring contest, knowing that any move made was going to be horrible for everyone involved, but she couldn't dark to look away. The dead silence across the pool deck made it clear she was not alone with her thought.

Even Mikau looked set off by the exchange. Yang had yet to the see the giant fish boy do anymore than grin, chuckle, or tilt his head, but now he was staring with abyssal blue eyes and partially raised hands, like he was debating who to grab. Couldn't blame him for picking neither of the blondes. Both would have probably burned him.

Out of the corner of her eyes, Yang saw something else move. It was odd only because the rest of the pool was still as ice in the freezer. It was Jaune, making his way back to Mikau. No need to guess why. Yang didn't notice much more before he reached Mikau, lightly tapping on his shoulder. The deck was quiet enough that the buxom brawler could hear the noise. Mikau looked down at Jaune, his pure blue eyes questioning.

"You probably want this back now," Jaune spoke, finally, to Mikau. If there weren't six dozen and a half other hunters in training running around, it might've made a funny scene. Only seeing of what as necessary, however, making the whole thing kinda disappointing, to Yang at least. Still, at least Jaune pissed off the Ice Queen in a whole new way!

"Thanks mate," Mikau spoke up. All eyes immediately focused on him, most especially Ms. Goodwitch and Tatl, the golden fairy ringing lightly with the motion. "That stich was getting bad fast. Nice recovery."

"Well I-It's yours… a-and you, um… have to finish-" Juane stopped speaking when Mikau put a hand on his head, ruffling his already unruly blonde hair. The fish boy had better not try that on her.

"Hey, don't stress yourself. That only helps when you're workin' out." He chuckled again, that vibrating sound Weiss seemed to love so much. Did sound cool though, like running your voice through a fan. "Buuuuuut I think it's time to finish up the set, don't ya think?" He turned his long head towards the professors, long tail connected to it waving in the air. He struck that smirk again, probably practiced from all those sets he kept talking about.

"Excellent idea! Very good," Dr. Oobleck shot up, thankfully. "No haste, however. A unique display often requires prep and focus. Optimal data collection begins with optimal conditions. Idea! We should-"

"Okay, yeah, big words again," Mikau spoke up and over the professor, rubbing the palm of his hand over his head. Yang briefly wondered if it was like massaging a temple. "Why don't you get comfortable, take ten, and let me do my thing. Kay?"

Mikau finished by extending his arms outward, stretched out like he was threatening to hug the doctor. That would have been funny to watch. But no, too obvious for the Zora it looked like.

Instead he fell right back into the pool.

Yang didn't even realize what was happening until he had hit the water, splashing the pool deck with the impact. A few students let out small y elps as they got wet. He was a fish, that was water, must have been like going home! Didn't stop a great many of the students crowding to the edge of the deck, looking over for the fish boy. Yang was smarter than that though.

"Hey," she spoke quickly, turning to Blake as she did so. Her sister could already hear her. "Let's go find some prime spots, huh?" She flashed a cheeky grin at her partner at the question. The feline faunus blinked only once before smiling in return nodding her head.

"Yeah! Let's find somewhere perfect!" Ruby climbed up on the boxer's back as she spoke. Yang could feel her sister pumping a fist into the air. "We don't wanna miss whatever Mikau is going to do. I bet he's gonna-" No room for ceremony apparently.

No sooner had Ruby shouted her agreement than did another splash resound in the pool. Yang looked over, confident it was some unlucky student finally getting pushed in. Apparently not. The true reason for the sound become pretty quickly obvious.

Her lavender eyes watched a figure rising out of the water, like it was jumping out of it. It was near the center of the colossal pool, towards the end and near the high dives. Actually… it was jumping up towards the high dives. Even jumping was a really loose term for it. The fish boy, cause who else could it be, was waggling in the air like Yang had seen flags do in the wind. His fins were fully extended, water following up behind him, and looking every bit at home in the jump as he likely did in the water.

But man, Yang realized, he was getting high! Like, he was probably past the second high dive, rapidly approaching the highest one. He was… He was actually going to make it, wasn't he? The dude was jumping almost higher out of the water than most other people could jump off the ground. Was that normal for fish? In the end, didn't really matter.

Mikau extended his hands at the highest point of his ascent, grabbing the edge of the high dive and pulling himself up. Yang thought she heard a few regretful sighs from the crowd. Didn't take much of an imagination to know why. But then, in an almost instant, Mikau was sitting back down on that high-dive looking at the crowd below, all grin.

"Hey!" He yelled out, waving his hand down to them. Yang couldn't tell if he was playing around or genuinely though they couldn't see him. Kinda hard to miss the fish boy sitting above the pool. "Who wants to hear a jam session, Zora-Style?!"

Yang covered her ears at the eruption of noise.

She couldn't call it cheering, not really. Cheering meant you were chanting someone's name, maybe just 'yeah' or 'yes', at worst it was a childish 'whoa-ho'. But no, of course not right now. The crowd on the pool deck just decided to start screaming like they had decided to tend some kind of torture session. The acoustics of the pool deck were not helping, at all, zero and zilch.

Yang felt Ruby cling to her a bit tighter, falling over her shoulder and plugging her own ears. Yang could see Blake taking the worst of it, her partner kneeled down and covering her bow and human ears as best she could in tandem. She was even shaking, but the blonde may have confused that for the aquatic center shaking at the noise.

It only got worse when she saw Mikau waving his hands towards himself, like he was absorbing the sound or something. He really was just some punk-musician, wasn't he? Yang ground her teeth.

"Alright!" Mikau shouted again, pulling out one of his magic-trick and producing the Guitar of Waves. He rolled back on the diving board, something that got a few more vocal 'whoas' now that they were ready to scream in the aquatic center. Didn't mean for much. Mikau was already standing again.

"Don't know how much talent you all got with your… Superbilites? Yeah, that's word." Clearly not the word he wanted to use, but Yang gave him credit for almost knowing theirs. "But here's a quick lesson you better pick up fast!" Mikau was still shouting, even as he started to lightly strum on his fish bone guitar. Maybe he though they couldn't hear it. Probably.

"If you got a talent for somethin', don't let it waste on just one thing." Wait, was he seriously giving them a lecture. They were past that now, weren't they? Yang was pretty sure he just had to impress Goodwitch enough to get out of punishment. Maybe he was going for broke or something. "Treat it like you would an open ocean. Be free with it, try it out on new things, experiment! Cause if you never try anything new, you'll never know the extent of what you can do." That was definitely Link talking.

"Cool on you to know how to fight, but if you wanna impress people, you gotta show them how to live." Yang would have wondered what the fish boy meant, if didn't start to crackle again.

For a moment, a quick one at that, Yang thought he sort of looked like a glow fish, those big things that had a giant ball at the end of their heads. The way his giant fin extended from the back of his, it was almost a perfect picture. It helped that the glow of electricity around him was far brighter than anything the pool deck's soft light had. Cool, for sure, but not much different from what he'd shown off already. The difference became clear when he strummed on his dead fish guitar.

It sounded like a rock guitar.

Yang, who knew good music when she heard it, instantly recognized the sound. It was like a Fender Stratocaster with an echo that vibrated like a 700 Gibson Anniversary. It flowed through the air perfectly, splitting the stale pool deck like a hot knife through stubborn butter. It was the acoustics of the guitar by itself with an electrical amplification. It was awesome.

And it only got better! He started to strum quick notes, each one dropping in volume the quick he strummed, a falling chord if Yang remembered correctly. The electricity of his semblance washed over his guitar as he played it, jumping slightly with each note he strummed. It was like watching the acoustics of a set play atop Mikau's guitar. She could literally see where every note was playing.

The sound was awesome, sweet even, and it looked like it was about to set something on fire, literally, but it was kind of… quiet. It was a common problem when you played a guitar solo, especially electric. You were left with either soft ballads or left depending on singer. Besides, wasn't the point to show off that sapphire of his?

As if in answer to her question, the notes Mikau played began to pick up. They started to rise instead of volume, in both volume and pitch. His hands slowly swayed towards the head of his guitar as the notes got higher, his picking at the fishes bone a little harder to up the sound, shooting out small sparks of electricity with it.

"Whoa!" Mikau shouted. Then he jumped.

After what happened next, Yang could fully understand the shouting of the crowd now. After what happened next, she understood why she was rapidly moving across the pool deck, making room for more and more students and who-knows-else pouring into the center. Really, she found herself almost jumping as well, were it not for her little sister on her back.

Cause while in mid-air, falling towards the pool below. Mikau strummed his guitar again. It was more like a swing, actually, every muscle in his arm going into the force of the note. But that extra force seemed to translate into something else.

Electricity exploded in the air above the pool.

The sound was like a set of extra-large speakers turned up to twelve, blasting the sound of the electrified bone guitar through them with twice the effort they normally would. It felt like the ground shook beneath her, and Yang wouldn't have been surprised in the least to find out it had. It only helped that the students, cause who else was young enough to enjoy the sound like an electric guitar, started screaming again. This time, she got it perfectly.

It helped a lot that the blue electricity that crawled over Mikau before now acted like it was erupting from him. Giant arcs of it were shooting out of his guitar with the blow, pushing out across his body like he just swung a metal rod that them. It was incredible! It was cooler than a cart full of dust going off inside a mining lab.

But then he hit the water, and it only got crazier. Mainly because he stopped on top of it! The screams of the students only grew in intensity, Yang having to reach the top of her toes to see over the crowd that was now clearly jumping at the music Mikau continued to play. She felt her younger and thankfully lighter sister crawling over her head to get a better view herself. Over the screams of the crowd and the electric guitar jamming on the pool surface, Yang could just barely make out her sister screaming with it. Looked like she found a good song, too!

Then the electricity suddenly shrunk, the multiple arcs of lightning all shrinking back down until they were barely visible over the head of the audience members. It would have worried Yang, if it didn't match the sound of the guitar dropping. She only hear single notes, spaced out from one another. She was probably reading too much into it, but… it almost sounded like they were counting.

"Now here we go!" She just made out Mikau's scream before the pool deck exploded again.

Yang was nearly blown away by what came next. The rest of the students literally were.

Shockwaves, literal honest to Grimm and Dust shockwaves rocked over the pool and onto the deck. There wasn't much else the blonde could say to make it clear. It was like a seven-forty-seven running on enhanced fire Dust was flying in a circle through the pool deck. They were strong enough to have the students screaming some more as they were pushed away from the water, more than a few of the skinnier members rolling across the tiled floor and into the wall. She even felt Ruby cling tightly to her. Didn't keep her little Red from cheering though.

The shockwaves did, however, give Yang a perfect clear image of the Zora playing on the pool surface. She thought he must have frozen a pillar in the water at first, able to stand on the water the way he was. But nope! Electricity was literally crawling around his feet, supporting almost like a raft in the surface. His blue eyes were shut, hands playing across the fish-bone guitar of his masterfully, and swinging around like he really was on stage. But what was causing the students to fall back like flies in a storm? That was obvious.

Mikau was literally stomping his foot on the water. It would have been funny if it wasn't shooting out literal waves of lightning across the surface of the pool. It was almost terrifying as it was amazing to watch. Each one hit the side of the deck, creating a crack of thunder that was missing from the lightning that crawled over the Zora's body. It only added to the strumming of his now electrified guitar.

But for all the sound and shockwaves he made, it was still secondary to the literal column of lightning he was shooting into the air. It was a good thing the ceiling of the aquatic center was so high, otherwise fish boy's electric storm probably would have torn the roof of the place. It was shooting up like reverse thunder, a column of the blue stuff wider than the guitarists outstretch arms. It was insane in a way that made Yang grin with ideas.

And through the whole thing Mikau was still playing. If anything, him jamming on that guitar of his was what was probably making the indoor storm so stupidly awesome. For every strum and chord he seemed to rip into with his electric bone fish, he seemed to make the lightning bigger, the shockwaves stronger, and the music louder than ever before. Mosh pits wished they could be this awesome.

And then he stopped.

Almost as suddenly as the lightning the first time around, it all just stopped without so much as a warning. The shockwaves were gone, the super charged sound gone, and even the lightning that surrounded the Zora was gone. It was like a snap of the fingers then poof, nothing.

Of course, with nothing there, Yang watched as Mikau swiftly fell beneath the surface of the pool again. She had literally no fear now, at least regarding his safety. After a show like that, she kind of doubted the fish was going to drown.

It only became clear when she saw his hands reaching from the water to the deck again, almost as cool as he did the first time. Much less show though. Then again, maybe she was still expecting too much after that little escapade he did. But hey, at least she was right. This was sick in all the right ways.

As Mikau pulled himself back onto the desk, Yang risked a look around the pool. The crowd was now much more spread out than before, a good majority of them behind her, unable to take the blasts the Zora had basically stomped on the water. It was kind of funny to say that out loud. Ms. Goodwitch and Dr. Oobleck were both okay, watching the Zora climb out of the pool. The brawler had to admit she was a bit hurt to see the blonde professor do little more than raise a brow at Mikau. Didn't he at least deserve a grin for all that?

Yang did find Weiss standing a bit further away than before, likely thrown by the same semblance as everyone else. They didn't have the muscle Yang did, so she could hardly blame her. She was brushing off her dress, probably from whatever debris was on the pool deck. Other than that, she looked no worse for wear. Blake, standing just behind the Schnee heiress, looked a little more uncomfortable.

Probably a fault of the sharp cat ears she kept covered up, but the shockwaves and super sound probably didn't do much good for Yang's partner. She was standing as straight as she could, but it still looked like she was a bit wobbly. That didn't matter as much on a deck full of people uneasily standing. Yang did, however, see the feline faunus fighting herself to not adjust the bow on her head. No more than one guess as to why there.

"Well shoot, looks like I got a little carried away in the current." Yang's attention was drawn back to Mikau, seeing the tall fish boy scratching the top of his head, just above that head fin of his. What did he call it again? "Used to at least a little cheer after a gig's done."

"Then allow me to be the first!" Yang almost jumped as much as Mikau when Oobleck shouted aloud. Quick as he usually was, the green haired doctor was standing in front of Mikau, shaking the fish boy's hand with a speed that looked almost painful. She knew it was when Yang heard Ruby wince.

"That was a momentous show of foreign application of Aura in a manner both unconventional and revolutionary! The discoveries, the secrets, the applicational uses, the process of processing Dust in such a manner. Truly endless!" Doctor Oobleck was starting to tinker dangerously close to mad. Madder than usual. "However, parameters. Yes, establish those. Glynda, does he meet requirements previously discussed?"

"He does." Yang was only a little startled by how fast Ms. Goodwitch responded. On one hand, she was used to it. On the other, it was kind of impressive being used to Oobleck of all people. "You are excused from your repercussions and, per your request, you may take charge of Link."

"Exceptional!" The doctor shouted again. "Then I must be off! Preparations, too many to name aloud, too many to start any later. Link, Mikau, you both," Doctor Oobleck faced the Zora again. "I eagerly await our next discussion, your fairies as well! Now, with haste!" In a rush of wind Ruby had prepared Yang for all her life, the doctor was gone. She heard the double doors of the center swinging at his exit.

"Doctor Oobleck may be overzealous in many things, but here I can understand his… enthusiasm," Ms. Goodwitch spoke plainly as she typed a few commands on her keyboard. Yang hoped they were pictures. This was something she really didn't want to forget, or let Weiss forget. "While it may be too early to justify your display of electrical properties through semblance as limitless, I will trust your honesty and show that it has significantly increased your reservoirs of aura."

"Do all the knights around here like to talk out of a dictionary?" Mikau shook his head with the question, Yang knowing full well it was rhetorical. The fin that protruded from behind him swayed at the action though. She really wanted to remember what it was called. "But hey, good to see we're makin' some waves over just crashin' them. No 'remedial' actions or other salt rock stuff."

"You celebrate too swiftly, Link." Yang had to stop a groan from gurgling out of her throat. "Though I will offer thanks for your promptness in paying back actions in which you commit fault, you seem to have a penchant to causing another problem whilst doing so."

Instead of speaking again, Ms. Goodwitch merely flicked her riding crop towards the wall behind the high dive. It was a tall wall, like the rest of the building, colored a lighter blue than the water was. Style and all that stuff. But was unique about the wall as compared to the others was what hung on it. No banners, which swayed from the rafters, no windows, which were against another fall wall. Just the large scoreboard detailing the success of individuals.

Said scoreboard was sparking with likely frayed parts and melted wires. Kay, not a good thing.

"Oh, my bad." Mikau spoke up, sounding more like he was guilty for putting his hand in the cookie jar.

"There is more," Ms. Goodwitch noted like she was unsatisfied with his admittance of guilt. Her riding crop swung through the air, stopping only when it pointed at the pool again. Yang was confused only for a moment, least of all by the whispering of the students. Probably a lot more vocal now that they had all screamed their heads off. Watching an indoor electric storm did give a little breathing room in the allowance though.

When her lavender eyes settled on the edge of the pool, probably near where Ms. Goodwitch was pointing her leathery weapon, it became pretty clear to the blonde brawler what the 'more' in this situation was.

The gutter, once taking in a lot of the junk in the pool, was starting to spit a good deal of it back out. That was also not a good thing. In fact, it was pretty disgusting.

"Huh," she heard Mikau speak up now. "Don't remember bein' able to reverse the flow of water. Believe me I'd remember that livin in the ocean." Reverse the water? What was he talking about?

"You have reversed nothing," Ms. Goodwitch was ever-so-kind to speak up. "In actuality, your electric performance conducted through the water and into the filtering system of the pool. The amount of current being used by your semblance was high enough to damage and likely destroy the pump used to direct the water. In short, the pool is now nothing more than a collection of still waste."

"Isn't that what all pools are?" Mikau asked, probably sincerely. He didn't know about filters, did he? 'Course not, why would a literal fish boy need to filter water from the freaking sea? Well, actually a lot of reasons, but probably not he had. Ms. Goodwitch, however, chose to ignore the comment. Probably training from all the sarcasm other students gave her. And Ozpin.

"As you and your fairies may recall, a stipulation of your display was that no damage be done to the facility or students. You have clearly broken this clause and now you are required to pay reimbursement for the damage." Yang had to admit, Ms. Goodwitch said something that would probably destroy a student's life as easily as she did describe the weather. Kind of a debate who was the real monarch of ice between her and Weiss.

Speaking of… Yang saw the alabaster heiress walking up to the duo. Arms neatly folded behind her back, she looked like she was getting ready for some kind of board meeting. When she opened her moth, it sounded like she really was.

"Ms. Goodwitch," Weiss began in what absolutely had to be practiced sincerity. There wasn't a trace of the usual whine her voice had. "I apologize if I am assuming too much, but I don't believe Link, as a member of a foreign society, has the same currency as we do, let alone to a significant enough degree to pay for damages."

"Fair assumption," Yang heard Blake mumble beside her. It was a good point. She couldn't expect space pirates to pay in Lien if they ever came to town. Wonder what Link did consider money anyway. Maybe it was valuable.

"If Link is unable to repay the damages, he would be forced to work until a suitable purse of lien is obtained," Ms. Goodwitch spoke while she was already tapping away at her pad. Yang only wondered briefly what she was typing. The conversation was more interesting though.

"Forced to work…" Tatl spoke the phrase again, in a much more passive voice than Yang expected. Sounded like she was thinking. "Forced. To. Work. Like, as in a… servant?" Sounded like there was another word she wanted to say. But Yang didn't focus on the ball of light long enough to care. Her eyes were on Mikau. Mikau, the so far passive electric fish rocker, looking at Ms. Goodwitch with a look she hadn't seen before, least not on the fish boy.

She'd seen it before, a few times before in fact. Usually came when someone she knew saw something they hated. Weiss wore it a lot when the White Fang came up, Blake just as often when Faunus were mistreated. Her dad put it on when Summer came up. And, Yang was sure she put it on whenever anyone crossed a line and threatened Ruby.

It was a look of absolute disgust.

With his abyssal blue eyes squinted, flat nose lifted, height tilted back, and jaw open just enough to show the sharpness of his fangs, the Zora looked as pissed off as he did intimidating. The height wasn't helping. Neither was knowing that he could fry a building for supper with that lightning of his. What was his deal?

"Then that won't be necessary." Yang had to force herself to look at Weiss. "I am willing to pay for all damages done. This was a demonstration requested by students and faculty alike, and we shouldn't risk creating poor relationships with a foreign dignitary." Kay, Link, heck even Mikau, was anything but a dignitary. He was a freaking Grimm Hunter, not some prude who put on a fancy suit. But… that was probably just more of that practiced Weiss ta-.

Wait, she was paying up the bill?

"Whoa, you'd really do that?" Of all people, Jaune spoke up. Of course he did, Yang realized. He only realized his mistakes after he stumbled head first into them. Weiss shot him an appropriate glare. Average look for her. "I-I mean… it's gotta be a lot of lien… right?"

"For the electrical firings through the water, resulting in massive damage to the circulation system, lighting, pool water filtration, and the billboard, the total will be summed up to be between four of five." Four or five Lien? Wow, cheap pool. Yang could pay that with the spare chip she kept in her back pocket.

"Four or five… w-what?" The Peeping Tom asked. Actually a good question. Couldn't be more than a thousand, like that was a small number…

"Apologies. Four or five hundred thousand, give or take thirty to four thousand between." Oh… Oh that was a lot. Judging by the whistles that came from the now spread out crowd, it was an opinion held in high agreement. Didn't seem to phase Mikau though, he kept staring out at them with that abyssal blue gaze. Kinda made sense actually.

"A drop in the bucket at worst," the Schnee heiress waved her hand at the number, literally. That made an unfortunate amount of sense as well.

Yang was starting to remember why the girl got on her nerves so easily. Still, great partner for her little sis, so long as they remained on good terms. It made the upkeep of their weapons easier, as well as ammo. Yeah, ammo was good to have.

"Rather, it would be rude to not offer my help. You were only so generous to us before, as your… fairy was inclined to remind us of." Oh yeah, Tatl was going off about that before.

"I'm gonna just assume it's a lot money that Triple B over there is asking for." Yang was starting to wonder what the golden ball of light's nickname for Goodwitch meant. Judging by the way the professor narrowed her emerald gaze, tapping away at the pad in her hands, she was too. "So… yeah, thanks for the help. Really."

"Think little of it," Weiss dismissed, probably something her daddy taught her to do when handing out the big lien. "Mikau merely possesses a very unique and unquestionably valuable form of Dust. If this is the cost for the display of its power, I will be more than glad to pay it." More like her family would be more than happy to pay a finder's fee for the next great weapon.

"Still, looks like I owe ya one sea foam," said Zora spoke to Weiss, grinning that same half-pulled smirk as he did. Seemed to do wonders on the Schnee heiress, who smiled in return. It looked to be done for a little more than simple politeness. "Let me know what I can do ta make it up to you later, sound good?" He stuck out his hand as he spoke, looking down towards Weiss with those same endless blue eyes. Seriously, how did he see like that?

"I… I will find a suitable way for you to make your repayment." Yang felt her own smirk developing as her sister's partner stumbled at the starting line. She recovered well enough, lifting her head and gripping the extended hand of Mikau as she did so. Probably had to do that a couple hundred times over growing up. "And worry not, I will make sure it is of appropriate recompense for this… small display of your abilities." And the smooth talking. Guess that was just as learned as the hand shake. Yang heard Ruby giggling behind her, no reason to wonder why there.

"Sounds good to me," Mikau agreed, expect he didn't let go of Weiss's hand. Instead, Yang watched with a careful eye as he settled to one knee. Even lower to the ground he was about as tall as the Schnee Heiress. Probably easy to manage when you were seven feet plus.

But then, he lightly kissed Weiss's hand. The sun was dimmer than Weiss's face.

Yang started laughing, hand held firmly against her mouth, when Weiss's blush lit up more of her face than a flashlight did at night. She curled over, completely blocking her view of the event when the cheers starting coming from the crowd.

Forget Fish Boy, Mikau was now officially Lover Boy!

"He's like a knight in a fairy tale!" Ruby eagerly whispered into Yang's ear. She could feel her younger sister practically jumping. She could feel it as well as she could hear the whoops and whistles of the crowd. Oh this was really a perfect day. "The knight swearing his loyalty to the princess with a kiss on the hand! It's amazing!"

Yang could not stop laughing. Her sister was going to literally kill her.

"I'm going to get Weiss," she heard Blake speak to them. "I'll meet you two at the exit." Yang couldn't understand anything more she said. She was nearly on her knees with mirth.

She had, in a the course of only a few hours, collected enough blackmail and teasing material on people in her class than she had on her own sister in near fifteen years. Love interests? Crushes? There was no sweeter way to pull someone's strings than that!

"C'mon Yang!" she heard Ruby speak down to her again, whispering foregone. "We gotta help Blake find Weiss!" Why? Had the ice princess gotten cold feet? The joke only made the blonde brawler laugh even harder, hand clenching at her jaw to futile keep it still. But looked up, just to check.

Mikau was still there, standing up again with a now all-so-deserving grin on her face, complete with hands on his hips. Goodwitch was beside him, casting a glance that looked one-part curious two-parts damning. No surprise why there. His fairies were still by his side, though the only non-mini-drone was blushing about half as hard as Weiss was, which was still bright enough to light up a room.

Crowd was still very much there, alternating looks from pride, embarrassment, and humor all around them. She could clearly see Nora jumping for joy, a normally apathetic Ren nodding impressively at her side. Pyrrha was amongst the embarrassed number, eyes looking away and face as red as her long hair. Jaune didn't look any more comfortable, hand pushing his own head down.

But Weiss was no where to be seen. She really was gone.

"Oh no!" Yang yelled out as she got up. Her sister was right beside her. "We're gonna catch the little snowflake and make her spill every bean she's got!"

"W-What about Mikau… I-I mean Link!" Leave it her sister to think of everyone. Yang sure didn't now when there were better prizes to be had.

"I'm pretty sure Goodwitch has got a few words for him. Ain't like we're not gonna see him again!" Then she was gone, well starting to be gone at least. Yang took off throught he crowd, thinned out as they were spread out about the pool deck. Made access to the doors easier.

Weiss was as good as caught, the only question was how soon she wanted to get her humiliation over with.

Chapter Text

Ozpin took a gulp of his coffee. He was not in a good mood.

It was hard for him to muster anything more than a sardonic grin when he was being presented with orders. Orders from individuals who hadn't the power to give them in the first place, at least not to someone at his level of standing.

They were orders being given for a reason that he could not even begin to see as acceptable. In fact, nothing of this was acceptable to him. Despicable.

"I refuse to hand Link over as if he is some possession." He spoke clearly to the screen before him, not taking his eyes off the black shadows, nor the regally dressed general. "Least all of for paranoia that you cannot control."

"This is beyond merely some concern for the future Ozpin, however important that may be," one of the shadows spoke up, a dark arm waving with as much emotion as the monotonous speaker. "This new student of yours is not simply an outsider, he is an outsider that possesses infantry power beyond anything we currently have! That's not even including what he has failed to mention thus far."

"What he possesses are invaluable tools to strengthen our Military," another figure spoke. It was Ozpin's unblinking gaze that allowed him to see the general on the other screen nod at the notion. "Take your pick of what he has shown and we can name a dozen areas that could be improved by said tools."

"And at the cost of taking a foreigner and turning him into a subject," Ozpin spoke the unspoken line. He knew it was never merely an exchange of services with the council. It was obvious. It was a trade that was set in the sand. "I am far from uniformed in your workings and methods. Even less so when it comes to the Military."

"You know that is uncalled for Ozpin," the general spoke, his voice deep as his shoulders were broad. James had a way of making the sympathetic words he spoke turn harsh. "All of those under my command are irreplaceable to me." It was fortunate he was not as skilled in the battle of words as the Emerald Headmaster was.

"And I see my students in the same way," Ozpin continued. "It is why Link, who has passed the entrance exam with all legalities met, will remain here until he so chooses to leave. And I assure you, asking for him to give you what he has will not work well for you."

There was no soul who would so freely give the memories of his closest friends. The black shadows of the Council knew that, however.

"That is why we are asking you to hand him over." The third shadow of the Council spoke. "Not just an outsider, he is an unstable faunus whom has already caused serious damage to your own school. How long until he damages what cannot be replaced?"

"It is why he is a student still, Councilman," Ozpin returned curtly. "He is not a hunter until I give him my blessing. My own, and the authority of one of you." His mug moved from the Council to James Ironwood. They knew the laws. They knew what he was referring to. "And I believe you are all far from accepting him into the ranks."

"But not so far as to say he is not skilled enough to be a Hunter," James spoke up again. His voice was deep and commanding. Tiresome, at least when he was speaking a point. Ozpin took a sip of his coffee to keep himself awake. "Not only in the entrance exam that Glynda documented, but also in his activities with his friends and the tools he possesses. Ozpin, please, think of what could be done if we could replicate those Gems of his, let alone the masks he wears."

Ozpin sighed. And James was doing so well, until that last line.

"The Gem he possesses is a sacred item to the people of his homeland," Ozpin began. "The masks are the literal memories of his friends, memorialized as we would the movies and pictures of our past. Used in a far different manner, I am aware, but asking to borrow or use them would be harsh in any context."

And they were all learned people. They were politicians and generals, men and women who had seen and experienced the worst.

It was only a shame they could not see the best way to correct those mistakes of the past.

"It does not matter what you say, Ozpin," one of the shadow Councilman spoke again. "This faunus of yours has clearly demonstrated he could easily turn into a threat with only the slightest provocation. What's to happen if some prank is pulled and those precious masks are damaged?" The figure's arm rose as if the question were a valid one.

"You are suggesting I forfeit Link's agency on the superstition that he would lash out violently if mocked?" Ozpin raised a brow at the very thought. Questionable. The silence that followed the question was more telling than any answer. "Though praised by some, there are fair number of my students who mock him for his similarities to Mr. Arc, calling him the bastard faunus child of a hero. This is only on the first day, and yet Link has only offered to keep friends with those close to him."

"Except for the moment where he threw his 'fin' at Winchester's boy." Ozpin hid his scowl behind his mug again. "And that was likely for the so call 'simply mocking' you were speaking of. What will he do when damage actually comes? Should we prepare the gurney?"

They were reaching in the worst of ways now.

"You cannot be serious with that conjecture." Ozpin spoke his own statement as he matter-of-factly he could. He honestly could not see the jump in the logic. The gap was far too wide. "And as I recall, Link did not strike Cardin. Dr. Oobleck's own report shows the blade would have missed Cardin even if he jumped to try and strike it. To say Link is a violent individual is a stretch."

"This is far from a stretch, Ozpin," the same figure from before spoke. "And if anything, we are being lenient with our demands. Even a child could see the danger of having an uninformed source of power like this faunus running around unchecked."

Ozpin glared at the screen though he knew it would hardly show. Not through the filters and silver bangs of his hair. He only wished he knew the name of the Councilman on the other side of the screen.

So then he would no better the reasoning for such a ludicrous statement.

"What if he were to tour Vale? What if a faunus visiting from a far spoke to him, hmm?" The silence hung like a lead curtain. "A single slip of the tongue and he could move to aid the White Fang!"

"And if he is as wise as you claim him to be, he'll likely want more than mere testimony about the world he has… sailed into," another figure curtly replied. If there was an insult Ozpin could never level against that pillar of the Council, it was stupidity. He knew how to bend the facts to match his end. "It is far safer to take these tools from Link and place them in a protective site while they are studied. To do otherwise would be pure negligence."

Was that their true train of thought? Idiocy.

"No, that would be pure theft," Ozpin argued in turn. "Taking from another who has done no wrong for the belief he may. Do not forget, and conveniently set aside, that I asked Link here for the sole reason of his power. Students come to either become stronger or become wiser. I am hoping to make Link the latter."

The gears of his office turned beneath him, a reminder that time marched on in conversation. Their actions were already in effect. So Ozpin had to be quicker with his words and the conclusion.

Ozpin hated what was to come next, but corners only offered one means to leave. And waiting to be struck at was not something he or only leader was privy to do. Damnable is what it was… but necessary.

Perhaps though… he could turn it to his advantage. He only needed one thing. Time.

"There is another deal we can make," Ozpin spoke again. The faces on the screens remained just as unmoving as before. "And it is one that satisfies all parties." It did not satisfy him. At least not yet. But he would play the game long enough to make it so.

"Oh? Do tell then."

Ozpin hid his sigh behind a drink of his coffee.

Goodwitch tapped her foot as she stared at the student in front of her, standing at the center of her office. Tapping was all she did right now, all she did because it was all she could do while she prepared for what would be a hard lecture to a single individual.

A reprimand was quick to a singular point with a solitary punishment. A scolding may have involved a bit more insight from other professors, but otherwise was only mildly longer, no more than a class period's time.

Her office was meant for discussions such as this, deliberate intimidation through size and repercussion of noise. Every little tap of stone echoed around them, the height of walls making even the tallest of huntress seem minuet in comparison.

Though far from bare, fitted with many materials needed to teach and keep track of the events of Beacon, it was less decorated than the more eccentric professors at Beacon, lacking trophies from her time as a contract huntress. That mattered little now, however.

For the green hatted faunus before her, claiming to be from a mythical land beyond any map's boundaries or knowledge, she had so much more to say than a simple scolding could cover.

He had violated a great number of rules, many without knowledge of them. He had made a show of his powers, demonstrating an almost terrifying level of aptitude. But more than that, he had opened the door about his unique position on campus to a great many of the underclassman as well as a few more mature hunters.

A slow sight seethed from between her lips, an action that made many other students squirm. Link, however, appeared no worse for wear. He continued to stare forward, standing still and with his arms folded behind his back. There were no 'fairies' about his head, as they usual two were.

Instead, they were waiting outside, doubtlessly with the Team RWBY and JNPR. Various members of the teams had all taken a quick liking to this mysterious faunus.

Link was no longer wearing the guise of his 'friend's', instead now only looking towards her with his aquamarine gaze. Long and race-signifying ears were extended from the sides of his head, listening intently to her. For now, they heard nothing but Goodwitch tapping upon her pad. She was placing the mini-drones around the room carefully, making sure that each angle was accounted for.

A lecture though this was, it would become clear all too soon the severity that came with it.

Glynda's mini-drones would not merely record the conversation, they would hinder the interference of foreign drones as well. She needed to, as there was no other way to ensure a protected conversation.

The blonde professor sighed again, much softer than her previous one. She almost wished Ozpin would join her, but he was the headmaster, keeping back the wolves at the gate while she taught the sheep to defend. Problem was, Goodwitch wasn't sure which Link was.

"Link," she began simply. He straightened slightly, perhaps as much a sign as she would get that he was listening. "Let me begin by saying that you have made an impressive display of your skills, abilities, and elements of your equipment at your first day at Beacon, more so than any other student before. Let me also emphasize that this is not a positive thing."

Glynda tapped a few more commands upon her pad. The signal scrambling was on, the cameras running, and her office was now an unknown to the rest of the world. She slipped her pad behind her back, letting the large scroll fold and slide itself away.

"Here at Beacon, students, huntress and hunters-in-training, are taught to work together as amiably as possible. This is done through four sections of teaching. First and foremost, education of Grimm. I believe you and your companions refer to them as simply monsters. This is what you received in Professor Port's lecture." Link nodded at her words, but only once. Glynda began to step around him, heels clicking upon the floor as she did so. It made a slight echo through her office, a desired trait for times such as this.

"Secondly, we back up these classes with exercises and excursions into the wild of the Emerald or Forever Fall Forest. Done perhaps twice a month, these are either hunting, tracking, or more advanced trapping events that test the strength and learning of the team. Professor Peach is usually in charge of such lessons for the first years. As I am sure you have learned, knowledge unpracticed is of little use." He nodded again. Glynda now made her way to his back. He continued to stare forward, not looking towards her once. Well-trained indeed.

"Thirdly, we teaching sparring classes with the students. Teams optionally fighting together, commonly against one another, this is meant as a controlled area where skill can be honed and advice offered between teammates, classmates, and the academy as a whole. I commonly teach these classes and all students attend them regularly." She had circled him, now standing before him with a leveled glare, looking down at the shorter faunus.

"Finally, as I am sure you are now aware, we teach classes upon the varying levels of turmoil in our world, Remnant, if you were unaware of the name. For now, these are focused upon the interactions between faunus, such as yourself, and humans, such as I." He did not bat an eye towards the clear contrast between them. Perhaps that was due to frequency. Ms. Belladonna was much the same for Ozpin.

"Yet, somehow, in the course of Doctor Oobleck's instruction of this class, you managed to disrupt the class schedule of five other rooms, collect the attention of a touring donation family, and cause mass damage to the aquatic center requiring days for full repair in the least." Goodwitch was careful to keep her voice from anything more than level. Her gaze was much the same upon Link.

"But the most damaging part of your little display, Link, was quite literally broadcasting to all students, professors, and even curious visitors of Beacon exactly what you are." She paused only briefly before continuing. "Eccentric and honest as your companions tend to behave, their words of your origins would at worse be seen as some tall tale. With your actions, they are now fact." Now he showed emotion.

It was only a single raised brow, looking at her with what she knew was a curious gaze. It was not the embarrassment or self-loathing she was looking for. Of course not. He did not understand the level of impact his actions had caused. Goodwitch was caught between blaming his level of intelligence and his area of origin. Both seemed likely suspects.

"Link." Goodwitch put an edge to his name, hoping to ensure he understood the full weight of her words. She made sure to tower over him as she spoke them. "Beacon Academy is a school, a place to train hunters and huntresses for the terrors that threaten the world. The military, the government, the many factions beyond our borders, are either allies or enemies. But none of them are us." She put a hand to her chest as she spoke. She watched the faunus lower his gaze to it once before looking back into her eyes. Hopefully this was getting through, but best not to stop here.

"Ozpin has allowed you to stay at this Academy as a student because you meet our requirements, though we understand you are hardly to be considered one." Goodwitch couldn't help the small slip in her dialogue, voice evening out. "By claim and demonstration, you have shown to be proficient with your already immensely powerful tools, weapons, and dust that have not even been thought of in any of the four kingdoms before." The emphasis was placed, but now she needed to deliver the message. She leaned into him, whispering the words to achieve the desired effect.

"Here, no one can do any more than ask you to show your might. Anywhere else, you would be captured, stripped, interrogated, and likely tortured for all that you knew and all that you could tell." Now she saw his eyes furrow.

That was not out of confusion. Link knew well what she meant. Excellent.

"Your display with Doctor Oobleck allowed more than a mere handful of students to record and capture proof of your powers. Already there are rumors of you flying about Beacon like Nevermores congregating for a kill!" She raised her voice now, whipping her crop as she did so. Link did not flinch, though his gaze was hard as steel. Still good. "Students who do not know you think you are either a spy from foreign lands, a secret member of the White Fang, a super weapon we have been developing for a coming war, or even an ancient warrior thawed out from ice. Each one more ludicrous than the next, but all seen as plausible until knowledge of you is released. Do you know what that means?"

Shame.

Glynda saw it pass through the faunus's blue eyes swift as the wind, but it was there. Fleeting as the emotion was, it was definitely there. It was a sign of many things, least of all the self-pity. It was a sign of recognition, admitting wrong doing. It was a sign of embarrassment, uneasy about the use of power in this specific case. But more than both, it was a sign of a mistake. Link knew now that he was in the wrong. Now lessons could be taught.

"It means that unless we alter your standing at Beacon, your continued presence will only cause more trouble than benefit." The green-hatted faunus shut his eyes as he took in a deep breath of air. That was curious. It was almost as if… oh no.

"Do not mistake my words, Link." Glynda rose up as she spoke, still towering over the student-in-name but no longer intimidating his gaze. "We are not excusing you from the Academy, not yet anyway." His returning gaze quick release of air confirmed Goodwitch's thoughts. "Though this is a sudden burden, occurring no sooner than we have established your place as a student, throwing you away like meat to the Grimm is far from an action we even rarely take."

Goodwitch stood back from Link before turning away from him. She looked out the window of her office, placed at a decent height above and behind her desk. It showed a great amount of the Beacon landscape, covering a good portion of the dorms and classrooms. The roofs of those builds was easy for her to see, the floor at which her office was situated. It also helped to make the horizon of Vale almost majestic to see.

Glynda did not find herself constantly staring out at the sights, however. More often she had her emerald eyes on her desk than over her shoulder, far more focused on what she had to do then where she wished to be. The dorms were a reminder of the students she taught, the classrooms of the lessons they learned, and the city beyond of what it was all designed to protect.

"You were to be a student here Link, if only in name," she spoke almost as if thinking of a kind memory. She abandoned the thought as soon as it had come. Ozpin was the dreamer, she was the planner. "Now you are to be something I have no names for. Class schedules, uniforms, future team assignment, all the plans that Ozpin and I had generated over the past couple of days are now worth no more than the dirt you used to secure your entry into Beacon." Glynda gave him credit. Most students would have chuckled at the line she dropped. She did not and neither did Link.

"Now, you and I are going to have to reassess your position and duties here." Goodwitch turned back to Link as she spoke. He had not moved nor changed expression, even in the slightest. "Much of what I am to say is written in the hardest of stone, no ground or permission for you to compromise over. Others, of which I will tell, we will have to discuss. Before either of us leaves this room, we will have a new plan regarding your stay here at the Academy." He nodded at her words. Excellent.

She raised her pad again, tapping across it to bring up a small checklist she had established during his earlier stint as Mikau. She made an additional note to form a list of his many 'friends'. Only two were currently there, but according to Tatl, ten were to be eventually accounted for. That was a matter for an entirely other day, however. At present, Link's placement was the priority, and that was not to change.

"Before anything else," Goodwitch spoke as she drew up the list, dotting her own notes before the meeting began in earnest. "You must understand that you were nothing short of fortunate with your actions. If not for your sudden display of Dust through the… Zora Sapphire, or Ms. Schnee's saving grace for your destruction of the aquatic center, there would be a great deal more we would be concerned with." Link nodded again, though slightly slower than before.

"You are cleared on those accounts, as payment has been transferred for repairs and Doctor Oobleck is now going to speak with you and your companions regarding his research proposal, as agreed. I am only speaking of those points again to emphasize your needed caution in the future. Though you will be unable to reveal yourself to a crowd that already knows you, it is not impossible to break the same thing twice." Glynda hesitated over her pad for a fraction of a moment. She had to. It was all that she had to do to note the sheepish look Link adopted. Humility, an excellent attribute to possess.

"Now," she started. "We are to discuss four key differences to your being here at Beacon, understand?" Link did, as his nod confirmed. "Then please, take a seat."

She produced her riding crop long enough to wave over an extra chair and small table, both neatly folded at one of the many tall walls. They flew through the air and assembled together with practiced ease, doing little more than gliding through air, never once impacting one another or the floor until necessary.

Goodwitch watched Link regard the furniture for a pregnant moment before pulling on the wooden sitting platform. When he was satisfied, he settled himself in. She nodded at him as she walked around her desk, moving away the many papers and messenger scrolls settled upon it with another wave of her crop. Drawers flew open along her armoire, the papers flying inside as they neatly stacked themselves one atop the other. They pattered only through the air, not a single crease forming from the action of their flight. The scrolls were no different, clattering only when they were being placed inside drawers they would soon call their temporary home. When all was away, Goodwitch settled into her own seat, laying her large pad out in front of herself.

"Your current singles room is still yours and will remain unchanged," she spoke quickly, diving into the meat of the conversation with little more padding. "There is no need to relocate you. The scroll Ms. Rose instructed you with is still yours, as well as your access to the cafeteria and other facilities. No necessities to living are being removed from you." Link nodded in his chair, his arms raised only so that his hands could fold across the table. For comfort, most likely.

"For things that will change, we will start with what has no room for discussion." She left just as much room to talk as she sent a small pile of papers towards the green-hatted faunus, all of them neatly piling on his desk. He regarded them before looking back up at her. "First and foremost, you must understand the relationship we have with our current allies, those being the Military and the Government. The structure of these groups can be explored in your own time. For now, I must make you aware of what they expect from us and what we do from them."

Glynda pushed at the first item on her pad's checklist, producing the few pages of treaties and orders that were relevant to the current situation. Though there were truthfully hundreds to thousands of pages, none matter when it came to the regards of the mysterious faunus in her chamber.

"As many of the huntresses and hunters that graduate from our Academy are hired by the Military, they have a constant eye upon our activities and prospective students. Many times in the past, they have volunteered a great deal of resources to us for use in our classes or building of new training grounds. As the Military is controlled by the Government, it is safe to assume that any information given to one is shared with the other." Link nodded at her, though him still not once touching the papers before him.

"Though rare, the Government has the authority to influence policy within Beacon if it feels they have grounds to do so. These are done by voting between their members, one of which is Headmaster Ozpin." Link blinked at her words, though Glynda did not restate herself. She loathed to do so. "However, even these executive decisions must be made based upon criteria, such as the welfare of the people, economy, or Government itself."

"So far, you are fortunate that you have done little to nothing to make yourself a credible threat to anyone. Thus, it is removed that the government will be able to intervene in such a way. They may attempts to do so, but Ozpin and I will be more than capable to make such moves near impossible." Glynda noted, with a small amount of pleasure, the look of thanks that slightly lifted Link's lips. He was taking this all remarkably well in stride.

"The Military, however, is of another concern. As aforementioned, we are no longer able to keep your exact nature a secret. As such, we must now report to the Military about your being here. This will mean they will be curious for many reports, figures, and perhaps even interviews with you in the near future. Without an idealized sense of what is to come, I can say that few to none of these visits will be made without the thought that you are a possible enemy to them." And again, Link only nodded at her words. Not even a look of remorse upon his face. Curious.

"Though interviews must be scheduled, and none have been made as of yet, they have already requested much data regarding you and your combat powers. What I have recorded from your initiation has already been sent, but they will be inclined for more from you and with increasing frequency, in all likelihood." Link made an audible sigh at the news. Glynda spoke on, noting the action before speaking again. "But as said, you are a part of Beacon, and the Military is but an ally to us. You are no more under their sway or command than Ozpin or I. Have no fear that you will simply be handed over." The smile came again. That was thanks, at the very least.

"However, as failure to communicate data with our ally can be seen as a breach of contract, data regarding you must be sent. To do this, your required activities have been altered." She flicked her crop at him, or more specifically, at the stack of papers in front of him. Instantly, as always, the first few sheets were flipped and settled next to the remaining stack of papers.

What Glynda was planning to do was wait for Link to read over the documents, scan them as she had seen many students do before, though in drastically different situations. That would allow her to explain only what was needed or unspecified. However, as she watched the faunus continue to look over the pages with a growing look of complexity, Goodwitch realized something unfortunate.

"You… can't read it, can you?" She knew the answer already, the many reasons for it just as logical as near anything else in Beacon. It only made the professor sigh when Link nodded his head in confirmation. Disappointing, but not completely unforeseen.

"Those pages detail your dismissal from classes concerning Professor Port or Doctor Oobleck," Goodwitch spoke on, tapping across her pad to note Link's inability. It would be required to know for future events, doubtlessly. "Though learning history of the land is of great importance, to you more than most, your presence in the classrooms would only cause disruption and likely lead to a divergence from the required material. A single class with Doctor Oobleck has shown that." She was slightly pleased to see the faunus lightly nod, a quick sigh leaving his lips. It appeared he was not to disagree. Good, as even if he did it would not change what was to come.

"Though the first-year students have sparring sessions only thrice a week with me, I hold the classes for all other years. In order to prevent action by the Government or Military, it will be required for you to attend one sparring session a day with me, understand?" Link nodded, so Glynda continued. "I will decide at these classes whom you will fight with and will record your actions throughout. It will not be necessary for you to do anymore than that." Link nodded again. She wished half her students were so willing to listen.

"The first few sessions, starting tomorrow night, will be done with no requirements on your part. But as the reports are filed and we keep meeting the minimal standards of our agreement with the Military, they may request more data regarding specific methods to your combat abilities." Now Link only stared at her, head tilted slightly to the side. Confusion. She could explain.

"It means that you have thus far demonstrated aptitude for a sword and shield, hammer, boomerang, and then utilizing the memories and forms of your friends. As matches continue and your abilities are more well shown, some officials or members of the Council will likely ask for more data regarding a specific weapon or friend. When that time comes, I will require you to use said weapon or friend. Is that clear?"

Link gave her a new look. It was foreign, not as much as he was or his customs, but it was not the same nod of agreement or curious look of confusion. Rather, it was more reserved. His brows were knit together, lips lightly pursed as he nodded slowly. It took a moment, but the blonde professor deciphered the expression well enough.

Caution. He was wary to so easily show something. Another moment and she realized what.

"I assure you that we will not request for you to don the visage of your friends during the sparring sessions so regularly. I have already marked in several filings the pain and torture you must undergo in order to bring your friends to… reality, I suppose." Life wasn't the right word. Both she and Link knew that much. "Though there will be questions regarding the uniqueness of your faunus companions, as they are more foreign to us than even yourself. But majority of the inquiries will likely be drawn to your unique Dust weapons and Artifacts." The reserved look on the faunus's face slowly dissipated for one of understanding and, perhaps, thanks. It was unneeded.

"And perhaps now is the best time mention this, but this was the case before your… choice of events." Glynda was unsurprised to see another look of confusion become his face. "I am telling you this now so that we may be able to prevent further conflict. Ozpin wished to bolster your presence in this Academy for the reason of preventing other affiliations from contacting you." Goodwitch watched, carefully, as Link's curious expression morphed. His lips opened only a touch, head tilting with a noticeable favor to one of his eyes. Wariness. Appropriate given her words.

"Please do not assume that we have impure motives for you," Goodwitch spoke dryly. This was not an area she had patience for. "As I am sure you have heard, if not from the students then from Team RWBY, there are foreign organizations that are keen on causing harm to others. But, just as likely as that, they are willing to recruit the naïve into their ranks. Without intending to insult you, you have a very naïve perspective of our land, as I'm sure I would for yours." She watched Link, slowly nod his head. Still wary, but less so at that. Suitable.

"Very well, moving on there are a few more details that need attention." Goodwitch flipped a few pages over as she spoke. Force of habit once she remembered Link's inability to read their language. "As you currently now having a working relation with Dr. Oobleck, I will be asking him for any gains in knowledge he makes in his research. Given your uniqueness, I will be expecting a fair number of notes in the coming weeks. And again, I must emphasize, this is to prevent the Military or Government from assuming we are conducting anything that may be perceived as a threat." Link nodded again. Satisfactory still.

"Furthermore, your visits to Vale, if any should need occur, will be done under the supervision of one of the professors here or a high-standing Beacon student. I am sorry to say that Team RWBY and JNPR, though accomplished in their own rights, are still freshman and therefore unqualified." He nodded again, but with less energy than before. Acceptance more than agreement.

"As I am aware that you have traversed to our lands in search of your friend, I am sure that your conversations with Dr. Oobleck will eventually require some form of exploration beyond our grounds. When this happens, I will have to request knowledge of what you are taking with you and the coordinates to where you will be going." Link raised a brow near the end of her sentence. Glynda caught why. "Your location, simply. Dr. Oobleck will more properly handle those details. This is to ensure, once more, to the military that your activities are genuine and should not be perceived as a threat."

She explained herself further, yet his brow did not fall. If anything else, he head tilted further. Why was that? Being told of restrictions via extra personal was usually the reason most huntresses were confused or often angry. It took her a small moment, but the answer became clear to her.

"The restrictions of your items is meant to give ease to the Government," she explained. "To be clear again, both the Military and Government are interested in your abilities as well as your equipment. At the moment, neither have the grounds to confiscate them from you and Beacon Academy will only do so if threats are made against another student's life." He nodded clearer at this. She was glad there was common ground again.

"By telling the Government about your equipment when you leave Beacon, it removes the possibility of them using a clause of 'Threat to Public Safety' to apprehend you. Whilst I personally trust you will not commit such an act, the Government is only looking for reason to take from you." She spoke no lies in her statement. She never would to a student she was giving a lecture to. Link must have known, for he smiled at Glynda again, though only nodding slightly so. She understood why now.

"For anything you may be required to leave behind, I have programmed security drones to keep constant vigilance over your quarters. Officially, this is to make sure you do not perform any threatening actions. Realistically, it is to prevent others from invading your personal affects." He relaxed, visibly. Excellent. The most information was shared when both individuals were of a calm mind.

"Lastly, you must be made aware of student's opinions of you." This was a conversation Glynda always loathed to have. But like Link's special admittance to the Academy, it only needed to occur a few times at worst. "Though many had positive receptions of you in the aquatic center, just as many are wary that you are working for a foreign entity." She paused, judging his reaction. There was none, but that was a sign in itself. Pre-existing knowledge. He knew they would think such of him. Curious, but at the moment helpful.

"This level of suspicion now associated with you, in combination with your unorthodox display of powers and abilities, has bolstered the assumption of you in a negative way. If I were to be more… direct in wording, the students will see you as either an enemy or a novelty." Glynda, in what she recognized as reasonable in only a few situations, was glad to see the furrowing of Link's brow. "I bring this to your attention so you will be aware of what will be spoken to you in the days to come. Rest assured, both Ozpin and I will do nothing but aide you during your stay here, but we can no more influence the student's opinions of you then we may change the nature of Grimm." She smacked her crop against the table. It was more of annoyance for herself. She loathed things she could not control.

"That covers all of the details I have need to speak with you." Goodwitch shook her crop at the pile of papers on the desk in front of Link, commanding them into the air. With a quick flick, they floated back to her own. "Anything we have not spoken of, I ask you to exercise your best judgement. Accidents aside, you have done a far better job than most students in that category." He smiled at her again,

"I'm going to address the students waiting outside the door now," Goodwitch swiped on her pad as she spoke. It told the mini-drones to enter a hibernation state. Nothing overtly sensitive would be spoken now. "I trust you will explain to your companions what I have meant and, if they are keen to notice, why there will be drones surrounding you." He nodded at his words, again looking no more worried than a squirrel before a tree.

That was rare, but common in well-trained hunters. Link had the history of one, as Tatl was keen to relate. Tael agreed with his sibling, but with less energy. A hunter of that caliber, however, needed more than orders. That was something Glynda had learned only through time on the field.

"Link, make no mistake," she spoke softer, intentionally. "We care for our students lives above all else. As you are now our student, even if only to allow you a place of stay, you under our contract of protection. Neither I nor any other professor here will allow harm or fault to unjustly come to you." Link only continued to look at her, smile one of mild thanks, not of understanding.

If he were any other student, a citizen of one of the four kingdoms who dreamed of slaying Grimm for the protection of all life, it would have been a non-issue. But, that was not the case. Link was far and away from a typical case. He was a faunus listed as a student only as a means to keep him from the eager hands of militant minds or greasy government officials. Underhanded, perhaps a little sneaky, but ultimately necessary. He needed to know that.

"Even Beacon aside, Link," Goodwitch began. She walked over to him, lightly placing a hand on his shoulder when she was close enough. He looked down at it before looking back up at her. "I will do all that I can to keep you safe. Our world may never be a paradise, but it will sooner end before I allow you to fear it."

Now she received a reaction, one she was not disappointed by.

Link looked up at her, grin pulling at his lips. The ears that pulled from the side of head wilted, relaxing actually. Relaxing was a sign that Glynda never took poorly. It was trust. Trust, as she knew, was something more valuable than any amount of lien or dust. It was something that could truly decide the fate of history. And, even if in some small way, they had built trust between them. It was excellent. She stepped back, removing her hand as she did so.

"Be sure to come to the training class tomorrow," Goodwitch spoke once more. "You will now be required to fight at least once per session. Attend the other classes at some point following the next few weeks, when the awe of your presence has shrunk to only a curiosity."

Instead of simply nodding her head at the faunus, Glynda extended her hand. A handshake secured no more grounds of loyalty than any oaths or words, but it was seen commonly across many cultures.

Link, however, was not a diplomat or professor, only barely a student. He was a foreign faunus. Though Glydna very much doubted she would insult him with words, she knew that keeping the trust they had forged whole was very important. For that, physical contact was required; a simple show that they were in agreement.

He looked at her hand for only a moment before raising his arm to match hers. They locked hands, grasping at one another's palms. Link had strength in his hold, as his show of force during his examination left as no surprise. It did, however, show his sincerity to the contact as well. Glynda smiled as they shook.

"Very good," she spoke as she released her hand. "Now, I will instruct what I can to the others. Wait here until I have done so. You can speak to Tatl and Tael once you are in your room again. When I return, you may leave."

With a nod, Glynda turned her back to Link, marching for the door to her office. The next conversation would be much easier. At least these students didn't have mystery lurking in the very corners of their past.

No more than the average huntress at least.

Link understood the blonde knight's instructions well. There was very little room to misunderstand.

Nothing was spoken in code or hinted at to be so. Her words were precise, their definitions explained, and above all else, the severity of them emphasized. He repeated them back in his head, as practice and history had taught him to do.

He was an anomaly within this Knight's Academy; that was never unknown to him. Given a unique test and quoted as being only one of a few to be offered so, Link was well aware that he would be seen differently. That was not new. His actions, however, offered too much ground to the other students, showing more than he should have to eager and curious youth. That he also knew, but not to the immense danger Goodwitch had specified.

Perhaps it was a tribute to how much they did trust him, believing he would temper his own displays in place of making him step lightly. Or, more likely, they wanted to see him overstep first, to know the extent of what he was capable. Both were possible, and he had no reason to dismiss one or the other.

They trusted him only by what they knew. But he was still an unknown. And like any unknown, the curious wanted to pull back the veil. The blonde superior of the training knights made no mistake or attempt to hide her intention about that. He could count the reasons.

There was now ever vigilance upon him, hidden eyes he could not see and ears that never ignored him. It was unimportant how they worked, by either magic or the 'electricity' the boxer was keen to say. What was important was that he could no longer speak aloud, easily relax, and plan his search. Even visiting the memories of his friends was something he could not freely do; not without recompense.

Every new action would bring a new question, and a new question would require new answers. They could only go so far before he would need to tell more than he could. And when that happened, history would repeat. Perhaps… that was for the best.

Link sighed, loathing the inevitable.

He was being tested. It was as easy to see as the walls that surrounded him, though the exact opposite to the eyes that now stared at him. He was being tested to ensure that he was no invading traitor or foreign spy attempting to usurp the monarchy. Link had no fear of that, for he knew he was neither.

He was glad, and honestly at that, to have an Academy of knights protecting him from the spying of others. It was a great feeling to know he was being protected when he was unaware. But it did not change that they were spying on him in turn. Choosing between the cage and the safe.

However, if they were testing him, then perhaps it was best he returned in kind.

They trusted him by only what they had seen, but every soul upon the land had a point where they wavered, a location upon the cliff where their legs swayed and head averted. These knights in this Academy were no different, no matter the military they protected him from.

Link needed to see where that point was. For now, he was being appreciated for his uniqueness, a thing that kingdoms and cities passed had done in kind. His skill with a sword to protect with and friends nearby to rally for. Many welcomed him with open arms, but just as many kept him at arm's length. It only ever took so much for those welcoming gazes to shift into wary glances…

He had to test this place now, to see what they would do if shown too much. Tatl would understand. She would agree with his logic as well as ever before. She knew the value of trust, but she also knew the harsh realities of betrayal. Tael would fight it, however. He trusted unconditionally and was loyal to many faults. Link envied him, but he would not become him now.

There was going to be a test, conducted when he and Tatl thought it best and right. These knights and their leaders wanted to test him for his capabilities. He would only have to test them to see their loyalties. Link only had to be careful on how to test them. Showing enough, but not nearly it all.

They were going to test his strengths and determine his worth.

He was going to test their loyalty and determine their worth.

The unknown always had the advantage. That was why it never followed a one-way test.

He would need to bend it, manipulate this trial of theirs. To follow it to the letter would only result in cementation, burying him where he did not belong. He would be studied, memorized, kept alone and isolated. He would cease to be the unknown. That was unacceptable.

But… to merely leave was just as undesirable. A few days, five at best, that was all the time he had spent here. But he could already see the genuine concern some of these young students had for him, the wonder and care Ozpin gave him, and even the immense curiosity Oobleck had for him. All of it coated in the sacred item that defined friend or foe. Respect.

It was not something he could assume to find in the wilds of this new world, wandering foreign streets, or even staring down from mountains. Respect was what gave security, and safety in rest was something he needed to have.

He was not being tested by these people, he was being done so by the people Glynda described, the Council and Military. They were the ones he needed to trick, to exploit. He needed to test them in a way that would make them slip. Something that when done, just enough, would force them to overstep their hand. Fortunately, being asked to duel students who had breathed air for shorter time than he had held a blade, there were many opportunities to be had.

He needed to talk to Tatl. They needed to make a plan. Tael would understand. They needed to find someone would be willing to risk something great. The perfect mix of gullible and empathetic, yet still unknown to the greater members of their team. Enough so that any oddities of behavior could be excused, but not so much that it was an act.

Link only needed to prepare a suitable payment for whomever Tatl found. With so many unknowns, all it would take was the promise that the punishment would be worth the reward…

"This is stupid!" Ruby couldn't help but agree with Tatl's words. This really was stupid.

"Your discontent with the alterations in Link's schedule are noted, but are otherwise unimportant." Ms. Goodwitch tapped on her pad as the fairy rings in front of her. Ruby just pouted her lips. It was the only thing keeping her from saying something really mean to the Ms. Goodwitch. That would have been a really bad idea. "I will, however, elaborate to say I am no more pleased by these changes than you are. Were my decisions final, Link would be continuing his class schedule Ozpin and I arranged for him… only a few days ago."

"Yeah, well why don't you do that?" Tatl shouted back again. "Afraid you'll have to admit your wrong about something? Might have to show a bit of emotion?"

"Sis…" Ruby heard Tael whine. That was… probably smart, being small at least. Ruby couldn't forget that Ms. Goodwitch was a huntress, a fully trained ready to go huntress, complete with a dust laced riding crop and a semblance that made her own look insignificant. Kinda hurt to admit that.

"The only thing I am trying to prevent, Tatl, is further exposure or potential harm to Link or the Academy." Ms. Goodwitch swiped her hand across the pad, shutting it into its closed state of two thin metal bands before pocketing it behind her. With that away, she was able to focus her emerald gaze firmly on the blonde fairy. Good thing it was the fairy, cause Ruby wasn't sure she could take the full force of that look.

"And to do that you're making him a show horse?" Well, if anyone could be direct with Ms. Goodwitch… Ruby swallowed as she watched her teacher's eyes narrow considerably. She wasn't sure what was sharper. Crescent Rose or Ms. Goodwitch's stare.

"It is either that or allowing foreign entities to move in and take their own interest in Link." That did sound bad. "Whether or not you believe me, I don't wish to see Link or any of my students made out to be things. I do all that is necessary to keep them safe."

Ruby bit her lip, unsure of what to say. She pulled her cloak a little tighter around her, comforted by the weight. It made sense… but it didn't seem right. Wasn't a hunter supposed to protect others? This… this didn't seem like they were protecting Link. Sounded, but didn't feel. Did that make sense?

"Regardless, the decision has already been made and agreed upon with Link. Pending the results of the next few days, accommodations can be made and agreed upon." She tapped on her pad as she spoke, easily pointedly looking away from the rest of them. Ruby swallowed on nothing. She didn't like situations like this.

"So what happens now?" Blake asked, Ruby could tell. She sounded… upset. That was understandable, so it was okay. "Just pretending nothing happened, go about or lives with blissful ignorance?"

"Hardly," Ms. Goodwitch returned. "Link and his companions will be expected to return to their quarters until the training session tomorrow. The remainder of you are to attend classes. You are not barred from seeing Link and far from being punished for it." She adjusted her glasses. Ruby only noted it because she stopped typing on her pad as she did so. "To rob one of my students of socialization is a crime I could not dream to commit."

Well, that was good. Or… better, Ruby supposed. This wasn't a good situation. She knew that because it didn't feel like it. But it was at least better. Link wasn't going to be in jail, or arrested, or… forgotten.

"Fine," Ruby heard Tatl agree. "I'll roll with this, for now. I guess I can see how it could be worse. But I swear in the name of Time, if this turns out to all be some clever ruse to get Link to be a thing… oh, there aren't oceans deep enough to hide from what I'd do to you."

"Your concerns are noted." Ms. Goodwitch spoke, easily passing off the fairy. Ruby could hear Tatl ring. "But for now, I think it best the rest of you return to your quarters for the evening."

"Whoa, wait, what?" Yang spoke up. "Uh, sorry teach, but I'm pretty sure we're here waiting for Link. Don't think we're gonna start running away after this little episode."

"And I would hardly think you would," Ms. Goodwitch easily returned. Ruby was starting to wonder where Link was. "But experience has taught me that conversing in times of high emotional activity benefits few parties. Again, I am strongly suggesting that you all return to your rooms. Tatl and Tael, however, should remain with Link."

Oh, well, that was better. Again, just like before. Better, but not good. Link wasn't alone, but she wanted to be with him right now. He was a friend, and a good friend, and a good person. They didn't deserve to be alone like this.

"Um… m-maybe you guys should go." Ruby's hair whipped to see Tael.

"Tael?" She spoke up. "W-What do you mean?"

"Link… we…" The dark fairy began to speak, but kept chocking on something. His rings were short and sporactic. But then, much like Yang did for her, Tatl came to her sibling's aid.

"We're gonna have a lot to talk about." Tatl spoke up as she flew to her brother. The two light's melding into a soothing gray. "This is… well… we came here together, so now we've gotta talk about how its going. Don't get us wrong. We're grateful for you guys, really. But this is just… one of those times, you know?"

Actually, Ruby did know.

She knew because she had those times before, where she wanted to be alone. She knew Yang did as well. She had seen Blake do so. Weiss was commonly alone, or preferred to be. Ruby wasn't sure about everyone else. They weren't her teammates, but… a quick glance told her they could see the logic.

"Alright," Jaune, thankfully, spoke up. Ruby was thankful for him. "We'll, um… let you guys sort it out. But we're all in all our rooms if you need us! Just like, give us a call, or fly-by, or something."

"Yes," Blake was quick to follow. "Please do not hesitate to come to us for help if you need it."

Tatl and Tael both rang lightly with what Jaune and Blake said, bobbing in the air just as softly. That was a nod, probably. At least, Ruby felt it was. It was important to act on what she felt. Well that was good, at least. It meant they trusted them still. That was good.

"Excellent, then I wish you all well." Ms. Goodwitch spoke up, eyes on them and off her pad. "Tatl, Tael, please follow me inside. I will see the rest of you tomorrow."

Without as much ceremony as before, Ms. Goodwitch turned and opened the door to her quarters, the dark and light fairy following her inside. Without so much as a glance back, she shut the door leaving, Ruby's team and friends outside.

For a short while, none of them moved. She knew where they had to go, even why. But a part of her still told her not to. She really wanted to see Link. She didn't want him to be alone, to feel alone.

"Hey," Jaune finally spoke. "Lets… let's call it a day. I don't want things to change anymore than they have already." Well… Ruby could agree with that. She lightly nodded, neck gaining strength with each bob.

"Yeah," she finally agreed aloud. "Besides, we all gotta a lot to talk about, right?" She looked to her teammates as she asked the question. She knew her partner, she knew her sister, and she knew her friend. She knew that when they got back to their room, it would be anything but quiet.

One by one, they nodded, agreeing with her words. That was good, too.

It was getting dark outside. A lot had happened since Mikau has shown up and left. A lot of good, but even more bad. She ahd a lot of fun new memories, a lot of new questions, and she could even believe she made a new friend in the zora. But… Link…

"Hey," Yang interrupted Ruby just as her mind began to wander. "No getting sour just yet. Make sure we're back at the dorms before any of that happens." Ruby smiled up to her. Yang smirked back down at her.

But Ruby still felt nervous, really nervous.

Even after they all said their goodbyes to each team, making their way across the dark campus to their dorm. Even after they changed and settled into bed, after they had talked about how this was all strange, different, exciting, terrifying, and new.

Even after all that, Ruby felt nervous.

Jaune was nervous. That wasn't new, far from it. It hadn't changed since the previous night.

He'd been nervous about a lot of things, a lot of them for good reason. He'd lied to get into the greatest hunter training school in all of Remnant. He was made the leader of a team that boasted some of the strongest, wisest, and most skilled members in said elite school. He was from a long line of heroes that were sometimes called the founders of Remnant. Those were all perfectly reasonable reasons to feel nervous about most things.

Right now, he was nervous for a different reason, probably not a good one. The reason didn't directly involve him, maybe not even indirectly. No one was in immediate danger. No orders of the world were about to change. At worst, there would probably be a few lost bets, at least something in his gut told him there was betting going on.

The reason he was nervous was standing in the center of the dueling arena, wearing the same green he had when Jaune first set eyes on him.

Link was his name. A name he had heard at least a few dozen times a day since the faunus showed up. A faunus that looked like his clone with ear extensions… and a penchant for silence. Jaune kinda envied that last one. Being silent was usual a good thing, especially given how he usually rambled. Link, however, hardly ever talked. Even when he did, it looked like only his mini-drones understood him. Spoke little and quietly, nice combo.

So Link was there, and given where he was, wasn't too hard to piece together that he was going to fight something. That wasn't what made him feel nervous. What made Jaune feel that familiar queasiness in his stomach was why the faunus was going to fight. Not because he was a stellar student in practice, or even an non-stellar one trying to get better.

Link was going to fight so that he could be measured, analyzed, and basically spied on by Beacon, the Military, and probably the Council as well. How was he not supposed to feel nervous about that?

"This isn't right," he mumbled the words as he rubbed a hand over his head. He wasn't even fighting today and he felt both nervous and sick. He knew the difference between the two. "Yesterday he was just trying to fit in. Today he's… I don't know."

"He's a show." Apparently Blake knew what he was right now. Her tone was less than inviting, basically telling Jaune that if he disagreed, he'd lose an eye. Maybe an ear or two, too. "We're making a show out of a faunus who showed more promise than any human. Tatl was right." He may be lacking Link's longer ears, but Jaune swore he heard Blake growl those words.

"This is… troubling." Hearing those words come from Ren, Jaune knew this was bad in every way possible.

"Well maybe it won't be too bad?" The blonde looked at his fellow youthful team leader. Ruby was biting her lip as she shirked into her shoulders. Didn't look like she believed her words much more than she hoped the others would. "I-I mean, he doesn't seem upset. And, it's not like he can't handle himself in a fight."

"Far from the point Ruby," Weiss followed. "It is precisely his skill with his blade, tools, and very likely his friends that has put him in this unique and utterly detestable position." Jaune had to double-take to make sure it was Weiss talking. Her sounding annoyed was far from new. Her sounding pissed because of a faunus suffering, that was like watching a supernova. "Selectively removed from the other students, assigned to a solo-room, prohibited from joining other teams, all because he was doing his utmost to conform. I nearly hope the army bores of him so this mockery of teaching can be finished." That pushed a thought into Jaune's head.

"Hey, what are we supposed to be learning from this, anyway?" He looked at his teammates and friends as he asked the question. He was new to this, so maybe there was something obvious he was missing. Like he was supposed to record the fight or something. "I mean… I-I don't know."

"None of us do, Jaune," Pyrrha spoke to him, laying a hand on his shoulder as she did so. The novice team lead had to remind himself that she could probably break his arm with her hand there, given her strength and skill. She wouldn't do that though, probably. "In fact, I believe the superiors in the Military are gaining more from this than we are."

"I don't follow." Probably bad to admit that, but if he didn't, he'd be stuck staring at the sky again.

"They're going to use what they observe in Link's fighting style, weapons, and dust manipulation to develop new weapons and training regimens themselves." Blake snarled the response. She was going to hurt someone soon. Jaune was sure of it, just not when. "The only thing keeping them from snatching him from Beacon and doing it by force is the deal Ozpin and Goodwitch have cooked up with them."

"So it's a monkey-show or a dissection." Wow, Jaune was actually impressed with the narcissism Yang said that. Blake's hiss that followed got everyone else to look at the brawling blonde, leaning back in her seat and staring at the ceiling. She waved a hand at Blake when she heard the noise. "Chillax kitty. I'm just as pissed about this as you are."

"There is no way you are as angry about this as I am." Jaune believed Blake, instantly. She was a fuanus, though he wasn't allowed to say as much. She probably understood what Link was going through better than they were.

"No, I am, just for a different reason." Yang snorted as she finished, scowling up at the air again. Jaune watched her fists clench and unclench. She was thinking of punching something. "I'm pissed cause no matter what kind of different scenario I can imagine, the best one always comes back to this."

Jaune was unsurprisingly shocked to see Blake grab at the Yang's arm, pulling the blonde out of her seat and into the black huntress's face. He held his breath as everyone else whirled to intervene. No way could he do anything to stop a brawl between those two.

"The best?!" Blake snarled into Yang's face. What a weird day to see Blake showing more emotion than Yang.

Then again, what a weird week.

"He is about to be put on for a show, demanded to fight like some kind of wind-up doll until he's useless to the bigoted government and their military! He's going to be pushed and pushed and pushed until he falls and then he's going to be mocked and thrown away! How is this the best?!"

Their noses were touching, Jaune faintly realized. Their noses were touching and if one of them swung there were have been nothing stopping them from destroying this side of the fighting arena.

"Because if Ruby hadn't found him in the woods," Yang began. "He might have ended up being found by the Military, put through all those fun little dissection stories we've heard so much about. Or he might have been picked up by the White Fang, tricked into doing their dirty deeds and losing any chance of finding his friend." Those… those were horrifically good points. "Or, worst situation I can think of, he might have wandered into the Badlands without knowing any better and been eaten up by the Grimm."

Okay, no, that wins. Death wins all.

Blake snarled at Yang hard, her golden slit eyes practically glowing with rage. Or maybe they were just glowing, probably a faunus thing.

But Jaune let out a breath of relief when Blake released her partner, spinning in her seat to face the arena again. He heard the rest of the group let one out as well. Ruby, however, was focused on her sister, laying a hand on her shoulder and whispering something. Not his place to ask what. They were siblings after all.

"Am I interrupting something?" Jaune didn't know if he was happy or mortified to hear that voice. He didn't have to turn his head though, as the now familiar ball of light flew around the eight of them.

"No," he found himself saying. "Just… talking about… bad stuff, I guess." Smooth as a Grimm's horn.

"Link, you mean," the golden mini-drone noted matter-of-factly. He swallowed in response. "No need to hide that from me. Whatever you guys are feelin', Link, Tael, and I are getting at least twice as bad." He hadn't thought of that. Tatl trailed golden dust before settling on Ruby's shoulder, the young team lead regarding the fairy with blinking silver eyes.

"How is he doing?" Yang asked, having settled back into her ceiling-staring posture. Probably didn't want to entertain the authority figures or something like that. "Ya know, having to be put in a spotlight and given commands like jump."

"Eh, been through it before." Wait, what? Jaune must have made a sound, cause Tatl seemed to answer him. "C'mon, you can't seriously think a guy like Link, killing ancient monsters just a decade after popping into the world, isn't going to be vetted and tested by whatever army is leading the world." Well, when you said it like that…

"But this is still barbaric," Weiss defended. Seriously, what was with Weiss doing this? Jaune couldn't lie, seeing his Snow Angel defend someone was awesome, but just… he didn't expect it to be a fuanus. That was more Blake's territory. "Qualification for Beacon Academy should render him beyond the Military's reach until time of graduation. Even then, licensed hunters are above military recruitment and study."

"Unless you were born with an extra pair of something." Blake let out again. "Ears, antlers, tails, anything at all and the military will treat you more as property than humanity."

Jaune looked back down at Link. The mysterious faunus from a far off land, calling himself a Hylian Hero. Or more accurately, his mini-drones calling him as such. Wearing green like tree leaves, standing just beneath himself in height, and looking more relaxed than anyone else in the crowd. That was kinda weird.

But why wouldn't he be? He was great with a blade and shield, apparently, also a hammer and boomerang, which Jaune did see, and with friends literally only a mask-donning away. He had taken on an entire team without only three moves and had almost rendered Professor Oobleck speechless. Almost, but almost was still a lot closer than most others got.

Really, Jaune could see why the military wanted to know more about him. Able to change shapes was pretty ridiculous as it was. He could just imagine a hunter changing shapes in the middle of a battle, fighting Grimm in the water like it was nothing. There was a lot to get out of that. But the infinite dust thing? Who needed to transform if you could literally fire a gun forever?

Actually, saying it like that, it sounded more like a kid's cartoon than an actual military plan. No, they would probably be more focused on energy supplies and powering more advanced robot designs. Yeah, that made more sense. But… that made Jaune realizing something else.

Just studying Link fighting wouldn't be enough for them to be able to reverse engineer anything like dust recovering diamonds or whatever he called that Zora stone. They'd need samples, examples to work off of. It would be like trying to figure out how a Grimm grew up by studying how it hunted. The two didn't connect. There would have to be something else, but… what?

"Class." Ms. Goodwitch's voice rang through the room, earning immediate attention.

Jaune focused on her, standing next to Link and dwarfing the fuanus by at least half a foot, probably more than that. She had her usual pad held against her chest, her riding crop held in her other hand. Her eyes were looking about the room, likely silently reading the students. Juane could only see a few from sitting in the stands himself, but he could tell there was a heck of a lot of confusion going on. He was a part of it after all.

"As you may or may not have become aware over the past day or two, Link is a new student attending our academy." Basic introduction. Alright, made sense. "I am aware his unique method of entry as well as well kingdom of origin has made him a topic of frequent discussion. Said talks and rumors have only been exacerbated following the recent incident with Doctor Oobleck's class and the incident at the aquatic center." Yeah those did generate some headlines over the scroll network.

"Because of these unfortunate incidents, and the newly realized depth of his abilities, he will be put through dueling sessions once a day, in order to collect data on him." Maybe it was just him, which Jaune realized was a distinct possibility, but Ms. Goodwitch didn't sound any happier about what she was saying. "As such, in order to measure his skill with blade and shield alone, I will need a volunteer to place against him." Wow, that moved fast. If she wasn't even going to take questions, she must have really been sour about this. That was a good thing, Juane guessed.

He saw a few hands raise themselves in the air, some faster than others. He could make out Cardin across the platform raising more of a fist in the air than a hand. That wasn't really worth a lot of surprise. He did see Pyrrha raise hers as well, probably because she knew how to duel better than anyone else at Beacon. Made sense she'd want to take on someone who the Military had their eye on.

Link seemed totally out of it though. He was just standing there, looking at all of them like this was just… normal. Jaune knew he'd be freaking out. Making excuses or something to get out of there, anything really. But Link? He was just… waiting. Maybe he really was that good, maybe he didn't have any reason to be afraid. Okay, maybe not afraid, but if Blake gave any clue, Link should have been at least a little angry.

"Mr. Arc, you will do for this." Wait, what?

Jaune blinked, shaking his head, before looking back down at the stage. Ms. Goodwitch was looking at him, so was Link, and now that he thought about it, just about everone around the ring as well. That wasn't good.

"Um…" He mumbled. "M-Maybe it would be better to-ah… h-have someone else fight him?" More like a requirement, but he really couldn't think of a reason, not on the spot at least.

"You are one of the only students in this class who utilizes a broad sword and knight's shield. The contrast between your abilities and Link's will make it easier to measure him." Like measuring an ant-hill to a mountain, Jaune thought.

"Y-Yeah, but…" There had to be a counter-argument he could use, some kind of excuse. Maybe? Hopefully? Please?

"Just get your butt in the ring and let it get handed to you," Tatl spoke from behind Jaune. Not exactly the most encouraging thing he'd ever heard. "The longer you stall the longer Link's gotta wait, and I'm pretty sure we all just wanna get this over with." Well, that was true. Jaune only had to remember the conversation from before to know that all of his friends were less than happy about Link's… predicament he guessed.

Jaune sighed. Well, if letting his butt get kicked got Link out of the ring faster, then that was a good thing. Better than seeing someone else mock him. The leader of Team JNPR stood, letting out a groan as he walked towards the edge of the stage. When he reached the side of the ring, he felt the familiar platform rumble beneath him, the only indication he had before it started to descend into the prep room.

He got a look from Pyrrha before the floor raised above him. She was biting her lips, staring at him with that same nervous look she had whenever he had to fight. She knew he was going to lose. That was okay. Jaune knew he was going to get slaughtered, too. He gave her a thumbs up though, followed by a weak-smile. That made her smile at least. Better than nothing.

Not a moment later, Jaune was in the familiar locker-room, surrounded by small benches and metal doors to house your objects in. Good for when you were planning on a long sparring session; kinda useless for when you were getting ready to be destroyed. Besides, Link was waiting for him.

He took a deep breath, pulling out the weapons of his family's legacy. Crocea Mors, a sword and shield used by his grandfather during the war of faunus and man. It had more history in it than he could ever really hope to understand. So many battles it had been through, so many lives it had saved… and then probably just as many taken. And here it was, held in the hands of some descendant who didn't even know how to hold it right until just recently.

Well… could be worse. He could be complete unarmed.

Jaune let out the air in his lungs, stepping out of the locker room and into the ring. He kept calling it a ring, but when you were standing inside of it, it felt more like an Arena. Everyone so high above you, watching from beyond the flood lights. It seemed immensely larger once you were standing on the ground, kinda like the difference between studying for a test and actually taking it. Everything seemed harder when you didn't have the notes in front of you. Actually, that didn't make any sense. Even in his own mind he was rambling. Go figure.

"Mr. Arc," Ms. Goodwitch spoke his name, earning his immediate attention complete with a stiffening of his posture. "Please come to the center of the ring so that we may begin the match." Oh right, the fight.

The fight with Link, his faunus doppelganger, the foreign hunter, the one who apparently killed ancient Grimm when he was a kid, or so his mini-drone said. Fighting him. Yeah, this was gonna be really bad. Jaune gulped on air as he made his way forward, watching Link more than Ms. Goodwitch.

Link didn't appear threatening, but Jaune knew all about appearances and deception by now. He knew that in less than a minute or two, he was going to be crawling on the ground, maybe even writhing depending on how bad Link decided to kick his butt. He kept moving though, stopping when he was probably less a few feet away from Link. Took that long for him to realize he was taller than his green-clothed double.

"Very good," Ms. Goodwitch spoke. "Now, traditional rules still apply. Link, as this is your first time, I will explain. The objective this sparring session is to reduce the aura of your opponent to critical levels. When one of the two of you have done so, the match will be called. If you manage to disarm your opponent, the match is also won in your favor." Link nodded at her, no doubt in understanding. "Furthermore, outside interference is strictly prohibited. You are required to stay within the boundaries of the ring until the match is decided or you chose to forfeit." If anyone was gonna do that, it was probably Jaune.

"When I give the word, you may begin." Ms. Goodwitch stepped back as she said those words, tapping on her pad. Jaune knew she was adjusting the lights and setting up the scoreboard. She always did, and just like always, he would be in the deep red with Link still a healthy green. At least it was that way for all of his other fights.

"So," Jaune spoke, grinning nervously. "First time in a fight?" Link stared at him for a moment, blinking. That was the usual reaction to a stupid question. He was pretty sure he heard one of his teammates slap themselves for him. Link though shook his head, giving an actual answer. "Right, course it isn't. You alright fought, like, an entire team to get in."

That made Link smile. That was good. Smiles meant he was happy. Didn't want to make the faunus that was going to kick his butt to mad. If Jaune was going to lose, he didn't want to get destroyed as well.

Jaune felt his own smile falter when Link drew his sword and shield. Oh yeah, he forgot about those. Well… more like he forgot about the Dust literally encrusted into the metal of the blade and shield. Ruby said that he could shoot lasers with them, and he didn't doubt it for a moment. Link raised the sword towards him, pointing the tip of it at Jaune, He swallowed again, knowing that the sword was going to be cutting him up soon. Oh man, he did not want to do this.

"Cross blades!" He heard someone shout from the crowd. Took him a moment to realize it was Tatl. "You can't start a duel until you cross blades, Not-Link!" Not-Link? Oh, that was his nickname. Well… better than Vomit Boy.

He looked back at Link, who was still looking at him, blade raised and shield at his side. Jaune lifted his own sword, holding it towards his person for a moment. He felt his legs shaking. He was gonna have to work on that. Oh man, he really didn't want to do this. But… sink or swim. Jaune extended his arm out, letting the metal of the Crocea hit against Link's Magic Sword. The sound of metal ringing echoed through the ring.

For that brief glorious moment, Jaune felt the power of his weapons.

He felt strength in the steel, he felt strong for holding them. He felt strong, protected, ready, and most importantly, confident. He felt… amazing. How did that happen?

"Begin." No time to think.

As soon as Ms. Goodwitch had spoken, Link had jumped backwards. Well, jumped backwards doing a backflip, landing with his shield raised and covering most of his body. Jaune just stood there, pulling his own shield to his chest, waiting for the inevitable.

Wait… that wasn't what he was supposed to do. Pyrrha told him that he should strike first, test the defenses of is opponent while keeping his own. As long as his shield was up, Link should at most only be able to push him back. Yeah, that was the right thing to do. Better than standing still and waiting to eat dirt at least.

He let out a quick cry and he started to move his feet charging and Link like a bulldozer, a pathetic bulldozer, but still with some force. He saw Link tighten the grip on his sword, preparing for the strike. Good, that meant Jaune was doing the right thing! Just a few feet in front of Link, he swung down, ready to have his sword clash with the red Dust encrusted shield.

But instead he hit air. He hit air because Link had jumped to the side. Link had jumped to Jaune's right, his fully exposed, unshielded, vulnerable right half. This was going to hurt.

Not a moment later did he feel the sting of Link's sword slice into his side, taking a good portion of his aura with it. But he had momentum now. He spun with that, raising his shield to take next blow Link would try to give. He would be ready for it thi-

Jaune chocked on nothing as something hit his back, hard.

Whatever spin he thought he was in the middle of got turned into a tumble, rolling head over feet into the ground. It was in the middle of it that he realized Link had kicked him. That was smart, like he should have been. Kicking an opponent before they could raise defense. Wait… he was still on the ground, without any defense. So that meant…

Jaune rolled across the ground, avoiding what he knew was sure to be another blow from Link. After a few rolls, he pushed himself to his feet, swinging his sword out to push Link away. That was the smart thing to do, keep an opponent away while you were thinking.

At least, it would have been smart, if Link were still not some distance away. Meaning Jaune had just made a fool of himself, again, in front of everyone. Great. This was turning out spectacular.

Even Link had his head tilted, one of his eyes skewed shut with the other open. He must have realized how much better he was than Jaune. Most other students did at this point. The smile didn't help, not even when his head straightened and eyes relaxed. That just meant Link as getting ready to- why was he walking towards Jaune?

The young blonde swordsman blinked, making sure he wasn't seeing things. His faunus double was walking towards him, but more than that, walking towards him with his sword and shield at his side. Completely exposed. Was he mocking him? Maybe, but… something didn't seem right.

That was when Link stopped just in front of him. Jaune watched his eyes look towards his shield, Mors. Link held up his own, then lightly tapped on it with his sword.

"What?" Jaune spoke, unsure what Link was trying to say. Link just tapped his shield again, then pushing it further from his person. As he did so, he crouched lowering himself closer to the ground. Closer to the ground made him smaller, which meant the shield covered more… which meant…. He was giving Jaune lessons?

"Uh…" The blonde let out in an unsure tone. He looked at his shield, lowering his stance as he did so. "Like this?" That got a nod from Link, who was grinning with his teeth showing now. That was… great, actually. Being taught how to fight instead of just getting thrashed. Thrashing was probably still coming.

He let out a grunt as Link slammed his sword into Mors. It rang like metal always did, but nothing more than that. It was a strong blow, nearly sending Jaune to his knees, but it didn't. It didn't because he was already crouching, which made it easier to push against the blow. And because his shield was held out further, he had more time to strengthen his hold.

Jaune looked at Link, blinking. Link looked back at him, nodding with a grin pulled at his lips. He drew his sword back, putting space between the two. Maybe this… maybe this wouldn't be so bad.

"Alright, ah… Let's-um… try this again?" Yup, the beacon of confidence at Beacon Academy. Link nodded at him though. Shuffling on his feet behind his shield. At least Jaune knew what to do now. Maybe he would at least be able to stop one of Link's blows now. That would-

His thoughts were interrupted by Link jumping in the air. No, not just jumping, spinning. No, not just spinning, flipping. Flipping with his sword extended outwards and ready to strike. Okay, that was really bad. It only got worse when Jaune caught a glimpse of Link. And really, that one look told him all he needed to know.

Link looked perfect in that strike. His sword was held above his head, his eyes were focused even as he spun, his legs were pulled into spin faster, and his shield was still covering his side. He looked every bit the hunter Tatl and Tael made him out to be.

And he was about to get struck by that hunter.

Jane raised his shield in time to block the sword, the new stance he had with his shield mitigated a lot of the force. He grunted, but Link wasn't even close to done. No sooner did the sword strike than did he feel Link's shield beat on his own, swatting it away like a fly. That left him open to Link, who had managed to land perfectly on his feet. Exposed and with no way to react, Jaune knew what was coming next.

Or he thought he knew.

Link did swing his sword, he did cut into Jaune, but it wasn't just a single strike. It was like a hurricane.

Jaune felt himself getting picked up into the air, every hit of Link's sword pushing him higher and higher, forcing him into the air with threat of cuts and impalement. He let go of his sword, unable to hold onto it. His shield was next, falling at his side. He didn't even hear it clang, not with Link literally digging into him with that Magic Sword.

But when he stopped, Jaune was cursed with one brief moment of spite, able to look down. He saw himself a good dozen feet in the air. He saw himself flipped around. He saw Link floating just next to him, sword still drawn back and face set like Pyrrha before a fight. He didn't need experience to know he was done for.

Link gave out a great battle cry, flipping over Jaune. The blonde felt Link's sword dig into his back, his aura, that safety next Pyrrha had blessed him with, practically wilt at the blow. It only got worse. It got worse because Link kept digging as they were falling. Link was literally going to impale him!

This was bad. This was bad this was bad this was bad this was very very bad!

Jaune felt breath leave him as he slammed into the ground. He tensed, ready to feel a sword dig into him. But nothing came. He took a few shallow breaths, sure his adrenaline was just slowing down time for him.

But when he opened his eyes, the first thing he saw was Link's sword impaled into the ground, just inches from his face. That was… scary. Yup, scary was the word.

He flipped himself away from the blade, feeling his muscles crying out at the effort. Oh, everything hurt after that. Jaune groaned just to show it. A little further away now, he could see Link was kneeling by his sword, blade impaled just a few inches where his head was. Link's own eyes were furrowed, staring at Jaune with a tight grip on his blade. No, scary wasn't the word. Terrifying was more like it.

That was when the voice of god spoke.

"By disarm, Link is the victor." Ms. Goodwitch announced, stepping forward and shutting down the flood-lights as she did so. Jaune let out a long drawled out groan at the words. He lost, no surprise there. "An impressive display Link, and good show of dignity by correcting Mr. Arc's stance with his shield."

Jaune looked up at Link, groaning as he did so. The faunus was standing as well, holding his sword in hand. Must have been strong to have pulled it from the ground so easily. Then again, must have been strong to put it there. Six of one half a dozen of the other, Jaune supposed.

"With your required bout out of the way, we can move onto our next pair of contenders." That was Juan's queue to get up. It was hard though, what with his muscles feeling like they had been cut into. Must have been that aura defending him again. Good stuff. He tried again, but this time, catching sight of Link standing over him.

What would have normally made Jaune groan in annoyance, used to people like Cardin mocking him in defeat, he instead saw Link holding his hand out to him. He was offering to help him up. And hey, the green-clothed faunus was still smiling. That was good. That was… really nice actually. Jaune took it, feeling Link pull up as soon as he did. His muscles have been groaning, but at least he was standing.

"Thanks," he spoke softly to the faunus. Link nodded in turn, just before touching something to the armor on Jaune's chest. He looked down, expecting to see a hand or something. Instead, he was being handed Crocea Mors. He was literally being given his weapons back by the faunus who had so easily disarmed him. "Wow, thanks man." Link only nodded again, smile not shrinking.

"Next we have-"

"Wait, hold on!" Well that probably wasn't good.

Jaune looked up into the stands, just behind Link. The faunus turned around too, his long green hat lightly twirling at the motion. It was hard to tell at first, mostly because his eyes were still used to the flood lights from before, but Juane could tell someone in the audience was standing up. Were any of them his friends or teammates?

"That's all we get to see of him?" Kinda of obvious what they were talking about. "All this hype and lead up for some killer faunus warrior and we just get to see him beat the crap out of Beacon's biggest disappointment." Well this was going swimmingly. Jaune could already feel his confidence eroding away. So much for looking tough.

"You are far out of line Ms. Ether," Ms. Goodwitch spoke up. "I suggest you temper your emotions for a more appropriate time."

"When is this ever gonna get more appropriate?" She wasn't backing down. Oh crap, this was really bad. "Next time Link fights? If every fight is going to be that disappointing, you could at least make them more entertaining." Jaune was starting to feel the air getting really cold. Then he heard the voice of a blizzard.

"The purpose of these sparring sessions are not entertainment." Ms. Goodwitch could have frozen the ocean with her voice. "They are to teach and instruct, much like Link was doing with Mr. Arc. You, on the other hand, are only demonstrating a naïve and childish attitude unbecoming of a huntress."

"So you're not gonna deny that fight was lacking?" Jaune swallowed on nothing. He was nervous now, didn't know about what. "C'mon, you were saying you needed to collect data on the faunus. I'd bet my bow that whatever that poor excuse for a fight wasn't nearly enough." Jaune was sure that if he looked down, he might have been able to see the pieces of his soul falling apart. It sure felt like they were.

"Enough or not, Link has satisfied his end of the bargain and I will not force further activity on his part because a brat like you believes themselves superior." Did Ms. Goodwitch insult a student? Oh wow, this wasn't bad. This was apocalyptic. It was probably a good time to leave.

"Well what if he wants to fight some more?" Jaune's eyes had adjusted well enough to just make out what happened next. Actually, he would have had nerve damage to not make it out.

The girl jumped from the stands, Ms. Ether, Jaune couldn't remember her first name, and landed just in front of the pair. Jaune would have taken a step back, if he muscles weren't still angry at him for the beating he took. The girl was on bended knee, her neon red hair hanging off one side of her head. It was matched by pink clothes that covered her torso, hanging from her shoulders and stopping just above her waist. From there, she was wearing very… tight lavender clothes. Her arms were completely bare, tan at that. It was pretty hard to ignore the proud smirk was practically embezzled on her face, especially when she stood and stared right at Link.

"You," she spoke pointing at Link. Jaune kinda wanted to walk around them to see what expression Link was making, seeing as he was still standing behind the shorter faunus. His legs said no though. "Are gonna fight me." She pulled her thumb back to her chest, touching the pale skin with a fanged grin.

Then Link shook his head.

It was so simple and quick that Jaune couldn't help at least smirking. He was able to get his hand to cover his mouth, hoping that would be enough to stifle the laughter. It wasn't. From what he heard around the stands, most others weren't even trying. He did look back at the neon girl, whatever her name was. She was miffed, clearly, but not much more than that.

"I'm not done," she spoke again. "You're gonna fight me, because we're going to make a bet on it." A what now?

"Absolutely not," Ms. Goodwitch spoke again. Seriously, Jaune was starting to feel his own blood freeze at her voice. "You are going back to the stands and Link will return as well. He is done for the day and you are to be put on probation for your inappropriate behavior."

"Even if I'm willin' ta bet this?" 'This', by Jaune's observation, were apparently her bow. She pulled out it out from behind her back, the ends popping further and further out into it was about as long as she was tall. Then with a snap, a string strung itself from one end to the other, looking sleek. It would have been cool, except that she… well… wasn't.

"Meet Pride," she continued to speak, looking right at Link as she spoke on. "A bow I hand-crafted. One-of-a-kind, least until I make a new one. Built to last, smelted of specialty heat-treated Titanium, star-bolted together, and sharpened like the Damascus swords." The what swords?

Apparently whatever Ms. Ether was saying was a big deal, cause the rest of the stands had changed from laughing and giggling to light talk and whispering. Well… betting your weapons was a pretty big deal. She must have felt confident about something.

"That's pretty interesting." It took Jaune a moment to realize that wasn't the voice of anyone in the ring, at least not right now. He turned his head to see Tatl flying down from the stands, circling around the red-neon hair girl. That seemed to get the whole class to shut-up, Ms. Goodwitch included. "Probably not the same here as it is in Hyrule, but betting your weapons back home was like betting your future as a knight. Basically, if you lost, you were done." Whoa, was that true?

"Cute," The girl responded. "But that's not the case here. I'd just have to wrack in the dough to buy the materials to make a new set for myself. Buuut, if I were to sell this baby, I'd probably have enough money to pay for a few month's rent." Was… was that a lot? Jaune wasn't sure.

"Oh, yeah, cause with a room being given to us, we totally gotta buy rent." Tatl mockingly replied to the neon-girl. Go mini-drone go. "Not to mention these guys are giving us food, washing our clothes, and basically guarding the place while we sleep. Yup, we are totally in need of money."

"Course you are," the girl, for some reason, did not let up. Jaune thought he was embarrassed earlier, but this girl? It was like she was fighting for his spot of humility. "Cause it's not like you can go into Vale and do a little shopping. Without something to spend, you're basically just trapped in a nice big prison." Did she really just say that?

"What did you say?" Looks like Tatl was surprised by that too.

"You heard me," Ether leaned into the golden ball, grinning with a snarl. Kinda creepy now that Jaune thought about it. "You're nothing more than a hamster being tested and studied while you're here. Maybe that's just what you want. Faunus have a knack for letting themselves be used."

Did she just say that?

Jaune wasn't the only one to think the question. He heard the crowd of students erupt at the words. It was impossible to make out much of anything between the screams, jeers, and oddly enough, the occasionally cheer. It was like a million times worse than anything else Jaune had witnessed or done, and he had walked around in an onesie at orientation. No, wait, this was so much worse than that. This was literally insulting everything Link was!

"Garnet Ether!" Ms. Goodwitch yelled, actually yelled. Jaune was shaking and he knew it had nothing to do with being tired. He was standing between a raging hurricane and an erupting to volcano. "Return to your room immediately or I will be forced to suspend all activity fo-"

"Oh no!" Tatl shouted, literally shouted, at Ms. Goodwitch. Jaune felt his eyes dry with how wide they were, staring at the golden ball of light shaking in the air. It looked like her wings were going to fall off. "Oh no, that pent-up little ball of dissatisfaction isn't going anywhere!" That… That wasn't good.

"You… Y-You don't seriously mean…" Jaune felt himself saying, unable to keep his mouth shut. Who could at a time like this, he reasoned. Well… his faunus double could.

"Oh yes I do! We're taking that bet!" Tatl flew at Jaune for a moment, almost making him fall over with the speed she flew and volume she shouted. It felt like a speaker was being thrown at him at high velocity and max volume. "Cause there is no way we're gonna let some washed up, wanna-be, slut like you talk like that."

Jaune was seriously regretting not leaving now. He still could, if his legs worked.

"Slut, huh? That's the best you got?" This girl must have really wanted to piss off Tatl. "But hey, glad you're taking the bet. Cause if, and when, I win," she giggled before finishing her words. "I get to take you." Her finger poked at the golden ball of light in the air. That was really, really bad.

Jaune looked at Link, looking at him now that he had turned enough to look at Ms. Goodwitch and Tatl. He hadn't actually turned, but it was impossible to miss his face. It was impossible because what Jaune saw burned itself into his mind.

Link, with snarled lips and furrowed beady eyes, looked ready to kill.

Summoning all the powers of his ancestors, Jaune put the strength into his legs to move away from what was doubtlessly a boiling cauldron of Dust and explosives. When it went off, nothing was going to be safe. He just managed to make it to the wall of the arena when Tatl spoke again. If the room hadn't become so quiet, he would have missed her words.

"We're gonna keep this deal, I promise."

"After all this, you'd better."

Then without another word, she flew off back into the stands. Jaune watched her float over to where his teammates were. That was probably good. Yeah, it was. He just needed to get there.

He rushed himself through the locker room, not even bothering to put away his weapons or armor. He just got on the lift, hit the switch and rose back to the stands. He was met with the same silence he had left in the arena. Shuffling over to where his friends were, he saw them all wearing different visage of shock or hate. No surprise who had what.

Blake was looking every bit as feral as he imagined a rabid animal would. Really bad example right now. Yang was little different, the same with Nora and Ruby. Weiss and Pyrrha had hands over the mouths, probably out of a combination of upbringing and terror. Ren was, terrifyingly enough, combing his hair with his fingers. It was the most emotion he had ever seen his quiet teammate make.

"This goes against all regulations I have set in place." Jaune turned to the arena to see Ms. Goodwitch talking to Link and Garnet. At least know he knew the neon girl's name. "You two have effectively sworn to fight one another whether it be in or outside my observation. As such, I am forced to allow this to occur, but only for fear that not doing so will seriously result in loss of life. Be sure you will both be reprimanded when this is finished. " Jaune had an idea who was going to die.

"Step away from one another." Ms. Goodwitch gave the command, whipping her crop between Link and Garnet. The neon girl smirked, turning away and doing so, twirling those sickles of hers. She was confident, no denying that. But when Link turned around, it was a whole other story.

Jaune thought he was pissed before, now Link look enraged. His arms swung stiffly, legs the same, and head crouched over as if preventing him from screaming. His eyes were looking at nothing, okay probably the wall, but it was hard for Jaune to imagine him focusing on that. His hand was clenched around the sword of his, hard enough that Jaune swore he could nearly hear the metal of the hilt breaking. Given how strong the faunus was, it was a define possibility. That just made this all the more terrifying.

"The same rules for combat apply," Ms. Goodwitch spoke, her voice strained and trying to hold itself back. No wonder why. "You have a minute to prepare. No speaking to one another." Well… looked like there were some new rules.

"This is insane," Jaune finally whispered, unable to hold it back anymore. "I-I mean… wasn't this supposed to be… educational or something?"

"Education doesn't matter when you have bigots like that girl," Blake snarled a response. Jaune wouldn't have disagreed no matter the circumstances. "With someone like that, the only response is to beat them into the ground."

"It's… very hard to disagree," Weiss spoke in turn. If she couldn't disagree with that, then the Military and White Fang must have shook hands over something. "But I fear that Link may be letting his honor for his heritage blind him. It could very well be Garnet's tactic to beat him."

"It won't work, and you're wrong." Tatl spoke up now. No one asked her why. She was going to tell them, at least Jaune was sure of it. "You could insult Link all day long and he wouldn't care. He's much better at proving people wrong than listening to what they say." Well that was one… but why was it wrong?

"Then why does he look ready kill?" Pyrrha asked that. Pyrrha, the most well-trained huntress Jaune knew. Well, okay, huntress in training, but still, she could read people like a professor could read a book. Forwards, backwards, and in between the lines. He'd been saving that line. "I'm sorry, but he didn't look like that when he was going to fight Jaune." Good thing, too. Jaune was in no mood to die.

"Because Garnet said she was going to take me if Link lost." Oh.

"She basically told Link that I was going to be her property." Oh!

"Don't know if it's the same here, but turning lives into property is slavery." Oh!

"And Link has never regretted hurting people like that." Oh Grimm and Dust.

"Both fighter's ready?" This was bad. This was catastrophically, nightmarish, world-ending bad. This was a worse kind of bad Jaune felt when he saw a Grimm getting ready to tear him in half. This was… this was him watching someone die.

"Fight." Garnet started shooting. Link did nothing.

Jaune felt himself suck in a breath as dust arrows literally exploded over Link. They were being shot like dual pistols, the Garnet girl aiming high, low, mid, joints, torso, everywhere. It was like she was on the shooting range. It really was, because Link was doing nothing!

"Why isn't he fighting back?" Jaune heard Ruby ask. He didn't fault her for sounding worried, cause if he spoke his voice would be two octaves higher with fright. At least Ruby sounded in control. "Why isn't he doing anything?"

"Because he's trying to control himself." Tatl, somehow, didn't sound fazed by any of this. Actually, she sounded much calmer than Jaune had ever heard her. That was probably really bad. Where was her brother when they needed him!? "He's trying to convince himself he doesn't need to do anything."

"You mean he's actually going to do that?" Yang now. Jaune knew it was bad if she sounded surprised. "He'd really do that?"

"To save a friend, yeah." This was like a night terror. "Those bars on the screen are that aura-stuff, right?" The ball motioned towards the screen hanging above the ring. It was just a bob, but her wings rang with the motion. Jaune looked up at them. Link's was shrinking, no surprise there. But… it wasn't really fast… Down was still down though!

"Link's got time," Tatl spoke again. "But when time's up, he's going to unleash Time's wrath." What did that mean?

"Are you giving up, already?" Jaune turned to see Garnet shout that across the ring, currently in the process of pulling the string of her bow. Link still hadn't moved. His green tunic was slightly charred by the Dust, his blonde bangs lightly messed, but otherwise still intact. Jaune didn't know if that was good.

"C'mon Link," Jaune heard Blake whispering behind him. Well… growled maybe.

"If you're not even gonna fight back, maybe you should just give up. I'm sure you know how to do that." Garnet aimed her bow at link again, walking confidently around the ring as she did so. She licked her lips before speaking again. How much worse could this honestly get?

"It's almost like you want to give me that little golden lamp of yours."

Oh… that bad…

"Link!" Tatl suddenly shouted. It made Jaune let out a cry of fright. "Just finish her off!"

Was Link seriously going to kill her?!

"Quiet!" Goodwitch yelled back up. Jaune noticed she wasn't taking her eyes off the match. "Commands and orders are considered interf-" She cut herself off. Wasn't a surprise to Jaune. At least, it wasn't a surprise when Link finally moved.

He didn't jump forward, pull out some new weapon, or do much of anything that was really threatening. Link just… crouched forward. He bent towards Garnet, raising his sword arm until his hand covered his face. It looked like he was thinking.

What came next happened faster than Jaune could rightfully imagine.

Link spun like a top, quick as wind at Garnet. But before he even got a good stride forward, he threw his shield at the girl, hard. It shot out of his hand like a cannon, spinning like a disk. Would've been cool, if it didn't look like the literal tool of death! Garnet must have thought the same thing, because she leaned back like she was doing the limbo. Really didn't want to mess up that one! The shield flew straight over her, slamming into the far wall hard enough to indent it… then stick to it.

Jaune was new to Aura, but he was pretty sure that something that strong wasn't gonna be stopped by magic force-fields. Garnet leaned back up, cocking her bow and probably getting ready to say something. Probably, because most people bragged after dodging something like that. But Jaune didn't know what she was going to say, if anything.

Cause Link started to attack.

He was in front of her swinging his sword before Jaune had time to blink. When he did blink he saw Garnet pushed back, bow thrown out of her hands, and Link continuing to swing the sword like a mad man. Mad? No, that was mild, Link was swinging it like Jaune knew he would. Would, if he could swing a sword so fast it turned into light!

It must have been turning into light, cause what happened next Jaune could only call a trick of light, like the magicians that used to perform at his school. Cause unless Link was showing off his semblance, there was no way what Jaune saw was actually happening.

Garnet was floating… in a golden triangle.

He couldn't even see Link's sword anymore. He could just see light… and hear it. It sounded like metal cutting metal. It rang high and loud enough to make Jaune's blood feel cold. He felt cold. Why? This was normal, right? This is what being a Hunter was all about.

Being strong and fighting… to the point where… people died… He felt sick.

Then it ended, almost with a literal bang. Close enough.

The golden triangle shattered into a million pieces, sounding like a building had come crashing down right next to Jaune.

It made him jump, let out a cry of fright, and pull his arms over his chest. He made another sound when someone grabbed him from behind. Took him a moment to realize it was Pyrrha, probably trying to calm him down.

She was gonna need a lot of hands, cause for the first time in a long time, he wasn't the only one to scream in fright. In fact, he heard a few of the kids a couple of aisles down from them yell, a lot of them across the arena, and so many others. He even heard the familiar wretch of vomit. And really, he knew now of all times it was okay.

Link just killed someone.

For the first time he had literally just watched someone get executed in the middle of a fight. He could have stopped, Link almost stopped, but he didn't. He didn't and because he didn't some confident girl was dead, lying a pool of blood. Goodwitch was checking on her, leaning over her and tapping across her pad. Link as just standing there, just standing there with his sword covered in blood like this was normal to him. Was this normal? How could this-

"Stabilize her, now!" Ms. Goodwitch's shout broke Jaune from his thoughts. She was pointing at something, something that quickly rushed to the center of the ring. They were a pair of medical drones, a stretcher bed between them. They were beside Glynda and Garnet before Jaune knew it, stretching their limbs out under the girl to pick her up. Jaune felt his stomach lurch when they did lift her, probably because he saw the blood rapidly fall from her as they did.

Right there, in the middle of the ring, the pair of robots started to weave threads around the girls open cuts, literally trying to stitch her back together. Was that even possible? With how deep those cuts were? Jaune thought he saw bone in more than a few of them! He saw the white blanket she was on rapidly turn crimson, he saw one of the robonoids stab her with an IV tube, hooked up to more blood. He saw them working over her so fast he knew that if it was anyone else, Garnet would have probably died.

But then… maybe she already had. Cause when Jaune looked at her face, staring up at the ceiling, he saw only a blank expression of horror. Eyes wide, blood staining her neon green hair, and probably once flawless brown skin now marred for life. She had to be unconscious, otherwise she would have been screaming to her death.

"Patient at critical levels of aura," one of the robonoids announced. "Wound stability: critically low. Blood loss: critical. Internal Injuries: several lacerations to digestive organs, bone fractures, and muscular damage. Muscular damage areas: brachialis, latissimus doris, rectus sheath, and quadriceps muscles severed. Recommend immediate transport to Vale Critical Care Unit."

"Go! Go!" Ms. Goodwitch practically pushed the robots out of the room. They left as quick as they came, taking Garnet with them. And when shew as gone, it was quiet again.

No one in the stands spoke. Too much had happened, way… oh so much more than Jaune was hoping to see today. He could tell without looking where everyone was looking though. Really, kind hard to look anywhere else.

Link was just standing there, looking at the red spots on the ground. Jaune felt his regurgitation reflexes kicking in again. Not good. But then he started walking towards it, like it was nothing to him. Was it nothing to him? Oh god, that was probably even worse. Then he bent down next to it, like he was trying to get a better look at it. But then it got worse! His hands were reaching towards the red stains! What was he gonna do, taste it!?

Thankfully, really thankfully, Jaune found himself proven wrong.

Link instead grasped the weapon Garnet had used in the fight. So far out of Jaune's mind was it that he didn't even register that it was there. He picked it up, standing as he did so. He looked it over in his hands, judging the bow for something. Jaune didn't know if he'd be able to judge up from down after that display.

But then, in what he knew must have been a gesture of some small sliver of good will, Link turned towards Ms. Goodwitch. Without any warning, he held out his hands towards the professor. Said huntress held out one hand towards him, allowing Link to drop the bow into her palm. Link wasn't even keeping it. He wasn't even going to take what they had bet on. What was all of that then to him, fun?

"Return to your quarters, Link." Ms. Goodwitch spoke evenly to him. True, that was how she always spoke but… wow. Jaune wasn't sure he would have been able to say his name without stuttering after that. "You and I are going to have another serious discussion following this barbaric display of yours, at length."

"Oh back off Triple B." This was just one rollercoaster Jaune couldn't get off of. Tatl flew down to the ring with her words, flying right into the professor's face as she did. "That girl was picking a fight and she got more than she could chew. Link coulda killed her, but he didn't. Heck, back in Hyrule, he would have gotten a medal for actually offing her." Wait, what?

"You are not in Hyrule," Ms. Goodwitch spoke in turn. Her voice threatened the wrath of hell's deepest circle. Maybe that was why the air was so cold. "I care not for what you think you should do or what you think is right. You are a guest at Beacon, a guest that has so far overstepped more bounds than we would allow even a dignitary to do." Goodwitch stepped past Tatl, clearly staring at Link. She bore down at him with an expression Jaune knew would have made him weak in the knees. Or, more likely now, just straight up vomit.

"So I guess it's alright with you if Link had lost and that little slut of a girl had put me in a cage, is that it?" Maybe if Jaune left the room he'd be able to breath again. He'd need his legs for that, but Pyrrha was holding him stock still. She must have really wanted him to see this. Character building probably.

"You are missing my point." Ms. Goodwitch was driving home. "You nearly killed a student in my presence, in a sparring session I made clear was not for any more than to learn from. Up until now, you have shown yourself to be kind, generous, and loyal. The extremes of those traits are what had you crossing lines and breaking rules. But if killing in the name of misplaced anger is who you truly are, then I will do more than simply remove you from Beacon."

Ms. Goodwitch leaned over Link, letting her cool emerald gaze bore into his.

"I will personally hand you over to the Military." Alright, now it was worse.

Jaune heard a lot of chatter at that threat. Only thing keeping him from talking was the threat of his stomach relieving itself. But he could hear Blake hissing at that, clearly still in favor of Link… somehow. He could feel Pyrrha gripping him even harder. Good thing his armor held through Link's assault. But he could hear Ruby and Weiss talking, more like whispering. No idea what they were talking about. But then, Link did what Jaune didn't think any sane living being would do.

He shrugged.

He literally shrugged at Ms. Goodwitch's very harsh and probably very real threat. Jaune might have laughed if he wasn't busy thinking of what to put down in his will. No, now that he thought about it, he would have just cried a little.

"On that charming little note, I guess we'll be going." Tatl broke up what was probably close to being the third fight of the day. Well, second, Jaune didn't know if the one-sided assault on him counted as a fight.

The golden fairy flew around Link, coating him in that golden dust Jaune hoped wasn't really Dust. That would have been… weird.

"Oh, and for the record, Link is really just a nice guy," Tatl spoke on. "Probably more generous and loyal then you could ever hope any of your 'students' to be." Not a great way to start a counter-point, least not in Jaune's mind. Most insults end with beatings. "But there is no one, and I mean no one, who is more willing to fight for his friends than Link is."

Then he walked off. Link just turned and walked away, into the locker rooms and out of sight. Ever fall of his boots echoed across the room. The ringing of his mini-drone, no sorry, fairy accompanied him. She really was loyal to him, and… well, obviously, him back to her. Tatl was willing to stick up for him in a room full of people like it was a Tuesday. And Link… he had shown the brutality of what he would do for a friend.

"Class is dismissed early," Ms. Goodwitch spoke once Link had gone. She was eyeing the locker room he had left through. "Commit to self-study for the evening. We will resume sparring sessions tomorrow." Without another word, she left, through the same door Link had.

For a time, no one dared to move. Jaune could feel it, like it was ice in water. No one wanted to be the first to leave. Not after… that.

"Should…" he began quietly, not realizing he had spoken until the word had left his mouth. He bit his lips, but continued on. "Should we go… l-look for him?" He didn't look at his teammates or friends. He didn't want them to scowl at them with the insane question.

"Yes." That was, without a doubt far better than the answer Jaune had been expecting. Or was it bad, considering who he said they should look for. No wait, more than either of those, Ren was the one who said that. "By Tatl's admission, Link did what was honorable in his homeland. Horrendous here, but we share different forms of common sense." Now Jaune looked at Ren, unsure of what his friend would be doing.

Instead of maintaining that ever mysterious look the green martial artist liked to wear, or even that momentary panic he had before, Ren had settled his head into his fists, cupping his chin between them. His eyes were shut, probably to think. Yup, that was the Ren Jaune knew.

"I agree," Jaune was slightly less surprised to hear Weiss speak up next. "As barbaric as the display was, he did forgo actually… murdering Garnet once Ms. Goodwitch gave command to stop." No one missed the Snow Angel's reflexive swallow. If he caught it, everyone else did, too. "It is important we rectify this situation before it sours any further."

"Then let's go!" Ruby practically cheered. It was deafening given the stillness in the room. Did put every eye on them though. At least Jaune wasn't alone in the awkwardness this time. Well, if there was anyone used to acting under the scrutiny of a hundred pair of eyes, it was definitely Jaune Arc.

"Alright," He let out, pushing himself off of the seat and out of Pyrrha's grasp. Wasn't an easy task given how strong she was, but she seemed to let him go when he made the motion. That was good, he guessed. "So we just gotta talk to the Link and straighten out that killing people is a bad thing. All while remembering that he could kill us quickly… instantly… but probably still painfully." Oh great, he was psyching himself down.

"Nope, he wouldn't do that!" Sometimes Jaune questioned how Nora could always be so cheery. It didn't look like even a visit from death got her down. "The Tatl fairy said that he would do anything for his friends and we're definitely his friends! You wouldn't show off your friends to people who weren't friends, unless you wanted to brag about your friend, but I don't think he was bragging." What… What was Nora talkin-

"She means Mikau," Pyrrha spoke up. She sounded calm at least. "Link was… well, Tael told us about Mikau, and Link was going to show us him to relieve our fears. That would mean he saw us in a positive light." Oh, oh yeah.

"Then let's go already," Ruby added again. She was already standing, like Jaune, but facing the rest of the group with her hands clenched in front of her. "The longer we sit and wait the harder it's gonna be to find him."

"Calm down, sis," Yang spoke up now. "We're not gonna lose track of Jolly Green anytime soon." Well, she sounded awfully relaxed for all of this. "Case you missed it, we gotta tail on him, courtesy of one Blake Belladonna." A what now?

Jaune turned to look at where the hidden-faunus was once seated, hard to not remember given how frequently Juane was reminding himself not to piss her off. But when he looked, just like everyone else, the third member of Team RWBY really was no where to be seen.

Oh, Blake really was gone.

Blake had left the moment Glynda said to. She wasn't about to waste a moment thinking of something she had already decided on. There was no point in listening to some bigots discuss how wrong Link was, not even giving a thought to how wrong they really were.

Oh, Link had screwed up, there was no doubt about that. Were he originally from Vale or any of the four kingdoms, he would have sent faunus/human relationships back to the beginning of the war. He might have already done so. But that was no fault of his, not after what that girl Garnet had threatened. Goaded him into a fight, bet her weapons against his friend, mockingly stating his desire to be controlled, threatening to keep his fairy like property…

If Link hadn't beat her into an inch of her life, Blake would have done so outside the eyes of a referee. She was sure of that. Sure enough that she knew the last thing Link needed now was thinking that he had been in the wrong. He needed to know that at least one other person in that training room was on his side.

Blake could not allow a fellow faunus to feel alone. Not after being ridiculed.

She knew Link would not go back to his room. Not likely. He would want to be alone and solitude was kept worst when you were where everyone knew you to be. True solitude was gained in hiding. Link, who was likely every bit as well trained as the professors that taught them, would not be foolish enough to wane in that knowledge.

So now Blake had to think like her faunus brethren, miss-treated and in a place that was unfamiliar. She knew she would not go to any place that had been pointed out to her, knowing that those would be the first locations they would look for her. Leaving the campus was a possibility, but also unlikely, given Link's usual control and obedience to rules he understood. That left only areas that were either secluded or difficult to reach.

Stepping out into Beacon's Grounds, Blake's trained eyes began to scan as her mind thought of all those possible places. She thought of two, but saw one. The one she saw was the Headmaster's Tower, or more specifically the top of it. It was only a possibility given the ability of flight Link's friend possessed. It was reasonable that when abandoned he would turn to his friends for aide. That was the normal, and healthy, reaction.

The two she thought of were the rooftops of the dormitory, usually barren for need of other activities in the city of Vale, and the far ends of Beacon, where students passed by only for need of travel. She could only reach the two she thought of, as she lacked the dexterity to ascend a tower able to peak above the clouds. Well… up may not be the issue, but down certainly was.

Blake moved with haste, ready to start searching the perimeter of Beacon first. Starting out then moving it. It was the most logical way to conduct any search. It was hard to distinguish her walk from a run, given the speed she was moving at. Arms flexed and face stern, she thought only of Link. Only of him, and what she would say to him.

That was why she missed the golden fairy that bopped into her head.

"Ow!" She heard Tatl let out, startling Blake more than the actual blow did. Mostly due the small golden ball's size, the actual impact didn't hurt, but it felt like running into a towel. Enough to get her attention. "Geez kitty, I called your name like three times before you barreled into me. What? Needed to head butt me or something?"

"What? Oh, no, I-I didn't even see you, or hear you." Blake tripped over her words, but quickly caught herself. This was good. Tatl would know where Link was. "I was actually looking for Link. I wanted to talk to him about what happened." Oddly, the fairy didn't seem very pleased by her words. The droop in her wings and low ring were indication enough.

"Oh, why? Gonna give a few more harsh words to him?" The voice sounded like Yang when she was angry at someone. "Want to give him a stern talking to about what he should have done?"

"No! I agree with what he did." Blake honestly did. That seemed to get the fairy to start, at least the light bob in the air was a sign of something. "Well… I agree that Garnet deserved to be punished. Link did go too far, yes, but if he hadn't of done that I very well may have."

"Huh," Tatl simply responded. Better than sarcasm at least. "Well… okay that's, wow. And here I was prepared to give a whole speech about it." Blake felt herself smile despite the situation. It was good that Tatl was loyal to Link. He certainly was to her. "Um… guess that means you wanna see him then, huh?"

"Yes," she answered instantly. "I need to talk to him, at the very least show that he wasn't alone in there." The fairy bobbed in the air a few times, probably in thought. It was hard to tell exactly what Tatl was thinking, given that she was just a bright ball of light to Blake.

"Yeah, that's… that's actually good," Tatl finally responded. "I was going to go look for my brother and Super Buzz. Figure that they've spent too much time together at this point." The fairy turned around, noted by Blake by the transparent wings. "Link is over by the dorms, got up on the roof to feel the wind. He likes the wind, feeling it at least." That was good to know.

"Thank you," Blake responded. "I'll go see him now." The fairy seemed to gather her hot air back before responding.

"Better do that, or else I'm going to have serious trust issues with you in the future." Tatl flew closer, hovering just in front of Blake's golden crossed eyes. "And for the record, just while we're agreeing on stuff, I'll let you in on a little secret."

Instead of speaking, the fairy simply fluttered into the air, higher than Blake's eyes. Tapping her carefully assembled bow, the fairy spoke on.

"Your secret."

Blake's eyes widened and her form stilled.

"Don't worry, I'm not going to go blab about it," Tatl hastily added. Actually pretty caring. "Tael and I figured it out, what with how your bow seems to hold still in the wind but twitch when there's a fun topic being talked about. Just gotta be observant."

"You can't tell," Blake spoke, despite hearing the fairy's words. "Only my teammates know I'm a faunus. You can't tell anyone else. Not Ms. Goodwitch, not Link, no-"

"Would you calm down?" Tatl asked, lightly bopping into Blake's forehead as she did so. "I told you I wasn't going to tell anyone. Tael and I are fairies, in case you don't remember. It's a natural talent of ours to hear and keep secrets. It's what makes us so rare." That… had some sense to it. Blake swallowed on nothing, nodding her head in thanks.

"Seriously though, I gotta go find my brother. Super Buzz is probably putting him in an awkward place by now." With Doctor Oobleck, that was entirely possible. "Now you go find Link. If you can talk to him, and get him to really listen, I'll be grateful. Honestly, I will." That must have been a lot for the fairy to say. "But you should know. I left because Link wanted to be with one of his friends, alone." Oh.

"Then… should I wait for him?" Blake knew value of privacy, especially with friends. That was not something that was meant to be so easily trampled upon. The fairy, however, rang as she shook in the air.

"No, no way, you gotta talk to him. Give him another side of the story but ours. Really show him that you care." The fairy was silent for a moment, but only that long. "But only if you do care. Otherwise, yeah, leave him alone."

"I do care," Blake emphasized. "And I'll let him know I saw you." She bowed to the fairy, the only sign of respect she could offer a creature so small. "Thank you Tatl, for your trust and silence."

"Yeah, well… don't screw up talking to Link." Blake hid her smile behind her hair. Getting the fairy to stumble was rather fun. But she had no time to dwell on it.

Rising, she nodded at the small ball of light. Then she headed off for the dorms in haste. Link was unlikely to go anywhere else, for a logical fear that it would separate him from his fairy friends. That was not something a caring individual would do. And Link, by his actions and testimony of his friends, cared much for those who were close to him. Blake could not ask for a better ally.

She ignored the students that she passed, keeping in mind only the one individual that was important now. He was sitting above the dorms, likely wearing the mask of one of his friends. She hadn't an idea who yet. Blake was… in between what that was like. She put her discomfort aside, like everything else. The mission… the task she had was more significant.

It took the feline faunus little time to reach the dorm, not even bothering to walk through the center doorway. Too much time to ascend the stairs. Blake jumped to the small alcoves of the building, decorative markers to show the separation between the floors. Maybe they had a purpose for construction, but that was gone now. It did, however, make it easy for her to leap from one hold to the other. In little time, she ascended to the roof.

And she was immediately greeted by the sight of a girl in green.

Blake blinked, ensuring that she wasn't seeing things, but no matter how often her golden eyes opened and shut, all she saw was a child standing on the rooftop. A child that looked like she was garbed in a forest, emerald hair that was shades lighter than most natural colors, and facing towards the river that separated Beacon from Vale.

She was short, Blake could easily see that. If they were to stand by one another, the younger girl would probably rise only to her navel at best. Yet she did stand tall, wearing a cloak of green and undergarments a shade darker than that. Her top layer of clothing was frilled at its ends, the layer beneath lined and touch, reaching to the girl's outer arms, but stopping just above her knees. Boots, made from either leather or thick bandages, were wrapped about her feet.

Though she was facing away from Blake, the hidden faunus could see the slight length to the girl's hair, just enough to hide the joining between her neck and shoulders. Locks of the hair curled around her face and out of sight, framing the pointed ears that pushed from her side.

Blake chose not to spy further, however. Given what Tatl had said and knowing the diversity of Link's friends, this very well was him speaking to one of his friends, at least as well as he normally could now. This girl was very likely one of them, and it would be hypocritical of Blake to do anything else but speak to them now.

And like it was fated, the girl turned to face her.

The look momentarily froze Blake, mostly due to the new details she studied in the girl. The main two being her eyes and now slightly more visible ears. Her eyes were the same color as her hair, an emerald that was basking in the sun. Illuminating and brilliant to behold, yet harshly ironic given recent events. The girl's ears protruded from her head no different than Link's, marking her as a faunus as well. A headband touched from the base of one to the other, a shade matching her undergarments, but marked with a dark brown emblem Blake did not recognize.

"Are you alright?" The girl asked her. She tilted her head as she asked the question. "I apologize if I startled you. I wasn't expecting to speak with anyone so quickly." Of course Link wouldn't, this girl wouldn't. They wanted solitude.

"I'm sorry for… intruding," Blake began, choosing her words carefully. "I wanted to speak to Link, to you, about what happened earlier." The girl, of all the actions she could have done, smiled. It was only the melancholy in the look she gave that told Blake it was not of unbridled joy.

"Ah, yes, that," the girl spoke again. "Link does have a habit of acting harshly when his friends are threatened. He always has." So an old friend, Blake realized. That was something. That meant… a childhood friend? "I remember one time Mido, another Kokiri in the forest, was trying to force me to tell the others he was the leader of our group. He always scowled when he said such things. But Link, without any word of request from me, pushed him away. He fought a boy that was twice his size at the time, because he knew I was not comfortable." Blake found herself grow her own smile at the story.

"Link is very loyal," Blake agreed. "I have not known him… you, for long, but I do know that you consider the emotions of your friends dearly." The girl nodded at her words. But then she stopped, dawning a momentarily shocked expression. One of her hands touched at her lips.

"Oh, I forgot to introduce myself," the emerald girl spoke, but rapidly started to smile again. Hastily, in what was clearly unpracticed and done merely from formality, the girl grabbed the edges of her skirt, bending her knees in a curtsy.

"My name is Saria of the Kokiri. I am an old friend of Link's."

"Blake Belladonna," the feline faunus returned, bowing to the young girl. "And it is my pleasure to meet you." The girl, Saria, giggled at the words. Blake raised her head to see her standing once more, shifting back and forth on her heels. The frills of her upper layer billowed in the wind, matching the motion of her curved hair.

"You're probably wondering why Link has a friend like me, so young compared to how old he is, hmm?" Well, Blake wouldn't have called Link old by many stretches of the word, but it did strike her has odd, if only because she could, or did not want, to imagine the way this girl would be placed on her death bed. "Well, I'll give you a hint," she leaned forward with the sentence, almost as if to whisper it.

"A hint?" Blake repeated. She knelt to one knee, matching the young emerald-haired girl's height. Saria nodded rapidly at the word. She really was a child.

"Yup. Just a hint to the answer," she returned. "All lessons are answers, and all answers have hints. Small signs or signals that tell us what the answers really are. You can't find an answer without at least a hint, no matter where it comes from. So I'll give you a hint, so you can discover the answer. And, when you find it, you will have learned a lesson."

Blake blinked at the words.

There was a lot of wisdom in them, more than just the words themselves. In them, between them, and likely surrounding them. Those… those were not the words of a child. Saria only laughed at whatever expression Blake was giving.

"You can't tell someone a lesson, you can only remind them. Giving answers takes from them the lesson they can learn. If they can't learn a lesson, then the answer doesn't mean anything." Was this really a child?

"You are… wise," Blake spoke the words with care, though different than carefully. A part of her was still putting the apparent age of the child with the words she had spoken. Saria only spun around before looking back at Blake, the emerald clothing she wore lifting and falling with the action. But instead of responding, Saria leaned closer to Blake, placing her head next to Blake's then lightly whispering in her ear.

"I am the Forest Sage." Then, with as much ceremony as she gave leaning in, Saria leaned back, still grinning at Blake. The hidden-faunus, however, had her mind thinking rapidly.

Link grew up in the Kokiri Forest, Tael told them that. He had grown up surrounded by danger, and he learned to avoid and fight it. But for him to do so, he must have taught. If he was taught about the woods, it would have been by those who were also living in it. But if it wasn't an elder, and Blake had the strong suspicion it wasn't, then it was by a friend.

A friend that would have to be old and wise, knowing the forest well enough to be able to teach without the true fear of death lurking in the corners. That didn't mean controlling the woods, but… it did mean knowing the creatures. Knowing where they lurked, how they hunted, and how to live in the dangerous lands of the Lost Woods, or so Tatl called them.

"You raised Link," Blake concluded, earning a cheerful nod from Saria. "How… you… you're so young." That only made the child giggle further.

"Young in appearance, but not in mind. Definitely not in years." She twirled again. Tatl did say Link liked the wind, but did Saria, too? "The woods are full of life, and for the Kokiri who live in the forest, we always know where to find it."

'And those that were lost became monsters. Became monsters because they lost their soul.' Tael's words echoed in Blake's mind. Did… Did the Kokiri do that? Were the Kokiri, like this child, the ones who turned humans into monsters? Appropriate, but… horrific.

"You're wrong," Saria spoke so suddenly Blake almost missed it. "I don't know what you're thinking exactly, but I know you're wrong. We don't do anything that would make someone have an expression like that." The young girl's finger pointed at Blake's features. She must have looked horrified or revolted. Either were usually taken as bad signs. "Kokiri lived secluded lives, away from the rest of the world. No Gerudo, no Hylians, no Zora, no Gorons. Just us, the woods, and the spirits that reside there."

Something in those words, the separation perhaps, gave a quick epiphany to Blake. She could not say what it was, any one point alone, but she could not deny the thought that had wormed into her head. And so, she spoke it aloud.

"You're immortal. Or… you were immortal." It was the only reason Blake could think of, given the apparent wisdom of Saria's words. If sage meant the same to Link's country as it did in Vale, then it was clear this girl was more than merely a child of the woods.

"You're a wise one, too," Saria noted back to Blake, her smile as innocent as ever. The giggle that followed was doubly so. "I can see why Link calls you a friend." Blake, to her great embarrassment, had almost completely forgotten about Link.

"I actually wanted to speak to Link," Blake began, but found her thoughts changing. She wanted to speak to him still. But… he must have become Saria for a reason. "Unless I am speaking to you right now." That only made the younger girl's smile widen.

"I'm here, and so am I." If anyone else had said those words, Blake would have questioned their comprehension of speech. But for Link, her fellow faunus, she knew what that meant. "Saria raised me. I know what helps Link in his troubled times. Before I had a fairy to guide me in the woods, I was the one who helped him. I've helped many other Kokiri before their fairies came to them, ever hundreds of winters." Blake was only passively able to confirm that Saria truly was longer lived than she looked.

Actually, it was hard to tell which was more impressive. The age of the 'young' girl or Link's ability to swap between his mindset and hers.

Clearly they were not melded, to many words directed at the other. But the way they spoke, it was what she had seen close siblings do. Finish one another sentences, know where their thoughts were going, able to predict actions. Link, or Saria, simply seemed to be a perfect meld of two people.

"Kokiri are long lived," Saria continued to speak, of a topic Blake had only a foot in, not a stance. "We live by the woods and for the woods. Link was brought to the woods as an infant, and raised as one of them. Kokiri are kind, gentle, and full of wisdom befitting of their eternal youth." So more than immortal, Saria truly was always a child. That did explain a great deal. It didn't make the knowledge of her death any worse. Blake had the mind and heart to know asking of her death was far from appropriate.

"I am no longer here," Saria spoke now, either to continue the topic she began or to ease Blake's mind. It was unclear which. She did have the dark girl's full attention. "I cannot help Link how I would in times past. But I can offer him my memories, my emotions, my love for him." The emerald girl placed her hands over her small chest, as if to shield the tiny heart within. "He needs to know he's not alone. Even if only memories of me remain, I want him to know that they're his now." Blake had no hesitation for what she said next.

"I'm here for him." Saria looked at her with those words, the child's emerald eyes bright with hope. Maybe it was Link, maybe it was Saria, maybe it was normal in this magical kingdom of Hyrule, but Blake would not disappoint it. "I will not lie and say I know a lot about Link, even less about his friends. But I do know he has done nothing but try to show goodwill to us, all for the sake of defending the friends he has… while searching for the one he's lost."

Saria was blinking up at her, blinking more than a simple reflex of the eyes. She was clearing something in her vision, and Blake's feline eyes made it easy to see the extra dampness that surrounded them. That was likely Saria. Link had done no crying thus far. But… there was no Saria. Only Link and his friend's memories. What a difficult thing this was to understand. That was difficult, at least. Her loyalty to Link was not.

"I want to learn so much more about you, Link," she spoke past the mask her faunus brethren wore. "I want to know about your home, your past, your training, your honor. I want to know how you can bear the insults of so many people, yet still have faith to keep friends." Blake placed her hands on the small girl's shoulders, looking squarely into her emerald eyes. "But I want you to know that my friends and I, we trust you. You've scared us, but you've been honest with us. I can forgive being scared, but I can't forgive being lied, too."

"It is hard to trust another who can so easily spin a false reality." It was becoming more and more obvious to Blake how old Saria truly was. The woods… Doctor Oobleck would have probably generated a thousand and one questions about their properties for eternal youth. Maybe Ponce de Leon wasn't so crazy. At least, not as crazy as this scenario was.

"It really is," Blake admitted. "And you have only been honest with all of us. That… that is why I know you can be trusted. It's why I do trust you." The feline-faunus, near always in hiding, made a very important decision.

She lifted one of her hands off of Saria, raising it to her head. With a single pull, she undid the ribbon that hid her true self from the world.

The small Kokiri girl stared at the ears, blinking at them. There was no disgust or shock, no amount of distaste or sign of distrusts. She was simply… looking at them. Maybe it was too fast, too rushed. It took Blake months to show her true self to her teammates. And yet here she was, showing off her ears to another faunus she had known for bare a week.

Then again, this was a faunus who had openly shown his true self to her. Hesitating only because of the pain it brought him, in the physical and mental world. He openly shared his past, his friends, and his abilities. For Blake, showing who she really was to him was the least she could do to actually show her thanks. Show her thanks, and cement their trust.

"They're very pretty. They suit you well," Saria finally said, in that innocent tone that beget her age, an age Blake knew now she could not so easily count. She'd have to ask Link about Saria another time. "I suppose it really isn't too shocking to see them. You were awfully curious about Hyrule." She was still smiling, far more playful this time. Blake played along.

"It's hard for me to not be curious," she admitted. "A land where faunus dominate the kingdom, where they aren't subjugated and repressed by humans. It… It sounds like a paradise." Blake blinked slowly as she spoke those words, imagining for herself walking through the kingdom of Hyrule, ears exposed and not offered more than a nod of hello.

No staring eyes, no harsh scowls, no curious ears. Just her, her and many other faunus living together free from the hatred of man. It what she had dreamed about, what she had envisioned since she was a little girl in the White Fang. It was what she truly wanted.

"Paradise for one is always misery for another." What?

Blake was so caught in her daydream she nearly missed the girl's words. Her cold whispered words. Blake's eyes shot open, looking at Saria with a worried expression. She expected to see a scowl with those words, a deep frown, maybe even tears. Something, anything at all to match that horrible statement.

But she only saw the emerald haired girl, smiling sweetly and looking back at Blake with a tilted head. She looked unaware of what she had said… Had Blake imagined it?

"Paradise is something you make, not something you find." Was that what she said? "The Kokiri made a paradise in the woods, the Zora in the ocean, the Gorons in the mountains, and the Hylians in the plains. You cannot find paradise, for every life has its own fantasies."

There was the wisdom again, the wisdom Blake would have had to hear come from Saria in order to believe it. The girl smiled up at her, bright enough now to force her eyes shut. It was probably in spite of her words that she was able to look so innocent. Most other wise lives Blake knew… they had to live hard lives to learn what they did.

Silence took a small hold over them, interrupted only by the occasional passing breeze. It billowed Saria's leafy tunic, and tickled Blake's now exposed ears. But it was not unpleasant. It was a reminder that this was real, and reality with a friend was also preferable to the coldness of her dreams. Reality was warm, but just as often could it be cold. It was a reminder to Blake that she should not risk anymore than she had.

She lifted her black ribbon, wrapping it about her head before positioning the ends carefully over her scalp. With a practiced motion, one she had perfected before even attempting to enter Beacon, she wrapped the ribbons around her ears, knitting the ends together to turn it into the bow it was familiarly held in. A disguise in plain sight, all she could do to hide what she was, who she was.

"How… How much trouble am I in?" The question made Blake blink.

It came out of near no-where, completely unrelated to their conversations thus far. They were speaking about loyalty to one another, the value of honesty, and the bond Link had with his current friend. And now, as a cruel reminder, they were apparently speaking of what had transpired in the training session. It was as sour a memory for Blake as it was Link, apparently given by Saria's hurt frown. Still appearing as a child, it seemed.

"I don't know," Blake answered honestly. She couldn't tell what Ms. Goodwitch planned. "I do know that there are dozens of students who all saw that girl threaten and insult you before turning her bet towards Tatl. That's provocation in its most horrible form."

"But I acted too far," Saria, or more likely Link, responded. "She wanted to make Tatl a… a thing. She wanted to own her."

The little girl's hands were trembling as her head fell forwards slightly. Blake's sharp ears could hear the swallowing motion of her throat. It was impossible to tell if it was Saria or Link who was so near tears.

"She wanted to take away my friend."

Blake watched unblinking and focuses as Saria's innocent expression changed from the brief amount of sorrow it held into a twisted visage of rage. Her emerald eyes were squinted, her teeth bared like fangs, creases forming over her face, only hidden by the vibrant green hair that fell over her cheeks. It nearly made the feline faunus jump.

But as quick as it was there, it was gone. Replaced again by the more somber expression of regret. Wet eyes, flaccid skin, and lips fallen into a straight line. It was too quick for most others to see, and Blake was sure none of her friends would have seen it. But she was trained by the White Fang to spy and hunt, so details were a hard thing for her to miss.

"But I didn't kill her. I… I made sure to not kill her. I hurt her, badly, but I didn't kill her." It was hard to tell if it was Link or Saria who spoke those words. The fear in them, terror even, was more befitting a child then the hunter Link appeared to be. Then again, Saria wasn't any more a child than Link.

"You didn't, and that will count for a lot." Blake encourage, comforted. "And if nothing else, Garnet made a bet that she lost. It is not your fault that a human bigot saw you as some exploitable thing." Saria blinked up at her words, a string of curiosity in her damp eyes.

"Has that happened to you?" She asked. An inevitable question really. "You sound… as if you speak from experience."

Blake felt something tap on her chest, just between her breasts. She looked down, seeing Saria's small hand placed atop her blouse. It didn't roam or search, it just sat there, lingering like a cat in the sun. The sage's green eyes, however, never left her own.

"I can feel your anger, your hate and rage." Blake felt a breath quickly enter her lungs, but she slowly let it release. She could not doubt the wisdom of this apparent youth. She knew more and could like read signs Blake could not. "It has been there for some time. Many experiences, some tragedies, all focused upon a group. Focused upon the Gerudo. Or… as you would saw, the humans."

Blake shut her slit eyes as she listened to the dialogue about her past. It was not a pleasant topic for her to hear. It was a kind story to no one.

"It's not wrong to hate, not in the short sense," Saria continued. "It can be a force that drives a life as well as sorrow or joy. But it should not last, not forever. It would be no different than a winter that never ended, or a fire that never ceased. Life is not born in those times, it is strengthened by them. Do you understand?" Blake nodded her head, she understood. "I don't think you do."

"What?" Blake asked aloud. Saria, however, continued.

"I'm giving you another hint," the Forest Sage spoke, grinning quickly with her words. Probably an indulgence of her playful nature. "I am not telling you what to do, nor am I asking something from you. I'm giving a hint, just a small one. Can you guess what that is?"

Honestly, Blake could not. It was not that she wasn't listening. It was… the words seemed like a lecture, like a paragraph from a book she might read, of mentor to student, guiding them during a patch of their training. For the real world, it was more a reminder than things weren't always easy, but that was a lesson she hard learned long and far ago.

"Guess the hint first," Saria spoke, drawing her hand back from Blake's chest. The feline faunus let her own hand slip from the girl's shoulders. She felt her ears twitch with another breeze of the wind, the young girl's own long ears slowly shaking in the breeze as well. "That's a hint, too. A hint for a hint, all leading to an important answer. I know you can find it. You are very smart."

Blake slowly stood with Saria's words. She regarded the young girl before her, smiling up back to her. Her demeanor, her every action, they all betrayed the wisdom of her words. A child like state, shifting on her feet and enjoying the wind like a sail, it contrasted so harshly with the depth that her words carried. Words that sunk the depth's of Blake's soul.

"You don't need to know the answer right now," the girl spoke on. "Not all answers are that simple. Many lessons take days, to moons, to seasons to learn. Too many hints will give you the answer, so you can only search for it over time." Saria turned away from Blake then, looking out over Beacon. Blake walked around the rooftops looking down at the young girl.

It was then that she saw Saria had her eyes closed. She was not enjoying the sight of Beacon, the grand academy of huntresses and hunters, she was not admiring the high tower of Ozpin, she wasn't even staring at the sky, so close to turning into dusk. No… she was either thinking or feeling something. This was when people were at their most vulnerable state. This was… Saria really did trust her. And that meant… Link did as well.

"I love the wind," Saria spoke up, her eyes still shut. "It reminds me of the forest. Climbing to the highest branches, sitting on the canopy of leaves, so high you might believe you can touch the clouds with a wave of your hand. Up there, there wind blows at its hardest, chilling you to your bone, clearing your mind of everything else." It was impossible for Blake to tell if it was Link or Saria who spoke those words.

"It feels good to forget," Blake admitted. She felt her ears twitch beneath her newly tied ribbon, a reminder that she did not forget, she hid. That wasn't right. Her hand rose to one of them, as if to cover it up. But… it didn't feel right. The closer her hand drew to her ear, the more it twitched, the more her stomach churned. It wasn't right.

Her hand dropped back to her side, having accomplished nothing. Blake drew a breath of air in as she did so. She filled her lungs, stopping only when her lungs could take no more. She released it all in a single breath. It felt cool. The air felt coo, relaxing, free…

"Freedom should never be taken away." Blake looked to Saria again. The young girl kept her eyes shut, still standing on the edge of the building. Her arms were extended to her sides. Were she truly a child, Blake could see her pretending to be a superhero or successful huntress. Now though, she knew she was doing neither. "Freedom is what makes life so wonderful."

Then she opened her eyes, but Saria did more than that. She turned to Blake, holding up her hand as she did so. It barely reached above Blake's chest, given the girl's short stature and Blake's straight stance. But the Saria still smiled up at her with emerald eyes, green hair lightly waving in the wind.

"Would you like me to show you what it's like to feel free?" The question was asked so naturally, it was impossible for Blake to discern the meaning. The smile, that innocent smile Saria seemed content to hold, gave no indication it would speak anymore.

The answer the question, however, was as obvious as the lake that surrounded Beacon. Blake didn't need a moment of thought to know the answer.

"Yes," she answered, offering her hand to the smaller, though clearly not younger, girl. It made the emerald haired youth smile.

"Excellent!" Saria squeezed Blake's hand, though lacking in any significant display of strength. She was physically just a small child. "Then please wait a moment."

Without giving Blake time to react, Saria reached up and grasped the sides of her face. The feline faunus knew what was coming next. She shielded her eyes with her arms, feeling the intensity of the bright light before her eyes were blinded by it. Only a flash of a moment later was it gone.

Lowering her arms, the feline faunus saw her foreign brethren standing before her once more. Only a few inches above her own head, wearing the same emerald green as Saria, and a dower expression of melancholy joy. It was one Blake had seen upon many of her kind, more often than any other. She loathed it. His gaze was not on her, however.

Instead his cerulean eyes were on the mask that had found its way to his hand. Porcelain white, bearing the markings of emerald bangs and along its top. It was smaller than the one belonging to Mikau, physically at least. That made an inappropriate amount of sense.

He pocket the mask though, a single hand slipping the wooden frame into the shirt of his tunic. Out of sight but far from out of Link's mind. That was, at least, until Link pulled out a different mask. It wasn't knew, as she had seen it before.

The same top feathers, the same golden frame, and of course, the same blue markings that ran across its surface. Link was holding Elrora's mask again. And, with as much ceremony as he brought it out, he donned it.

Blake blocked the immense light the same way she had Saria's. The sound of Link's screams was more difficult to ignore. Thankfully, gracefully, it did not last. Just as quickly as the light from before did it fade away. Moving away her arms again, the dark feline faunus was greeted with the tall sight of Link's friend, the first that she had met.

"Hello Blake," Elrora spoke down to her, kindly and gently as the first time they spoke. Elrora was kind during their first meeting. Blake knew by her honesty and recollection that she was not. She could make up for it now.

"It is good to see you again," she spoke with a low bow. She was the Queen of the Watarara, a tribe that doubtlessly held much sway in Hyrule. It would be disrespectful for her to act any other way. That was why the giggling that began to come from above confused her. She tilted her head to see the avian features of Elrora gazing back at her. Even with a hard beak, it was clear she was smiling.

"I apologize," the golden faunus spoke to her. "It was rude of me to find humor in your action. You are not the first to mistake my former title as a requirement to show respect." That was… confusing.

"Your… um…" Blake began to speak, but then pattered off when she realized she didn't know how to address the tall monarch. Judging by the kind smile the golden avian adorned, it was a common problem. Blake resisted the urge to duck her head.

"Elrora, please," said faunus spoke. As she did so, she unfolded her wings, the robe of feathers it created falling away. Blake saw it the first time she had set eyes on Elrora, the reason for her keeping her arms crossed over her chest.

The avian faunus's wings had feathers longer than some blades. Each one extended some distance, layered atop and beneath one another. The primaries, as Blake recalled, where the longest feathers on a bird's wing, used to push the air with every beat they made. The longer they were, the more they could push. That was a fact.

And her feathers, Queen Elrora's, were nearly as long as Blake's leg. If she did not cross her arms, they would have dragged on the ground, ruining the well-groomed and cleanly molted appendages.

Blake's thoughts ceased, when she saw the queen reaching for her. She stiffened, if on instinct, but it was noticed by Elrora's eyes. Justly so. Nearly all avian species had superior sigh, Blake reminded herself. It was how they hunted from the scare, staring at the ground below like a telescope. Blake looked into those keen eyes with her own golden pair.

It was only then she saw the barest of tears collecting at the corner of her gaze.

"Elrora?" Blake asked her name with concern. It appeared to be enough to tell the avian faunus what was wrong. One of the hands she was reaching forwards with lifted instead, lightly brushing at the feathers that were lined under her gaze.

"I apologize," came the instant reply. "I am… you remind me very much of my son." Blake wasn't sure how to take that. "Not in the sense of the physical, no. But, your curiosity, your independence, he had those to remarkable degrees."

Blake watched, silently, as Elrora shut her eyes. Standing to her tallest, it was hard to think of her as anything but majestic. Royalty flowed next to it easily. Queen Elrora, it wasn't hard to imagine at all.

"For the first ten migrations of our lives, Watarara can not fly." The fact came out of almost no where. Blake committed it to memory regardless. "Our feathers never stop growing, but they do not allow flight in youth until they have reached a required length. Fly too early and they cannot keep us in the air."

That made sense, Blake silently noted. It also explained the long length of Elrora's primary and secondary feathers.

"Youths of our tribe are carried by their mothers, taught before they are ready how to feel the air, to fly through it, to follow its guide." The tall Watarara's eyes slowly opened, staring upward into the vast expanse of blue above.

Blake found her head tilting further back to look as well, knowing already she wouldn't see anything more interesting than the tall faunus before her.

"My son disliked being carried." Blake could hear amusement in the queen's voice. A fond memory. "So often when he was atop of my back, he would try and jump off, to take to the winds himself. Just as often I had to catch him." It was an odd thought, Blake admitted, bird's falling from the sky. She was so used to them having wings that she honestly never considered birds to be capable of falling like that.

But Blake could see, if only faintly, where this was going. She was both love and loathe to it.

"Rouru did not enjoy being carried in the sky, but he did love the sky itself." Elrora's wings shivered, her feathers appearing to puff out around her. Blake had to blink her equally golden eyes to make sure she hadn't seen it wrong.

Then she remembered birds that commonly pushed their wings out for warmth. She had seen it in the high ceilings of Vale, birds perched atop skyscrapers baring themselves against the wind. She suspected Elrora was doing the same act for a different reason.

"All children of the Watarara want the sky, and so as they grow old, they come to love it." A slow sigh left the avian's beak. Blake kept herself silent as she could be. "Children grow seeing the expanse of the sky, but only being able to dream of one day taking it as their own. When they do, they feel what makes the Watarara a truly great tribe."

Slowly, like the curtains to a play, Elrora's wings unfolded.

"They feel freedom."

Blake watched, fascinated as the gold of her feathers became only more and more apparent. Each one was colored green at their tips, the same hue as Link's cap, and the same shade as the Ozpin's tower. With her wings held out, her feathers did indeed slowly trail across the surface of the roof they stood on. It was all no different than the first time Blake had seen the queen. But now, she saw her not as a mask of deceit, but as the friend of a friend, long past.

So now, she could enjoy the details she missed before. Her sharp golden eyes saw the large bracelets that were secured at the base of the queen's hands, separating the feathered arms from gloved hands. She could see the emerald green gown she wore. Little different than Link's tunic, but lacking the belt and armor that made it designed for war. She saw the elegant details that ran across the queen, lines and swirls of emeralds and blues. They looked painted on they were so well placed.

But all of that slowly settled into her mind when Elrora let her wings fall down. She didn't fold them over her chest, to keep her feathers from dragging. Instead, she let them hang at her sides, letting the interminable primaries dirty themselves on the roof. But Elrora didn't appear to care, not with here avian blue eyes settled on Blake.

Again, she extended a hand forward, reaching toward the feline faunus. Blake, this time, did not shirk away. She felt no malic in the action, no intent to harm. It may have been the story, it may have been the aura the tall queen was giving off, but Blake saw Elrora's actions not as inappropriate. Rather, they seemed almost… motherly.

Blake let the elder faunus place her hand on her cheek. Immediately, Blake felt the coarseness of the glove she wore, a rough leathery surface that more likely belonged to Link than the queen. But immediately afterwards, she felt the soft touch of Elrora's fingers across her face. It almost made her shiver.

Her fingers felt like small pillows of air pushing against her bare skin. They were feathered, if very lightly so, like a coat of fur with long spread out strands. But just as soft as the touch was, it was also warm. Like puffs of a fire's smoke, without the harsh scent of ash. It was comforting, enjoyable, and just good enough for Blake to purr lightly at the action.

On a normal day, in her hidden life, she would have run after doing such a thing, run and hide and find a way to justify what she had done. But with Elrora, the queen of a foreign faunus race, she wasn't hiding. She was… happy.

"Blake," she heard the queen Watarara speak her name. "Do you want to feel free?"

Soundlessly, Blake nodded her head into Elrora's hand.

Oobleck was in paradise.

Not literally, of course not. Currently such a thing would involve his untimely demise to a Grimm or an unfortunate accident. Neither were good. He was in a metaphorical state of mind that could be called paradise. Other synonyms included dream-like, euphoric, at peace, or perhaps even heaven. Paradise simply seemed the most appropriate.

He was sitting at his desk, adjusting his spectacles as he read over his notes for the umpteenth time, sipping at his coffee between sentences. Five cups and fourteen pots later, he realized he was in need of a bigger pot for his coffee. That was the only way he would be able to analyze the multitude of data Tael had provided for him.

Oobleck, in the course of a few short hours, too short hours, had generated enough notes and testimony from the fairy to publish dozens, perhaps hundreds of research papers. In actuality, he may even had been able to secure an entire journal with this work. Unlikely to be accepted currently, perhaps, but he saw no reason for the data to be false.

Each note detailed a specific portion of life regarding the many different faunus in Link's land of Hyrule. They were far from heavily detailed, disappointingly, unfortunately. Details of food were related to only the broadest of generalizations. Zoras at fish, no classifications for which kind. Hylians ate meat and greens, no indication of climate either were produced in, repeat for all.

However, an upside. Generous one as well. All faunus were whole, not different. No generalization. Within the four kingdom, there were only one group of faunuses. In Hyrule, there were Hylians, Zora, Gorons, Watarara, Kokiri, Shiekah, Deku Scrubs, Fairies, and Gerudo. Correction, Gerudo were Hyrule's equivalents to humans. Not faunus.

Oobleck shuffled his hands over the many stacks of papers across his desk. They were organized; he knew that. In their scrambled piles of thrown documents, hastily scrawled penmanship, and poorly aligned stacks, they were organized more completely than Beacon's library. Flawless.

He knew that the stack of papers two up and one across from his left hand detailed the climates each of the faunus groups tended to live in. The pile of papers just beneath that were sketches of Deku Scrubs, detailing their barky exteriors and penchant to live underground. Fascinating. Marvelous. Miraculous even. But just beside that were notes on Zora hierarchy, detailing briefly the monarchy that was in place, but the looseness to which it was practiced. Royalty commonly eating amongst all their people. Odd to us, common to them. Wondrous.

There was so much to read, to document, to organize into the archaic structure that published journal articles required to have their papers sent across the four kingdoms. An unorganized mess. Truthfully so. His system was vastly superior.

In just a few moves, and a couple cups of coffee, he could access any specific article of data that Tael had narrated to him, before his sister had insisted his departure. Acceptable, truthfully. Community between family was important. Inappropriate to interfere.

Breaks were good anyways, important even. Needed to memorize key points of data, required in order to generate and prepare for the next section. Even more critical, research into friend fairies had requested of him. Interesting request, a challenge really, but one he loved. It meant a unique mixture of research, extrapolation, and exploration.

Just by what were undoubtedly the cliff notes of each of the faunus clans in Hyrule, each had their own area or climate they preferred to live within. While all possessing the ability to travel to other areas, they were not as comfortable. Understandable, perfectly, but fascinating nonetheless. Already dozens of questions he could ask from such a viewpoint. How land was divided amongst these many clans to ensure proper growth without disputes, economy interaction between them, cultural bleeding between two groups living in close proximity. Libraries could be filled with what there was to learn.

But no, he needed to focus. It was clear clans such as the rock Gorons thrived in mined mountains, Zoras in deep rivers and oceans, but fairies, like the friend he was requested to help find, were different. They had no one area of preference, normal habitats across all of Hyrule. Instead, made homes, similar vain to humans in the four kingdoms. Enchanted springs with a fresh water source, illuminated lightly by their constant aura, but almost always buried or tucked away in hiding.

Mindful in a dangerous world. Tael mentioned several fairy fountains in monster territory; sealing themselves away was the proper response, similar vain to an automated door. More archaic, but equally effective.

Hard to find, however, even for natives to Hyrule. Common enough to not be myth, but rare enough for them to be legends. Difficult to find. In the four kingdoms, rooted in areas that have been mined, scavenged and otherwise pilfered of all Dust capable, unlikely to find such hidden springs. Made the next course of action clear, but difficult.

Research into unexplored areas, exploration of said areas, marking and digging where said fountains may lie. May find fairy friend, may find fairies at all. All ways led to providence.

There was so much to do, though. He had to organize questions for the next section with the fairy siblings, prepare classes schedule for the following week, grade homework to ensure the cultural clashes were being understood by the younger students, read through digs in the past two decades that may have detailed similar fountains as the fairies' homes, organize the notes into a more archaic sense for publication, ask Link about his other friends, and… and…

Air… Oobleck needed some fresh air. Coffee as well. Both were good.

He stood from his desk, grabbing his thermos as he did so. Pushing the chair out from behind himself, he turned for the desk, marching out of his office as he did so. Marching, that is, over the scrolls, pictures, text books, and states that blocked his way. All there on purpose of course. Superior organization.

His door open and shut with a click, placing him into a hallway nearly barren of life. A student here or there, but far from packed or crowded. Not uncommon in the later hours of the day. It made his trek for the door simple and uninhibited. He took a long sip of his coffee along the way. Rich and dark roasted, delivering a maximum amount of caffeine. He needed to find a superior method for the delivery.

It took little time for him to reach the outside, and it took just as long for Oobleck to conclude he made a wise decision to take a break. His lungs took in a deep breath of air, savoring the scent of freshly processed oxygen through plant cells' chloroplasts. Much better than the stale and processed air present inside closed rooms and buildings. A pity more work couldn't be done outside. Always some, never all.

His feet tapped lightly on the pathway he walked down, eyes looking up through his spectacles. There was always more to see when looking skyward, he concluded both figuratively and physically, at least where archeology was unconcerned. For now, it was a properly destimulating experience to stare at the clouds.

Removing stimuli from the brain was important, no different than sleep. Removed addiction and immunities responses of the body. Immunity from stimuli meant an inability of focus, very bad. In all accounts. Oobleck took a long sip of his coffee at the thought. It was a wonder what a life without stimulus would be like. Would be too eventful or completely uneventful. Curious question, impossible without testing. Such a test, however, was immoral. Many more important questions anyways.

He had to figure out the best place to start searching for records regarding fairy fountains. History was unlikely, geology was possible, but mining incidents could also be a sort of information. Documentation of steam funnels, pockets, other minerals, all catalogued by miners. Very important. Notice of fountains with fairies? Perhaps, though unlikely. Would have generated mass attention if true. Perhaps it would be-

WHOOSH!

Oobleck jumped backwards at the sound.

His spectacles fell sideways on his face, coffee thermos emptying its contents on the ground by the sudden change in inertia. Legs bent, back stiff, he had fallen in to his hunter instincts instantly. He couldn't hear or see any threats on the ground, no vibrations to indicate it was subterranean, and no damage to any buildings. That left only one area of possibility.

His eyes turned skywards again, body twisting this time to maximize the amount of space being scanned through his optical nerves. There was a threat, or at the very least an alien presence in the air. The sudden sound was clearly the indication of air filling a vacuum, caused by a high speed airborne projectile. He now had to find the projectile, or the gunner, or other cause.

With his detail-oriented eyes, it took Oobleck little time.

Flying high in the air, ascending from what was previously a low altitude, was the figure of a golden avian creature. Difficult to judge without a reference but all indications showed it to be tall, very tall. His had a feathers that stretched half the length of its body, wings that could encompass entire desk, and a curious garment of green along its underbelly. Not only that, but as it spun, he could see a large bump of black along its back.

It took him a moment, but he recalled what the creature was, who it was more accurately. Tael had told him in detail about it, from an example of one of the many communities in Hyrule.

It was Queen Elrora, the former avian ruler of the Watarara.

And that black mass, hanging for what appeared to be dear life, was doubtlessly Blake Belladonna.

"Did you see that?!" Oobleck heard a student scream. It was met with the sound of dozens of feet running across the ground. Non-curious, obvious response, his response weren't he already here. "That thing just about slammed into the ground!"

"What was that?! A Nevermore? A new Grimm?"

"Didn't have a mask, and no way any Grimm is stupid enough to come onto Beacon grounds."

"Then what the heck was that!? It was even carrying something!"

Oobleck could feel the panic rising in the students. His students. It was his job as a doctor in Beacon to remedy the situation. He managed, just barely, to pull his eyes away from the wondrous example of faunus strength to look back to the ground.

He saw dozens of students piling into the courtyard, even more coming from the buildings. Elrora's passing must have shaken the nearby buildings. Good on Blake to hold on through that. Improper planning, however.

"Students! Calm yourselves!" He let out as loudly as he could, standing to his tallest. A few looked towards him, but not nearly all. "Though unexpected, quite unexpected, there is nothing to be afraid of! That is Queen Elrora of the Watarara!"

"Th-The what?" A young girl asked him. He took a moment to look her over. Terrified, but unharmed. No student was harmed. Good, and with a good question.

"She is a friend of Link's, a denizen of Hyrule." Those words made a lot more faces turn towards him. Good, but perhaps not.

"That thing is a friend of that faunus?!" A barbaric student yelled the question. Barbaric was a proper description of him, using faunus as a derogatory term. "Then it is attacking the Academy." The students' murmurs of discontent grew louder. Bad indeed.

"Completely incorrect!" Oobleck challenged back. Volume and strictness were important her. "Watarara are a nomadic species, prone to long periods of flight. She is no threat at all!"

"Look!" Another student yelled, pointing up at the sky now. Something must have happened. Oobleck looked up at the declaration.

Elrora was flying in a flat line, a continuous altitude. Her wings were fully expanded, leaving her underbelly completely exposed. She beat them once, twice, then held them still. The cycle repeated, four extra beats for the period of stillness, 4/8's time. She was letting the wind do the work. Brilliant. She turned sideways, turning without the use of tail feathers or wing direction.

Then Oobleck saw the reason for new attention.

It was impossible to not see Blake now, to not be able to identify her either. No other student wore a bow of black like she did. More than that, Blake couldn't identify any dark haired females that were close to Link, excluding those with long red capes. His short-term presence campus made it unlike for him to gather anymore friends.

The one riding on his back, or Elrora's back, appeared to be having a wonderful time. Obvious really. One hand was raised into the air, balled into a fist. An action that was common only in those having a high adrenaline induced moment of euphoria, common in sky divers and high speed automobile racers. Riding on the back of an avian faunus capable of creating vacuums in air qualified, likely.

Elrora banked again, Blake grabbing onto her and flattening herself atop the tall faunus. Then Elrora began to climb again, metaphorically of course. Oobleck watched her wings beat against the air, swimming through the collection of oxygen, nitrogen, and various other gas molecules. She pierced the lower lay of clouds with ease, making not a sound to those on the ground.

He could faintly make out the sounds of the students around him gossiping, talking really. That was to be expected. He had an opposite reaction to the same stimulus. Oobleck was speechless. Perhaps many would call that shocking enough.

Elrora finally straightened out again in the air, wings beating lightly to ensure a safe altitude. Blake didn't appear close to falling of either, though they were now far too high to judge properly. Such an altitude was commonly reserved for low-flying air vehicles, mainly student transport or airships. Oobleck wondered briefly if Elrora was either.

His thoughts shifted when he saw an obstacle in the air. That was incorrect. It was an obstacle in the air, rather, it was protruding into the air, reaching high into it from the ground below. It was possibly one of the tallest towers in Vale, let alone Beacon, and it was often the namesake of the school, green and ever bright.

Elrora and Blake were flying right towards Ozpin's tower.

"Are they gonna fly into the headmaster's office?" Oobleck heard a young woman ask. "I don't know if that's awesome or crazy."

"It's both, its definitely both." Oobleck was kind to agree. "Why is that bird even doing that? Is it gonna make a nest up there."

"Incorrect!" Oobleck shouted out once more. It was his duty to correct the students. "Watarara are a migrating tribe. They make no nests and settle only where cover is already provided. Likely assumption. Elrora is gaining an advantageous view of the Academy." And that was true.

Where he able to fly without the use of a Bullhead, being able to enjoy the sight of the ground from the air, the highest perch only meant you would see the most. It was logical, and he was glad his logic carried over to this foreign faunus. His mind must have been in the right place.

Just as expected too, Elrora and Blake perched atop the high tower, appearing little more than dots of gold and Blake against the bright green light of Ozpin's clock tower. Oobleck watched carefully through his spectacles as Blake unlatched herself from the avian faunus's back. On one of the outer rings of the tower, they set themselves down.

They really were little more than dots, even to Oobleck's trained eyes. If sight was hard to have, then sound was impossible to hear. He could do little more than speculate, wonder, imagine. That was wonderful and horrible. It meant—

A door opened.

No, literally, Oobleck reminded himself, a door opened.

It was only obvious by the sudden pitch of darkness that appeared in the otherwise blinding light of green. It was door at the top of the tower, just beside where Blake and Elrora had perched themselves. A figure was stepping through it, impossible to determine without better eyesight. Yet, by simple inference, Oobleck knew it had to be Ozpin. No one else would step from his office, the only room on the floor so high up.

He heard the school yard mustle and mumble as the three dots of figures moved along the tower's high ring. They were talking most likely, perhaps about the inappropriate use of flight. Likely. Or it could be about the improper method to reaching the highest point of Beacon, without permission. Also likely. It could also be Ozpin's curiosity, a force that rivaled Oobleck's own. Very likely.

Whatever the reason, he saw the three dots disappear into the door. Said door then vanished all the same.

Oobleck was glad he came outside. It really did stimulate the mind.

Ozpin stared at the pair of students across his desk.

He was not in shock, not caught in some over-expressive stillness of new information. He was simply thinking. Thinking while he stroked the tip of his chin with underside of his thumb. He kept his weight mug in his other hand, occasionally sipping on the caffeinated beverage inside. It helped him to focus, and focus was a necessity right now.

True, only one of the youths across from him was a student of Beacon, the other so only in name. He could not call them children either, for both had seen far too much to have any remnant of innocence left. One was a huntress-in-training, already having learned much from her shadowy past in the White Fang, a past Ozpin had already acknowledged and forgiven. The other was a hunter, and very clearly needed no training.

"These have been an active few hours, haven't they?" Ozpin asked the pair, eyes shifting from one to the other behind his small spectacles.

He was unsurprised to see Blake's passive sight at his question, arms crossed and very much on guard. Link, however, appeared to be honestly thinking of the question, eyes looking up and head rocking atop his neck. His final answer was a shrug, an action he knew the foreign faunus would make often.

"So, where to begin?" Ozpin asked the question aloud, though it was meant for himself. A recap seemed appropriate. "In the course of fulfilling a rather unsavory arrangement with Glynda and several outside parties, you were insulted then threatened by a student visiting from Atlas. You then proceeded to unleash what I assume was your Semblance, very nearly killing her before even Glynda, one of the most well-trained huntresses in all the four kingdoms, could react."

Ozpin was pleased only by the knowledge that Link showed no outward joy by the recap. No grunt of amusement, no snicker, not even a twitch. Only the same eyes staring forward, straight lips below, and a posture stiff and stone. If he had favor to his actions, it would have complicated things immensely.

"Garnet was trying to force Link to surrender one of his friends like a trophy," Blake intervened swiftly. "Insulting Link was not what baited him, but threatening to take away the only friends he has left. That would be enough to set anyone off."

"Certainly it could," Ozpin agreed. He pushed his arms outwards, stretching across his desk, before pulling them back in. "But we are hunters and huntresses, trained to defend others and kill Grimm. Never the other way around."

"Then are you going to expel Link from Beacon?" She already assumed an answer. It was clear in her tone, in her mannerisms, in the glare behind her narrowed eyes. Ozpin was right about Blake. Fiercely loyal, but to a fault.

He sighed, deeply, running a hand over his mouth before dropping it back to his desk. There were times where he loathed his job. This was one of them. Ozpin was honest. Dishonesty, even to be kind, was always detrimental in the long run. Sometimes more so.

"I feel another chance for Link would do more harm than good." Blake's reaction to his words were not unexpected.

"I'm not surprised. Abandon the faunus once the first sign of trouble comes." The faunus in hiding turned her head away with the statement, perhaps sickened by looking him. Humorous, perhaps, but utterly inappropriate.

"The first sign of trouble came when Link performed arts with Dust unheard by any of the four kingdoms, Blake." He spoke to the girl, but Ozpin turned his gaze to Link as he spoke on. This conversation was about the faunus in green. He should not be excluded. "It came again when he caused hundreds of thousands of lien in damages to the aquatic center. And now, it is because he has very nearly killed another student."

For his part, Ozpin could tell from the corner of his gaze that Blake was embarrassed by the words, humbled maybe. Humility was good, here at least. It showed she was not completely biased with her opinions, a trait required when tending to mediate situations. Link was a different story. He appeared different, for certain, but not humbled, that wasn't the right word. He his were shut, lips held in the same straight line, and chest slowly rising and falling. He was taking this as a scolding. Perhaps his training as a knight, perhaps the difference between his knighthood and their hunter training.

"However, what Glynda said to you before still stands. You are now a member of Beacon, and as such, we will defend you for as long as you deserve." Link blinked his eyes open. Excellent. "Her exact words may have varied, but the meaning behind them is the same."

Ozpin made sure they had complete contact before he spoke on.

"We defend our students till our last breath, no matter the mistakes they make." He turned his attention to Blake, only long enough to add an important amendment to his rule. "No matter who they are or where they are from."

The emerald headmaster was rewarded with a quick grin from Blake and soft sigh from Link. Both came and left like the wind, missed if not paying attention. He was though, he always did. Even with his back turned and attention elsewhere.

"But, that doesn't change that a mistake was indeed made. And with any mistake, you must either live with it or correct it." Ozpin circled a finger around his mug, feeling the moisture of the dark liquid that settled on the lip. "I prefer to have few nightmares when I sleep."

"Sir?" Blake spoke to him in a curious tone. Respect always, even if as just a veil. He sighed. That may very well change as the conversation unfolded.

"In truth, knowing more about you, we may have rushed your entry into Beacon." A half-truth. He knew it as he spoke it. It was a necessity to have Link enter Beacon as quickly as he could, especially with the other parties that would have doubtlessly exploited him. It was the position that was for question. Best to let the students figure that out.

"So Link should have waited?" Blake spoke again. It surprised Ozpin little. He knew she would be dominating the other side of the conversation, especially with Link's words being mute to him. "He should have just wandered back into the Everfall Forest and waited for the next set of testing to begin?"

"Perhaps," Ozpin returned easily. It was easy to agree with an extreme as long as there was a sliver of truth. "But in honesty Ms. Belladonna, my mistake was due to my haste, not the action itself." He watched the green-clad faunus blink choicely at his words, but still say nothing.

"And what do you think went wrong there?" Blake continued to accuse. He would blame her only when she crossed the line. "Assuming he knew all of the rules, pretending that he would fit in like any other human, or intervening only when it suited you?" She was close.

"I will not grace those questions with answers, Blake," he spoke her name now, earning a defensive reaction. "I do not regret treating Link as another student, though I do regret the… short-lived conditions the Military and Council attempted to force on him." Silence from the two meant agreement with his words. "No, my mistake is making Link a student at all."

He knew Blake would not speak, he knew he wouldn't able to hear Link if he could. Blake needed to think, to wonder about those words. Link was either taking this as very well, or he was internalizing it. One was clearly more beneficial than the other.

"I should have rethought my actions when Tatl and Tael gave stories of you slaying ancient Grimm at a child's age, when you were able to become warriors and queens of long dead friends, and certainly when you treated what most students consider a test for their lives as a jog in the park." Ozpin slowly stood with those words, sifting around the table as he did so. Blake's golden eyes followed him. Link's did not. Curious.

"Sir?" Blake asked in a curious tone. She was used to chains of command. He suspected that Link would have said the very same word, or one close to it. That was, however, a curiosity for another time.

"Beacon is a school for training hunters and huntresses," Ozpin went on. "You come here to learn how to fight Grimm, to protect the kingdoms, to be your very best." He placed his hand down on the side of his table, directing his gaze above his spectacles and towards Link. He waited, patiently, until the foreign faunus finally turned to gaze at him. He lips still did not move.

"But none who come here have already earned their marks as a Kingdom's Greatest Hunter, or in your case, Knight." The insinuation was obvious. He need not explain more.

Blake looked from him back to Link, her long dark locks momentarily billowing at the speed of her twist. Link gave her only a glance before reverting his attention back to the emerald headmaster. Keeping his gaze where the superior officer wanted them. A hunter through and through.

"It is my mistake, Link, that in my haste I did not think to treat you as a hunter." Ozpin bowed his head, removing eye contact as he turned from the two. He continued to walk around his desk until he too stood over the great glass that housed the gears of his tower. Ever moving, ever constant, never slipping. "I thought of you as a student, I judged you by sight alone. Too wrapped up in my own activities that I did not think to apply a bit more logic to your own situation."

"Ms. Goodwitch said much the same to Link before removing him from classes and announcing his job as a training dummy for Military studies." The bite in Blake's voice was obvious, but deserved. It would take years before she saw reality beyond the lens of bigotry.

"And it is why I have spent a great deal more time thinking on this," Ozpin spoke on. He turned back to face them. Neither had changed, aside from turning to face him. They never lifted eye-contact at least. "What Glynda did was done as a necessity, to prevent Link from being taken. You see much of the world in black and white, Ms. Belladonna, but if there is one area you are correct in, it is the Military's and Council's desire to remain in power. Unknowns disrupt that."

Link flinched. Ozpin immediately shifted his eyes to the faunus, staring at him unblinking. Silence reigned in his office momentarily, invited by the fixed gave Ozpin and Link offered one another. Neither blinked, neither looked away. The headmaster knew there was something there.

"So what are you going to do about it?" Blake asked the question naturally, and timely enough to earn both his and Link's attention. Her arms were crossed again, golden slit eyes staring at him curiously. The question was well-timed, practiced even. Given her history, he didn't doubt it. "Up the number of training sessions, have him fight the mecs from the Military encampment? What are you planning on doing now that you see Link as such a threat?" Now that made him blink.

"Ah threat?" He repeated, earning a nod from the young woman. Link merely breathed through his nose. "No no, you misunderstand. If I believed Link a threat, I would never have allowed him upon my Academy's Grounds." That was a fact, no secondary objective or meaning within it. His students were his life, and to endanger them for any reason but necessity was unforgiveable.

"Then, with respect, what it going on?" Blake's words were imploring. They were aided immensely by the nod of Link beside her.

The action wasn't as telling as the sudden jolt Ozpin knew he saw before, but it was enough. Enough to remind him and tell him that Link was here and a part of the conversation. Both were immensely important.

But that didn't mean he had to give up his reason so easily.

"It never ceases to amaze how quickly things are accomplished when enough minds agree with one another," Ozpin spoke. He let the ideas of his words stew in the minds of the youths before him. Their meaning and their reason for suddenly being spoken. "It took generations for us to reach a tentative form of peace between cultures, and even then it is hardly considered complete. Yet, promise enough powerful minds all a great reward, and they'll redraw maps to make it happen."

"Sir?" Blake asked confused, though impatience was beginning to leak into her voice as well. Ozpin could not blame her. He had a habit for being vague. It was a trait of his, one he enjoyed. Link only had a tilt to his head. Still better than blankly looking forwards.

"Shortly after Link's display, I arranged for an emergency meeting between the Council, Military, and myself. You might be impressed how quickly they were available once I used the word 'original." He watched Link, closely. The green faunus only blinked, a small raise of his brow aside from that. Interesting. Blake was silent, listening intently. "To what I am sure will be your lack of surprise, they deemed that you, Link, were a danger to the four kingdoms. The recommendation on what to do was just as obvious."

"They want to experiment on him." Ozpin was as unsurprised by Blake's deduction as he was by Link's final show of surprise. His head turned fast enough for his long green hat to lift, eyes dilated and pupils constricted. He was likely thinking imprisonment. Perhaps his home country was for the better if testing others was abhorred.

"Close enough to be correct." The emerald headmaster nodded. "But in case it is not as easy to deduce, I was far and away from agreeing with such a rash act." It was as bare as Link's words, but he was able to notice the small smile crawl over Blake's lips. She was pleased with his actions, good. "Instead, I sought a middle ground that all the involved parties could benefit from."

Ozpin looked back to his desk, reaching over it to grab the Scroll placed nearby. It wasn't her personal device, nor one confiscated for any student. It was a Scroll meant specifically for his office and controlled all devices within. The desk he sat at, the gears of the clock around it, and most importantly now, the television screen.

He slid his hand across the device, bringing up the documents he had been researching earlier. That, and so much more. They came to life on the screen in his office, Link and Blake both turning to look up to it. He did so to, once he had everything in order.

"The Council wants confirmation that any new power entry is within either their control or their reach. The Military wants to develop new technologies with any new finding it comes across. I, and therefore Beacon, want to keep the students and people of Vale safe. All interconnected, yet so commonly diverging when it comes to means and action."

Ozpin monologue the three powers as he walked to his students' sides. He had his hands folded behind his back, straight and proper. He was taught and instructed as much. He titled his head back to look at the objects on the screen.

"Professor Ozpin," Blake finally spoke his name. "Is that what I… think it is?"

"It is indeed Ms. Belladonna," Ozpin confirmed, nodding his head. He stared at the document on the screen, front and center.

An Official Hunter's License.

A Hunter's License, signed by Ozpin, stamped in the name of Beacon, and bearing the image of Link atop of it.

Ozpin looked to the faunus in question, grinning as he saw the faunus look back at him. He was blinking, mouth slightly agape, as he regarded the headmaster. He was shorter, maybe by half-a-foot, perhaps more, but Ozpin still saw him as strong.

"It is as I said earlier," Ozpin spoke on. "It was my mistake to not see you as this before. You have more strength and training then any student, fighting ancient Grimm and perhaps a war if your companions are to be believed. Placing as a student was a simple, but hasty, decision on my part. For that, I apologize."

Link was looking from the screen back to him, blinking in between. That was… curious. He expected a bit more surprise, disbelief perhaps. Link appeared… confused. Then he remembered what Glynda mentioned earlier.

"You don't know what that is, do you?" Oddly or ironically, it was Blake who asked the question. For the first time since stepping into his office, the two faunuses turned to one another. Link shook his head, confirming what both Blake and Ozpin thought. "Right, that makes sense. Whatever your means of identifying Hunters in your land, it is probably different than ours."

"Knights, Ms. Belladonna," Ozpin lightly corrected. The teacher in him, he supposed. "Hunters in Hyrule are Knights. A title assigned by a monarch to his or her most loyal soldiers." He turned his attention to Link when he spoke that final line. "At least it is how it was in our past. Knights to serve the hierarchy while soldiers fought in the army." He nodded at him, most likely in understanding. That was good.

"Right," she nodded towards him, only before looking back to Link. "That's a sort of identification for a hunter. It signifies authority to hunt Grimm in danger zones, undertake high ranked missions, and at times pardon misdemeanor crimes. It's what all the students at Beacon are working to receive."

"And I have confidence that one day you all will." Ozpin smiled down to her, but he soon turned his attention back to Link, the real topic of the conversation. "But for now, I believe all can agree Link has the power, skill, and training to qualify. The only true question left is his ability to integrate into the four kingdoms. But as I've said, I believe any negative outlook thus far has been because of my own hasty actions, not stopping to make clear the land you have found yourself within."

Link blinked at him once more, nodding with a slight twitch to his lips. It wasn't clear if it was for a smile or frown. But his azure gaze looked back up to the screen, framing Link's identification card. It wasn't actually real, not yet anyways. If it was easy to create one, there would be thousands of forgeries and far fewer students in his academy. There were a few checkboxes that had to be filled.

"There's something I'm not understanding though," Blake spoke, turning back to Ozpin. "You said the members of the council wanted to… use Link. How is granting Link a hunter's license going to fix that? If anything it sounds as if it will amplify the problem." Ozpin was glad Blake was the member of RWBY present. He honestly feared that any other member would merely congratulate Link.

"That is because I cannot give this to Link just yet," Ozpin further explained. Give the proper answer when they ask the correct question. Lectures were easy to ignore. Students always remembered best the answers questions they asked. "As you said, the Military and Council seek to use Link. The only reason they cannot do so is his current commitment to Beacon, if only on paper. However, with this recent… mishap, shall we say, the Council will likely find grounds to claim Link a danger and demand his turnover."

Link looked back at him now, eyes off the screen. There was no more curiosity in his gaze, nor confusion. He knew well and he knew clear what they wanted. Ozpin was glad for that much, at least.

"There is no intention to do so, Link," the emerald headmaster assured once more. He would say it a hundred times if need be. "In fact, I believe I may have found a way to set you in your proper place in these strange new lands, all while offering you a lesson on how the four kingdom's work." He didn't appear any more enlightened by the words. It took only a glance to see that Blake was not either. "Before you ask me a question, Ms. Belladonna, please allow me to ask one of my own." The hidden-faunus stilled for a moment, but nodded slowly. He smiled gratefully before speaking on.

"Aside from schooling under one of the four academies, what else is required to earn the title of huntress?" It was a simple question, one most students learned before they ever reached the higher academies. Even members of the citizenry would know.

"To show proper skill, ability, and knowledge in the slaying of Grimm." She recited the words. Ironic that she sounded almost akin to Ms. Schnee as she did so. He nodded towards her.

"Precisely." It was the only word he spoke before the tapped on the scroll again, closing the image of Link's future license, and bringing up a new one. It was actually an image sent to him, taken by a mini-drone. He had seen it before, and was none-too-happy to do so.

High up on the screen was a Creeper. A Creeper easily the size of three stacked train cars. In simpler words, an Ancient Grimm. The silence from behind him was expected, especially from Link.

"This," Ozpin spoke again, swiping a finger across his pad to magnify the image. "Is a Creeper that is calculated to have reached two hundred years of age." He twisted the image, on his screen, showing the many other angles the drone had taken the picture from.

It showed the Grimm's claws reaching across a barren land, cracks forming with its every step. Dozens of smaller Creepers were lined around its gargantuan body, following their elder obediently. It had scales black as night, wore a mask whiter than snow, and had red eyes sharper than many swords that had been forged. White bony protrusions charged out of its dark scabby hide, appearing sharp enough and hard enough to reduce a carrier to scrap.

It was bellowing upwards, giving off a great call as if just slaying an unseen foe. It was entirely possible given the nature of Grimm, especially the ancient beings.

"Found by the Military at one of their DMZ's, it is being secured until a proper method of its disposal can be found. They were close to contracting a hunter's team to dispose of it… until news of Link came in." Ozpin looked to Link with his words, Blake glancing between them. She was, unsurprisingly, the first to speak.

"They want Link to slay the Grimm." Wise indeed, no one could ever say otherwise of the young woman. "You want Link to kill it." Her hand pointed at him accusingly. It would have been rude, were it not correct.

"I do," he admitted. He kept his gaze on Link for a moment, studying the silent faunus. He didn't do any more than blink. Interesting. "And like I said earlier, it is amazing how quickly things are done when all parties agree. The Military has arranged to hold off on the slaying until Link's arrival, the Council has granted a pass for him and all required parties, and I have no desire to put a stop to my own plan."

"Your plan…" Blake repeated, letting the word die off. "Their plans are what I'm afraid of more." He smiled at her, silently grateful. Her sharp golden eyes did not return the gesture. She looked back to Link instead. "No doubt they want you to slay that Grimm alone."

Link looked back at her, mouth opening and shutting in a hair's length of time. Maybe he spoke, perhaps he did not. Ozpin could not have told either way. Blake, however spoke on.

"They're probably planning on you dying fighting it, so they can claim ownership of everything you have, even your corpse." He watched the young girl swing her arm, likely imaging the cruelties of her past. The depth in her scowl made that more than evident.

Ozpin looked beyond them for a moment, to the sun slowly fading over the horizon. His office did offer an excellent view, being placed atop a high clock tower. The gears that clicked and rumbled beneath his feet kept him rooted to the world. The view from above kept his mind in the future. Both were needed to lead the next generation. And now, with this new entry to the world, he needed all of his wisdom in spades.

"It doesn't matter if you have done it before." Blake spoke on, clearly answering one of Link's mute responses. Ozpin was a little jealous. "I have no doubt that you have done so, maybe dozens of times before, but even if you succeed here, they will only ask you to continue on these suicidal tasks until you do die." She shook her head, clearly loathing her own words.

"They may just arrange for it." He was silent for too long.

"And that is precisely where I come in." He spoke up, earning both the attention of Blake and Link. "The Military claims this can be used to study new methods to counter large Grimm, the Council for simple measuring Link's capabilities. Those are their claims, and we now those to be only guises. I, however, claimed that this would be recompense for Link's attack upon Garnet." Link didn't appear moved by the words. Interesting, perhaps worrying. He couldn't be sure.

"But that's not your true purpose." She noted, not asked. "And the Council would have to be under the assumption of being able to do multiple research assignments of Link. They would not settle for a single project. The Military as well must be thinking they will gain something more from Link, maybe his loyalty or use as a weapon." Link looked at her now. That wasn't odd to Ozpin.

What was odd was the way he sighed, quietly at her words. A sigh was made out of resignation or fatigue. He was clearly not tired, as he had not been thus far. Resignation meant he had acceptance. Acceptance this quickly meant prior experience. Now where had he gained that? But… that was a question for another time. Blake had assumed much, correctly at that.

"Though Ms. Schnee may be called the most knowledge in team RWBY, it is clear you are perhaps the most wise," he complemented, making a confirming noise as he drew his lips. Blake did much the same. "Though no words were spoken, I believe both the Military and Council believe Link will die during this test. When he does so, they will claim all of his items for themselves." He turned his attention to Link now, who was gazing back. It was a hard glare, but it showed nothing more. "However, from what I have seen so far and heard from your fairy companions, I believe you will come through. Do you?"

Link did not hesitate to nod. He even had a grin over his lips. Brave or foolish, it was impossible to tell until the test was finished.

"And when he does?" Blake continued, showing her wisdom by not settling at a noble end. She needed the true one. She was like Glynda in a way, though smaller and a little more impulsive. "What are you going to do to make sure Link isn't going to be used?" Ozpin didn't answer immediately. Not because he was unsure or searching for answer, but because something interesting caught his eye. It wasn't even subtle.

Blake placed her hand over his shoulder, gripping the green fabric tightly, possessively.

Link looked at her hand too, but only for a moment. The grip looked strong, possessive even, like one friend ready to do anything to defend the other. It was hard for Ozpin to pass it off merely as loyalty to another faunus now. Even a former member of the White Fang would need more to go so far. Fortunately, he didn't need to craft a lie or fable to convince her. He knew the truth would do just fine.

"When Link kills the Ancient Grimm," Ozpin began, walking past the two and towards the screen. He waved his scroll in the air as he did so. "He will have satisfied the critical requirement for becoming a licensed hunter. None of the other parties were told or mentioned this, however even a wise member who figures it out may find it inconsequential. What would it matter if Link became an official hunter? He could still be considered a threat, a danger, and much else. If anything, it would only be a reason why he could not be protected by Beacon Academy."

"I'm saying this only because Yang is not here, but you are doing a very poor job at making this decision seem wise." That made Ozpin chuckle. Perhaps more eloquent than the Y of RWBY would put it, but the point was easy to find.

"That's because they don't realize what that means." Ozpin left of. He tapped on the clear screen of his scroll a few times, adjusting the image being projected.

The picture of the Ancient Grimm faded, only to be replaced by a document of text. Not his personal favorite item to view, but often times necessary. It wasn't too long, only a few paragraphs, but he had studied them like scripture.

"These are the minimum requirements for a hiring position at Beacon Academy." His words were immediately rewarded with Link's and Blake's heads spinning to him. "I have read over these requirements several times, looked to every other paper they referenced, and even did a light dabble in the history of their changes." He waved his hand over the screen, motioning towards it all.

"There are three immutable requirements to be met. Number one, backing and support of a Council Recognized Hunter's Academy. I assure you that you satisfy that with me." He nodded towards Link before continuing on. "Number two, no outstanding criminal past or ties. Given your new arrival here, I can say that is unlikely. This agreement being struck up will eliminate any outliers that may be conjured up. And Number three, be a registered and active hunter." Now a bit of patience, an ounce of silence. It worked as expected.

"Professor, what does this mean?" Ozpin could blame the weight of the matter being thrown so quickly for the disorientation of Blake. It was difficult for him to entirely grasp at first as well. Thankfully necessity made many things easy.

"What this means, Link, Ms. Belladonna," Ozpin spoke their names, stepping towards them before turning around to face the screen again. He held his free arm up to it again, pointing at the glass display. "Is that in no prior or past requirement of the qualifications does it state that a teacher must be a member of the four kingdoms, must be acknowledged by both the Military and Council, or be any one species." That made Blake widen her eyes, but only before narrowing them.

"Teachers at Beacon are given more freedoms than students. Teachers are given more room to explore, fewer restrictions to abide, and perhaps most importantly, complete independence from the other ruling bodies. Simply, they answer only to the headmaster. Me."

Link hadn't said a word the entire conversation, and Ozpin knew he wouldn't have heard him if he had. But when he spoke those words, Link did make an action that made it clear he was attempting to say something. Lifting his arm, pointed one stray finger at the emerald headmaster. The meaning was rather clear to Ozpin.

"Yes," he answered the unspoken question. "And I can promise you with both my word as a Hunter and teacher that I would only continue to encourage you to find your friend within our land. I would no sooner cage you here then would I wish harm upon my students." Cryptic responses had no place where earnests needed to reside.

Link made another action then, Blake silent by him all the while. It was perhaps her wisdom that told her to allow him to speak in his way. It was only another simple gesture though, one he had done before with a small twist. A shrug of his shoulders, but this time with accompanied raised hands. Not a dismissal of facts or suggestions, but a question to Ozpin himself. Just as easy to read.

But before he responded, Ozpin turned his attention to Blake. She may have no say in the decision, but he would be a fool to think she could not explain to Link which way to sway.

"Because I believe you can be more benefit to the world alive and free then being trapped and studied." Now Ozpin turned his gaze to Link, staring just as hard and honestly to the green-clad faunus. "And because I promised you, Glynda promised you, Beacon as a whole promised you that you would be safe so long as you were a member of this place. You may be too strong and skilled to be a student, but there is still another position you can take."

"Link," Ozpin began, staring at the foreign faunus that promised so much, and all so silent. "What I am planning, and what I am asking, is that when the Grimm is defeated, when you have done enough to ward off the reaching hand of the Military and Council, in that brief moment of respite, is for you to come back to Beacon."

He held out his hand to the faunus, extending towards Link as they had the first time they had met. There was so much more weighing on this decision now.

"When you have earned your hunter's license, will you return to Beacon and teach my students?"

He knew the question was far form unobvious, but cryptic messages were not meant for important questions. For now, he needed Link to know what he was asking, speaking in a way that went around any confusion of cultural boundaries. He needed to be direct, and for that, he needed to be specific.

Link's answer came faster than even Ozpin expected.

He grasped the emerald headmaster's hand, staring up at the taller man. His grip was strong, eyes sharp, and smile as confident as his fairy's words. When his mouth moved silently to Ozpin, past the headmaster's spectacles, his answer, relayed through Blake, did not disappoint.

"Of course," Blake said. Ozpin could tell by the awe in her voice and breathlessness she had that she was merely repeating what Link was saying. A part of him wondered if this was a part of her dream being realized, to see a faunus take a position of high power among Beacon. "H-He says of course! He agrees, he'll do it!"

Ozpin smiled, if only to himself, as Blake let her eagerness and joy take over. He released link as she grabbed him with both hands, holding the likely elder faunus closer, staring up at him. He looked back down at her gaze, blinking likely out of confusion for the suddenly closer proximity. It was not an easy thing to adjust to. The feline faunus either didn't mind or didn't care.

She wrapped him in a hug, burying herself into his chest. He let out a strangled noise of surprise. Ozpin didn't even attempt to hide his laughter now. He was sure that any other parties present would either be doing much the same or whistling like wolves.

"Link," Blake spoke against his chest. "I… I don't think you realize how amazing this is. You're a faunus, one of the first faunus to be given a position like this. No restrictions, no limitations, and being encouraged to work at Beacon. This is… you're going to be something amazing!" Blake couldn't see it from her position, but Ozpin could see a choice expression bleed and dry over Link's face.

A sour twist of dislike. Perhaps this was moving too far too fast.

"Please relax, Ms. Belladonna," he encouraged the young girl, lightly tapping on hers shoulder as he did so. She released her hold on Link, tacking a few quick steps back as she tucked a stray strand of dark hair behind her ears. Embarrassment, doubtlessly. "There is a point I need to make, one I'm sure neither of you will have any trouble agreeing with."

"Yes? And that is?" It was almost humorous how more excited Blake was knowing what was to come. Then again, perhaps that was the nature of all living things. It seemed likely enough.

"I need the two of you to withhold this information for now." He spoke the command as he walked beyond them again. He circled his enlarged desk as he spoke on. "While I have no qualms with you calming your friends with news of what Link will do to appease the Council and Military, I request you keep the end game we have discussed private until the necessary time. Talk as you will up to registration for his license, as I believe the Council will deduce that much well enough. But, make no mention of your future sessions." He put his eyes on Link, who nodded at the words. Good enough.

Ozpin pulled the chair out from his desk, sitting down it before turning back towards his large desk space. He made no move for his coffee mug. Not yet anyways.

"Before you ask, I have told both of you this so that you are aware of my instructions when the time is appropriate. I'd hate to ask a question and make plans if the key players are not willing to join." He laughed lightly, enjoying the joke he made. Neither of them joined in. A pity.

But still work needed to be done.

"Now," he began, lifting the clear scroll that controlled his office back to himself. "If you will both sit, we will need to discuss the finer points of the test, in order to eliminate any technicalities that may hinder Link's passing, agreed?"

Ozpin was encouraged himself with both of the faunuses nodded their heads towards him. Both seemed eager as well, both smiling, though one clearly brighter than the other. The fault of being foreign and given domestic news, he supposed.

Tapping on his pad, and bringing for the key images and documents, the trio began.

Chapter Text

This was weird. Pretty sure there was no other word for it, at least not to Jaune. Maybe horrifying. That was close, too. Horrifying and weird. Probably the two worst words to use to describe a situation. And yet, that was all he could think of.

They were on their way to the Badlands, the home of more Grimm than anywhere else in all of Remnant. Beowolves, Creepers, Goliaths? Oh yeah, they were all there. But according to Weiss, it only got better. There were also Ancient Grimms.

Grimm more powerful than some of the strongest tools in the military, older than any of the kingdoms, and as intelligent as scholars. That was why horror worked pretty well here. Scary things tended to be horrifying.

The weird though? They were going here for a test. A test for a faunus from a foreign land that was nearly his twin. Weird was a pretty good word for that. Odd just wasn't strong enough. Creepy didn't work either, not when Link was only ever smiles and shrugs… even when cutting a girl into nearly fractions… maybe creepy did work.

"Are we almost there?" Jaune's thoughts were shaken by Yang's question. "I'm getting sores from sitting for so long." That reminded him pretty quickly where they were. No, more specifically, how they were getting there.

An airship of course. Airships were the best way to travel, second to none, or so everyone from Vale to Atlas said. Didn't help that he could stand motion like this… or heights… or horrible dangers like the badlands. Oh yeah, those were all bad, very bad in fact. Things that could kill you without any effort, those were pretty high on the ladder for bad.

"We will be arriving at the DMZ in approximately 4 minutes, Ms. Xia Long," Ms. Goodwitch spoke up from the other end of the tight ship. There was only ever one area for passengers to sit in. One area that was determined to show of all the time just how high up in the air they were. That was always bad.

"If I may ask, what will happen specifically at the DMZ?" That was Pyrrha. Jaune would recognize her voice anywhere. Kinda hard to forget the girl that had saved your life a dozen times over. "I understand that Link is going to be tested to slay an Ancient Grimm… but-"

"We will be meeting with General Ironwood first and foremost," Ms. Goodwitch interrupted. Jaune had his head between his legs, the best way to prevent the motion sickness from getting to him, but he could pretty well imagine the professor was typing on her pad the whole time. "He will be given instructions and limitations to Link, specifically to prevent any danger to the DMZ or Link. We will be escorted to an observation room where we and members of the Council will oversee the battle."

"Okay, yeah, but-" That was Yang again, but she was shut down faster than Pyrrha was.

"We are not staying here as long term guests. If all goes well, we should be on our way back to Vale before the day's end. The Grimm has already been researched and isolated thanks to military efforts, but are now awaiting Link to destroy it."

A part of Jaune, the part of him that realized more than he liked to say out loud, told him that there was probably a lot more planning behind those words. Probably hours and hours' worth of meetings organize everything with the Military, Council, and Beacon, not to mention fast-tracking Link for this test. But he really didn't want to know all of that. He was sure of that much. Being sure was a good thing.

He groaned as he lifted his head up, letting it drop back onto his knees. Pyrrha put her hand on his back, probably to help support him. That was nice of her, which was always a good thing. He didn't speak though, afraid he would hurl.

His eyes fell to Link, the faunus who had started all of this. That sounded to Jaune a whole lot darker in his head than he intended it to be.

Long pointed green hat on his head, tunic secured with a pouch-filled leather belt and, of course, his red gem encrusted sword and shield on his back. He was standing near the back of the ship, watching the path behind them. Jaune didn't have the courage to do that, heights and everything. Even though Jaune couldn't see Link's face, his faunus-double facing away from him, he was sure he was smiling. Given the circumstances, kinda hard to judge if that was a good or bad thing.

Blake sat next to him, looking nervous and on edge, though probably for different reasons than himself. He didn't put too much thought into it. If there was one lesson his sisters had taught him, it was to avoid reading women. Apparently it was always a dark and horrible trail, according to his eldest sister. That sounded bad at least.

But… if he guessed by how his sisters acted, Blake seemed more nervous about Link, constantly looking at him and then back to the front of the airship. All the while her long nails clicked against her clothes. She looked ready to scratch someone's eyes out. He did his best to avoid saying it was appropriate.

The rest of his team and RWBY were scattered about the airship, either standing, sitting, or flat out lying on the ground. That was Nora, of course. Couldn't trust she was alright unless she was doing something odd. Then again, Ruby was doing the same thing. Maybe they were excited about having the airship to themselves. Then again, maybe they were just being kids. Ruby was still a kid after all.

The airship lurched in mid-air. Turbulence. It made his stomach turbulent for a moment as well, shaking its contents. He groaned at the action.

"Oh hey! You can see the outpost now!" That was Tatl, at least Jaune was pretty sure it was. Kinda hard to ignore that high-pitched voice. She did sound really excited though. "Oh by Time, it looks like one of the fortresses you'd see at the Gerudo Checkpoint. It's got enough people walking around it to make it a castle even! But geez, couldn't they have made it look like anything else but a big block of metal?"

"I… I-I think it's supposed to be like that, sis. I mean, it is supposed to between the Gerudo and the monsters, right?" That was Tatl. Kinda sounded like Jaune did actually, but a few years younger. "I just… what's with all those giant metal doors? They look like they could hold dragons."

"Those?" Weiss now. Had to be Snow Angel. Jaune could practically hear her putting her hands on her hips as she spoke. "Those are air-craft hangers designed to house high-speed and powerful flight crafts. On average, they can reach speeds over thrice the speed of sound while carrying payloads of Dust strong enough to flatten mountains." That was scary in a different kind of way.

"Geez… Isn't that called overkill?" Tatl asked without missing a beat. "No wait, better question, why do you need knights when you got stuff like that?" Actually, Jaune was surprised he knew the answer to that. Too bad he didn't have the stomach to answer right now.

"The difference between a sword and a hammer," he heard Ren spoke. Whenever he did speak, it was also for a point. "High accuracy and precision, damaging only a very small area, or a very powerful blow that decimates all. Trained hunters that kill only the Grimm, or an indiscriminate bomb that, quotes, blow up a mountain."

"Then… why don't you just blow up the Grimm out here?" Tatl again, and actually with a pretty good question. "I mean, it was made pretty clear to us that there's really nothing out here. Just mountains, dirt… and monsters."

"Because the Grimm that aren't killed would be spread into the four kingdoms." Weiss was talking like it was out of a book. Probably was actually. Jaune noted he should start reading more too. "A mass bombing such as that was proposed three decades ago, but basic calculations showed that Grimm with high intelligence would be able to reach an area of protection from the bombs, and would then be able to invade nearby towns or cities. It is more cost-effective and safe to regulate the more extreme monsters to the badlands." Yup, definitely a book.

"We are now beginning our descent." Ms. Goodwitch spoke the words, and they sounded like church bells to Jaune. "When we arrive, Link will be expected to meet with Ironwood post-haste. Is that clear?" Even though it probably didn't mean much, Jaune still shook his head. He had to swallow something wet to keep his stomach calm.

His stomach shifted as he felt the ship sink the sky. Hard to tell if that was good or bad. They were going to land, which was always a good thing, but he was probably going to vomit, which was always a bad thing. Suddenly staying back at Beacon was looking to be a great option.

The ship shook suddenly, but came to dead still when it was done. That was as clear a sign as ay that they had actually landed. Relief poured out of Jaune in the form of a pleasured groan. He then proceeded to fall face forward to the ground, head smacking first. That was okay, he guessed; it was better than vomiting.

A loud clang of steel got his attention, forcing him to rise to his feet. Well… more like push himself off the ground first. His legs weren't strong enough to stand on quiet yet. He was able to see the back of the airship opening up, showing them the way to the Badlands. Great.

"Me first! Me first!" Jaune wasn't even fazed to see Nora skipping out of the ship, twirling in mid-air as she hit the dirt outside. "Tada! I'm the first one here. That means I win a prize!" Thankfully, her laughter ruined any need to explain why that wasn't going to happen.

"Are you going to be alright, Jaune?" His partner's worry finally reached him, evident from the hand over his chest plate, helping him stand. He rose to his feet shakily, nodding his head as he did so. He couldn't worry her, not any more than she already did. He swallowed again before responding.

"Yeah, just… just gotta get my bearings again. I really hate flying." To Pyrrha, it was probably like telling a fish that water was wet. Both just that obvious. He at least got a small smile over her features. That was good. Smiles usually meant everything was going just right.

"We should probably hurry then," Pyrrha suddenly said. "Everyone else is already on the ground." They were? Jaune cast his eyes around the airship, getting the first solid look around it since they took off. Sure enough, they were alone. That was… he didn't know. Must have been on the ground longer than he thought.

"Y-Yeah, we should go." Jaune puffed out his chest as he turned towards the exit, the metal of the hull clinking as he walked across it. Pyrrha was just beside him, though her hands now removed. The airship was meant to house dozens, so it took a bit of time before they reached the exit. When they did, however, Jaune got his first eyeful of the DMZ of the Badlands.

Just like the fairies had said, it was a structure almost completely made out of steel. There were no glass windows, no wooden doors, and no trace of color aside from the shiny gray that made up the exterior. He saw the odd line or two, probably divots in the steel to allow cameras to sit in. Doors that he could see ranged from just small enough to walk into monstrous enough to fly an airship into. He criticized himself. That was exactly what they were meant for.

But aside from all that, the size of the place… was… underwhelming. Of course, he was comparing it to Beacon, or Atlas's Military Fleet, or basically any other major institution he had seen. Compared to that, the dorms at Beacon were larger, friendlier too. There was probably a reason for that at least. Maybe to avoid attention? Yeah, that would make sense. No need to invite death when it was already next door. That was certainly true.

The whole landscape around the place was just gray and brown. It looked like a fire had passed through it and nothing had bothered to try and grow again. Oh sure, the sky was still blue and the clouds still white, but it just looked… alien next to the dead ground they stood on. It was creepy, really creepy. That's was another point in favor of horrifying.

"General Ironwood," Ms. Goodwitch's voice stole Jaune's attention. His eyes snapped to a tall man dressed in white, standing in front of the professor and the rest of his team, RWBY, and Link. He was tall, that much was clear, standing over Ms. Goodwitch with arms folded behind his back. Slicked back hair and a stern look on his face, general certainly fit the bill.

"Professor Goodwitch," the general returned, his voice sounding muscular even. Probably from shouting orders all day. Jaune didn't dare say that aloud, that would be really bad. "I am glad to see that you have all arrived without incident. You especially, Master Link." Oh yeah, that was why they were here.

Jaune's eyes fell to Link, whom stood only shoulder high to General Ironwood. The only thing Jaune could tell with any confidence was that he was looking up. Other than that, he couldn't guess what Link was thinking or getting ready to say from behind. However, Tatl and Tael more than made up for it. Or, more accurately, just Tatl.

"Yup, we're here and all set to go. Let's just start this monster hunting business, m'kay?" The air was already frigid, but Jaune felt it go ice cold with how easily Tatl spoke to Ironwood. It was like insulting a bull!

That was until the general smirked.

"Ah yes, you must Tatl, correct?" He unfolded one of his arms and pointed at the golden mini-drone. She bounced in mid-air at the question. That was a nod, probably at least. "That makes you Tael," Ironwood's hand swung lightly to the other mini-drone. Another bounce, but far lighter and with less energy. Probably still a nod.

"They are companions of Link that will be assisting him on the Grimm hunt." Ms. Goodwitch spoke up again. And, of course, she was typing on her pad as she did so. She must always be working on a novel with how much she typed on that thing. "This has been cleared within the bounds of the test."

"Of course, I have no objections," Ironwood waved his hand at the comment. It was almost disturbing seeing someone that tall smiling. Not creepy just… it put Jaune on edge. "In place of a full team, I can hardly object to two companions as these two. If I had to suspect, what they lack in battle experience, they make up in knowledge."

"Got that right, pal!" Again, Jaune was horrifying fascinated to see Tatl fly up to Ironwood's face as she said that. She would probably do that to a Grimm if she had the chance. "Between the three of us, there isn't anything in all of Hyrule that can stand up to Link! He was the strongest warrior there was, a hero, and nothing is going to change that."

"I have no doubt you speak truthfully." Jaune was just as amazed at how easily Ironwood took that yelling. Actually, no, he was just glad there wasn't a battle out here. "The very fact that Link is too powerful for any students at Beacon is proof of his strength. However, that is also what has placed him in this precarious situation." Oh crap, this Ironwood was like a taller Ozpin.

"Are you saying what I-" Tatl's doubtlessly rage filled words were cut off by the general.

"However, we should continue this conversation inside," Ironwood spoke as he turned, folding one arm behind his back as he swept the others towards a vacant doorway. "The DMZ is a safe zone, but the word doesn't mean much when we are on the edge of Grimm territory." Going inside suddenly sounded like a really good idea.

"Sweet, finally getta see the inside of a Military base. Do we get a tour, too?" Yang had her hands folded behind her head as she asked the question, already walking towards the door. Between her and Tatl, there wasn't such a thing as respect for authority.

"Only as far as necessary," Ironwood, again, easily returned. He stood still as everyone walked by him, Jaune walking just behind Ruby and Pyrrha just behind him. "As you said, this is a Military Institution. Meaning many areas are designed for only high level access. Even as guests, you won't see much more than you'd see in an introductory video."

"Can't say I'm surprised," Jaune almost jumped at Blake's voice. It was the first time he heard her talks since they left. "Wouldn't want any secrets being exposed?" Her voice started to echo as they finally walked inside the base. With how tight the corridors were, Jaune was thankful he wasn't claustrophobic. That would be bad.

"Yes, that, and of course the multitude of high-yield dust weaponry being stored for emergency use." Honestly, that didn't surprise Jaune. He didn't know a better place to store the stuff than right next to wear it was going to be used, like his toothbrush by the sink. "We can't very well say we are protecting the citizens of Remnant if we allow a few students to harm themselves with our weaponry." Jaune was starting to like this guy, if only because he didn't seem to have a berserk button. Kinda the opposite of Ms. Goodwitch, or Yang… or Pyrrha… or Cardin… or anyone else in his life.

"So where are we heading?" Ruby asked now. Thank the heavens Ruby. She was young and crazy, but she was team leader for some reason. "Are we going to the top floor to see all the Grimm out in the Badlands, or deep down into the basement behind hundreds of feet of steel?" That was Ruby alright, crazy to the core.

"You, Ms. Rose," Ironwood began, walking past the group arranged in the narrow hallway, just enough room for him to get by, and stand in now that Jaune thought about it. "Are going to the observatory near the top floor. The actual top floor is reserved for personal trained to use the artillery rifles housed up there." Okay, yeah, that made sense. Kinda creepy, sure, but hey it made sense. "Link, on the other hand, is going to accompany me to the hangar, where we will show him the location of the Grimm needed to be slain." Right, that was why they were here. Guess it was kinda easy for Jaune to push that kind of stuff from his mind. Danger and all.

"Sweet, so we get to head there ourselves then?" Yang sounded pretty happy when she asked that question. "Walk around the DMZ, alone, unescorted, trusting us to get where we need to go?" Oh, that was why.

"No, Ms. Goodwitch will escort you." Ironwood's voice never changed as he spoke. Jaune, on the other hand, could almost hear Yang's grin fall. "If there is anyone I can trust to make sure you go where you are expected, it will be her." Definitely he wasn't wrong there. "I trust you know how to get there?"

"The elevator at the end of the hall to floor thirteen. I have the access codes ready." There was no part of that that really surprised Jaune. If she had to ask a question, then he would be shocked.

"I will join you soon after Link is all set." Ironwood's hand fell on said faunus's shoulder as he said the words. Link looked at the hand, its size near dwarfing the rest of Link's arm, but didn't do much more than that.

Without anther word, Ironwood turned towards the wall behind. That got Jaune, got him all the way until Ironwood put his other hand on it. A myriad of clicking and rolling echoed through the thin hallway, all rumbling past the steel walls.

Then, like a theatre door, a section of the steel wall fell downwards. The whoosh of air made Jaune almost shiver, but it was the sight behind it that really did him in.

The invisible door General Ironwood opened looked into a massive hanger. Jaune didn't need to think twice about what it was. The airships, ranging in size from small to colossal were all aligned within the large room, each sitting upon long thick cables that hang from a ceiling too high for Jaune to see, at least without stepping into the hanger itself.

Sound echoed from within now, much clearer without the thick steel between them. Dozens to likely hundreds of other military personal were working about the hanger, some tapping on pads like Professor Goodwitch or working with tools on the suspended airships. Maintenance, undoubtedly, both on the parts themselves and the systems. It would be really bad of either of those failed.

But… everyone that was in there, all of them working so close to the Grimm… a part of Jaune told him that was good, probably cause none of them really objected to being here. They were ready to go off and fight as soon as they had to. That was good, but really scary. That was… what a hunter was supposed to be… huh…

"Now then," Ironwood spoke up again. "I will be showing Link his means to enter the Badlands. I trust to see you all soon."

No one had time to object, not before Ironwood turned and stepped through the door way, Link quickly following. But before the door shut, turning the massive room into just a thin hallway again, Jaune caught Link turn and looking back at the group. No… that wasn't right. He was looking at just one person.

He was looking at Jaune.

That made the boy blink. But before he could ask a reason for the sudden attention, Link took a step forward, raising his arm, and patted him on the shoulder. A part of Jaune shuddered. This was foreboding in every sense of the word, like watching a squire being knighted before running off to chase a dragon.

But before Jaune could say, or probably more like mumble, any questions, Link had taken his hand off and returned to Ironwood's waiting form. Another second later, the large plate of steel rose and pushed itself back into place, turning the room into nothing more but a thin hallway again.

"What was that about?" He heard Weiss ask. He wanted to say distantly, but with how everything echoed in the thin metal hallway, nothing was really far away. Besides, he didn't have an answer for his snow angel either way.

"Probably the 'loyal knight' trying to ease Jaune's nerves." Yang again. "A blind man could see that Vomit Boy is ready to puke again." May the heavens forbid the girl from ever calling him another name.

"We must make haste for the control room." Ms. Goodwitch spoke up then. "If we are to properly observe Link, our presence there is required." Without another word, or even a glance, she turned away from the group. Cold as ice and hard as diamonds, that was Professor Goodwitch.

Link tried to keep his jaw from falling as he looked around the room he had entered into.

The size of it dwarfed many of the castle rooms he had seen before, able to fit entire monasteries within it. It was long enough to train a horse to sprint within it, and tall enough to make it skeptical for a bowshot to reach the roof. The only room he could imagine compared to its sheer size was the Library of Hyrule Castle, and even that was a difficult comparison.

But the size of the room only emphasized the size of the carriages within it. Link had seen already thrice over these airborne carriages, needing only some clever use of magic to pull and guide them. But all the ones he had seen were of comparable size to chariots and cabins back in his homeland. Some of the ones that hung from the high ceiling looked more like entire homes made mobile. A part of him doubted they would ever be able to move. And then, another part of him, told himself that this was ordinary to the Gerudo that walked around it.

If the difference in skill and etiquette was not a clear sign of foreign status, than the gap between a horse-drawn carriage and these aerial chariots drew it.

"Impressive, isn't it?" Came the deep voice of the general beside him. He didn't wear the typical garb or scarf of a general, but that was judging by his standards. The Gerudo they passed, however, all saluted the man. That was a sign if anything of his rank. "I know little to nothing of where you come from, but I can tell by your awe that this is not a normal sight for you."

"Normal?" Link heard Tatl ask. "Normal is running across open fields on horseback, or flying up to high tree limbs to sleep. Normal isn't running into monster infested territory to make up for some mistake that wasn't even our fault in the first place." Link was able to hold back his laughter enough to allow only a smirk.

Loud and boisterous as she was, Link could always trust Tatl to remain focused on what had to be done.

"Very little distracts you, doesn't it?" Ironwood asked the golden fairy. "That is a commendable trait I wish many of my soldiers would learn. Focus is always key on the battlefield."

"More like forgetting about a coming battle makes it kinda hard to get ready for it." Tatl listed off the rule she had learned from him, if by sight more than words. "But hey, when we get back from killing this Dodongo, then we chat about your "super chariots" all day long."

"Dodongo?" Link noted the perplexed note in the general's voice. It was followed quickly by one of realization. "Ah, yes, that must be your name for the Creeper. I understand. It would be unlikely for us to have similar names for objects." He nodded his head as he spoke, looking forward again as he did so.

Link looked around himself some more, ill content to not observe as much as he could of this place. But yet, despite its size, all Link saw were many men and women dressed in very similar clothes, doing very similar tasks, and taking very similar stances when the general passed. The large doors that Weiss referred to as 'hanger doors' aside, he saw no station of authority or place of interest. It was rather disheartening, but not too unsurprising. Despite how large this room was, it hardly was the size of the fortress all together.

"Link," Ironwood spoke again. When he turned to face the general, he found the taller Gerudo had stopped, gaze set upon him. Link quirked his brow. "I apologize for not properly introducing myself before. I prefer to have as few people outside the DMZ as possible."

Because of the threat of the monsters, that made sense to Link. He smiled, seeing this tall man in a kind light. He hurried his words to secure safety for his people. That was a good thing. Generals who valued the men who served them.

"My name is General John Ironwood," the Gerudo spoke formally, extending one of his hands towards Link. Link grasped it, the exchange easy to read. "Though I am not sure if this is yet a pleasure, I am glad to meet you while we are still on good terms." Those weren't comforting words.

"You were almost there Stiff," Tatl spoke up from beside Link, saying everything that Link thought. "But hey, point for at least givin' us a proper hello. Most of the Gerudo we've met have just sat and stared at Link like he's some kinda legend. They're not wrong, but the wrong kind of legend."

"You will have to tell me later of this legend," Ironwood spoke to his golden fairy, smile never faltering. Either he was speaking honestly, or he was a truly excellent liar. Link prayed to Time he was the former and far from the latter. "For now, I believe we should introduce you to your pilot." Pilot? That must have been the name for the stable-hand. He remembered Glynda calling the man at the front of the ship the same thing.

"Why do we need a pilot? Are… are we riding one of your air-carriages?" Tael asked that question. It was a good question, but it was filled with his usual hesitance. That was okay. He was speaking far easier to strangers than he had before.

"But of course. I would hardly expect you to trek through the Badlands alone. The purpose of this is to see how a hunter from a foreign land best handles threats such as Ancient Grimm. If you were to be harmed or equipment ruined before reaching the beast, any data we gained would be skewed." A test, right. That was what Ozpin had called this. But there was more than one test going on, a different test for each of the branches of power. He couldn't forget that. He couldn't forget to play along.

"Cool, at least you're playing fair," Tatl again. "I was kinda expecting you to say we'd have to hick to the Dodongo on our own."

"While I cannot say we will fly you straight to the Grimm itself, we hardly challenge our soldiers in the middle of already life-threatening missions. I don't believe it accomplishes anything to treat you any differently." Ironwood was smiling at Link again. It was that same kind smile he had before. It was nice, full of honesty, but that was what was irking Link.

He couldn't name a figure of high power that was full of honesty. Not one. Good of heart, maybe of soul, but never free of lies. That was as impossible as a bloodless war.

"Still though, we shouldn't waste too much time talking," Ironwood spoke up again, head swinging back down the long room, likely searching for this pilot of his. "The Grimm is under watch, but it would be best to reach it before it decides to act in any threatening way." There was wisdom in those words though. Link nodded slowly.

Ironwood began to march down the grand room again, the soldiers that noticed him stopping to salute as they walked by. There wasn't a one that did an action otherwise. It was difficult for Link to tell if they were acting out of loyalty or duty. There was a very clear difference.

"Ah, here we are," Ironwood spoke, stopping before one of the many carriages that hung from the high ceiling. Hands folded behind his back, he looked up at it. Link, with hands at his sides, mimicked the action.

It wasn't a very large carriage, at least compared to the multitude of others that were hung about the rest of this chamber. Much like the airship then rode on to get here, it had glass windows around it, two metal inflexible wings jutting from its sides, and a large gap in its back that disappeared into darkness. His instincts told him that was both the most important and most dangerous part of the craft.

And yet, the size of it continued to plague Link. He was expecting a well-armored vessel, meant to take blows from a Dodongo's breath. This? This looked small and fragile. But… perhaps that was the point.

"This is merely a singular transportation airship," Ironwood spoke from his side, likely answering some question Link had yet to speak or think of. "By removing any weaponry from it, it allows the Dust engines to be solely responsible for acceleration and altitude control. With room for a singular pilot and companion, it can enter and leave dangerous areas before any monsters have the instinct to attack it." Ah, now Link understood what he meant.

"Sounds sweet, but where' the pilot you kept talking about?" Tatl asked again, this time a question Link shared. "I mean, I'm sure we wouldn't mind trying to fly the thing, but something tells me you wouldn't really approve of that." Link trusted her judgement. Rude as she could be, he had never met a better judge of character.

"Nope! That's why I'm here!"

Link spun at the voice.

His hands were on the hilt of his sword and grasp of his shield when his eyes fell on a young girl just behind him. It was very obvious she was the one who just yelled, complete with her mouth still open in a cheerful grin, hands up to her shoulders, palms forward while waving back and forth.

With puffy red hair and vibrant green eyes, she already looked complete different to every other Gerudo in the grand chamber. That was to say nothing of her light green blouse and long black leggings, looking more appropriate on a citizen than a soldier.

However, it didn't take much to tell she was unfazed by Link's defensive actions. That alone spoke volumes of her hidden depths.

"Whoa!" Link heard Tatl ring out, her golden form rising and falling at the shock of the girl's entry. He could hardly blame her or her sister. "Who in the name of Time are you?"

"Me?" The girl spoke the word questioningly, letting her index fingers daintily point towards herself. Her smile never faltered. "My name is Penny, and I'm your combat ready pilot!" She completed her declaration with a quick puffing of her chest, practically slamming her hands to her hips as she struck a pose.

Put altogether, it made Link blink. Slowly.

"Uh… what?" Link's long ears heard Tael ask, the dark fairy ringing lowly with clear trepidation. "You're, um… you're the one who's going to be flying us… into the Badlands… full of monsters?" It was clear Tael had as much confidence in this clearly energetic girl as his sister did. That was to say little to none.

"Yup!" The girl obliviously replied. "I've been certified to fly all variations of airships up to them tetrahedral class models. I've accumulated over five hundred hours total in flight time in both on-and-off mission flights! I'm super ready for this!" And again, she pumped her hands in the air. Unfortunately, link only stood half, at most, of what she said. The low rings of annoyance from Tatl told him he was not the only one.

"Penny is one of the most certified and trust worthy pilots we have," Ironwood decided to intervene. He was looking at Penny as well, that same smile on his face. "She has been briefed in depth about what is expected and where to go. If I am to guarantee you reach the Grimm without incident, Penny is piloting this ship is it." He did sound confident. Plus, if his earlier actions were truthful, he would not willing sacrifice one of his soldiers simply to inconvenience Link.

No… Ozpin said that if there was any man in the military that could be trusted, it was Ironwood. That was one of many notes he had Link memorize before they left, in the privacy of his office and away from the others.

"General Ironwood," Penny spoke up again, this time speaking more formally. She didn't lack the smile or small bob in her stance, like she was getting ready to jump. "I was told to deliver a message to you from the council. They said it was urgent to do so before we left."

"Ah, I see," the tall Gerudo spoke as he nodded. His head quickly turned towards Link. "Please wait here for a moment. I want to ensure all tasks are in order before you leave." Link nodded, understanding perfectly well what he meant. Leaving unprepared for even the smallest of tasks could lead to poor events.

The general and the young girl walked away, side by side as the girl, Penny, began to speak her message. Link did not listen. It would be impolite to do so, or at the very least tarnish any trust that existed between them right now. He was to be delivered to a battlefield, and he did not want the woman taking him there to have a grudge. That would be bad.

Instead his eyes wandered again, looking for any object that might appear worth studying in the short interval of time he had. The ships meant little to him, each one already so alien that it would take seasons truly grasp what they were. Metal was meant to fly, and seeing the ships do so at speeds that rivaled the Watarara was almost a fantasy.

It felt inappropriate to speak to any of the soldiers either. Their looks towards him, as they busied through their tasks, mixtures of confusion and distrust, were reason enough to not approach. They would not hear him even if he tried to speak. Tatl and Tael wouldn't do much more than either insult or confuse those whom he did speak to.

The fairies spun about his head as he trekked around the ship, eyeing it though understanding none of it. His boots clicked against the metal floor, an odd sound to him, so used to brick, dirt, or carpet. But it was far from something worth more than a thought. He was assaulted by strange sounds the moment he had come to this foreign land.

Whirring gears behind walls of steel, the buzzing of lightning in small objects that he could grasp, the grinding of metal in a place not dirtied with blood. Those were all just odd to him, odd enough to be a constant reminder that Hyrule this was no more. But then he heard a familiar sound.

A neigh.

His head spun, green pointed hat with him. Eyes trained by years of archery searched the grand chamber, looking for the source of the noise. It took him little time to see it now. Being led by reigns down the massive walkway, carried by a man who looked older than a sage, was a sight Link was only too happy to see.

"Is that a horse?" Tatl asked the obvious question, knowing already the answer. "What's a horse doing in a place like this?" Link didn't answer, he was already walking towards the familiar creature, lips pulled in a light grin.

"H-Hey, Link! Maybe would shouldn't… um, go too far away. Penny and the General should be done soon, right?" Tael fruitlessly tried to sway him. They could find him later. Link wanted to see a familiar face, even if it was on a creature he had never met before.

When he was only a few paces away, the old man leading the horse finally took notice of him. Both stopped, the horse's feet tapping against the metal floor as it came to a standstill, testing its own reigns with pulls of its head. Link looked at the man long enough to not the gray hairs on his head, the long tan overcoat he wore, buttoned and patched to show its years of work and wear. A set of glasses sat on the bridge of his nose, one of the spectacles larger than the other. There was a reason for that, likely, but Link didn't pay much mind to it.

"Can I help you?" The man asked finally, apparently searching for the right words to ask Link. "Sorry to say you don't look like any of them soldiers, so I gotta wonder what you are doing here."

"We're here with your General Stiff," Tatl spoke up from beside Link. He let her rule the conversation, she always did. "We're just busying ourselves while he talks to that little girl with him."

"General Stiff?" The old man mumbled, a confusion that was justified. "Ah, you must mean General Ironwood. Great man, great character. If he let you in here, I can trust you aren't up to any mischief." The man walked up to Link, matching the Hylian's height inch for inch. "My gaze may be going, but I can guess you're more taken by the mare then by me." Link nodded his head, looking from the old man back to the mare he led.

She was a beautiful thing, a coat of white and eyes of silvery blue. She had a good stature to her, standing at least eight feet tall, a face long and free of any mares. That meant she was probably raised carefully, away from any strain. A prize horse maybe. It was hard for him to judge more than that, however, given the large thick blanket that lay over the creature. He reached for it, prepared to lift over the mare's carriage-

-Only to find the old man slapping his hand away.

"Hey," the man spoke with a bit of bite. "I don't mind exchanging a few words, but you better have a good reason for just grabbing at things that aren't yours."

"Lighten up you old geezer," Tatl, unfortunately, answered. "Link's just curious about the horse is all. He's been around them for a good long while, at least since he was ten. You'd be surprised how much he knows about them."

"However much he knows isn't enough to understand this girl." That earned a quizzical look from Link. In turn, that made the old man grin, showing off his few golden teeth. "Not what you were expectin' to hear? Well, hate ta tell you this, but horses ain't exactly the kind of thing you'd see at any military site, let alone next to the Badlands." In Hyrule, that would be the sign of a deranged mind. In this world, with ships of metal that flew through clouds, Link could believe it.

"So then what am I looking at?" Tatl asked again, flying around the alabaster mare for show. Her golden dust sprinkled across the creature, making it tug at its reigns a bit harder. The old man grunted as he calmed the creature. "It looks like a horse, smells like a horse, and sounds like a horse. I'd say that makes it a horse."

That was when Link saw the old man smirk once more.

"Except horses don't have these." In a fluid motion that defied the man's apparent age, he reached for the same sheet covering the beast that Link had reached for before. His hand wrinkled the material as he grasped it, pulling it off of the white mare with a great pull.

And from it were produced a quartet of wings.

Link, for one of the first times since he arrived in this foreign land, felt himself step back in shock.

"Whoa!" He heard Tatl yell, mimicking his thoughts. "Holy crap! In the name of Time, Fate, and Destiny, I didn't expect that!" Her words only made the only man chuckle.

Link stared at the creature he knew now was far from a horse, even rarer than a simple alabaster mare. Two sets of wings extended from its sides, free to bend and wave with the tan curtain taken off of it. They stretched out further than Link could reach laying down, each lined with feathers befitting the royalty of the Watarara. They were all the same shiny silver as the creature's coat, but slick even to a naked eye. The creature neighed under Link's assessing gaze, likely in approval.

"Impressive, isn't she?" The man spoke again. "You won't find anything regular in the Badlands, be they Grimm or weapons, so I'm hearing making and taking care of the odd." His eyes fell back to the winged creature, hand running up its head. Link watched as the mare pushed its head into the contact, craving it.

"She's beautiful," his long ears heard Tael speak in awe, his ringing long and drawn out. "There… there are stories of pegasi in Hyrule, but we've never actually seen one. She looks… amazing."

"That she is," the old man agreed. "She was a side project of mine between tinkering with the robots and airships, a bit of genetics between robotics, but she's rearin' and ready for a test flight soon, and I can't wait to see how she handles."

Link only passively listened to the man's words. He was more taken to study the creature further and further. A part of him wanted to ignore the creature's magnificent wings, to see if it was still truly a mare in his eyes, but it was like ignoring the blue of the sky.

They flicked and twisted about, stretching themselves to show the restlessness of the beast. Each little waved of the mare's head came with a quick flap of the quartet of wings, never strong enough to lift it off the ground, but the air it pushed was enough to make Link's eyes wince shut. He had little doubt it would fly, could fly, and when it was free to.

Old instincts brought his hand to his built, reaching for a familiar tool he had played with many times before. His blue ocarina, an instrument he had played often on the ranges of Lon Lon, soothing the many mares and stallions that ran its grounds. This mare wasn't one he had ever seen before, but if it was anything like the horses he had rode before, it would be soothed all the same.

Settling his lips over the metallic mouthpiece, Link began to play the Song of his Mare.

It was a tune that called home, that begged for creatures of the plains to run through their land. Not to race through it, not to challenge it, but to enjoy it. The same stallions that would run through the plains would race only a patch where they could rest, where they could let the tune fill their ears and soothe their minds. Peace, it was a song of peace.

He bobbed as he played the familiar song, first sung to him by his long-time friend. One friend that had taught it to him, and another that answered it. A song that stretched passed the boundaries of the physical and united.

Link stopped when he felt the mare push against his face.

He laughed, enjoying the contact of the silvery creature, the wind it made from its wings a welcome breeze. He lowered his ocarina, returning it to his pouch as he raised his hands and soothe the creature's long face. It neighed into his palms as he knitted fingers across his mane.

"Oh, she's smitten for you," he heard the old man say, his voice full of no ire or mockery. "Gotta admit, most of the curious rookies that try and pet get a few stitches on their hand. You must really be experienced with mares and stallions."

"He sure is," Tatl assured. "But a pegasus, that's a new one." Even as Link slowly slipped his fingers through the creature's silvery mane, he knew his golden fairy was right. "That makes me wonder though, what's her name?"

"She don't got one yet." He sounded almost angry by the statement. Link offered only a glance long enough to see him snort in the air. His attention was quickly back to the playful pegasus. "I can't think of a name to really fit her. Pegasus is just too plain, like calling a human 'Human'. Naming her after any cartoon character would be insulting to how well she turned out, but I just can't put together a name to really fit her."

Link had one.

Link had a name that was perfect for the mare. It was name passed down through the generations of Lon Lon, given to only the strongest and heartiest of the ponies on the range. They were destined to be as willful as they were graceful, tough as they were proud. It was a name carried through a legend, one so far removed from his own, yet so perfect.

"I think Link has an idea," he heard the golden fairy reply. "And I think I know what he's thinking." The lightly ringing of his friend told him she was more than merely confident.

"Oh, and what would that be?" He sounded at least genuinely curious. Link noted all of it passively, the mare deserving his full attention.

"Epona." Tael, not Tatl, spoke the name. "Epona, a goddess to horses of old." It was the perfect name.

"Hey… yeah," the old man slowly let out, hand likely drawing over his chin. "That's gotta nice ring to it, really sticks with ya. Can't forget it and you can't chance thinking of something else when it comes to mind. That's darn near perfect!" Link heard him whoop. He let out his own chuckle at the energy.

Epona, the now properly named mare, neighed towards Link once more. He took it as acceptance to the name. His swiftly moved his hand up and down the long neck of the mare, scratching her glistening coat. It pushed into the hand with joy.

"Ah, there you are," the voice of Ironwood spoke from behind him and quite clearly towards him. Link twisted his head to see the tall general approaching, the tan dressed girl standing just beside him. Standing, actually, was a loose term, seeing as she was bent almost sideway as she stared at Link and the winged mare. He could hardly blame her. "I see Zeppeto has been keeping you busy." The name rang no bells.

"He's actually been the one entertaining me," the old man spoke. The name clicked instantly. "Gotta say though, I didn't expect a faunus to get on the mare's good side. Came up with a good name just to add a boot to it. Epona." Link was able to catch Penny's bright green eyes sparkle at the name. If that wasn't credit to her appreciation for the name, her words certainly were.

"Wow! That's such a pretty name for her!" The girl skipped closer, away from the general and up next to Link. She came to judge beneath eye height to him, but her gaze set up at the mare Link continued to brush. "Hello Epona, my name is Penny! It's a pleasure to meet you."

The mare snorted wetly at the girl. Link heard Tatl nearly fall to the floor with laughter as her brother rung lowly, nervously.

"You aren't on her good side yet, girl," Zeppeto spoke to Penny. "Gonna take more from you then some good words." Link watched the girl huff in annoyance, complete with a small raise of her lips, but no puffing of her cheeks. She did… look like she was trying though.

"That will have to be addressed later," Ironwood interrupted. Link did not miss the small grin he had on his lips. He had a light side at least. "It would be best to depart soon for the Creeper in the Badlands. Link, this is for you." Even as he spoke, he extended his hand outwards towards the Hylian, on object lying on his palm.

It was a small curved device, from what Link saw, with very small hollow divots on one of its oval ends, the remainder of it a smooth metallic material that seemingly curved like a snake. Aside from that, it was hard to identify anything else about it. There were no symbols, markings, or even sufficient size for him to note how it was put together.

"This is a two-way communication device, simply called a comm piece for short," Ironwood began to explain again. "It is a means for us to talk to you regardless of distance, and you to us… if you find yourself able. We have modified it slightly to show us your position in relation to the base. Simply, you wear it in your ear so that you can hear us, and we can find you." That was very convenient.

Link rubbed the device with his thumb. It was like a smaller version of the gossip stone, but apparently needing none of the Sheikah's mind to access. He would need to ask later how it worked. Lifting the device to his left side, he slid the device into his ear. It was cool to the touch, fitting loosely against his inner ear. He pushed on it, feeling the material lightly deform as the action. The long curved end wrapped around his pointed ear, uncomfortably grabbing at it. He flicked it to adjust, but found it only lightly relieving.

"It is normal to find it uncomfortable," Ironwood, for not the first time, answered his unspoken question. "Many soldiers find it disorienting, but the ability to hear others across a battlefield is more valuable than a small pinch of skin." Link had yet to enjoy the benefit the general was speaking of. But, imagining such a thing, he could see the advantage outweighing a minor irritation. His hand curled around the twisted end of the device regardless, hoping it would adapt to his long ears. No such luck came.

"Hi there!"

Link almost ripped the device clear off his ear.

"Whoa, Link! What's wrong?" Tatl's concerned voice asked him, in a much more appropriate volume. She was nearly dull compared to how loud the voice just before was. He was only just able to make out the ring of concern as both fairies floated around him, the darker of the two huddling up to him.

"Oops, sorry about that," the same voice spoke again, but not from within his ear this time. Link had his skewed eyes set on the bright eyed girl. She had a finger between her lips, biting it lightly, guiltily. "I maaaaay have forgotten to adjust the volume on the receiver, sorry about that." All Link knew was that she had accidently startled him. He sighed at the action.

"Apologies for the scare, but rest assured that during the actual fight, conversations will be quiet and limited to only impertinent information," Ironwood smoothly followed the rather hazardous display. It was hard for Link to judge if he was used the girls mistakes, or simply surprises in general. A military leader was expected to deal with new information readily and carefully.

"Right, just make sure you're not gonna let Ice Queen start talking to Link," he heard Tatl say. "I can't think of a more annoying person distracting Link than that." He bit back a chuckle, settling for only a small smirk.

"Noted," Ironwood spoke. "But communications to Link will be limited until necessary. We cannot and will not give battle strategies, as this is a way for you to make up for your over-aggressive display at Beacon."

"Wait, I thought-" Link raised his hand to Tael as soon as he started to speak. He trusted the fairy, and valued his advice, but speaking secrets to strangers was never a good idea. The Hylian watched the tall Gerudo raise one of his thick dark brows, curious of what was going to be said. However, he did not ask.

"You should leave for the Creeper, if you are now prepared," Ironwood spoke. "Any other information that has not already been given to you will be provided by Penny in flight. Ask if you need anything else. Zeppeto." Ironwood bowed to the old man, speaking his name.

Then, without so much as a nod more, he marched off back down the longer chamber, towards the invisible door they had come through, doubtless to meet up with the others again. Or, more likely, to reach a point of communications, like the high tower of Hyrule Castle. Both were likely.

"Off to fight the Creeper, are you?" Zeppeto asked with a wry tone to his voice. "That beasty has been causing a lot of iffy air around here. Just close enough to cause some alarm, but too far to really do any serious damage. Kinda like it's waiting on the borderline for something to happen. I guess you're just that, aren't ya?" The old man grinned as he finished.

It reminded Link of someone, someone he had no love nor interest for. He had to remind himself again that they were two very different men. One was before him, old in age and recognized by others. The other was a man that never lost his smile, and yet never gained a face…

"Are you ready to go now?" Penny asked Link, her voice chipper and free of any worry. There was something… wrong about that. He couldn't place his finger on it. "I am free to wait for any required amount of time you need, but I think leaving now would be ah-oh-kay!" She winked at him as she raised on hand high in the air. He had no idea what that meant.

"Best be off sooner than later if you ask me," Zeppeto spoke again. Link heard Tatl and Tael ring as they shifted their attention with him. "Don't want to fight those things in the dark. Hard to see black fur in a black night." It sounded like common sense, but many soldiers Link had known never thought as much when they jumped into caverns with hardly a lantern. This man was more experienced than he appeared to be. "You just be safe now Penny. Can't have you getting banged up again, can we?"

"I won't," The girl replied with an overly done shake of her head. "I've got order to be extra careful when approaching the Creeper. Link's safety is top priority!"

"Of course it is," Link just faintly heard Tatl mumble, shaking in the air just aside his ear. He gave no notice to the mutter. Best not draw attention to it.

"Then I'll be off," Zeppeto spoke, just before looking back to Link. "And you best promise to come back as well. I don't want the faunus that named Epona here to suddenly be done it. That's bad luck no matter what way you look at it." Luck was hardly a thing that needed to be looked for, but Link understood the message.

Smiling, facing the man, he bowed to him. A soft chuckle was the sign Link was given he was understood. AS he rose, he let his hand pass over Epona's silver coat again. Her wings lightly flicked in the air, clearly wanting to take flight in some way, if they could. When he did come back, he would have to help her with that.

"Alright, I guess this is us then." Tatl's voice was already fading as she spoke, her golden body bobbing through the air and towards the metal carriage. Dust trailed lightly behind her. "C'mon, I don't want to be out here any longer than the rest of us. I can't feel anything alive out here." That was as good a reason as any. He took a step to follow her, but was stopped by a light ring from Tael.

"Um… Link?" The fairy spoke his name questioningly. "Are... Are you ready for this? I mean, I know you're strong. I can't forget that, but… But you remember what Ozpin said, right?" Link could hardly forget.

He nodded at the fairy, a short smile on his lips. There was no need to look grim towards the already nervous fairy. He still shook in the air, likely ready to cry.

"Then you can handle this, right? I know you can, I know but… but this is different. Please don't let anything happen." Those were words that reminded Link of how young the dark fairy was. Not just younger than his sister, but still very young to the world. It was kind, it was pitiable, it was tragic, but it was gave Link enough hope to smile.

He held out his hand for the dark fairy, Tael instantly settling on it. He weight like air to the Hylian. Link let out a light chuckle as he face the fairy, turning towards the ship as he did so. He saw Penny waiting by it, head tilted at a rather extreme angle, Tatl just above her. Both were waiting, and he was ready.

Penny saw him, and he watched her own overly bright smile light up. She appeared naïve as Tael, yet had the energy of Ruby. It was a wonder why she was here, but it was a wonder he would hold later. Ozpin, as Tael had reminded, told them that they were to fight the Creeper. The Military and Council would do all in their power to make it so.

Because when he got there, he was supposed to die to it.

He only hoped Ozpin would be worth trusting when the time came.

Weiss was familiar with expensive equipment. As the heiress to the Schnee Dynasty, raised to take over the business once she was of age, she was well aware of all the finest equipment when it came to Dust Mining, Processing, and Manufacturing. However, as it was so often the case with any large business, she was required to become intimately familiar with not only the product itself, but how it was guarded and transported. From trains, airships, communication relays, and defensive drones, Weiss had studied and nearly memorized all that were available on the market.

That was why she was one of one two faces that were not struck awed by the communications tower she and her team had ended up in.

She was well aware of the reason for three rows of a dozen soldiers, each pouring themselves over respective monitors, she could tell the purpose of every one of the few dozen screens that lined the walls and near high ceilings, and of course, she was well aware of the reason for structure of the tower.

A 'Normandy Relay' is what it was called, where the general or senior authority figure would stand in the center of the room and be flanked on all sides by her diligent soldiers. He or she was given an eye and ear to all the incoming data, never out of ear-shot of any sudden shout the soldiers may give, be it confirmation of an order or warning of an incoming attack.

The floors were layered in three, to maximize space and effectiveness. Nearly looking like shelves at the store, the soldiers sat at terminals, punching away at the screens and scrolls that they needed to, relaying and documenting all incoming information. Everything, in a danger zone or elsewhere, was key. If not in the moment, then sometime in the future.

However, all of that was, as expected, in a restricted area.

Weiss and the remainder of her team were behind a set of glass doors, given eyes and ears to the room, but far and away from any access. To be honesty, she was slightly miffed, but she could hardly call herself a well-educated woman if she complained about not be allowed access to a classified area. That wouldn't do for her image.

She was stuck with her arms folded under chest, staring into the mildly darkened room. She couldn't complain of the view or comfort, as sat on a rather comfortable chair at the end of a long conference table. Screens were displayed on the opposite of the long piece of equipment, likely to allow any form of video conversation. It would difficult to have one in a room that was always buzzing with activity. It took the heiress little time to know that the members of the council would likely be lighting up the screens soon. There was simply no way they would miss watching Link perform in the field.

Not after she had sent her father all the data she had recorded regarding the foreign faunus and his rather… exotic forms of weaponry.

"I've never been caught so well between nervousness and excitement," she heard the rather pitiable leader of Team JNPR start. He finished with a dry chuckle, a clear a sign as any for his lack of confidence. "Feels like I'm getting ready to watch an interrogation."

"When you think about it, it kinda is," Yang responded, with all the grace she usually had. That being none. "I mean sure, it's not so much an interrogation for a crime as it is watching Link kick some giant Grimm's butt, but hey, that happens sometimes interrogations. Fun ones at least." That comment didn't surprise Weiss in the least.

"I just wish we could know where he was at," Ruby, her partner spoke now, sitting on the table, legs swinging beneath her as she looked out into the glassed off restricted area of the comm tower. "I just doesn't feel right… leaving him like that."

"General Ironwood has promised and assured that Link will be grant absolute protection until he reaches the Creeper in the territory of the Badlands. If anyone can be trusted for his word, it is him." Ms. Goodwitch spoke up, likely to assure Ruby. Weiss clicked her tongue. "We will be receiving updates of Link's battle as it occurs, as well as any to all critical information."

"That doesn't mean to let your guard down." Weiss was completely unsurprised to hear Blake's comment. Then again, she was inclined to agree. "If there is any place where you need to be constantly aware, it's on the border of Grimm Territory." Weiss didn't need to hear to know that Blake was referring to a danger entirely unrelated to Grimm. But once more, given Link's displays thus far, she was greatly inclined to agree.

"A valid point, but it does not negate my own," Ms. Goodwitch countered. Weiss glance at the professor long enough to see her eyes were still trained on her pad. "Link's safety is guaranteed, and I have observed no reports of danger or mishap from Ironwood." It was likely only because the professor used the General's name that the statement wasn't utterly laughable.

It would only make too much sense to Weiss to cover up a mishap that had occurred on company grounds, burying evidence and paying off the right people. She doubted the Military would work any differently if Link were to be injured in some way. But again, Ms. Goodwitch was the polar opposite of inexperienced. It was likely only because of Ironwood that the comment was made at all.

"I apologize for my delay." Speak of the Grimm and they shall emerge, Weiss internally quoted. She swung her head to observe the metallic door open and closer without hardly making a noise. "I felt it prudent to ensure that all matters were in order before having Link leave the hanger bay." In walked the impressively built General Ironwood, arms folded behind his back and wearing that oh so subtle smirk. It dripped with self-induced confidence.

"So does that mean Link's on his way then?" Jaune asked again. Of course it was Jaune. Even compared to Nora, he could never keep his mouth shut. "I mean, he must be close to leaving, right?"

"He and our designated pilot departed a few minutes ago. They should be arriving at the drop-point within no time at all." By Weiss's standards, that was very vague for a general. She'd heard Ruby be more specific about details.

"Then can we see him?" Ruby, of course, jumped in and asked. She swung her legs over the table, gracefully moving to a kneeled position atop the desk. It would have been impressive, if she wasn't kneeling on a table. "We're gonna get to see him, right?"

Ironwood didn't respond, not immediately at least. He only kept that rather confident grin as he reached into one of the pockets of his rather pristine white coat. A part of Weiss was tempted to ask how he kept his uniform so clean in such a dusty and otherwise hospitable climate, but that was a question of lesser concern.

From his pocket, Ironwood produced a small scroll, just large enough to fit in the palm of his hand. His thumb tapped it, lighting up the screen. He made a few more taps on the translucent screen, all without ever-answering Ruby's question. But then, with a small turn of his head, and another tap on the small scroll in his hand, the screens across the table lit up. The room was already well lit, so it was incorrect to say they lit up the room. That didn't stop Ruby from lighting up like an explosion of Dust.

On one of the screens, second from the right with crystal clear picture, was the foreign faunus of green.

"Link is in mid-transport, being carried in a Model T-3040 Bullhead," Ironwood spoke that with a good level of detail at least. Thankfully, too, because Weiss was well aware of the model. She only needed to glance about the room to see the rest of her teammates weren't.

"It's Bullhead designed for swift transportation of individual passengers," she began to explain, tilting her head back. Just to get a better view of the screen of course. "The reduction in size and removal of any Dust Cannons allows the Bullhead to focus on high speed and dexterity, supplementing that with an experimental Dust Overlay Shield. It wouldn't help in a fight against an opposing airship, but it will keep minor annoyances off."

"Precisely correct, Ms. Schnee," Ironwood complimented her with a quick bow of his head. "I can see your father spoke honestly about you and your knowledge of our tools." Weiss was completely unsurprised to hear that Ironwood and her father were friends. In actuality, she would be more surprised if they hadn't met at some point.

"Sounds like's gonna be safe till he gets there," Yang spoke up again. She snickered before she spoke on, however. "But he doesn't look too secure himself." And honestly, Weiss agreed.

The camera allowed only a stiff view of Link, his odd-colored mini-drones sitting on either one of his shoulders, but he was clutching the seat he was riding with a clearly tense grip, back straight against his seat and eyes shut. It looked as if he were holding on for… dear life…

"General Ironwood," Weiss began to ask. "Is the pilot using the ship's… maximum speed?" A part of her already told her the answer.

"But of course," Ironwood, unfortunately, confirmed the heiress's thoughts. She sighed at the admittance. "We wanted to ensure Link was not in a battle with time, and delaying his confrontation with the Grimm would only put him at chance of fighting in the Badlands at night." True, that was bad… But Weiss doubted a foreign faunus like Link was used to the T-3040's maximum speed.

"How fast does it move?" She heard Ren, reasonably, ask.

"You remember how fast we were flying on the way here?" Weiss asked rhetorically. She didn't wait for an answer, deciding to shake her head instead. Good thing the seat was comfortable. "The T-3040 is capable of flying over a dozen times as fast, just kept off of super-sonic levels for fear of damaging the smaller wings of the Bullhead."

"Oh," was all Ms. Goodwitch spoke. It was all that needed to be said.

It was rather doubtful Link had ever flown in a ship that fast back in his rural homeland. Weiss was more impressed he wasn't vomiting from the motion, much like another thick-headed blonde he unfortunately resembled.

"Well at least it isn't a boring flight, huh?" Of course Yang would make a joke. Of course she would. No one else would but the buxom boxer of their group. "Looks to me like he can't wait to get out of the ship. Think he'll want to fight the Creeper over taking that ship back?" She laughed at a joke that Weiss clearly missed.

"He'll be alright," Weiss heard someone else say. It didn't take her anytime to see Blake speaking, arms folded across her chest. Everyone else was focused on Link, if Yang's dry humor and Jaune's nervous mutterings were any indication. "If half of what Tatl says is true, the worst Link has to deal with will be the flight itself. Besides, he has his friends with him. With them, he's never really alone."

That got Weiss.

It had been nearly three days since Link and Blake "flew" up to Ozpin's office, coming out with news of this ridiculous hunt. Three days of Link studying with Ozpin up in the tower, coming down only to go to his room and sleep well into the next day. Those same three days filled with Blake constantly talking about the foreign faunus.

Weiss never did consider herself a gossip, finding the ritual more tiring and confusing then any form of satisfaction would make worthwhile. Yet, she was consumed with questions regarding Link's little meeting with Blake.

What did Link tell Blake to earn her trust so quickly? A part of Weiss wanted to simply chalk it up to faunus heritage and be done with it, but she couldn't accept that. It would be like saying Yang loved every fight she was in. If that were true, she wouldn't have enemies. No, Link earned Blake's trust, and the Schnee heiress was determined to figure it out, sooner or later.

For now, though… it was better to focus on the foreign faunus and his fight at hand.

Especially now that he looked to be relaxing on the screen…

"We're almost here, so we're slowing down now!" Link was grateful for the voice in his ear, even more so for the message it gave him.

His fingers unwrapped from the metallic seat his was on, feeling the force of the flight ebb from intolerably strong to relaxing drift. A breath slowly left his lungs in the form of a sigh. He wasn't aware he had any air in there, not after the take off the girl had performed.

"Oh… Oh thank Time," Link heard Tael mutter tiredly from his shoulder. He had to look to make sure the dark fairy was still there, lying down and ringing only as he spoke. "I thought. I thought we were in trouble before we got to the monster…"

"That girl," he then heard Tatl continue. "She's in for one heck of a yelling when we get back. Oh yeah, I'm… I'm gonna just let loose and… uuuuh," the golden fairy's supposedly strong boast teetered and fell with her golden glowing body. Looks like the speeds were too much for either of the airborne fairies. If Link had control of his gut, he might have chuckled at that.

He settled instead for focusing on the outside of the ship. Penny the Pilot told him they were close, that meant that there would be monsters outside the flying carriage. It was natural for larger monsters to attract their lesser kin, the basic instinct to be near something strong. It was true from the densest forests to the darkest of caverns.

Unfortunately, Link was left rather stuck in that regard. The small compartment he sat in had no glass to see through, and it was impossible to hear anything aside from the roar of the machine. Penny had called it an 'engine', though he suspected it was the name of some magical device. All that mattered in the moment was that its roar shook the metal he was surrounded by, completely nullifying the sounds from outside.

It wasn't a good idea to run into any fight without knowing as much as possible. He recalled more than once Tatl screaming at him for doing just that, but time and experience had taught him the benefits of prior planning and research. He knew of the dangers of the forest temple from his friends in the Kokiri. He knew of the horrors of Death Mountain from the Gorons, and even the depths of the Great Bay were told by the Zoras.

Right now, all he had to go on were the existence of monsters in large number, clamoring in an otherwise desolate land. He had no idea of what kind or size of the monsters, the Dodongo aside. He could guess that there were likely many more of its kin or familiar monsters around it, all finding the shadow of the larger monster safer than anywhere else.

He had bombs to spare, and those were one of the few items that would pierce their thick shell. However, as he, Ozpin, and Blake had planned, he needed a large number of them to take on the larger Dodongo. It was likely a King, but it was hard to tell from those pictographs. Even now he had to admit they were of much higher quality than the ones he had taken back in Termina…

… Those were days he preferred not to remember.

"Oh hey, the ship's slowing down." Tatl's voice, thankfully, took Link from his thoughts. That was when he noticed the noticeable drop in force as well. He no longer had to grip the seat to feel safe. The slow drop in his gut told him they were descending as well. It was like falling, but without the sudden stop.

The rumbling of ship began to lesson, changing from what sounded like Volvagia's roar to a Deku Scrub's whine. A moment after that, he felt the flying ship touch down on the ground. Though not alien to flight itself, not with the help of Queen Elrora, it was still odd to feel flying like this.

"Whelp, we're here!" The voice of Penny shouted again through the small device in his ear. It was a thankfully lower volume than before. "I can't take you any further without spooking the Creeper and having him attack, buuuut I'm pretty sure you can find him from here."

"W-What does that mean?" Tael asked from Link's shoulder, still clinging to the green tunic desperately. He may not have known, but Link knew well enough.

It was as Ozpin had told him. The monsters of this land were stronger with age, but also wiser. If the Dodongo saw the flying ship, or any sign of the Military that had likely hunted it before, it would either burrow deeper into the Badlands, or attack. Attacking was bad now only because risking Penny's safety was not an option.

So, instead, he was going to have to hunt.

Almost in time with the conclusion of his thoughts, the door to the small compartment he sat in opened up, the air whooshing past him. The unseen magic within the machine buzzed like lightening as the door raised, stopping in time with the metal door. IT was only too clear what was expected of him next.

Link rose from his seat, walking the one step he could inside the small space, before jumping to the brown dead ground beneath him. It was a blessed compared to the metal of the ship. Even though there was not so much as a blade of grass or even a dead tree around him, it was far preferred to sitting in the ship he had just come from.

"Oh thank Time we're out of there," Tatl hastily replied as she flew past Link, darting through the air and away from the underside of the ship. Link followed her with haste, remembering full well where they were. Separation was a death sentence.

"H-Hey sis! Wait up!" Tael yelled to his golden sister, thinking as Link did in this moment. The golden fairy did stop, though with a ring Link just barely heard over the hum of the ship behind them. He wondered again about the magic that operated it.

"Oh give me a break, I'm not flying off," Tatl spoke back defensively, though waiting until Link was only arm's reach from her. "I just wanted some distance from that flying contraption. Seriously, it was a moving cell or something." Link couldn't argue with that.

"So I take it your all set?" the voice in his ear spoke again. Link turned back to the ship, looking to the front of the flying carriage, where Penny had seated herself before they had left the fort before. She was just visible to his naked eyes, the bright green of her eyes rather scarce compared to the land around her.

"Yeah, we're all good, at least as good as we can be in a monster infested area." Tatl spoke into Link's ear, ringing with her words. Sarcasm dripped from her words like dust from her body. Penny, however, only seemed to smile from her place at the front of the ship.

"Spectacular! I'll see you back here soon! Remember to use your comm when you are ready." The pilot cheerfully yelled to him again. This time he could see her waving from the glass dome she sat in. It appeared that very little bothered her. That was a good quality to have, if not in the army.

He watched as she turned her attention back to the area she sat in, playing with something that was outside his field of vision. Her head waved back and forth as the noise of the ship increased again, in time with its slowly rising into the air. The metallic door Link had emerged from slowly shut itself, completely sealing itself off by the time the hovering craft was well over thrice his height in the air.

Link could only make out the underside of it now, but even then he didn't have much time. Much faster than it has raised itself into the air, the flying craft took off across the brown plain, flying through the much faster than he believed any Watarara or dragon could fly. It rose as it flew, splitting a few low-hanging clouds before finally vanishing from sight.

That left Link alone with Tatl and Tael, in a land more barren than a desert and hardly a whisper of noise. He could see mountains on the horizon, as bleak and brown as the earth he stood on. There likely valleys around those monolithic protrusions, as was so often the case. Link found it unlikely he'd find any more sign of life there either. Hilly plains, tall mountains, and likely deep valleys, each as dead as the next. He preferred the solid earth to the hollow metal of the ship, but he could not stand the absence of life. It was too heavy a reminder.

The only comparable form of life he could see was the blue sky above, but even that was dulled by the bleakness of the land around him, as if it rose to corrupt the sky even. There was no wind across the wastes, nothing to show that there was every anything other than dead land.

"Well… this is exciting," Tatl spoke in mocking tone, though not directed at anyone present. She bobbed up and down in the air. "Yup, there are total loads of monsters around here. I can really see why everyone is so scared of this place."

"Sis, it doesn't seem like a good idea to be saying stuff like that," Tael warned his sister, though he did it with noticeable ease. It wasn't hard for Link to see that he wasn't nervous. In a land supposedly filled with monsters, that was not to be expected. Then again, Link couldn't see a single beast across the bleak landscape.

"No, no, it makes sense." The only reason Link did not take the fairy seriously was because he knew her well enough. "The Gerudo here have clearly run out of the desert, living everywhere from the Kokiri's Forest to the Zora's River, so it totally makes sense they'd call the place they ran away from evil." Link tried not to smile as he continued to search the horizon. The hills seemed irregular, but the land was so dead it was hard to tell what it meant.

"Yeah, but… there is something out here, right? That general said so," Tael, apparently, already gave up on the argument regarding insult to the land. That usually meant he already silently agreed. Link trained his eyes on the cusp of the hill. It was uneven still, but it just seemed off… It didn't help that it appeared difference when he blinked once and twice.

"Of course there's something out here, otherwise this would be a pretty crappy way of trying to get rid of us," Tatl spoke back, ringing as if to scoff with her own words. "I mean seriously, after all that lead up, I just thought it would be like Ikana Valley. At least that place was creepy." Link chose not to remind her of the darkness that lurked in the graveyards of Kakariko. Those were far darker than this land. But at least even there was grass and trees, not the complete lack of life here. And the hills didn't keep moving…

"I know, I know, but we shouldn't tell them they're wrong or anything." Tael meekly responded. "I wouldn't like it if someone told me that the Lost Woods were boring. I liked those woods." Link did, too. He could admit it easily when he stood in a barren waste. He could admit even more as his hand slowly reached for his blade.

"Who said anything about mocking?" Tatl spoke. She once more sounded wholly serious. "I'm just calling them out for basically exaggerating this place as the 'end all' of the world. Dig out a lake or something and you could probably live here. I just can't call a place dangerous unless there's-"

SKREEEE!

The cry came from a monster that jumped from the dead lands. Jaw open in mid-flight, it barreled towards the pair of fairies, aim true, precise, and in all likely hood deadly. Tatl and Tael didn't even have the time to ring in fright as the creature was set upon them.

And was swiftly pierced down its length by Link's blade.

He held the creature at the tip of his blade, held in his dominant hand in a forward thrust. It weighed heavily, an extra weight on his already mildly weighted steel. It made no thrashing movement though, no cries of pain either. Link's decisive strike had killed it in a single blow.

Tatl and Tael hovered behind him, peaking over his shoulders as they all observed the creature. It was long and snake-like in shape, its head larger than the rest of its body. No arms or legs, it had only a wide jaw and heavy plate to make it a fierce sight. But all of that alone, it was definitely a baby Dodongo. But that was it.

This creature had scales black as night, darker than even the dead ground it jumped from. A starkly white plate sat over its head, two sockets that were once home to red piercing eyes, though now snuffed out with its life. The plate smooth along its edges, flowing into its scales with no rough edges. Those edges were for its teeth.

Teeth that appeared to be sharp as Link's blade and lining two sets of teeth. It was not something any creature could take without at least a small kind of pain. Even for a supposed baby, this creature could take on a full-grown mare.

It was just as Ozpin had shown him with the image of the Monster from before. Every bit the monsters he had fought in Hyrule and beyond, but twisted even further into monstrosities that even the darkest parts of the world feared to claim. At least the wolfos seemed hardly different from before and the Nevermore creature a new beast on its own. This merely confirmed that for all the similarities Link could find and see, there would inevitable be differences as well.

"Whoa, nice catch Link," Tatl complimented him. It was a clear as the sun, especially to those who knew her, that it was highest kind of compliment she could give. "I didn't even see that thing coming."

"S-S-See!" Tael shouted at his sister, her nervous tendencies jumping forwards all at once. "I told you not to make fun of this place. Now… N-Now there are monsters j-j-jumping out of the grounds at us!" Link quickly withdrew his blade, the creature falling soundlessly to the dead earth. Another quick swing of his blade and its dark blood flew off, nothing to grip to.

"Oh quiet worrying Tael," his golden sister responded. "So we gotta bit of a jump scare. Big whoop. Link took care of it like it was nothing." Not untrue, though Link preferred a fight to an ambush. His eyes scanned the ground the Dodongo had jumped from. "Besides, at least now we know where to go."

"W-What?" Tael asked, his voice quivering with the same pace as his ring. Dark dust fell from beneath him, wings shifting from Link to his sister. "W-What do you mean?" Link only smiled lightly as his eyes trailed the earth, seeing what he wanted.

"C'mon Tael, think for a second," his sister cajoled him, flying around her darker sibling. "A monster just attacked from out of the literal ground, but even then it means it would have had to come from somewhere, right?" A low ring came from Tael, matched by the quicker and higher one Tatl made herself. "So now all we gotta do is follow where it came from." Tatl knew better. Then again, Tatl had been with her for more of his journeys than her younger brother. Link knelt down long enough to poke the dead ground, confirming the looseness of it as the path the Dodongo had burrowed from. In essence, a trail.

"W-Wh-Why would we do that?" Link stood as he heard Tatl ring, likely with annoyance. It was alright. Tael just preferred not to fight. It was unfortunate that was the exact opposite of what they were going to do.

"Cause that was just a baby," Tatl spoke up, rising a little in the air as she spoke. "And we're gonna go and take down that thing's big bad grandpa!" Not how Link would have said it, but it was close enough to be true. Besides, he had a trail now, ahead and over the hill.

Link kept his blade up as he began to follow the underground trail, knowing full well what he would find at the end. There were going to be plenty of distractions along the way.

But they wouldn't be any more than that, distractions.

"He's quick, I'll give him that," Ironwood spoke aloud, though to no in particular. Even if he had been talking to someone, Ruby didn't bother to check who. Her eyes were glued to the screen showing Link, the definition of easy to see, seeing as he was wearing green in a big, dull, and plain land.

Ms. Goodwitch's mini-drones were following him, watching his every move, and they had showed perfectly how he had drown his sword and struck down the Grimm faster than Ruby would have been able to get Crescent Rose ready. It was like watching something explode! Just standing there, normal and everything, then all of the sudden… BAM! Carnage!

Well… carnage was probably the wrong word, the young team leader internally realized. He did only strike once, but that was awesome, too. One strike for one monster. Then he was off walking in the Badlands again like nothing was wrong, Tatl and Tael flying around him. He looked every bit the hunter she wanted to be. She almost felt bad for whoever the pilot was, taking off before they could see Link thrash the Creeper like that.

"Don't worry, he's strong, too," Ruby heard Blake speak, likely to General Ironwood. "He lifts objects several times his own weight to battle Beowolves and school bullies. It's going to take a lot more than a few surprises to get the best of him." Blake's confidence was impossible to miss. Ruby shared it, and she was sure everyone else did, too. Who couldn't cheer for a faunus like Link?

"I have no doubt he is just that, otherwise Ozpin would have never proposed this," Ironwood spoke back. Ruby had her eyes on the screen still, watching Link's head move as he walked. "But in the Badlands, strength and speed are useful only in the short term. He will need more than that to best the Ancient Creeper."

Almost in time with the general's words, two more Creepers jumped from the dead earth, jaws open for Link. They were no different in size from the ones before, just as deadly. And after Link spun in a circle, they were just as dead. Well, maybe deader, seeing as they Grimm fell back down in two halves each. Link never even broke stride. Ruby was grinning with fists clenched just beneath her jaw, her excitement starting to boil over.

"He seems well-trained to me," Pyrrha spoke now. If she was calling someone well-trained, that could be written in the books. Pyrrha was, thankfully, not a show-off with her skill, but that didn't mean she handed out medals like she did apologies. She only said something if she meant it. "I'm sorry, but he has shown to be adept at using minimal movement with his blade, as well as having instinctual knowledge of where to strike. He isn't just swing a sharp piece of steel."

In what Ruby was now considering Remnant's way of proving her right, another small Creeper jumped at Link, this time from behind. On a heel he spun, but in the opposite way she expected. Instead of his sword cutting into the creeper, his shield slammed into it, beating away the airborne Grimm. She could only guess it let out a cry of pain as it was swatted like a fly. Whatever noise it was though was ended as soon as Link completed his spin, sword stabbing through the creature before it ever touched the ground. He kept moving in the same direction afterwards.

"He is proving his land's namesake of a knight," Ms. Goodwitch spoke now, with what Ruby could not ignore was a tone of approval. "Following the trail of the Grimm hunting him so he can find his way to the Ancient Creeper." Is that what he was doing? It made sense of him constantly poking the ground as he moved, but she was more focused on how fast he was cutting up all the Grimm. It was like a movie special.

"Yeah, but when is he gonna fight some big Grimm?" Ruby almost diverted her attention from the screen, almost. Nora's question was two parts rude and one part random. Then again, one part of everything she said was pretty random. "Those little guys don't mean much. How about a big guy! I wanna see Link prove he's the King of Hyrule!" Wait, Link was a king?

"Hero, Nora," Ren patiently corrected. Made sense, he was Nora's partner, and patient, and smart, and she was starting to lose focus on Link. He was almost over the cusp of one of the brown hills, shield and sword at opposite sides. "According to his companions, Link was called a Hero of Hyrule, not a king. He was also never labeled as the only hero."

"Besides, Link lacks the dignity befitting someone of noble birth," Weiss spoke up. She would know best about kings, queens, and other rulers. She was a princess after all. "He prefers smaller accommodations to others, requests no special privileges, and, above all else, left his homeland. No proper ruler would leave their country in such a way." Well… Ruby could give her that last one. Besides, she had to focus on Link still. He was just moving over the hill, Ms. Goodwitch's mini-drones following him as they showed him straighten at the top of the hill, overlooking –

- a large creeper jumping at him with forearms drawn.

The view of Link momentarily shaken as the mini-drones moved further away, making Ruby hear a gasp from some corner of the room. She felt her hands grip her cloak tightly. When the cameras righted themselves, it showed Link in mid-roll, the dark Creeper flying over him, both unharmed. That was mixed news.

Link rose back to his feet as his roll finished, shield raised towards the Creeper that had turned around at its own landing. Both were as still as the dead earth beneath them, Tatl and Tael flying just behind Link's green cap. No sound was made, mostly due to the fact that Ms. Goodwitch's mini-drones didn't make any sound. Ruby wanted to grab the screen and shake something free, if only to make this look less like a montage of Link being attacked. But, as she learned from Weiss, she had to be patient.

The Creeper attacked again, jumping with its powerful forelimbs. In one of Dr. Port's stories, those had ripped the hull of a cargo train clean through. That meant it was tough. Link must have known that, because he leaned back, spinning towards the ground. One of the larger Creeper's claws went right over Link again.

Without the cameras moving, Ruby could see the size difference between the two. The Creeper was twice as large as Link, probably weighing just as much. Combine that with the strength to tear through reinforced steel and run at speeds as fast a dust powered engine trains, and it was a hard fight.

That was why it was all the more impressive when Link continued his sideways spin, raising his sword and cutting through the Creeper's tail as he did. He stopped his spin standing again. This time, the Grimm hit the ground with half off its body cut off.

It writhed on the dead earth, head moving back and forth and probably making some guttural cry. Ruby was glad she couldn't hear it. But then it fell over completely, red leaving its eyes to show it was dead.

"Looks like Mr. Hero is gonna be just fine," Ruby heard her sister say. Knowing her sister, she was probably nodding her head with a confident grin. Ruby was doing the same, for the same reason. She loved her sister. "Taking down that beast with one strike, it's a whole cut above a Beowulf!" Ruby sometimes hated her sister. The groan that followed through the room was one she shared.

"He does have good instincts, going for the weakest part of the creature," Ironwood noted again. Ruby hoped he was nodding his head. That's what he did when he told her she'd done a good job trying to fight the infiltrator at Beacon. "He'll need them he fights the true beast up ahead." Well yeah, there was that. "But I am curious as to what he is doing now." Because Ruby was watching the screen, she knew exactly what he was talking about.

Link was kneeling down by the corpse of the larger Creeper, the hand that was connected to his shield arm running over the top of the Grimm. Tatl and Tael were flying around him as he did so. Maybe there were talking. Maybe he was looking for something, probably, but Ruby didn't know what.

"What's he doing?" Jaune voiced Ruby's question. She could always count on him to do that, especially when she knew it would be too embarrassing to say them out loud. Yup, good old Jaune taking the heat for her.

"Isn't he hunting?" She heard Jaune ask. Way to go! "You know like, hunting like a hunter? Like, what we're training to be?"

"There's a reason why we are called Hunters, Mr. Arc," Ms. Goodwitch spoke up now. "Though labeled differently for likely alien reasons, Link is still hunting the Grimm as you will one day be expected to as well. Grimm rarely stay in one place, and in the labyrinths they may exist in one day, you must learn to hunt them, or else they will hunt you." Actually that made sense.

Link did seem to find something though, as he followed the dirt with his eyes, then his hands. Then he was walking again, Tatl and Tael circling around him. For not the first time, Ruby really wished she could hear what was going on. She didn't need an imagination to know that they were all talking together, and probably about where to go next.

"You know, there is still one thing I don't get." Ruby heard Jaune ask. She couldn't think of an embarrassing question, so she wondered what he was going to say, only as she watched Link carefully stride over a hill. Ms. Goodwitch's mini-drones seemed pretty happy with not showing her what was over it already.

"Grimm are attracted to emotions, like really bad ones, right? So then, why are they all crowded out here? In this wasteland?"

Ruby blinked. That… was actually a really good question.

"Ah, a fair question," she heard Ironwood respond. She had to look at him now, because it was worth at least a glance away from the screen. She looked long enough to see the general smiling at Jaune, nodding approvingly. That was enough. She turned her silver eyes back to the screen. "It is something our researchers here have been attempting to study, mainly concerning the abundancy of not only regular Grimm, but also their elder counterparts."

"Wait, research? You guys actually do stuff here besides holding the line?" That was Yang. Her sister definitely knew how to ask the direct questions. She did always get an answer.

"Of course, research and study of Grimm behavior is one of the cornerstones of the Military. The unknown does have the advantage, and the only way to overcome that is to study the unknowns." Huh… that made sense, too.

"Interesting, and have you any findings. Well let me clarify, any findings that are not sealed behind the Council's red tape?" Even if she wasn't intently familiar with her voice, it was only too obvious to Ruby that Blake asked the question. No one else loathed the Council and Military as much as she did. There were a lot of good reasons though.

"Not enough to keep me from saying that it has something to do with strong emotions," Ironwood, surprisingly, answered. The lack of a scoff or growl from Blake probably meant she was surprised, too. Ruby just kept her eyes on Link, pumping a fist as he effortlessly chopped another baby Creeper in two. That one didn't even make it out of the ground. "Specifically, for whatever reason, there are is enough hate, anger, and despair flowing from the badlands to draw even the eldest of Grimm to this location."

"Whoa," Jaune let out. "So like… why is there all that stuff? The hate I mean. I mean, yeah, hate the Grimm and all, but why's it there?"

"That is where the confidentiality begins," the General spoke, to doubtlessly Blake's utterly lack of surprise. "Though I can admit that even we do not have an answer. Only theories."

"I didn't realize that theories were worth keeping from the general public," Blake spoke again, and Ruby almost heard a hiss. With how hard she was willing herself to hear Link through the mute screen, she could have heard a pin drop.

"Unfortunately, it isn't that uncommon." Wait, Weiss? "Confidentiality in the realm of theories is no different that patenting unfinished ideas, just changing the institution responsible for it. My father has plenty of them, mostly regarding Dust locations or manufacturing techniques. However, every one of them he's made has been with substantial evidence." Ruby's partner changed her tone from informative to questioning without missing a beat. She was used to it.

"I have little doubt that he did," Ironwood agreed smoothly. He must be just as used to these kinds of conversations. "And your claim is also correct. However, telling you what it is will not happen." The finality to his tone was hard to ignore, even when Ruby watched Link kneel down to the ground again, hands trailing over the surface.

"Yeah, doesn't seem kinda impossible," Jaune spoke again. Ruby could tell he was rubbing the back of his head. "Getting a general to spill on stuff like that. N-Not that we'd try or anything just… y-yeah know." Ruby would have giggled at his stumbling, if not for her focus on the screen.

"I do, and I am glad you realize that," General Ironwood never sounded any different, at least not to Ruby. She wasn't paying attention though. "However, if I may be so bold, I believe the more important matter at hand is Link's repayment for nearly killing one Atlas's students." Ruby almost spat out her sigh. Yeah, Link did that, but after what that stupid Garnet had said, how couldn't he have done that. Sure, it might have been too far, and bloody, and really scary, but the point is he didn't do it for fun. Besides, what did Ironwood care?

Oh… wait… was General Ironwood also the headmaster at Atlas? The realization made a cold drip of dread run up Ruby's spine.

"Garnet Ether is being given the highest amount of care, as promised by Beacon Academy," Ms. Goodwitch spoke up, thankfully. "Despite her unfortunate condition, Link's attack of her was instigated after promised threats towards him and his mini-drones. It is rather clear that he thinks of them as his friends, so promising one as a poker chip was not a well-planned action on Ms. Ether's part." That cold feeling Ruby had only seemed to freeze when Ms. Goodwitch spoke on. Her voice was like the artic time a million.

"I am not arguing that part," Ironwood, rather calmly, returned. "It is why I am glad Link agreed to this hunt, as well as Ozpin. Slaying a beast like the Creeper for free will save a lot of money in the budget. It's a good way to show humility in actions, even if it is a bit dangerous." Wait, that was why they were here? To save the Military some money?

Ruby knew it made sense. A good hunter cost a lot of money, and to kill an Ancient Creeper… Ruby could have bought Crescent Rose a dozen times over with that kind of Lien. But really, something just didn't seem right. Maybe she was just thinking too much. Besides, two Creepers just attacked Link, and she watched as he dealt with them without breaking a sweat. He really was a Hunter, probably the best in Hyrule!

"Soooo, how do we know when he's getting close?" Yang asked. "Not that I mind watching Link kill the Grimm like flies on a wall, but I don't want to see him out there all day and night. That'd get boring… and dangerous."

"Nice save, Yang," Ruby found her mouth moving before she realized it. The smile that followed was just as unavoidable. She didn't dare turn her eyes from the screen, not after the small silence that fell over the room.

"Your enjoyment aside, I believe Link is approaching the nest of the Ancient Grimm." Now Ruby turned to look at Ironwood. If they knew where it was, why didn't the pilot or someone tell Link?

The general was looking down at his palm-sized scroll, thumb running over the surface as he looked at something. Ruby could just make out a flashing dot on the screen, but everything else was impossible to see at the angle she was at. Must have been numbers though, that was how maps worked, usually.

"The Ancient Creeper was prone to burrowing itself and moving from location to location, likely a lesson it learned over its many years." That made sense. "Link has been doing an excellent job at following the burrowing holes the younger Grimm are coming from." So that was what he was doing! "And if he continues his pace, he'll find himself before the Ancient Creeper in the next few moments." That was… good? Ruby felt her brows quirk at the general's words, but she quickly moved them back to the screen.

Good thing she did, too.

Link was shaking. Not like scared shaking, like Ruby would in a horror movie. The cameras weren't moving, but he was. That made it look a little weird. He was shaking like something was shaking him, like… the ground was moving. Oh crap.

"Ah, it appears he has found it."

Ruby bit her lips as the ground began to crack underneath Link. He jumped back quickly, before turning and avoid the splitting earth. That was smart. The mini-drones showed everything, though, how the further he well, the more the earth split. It wasn't just towards him, it was out and around the Badlands, like a massive crevice.

She held her breath as the earth began to fall into it, showing the dark depths beneath. It took her a full moment to realize that the blackness wasn't a deep hole…

"Well, guess we found it," Link heard Tatl speak next to him. He could feel Tael shivering on his shoulder, gripping his tunic with all his small body could muster. He didn't dare look towards them. It would mean breaking contact with the monster rising from the ground.

And rising was the apt word for it.

From the crevice that had grown to well over the size of the hill, a great black claw raised itself towards the heavens. It stretched well above any height Link could easily reach, perhaps the limits of what his Longshot could grasp. The harsh black against the vibrant blue, it was a start comparison that enraptured his attention.

Focus was broken when he noticed the same claw falling.

Link backpedaled before running again, making a strong dive forwards when he saw the tips of a shadow overtaking his own. No sooner did his body roll across the ground than dead earth behind him get shattered. Dust and debris rose into the air at the heavy impact, throwing the Hylian back even further. He was unharmed, but far from unfazed.

His shield was between himself and where the massive claw had descended, preventing any of the larger chunks of land from smacking into him. He fell the debris run across the steel, but do nothing more. The cloud of dust it had generated, however, made vision near impossible. That was no good. It was impossible to face an enemy of this size without seeing it.

Link backpedaled again, keeping his shield up and sword out, ready for any of the smaller Dodongo's to come after him. The further back he went the thinner the cloud became, eventually dispersing again. Out of its obscuring shadow, the Hylian was able to see the full size of the massive creature. As rising was perfect for the ascent of the claw, monolithic was more than appropriate for describing this monster.

A mask of purest white sat atop the creature's head, a head that was hanging a towers height in the air. Beady red eyes shown from the two hollow spots at its front, sitting above a massive jaw that was lined with teeth sharp as sword, large as bodies. Within that jowl was only darkness, a darkness that seemed akin to the pit it had crawled from, deep and endless.

Its body was of scaled, each darker than the empty spots of a night sky. They smoothly ran from the cowl of white that was the creature's mask, vanishing into its large body, then becoming indiscernible with the pit it still had half of its body buried within. Both of its claws were placed upon the dead earth, both on near opposite sides of the deep crevice it was crawling from.

It only occurred to Link that it was growling when he felt his feet rumble. The very sounds the monster was making were enough to make the dead earth tremble. It made sense that its strength was enough to split it with simple swipes of its claws, claws that Link lay down on with arms spread and not reach the ends of.

Link thought back to the last creature he fought that had the name Dodongo, the King of the beasts. Within the cavern it was named after within Death Mountain. It was a giant even to his adult self, and yet he had fought it as a child. Unaffected by any blows along its length, only by forcing it feed on bombs were enough to damage it.

But this creature, crawling from the pit with a rumble that shook the earth, was no less than triple that creature's size, larger than even the skull he had found within the cavern's main chamber, and looking far more alive. So this was what became of Dodongo's that were wise enough to hide.

If the one he had feld before was a King, then this was without a doubt an Emperor.

"L-Link," he heard one of the fairy's speak shakily. "Is… A-Are we going to be able to beat this?" It was question on Tael, could ask. It was not a slight on his character, and certainly not his confidence. He was a fairy used to tricks and stories, not adventures like this, not like his sister. It was why Tatl only hovered aside Link without a word, the ringing of her wings the only indication that she was aware of the world around her.

This creature, Emperor Dodongo, was pretty bad. But they had seen so much worse.

Link nodded at Tael's words, finding a grin pulling on his face as the massive creature's head turned. Its head bobbed in the air, up and down in very quick motions. It took the hero a moment to realize he was sniffing, like a wolf in the hunt. Any questions for what it was looking for were only too quickly answered.

Its head slowly twisted down to Link, focusing its massive red eyes upon the lone green figure in the field of dead gray. The shaking of the earth intensified, link's first clue that the monster's growl had risen in volume. It clearly knew he was there, even if Link was comparable in size as a fly was to a horse. That was okay, it only opened up new possibilities.

A breeze passed by Link, coming in from nowhere. He quirked a brow before he realized the creature was leaning back with it, the monstrously large form leaning with the flow of the wind. That was the first and only clue that the wind wasn't natural. It was the Dodongo sucking in the air through clenched teeth. He knew what was coming next.

Link knelt to the dead ground, raised his shield and put as much of his body behind it as he could. Tatl and Tael quickly joined him. What happened next was as Link thought, but then some as well.

The Emperor Dodongo roared.

If its growls shook the earth, his roar split the air. The debris from the impact was nothing compared to the force link felt pushing against the barrier of the Magic Shield. He could feel it straining, ready to break under the massive force pushed against him. If that wasn't clear enough, his feet dragged backwards, constantly threatening to send him head over heels. Only clenched teeth and a sure grip kept that from happening. However, he couldn't win this fight by simply enduring a creature's roar. As he had with all monsters, he needed to attack them at their weakest, so he could reduce their strength at their greatest. Now was such an opportunity.

Bombs were what a Dodongo was normally vulnerable to, a high explosion within the soft insides of their body. It made the idea of piercing this thick hides moot. However, given how tall the creature was, it would be impossible to throw one far and quick enough without the beast shutting its maw. But… that didn't mean there wasn't a way.

As soon as Link felt the force on the Magic Shield lessen, he let it go. As predicted, the force sent it right back against him. In this case, right onto his back. In mid spin he had caught it in a holster, never needing a hand for the job; they were busy getting his trick ready.

He needed an arrow in one hand, the quickest way he could deliver anything from A to B. Maybe not the power of the longshot, but if he could hit a crow half the length of Hyrule Field away, he could hit a giant monolith of a target a tower's height above him. But that was only one item he needed the other was oh so different.

It was a bomb, as he knew it had to be, but it wasn't the same bomb he had used before. Those were small, quick, and light-weight. They wouldn't do much against a beast easily thrice the size of King Dodongo, even from the inside. He needed more of a punch to go with the boom, and he did the only thing he could think of. Use three times the munitions for a beast three times the size.

So three bombs. Three bombs, attached to the head of one arrow. Sometimes it was easy being the unknown, especially when you made up ideas as you went along.

"Link!" He heard Tatl yell, probably more angry than panicked. "I don't know what it is you think you're doing, but you better hurry it up!" Definitely angry. That was okay, he had a plan to get started.

As the force was dropping into nothing more than a breeze, Link grabbed for his back, at a pocket on his hardness, sitting above his shield. From the magical cartridge, he produced a tool he had long since mastered, and still eternally enjoyed. His faithful Fairy Bow.

In a smooth motion, he notched the bomb/arrow combination onto the bow, pulling back the string. His legs twisted on the ground, stopping only when he faced the beast once more, no barrier between them. The Emperor Dodongo was leering down at him, jaw open wide enough still for Link to see the point of every one of its teeth. Perfect.

TWANG. HIIIIIiiisssss….

He released the arrow with a single twitch, the force igniting the fuse of the bombs as it flew. He only too quickly readied another arrow, for the preparation of missing his shot. But he didn't. As true of all the arrows he had fired before, it flew in a straight line, never flying far enough to show its arc. Even with a bomb weighing at the front, it went precisely where Link wanted. Straight into the Dodongo's mouth.

It landed without a sound, too high up and far away for the noise to travel. But the sudden freeze of the monstrosity was clear a sign as any that it knew something was wrong and that Link had done something right.

"W-We'd better get away!" Tael shouted in the void of noise. Link responded only with agreement, running further away and back. It was a not a retreat, it was a dodge, just for an attack that hadn't come yet.

He knew it was on its way when a dull boom echoed from behind him. It was followed quickly by a high, but loud, whine of pain.

"Sounds like your magic arrow did the trick!" Tatl shouted as she flew beside the sprinting Link. She didn't expect and answer, and he didn't give one. He needed to get clear, then he needed to strike. He could feel the air moving past him as he ran, a sign of the Emperor Dodongo's quick descent to the ground; a mixed blessing. He had to avoid the fall, but once he had, it was time to strike.

Just as before, the impact of the Dodongo shook the Earth. Link saw the debris and dust fly past his head before he felt his footing shake. When it did, it was the sign to move. He spun on a heel, Tatl and Tael ringing as he did so. In the same spin, he drew out his sword and shield, bow stored away. He ran into the field of dust without another thought.

Link squinted through the dust, looking for outlines of the beast he had momentarily felled. With the dead earth polluting the air, it was difficult to make out the black figure of the Dodongo. But that was only the fault of distance, a problem that his continued movement slowly fixed. It was, after all, very hard to not see something the size of that monster.

And when Link did lay eyes on it, the rough outline of the great beast, he did not hesitate. He needed to be fast, decisive, and most importantly, flawless. Failure to do so would, at best, ruin his chance to win. At worse… never think of the worst.

He jumped atop the claw that was closest to him, rolling as he made it over the top. It didn't stir as his weight was put on it. A clear a sign as any that the monster was unconscious for now, but not forever. Link had to be fast, that hadn't changed.

He ran up the length of its arm, jumping across the gaps of scales where its figure bent. Once, over its wrist, twice over its elbow, then again on the thick black scales of the Dodongo. There were no clocks or messages to tell him directly, but Link could tell by feeling alone that the creature would awaken soon. He ran up its length, quickly finding the smooth joining between its black scales and white mask. He had to move now.

Link, reaching the top of the Dodongo's alabaster mask, jumped off of it. With all his strength, he rose high into the air, high enough to see the perfect place to strike. Now he only need make the tool to do so. Falling, spinning as he fell, Link focused his magic into his Magic Sword. It sharpened, it lengthened, and… most importantly, it was swung.

At the nadir of his fall, Link drove the Magical Sword well into the Dodongo's neck.

Deep, but not deep enough.

Link pulled his blade free as the Dodongo let out another grand scream, far quicker and higher than the roar that shook the dead earth. Though it made sense. That was a call of war, Link had just made it scream in pain.

He fell back to the dead land, hitting the dry surface with boots first. He was sprinting before even putting his weapons away. The monster was moving again, and it would take only a single lucky strike to make Link's attack meaningless. And, as expected, the Dodongo's massive claws drew through the ground as it writhed in pain. Link was already outside of its reach.

"Whoa, whoa, okay, alright," Tatl was listing aside from Link as he turned back around. "That worked, yeah, that totally worked. That's good. Now… now we just gotta do it again, but really finish it off this time." She was right, of course. She'd seen enough fights with monsters to know what had to be done.

"C-Can we do it again?!" Tael asked with a scream. It was impossible to tell if he was screaming over the noise of splitting earth, or from the usual fear. "A-Aren't those… i-isn't this Dodongo s-s-supposed to be smart!? Would it fall for it again?!" A fair question, but not relevant.

The question is never tricking the monster, it never was. The trick is striking its weakness, a weakness it natural revealed as it tried to attack. It was no different than trying to parry a soldier's sword mid-strike. A successful counter left the opponent open for attack, much more so than if they had shield and sword raised in defense.

And monsters by nature, regardless of age, were always on the offensive.

Magic Sword and Shield raised, Link turned around to face the Emperor Dodongo once more. Its cries hadn't lessened, the wound around its neck more than clear, and the rage in its beady red eyes enough to send lesser soldiers to the rear lines in fear. Link didn't flinch. He could do this, he would do this.

Against monsters, he was the ultimate unknown. And the unknown always had the advantage.

"Oh yeah! Three points for the faunus in green!" Yang cheered with fists in the air. That quickly changed to actually pumping her fists like the boxer she emulated. "That was a super one-two combo. One strike with bombs then another with a super sword swing!" Those were most likely not the names of his actual attacks.

But Blake could understand her partner's enthusiasm. She shared it, though without the boisterous displays of joy or excitement. No, Blake was always more reserved, preferring the shadows and more unnoticed sides of the usual activities. And yet, even she couldn't keep a smile from pulling at her lips. Not after Link's display.

Sitting in the corner of the semi-lit room, Blake had her fists balled just above her chest, willpower keeping her from beating them into the air. Beneath her dark ribbon, her feline ears were perked towards the screen, straining to hear noise from the mute device. It was fruitless, she knew, but enough excitement made you wish for anything to be true. Her young team leader was more than evidence of that.

"Truly it was impressive, but I am more interested in where those weapons came from." A voice drooled from another screen, one that near instantly made Blake lose her good cheer. Her golden eyes, begrudgingly, swiveled away from the screen showing Link's stance against the Ancient Grimm, looking instead to the large screen besides it.

It hardly showed a picture worth looking at, three silhouettes atop a blinding white background, each one sitting around the same unseen table. It was impossible to tell which one had spoken, let alone if there were in the screen at all. All Blake knew was that the screen showed the ever-popular image of a power she had long loathed. The Council.

"The ability to draw objects of various sizes and shapes with ease does present a great many of uses, both industrial and in military." Blake assumed a new member of the council spoke, but again due to the monotonous tone that came through the display, not even her sensitive ears could tell. "Used properly, it could save millions of Lien in storage space and maintenance, possibly allowing more space for living or research areas."

"True, but I am more curious about his weapons." What was definitely a new member spoke now. "According to the records given by Ozpin, Link does need to replace the Dust encrusted into his weapons. That can only leave one curious how he is able to power his shield and sword the way he has. Does he replace them altogether? Are they powered through some other means? His Aura, perhaps. The idea begs for answers." She was loathe to admit it, but Blake knew they were asking good questions, and proposing, to a point, harmless research. It wouldn't take long for them to reach that line, though.

"I believe we should focus more on this battle before wondering about his tools," Blake heard Ms. Goodwitch speak up. She shifted her eyes just long enough to see her professor tapping on her pad, with emerald eyes glancing back and forth between it and one of the many displays. "For example, Link has shown a great aptitude to adapt to the situation, using what was clearly an uncommon use for his weapons to solve a problem presented to him."

"Oh yeah, firing bombs on arrows, kinda like retro-rocket," Blake heard Yang speak again, complete with a snicker. "And then all he does is just smirk and get ready for another go. Looks like Tatl was speaking honestly about Link with all that high praise, huh?"

"I-I don't think I'd say she's exaggerating now," Jaune now, the other blonde hunter-in-training in the room. "Kinda easy seeing him fighting Grimm as a kid now that he's well… fighting something like that… alone… in the badlands…" At least he was aware of how unfair and ludicrous this was to Link, likely done because of his status as a faunus.

Blake took in a slow breath of air, quiet as grass, to control her bubbling rage. They had talked about this, Ozpin, Link, and herself. They knew this was going to happen, they had planned on it. Ozpin had been more than upfront with Link regarding the 'repayment' for the Military, a test in disguise. Ozpin couldn't come because of Link's status, albeit short status, as a student of Beacon. Blake was the control to mediate the theories, keep the military or Council from guessing the end-game. She was only too glad neither had spoken or made motion for any ideas thus far.

They had come close, so close, with questions of the Dust Link used. Just one question more, one further prod, and they would have requested things from Link that no one should have to turn over. Relics of his past, symbols of his home, his heritage. She wouldn't let that happen. And ironically, she was likely the only one who could. She loved her team, loved them as family, but Ruby could not keep a secret, Yang would brag about what she knew, and Weiss would all too likely be pressured by her family to break. Only Blake had no ties left to force her hand.

"Hey, what's happening now?" Ruby's voice grabbed Blake's attention. With the girl practically pressing her nose against one of the screens, it was impossible to incorrectly guess what she was referring to. Blake focused her slit eyes on the screen above the red-cloaked girl.

It showed the Ancient Grimm from a higher angle, a much higher height. Were it free of any landmarks for comparison, it would have looked little different than the usual Grimm that populated the abandoned cities or dense forests. However, with the small speck of green that Blake knew to be Link, it appeared gargantuan. Even as it tilted its head back, having its ominous red eyes look skyward, it was nothing short of huge. It only made the large gash that ran across the back of its neck all the more impressive to witness.

Then, with its maw open, it began to scream. At least, Blake assumed it was screaming. No matter how hard she strained, she made out no noise from the television, and mini-drones that recorded the image didn't shake in the air. Link, however, perched firmly on the ground, wavered as the Grimm continued to point its open jaw into the air.

Then, on a screen that showed Link's profile more than the Grimm's, Blake saw him turn and run.

"Is he running away?" She heard Weiss ask. Blake gave no emotion to it. The heiress was far from the bigot she thought her to be. Her question was one of genuine concern. Was the trained hunter, the best in his foreign kingdom, running away. Blake knew the answer to that.

"Unlikely," she heard Ironwood speak, in place of her. "It appears he senses something we cannot see, and is tactically putting distance between the Grimm and whatever it is attempting to do." That made sense, perfect sense, and Blake's opinion of the Military leader slightly raised at his defense of Link. But that still left the question of what was happening.

Said question was thrown to the wind as the dead earth began to crack again. Only feet away from where Link once was, there was already a giant pit, falling and swallowing itself into darkness. The cracks only grew outwards further and further from the Grimm, seemingly chasing the running faunus. He wasn't fast, far from it, but he was already far enough away.

"Good instincts," Pyrrha spoke now, nodding from her place beside Jaune. "He didn't question what he felt, and it saved him." Coming from an expert duelist like herself, it made sense she understood best what Link thought and acted on.

"An often required trait amongst hunters," a voice from the screen ruined Pyrrha's good words. "But if I can trust my own gut, there's more to that Grimm's move than merely moving some dirt." That, unfortunately again, made sense.

"Is that supposed to be moving?" Nora now, legs swinging under the table, as she pointed towards one of the screens, just beneath the one showing the Gargantuan Creeper. Blake's golden eyes followed it, seeing only the darkness that trailed behind Link, the chasm that opened up beneath the dead earth. It took her sharp eyes a moment, but she only too quickly saw what the energetic member of JNPR meant.

The darkness was moving. The abyss the Grimm opened the earth into was moving. That meant that it wasn't an abyss. It was worse than simple darkness.

Those were Grimm.

"Oh geez!" She heard Jaune curse, but only the loudest, gasps and soft hisses echoed about the room, herself included. Creepers both small and large jumped and clawed their way from the hole, each hitting the dead ground before setting off after Link. They began as a line, but far too quickly began to resemble a flood. Blake's stomach felt light, hollow even.

"Th-that's bad. That's… that's really bad." Blake didn't need to hear Ruby to know how dire the situation was. Chased by dozens to a near hundred Creepers, within their own home in the Badlands, and shadowed by their Ancient Leader. Bad didn't begin to describe how dangerous the situation really and truly was.

For the first time, the legitimate first time since meeting him, Blake feared for Link's life.

"What will he do now?" One of the voices, the voices that Blake now so easily loathed, spoke drearily through the screen. "This is not a situation most professional hunters would be able to find a way out of. Perhaps this was too much for the young faunus after all." And there it was.

Their hatred, their malicious superiority, their loathing for something that was stronger than them, in mind, body and spirit. These humans, with their filthy and disgusting machinations. They were going to let Link die, and they wouldn't do anything more than snidely comment on the quality of the picture. Blake wanted to scream, to scratch, to tear the screen right off of the-

"He can do it…." Blake almost missed the quite voice.

It took her just as long to realize it was her won

"He can do this," Blake responded, a smile spreading across her lips. She turned back to the screen, rest of the room silent and still as Link bent low, dodging a Creeper that lunged over him, promptly burying itself in the ground a moment later. "He can do this." Because he was the greatest knight in a kingdom of faunus. He was literally the best of the best.

She watched as Link rolled to the side, avoiding another large Creeper that lunged at him. The camera spun far enough to show the crack of the earth hard far sense dissipated, no longer chasing him like the abyss. But that still left the Grimm that clawed over dead lands to get to him. But when the camera on a different screen showed his face, illuminated by the dark and gold, it didn't show a face of fear, and far from one of worry.

Link, with long ears framed by golden locks, blue eyes shining against dark creatures, was grinning. That was all Blake needed to see to feel confident again.

She watched as he slid his sword and shield away, grabbing against for a pouch along his belt. From it he withdrew his bow, swinging it far enough along his side to bat away a stray baby Creeper. But he wasn't done. With his left arm extended, his right reached for pouches on the harness that ran from his shoulder to waist, grabbing through it wistfully. He pulled the obvious item from it, or a series of items. Multiple arrows.

"Good idea to keep distance. Creeper are known to pile upon their prey." Ironwood noted, but Blake largely ignored him. She watched instead as Link took a few more bounding leaps forwards, turning on the last. Yes… turning. He spun in mid-air, slow enough that when his feet touched the ground, sliding over the cracking decaying land, he was facing the hordes of Grimm and Monstrous Creeper.

He had the arrows notched in his bow, aiming down the line of Creepers that were fast approaching. Blake felt her chest tighten the closer they drew, Link no longer retreating from their assault. He was just kneeling, staying almost perfectly still, with his bow drawn and the Grimm almost on top of him. One screen showed a close up of Link, eyes focused forwards, teeth showing in a light grin, and arrows glowing an alabaster blue… wait…

"Are his arrows glowing?" one of the disembodied voices spoke through the screen. Blake didn't offer it a glance. She just watched Link. She watched as he released the string of his bow, as the arrows flew forwards, and each one found a target amongst the Grimm.

And she watched as the flood of Creepers was frozen in a flash.

"Whoa!" Blake's sharp ears heard the Orange sisters let out in tandem. With how hard she was straining to hear, she could have heard a pin drop. As such, it sounded as if they shouted only inches from her. "That was- He just- I can't-aaaaggyeeeeaaaaahhh!" That was Yang, and Blake thought she had never been more eloquent.

"My word," her ears heard Ms. Goodwitch speak next, her voice bit softer than usually. She couldn't blame the professor, not with her own voice feeling so far away and impossible to find.

On the screen, each of the screens that showed Link's trial, one from every perspective the mini-drones could find, Link had made a veritable mountain of frozen Grimm. He was just a blip of green against the tower of white blue, dust with the dark creatures inside. Even the Monstrous Creeper that towered above hardly moved, likely judging the giant frozen structure in confusion. It was a Grimm, a horrible and ancient monster, but it was smart, too, at least smart enough to live for as long as it had.

"A superb display indeed!" One of the monotone voices cheered from the screen. "Pooling the pack of Grimm into a trap of ice! What a wonderful move, a risk that was well worth the take."

"Oh Grimm and Dust," Jaune now, sounding just as breathless as ever. "That was insane. That was like Snow Angel times a million." An exaggeration, even by what Blake could admit was bias towards her fellow faunus, but the superiority in size and magnitude to Weiss's own ice was easy to see. It took only a glance to see that the heiress appeared unwilling to argue the point. But that didn't matter.

Link was moving again.

Blake watched, hands balling on the tails of her white shirt, as Link ran back towards the icy tower. His bow was away, no arrows in his hands… but neither was there a shield or sword in his grasp. Instead, he was reaching for another pocket, another tool that Blake could hardly wait to see. His left arm swung outwards, pointing up towards the glassy ice, holding a device she had never seen before. One of Ms. Goodwitch's mini-drones made it simple to see.

It looked, at first, like an unfinished gauntlet. It had a guard that rand down half of Link's forearm, but an end that extended outwards just as far. Chains wrapped around the half-finished guard, likely a few times over, but only Dust knew how many times it did so beneath those bulky lines. But at the end, the end pointing towards the frozen Creepers, was a point no different than the end of a blade.

Any questions anyone had to ask regarding the device were silenced when Link made a quick motion with his arm. When he did, the end of the gauntlet flew through the air, straight and true as the arrows he had fired before.

All in the same now torturous silence, the device flew towards the icy mountain, trailing its sharp end with the chains that were wrapped about its end. Fast as the arrows he had fired before, the tip hit mound, digging itself into a crevice. It flew far, farther than Blake suspected a simple chain could have extended, but her eyes told her only the truth.

But it only got better when Link flew next.

"There goes Mega Man!" Blake heard Nora shout, but again, she didn't look towards the bubbly girl. Her golden eyes were focused hard on the screen. Link, as a blip of green over a sheet of white blue, was being pulled up the surface of the structure, all without appearing with any difficulty. Fast as the spike and chain and flown before, Link was atop the icy structure, literally standing over hundreds of Grimm.

"What an interesting tool," another droll voice spoke through the monitor, the screen that Blake's very being warned her from "A bit archaic in design, but an upgrade with Dust cartridges or Carbon Laser tips could improve the reach and durability of the device. It does seem to have a simple, if desirably, use." Of course, already making judgements on how to improve something they didn't even understand. She didn't care, not with Link on the screen.

With the same leaps and bounds he made on the Ancient Creeper before, he climbed the great structure of ice, jumping the few flat tops to reach a higher and higher point, but also further and further forwards. He was climbing the Ice, running over his Dust created ice block… back towards the Ancient Creeper.

Said monstrosity had its head still angled back and upwards, making its mouth completely inaccessible. Worse though, the flexion of its neck blocked the wound that Link had made previously. That meant no way to knock the creature out again and no way to exploit the previous wound. Both bad. But Link wasn't stopping.

Blake watched, fists clenched and teeth grating, as Link aimed his half-gauntlet again, up towards the massive beast. He was running out of ice though, the platform his Dust arrows had made reaching an end. Would he stop and take aim? Risk holding still even for a moment in front of the ancient Grimm? Blake's answer came swiftly.

Link jumped off the platform, legs rotating with the effort. At the apex of his height, the gauntlet flew forward again, the spike running towards the great Creeper. Blake didn't dare take a breath as it flew. The rest of the room was just as quiet. The screen that focused on the Creeper showed the spike fly true, long chain trailing behind it. It hit the mask of the Grimm, without making a sound once more. Just as before, Link flew with the hook, but… differently.

"Is he… swinging?" Ruby asked the question, and just as before, her words couldn't have been more accurate. Link was swinging.

He fell downwards, the chain holding taught as he swung towards the Creeper. Towards it, but also away from it. He was swinging towards its side, like a swing set. It only made the difference in size between him and the Ancient Creeper all the greater. With the full length of his chain gauntlet, swinging down the length of the Creeper, Link looked like a leaf falling down the trunk of a tree. But he was more than just a passive object in the breeze, Blake knew that. He was a faunus, a hero to his land. He would not disappoint.

The Ancient Creeper, however, seemed to sense something was wrong. Once more it proved the wisdom of its age, foregoing it's still posture with a jerk of its massive head, pulling at the still swinging Link. Blake heard a gasp as he was jerked with the effort, like he was hit from the air, but she didn't dare look away. Link wasn't done.

The Creeper swung its head again, the opposite way this time, hoping to completely throw Link from its mantle. And again, Link was rag-dolled from the end of the chain gauntlet he gripped to. It was perhaps a miracle that he arm wasn't ripped clean off by the effort. That, or proof of the strength in his aura. Maybe it wasn't a miracle, but what came next was absolute proof of Link's skill.

In the midst of another swing, forced and thrashed by the Ancient Creeper, Link began to retract the chain of his gauntlet. Blake watched on the screen that focused on him, watched as he flew up towards the maw of the Ancient Grimm, all with a smile on his face. He flew up to the mask of the Creeper, up and past the maw that the Grimm now protected.

And then, the momentum Link gained sent him higher. He practically flew past the Creeper, flying into the sky above the Ancient Grimm. The screen that showed the Grimm showed nothing but a faint green dot hovering above the massive beast. The screen that showed Link showed him hanging in the air, the Ancient Grimm beneath him roaring up with death in its gaze. And Link was still smiling.

Then he began to fall again, back to the dead earth and towards the Grimm below. Blake felt a breath slowly get sucked into her lungs, seeing too many ways in her golden eyes on how this could end for Link, a swat of the Grimm's paw, eaten by its maw, or a simple fall to the dead ground, nothing to protect from the impact. They were all plausible, all possibilities, but at the same time… Blake couldn't imagine them when she saw how Link was grinning.

He pulled the sword from the sheath, red encrusted weapon shining like a beacon over the dead landscape. It only became that and more when the familiar hue began to glow over it, lengthening the blade with the Dust that was built into it. Link slowly twisted in the air, stopping only when his feet were towards the ground and sword raised high above his head. Blake couldn't truly hear it, but on the screen, it felt like the Creeper was roaring up at him.

Link was nearing the Grimm, so close to the Creeper, but he still hadn't stopped smiling. Blake watched as he rotated the blade, the long sword now aimed downwards and between Link's feet. That made it only clear as day what he was going to do.

"Risky," she heard Ironwood speak. "Let's hope it works." Better than mockery, Blake realized. She still didn't offer him sight or thought. Only Link mattered right now. Link….

… Who had suddenly driven the blade into one of the Creepers' eyes.

Blake found herself blinking, golden eyes confused at what they had missed. The creeper thrashed as the long hue of Link's blade sunk deep into the socket of its mask, but Blake still couldn't see when he had struck, especially given his clear one-directional travel. She would have to think of it later, because Link wasn't done.

He was still falling, and the further he fell, the further the blade drove itself into the Grimm's skull. In no time at all, Link was standing on the alabaster face-plate of the Ancient Creeper, sword pierced deep and through its red eye and into its mask. Yet the Grimm had stopped moving. That was truly it. No thrashing, no jerking motions, nothing. It had simply stopped. That was until time seemingly started again.

Like a forest giant at the end of its life, the Ancient Creeper began to fall. It was all noiseless, as silent as every other action Blake had watched up until now. It slowly toppled over, large and doubtlessly heavy form crashing into the dead earth beneath it. The ground cracked and shattered, embedding the massive Grimm deeper into its crust, but only assuring the beast's demise.

And then, with a quick jump from the mask of the beast, Blake watched Link land safely on the dead ground away from the beast, blade spinning and sheathing itself behind his back. He turned and stared at the fallen Grimm, smile as still on his face as it was before.

He did it… he did it!

"He did it!" Ruby screamed what Blake was already internally cheering. Her team leader jumped into the air, hands up and grin plastered on her face. In a smooth rush, Yang grabbed her sister out of the air, cheering with her and screaming in praise for Link. Blake stood up slowly, her limbs shaking with the desire to scream and jump as well, to let all of Remnant know how happy she was. The smile that pulled at her cheeks like ropes on a sail would have to do.

"Woo-hoo! Oh yeah! Link-one, Nasty-Grimm-Monster-zero!" Nora was cheering now, spinning in circles on the back of her heels. Blake could heard Ren making muffles sounds from his place between her arms, likely being crushed by the girl's monstrous strength, but that didn't matter. Link had defeated a monster that was centuries, maybe even a millennia old. THAT was what mattered!

They were laughing, cheering, and even celebrating. Jaune, Pyrrha, Ruby, Weiss, Ren, Nora, Yang. They were all jumping and hugging one another, all so happy for Link, for a faunus, for someone other than themselves.

And it was wonderful.

"Well, I suppose that settles all debts, doesn't it?" Blake heard Ms. Goodwitch speak up. She turned to her professor, seeing a subtle smile across her lips as well. It was hard for Blake to keep her tears in check. They were all happy for a faunus they hardly knew. How could she not be happy? "Now would be an excellent time send your pilot, Ironwood. Before any other creatures are attracted to the area."

"Of course," the general instantly agreed, thankfully, blessedly. He lifted the small screen in his hand, the small device that linked to Link's Comm Device. He had hardly even used it, but Blake supposed it was a matter of safety. That was good, but Link killing a Creeper older than some countries was even better. He pushed a few buttons on the pad, looking up at the screen as he did so… except… that wasn't Link's screen.

Blake would have missed it if she were any less cautious of humans, if she had any more faith in their ability to be trusted. But even in the midst of a quick but grand celebration, her golden eyes caught Ironwood's glance towards the screens. He didn't look at Link's close-up, of him sitting on the ground with legs out and arms back, or of the panoramic view showing the already disappearing corpse of the Creeper.

He was looking at the Council screen, he was gazing right at them. And, to Blake's growing unease, the figure in the middle made a bob with its head, a nod. A nod for what?

Blake immediately looked back to Ironwood, the tension in her growing by the second. Her joy was replaced by fear, elation by deprecation. It only grew darker when she saw the general give a sigh. She knew what that sigh meant, because she had seen it before.

She saw Adam sigh like that just before he derailed a train.

Ironwood pressed a button on the pad.

"Oh yeah! Take that Dodongo!" Tatl cheered happily, ringing as she rose and dove in the air. Gold dust fell off of her with every wave. "That's what you get for thinking you can take us on! Should'a dug deeper and played dead then try and take us on!"

"Um… didn't we hunt him, sis?" Tael followed his sister, hovering closer to her bobbing form. "I mean, yeah, it was a monster, but like… I-I don't think had much of a choice."

"Oh, please," Tatl spoke sarcastically as she rounded on her brother, spinning about him before stopping light length's apart. "If that thing was smart enough to know how to handle Link's bombs after one go, it definitely had the fore knowledge that getting this close to an army's fort was a really bad idea. Don't you agree Link?"

The sudden question made the green clothed Hylian blink, but only smile lightly afterwards. He held up and waved his hands, knowing better than to intervene or argue in an argument of any kind. Besides, they were siblings, and history had told him that it was common between them. His mind was elsewhere anyways, blue eyes set on the slowly vanishing carcass of the Emperor Dodongo. A part of him slightly wondered if they would call it anything but a Creeper or Grimm.

"Whatever, not like it matters now. The monster's dead and we are one debt less to that freaking knight training place." The ire in her voice was palpable. "Seriously though, it's more like they're in our debt, making up reasons for us to get to work."

"We well did break their stuff… a lot. A-And, um… Weiss was kind enough to pay some of it," Tael lightly spoke again, adding to her sister's words. She rang in what was undoubtedly annoyance. Link, kept his eyes on the misty form of the Dodongo, wondering just how deep it had dug the abyssal drench before. There were a lot of smaller beasts in there.

"Yeah, paid for it right after she basically had her fill of Mikau." Link chuckled at Tatl's words. Of course she would notice the young girl's attraction to the Zora. "Ice Queen must have been full of salt with how much she drank in Link. I mean geez, she was practically moaning when Mikau threw that water on himself." Link put his hand to the edge of the pit as he gazed into it, carefully for the land to crack again. His eyes couldn't see past the blanket of darkness he saw.

"I-It's okay now though, right?" Tael followed his sister once more. "This was… Link did this so that we wouldn't get in trouble, for what the girl said… about taking you away…" Link felt his hand clench the dead earth at the reminder, splintering at his grasp. It was enough of a reminder to back away before he really did fall into the abyss below.

"Hey hey, relax," Tatl spoke far softer than her words just previously. A quick ring was enough indication to Link that she had flown to her brother's side again. "That's not gonna happen. Don't worry. Link made that clear as the sky. 'Sides, now that this is taken care of, we can start to pull that fast one on the stupid Military and Council everyone keeps talking about." Link was hesitant to call them idiots, not with how they ruled the land. Perhaps unwise in specific areas, but far from idiots. Blake and Weiss had made that perfectly clear.

He sighed as he walked softly back to the fairies, the siblings that spoke and hugged one another. They seemed incredibly out of place, two bright balls of light hovering within a dead land. It didn't matter though. He had done his part for the General, and so he would have a means to leave soon. It was what the pilot had promised and, with the small drones that continuously flew around him, it couldn't be long before they found their way to him.

"You know, now that I really look at it, doesn't this place seem kinda strange?" Tatl flew away from her brother as she asked the question, flying higher into the air as if to survey the endless dead landscape. Link watched her, curious.

"What do you mean, sis?" Tael followed his sister, in question and path. Dark dust sprinkled down as he flew up to join his elder sibling. Link watched them for all of a moment, eyes trailing the horizon as well. He found it hard to focus on anything but the contrast of dead land and blue sky.

"I don't know…" she spoke and trailed off. "Just call it a gut feeling I guess. Too many surprises and stuff. This whole place, it just… I think I can feel something about it." Link did not discount her words. Intuition was an important part to survival. Thankfully, neither did her brother.

"A-A bad thing? Like a-are we… is something bad gonna-" Anything else the dark fairy had to say was lost. Drowned out by a far louder and far more painful sound.

RIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII

Link let out a yell of agony, hand grabbing at his ear the moment the sound came.

His hand gripped the metallic device he had set in it, ripping it from his ear and throwing it across the dead landscape. Eyes shut with the pain, he didn't watch were it landed. He only raised his hand back to his long ear, feeling at the sore limb and trying to hear through the ring that continued to deafen him. Even his other side felt pained.

"…in…..nk…..LIN…" A soft was calling his name through the fog of that high ring had brought to his head. He knew it was Tatl or Tael, but he couldn't even make out the difference in their voice. Only that they were there.

He took deep breaths. Deep breaths helped, helped to focus, and focus helped to dull the pain. It was a slob ease, one he could count the seconds in, but the ringing slowly fell away, leaving only his panting of the stale air. That, and Tatl and Tael's nervous calls.

"…as tha… n't…. op!" Still Tatl, but she was no longer screaming at Link, probably. He could see her flying towards the metal half-ring the general had given him. It was still ringing, probably, but with how his hearing was he still couldn't tell. Link could tell that Tael was still flying over him, his dark light flashing in and out of his vision. He couldn't hear the timid fairy.

Link dug his finger into his long ears again, pushing against the canal that now felt so abused. The ringing was going down, he thought. It was an assumption he felt safe in making, given that he could hear the fairies a bit more clearly.

"This thing is what Big Stiff gave you! What in the name of Time is it doing?!" That was a good question, and one that Link had himself. His deep breaths slowly shallowed out, the pain subsiding into only a minor ache. It wouldn't be long until that was gone as well. But the question mattered more.

It could be an alarm of some kind, like the bells of a tower. Doubtless though, as he had heard words come from it before. A means to find him perhaps? Just as unlikely, given how the Gerudo talked about 'trackers' as if they were silent beacons across the land. What that left, however, was not an option Link enjoyed the thought of. But he took no chances.

Link stomped over to the metal crescent device, looming over it only briefly. With a quick and deliberate raise of his leg, he stomped the ear piece. The sound cut off with a resounding crack. It left only the still silence of the dead land. That, and the creeping dread crawling up Link's back.

"W-What did that do? What's… what's going on?" Tael was scared. Link didn't need to hear him speak to know that. It was as obvious as the dark light he projected. It was understandable, reasonable, and of course, expected. Tatl was the same way, though voicing it in a much different manner.

"They sold us out!" The golden fairy screamed with an echoing screech. "They just… they're trying to get us killed! That loud a noise! Here! They're trying to kill us!" She was right.

Link knew she was right.

"W-W-What are we… W-W-What do we do?" He drew his sword, eyes sweeping over the horizon as he ears listened intently for noise. Anything, something, even the smallest indicator that they were going to be attacked again. But he heard nothing, saw nothing, nothing but the corpse of the slowly evaporating Emperor Dodongo, and the glacier of encased monsters.

No new cracks spread over the earth, no creeping eyes or bellows of rage. Nothing that wasn't already there from the battle just before. That wasn't good or bad. If anything, it was good or horrible. Nothing near them showed any form of danger, none that hadn't already been dealt with implicitly and directly. But that didn't mean they were safe.

He looked past the dead earth, to the mountains on the horizon. Looming things that so often marked the landscape, a silent an unmoving beacon no matter the land they belonged to. This one, the range that circled around them, appeared more akin to Hyrule's Death Mountain than to Termina's Snowhead. No white dots settled at their peaks, only the same dead gray and brown that dominated the landscape around them.

"There's nothing here, nothing I can see." Tatl started to speak, softer than Link expected. That changed quickly. "Oh wouldn't it be just perfect if those double-crossing godless brats messed up their own trap?! We're due for a break on that front, enough people twisting our strings. Figures the first time these amateurs try they screw up!" Link wasn't ready to admit their good luck quiet yet. Neither was Tael.

"A-Are you s-sure we're safe, sis? I mean… couldn't… wouldn't… maybe the monsters are…" The frightened dark fairy began to swoon in circles, seemingly fighting to keep himself afloat. He would be alright, for now at least. Link stay focused on the dead land around them, these Badlands.

But as far as he could see, and hard as he could hear, nothing threatening reached him. Still nothing, after the minutes had snailed by from him crushing the crescent ring. Maybe he was fast enough. Maybe, just perhaps, he acted before whatever trap the army had set could truly be cast. That would be fortunate, but he knew better than to gamble on luck.

He would have to take action though, something would need to be done if, when, he got back. It would be a long trek, but perhaps it would be even longer. He couldn't after all march back to the Gerudo who had just tried to kill him. No, Link might have to find his way back to Beacon, which is if they were not his enemies as well. That was doubtful, at least in regards-

Link's knees shook. That was a bad sign.

He wasn't scared, wasn't shocked, wasn't filled with sorrow or pity. He was of sound mind, at least in the current moment, focused on the matters at hand. Link's grip hardened on the Magical Sword he held. His knees, and through his legs continued to rock. That was a very bad sign.

He wasn't shaking, the ground was.

"What is it?! What is it?!" Tatl was screaming again. She couldn't feel the earth shaking, but she knew better than to think the worst of Link. Tael said nothing, only flying and gripping to Link's tunic with a death-like tightness. The real problem was, Link wasn't quite sure what it was happening.

This wasn't a series of quakes, like when the Emperor Dodongo had emerged and broken the dead land. Those were strong, but brief quakes. This was continuous. It was a non-stop force that trembled through the dead land, making the pebbles that laid around the earth jump like startled Picori. The ice column of monsters rattled as well, small fissure parting the structure. It mattered little. The Giant Dodongo shook as well, corpse moving like it was being pushed. That mattered less.

Then, like a nightmare of the future-yet-to-come, Link saw it.

At the edge of the horizon, where the mountain was at its tallest, a creature crawled over them. A creature of a single long body, snaking down the brown surface of the tall mountain. Even from the vast distance between Link and the mountain Range, he could make out entire details of the monstrosity.

It had a body of black matter, likely scales little different than the Dodongo he had faced. Protrusions of white stuck out from it like spikes, some digging and spinning along the mountain that it crawled down, burying themselves only to push forwards. They worked with terrifying ease. But at the forefront, and easiest to see, where the pincer like jaws sitting beneath a set of three eyes, redder than blood and fuller than any moon.

Link watched in dry-mouth observation as the creature crawled down the length of the mountain in seconds, its head disappearing beneath a smaller peak as the remainder of its long body continued to climb over the taller protrusion of land. It didn't last. That is, the mountain didn't last.

As a testament to the monster's size and strength, the mountain it crawled over began to fall apart, beaten apart by the creature's digging spikes and long, heavy body. In the act of simply climbing a mountain, the monster had destroyed it. Link only knew of one creature that could grow so big, that could hide so well, and could destroy so efficiently. It was not a monster he enjoyed to fight.

"Molgera…" He heard Tatl whisper the name, a volume Link was sure would be unintelligible once the monster was close enough. "That's… that's a Molgera. A-A monster eater, an army devourer! That's… that's a freaking huge Molgera!" Huge it was.

Compared to the Emperor Dodongo, the largest of its kind Link had ever faced, the approaching Molgera appeared capable of swallowing the beast in a single bite. And as if to show its capability, it showed its open jaws as it approached. Teeth whiter than diamonds shone in its mouth, reaching far into the creature's maw, disappearing into either the absence of light or the dark scales that made up the rest of its body. This wasn't just a Molgera, and it was far larger than the Twinmolds he had bested within the Stone Tower.

This… it was a Bellumgera. A War Eater, capable of devouring kingdoms.

This wasn't good, at all. But Link knew what he had to do. Two things he had to do before the monster was here. If he didn't… his friends could die. That was the worst outcome. So without wasting a moment, Link began to act. He plucked his green crap from his head, spinning it until its end was open, like a bag waiting for transport.

In a deft move, he pushed Tael and caught Tatl inside of it. His fist held the end as he quickly tied it shut.

"Hey! Hey!" He heard Tatl screaming from within, ringing with a volume that would have deafened Link were she outside the bag. "What do you think you're doing?! Let us out of here right now, LINK!" He could hear Tael whimpering, terrified. That was bad, but not as bad as dying. If he lived, he would have to apologize to them. Then it would be okay.

He concentrated, focusing on the hat in his hands. He ignored the beating and screams of the fairies inside, ignored the guilt he felt for forcing them away, and ignoring the growing noise of trampled earth that was approaching. He focused on the magic in his soul, on the beacon he had set before he left the group of knights-in-training. He made a beacon of one of them, and he would ensure Tatl and Tael's safety through it.

"Don't you dare Link! Don't you DARE!" Tatl knew, of course she knew. She had flown with him before. Now she was going to fly with her brother. Link sighed as he focused harder, hoping he would get to apologize to her.

Without a word, as he did all actions, Link let his magic surround the hat in a green ethereal light. It was visible for only a moment, a moment before vanishing completely, all with a slight ring and pop.

And that was that. Link was alone, alone against the approaching Bellumgera.

It was close now, much closer than anyone would wish for. It looked like a mountain on its own, sliding over the dead land as he would imagine a fish in water. It was at home here, home turf that Tatl had so keenly noticed before. But he had not. And now, he was going to have to fight a monstrous enemy on uncommon ground.

Link sighed deeply.

Chapter Text

"What is that!? What is that thing!? Is that a Grammite!? Is that a giant-fucking-Grammite!?" Yang was screaming, she was screaming as she pointed at the screen that showed horror in its purest form. One of her hands was clenching her hair in a bushel, the other doing all that it could to not assault the screens themselves.

Yang was screaming, but she was not the only one panicking. Blake was hyperventilating, breathing like Velvet would whenever Cardin looked her way. Jaune and Pyrrha were staring dumbstruck at the screen, the former falling out of his chair and the latter hardly noticing.

Ruby was terrified.

Her legs drawn to her chest with hands clenching at her knees. Were she not wearing her stockings, her nails would have drawn blood. This was bad, this was very bad. Link was in danger. Link was in real danger that he wasn't prepared for.

But… But he promised he would come back. Tael and Link both promised they would come back just fine. So he would be fine, right? But what if he wasn't? Would it be her fault? Would it be her fault that he wouldn't be alright? Did he do this because of her? That would make it her fault. Would Link make a promise and never come back?

"You did this!" Yeah, it was her. She didn't need to look at Blake to know she was accusing her. It was all her fault. Just like her mom. Just like before. No one else could be blamed. "I don't know what you pressed on that screen of yours, but you baited that thing to Link!" Screen?

"I don't know what you are talking about," the general replied. It had to be the general, how strong and sure he sounded. Why would it be his fault? Did… did he do something? Ruby snuck a peak from behind her raised legs, still gripping herself with the fear of death.

Somehow, Blake had ended up just in front of General Ironwood. She had her hands gripped to his uniform, tightly. Any little breath Ruby still had was expelled at the site.

"Ms. Belladonna, calm down." That was Professor Goodwitch. She sounded cold, very cold. "Acting irrationally is not how we are going to solve this problem."

"This is not irrational!" Blake screamed back. Ruby gripped her legs a bit tighter. "I saw him do it! I watched him nod to those figure heads on the screen and he pressed some command on his scroll! Why else would Link break his communicator? How else wou-" There was probably a lot more she was going to say, it but it was drowned out by a rising ring.

It hurt Ruby's ears. It was like an alarm was tapped to her offending appendages, deafening her for the sake of torture. IF that was what it was, she deserved it. But her eyes told her that wasn't it. No, instead, her silver eyes saw a green light growing in the room.

A green light seemingly attached to Jaune's sweater.

"Whoa! Whoa! What gives?!" He screamed over the ringing, practically ripping the garment off. Not a moment after he did, the ringing stopped, as with the quick green light. It didn't, however, leave nothing behind.

Sitting atop Jaune's discarded sweater was Link's hat, tied and bouncing around.

"Let us out! Let us out!" The screaming command came from the hat. She just stayed in her seat, staring at the tied green hat in mute horror. Thankfully, not for long. Someone needed help, and Ruby was quick to respond.

The young team leader grabbed the hat, untying it in an instant and letting the two fairies fly out of it. Tatl, the golden elder sister, rang with a volume that so nearly matched the light from before. Golden dust showered off of her like rain in a cloud. She dominated the attention of the room. It made Ruby fall back into her seat.

Only Ruby noticed Tael, and only because he was sitting on her knees, grabbing at her bangs tightly. Why? Was he scared, too?

"There you are!" She heard Tatl scream. That was all she heard before the golden fairy flew right up to the nose of the general. Ruby blinked, astonished and terrified for her friend. Ironwood was a general, Tatl was a small fairy.

"You sick, double-crossing, inbred, TRAITOR!" Ruby didn't need to turn her head to see the room became still as stone, no different than herself. She had heard people scream like that before. This was little different.

"Calm yourself." General Ironwood, somehow, managed to return calmly. Ruby knew she wouldn't be able to do that. Tael continued to grip her stupid furry ears tightly. "You must be disoriented from whatever means of travel brought you here."

"Indeed." One of the faceless members of the Council spoke. "And I for one would like to know how the young faunus managed to instantaneously transport you from the outskirts of the Badlands to their borders. Such technology-"

"Shut up!" Tatl shrieked again. Ruby felt Tael grip her harder and… something wet was on her cheek. "Shut up! All of you just shut up! You lying freaks of nature don't get to talk! Not unless you're going to explain why you just screwed Link… Link!" Why… Why did she dip like that?

Ruby saw Tatl fly quickly away from the general, stopping in front of one of the many screens that showed Link.

"C'mon Link, used the Pegasus Boots, run away! Get away! Get out of there!" What was she saying? What were those? Did… did Link have a chance? That… that might be worth looking. Yeah, Link did promise he would come back, a-and Tatl did know him best.

Ruby chanced a look, but only at the screen that showed Link, just Link. He was staring up at the Grimm approaching, the thing that Ruby didn't want to see. He hopped, lightly, like putting his sword away and drawing forth his shield. When his feet hit the ground, Ruby saw something new on them. Wings… miniature feather-like wings.

"Yes! Yes! Okay, now run you idiot, RUN!" Run? How… How could Link outrun that… that Grimm? Ruby knew that wasn't possible, it just... wasn't…

Link was gone.

"Where did he go?" Another monotone question from the screen Ruby wouldn't look at. "Was the connection disrupted?"

"Oh no, you don't get to know." Tatl spoke up again. But… she was calm now. That was good. She wouldn't be calm unless Link was safe. She just had to trust Tatl. Tael did, and so did Link, so she could, too. "You get to explain what made that ring thing you gave Link ring like a bell calling dinner!" It did what? That was what happened?

"Ironwood," Ruby felt her body shake at the voice, though she knew it wasn't directed at her. She took comfort in Tael still gripping her tightly. He was warm, even as he shivered. "Is what Tatl is saying true? I advise you to speak honestly." Ruby heard leather creaking, like it was being tightened. She heard that a lot from Ms. Goodwitch… when she was angry.

"Screw that!" Tatl screamed again. "I'm gonna tear his ears off personally later, but right now he's gotta send that pilot back out to get Link, like now!" That's right, that's right! They could go get Link! Grimm were fast, but nothing could match the speed of an airship!

"That will not be happening." What? "This may be cruel, but it is necessary to safeguard the hundreds of others that are currently stationed on the border of the Badlands. If the faunus were to be rescued, it would doubtlessly lead the Grammite back, possibly to escape the Badlands." Was that it? Were… Were they going to leave Link to die?

B-Because they wanted to protect everyone else? No… No, NO! Link didn't deserve that! No one did! Link was too kind, too brave, too willing to help to die like that!

"You planned this…." Ruby heard the whisper come from Blake. It quickly grew into a hiss. "This whole thing was a ruse! You lured Link out there and then baited the Grammite. You really are trying to kill him!"

"That is utter nonsense." The cloaked girl gripped her legs a bit tighter at the voice. "I would never plan nor even think to harm any student."

"No, but you're probably fine following a command to do so." That wasn't Blake, and it wasn't Professor Goodwitch either. But it was still feminine, dark… angry. Was… was that Weiss? "I know plenty of men like you, general. Doing as told no matter how much your morals argue against it. You don't care if you step over your moral code, so long as you remain the dutiful soldier for the council." That was… venomous, harsh.

"Believe what you will Ms. Schnee, but the accusations of misconduct from a defective mini-drone aren't even worth the dead earth of the Badlands." More monotone voice, giving cold and harsh words. Ruby didn't want to hear anything from that screen anymore. "Perhaps it would be best to secure those two bright orbs of the faunus. Upon his death, they will need someone to-"

"LINK'S NOT GONNA DIE!" That was Ruby who screamed. She had to scream. She needed to scream "LINK IS GOING TO COME BACK! HE PROMISED HE WOULD AND HE'S GOING TO COME BACK BECAUSE HE PROMSISED! H-HE WOULDN… WOULDN…. H-h-he w-o-o-o-uldn't…"

Then there was sobbing. Ruby was crying.

She wasn't used to crying, not anymore, but she had to cry. She needed to.

Teal was leaning against her, warm and soft. But she felt something cold, like pricks of needles.

Tael was crying. He didn't deserve to cry.

"Shh… hey, Ruby, it's gonna be okay," Yang whispered to her.

Ruby didn't know when she got so close, but her sister was there. She felt her get wrapped up in a hug. She fell into it. Yang's hand started to stroke her hair.

"It's gonna be okay Ruby. Link'll be fine. He's like Super Faunus." Ruby knew he was. But so was her mom. Super Huntress.

"Ironwood, this is your last chance." Professor Goodwitch spoke again. "Speak honestly, as this is your last chance. Did you and the Council organize this event to lure Link into a trap."

Had they?

"You are over reaching with your authority, Goodwitch." Another evil monotone voice spoke up, from the same screen. "General Ironwood is under no obligation to answer you, and you have no power to make any accusations or punishments for him."

"The actions of the man standing before me have led one of the students at Beacon to be pursued in the Badlands by one of the single largest and most dangerous Grimm ever to scorn Remnant." Only Ruby's faints sobs interrupted Ms. Goodwitch's words. "I hold the power to punish those responsible for endangering or plotting harm to affiliates of Beacon Academy. And, I assure you, if any falsehood is found after your professed innocence, I will only increase my punishment ten-fold."

Ruby's sobbing dissolved into sniffles, the rest of the room quiet as cast glass. In the year Ruby, had been at Beacon, she had never known Ms. Goodwitch to lie, let alone exaggerate.

Her punishments were torturous and usually worse than any exam or Grimm Hunt imaginable. To increase it ten times… but it was for Link.

Ironwood didn't say anything, not at fist. He simply stared at her, judging Professor Goodwitch as she doubtlessly did in turn.

They were experts at this, masters of showing their strength through stance and sight alone. This was already bad, but it could get worse. How could it get worse?

The small scroll in his hand rang.

In the pocket of silence that took over the room, it was deafening, a beeping noise that sounded more akin to an alarm than a simple noticed. Ruby felt Yang relaxed her grip, watching through a bleary nearly covered eye as the general tapped on it with his thumb, holding the screen outward from his body.

"Zeppeto?" Ironwood spoke the name in a curious tone, as if he wasn't being threatened by one of the most deadly huntresses in all of Remnant. "Has something happened? I don't hear any alarms."

"Oh no, nothing worth an alarm." The voice spoke through the screen, much clearer and cleaner than the voices that Council spoke with. "Well, something did happen, but it's not worth making a big deal over. Just though I'd let you know before you got blindsided."

"Oh? And what might that be?" Ironwood still didn't sound any more upset or nervous than before. Ruby couldn't imagine the latter, but a clear part of her feared the former.

"Well, you see, you know how I was the one who gave you the scroll you're using, right?" Ruby leaned in closer to Teal and Yang at the question. Not because of the question, but because of the sudden stone visage Ironwood gave. "Plus, Penny and I were watching the little tiff that Link got into with the Creeper and Grammite. Easy to hack a network you make and all." Penny? Penny was here? That was good, maybe, at least Penny would help if she could, right?

"Are you informing me of your break from protocol?" Ironwood spoke through the scroll again. He didn't sound different.

"Nah, nothing like that." The man spoke again, laughing with his words. Why was he so happy? "I'm just letting you know that the little test I showed off to Link earlier got away from me." Test? Link? What did he mean?

"Zeppeto…." Ironwood spoke the man's name slowly. Ruby gripped her legs a bit tighter, biting her lower lip until it cut off the blood. Yang's grip got tight again. "Where is the WPM Model?" Was that a weapon? The man lost track of a weapon? It must have been one heck of a model.

"If I had to guess, probably flying out to that faunus boy as we speak." It was what? It was flying? Was it a ship then? "But don't worry, I know how important military property is, so I got Penny flying out after it." She was? Penny was flying to Link?

"Zeppeto… Did you send two high priority research subjects into the depths of the Badlands?" The question was monotone, as every word spoken from the screen was. But Ruby knew the hostility in the words.

"That the Council?" The man, Zeppeto apparently, asked. "Well, only half true. One of them, Epona, the WPM model's name mind you, kinda got away from me. No telling how it happened. Penny was kind enough to volunteer to go loop the mare and bring her back. Told her to be careful, what with a massive Grammite stalking out there and all."

"Link's getting help?" Jaune asked the question. "I-I mean, this Penny girl is chasing the WMP, or PM… Epona out there, b-but where are they headed?"

"Is that Arc's kid? You and your dad both sound about as sure of yourself as I am with ethics!" Was that a joke? Ruby couldn't tell. Thanks to Yang, she was bad with jokes, and she didn't want to joke now. "But really, that's what I'd guess. I mean, Epona has shown an aptitude in locating high-ranking Grimm, just like I designed her to. With the Grammite out there, gotta guess that's where she's headed."

Despite herself, Ruby felt a smile creep on her lips.

Link is getting help. He… He wouldn't be alone. That was excellent, that was perfect, that was exactly what he deserved! She looked at Tael, looked at the small ball of light that was gripping one of her long bangs so tightly. She couldn't see beyond the bright veil of lavender that made up the fairy, but Ruby could his warmth, his happiness, his shared joy. She saw Yang smile, she saw the warm glow of her eyes! Link was going to be okay!

"We will have to discuss your clear lack of oversight in the future, Zeppeto," The Council spoke again. Ruby didn't like their voice at all. "Furthermore, unfortunate as the loss of the WPM and RAD models are, we cannot risk their return to base should they make contact with the Grammite." They couldn't? They… they wouldn't let Link escape?

"Whoa, why not?" Yang released Ruby to yell up at the screen. She heard knuckles cracking. "You gonna let your little whatever-letter models get thrashed just for Link? You seriously wanna kill him that badly?" Ruby swallowed on nothing.

"Believe what you will, Ms. Xiao Long, but our decision extends not from any animosity you imagine we have, but simple logic." Ruby shivered. "Should The RAD and WPM model reach Link and the Grammite before the former is harmed, and should they then attempt to escape, they will only end up leaving a trail of fear back towards the bunker you currently reside in. As capable as the Military is, the facility you are at is simply not equipped to deal with a Grammite, let alone worth the risk of the hundreds of other soldiers stationed there."

That made sense, of course it made sense. Why risk a hundred for one? If it was her out there, if Ruby were alone, she would understand, she would ask them to. But… still… it wasn't her. It was Link.

"Fine!" Tatl yelled. Why did she agree? "But when Link kills that thing, and I promise you he will, I'm gonna make sure every single one of you-…. Link?" She stopped. She said his name. Why did she do either?

Ruby raised and twisted her head, just enough to peer at the golden ball of light, and just long enough to see where her translucent wings were facing away from. She was facing the screen, the screens that showed Link fighting the Creeper before.

Two of the screens showed nothing, nothing of interest to Ruby right now. Just the wasteland at varying degrees of zoom. The dead earth with cracks and slowly eroding bodies of Grimm. The last, however, showing the basin entire, showed what she feared, what some nightmares were akin to be made of.

The Grammite, the crawling death-eating worm, was moving still, as it had been for some time, either searching or chasing Link. They couldn't see him, couldn't follow him, something, but that was before. Right now, she could see him.

Behind the Grammite, staring at its retreating trail, a small speck of green was shown. But that was all it was, just a speck, too far away to see anything more.

"What's going on? Why isn't he moving?" That was Blake. She sounded, scared, nervous probably. Ruby didn't like hearing her friends like that. Anyone like that. "Where did he go? Why can't we see him closer?"

"Zooming in with minidrones five-through-ten now," Ms. Goodwitch spoke the works like a self-directed command. "They couldn't track Link before, due to whatever he did to avoid detection. I should have a clearer picture soon." She was tapping at her pad, rapidly, as she spoke.

"He was running," Tatl spoke again. The room was silent as she spoke, either waiting for her or the screens. "He put on the Pegasus Boots, boots that were made from the hide of an ancient creature, enchanted by the Great Fairy of Magic. He can move faster than the wind when he wears them… but if he runs too fast, the world pushes back." Pushes back? What did… wait…

"A-A sonic boom?" Ruby was almost surprised to hear her own voice. But she knew what that force was. It had happened to her when she started to train her semblance, a lot. "That… I've had that happen… a-a few times."

"Another seemingly miraculous tool in the faunus's ever growing pile." Those voices spoke again. "And yet another question for its method of powering, no different than his blade. It will be interesting to study them."

"You're not getting your grimy hands on anything!" Tatl yelled back at the screen, golden aura flashing a dark shade for a moment. After the many times she'd seen her sister's eyes change, Ruby knew she didn't imagine it. "The only thing you're gonna be grasping at are excuses for why you shouldn't be locked into shackles and thrown into the sea you sick, worthless, figureheads!"

"With every word, I find myself agreeing with our fairy friend more and more." Who was that? Was… was that Ms. Goodwitch? It sounded like her. It just sounded… off. "Mini-drones are in place, Link's image should be appearing, now…" Her voice trailed off with the words, but Ruby could see why.

The screen did show Link, close up and clear as it had during his fight before. But before, Link always looked confident, sure, and ready to go. Even without sound, Ruby could see he had a plan, that he was thinking, that her friend was ready.

That was not how he looked now.

Blood ran from the edges of his mouth, tears from the corners of his eyes. Silent as it was before, he panted on the screen, chest moving out and in to grasp at air. Blond hair once looking so pristine and perfect was now wild, either looking wind-whipped or matted down at odd angles. But that was merely his face. On bended knee, one hand on the ground, the other holding his gem-encrusted shield… or what was left it.

The same shield Ruby had seen push and resist Dust-Bullets with a passive film was no longer there. In its place was a bent contraption, red Dust Crystals that were embedded over it now shattered and lain out in a trail over the dead earth behind him.

"Oh no."

Ruby watched, praying to whoever would listen to save Link. She couldn't lose someone else. She couldn't lose anyone else.

It was bad. This was all kinds of bad.

Link coughed in the midst of another gasp for air. It felt wet, constricting too. He didn't need to look to know he had stained the dead earth with more of his blood. Internal wounds, the cost of over-use of the Pegasus boots. That was one cost, but he held the other.

His eyes looked away from the retreating Bellumgera, looking at the shield in his right hand, or what was left it. He saw the splinters of gems around him, shining across the dead earth like a trail of tears. The steel along the rims of the metal were bent at odd angles, the consequence of his effort to move faster than was necessary.

He ran into the wind with the shield raised, knowing the force the wind would push back on him with. Link had thought, he had hoped really, that if he had his shield raised, then whatever force pushed back on him, he would have endured. For a time, he did, and he was able to avoid the War Eater.

But then the wind had fallen away, letting the boom of the world slam into him. The Magic Shield could not endure such a blow. The result of his effort was in his hand, and the consequence leaving riddled wounds all over his body. Not even Link could tell what was from the ground, the shield, or just his inability to stop.

His gamble had worked though, for however long. The Bellumgera crawled away from him, its great massive speaks piercing the dead earth. It's tailed waved back at him, mockingly perhaps. But Link knew better, for the monster did not know where he was, not exactly in the very least.

That tail was the key though, it was what Link knew to focus on. The most sensitive part of any Molgera, the piece of the worm that felt the earth. Its scales were too thick to properly feel the vibrations of the ground, but its exposed tail could. That was how it hunted from leagues away, and it was how Link would keep it from diving into the earth, perhaps even kill it.

He had done it before, several times as well, but he lacked any of the tools he had back then.

In the land of Termina, Link had the Giant's Mask. That was lost among raids and thefts. If not that, then in the Gerudo Valley he kept on Epona for speed and aim. He had neither of those, and not even the Sacred Light Arrows to wound the beast. Link, for all that he had, was at a great disadvantage.

No tools to readily aid him, wounded and likely nearing mortal status, this was not going as he had hoped, as he, Ozpin, and Blake had planned. Then again, it ever so rarely went so smoothly.

Link let the shield fall from his grasp, landing on the dead earth with a rattle before stilling. It was useless to him now. He wouldn't be able run more anyways. His legs would give out before he reached a quarter of the Bellumgera's length.

It was indeed bad… but Link had no intention of dying here. He had too many promises to keep, and years to go before he could sleep.

The great beast was turning again, twisting towards him with its great bony protrusions. Link found it odd, for a moment. The creature appeared by eye to be moving slowly, massive limbs moving as if through water. By the distance it covered alone, he knew the monster was anything but slow. Strength, the power to crush a mountain with its own weight, was non-negotiable, great.

Without a shield to endure the winds or 'boom' of the air, and honest way to match the strength to crush a mountain, he was left with only the idea of careful planning and execution. It wasn't unlike his fights of the past. He simply had fewer tries to get it right. Just one in fact.

The creature spun slowly, so if he was able to avoid its maw, he might be able send a few arrows towards its tail, either strapped with bombs or doused with flames. Either would work. His Longshot would make the trek easier, but that involved righting himself before the creature was able to defend against him. It was smarter than a simple wolfo, it would know to defend if its attack failed.

He could heal himself… he could use the gift of the Old Woman… but instincts and logic told him otherwise. He was being watched, by eyes that Glynda commanded unseen. If they were doing this to study him, test him, they anything he showed would either be ordered away or claimed out of fear.

The unknown had the advantage, and he could not lose it until defeat was certain.

Then an idea struck him – Just as the Bellumgera let out a roar of its approach.

Link twisted his arm and aimed his Longshot to the side, far out of the path of the encroaching War-Eater. With a click of the trigger, its metal length pushed against him as it sailed true. In no time, he felt the tip dig into the dead earth, taunt as it could be. It pulled Link without delay.

The Bellumgera dove towards Link, perhaps sensing he was soon to dodge. The Hylian could see every one of its massive teeth as he sailed, each one closer than the next to ripping into his flesh, each more menacing than the last. But he was not afraid. He knew he would survive.

He landed at length away from where he once stood, rolling to a harmless stop, having done the action hundreds of times before. The oddity now was the loss of his hat, letting his blonde hair wave at length. He pocketed the Longshot, reaching into another pocket along this chest plate, grabbing at the bow within. His fingers brushed against it, feeling it within reach…

But then the ground rumbled. Link's already shaky feet wavered the tiny amount more needed to send him to the ground. He hit the dead dirt with a huff, energy gone. He was out of breath, out of energy, and running out of time. His blue eyes looked up, watching as the Bellumgera grabbed and pulled by, snakelike body running body, its vulnerable tail with it.

It would charge at him again, no doubt knowing that he was running out of chances to escape his maw. Link had even fewer attempts left now to gain the upper hand. Pushing himself up from the cracking earth, arms shaking with the effort, he racked his mind for anything he could use.

Molgerums were prone to dead lands, having devoured all the life that once inhabited them. They made home in loose soil, jumping forth whenever they found life. The larger the worm, the grander its name. From person eater, to army eater, and now, the war eater. But despite their size, the only thing else that ever grew was their caution.

The youngest would fly in the air, heedless of their vulnerable tails. The older they grew, the more prone they were to scrape along the ground, to harden their shells and become more accurate with their attacks. They larger they became, the rarer they were seen, and for many good reasons. But one thing they rarely did, ever did, was something new.

The Bellumgera would be unlikely to attempt some new attack on Link, not so long as it remained unharmed. It would charge, he would dodge, and hopefully soon, find out a way to either stun and damage the great beast. He only could hope his body would last as long.

No… it would. If death came too close, he would sacrifice and unknown to preserve his life. That was a fair trade. Unfortunately, that time was fast approaching. Already the great beast was turning again, bony spikes pivoting its body in the dead land, running towards him with its multitude of claws and open maw. Link could feel the rumbling of the earth again.

He needed to strike, only one chance to make a move before he needed to recover, and before the monstrous worm could strike again. But it would be difficult, its eyes were as large as its great mouth, all three staring down in a deathly red gaze. They were focused, concentrated…

…Vulnerable.

It was risky, Link knew it as he reached for his bow again, pulling out the carved wood as he notched a new arrow, layered with the fiery remains of the sun, a gift from Lake Hylia. It was a risk because even if he hit, there was no guarantee the Bellumgera would divert in its path. If it didn't move… Link had no chance… But that was worth it.

All or nothing, all at once. It was his only chance now, that or a game of cat and mouse that ended with him unconscious before dead. He far preferred to go down trying.

One with Courage did not surrender to chance.

He aimed for the eye, the one on the left. Any life leaned into pain, to shield the area that was hurt. He had to do more than be a speck of dust, he had to maim the eye, to destroy it, to do something that would not be simply ignored. Fire tended to do that, but fire was slow and the Bellumgera was large. That made the window small.

Link pulled on the bow, sucking in a breath as he felt the fire burn. The worm roared at the sight, but it didn't falter. That was good, for now at least.

Link breathed once, the monster continued charge.

He breathed twice, feeling his finger twitch. Not yet.

He took a third breath, then held it in. The air was far from still, not with the Bellumgera charging.

Then he released.

The fire arrow flew perfectly, flying truer than a drop of rain. It landed in the Bellumgera exploding in a flurry of fire that eclipsed the beasts entire eye. It roared again, but higher in pitch, quicker in length. That was pain that was good.

But it wasn't moving course. It was still charging. It was still heading straight for Link, and he hadn't the time to aim and move away.

Link had only the time release his last breath of air. He whispered an apology on it, but it was lost in the roar of beating earth and the monster's roar.

He felt the heat of its breath envelope him.

Then he felt the winds of the air whip across his face.

Link blinked twice, head spinning left and right quickly. He was in the air, moving swiftly at that. The roar of the beast was behind him, but quickly falling away. He was moving fast, very fast, but he knew within his mind Elrora was not with him. He reached down, grabbing at something, anything.

He grabbed fur, thick and light in color. His blue eyes blinked, looking down his waist before twisting left and right again. Wings took up his vision now, two pair of wings that beat with the strength of a Watarara's Queen. They were connected to a body that he sat atop, strong in muscle and wide. His eyes followed it, running up the white coast and seeing the alabaster mane. Strands of hair waved in the wind, charging into the sky with purpose, with ownership.

Link felt a smile pull at his tired lips, hands reaching forward and grasping the hair.

Epona was here. Now… he had a chance.

Penny was a robot. She reminded herself of this every day. It was an order from the Council, given to her from Uncle Ironwood, and instructed to cleverly avoid by Papa Zepp.

She was a robot because she could download information from a scroll, see in the dark with ocular orbs that had been programmed to read fifteen different kinds of light, stop trucks with her bare hands, take the blow of a train without a sweat, and control fifteen stringed blades that came out from her back. She was a robot, through and through.

But Penny was also alive.

She had an aura, a soul, she had proof that everything she felt was real to her. She felt joy when she met Ruby Rose. She felt worry when she exposed her secret for the first time. She felt nervousness when she was scolded, but relief when she was rewarded. She felt everything, and she saved all of that whenever she could.

And right now, she felt the purest form of relief she had ever experienced, and it came from watching just outside the window of her airship.

Flying out and away from the massive Grammite was the WPM Model that Papa Zepp had developed, taking off at speeds that the Grimm could only barely match. Hanging atop the white mare was a figure wrapped in green, but with blonde locks whipping in the wind and a sheath of red on his back. All of that together meant that he was alive.

"He's alive! Oh, yeah!" Penny cheered aloud, fully knowing her words were being listened to by Uncle Ironwood. That was okay, Papa Zepp he was a good guy. "He's alive, flying… but I can't say he's having a good time."

"We lost sight of him during the rescue," she heard her uncle's voice respond. "What exactly happened, Penny?" Oh, she knew the answer to that!

"Well, Link was just standing there waiting for the Grammite to come after him. He was pulling on something, and I guess it was his bow and arrow!" She knew it was his bow and arrow. She could see for up to three-point-seven-two miles away. "I was following the WPM Model-"

"Her name is Epona and you know that!"

Penny stumbled across her words at the voice that shouted at her. That wasn't her uncle. That was… Tattle? No, Tatl!

"You're right! My bad." Penny corrected, making note in her memory bank about the name. Papa Zepp did say it was a good name. "Well, I was following Epona and saw her diving for Link. He fired off that giant fire arrow and it went all fwoooosh! But when the Big Bad Grimm didn't move, I thought, Link was in trouble! But then in came Epona and picked him right up!"

"So Link is unharmed?" Penny recognized that voice. Those were the Council members. She could never tell which one it was, even with heightened hearing.

"Weeeeeell, I wouldn't say unharmed," Penny drooled out, noting with her enhanced vision how tired Link looked. He needed a new Dust canister… or rest. Rest was probably more appropriate for him. "But he's not about to be eaten by the Grammite." Penny heard a few thankful voices through her built-in comm. She understood the feeling.

"Penny, your orders stand to give a wide berth to both Link and the WPM Model." Huh? That didn't make sense. "When the time comes that they are finished, you will fly deep into the Badlands before executing a near-sonic flight path back to base, is that clear?"

Well, speaking strictly, it was clear. Penny understood what they were staying very well. She had excellent auditory software and translation components built in to her mainframe. She could understand almost any language, dialect, and even a few animals if she stretched it. But what she didn't understand was what the words meant.

It… sounded like she was being told to abandon him. Why would she do that?

"Uh… but I can help him from here," Penny spoke testingly, finger extensions hovering over the on-board battery cannons. They were filled with crystalline ice dust. "I mean, it wouldn't be that hard to distract the Grimm. Maybe then Link can-"

"Your orders are clear, Penny." That was uncle Ironwood. Why did he sound so mean? "Do not engage and limit your visibility. You will likely be required to pick up the remains of Link." Re… Remains?

"I knew it! You sick bastards!" That was Tatl again, and she sounded mad. Penny felt something similar, but she mostly just felt confusion. "You really do just want to see Link get killed! This whole thing was a plot from the beginning and you just proved it!"

"I am trying to limit the number of casualties. Link, who is currently engaged with the Grammite, has no chance of escape. Penny, who has not fired of a single battery, is not yet in danger. It would be unnecessary and wasteful to put her in harm's way." Was that really it though? Something told Penny that wasn't it.

She felt hurt, pained. She double checked her aura levels and chassis to confirm no breach in her exterior, but the feeling of pain lingered. Why did she feel pain? It felt… it felt like when she was lying to Ruby, when she was telling her friend to run away, to forget about her. It was a bad feeling, a really bad feeling.

Was that was she was doing now? Being told to… run away? Is this was Ruby felt then? She was… This was a really bad feeling. She didn't like it. She didn't like the idea of abandoning someone. She couldn't do it, she wouldn't!

Penny wasn't going to abandon Link! She wouldn't!

Her eyes scanned the horizon again, quickly finding Link atop Epona. He gripped the mane of the mare he rode tightly, both hands stiff against the alabaster hairs. He looked tired, very tired, but he held onto Epona's mane as she flew through the sky. He was still going to fight, and Penny was not going to abandon him!

She twisted the controls of the airship, angling it back towards the Grammite.

"Penny what are you doing? I gave you clear orders." He did give clear orders. Penny wouldn't like about that. But… she could disobey.

"I'm sorry," she spoke up quickly, fingers running through the canister controls as she did so. "But something is telling me that it would be really wrong to abandon Link, worse than not listening to you."

The screens in front of her beeped as they flashed a multitude of colors, commands appearing and vanishing faster than most human eyes could see. Penny saw and memorized each one, knowing exactly what they said and what they meant. Her guns were ready, and her target was locked.

"I'm sorry Uncle Ironwood, but I have to help Link!" Every part of Penny told her to.

She pulled the triggers of the airship. The cannons opened fire.

Almost instantly, though in truth to be an approximate 0.34 second delay, the Ice Dust Canisters impacted the dark outer shell of the Grammite. They exploded, reacting violently with the high carbon content of the air, forming dense ice crystal with thick lattices, taking over the shell of the Ancestral Grimm. Another approximate 2.54 seconds later, a thick ring of ice had formed around the Grimm, severely limiting its motions.

"No backing out now!" Penny cheered, seeing the large Grammite struggle back and forth against the icy ring it was bound to. It wouldn't hold, certainly not for long, but definitely long enough to make sure Link was out of danger.

Penny heard cheers through her comm, and she smiled with them. She recognized a few of the cheerful voices, some new voices as well. That meant she made a good decision. That always made her happy. At now no matter what happened, she knew she made the right decision.

"Now, where did Link go?" She mused as her enhanced eyes scanned the horizon again. Surprisingly she couldn't find him. Her common sense algorithms said that white appeared over dark brown very easily, yet she couldn't find Epona anywhere in the skies.

Penny did, however, see shards of ice, some small as a person to as large as a bullhead, flying off the Grammite as it shattered its very temporary prison. She could feel her airship shake with the roar of anger it gave. She wasn't afraid, not of something like that, thought that might have been Papa Zepp programming her to only be afraid of -.

Tap Tap

Penny's musings stopped as she heard the tapping of the glass. Her head spun to see a familiar face looking at her, though now bruised, a little bloody, and missing the green hat. Penny missed it, too. Link looked good in that hat.

"Hello Link!" Penny called to him as loud as she could, waving to him as she did. "I'm here to help you! So is Epona!" He only continued to stare at her, breathing heavily as his blond locks whipped violently. Well, it must have been hard to hear her through the glass. That, and Penny's accelerometer told her they were traveling at speeds excess 100 mph. That told her memory unit the wind would be deafening anyways. It was probably the later.

She watched him look away from, probably back down the Grammite. His eyes were squinted, unsurprisingly given the wind. He had to worry about moister, Penny didn't. She looked at her monitors quickly, seeing the cameras that gave optical view beneath her ship. The Grammite was just beneath them, circling them at a speed befitting its size. It almost wasn't fair. Then again, they could fly, it couldn't. Couldn't it? No, it couldn't.

Tap Tap There he was again!

Penny looked over, bright-eyed, at Link. He was less bright-eyed, definitely because of the high-speed winds and lack of protection for his eyes. Too bad they weren't metallic like hers. Actually, that might have been good. Faunus did have good eyesight.

"Hello again Link!" She called loudly again, making sure she moved her mouth open and widely as possible. If he couldn't hear her, maybe he could see her. Well, see her words, she knew he could see her. They were looking at each other right now. "I'm combat ready and ready to help." He nodded at her words, even as he gripped Epona tightly.

Link looked away from her again, probably to follow the Grammite on the ground. Penny made careful not of Link's location as she rotated her ship, making sure they didn't fly out of the Grimm's sight. If they did, it might start hunting something else. That would be bad, very bad, especially for Uncle Ironwood and Papa Zepp.

But then he was pointing, at least all of Penny's interpretation parameters and code blocks told her that he was. Pointing down once, twice, then at Epona's… tail? Pointing down, at the Grammite, then at Epona's tail. Grammite, Tail, oh!

"The tail?" Penny spoke, moving her mouth in a very large fashion. Link had long ears, but Penny's internal memory unit told her that speaks excess 123 miles per hour made it impossible to hear. "Aim for the tail?"

She must have guessed right, because Link grinned as he vigorously shook his head. Penny smiled back.

"Alright, you can count on me!" Penny was determined to prove that Link could do just that. Tightening her grip on the controls of the airship, she began her attack.

She lost altitude, moving her closer to the Ancient Grimm. Less distance meant fewer variables required for calculating trajectories. Less time meant higher chances of impact. Link wanted to aim at the tail, and that meant it was a likely weak-point of the Grammite, that or it would at least stun it. That meant she needed high impact. High impact dust rounds that is.

Her hand danced around the control pad to her right, rapidly moving through the screens, having already memorized the prompts and commands they displayed. Internal memory boards were great to have! In no time, she had adjusted the batteries of her ship to load fire-enhanced Dust rounds, ready to cause violent explosions upon exposure to oxygen environments, a.k.a. anything outside of the shell it was held in.

The Grammite was moving rapidly on the ground, twisting with dexterity that most common sense modules would deem unlikely. Thankfully, Penny's had been outfitted with modules made specifically by Papa Zepp, so she knew the Grimm wasn't breaking any laws of nature. Well… no more than existing.

Her cannons lined up with the tail, flying some distance behind the creature, just high enough to avoid any loose rubble it pulled up, but not so high that it made impact difficult. Given the size of the Grimm, it took little time for her to lock onto the target. She smiled as she readied the trigger, getting ready to unload her rounds at the Grimm and-

Its tail whipped.

Like dropping a boulder into a lake, the tail of the Grimm sprung up at Penny's airship, the whole weight of the massive object barreling towards her. It was fast, very fast, faster than most pilots could react. Further unfortunately for Penny, she didn't have any cores set to avoidance maneuvers.

Penny had just enough time to slam on the control pad for her wings, avian rolling the ship out of the way of the massive tail. It wasn't far enough.

Warnings blared across her screens and comm, the interior of the ship turning a dark red. She had been hit. The Grammite's tail had hit her ship! That was bad. That was really bad.

One of the engines was gone, too badly damaged to help maintain altitude. The other was unable to hold up the weight of her ship alone, let alone balance it. Her batteries were heavily damaged, unable to fire. The screens were sparking, sirens blaring.

Penny was going down.

"Penny! Penny!" She heard Papa Zepp calling through her comm. She couldn't respond. She was trying to fix something, anything. "Eject Penny! Get out of there, now!" Papa Zepp did know best.

Her memory units told her right where the ejection buttons were, three color-coded buttons to be depressed in sequential order. First button, green, attached the locking harness over her body. It worked flawlessly. Second button, yellow, detach the locking mechanisms of the windows. The blaring stopped when she pressed it, her temperature sensors telling her there was a significant decrease in degrees Fahrenheit.

The third button, last one, red, committed ejection. She pressed it, and the cockpit of the airship was ripped in half. A moment later, she was flying in the air, strapped to her seat and held securely as her body was rocked up and away from the falling airship.

The parachute deployed from the back of the seat a second later, stopping her free fall and holding her in the air in a controlled descent. Her arms gripped the seat tightly, eyes watching carefully as her ship fell to the Badlands. It was spinning rapidly, unable to maintain itself any further. By all accounts, her memory almost attributed the sight to a falling firecracker more than a ship, given how high up she was and how far down it was.

But in almost no time, it hit the ground and exploded on impact.

That could have been her. She almost died. She… she was almost killed. Penny was-

ROOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAR!

Penny was still in danger.

Her eyes moved, wide and focused, at the Ancient Grimm charging for her, its three large eyes focused on her descending form. It knew where she was. It knew it could get her.

This… this was what an ancient Grimm was. Smart, strong, and able to kill someone in a single blow. She wasn't ready for this. Why did she come out here to do this? Why? She hadn't even gotten to have fun at the Festival yet.

She… This wasn't supposed to happen.

The Grammite didn't care.

Penny watched, caught trembling and unsure in her floating seat, as the massive Grimm jumped towards her once more. It couldn't fly, but it could leap, and it jumped well above the height of the Badlands Hanger. That was enough to reach her.

It was jumping up to eat her, to kill her, and Penny couldn't do anything to stop something so big, or avoid something so large.

Penny really was going to die. Penny-

…Found herself getting whipped heavily to the side as something ran into her.

If she had breath in her lungs, or lungs at all, she would have lost them at the high velocity impact. Instead, she merely found her accelerometers and gyroscope momentarily knocked out of balance and equilibrium. Her sensors flared, but were quickly righted.

When they were reset to balance, she found herself free from the chair she was holding onto, flying again. Except, she wasn't in a ship, or outside of a ship, or even falling straight down. She was flying horizontally, or so her gyroscope told her, and at speeds just shy of terminal velocity. She blinked, doing automatic calibrations on her visual sensors.

When they came to, she found herself being held by Link.

She blinked again, doing a secondary restart. The vision remained the same. Link had one of her arms wrapped tightly around her torso, holding her between himself and Epona. She could feel the wings of the WPM Model beating at the air, just as well as her sensitive pressure sensors could make out the high density of Link's own muscles…

He smiled down at her, blond locks still whipping in the wind. No words came from his mouth, but Penny could tell what he meant. It was an action Papa Zepp had given her many times before, after all of her field tests.

You're okay. I'm glad.

"I'm… I'm undamaged," Penny confirmed the report, her body doing diagnostic as she spoke. No ruptures to her subdermal metallic armor or her latex exterior. By all accounts, the only real damage that would require maintenance were the sudden spikes and off-settings to her balancing mechanisms. That would require external check-ups.

But… She still had her hands clenched tightly against Link's tunic, holding onto him as she flew Epona through the air. She watched him, his eyes looking away from her, more than likely to look at the Grammite. Penny could hear it roar again, but it sounded farther off. No… further down. That was smart, especially after what happened to her airship when they were close.

The airship… designed to take head-on impacts with Nevermores of ages of seventy years and below, was knocked out of the sky by a single passing blow of the Grammite. It was terrifying. She felt… Penny felt scared. She felt really scared. Her hands clenched Link's tunic tighter.

He held her closer.

Penny blinked, looking back up at him. Link still had one hand on Epona's mane, but he was straightening himself, raising himself until he was looking down at the Grammite. They must have slowed, because Penny could see his locks barely moving in the breeze. It was safer to stand taller when there was less drag.

Without a word, Link reached behind himself, reaching for something that made an unclasping sound according to Penny's auditory inputs. When his hand pulled back around, he was holding a weapon he had used before.

It was his bow.

The same bow and arrow she and Papa Zepp saw him use against the horde of Creepers, freezing them solid according to the rapid-pace images. It was the same one he had used against the Grammite before, launching what was likely another high-impact arrow encased in fire dust. It was powerful by all previous assessments, but it was probabilistically unlikely for him to hit a target like the Grammite from any great distance.

Wind speeds would heavily offset the arrow, its natural decay in longitude due to lower max velocities made timing more delicate, its dependency on constant air-pressure made its straight path less guaranteed, and for maximum impact, it would have to hit the target before natural air drag lowered its speed to terminal velocity. It was a weapon unlikely to work.

But despite all of that, Penny felt he could do it.

That was enough for her.

"Oh thank Dust. Oh thank the Dust, Aura, and anything else that helped with that. Oh geez." Weiss passively listened to Jaune's unflattering remarks of thanks, his decompression from stress. She could practically hear him melt in his seat. "That was close, oh geez that was close."

"But they're alright, right? They're okay." Weiss glanced at her partner, watching the younger girl play with her skirt as she spoke the words. She may have meant to sound sure of herself, but it was too easy to see the unease she felt. Hardly surprising, easily understandable. "Penny's safe, Link's safe, they're both okay."

"Penny has suffered no immediate reduction in her aura levels, well above critical limits." Ms. Goodwitch appeared to answer Ruby, though Weiss was appreciative of the information. "Link, however, is near critical levels himself. Likely a combination of factors including exhaustion and overexertion with his previous fight."

"Yeah, fighting two giant monsters tends to take a lot of you." Weiss felt herself scowl a little as Tatl spoke. She was rude, as always. However, it was rather justified now. "But hey, we didn't exactly plan to get betrayed by Mr. Stiff and the Council of Stooges, did we?" Weiss pointedly ignored Yang's stifled laughter.

"You can label me a betrayer until your breath runs out, but in no way did I plan this," General Ironwood returned. Weiss saw his eyes still on the screen. "I believe your energy would be better spent focusing on Link's safe return." Deflection, a common tactic of high ranking officials.

"Don't change the subject!" Tatl fired back. "I think now's the perfect time to shout out all your hypocrisy! Link and the Armos-Girl are safe on Epona up in the clouds." Armos? Must have been a foreign term. "Right now, you're the one holding back on helping them and calling up some misplaced sense of duty. What kind of bull is that!?"

Weiss pointedly watched the screens over the growing unrest in the golden mini-drone. She noted as Link guided the flying horse, releasing Penny so he could grip the alabaster mane. The quality of the video was fluctuating, no doubt a consequence of the speeds he was moving at. It did show, however, as he grabbed the Grammite's attention with a quick flyby, moving at speeds far superior to the dragging-based movement of the Grimm. Doubtlessly a tactic for some grand end goal.

"In case your memory subroutine is failing, the appearance of the Grammite is an unfortunate and unforeseen result of the hunting of the Ancient Creeper. The Prototype Models that pursued him were a result of poor management of subordinates by General Ironwood." Without even a glance, Weiss could feel the chill that came from the tall general. "We will be sure to diagnose you and your… sibling's programming when this matter with the Grimm is con-"

"STOP TALKING TO ME LIKE I'M A THING!" Now Weiss turned.

Tatl, the annoying golden ball of light, was glowing red.

The mini-drone was ringing like an alarm, her insect like wings vibrating with a tension that looked ready to endure a knife's cut. It didn't take any kind of thought to know the mini-drone had reach some level of threshold in its programming, some maximum is was never meant to either read or reach. Either way… something interesting was going to happen.

"You're talking to me like my brother and I are possessions, no different than that girl Link had to slice up a dozen ways to the Gerudo Valley to teach her a lesson." So much for regret. "I thought at first… no, I hoped that she was an outlier, that things would be different here. But from the way you're acting, you're no different than her!"

"S-Sis…" Weiss lightly heard Tael sputter out, but anything else he had to say died off in his sister's monologue.

"But it isn't just Tael and I. Link, even that girl and horse, they're just objects to you, things you get to bargain with like chips on a board!" Steel was less dense than the air was right now. "Just admit it. Stop trying to make enemies out of people who kill your worst nightmares for sport, and just tell me straight that you set us up."

"You are making rather reaching conclusions based off of circumstantial evidence." About the response Weiss expected. "It can be understood that you are angry because your master is in danger, but lashing out is unbecoming of a drone such as yourself."

"Perhaps it would be more prudent to observe Link for now," Ironwood again, another diversionary tactic. Either he knew this would end badly or he wanted to maintain peace. Likely both.

"Oh no, not after that comment." Tatl, the now red-ball of fury, let out. "I know Link's going to be just fine, I know he's going to come back from that Grammite more tired than hurt. But what I really want to know, what I'm not gonna stop until I get, is some kind of word that when Link gets back, he's not going to be jumped and thrown to the wolves… A SECOND TIME!"

Tatl rang at blaring levels in front of Ironwood's eyes. He didn't so much as blink at the antics of the clearly malfunctioning mini-drone. More control than Weiss herself would have had, already knowing that if such accusations were leveled at her, she would have beaten the figure out of the air.

Instead Ironwood merely glared at the malfunctioning drone, eyes screwed and fists tight at his side. Weiss took the chance to glance at the screens. She was of mixed opinion to see nothing much had changed. Link and Penny were still in flight atop the winged horse, the Grammite chasing them. No gain on either ground.

"What makes you believe you have any right to make threats to me?" Ironwood coldly replied, a tone that drew Weiss's attention once more. "You are guests on a military compound, making judgements about our methods without knowing our history."

"But I know your history, Ironwood." Was that Ms. Goodwitch? Weiss looked to see the blonde professor pointedly looking up from her pad, staring at the general and red-lighted mini-drone with a gaze sharper than a sword. "And I know that your actions and decisions throughout the course of this operation have been far past questionable."

"And I saw you activate Link's earpiece," Weiss heard Blake add-in, utterly unsurprisingly. "And it was only just after that when it let out an ear piercing screech, easily enough to gain the attention of the Grammite."

"Just admit it," Tatl again, nearly bouncing off of General Ironwood's forehead. "Just admit you set Link up and I'll at least try to not tell him what you did."

Weiss saw no reaction in Ironwood at the words, nothing more than a simple raise of his brow. Tatl seemed to recognize it as well.

"You may not be afraid of me, and I probably couldn't do anything to you…" The mini-drone continued. "But do you really want to chance fighting Link, when he is taking on your big bad monsters without a shred of fear?"

Brows furrowed again. That… was actually a good point. Not even Weiss saw the point in denying Link's skill by now. Even comparisons to other hunters was far from possible, she could at least see the threat he would possess to the average hunter, let alone Grimm. He wouldn't be taken out easily, and a general like Ironwood would definitely be able to see that.

Actually… if they saw it earlier… then all of this…

"You're right, we did set Link up."

Weiss felt her jaw drop. Her eyes widened in tandem.

Speechless, she was absolutely speechless to the affirmation. She was likely the only one.

"I KNEW IT! I KNEW IT!" Tatl screeched, ramming her tiny body into the general's head, having as much effect as one would expect. "YOU DOUBLE-CROSSING, LYING, SACK-OF-CRAP, HYPOCRITE!"

"Are you kidding me?!"

"Oh Dust, oh Dust, oh Dust…"

"No, no, no, no, no!"

"Not again, no please not again,"

"You've got to be joking-"

It was a torrent of words all being shouted at once, each voice drowning out the other. The voices that Weiss couldn't hear were probably muffled beneath hands against their respective mouths or buried against their chests. Maybe they were just struck dumb. Weiss felt that way now.

The conference room really was a mess, a mess of emotion that Weiss couldn't keep track of. Fear, surprise, lots of anger, hesitation, doubt… all of that was expected. But who felt what? What did she feel? What was she supposed to feel? Surprise from being lied to? Anger? Doubt? What was more appropriate? What… What was...

"General Ironwood!" A voice, for the first time, far from monotone spoke through the screen. "You are disclosing far more than-"

CRASH!

The sound of shattering glass silenced the room.

Weiss felt herself jump away from the sound, instinctively activating a heavy-mass glyph shield. She dismissed it just as quickly as she brought it out, at least once she saw what had caused the noise.

Yang, the buxom blonde brute of their team, had thrown her fist into the screen of the Council members. Wiess wasn't sure if even her family could put a price on the grin she was giving the room.

"What?" She casually asked. "They were getting too loud for my tastes, plus I couldn't find the remote." There was something almost comforting in the brawler's carefree attitude. Probably the comic relief she provided. "Besides, can't have a bunch of faceless voices interrupting our conversation now, can we?"

She finished the question with a pound of her fists. Weiss felt her skirt flip at the blow. For all of Yang's shortcomings, strength was not one of them. Thankfully, it might have a use here.

"And I agree entirely," Weiss looked back to Ironwood, who even to her standards was standing too tall and proud, given the admittance he just delivered. "It would rather not be tied at a moment like this."

"Then perhaps you can start with sending aid to Link and Penny, then?" Weiss found it the perfect time to interject, walking slowly around the table until she stood opposite the general. She was an heiress, and one day would be more powerful than him. "It is the first step to rectifying this situation you have placed us all in."

"No." That was fast. Fast enough to make Weiss jerk in slight surprise.

"Oh no, you listen up you over-baked lump of coal!" Tatl shouted at him again. Now it was perfectly understandable. "I can get being entrapped by some big title above you giving orders, but if you keep talking like this-" Anything else the mini-drone had to say was silenced.

General Ironwood was thrown again the far wall. Hard.

SLAM!

Weiss let out a quick gasp, hearing a few high cries behind her. One doubtlessly belonged to Jaune. The other probably Tatl. Those didn't matter though. What did matter, to Weiss in very least, was what had sent the general to the far wall with such force. Nothing had hit him, let alone grabbed him. He was simply standing there then was shoved back with a break-neck speed.

"I believe Ms. Schnee has raised a valid point, Ironwood." Weiss had been called a princess of ice many times over, but Ms. Goodwitch's voice doubtlessly mad her the queen. Her blue eyes swiveled to see the blonde huntress aiming her riding crop at the now pinned general. Her eyes were sharper than Ruby's scythe. "Please elaborate on why you will not help Link and your own soldier."

"Because I am against… sending out more of my soldiers… to their likely death." He struggled to speak, obvious by the breaks in his speech. It didn't keep him from sounding powerful though, as if he was in control of the situation whilst hung on the wall like a wet towel. "Penny disobeyed an order… I did not send her."

"So then where are we now big guy?" Tatl asked again, flying up to the general. Her glow had softened from the vibrant red, returning to the glittering gold. Her attitude only mellowed, but the mini-drone lost none of her boisterous attitude. "What's changed then, huh? Why should we even listen to you?"

"Because... I don't want Penny… to get hurt either." Sympathy. An odd thought passed through Weiss if she was offering sympathy for the devil. She declined the thought, realizing Ironwood was the lesser of any evils she could compare him to. "And Ozpin's plan… whatever it is… I want to help." Wait, the headmaster's plan?

"What plan?" Jaune was asking the question now, sounding like Ironwood had made a death threat. "What plan is going on again now? I don't need any more surprises. I don't think any of us do. Really, please what plan?" It was pathetic, him whining to the room for an answer. He hardly befitted his name.

What plan do you think Ozpin has?" Glynda asked coldly. Ironwood grit his teeth. The professor must have been putting more force into her semblance. Weiss had seen Goodwitch carelessly lift entire slabs of granite…

"Ozpin is no fool…" The general started. "He would not… send a student or friend… here… without a plan…" That… actually made sense to Weiss. Of all the things she thought of the headmaster, sneaky was definitely a top of the list quality. It helped that they were usually beneficial. "Be it a weapon… or a ploy… or the bending of a rule… I want to help."

The room was silent after that admission, caught in a dozen different thoughts, one for each head present. Weiss let her own thoughts sift to what a plan could be, if there was one at all. If it was meant to ensure safety of Link, it must have failed miserably. Unless it had yet to be done, but considering the near miss on Link's life, twice, it was unlikely it would deploy for much else. A Cue De Ta didn't sit with Weiss as one of Headmaster Ozpin's likely strategies. But what did that leave?

"You swear you'll help?" Tatl, of all the voices in the room, asked. That made Weiss as incredulous as it did furious. What did a mini-drone know that she didn't? "You swear, on your backstabbing and betraying mind-set, that you'll actually keep your word this time?"

It was impossible to tell, for Weiss at least, if Ironwood was sneering or frowning at the words, guilt or admission. She could only be sure that he was breathing deeply as he stared at the golden ball of light, deeply.

"I swear on my post as general, honor as a Hunter, and life with a soul." Three crosses over person defining traits, that wasn't something to take lightly, but they were only words. A snake could swear it was the hand of a god if it meant eating a bird's egg.

"I'll give you one chance Ironwood," Ms. Goodwitch, with all her terrifying strength, spoke again. "Give me one more reason to see you trying to deceive us, and I may take an irreparable action."

Ironwood's head tilted against the wall, harder. The surface behind him groaned with the effort, clear a sign as any that he was being pushed against it. But instead of glaring at them, or even nodding his head, the general tilted his gaze away from them. He started looking towards the glass… wall…

Looking through the glass wall of the conference area, a feature easily forgotten amongst the myriad of events that had occurred, Weiss saw at least a few dozen set of eyes staring at her. Well… at her and her companions.

An entire comm room full of military personal were staring at them, each one appearing more a statue than an on-duty officer. Some were looking up from their work stations, hands hovering over their keypads. Some were standing up, adjusting their goggles and lenses to see through the tempered glass. Hardly surprising, given everything that had happened, especially given the speed.

Even in the darkened room where the officers sat, it was clear as day that they had forgotten their work to see the explosion that had occurred, physically and metaphorically. Unfortunately, they were all armed members of the military, watching their superior being forced up against a wall. Fortunately, it never became more than that.

"Stand down," Ironwood spoke the command, eyes on the officers staring at him. "There is no threat, so return to your stations and… Stand. Down. Now."

It wasn't an immediate reaction, for reasons wholly obvious to Weiss, but one by one the soldiers began to relax, returning to their stations and turning the backs on the room, though not without the occasional glance. Weiss could hardly fault them.

"This is justified…" Ironwood began, still with the difficulty in his speech. "But only… for so long… Glynda. Besides… I would much rather… watch Link and Penny…"

How had Weiss forgotten?

Her long hair spun as she whipped her head back to the screens, the undamaged images that showed Link riding atop the alabaster mare, a ginger haired girl in front of him. That was what she had seen last, trailing in front of the Ancient Grammite.

Now though… They were charging it…

"Oh, not again…" Weiss would have asked the mini-drone what she meant if her gaze were not captivated on what was unfolding.

Two shots. Four chances. Five seconds. Two Dozen more arrows to spare. Those were all the numbers Link cared for at the moment. Those were all that he could afford to care about.

He was flying Epona towards the Bellumgera, charging the monster to keep its path. It was smart, obvious given its size, so it would act differently if he only continued to trail it around. It might burrow into the dead earth, it might try and cut him off within the bowl, or it may even have grown bored and begun pursuing the outpost. That was where the knights-in-training were.

It made all options unacceptable. So, therefore, the only option was to charge. To charge and, hopefully, have a plan that worked this time.

"What are you doing, Link?" The girl in front of him called out loudly, nearly drowned out by the wind Epona flew through and the roar of the monster ahead. Even though he heard the question, Link ignored it. He could not spare any time to answer or explain.

He had already pulled his bow, now he had notched an arrow. That had taken two seconds. He had only three left to make the shot matter. That, and two more afterwards.

Without waiting to aim, Link raised and released the string of his bow, letting the Fire Arrow fly true. As it had before, the arrow struck home against the Bellumgera's eye, one of them at least. Its charge noticeably slowly, its spines halting its movement in the earth as it let out a high, but loud, cry of pain. Fire was a foe to all creatures of flesh and blood, especially the vulnerable patches of flesh.

With eyes larger than many houses Link had been in, a well-placed arrow blessed by the sun did more damage than any simple piercing arrow would have managed. An arrow to a creature of such magnitude as the War Eater would have simply been an annoyance, no worse than a single bee sting to Link himself. But fire spread, especially across the soft and vulnerable surface of an exposed eye.

But he couldn't wait, not longer. Link notched, pulled, and released another arrow, all done with the orange haired girl sitting in front of him. She did no more than latch onto Epona as Link watched the arrow fly true. It struck home like the hundreds he had fired before on the Gerudo Training Range.

The beast was pained, crying out in a multitude of high noises. All of its eyes were hit, leaving the behemoth of a creature blind, wounded, but most importantly, vulnerable.

It was no longer moving. Link knew that as he grabbed at Epona's mane, hoisting the mare to fly high into the sky, above and over the Bellumgera. Since it had stopped digging into the dead earth, pulling its way forward, it was not a close call. They had distance to spare. That mattered little, however, if he did not capitalize on the creature's wounded state. Wounded eyes, but monsters such as this were never done with such simple damage, not at this size. There was more he had to do.

"This is… this is really scary…" Penny spoke in front of him, leaning back into him with her words. He was used to the action, more than one person having grabbed onto him as safety net, warrior trained or farm raised. At least the young girl did not collapse or wail. What's more, Link could understand the terror.

Even now, as they sailed over the dark creature, scales of absolute net with protruding white bones of unreasonable size, its cries of pain rumbled through the air, high pitches making the hairs on Link's neck stand on end. It was vulnerable, but vulnerable was not weak. A simple twist of its body at the wrong time would have one of the massive spines smashing into them, throwing them all from the sky.

He had to capitalize now. He had to go for the tail. He knew that.

The tail of any Molgera was its weakest point. It was what allowed it to sense the earth, to feel even the faintest of movements. Given its size, it would have taken more than a simple foot step to get its attention, but a horse sprinting across the dead land would be more than enough. It made sense that the battle with the Emperor Dodongo and the ear ring he was given would call the monster's attention.

But now, Link had to destroy that sensitive part of the War Eater. If he applied the right amount of force, the greatest of his strength, into the tail of the monster, he could possibly kill it. Possibly. That was all it was, a chance.

The larger any monster grew, the tougher its hide became. It didn't make a difference it was the night-black scales along the Bellumgera's back or the sensitive tail he guided Epona towards, both were harder to cut the larger the monster became.

That meant either multiple tries, or one all-or-nothing attack. Link, replacing his bow and unsheathing his sword, decided on the former. He was safe for now, no reason to risk it all. Not until his life was all that was left.

Epona let out whining sound as Link flexed his legs, spurring the alabaster mare forwards. Her wings beat quicker, head charging into the head-wind at a great speed. Link leant closer to the mare's back, Penny mimicking his actions. That was good. It made things easier. Not easy, easier.

The spines of the War Eater rushed past them like columns in a castle, towering and thicker than Link's body was long. But they left a clear path along the Bellumgera's back, free of any obstacles. They couldn't fly higher, too high would cost too much time. The monster may recover by then.

He gripped the Magic Sword, feeding his own magic into the blade. It shined with his effort, a stark contrast of light over the dark hide of the beast. It wouldn't last much longer, not with the end of the monstrosity fast approaching. He couldn't strike it properly if Epona was flying upright. That meant at the end, he had to spin. It was dangerous, but necessary this time at least.

When the alabaster spines ended, the red tail of the Bellumgera became obvious, exposed and laying still beneath him.

Link pulled at Epona's mane quickly, spinning the mare. He swung above his head with the moment, his blade striking down in orientation. He was rewarded with heavy resistance, but nothing he could not cut through.

The familiar sing of steel in flesh reached Link's ears, vanishing as quickly as it had come. It was soon replaced by a screech of pain from the Bellumgera. What followed that was a series of thundering booms. Link didn't have to see to know it was the War Eater thrashing upon the dead earth, shaking the land with its weight alone. That was why he was glad to be in the air.

"Wowie zowie! That went great!" Penny cheered in front of him, clearly excited by his actions. Positive reinforcement was nice, but it accomplished little without action.

Link pulled Epona's mane again, spinning her until they were perpendicular to the beast, far higher in the air than before. He watched the Bellumgera writhe on the ground, like a toddler. It was an image that lasted for a sparse amount of time. It was soon upright as it could be, charging across the deadlands with a new found fury.

It was a monster before with its size. But with its faster movement, it could be safely seen as a demon.

It turned around with a speed that made the ground grumble, its charred eyes staring up at Link with a rage he knew all too well. It roared at him, though too far below to even be considered within range. That only meant Link had to make the first move.

He sheathed his sword, feeling it slide back into place. He pulled at his honed bow immediately afterwards, the action as simple as breathing air. Link lightly pulled on Epona's mane, adjusting her mid-air. He couldn't notch an arrow yet, not until he could trust the mare to fly true without his guide. But to do that, he first needed to gather the monster's attention once more. That would not be difficult.

Link nudged the young girl in front of him, a prompt for her to brace herself. She did, wordlessly. When she did, Link began a quick descent, guiding Epona as faked a collision with the Bellumgera. A taunt, of course, but one the beast would likely accept given the insult Link had made with the injury. The angrier a monster became, the easier it was to predict.

It roared as the mare approached it, spines ripping through the dead earth at a speed that gave Link pause. But it was still slower than Epona, at least when the quartet of wings were beating through the air. It blinded Link's gaze when he attempted to stare into the headwind. But, fortunately, that was not where he was aiming to look.

Link steered the mare to the front of the charging monster, straight ahead and out of a collision with the beast. It raced them, razor-teeth filled maw screeching at them. Link knew that falling into it was sure death. He just had to kill it first.

He notched his arrows again, aiming for the great beast, for its three large and unblinking eyes. He pulled on the string, feeling the magic of the arrows alit, ready to burn the sensitive flesh of the Bellumgera once more. But before Link could release the arrow, the unexpected happened.

The creature burrowed.

Despite its size, despite its massive nature, it dove into the dead earth as if were sand. Link hastily unnotched his arrow, pulling on Epona's mane to guide the mare higher into the air for fear of rubble slamming into them. Boulders the size of cart flew past them.

Link did not look back at the monster, focusing instead to guide Epona safely through the air. She could not see the threats Link avoided, and it was not her job. She kept them airborne, Link kept them safe. It was only when they were high in the air, comparable to where they were before, that Link turned around.

He saw only the tail of the Bellumgera now, too swiftly disappearing into the vast darkness of the under earth.

"Whoa! That was really smart of the Grimm…" The girl in front of him noted, both staring down into the vast empty hole the monster had vanished into. "Is… is it coming back up?" Without a doubt, Link knew. The real question was what bait to lure it out.

The air was suddenly too quiet for Link to think. No screeches of pain or roars of violence, no crumbling earth, and no battle cries of his own. Just Epona's wings flapping through the air. It was haunting, in a way Link was familiar with, in way he did not like.

His eyes scanned the dead earth, now as silent as it was still. Somewhere in the dark caverns beneath, the Bellumgera was tunneling its way. Perhaps it was waiting for them, maybe it was fleeing. Likely the former, doubtful for the latter. But Link knew how the Molgera's hunted.

Its tail, the sensitive tip, was what told it of the small prey it needed to feast on. The thick scales along its hide and hideously large spines kept it from noticing the smaller of prey. But the exposed tail allowed to sense the changes of the earth.

In other words, as soon as Link touched Epona down on the land, it would emerge. The trouble was, he could not be sure where. It be across the landscape or right beneath them. It was too variable to be a plan. However, if something else made the noise, some other great force, the monster could be drawn out. His bombs could work, but given the singular force they made, the creature would likely be too wise to simply emerge for it.

Link needed either to chance the safety of Epona and Penny, or find a larger force to draw out the monster.

No sooner did he have the thought than did his eyes land upon the fallen chariot of Penny.

It was still a smolder, the metal that surrounded it twisted and molten in some parts. Flames still licked along the sides of the ruins, but nothing more than that. He recalled the girl firing from the ship, speaking of how she could fire from it. The biggest clue he had were the cannons attached beneath the ship, when it was still able to swim through the air.

If they were no different than the tools he had seen the knights-in-training use before at Beacon, then perhaps there was something to be done… Maybe... It was worth a shot.

Link notched his arrow, aiming towards the mess of a ship from his vantage high the sky. Epona's pace was leisurely, enough to keep them high and out of danger. It would make the shot, despite the distance, simple. All he had to now was hoped it worked.

"Um, Link? What are you aiming for?" He heard Penny ask. It was a natural question, but it would be answered soon enough.

With a twang, his bow was released, the flames of his arrow splitting the air as it flew true.

He was happy to see the impact upon the ship do just as he expected.

A boom that shook the very skies followed his arrow, strong enough in force and volume to shake the mare he rode. Epona whined as her wings went spastic for a moment, righting herself quickly afterwards. It was still enough for Link and Penny to fall to her back, gripping the mare's mane to ensure their posture.

There was no ring that followed the explosion, just a rumble that echoed along the land scape, over the mountains and eventually out of mind. A tower of smoke and fire rose from carcass of the carriage in large plumes. It blanked the dead ground with a cover of ash and soot, blinding Link to the land far below. It was everything he could have hoped for.

Because he was happy to see the impact did just as he expected, he was excited to see the Bellumgera emerge from the ground.

Like a monster from the ocean, it shot from the dead earth, an impressive amount of its length floating in the air, striking through the residue of the explosion the ship had caused. It roared with the charge, hanging in the air menacingly, all eyes staring up as it slowly fell back to the earth.

The exploding ship had caused a boom that shook the air and earth. The Bellumgera, its full weight rising and falling, made exactly the same noise and effect. It was an all too clear reminder of the weight and magnitude of the monster he was fighting.

Caution was necessary, but risks were as well.

This was one of them.

Link pocketed his bow, withdrew his sword, and spun Epona towards the War Eater. It was time this ended.

He was amazing.

He was really amazing.

No matter which algorithm or method of analysis Penny applied to Link, she only reached the same conclusion. If she judged him by his skills with riding Epona, he was amazing. With his accuracy and acuity with using a bow, he was amazing. With his battle preparation and plans when fighting an Ancient Grimm, he was still amazing. Even his looks were amazing! That last one didn't matter for battle judgement, but Penny still stored it away as important knowledge.

All of her logs told her that fighting a Grimm that was superior to several decades was considered dangerous if done alone. When reaching the upper centuries, it was changed to suicidal. Beyond that, it was believed that the Grimm then possessed the wisdom to not recognize the threat of a single warrior.

Yet here Link was, challenging a Grimm that had proven its wisdom near a dozen times over, and he was winning. Without having to turn around to look at him, she could feel with her synthetic soul the thought in his actions. The way he stored away one weapon to withdraw another, the distance he put between himself and the Grammite, even the small tugs he made on Epona's mane, keeping her flight pattern semi-erratic, more difficult to predict.

These were not things that came intuitively. Penny recalled many sessions with Papa Zepp and Uncle Ironwood, being trained and being taught lessons that databanks and algorithms couldn't be programmed in. She had dedicated a specific folder in autonomous subdirectory to those lessons. She called the folder 'instinct', just as her papa had.

Yet she had linked more than one of Link's actions to various subdirectories, documents, and reboot commands in that folder. The way he was able to change tactics so easily was first and foremost, a statistically smart move in order to prevent the opponent from gaining an upper hand. The distance was another, making it easy to watch the Grimm without fear of being ambushed; that was very important.

And now, he was flying an arc about the Grammite, currently crashed atop the remains of her airship. He was going for a strike, but in a different way. If it was normal, he'd be charging the tail. Thankfully from her front-row vantage point, she knew that was not what Link was planning.

He was arcing towards the Grammite, but he was gaining altitude.

That didn't make sense to Penny, not with the knowledge that he had his sword equipped, not his bow. A bow would be advantageous at certain distances, a sword was not unless up close. Yet Link was commanding Epona to fly in a steady arc, diverting slowly away from the Grimm and up into the air. A 'borrowed memory' file told her it was akin to a roller coaster, but she had never been on one to have the experience.

Her fingers gripped Epona's mane as Link leaned over her, his free hand doing the same. Possibilities for his actions were listed and crossed out via her algorithms, one-by-one picking off the reasons for his actions. It was an attack, obviously, his previous action having successfully lured out the Grammite. But with a sword, it left limited options. He had his beams, but they were comparatively slow and likely dissipated in bower in relation to distance traveled, as with any wave form.

Her musings were stalled as Link tapped her shoulder with his bladed hand, the back of his golden gauntlet knocking on the faux-dress she wore. A sub-routine gave her internal thanks for there not being a metallic clang as the two met. However, her curiosity was still left on why Link had done that. She turned around, knowing that it was meant to get her attention.

Only to see him falling off of Epona.

She had enough time to gasp and reach out for him, one of her hands reaching for his. He didn't reciprocate. Instead, he fell off the vertical pegasus easily a mile in the air.

Her detailed eyes analyzed the images of Link quickly. After his clear departure from Epona's back, sword in hand, and Grammite beneath him, Penny noticed something else.

He was smiling. He was planning for this.

The mare she rode stalled as the weight had left her, righting herself mid-air with an almost violent toss of her head. Penny lurched forward to catch herself, momentarily losing sight of Link. Commands were given through her servo motors, directing Epona into a circle, giving her sight of him once more. He was still falling, but no longer looking up.

The only reason Penny didn't obey the instinct command of her subroutines was the contradictory 'trust' protocol. Her instincts told her to save Link, but his actions… they told her to trust him, and that this was what he wanted.

So, gripping Epona's alabaster mane with her deathly cold grip, she watched as Link fell towards the Grammite. He was reaching into his pockets calmly as he did so, unlatching and reaching into one of his many leather pouches. Then Penny watched the foreign faunus pull forth a bottle of sloshy purple liquid. She stored the sight for later analysis, both the unequal size ratio between the item and its storage device as well as the liquid itself.

Falling through the air, seemingly without a care, she watched Link uncork and drink the purple liquid, gulping it down. Only her ocular enhancers allowed her to see the speed at which he emptied the container, pocketing it quickly as he had produced it. When he was done, she watched something else spectacular.

His blade began to glow. Glow… and grow.

She knew near immediately it was a trick of his semblance. That or the machinations of his dust that the Military had not yet produced. Whichever it was, the end result was the same. The red gem encrusted sword Link had grew with a light that was as sharp, strong, and easily blinding as the steel itself.

He was holding the point into the air, seemingly aiming it up at the sky. As Link fell towards the Bellumgera, the great Grimm churning slowly on the ground, the blade grew upwards. The end result was the tip apparently going nowhere. It was impressive, amazing, and by all her calculations impossible.

But the sights of her sensors overruled logical trains of thought. It was impossible to deny a result that was already real.

And to pay tribute to that logic. Link began to spin again.

It was the same spin that he had done before, as her visual input with Papa Zepp had shown him fight the Great Creeper from before. Except now… now it was with a sword that was longer, sharper, and more importantly, deadlier.

Penny tightened her grip on Epona's mane as Link's spin intensified. It turned from a slow lazy flip into a faster and faster cartwheel, the lines and colors blurring in his shape. She, herself, was outfitted with a high-speed capturing recorder, giving her advantages in fights against opponents with superior speed. She could follow Link with that. But by her low-powered lenses, he was nothing but a dot of green in the center of a spinning cyclone of steel.

A great saw-like blade that was falling towards the Bellumgera.

The Massive Grimm was doing something, but Penny wasn't sure what. It wasn't looking up. It couldn't see Link, but that meant it was probably going to hide again. Its great white spines churned, slowly digging it across the earth. A subroutine dedicated to pattern recognition told her it was searching. More power was given to her memory capture unit, for a far more important reason.

Link's great blade and spin were falling to atop the Grammite.

And the closer he got, the tighter the feeling was about Penny's chest.

She recognized what the attack was, just as he began to strike.

The blade sank into the exposed tail of the Grammite, just as Link had done before. But Penny didn't need any advanced algorithms to know they were different far different. Like comparing the damage between a sliver and amputation.

With a long ring of steel, one that echoed across the lands and up to as high as Penny flew, the magical blade swung into the Grammite's tail, cleaving through the exposed tip as if it were no different than air. It came with three things, all permanently etched into Penny's storage banks.

An excessively bright flash of light, a deafening ring, and the feeling of emptiness.

Following those three came something else. A death cry.

In the flash of light that had blinded Penny, still flying high above on Epona's back, she saw the great blade Link had made was nowhere to be seen. Its essence gone as if it were never there. But it was there. The effects of its existence were immediately evident.

The death cry that roared to the sky, the Grimm raising up just as it had done when it had charged from the earth. Its spines were waving widely through the air, each one of the dozens of boney limbs grabbing and scrapping at air, pushing against nothing, fruitless acts. Behind all of them, the only part of the beast that was still, was its tail.

Its severed and removed tail.

Penny had enough data regarding Grammites to know that their critical nerves and memory processors were located in the tail, its only evolutionary disadvantage. Even with its exposed tip, it took a great deal of force over a very small area to pierce the exposed hide, comparably enough that even her airship would have slightly wounded, not killed the great beast.

Yet Link had severed it clean off…

It was an attack Penny had no data on. No numerical evidence, no documented case reports stored in her system memory, nothing. She had just witnessed what was never perceived by intellectual minds before. And yet… she knew what it was. She knew what it was because she felt it. She had felt the attack from the depths of her soul. She had felt the attack empty her soul.

Link had pushed not his semblance, but his very aura, his soul, into that one strike. The strike that had split the air, cut sound, and rendered the thousand year old Grammite into a dying husk.

She had no need to breathe, but Penny still felt her breath taken away, an unusual amount of pressure about her torso region. Her ocular senses refused to look away, determined to document every moment following what she had seen.

She could still see Link, standing now in the dead lands, the Grammite hanging in the air in the thralls of its final breath of life. He looked tired, a word that unnamed parameters within Penny's subroutines had deemed to be too subtle a word to classify the state Link was in. Exhausted didn't do enough justice either.

Even with the Grammite hanging in the air, arching backwards, Link appeared to be ready to sleep, to fall over no differently than the Grimm. It active a curiosity node within her mind. Penny motionlessly acquired a few commands, scanning a specific sensor, and reached a conclusion.

Link wasn't simply tired, he was near-death.

The aura he had used in his attack had not returned. He was below critical levels before. But now, it would be plausible for a passing breeze to reduce his aura levels to zero. That only became logically clearer when his sword fell from his hand, soundlessly falling to the earth.

His knees followed, collapsing downward, free of any strength. He rolled the rest of the way to the ground, limbs outstretched and face to the sky. Even with only shreds of his aura remaining, he looked brighter than any other thing Penny had ever seen. That was the word her mind told her was appropriate.

Bright was appropriate because Link was a beacon. Beacons were meant to be bright and illuminate objects for miles away. And Link was the brightest beacon Penny had ever seen.

"Let's go get him, girl," The young girl spoke to the mare she rode, lightly patting the mare's neck. "We gotta bring the hero home!" She yelled the last few words. She had to. How could she not? Historical records indicate that screaming for joy was perfectly normal when witnessing a rare and exciting sight.

Link had just killed one of the oldest Grammites to ever be recorded by military history, and without the aid of air offensive or battery rams. That meant it was the perfect time to scream for joy. She held the smile on her face, guiding Epona down to Link. The smile held until she saw the Grammite finally begin to fall.

Begin to fall the wrong way.

Sensors silently blared inside Penny, warnings and caution of what she was seeing. The Grammite weighed comparable to the entire Military Outpost. It could literally crush mountains and burrow through solid stone. It was big. It was heavy.

And it was falling towards Link.

"Watch out!" Penny screamed as loud as she could. She didn't know why. She was too far away, too high up, and Link could easily see it. "MOVE!" She cried again, without knowing why. He was too weak to even lift an arm let alone move out of the way.

The Grammite was falling, and Link was going to be crushed.

Penny didn't think. She charged.

She buckled her legs around Epona like Papa Zepp had taught her, grabbing the mare's mane and driving her forward. Penny didn't have to worry about speed, sound, or discomfort, so she made Epona fly as fast as she could.

The mare dove towards Link, chasing at the collapsed faunus. He wasn't moving, even as he stared up at the falling Grimm. He didn't move, he didn't scream. He didn't do anything. Penny didn't slow.

They were getting closer, close enough for the shadow of the Grammite to fall over them, close enough for her non-ocular enhanced senses to see Link. He had his hand raised in the air, weak as a grass blade. His lips were moving, but Penny could detect no sound coming from his lips.

She reached out to grab him, ready to snatch him as Epona dove-by. The shadow of the Grimm was dark and terrible now, every alarm and sense blaring at Penny's internal servos to evade the impact. She overrode them, placing a requirement for Link to be in her arms first.

Light was blotted out when she was mere meters from Link, fingers nearly touching his. The Grammite was upon them, and internal servos in Penny told her she had to prepare for impact. She stuck to her requirement for Link, making sure she could grasp his hand before anything else.

She grasped tightly.

Then darkness overtook her.

"Oh… oh no," Jaune let out weakly, weak as everything else he did. He was only slightly thankful to be sitting, as he would otherwise have fallen onto the floor. Really, he would have, because he didn't have the strength to stand.

Not after watching Link, Penny, and that pegasus get crushed.

He kept staring at the screen, the one that wasn't filled with static. He knew form basic signals class in high school that it was because the connection was lost. But that meant he could only stare at the other screen, the one showing the collapsed, beaten, and dead Grammite. The Grimm that was laying over the people who killed it.

He felt sick.

He wasn't moving, but Jaune brought a hand to his gut regardless. He felt like he was going to throw up. That wasn't good. Nothing about this was good.

His hearing was going numb, his mind anywhere but in the room. He heard a few voices screaming, probably yelling. He heard commands being spoken, just beneath that. He could hear a lot, feel just as much through the floor. He couldn't who or what was moving where, but it felt like people were running. But that was as much as he could focus on.

Otherwise his was focusing on not throwing. Not after he had just seen Link and Penny get crushed. Not after seeing them pull out a super move like that, then having thousands of tons of whatever-made-up-Grimm come crashing down on them. He couldn't stop the rouge thought that they were flattened like pancakes.

His stomach lurched again.

Jaune gripped his mouth as tightly as he did his gut, trying to think about anything else. The Military would get sent out soon, like Ironwood promised. They would help a-and then Link and Penny would be brought back here… if there was enough of them to find.

Now Jaune tasted bile on his tongue.

Oh man, it was only getting worse. He could feel his muscles weakening, like they always did before he hurled. That and the sick smell filling his nose, taking over his taste bud, and bright green light begin to cover his eyes…

Wait…

That didn't usually happen.

But Jaune had seen that light before, just before, when Tatl and Tael popped into existence. Through a bleary sick gaze, he saw that same light glowing over his jacket. He didn't need to question or hesitate this time.

Risking expulsion of his last meal, Jaune hastily threw his arms into and out of his sweater, pulling the heavy garment off him, over his head, again, and across the room as fast as he could. It got stuck on his elbows, his head, his hair, and even the ends of his hands. He didn't stop.

With luck, he was just able to throw the garment off and away from him. Further this time.

Not a moment later did the light explode.

Any queasiness Jaune had was beaten away by disorientation, the light far brighter than it was the first time around, in his opinion at least. At least he thought it was the light. Then again, light didn't typically feel heavy, or make noises, or… feel like a popped balloon when it was turned on.

Spots danced in his shut eyes, but he started to blink them away. Hands rubbed at his vision, pushing the remaining troubled spots out of the way. A few more blinks and hard stare at the floor, and Jaune was sure his vision was back to normal, unease in his stomach as well.

Turning head, he looked to see what had happened to his sweater.

Instead, he saw a horse sitting in the room.

…A rogue part of his mind told him it was better than an elephant. That part of his brain only had room to function with the silence that took over. Before he was just hearing various volumes of sound. Now, he heard nothing.

Jaune gulped on nothing, doing his best to control himself. He had to learn to do that much at least, especially at a place like Beacon. And, thankfully, he succeeded, at least somewhat. He didn't feel like he was going to throw up at least.

But his eyes remained trained on the horse, pegasus, Epona, that was in the room. It was sitting down, at least he hoped it was. Sorry, he hoped she was. Her head was moving side to side, trying to get comfortable maybe. Annoyed, confused? Jaune knew he was, but he was used to it by now.

It's, her, wings were down from her side, not flexed against them like most birds. It was, if Jaune had to describe it, like they were too tired to hold up properly. They looked like his arms when he was done training with Pyrrha, after the first ten minutes. That made sense, especially if when you were out flying a Grimm that was bigger than most airships and able to eat mountains…

…wait…

… This was Epona… This was the mare they had watched fly on the screen…

… Where were Link and Penny?

His silent question was answered almost instantly.

"Help!"

It was a shout that came from beneath Epona. Jaune was too struck with exhaustion, simply from watching the screen, to do little else but stare dumbly at the mare. Even as her wing was lifted up, heavily, showing what lay beneath.

All he could see then was Penny holding Link. A very very still, not moving, probably not breathing Link.

Link with… what was wrong with his arm?

"Please Uncle Ironwood! Help!"

Jaune wasn't trained enough to know what happened first, or even what was happening.

He found himself shoved off of his chair and to the ground before he was even aware something was running past him, maybe over him. He could make out voices, panicked shouts, a few feet running over his fallen form, and a lot of lout neighing from Epona as well. A lot of objects were being slammed as well. Probably every chair, the table likely had flipped, and he was sure he heard the glass break at one point, maybe twice.

But he didn't try to get up, not right now at least. Jaune knew there were times when he was at least good for something, even if it was just direction. Years living in the Arc family told him the Military needed no help in that category. And seeing as there weren't any especially large threats to be the bait for, he wasn't good for that either right now.

Right now… it was best he just stay out of the way. As long as he did that, he could at least think of what would be the right thing to do next. It could be a lot, after all. It was how he to fly in and help RWBY after The Breach, how he was able to pick out Cardin's weakness, why he was practicing with Pyrrha every night until his legs gave out. He just needed to think.

But all he could think of right now, lying down and staying out of the way, was Link and Penny.

Link looked… dead. Penny… was holding him like… oh Grimm and Dust…

He shouldn't be thinking about that. Jaune knew that much at least. He was supposed to stay out of the way, but that didn't mean he couldn't at least watch. That usually helped. So he rolled over on the ground, standing up as he did so.

Jaune noticed how quiet the room got. Kinda easy to tell when your ears went from deafening loud to dark-as-night quiet. Well, not completely quiet. There was tapping and low talking, but it didn't sound like anyone from RWBY or his team. Probably from the comm room, that room beyond the glass… but he couldn't hear them before…

He… probably shouldn't say anything yet. There was a lot to ask but… now wasn't a good time. He could tell that much at least.

Instead, Jaune took note of what he saw again. Table was flipped, as he had heard it. One of the glass walls to the tech room was shattered, but only one. That explained the tapping and muttering. But he thought he heard two of those windows break. Look over and what did he see? Two more screens were cracked. Wonder how that happened?

"Jaune…"

No question though why all the chairs were either on their sides or pushed to the wall. Oh… but Epona was gone? Where was she anyways? Couldn't have been easy to get a horse like that out of here, especially with how big it was.

"Jaune." Was someone calling his name?

He looked over and saw Pyrrha, his partner, his really well-trained, extremely capable, probably-should-have-been-leader-instead partner. Jaune smiled at her. It felt off even to him.

"Oh, hey Pyrrha, what's up?" He sounded woozy. He didn't feel off though, did he? It was… hard to tell. Oh, maybe he was. Probably stood up too fast.

But just as he began to waver, he felt a hand on his chest. He didn't need to look to know that it was Pyrrha, she always was the one catching him when he fell. He fell a lot, too. She was there pretty often.

"Jaune, you need to sit down." Really? Oh, well, he probably shouldn't question her about that. She had a good sense for things like this. Battling Grimm that nearly killed you, squashed like a bug, yeah.

A forceful hand was put on his shoulder, making him slump at the effort. He felt himself wince at the noise he made. It sounded like a Dust-Bomb given how quiet the room was. No one seemed to scoff at him though, weird.

"Jaune, listen, you passed out." He did? Well… that wasn't too unbelievable actually. "Just hold still, please. I'm sorry, but you need to wait a few moment. Moving too much after passing out can cause stress on your mind." Didn't know that, but Pyrrha would know. Yeah, she definitely would.

"Okay," he mumbled, shaking his head up and down. "But um… what'd I miss?" He did pass out, so it must have been a lot. He at least wanted to know what happened to the horse. Actually, no, Link was more important, yeah.

He heard Pyrrha give a sigh after that. Probably readying herself for stupid questions. He was prone to those as well. Good thing she was so patient.

"Link had his aura completely drained, and either the strain of his… teleportation or Penny's sudden appearance severely damaged his arm, as well as putting him an unconscious state." Those were all bad, like really bad. "He is being taken to the infirmary for emergency care. Professor Goodwitch and his mini-drones are accompanying him."

"Fairies," Jaune mumbled only realizing he said it when he shook his head. His mouth felt heavy. "They're fairies, right?"

When no response was immediately given, he looked over to Pyrrha. She was probably thinking, something he had to do a lot more of, to get better of course. She was biting her lip, looking away from him. She was probably thinking about something.

"Right, they're fairies," she finally said. Something still felt off to Jaune. Maybe it was because he passed out. Why was that? He knew Link's arm was messed up, couldn't forget that… not when it had more red than green and not a patch of visible skin. But… he's seen that before. Didn't pass out then.

"Um… how did I," Jaune hesitated on the words, thinking of the best way to phrase them. "How'd I get knocked out?" He looked at Pyrrha as he spoke the question. She looked right back at him when he asked.

"Tatl flew into you when she was flying towards Link." Oh, the golden one? Wow, Jaune didn't know how to feel about that. He felt odd still, just off, but a fairy knocking him out? They must have been either really have or moving very quickly. He didn't know which one to guess.

"Oh, sorry about that," he apologized on instinct to her. He was a hassle to her, so Pyrrha had to know how much he appreciated her help. Seriously, it was a lot. "Must have been distracted by… yeah."

"What? Oh no, Jaune, if anything I am impressed that the worst was you losing consciousness." Well that was good, but… wait, what? His expression must have shown his confusion, because Pyrrha spoke on. "When Penny came back with Link and Epona… Tatl and Tael, most Tael… they didn't take it well."

Her eyes left him and drifted around the room. Jaune followed her, hands on his knees and butt on the floor. The damage was the same as before. Broken windows, broken screens, flipped table… bent chairs… missing lights… oh, wait… seriously?

"They did all this?" He asked aloud, speaking before his mind caught up. That happened a lot. Pyrrha nodded, eyes on the chair at the far end of the room. It Jaune a moment to realize it wasn't just pushed over, but embedded in the wall… wasn't the wall made of concrete? Or steel?

"Tatl was frantic when Penny showed how injured Link was. She ran into you as she flew towards Link. You were knocked out almost instantly. Tael wasn't far behind." Huh, he was kinda glad he didn't see that. Didn't need to be any more afraid of the fairies than he was. "But General Ironwood and Professor Goodwitch were able to calm them, at least enough to get emergency attention to Link."

"Well that's good, really good." And it was. But there was still an odd question in his mind. "What happened to Epona?"

Pyrrha blinked at him, probably confused. It took Jaune a moment to realize how stupid his question was.

"Oh, um, one of the military engineers… um, Dr. Zepp I believe, came and took her away. I believe he was the one who engineered her." Oh, well that made sense. Kind helped the pieces fall together.

Still though, the room was really quiet. No way were they all waiting on him. He was around long enough to know that the only Pyrrha had the patience for that, one more reason why he had to thank her.

"Thanks Pyrrha," he said genuinely and heartfully. He tried to smile, but it felt fake. Must have been how heavy his heart was feeling. "So um… what happens now?" He looked up as he asked the question, wondering what the others thought. They must have had a better idea than he did, especially if he was knocked out for… however long it was.

But the first thing he saw was that Ironwood was already gone. Well, gone as in not around everyone else. Jaune shifted his view, looking over the table and into the comm room. There weren't as many people in there than there were before. Probably scared out by the fairies. Jaune would have been. But he did see Ironwood.

He was standing at the center of the room, fingers tapping across a comm terminal as he held one of his palms to his ear. Probably a comm link. Jaune couldn't make out the screens from how far away he was. Probably some orders, most likely with the Grammite that Link had killed, yeah. That would make sense. No need to clean up, but killing that thing would have had to result in some kind of action.

Plus, given what Tatl had gotten out of him, the Military and Council weren't betting on Link surviving. Jaune wondered if that was a good or bad thing. Well he lived, so that was good. But now what?

Jaune twisted his vision to look back at his team. They were okay, at least not hurt, which was always a good thing. But that was about as far as they were okay. He'd been around all of them long enough to know when something was wrong.

Nora was obvious. She wasn't her usual bubbly self. She was still moving, which was good, but it was just a slow rocking on the balls of her feet, back and forth. Her arms were crossed tightly and eyes looking at the ceiling. She usually didn't think, at least not deeper meanings in things, but that only made her position all the more worrisome.

Ren was harder to read, as he usually was. Easily the quietest friend Jaune ever had, it was always difficult to tell when he was thinking, planning, waiting, or even just sleeping. They all kind of looked alike. Right now, Jaune guessed thinking. At least, that was Ren usually did when he leant up against walls. It wasn't too look cool, as Jaune incorrectly guessed before. Ren just got too tired thinking standing up. So he must have been thinking pretty hard.

Pyrrha… she was dotting over Jaune. That made sense though, it's what she usually did whenever they went on Grimm hunts or were in field training. She knew what to do, always. He didn't, just as often. So she was being normal, but… well… Jaune swore she smiled more around him and the team. Must have been the maternal side of her.

It was only after Jaune had checked over his team that he realized no one had answered him. Maybe they did though and he just didn't hear them. He hadn't been knocked out like that before. Heck, he couldn't even remember, but that made sense, too.

"So um, seriously though, what does happen now?" He asked more towards the group of girls than Pyrrha. He hoped she didn't take it the wrong way. Ms. Goodwitch just usually had an answer, or a good idea.

"Now?" Said blonde asked aloud. He only just noticed she wasn't tapping on her pad. She was looking over all the members of the room. Her gazed lingered on Jaune, sitting against the wall. Probably because Pyrrha was right next to him. "We wait for the general to come back to us, then we proceed with the next phase of Ozpin's plan."

Ozpin's what now?

"Uh, plan? What plan?" Jaune really hoped getting knocked out didn't rob him of his past. Amnesia was always a big hamper. He watched enough cartoons to know that much, and he didn't want to get hit again to try and jog his memory. "I thought this was the plan. What's supposed to happen now?"

"Link is to be recognized as a hunter by both Beacon, the Military, and the Council." That was Blake. No one else talked like she did. Mostly like she was ready to kill at moment's notice. Like his snow angel, but without the grace. "Beacon already does and Ironwood has to by regulations. The Council likely won't but it's two to three in odds."

"Correct, Ms. Belladonna," Ms. Goodwitch spoke up again. Jaune blinked slowly as he watched the tall huntress nod at Blake. Her eyes shifted over the group again. It was only when Jaune followed her gaze that he realized how off everyone looked. It really wasn't just his team… Everyone looked off. "It is critical we have this established now before any safeguards can be established by the Council in order to hinder Link, unless they have been already." That didn't sound good.

"What can a bunch of thin-boned cowards do from across the world?" That was Yang, had to be Yang. Jaune would recognize her as well as he did the end of Pyrrha's sword. One was always loud, the other always against his throat. "Link killed the Grimm, two Ancient Grimm, did it all alone, followed the rules they put up like stop signs, and even saved a damsel while he was at it. What are they gonna do? Say there isn't enough evidence?"

She scoffed when she finished. Jaune didn't have a clear view of her, mostly because of the flipped table, but he could see her leaning on the wall. He more heard her scoff than saw it. He could tell she was pissed though. Good thing he was knocked out, just literally, and a bit tired. Kept him from saying stupid things. Hopefully, only time would tell.

"Do not underestimate your foe when you do not know them well enough, Ms. Xiao Long." That was Ms. Goodwitch, really obviously. "Instead, let us wait until Ironwood has finished his business before continuing."

"No need to wait any further."

Jaune shifted his gaze back towards the broken glass, only to see Ironwood walk through a glass door next to it. What was the point? Oh, now that he thought of it, probably the fact that it was broken glass. That stuff was sharp and cut deep. Probably best to avoid that, yeah.

"The necessary crew members have been deployed to secure the region of the Grammite's next, as well as surrounding areas to prevent a Grimm Surge from occurring. Penny is currently overseeing Link's transfer to the medical unit and has been keeping me… consistently informed." What did that mean? Things were alright? Well… it was a safe bet at least. At least given that no one was dead yet. Jaune hoped as much.

"What are the early prognosis to Link's condition?" That was Weiss. Jaune recognized his snow angel anywhere. Especially when she was involved in something like this. Then again, who wouldn't be? Him, apparently, but he was knocked out for… he really had to ask how long. It was starting to bother him.

"He is in critical condition due to a lack of aura preserves and severe damage to his left arm." Not good. "Per Penny's training, he has six points of torque fracture, one compact fracture, two torn ligaments, several extreme lacerations, and will likely need immediate blood and Aura transfusions in order to stabilize him. Definitely not good.

"So far… Link has good odds of surviving." Well that was good, but he sensed a 'but' coming like he did Nora's outbursts after a bowl of sugar bombs.

"But rehabilitation of his arm and future career as a huntsman are on the line." Yup, all bad.

"Are you joking?" It took Jaune a full second to realize that was Ren. Ren never talked like that, ever. He usually just didn't talk. But that… it made Jaune's own jaw work in a confused manner. "You are reneging on a deal because of an unspecified parameter to your arrangement?"

"Not at all," Ironwood followed quickly. "If we are to ask if Link deserves to be a Remnant recognized Hunter, then I will say that the Military gives their full support in the matter. You only need my word because of his status as a foreign agent. Besides, this was meant to be sort of… trade with Link."

Well… that made sense, given that Link wasn't a student, anymore at least. But… weren't they talking about it for a while now? Final exam and all that? Must have been another fault of Jaune getting his brain beamed by a pissed off fairy.

"True, but we need it regardless." Ms. Goodwitch followed quickly. Now she was typing on her pad, quickly too. "That confirms all the requirements set by Ozpin, including his safety measures." Jaune wasn't sure he wanted to know what those were.

"So Link can be recognized as a Hunter, with merits granted by Beacon Academy." He could? Well geez, Jaune thought he already was. Then again he was a student just a couple of day ago. Guess this was supposed to be a graduation test of sorts… fast track test? Early graduation? Jaune needed some ice; his head was starting to pound.

"Indeed he can, but the first priority now is to ensure his safety." Ms. Goodwitch was still tapping on her pad as she talked. It only made it clearer to Jaune that he never wanted to be a reason for her stopping. Her undivided attention sounded like a pretty scary thing, even next to Grimm. "The council will not be pleased with this outcome, after all."

"Wait, hold up, you think those guys are going after Link?" The words left Jaune's mouth before he thought of them. Wasn't the first time that happened. Definitely wouldn't be the last, at least if his luck had anything to say about it.

Jaune knew he really did say something stupid when Ms. Goodwitch gave him her look. That was all he could really call it, just her look. Like Nora's energy or his own stupidity, Ms. Goodwitch just had her look. It could silence a classroom or make a Grimm freeze. Right now, he felt like both.

He put a hand over his head, already loathing that he didn't filter his mouth. It seemed like a good question, but there had to have been a better way to ask. Really, there was, he just couldn't think of it right now. Hard to tell if that was because of the brain damage from getting beamed or just his own lack of social skills. Probably the latter.

"I believe… you all should go be with Link." What?

"What?" That wasn't Jaune this time. It was Pyrrha.

"All of you should go to Link. He may be in surgery at the moment, but you will have more benefit near him then around her currently." Like a freaking mountain, there wasn't any room to budge in Ms. Goodwitch's words. Made sense she was the combat instructor at Beacon. No one else could command a room like she could. Here was no different. "General Ironwood and I have other matters to discuss."

Jaune was sure the others were trying to find the words to talk. Wasn't an easy thing though. Apparently his mouth decided that it had already satisfied its quota for stupidity, so it wasn't speaking up, thankfully.

"If nothing else, someone other than Penny should keep an eye on Ruby." Ruby? What did she have… to…

Jaune did a double check around the room. Ruby wasn't there.

Yang, yes, Blake, yes, snow angel, couldn't miss her.

Ruby? Nowhere in sight. That probably explained why the room was so quiet.

"Yeah, we should go do that." The words, again, left him before he knew they were there. At least they didn't sound as pathetic as the usually did. At the very least a general had told them to leave. That meant it had to have at least been close to a good idea, right? He hoped so.

He began to stand, feeling Pyrrha grip his arm as he did so. It was hard to tell if he was rising because of his own legs or if she was picking him up. Given that he had been knocked out for… however long, it was probably all her. She could do about anything. Hopefully that extended to keeping Ruby calm. Even getting knocked to the floor couldn't shake Jaune's memory of the last time they had gone up against Ruby.

There were still stains over his uniform…

"Are you sure it was wise to send them to Link?" Ironwood spoke the question carefully, watching Glynda as the elevator shut, taking the remaining trainees away. "I understand we cannot speak while they are present, but wouldn't the site of Link only antagonize them?"

"I trust them to be mature enough to not interfere with the delicate operations Link is likely going through." She answered evenly, turning back towards the Ironwood before she spoke on. "But we should move to a more secure location as well, before anymore words are exchanged."

Of course, Ironwood agreed. It was hard to call the conference room secure with broken glass and screens. Trust of his subordinates in the control room was absolute, but not of the chances that they could be exploited. Their enemies saw no one as untouchable. Speaking amongst his team only made them targets. Fortunately, there was an obvious solution.

He nodded towards the elevator the students had only just left through, walking towards it shortly afterwards. Glynda silently followed, one hand clutched to her scroll pad as she did so. He took note of it. The metal doors to the elevator opened with a quick hiss. He entered and moved aside for Glynda. There was more than enough room, but manners and politeness should never be put aside. They were a testament to his post.

No sooner did the doors shut than did he find himself thrown to the wall. This wasn't the room he had in mind.

His eyes focused on Glynda, the woman pointing at him with her riding crop, eyes glowing with a heat more fierce than a readying Dust cannon. Her pad was folded and put away, her stance forward in classical combat posture, and free hand tight at her side, ready to move at a moment's notice. She had every intention of severely harming him.

"Right now," she began. "Before we move in any direction, tell me why you did all of this." Her words had more patience in them than she had. That much was obvious. "Why did you risk Link's life?"

"Because it was a necessary risk." Ironwood had thought over the answer long and hard enough for the past few days to know the answer second hand. Glynda did not see it that way. The invisible force tightening on his neck told him as much. "It was… the choice with the… least consequences."

"Not good enough," was the hard reply. "Do better than that."

"Link had… a chance here," Ironwood spoke up, slow breaths between his words. He like talking with Glynda's Semblance pressing down on him. It felt like speaking through a muzzle. But he knew her better than to ask for leniency, at least in the current moment. "It was that… or simply robbing him of his possessions or… his life."

A pause, one long enough for Ironwood to count. Silence was kept away only by the slow hum of the elevator, an echo of the mechanics working behind the metal walls. Glynda never took her eyes off of him, neither did he to her.

But he did feel the force of her Semblance lift. Not enough for him to remove himself from the wall, but enough for speech to be easier. That was better.

"Explain," Glynda spoke again. "And be sure to note why you did not approach Ozpin or I for aid." He didn't need to think on what she meant. In truth, it was one of the many options he considered when the plans came forward.

"When Ozpin put forth the plan for Link to slay the Creeper, the Council approached me immediately afterwards for a method to dispose of Link." Only Glynda could hear those words and not react. She didn't. "Given Weiss Scene's report to her father regarding his Dust Crystals and your report on his… abilities, the Council believed him more valuable dead than alive."

"So why did you go along with them?" Glynda's hard question as stiffer than steel. "I know you well enough to know you don't thoughtlessly throw away lives."

"I didn't." Ironwood countered. "They wanted an accident. They wanted Link to die before he ever reached the Creeper. I came up with a way for him to have a chance."

"By throwing him against a Grammite? One that I couldn't find even a file for?" Her semblance reacted with her words, pushing Ironwood back against the elevator. She wasn't pleased. "Do tell how that is a chance for even the most capable of hunters."

"Because I made sure to instruct Zepp to send Penny and the WPM as well." That was what he hadn't told them before, the plan between himself and two of his best subordinates.

Now Glynda paused. That was a queue to continue.

"I organized the meeting with Zepp, with Link." He started slowly. "It gave time for the WPM model to imprint on Link, so it could sense distress. It was what allowed it to fly to him when the situation grew dire, and gave excuse for Penny to follow. Do you believe Zepp would have let either get away if he truly didn't want them to?"

No, he knew she didn't. Glynda was never anything short of brilliant. She knew there was a plan, she just didn't know what it was. It was why Ironwood was being given the chance to speak. If she really thought he was a traitor to their circle, to the Maidens, he would already be indisposed.

"Then why not contact us?" The next question he knew would come, the one he had tried to get around for the past two days, but found no clear answer. In the very least, it gave him a response that she wouldn't be able to deny.

"For the very same reason you and Ozpin did not tell me of your next step." It was a necessary thing to say, to establish middle ground between them. "We cannot be sure who will hear our talks when we are separated by miles of land and a chain of communication littered with holes. Send the wrong message down the wrong pipe, and who knows what would have gotten out."

Glynda's eyes tightened on him. She was listening to him, believing him too. That was good, given how long he had thought about this in his private hours. If he could not convince one of the few people who knew as much as he did, then the situation would have been dire.

"Please understand," he began. "I am under higher observation than you or Ozpin when it comes to public opinion and Council approval. My ever decision has to be made to at least appear beneficial to them. If I could have prevented any of this from happening, I would have without hesitation."

She relaxed. Ironwood was trained enough to see the signs. Her legs shifted slightly in posture, her arm bending a tad at the elbow, and brows unknitting enough to turn her glare into a look. He was just as well trained to know it meant she was still far and away from vulnerable. At the very least, she understood his words.

"That is… acceptable." Ironwood took a deep breath of air, slow and long, when he was released from her Semblance. "Though I hope you can also agree that this has escalated to a level that goes beyond subterfuge."

"That's when you stop hiding what you are doing and start disguising your motives." It wasn't a motto he was ever told to recite, but Ironwood knew the words like a creed. "Besides, I'm fully expecting you and Ozpin to have a plan for Link, taking him away from the Council's grasp."

Ironwood thought he may have been one of the few people to see the small smirk on the edge of Glynda's lips.

"There is," she admitted easily. "But we need to be present with witnesses before it can commence. Purely ceremony at this point, but necessary to plug any loopholes." Ironwood smirked. Preventing the exploitation of any system was Glynda's specialty. It's what made her such a good teacher for young hunters. They couldn't talk their way out of her class or discipline.

"I assume that is why you have littered the compound with your mini-drones?" He asked easily, having only suspicions. But those were made the difference in combat. Glynda's smile, so small and coy that it could be mistaken for a twitch, told all.

"Did you expect me to trust all members of your Military?" She countered his question. "I trust you, Ironwood, but I don't trust the man I haven't met."

"I hold no objections to the action," he spoke with upturned hands. "I only am kept from doing the same due to treaties and amnesties agreed upon by the four kingdoms." Monitoring anyone 24/7 gathered and unclean public image. When you were in the midst of a public confidence, looking sneaky or underhanded was not the image one wanted to keep. "And it is as you say. I may trust my subordinates to not speak of the act, but all it takes in one wrong word to turn it all over."

Glynda nodded to his words, reaching behind her cape and pulling out her pad again. It unfolded in her hand, pen popping into her fingers as she began typing across it.

"I had the room in an iso-field," she spoke simply to him. "Anything sent out had to come in first. The traffic remains at zero." Ah, her drones. She had the elevator secured before she assaulted him. That made sense. Likely prepared it when Link was being taken away.

It was the most opportune time. Ironwood couldn't help but smirk at her instincts. Thinking ahead even when danger was at the door. That was what made his next question important.

"So… how is the maiden?" Even with her field still in play, he kept his voice low. Not quiet, hardly ever quiet, but far from the rumble his tone so commonly set. Glynda stopped tapping on her pad long enough to look at him. He said nothing in return, not until she did.

"Autumn remains in a stable but nonresponsive condition," she returned in a neutral tone, as always… near always "According to his last correspondence, Qrow is continuing his search for the culprits, but has been dark for some time."

"You and Ozpin have said that's normal, correct?" Qrow was an outlier to Ironwood. Not a member of the Military and a Hunter only on paper. Never working for bounties or profit, only the Headmaster of Beacon. He could not predict those that stood outside the norm.

"I did not say I was worried," Glynda spoke, her tapping across her screen resuming. "If something foul had occurred to Qrow, we would have been notified of it through public of private channels… knowing our enemies tactics thus far, likely the latter."

And she was right. Ironwood could soundly agree with the conclusions based upon the evidence thus far. No outlandish threats had been made, their subterfuge had gone as deep as to have criminals confess for crimes not their own, and worst of all, the only had the part of an idea for what their end game was. The dangerous problem when dealing with a rogue threat.

Ironwood let out a sigh. At least the Grimm were straight as arrows with their intentions.

"So what do we do now?" He asked her simply. From his stance, he only had to follow her lead. "Should I prepare a comm channel for the Council? Or perhaps thanks Zepp for his planning."

"…Neither," Glynda responded, but only after a moment of silence. It wasn't lost to Ironwood. It was enough to turn his light grin downwards. "I believe we should go to the infirmary."

A curious sound hummed through Ironwood's lips, his legs taking the step or two necessary to look over Goodwitch's shoulder, gazing down at her pad. She didn't move to block him. If anything, she adjusted for him.

Wide-eyes were his first response. Planning was his second.

Ruby wasn't worried. She couldn't be worried. She knew Link was going to be okay. He promised he would be.

It didn't matter that she couldn't see him, that he was behind a door that they weren't allowed to go through, that there were a lot of guards in the way, and that the doctors who took him in were all yelling. He promised he would be okay. Her friends kept their promises.

She felt her grip on Crescent Rose tighten.

"This is taking way too long!" She heard Tatl yell. She was yelling a lot. "It can't take this long to set a freaking arm! You can't call this place high-tech then take even longer to do something!"

"I-It's just a matter of time." Penny spoke now. Ruby turned her head to see her friend, looking up at the shaking golden ball. She looked nervous. Maybe scared. "They have to set the bone after cleaning the superficial abrasions, b-but that comes after stitching muscle lacerations made by the compound fracture, and they have to check for internal hemorrhaging-"

"It's taking too long!" Tatl was red. She turned red, just as red as Ruby's cloak. She bit her lip, pulling her hood tighter over her head. Tatl got red a lot when Link wasn't around.

She wasn't worried, she couldn't be. Link made a promise he would come back, so it didn't matter how long it took he would come back. He would. Tatl and Tael even promised he would. That was three, right? Three people that promised that Link would be okay, he would…

"H-He's going to be fine." Ruby lifted her head at the voice, the tip of her hood shielding her eyes. At just the edges of vision, she saw Tael's lavender light. He was flying right next to her, but he wasn't too bright. He was warm, just like before. "Link's been… through a lot worse than this. Y-Yeah normally he, um… has a way to get better. But this won't, i-it won't stop him. He'll come right out of there and… a-and take a nap."

The fairy's wings were downcast as he spoke, ringing in a low volume. He looked like that when he was talking about Mikau's family, like when… he felt bad. Was he lying? No, Tael wouldn't lie. He was her friend. Besides, fairy tales said that fairy's couldn't lie. And they were called fairy tales after all. Still, Ruby didn't hold Crescent Rose any lighter.

"In the name of time!" Tatl was shouting again. "Why can't we go in there yet! No, wait, better question, why don't I just go in there"

"You can't!" Penny again. "The doctors have to focus on Link a-and you might get in their way which would might result in something going wrong while operating on Link and could lead to further hemorrhaging or loss of anatomical function a-and-"

"They just need to put Link's arm back in place! Why do they need to worry about all that other stuff!?" Ruby pulled her hood down again, blocking Tael from her view. She didn't mean to, but she didn't want to see Tatl's red glow. It was too bright, too hard to ignore. "Link's got a blue potion in his tunic! All those stupid doctors have to do is put his arm in place then let him drink the stuff!"

"I-I don't know what the blue potion is… but I'm sure… 92% confidence sure, that the doctors are doing their best. Absolutely, yes, I know they are." It was getting harder to hear Penny's meek voice over Tatl's growing ring. It was starting to sound like someone was throwing Christmas bells across the room. She didn't want to look up to see.

"Then they don't know jack! They don't know jack from jill from a freaking wolfo if that's what they think is best!" Ruby's grip on her hood was as tight as Crescent Rose. "Get me in there and wake him and I bet my wings that he'll be alright!"

"H-Hey," A much more timid voice spoke, much closer to Ruby as well. She lifted her head, just enough, to see Tael was hovering just above her chest, curtained by her hood and cape. He was glowing very softly, almost as if he was about to turn off. "I-It's alright. Tatl just worries a lot. She… She means well, a-and Link doesn't break promises."

Letting go of her hood, Ruby lightly pulled Tael to her chest.

The first thing Ruby realized was that he felt the same as his sister, when Ruby had grabbed her in the Everfree. That seemed like so long ago now. He was light, warm, and fit in her hand like a doll. But she was careful, extremely careful.

She felt something small grab at her dress, like doll hands, and she knew Tael was alright. She didn't cry because she didn't have to. Link promised he'd come back. Tatl was just worried like Penny was. Tael was comforting her with his soft warmth. It was alright. It was… going to be alright. But her grip on Crescent Rose didn't lax.

"Ms.… Penny?" A voice spoke up, one that Ruby hadn't heard before.

She looked up, hood covering the top of her eyes. She couldn't see the face of whoever was speaking, but she could see they were wearing a white gown, plastic on their feet, and… rubbing their hands. From the chest down, he looked like a doctor.

"Dr. Swasaran, yes! I'm here!" Penny replied, far faster and louder than anything she had said in the past while. "How is Link? Is he alright? Does he still retain movement and dexterity in his limb?"

"Buzz off metal head!" Ruby bit her lip when Tatl said that. She felt Teal hold her dress a little tighter. "If anyone gets to know what's happening to Link, it's me and my bro, got it?" She didn't sound as mad, but still mad.

"Yes, well, um…" the doctor started to speak again. Ruby saw his feet fidgeting. "We were able to stabilize his fractures after cleaning his wounds. Majority of the muscular damage was down due to the protrusions of his bones. He was lucky to have no torn ligaments or tendons from his injuries. Though they are doubtlessly stretched and in need of therapeutically repair." Lucky wasn't what Ruby called Link's injuries. "He is not yet stable enough to be declared out of the woods just yet, but it is highly unlikely he will fall into critical condition now at the very least."

"Great, awesome, so where is he?" Tatl sounded off quickly after the doctor finished. "Thanks for taking forever to set a simple fracture, but we've gotta see him now."

"Oh no, that's out of the question," the doctor waved his hands as he spoke. They left Ruby's vision as he did so. "He's unconscious currently and waking him up could put serious strain on his vascular system. He lost a lot of blood due to his injuries, so stressing his body could result in major harm."

"Then you don't know Link well enough!" Tatl was screaming again, ringing like thrown bells. "All you're doing is keeping him knocked out so you can do whatever you want to him! He didn't die fighting that Molgera Monster, so now you want to kill him and make it look like an accident!"

Ruby felt her breath turn cold.

"What?!" The doctor yelled. He sounded mad. "I'll have you know that preserving the health of my patients is my top priority! How dare you insinuate that I would harm anyone in my care!"

"How dare you keep me from seeing Link!" Tatl wasn't letting up. "Do you really think you're gonna be able to keep me from seeing him!? Are you dense enough to think that I'd just fly around and do nothing while your off playing with him like a doll!?"

"Th-That isn't what Dr. Swasaran would do!" That was Penny. Ruby was biting her lip too hard to say anything. "He's a-a good doctor! 72.1% of his patients recover after seeing him with no long term injuries, a-and his mortality rate is… it's only 3.42%, with error."

"Stop talking steel face!" Tatl was red again. Ruby could see the light. Tael, however, was a soft blue. She felt the same. "I don't trust you anymore! You called Big Stiff up there your uncle, and he's the one who admitted to trying to kill Link!"

"What?" Penny spoke breathlessly. "But… Uncle Ironwood said…"

"So I don't trust either of you! If you want me to trust anything you have to say, you'll let me see Link right now!" Tael hadn't made a sound against Ruby. He was quiet as a mouse. Ruby felt as small as one.

"If you attempt to see Link before I deem he is ready, I'll be forced to remove you from the infirmary." That was the doctor again. Ruby could him fold his arms. He was probably giving a really mean expression at Tatl. Penny was looking between them. Ruby still didn't say anything. She didn't like being here.

"Oh yeah? I'd like to see you try!" That was probably a bad thing to say.

Ruby knew it was when she heard guns being cocked. She didn't want to let go of Tael, not with how hard he was holding on to her. She let go of Crescent Rose to lift up her hood. She almost wished she didn't

There were soldiers, three of them, pointing their rifles at Tatl, who was glowing a very ominous red. They were ZK Models, maybe carrying Fire or Lighting Dust cartridges. One was painful, the other instantaneous.

Penny didn't move, even when she looked at Ruby. Ruby made just as much motion. She didn't know what to do.

"Whoa! What's going on here?" That was Yang. That was her sister!

Ruby twisted to see her big sister walking into the infirmary, the rest of her team and JNPR tailing right behind her. Everyone was looking around the room, at Ruby, at Penny, at Tatl, and the doctor, and probably the guards, too. It probably looked bad because it was bad. Ruby couldn't' call it anything else. Then Yang pointed at Ruby, right at her, with a small snarl on her face. That confused her.

"And what is the perv doing so close to my sis?" Less confusing, more embarrassing.

"H-Huh?" Tael let out in a sort of shocked sheepish voice. Ruby felt him cling to her tighter, only to immediately jump off with fairy wings beating. He was ringing lightly, like he was blushing. "I-I was trying to… to comfort R-Ruby, b-because the-ey won't let us see Link a-a-and Penny and my sis a-and-"

"Save it, you just bought a one-way ticket to pain station." Ruby didn't what to feel when her sis slammed her fists together. One part of her was just so used to it she wanted to giggle. The other was still stuck on the matter at hand. Now wasn't the time for Yang to be her big sis, not like this. She had to help her fix this.

Of course, that meant Ruby had to do something, too.

"Yang, i-it's true." Ruby voiced to her big sister, earning a blinking gaze from her brawler of a sibling. "Tael… I-I wanted to hug him when all the yelling started because the doctor says that we can't see Link, but Tatl is saying that they're probably experimenting or doing things to him while he's unconscious and Penny doesn't know what to do, but the doctor says that we can't see him so there are guards here now threatening us to leave a-and I don't want to leave until I know Link is safe so-"

She stopped when her sister put her hands on Ruby's shoulders. Ruby only knew her lips were shaking when she saw how relaxed Yang's were, smiling down at her. Even her eyes looked like they were grinning.

"Hey sis, it's alright, your big sis is here now." Yang spoke and acted like she always did when Ruby felt scared. She got in close and spoke like Ruby was ten. She pretended not to like it. "There ain't nothing that's gonna happen that I can fix. Trust me, everything's gonna be just fine." She winked to finish her words.

Ruby only half-tried to stifle her giggles; she didn't even attempt to stop her smile. Her sister was always something else, able to make her worry one moment but then make her laugh the next. There really was no one else like Yang.

"Honestly, I don't even know who I can ask for a straight answer here," Ruby heard Weiss speak up from behind her sister. She knew her partner's voice anywhere. That was one of a kind, too. "You there, doctor. Tell us why it is prohibited to see Link?"

"Ms. Schnee?" The doctor knew Weiss? Well… more like knew her family. Ruby was starting to realize she might really be the only person who didn't know Weiss at their first meeting. "Of course I can elaborate. Link has suffered multiple internal lacerations due to the compound fracture of his radii and ulna. We have sutured all wound and set his bone, but there was heavy blood loss due to his injuries. He is currently unconscious, but waking him up or putting extra strain on his body could result in an increased risk for clotting in his epithelial cells, due to their currently exposed nature."

There were a lot of words there Ruby didn't understand. All she got out of it was waking Link up was bad. So, they couldn't do that.

"Makes sense," Weiss replied easily, nodding her head. That worried Ruby. "Then I suppose if we are to visit him, we must simply refrain from waking him up." Worries were gone. Smile was back.

"I'm afraid it isn't that simple Ms. Schnee," the doctor started again. But Ruby could tell that he wasn't going to be able to finish, whatever he was going to say.

"Yes it's that simple!" Talt now, screaming again. "You're gonna let us see Link and you're going to do it now! All we gotta do is be quiet or whatever. You know what? I'll settle for that as long as you let me see Link."

"It would be best to comply with Tatl." That was Penny. Ruby could see her ringing her hands together behind her back. She was rocking on her heels, but Ruby couldn't tell if she was still nervous or if her usual bubbly confidence was back. She did feel Yang grip her shoulders a bit tighter. "A compromise here is better than risking any… confrontations, correct?"

Despite how happy Penny sounded, Ruby felt a chill at those words. Was she expecting there to be a fight?

Well… with the guards aiming those high-end guns at them and Tatl still glowing a fair color of red, though a bit of her usual gold shining through, a part of her could see something happening. Then again, it did sound kinda silly. A bunch of soldiers worried over a little fairy causing damage. Then again again, she did see Tatl knock Jaune out cold…

Ruby glanced over at her first friend at Beacon. He looked alright, but he was leaning on Pyrrha a lot. She didn't seem to mind.

"…Fine." The word made Ruby's heart leap in her chest.

"Finally!" Tatl let out, any red hue in her aura vanishing with her words. "Now just tell me where he is and I can start to forget about this whole mess!"

"Indeed! I am also interested in-" Penny was interrupted quickly.

"Now now," the doctor spoke up again, hands waving lightly in the air. "I can agree to the mini-drone-"

"Fairy!"

"You going to see the patient, but there is not enough room in the infirmary to allow all of you visitation, especially when it is usually prohibited." Oh… that didn't sound good. "I can allow one of you to accompany Ms.…. Tatl here." Ruby heard the fairy ring at him, but she didn't say anything else.

But wait, that wasn't what was important. What was important was that they couldn't all go to see Link! Well then who could? Tatl should, and Tael. But who else?

"You're coming, metal head." Ruby almost missed Tatl's declaration. Almost.

"Wait, me?" Penny asked. Ruby had to thrash her head lightly to get it out of Yang's hair, enough to see her robotic friend talking to Tatl. Honestly, Ruby would have preferred to just get out of Yang's grip, but that was like trying to lift a building.

"Yeah, you." Tatl spoke up again. "I might not trust you for even a second, but I'm gonna have to gamble on you owing Link." Why did that matter? Ruby didn't understand. "So are you gonna come, or are you just gonna try and jump lower on my list?"

"Oh! I'll come, yes, definitely!" Ruby couldn't tell if Penny was excited or still on edge. It was probably the former though. Ruby felt her stomach falling in tandem with it. She really wanted to see Link.

"Kay, there, all set, now hurry up and take us to Link!" That was for the doctor, Ruby knew it was. The high ring that came with it made it obvious that it was Tatl, as if the voice wasn't enough.

"…Alright," the doctor relented. Ruby felt a bit of the stress in her release, falling a little into Yang's still tough as high density titanium embrace. "But you must swear to keep volume to a minimum and not attempt to wake him. I can only emphasize so much how critical it is that Link remains-"

"Yeah yeah, let the big guy sleep, I got it, now hurry it up!" Ruby could hear the doctor give a disapproving huff. Too bad Yang's hair still kept her from seeing anything. Also it was kinda bad she didn't want to talk right now. She hated ruined moments.

But then she heard doors swinging, just like when the doctor came in the first time. It was kinda hard to ignore the sound of Tael and Tatl leaving, ringing as they flew. It was only after a moment of silence passed that Yang finally let go of her, leaning back to move her hands to her hips. It was her low sigh that broke the silence.

"Gotta admit," her sister let out with a shake of her head. "I'm really starting to hate all this 'at-gunpoint' bull crap." Ruby couldn't disagree.

From the way Ruby saw the doctor shaking his head apparently neither could he.

It was always odd when Penny felt new things. Papa Zepp had told her that it was a sign that her self-generating code was operating at optimal levels, combined with her redundant servers recalling prior experiences to generate new physical feedback. She knew what it was, but it was still odd that it was new.

Right now, the room hallway she was walking down wasn't new. She had followed Uncle Ironwood down it several times before. The fairies were new, but she had met them briefly after they arrived the first time. What was really new was the feeling she had. Then again, she knew why the feeling was there.

By simple searches on the CCTS information network, it was called nervousness.

Defined simply as a sensible reaction to potentially scary or life-altering events. It was odd to her, because any algorithm she ran showed her that every event altered one's life. This was no different. Then again, in terms of frequency of occurrence, this was easily the first time for Penny. Perhaps that was why she was nervous.

Her head turned when she felt a light pressure on her shoulder. At first, she was sure it was one of the guards asking her for specifics to combat protocols, but instead found one of Link's fairy friends. It was the darker one, named Tael. His wings stopped fluttering as he settled into place.

He didn't say anything, but Penny's observational data told her he was likely looking for comfort from an entity familiar with the environment. It was common between new recruits or visiting members of other countries.

Penny could tell the white walls were not settling easy for him, or the many rooms that likely contained semi-critical conditions soldiers, nursing everything from Aura Depletion to severe amputations. If it was an uncommon sight, then comfort was understandable

"Here we are," Penny heard Dr. Swasaran speak. It took her approximately 0.012 seconds to realize he had stopped in front of a high security door. That may have been bad. His fingers tap on the pad, bringing up a small screen that he enters some series of numbers on. Penny quickly memorized the code, 31172. Humans called it photographic memory. She called it data management. "I will remind you once more. Any undue stress onto Link will likely result in raising his condition and resulting in severe muscular or nervous damage. However, I will respect the courtesy of visitation by trusting you to this." He was looking at Tatl when he spoke. Likely because she was loud. Actually, far above the normal decibel range of human or faunus.

"Yeah yeah, we get it, you're risking a lot to do the right thing," the golden fairy rattled off. "I'm so glad you just want to do this, no threats whatsoever. Seriously though you're good to go."

He was snarling. Penny could see it. Well… maybe not. It was close. His lips were raised with his nose, but that was really it. Management of human expressions gave it a 73% chance of being an unpleasant expression, but only 23% of a snarl. But the doctor did leave, passing by all of them with a quick pace. She moved out of his way, knowing he wouldn't move for her. Dr. Swasaran was used to the submission of others, especially in the medical wing.

"C'mon metal head, let's go." Penny knew she didn't like that name, but bringing notice to it would increase her likely-hood of being found out up to 89%. So instead, she followed the golden fairy into the room. The door shut swiftly behind her.

She got another feeling when she entered the room. Penny felt it before, only hours before, but she didn't like feeling it. At least she knew why shew as feeling it, especially when her ocular sensors looked at the only medical bed situated in the room.

Link was on the bed, but… he looked so different.

He was lying on the bed with his hat gone, tunic as well. Given the copious amount of blood and other fluids that had seeped into it, removing it was of no surprise. It had been cleaned though, as its presence at the far end of the bed was evidence of. His equipment wasn't there. Penny knew those were being kept under high-guard…

Penny double checked her algorithms. It was on the debugging of the "observation" function that she realized she was avoiding long term contact with Link. Her head shook, a human gesture for "righting one's mind." Then she looked at him.

A mask was held over his face, a respirator connected to a 20 breath/minute cyclic pump. It was supposed to keep his lungs full of air, allow breathing to be less stressful on the body, sustain him in a catatonic and dead state… Penny didn't like this.

What drew her attention the most was his arm. She remembered it before, strong and stiff, gentle to the touch, warm as it wrapped around her to keep her on the WPM model. Now it was wrapped up in a cast thicker than most armor Penny had data of. Large metal clamps were held about it, likely keeping it as stiff as it did secure. Strings were attached to the metal bands, holding the arm up in the air, off of the bed. It… it looked wrong.

All her data said it was a support fixture to reduce stress on injury sites, maximizing the rate of healing and likelihood of unionization of the bone but… it felt wrong. Maybe it wasn't the fracture? She felt her cores overtaxing her "self-write" function to make sense of it. Papa Zepp it could be bad, but not knowing something that was supposed to be fully documented felt like an instance of recursive logic. Bad.

It was silent in the room, except for the small ringing of the fairies as they flew around Link. The usual beeping split the air, the beeping that was always in hospitals, in every room Penny had ever been in. Constant, static, high pitched beeping. Indicators of functioning metrics of the human system, including EKG's and blood pressure cuffs. Its rate was satisfactory for someone in an unconscious, well within normal parameters.

"Oh Link," Penny's automated audio input heard Tatl speak. She saw the golden fairy fly about his still body, dust sprinkling on him as she did. "Why do you always have to be such an idiot." She fell onto his chest, on a segment of his bandages. He didn't move.

Penny felt something lift off her shoulder. It took her 0.001 seconds to realize it was Tael, made clear when she saw his dark light flying towards his sister. He made hardly a sound, ringing as someone where holding the wrong part of the bell. Penny made not a sound as he fell next to his sister. It was bad manners to interrupt situations like this.

Penny was moving though. Her information on Link's state was limited to visual input now, but she could easily get more from interfacing with the medical equipment. She had the necessary codes and functions too use them. It took her an undocumented but small amount of time to reach the terminal controlling Link's EKG monitoring.

Her fingers danced along the screen, quickly brining up a small projection of data. Everything was available to her. Time, data, and even the black-listed protocols. Papa Zepp made it very clear to never tell others how she got those. She filed that under quick reference material.

"Half-hour post-surgery, resting with a prescribed dosage of 2mg Morphine to be delivered every other hour. Bandages changed twice daily until tissue regrowth prevents leakage from suture sites. Stitching is to be checked with bandage care, as well as wound cleaning to prevent infection. Other medication: Gentamicin, 10mg daily, and Apixaban, same dosage."

Everything appeared perfectly in order. Too perfect. But sometime too perfect was the right amount of perfect, like Uncle Ironwood said. She didn't understand, which usually meant a lie. But some lies were good, as told by quick reference code "CT-012".

"Those are antibiotics, commonly prescribed surgical patients to prevent infection," Penny looked happy as she said that. "That means that Dr. Swasaran was telling the truth, and Link is being properly taken care of." That made sense though.

Link wasn't being tested on, or being threatened, or mocked. He was being taken care of, like he should be, like he deserved. That was a great thing.

"Yeah, great," Tatl spoke up from above Link. She wasn't flying. She was sitting on him. She sounded… not like the fairy from before. It was the same fairy, as all sensors told, but it wasn't the same direction of speech. "Link's just as injured as he said he was…" Penny raised a brow as she ran through recent conversations. It took her approximately 1.012 seconds to figure out what the fairy meant.

"O-Oh I… No, I didn't… that's…" Penny fumbled over her words as she waved her hand over the pad. The screen vanished with the action, leaving only a vacuum of noise, cut by the monotone beeping of the screen. "Well… h-his condition is improving, once the vascular sites have repaired themselves and the fear of clotting is reduced…"

"Metal Head," Tatl spoke again, lowly, but also raising herself from Link's chest. Penny watched her silently, watched the golden fairy as she floated towards her. "I get it, really, you feel bad, I'm actually glad you do." Penny wasn't sure how to respond to the statement.

"B-But… I don't want to… I want to help." Her words fumbled out, her pitch attenuation units either having a short or her auditory communication going through a lapse in functions. "Link helped me, saved me. So, as moral codes… a-and ethical guidelines state, I wish to help him."

"Kay," Tatl returned with only a quick soft ring. "Then go get his stuff, the rest of it. His sword, his belts, everything. Bring them back here." Penny's mouth moved wordlessly, but only for a moment. This time it had to be her speakers that had a short in them. She'd need to see Papa Zepp about repairs soon.

"O-Oh, um… I am… unable to comply with that request." She didn't sound happy with herself as she said the words. She didn't feel it either. Her hands flexed and unflexed in front of her, a diagnostic check required given her lack of function in the previous moments. "Those would be classified as 'personal affects' a-and I, as I, um… member of the military am not able to handle them without permission."

"Permission given." Tatl spoke the words. Penny wasn't sure it worked that way. "Now go grab them, and hurry. You're the only one who knows where they are." She hardly made a ring as she spoke. A thought occurred to Ruby that maybe the fairy was tired. She always saw a lot of tired people in hospitals, just another reason why she didn't like them.

Penny didn't move, not at first. Her eyes looked at Link on the bed, not moving, not stirring, then back to Tatl. Her lips were moving, but no sound came out. Her eyes were blinking, but there was no interference with her ocular sensors. Her functions would need to be debugged at length during the power cycle. This was too hard to work with.

But for now… she could do as Tatl asked. If it helped Link, it would be worth it. That was what her memories told her. So she would do that.

"Be back soon!" She replied as cheerily as possible. Papa Zepp told her happiness was contagious, and this room needed some happiness. Maybe she'd be able to bring it in a moment. She left though, quick as she could.

The door snapped shut behind her as she left, but she gave it notice through her redundant systems only. She had a storeroom to reach. It was located two floors up and past two mid-trained soldiers, operating on a three-hour shift, continuously. It was maybe the fourth most guarded place in the DMZ, the Command Center, launch pad, and communication tower aside.

The soldier only gave her passive notice as she hurried towards the stairs. It wouldn't take any time to reach the store-room, and she could use her access with Uncle Ironwood's codes to get in! Everyone knew here around her, or at least recognized her physical features enough to not give off threatening or uncertain feelings. But one of the "lesson memories" Penny had archived was telling her something… off.

Uncle Ironwood said to never go against orders of the Military. She was made by Papa Zepp to be a great warrior and a loyal soldier. That included orders from the Council and respect to the laws the Military entailed. On page 385, paragraphs 2-3, it was detailed that items in storage containers held by Military officials were not to be accessed unless given implicit instructions to do so, in so many words.

But she wasn't doing that now. Because her "instinctual memories" told her that it was rightto gather Link's items for him, like the fairies had said. Papa Zepp had even told her there would be conflicting inputs in the coming hours, after she left on the Airship. But this was odd, too odd. But it was , wrong.

She pocketed the internal conversation as she saw the storage lockers ahead, complete with double grating, two soldiers, and a Schnee encrusted Dust Lock settled over the stands. No hospital rooms within twenty-five meters of the entrance. Yup, this was it, as her memories had correctly led her here. The soldier behind the grating was flipping through papers when Penny's kipped up to him.

"Salutations!" Penny spoke up as she approached the guards. Their quick jumps at her was indication they both recognized and listened to her. Superb! "I am here to request the items being stored for patient GA-1322 by orders of General Ironwood." Lie. The spike came in her system, but she ran redacting protocols and stored it away in memory. As Papa Zepp would say, a necessary little white lie.

"The general ordered that?" the man behind the gate spoke. The guards wouldn't speak, they were meant to be intimidating, and 84% of soldiers had voices that did not match the physique they were given. "I didn't receive any comm chatter or authorization notice from him." Expected, but Penny was prepared.

Intimidation or flattery were the two most successful means to appropriate materials through lying or deceit, as her databases had instructed her. Dependencies of success came down to factors involving the individual and geographical clues. Flattery served little good in military settings, where power and hierarchies were absolute. Flattery had only a 3% chance of success. Intimidation, by minimal function references, was closer to 86%.

"He did not?" Penny falsified inflection in her voice to feign ignorance. "He gave me super important orders to come here. It would be extremely bad if I was late. Don't you agree?" She made sure to smile, smiling always helped, always.

The soldier raised his brows, a sign that it was working. His hands then scurried over the pages in front of him, likely attempting to reference a transmission he might have missed. He wouldn't find it, Penny knew. But she had to ensure he stopped looking, to assume that's he was correct.

"Uncle Ironwood would be mad if I was late, and he'll be even more upset if I tell him it was because soldiers were stopping me." That worked. The soldiers flanking Penny by the grating both looked nervous by the comment. Stupendous! "Buuuut if I were to start collecting Link's affects, I'm sure you'd receive the transmission pretty soon."

"U-Uh yeah, yes, I agree!" The soldier hit knew legs on the table with the speed he stood up, Scroll fumbling in his hand as he attempted to access the necessary records for Link. But then he stopped, like a statue.

Penny watched him with quirked brows, a sign of confusion by her records. She was not sure what he could have seen on the scroll to alter his perception of what was happening. His reaction was due to new information, doubtlessly, but what that information was she was not sure.

"Um, are you sure it was General Ironwood who gave the order?" He asked. Penny nodded, all smiles. Had to keep smiling. "Because my records indicate that the affects of Patient GA-1322 are meant to be transported to Council's Facilities in two-one-hundred hours."

Penny's internal clock immediately noted that that was in just 23 minutes. There was simply no feasible way for Link to heal quickly enough to appropriate his own items again. And they were headed to Council space, where full jurisdiction was given to them and under non-scrutiny from Military and Academy personal.

Tatl was right. Penny's guilt was absolved, just as Papa Zepp said it would be.

"Of course!" Penny quickly agreed. Never counter facts that are present in a discussion. Instead, twist. She had a 74% chance of convincing the soldier still. "Uncle Ironwood wanted me to collect the affects for delivery to the Council ship when present. Because no is more combat-ready than me!" She struck the pose Papa Zepp told her was appropriate. Except, while Papa Zepp laughed, the soldiers looked nervous. That was an 85% chance of occurring.

"O-Okay, yeah, that makes sense," the soldier nodded rapidly, reaching for his keys as he did so. Scrolls were too easy to modify and hack to be used as secure terminals for lockers.

Dust encrusted keys, however took weeks to properly modify or replicate, so were more efficient at securing high profile items. Penny remembered being behind one before she was shown by Papa Zepp to Uncle Ironwood.

"One Dust-Encrusted Gem Sword," the soldier began to list off, pulling Link's items from the storage container and placing them on the nearby rack. Protocol on pages 239 detailed that verbal confirmation of all affects was required to ensure no miscommunication between military parties. "One multi-holstered leather pouch. One multi-holstered and scabbard equipped belt." He placed the items next to the sword. "One pair of size 9 leather boots." That seemed small, but Penny didn't think Link would mind. "That's everything."

"Stupendous!" Penny cheered aloud. "Then I will make haste for General Ironwood!" The soldier only nodded as he fed the items through the slot of the grating. Penny quickly placed them in her hands, optimizing surface are to pressure of the materials. Stability of stacking was also run, to ensure they wouldn't fall out of her hands. Failure to run that once resulted in dropping one of three crates of dust. That was filed away under "unfortunate events".

Penny nodded when she had the items in hand, properly secured, and a salute from the soldier. With this, she was ready to get back and help Link! And then the soldier's Scroll beeped. Odds gave it a 41% likelihood of being detrimental, considering the time table she was read before.

"I'll be off then! Goodbye!" Penny turned on her heels and began to walk down the hallway, briskly. Briskly meant the borderline amount of force necessary to leave foot indents into the floor of the hospital.

"Hey! Wait! Stop her!" Her footing left indents now.

Her foot stamped down the hall, leg twisting up to move the door out of the way. It slammed off its hinges, into the far wall, and loud enough to alert all soldiers within a 43-meter radius. Not satisfactory, as her functions had described.

But that didn't matter. She had to get to Link! And with her head start, she knew she could. She had a 92% probability. She lunged down the steps to maximize the chances, activating the high friction pads on her feet to allow acute turning angles. It worked! She was in front of Link's door promptly.

"I'm back!" Penny's voice was louder than the swishing of the door. She made sure it was, just in case the guards were already pursuing her.

"Speak of demons and they shall rise," Tatl let out in what Penny was sure was a mumble. "Whatever, thanks, really, now set it down and get out his belt for me, the one that supposed to go around his waist." She must not have heard the commotion yet. Functions deemed it unnecessary to alert her at the moment. So, Penny did as the fairy requested.

Penny set items down and quickly pulled out the requested belt, noted by its lack of sword's sheath attached to it. It also housed approximately 34% more storage space, given its greater number of pouches. Then again, her functions would need alterations given the items she had documented Link producing from the belt. They were not to scale. Oh well!

"This one?" Penny held up, holding it out to the fairy. Quick warnings fired in her head the fairy had neither the physique nor the ability to hold the belt. The way Tatl failed to make a move towards the belt told her internal observation functions that it was a shared conclusion, or fact.

"Yeah, that it's," Tatl confirmed. Superb! "Now you just gotta pull out the blue potion in the class bottle. Get that and give it to Link, and we'll be all set here." Penny could not find an instance in her memory that any liquid generated quick recovery or fracture healing, but she was talking to a fairy. Her "humor" memory files told her that one justified the other. "Glad you're actually on the hustle this time." Penny felt herself beam at the words. Kind words and praise always deserved to be met with good cheer, as so her "conduct behavior" file told her.

"Oh, of course I'm helping!" Penny replied excitedly. "That's why I have one more thing to do!"

Penny spun on her feet, leaping back towards the door she entered in. Her high acquit hearing could make out soldiers in a sprint. There was a 93.4% likelihood they were coming for them. That meant, given the distance from the room and Link's still unconscious state, there was only one thing to appropriately do to stall.

Penny slammed the door shut… breaking the unlocking mechanism. She was combat ready and ready to defend her friend!

"Whoa! What are you doing!?" Tatl screamed. That was appropriate, given the Nosie and sudden destruction of property. It was classified as abnormal to see destruction with mute reaction. So Penny made sure to smile when she gave her explanation to fairy, complete with twisting a portion of the door close to the wall inclusion point, further locking it in place.

"Oh! Um… you see, I got Link's stuff like I promised. Buuuuut the guards thought it was a bad thing to take his stuff. I took it anyway." Simple and sweet explanations were always the best. So said Papa Zepp and Uncle Ironwood. If both said it, it couldn't be wrong!

BANG

"Sis!"

Tael screamed as he jumped from Link's chest, flying around the room and throwing dark Dust as he did. Penny looked at the door she was gripping, her hand not moving an inch…. Even as it was hit again.

BANG!

It was secure, so Penny moved. She jumped at Link's belt, knowing that whatever Tatl wanted was in it. At least to an 81% certainty.

Her hands unrolled the belt as her mind was already justifying her actions. She was promised to help Link, promised that if she did this he would get better. This was the right thing to do. She had to help Link before something bad happened to her. Her guilt was absolved by the Council's actions. She was just, even as recursive functions gave red warnings across her peripheral vision.

"Why are they trying to get in?!" Tatl screamed. "Big Stiff said he was helping us! Why are the guards trying to get in!?" Penny didn't have time to explain.

BANG! BANG! BANG!

She just had to find the potion. She had to hurry and find the potion. Everything else was okay so long as she did that. Everything else was justified if she helped Link, and the way to help Link was by doing what his fairy companions were telling her.

"They most likely are under orders from the Council, yes! That's the most likely reasoning!" Penny responded to Tatl. She had to be cheerful, now of all times. Second pocket and still no potion, though she confirmed with her observational functions the pockets held more volume than their outer measurements permitted. "They must reallywant Link's cool stuff!"

"Well they can't have it!" Tatl yelled out again, flying over to Penny. Did she know where the bottle was? The odds were with her. "Third pouch left from the buckle, grab the blue bottle!"

Yes! She did know.

BANG! BANG! BANG!

Penny's dexterous fingers played with the latch of the pouch, quickly opening it and diving inside to produce the required item. She felt several smooth glass fixtures, each of them likely bottles of some form. But she needed one that had a color index around #0000FF.

"Uh oh, I think they're getting through!" Tael called, but Penny didn't look up at him. It would have been a needless act to confirm the fairy's words. They were 99.9% likely to be correct, high enough for a guarantee.

"Well get away from the door before they break in!" Tatl yelled back, only to fly around Penny in an almost blinding display of light, almost. Penny herself had identified two of the likely seven bottles in Link's pouch. One was empty, the other had a color index of #00FF00, not #0000FF.

Finally, she saw it. Her hand didn't waste a moment in grabbing it and pulling it from the pocket.

BANG! BANG!

CRASH!

The door window broke, Penny's algorithms deduce, but she didn't check. Link's health trumped confirmation of data.

"Penny Polendina!" Penny heard the same voice of the guard from before yell at her. He sounded much angrier. Lowered pitches by raised volumes usually led to that conclusion, and he was much high in the decibel range. "Remove yourself from this room immediately! You are breaking protocols and Council Orders!"

"Apologies sir," Penny responded still with cheer in her voice. "But I have promises to keep myself! And a good friend does not break a promise!" Tael rang highly by her. That was likely a good sign, or at least a 34.5% chance of not being so, with a 21% of being mute.

She ran to Link's side with the bottle in hand, her feet jumping the few feet from the end of his bed to its edge. Tael fluttered and rang around her. The latter was unlikely, not with her acute hearing. But she couldn't dedicate cores to that now.

"Hurry! Get that mask off of him!" Tatl shouted from behind her, anger and desperation in her voice. Penny understand why for both. "Make him drink the potion fast! We gotta hurry here!" She did as was told.

Her free hand quickly and hastily pulled at the straps that held Link's oxygen mask in place, loosening it until it hung from his mouth like a straw. She had seen doctors remove them before, and she did her utmost to repeat what she saw. She did her best to remove the length of the tube that was down Link's throat with both speed and precision. It was her first time performing the operation alone

"Penny move this instant!" The same soldier screamed again. He was banging on the door still. "If you don't you risk confinement by the Council's orders and likely rejection from all hunter academies!"

"That's acceptable!" Penny almost cheered. She made sure to keep her smile up, or else the situation would have looked much more critical, which it wasn't allowed to be. "All my currently functioning emotional processes state that that is the preferred outcome!" She spoke no lies to the guard now.

Penny tuned out that rest as she focused on Link.

She uncorked the top of the bottle, hearing the blue liquid inside slosh around as she did so. The beeping of the computer was getting louder, but she ignored it. She was good at ignoring loud things, especially when there was something important to focus on. Shutting off inputs of her body gave her cores more memory to use.

The liquid began to seep down his throat, some spilling off of his lips and onto his chest. She ignored that. She focused on his throat. She watched it swallow the liquid, drinking it as she poured it. That was good! She was fulfilling her promise!

That meant Link would get better soon, in no time! That was what Tatl said, so Penny just had to keep going, she just had to-

Penny stopped.

No… a hand stopped her.

Link's hand.

A 'eep' of noise was all she made as she felt Link's hand grip her own, his large and muscular hand overlaying hers over the bottle. She was made of metal, but his had more volume to it. He was guiding the bottle with her, taking larger gulps as he tipped the glass further and further back. It was audible, quick, and it took little time for the bottle to disappear. When it was empty, Link made a pleasured sigh.

Then, opening his eyes, he smiled at her.

Penny, for the first time since Link left to fight the Grammite, smiled honestly at the faunus.

It had been a while since Glynda had found herself this on edge.

A skirmish or two naturally kept her up-to-pace with any number of hunters, more than earning her position at Beacon. Her cognitive notes of the world around her were without par, enough so that even the Headmaster of Beacon often deferred to her for information. The general of the Army himself often rescinded he was second best when it came to her.

This careful monitoring of the space about herself made surprises far and few between. She could see bullies plotting before their strike, monitor the progress of students when they trained well beyond the night, keep track of wandering hands, and just as often, wandering minds. It made it for few surprises when she came to test her students, to deliver discipline, or simply watch her pupils grow.

If you were able to watch every moment of a seeds life, it was no surprise to see it change from a sprout into a full fern. It was a melancholy type of realization, knowing that her network and instincts were sharpened so well that shock was rarely something she experienced.

It made Link's presence the largest rock she had ever seen thrown into the calm surface that was her mind.

His first meeting, his subsequent tests, his abilities, his lack of thought for his actions, he willingness to show off, his hesitance to explain, his ruthlessness followed by his kindness, they were things she would have seen coming if he were from anywhere in Vale or likely beyond. And yet, he wasn't, so time and time again, the young faunus, so easily now seen as a trained hunter, made her focus shift with such speed that she was forced to reevaluate the priorities of her mini-drones.

So perhaps it was the frequency of his surprises that finally made this new event less shocking than it was to most. And by most, her cognitive mind noted, she included Ironwood who marched beside her and the students that followed close behind. Close was the operative word.

"Holy crap! Can we at least run there!" Ms. Xiao Long yelled, most likely being the major contributor to the force forward. "Something big is going on and we're just walking there like we're in some kinda cheesy action flick?! Seriously!?"

"We are walking in order to garner time, Ms. Xiao Long," Glynda smoothly told the most boisterous of the students. She was her father's daughter, of that there was no denying. "Because running would likely result in only souring the already precarious situation."

"Can you at least tell us what happened?" That was Ms. Rose, her concern for her friends palpable in her words. "Is Link okay? Penny? The fairies?"

"Penny has… procured Link's belongings from the requisition officer," Ironwood returned. Favorable, as Glynda was still making notes as she walked, a good portion of her abilities keeping the students from running past her and ahead. "It can be assumed she did this on the request of Link's companions, but the order to retain the items was absolute."

"Uh, yeah, stupid question here, probably," Mr. Arc spoke now. Glynda was constantly rechecking her records to ensure that he was his father's son. "But um, can't you call back that order? General of the Army, man in charge?"

"If it were my order or one from my subordinates, then without question," he returned. "But it was under the Council's orders to keep Link's equipment under guard and storage until suitable transport was provided." Ironwood gave a single breath of a chuckle before continuing. "I don't doubt they have even prepared airship let alone found a pilot."

"Whoa, wait, back up, the Council is behind this? Those guys again?" Ms. Xiao long was speaking up. Glynda felt a force on her guard as she did so. "Then shouldn't we be running? They might be trying to kill Link!"

Boisterous and without thought. Ozpin made a good decision in making her sister her leader.

"That is not happening," Glynda spoke before Ironwood, already feeling the tension rise without the use of her Semblance. "This whole diversion was designed to leave their hands bloodless. To kill Link now would sour the relationship between the Army, Council, and eventually citizens for a long period of time."

She understood the depths of what she spoke, seeing every string that would fall into place. Ironwood, however, spoke up after her. Apparently the students did not and he could sense it.

"The majority of the Army is loyal to me. Seeing one of their members kill in the name of the Council would cause inherent distrust for the very institution they have sworn to fight for. Information would eventually leak back to their families, who would spread the news like oil in water, obvious and unavoidable." Too poetic for clarity, at least for Glynda's taste, but perhaps that was why he was the general of the Army.

"Oh yeah… that's bad." A poignant statement.

Further conversation was reduced to hushed whispers between the students as they turned corner, seeing the figurative line of soldiers outside the room of question. Glynda didn't need to know Link's room number to know where he was.

Near all of the soldiers were lined against the wall, a typical pattern when preparing for a breach. Majority had small-armaments, most likely loaded with concussion based dust cartridges. Suitable for rendering someone incapacitated whilst minimizing the risk of death. Her attention noted this, noted the number of guards to be near a dozen, and also the shards of glass about the door. What she heard, was one of the soldiers yelling.

"Penny! I once again am delivering the order to desist immediately!" He sounded desperate. Appropriate. "Do not let him put on-"

His words were drowned out by a scream.

Link's scream.

Glynda, even as she felt her nerves go on edge, was familiar with the sound. She had heard or witnessed it at least a third of a dozen times now, all while he adorned the mask of his friends, their 'memories' as the golden mini-drone simply stated it. Hearing it now meant only one thing.

Light flashed through the broken section of the door. Glynda's pace became hurried as she rushed for the door, Ironwood just ahead of her now and her students licking at the heels. She would not, however, risk them entering the room first, not unarmed.

It was expected for the soldiers to make way for them once Ironwood's presence became clear, and Glynda's assumptions were rewarded. As the light quickly faded away, the soldiers had all but cleared away from the door, leaving only Ironwood and Glynda standing before it. The Beacon Instructor instantly took note of Penny standing in front of the door way, one of her hands gripping the metal frame.

"General!" The girl replied in an excited tone. Odd, but far from surprising. "I'm glad you're here! I was nervous the soldier was going to request heavy armaments to remove me." Wholly unsurprising. "Oh! And everyone else is with you too! High everyone." Completely and thoroughly.

"Penny," Ironwood returned, his head nodding only once. "Please move for us now." To the point, a characteristic the general was known for in times of action. He did justice to his post in that regard at least. Penny, however, did not move immediately. Odd, but within the realm of possibility.

"Oh, of course…" she returned. "Just let me get-"

"Ready!" That wasn't Penny.

Glynda blamed the door, having such a small ability to see into the patient's room. She blamed foreign area, the workings of the facility not yet known to her. But more than anything, she blamed Link and his incomprehensible ability to always do what the laws of Space, Dust, and Time said were not to be altered.

Because as soon as Glynda heard that foreign voice speak that single word, a large hoop of gold fell over Penny. The girl was gone with it.

Half a centisecond later, another girl jumped into view of the window, completely new to Glynda. She had hair of blue, long enough to be tied in a single ponytail that dangled from the side of her head. Small jewels of blue were dotted about her azure hair, and a tuff of red and white fabric tied about her ponytail. With the small space the window offered, that was all she could see. That, and the gleaming smile on this new girl's face.

"Hello!" The girl waved at them, beaming as if she were meeting them under the kindest of circumstances. "Goodbye."

The hoop rose again, and she was gone.

Ironwood blew the door away less than a second later.

The heavy metal slammed into the far wall, embedding itself into the concrete and decimating the hospital equipment that laid in its path. Glynda stormed in soon after him, eyes scanning the room with fervor, but her suspicions were confirmed the moment she entered.

The room, save the equipment, was empty. No Link, no Penny, and no mini-drones. They were gone.

"Whoa! Where'd they go?!" Glynda heard Yang yell as she came in, voice as loud as ever. "The heck happened?! Did the Enterprise beam them up?!" References to pop-culture did nothing to alleviate the severity of the situation.

Glynda raised her pad and started to power-up several of her mini-drones, activating their features and spreading them throughout the facility. She heard Ironwood giving orders to the men outside of the room, hurried footsteps running down the halls. The students spread out about the room, majority congregating to the crate that likely once held Link's equipment. It was as bare as the Badlands now.

Images began to fly about her screen, each one showing different areas of the facility. The hanger, the operations room, the surgical center, Ironwood's personal office, airship docking stations, storage facilities, every nook and cranny her drones could reach, she searched. Fingers danced across her Scroll with a practiced pace, memorizing and tracking every detail. But no details she saw related to what she was looking for.

She saw no sign of Link or his compatriots now. That didn't even include the mysterious girl who had warped the pair, and likely remainder of their party, from the room. She was as incognito as the remainders.

"What is this thing?" She heard Ms. Schnee ask aloud, complemented by the sound of dragging metal and clanging steel. "Golden, gaudy, and lacking any Dust compartments; where did this even come from?" Glynda spared a glance.

She saw Ms. Schnee playing with the golden hoop the girl had used.

"It… It looks like a hoola-hoop." Ms. Rose returned. Her hand gripped the metal her partner was holding, Glynda feeling a part of her body shiver as they played with the tool. "Could that be what it is? No… it's weight is too symmetrical. The force required to keep this moving would be unsustainable." At least she was showing her strength as a weapon's expert.

But that was no excuse to allow them to play with the device.

"Ms. Rose, Ms. Schnee," She addressed to them, earning their immediate attention. "Please… place that on the ground." She was given confused stares by both girls, and likely by the recursive members of the room. Glynda cared less than nothing. Her appearance meant nothing when compared to the well-being of her students.

Thankfully, they did comply, lowering the golden hoop back the ground. Ms. Rose made a point to step away from it, hands raised as if she were showing her lack of contact with the device. Ms. Schnee simply stepped away from it, crossing her arms.

"What's up, teach?" Ms. Xiao Long spoke again. "You think something is up with that thing?" Glynda opened her mouth to reply, already forming the quick explanation that it was the object the mysterious blue-haired girl had used before, but found the need to speak over-ridden by something more important.

Her scroll had an incoming message, from Ozpin.

Glynda accepted the transmission without hesitation, watching as the various displays of her mini-drones were minimized to allow Ozpin's image full coverage of her Scroll. She was greeted with the familiar picture of her boss, tinted glasses on the bridge of his nose and knowing smirk upon his lips. She returned it with her usual glare.

"Glynda," he began. "I hope I am not interrupting any important matter at the moment. I was hoping to receive an update on Link's test. Is everything alright?" He asked the question with such ease that Glynda could not repress the thought that he knew something.

In fact, it was that feeling that kept her from speaking quickly. She knew Ozpin well enough to know when he was hiding a card in his glove. The smirk, the casual questions, but most telling of all, the small dip in his right eye. He knew something.

"Concluded, yes, but far from without complications," she began, aware that the students around her were all quiet as mice. Good, it would make conversation easier. "Though I suspect you can tell me how Link is."

"Hmm? I can?" Ozpin asked in return, his smile unfading. He definitely knew something. "How would I know more than you?"

"Ozpin, don't play games with me," Glynda didn't simply return, she threw. "The last few hours have been more than simply grating to my nerves and patience. For the sake of your health, don't play games." He blinked at her words.

But only before chuckling in response. If she was unsure before, now Glynda was definite in her assumptions. Ozpin shook his head lightly, silver bangs waving with the action. His hand made much the same motion before turning his attention back to her.

"Apologies Glynda," he spoke with far more amusement in his voice than she would have liked. She deepened her scowl as recompense. "I simply found this an opportune time to… I suppose make light of a heavy situation. Comedy, from time to time, is as necessary as the story itself."

"Enough, Ozpin," Glynda spoke with more volume to her voice. Her nerves were already frayed. If they broke, he would have a bill to pay. "What has happened to Link? Or, better yet, do you have information on that girl who was in here?"

"Girl? What girl?" Mr. Arc asked from behind her, but she discarded it.

"Ah, well, I can thankfully answer both questions with one answer." Instead of doing that, he stood up. Glynda watched through a finite space as he brought his hand to the Scroll he spoke on, twisting it around it showed the clock room that was his office.

She saw two familiar figures and two balls of light.

It was only her witness of the teleportation trick from before that kept Glynda's shock from being too severe. She observed the obvious form of Penny, marveling at the blue haired girl Glynda had only quickly witnessed before. Tatl and Tael flew about said girl like slow halos.

She was gowned in an outfit as revealing as Ms. Xiao Long's, but with far more frills than straps. Her midriff was bared between two straps of green, the lower portion forming a skirt that hide the tops of her thigh-high emerald stockings. A cape of blue was strapped over one of her shoulders, billowing about. Billowing, Glynda noted, because said girl wouldn't stop twirling about for even a moment. A tired sigh left her lips.

"This has been too long of a day," she let out with a soft sigh. She heard Ozpin clearly chuckling at her words. There was a conversation to be had when they returned to Beacon, of that he could be rest assured. "So, who is this mysterious benefactor?"

"Lana, the self-title 'White Witch'," Ozpin spoke clearly through the Scroll. The students around Glynda were whispering, doubtlessly conjuring theories with insufficient evidence. "A friend of Link's that I became acquainted with before your departure. His companions are rather smart, planning ahead for worst case outcomes I haven't even considered."

Glynda knew of the likely outcomes, and the appearance of an Ancient Grimm was well within her theories. The difficulty was making a plan to counter it when she didn't know the extent of the abilities of those around her. She envied the days of her student life, when what was available to her was short, sweet, and obvious. Even constant vigilance let information slip through the cracks.

"So I can assume the disappearing act was her doing, correct?" There wasn't much left in the room for error, but if the situation was not dire and timing not important, then confirmation was always needed.

"It was," Ozpin agreed, still outside of the view of the Scroll. Glynda was stuck watching Penny and this… Lana, jumping up and down by one another. "Lana has a unique tool she calls the 'Gate of Souls'. It allows the instantaneous transport of objects despite distance, as she so recently demonstrated. I am admit to say I have not seen her use it long enough to know of the drawbacks."

"Oh, is that Glynda?" Said instructor's attention was taken from Ozpin's words and solely onto the girl that was staring at her from across the screen. That didn't last. The lightly green garbed girl skipped towards Ozpin's terminal Scroll, stopping with a jump in front of it, lips beaming with joy. "Hi Glynda! It's nice to finally meet you!"

"Who's that?" Ms. Schnee asked from aside the room. "This 'Lana'?" Glynda didn't turn nor attempt to address the Schnee heiress. Answers like that could be given in time.

"Lana," Glynda returned simply. She wasn't in mind to be overly kind to any individual that stressed her nerves needlessly. "Please allow me to speak to Link."

"Aw, do I have to?" Glynda wasn't sure which of the two personalities spoke. She assumed it was Lana, as she had no data of Link previously speaking or attempting to speak in such a way. "I finally get to meet you and Penny and everyone and now I have to go? C'mon! At least let me say hi to everyone else!" She was grinning as if the answer was a given. Glynda was never one to be seen as 'easily swayed' and now was no exception.

"You may speak with them later," she answered quickly. "For now, if you are so insistent, please allow me to speak with Ozpin. We can talk another time." The frown Lana gave her was overly done and near comedic.

"Boo, that's not nice," the girl sighed as expressively as her every other action. Glynda wondered how such a girl became friends with Link, but only as a swift thought. "But I understand, lots of stuff to talk about and new plans to make. Can you at least bring me back the other end to my Gate? I kinda need that."

Glynda quirked a brow, looking past the Scroll in her hand to the golden hoop settled on the ground. She noticed Ms. Rose and Ms. Schnee both look it and back to her. It was all too obvious it was what Lana was referring to.

"I will be sure to store it away for our departure," she noted lightly, but honestly. Leaving something so odd in the Military compound was not on her list of possible solutions in any scenario.

"Awesome!" Lana cheered across the Scroll, hand raising upwards in some juvenile form of success. Glynda did not speak such a thought aloud. "I'll be extra ready to see you when you get back then!" And with that she skipped away.

Glynda watched her return to the other girls, rocking on her feet as she told the short story of her conversation, likely. The opposite colored mini-drones flew about her as she spoke, but they were beyond her hearing now.

"She's full of energy, isn't she?" Ozpin finally spoke again, his sign that they were in a state to speak. Glynda lightly judged what should and should be said, at least in the presence of the students around her. She was thankful that most was free to be spoken of. Other matters were not.

"She doesn't have Link's ears," Glynda noted lightly, an observation she had not made until now. It was only apparent when she remembered that the girl, despite her cheery nature, was Link's friend. All of said friends bore resemblance to him in that regard.

"Link's ears? Wait, is Lana one of his friends?" Ms. Belladonna asked, likely addressing Glynda. She ignored the girl. It was one answer amongst many that could be given later.

"True, an observation I made when we were first introduced." Ozpin tilted the Scroll back towards himself, showing him leaning lightly on his desk, cane in hand and chin rest on its tip. He seemed pleased, naturally. "She confessed she was a member of the Gerudo tribe, the term Link's nation has for humans, or so I've gathered."

It was the same conclusion that Glynda reached as well, thanks to Link's admission and the talks between his mini-drones. Only time would tell how solid such a parallel was.

"So… Link's Hunter License?" Ozpin lead. Glynda knew the next step in time. She had come prepared, after all, as she did with all things.

"Ironwood has agreed to Link's abilities and has granted his approval. Link is an officially recognized Hunter within the Four Kingdoms." Glynda wisely ignored the excited whispers of the students around her. They would explode, naturally, when the conversation was finished.

"Excellent. I can confirm from here that he still has all of his tools, confirmed by himself and the fairies." He nodded with the words, eyes on the three girls and voice focused at the Scroll. Glynda, admittedly, was watching Lana play with Penny, dancing more like. "And for his faculty position?"

"Woah, faculty?" That was Mr. Arc, again. He was a quieter version of Ms. Xiao Long, speaking when not spoken to.

"Two of the three necessary branches have given approval, assuming the Council disapproves. Majority approval makes it acceptable." Those whispers around her were louder now. "The slaying of the initial Creeper, as per the document request signed by all parties, mitigates any debt to the Council or Military."

"Perfect," Ozpin spoke with finality in his voice. "Despite a few bumps, I am glad the end goal was met." Glynda was as well.

"Ms. Goodwitch?" Glynda turned her head to see Ruby speaking to her, far more polite than her elder sister. "Is Link really going to be a teacher? At Beacon? To us?" Though many of her taken lectures and books read in Biology told Glynda about the impossibility, she swore there were stars in the young student's eyes. Perhaps she had spent too much time around those inefficient mini-drones.

"That was the end goal, yes. And I am pleased that it has been realized, barring the unfortunate complications." It appeared that Glynda didn't need to add her concerns for Link's unfortunate circumstances and medical unit visit. Ruby's grin was exceedingly wide.

"Aw yes!"

"Yeah yeah!"

"Augh yeah, yeah baby yeah!"

Glynda was not a fan of screaming in celebration. The enclosed room did not help.

"Woohoo!" Ms. Valkyrie yelled into the air. Glynda could tell without looking she had jumped as well, likely to the ceiling. "That's awesome! That's killer! We get a super-soldier warrior to teach us how to slay Grimm! Ah yes! This is gonna be like the best thing to happen all year!"

Fireworks, Glynda realized, were less subtle than the noise her students were making.

"This is so kickass!" Ms. Xiao Long, of course, yelled the loudest. "A BA teacher that was a BA student and showed off his BA skills against freaking ancient Grimm! Freaking A! This is like perfection!" Far from it, in Glynda's humble opinion.

"I personally hesitate to use such a term." Ah, it appeared that Ironwood had returned.

Glynda looked towards the doorway to see the tall man entering, a grim smile on his face. It was the expression of a man who was about to make a poor decision for honest reasons.

"Ozpin, please hold a moment." Glynda was not surprised to hear Ironwood request for a longer conversation. He did lose one of his most prized Military members to this stunt.

She turned to see Ironwood, freshly returned from his own search and troop management. Likely filtering out the few soldiers who were more in favor of the Council than himself. Necessary, given their precarious position by Grimm Territory. She also made note of the noticeable silence that fell over the room, excitement gone.

"Ironwood," Ozpin replied through the screen, turning to face them once again. Glynda tilted the pad to show the general, observing Penny doing the same in the background of Ozpin's Scroll Terminal. "I am two parts thankful and three parts disappointed in you." A suitable number, Glynda agreed.

"And I believe you right in both," Ironwood began. "But I am not speaking for details, those can be discussed later. Rather, I'd like to speak to my subordinate. The one I've confirmed is present with you." Glynda made note of his speech pattern, carefully observing the lack of anger or distaste in his voice. That was a good sign, as she was wisely wary of the general of the Military when it came to physical feats.

"Of course, just give me a second." Ozpin spun the Scroll back around, facing the group of girls and mini-drones. It was hard to tell if their conversation was any different from before, two of the three girls just as animated as before and their accompanying mini-drones inefficiently sprinkling Dust as they twirled about.

"Penny, someone would like to speak to you." The words made the ginger haired girl turn towards the screen, briskly walking up to the Scroll. Lana stayed behind her, watching the girl leave.

"Yes, oh! Hello Uncle! It is good to see you!" Glynda debated in her mind who was more like who, Penny to Lana or Lana to Penny. The two no doubt would get along smoothly as clouds and air.

"Penny Polendina," Ironwood began, his voice changing to that of a general. Glynda noted the stiffness that overcame Penny's posture across the Scroll's screen. "You have disobeyed two direct commands from two different commanding officers, one of them being myself. In both cases, your actions led to a breach in security and endangerment to those around you."

Glynda felt her brow quirk with his words. She spared a glance at him, noting the furrowing of his brow and dip in his frown. She could see where it was going, a likely outcome given her knowledge of Ironwood, but assumptions were valid only when proven.

"You have also fled Military Grounds without notification or approval of your departure, an offence compounded by your theft of Military property." Glynda made no movement to correct him. She held up a hand to her students, stopping them from doing the same. There was no question what the 'property' was.

"B-But Uncle Iron-" Penny tried to speak, but was immediately cut off.

"It is for this reason that I am hereby dishonorably discharging you from Military Activities effective immediately." The shock on Penny's voice was worse than any words could ever hope to describe. The sudden gasps from a choice few of her students were expected, but only heightened the effect.

"Un… U-Uncl-"

"Furthermore, I cannot allow someone who recklessly ignores orders to be a member of my academy." For the first time in the conversation, Glynda felt her grip on her Scroll tighten. What was he doing? "As of this moment, as Headmaster of Atlas Academy, I hereby expel you and revoke all privileges once held by students." The reaction Penny gave was as expected as it was painful.

Her hands reached half way to her jaw, trembling as her lips moved uselessly. Wide eyes blinked in confusion, darting around as if searching for the reason for her predicament. Glynda knew she would find none. So it was of little surprise when the girl turned away from the screen. Anything more was left out as Ozpin turned the Scroll back to face himself. Glynda felt what she would call a healthy amount of rage. Ozpin was the one who was showing it.

"Ironwood," the headmaster of Beacon began. "It is my trust in you that is keeping me from assuming the worst. Explain yourself." Glynda did not forget to note the tightness Ozpin had on his cane. His knuckles were of a similar shade of snow.

"Ozpin, I am glad we can talk," Ironwood began, oddly at that. He was speaking as if he were unaware of Ozpin's presence. It severely limited the number of possibly paths he could take. She kept her riding crop notched at her side. It would come out the moment the general treaded a step further than he already had.

"Oh. What about?" Ozpin had none of the usual cheer or tranquil calm his voice so usually had. Glynda knew the tone well. It was not one to be taken lightly. Ironwood, however, spoke his next words with what could be seen as cheer.

"I have a prospective student for you."

Glynda wasn't surprised, but she was impressed.

"She is a capable fighter, a student that has a lot of room to grow, but as much drive to improve her abilities as any hunter does to fight the Grimm." He spoke on without pause, either ignorant or proud of the stunned silence his words were creating. Glynda was thankful whichever the reason, keeping her students from speaking rashly. "I can assure you she has passed all of her initiation tests at Atlas with flying colors and I can transfer the needed documents promptly. There is only one catch with her, however."

"Hmm. Pray tell, what is that?" Ozpin sounded to have readopted his encouraging tone, his grin already back in place. Glynda reminded herself from previous experiences he preferred the greener side of life, only too happy to jump back to it when he could.

"She has an issue with authority," Ironwood continued to speak in a pleasant tone. Some of it must have been forced. "More than once she has evaded escorts assigned to her, freely follows the advice of friends over the orders of her commanders, and often expresses difficulty in restraining herself. I am unfortunate to say that none of these have been improved during her time at my Academy and I have been forced through unfortunate circumstances to force her removal."

Glynda could tell the grin that grew over Ironwood's features was genuine. She could just as easily tell with only a glance that the brimming smile Ms. Rose had over her own features was no less genuine, more so in fact.

"I believe that transfer to a new facility, with different colleagues and environment may better encourage her to adopt a new mindset, one that has greater respect for authority, rules and regulations." Glynda heard a clear chuckle come from the tall man, soft as it was. "May I perhaps trust Beacon to be such a place?"

Ozpin didn't answer, not immediately. Instead, Glynda watched as he raised a hand to his chin lightly stroking it as if deep in thought. His eyes averted themselves as well, looking up and over his spectacles yet away from the Scroll. He wasn't fooling Glynda for a moment. He had made up his answer the moment Penny arrived in his office.

"I believe we can arrange for a transfer for a problematic student," he spoke easily, any tension he once had in his voice gone, back to its neutral state. "I'm sure Glynda will have no troubles in finalizing the paperwork for it." A leading statement that had an obvious meeting.

"They can be finalized mid-transit back to Beacon, provided Ironwood finally proves himself a man of his word and gives me the needed documents." There was no room for error in her words. Knit brows with her gaze focused at the general made her intention clear. She saw him take in a deep breath of air, confirmation enough that he understood her.

"Once I have you all aboard an airship, I'll have the documents to you before you leave the DMZ Airspace." Glynda nodded curtly. It was meant to be short and to the point.

"Excellent," Ozpin spoke through the Scroll. "Then I believe we shouldn't wait a moment. I'll be sure to fill in our newest student and faculty member. Glynda, have a safe flight."

As the Beacon instructor expected, Ozpin leaned over and shut off the Scroll as soon as he was finished. Greedy and egotistical were not words she nor anyone else could properly associate with the headmaster of Beacon, but if there was ever one tick he had it was having the last word of a conversation, now was no different.

As the video closed, Glynda pulled the pad back to her, removing it from Ironwood's sight. She began to tap across it, commanding the mini-drones she had situated about the facility. They would be leaving soon and it would be improper to leave them flying around. They were expensive, after all.

"Uh, Ms. Goodwitch," Mr. Arc spoke up. He was polite when he was addressing someone. That was a positive point to his part. "What… just happened? I'm a little confused, and lost, definitely both." But his largest drawback was his over simplicity. At his age, it was teetering on the fence of adorable and annoying.

"Penny's leaving Atlas and coming to Beacon!" Ms. Rose jumped at the declaration, at the very least kindly holding it in until the conversation with Ozpin was over. She took it as an apparent queue to grab her partner's hands and spin her around in a circle. Ms. Schnee, completely unsurprisingly, was far from the same level of enjoyment. "Penny's going to come to Beacon and we can spend so much time together! Oh it's going to be a blast!"

"Yeah!" Ms. Valkyrie now, apparently, reciprocated Ms. Rose's words. "A new teacher anda new friend! New teacher! New friend! New teacher! New friend! New teacher! New friend!" She danced with her words. Glynda had no other words or energy left to focus on the exuberant teen.

"I… I, uh, believe Jaune is curious about whyPenny is coming to Beacon. That conversation seemed, rushed." Ironwood left the room as Ms. Nikos spoke up. Glynda watched the general leave, pointing commands to his men. Doubtlessly including repairing the disarrayed room. "I'm sorry, but it sort of did."

"Enough Ruby!" Ms. Schnee apparently had had enough of her partner's antics. As per usual, it did little to dull Ms. Rose's attitude. "Now, I am rather sure that Penny is coming to Beacon for the same reason Link is. To avoid the Council, correct?" Glynda easily suppressed her grin. Ms. Schnee was her father's daughter.

"That is the likely assumption," Glynda told the teen. "As she was acting against orders from the Council, and not Ironwood, it is likely they will seek recompense in some way. I am doubtless that it will be argued on his part that her dishonorable discharge from the Military and subsequent eviction from Atlas will equate to a suitable punishment, especially considering that she was acting in the benefit of another."

"And at Beacon she's safer than walking around on the streets. Yeah, that makes sense," Mr. Arc finished. His head nodded with the words, one of his hands scratching at his mop of blonde hair. "That's cool, but… now I'm just really lost about Link. I mean, a teacher? That's freaking awesome, but like, how long was this being planned?"

"For quite a while." Ah, Ms. Belladonna finally saw to speak. "Ever since Elrora flew up to Ozpin's tower after the incident with the bigot." Her language was as colorful as her partner. Appropriate, given the scarcity with which she spoke. Her words made the reaction of her friends predictable.

"Are you serious right now?!" Her partner yellowed, golden hair shaking as she whipped towards Blake. "You knew about this little gambit since last week?! Why the heck didn't you tell us!? Holy crap, this is just… this is too much!"

"I'm actual curious for your silence as well," Ms. Schnee addressed her teammate. "If anything, I'd thought you'd be thrilled to have a fellow faunus as a teacher at Beacon."

"I'm beyond thrilled," Ms. Belladonna returned. Given the smile she wore, brighter than any Glynda's mini-drones had recorded before, it was believable to ascertain. "I never thought it would happen honestly. I was… so sure that even if it went off without a hitch, something would happen to prevent it. Something or someone."

Ah, a developed fear of past incidents. It was unneeded to have it around Glynda, whom made her decisions based upon the needs of her students and written rule of the school's laws, but she could understand the dark girl's mindset. It was hard to gain back trust that was already in ruins.

"You know what? I'll let it slide this time," Ms. Xiao Long spoke up, only to swiftly grab her partner into a 'friendly' head-lock. Glynda would be sure to release Ms. Belladonna if her annoyance became clear discomfort. "I'll let it slide because next time you try to duck and hide that kind of information on us, I'm gonna make you do the naked lap around Beacon!"

Step too far.

"Yang, Goodwitch is right there!"

"You barbarian!

"Sis, c'mon!"

Three consecutive voices shouted the blonde's name. It was unsurprising to see, through her Scroll, that Mr. Arc and Mr. Lie Ren were averting gazes. They were shy and chivalrous boys, good students for it.

Glynda lightly drowned out the remainder of the banter as she focused on her pad. She had to set up the transfer of Penny into Beacon, stating her passed acceptance into Atlas as appropriate testing of her abilities, setting her into a class, denoting her as a 'solo-student', and much much more. It would be done mid-flight back to Beacon, but only if she began work now.

She was sure Ozpin was doing his part so many miles away. But Glynda wouldn't forget Lana's golden 'hoop' before she left.

"S-So… Uncl… H-He did that t-to protect me?" Penny mumbled the words uneasily, still piecing the information together in her mind. It was interesting to him, seeing a young girl with the body of a machine behaving as any normal student would. Curiosity, however, belonged to the part of her 'father'. "He… He doesn't ha-hate me, correct?"

"Not in the slightest," Ozpin returned to her, nodding his head lightly with a tip of his cane. "I'm certain the harshness of his language was related more to protocols he was forced to follow than any personal emotion. I have known John for sometime and I can say with certainty that what he did was with your benefit at the front of his mind."

He had no deceit or even half-truth in his words. There was no need to. John Ironwood was a valued colleague and long-time friend. The idea of him dismissing one of his most prized students and valued members of the Military so easily was unheard of. Thankfully, the context was known to Ozpin, so any mystery was brief and short-lived.

"You sure about that?" Tatl spoke up, flying about Penny twice before drifting to his eye-level. "Cause from I remember about that creep, he tried to get Link killed, literally. There's no exaggerating there. He summoned a freaking massive Molgera to try and tear Link to pieces!" Her ring hit a high pitch as finished her sentence. Ozpin watched on through his spectacles.

"Hey now Tatl, that isn't fair," Lana, of all present, argued with the golden fairy. Odd, only because Link was the one whom had his life threatened. Perhaps it was the alter-ego, his former friend, he was currently adorning that made the argument possible. "He was just like Impa in the army, having to follow what the princess said no matter what! I'm sure if we asked him, he'd be very sad that he had to do that."

"Oh c'mon," Tatl argued back. "That's a cop-out excuse and you know it!" It was difficult to tell who the fairy was arguing with, but Ozpin kept himself silent at the exchange. His intervention would only lead to the loss of information. "A guy like that, the worst they can threaten him with is kicking him off of that high seat he calls general. All I got out of it is that he thought your life was second to his position!"

"Ooooor," Lana trailed off with the word, slowly raising her hands to match. She had an uncanny resemblance to Ms. Valkyrie. "He knew that we could kick any monster butt that got thrown at us! And he was right!" Now her hands were thrown into the air, clearly of joy.

Curiosities were still abound of how much of the conversation was contributed through Link. That was not to mention this mysterious figure Impa; a general if the context was to be believed. But, to Ozpin's slight dismay, the discussion was going off track. There were still some final thoughts that needed to be settled and this conversation would answer none.

"Before we argue the possibilities of John's morality," Ozpin began, intentionally tapping his cane on the glass beneath his feet. It vibrated enough to earn attention. "I believe we should finalize your new position," he motioned his cane at Lana. "And your transfer," now the same towards Penny.

By the almost mischievous grin Lana adopted, Ozpin had to make a confirmation in his mind that this Lana was not Ms. Valkyrie's long lost relative. Though that was heavily unlikely, most due to the… large… oh, no, Lana didn't have them.

Lana did not have the long ears of Link. She was not a faunus.

And yet, as she and he and both declared separately, she was his friend, even after her unfortunate demise. That was a story he was more than willing to sit down and listen to. Another time, however. Too much had to be done to keep the Council from making themselves known on his campus.

"Apologies," he quickly rectified. "I am simply not used to the… ease you have with the situation. It's something of a prick of envy on my part." That was a half-truth. "Regardless, we should get started, shouldn't we?"

Perhaps it was the training under John that brought on the reaction, but Penny stiffened at his words, standing to her tallest with arms stiff at her side. Her expression was comically serious, likely her attempt to act more like the soldiers she so often was associated with. Troubling, but history.

"Whoa, calm down there Steel," Tatl spoke to the girl with a curious nickname. "No need to act like a golem around her." Golem? Oh. Interesting.

It appeared that if the fairies had already realized Penny's… metallic origins. No need for him to put anymore voice to it than that. Why speak up about a subject all were already aware of. Still, Ozpin kept it as a feather in his cap. Despite the fairy's boisterous and forceful nature, she had a knack for seeing the secrets hidden in plain sight.

"Oh, is this not required?" Penny asked, her voice noticeably more stable. It was hard to reconcile it as her robotic programing to easily rebound… or the strength of her soul. Curious, but minor compared to the matter at hand. "My apologies then. It's what we do at Atlas."

"Well, I'll be happy to inform we have far fewer restrictions at Beacon," Ozpin easily moved in. "Rules, of course, guidelines to follow to ensure the safety of the students, faculty, and people of Vale. More than that, however, often restricts the growth of an individual. Does that make sense?" It was an important question to ask now. His contact with Penny was minimal until now. He needed a baseline.

"Absolutely!" Lana spoke up. Not Penny, but still worth storing away. She was newer than even the young robotic girl. "Can't grow a flower in the desert if you tell it what it can't do, same way for people, too!" But with patches of wisdom doubted through. Interesting.

"I think we're getting off track," Tatl spoke up again. Ozpin interpreted her low ring that followed as a sigh. It seemed appropriate. "Let's just finish this up ASAP please. I mean really, this has been too long of a day." Ozpin smiled at her words. She was far from incorrect.

"Of course," he returned. "But I may request that we speak to Link?" He held his hand towards the blue haired witch as he asked question. She pointed to herself with equal perplexity. "Not that I have any argument to speaking with you, but if we want to minimize any exploits of the Council or other bodies of power, I feel it is best we follow protocols to the letter here. They can't argue we tricked them if we followed their rules."

"Oh, Okee Dokey!" Lana spoke approvingly. Ozpin counted it as a blessing. "Just hold on oooone sec." Lana jumped back, nearly skipping, before stopping next to Penny. She grinned at the ginger haired girl, the other nodding with a bright smile of her own. Interesting, but not curious. Both were bubbly and excitable. It made sense they played well off of one another.

Before Ozpin could make any more conjectures about the blue-haired youth, she placed her hands to the side of her face, holding them as if a frame. Then, with care, she began to pull. Light enveloped her, the same light that Ozpin had seen through Glynda's mini-drones twice over, and once more in this office before. He still had many questions about the matter.

But when the light was gone, Lana had left with it, leaving behind only Link. Link, holding a mask that was detailed in many ways, but having only the features of a face in the broadest sense. Two holes for eyes, a golden ribbon wrapped about the top of the mask, and a plain porcelain white appearance. It was far simpler than the other masks he had seen Link use. That made its appearance all the more curious.

"Don't ask about it," Ozpin heard a voice speak from his side, unsurprised to see Tatl there when he turned to look. "Trust me, if we're here to stay, for a while at least, you'll get to know. Just not right now. Got it?" She was right, thankfully. At least one question of Ozpin's had been answered.

Tatl did a marvelous job at keeping the most important matters at the front of everyone's mind. For adventures in the open world, that was an important trait to possess.

"Welcome back, Link," Ozpin spoke earnestly to the faunus across from him. He appeared little different than the last time they had spoken, but still changed. The only physical change was the lack of a red crystal-adorned shield sat on his back. Lost to the fight against the Council's treachery, if Tatl was to be believed. She was boisterous, but not a liar.

Link nodded back to him, pocketing the porcelain white and golden mask. There were still many curiosities to be had regarding those pouches of his, but again, Ozpin reconciled, for another time. There would be plenty of time now.

"Ms. Penny Polendina," Ozpin began. She stiffened at his words, puffing her chest out. "By recommendation from another Academy Headmaster, through your record of activity amongst the Military, and your upstanding duty to assist your fellow hunters, I accept your application to Beacon Academy."

Penny normally beamed with her smiles. But at the moment, Ozpin had the slight fear that her internal battery source was showing. Her features were glowing with pride.

"Thank you Headmaster Ozpin!" She spoke, perhaps a bit too loud. "I promise I will do my best to uphold the law of Remnant, to serve the people of this land, and to defend all against the threat of Grimm and-"

"Simmer down metal head," Tatl interrupted Penny. "You're in, relax, but hold off for a minute, okay?" Ozpin his smile now beneath his hand as he adjusted his glasses. Tatl had the most curious way with words. He wondered how odd it would be to speak solely to her.

But that was another matter for another time, one of hundreds now. Now though… he had one last matter to attend to. His attention turned to Link, the faunus's hands behind his back and posture straight. The smile was the only thing that looked unprofessional.

"Link of Hyrule," Ozpin spoke, the faunus's last name not given. "You have proven yourself in the battlefield against the threat of the Grimm. You showed valor, strength, wisdom, and courage in the face of foes that threaten our lives. You have only shown time and time again your ability to adapt, to learn, and even to teach. It is for this reason, as well as the recommendation of fellow faculty, that I accept your application to teach at Beacon Academy."

Link took a deep breath of air with the words. Both he and Ozpin reached out with their hands at the same moment, gripping one another in a firm hand shake. Ozpin felt the fear of the past two weeks fade with the contact.

Link was no longer a student of Beacon. He was a professor.

The moment was shifted when light clapping and ringing echoed through his office. Eyes turned to see Penny, her applause as energetic as her grin. Teal rang loudly above the pair, Dust falling in his wake. Ozpin took it as a great sign.

"So," Tatl spoke again, to Ozpin of course. "Where do we start?"

Chapter Text

Link looked across the long table towards Headmaster Ozpin and Glynda Goodwitch. He had seen them many times before now, at least as many times as one would expect within the span of a few days. It was enough for him to get used to their manner of dress, speech, and priorities, at least on the surface.

But that didn't stop him from analyzing them either way . He noted the coy smile Ozpin perpetually held, the focus Glynda had despite her eyes looking elsewhere, and the ease at which both had around the clicking of the gears that made up the Headmaster's office. The reanalysis was needed, though. The situation had changed greatly.

Now was the time for both parties to analyze the results of their respective tests. The trials Link had voluntarily endured against the Army of this World of Remnant was the topic they would speak of aloud. What he would be doing, the protection he, Tatl, and Tael would receive, expectations, and, of course, help to find Navi.

Link, however, would be continuing his two-way test. It began with his actions against the trainee of the visiting nation, but it was far from over. It would be done when he had a clear idea of the alliances he could fearlessly swear to.

"So, here we are," Ozpin began. "Finally a professor at Beacon. Most would consider your quick ascension from student to teacher rather… odd." Link could not disagree. It felt similar to a page becoming a knight over the course of a single session. Such leaps in rank were unheard of even by the most capable of soldiers.

"Yeah, well, that's one word we can agree that fits the bill," Tatl spoke up beside him. Link felt a smile pull at his lips. She always did speak towards the coarser side of a conversation. "Hope you're not about to argue that it means Link should take a break or something like that."

"Oh, not at all. Not at all," Ozpin waved his hand with the word, the other firmly gripping his cup of hot liquid. Probably tea or this coffee he had heard so much about. "I just find it important to look at a situation objectively before making any decisions. And we are making some very critical decisions, aren't we?" The question wasn't directed towards Link.

"Before the meeting's end, Link will be assigned a routine schedule time for classes, the manner of classes to be determined, and its syllabus created," Glynda poured out without ever looking up. "The manner of the class is important to be established first."

"Of course," Ozpin agreed, "And I feel that there is only one class you are qualified to teach, Link." He quirked a brow at the statement. He didn't reply, not that they would hear anyway. Didn't stop Tatl though.

"Oh, and what kind of class is that?" Link was actually mildly impressed. She wasn't as loud as he expected her to be. Maybe it was because Tael was sleeping upon his head. The darker of the two fairies was worn out.

"Combat Training," Ozpin spoke the words with clear pride.

"Combat Training, for students, is a class that focuses on pairings for duels while simultaneously correcting their methods," Glynda was giving him the instruction. "Lectures are minimal and usually brief, classes ranging from two to three hours in length, and strictly overseen by a qualified professor."

"Before you ask," Ozpin spoke up as she finished, his cup motioning towards Tatl. "I find that this is most suitable for you, Link, due to your… difficulty of being heard, making lectures a stretch." Understandable. "And heading field studies would be difficult given your general unfamiliarity with the land." Also valid.

"So that leaves just teaching the tikes how to beat the crap out of one another," Tatl concluded. Link was silently glad to see Ozpin only nod towards her, grin still present. "Well, Link can definitely do that. Maybe we'll be able to get a few of them to actually treat others with respect." Battle did have a tendency to humble fools.

"Excellent," Ozpin raised his cup with his words. "That's one matter down, now onto the next." Despite his carefree attitude, Link could tell he was focused on his work. Perhaps he did exercise the rights of a Shadow, calm no matter the scenario he was in.

"Hours of Operations are important, as they will determine the objectives of the syllabus by date," Glynda spoke again. Link found the words being spoken in a manner similar to a speech. He did not voice his thoughts. He rarely did.

"Is that really a big deal?" Tatl spoke up next. "It's not like we got a lot of places to be. Until Super Buzz can point us towards something promising, we're pretty much stuck here anyways." Ah, that was right. Link had almost forgotten.

"Not only does this concern the length of time, but also the frequency at which you teach your classes." Glynda never raised her eyes as she explained. "Capable as you are, I do not believe teaching for hours on end or even the early mornings will be suitable for you. These classes must be done when you are most likely to be in your prime position, as your attention to the class is what prevents the students from maiming one another."

Now she looked up.

"Or have you already forgotten your own incident?" Link closed his eyes. It was far from something he enjoyed. But the distance was equal to both his regret and determination.

"I believe that matter is resolved." Ozpin quickly stepped in with his words. "And Link demonstrated before the unfortunate incident his ability to teach other students. Mr. Arc did indeed learn a better gripping on his shield, if your reports are to be believed, Glynda."

She looked at him now, with the same cold stare that she had for the pad she so often stared at. He only returned her gaze with a grin of his own. Perhaps there was a deeper meaning in the silent conversation. Link did not know them well enough to tell.

"Well, you're half right about the mornings," Tatl spoke up next. Link was thankful she did not pursue the obvious train of thought. Perhaps she was restless to leave. No, she was still thinking of her brother. "I'd say mid-day is best, sooner after eating the better. That's when people tend to be their most awake. Least it was that way back home."

"Schedules are open Tuesdays and Thursdays for such times, between the hours of eleven to four." Glynda tapped across the pad as she iterated the information. Her lips puckered for a moment before she spoke on. "Times from one to four would be best, as it allows the early luncheon students to digest before activities."

"Is that enough? You're not gonna hassle us for more time?" Ozpin only grinned towards Tatl's question. Link watched the conversation, silent as always.

"I am actually hoping you may be able to take some of Glynda's currently scheduled Combat Training hours," he spoke smoothly. Said blonde Gerudo didn't react to his words. They likely talked about it before. "There are other matters concerning the welfare of Beacon, and the more time she has to dedicate to that, the fewer hours she has to spend staring at a screen all day."

That was unsurprising to Link. It was not uncommon for many of the instructors at any Knight's Academy or Barracks to have duties aside from the upbringing of new men. Granted, such duties varied from guarding vaults to counseling politicians. It was impossible to say what Glynda's were.

"But wait, let me guess," Tatl spoke up, rousing Link from his thoughts. "You want us to be supervised first, right? Can't risk us being loose arrows or somethin' like that?" Well, Link could understand that as well. He was new here, in almost every sense of the word. It would be better to be watched sometimes as opposed to being monitored always.

"Of course," Glynda replied easily. Easily enough that is. She did spare Link a glance. Why? Tatl was the one talking. "Supervision is a standard practice when bringing new faculty into Beacon. We must ensure that teaching styles to do not conflict or give students incorrect assumptions regarding monsters or other threats across Remnant." That seemed… fluffy, overdone.

"Just say you're gonna make sure the kids understand that we're in charge." Tatl seemed to have gotten more out of the words than Link did. That was pretty common. "But, I think you finally had a good idea there Triple B. At least I'd be pretty surprised if the students just accepted Link as their instructor."

"You are on the correct track, Tatl, but there is a bit more to it than that." Ozpin remarked, sipping at his mug before continuing. "We can't joke with ourselves and say that you, Link, were always a prospective teacher. This arrangement was born out of necessity, as are most things. The true purpose is for you to observe how Glynda teaches and then emulate her in future lessons." There was a reason for that, Link realized, but he couldn't place his finger on the catch.

"Oh, I get it." Tatl apparently did. "Cause if he's not a good teacher, or too many students complain or something, those Council guys are gonna have a reason to take Link away, right?" Ah, that would do it.

"While they would need much more than a few complaints or poor word-of-mouth communication, it would be the foot in the door they'd need to bring an investigation of sorts." Ozpin didn't seem happy about the words, despite his grin. "The more capable Link is at teaching, the lower the likelihood of the Council or Military attempting to 'detain' him for some other ludicrous reason."

Link wasn't sold on them yet. He wasn't sure Ozpin and Glynda had only pure intentions for them. There was very likely, very possibly, an ulterior motive to their kindness and rush to his defense. But he had seen the capabilities of both this Council and Military when it came to his harm. For now, Beacon was the lesser of three evils.

But if they needed a teacher, he was not the most capable. Link knew that. He was a knight, a warrior, a… lot of things. He had taught only a few before, and those were not in regards to skills with a sword. Tips and tricks only went so far in a battle for one's life. Fights with monsters were always just that. If they needed a teacher, he was not the most capable for the job.

However… he knew someone who was.

Link reached into his tunic, looking for the remains of his old friend. A friend he had seen more as a shadow than a person among their first meetings. Their initial trust was fostered by another before blooming on its own, but eventually ended with them on equal terms. She was one of the most capable fighters he had ever met, and he was glad they had not met on the battlefield…

"Um, Link? What are ya doin'?" Tatl spoke up to him in a low whisper, just quiet enough for him to hear. Ozpin and Glynda likely did not. They did not focus hard enough or have the ears to passively do so. "Oh please don't tell me you're going to… who am I kidding, of course you are." Link only chuckled as he grabbed at the mask he wanted. Tatl knew him well.

"Can I assume you have another friend you wish for us to meet?" Ozpin spoke up now, directing the words towards Link. He looked up and nodded towards the Gerudo, producing the mask he grabbed.

It was a white mask, mostly, but with painted stripes and designs across its surface. Almost all of the markings were red, smooth and curved with endpoints meeting to shape sharp edges. Three triangles of such red were across the top, all sitting above an oval. Said oval guarded the only part of the mask that was not red or white: a halo of gold.

"Oh, yeah, of course," Tatl replied dryly. "Of course she's the one who'd you think would be best for this. Figures." Link had to remind himself that the two were not on the best of opinions of one another. Understandable, but unfortunate.

"Who is this… obvious choice?" The question was for Tatl, not Link. Ozpin wouldn't be able to hear what Link explained. Thankfully, Tatl was able to answer.

"The obvious choice, the Sheikah," Tatl started. "She was the caretaker for the princess for a few generations and held the rank of general for even longer. She was personally responsible for training new knights amongst soldiers and guarding important treasures through the kingdom. And as an added bonus, she's got a stick up her butt just as far as Triple B over there."

Couldn't answer without an insult. Link only smiled at the predictable event. Still, he had no fear of repercussion. Tatl was a fairy and his friend. At worst, she'd have the same thrown back at her. A part of Link loved her the most when someone was doing just that.

"She sounds very impressive," Ozpin continued. Link wondered for a moment if it was to keep Glynda from answering. He doubted it, as she had excellent control of her emotions. "It is why I feel conflicted in following with the obvious question." Link knew what that was. Thankfully, so did Tatl.

"It wasn't a fight," his friend began. "She got ambushed with Link. Some coward who couldn't take them in a fight; just stabbed her and fled." Link didn't miss the quick ring of disgust. He was confident Tatl's shade turned green in that quick moment. "Not the most tragic death you'll ever hear, but still… gah, I just hate that we never got that guy!"

Tatl had no need to remind Link of such a thing. It was a shared memory of disgust.

"Truly a pity." Link had a difficult time discerning if Glynda's words were full of apathy or disgust. He gave her the benefit of the doubt. She did fight the General in his name while he fought the Bellumgera. "On both accounts named." Her finger drew across the pad slowly as she spoke, eyes narrowing at the screen.

Wait…

Link looked quickly between the two, noting everything he could in the spare moments. Ozpin's brow was furrowed, his mug hiding his lips. His hand was hidden beneath the table, his body oddly still. Glynda's expression was harder than usual, looking at the screen Link couldn't see. Her movements were slower as well, as if heavier to make.

They were reminded of something…

"If I may ask, Link," Ozpin began again, lowering his mug to show the grin on his lips. Link would swear on his life it was not there only seconds before. "Why was she targeted? I understand if it is not something that you wish to be discussed… but you are carrying her memories for a reason, correct?"

Link didn't know what that meant. She was his friend, in life and until her death. Perhaps not always on the brightest of terms, but never without respect for one another. Was there something else? What were they looking for?

"Hey, you know what, how about this," Tatl spoke up, quick as the light she cast. "How about you talk to her? You guys can ask whatever you want then, right?" She swayed with her words, spinning about Link before settling on his opposite side. He felt Tael squirm above him, but not enough to rouse him from his sleep.

"Well I can't say no to meeting a new friend of yours," Ozpin spoke on, his cup swaying towards the mask Link still held. "But I would like you, or perhaps Tatl, to explain what your goal is here. Do you believe she is to be a mediator, a capable teacher, or something else?" He was cautious, but inviting. That wasn't an odd trait for a leader. But there was something more.

Link didn't like it. They were keeping unknowns. They were asking questions without telling what it was. They were looking for something that they wouldn't explain. It didn't make sense, and that was why Link didn't like it. But… he wouldn't speak against it. They were acting as unknowns, but he was still an unknown to them as well.

"Like I said Mr. Green, she trained new knights," Tatl spoke up, thankfully following Link's train of thought. Decades together made it easier to do. "She trained them from the time they were brought into Hyrule's Military to their first time on the battlefield and then a little beyond. I'd bet my wings she has more years under her belt than either of you do put together. Sheikah have that advantage." Now she was going too far… Tattletale.

"Now what might that advantage be?" Ozpin spoke up, curiosity evident in his features as much as it was in his words. It was only troubling that he did such a good job of focusing said curiosity. Link had to be careful… perhaps that was why Tatl was speaking. In the grand scheme of his friends and goal, it was a small unknown to reveal.

And the unknown always had the advantage, but only as long as curiosity was focused elsewhere.

"Promise not to jump to anything when I tell ya?" Tatl started off. Link hid a chuckle under his breath. She loved to get a rise out of people. Apparently Ozpin was used to it, as his grin hardly faltered. Glynda looked equally unaffected.

"After what you have demonstrated and shown thus far, I doubt there is much you can say that I will fail to even consider." He was honest, or at least he sounded honest. Link reminded himself that he was the Gerudo who did his utmost to protect Link from this Council he'd never met and a Military that seemed too familiar. At least in heart, he was a good man.

"Let's see if your face is that straight in a second," Tatl warned as she always did, like a child getting ready to mock their sibling. Funny, because she was more protective of Tael than Link was. "The Sheikah, guardians of Hyrule's royal family, live for centuries."

To Tatl's credit, Headmaster Ozpin did blink in response. To his credit, it was all he did.

"Well, that certainly is surprising," he started off simply. "Though I suppose against golden avians and electrified fish, it's not much more than the next step, is it?" Link felt a grin pull at his lips. Ozpin… he liked Ozpin.

"Aw geez, is that it?" Tatl whined at his response. "I wanted to see you argue about try and go all, 'oh that's impossible. You can't live that long. You must be lying.' And then Link would show her off and you'd start to get all bug-eyed." Link chuckled softly now, loud enough to be heard. Ozpin joined him. And, to Link's unspoken enjoyment, he saw a small grin crack over Glynda's lips.

"While I am sure you have a secret or two that could commit such an action, I'd ask you keep them buried for now," Ozpin spoke before sipping at his cup. "As an official member of the faculty, your job is to teach students, not startle them. The latter is only acceptable if it accomplishes the former." Once more Link saw the focus his curiosity had. It was a rare gift to have both. It was understandable why he was the head of the Knight's Academy here, Beacon.

"We can agree on that much at least," Tatl expressed with a ring, a clear sign of a sigh. Link was humored to think of what she would do if Tael wasn't asleep on his head, an increase in volume aside. That was too obvious. "But hey, you know what? If you're that open about Link's friends now, do you want to meet her?"

Honestly, it wasn't like her to invite such a thing, but Link didn't argue. He knew she would want to meet the new instructor for a new generation of knights. It would be weird for her not to. She was a general, and a general enjoyed knowledge.

"Of course," Ozpin agreed, chipper at that. He had not just grown used to Link's friends, said Hylian realized. He had become excited to meet them. It was a plus in any regard. "Though if I can ask, what is her name? It would be rude to meet her without knowing that." Oh, yeah, they'd forgotten that, hadn't they?

Link smiled down at the mask in his hand as Tatl answered the question.

"Impa."

Pyrrha was on edge at the moment.

It wasn't completely abnormal, not for her. New things didn't usually go over very well for her. That was something she had to work on. Well, she was working on it. She wasn't apologizing as much. Sometimes she still did, but not as much.

Regardless, she was on edge now. She was on edge because something was inevitably going to happen. It had to, really, and she wasn't the only one who thought so this time.

They were going to see Link actually teach a class.

"I mean, this is still really weird, right?" Jaune asked as he walked beside her. He was talking to the team, not just her. Pyrrha knew that. But… it was fun to imagine. "He was, like, in class with us last week. Now he's going to lead us on how to fight? That's gotta count as weird, doesn't it?"

"It is… peculiar," Ren answered, simply as always. "But far from weird. He is well-trained and diligent, as we should expect of our teachers."

"O-Oh yeah, no, I get that," Jaune spoke back. He sounded on edge, too. It gave Pyrrha a dissatisfying sense of comfort. "He's totally the kind of ma-faunus I wanna learn from, faunus, yeah." He nodded his head at the words. "But I mean… Nora, what if you suddenly taught us class tomorrow? What would you do?"

"Me?" Pyrrha turned her head to see Nora answer. "Oh! I'd talk all day about the kinds of things you should do to a Grimm! How to crush their legs, crush their arms, crush their head, maybe their chest, and have a picnic knowing that there were no other Grimm for miles!" There were many holes there that Pyrrha could pick through, but she had learned quickly to just take it in stride.

"Okay, that was more than I needed to know, but you get my point, right?" Pyrrha honestly didn't. She had to remind herself that it wasn't worth apologizing for. "We aren't really gonna be able to take anyone we've actually spent class time with seriously when they're teaching us."

Wait, he couldn't? But… But Pyrrha had been helping him master his sword thrusts and blocking techniques for months now! Was he doing that to… humor her? No, Jaune was a nice guy, he wouldn't do that. Pyrrha knew he wouldn't.

"I… believe you are the only one who sees the awkwardness in this Jaune," Pyrrha said carefully. He was a sensitive guy, and she really didn't want to upset her leader. When he looked at her, he didn't seem hurt. That was good, she supposed.

"I don't know, maybe I am," he spoke, a bit too dejectedly for her liking. "I mean… Link did actually teach me that trick with the shield, a-and we did see him literally kill two Ancient Grimm back to freaking back!" His hands were moving around a lot as he spoke. Pyrrha knew he did that a lot when he was voicing his honest opinion.

"There is no doubt he is an impressive fighter," Pyrrha agreed. "It is why I am interested in seeing how he monitors our dueling sessions." And in truth, she was.

She knew from real experience that the type of monitor you had for duels could greatly alter the format of the fights. Not only that, but she had a hard time seeing Link simply… watching. Even if his mini-drones would be the one verbally speaking, it made sense to her they'd be correcting mistakes in their forms. Or maybe just offering advice.

"Yeah… I am, too." Jaune sounded… tired. That usually meant he was done. Why he was made sense to Pyrrha. She sighed, turning her eyes to the familiar entrance. They were at the dueling hall. "Well… let's see what we're signed up for." And Pyrrha was again reminded why she felt on edge.

The Student Dueling Arena, she reminded herself. The SDA, one of the simplest yet most well-designed practice arenas in all of Vale. Even though she had been in many arenas of similar size, structure, and even stand placement, Beacon was different. It wasn't just the feeling. That came with the crowd. No, Pyrrha knew simply from experience that Beacon was different because of its care. She knew it was different because, before fighting, it was a place for learning.

This wasn't weird and was far from strange, yet it still was… different. Different enough that she had no idea what to expect from the classes anymore. Link... teaching? ...Here? This really was… well, she honestly didn't know. Maybe that was why Jaune sounded the way he did. She was on edge. He was… yielding.

"Oh and I can't wait!" Nora let out, shattering any tension that had built up. "I'm ready! I'm ready! I'm ready! I'm ready!" She repeated again and again, skipping into the indoor stadium stands, smiling all the while. She heard Jaune let out a quick breath of laughter. That brought a smile to her face.

"Well, we can't leave Nora alone for long," Jaune spoke up, chuckling with his own words. Pyrrha understood why, something she wouldn't have done a few months ago. She nodded with Ren, both following him through the small hall, opening up into the familiar stands of Beacon's SDA.

And was immediately overcome with the number of students that filled the room.

For a normal session, there were usually stands for days, half a dozen of them wrapping around the Arena entirely, benches long enough and vacant enough for Nora to lay down and take a nap on without disturbing any nearby parties. Now? Now that was impossible.

Nearly every seat was taken up in the Arena, faces she didn't even recognize sitting around one another, touching shoulder to shoulder just to make room. Some were standing in the back, others kneeling in the front, and conversation was dominating the room. Pyrrha had to wonder if it was her focus on Jaune or the room's construction that kept her from hearing the sound before.

She felt a tap on her shoulder, turning to see Jaune looking at her. He was leaning close to her, with shoulders hunched and a hand cupped around his mouth. Pyrrha felt a wave of heat wash over her, but it quickly died out.

"Any ideas?!" He nearly screamed the question, but it was muffled under the cacophony of noise, making it sound as distant as the waves on a beach. Still she made out what he said, and what he meant. Where were they supposed to go?

The question was answered sooner than Pyrrha had expected. Ren got Jaune's attention, and by consequence Pyrrha's, with a small wave of his hand. Instead of words, the quietest member of their team pointed across the stands, aiming into the mass of students that made up the unexpected crowd. Thankfully, it was easy to see what he was pointing towards.

Nora was standing in the bleachers, waving her hands in an excited motion towards them. If she was yelling, which Pyrrha expected she was, it was drowned out by the rest of the students. Still, she likely had seats, and that was a good thing. Now they just had to get… there…

Pyrrha's train of thought was pushed to a stop as she felt a hand wrap around hers.

She felt Jaune grab her hand. And then, in the next moment, leading her with it.

The room was quiet as a lake in winter now. All of her attention was on Jaune, leading up the steps and past the students that crowded the stairwell. His grip was strong, firm, but far from tight or uncomfortable. It felt like… she was holding her sword. Something strong and reliable, that she didn't have to be afraid of showing her true self with. It felt like everything she expected. It was why she loathed it when his hand let go of hers.

"…inally!" She heard him yell above the crowd, barely. She missed the beginning. Still, he sounded happy, and it was plain why. Three seats were available for them in the stands, all right next to Nora, and settled between their suitemates.

Pyrrha recognized Ruby waving towards her, bright smile under silver eyes as recognizable as ever. Her team members were mimicking her actions, though with varying amounts of energy. Blake and Weiss were nodding towards them respectfully, while only Yang compared to her younger sister in waving with a wide grin across her features. But… there was something else. It was small, hard to see and impossible to hear in the crowd, but Pyrrha trusted her instincts enough to know it was there.

Tael was hiding in Ruby's hood. Well… maybe that wasn't the right word. Ruby saw her gaze and quickly raised a finger to her mouth. 'Please be quiet' was what she had come to learn the motion meant. That, again, meant Tael wasn't hiding, at least not from Ruby. Still, it meant it wasn't her place to bring attention to it.

"Attention students!" Pyrrha was momentarily thrown by the voice. Apparently everyone else was as well.

The room dropped noticeably notches in volume, the discord of noise dropping into low whispers. All attention was immediately given to the center of the arena. It was impossible not to notice Professor Goodwitch standing at the ring's center. Pyrrha took her seat during the drop in volume, comfortable with how close she was to Jaune. He didn't seem to mind either. He even smiled.

"Thank you," Glynda spoke again, her voice amplified through the unseen speakers. Doubtlessly the efforts of her scroll. "As I am sure you are aware given your attendance, we have a new professor teaching at Beacon. Currently, said faculty member is scheduled to monitor and assist in your Combat Training. I will be observing the first few sessions to help mediate their transition into the role."

Professor Goodwitch and Headmaster Ozpin were being careful, that made sense. With the Military and Council, they had to be. Still, that didn't mean Pyrrha felt any less on edge. She'd prefer sitting on a cliff to waiting a moment more. Tournaments had less build-up.

"Though many of you are aware of this, I will reiterate that the transitioning professor is unfamiliar with the rules of Beacon and laws of Remnant." There was a lot less chatter than Pyrrha expected from that. Her team and RWBY were quiet as snow. She was simply thankful Jaune hadn't leaned away from her. "This has led to a series of conversations regarding their methods in teaching the Combat Training course."

What? What did that mean? Pyrrha had no idea and, perhaps thankfully, she could tell Jaune didn't either. He looked towards her, a confused expression twisting at his features. His shoulders shrugged, silently asking her the question. She could only shake her head in return. Truly, she hadn't an idea. She could at least tell that Professor Goodwitch wasn't entirely pleased with whatever was coming next.

"As such, compromises were made regarding the current and future sessions of the training regimen taught during the Combat Training course." Her sigh was audible, and that alone made Pyrrha's senses stand on edge. "Agreed upon by Headmaster Ozpin, with the results to be monitored by myself, the professor's methods will be objectively judged to determine their merit and worth."

Pyrrha made the small note that whenever Link was involved with Professor Goodwitch, something confusing seemed to follow.

"Without further ado, it is my pleasure to introduce Beacon's newest professor, Link of Hyrule."

The volume of the crowd returned and, if possible, was louder than before.

Whereas she felt Nora and Jaune jump to cheer, Pyrrha held her hands to her ears in a vain attempt to muffle the noise. Her teeth grit in testament to the pain, completely unused to the blaring sound of a hundred screaming students. It was so easy to stand it when you were meters away from any fans and not caught in the center of them. No wonder her parents so often wore earplugs.

Still… this wasn't something she wanted to miss. She had dealt with far worse pain then some ringing eardrums, and this was not something she was going to see again twice, not in the same way. So, keeping her hands to her head and her jaw flexed, Pyrrha stood to her tallest, looking over the row of students in front of her and to the arena floor.

And there was Link.

Side-by-side with Professor Goodwitch, he seemed small. She knew he was smaller than her, but knowing that he was replacing her, teaching them what Professor Goodwitch once did, it became much harder to not notice. His hand scratched at the top of his head, moving the green cap that sat there. The tunic of green and belts galore were still present, including the sheath of his sword on his back. But… it seemed all off.

Maybe this was what Jaune meant about it being weird. It honestly wasn't far different from the last time Pyrrha had seen Link in the arena, preparing to do the regimen of fights that had been set up to placate the Council and Military. It was still him, and Professor Goodwitch was still there. Except now… they were equals. Jaune was right, this really was weird. Just one more thing she had to remember.

"Yes, thank you for your approval," Ms. Goodwitch's words were barely audible above the noise and through Pyrrha's covered ears. "Now please settle down, there is still much to discuss and we have a schedule to keep." It wasn't immediate, but the noise did subside slowly but surely.

Students began to settle back in their seats, cheers being reduced to one last scream of approval, and clapping hands settling back onto laps. Pyrrha felt no lack of relief in finally letting go of her head. Only too quickly did she feel something grab at her hand once more, and just as before, it was Jaune.

"Are you okay?" He asked her quickly and quietly, eyes focused on hers and wearing the same emotion she knew was completely genuine. It was an expression she adored to see, but she couldn't allow him to worry, not selfishly.

"I'm fine, Jaune," she replied with as much haste. "I'm just… not used to being in the crowd." His mouth formed a quick "oh" shape and nodded in understanding. She was only too happy to realize he had not released her hand. There was no reason to remind him.

"Thank you," Ms. Goodwitch spoke again, earning Pyrrha's attention once more. "Now, as you are doubtlessly aware, Link has an unorthodox set of abilities, and an unfortunate penchant for silence." Pyrrha wasn't sure how much of that was a jab or an insult. Link didn't appear upset though. He only nodded his head with closed eyes.

Wait… where was Tatl? She'd usually speak up by now.

"Thankfully, during an earlier meeting with the Headmaster, Ozpin and I were able to meet one of Link's good friends." His what? "In similar fashion to his display with Mikau, Link has another… comrade that fills the role of a teacher rather well." Oh… oh, that's what she meant.

But then… where was Link going?

He was literally walking right out of the arena, like he was a guest of the stands. Was… was that it? Just a placeholder? No, there was no way it was that simple. Her musings weren't the only ones, Pyrrha realized. The students were becoming louder again, but not with cheers or screams. Instead, with confused whispers. But Glynda spoke on.

"This friend, as we were able to learn, commanded the armies of Hyrule for a significant portion of her career, doubling her abilities with the guarding of the Royal Family." That was impressive, but Link was still leaving. Now he was gone. And the volume of the students was increasing. "Carrying a diligent manner of teaching that has shaped many hunters in the Hylian Kingdom, she is, apparently, eager to continue administering her lessons to you all."

"Then where is Link?" Some student Pyrrha didn't recognize shouted from a far off section of the stands. Several other students joined him, to her great dismay. This was how booing usually started. That would be horrible.

"Link will be returning shortly," Glynda spoke on without any hesitation. It sounded as if she had more to say. At least, a great many of the other students were getting ready to shout as well.

That was before a dull scream and bright light shined from the changing room.

"Ah, allow me to correct myself," Glynda spoke on as if nothing had occurred. "She is coming now." She? Who was she?

There wasn't any time for whispers, however. Because all too quickly, a new figure strode from the changing rooms.

Pyrrha could tell on first sight that the woman she saw was strong.

She was of equal height to Professor Goodwitch, walking with a gait that appeared practiced and ready for immediate action. Her arms swung at her sides with just as much care, possessing no laxness to their movements. The majority of her was covered in an outfit of sky blue, small rings of golden triangles about her legs. A thick belt of leather was then wrapped around her torso, holding what appeared to be long feathers of dusk red color. That was where simplicity ended.

Her extremities, all of them, were covered with metallic braces. From her knees to her toes and from her shoulders to her fingers, heavy thick bands of metal were wrapped and fashioned. They shined in the arena's artificial light, each showing their density and strength. But while she wore metal on her arms and legs, her neck was covered by cloth, or a scarf to be specific. A dark brown texture that curled loosely above her shoulders.

But her hair was more than simply striking. The alabaster white of it immediately reminded Pyrrha of Weiss, though this woman's hair was clearly braided and tied in a manner more befitting a fight. Only a single long lock fell over her features, and even that was braided to prevent free strands from obscuring her vision. The rest was tied and knotted behind her head, held by a decorative clip Pyrrha couldn't recognize.

But she could easily see the sharp ears that stuck out from the side of her head, little different than Link's own. They were darker in color, but that was the only difference at best. But just as her hair and skin were different colors than Link's, so were her eyes. They were red, red as Pyrrha's hair and sharper than most swords. And speaking of swords, Pyrrha could not ignore the most glaring feature of this new arrival.

The large sword that sat on her back, if it could be called that at all.

It was longer than the woman was tall, its hilt sitting well above her head, and the girth of the blade wider than the woman was herself. The actual blade was hidden in the dark gold sheath, but even the lightest of metals would make it a substantially heavy weapon. Yet the woman walked as if there was nothing on her back. That alone told the duelist how strong this woman was.

"Class," Glynda spoke up again, the first time earning attention away from the new woman. "Please welcome Impa of the Sheikah, former General to Hyrule's Army and Guardian of the Royal Family."

The room was deathly quiet. Pyrrha contributed to that void the most. At best there were a few whispers. It felt like the calm before a match began, everyone deathly silent to prevent distractions. All eyes were on this new woman, this friend of Link she'd never met. Just… why did he ask her to come?

"What's going on?" She heard Jaune whisper next to her. She turned to him without an answer, her shoulders shrugging and head waving in response. Regretfully, she looked past him for a moment, seeing Tael out of Ruby's hood and in her hands. She was leaning towards him, as was the rest of her team from varying angles. Well, he'd know, but Pyrrha knew better than to make him the center of attention.

"Silence speaks volumes." Pyrrha didn't recognize that voice emanating from the stage. That meant it could only be one person.

Her attention immediately spun back to the center of the room to find Impa, the new woman, looking around the stands with her sharp red eyes. Her arms were crossed under her chest, eyes scanning over them as if appraising the students. The flat line that made up her lips meant she wasn't proud of the results.

"It could mean you are too surprised for words. Or more likely, unimpressed with what you see," Impa's voice was surprisingly like Ms. Goodwitch's… intensely similar actually. "But either way, it is a display of disrespect. So now I must ask why you, a body of knights-in-training younger than most I have seen, act discourteous to strangers you've never met?"

Pyrrha fought the urge to swallow. She heard Jaune fail to do so. It was clear that Link wasn't having influence with her words. He was strong, but polite and open as well, maybe even shy. This woman, Impa… she seemed to be a faunus version of Ms. Goodwitch.

"Uh, Ms. Impa?" A voice spoke out from the crowd. All heads turned towards it. Pyrrha, perhaps thankfully, recognized the red hair of Penny Polendina. She had her hand raised into the air. "Yes, um, I'm pretty sure no one here is trying to be mean, or disrespectful. We just thought Link would be teaching! Um… yeah." The energy she gained fell as she spoke.

But the room was quickly filled with 'yeahs' and grunts of agreement, all of which just as quickly died down. They left as Ms. Goodwitch raised her hand into the air.

"Understandable, Ms. Polendina," she spoke. "But during our discussion with Ozpin, we found that many of Link's shortcomings make teaching difficult, if not uncomfortable, for him."

Whether or not she had more to say, Impa now took over for her. "Link is strong, as I can attest," Impa started, curiously. "But a great portion of his skill is talent, and talent cannot be taught. I, on the other hand, have spent generations raising and teaching the order of Knights that guarded and defended Hyrule. I have seen more battles then you have monsters and saved more lives than you have met."

It was difficult for Pyrrha to place those words as either boasting or simple fact declaration. It was impossible to tell with Impa's straight face and even tone. She didn't appear happy with what she said, but not disappointed either. It was… uncomfortable. At least now she understood what Jaune meant by 'weird.'

"If it is now Link's job to teach you to fight and survive against the threats to your kingdom, then I freely offer my memories to help," Impa spoke, her voice, somewhat softer, but it was like comparing ice and marble. "And… I believe that it is as proper a bind as we may reach." A… what? If anyone, aside from Pyrrha, was going to voice the question, it was dropped as Ms. Goodwitch started to speak again.

"Impa has spoken at length regarding her methods and results of teaching," Ms. Goodwitch wasn't looking up from her pad. "Confirming these results with Tael and Tatl, separately, we determined a combination of her past methods and the current dueling standards would best suit future classes under her supervision."

"Aaaaand, what does that mean?" Jaune spoke to Pyrrha again. She had the same answer as before. They could ask Tael, but a quick glance told Pyrrha he was busy explaining as much to team RWBY. Ruby looked impressed at least.

"Currently, you are all expected to practice and hone your skills as fighters and teammates off duty." Well, Pyrrha would argue that it went well with studying, but she assumed that was what Ms. Goodwitch meant. "Impa, however, focuses on three main areas to build the skill of a Huntress and their detachment."

"A true Knight focuses on three areas to better themselves," Impa followed Ms. Goodwitch. Was it Ms. Impa? She'd have to ask later. "They must plan for the present, prepare for the future, and practice to better the past. From what I have seen and heard, you do these things. But, they are done in a disjointed fashion."

"To reiterate," Ms. Goodwitch, thankfully went on. "We emphasize a need to heighten your education for future events. Plans are made amongst your team members daily to meet goals that are set in a variety of classes. And you are practicing just as often in order to further your past results, hopefully." Well, said like that it makes more sense. But then… how was it different?

"Unfortunately, from what I have been informed, your Combat Training has been reduced to merely a practice of skills. Little planning or preparation is ever done." Not Beacon, no, but in tournament settings it was impossible to expect a win unless you knew your opponent. Pyrrha kept her thoughts to herself. Impa's point was understood to her at least. "So, after much deliberation, thanks to Ozpin and Glynda's counsel, we have reached a needed remedy." That sounded nice, maybe. Ms. Goodwitch was nodding at least. Still no smile, but Pyrrha knew better than to expect one.

"Combat Training will still be an area to allow supervised dueling of one another, but there is now a major addition to the curriculum." There was what?

Pyrrha could feel the tension rise in the air, mostly because she felt it crawl across her own skin. The class was being changed that drastically? To what? It was a question she heard whispered all around her, even Jaune leaning over to Rena and Nora. Nora's answer was a much more vocal 'dunno', but it wasn't much different than the other few hundred students.

"Instead, as Impa has explained was done in the past, it will be used as a form of voluntary testing of your abilities." To Pyrrha's opinion, Ms. Goodwitch seemed very calm about something so… huge. "I will allow Impa to explain this further." There was a nod between them, a quick and mutual agreement. Pyrrha supposed it was like that quote, 'great minds thinking alike.'

"In Hyrule, Knights were only given their rank once they were shown capable on the battlefield." Well… that wasn't too different. At least it didn't sound that way. "Before they could march into what may be their death, they were given a test by an instructor of their choice. If they could reach a point of satisfaction to said superior, they were given leave to prove themselves without safety at their side."

Oh… Pyrrha knew where this was going. She must have been the only one, because Jaune still looked confused. Her hands, however, were gripping the bleacher she sat on tightly. This was worse than listening to an announcer declare victors.

"Instead, here, you will train amongst one another, you will converse to make plans, and you will research all that you can to attempt to defeat a single opponent." Pyrrha was not surprised, but overly anxious, as Impa's arm unfolded. One of them moved towards her chest, settling there in a point. "Me."

Pyrrha was unsurprised, but of equal agreement, to hear the gasps of breath quick mutterings of shock. A few voices behind her were full of more expletive curses, but if it was acceptable at defeat, then being told this had equal merit for their use. She could tell, however, how ramrod still Jaune was. That was also understandable.

"To be clear," Ms. Goodwitch, gracefully, spoke on. "Headmaster Ozpin took a liking to the idea of students dueling a professional Huntress. It will theoretically give you a benchmark you can measure, research, and plan for. More practical applications to the theories other classes teach you." It was clear as glass, but Pyrrha was dangling off the edge she felt herself on earlier.

"Further, you all have apparent 'years' to meet before you can be declared true Knights. No level of competence you have in a fight with me will earn you the right to take your… final exam." It was becoming easier and easier to see where the compromise was made. But still… wow… Pyrrha was still reeling.

"Then like… what?" Some brave student Pyrrha didn't recognize called out. "You're just someone we can fight for fun? In case we get bored?" There were so many better ways to phrase that, Pyrrha was sure of it. It sounded intentionally antagonistic.

Unfortunately, from the stern and perhaps even icy expressions for Ms. Goodwitch and Impa, they thought the same.

"Hardly," Ms. Goodwitch returned. "This is where the compromise was reached." Why didn't she sound happy? Why did she sound… regretful? It sounded like some arrogant competitor having to admit defeat, but Pyrrha knew that wasn't who Ms. Goodwitch was. So what was it?

"It is common knowledge in Hyrule. Chasing success is a greater motivator than fleeing from failure," Impa spoke again, and Pyrrha could agree. "Challenges with superiors held many benefits if you succeeded, and the worst consequence for failure was merely knowing you had to try again. So instead, your Headmaster, Glynda, and I have agreed on an alternative solution."

"I got a really bad feeling in my gut," Jaune spoke next to Pyrrha, and she could relate. She was only too happy to feel him grip her hand, mostly because she needed something to squeeze as well.

"To begin with, 'satisfying the instructor' is a poor guideline for success," Ms. Goodwitch spoke, eyes down on her scroll. She was probably reading her notes, maybe. Pyrrha shouldn't presume. "If Aura levels can be reduced by one third their total capacity, then the match is considered a victory for the opposing student. However, that is only if challenged one-to-one." Huh?

"As you are meant to work as a team, and fight as one, you are just as allowed to challenge me as such," Impa continued. She sounded, though very slightly, more pleased with the plan. It was really hard to tell though. The ice and rock metaphor came back to Pyrrha. "However, the further the odds are stacked against me, the greater you must prove your strength."

"Should a team wish to challenge the instructor together, defeat is considered per the same regulations of a student match; either critical aura levels are reached or disarmament." That made sense, and Pyrrha could follow what Ms. Goodwitch was saying, but… why did she keep saying instructor? Why not just Impa? And what was the incentive?

"There's gotta be a catch. No way is it that simple," Jaune said beside her. "Um, Ms. Impa? Ms. Goodwitch? Is there… something else? Like we have to fight weaponless or something?" Pyrrha felt her lips screw as her eyes shut. Jaune was a nice boy but… sometimes his naivety showed. The mutterings of the class around him didn't help.

"I'm glad you noticed, Mr. Arc," Impa spoke up, and with her words made Pyrrha's eyes widen. "And you are correct, in a way. I am the instructor that will replace Glynda. I am the one who oversees your progress, but Link is still the one in charge." What did that mean?

"The instructors," Glynda began, slowly. This felt all kinds of weird. "Include Link and all of his companions."

Oh. Oh!

"Oooooh!" That was Nora. Thankfully that wasn't just Nora. In a more subdued form than before, the classroom was buzzing with sound. Pyrrha could make out the strangled noises of excitement and shock, thankfully far from outright screaming this time. But though she was glad it wasn't that, she would have understood if they did.

That included not only Link and Impa, but Elrora, and Mikau, and… a lot of his other friends as well. There were a lot of friends, according to Tatl and Tael. So… they had the option to fight all of them? Why? What was going on? This all felt so… rushed to her.

"But here is the real catch, Mr. Arc," Impa spoke again. "The purpose of this is for you to plan, prepare, and practice. Merely allowing you to train against me does little to satisfy the first or former. In a true battle, you may know the enemy you face, but have no control of terrain you fight on. Or just the opposite, you may be asked to defend a post, and any enemy of the world can come to you."

An offensive or defensive position. It was similar to dueling, but it sounded more… involved. You could root yourself and deal with attacks, or increase your mobility to take the offensive. Focusing solely on one left you vulnerable to an opponent who was skilled in feints or taking charge of a battle's flow. A balancing act. That made sense, to Pyrrha at least. She'd probably have to explain it to Jaune later, or so his expression told her.

"You can choose which of Link's companions, including myself, to face, but then I will choose the terrain we fight on," Impa raised her hand as she spoke. "It could be in this arena, or in the Emerald Forest, or the shallow beach along the shore, or perhaps even a nearby plain."

"All matches outside of Beacon will be heavily regulated and monitored by one faculty member aside from Link," Ms. Goodwitch cut in. That was probably part of the compromise, which made sense. Ms. Goodwitch was very careful with them.

"I think I get it," Pyrrha heard Ruby speaking from far aside. It was difficult to hear, but she could, just barely. "If we want to fight Mikau, he'll fight near water, or Link in the forest, or something like that." And that was the catch.

They could pick their opponents, but lose the advantage of terrain. Or they could choose a spot then knew well, without knowing which of Link's many friends would come to his aid, if any at all. He was far from an easy opponent anyways.

"The first lesson I can offer you is this," Impa began suddenly, and Pyrrha was upset she didn't have any paper for notes. "Learn as much as you can before you make a plan. To assume that one's knowledge is enough, often leads fools to build their arrogance . Learn of the terrain, memorize it, learn of your opponents, study them, and then plan and prepare for what will come." That was cryptic. But… Ms. Goodwitch didn't elaborate.

"You still haven't told us what the prize is!" Pyrrha was thankful that another student she did not recognize said those words. For a moment she feared it was Cardin, but apparently even he had enough foresight to not speak so brashly to a new professor. But his words did draw murmur through the crowds regardless.

"Ah, did I not?" Impa sounded rather… intentional, if that made sense. It did to Pyrrha, like a feint, an intentional miss. "My apologies, I was saving it for last and it nearly slipped my mind." But instead of speaking on, her red eyes looked to Ms. Goodwitch.

"Victory against the instructor, as either a duo match or team effort, will be rewarded with…" Glynda let off with a sigh. That was almost more surprising than Impa's initial appearance. "Rewarded with an item of Link's choosing."

Pyrrha was very careful with dissecting those words. She had taken great care in reading into statements during her first few months here. Items of his choosing, but were they school items? Lien he had earned? Dust, what? The room was calm, but the excitement was slowly spreading. Pyrrha wouldn't give in until she knew what an 'item' was.

"To clarify," Impa, thankfully, elaborated. "If you can best me or my friends in a duel, I will reward you with a tool that I have brought with me from Hyrule. For you to use in future fights of your own."

Oh… Oh crap…

That meant… anything… his sword? His bow? His ocarina? Oh… wow…

The arena was filled with choppy silence. For each student that was struck dumb with the idea, there was another who was eagerly clapping and perhaps even laughing at the idea, but then next to them was another who wrapping their mind around what could be done. She was in the latter. Jaune and Ren the former, likely. Nora… the middle.

"Wowie! That's awesome!" She verbosely let out, to Ren and Jaune's equal horror. "Then let's go right now! Yeah!" Jaune's horror now outmatched Ren's by leaps and bounds. Pyrrha felt her own dread joining. And, if nothing else, she knew it was bad when Lie Ren reached up for his partner to sit down.

"Ms. Valkyrie," Ms. Goodwitch spoke up to them, horrifyingly enough. "Are you volunteering to fight Impa first?"

"No she isn't!" Jaune shouted back, thankfully as well. "Nope, she was just eager. Nuh uh, no fights today! We're good!" He waved his hands with the motion in a frantic manner, one of them just as desperately trying to push Nora down.

"Aw, but I wanna fight Impa. Maybe if I win I can use that Megaton Hammer! Then I can crash and smash twice as hard!" The mental image alone was enough to horrify Pyrrha to her core. Grimm were less of a threat than Nora with twice her destructive power.

"Should you manage to defeat me in the manners specified, I would likely offer it to you." Pyrrha wasn't sure if she should be horrified or amazed by the offer. Petrified? Horromazed? "There is no use in me congratulating your success with a trinket that serves you no purpose. I would feel proud to give you a tool to make your future battles easier."

The crowd was picking up again, quick whispers becoming entire conversations. People were getting excited again, eager. That was something that Pyrrha couldn't quite grasp onto yet. Was this good? Bad? What? It was like being told of some grand tournament then registering for it before she even knew the rules.

"It would be no different than offering Yatsu of Team CFVY the blade on my back." Her thumb pointed to the fixture on her back, and her eyes set to the behemoth of a member of the junior ranked team. Pyrrha saw his head tilt in curiosity, or maybe pondering. Velvet looking nervous at least. Coco looked… too eager, with a sick grin and a hand stroking her chin.

"Or perhaps a set of gauntlets for Yang Xiao Long?" Impa turned back towards them, or team RWBY. Pyrrha felt as much as she saw Ruby's horror at the mention of her sister. It was the complete opposite feeling for Yang, who looked ready to scream in agreement to the challenge. Thankfully, truly thankfully, Blake and Ruby kept her in her seat, with force.

"Or any number of my other belongings to the many who are here," Impa's voice was loud as she spoke, her pride bleeding into her words. Was it pride when she was generous? Was this generosity? Pyrrha wished she was back on the edge; it felt safer than wherever she was now. "And let me offer verbal confirmation. I packed heavily before I departed from Hyrule, and none of my belongings are of the state of useless. They could be yours, but only if you prove to me you are worth using them."

"Then I wanna try!"

There wasn't enough time to register, let alone stop, the speaker from jumping into the ring.

Pyrrha eyes fell onto Penny, hands on her hips and grinning like a mad woman. She likely was.

"Hmm," Impa spoke simply, re-crossing her arms as she stared down at Penny. There was still half the length of the arena between them, but even still it looked like the older woman was looking down her nose at the girl. "You came here from Atlas, if Link's memories are true. You have no team with you currently and functioned in an unspecified role to Ironwood. You must have some skill for a General to give credit to you, but I assume that also means you are challenging me without a team."

It was amazing how the woman's simple summation of Penny was able to so radically alter the girl's motivation. Pyrrha could have counted the seconds in which Penny's smile fell, settling at the nervous grin she usually saw on Jaune's features. That was nerve racking in its own right.

"Um… yeah, but… I'm pretty sure I can at least reduce your aura levels to zero point six repeating. I mean, it'll be tough, but I'm combat ready and ready to go!" Now the opposite. Her words seemed to inspire her in turn. Perhaps that was why Ironwood took an interest in her. That, and her unfathomable abilities to pilot airships and hunt Grimm, not to mention her ridiculous strength.

"Very well," Impa responded. "But perhaps Glynda should be allowed to finish speaking the parameters of our compromise." Her red eyes turned to Ms. Goodwitch, as did Penny's own. Actually, everyone's did, including Pyrrha's. Said instructor was still typing away on her scroll.

"To prevent excessive challenging and to maintain the core purpose of this class, to train, challengers are not permitted to undergo an Instructor Duel, as these fights shall henceforth be known as, for three weeks' time following their latest attempt." That was definitely read off of a document of some kind. Not even Ms. Goodwitch talked like that.

But three weeks? That was a lot by any measure. Nearly an entire month of just… training. It made sense to Pyrrha at least. Training for most tournaments took almost entire years. But for everyone else who hadn't participated in matches since they were able to talk…

"Ooooh, so I gotta be really sure before I face you, huh?" Penny bobbed her head with jubilance as she spoke. It… didn't seem to bother her. "Well, according to Beacon's academic calendar, that just means I'll be able to challenge you again before the semester's done!" She actually jumped with the words. Impa, for whatever reason, seemed impressed.

"Good," she spoke with a nod, her eyes turning from the young girl to Ms. Goodwitch. "May I ask you oversee the match, Glynda?" Impa sounded polite at least.

"Of course," was the return. "But please offer me at least one day's notice before subsequent examinations. I'll be collecting any newer requests, but when this is officially handed over to you…" Ms. Goodwitch didn't even wait for a reply or finish her words before turning on her heel and walked to the arena's outer limits. Her heels echoed in the void of noise, and it was only when Pyrrha heard them that she realized how quiet it had gotten again.

Pyrrha made an observation. Walking into the room, she felt on edge. Watching Impa, Link's newly revealed friend of a past life, prepare to fight Penny, a girl that Ruby and Blake had described as super-human, was something else entirely. It wasn't a cliff she was teetering over, it was the Gorge of the World.

She gripped Jaune's hand to keep herself steady. He grabbed back just as hard. It was a comfort she took advantage of.

Attention was shifted as the familiar screens lit the arena's rooftop, displaying names and aura levels for each of them. Impa's was above Penny's, but both were full and matched with a picture of their counterpart. Down on the floor, the two were preparing.

Penny was leaning from side-to-side, performing bicycle stretches with outstretched arms. Her mouth was moving as if counting and lips stuck in an upward grin. If she wasn't ready, she was at least excited enough to fake it. Impa was… entirely different.

She had opted to kneel on the floor, hands on her knees and head slightly bowed forwards. Her eyes were shut and, assumingly, breathing even. Pyrrha recognized the pose as one of deep meditation. A few competitors in the past had adopted the pose between matches, and usually were all the calmer during their bouts for it. Personally, she preferred to be active, but it was not her place to judge.

"Fighters prepare," came Glynda's words.

Penny jumped to action, leaping backwards and bending her knees as she landed back on the arena floor. A murmur swept through the crowd as floating blades extended and fanned out behind her, hanging in the air effortlessly. That left a few questions to be answered, but definitely for another time.

Impa, however, hardly moved. Instead she merely nodded towards Ms. Goodwitch before adopting her pose once more. The murmur swept over the crowd and cascaded once more. Pyrrha didn't join them. She knew, maybe by instinct, maybe by intuition, that whatever Impa was going to do, it was going to be powerful.

"Begin."

Pyrrha clenched her hands as the fight began. She heard a dull 'ow' beside her.

Penny was moving first, quickly too. Two of her green swords shot to the sides of the arena, imbedding themselves in the far walls. Her fingers were dancing above her, twisting and bending the other swords that floated behind her. They each twisted and locked their ends to one another in sets of two, making for two very large and likely very sharp shuriken blades.

The Atlas girl grabbed them into each of her hands, leaning back for a moment as she did so. She was vulnerable, of course, but the sheer distance between her and Impa made the risk of being attacked minimal. But the idea of Penny throwing the blades from just a distance made it too telegraphed. That, Pyrrha realized, was the purpose of the blades on the sides of the arena.

Some unseen force, likely strings or magnets, pulled at Penny. Like a slingshot, she was thrown forwards at high speeds, the wall-embedded blades the fulcrum point. Whatever linked her to them, it practically threw her forwards. With that speed, with that dexterity, she chose that moment to throw the shurikens.

Some bullets were slower than those two blades, spinning through the air towards Impa. If one of them hit, it was very likely that it would reduce the new professor's aura levels to the required threshold. But then… that required one of them hitting, something that Impa quickly proved was unlikely.

In a flash, a literal one at that, the kneeling warrior was several meters forward, blade drawn, and just beyond the striking distance of the shurikens. It happened so fast that Pyrrha wasn't sure if Impa had moved through sheer speed or a semblance of some kind. But what she was sure of was the blade in her hand, double-wielded.

It appeared that the scabbard on her back wasn't merely for show, as the blade looked as long and wide as the holster it sat in. Except now, she could see the metal that it was made of, polished to a point where it could be mistaken for a mirror. Single edged, appropriately, and with a hilt that made slipping nigh impossible. It was far more imposing outside of its sheath then in.

That fact was compounded when the shurikens Impa had deftly dodged exploded into eight separate parts behind her. What kind of delayed reaction was that? A big one, if Penny's sudden expression of shock was any clue.

But it didn't appear she had time to recover, not that Impa was offering any.

The woman had leapt forward, expelling a single cry of effort on her part as she did so. The massive blade she held didn't look to slow her a bit, not with the speed she was moving at. Said blade fell just in front of Penny, enough room for the girl to make a startled lurch back. The tiling and floor shattered at the impact, creating a dull boom that shook the arena. Impa, however, wasn't done.

In a display that spoke of talent and honed-skill, she kicked the blade forwards, only then to ride on it. Pyrrha couldn't think of a metaphor. She could, however, see the shock on Penny's face as Impa approached faster than she anticipated. Not fast enough, though.

The Atlesian girl's training showed as she back-flipped and rolled away from Impa, dodging the blade that was quickly slowed by the mass of concrete and steel that used to be the floor. She ended her flight with the recalling of her blades, returning to her back. Impa recovered as well, kicking her blade once more, forcing it high enough into the air to settle back into its sheath, perfectly. Then they were back to square one, the only difference being the significant damage to the arena.

Pyrrha didn't breathe for fear she would break the tension. More than once she thought one of the two competitors was going to get impaled. Once with Impa then twice with Penny. She may have started the fight with her hands in death grips, but now she could feel Jaune grasping at hers with as much force. She wondered how many others in the crowd were the same way.

When the battle began again, it was in earnest.

It was Impa who moved first. Pyrrha blinked for a moment, and in that span of time, Impa had gone from a respectable distance from Penny to clashing blades with the younger girl. That was a generous way to describe Impa's behemoth of a sword slicing through and destroying any semblance of a guard Penny's floating blades made.

The Atlas girl immediately sensed the futility, Pyrrha could tell. It became obvious, when she retracted her floating blades, doing her utmost to dodge the strikes altogether. Even that proved difficult. The weight of the blade made every impact into the ground a rumbling blow, strengthened by Impa's tendency to swing downward with it. It made Penny's footing unstable, allowing the older woman to land swinging fists and kicks instead.

It was a simple strategy, but clearly an effective one. One weapon so massive and swung so quickly that avoidance was the only method of counter, but using quick arms and legs to deliver swifter blows to follow. It was working, as Pyrrha could easily see Penny's aura levels depleting with every strike. Impa, on the other hand, remained untouched.

Another quick battle cry from Impa, another swing of her massive blade. It led to another quick jump from Penny, which was matched with a decisive kick from Impa, leaping onto her ground-embedded sword. Pyrrha didn't know if it was more impressive that Impa was defeating a girl General Ironwood treated like a personal protégé so viciously or that she was so easily swinging a blade that was likely designed more for defense than attack.

Penny, however, seemed to garner an idea. In the midst of another blow, her swords flew out to the far side of the arena. They hit the wall and pulled her away swiftly, just avoiding another swing of the sword. She flew, but as she did, she sent her green blades into the walls around her. It was clear she was making a trap, but Pyrrha didn't see what it would do.

Impa must have seen the same, because she didn't chase the younger girl. Instead, she adopted a crouch just outside the perimeter of the blades. One hand was on the hilt of her sheathed sword, the other held in front of her like a guard. Likely, with the heavy metal vambraces she wore.

Pyrrha risked a look at the screen above the Arena, noting again how Impa had lost not even a single percentage of her aura, but Penny had lost a good sixth. It wasn't much, but even a slow victory was superior to a quick one if not a blow was landed. That was why she carried a buckler instead of a second blade.

Her attention was drawn back to the arena as Penny began to do something new with her blades. Six of them, the other four held in the walls, began to spin in front of her. Their tips were aimed at Impa, and they were making an illusionary cylinder with their speed. Their speed must have been a factor of how close they were to her body, or else it would have been easy to fight from afar. Pyrrha stored the information away for a future duel.

Then… a green glow began to form within the blades. It was like active Dust, glowing in a combustible state, but clearly focused through the green tunnel formed by the spinning blades. Blades that Pyrrha couldn't see anymore.

But Impa didn't move. Despite what was clearly going to be a rail-gun of some form, the woman didn't budge from her spot. Instead, she just changed her pose. Her gait widened, lowering her center of gravity. Her free hand joined her first at the top of her blade, twisting the scabbard until both hands were raised over her head. It was the exact position of a downward strike. She was going to challenge the blast. Pyrrha wished she knew the scale of it. From a quick glance towards Ms. Goodwitch, eyes raised off of her scroll, she might too.

Ruby, however, seen from just out of the corner of Pyrrha's eyes, looked mortified. She knew Penny. Did that mean she knew how strong it was? That reaction then… that was not good. Any questions that might have been asked were left aside as the cannon-made-of-swords fired.

Fired was such a loose term.

It looked more like a beam of light then a proper projectile. A sheer green hue jetting towards Impa with great speed. Before Pyrrha could even twist her head, the older woman was encompassed by the blast, the intensity of the light blocking out anything her eyes could see. The vibrations of the blast made it just as impossible to hear. Though, good or ill, she could make it out a few startled cries from the stands. Seeing as no emergency was enacted, the beam hadn't penetrated the arena's shield.

That didn't keep Pyrrha from squeezing Jaune's hand, the best replacement in all of Remnant for biting her lip with worry. The blast was clearly strong, and Impa was in the center of it. The unease was only compounded when she saw the slow dribble of the older woman's aura.

Her aura was, very clearly, decreasing. But it was slow, slower than she would expect of such a colossal blast. The ratio in decreased aura… it appeared more fitting to be done with light jabs and nicked sword strikes. What Penny was doing looked as if it would cut through Bullheads with ease. Yet Impa lost hardly enough of her aura to be seen on the arena's screen. In fact, if her healthy amount of paranoia was working, she may have been the only one to notice.

Still though, down was down. Even if it was only a tenth of her total pool, it meant Penny was doing something. If it kept up… what would that mean? Penny was that good? Impa was an inferior fighter? The question was one to be answered shortly, as Penny's green beam of light did indeed begin to die down.

Like a laser losing its power, the diameter of the beam began to decrease, becoming thinner and thinner with each passing second. It changed from a pillar of deadly green to a column, ending when it was no more than a single thin trail. Penny's swords retracted to her back when the attack finished. That was not where Pyrrha's attention was focused on, however.

Instead, her focus was directed to the blue glyph held in front of Impa.

Her gaze remained attentive, but only long enough to ensure her eyes were playing no tricks. She still saw the same tall woman as before, with an enormous blade on her back, holding an outstretched hand that led to a large and unmarred blue glyph. A glyph that was spinning with runes and figures she couldn't recognize.

Pyrrha turned quickly to Weiss, noticing that she was amongst the last in the group to do so. Every member of Weiss's team had eyes focused on her, the Schnee heiress looking down at the arena with what Pyrrha thought was appalled horror. That was understandable, at least to Pyrrha.

She would feel the same way if a foreign fighter possessed her semblance as well.

"Adequate," Impa's voice shattered the vacuum of noise with the grace of the sword she bared. "But ineffective against a prepared opponent. It would be more suitable from a distance against a foe that is distracted in battle or not yet in one."

She was giving advice? Pyrrha had to remind herself that this, no matter the form, was Link, their new Combat Training Professor.

"Rather than one strong blow, when fighting alone, aim for frequency in strikes. It keeps you moving and prevents your enemy from taking advantage of your openings."

Penny, when Pyrrha looked towards her, didn't appear out of breath. Shocked, without doubt, but not out of breath. Her eyes were wide and her blades were floating behind her, but nothing more than that. Hopefully she was listening… because Impa was giving very good advice.

"Allow me to demonstrate," Impa spoke before clenching her fist. That simple motion made the glyph in front of her change.

The runes began to spin rapidly, twisting with a speed that made them all more circular and losing all their jagged edges. It didn't keep it from appearing as the imposing object that it was. Her duels against Weiss told her of the many utilities and strength behind those runes. It made it all the more terrifying when the single glyph split into ten.

There wasn't time to appreciate the speed at which Impa made them. No sooner were they formed than they were encircling Penny, making a dome around the now trapped girl. Her eyes looked from one to another, trying to find a way out. She must have seen one, as she suddenly started to fly within her captured state, doubtlessly the effort of one of the sword's she had embedded mid-flight. But it was of no use.

The glyphs moved again. Penny slammed into one and bounced back. Her sword pulled itself from the wall, the force of the impact greater than any frictional coefficient it possessed. She tried again in the same manner, but was left with the same result. She only stopped when one sword was left. Pyrrha could guess her thought process.

She was going to attack Impa, distract the one who had built the pseudo-cage of glyphs and cause them to fade, maybe, and thereby free herself. It was as good a plan as she would have come up with. And with Penny's next action, Pyrrha's thoughts were proven true. The four blades outside the glyphs all flew towards Impa.

They all passed by her as she took a single step back.

"Too slow," Impa spoke. Then she opened her fists. Penny was then overtaken by a barrage.

They were too far away and too numerous in number for Pyrrha to tell exactly what they were, but they fired by the dozens from each glyph, shooting with the speed of an exploding dust cartridge. They left no openings, had no time for reloading, and effortlessly tore into Penny.

The Atlas girl surrounded herself with her blades, wisely, spinning them with great effort, equally thoughtful, but it wasn't enough. The number of the projectiles made it impossible for even her ten blades to keep up as for every seven they blocked, maybe one or two got through. When the projectiles were nearing the hundreds, that was far too many.

Pyrrha could see Penny's aura decline, not even slowly anymore. She was dropping quickly and her defeat looked certain. But… wait… were Impa's levels dropping as well? They looked lower than before…

"Stop," Ms. Goodwitch spoke. Like an alarm from a dream, the glyphs ceased their firing and disappeared, the sound of shattering dust all they left behind.

Impa was standing tall in the arena, arms once again crossed in front of her, looking down at the student she had, apparently, effortlessly beaten. Penny looked the exact opposite. Her swords were laying around her, none broken but all far from usable. She was on her knees, one arm grasping at the other and her head downturned. Even then, she didn't look out of breath. But a clear look towards the scoreboard indicated her defeat. Her aura levels were in the red.

"The winner by aura depletion is Impa," Ms. Goodwitch spoke as simply as she ever did, jotting notes on her scroll. The actions matched the cleaning of the scoreboard above the arena. "Ms. Polendina, do you-" She was cut off by Impa's raised hand. That was… curious.

"Please," Impa spoke with the words. Pyrrha guessed that made it polite. "Allow me." Without waiting, she walked forwards the few strides necessary to reach the defeated girl. Penny looked up at her when she was close enough, lips downturned in a frown. Well… it was difficult to grin at defeat. "Are you harmed, Penny?"

"N-No," Penny stuttered on the words, but recovered quickly. "I'm just… not used to losing. Or being surprised. I thought I had a significant enough amount of data to combat any protocols you developed in the battle and-" As she did with Ms. Goodwitch, Impa stopped Penny mid-sentence. This time, with a single digit against the girl's lips.

"Data is useless unless you have a plan to use it," the older woman returned, rising as she spoke. She extended a hands towards Penny as she did so, the younger girl taking it. With a look backwards, her swords dragged themselves across the ground, all fitting together and back into her backpack. "You have the high qualities of a Mage, and your form is foreign enough to make you a contemporary Unknown. But you were overconfident in your abilities. It's as simple as that."

Pyrrha was immensely thankful to hear a wave of confusion float over the arena's crowd. It meant she wasn't alone. It was only compounded when Jaune looked to her, and she could only offer a shake of her head. She loathed doing that.

"Did I miss-speak?" Impa asked, though the direction of her voice told Pyrrha she was still addressing Penny. The Atlas girl must have been confused as well.

"Oh, no, I understand," Penny nodded her head. "But... what I don't understand are those terms. A 'Mage' and 'Unknown'. What are those? The current records and definitions for them don't match the cases in which you applied them." Pyrrha held in her sigh of relief. Asking questions was embarrassing.

"Ah, my apologies," Impa easily returned. Her ease of speech made the awkwardness smaller at least. "I overlooked our differentiating terms. I do not know the equivalent for them, but I suppose I can give a short lecture on the matter. Perhaps your… library of information could find the nearest fit."

Penny nodded at Impa, her grin returning. She was still gripping her arm rather tightly, but Pyrrha was more impressed she wasn't groaning in pain. That onslaught was nothing short of immense. That was a matter for later though, at least while Impa was moving.

She walked towards Ms. Goodwitch, the two having a short and unheard discussion. Their old professor had likely turned off the microphone, preventing the exchange from being heard. She could make out movements, small hand waves, head tilts and nods, but that was it. Then it was over just as quickly. Ms. Goodwitch tapped on her scroll some more, and Impa walked to center stage. Penny had made her way to the sidelines beside the former professor. No need for ceremony.

"In Hyrule," the older woman began, "Knights and Knights-in-training are organized by four specific categories." She held up her hand, lifting a finger with each name she spoke. "The Warriors, the Shadows, the Mages, and the Unknowns." The terms made sense, their application… not so much.

"Warriors are the Knights that stand at the front of the line," Impa continued. "They are both able to take the greatest amount of damage, and deal the most devastating of blows. Their weapons of choice are often simple to understand, but whose accompanying level of skill makes the tool one to be feared." Her hand lifted and tapped on the great blade that sat on her back. Guess it was easy to see where she fell.

"Shadows are Knights that can be either impossible to find, impossible to hit, or a combination of both." She was turning as she spoke, addressing the crowd naturally. Impa must have really been a teacher in Hyrule. "As I'm sure is the same here, not every battle is fought on open ground. Shadows are masters of keeping their movements hidden, sneaking to their foes, and striking with great speed. When they are found in the open, or are trained to fight besides Warriors, they are nigh impossible to hit. Like fighting your own shadow, it is an inevitably losing battle." That made sense to Pyrrha as well. Mostly because, if she was being objective, she would place herself in that category. She was rarely hit during any tournament match.

"Mages are what I'm sure a few of you are," the woman continued. "If I recall Link's memories truthfully, which I am, Dust for you is synonymous to Magic for me. Mages are true masters at the manipulation of it. They can create grand forces of might, impenetrable illusions, or provide a level of support that can carry any group of soldiers to Knights to victory. They are also the ones to fashion grand plans with broad goals." Weiss, that sounded like Weiss. Her glyphs had helped RWBY more times than Pyrrha could count… but Impa used those… what did that mean?

"And finally, the Unknowns." Impa didn't sound… pleased with the word. "Unknowns are not a category you can train to enter. They are the forces that are both the least expected and most gambled on. It could be your presence alone that makes you an Unknown, or even the weapon that you use. They are the most closely guarded secrets, the first line of attack, last line of defense, and the most difficult enemy to face." She took a small breath before she spoke again.

"To place it simply, Unknowns always have the advantage."

Pyrrha was really really upset that she didn't have a notebook with her. Thankfully, judging by the way Ruby was leaning towards Tael, the dark fairy almost forgotten, he knew everything that Impa was talking about. She'd have to ask for a recap later, if he was open to it.

"Impa," Ms. Goodwitch, of all people, spoke up. "Can you perhaps clarify, are you stuck to one of these categories once entered?" The question sounded leading, like a pair of competitors feigning ignorance of one another before a match. Well… they had talked to Ozpin, as both had mentioned several times. Maybe this was part of the lecture.

"No," Impa returned. "If anything, you are encouraged to study the other areas once you master what you are comfortable with. A Mage that can remain as hidden as a Shadow is a deadly foe. A Warrior who can double their strength with the abilities of a Mage is a threat to all forms of monsters. And a Shadow who can face hordes of enemies even if discovered is an asset that cannot be overestimated."

"This is really cool," Jaune whispered beside Pyrrha, suddenly giddy with attention. What a rollercoaster they were on right now. "But I really wish there was a book on this or something. I'm not gonna remember half of it later." Pyrrha had the same fear. Combat was easy to memorize. Lectures were not.

"Oh, I have a question!" Penny shouted from the sidelines. She was jumping with her hand raised. She seemed to have recovered rather quickly from her battle. "Do your titles change with those groups? Like, are you a Captain if you're a strong Warrior? Or maybe a Chemist if you're really good at both Shadow and Mage things?" Her question was oddly phrased, but it was a good question.

"Yes, and excellent question," Impa smiled at Penny. Despite the strength the woman had, her smile was surprisingly gentle, at least from decameters away. "Your position in Hyrule, once you were a fully recognized Knight, varied by your strengths. Your capabilities in these areas was listed by your title. The higher level of mastery you held, and the number of areas you had mastered, led to grander titles."

So it was like a ranking system. Identifying the best not by name, but rank. It was interesting, but odd. It wasn't Pyrrha's place to judge a different culture though. It must have worked if it made Hunters like Link and Impa.

"What are some examples?" Ms. Goodwitch spoke now. That sounded off script, if they were on one. Pyrrha shouldn't presume, though, as Impa appeared to have no problem relating them.

"I can list two for you," she started. "Two terms you, personally, have heard before." This was interesting. "A Witch, or Warlock, is a Mage who is unparalleled with their magical abilities. It is a term used to note a dangerous enemy, or a powerful ally." Okay, that made some sense. Witches in most fairy tales she heard were… old and decrepit, but they usually did something bad when threatened.

"Another example is a General. Generals are scarce throughout Hyrule, made through mastery of the Warrior before pursuing the paths of the Shadow and the Mage." So order counted, too? "In any time, of peace or war, Generals are leaders just beneath the monarchy, leading troops of soldiers and Knights alike. On the battlefield, they are one of the most singular difficult enemies you may ever face, for they carry the strength of their army and their plans to succeed."

Generals… Impa called herself a General. A master of the Warrior, the Shadow, and the Mage. And Penny had challenged her? It was hard to grasp it all, the weight of it being grand, but against everything Link had done from brief past to present it was hardly unlikely.

"Interesting," Ms. Goodwitch simply noted, somehow. "Though I suppose there must be a few questions for you from the stands. If anything is to raise curiosities, it was that lecture." Ms. Goodwitch was far from wrong.

For just as many hands were raised, there was a voice that was already yelling their question. Pyrrha had her own hands over her ears and mouth shut tight. She didn't like crowds for this reason alone. Too much noise and no order to it. That was why she was once more thankful to have Ms. Goodwitch in the room.

"Be quiet and sit down or else no questions shall be answered." The simple words had the results one would expect when spoken by Professor Goodwitch. The hands slowly lowered, questions falling with groans, but all eventually tapering out until only a murky silence remained. "Good. Now, I appreciate that you are all eager to learn, but only a few questions shall be answered, with preference to time."

Oh, Pyrrha had almost forgotten. This was a class, not a tournament match. They had to go to Dr. Oobleck's faunus studies after this… that was going to be an interesting transition. Her musings were lowered as Ms. Goodwitch pointed into the crowd.

"Ah, could you give us a list of all those titles?" Another student Pyrrha didn't recognize asked. They wore a Haven uniform though. "That sounds really awesome, a-and I mean, it'd be pretty cool to know what my title is, or is gonna be."

"I can make a draft following your class. I am sure Glynda will help me distribute it." Impa finished with a look toward said teacher. The simple nod was answer enough. Pyrrha, admittedly, was excited to see it too. "Next," Ms. Goodwitch spoke with a point of her hand.

"So like, what are you?" Of all students, Cardin, spoke up. Pyrrha had no love for his voice, actions, or motives. "Link kept calling himself a Hylian. What's that make you?"

"A Shiekah," Impa returned with a neutral tone. "Guardians to Hyrule's monarchy. We can speak later of what I am." Well, that sounded sharp. Thankfully, too, if Pyrrha could speak her mind.

"Last question, then we'll continue with class," Ms. Goodwitch spoke up once more. Her hand, horrifying or not, pointed to their general area. That was when Yang stood up. She looked… happy.

"Kay, Impa, Ms. Impa?" Her face screwed in confusion, the question obvious.

"Impa," said woman replied. "I have no family name. Continue," She gestured past what would normally be a rather bold declaration. It was actually pretty tame next to everything else.

"Sweet! Okay, bear with me, but I just gotta nagging question in my head." Every member of the blonde's team looked ready to jump up and grab their most active member. "I get that you're… not all here anymore, like Elrora and Mikau, right?" Impa's nod was stiff as stone. "Kay, but before whatever happened did happen, who would win in a fight, you or Link?"

For not the first time, Pyrrha was having difficulty deciding who the older sibling between Yang and Ruby was. The mirthful chuckling of the crowd didn't help, complete with more than a few dozen faces burying themselves into their hands. Impa in the arena center, brow raised in confusion, didn't help.

"Link and I dueled many times." All sound was drowned out as she began speaking. "The first time was the moment he stepped into the Hyrule Barracks, asking to gain admittance to the Knights of Hyrule. By name he requested me and asked that he prove his worth as a Knight." That was sounding surprisingly similar…

"But he kicked your butt, right?" Yang couldn't stop grinning, at least from where Pyrrha was sitting. "I mean, he had to of. Tatl and Peeping Tom kept saying he was a Knight and all."

"Actually, the duel ended in a tie," Impa responded. Her features were as flat as Ms. Goodwitch's usually were. If nothing else, Pyrrha could leave today knowing that the change in teachers did not have a change in demeanor. "I was forced to allow him entrance, and he proved himself from there."

"But doesn't answer the question," Yang kept pushing, hard. "Like, if you were to fight now, who would win?" Pyrrha was having difficulty seeing the question as anything but idle curiosity, dangerous at that.

Impa grinned at the answer she spoke.

"Link never won a duel against me."

Oh… wow… that left a disturbing number of thoughts to surface in Pyrrha's mind. She even heard a few of them whispered over the crowd, Jaune and Nora included in the list. It was close, for sure, but at the height of skill, split hairs were what determined the winner. And Impa, if she spoke honestly, was literally above Link's level, the Hunter that had killed two Ancient Grimm just a few days ago.

"Before next session, I have assignments for you." Pyrrha almost shook her head in shock. There was almost never work to do for Combat Training, training aside. The whispers of the crowd all too quickly changed to groans, very loud considering the size of the student body in the stands.

"Behave yourselves," Ms. Goodwitch spoke up now. "You are students and Link, and by de-facto Impa, is your professor. Be respectful." That did some work in reducing the whines.

"Thank you, Glynda," Impa returned with a bow. "Now, before the next session, I require each of you to summarize the fight you just saw. That is, describe what Penny did, describe what I did, but most importantly, state why we each took the actions we did." This… oh… oh Pyrrha got this. It would be difficult, but it made sense.

"Interesting. Perhaps you should detail the purpose behind this exercise," Ms. Goodwitch spoke again. Once more, she watched a brief silent exchange between her and Impa. It would be… interesting to see them interact outside of Beacon, but that was a thought she didn't need to pursue.

"Ah, I suppose I can." Impa had her red eyes on Ms. Goodwitch as she spoke. Tension… "As you are all Knights-in-training, I wish to see how you fare in understanding the minds of combatants that are not yourself. Battles are won not through sheer force, but in understanding and correctly guessing your foe's next move. The better you understand your enemy, the easier it is to counter them."

"So she wants us to understand their mindsets," Pyrrha whispered the words, careful to do so quietly. Others were doing the same around her, but she didn't pay any mind to their actual words. She had to focus now.

"Is this like that whole 'two steps ahead' thing I hear a lot about?" Jaune asked beside her. She always did her best to never tune him out. She looked towards him, pleased that she could nod this time in confirmation. He smiled back sardonically in turn. "Great, that just means I gotta understand the minds of an alien general and some super-soldier girl."

She patted his back sympathetically.

"Now then," Impa spoke once more, her voice deeper, more controlling, than it once was. "The purpose of this time is for you to practice. Who would like to duel next?"

It didn't matter how many times Weiss saw it, it was always the same.

Combat Training had gone on for the full five hours, and not a student she could recall left for more than a quick break. That didn't include the students that were brought to the arena center, where they fought one another as was usual, only now under the watchful eye of their new faunus professor.

When Professor Goodwitch monitored their fights, she was quick in issuing orders to stop, intervening with well-timed use of her semblance. Fighters were separated, a victor was chosen, and then the next duel began. As Impa, Link's friend, observed the fights, she had not intervened with quick shows of force as Weiss had expected.

No… she had used glyphs.

Schnee Glyphs.

They formed around and between combatants as soon as victory was decided, enduring a few heavy blows and forming at exceedingly well-practiced speeds. Each time the runes formed, Weiss looked desperately for any show that they were some new trick or tool Link had brought with him, a clever device from the faunus kingdom. But just as many times, she was left disappointed.

Impa had formed Glyphs, the signature semblance of the Schnee family, far more than once. She had made multiple versions, made them multiple times, and altered them as they were required. Against Penny alone, Weiss had witnessed them deflect a likely steel-splitting beam, divide into ten counterparts, resist blunt force trauma, and then unleash a wealth of projectiles.

She wasn't the only one who was surprised. The first moment those glyphs formed around the Military girl, her partner and teammates all whipped their heads towards her. Not to mention the members of JNPR. They knew, as she knew, that those glyphs were the unspoken namesake of the Schnee Family.

The other students weren't aware, and it appeared that not even Ms. Goodwitch knew. There were no questions about them, no verbal cries of shock, nothing. Just her own silent thoughts demanding for knowledge on how a faunus from some unknown land had the same power as she did. And, even if she loathed to admit it, using it to equal effectiveness as Winter.

If it was a trick, it was one Weiss was desperate to memorize. She had to learn it so she could improve it. If it wasn't a trick… the implications were unending. Did they share some common ancestor from millennia ago? Was Link not the first to come from this Hyrulian kingdom? Was the power stolen? Weiss was loathe to even think of the last possibility.

But that didn't matter now. Four dozen student fights followed Impa's display of power, overwhelming at that, and class was nearing its end. The last of the combatants, some unimportant member of CRDL and a visiting Haven student, were leaving the arena, leaving Impa and Ms. Goodwitch alone. The former stepped forward, taking the center stage as she had before.

"Students," she spoke the word carefully, as if testing it. Weiss knew she had another term in her mind. "I am pleased with what I have seen today. I will admit I was skeptical of your capabilities, though I now see it was unfair of me to judge you so quickly with so little time."

Weiss hung on every word, as if hoping to hear the secret to how she had used her glyphs. Nothing so far.

"As a reminder before next class, document the every action from my duel with Penny Polendina. Speculate at everymove what each of us was thinking. Today, all of you, who had fought, had done justice to your peers, showing me that you are all capable and likely to be… Hunters in your future."

There was that hesitation again, but she slipped past it easier this time. Still no secrets for her abilities just yet.

"According the schedule Glynda and… Link have devised," Impa's red eyes looked towards the blonde professor as she spoke. Nothing more happened. "Next class will be in two days' time. If you must collaborate on the assignment, do so strictly with your team. Otherwise, I thank you for coming and look forward to seeing you all soon."

She bowed in the arena, deeply at that. It was difficult to see who she was bowing to, when the likely subjects surrounded her completely. But she rose once more, walking out of the arena without another word. That was bad. Weiss needed to talk to her, before she changed back into Link!

The crowd was moving, everyone standing up and move to the exits, but they were too slow! They were just talking to one another, shuffling their feet like they were dead on them. By the time Weiss finally left the Arena, it might be night.

But she would be damned before she demeaned herself by shoving, rough-housing, or jumping over the students. That was an action more befitting an uncouth free-loader, thinking themselves benefitted by attention. She was a Schnee and, no matter how her wants told her to hurry to Impa, she knew the importance of appearance.

"In a hurry?" She heard Yang ask from behind her, leaning in an uncomfortable distance to be understood through the crowd. "Do I get three guesses why?"

"You need three?" She muttered without turning around. The brute knew darn well why she was in a hurry. It was an open secret to anyone who had seen her fight. The chuckling that came from behind her told her the message was heard.

"Right, then what are ya gonna ask her?" Yang asked as she and Weiss moved past another stubborn block of students. The crowd was thinning, majority of them heading for the exit, not the lockers. "Gonna open up with something edgy like 'Did ya steal that from my family' or somethin'?" The only thing that kept Weiss from whirling to the eldest member of their group was the need to continue moving.

"I want to know if that was her semblance at work or if it was some new tool of Link's." She spoke as she walked, her pace quickening in direct relation to the drop in students. "After seeing him perform instant teleportation, Aura sustaining Dust Crystals, and Ward Projections, I need to know if my semblance is something Impa can just… replicate!"

Weiss bit her lip to hide away the grunt of annoyance. It was a rude sound that was unbecoming of a Schnee. Thankfully, the door to the lockers was just ahead. She didn't hesitate in entering it, marching down the stairs. She heard her team following her, not just Yang.

"Hey, I get the sour spot, just try not to piss off the faunus-version of Goodwitch, alright?" Yang's question was questionable in itself. Weiss didn't even need to turn around to know that she was getting looks from Ruby and Blake. "What? Don't tell me you didn't get the feeling. Her eyes are already red with rage."

Weiss let the buxom blonde member of her team defend herself, fruitlessly, as she entered the locker room. It was the same as it ever was, their portable weapon safes lining the room, ready for depositing their weapons, benches to sit on, and showers tucked in the back. Spacious and open, with not a soul in sight.

In other words, no Impa or Link. Weiss bit her lip.

"Oh, do you think she's gone already?" Ruby asked aloud, walking past Weiss, twirling around. It was a poor method for searching the rather open room. "We weren't that slow in getting here, were we? Maybe Link was in a hurry and had to… take her off? And then run." Weiss pocketed the term for later. She was also unaware of how to address Link's transformations.

"Could be, but then we just gotta ask him really nicely to turn back into Impa. Shouldn't be impossible, I mean, seeing as we're gonna be getting lessons from her now." Yang let out the breath of a chuckle. "Still trying to figure out how on board I am for it."

"And what do you need to know to change your mind?" Blake followed up her partner. Probably small payback for the faunus comment. Honestly, even Weiss knew better now.

"Oh you know, just knowing more about the broad." Yang continued. "Like what she likes to drink, what she does for fun, how organized she has to be. I don't wanna learn from someone who has a stick glued up their ass." It was the comment that finally made Weiss shut her eyes in annoyance.

"I prefer tea, meditate when I am able, and treat clutter as I do monsters."

It was the voice that made Weiss shoot her eyes open.

Leaning up against the wall, just besides the stairs, was Impa. Her arms were crossed over her chest, head bent over just enough to tuck her chin and mouth into her brown scarf, and enormous blade still packaged behind her. But the most concerning part of her were her eyes.

They were focused squarely on Weiss.

"Grimm and Dust! How did you do that?!" Ruby let out, jumping backwards with the words. For once, it wasn't an unreasonable reaction. They had checked the room when they entered, and that included the walls immediately following the hallway. Impa was not there before.

"An old Shiekah art," was the response, but nothing more. Her eyes didn't move. "Ruby, where is Tael?" The peeping mini-drone? Weiss had nearly forgotten about it. Where had it gone? Ruby had been coddling it during the whole match, speaking in whispers.

"Oh! He said that he was going to find Tatl," her partner swiftly replied. "I think he was worried about her, but I'm sure she's fine. If anyone can handle Dr. Oobleck's questions, it would be her." Though Ruby grinned with the answer, Weiss had to agree. The golden mini-drone had a forceful enough personality to at least temper the teacher's… energy.

"Thank you for watching over him," Impa spoke again. "He wouldn't have fared well at the attention's center. Now though, was there a question you were hoping to ask me?"

Instead of waiting for a response, she pushed off of the wall, showing her height as she walked the few steps necessary to reach them. She was near Ms. Goodwitch in height, standing above the four of them and looking down with red eyes. Arms crossed and gaze unblinking, it was hard to not think of her as the General she claimed to be.

"Impa," Blake spoke first, extending a hand towards the taller faunus. She was a faunus, as her long ears still indicated. "My name is Blake. It's a pleasure to meet you. I look forward to learning from you in the coming semesters."

"Blake," the taller woman returned, grasping the hand offered to her. "It is a pleasure to meet you. I hope you show promise as the days come. Though don't misunderstand. I'm still here, too." She was still… what?

"Oh, yes, sorry Link," Blake returned, catching before Weiss did. Said girl had to double-take before she got it. Mental self-scolding could wait for later. "It's just… difficult to remember when I'm looking at someone else."

"Do not worry," Impa, hopefully Impa, spoke again. "I try often to avoid the confusion, but it's hard when second meetings are treated as first introductions." Ah, that one Weiss understood. It was similar to when businessmen forgot your name and treated you as a showgirl. Men who were later maimed out of eye-sight and ear-shot.

"So hey," Yang spoke up, her usual comfortable self. "Impa, I've a hundred and one questions to ask you! Buuuut, Weiss here's got a bit more important one, if you don't mind." Weiss had just enough time to look towards Yang before her social queues kicked in.

She walked up to Impa as well, extending her hand towards the faunus. She grasped her hand in turn. The first thing Weiss noted was the strength. It was there, and comparable to Yang's grip. That made sense, especially given the size of the blade she carried. The second were her eyes. They were sharp, but they weren't threatening. More focused than anything else.

"It is a true pleasure to meet you, Impa of the Shiekah." It was how Weiss was taught to speak to all high ranking members of society, foreign or not. Impa was a General, if even former. Elrora, if they were ever properly introduced, would gain the same treatment.

"You as well, Weiss," Impa spoke. Their hands released, and the taller woman almost immediately crossed her arms. "Now, what question is it that you wish to ask me?" Oh, right, that. Weiss nodded her head, a quick breath of air to boot.

"During your match with Penny, I noticed your use of high-density glyphs." Noticed was the lightest term she could have possibly used. "Following your monitoring of other matches, you were able to use them in a very controlled and fluid manner. That is something… extraordinary."

"Decades of practice, I assure," Impa returned first, nodding her head without breaking eye-contact. "Although I refer to them as runes, they are very useful for filling the gaps that I cannot reach physically." Weiss understood what she meant, but that wasn't her question.

"But, are those your semblance?" Weiss asked, hoping the question was not too blunt, twice hoping that Link's memories told her what a semblance was. "Is that… the power you use from your soul?"

"Of course." The answer was so simple and quick, Weiss felt as if a wave of relief had crashed into her, rather than washed over her. "We Sheikah are trained to use the power within ourselves since the time we are able to walk. It is as rigorously trained as the weapons we wield or the secrecy we keep." Glyphs, weapons, and secrets… Weiss memorized them. But there was still more to ask.

"Impa, without meaning to pry," she began carefully. "You may or may not be aware that Glyphs are also my semblance. I am still practicing, but they are the pillar that I base my huntress abilities on." The faunus didn't say anything, only keeping a neutral level of eye-contact. "My semblance is rare, in that it is hereditary. That means-"

"It's shared amongst your family. Like the color of your eyes or preference to food." Impa interrupted. Weiss bit her lip.

A pregnant pause filled the locker room, broken only by Ruby's fidgeting with her cape. No one else dared move, probably thankfully. Weiss felt like she was being judged for her capabilities again. She hoped she was good enough.

"If I may guess," Impa spoke again. "You are suspect to the idea that we, Impa and yourself, are related in blood down some line." That was one question, yes. And with the possibility of the glyphs being the product of some Dust artifact far removed, it was the largest question in her mind. "Would the idea disturb you?"

That question caught her off guard.

"Wha-no!" Weiss quickly defended, perhaps too desperately. "I-I just want to understand! It's been taught to me since I began my Huntress training that Glyphs are a unique semblance to the Schnees. To see you use them, I just… need to know."

She sounded desperate with her words, and Weiss hated it. Desperation was a sign of weakness, and it was something Winter and her father had taken much time in pushing out of her. Her eyes shut tightly for a moment, doing her best to sort her thoughts out. It wasn't even a moment after she did so she felt a hand on her shoulder.

Weiss was about to tell Ruby she was alright, but stopped a moment before she did. Ruby was strong, but this hand was undoubtedly stronger. She looked up as she opened her eyes.

"Peace, I meant no insinuation by the words," Impa calmed her. "A common ancestor between us is most likely, but knowing the distance between my kingdom and yours, in distance and knowledge, I would dare to say many if not all of us share such a thing."

Well… that was true, Weiss supposed. Trace enough lines back far enough and it seemed plausible that all relations joined together. But for two different lines to carry the trait, what would have had to been eons worth of generations ago. The chances were simply astounding.

"Would you want me to train you on their use?" Impa spoke again. Weiss continued to look at her mutely. "They are difficult to master, each one dependent on the situation at hand. But I have instructed others on their use before, and I am sure I can lend you that same support." There were two parts of that sentence that Weiss found her mind focused on. She began with the latter.

"Others?" She spoke the word as a question. "What others? I thought it was a hereditary skill?" Didn't they agree on that?

"Indeed," Impa did agree. "And the few I taught were of my blood. It is that simple, sometimes." Oh, yes, of course. Weiss would admit she did react a bit too hastily on that one. Her nerves were being frayed with the amount of information she was dealing with.

"Oh, I have a question," Ruby spoke up. Weiss would have to thank her later. "Who were those others you taught? Younger brothers? Sisters?"

"A niece and nephew, actually," Impa replied easily. "My sister's children. They were born decades apart, but both loved to wander."

…Decades?

"Uh, I'm not judging, but that's kinda a long time," Yang spoke up now. Weiss had no need to thank her. "Did you mean a decade? Or like one was in their teens when the other was born?"

"My nephew was well into his 70th winter when Impaz was born to the world." Weiss must have heard those numbers wrong. There was no other reason. "Shiekah are long lived, and secretive for it. Only one of the clan is ever known to the world. You are looking at said member."

Weiss's blink was slow and deliberate, hoping to clear her ears as well as wipe her eyes. Something was just… not right. There was simply no way she was hearing the correct numbers from Impa.

"Remarkable." Weiss had no surprise that Blake was hanging on every word, with belief. "That is… unheard of. I thought faunus and humans lived for the same amount of time."

"Your former instructor and headmaster had just as much disbelief, but I assure it is true," Impa spoke with a grin. Weiss could just see it over the scarf. "Upon my death, I was nearing my eight hundredth year. I am aware it is old, but I was hardly an elder by the accounts of other Shiekah."

Eight hundred years. Those were three digits. Weiss counted them in their head, ran math with them just to put into perspective the magnitude of it. She had lived well over forty times the length of Weiss's current age. She was alive for nearly eight generations of humans. She had likely seen more wars, battles, and students than anyone else alive. Her claims from the class suddenly seemed so valid now.

And this woman was offering to train her, with her glyphs. Weiss could not ignore that. Not her sister or father. But this woman, a faunus General of unexplainable age. She knew, this was what people referred to as once-in-a-lifetime.

"Impa," She spoke the Shiekah's name again. "I would be grateful… very grateful, for you to teach me how to use my glyphs properly."

The faunus smiled down at her.

"Excellent." Impa patted Weiss's shoulder with her hand before releasing it. "Finish the task I gave your class, then we may discuss how to proceed. It will require many hours from you, but I am confident that you already expect nothing less." The spoken opinion made Weiss smile, broadly at that.

"Of course," she spoke with a nod. "I'll be sure to turn it in promptly and ensure my teammates do the same."

"Hey, Weiss, we got ours, no need for you to look over our shoulders again." Yang's comment was made inopportunely, as always. Weiss was having none of that now.

"You didn't even read a page in Professor Port's last lecture, slept through his quiz, then asked me and Blake what the difference was between a Grammite and King Taiju." Weiss pointed her finger at the blonde, who only grinned at her in response. She was insufferable, honestly.

"That stuff was boring as watching rocks, though," Yang countered, poorly in Weiss's unbiased opinion. "This new stuff is all about how to fight better and quicker. How can I not wanna do that?"

"Because you're probably just going to say something nonsensical like 'hit harder', 'hit even harder', or 'fake a hit then hit your hardest'!" From how she had seen Yang fight before, it was an entirely plausible answer the Blonde would give.

"But would I be wrong?" Points for Weiss.

"Don't worry Weiss, we got this!" Ruby spoke up. Her hands on Weiss's shoulder were much softer in comparisons to Impa's, but still strong as stone. "We'll write reports that'll give us extra credit and show Link that we really know how to think on our feet!" If only her energy was as contagious as her optimism.

"Then perhaps we should attend our next class," Weiss answered. "We can prepare our schedules for the report when we are done." Skipping class was not an option. It was even less than that when a professor was standing not but a foot from them.

Weiss had to remind herself she was calling Link, the faunus she had called a student a few days before, her professor. Well… his current friend at least.

"An excellent idea, Weiss," Impa spoke once more. Weiss would have to ask her what she preferred to be called. Professor perhaps, or General. "Your academics are as important as your physical training. Pay equal mind to each, and you will be a force on and off the field of battle."

For all the remarks for her being an Ice Queen, Weiss felt like her blood was on fire. Maybe this was how Ruby always felt.

"Then we best be off," she spoke to her team leader. "We can't afford to be late for Dr. Oobleck's lessons."

"You girls go on ahead," Blake spoke almost immediately after. "I'll catch up. I just need to ask… Link a quick question." That made Weiss pause, but only for a moment.

They were both faunus, and Blake likely had to ask him about how it felt. It wasn't her place to intrude on her teammate's privacy, not right now anyways.

"Alright, but you'd better be quick Blake," Ruby answered for three, in a jokingly strict tone. Of course. "We'll be sure to take notes for you in class." Weiss rolled her eyes at the comment. She was the only one who took notes in class. She supposed that made Ruby's comment valid, in an annoyingly twisted sort of way.

"We'll see you soon then," Weiss offered as well, nodding towards her darker counterpart. She put her eyes to Impa just afterwards. "And Impa, thank you once more." She curtsied towards her new professor, who nodded towards her once more with that small grin. She was tough to place it on either Impa for Link. That was just another question for another day.

Weiss led the sisters of her team out the door, Yang waving to her partner as they left.

Blake watched her team go, thankful once more that they understood her. Well enough at least. It left her alone with Link. Or, currently, Impa.

"What did you wish to ask me?" Impa asked her as the doors shut. Her arms were crossed again, looking at Blake with the stern expression she had held near the entire class. It wasn't cruel or mean. Simply… attentive. But that didn't mean she had to be warry. Link was a friend, a fellow faunus at that.

"It was about the test you set up," Blake spoke honestly. "I'm sure the others are just as curious but Weiss was… preoccupied with your abilities."

"I commend her for focusing on what she can measure over what she can only speculate," Impa returned. Blake agreed. It was why she didn't try and distract Weiss. That, and she knew the futility in trying to change the heiress's mind. "What did you want to know? Was there a rule Glynda and I were not clear on?"

"No, it all makes sense." And it did, even the incentive portion, though she could worry on that later. "It was about the… opponents we could choose. How they were you and your friends. Did that mean… all of them?" She hoped she was clear about her statement.

Impa's short silence made her worry though. The locker room filled momentarily with only the humming of the pods around them, ready to launch at a command's notice. Blake was patient. It was her question.

"You don't want you or your team to take advantage of me," Impa finally spoke. "More than that, you are concerned about requesting to fight Saria." Blake was bitterly sweet to note that Impa was very well versed in reading others on and off the field. A General, as she had described, indeed. "You need not be. None of Link's… my friends aren't weak. They are strong in ways Hyrule taught them to be. As I can chose the battlefield, if you so choose the foe, I'll always pick the ground that I have advantage on."

"But… how will she fight?" There wasn't much point in talking around the obvious, not when they both knew what they were talking about. "Even if Saria is a sage, fighting her will be like fighting a child. She's small, very likely weak to physical blows, and Yang is very strong. I wouldn't want-"

Her voice was cut off, by herself, as she felt Impa place her hand on Blake's head. It was where Link had placed it before, squarely between her feline ears. Blake blinked at the tall Shiekah, who was smiling down on her.

"Your concern is appreciated, but I assure you it is unneeded." Impa spoke simply. "You are assuming too much of a person you do not know. You cannot plan for an opponent without first knowing. There is an idea you have, but that is all it is. Speak with your team and tell them what you know. It is the first step to gathering new information."

She wanted her to tell them? Impa… Link wanted her to tell her teammates about Saria? Why? Blake was so sure that she was his friend for comfort, the one that was a friend off the field of battle, before he was a hero. Why would he want to open that up? If Weiss or Yang found out… if they wanted to fight Saria… everyone else would to. Wouldn't that be horrible?

"It would be no worse than fighting them as Mikau or myself." The words shocked Blake, her golden eyes blinking in confusion. Did… Impa read her mind. "No, I did not read your mind." Blake wasn't so sure. "You are just easy to read." That wasn't what she wanted to hear.

"To explain, you hide your true ears from your team and strangers alike," Impa began, lifting her hand from Blake's head. "Though I have spoken with you almost more than Ruby, you speak little to nothing about yourself. That means you know the strength of secrets. But you also value your friends, likely because they have proven themselves as that to you."

It was becoming increasingly impossible for Impa to not have some form of mental reading ability. Call it mind reading or not, this was… far beyond just reading someone.

"You value the secrets of your friends, and knowing that you may be a reason why those secrets would come out terrifies you," Impa did not stop. "So I am here to say that I do not mind if you tell your trusted friends about my own. Thus, I relieve you of your guilt." It took far longer than usual for the faunus in hiding to make a response.

"How…" Blake started, but shook her head lightly. "That was all from just watching me? Was that you or Link?"

"Both," Impa admitted. "Link's memories and then a combination of our skills. I've taught countless knights and soldiers, knowing where to focus their strengths. Link has fought countless monsters and enemies, studying them just as well." Pieces were falling into place, and Blake knew just the term to use.

"That's the Shadow, right?" Blake ventured a guess from the lesson Impa had spoken of hours ago. "One of those Knight groups. The ones who aren't seen."

"They are also the ones who hide in plain sight, but yes." Impa was grinning with small nods of her head. "I'm impressed you remembered. I had the distinct feeling that the majority of the trainees glossed over those words as mad ramblings." She seemed oddly fine with those words. Glynda had probably told her that was normal, or Link. Ruby was right, it was mildly confusing.

"Then, what would the Shadow do next?" Blake ventured further. "Collect information then share? Make their own plan?"

"Either, in honesty," Impa answered. "It depends on who their leader is and how quickly the plan needs to be made. In the heat of battle, they are the ones who tell of any areas to exploit. In preparation, they often make the best scouts." Blake nodded her head with the words. That all made sense. It made even more sense when put next to the Warrior and… Mage? Yes, Mage. But what about the Mage?

"Then what would the Mage do?" Blake spoke, intent on memorizing the answer. "If a Shadow collects the information, I'm guessing a Warrior is the distraction. But what does the Mage do?"

"Often? They are the ones who make the plans," Impa shifted her shoulders as she spoke. "They focus more on the information they have gathered and how they fit together. A skilled Shadow may be able to do so, but their focus is more intently on staying alive and missing nothing. A Mage is usually protected enough to put the worry beneath those of plan buildings." Blake could see it now.

The Warrior drawing out the enemy, the Shadow remaining just far enough away to help out and memorize the information from different angles, and the Mage organize an offense or defense. In a small squad, it made perfect sense.

But what was slightly more surprising was the other connection she made.

"I'm the Shadow of RWBY," she spoke aloud, more to herself. "Yang is our Warrior and Weiss our Mage." And Weiss was the smart one, always making new plans. She even wanted to be leader. Yang actually got stronger the more she was hit, the Warrior through and through. But what about Ruby?

"What do you think that makes Ruby?" Impa continued Blake's thought aloud. "Is she the Warrior with her scythe that so cleanly slices through foes? Is she the Shadow, running and moving at speeds the wind chases? Or is she the Mage, making plans and listening to all around her?" Blake didn't know.

It sounded like Ruby was all three. She wasn't trusted enough to lead any attacks or make plans on her own, and she was far too loud to do real recon, yet, but she had traits that made her valuable in the areas regardless. So what did that make her? Blake didn't know.

"And that's the answer." What?

"What?" Blake spoke her own thought aloud this time. She was greeted only with Impa's grin.

"You can't tell what Ruby is, even after being on her team for what I assume is enough time." Impa's smile didn't fall even as she spoke. "So if you cannot predict her, how can any enemy you face?" They couldn't. Maybe her abilities in the broad sense, but Ruby was as unpredictable as the White Fang right now. Ruby was an Unknown.

Blake's eyes lit.

"There it is," Impa appeared to congratulate. "I'm glad you see it, too. How about I offer you a small reward for the discovery, a small piece knowledge?" Blake's eyes must have been telling. "You are the Shadow, so you may consider this gathering information."

She swallowed on nothing, not used to being trusted like this. It was… euphoric, almost the same as how Ruby had spoken to her before. And Yang. And, eventually, Weiss. She was right, Link was a friend, Impa by extension.

"But I warn you, you may consider this my own test for your judgement as a Shadow. The information I tell you is yours to keep or share, but action or inaction has consequences. Do you still wish to know?" Blake nodded slowly at first, but ended with a sure shake. "Very good," Impa spoke, then slowly leaned closer.

She stopped when their faces were finger's distance from one another, Impa's red eyes bearing into Blake's golden ones. They were still just as sharp and focused, but now, Blake could see the compassion that lay beneath. Impa wasn't soft, but she was far from cold.

"Despite Weiss's thoughts, my runes are not my soul's true ability." Blake felt her jaw crack open, if just a little. But then how? "They are a power made from my soul, but they are not the core of who I am. In your terms, they are not my Semblance. Good luck, Blake."

Impa stood to her tallest again and began to walk around the younger faunus. Her hand touched on the girl's shoulders, comforting, there, but gone just as quickly. Blake heard her walk out of the room, not changing back to Link, not doing anything even as the doors opened and shut to the lockers. But Blake didn't move.

Blake had no idea what she was going to do.

"So are we gonna fight him?" Russel spoke up first in the group. Wasn't that weird, not after getting beaten down, again. Cardin would gut himself before he said it was expected, losing that is. "You think the four of us could take him?"

"Which him?" Dove asked next. He was loading cartridges into his Gun-blade, rotating the cylinder with each one. "Link? Mikau? Or are we talking about the fairer gender?"

"Whichever you want. Him, her, it, are we gonna fight them?" Russel beat his hands over his knees as he spoke. Just his nerves. Cardin had known that was normal of Russel for a long time.

"I say we ask to fight that Fish Boy," Sky spoke up. He was running his hand his axe as he spoke. "Scales can't be that tough, and no way can he take a blow from you, Cardin." He wasn't wrong, but that wasn't what was getting underneath Cardin's skin.

What he couldn't stand, what was annoying him to no end, was how the faunus brat that had beaten them all at his first day at Beacon had turned around and was now teaching them. It was like watching some newbie to wrestling stepping into the ring and pinning him round one. He would have screamed if he were alone.

But they weren't. Class was over, Oobleck's class was useless, so his team were lying out in the sun, staring up at the sky. He was at least, the others could do whatever they wanted.

"I wanna fight Link," Cardin admitted, head nodding to assure himself. "I wanna fight him and beat him until he's just a pulp on the ground." The thought was cathartic.

"Hell yeah! That's what I'm talking about!" Russel agreed, slapping at Cardin's shoulder as he did so. Didn't even make him budge. "All we gotta do is challenge him during next class and take them down! It'll be easier than getting that bunny girl to cry."

"Do you mean Velvet Scarlatina?" That wasn't any of his teammates.

Cardin whirled on the ground, spinning until he was kneeling. When he was, he was looking up at that faunus with too many friends. She had her arms crossed, looking down at them with some snide expression she didn't deserve to wear. When did she even get here?

"I was informed that you had class following Combat Training. Why are you not there?" Her voice was neutral, but Cardin was smart. He could tell she was scared, shaking with her words. She must have accidently found them. Her mistake.

"We're making up a plan," he told her, knowing that the fear would get to her. "We're thinking of the best way to take you down a few pegs. No class around here is gonna help with that. So long as we beat you, that's all that matters anymore."

"Hmm…" Answered simply. Coward. "Interesting. And how do you propose this will happen?" Oh, that was easy.

"We're going to challenge you next class period," Cardin declared boldly to the woman. He snarled for good measure. She didn't flinch. "We're going to fight you, beat you to the ground, and show you that Beacon isn't a place for brats like you!"

"A brat?" The woman returned, arms remaining crossed. "I'm older than the four of you combined and I'm the brat? Better than that, you're childishly declaring victory before a battle, yet I am the lesser one?" Who did this chick think she was?

"Heck yeah you faunus pansy," Russel cut in. Good on him. "You fought us with cheap tricks before and probably threatened your way into Beacon like some White Fang spy! You're less than dirt!"

That must have been a good one, because the Impa chick wasn't talking. She was just trying to look intimidating with those red eyes, just like a Grimm. She even raised her hand to steady her head, gripping her chin. Bet it was about to fall off. No, even Cardin knew that was stupid.

"Tell me, who is the leader of your squad?" She finally asked. What was that? "I have a guess, but I want to be sure." Well she'd get her answer.

"That'd be me." Cardin spoke up, putting his thumb to his chest. "Cardin Winchester, Leader of Team CRDL." Damn, that always felt good say. The smirk told everything else she needed to know.

"I was correct then," the arrogant chick spoke on. She was damn lucky she was a staff member now, or else they would have beaten her into the ground, hands tied behind their back. "Tell me then, with reason, how you would beat me?"

"You? No, we're gonna challenge the real you," Cardin emphasized as he pointed at her. "We're gonna challenge the dumb punk that thinks too highly of himself, uses tricks to win, and can't even speak right!"

"Then please," Impa spoke again. "Indulge me. How would you accomplish this?" Cardin sneered with grit teeth.

"We'll surround you so that stupid boomerang of yours can't work!" He started, loving step one. "Then we'll hit you from every angle you can't see, dogpile you, but keep one of us back so that he can hit you right back into us when you try and escape." Yeah, just like that.

"Even a dog would know how to escape such a simple threat." What? Why this stupid- "I was hoping that strategy was your strength, because your coordination was so lacking, but I am left disappointed." Who did this-! "If all you have to threaten me are your words and empty plans, then I wonder why you are here."

That did it.

He didn't care anymore. Cardin didn't care if he was going to get expelled. He didn't care if his dad would disown him. He didn't care if he was going to get to be the gossip of Beacon all over again. He was going to put this arrogant bitch down.

Cardin pulled back his fist, stepping forward with a roar to do just that. He could feel his semblance surge in him, ready to knock the faunus scum out cold with one good hit!

But he hit air.

She stepped, literally stepped, to the side to avoid him. She didn't even uncross her arms or grab at that oversized hunk of metal on her back. She was toying with him! And why weren't the rest of his team helping him!

"I was warned about you," she started to say. That meant she was focusing on something else! He swung again at her. She side-stepped once more. "By both Glynda and Ozpin. They told me you had a temper that was difficult to manage." That didn't matter.

He swung at her again, jumping with the attack. He missed her, but it slammed home into one of the stone walls of beacon. It shattered at the force, stone weaker than he was. That was because he was strong, enough to take anything and dish it all back out!

"But upon questioning, they assured me that you had much promise as a Knight, or Hunter as you prefer." Was she still talking? Why was she still talking? Cardin pulled his fist from the stone block, swinging it to backhand the damn woman! It still missed, this time because she ducked. "They said your strength was great enough deal with a hoard of monsters, lifting them for your partner to 'dissect with his blades'."

Damn right he could! Grimm were weaker than him all around. He could have busted that Nevermore's face clean off with just one hit of his Mace, or any other creature dumb enough to cross his path. He could do it and he would do it!

"However, their approach to helping you has not been working, as the results show." That was because Cardin didn't need them! His team was strong! They were CRDL, and this arrogant faunus brat was not going to say any different about it. He kicked at her, but actually pushed him away now, spinning like some gaudy flower. "So now I will attempt my approach."

What did that mean?

Cardin didn't know, but he knew in the next moment he was looking at the world upside down.

He had just enough time to register that before he felt a bomb explode over his chest. That was what it had to have been, because in the next second he was stuck in the wall and groaning. His insides were on fire, muscles screaming at him, and his teeth clenched hard enough to shatter stone. The same stone he was trapped in.

He opened his eyes, ready to send the meanest glare he could at Impa, just before he would pull himself out of this wall and give her the beating of her lifetime!

That was before he saw her inches from his own face. His plan fled.

"Listen to me, Winchester," Impa snarled, snarled, at him. "I do not care what you think is right. I care even less for what you believe to be true. All you need to know right now is that I am stronger than you. I am better than you. And if I wanted, I could kill you."

… What? She wouldn't do that. She was his teacher. No, screw that, this was the same faunus brat that almost killed that Atlas girl!

"I don't have to make it look like an accident, like I did with her." Wait, she knew what he was thinking? "You are arrogant, unfocused, and constantly throwing yourself at mountains trying to make them move. Who would suspect me if they found you dead from your own effort?"

Cardin wasn't trembling. His muscles were shaking from his semblance. It wasn't because of this faunus bitch. It wasn't! Even when she stood up he was shaking, so he knew it couldn't have been her. Then he felt her grab his leg.

He was thrown again, not even given time to take in the air to scream. But like he was trained, Cardin pulled his body into itself, making him more of a boulder and less of a ragdoll. He felt the contact on the grass immediately, himself rolling over it without much say in the matter. Even when he stopped, he was only able to unroll himself. His semblance had used too much for him to do much else. Stupid trump card. But then he saw Impa marching towards him, glaring all the while.

"I've trained Knights like you before," she started. "Arrogant as the goddesses and believing themselves mightier than the Earth. Beating on others to affirm their own false self-identity." Who the hell was she to say that? He was going to get up and really put her into the ground.

But then she put her foot on his chest, pushing down. He couldn't move.

"Until you throw away that undue sense of identity, you aren't going anywhere." Now she was scowling at him. Cardin was sure the cold sensation on his back wasn't fear. It was… gravity, or something. Those eyes were too red. "You, your team, your future, they will be as empty as a monster's soul if you continue acting the way you do."

She looked away from him, up and away. Cardin strained his head to see what she was looking at. His eyes fell on his team members, all of them gripping their weapons like they were ready to charge. But then weren't taking her on. Why the hell not!?

"The same is for the four of you," the faunus spoke on. "Cardin is your leader, so he receives the worst of your punishment but not all of it. You all need to open your eyes to the world, the real one. If you can't do that, I don't see a reason for you to stay here."

Was this… was she threatening to kick them out? Oh no. If Cardin was going to get the boot, it was gonna be from Ozpin, or Glydna, or some other Hunter who had actually done a damn. Not from some foreign faunus who had to be told who the real enemies even were!

"But if you do turn around, if you do act like Knights," she started to talk again. Her voice was… softer, maybe. "I can promise you that you will do great things. As were the words I began with, I have seen trainees like you before. In time, as they saw their own flaws, they made up for their mistakes, and they became some of the greatest Knights ever to grace the kingdom."

What… Was she trying to give them a pep-talk? After beating him into the ground? Trying to beat him into the ground? She hadn't yet. Everything so far was just luck. She was trying to squirm her way out of it, he could tell. Even when she looked back down at him with those red eyes, talking on.

"I want to see you succeed." Grimm Blood she did. "I want to see what a Warrior like you can do when they act less like a child, and more like a man."

She reached out and grabbed him, faster than he realized. Then, with just as much strength, she picked up off the ground. It must have been another trick. No way was she strong enough to pick him up like that. It was next to impossible. Instead of throwing him though, she just set him down, let go of him. He was standing, his legs shaking from having used his semblance, not from the beating.

"A knight I trained long ago was named Groose," Impa began to talk. Was she telling him a story? Must have been, because she crossed her arms, stepped away, and looked at him and his team. "He was little different than you. The leader of a team, taller and stronger than most others he met, and with enough arrogance to talk himself into challenging anyone. If I'm correct, you were both even named after avian species."

What the hell was a Groose bird? Must have been made up. No point in listening after that.

"More than once he would bad mouth the trainees he was being taught with, assuming himself above others, despite having little to his own name." Well that wasn't Cardin. His family was rich. "I very nearly expelled him from the Knights, sure that his ego would be the cost of many lives. But another Knight, a trainee no different than Groose, requested to work with him."

"So what?" Cardin spoke up, already sick of this melodramatic stuff. "He died because he wasn't strong enough? You're gonna say he was too proud to admit he was wrong." Impa smiled at him. Why the hell would she do that?

"No," she shook her head. "In truth, both returned from their mission, though worse for wear. Groose had nearly lost his arm, did lose his eye, but was still alive. The other trainee he was with was unconscious, near death." So what did that mean? "In case it is not clear, Groose brought back the other trainee from what would have surely been his demise. But instead of rolling in praise, he only implored that his friend be given the most attention."

Cardin didn't say anything. There wasn't anything to say. This whole story was just a bunch of made up junk anyways.

"From what was later told, Groose had both sabotaged and saved the mission." Now that was stupid, how could you do both? "He believed himself so capable of fighting a threat that the trainee he was with was forced to fight with him. They were overwhelmed and very nearly killed. However, the other Knight saved Groose from what would have been a lethal blow. Groose was forced to watch as man he had insulted for fun nearly died for his mistakes."

What a bunch of bull this was. Did she seriously think some sob story was going to do anything for him? Only the weak listened to that.

"After that Groose was dismissed from the Knights." What?

"What are you talking about?" Cardin sneered with his words. "He brought back that other guy half-dead and he still got kicked out? The hell was the point then."

"You do not understand," Impa answered. "He left himself."

Now what the hell? Why would someone leave a Hunter position because of a single bad mission? That just proved Cardin was stronger than this Groose guy. A single defeat wouldn't stop him.

"He set off to search for his soul, realizing that his ego very nearly took a life that wasn't his own. The guilt weighed too heavily on him. He refused to even pick up a blade." Impa stalked towards him again. "I am telling you this because I see you two very nearly the same. Your team included."

Her head jerked towards his teammates. He snarled in return.

"I do not want to remove you from this Academy," Impa spoke. That was probably a lie, yeah… "I want to see you become a great Knight. I want to see your team save lives as often as you insult them. I wish to see what you can become when you correct your own mistakes. And believe me, you have much to answer for."

She was breaths from him now, and he could smell something like sulfur coming from her. For once, his sneer was him trying to get away from her. Impa didn't move.

"The choice is up to you, and you alone." Her voice was deep and quite. "Hold on to your ego, cherish it, and let it drag you down. Or let it go, open yourself up, and I will do my utmost to make you all Knights of renown."

She stepped away from him, a single step back before turning on her heel and walking off. Just like that… Just like that? What the hell? She came over here, insulted him and his team, beat him down some unfair trick, and she thought that was going to do him in? What the hell?!

"Hey… Cardin…" Said boy whirled on Dove, who was holding his hand towards him. "Maybe… we should listen to her?"

"What are you talking about?" He nearly yelled at his teammate. He was too tired to do that now. "Don't you see she was trying to scare us from fighting her? She knows that if we take her on she won't have a chance! We just gotta challenge her and then we'll show her who's best!" He stomped his foot into the ground, and nearly fell for it. Damn, his legs were weak.

"But… I don't wanna get kicked out of Beacon." What was this idiot talking about now? "Impa, Link, whoever, they're way worse than Glynda. Maybe… shouldn't we listen to them?"

"No!" Cardin yelled back. That was an order. Orders were yelled and soldiers listened. That was how it worked! "We're all going to go after her next chance we get, got it?!"

"I'm… I'm not on board for that…" What, Sky now too? "I get that she was being pretty bitchy about it, but… like… maybe we should hear her out. Didn't she just offer to make us famous?"

"That was a trick, numbskull," Russel, thankfully, spoke up for Cardin. He could trust his partner. "What can a faunus from some made-up kingdom do to make us famous? She'll probably send us to a slaughter!"

Yeah! At least Russel got it. Sky and Dove, what were they thinking? Did they honestly believe that sob-fest story about some made up dude? Even if he was real, and he wasn't, why would he give up knight-hood? Some misplaced sense of guilt. It was the other guy's fault for being there in the first place.

"C'mon, we should at least talk about this," Dove insisted. Why, Cardin couldn't tell. "What if she does get us kicked out? How am I gonna tell my mom I got kicked out of Beacon? I can't do that, man."

What was going on? Cardin shook his head as disgust filled him. His teammates, the guys he had trained and taught how to fight. They were being pansies in the worst of ways. Was this that bitch's plan? Link, too? Get his team to split up like this? Of course it was! That what it was all along. She just wanted his team to fall apart so they could have a reason to kick them out!

But he was the leader of the team. He could get this guys into shape. He'd show that stuck-up faunus how wrong she was! They'd be the best! They'd be the symbol of Beacon. They… they could do this. They had to. Cardin bit his lip as he fell on to his butt, gripping the grass until it tore from the ground.

He was a Winchester. He had to be strong. There were no excuses not to be. He had to be.

So why couldn't he even lead his team?

"Cardin?" That was Dove. That traitor didn't have the right to speak to him right now. None of them did!

"Get lost," he spoke to the wimp. "Just… go do whatever. I need to think." He fell to his back with his words, staring up at the sky as he had done before. He let his mind drift, thinking of anything that it could.

He heard his team members leave, swords and axes being sheathed, mutterings about things that didn't matter. He let them go. If they couldn't even stick with him, they weren't needed. That was the truth of it. Either they were his best friends or worst enemies. And the world was full of people who wanted you dead.

But what would he do if one of them did almost die? What would that make him if he almost cost a teammate their life? He shook his head. That stupid faunus story shouldn't be getting to him. It didn't matter. It didn't.

So why couldn't he stop thinking about it?

Penny wasn't sure what she was supposed to do, so she went walking.

Walking was what she always did when there was nothing to do. She walked to gather new information, to see new sights, to meet new people, or maybe just to feel free. But now, she was just that, free. Uncle Ironwood had kicked her out of Atlas, only for Ozpin to include her at Beacon, as he had assured her. But that meant she could walk wherever she wanted, talk to whoever she wanted.

But she still wasn't sure what to do. Everyone here had a team they were talking with, planning with actually. Her acute audio sensors told her that many of them were talking about how to fight Link, or Ms. Impa, or Mr. Mikau a few times as well. She hadn't met Mr. Mikau, but he sounded nice.

Penny, however, didn't have that. She had fought and lost to Ms. Impa. Badly. That had never happened before.

Maybe she had been surprised, but she had never lost like that. Against any opponent, whomever she fought, she always had the upper hand. Her advanced data storage and planning optimizers allowed her to calculate theoretical next moves and plan accordingly.

But she didn't know Ms. Impa could move so quickly with such a big weapon, that she was strong enough to destroy her defenses, or could use Schnee quality hard-light Glyphs. She didn't know any of that, and she had lost badly for it. She didn't know what to do. Penny didn't know what you were supposed to do when you lost. So she kept walking.

And she walked right into Ms. Impa.

Her sensors flared to life, having entered a 'sleep' state to allow the maximum amount of her cores to run 'thought sorting' programs. It made the contact jarring, having her flail her arms to stay upright. But the action was unneeded.

Her contact sensors told her two strong points of contact were made, quickly identified to be Ms. Impa catching her. She had strong arms, but the combat exercise with her already told her that. But the level of control she expressed, not damaging her exterior armor, implied a great deal of control as well.

"Are you well, Penny?" Ms. Impa spoke to her. "I apologize for surprising you."

"Oh? Oh! No no, I am the one who must apologize," Penny quickly spoke, righting herself and standing to her tallest, only to almost immediately bow towards the taller woman. "I had assumed too much of the data I had been recording and made incorrect battle assumptions about you. It is my mistake for not taking your word to spend more time reviewing data."

"Ah, you mean from the duel," Ms. Impa clarified before she spoke on. Normal. "It is quite alright. You performed well for one who had minimal knowledge of my abilities. If it aids you, I was equally surprised by the control of your blades."

She was? But didn't see or record any outwards reactions that indicated surprise during their battle. Did that mean she had complete alien forms of outwards expression? With the knowledge that she was from a foreign land undocumented, it was plausible, but the numerous other signs they shared made it statistically unlikely, a student p value of 0.44.

"Why do we not sit and discuss the matter?" Ms. Impa proposed to her. Her hand swept towards a wall, lined with benches. They were placed adequately to give one a view of the setting sun. That would not be for another 0.76 hours though. "I am sure you wish to learn from your mistakes. It would be difficult without speaking to another about it."

This was true, and Penny had saved several physician journal articles discussing such a point. Communication often corrected simple errors as well as encouraging new thought processes. Perhaps something Ms. Impa said could allow her mind to make more accurate connections. That made it really kind for her to offer!

"Of course!" Penny returned in jubilation. Cheer in one's voice made conversation easier. Many reports reported just that, saved in her core memory files. "I would be very thankful for that!" She skipped over to one of the many benches, spinning before sitting herself down. She grinned back up at Impa, who returned the grin. Hers wasn't a big as Penny's but that was a normal reaction, or so the numerous recorded conversations told her.

The faunus instructor took a few long strides before sitting down next to Penny. Her ocular sensors immediately took note of how she sat. Her hands were lightly folded together, making a loose spherical shape. Her back was straight, making her even taller to Penny than she normally was, but her legs reached further out than Penny's own. Even they were settled flat on the ground.

The exact posture wasn't well recorded in Penny's memory banks, but it had close relation to a 'sensation' one might have. On guard. Was that because of Penny? No, the smile made it statistically unlikely. It must have been a part of her status as a former-General. That was probable.

"Where would you like to begin?" Ms. Impa began. "Are you more concerned with my abilities, or the short comings you may have discovered? Both are areas I am sure are giving you discomfort." Penny smiled. She really was smart. Still, she had to check something.

Her eyes scanned the immediate area, looking for the nearest source that could interpret their audible exchange. The nearest students in sight were walking the stone path to the Bullheads, conversing with one another. The next set were at the far end of the water's edge, watching Vale from a distance. According to Beacon's downloaded schedule and anthropometric analysis, it made the most sense. Most students did homework or studying at this time, in their dorms.

Stupendous, that meant she could speak openly. Well, more openly.

"Ms. Impa, I am most curious of how I would have better countered your speed and strength," Penny spoke as she was taught to when speaking to superiors. "All of my current datasets indicate that your strength was directly proportional to your speed, when the vast majority of other test recordings indicate that the interaction is usually inversely so. Therefore, I was unable to form a correct strategy to counter you."

"Impressive," Ms. Impa began. "You have already thought of this in depth." Penny grinned with the words. It was the correct response for praise. "And you are also correct. Great strength is usually deterred by low speed. You saw my speed and assumed my strength subpar, but when I proved otherwise, you turned defensive until you could counter me. The attack you used then, what was your reasoning for it?"

"The Railgun?" Penny questioned. Ms. Impa nodded, so she continued. "I assumed that if I use a strong enough attack from great enough distance, I would be able to subdue you before you could inflict suitable damage on me. I also deployed stand-by swords for your quick attack, if you attempted to do so."

"You were hoping the strings would trip me or the blast would damage me, accounting for both speed and strength," she was nodding as she spoke, her arms moving from their hand-to-hand contact to crossed arms. Penny visibly noticed her position lax, leaning back with shut eyes. "A suitable strategy, but one that required much effort on your part. A 'trump' move, if I am using the term correctly."

"Indeed!" Penny spoke with her usual jubilee, but corrected herself. Mission briefings weren't meant to be exciting. "It was designed for countering large scale enemies or vehicles. Not… you." Penny wasn't sure what the correct word was to use there, and she had multiple encyclopedias on files.

"If it helps your self-esteem, there is unlikely to exist a single move that can best any foe at my level," Ms. Impa smiled down at her with the words, just visible over her brown scarf. "You have the great makings of a Mage, using your blades as you were. Your ability to record information is on par with a journeyman of the Shadow's path. Also, though inferior to my own, your strength is far from lacking." The praise made Penny's internal servos overheat momentarily.

"Oh, thank you," she replied. She wasn't sure if it was appropriate to say more. Uncle Ironwood usually didn't, but this was much more praise than she was used to even from him. "But… I still lost."

"Yes," Ms. Impa stated. "I was more prepared for you then you were for me. You have done an excellent job analyzing your performance thus far. Why do you suppose I was more prepared for you then you for me?" Penny did know.

"I adopted the first strategies that my… jumped to my mind." That was the correct phrase. She had several recordings of it being used before. "It must have made me predictable, correct?" She looked up with pleading eyes, setting number twenty-four.

"Correct," Ms. Impa replied. Penny smiled, as she knew was best. "But there was also another point that you missed. Small indeed, but critical when facing an enemy that is an Unknown." An Unknown used as a proper noun? Oh! She meant the terms she had addressed earlier.

Penny easily recalled the recorded conversation. According to Ms. Impa, Unknowns were an untrainable type of classification, given strength through their sheer unpredictability. As her conclusion was, Unknowns always had the advantage. Logic functions told her she was correct.

"What is the critical factor?" Penny asked once more. "I cannot bring… recall any key means to confront the Unknowns you described." It was the truth, even if she had nearly slipped. But her safety parameters flagged fast enough for her to backtrack, excellent.

"Imagination," Ms. Impa spoke. Penny remained confused.

"Imagination? The ability to generate new ideas from sparse information?" Ms. Impa nodded that was good, but… how did imagination help?

"Against an Unknown, the imagination is what allows you to not only predict your enemy, but counter them. You cannot know if your current abilities are enough, not until you use them in a new way." Penny's function connectors were starting to flag. "Therefore, if you act in new way, one the opponent has not seen before…" she lead off with her sentence. That meant Penny was supposed to finish.

Could she? It was difficult for her to generate new information readily. It was a function Papa Zepp was still optimizing. But it was working, though slowly. Connections were being made, figurative dots connected. She believed she had an idea, perhaps.

"… Then… you become an Unknown?" Ms. Impa's smile finally showed teeth. It was wonderfully bright.

"Correct." Penny felt the servos in her facial muscles pull a smile in complete relation to the heating of her servo motors. She loved that feeling, happiness. It was the main reason she always smiled. "Now I must ask the question that follows a lesson. How do you intend to better your imagination?"

And Penny's smile fell.

"I don't know," she spoke almost instantly. Nothing in her databanks pulled up a single result for training the imagination. Thousands for the former and hundreds for the latter, but not a single overlap in between. "I… would it be training my imagination to think of a way to better my imagination?"

She could feel a recursive loop forming in her code. That was dangerous.

"Or you could converse with others." Ms. Impa moved to stand as she spoke. Penny watched her, unsure if she should follow. "Not even the greatest of Knights fight well enough alone. You are kind soul, generous too, but you must make friends that you keep if you want to expand your mind."

"That helps grow an imagination?" Penny inquired. She believed she extrapolated the meaning, but with nothing to compare it too, she needed definite facts. Ms. Impa's nod told her she was on the right track.

"Indeed it does," she confirmed. She extended her hand now, and Penny took it. She felt herself being pulled up by the woman, standing beside the bench. "Speak to RWBY, talk with JNPR, converse with CFVY, I would even encourage you to attempt conversations with team CRDL." The last one confused Penny.

"But my reeeeememories seem to be telling me they are viewed unfavorably by majority of Beacon." Penny could recall at least three conversations between RWBY were Cardin's name was mentioned, specifically with his bullying towards Jaune Arc. "Wouldn't they be a poor choice?"

"They wouldn't," Impa disagreed. "Only a different one. Ideas you gain from speaking with Ruby will vary drastically from those you may gather with Cardin. Take this not as an order or request, merely a suggestion." Impa turned away from her walking once more along Beacon's outer walls.

Penny wondered if she was meant to follow. The conversation didn't appear to be over verbally, but physical queues seemed to indicate that it was. The conflicting conclusions weren't weighing well on her processing power.

"I wish to see you become a marvelous Knight, Penny Polendina," Ms. Impa spoke once more, her head looking over her shoulder as she spoke, single white bank hiding her only visible eye. "But you can only be so if you wish to be. I do look forward to dueling you again."

Penny didn't answer the faunus as she walked off, her form tall and well complimented by the now setting sun. Even with a blade that hid most of her form, she could tell Ms. Impa was not undeterred by the weight. She was strong, wise, and kind. And she was hoping for Penny to be all the same.

For the first time since she had met Ruby, Penny felt glad to be alive. She deftly decided it was her favorite feeling.

And now he was back. They were back, appropriately.

It had been a long day, as Ozpin had told him it would be. That was alright, he was prepared for it. He had had far longer days before, days that went well into nights. This was long, but far from the longest. The only difficulty he found in the day was finding the worrying students.

Link was glad the members of RWBY came to him. He wished he could have spoken more to Ruby herself, but Impa's memories told him of the awkwardness and favoritism it would show. That was always in poor form when teaching a class. She knew better. And because she knew, he did too.

Cardin was the difficult one. Link knew well before the class began, his rather overdone introduction and redone meeting with Impa, that he and his team would be the hardest ones to teach. From Impa, he was reminded of Groose, a name Link did not know. From Link himself, he was reminded of Mido. But Mido was still alive, at least the last Link had seen him. Impa said Groose had learned his lesson. Mido had started to learn his. Cardin… Link wanted to see him reach the end.

Penny was the odd one. She was a golem, or so Tatl told him. Not flesh and blood, but iron and steel. Not even stone, like a true golem. Still, she had a soul, she had a heart… metaphorically. Impa reminded him that they were in no place to judge one for their body. She was right, of course. Centuries of knowledge made for a lot of wisdom.

Though to be fair, Penny was the oddest trainee he had met. Confidence, but with solitude. Strength, but without numbers. Knowledge, but without experience. It was as if she were built from the minds of others, and in all likelihood she was. If she was open to him, maybe he could ask. Not yet though. She was as new to this school as he was. She needed comfort, and he would make sure she had it.

He would need to make sure they were all ready when the time came. It was impossible to predict the future. It was just as difficult to stop it. At least the results of his tests were going well.

Link opened the door to his room, already becoming acclimated with the newest center he was given. Not but a week ago they had given him a room with other students. Now Glynda had informed him that he would have a new room available to him as soon as it was prepared. He could wait, in all honesty. There was no rush for him to move.

"There you are!" He heard Tatl yell at him as he came inside. Tael was swinging behind her, silent next to his sister. "Do you have any idea how long we've been waiting for you? Seriously. I spent Time knows how long with Super Buzz and you were probably out taking a stroll." Maybe for the last hour, but not the first six.

"Apologies, Tatl," he spoke with Impa's voice. "I had trainees to meet and lessons that could only be delivered away from combat. Not everything can be learned through steel." She bobbed through the air, like she was shaking her head at him. Link had no doubt she was rolling eyes beneath those bright lights.

"Yeah, yeah, I get that," she drooled out. "Just give Impa a rest and let's talk. You know I hate looking at her."

Impa's memories were infuriated, but Link's were full of understanding. The history was complicated between them. But then, when was rich history simple and sweet? He sighed as he reached up to the edges of his face, saying silent thanks once more for his friend's aide.

He felt the familiar pull as he dragged his fingers over his features, Impa's memories fleeting with them. Her strength, her wisdom, her skill, her abilities, all of them vanishing the further he pulled. Until, with a small gleam of light, they were gone.

And he was standing in his room, himself complete, with the Mask of Truth, Impa's Mask, within his hands. He rubbed his palm over the inside, thanking her silently once more before pocketing it within his chest. She would be seen again, doubtlessly.

"Took your sweet time with that," Tatl nagged him, comfortingly. He smiled to her, and she bopped him on the head. It only made him laugh. "Alright tough guy, but seriously, shut the door, we got some stuff to fill ya in on." Well, it had been a long day for all of them.

Link's hand brushed against the side of the door, giving it a light shove until he heard the click of metal. He needn't lock it. He would be going out again before the night was truly here. It was enough to maintain privacy. He took the few steps necessary to reach his bed, twisting until he fell onto it. He bounced for his effort, a feeling that gave him a fleeting sense of joy. It had been a long time since he had a bed that bounced.

"Well since you're nice and comfortable, let's get started," Tatl flew above him, joined by Tael readily. Link looked up at them, and they down to him. "Tael tells me you had a lot of fun in that class today, hitting the Golem Girl down a peg. Guess it's the next best thing to Big Stiff himself."

"Sis, she wasn't like that," Tael interjected, and Link agreed. Penny was nice, honest as well. "She didn't complain or cheat or anything. She was just… confident, right?" Yes, that was the word Link would use. She was overly confident, but a quick loss usual saw to that. He was reminded of Cardin, but that was a longer lesson to be taught.

"Whatever, she doesn't matter right now." Link sighed at Tatl's usual dismissiveness. Still, she did know best, usually. "Did have to answer 1001 questions from Super Buzz though. Guy had more questions then blades of Grass in Hyrule Field." That was a lot.

"But… did something happen?" Tael spoke up now. They must have been waiting for Link before they spoke of it. It made him grin as he looked up at the two. "I mean, sis, you said we had to talk."

"Eh, didn't ask anything I'm sure he couldn't eventually infer," the golden fairy began. "Stuff like 'how often do Hylians and Zora talk to one another' or 'What is the expected trajectory of Watarara migration and speed'. Dude just wants to know all the random stuff, crap that doesn't really come back to bite you." On that, they could disagree.

Link found it hard to list any information as poor. More than once he could recall a casual conversation with a fellow Hylian leading him to discover some great mystery or secret. The secrets buried within the obvious were what gave power to the Unknowns.

And the Unknowns always had the advantage. It was why they always hid the best.

"Point is though, I got him to fess up about some the things he's doing for us." Tatl rang with her words, trails of her golden dust following about Link. They dissipated before they fell into his eyes. "Apparently he's been a Gerudo of his oath, digging up a lot of stuff about the surrounding areas."

That was important. Link pushed himself across the bed until his back was on the headrest, watching as the two fairies righted themselves to gravity in time with him. He felt his gaze narrow at Tatl. It wasn't threatening, never would be. But he didn't want to forget anything she said.

"Glad that got your attention," Tatl spoke up again. "Better than watching you debate about sleeping while give you real important stuff. Seriously, training these guys like you're gonna be here forever."

"They need us sis," Tael whined to his sister, but it was something Link agreed with. They only rang at one another quickly before Tatl continued, ignoring her brother's claim. That was alright with Link for now. He needed to know what the doctor had found.

"According to Super Buzz, there are several locations nearby that have been abandoned or have failed to be 'built up' into Vale, due to the influx of Grimm and past events," she began carefully. "Wasn't so much the trouble of the monsters being there, but that they kept coming back faster than they could keep them out. Apparently makes it impossible for any of these guys to do more than explore those places. Even then, he said that records were pretty thin about them."

"So there are a lot of places we can look into?" Tael questioned, flying with his words. Link shared the curiosity. Thankfully, Tatl had an answer.

"According Buzz, after I told him about how often Zoras… mate," she shivered with the words, uncomfortable. Link couldn't blame her for a moment. "He said that those areas are explored just enough to test three things. The type and number of Grimm, the amount of feasible space, and the resources around there. Didn't give me any numbers, but apparently if the first one is low and the last two high enough, they try and expand."

"But these places he mentioned the… didn't have enough?" Or too much, Link added on. But he knew the darker of the two fairies was speaking in the right direction.

"Yeah," Tatl agreed. Thankfully. "Since those things don't tend to change too quickly, they usually don't explore those areas again once their done. So it's one and done for their recon trips. In other words, if they weren't looking for the right thing…" Tael picked up where she trailed off.

"…Then there's a chance there could be something we're looking for?" That was exactly right. Tatl's high ring and bobbing motion only confirmed it.

"Exactly!" Tatl let out, maybe even with a bit of excitement. Impossible to blame her for that. "But that's also kinda the problem." Now Link didn't follow. It must have showed across his face, because Tatl gave another signature ring, flipping about in a small halo, before speaking on. "Think about it. He said these places aren't given a reason to explore when those Corrupted Council C-" Link ignored it.

"So why's that bad?" Tatl asked. Though in honesty, Link knew what Tatl meant now. The simple statement gave him enough to fill in the blanks. "Doesn't that just mean there's a good chance nothing's been found yet? Would find a fairy fountain if we looked for the right sings."

"You bet we could, but how are we gonna get there?" It was the rub, and the downside to his new position. Trading safety and freedom act while removing the distance he could go. "We can't just say we're gonna go explore some monster cave or deep-dark dungeon and hope they're okay for it. I bet my wings that Big Green and Triple B are gonna want to either tag along or record us during the whole thing."

That would make it rather difficult. Link couldn't risk being watched when he was exploring those areas. They could see too much, surmise too much more. It would remove him as the Unknown, give them the advantage, anyone who could see him. It was a balancing act and he didn't like it. He creased his frown in thought as Tatl and Tael spoke on.

"Well… maybe we can give them a reason?" Tael asked with a statement. "Like, we're curious about this land, o-or that we wanna help get rid of the threat?"

"Nope, tried it already," Tatl responded. "Had to explain that Deku Scrub Hierarchy for him to fess up about that. Explorations like that have to be done in teams, and I quote, 'Grimm threats always looming, but small bounties cull enough. Offensive unneeded.' So basically, unless we got a specific thing to look for, we aren't goin' anywhere without all these guys and that damn Council judging us."

It was a catch Link didn't like being between. His hand ran the bridge of his nose, over the tip, and then across his lips as he thought. They had to look into those areas, explore them to some extent, but without arousing suspicion. It wouldn't have mattered if they found nothing, but if they did get a hold of something, then it would either be studied by Ozpin or handed off to the Military.

He could not forget what Glynda said before. They were in a symbiotic relationship with the Council and Military. If they hid too much or were not open enough, it would give grounds for them to be explored and interrogated. Even if they could hide the important facts, too much little information would be vetted. It was something an Unknown could not afford.

"So… we're stuck?" Tael asked, likely reaching a conclusion similar to Link's own. He didn't like to admit it, but until they had an idea, it appeared that they were. It was superior to being killed by the Military or Council, but still far from the path a Knight was usually allowed to walk.

"For now at least," Tatl spoke with a quick ring. She wasn't happy about it either. "Still, not all bad. At least Super Buzz is actually helping us out, and he hasn't asked anything really hard to explain like wars, death, or opinion of Hyrule. He's just focused on gettin' down all the culture and stuff. Wants to know more about food then politics." Link envied the Gerudo greatly.

"Do you think we'll find a fountain?" Tael asked. Link could hear the hope in his voice. It was always clear as glass when put next to his usual shy tone. "It would be nice to see again. The magic, the warmth… the Great Fairy…" Link would want to see her, too.

"It'd be nice, and a real break, too," Tatl agreed, in her own way. It was a way her sibling and Link were well and used to. "But ya know what, given the size of this… world I guess? Probably a point in a favor getting Super Buzz to at least narrow down the suspect areas."

And she was right. This land, this world as Tatl was correct in saying, was far larger than Link imagined. He had seen the variety within his first day, from a forest of red, to green, to a city, and the Academy. But with his test against the Bellumgera, in the Badlands as the Gerudo here were found to call it, he had seen just how far this land stretched.

Travels were far from something he was unused to. Distant lands were often a place he would call home. But it was that experience that told him that for him to search the four corners of this world alone would take more time than even the Goddess would allow. No, this was necessary. It was a blessing that required a toll, but it was one he was willing to pay.

Like the sprout in the forest that hid beneath the green giants, it grew stronger the longer it remained hidden away. But… the thought jogged a rouge idea in Link's mind.

He reached into his belt pouch, the third canister to the left of his buckle. Awkward to reach quickly, but doable while sitting in bed, musing the day with friends. He produced another small pouch from within it, slightly larger than the hole it was stored in. He bobbed it up and down within his grasp, listening to the objects in side knock against one another, dozens in number.

"Hey, what are ya doin, Link?" Tatl spoke up now, flying around his arm before settling over his hand. "Are those the seeds the Deku Sprout gave you?" He nodded to her, confirming what she and her brother already knew. "What are you planning on doing with those? Reminiscence?"

Link shook his head. That was not what you used seeds for. Paintings, statues, instruments as well, but not seeds. Seeds were for planting. That was how you spread new life. Tael seemed to catch on faster than his sister.

"O-Oh! You're thinking about his promise, right?" The dark fairy spoke up. Link nodded in response. It was all the answer he needed to give, especially obvious with the dark fairy's perked up attitude. "That's great! I forgot about it before, b-but I'm really glad you didn't Link."

"Whoa, hold on a sec," Tatl spoke up. "Where are you thinking of planting those things? The forest full of all the monsters?" She didn't really expect an answer, Link knew that. "Besides, aren't we supposed to be figuring out what to do next? I mean, are we seriously just gonna sit around and wait for Super Buzz? He's working, yeah, but that doesn't mean we're going to do nothing."

Actually, that was right where Link's mind was going. It was far from doing nothing in his mind. He was actually helping other trainees. He wasn't a symbol to look at, a warning for what would happen, or some far removed member of the group. He was their leader now, in a sense.

Not a monarch, but a captain. Not the General, but a confidante. It was more than he ever thought he would have again. While someone else worked busily to help him, it made sense he would help the others who needed him. Besides, if nothing else, there was no other way Link could think to make sure these young trainees would survive the world ahead.

Waiting, in that sense, was unacceptable. It must have shown in his eyes, or Tatl had simply learned to read his thoughts. With how fairy's worked, it was possible.

"Aw c'mon!" She gave a hard bob as she spoke. "We didn't seriously jump through hoops in time and space just to sit on a cushy bed Link! We're supposed to be out there looking!" She never did bother to hide how she was feeling.

"Yeah, but sis," Tael lightly, gently, countered. "It's dangerous to go alone out there, and wherever those secrets are buried… well… they're just that to everyone." Link nodded with the younger of the two.

"So the better alternative is to stay here, spend Time knows how long talking to Super Buzz about super ancient history, and teach a bunch of love-hungry kids how to fight right?" Link nodded without hesitation.

If there was ever a lesson he learned, it was strength in numbers. Here, he had the aid of the Headmaster and at least two of his subordinates. Out there… he had only Tatl and Tael.

"You know what, I get it," Tatl suddenly spoke again, voice much calmer. That wouldn't last. "They've done a lot to help us here, a few of them at least. There are some dumb knockers out there, for sure, so you want to stick with where you know we're safe until we have to charge, right?" Actually, yeah. Link nodded at her words. She gave a ring that was equivalent to a sigh.

"But it makes sense," the dark fairy spoke. "Besides I-I… I don't want to just leave again. They're nice here, Ruby is. A-And Dr. Oobleck loves to hear my stories. He doesn't even interrupt or get bored. He just… writes them all down." Link would have to ask at a better time what stories he told. There was a long list.

"We don't belong here," the response came quietly. Link could guess why. "We're… we weren't supposed to stay here for this long. It was supposed to be just long enough to point us in a direction." Link knew, the longer he let the silence stretch, that Tatl would realize the meaning of her own words.

They didn't have even that yet. They had just found roads, but too many of them. It was impossible for them to tell which lead to treasure and which to empty tombs. They had to wait, at least until Oobleck had done more. He swung the bag of seeds in his hand, enjoying perhaps too much the sound of the seeds spinning inside.

"I hate this," Tatl spoke in the same volume as before. "This… it all happened too quickly. I don't like it."

Link gently lowered the bag in his hand, setting it down as it reached his bed. He bent his leg inward, letting his foot rest on the mattress and knee bend upwards. He held out his hand to the golden fairy, who settled in the offered perch. Tael joined only too quickly.

"Sis, it's okay." Tael whispered to his sister, a voice Link shut his and honed his senses to hear. "We're together. We all are. We'll get through this just like before. We all promised."

"I know we promised," Tatl weakly returned. Link could feel them comforting one another, holding and embrace only siblings enjoyed. "But that doesn't mean I like it… I just… we haven't even been here for a week and Link almost died!" Said Hylian gripped his opposite hand at the reminder. He was thankful the blue potion lasted, but that left him only wondering on what would happen next.

"But he's okay. We're okay," Tael continued to comfort. "A-And I know we'll… we'll all be okay in the end… right?" A long sigh left Link's lips.

Slowly, he brought the hand holding the fairies closer to his face, opening his eyes to look at them. A soothing gray was the first thing he saw, two sets of wings so close together it was impossible to tell which set belonged to which sibling. But that didn't matter. What did matter was their discomfort. He could fix that.

Cupping his hand, he place them as close to his cheek as possible, feeling the warmth of their light against his skin. He felt the heat warm as the fairies touched him, their small limbs holding on to him. Their small rings was all that filled the room. Yes, they would all be fine. Link would make sure of it. He wouldn't lose anyone else.

That was his promise.

BANG BANG!

"Link? Are you in there? Can I ask you a question?" Link heard the muffled voice through the door, immediately identified as Ruby. He sighed to relax himself, lowering the blade he had drawn. Tatl and Tael ceased their quick shiver as well. Ruby wasn't a threat. She was a friend.

"What great timing," Tatl let out, her voice sarcastic as ever. Link preferred it. "You want me to handle her? She won't really be able to, you know," She jumped off his hand and flew around his long ears. Yes, he did know. But that was okay.

He shook head, sheathing his blade as he stood. Tael jumped off of his hand, flying to his sister. It was okay now. They were better. They were better for the plan they had, so patience was their reward. Tatl understood his silent meaning.

"Uh, fine, but if you're going out with a friend, I'm staying here," she promptly flew over and settled on the chair beside his desk, a desk vacant of any papers or texts. He had brought none with him. "I've been talking too much today, so I just wanna relaxing night. Any complaints?"

The only question Link had was where the real Tatl went. He had never seen her tired of talking before. Maybe he really should be careful of Oobleck… he may be wiser than he looks.

"C'mon!" The voice of the young girl echoed from behind the door. "Link, I saw you walk in here like fifteen minutes ago tops! Did you fall asleep? Oh…" her voice settled into worry mutters at the idea. It made Link grin sardonically.

"Y-You should go," Tael spoke up as well. "I'm… I'm good without crowds for now. I wanna try sleeping, a-and Tatl's here so…" Link waved the dark fairy lightly. He had no reason to justify himself. They were all tired, and the two of them were under no commitments to teach the youths. It still felt odd to call himself otherwise.

Link turned towards the door as Tael flew and settled beside his sister, ringing together in their fairy tongue. They would be alright. They were safe here. Now, he only needed to worry about what the young Knight Trainee needed.

Ruby felt herself jump when the door in front of her opened.

She was so sure Link was asleep, or changing, or doing something that meant he didn't want to be disturbed that opening the door actually shocked her. She pushed a breath of air out of her lungs as quickly as she could. He didn't look mad or upset. He was smiling.

"Hi!" She eagerly spoke up, pushing down her discomfort until it wasn't worth thinking about. Stupid discomfort. "Sorry for waking you… did I wake you?" Maybe she should have asked before she apologized.

But Link only shook his head, long green hat waving with the motion. Now the relief was clear across Ruby. She was in the clear! That meant she could actually talk to him.

"Awesome! So, my team was wondering if we could talk to you, for advice and stuff," Ruby folded her hands in front of her as she spoke. Link only blinked but continued to watch. "We really want to challenge you but Weiss and I know that we don't know nearly enough and we were hoping you might be able to talk to us or give us some tips. I mean, not answers, but you know, ideas on where to start? Maybe?"

Link still hadn't spoken, or maybe he had. Ruby had to remind herself that she couldn't hear him. But he had folded his arms and was leaning against the door, smiling at her as she spoke on. He was listening, but was he taking her seriously? No, of course he was, they were friends. But then did that mean she had to convince him? Well she'd try!

"You really haven't seen us fight before, but we're all really good! We've taken down Deathstalkers, Nevermores, entire hordes of Beowolves, a few Boarboratusks, I think a Gryphon at one point…" She was starting to lose track of the amount of Grimm they've killed. She'd have to start a journal. "But we don't really fight other hunters, or know how to fight them. I mean, we can duel here and there, but it's not like we go out hunting people. Oh wow that was bad…" Ruby felt her shoulders hunching at the thought.

Link still hadn't said anything though. Was he waiting for her to say just the right thing? Maybe that meant she was on the right track. He hadn't shut the door on her yet, but that could be because they were friends, right? Well of course, but he was also their teacher. This was really confusing.

"So um… yeah," Ruby tried again, still determined. "You promised, or Impa promised, to help Weiss out with her glyphs, which is awesome! But does that mean you could show the rest of us how to fight? Yeah, you do use a sword, and that chain-gun, and a bow, and a bottles, and a lot of other stuff, but that still means you could help us out, right?"

Now he nodded. Ruby felt herself jump lightly again, smile splitting over her face. This was so cool! It was perfect!

"That's great! Can you talk to us right now?" Wait, maybe that was too quick. "I mean if you're available. Classes are over, but you could be tired. My team is just doing some homework at talking though, so if you did want to talk to us, it would be perfect!" And it would be perfect, Ruby knew that. Nothing was more perfect than getting one on four lessons with a master Hunter like Link.

Okay, yeah, he was a Knight, like Tatl and Impa said, but that was like a Hunter, close enough at least. So if he wanted to teach them how to fight like a Knight, then that meant they could hunt like Huntresses. It made perfect sense. And it only got better when Link nodded his head, smiling to her.

Then he shut the door.

Ruby was left staring at the white wood of Link's door with her grin frozen in shock. She blinked, wondering if she had maybe acted too excited. Weiss had been telling her that it was off putting and annoying. Did Link think she was annoying? No way, they were friends, and she was the one who helped him come to Beacon in the first place, right?

But then she heard the scream, muffled through the hard wood. Panic set in just as light shot through the cracks in the door. She had seen those before, several times not actually. Her excitement returned with a vengeance.

It roared with victory as Elrora opened the door, feathers long enough to drag on the ground and standing feet above what Link did. Her smile was visible even with her beak.

"Please, lead the way Ruby Rose," she spoke with a slight bow, shutting the door just before reaching her hands up to her shoulders again.

Ruby was bouncing in spot as she looked up at the Watarara. This was amazing! Ruby thought Link was going to come help them and Blake would have to translate everything, but now Elrora was going to talk to them instead! And Elrora was amazing, she'd have to be to be able to outfly a Nevermore! Elrora giggled as she watched her.

"I am happy to notice your excitement, but if your team is waiting, perhaps we should meet them?"

"Oh! Of course!" Ruby nearly yelled with joy. This time she did jump. She just made it to eye-level with the avian faunus. "You haven't seen our room before! Don't worry, it's awesome. Just follow me and we'll be there quicker than you know it." It took everything Ruby had not to grab Elrora's wing and shoot to her room with her Semblance. Maybe later.

Instead, she nearly skipped down the hallway, twisting around to watch the tall faunus following her, wings shut and smile present. She did all that she could to cheer aloud. She knew Beacon was amazing, but with Link and his friends, as her friend, it was nearly perfect.

"You think he's actually gonna come up here?" Yang posed the question with her eyes to the ceiling. Well, more accurately Blake's bed, but the principle was the same. That was what counted. "Isn't he gonna be super busy like grading the guys that fought today, making a schedule, or something else that like?"

"Hardly," Weiss countered from her side of the room. "Link has only just begun his position here and both Professor Goodwitch and Ozpin have both stated that they are doing their utmost to ensure that he has time to acclimate before serious duties are being presented." Well the former of the two did oversee the whole training session today. No idea how long that will last.

"Yeah, but wouldn't like everybody on campus want to talk to the dude?" Honesty she was surprised he wasn't swamped the moment class ended. "He went from literal nobody to center of attention in like a week. Not saying doesn't deserve it with the stuff we've seen, but you get what I'm layin' down, right?"

"If he is inconvenienced due to being overrun with students, I can understand," Weiss returned. "But a professor's duty, as he is now, is to their students, which we are." Oh yeah, that was true. If only he was a professor before he was a student. Well… a student that wasn't with them only a few days ago in class. Made it kinda weird. "Besides, he does owe Ruby a favor, for helping him get to Beacon upon his first arrival."

"Oh c'mon," Yang rolled to her side, propping her head up on hand as she looked over at the Schnee heiress. "You're calling in something like that?" Yang didn't know if she was a little peeved at the fact that it was worth a favor… or that she hadn't thought of it in the first place. Ruby could have done soooo much more with it than that.

"Only if he questions why he should have to help us beyond his position as a professor now." Well there goes Ms. Generous, flipping through a book Yang really didn't want to read. It was a book, so she didn't want to read it, simple.

"So you're exploiting him?" Yang felt her head hit her bed as it fell off her hand.

It bounced off the cushiony surface painlessly, but that didn't keep her from looking up at the bottom of the mattress she had before, eyes far wider than before. Blake had the tact of a hammer sometimes.

"No," Weiss countered, but Yang heard her put her book down. Hard. "I'm attempting to gain the most out of our relationship with him." Yang wasn't even interested in business and she knew that sounded sketchy.

"That's called exploitation," Blake returned neutrally, well… sort of. Yang was basically fire-proof and she could feel the heat coming from the bed above her. "And I'm curious why you think it is alright to do it."

"It's not exploitation!" Weiss returned with a bit more volume. Yang wasn't sure this was worth letting go on. "And I want him to help us so that we may have a chance at besting him. As he is now, using Dust in ways that engineers would brush off as impossible, we wouldn't last more than a few moments against him."

"Hey, give us some credit Ice Queen," Yang cut in. Hopefully she could smooth this out. Maybe. "You know that all we gotta do is get one good hit on him. Well… maybe one of his friends. He took down that super Grimm… but I bet Mikau couldn't take a good right hook."

"Right," Weiss spoke up. "All you have to do is ignore his remarks some days ago regarding the manipulation of water, a semblance that allots for electrocution, and some dust artifact that allows for the unlimited use of said ability." Okay, yeah that was bad. "It's like Impa said during the class. Unknowns always have the advantage. We must learn more about him if we are to have a chance."

Yang hated to admit when Weiss was right, like really hated it. She preferred Zwei biting her heels after she got cozy with a boy then having to fess up to Weiss's logic. But as was so often, the heiress had a point. They knew jack about Link's friend, let alone himself. He, on the other hand, could watch the news and get caught up on them.

"Is it really so worth fighting him?" Blake spoke up again. "Just because he offered? I would rather learn from him then attempt to harm him."

"There is no reason we cannot do both," Weiss continued. "In fact, that is why I wish to speak to him. I want to learn about him and his methods for improving so that we can emulate and perhaps surpass them in our own way. It will give us an advantage in the ring." Not a bad idea.

All they had to do was catch up several years of training under an army banner they didn't know, fighting wars they'd never heard of, and be able to kill ancient Grimm solo. Yup, few days of training and they'd be fiery as the sun. Yang snickered at the idea. She heard Blake do the same.

"And what is so humorous you two?" The heiress pouted with her hands on her hips. She even scrunched in her nose. Yang titled her head to see. "I fail to see what could possibly be worth giggling over."

"Nothing," Yang let out first. "Just the idea that we'd be at his level in a few weeks." It honestly still made her laugh. "Dude took down the Little Miss Atlas like it was nothing, and she was throwing swords ninja style. Plus she was, what, best in class or something?" She'd have to ask their resident ninja if that was how it normally looked. "I'm thinking we're gonna need the full three years here if we wanna get to a place like him."

"Yang is right," her partner spoke up. Good old reliable Blake! "Link has far more experience than all of us combined, not to mention his friends seem to add to his abilities…" Something wasn't right.

It wasn't that Blake said something wrong. Everything was actually pretty on point actually. No, the trouble Yang was having was just how she left off her sentence. She sounded quiet, quieter than usual, way too quiet for her to just up and ignore. It was the quiet she got when she was trying to hide one of her hotter novels from the group. What did that mean?

"Yo, Blake, are you-"

Any question Yang had died in her throat. Mostly due to the door opening at that very moment.

"I'm back!" Her sister yelled happily into the room. "And I brought a friend." Whoa, she really did?!

"Excellent!" Weiss perked up immediately, jumping off the bed as she did so. "Now please come… in… oh…" Her voice pittered off worse than Blake's! Yang's partner may have just gotten quiet, but Weiss sounded like someone hit her with a wet salmon and she was trying to make sense of it.

"Hey, Ice Queen," Yang spoke up, sitting up in her bed to look at the door. "What's uuuu-hhhheeeeyy!" Yang's voice did a one eighty as she saw just who was at the door.

The occupants were one Ruby Rose, best sister in the word. Weiss Schnee, heiress to a kingdom of Dust and Ice. And, finally, a tall golden bird she had only ever seen on the screen of her Scroll. Though, in the room was being generous. The bird was leaning down and she still had feathers on the top of her head hidden above the door frame!

"Hello Weiss Schnee," the bird, Elrora if Yang remembered correctly, spoke. She smiled down her beak at the Ice Queen. "May I enter your abode?"

"O-Oh! Yes, of course!" Weiss, rather ungracefully, corrected herself. She stepped aside and motioned with her arms for the bird to come in. Ruby giggled and Yang joined in, the blonde twisting on her butt until she was sitting on the edge of her bed.

Elrora bowed at the response… or maybe that was so that she could fit through the door. It was hard to tell. But as soon as she was in, she stood to her tallest, golden feathers completely covering her body. It looked like she was holding a blanket around herself. The hands on her shoulders weren't helping, but the smile was.

"Hello to you, Yang Xiao Long," Elrora spoke up, this time slightly bowing for sure out of greeting. Yang couldn't be rude to that.

"Hey, nice ta finally meet ya!" She waved at the golden bird, grinning as wide as they could. Would have been rude to just wave her off. Weiss still gave her a red look and scowl. Par for that course. But then Elrora's shifted upwards, looking at the only other occupant in the room.

"It is kind to meet you again, Blake Belladonna," the tall bird made the same motion, smiling and lightly bowing towards the girl sitting on the upper bunk. Yang could hear her partner shifting above her, probably to wave or bow 'er something like that. "We did not have the chance to converse following the flight. How was your experience?"

Oh yeah! Yang had almost forgotten that Blake had gone for a magic bird ride! Kinda understandable given the massive amount of crap that had hit the fan just after that. But hey, that wasn't what mattered now.

"It was… amazing," Blake spoke almost breathlessly. That got Yang curious, a dangerous trait. "You had such mobility in the air, it was as if were flying in an airship with all of the windows open. I… There was never a single moment I feared I may fall."

"I would not have let you," Elrora returned. Yang couldn't help but call her mothering. That was probably the best word for it. "It was no different carrying you then my son in his youth." Oh hey, look at that. No wait… oh crap Ruby.

Yang realized what it meant to have another one of Link's friends being a parent, talking about their kids. If Mikau was there… oh geez this was gonna be worse. She could already see her sis shirking into her shoulders, her silver eye downcast and finding something on the ground infinitely more interesting than the eight foot tall faunus bird.

The odd part, she wasn't the one who snapped her sis out of it this time.

"Elrora," Weiss began to speak. "Do you prefer Elrora, Ms. Elrora, your highness, or-" Any other suggestions were left of as said golden bird shook her head. Ruby was looking up at her at least. That was good. It meant she was focusing on something else. That was enough for Yang right now.

"Elrora is all I need," she returned. "I have no family name and my title as queen has been passed to my child. For now I am merely a friend to Link, repaying him in memory what he had given me in life." Oh for the Grimm's sake, this bird had the handle on steering things into awkward territory.

"Okay, enough melodrama," Yang spoke up, pushing herself off the bed and walking towards Elrora. Seriously, she may not be the tallest girl in Beacon, but she wasn't supposed to be feet shorter! "We wanted to ask our new prof a few tricks on how to kick some Grimm ass. Can ya help us with that?"

"Yang!" Weiss cajoled her, as predicted. "That is no way to speak to her!"

"That was kinda bad, Yang." Her own sister now? Well, she was partners with the Ice Queen.

"It is quite alright," Elrora spoke up, making both of the younger girls look up at her. Heck, everyone had to look up to her. Yang wasn't about to forget how tall Elrora was anytime soon. "And I believe I can offer some incite, if you would enjoy to listen."

"Oh, yes!" Weiss turned on a lien with her words. "Just let me gather my notebook. I can't afford to forget anything you may tell us." Yang knew she heard Elrora giggle as Weiss darted quickly over to her desk, pulling out a pad of paper and pen. Her hand scrawled over a blank page, probably to make sure there was ink in there. Little miss prepared for anything.

"Hmm…." Elrora hummed, her voice vibrating with the simple word. Well, she was a bird, and birds did make a lot of vibrating noises. "Would you prefer we discuss in here? I would prefer the outdoors." And again, that made sense. Elrora was no caged bird after all.

"Class outside?" Ruby seemed oddly excited by her own question. No wait, that wasn't odd. That was Ruby. "Class outside with you? That'd be awesome!" Yang couldn't say not to that face.

"I'm down for it!" She agreed with hands on her hips. "Be kinda nice to not have to think of this as some kind of detention."

"I would enjoy that." Blake's sudden voice almost scared Yang. Almost. It was just that she went from her top bunk to ride by Yang's side so quickly that the brawler thought she had teleported. Ninja for sure.

"Well, indoors are preferable for minimizing the possible distractions one can undergo," Weiss was starting to spit out, but she was outnumbered. A few good looks, Yang giving her best 'really' face she could muster, and she watched a piece of the Ice Queen chip right away. "But I suppose that if the outdoors increases our attentiveness instead, then I have no complaints."

"Excellent," Elrora spoke again. "Then, if I may request of you Ruby, can you please open the window?" Oh… Yang had a pretty good idea what was going to happen. She could feel her grin splitting her face already.

"Uh, okay?" Her sister replied innocently. Sweet innocent soon to be completely corrupted Ruby. She walked the few steps over, pushing up the frame of the window until snapped open at the top. "Like this?"

"Yes, that is perfect," Elrora didn't stop smiling as she spoke. "Now, please join me outside when you can. I will be waiting." Oh, this was gonna be good. Yang took a few steps back, knowing exactly what was going to happen. Ruby didn't.

"Um… don't you mean we'll follow you ou-WHOA!" Ruby had full permission to let out the surprised yelp.

Elrora, like a dust infused bullet, shot through the window.

Yang put her hand up her hair, keeping it from being pulled by the insane drag the bird had made with her exit. She could hear the papers flittering about their room, a few posters falling off the wall as well. Her bed was already a mess, but she could just see the sheets on Weiss's perfectly made comforter blown to smithereens.

"What was that for!?" Weiss shrieked as the vacuum of air filled itself back up. Just in time for Yang to start giggling like the madwoman she loved to be. "We invited her to our room and she decides to leave through window? What kind of barbaric-!"

"I think Elrora dislikes the indoors," Blake interrupted the heiress. Good move, kept her from saying something bad. Those were the hardest things to mull over, Yang knew. "Besides, I doubt it would be hard to follow her." Oh wait, really?

"What're you talking about?" But instead of answering with words, Blake did exactly what Yang suspected. She took two steps, bent at the knees and jumped out the window. It did much less damage to the room. "That's not what a window is for!"

"But it looks fun!" Yang couldn't keep her laughter in when Ruby joined Blake, leaping through the open window and out of sight. Hey, who was she to be the odd one out?

"Wait up for me sis!" She could feel Weiss's gaze burning into her, but she was already three strides forward and one good push away from the window. She soared through it as she heard Weiss yell some profanity with her name. Par for the course!

Yang wasn't the best at falling, but a short drop of a few stories? No big deal. She rolled into a ball, feeling her momentum build as the ground came closer and closer to her. She didn't need to see to know how long it would take. When the silent count down in her head was up, she extended her legs.

She was greeted with the familiar feeling of the ground. That, and what amounted to kicking solid steel. It shook her legs, but she hid it with a smile. Oh it hurt, but it was worth it.

"Yay! Yang's here!" She heard her sister cry triumphantly. She looked up, seeing the familiar shade of red grinning with fists in the air. Yup, here sis. Her partner was right next to her, arms crossed with a satisfied grin. "Now all we need is Weiss to-"

Whatever she was going to say, Yang missed it.

The force of someone landing on top of her tended to do that.

"Sonofabiiiii…" Yang started and let the words trail off into the dirt. She didn't need to swear in front of her little sis. But the person sitting on top of her. Still sitting on top of her. Was going to get one hell of a beat down if they didn't get off soon.

"Ow, seriously?" Weiss asked from above her. Of course it was Weiss. Who else would it be? "I finally join you ruffians in that deplorable miss-use of a window and my reward is landing on something harder than the ground."

"I'm not exactly enjoying this princess," Yang growled as she weighed her options. Jumping up and sending the heiress to the ground did sound pretty damn pleasing, but Ruby might get a little more flustered. That, and she wanted to see what the golden birdy had in mind.

Thankfully, maybe, the heiress stepped off of her, letting Yang get off the ground. Wasn't nearly as cool as jumping from their room, but definitely better than eating grass. She cracked her neck as she stood to her tallest, rolling it around to make sure it was on straight. Getting sent straight to the ground tended to push balance a little off track.

"Are you both well?" She heard Elrora speak, that same mothering tone. Yang looked at Ruby and Blake… but didn't see her. That was weird. Not left, not right… where did she go? "I'm where birds tend to reside, Yang." Wait, oh.

Yang looked up, and there was Elrora, perched on a tree limb with her feathers hanging down. Her smile was still there, of course.

"Stop making sense up there," Yang spoke back with a wave. "But yeah, I'm good. Weiss is too. She had something soft to land on."

"You are denser than the ground, Yang," the Ice Queen spoke back, making Yang chuckle. She had to admit, that was a good one. "But, we are outside now, and with the window to our room open for all manner of nature to populate it while we are gone." Oh, she definitely didn't sound bitter at all.

"What's wrong with nature?" Elrora asked. Was this gonna be a philosophical question? "Nature is what you are a part of, no matter how much we may change." Well, not as deep as it could have been at least. Weiss didn't answer immediately, which was good, because Elrora started to move.

Well, sort of move. She just took a small step forward, with feet Yang still had yet to see, and started to fall. It wasn't far, much lower to the ground then their dorm, but still high enough. She landed just beside Ruby, her feathers billowing but wings never unfurling. She didn't seem to mind the landing either.

"Elrora," Weiss began again, calmly. "I am not against nature. I just prefer to have our room clean and organized. The best way to do that is to keep it secure. Shut doors, locked windows, they all serve a purpose."

"So its peace you are trying to keep," Elrora's motherly tone returned. "Making a space that gives you serenity, safety in truth. One where you are undisturbed by the forces beyond your control." Well that was a poetic way of putting it.

"Yes, exactly," Weiss eagerly agreed. Hey common ground, that was good. "I'm glad someone else appreciates the importance of a sound mind. I honestly cannot tell you the number of times Yang has expressed the notion that 'disorder is the real way to live'." She even got her voice right!

"Hey, princess, you remembered!" She gave a thumbs up, earning a scoff from the resident Ice Queen. Heh, small steps. Eyes turned back to Elrora, the tall faunus starting to speak again.

"If you seek advice for improving yourself, I can assure you are already on the correct path." And Yang was lost. Wasn't uncommon, but one sentence in was pretty quick. Thankfully Big Bird kept talking. "While you are struggling with uncertainty, you will never be able to better yourself. A Watarara does not improve their flight as they fall, they improve as they soar. Such is the same for all things. When you have peace of mind, you no longer to struggle to gain what you don't have. Rather, improve on what you already know."

Yang felt her arms going lax as Elrora talked. She wasn't speaking in any old language, even if she did sound like guidance counselor trying to help some crying kid, and she definitely didn't have the old sage act going, though she had no idea how old the bird was. No, her words were just… making sense. Perfectly reasonable and amazing sense.

"Seeking peace is the first step to improving yourself, as is taught to all of the Watarara. You must clear the thoughts that tell you otherwise, focusing on only what you can feel. Ignore the nightmares that lurk in your sleep, forget the ideas that give you pause. Do that, with peace in your mind, and you can grow to touch the sky."

One of her hands left her shoulder as she spoke, reaching towards the sky. It wasn't much, really just a twist of her wrist. But it was noticeable, and with the smile she gave across her beak, brighter than before, it was hard not to see the pride she held. And man, she was making sense in ways Yang really didn't want to admit.

"But… I can tell none of you are at that point."

Yang heard her own breath get sucked in. She saw her sister stiffen like a board. She saw Blake stare at anything but Elrora. Weiss… she did what the heiress did best.

"What do you mean?" She questioned. "You were just complimenting me about my set-up process. Now you're saying I'm not even there yet?" Ice Queen was defensive, kind of her default setting. Elrora didn't lose her smile though. Kinda maybe that was her poker face, cause there was no way she knew anything about them.

"I spoke that you were on the correct path," Elrora said. "But I am too old and my eyes too sharp to not see that there is much that troubles you." Said blue eyes looked over all of them, one by one. Yang felt her legs tense as they looked at her. "All of you."

"Uh, sorry, I ain't buying it," Yang spoke up. "Look, it's awesome you're our prof now, but don't think that means you know enough about us." She didn't care who was listening, Link or Elrora. Both were out of line.

"Indeed," Elrora agreed. Well… that was easy. "But I have seen enough to know that though you are all driven to succeed, it is for reasons I know are not the best." Knew it was too easy.

"How would you know?" This time, Yang was starting to agree with Weiss. "Just because we may be doing our training for reasons different than your own doesn't mean we're wrong. We got this whole lecture from Dr. Oobleck already, and we're well aware of why we are doing this! Honestly, we asked you for help, but if all you're going to do is scold us, perhaps we'd be best on our own."

"And there is the current," Elrora finished.

The words kinda blew Yang over, metaphorically. Weiss was nearly sneering at Elrora. Yang quickened a glance to Blake. She was… conflicted. Yang could tell from previous experience she was well on her way to run. Maybe it was because they were talking to a faunus that she didn't do that. Mixed blessings, she guessed.

"Weiss," Elrora began, her tone never anything but calm. How did she do that? Take lessons from Ozpin? "I am not insulting you. I am not making you seem less than you are." Those were some… pretty choice words. "I would not say what I have unless I believed those words would help."

She was leaning towards the Ice Queen, but not over her. She was tall as a tree, but Elrora was doing a pretty good job of not hovering. Her words were handling that all by themselves. She covered any more area with them and Yang would be tempted to burn the thing down. Well… figuratively.

"Your motivation is not what I address. I can tell by the testimony of others that you all are stars within the sky." Well that was cheery. "But there are small things I notice; actions that remind yourselves of these dark pasts of yours. That will forever keep you from a peaceful mind."

"Then what? We're supposed to throw away what we are?" Yang shrugged her shoulders as she spoke, shaking her head at the bird. Who did this faunus think she was? Did Link think that? 'Hey you feeling bad? Don't worry about it!' Ain't that easy! "Just ignore basically all the tough stuff we've been through."

"It is a not an all-or-nothing determination, Yang." A part of Yang really didn't want Elrora to talk. She sounded too much like Summer... "I am not telling you to do away with what drives you, not forever. Place your reminders where you can't see them. Shut the doors to the dark corners of your mind. That is all."

"I-I don't understand." Oh no, that was Ruby, and she sounded like heard something really bad Ruby. If she started crying, oh, Link was in for a world of hurt. "I… w-what do you want?"

"I want nothing." Those words came out too quick. "At this moment I am not a queen to my people, I am not the mother to my son, not even am I a Knight to Hyrule. I am, as your companion has said, your professor. I tell and aid in all ways I can to see you improve. But force, in this matter, will do no good."

"Maybe we're just talking to the wrong person," Blake finally spoke. Oh thank Grimm. Yang was sure she was going to run. "Elrora… Link… I greatly appreciate you meeting to help us. But… maybe there is someone else we can speak to. I don't think you, Elrora, are the… best fit for us.

Oh and she spoke sense. That was some great sense! Yang could devour that for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. Link was a smart guy, he'd see what she meant.

"I disagree." Or not. "Actually, I asked Elrora to help because Ruby came." Uh…Link, what?

"W-What?" Yang could see her jaw shaking. Elrora may be a bird, but she'd only be walking if Ruby cried. "W-W-Why? Did I do something wrong, o-or-"

"Ruby, no," Elrora's voice was breathless as she took a step towards Yang's sister. It took every muscle the brawler had not to get in the way. "No, you only showed me, Link, what it is you care about. And by how you have chosen your words and decisions thus far, I can assume the state of them." Wait.

Wait wait wait wait wait… Oh no, she couldn't possibly be talking about that. Yang would take back every kind thing she said about Link if this went where she thought it was going.

"I am upsetting you all," Elrora spoke up. Yang did scoff. That was literally like calling the sky blue. "You asked me for my aid as a professor, and I am forcing you to question your opinions of me."

"Yeah, kinda hard not to." Yang agreed. She crossed her arms. Elrora still only looked at her. At least she wasn't smiling. Wait… that probably wasn't a good thing.

"Then do you think my mind is at peace now?" Uh… okay that was a curveball question. It made Yang work her jaw, wondering what the best answer was. Was there one? Sure didn't seem like it.

"No, you aren't." Blake spoke up now. Was what they said about great minds the same about faunus? "You seem troubled, at odds. If anything you have regrets." Elrora nodded with every word.

"All true," she nodded towards Blake. "And I will do you all no injustice by attempting to forget this conversation. I will remember it the next time I see you and I will carry it with me in all our future discussions. It is what a leader must do. It is what a queen must do. And, it is what I know you all to be doing."

"You are talking in some pretty insane circles right now." Yang held her hands in front of her as she spoke. She actually wanted to strangle Link. How did a conversation with a cool prof turn into a want for murder?

"What I will not do, Yang," Elrora spoke to her. "Is make decisions while holding this conversation in my mind." Those were still circles.

"Oh. Ooooh," Weiss spoke. Yang almost gave herself a whiplash with the speed she looked at her teammate. What great epiphany did she just have? "You aren't asking us to forgive and forget…" Elrora shook her head. "You're just asking us to change focus." The bird didn't nod, but she did grin.

"Very close," Elrora answered. "But you are forgetting a crucial step."

"What's that?" Blake asked now. Yang was just as curious. Maybe it would finally get this whole thing to make sense. Heck, if Link was lucky, maybe he wouldn't be limping to class on Thursday.

"You cannot ignore a problem you refuse to recognize." Nope, still not there. "If I may give an example, let me speak of Lin… my hunt for the Bellumgera. A Grammite, I believe you referred to it. You were all present for that."

That was the kind of conversation Yang could deal with. Elrora stood to her tallest again, shaded by the tree behind her. Sun was going down soon though, so her golden feathers were starting to glow. Not a good move when she looked more demonic to Yang.

"During that hunt, I recognized three things. My friends were in the care of strangers." Must have meant Tatl and Peeping Tom. "My life was being treated as a bargaining chip." Still was depending on who you talked to. "And that I may not see Navi again." …Who was Navi?

"Your friend," Ruby spoke up now. Her voice was way too quiet for Yang's liking. "The one Dr. Oobleck is helping you find." Elrora nodded at the words.

"The same," she started. "The same unfortunate separation that drove Link to come here, the reason for his pursuit to this land, and a memory that is melancholy at best." So sad no matter what? Kay. "Do you believe she was in my mind when I fought Bellumgera? That the idea of finding her is what gave me strength to continue on no matter what happened?"

"Doubtlessly," Weiss spoke immediately. Yang nodded for good measure.

"Wrong." Was the immediate reply. Well, dang. "I only thought of the blade in my hand, the girl before me, the mare beneath me, and the monster to kill. That was it. I didn't think of why I was there or any of the number of ways I could die. Those are not peaceful thoughts."

Okay… Yang was starting to see where this was going, finally. All she needed to do was be reminded that Link dying was actually a pretty bad thing. Or, more accurately, how calm he/she was talking about dying. Perspective and all that.

"What Link thought of, and all that I thought of, was acceptance." Perspective lost like paradise. "He accepted every notion and event that brought him that moment. That acceptance gave him peace. That peace gave him the time to observe, to plan, and then to strike."

"Because a mind clouded with doubt is the same as one without eyes." Yang was about 40% sure Blake had just quoted a book. It was a book Yang, herself, hadn't read. That made up like 99.999% of the Beacon library. "But how does that relate to us? How could you possibly tell what we think in a fight? You haven't seen us do anything yet."

"Blake, I am avoiding to list what I have seen because I do not know what secrets you all share amongst each other."

Oh… wow… Now Yang felt like dirt. Elrora really was talking in circles. She was talking, walking, flying, and maybe even singing in circles… all just to avoid an awkward conversation. Ah geez, that was the kind of tact people harped on Yang for not having.

"But, you need not tell me what those are." Yang looked at Elrora again, smiling again. "I am only telling you that whatever thoughts lurk in your mind, be they what make your history or the moment you are in, they are not more important than whatever matter is settling your wings. Think not of the storm clouds that circle behind you nor of the dark horizon in front. Think only of the breeze that flows around you, and what you must do to ride it."

Yang fell on her butt.

She wasn't hurt or anything, not even shocked. Honest. She was just tired. It felt like she had just run laps around the Emerald Forest, plural. Ran laps and fought Grimm at the same time. Geez, was this the kind of stuff Link was going to do with all of his friends? Daily? He must be a Zen Master if he was able to say that kinda stuff without tripping into hysterics. Yang was still debating beating the crap out of him. That was probably the 'dark thought' Elrora kept going on about. Maybe.

"Now, for advice on how to do it, I can also tell you." Yang looked back up at Elrora. She was all smiles again. "And to help your own peace of mind, I would never tell you something and simply expect you to conjure the truth. Watarara teach through example. I will do the same for you."

"Well that's a relief," Yang let out. "Here I was thinking of how I was gonna beat you to the ground later tonight for saying all that stuff. Seriously, I thought you were two steps, or flaps I guess, from telling us all that we were doin' our jobs wrong."

"Yang!" Weiss yelled at her again. It was actually comforting now. Man, she was tired. "How dare you insult a professor! Apologize to her right now."

"Weiss is right." And now Blake was joining in. What a wonderful world. "That was rather extreme, even by your measures."

"Hey, I said thinking about it." Yang waved from her position on the ground. If only her hand could actually brush away those comments. "And give me some credit here. All I saw the whole time Big Bird was talking was Ruby on the verge of crying." Yang held her hand over to her sister, so sure that she was going to puff her lips, get mad at the defensiveness.

So shocked was she when Ruby didn't even look at her.

"Rubes?" Yang spoke her sister's nickname. "You okay? Sis?" She stood up, lavender eyes focused on her sibling. Ruby this quiet meant she was thinking the wrong things. Wrong things were what Elrora just got them all riled up about how bad they were. That made this bad anyway she looked at.

Before she could make a motion towards Ruby, her sister walked towards Elrora. It wasn't far, three steps at most, but it was enough for her to make her intentions clear. Yang could only watch.

She watched Ruby walk straight into Elrora, proceeding to wrap the golden faunus in a big hug. She held on tight.

Elrora, for her part, didn't seem insulted. That was a plus, and a good mark back on Link's record. She smile down at Ruby, towering over the much smaller girl. Then she started to move her hands. Moving those meant she was moving her wings.

Her hands left her shoulders only to fall onto Ruby's, her long feathers trapped between her torso and the younger girl's grip. It looked painful, like having your hair pinched, but Elrora didn't say a thing. Yang didn't do a thing. This looked alright to her. No tears yet at least. She couldn't tell at first if what happened next was better or worse. Okay, the hair combing was odd, but Ruby wasn't letting go.

"Sometimes, when I find peaceful thoughts alluding me, I take to an activity that naturally calms me," Elrora spoke. "And if my memory serves, it is one that varies only slightly amongst all people."

"What's that?" Ruby asked. Her voice was small, muffled against the green fabric beneath Elrora's wings. That and her golden feathers. The thought of Ruby being comfortable because of her 'motherly' ways irked Yang. That wasn't cool. At all. Elrora only smiled at her sister.

"Music," the bird spoke simply. Her fingers running over Ruby's hair. Yang would have called creeper alert if it was anyone else. She was still half-way tempted to. "Link calms himself with his ocarina. You have seen Mikau enjoy his guitar. I hope it is of little surprise when I say Impa is skilled at the lyre. Tell me, do any of you enjoy music?" Her voice lifted with the question, blue eyes looking them over. Well that was a question Yang knew they could answer.

"Yes," Weiss spoke up. "I am actually renowned for my vocals amongst many fields, having sung the melodies of many tracks as well." The humility was amazing. "I have also sold several records with my abilities that have provided a suitable cushion to my funds."

"That is impressive Weiss. You should be proud." Yang got to see first hand what a motherly compliment did the Ice Queen. Wasn't a meltdown, but the red blush was a nice touch. "However, it sounds as if you sing not for yourself, but for others. Generous, but that rarely brings peace."

Yang watched Weiss again, hoping to see the heiress scowl or give another back-handed remark. She didn't though, probably because she realized they were talking to someone who was their prof, and right now using the memories of someone else way older, even if their hair was more gold than white, and made of feathers.

"Have you heard Link play his ocarina yet?" Yang shook her head. She heard Weiss and Ruby mumble a no. "Would you have guessed Impa played an instrument as well?" Honestly Yang would be surprised to see that woman handling anything that was smaller than her. She looked like the kind of girl to go big or go home.

"What are you suggesting?" Weiss asked, sort of calmly. Wasn't quite there, but given the track records, Yang could give her some props. Hard to tell if Elrora's smile was her giving that commendation or not.

"Nothing so sinister as you may think," Elrora almost chuckled at the words. "Only that you find what gives you peace, and then protect it. Though it may be hard for the four of you, generous and kind as you are, a small expression of selfishness, the desire to keep sacred something dear to you, is how you gain that peace."

"Oh, you mean like a guilty pleasure?" Yang asked. It's what it sounded like to her. Rolling through Vale on Bumblebee, scaring the nitwits out of Junior's gangsters, was definitely what she'd call a guilty pleasure. Helped her relax, too.

"Perhaps," Elrora returned. "Or maybe something so simple as not deny a request to play a song or distance yourself to read a novel. Peace of mind is both simple and complex. So easy to describe, yet so difficult to grasp. I believe only the sages were capable of finding peace no matter the time or place."

This was getting kinda weird. Okay, it was weird as soon as Elrora jumped out the window, but that was a good weird. Right now it was like watching Cardin walk up and apologize for being an ass. Not bad, but way too far into left field to be anything less than a trap. Blake must have thought the same thing, cause Yang could see her look away from Elrora, eyes wide. They'd have to talk later.

"But, returning to why you asked for my aid," Elrora started. "Once you find that peace, discover a way to enter it and keep it, you will then find the strength to improve all the easier to grasp. Fewer fears, less worries, they make for sounder thoughts and more satisfied lives."

She brushed a thumb over Ruby's head, and she looked up at the golden faunus. Yang was at a bad angle, but she could hear Ruby give her usual quick giggle. That meant she was smiling. That was better, much much better. She actually felt a wave of tension leave her.

"So do you play the ocarina all the time?" Weiss was asking again. Yang felt herself chuckle, hand running through her impressive mane. It was a mane of gold after all. "Or do prefer a designated time for it, such as the late nights. It would make it easier to keep the activity to yourself, but I don't understand the convenience."

"I play when I can," Elrora spoke, but that had to be Link talking. "But if you are asking if it is how I prepare for a battle, then no. It keeps my mind at peace, even when I am not playing it. I'm well practiced on keeping a peaceful mind. Elrora is, too. The benefits of a being a parent, if I were to suppose."

Dangerous word in front of Ruby. Yang could see her sis stiffen a little. Elrora must have felt it, because her hand stopped combing her hair. Why was Rubes still holding on anyways?

"You may know, but a queen must make difficult decisions often," Elrora began. "To do so with a peaceful mind is condemning, but I learned long ago the benefits of music, and I would often indulge myself in the art as I thought of coming ultimatums."

"Oh? What instrument did you play?" Weiss asked. Maybe she was eager to talk, or maybe she just didn't get where they were at emotionally right now. How the hell do you talk someone into understanding that? "The flute? Some brass instrument?"

"Actually, I sing as well." Elrora smiled at Weiss, who started for only a moment. "I would sing to myself often, a means to listen to the wind as I would hear myself. Focus on one brought me understanding of the other. For a Watarara, that is peace in a sound mind."

Yang looked out at the sun. It was getting over the horizon now. The dorm blocked it, but she was pretty sure the shattered moon was creeping over the other side of the hill. Maybe this would be a good excuse to turn in for the night. Not like Link and Elrora hadn't given them enough to think about.

"But when I had my son, the most curious thing happened." Yang's hair spun, her head twisting so hard. "I found more peace singing to him then when I sang alone. His smile, his cheers, they brought a warmth to me that gave me strength in everything. Even with years behind me, and two soul's worth of memories within me, I still find the strength of children a most curious thing."

Yang watched, ready to pounce like a Beowulf in wait, as Ruby looked up at Elrora. Big Bird looked down at her, hands still following her little sister's hair. Yang really wanted to see if her sis was crying, but she knew better than interrupt this now. One hiccup though and she was going to paint that tree behind Elrora red.

"Ruby, I must emphasize my apology to you." Good start. "Be it simple miscommunication or lack of understanding on my own part, I nearly gave you and your comrades the wrong impression. That is not something I wish to ever have happen."

"It's 'kay," Ruby mumbled, head falling back against the golden faunus. Yang could really only take that as a good sign. Ruby was a lot of things, hugger definitely on the list, but even she knew when it was time to let go. "I asked you for help anyways."

"True, but with the best of intentions," Elrora was still smiling as she spoke. Wasn't a grin, she didn't look cocky… at least not in the self-righteous way. "It is why I wish to offer you a favor with my apology, next a vow that I will think more carefully before offering words again."

Ruby twisted her head again, looking up at Elrora. Now she finally let go, taking a few steps back. Didn't keep the avian faunus from towering over her, or from smiling. She did fold one of her wings back up to her shoulder, but oddly enough, kept one just at chest level. Chest level may have been Yang's eye level, but those feathers were still dragging on the ground.

But instead of talking to Ruby, Elrora twisted her head to the sunset. Yang was momentarily reminded of an owl, given how far that head twisted. She supposed most birds could do it, right? Maybe not, but she knew Elrora could now.

"It is a beautiful sunset," she began, oddly. "Though the middays are best, there is a serenity within twilight that calms even the most turbulent of souls." Well that was enlightening, in the kung-fu monk sort of way.

"Uh, yeah!" Ruby returned. Yang could tell she was just following social queues, badly. "It's really pretty to watch sometimes. It's… um… shiny?" Yang was caught between chuckling and grimacing, the unfortunate middle ground of an older sibling. Maybe thankfully, Elrora did laugh, the sort of humming sound she had before.

"Yes," Elrora returned. "I suppose in the right setting it would shine. I know for certain it does when the clouds coat the horizon, preparing to shower the earth below."

She looked back to Ruby, and only Ruby. Yang was starting to notice something, something that was making her big-sis senses go to code yellow. This faunus, a motherly faunus that was here through the power of some kick-ass faunus, was only focusing on the youngest member of the group. Those sirens were only louder when Elrora extended a hand towards Yang's sister.

"Ruby Rose, as an apology and sign of trust, would you care for me to show you the sky?"

Yang was sure, without any doubt, her eyes bulged at the same speed that Ruby jumped into the air.

"Really!?" Her sister exclaimed, really yelled. "You mean you're gonna take me flying?!" Yang was sure that she had almost never been more mortified to see her sister happy. Very sure. Elrora's gentle smile and nods were not helping.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa," she finally cut in. This was getting too far. "You're not seriously going to do that, right?" She got in front of Ruby, looking up at Elrora as she spoke. "I mean, this is just some kind of peace offering, making sure we're all cool with that almost-trash talk."

"Not at all," she answered. Bad answer. "I am fully capable of carrying young Ruby through the air, as all Watarara do so with their children until their wings are set. If you are concerned for your sibling's well being, I can promise my wings that no harm will come to her."

"She's not lying." Said brawler felt her pretty wide eyes stare at Blake. Her partner looked as if she were deciding between taking a step towards her or Elrora. "I flew with her before, you know that. It was fun." Not nearly good enough.

"C'mon Yang," Ruby whined, whined, right behind her. "You know I can handle falls from any kind of height. We got shot into the Emerald forest on spring-loaded platforms and nothing happened then."

"You were ready then," Yang argued. "A-And is now really a good time? What if it gets dark and you miss a Bullhead coming in, or you fly into a window! Birds fly into windows all the time."

The chill Yang got from Blake told her she had taken a step in the wrong direction.

"I am rather sure Elrora is no simple-minded bird, Yang." Gone was any assuring tone in Blake's voice. "More than that, I think this is a perfect way to make up for any misunderstandings."

"I agree, one hundred per-cent!" Yang ground her teeth to keep herself from yelling. Ruby wasn't helping! Where was logic when you needed it? Oh yeah, wearing white and always asking questions!

"Weiss, c'mon, you gotta know this is a bad idea right?" She turned desperately to the heiress, only to whip her head back to Elrora. "Not that you're bad or anything. Just taking my lil' sis for a near-night flight sounds wrong and dangerous in ways I'm not about to let slip."

"I agree completely." Oh thank the Dust. "This will only be a sufficient apology if… we are all given a chance to see what your flight entails." Oh damn the Grimm!

"I suppose that would be of little trouble," Elrora kept talking. "It would need to be one-by-one, but as my words gave you all undue uncertainty, I can understand the need to all receive compensation."

"Well, actually, I am grateful for your… let's call it a remedial lesson." Weiss was not helping at all! "It was just far more thought-provoking than I expected, so I incorrectly jumped to conclusions that you were insulting us with your words. For that, on my part, I must apologize." She was making it worse!

"Not all, Weiss, though I do accept your regrets with grace," Elrora was bowing/towering over Weiss as she spoke. She was still freaking smiling! "Perhaps we have both learned short lessons this night. I am sure there are many more to come."

"And I eagerly await to hear those lecture as well!" Oh no, now she was starting to get excited like Ruby. Her sis was rubbing off on the heiress as the worst of times! "That is, on top of those glyph classes Impa said she would educate me in. I hope I make you proud in those regards."

"I believe you will," Elrora answered, but then turned to Ruby and Yang again. "Now though, would you care to join me for a flight? It may be the first step for you to find a peaceful mind." That was an opening, so Yang took it.

"How's it gonna do that?" She asked, maybe a bit too quickly. But whatever, she was understood. "I thought you said we had to be selfish with those things, like singing in private and stuff." Yang could feel Ruby glaring at her, but that wasn't going to work now. Sibling defense was greater than embarrassment.

"From my own experience, there is no better way to forget the worries of the present or pains of the past then experiencing something you have never quite imagined," Elrora spoke with a grin.

Oh c'mon! How was Yang supposed to argue with that? Now even she wanted to ride the magical Big Bird. How could she possibly keep Ruby from doing it if she wanted to? That was like trying to keep her from being a hunter, which was a guaranteed impossible fact!

"Pleeeeease Yang," Ruby kept whining. That was almost always a bad sign. "I bet flying with Elrora is like ten times cooler than anything we could do on a Bullhead or Airship. And it'd be first class!" First class was nice.

No, wait, focus, Yang was the responsible one. … Oh that cinched it. When Yang had to think that line, something was too far away to bother trying to fix.

"Fine," Yang let out, throwing her arms in the air. "Let's go for a magical flight around Beacon, complete with all the treats. We can make an event out of it. Guilt trips that come with flight trips. Heh, okay that was kinda catchy." Oh… but that was probably a really bad thing to say.

"I regret to inform that you four are the only individuals on this campus I am currently offering the experience to," Elrora spoke as if Yang hadn't just insulted her, which she didn't. "And hope any further students I speak to regarding the strength in a sound mind receive less insult by my words. Now though, I believe I extended my offer to you first, Ruby."

"Yes!" Yang's sister jumped clear over her head to get to Elrora. She kept hopping right in front of the tall bird, reaching eye level with each jump. "This is going to be amazing! So what do I do? Hold on to your chest? Get on your shoulders? Grab your feathers, no that wouldn't work, wouldn't be able to flap. Is it called flapping?" Her gums sure were flapping, Yang could say that for sure.

Instead of an immediate answer, Elrora turned around, feathers brushing over the grass as she did. When her back was to Ruby, she knelt and bowed at once, making her reach really close to the ground. Still kinda ridiculously tall if Yang was allowed to say so. She wasn't, but she sure could think it.

"Climb onto my back," the golden faunus spoke, twisting her head towards Ruby. Didn't make it all the way, but it still looked uncomfortably far. "Hold to my shoulders, and we can begin."

Her semblance or not, Ruby was on Elrora faster than Yang could blink. She saw Big Bird falter for a moment, but only laugh just afterwards. That was a good thing, points back for making Ruby smile.

"You are nearly as eager as Blake was when I offered," Elrora spoke up. "Though I must confess, I am happy my offer is so enticing."

"Of course it is!" Ruby yelled from behind Elrora, one fist quickly pumping into the air before grabbing at the golden shoulders of the bird. "This is like worth more than a carbide-tipped blade for Crescent Rose. Well… it's close, but right now I'd totally go for this!"

"Then let us not waste time." Elrora stood with her words, Ruby hanging off of her like a marionette. She knew Elrora was huge, but with Ruby on her back, it kinda put it into perspective.

Her sister's cape didn't even make it past the first layer of feathers that were pretty much draped around the faunus. Feathers that were only the first in what was like half a dozen lines of feathers. There must have been a term for that. Didn't matter. They were long and Elrora was tall.

But then she spread her wings.

A shwoom sound was the first thing Yang noticed. That, followed by her nearly being blown off of her feat. Couldn't say if it was surprise or just how much air was shoved at her. Either way, she was left teetering on her boots while Elrora showed off her wingspan. Yang knew, really did, that the bird kept her hand on her shoulders to stop her feathers from dragging too much. That was common sense, like hair in a bun. But what she didn't get was just how large those wings were.

Being outside suddenly made sense. If Elrora had opened those things indoors, she probably would have hit either wall then kept going into the next room! Didn't help that all Yang could do was work her jaw as the faunus lifted her hands a little higher.

Then, with a great flex, shot into the air.

Now Yang lifted her hands to her eyes, covering the dust and wind that blew into them. It was quick, and she was looking up as fast as she could, but the faunus was already high up in the air. Those wings weren't just for show.

"Oh… wow…" Yang heard Weiss speak from beside her. She didn't bother to look. That would mean looking away from Elrora and her sis. "That was amazing…"

"Isn't it?" Blake now. "She has the grace, form, and voice of a queen, but she keeps offering to help us whenever we see her." You, Blake, Yang silently corrected. Her faunus partner was the only one who had seen Big Bird more than once.

Actually, that raised another good question.

"You must really be glad Link is teaching here," Yang spoke up. She kept her eyes up though, watching as Elrora slowly banked in the air. Ruby was holding on tight. Couldn't see more than that from so far away. "Can't be every day you see what you're fighting for coming true."

She was sure Blake was… wait… ah crap! Elrora was flying over the dorm. They couldn't see them anymore!

Yang forced her eyes away from the sky as she took off for the edge of the dorm, wishing for the first time she could sprint like Ruby. She'd have to make it up later. For now, she really had to see that bird in flight. After all, she was next!

Ruby was so happy she was first!

It felt amazing being in the air. Everything was so small, the sky so open, and the view just amazing! It felt like she was flying with her semblance, zooming through the air and just watching everything else wait for her! She could feel her cape whipping behind her, hands gripping at Elrora's shoulders tightly, but grinning like the mad girl she felt like she was.

"Are you well, Ruby?" she heard Elrora ask. It was barely audible above the wind. "Are you frightened at all?" That was the most unneeded question Ruby had ever been asked before in her life!

"Are you kidding?" She spoke back, looking at the back of Elrora's head. "This is awesome! I feel like I'm the queen of the skies! Is that how you feel all the time?!" She couldn't help but ask.

"Only when I am in the company of others," Elrora returned. Ruby didn't get what that meant. "Now please hold on. I wish to enjoy the twilight before the sun sets." Didn't have to ask her twice.

Ruby pushed her body flush with Elrora's back, feeling some of the feathers poking into her stomach as she did. She gripped the broad shoulders of the golden avian, grin still wide across her lips. She was almost shaking with excitement. The payoff was going to be amazing here!

And it was.

Elrora took a sharp dive towards the ground, wings pulling into her chest. It felt like a divebomb, being thrown straight to the ground from hundreds of feet up. Ruby felt her fingers going numb as she gripped Elrora, her cape nearly tearing off of her own back, and blood rushing to keep her awake. She cheered all the while.

A schwoom that sounded like her own semblance knocked through the air, made in time with Elrora opening her wings. Ruby felt herself nearly sink into the faunus as she banked back up, body heavier than lead. She couldn't remember the name for the force, she just knew it was amazing!

Like her Dust cartridge bullet, they were spinning through the air, tumbling in way that made it impossible for Ruby to tell up, from down, from sideways, from holy-crap-she-was-starting-to-see-colors-and-Yang-would-be-so-jealous! Ruby's mouth pushed firmly into a bunch of golden feathers kept her from screaming just that into the wind.

Then, like, hitting a wall, they began to move up. It was like a wall because Ruby couldn't move even a finger with all the pressure shoving down her. But it was quick, faster than their descent even, which was scary fast! Not scary for her, but fast still! They were picking up in altitude again, and the force was dying with it. It was only then Ruby could hear herself laughing.

Her eyes looked up to Ozpin's tower, watching as the sun reflected off of the green glass. It was the same, always was, but it just looked so… different now. Maybe it was the blood leaving her head after that fall or the fact that she was much higher up in the air. Didn't matter to her.

Elrora's wings beat in the air, keeping her afloat at a cruising pace. She banked towards the Emerald Tower, far enough way to remove any thought of running into the glass… Yang's idea was still in Ruby's head.

"Are you ready for another spin?" Elrora asked. Ruby shook her head almost violently, adopting the same position she had before. She heard the faunus laugh, felt it too with how close they were. "Very well, then hold tightly."

As soon as she said the words, she started to descend again. But this time, it was different.

She wasn't just falling straight down, she was spiraling. It felt like they were going down some really big invisible slide. It only got better when Ruby realized they were circling the tower. Elrora banked as she descended, her angle to the ground increasing. The force of the spinning kept Ruby from falling, but a quick glance right showed her the ground. It was moving pretty fast down there. It was hard to tell if those little dots were students or not.

But they were getting faster, too. Every loop around the Tower made Ruby feel herself press harder and harder against Elrora, almost like she was sinking into the feathers. She wasn't even sure she needed to hold on anymore. The ground and tower were becoming blurs, their features all just looking like one big tinted green obelisk.

Then Elrora soared again.

Ruby felt air rush out of her lungs as they left the controlled tumble, the avian shooting into up into the air instead. Her arms strained as they climbed in height, the vacuum of air familiar to Ruby. IT was like her semblance, just like it, except now she wasn't just moving fast, she was moving up. Even with her head light and chest tight, it felt amazing.

Slowly, Elrora evened out, her ascent stopping instead for a calm glide, parallel to the ground beneath them. Ruby couldn't see just how far beneath them was. She was too busy sucking in greedy breaths of air. She didn't dare let go of the bird now.

"Are you still well, Ruby?" Elrora asked again. It was much easier to hear her now, without the wind whipping past her face. It took her a minute to respond. Maybe that. Time was always loopy when her head got this light.

"Y-yeah," she eventually responded. "Just… got a little hard to breathe there. I'm good, I'm… I'm all set." She gave a weak thumbs up, keeping her body flush against Elrora's back.

"Perhaps that was a bit too far," Elrora spoke again. "I apologize. You seemed so eager to experience the sky I did not think to give you time to prepare."

"No really, I'm all good!" Ruby spoke back with more volume.

Air was returning to her, just like she knew it would. When you run fast enough to create your own pockets of air, you can adjust pretty quickly. Of course, Ruby had to remind herself that was after who knows how many fainting sessions in front of Yang.

"But how did you handle that? I couldn't even think straight when you started spinning really fast around that tower. It was all swooooooosh." Ruby made a motion with her hand above Elrora, swiping it through the air as fast as she could. It clearly showed she was talking about the extreme forces and lack of air. Obviously.

"Ah, well, I would hardly be able to call myself a queen, even if only a past life, if a simple flight would tire my wings," she sounded happy as she said those words. Happy enough that Ruby felt her smile get even brighter.

She never stopped smiling, never stopped grinning through this whole thing. It was like the most amazing ride and any amusement park she had ever been to, times a thousand! She felt excited, she felt scared, she felt tense, then exhilarated, then wanting, then happy. Oh yeah, she was happy. Tired too, of course, but happy was top of the list!

Ruby found herself lightly pushing herself up on said faunus's back. She wasn't flying top speed anymore. Actually, if Ruby had to describe, it felt like she was walking on air. Well, gliding was more appropriate but Weiss wasn't here right now. Carefully, making sure she wasn't being rude to Elrora, she settled onto a small kneeling position on the bird's back.

Then she drank in the sights.

Not flying as if in a race, not seeking the adrenaline rush of a high-speed run, Ruby saw just what Elrora meant by the beauty of twilight. The golden light of the settling sun haloing the clouds along the horizon. The green towers turning a true emerald, dazzling the slowly darkening sky. Vale across the water, lights illuminating the streets, and cusp of the world beyond that.

It was one thing to see it in a picture, or to see it behind some thick pane of glass. But right now, with the wind through her hair and sky clear, Ruby felt like she was really on top of the world. And everything else looked so… small. This was what Elrora always saw, wasn't it?

No… wait… this wasn't Elrora, not just her. She was just memories. That's what she kept saying. And Mikau… And Impa, too… Their memories, their abilities, but someone else was showing her all of this. Ruby felt like a bad friend for forgetting him so easily.

"You're amazing Link," Ruby mumbled, hands doing their best to grip without tearing the feathers on the faunus's back. "You're really really amazing."

She heard nothing in return, just the light beating of Elrora's wings. The wind nipped at her, colder than what she expected. They were really high up. So, the cold made sense. Weiss was the one who told her about that.

"Ruby…" Elrora spoke, but then stopped. Was she just talking too quietly? Link did that. "Thank you kindly for your words." That made Ruby smile.

"Of course!" Ruby eagerly spoke back. "You may be a super sweet Hunter now, and a real one-of-a-kind professor, but don't forget that you were our friend first!" And just like her dad always said, that was what mattered the most. Knowing who your family and friends were.

"Yes," Elrora returned, her head nodding. Ruby really hoped that was Link talking. "And I hope I continue to be."

Ruby didn't say anything to that. She just grinned, wide enough for her eyes to shut. She felt great. She had a great view, she just had a great talk, she was given a great lesson, and she had just made sure her and Link, and all of his friends, were great friends. Everything really was great. She spread her arms out to their widest, still kneeling on Elrora's back.

It wasn't everyday she got to feel like this. She preferred to be running through the Everfree, or chasing down Grimm, or hanging out with Weiss, reading with Blake, playing games with Jaune, maybe even looking to hang out with Penny. With Link, right now, she just felt… safe. Even though she was probably a mile up in the air. Maybe, hard to judge.

"I think you're gonna do great," Ruby spoke up. She wanted to fall on top of Elrora, there was plenty of room. But that just seemed… mean. She settled with slowly laying on top of her broad back. "You're a natural when it comes to making others feel safe."

For the first time in their flight, Ruby felt Elrora falter.

It wasn't much, really quick really, but without walls to lean on or a warning from a captain, the sudden lurching of the faunus made Ruby give a quick gasp of fright. Her fingers bunched into the feathers, regretting as she did so the way she matted the golden locks. But it was over before she knew it began. That was it.

Did she imagine that? Maybe. She was getting tired, and it was late. She had spent just about the whole day studying and actually paying attention to class. That was what Weiss and Blake did best. She just listened to what they had to say.

"Ruby," Elrora spoke again. "Do you enjoy singing?" That was not a question she had expected.

"Uh, well, I can't sing," Ruby admitted, inching her way up Elrora's back. She didn't want to matt or bend any of the feathers. They were too pretty to ruin. "But I do like listening to people sing. It's… nice." Elrora hummed with her words.

That was a weird question. Well, Ruby figured that it wasn't too weird. She had talked about singing before as a way to establish that peace of mind. Maybe that was Link. Link now, Elrora before. Or was it reversed? They really needed to start making high signs for who was talking because it was hard to keep track. But did it even matter? She suppressed a groan into the sleeve of her uniform.

"Would you care if we stopped this flight?" That got Ruby to look up. Did she say something wrong? "I wish to sing to you instead, but only if you are willing to listen."

"I'm not wrong when I say this is a lot, right?" Jaune was looking at the ground as he walked, but he knew Pyrrha was listening to him. She always did listen to him, especially when there was a lot to take in. "I mean, I thought it was going to just be weird, but then he, or she, or they, throw in this dueling contest? I-I mean it sounds amazing, but… this isn't normal, right?"

They were walking together, like they usually did around this time of night. They had just circled the dorm and were heading back in, up the several flights of stairs to the roof. Pyrrha did say that was the best way to warm up, slow stretches and breathing. Walking long distances covered both of those.

"I can assure you, Jaune that I've never heard about this happening at any other academy" Pyrrha answered back. "I have spoken to a lot of other fighters and I've never heard a story like this. But that doesn't make it a bad thing." Wait, she thought he was complaining?

"Oh no no no," Jaune quickly faced her, waving hands in front of his face. That wasn't he thought at all. "I-I'm just saying that a lots happened in a little time. Haven't adjusted yet. Moving at the speed of light. I'm not mad o-or upset, heck Link actually seems like the kinda guy who'll make sure I don't just get into fights that I'll lose." Oh yeah, that reminded him, it was his turn to duel on Thursday. "Though, that will be difficult."

"Jaune, you'll do fine," Pyrrha spoke. He felt her hand on his shoulder. That was what she usually did when he started speaking the truth. Yeah, it was the truth. Only fighter at Beacon with a zero win record. "You've improved immensely since you've come here, and you are trying to get better. It's why you asked me to teach you."

"Well, technically you offered and I refused." He could recall those painful days unfortunately well. "Then I realized how stupid I was to not take training lessons from a master duelist like you. Sides, there's no way I would ask anyone else to help me get better than my best friend."

Oh yeah, he meant that. When it came to lessons, no one else, not even the professors, had patience for him. Pyrrha was the only one who bothered to help him, let alone deal with all of his short comings. And there were a lot. He must have done something really good in a past life to get Pyrrha as a friend, teammate, and even partner here. Jaune looked at her, ready to see that smile of agreement.

Oh no, she was avoiding his gaze. That was bad. Really bad. That usually meant he said something bad or did something bad. Had to be first, they hadn't even gotten to the roof yet. They were still in the stairs, with like another floor to go! And was she red in the face? Oh no, that meant she had gotten her mad.

"P-Pyrrha, I'm sorry." Jaune didn't know for what, but he knew from experience that submission usually lessened punishment. His twin taught him that. "I wasn't thinking, you know that. I hardly ever do, not well at least. When you're teaching me tonight, you can go extra hard to make sure I know how to actually parry those abdominal lunges and-"

"Jaune," Pyrrha interrupted. That meant he should shut up. He could do that. "I appreciate your concern, but you didn't do anything wrong, really. I'm sorry for making you think that." Oh, well, that was good. But then why was she looking away from him? No wait, it was more than that.

"Pyrrha are you okay?" Jaune asked. "You're talking really quiet all of the sudden. Are you light-headed?" He put a hand to her shoulder now out of concern. That was possible. He'd been knocked out enough times to know it was hard to speak when blood was rushing from your head. Or to it. Either direction.

"N-No," Pyrrha. "Jaune, I-I'm fine just… don't you hear that?" Hear what?

Jaune titled his head, mimicking the motion Pyrrha made. At first all he could hear was his own heartbeat. It usually beat up into his throat whenever he was about to learn something new about dueling and swordsmanship with Pyrrha. That was still there, louder if anything else. But…

There was something else. He just couldn't tell what. It sounded muted and dull, like it was being pushed through several layers of flooring, which it probably was, whatever it was. That was the trouble though. It just sounded like some low vibration. Pleasant, yeah, he'd admit that, but that was it. It meant it was good, but… what was it?

"I hear it," Jaune whispered back. That answered question to with why Pyrrha was talking quietly. "What is it?"

"I don't know," Pyrrha answered. Well they were on the same page. That was good at least, maybe. "But I think it's coming from the roof." Well that was bad.

"Uh, should we check it out or… practice somewhere else?" He didn't know what the better option was. I mean, they could just practice in the arena, it wasn't as if ti was packed this late at night. But then, if something bad was happening, maybe they should look into it. It was why they were Hunters afterall, well in training.

"We should go," Pyrrha looked at him as she spoke, nodding her head lightly. Then she started moving up the stairs. Juane was right behind her.

It never took them long to climb a few flights of stairs and with only one left it felt like no time had passed. They stopped at the door though, Pyrrha's hand over the crease as she leant into it. Jaune mimicked her action on the opposite side. Their eyes met for a moment, but she shut hers quickly.

Right, that made sense. It made it easier to hear. He did the same, taking a deep breath and holding it in. Ear to the metal frame of the door, Jaune listened to whatever was making the noise on the other side. With so little between him and it, it was really easy to hear now.

And he knew almost immediately it was singing.

It was listening to the voice through a steel door, which he was, but it was still singing. He could hear whomever was singing gentle uttering the words with care, take time to make sure that their meaning was more than just the words themselves. That was really good. In fact, even muffled, he could tell the voice was amazing!

He felt his jaw go lax the more he listened the voice, sounding more like something he'd hear in some opera house one of his sisters dragged him to then off of the Beacon Dorm roof. A part of him wondered just how amazing the voice would sound if there was no steel door in the way, or anything. Just… listening to the voice. There was only one, small, problem.

"What are they singing?" He whispered the words as quietly as he could, hoping Pyrrha heard him. No blame if she didn't. For all he knew she might have already asked the same. That'd be bad.

"Hmm," Pyrrha mumbled in response. That… was probably some quick dismissive noise. Made sense. Talking any longer would make it harder to hear the voice singing. "I don't know… it sounds… memorial…"

Jaune didn't know what that meant, but he knew she was right, somehow. The word probably meant that it was hard to forget something. Right now, Jaune was having a hard time not listening to it. Even if it was in a different language, or not a language, or just muffled too much, it was just… nice. It was good to listen to.

"Should we see who it is?" Jaune asked the question as quietly as before. This time, Pyrrha didn't give a response back verbally. He cracked his eyes open slightly, and looked at his partner. She was watching him, too. Difference was, she was nodding her head, slowly. That was good. "Okay… want me to go first?"

"No, I will," Pyrrha answered. That was good. Jaune honestly had no idea what he would do to get to the roof without making any noise. Sounded kind of impossible for him. Pyrrha? Probably a day in the park for her. Well, night, but same thing. "Just do as I do and stay close behind." He nodded, taking his ear off the door as he did so. Had to, otherwise she wouldn't have been able to move it. That was kinda important.

Slowly, almost mutely, Pyrrha twisted the knob on the door, pushing it open as delicately as she did sharpen Milo. He'd seen her do it enough to know that the level of care was the same. What was weird was that he couldn't tell if she was breathing. He held his breath for good measure. Less sound. The door was still opening.

As it crept open, more and more and of the pale moonlight reached over them, that and the cold air of the night. Almost made him shiver even with a sweater on. This time though, he did shiver, and it was that he was leaning in too close to Pyrrha's back.

It was because now he heard the voice singing.

"Fan ima tu rima nis. San ta limen ver pa," the voice sang, flawlessly. Jaune couldn't honestly think of another word for it.

It sounded like what it felt like to watch Pyrrha fight. No mistakes, no hesitation, just perfect movements and perfect pitches with each word. Jaune was curious before who was the one singing. Now he really had to know. Pyrrha must have to because he swore that door was opening quicker. Just as quiet though.

"Scrif tu mobis forra. Vato cris forten no ko reha," The voice kept singing and Jaune and Pyrrha kept sneaking.

Pyrrha was crouching, lowly, as she moved her way past the open door. Jaune was just behind her. He moved his hand to the door, holding it steady as Pyrrha hugged the wall. Couldn't have it move too much too quickly. Training almost every night made it clear to Jaune that the door wasn't well treated against the weather. It squeaked if it moved too quickly.

His head was just past the door when Pyrrha suddenly stopped. That was bad, really bad. Pyrrha didn't stop for almost anything. When she did, it was usually for unexpected sights, like Grimm swarming Vale or a single Hunter killing an Ancient Grammite. Those sort of things. When she stopped now he didn't understand. Yet.

Jaune, carefully as he possibly could, moved through the door the rest of the way, staying low as Pyrrha and still holding his breath. It was getting kind of hard to hold in.

"Vos tera not ver pa. In nuviste terana ver pu," He could hear the voice clear as the night right now. And it was a clear night. No clouds to cover the moon or stars. No real wind to make it hard to keep his eyes open. And really, even if there was, his eyes would have stayed open like they were glued.

It was easy, given that he was staring at a tall golden feathered figure at the edge of the roof.

"Scrif tu mov ta," her voice held words in the air, letting them slowly fade. And when they faded, she didn't sing anymore. Wait... was it a she? No guy no matter the race could hit those kind of notes. But maybe they could, and that was why they were hiding. If Jaune was wrong, that was bad.

Wait, no, that was secondary. He, they, Pyrrha and him needed to know who this figure was. She looked familiar, sort of. But… he couldn't place it. Jaune put a hand to his head, thinking of where he might have seen someone like… this before. It was only after he did that that he realized he let go of the door.

SLAM!

Instead of scaring himself, Jaune just let out a groan of annoyance, using the hand on his head to pull him down. A screw up to the very end. That was one thing he always had a knack for at least.

"Oh, hello," the figure spoke to them. Jaune didn't bother to look up. "I apologize for not seeing you there. I believed that we were alone." Well, technically they were until he and Pyrrha came up here. Technically most people knew they came up here every night, but they didn't exactly have it on lockdown or anything, so-

"Wait, we?" Jaune asked as he brought his head up. It took him a moment to realize the bird, doubtlessly a fuanus, still hadn't turned around completely. That didn't stop her head from looking over her shoulder far enough for him to see both eyes. Freaky. "Who's we?"

"Myself and Ruby Rose," she said back. Was she smiling? How was she smiling with a beak? No, wrong question.

"I'm sorr- we're sorry for interrupting," Pyrrha spoke up. Yup, he was sorry, good thing she apologized. He'd do the same next chance he got. "But, where is Ruby?"

The figure didn't say anything in response, but she kept smiling. She did start to move though. It was kinda cool to watch, all the feathers that were draped down her back moving as she twisted. It was like watching his little sister at her ballet recital, the dress spinning around her. This was slower of course, but the gold, that stuff was shining even with the sun down. He could see the long feathers falling off of the edge of the roof one-by-one, most likely, hopefully, hanging from the rest of her body as they did so. Of course the bundle of red that was in her arms was different from the gold but it… wait…

Was that… Ruby?

"She is resting," the figure spoke again. "I offered my voice to her, and she accepted. In the midst of one of my songs she fell asleep by my side." Were they standing, sitting, what? "When I moved to stand, she gripped by feathers, still seemingly unaware to the world." Sitting then, great. "So I picked her up and continued to sing. She must have been drowsy for some time, for I almost fear she is so deep asleep she may never awake."

"But she will, right?" Jaune found himself asking. "Never waking up means, like… something really bad. And, no, wrong question. Who are you?" Somewhere in his question he started to stand. He didn't know when, but he definitely was by the time he asked the important question. At least she seemed surprised by it. Kinda mute when she was… tall… really tall.

"Oh, my apologies once more, I failed to remember that we have not yet met," She bowed carefully, still towering over Jaune. That kinda made him worried, that and the seemingly ever present smile she had with Ruby. "My name is Elrora of the Watarara." Wait didn't Tatl mention something about her? Back when, oh… "I am also called Link."

"Link?" Pyrrha now, walking up to beside Jaune. She stopped just beside him and he gave her a glance. Her eyes were glued to Elrora. "That's… of course, I'm so sorry for not realizing it was you. Jaune and I usually come up here at night and your voice kind of surprised us, so we didn't want to interrupt."

"I thank you for your concern towards my comfort," Elrora spoke, her head lightly moving towards Pyrrha. Or was it Link? Both? This was worse than a gender question, because it was that and more! "And now I must apologize thrice to you for taking a spot I did not know you had reserved. I merely made to perch her shortly, but Ruby's state has made departure difficult."

"O-Oh no, you don't have to apologize," Jaune took up now. She, he, Elrora, Link… Jaunne was gonna call them they until told otherwise. "We can't exactly reserve it, we just… train up here. It's pretty empty at night, most of the time." He kept looking at them as he spoke, but it was really hard not to look down at Ruby.

She looked like a little kid in the faunus's arms. Like, really small kid, like a few years old by size comparison. She was sleeping like it to, eyes shut, head lolled into the bird's chest, on hand gripping at the feathers with the other curled around herself. Kinda made it harder to look away from with the fact that as she was literally being blanketed by the wings of the bird, too. It actually looked kinda… cute. Taking a picture of it probably would have been pretty bad though. Yeah.

"Of that I understand," they responded. "Peace is most easily obtained in the waning hours of the night. And rarely is there a better time to improve one's self then when you have no worries." Jaune really wanted to know how that felt. Being worry free sounded like being able to fly. Good thing he didn't say that out loud. That would have been bad.

"Um… Elrora," Pyrrha again. "Wouldn't it be best if you… put Ruby down, or in her bed? I mean, it can't be comfortable holding her like that." That was actually a pretty good point. Personal experience with his younger sisters told him that lifting someone seemed all cute and cuddly at first, but after a long time it was just basically holding a deadweight in your hands, one that might grab at you.

"I do not mind at all," they returned. Jaune needed more context for the name. "She is light, and appears to rest easily." Elrora looked down at Ruby. Jaune was now entirely convinced that smile was permanent.

"She reminds me of my daughter." Never mind, the smile fell.

Jaune had blinked. In the course of that single blink Elrora had changed from the smiling golden bird holding Ruby to a still looking bird holding Ruby. That wasn't much of a difference was it? Well… it was enough to catch his attention, which given Jaune's expertise in everything else, being little to none, meant it was something.

"Your… daughter?" He heard Pyrrha speak next to him. But she sounded off, way off. Why? Elrora just said that it was like handling their kid. It was… wait… If Elrora was like Impa and Mikau… and Mikau's story with his kids. Ah geez, couldn't they catch a break!

Jaune felt his own face fall as the bird slowly shut their eyes, taking in a deep breath of air. Couldn't they have just a normal conversation? Well, no, normal was pretty impossible with a guy that could wear the memories of his friends, fight ancient Grimm from age ten, and still be able to laugh at the idea of losing to any of them in an arena. Still, hearing that… maybe it would be best if Ruby were somewhere else, them to. Bed sounded pretty good right now. Focusing on a duel with Pyrrha right now seemed… impossible? Yeah, that was it, impossible.

"Um… Elrora?" He started, not sure himself why. The golden faunus looked at him. She wasn't smiling, which was bad. But hey, at least that meant she could do something else other than smile. That really didn't matter right now. "Uh… your voice was really nice while you were singing, I mean, Pyrrha and I didn't want to interrupt you." Hadn't Pyrrha already said that? Yeah, she did.

"I thank you for your kind words, Jaune," they said back. She looked like she was smiling, maybe. "But now, I think it best that I return Ruby to her room for the night. I am sure we will have much more to talk about during tomorrow's day."

"Uh, yeah! Definitely," Jaune was nodding his head heavily with the words. That was a good idea. "Yup, you do that. Here, I'll get the door for you." Actually he wasn't sure she'd fit through the door, but it was the only way off of the roof, aside from jumping. Still wasn't depressed enough for that. He moved towards the door, reaching out to grab the handle.

Only to have it slam right into his face.

"There you are! Do you have any idea how long we've been looking for you!" Someone shouted above him. Was it above? Kinda hard to tell when he was looking up at the sky. Oh hey, Pyrrha was there, too. Except she was looking down at him with a worried expression. That was normal at least. But then who was shouting? Sounded familiar. "We lost you when you did your spiral descent around Ozpin's tower. So where did you-"

"Weiss!" Someone else shouted. "Look would you shut up?" That was, without a doubt, the loudest whisper Jaune had ever heard. At least he thought it was a whisper, hard to tell with the throbbing over his skull. That wasn't too abnormal for him, pretty common way for him to get to the ground at least.

"Ah, there you are," they spoke. They were Elrora and Link, whoever actually was talking. They needed signs. "I was hoping you would come soon. Young Ruby will need one of you to take her to bed."

"What'd you… you… oh… Ruby…" Well, couldn't stare at the sky forever. Jaune gently pushed himself up, feeling Pyrrha put her hand on his shoulder, steadying him. He flashed her a winning smile, hoping that it would be thanks for now. He focused his eyes before he looked around himself.

First thing he noticed was Blake at the door. Noticed that first because he was still facing the door, albeit with his butt on the ground and a few feet away. She was looking past him. Weiss, his snow angel, was standing closer to him, but it was kinda obvious he was the last thing on her mind. It was made more apparent given that she was walking past him. Just behind her, behind in the sense that his snow angel was between them, was Yang. He couldn't see much of her, from the ground, a person between them, and walking away from him, too.

"She is well, of that I promise," he heard Elrora talking. Jaune twisted around on the ground, Pyrrha taking her hand off his shoulder as he did so, only to put it on the opposite one. Had to admit, it did kinda help him stay upright. Elrora was looking at Yang and Weiss, her beak smiling again. It may not have been permanent, but it did look like it came back pretty easily. "I sang to her, a personal request on my part. She fell asleep amidst the songs and I now find myself unable to find the most suitable way to care for her."

"I got her," Yang spoke up. She marched towards Elrora with her arms out. Kinda made the sheer height of Elrora all the greater, seeing as Yang barely made it past chest level with the bird, and he and Yang were the same height. "I'll make sure she gets back to her bed."

"Excellent, you are a kind sister, Yang," Elrora answered leaning down with Ruby in her arms. It was kinda obvious with the hand off. Pretty sure Ruby let out a noise of some kind, but it was hard to tell with the ringing in his head. He'd have to get that checked out. "She sleeps as soundly as a growing child. I find it difficult to remember that she is both a Knight and a leader."

"Shh…" Yang whispered instead of an answer. Jaune had to shake his head, doing his best to get rid of the pain. Only made it worse. Honestly he was just having a tough time remembering when Yang wanted it to be quiet. "I've got you. You're safe Rubes." That only freaked him out more.

"Thank you for your… assistance, Elrora," Jaune's snow angel spoke up now. Her voice was quiet, too. Guess she really did care about Ruby, enough at least to not wake her up. Wonder why that was, cause all Jaune could think of was how often his older sister would move him in his sleep just to prank him. From that angle, this seemed like gold. "You have provided us with much to think of in regards to our training, not to mention helping Ruby sleep." Did she have trouble sleeping?

"You owe me nothing, Weiss," Elrora answered. "But I accept your thanks with grace. I only ask you meditate on my words and care for your leader. I promise I will offer you flights in the coming days, but for now, I believe the night has made rest the most desired action to take." What was that about flights? As in flying? As in she carried them?

"Nope, no thanks, I'm good," he waved his arms, catching himself before he fell over. Well, Pyrrha caught him, but he righted himself. "No need to take me for a flight. I'm good on the ground, the safe hallowed not-moving-without-my-say-so ground." Jaune would have to be knocked out or dead before that happened to him.

"She was speaking to us, Arc." Weiss turned her cold blue eyes to him. Kinda funny, the snow angel speaking heatedly. Oh hey! It was her, not they! That was good, he guessed. "It was her form of apology for… making us all think something rather unfortunate earlier." How did someone make you think anything?

"Besides," Blake now, from behind him. Jaune turned to see her, her arms crossed as she looked down at him. That wasn't uncommon, but it was bad. "Asking for something like that is very personal to a faunus, something they give only to people that they trust." Well Jaune probably wasn't on that list.

"I do not mind," Elrora spoke up. Jaune was able to see a quick look of shock over Blake's golden eyes as she looked up at them.

He turned to them, but found the bird stalking towards them. Maybe that was the wrong word, but with her wings basically wrapping around her like towels, he was reminded of the last boss of some video games he played, looking all ominous and stuff. The gold kinda ruined that. That and the smile. They were both just too… bright to be either.

"Your hesitation is both founded and understood, Jaune," they spoke to him. "I thank you for your kindness earlier, you and Pyrrha both." Her eyes swiveled to his partner. Jaune felt her shirk under the gaze. No idea why. "But for now the coming night will be short, for I'll have to rise before the new day. With luck, I will see you all again soon."

When her hands reached for her face, Jaune knew what was coming next. He shut his eyes, looking away to keep the bright light from blinding him. It was uncomfortable. He felt it through his lids regardless, but it was far better than listening to Link scream. That freaked him out when he turned into Mikau and no amount of time would make it any better.

When the light had died down though, Jaune opened his eyes. As expected, Link was there. Just Link, his apparent faunus double, complete with his green tunic, belts, sword, and alabaster beaked mask. Didn't much time for him to put together what the mask was. He pocketed in his tunic, smiling as he did so. Maybe it was him grinning as Elrora.

He nodded towards them, green hat swaying with the action, but that was pretty much it. Maybe he looked at Ruby in Yang's arms, maybe he gave Blake a small nod, maybe he even gave Jaune a hand shake. Actually, he did do that last one. Had no idea why. He really should get that head injury checked. What he did know was that Link was the first to leave the roof, walking to the stairs and out of sight.

"Well… this has been fun," Jaune let out. "So what now?" He didn't really ask anyone the question, just kinda threw it out there. Helped with the thinking process, usually because someone would end up giving him an answer.

"Now?" Yang spoke first. "I'm gonna take Rubes back to the room, tuck her in, and give my dad a good long call." Kay, that made sense. Probably shouldn't ask about the phone call. Wasn't his business.

Still, Jaune couldn't help seeing how Yang looked down at her sister. The brawler usually had some lopsided grin, a smirk, or even a pout. But right now, she just looked… hurt. Was she hurt? Nah, probably not. About as likely as Pyrrha losing a fight. Didn't really matter all that much cause she was leaving, literally. She was out the door with Ruby in hand.

"That doesn't happen often, does it?" Pyrrha asked, but Jaune knew that wasn't to him. The answer was kinda obvious though. How often a faunus professor sings a student to sleep? Not hardly.

"No," Weiss answered. "Ruby and Yang are close, but she hates being picked up like that. I thought it was just due to the brute's tendency to smother her with her hair." Who to who what?

"She's fighting off jealousy," Blake now. "Elrora was able to gain Ruby's trust and sing her to sleep. I don't know much, but Yang… she told me about their mother, Ruby's mom." This sounded like it was gonna be bad. "She sang Ruby to sleep a lot, especially when she was scared. Ruby hasn't trusted anyone else to do that since she passed on."

Yup, Jaune was right, horrible.

"Then does it make it a good thing that Elrora sees Ruby like her daughter?" It was 'her', his snow angel confirmed that for him. Made it easier at least when addressing Link now. Elrora was she and Link was he, not they, which was usually pretty good. Some people preferred they. "Not like an actual mom and daughter, but like… surrogate? Is that bad?"

The silence that followed told him it was bad. Or, more specifically, the way Weiss and Blake were staring at him. That usually ended with someone hurt, nine out of ten times him. Well, he was already on the ground, but it'd be easier if he was standing. They were usually satisfied if he fell over. Jaune pushed himself to his feet, Pyrrha put her arm on his back as he did so. He got to his tallest when Blake spoke up again.

"Jaune," the dark girl said. "Elrora had a son. She told this to me, twice." Jaune felt his face fall, a groan just barely coming from his lips. Of course he had to be reminded of that. Nothing much worse came to mind than knowing parents and children were split up.

"Um, I'm sorry Blake, but you must be mistaken." Pyrrha spoke up now. "I'm very sure Elrora said Ruby reminded her of her daughter, those were almost her exact words."

"They were," Jaune agreed with his partner. "She told us right after she said how light and easy it was to carry Ruby." That only made the black and white members of RWBY look at one another. Was there a tag team take down coming?

"Could she have had more than one child?" Weiss asked. Oh please be no.

"No," Blake returned. That was good. "She only ever mentioned her son. Rauru was his name. She told Ruby and me in the Emerald Forest and myself again before our flight. I'm sure, I know, that she had only one child, and he was male." Was this still good?

"Pyrrha," Weiss asked his partner. "You're sure, absolutely so, that she said daughter?" Jaune nodded his head without being asked.

"Oh, yes," Pyrrha spoke. "I'm as confident that's what I heard as I am with a sword. She said daughter." There was something else.

"Yeah, and she even froze up afterwards," Jaune added in. "Kinda the way you'd expect anyone to if you reminded them of something like that." Well, he'd probably just cry, but that was probably something no one could blame him for.

Weiss and Blake looked… worried? Was that it? Wasn't a hundred percent sure on that one. Mortified kinda fit in there, terrified to, but he knew those two pretty well, given how many times his life had almost been ended. Blake was just shaking her head.

"You don't understand," Blake now. She seemed quieter than usual. That was… bad? Yeah, probably. "Elrora only had a son, but you two both say Elrora mentioned a daughter."

"That means… she misspoke?" Pyrrha spoke as question. That was Jaune's bet. He'd been called by each of his sister's names by his own parents before. Mary, Margeret, Jane, Juliet, every one of them had been his name at some point, usually with his parents laughing off the mistake. But Elrora didn't laugh, and it wasn't like Link… oh.

Oooooooh… oh Grimm no… C'mon…

Jaune wished he was back on the ground. He could already feel his stomach getting upset.

"It means… it wasn't Elrora who mentioned a daughter."

"Well, this has been an interesting day, hasn't it?" She spoke the words carefully, mulling over more important topics in her mind as she spoke them. They were meant for her two subordinates, not for herself.

"That's one way to put it," Mercury spoke, lower limbs outstretched and leaning back on his arms. The floor suited nicely for that. "I'd describe it more as a cluster of Nevermore, but interesting still qualifies." Crass, as usual.

"This changes a lot," Emerald spoke up now. "We already had to delay our plans with the festival being postponed, but with The White Fang on edge and this new faunus as a teacher, it could jeopardize everything."

Not many would insult her plan so easily. Even fewer expected to live for it. However, she was a not a woman of intellect for killing those who challenged her plans. Plans were merely ideas, ones that could be modified and improved until perfected.

"Agreed," Cinder spoke in turn. "Though do not forget that he is still but one creature. No matter how much power he has, it is just one more obstacle we must work around."

"I-I know," Emerald replied quickly, relenting. Good. "It's just hard to not think of him as some indomitable force after everything we got on him." Another valid point, more proof that Emerald was worth her weight for both sabotage and espionage.

"Let's see," Mercury began, lifting one of his hands from behind his back. He counted off his fingers with his words. "We got the ability to transform, mastery of Grimm knows how many weapons, some seriously high level combat experience, a semblance he or his little mini-bots haven't even hinted at, and then it's all neatly wrapped up in a warning the big boss gave us."

"You were doing so well, Mercury," she spoke calmly, directly, to the blue haired boy. His eyes flashed for a moment, the only sign he was aware of his mistake. He quickly realigned his own proverbial mask, a small grin and hunched stature. "But you are correct. Our mistress was very specific with her warning, wasn't she?"

Cinder was well aware of what the warning was. Replying it over and over in her mind as often as she did the plan they were sworn to commit. It was one of many mantras she had, one she kept as much thought into as the plans for the death of hundreds in the weeks and months to come. But, though she knew it, she had to be aware that her key pawns were just as wary.

"'When he appears, the faunus in green will bring both calamity and peace with masks to match.' Not something you can easily forget." Emerald listed the warning, correctly. Very good.

"I just kinda wish she were a little more specific about it." Mercury followed. "Does it mean we gotta keep a closer eye on his actions than Ozpin's? Or are one of his many handy dandy tools gonna be the key to some super weapon? Maybe that friend he says he's trying to find."

"All are possibilities," she emphasized. "Wise as she is, our mistress cannot know what time will not show her. It is why we are here doing as she says."

"It keeps us all safe, right?" Emerald questioned. She preferred direct answers. Questions as responses felt so… unsure. However, small offerings of forgiveness were important, she supposed. Otherwise her pawns may change color.

"Correct again," she lightly tilted her head towards the one-time petty thief. "She cannot be reached where she is and, so long as we follow her orders, we will remain just hidden from all around us."

"Bet that little blow Torch in Vale wishes he had the same kind of assurances." It was only the truth of the statement that kept her from being annoyed with Mercury.

"Indeed," she agreed. "Torchwick has done a fair amount of work for us. I only hope he continues to be a resource we can depend on. He is well aware of what would happen should his feet begin to shiver."

Though she said nothing in response, she heard Mercury chuckle at the idea. Of course he would, it was obvious. Just as obvious as Emerald's light hair toss and breathy sigh. Neither had love for the small time thief and crook. He had his uses, but they were limited in scope. His part would soon be done.

Bing

"Oh hey, speak of the Grimm and they shall roar," Mercury mockingly spoke. He lifted his hand to his breast pocket, producing his Scroll. A deft flick of his thumb produced the translucent screen, taken up by a series of words and images. Backwards and some distance away, she could not make them out. "Oh hey, I think it's for you. Idiot must have sent it to the wrong number." He leaned the scroll forward with the words.

"I should hope not," Cinder spoke honestly. "Else he was just as lucky to hand the information he sent to someone not involved in our circle. That would be… unwise." She took the scroll regardless, eyes looking over the words swiftly.

Cinder, sending this through boy blue boy blue because I know how much he loves his horn.

She raised a curious brow to said individual in front of her. His mask was as straight as ever. Mockery indeed, but the tact was deplorable. They would have words next time they spoke.

Ain't got much on our little faunus boy yet, mostly because whatever country he says he's from is as garbage as your little thief's thieving abilities. Those skills were actually second to none, but the mockery was evident in the words. What I do got is some words that he's made a deal to look out beyond the kingdom for that friend he was telling Ozpin about. Got a few boys looking in those dark corners myself, but I'm taking any loss of communication with them as a maybe for the location.

Look, point is that pointy eared elf is as much a mystery right now as you are to the rest of Beacon. They all know you're there, but they only know what you're telling them. A poor comparison again, but the final words of the sentence did hold merit. While Junior's goons are looking up and down spooky caves and haunted mines, I'm trying to make a plan myself on how to 'borrow' one of the little guy's masks.

"Oh," she spoke aloud, intrigued by the idea.

"What is it?" Emerald asked. Her curiosity was as palpable as her eagerness. A true dog, just as Cinder needed. But like any good puppy, she would have to learn patience.

See, we might get anything said in Ozpin's office, but Little Red and her three angry bears slash kittens seem pretty happy talking about him. They mentioned that he had ten masks to show off. So far, we've only got info on a few of them. She was already well aware of this information. Cinder loathed to be told messages twice. Buuuut, apparently the kitten of the group said that one of the mini-drones interrupted the other when they were going to put a number to the head count. I've been in this business long enough there are only two reasons you interrupt a partner during a business deal. Sacrifice or secrecy.

Cinder felt herself smile.

"Okay, seriously, what's up?" Mercury raised his voice now. "The last time you grinned like that, you found out the prize student of Atlas was actual a puppet with loose strings." That was true, but this was better.

Give me a bit more time in the park and info on the jolly green teach of Beacon and I'll start whipping up a plan. Heck, if I do it right, might be able to get the Fangless Faunus to help us out. Pretty sure it'd be easy to spin a 'traitor faunus' story to them. It was one of the few reasons Cinder kept Torchwick's role alive in the game. Seriously though, I'm thinking there's something else he's hiding on him and we need to get it. The gamble is getting something without losing something else. Let you know when plans A through D are done. I'm sure you'll be able to make up E through Z.

"Hmm," Cinder hummed as she shut Mercury's scroll, flicking it back at the boy. He caught it easily, his eyes never leaving her. Perhaps they did deserve an answer now. "It appears that the rat has found a rather enticing piece of cheese. We need only find a way to help clear away the traps."

"Sweet," Mercury answered. "I was starting to get bored."

Chapter Text

"I'm gonna kill him." That was, unfortunately, the response Blake expected. "I'm gonna tear his freaking throat out and feed him to the Grimm. He'll, oh, he'll regret ever coming near Ruby for this."

"Yang, calm down," Weiss spoke up. This was a situation where Blake was glad they were on the same side. "You're reading too far into Link's actions. We don't know how much of what was said was Elrora or him, not to mention that we are taking Jaune and Pyrrha's word for it."

"Then let's ask them," Yang growled out. "Their right behind that door!" Her hand flew out towards the door opposite their own. And they were only a knock away. Jaune and Pyrrha would definitely talk to them after this little discovery. It would also be preferable to discussing in the hall.

They couldn't use their own room, not while Ruby was sleeping, as Yang put it, like their mom was the one who put them to sleep. She probably regretted saying that once Blake and Yang talked to her.

They were standing in the hallway, just outside their door. Weiss's strategic choice. Semi-isolated at night, but close enough to Ruby to keep Yang from yelling. Optimal.

"We'll talk to them as soon as you stop looking like you're going to kill the first person you see," Weiss hissed the words back to Yang. That had an effect on Yang, enough for her to at least look at the ground.

"Fine," Yang let out. That was all the warning they had.

Yang was strong, the strongest on their team, so when Blake saw her immediately take the few steps necessary to reach JNPR's room, she knew she didn't have a fool's chance of stopping her partner. She tried anyway, grabbing Yang's hand. It didn't even sway under her strength.

The blonde nearly pushed the door off of its hinges, only the desire to keep Ruby asleep kept Blake from calling out her partner's name. The same was likely true for Weiss.

It was not true for the members of the room they had just invaded.

"What the- Yang!?" Jaune let out, his voice characteristically high at the surprise.

"You!" Yang let out, pointing an understandably menacing finger towards Jaune, and maybe Pyrrha too. "Start talking, now."

"About what?!" He was backed up on his bed, halfway undressed and likely getting ready to sleep. Pyrrha was sitting next to him, her hands reaching for a weapon. Ren and Nora were on the other side of the room, already prepared for bed.

"About whatever Link told you on the roof!" Yang let out a yell this time. Blake wasn't sure a door was enough to hold back the sound. "Tell me everything that… that… guy said about my sister!" Things were getting out of hand fast.

"Yang, calm down this instant!" Weiss finally found it opportune to intervene. "You're making a completely unnecessary scene!"

"Some creep just called my sister his daughter and you think I should be calm about this!?" Yang whirled on Weiss, hair almost glowing. Blake knew what that meant. Rage, pure and unfiltered. "You said it yourself! You think I'm, what, supposed to just shrug my shoulders and let some foreign monster seduce her?!"

Rage indeed.

"Whoa, you think what?" Jaune let out again, getting up from his bed. It must have been adrenaline that made him do the one-eighty. "No no no, I can say with at least a little confidence that is not what Link is thinking."

Blake had to admit. Jaune was not the man she thought would challenge Yang, especially now.

"What do you know about it!?" Yang shouted back. "Did that prick say something else?! Huh! Did he tell you his life story?!" Blake was getting ready to jump Yang again. Pyrrha was too, judging back the way she reached for Milo.

Jaune just looked ready to jump, out the window that is.

"No! He just said Ruby reminded him of his daughter," he was holding up his hands as he spoke. But Blake was listening to him intently. "I mean… you remind me of my older sister, especially right now! That doesn't mean I think you are her!"

Wow, point for the little guy.

Blake could see Yang relax, visibly. Her arms lowering to her sides, though slightly balled into fists. Her eyes were relaxing as well, though daggers were comparatively duller to what they were now.

She was breathing easier on top of it. Still though, they were far from out of the woods. Yang was volatile in the worst of ways.

"Jaune has a point," Pyrrha stuck up for her partner, seeing an opening to intervene. "All Elrora… Link said was that Ruby reminded him of his daughter. That was it. He didn't say anything like he wished she was his daughter." There was a large difference between the two.

"And how do you know that's not what he was thinking?" Yang still managed to growl back. "Cause from the way Ruby is passed out right now, I'd bet a lock of my hair that she doesn't mind treating the Big Bird as another mom!"

Anyone who knew Yang knew that was not a small bet.

"Yang?" A timid voice asked from the door.

Blake knew who it was immediately. So did the person the voice asked for. The brawler's head whipped for the door Blake following to see Ruby there, cracking the door open just a hair.

"What's going on?" She opened the door to its fullest as she asked the question, no longer trying to hide herself.

The room had gone from deafening loud to equally quiet with all the speed of a bullet. It made for an awkward atmosphere Blake rather preferred to not be a part of. This wasn't the time to run though, not yet.

"Ruby," her sister responded. "Hey, did I wake you up?" The red-head nodded her head lightly. It got Yang to bit her lip. "Sorry 'bout that. I just got a little heated up talking to Jaune here." By the way the boy was looking between the two sisters, he didn't much like the idea of being put in the middle of the conversation.

Blake could hardly blame him.

"You were yelling again, Yang," Ruby returned. "It's about Link, isn't it," Blake was hard to say if Ruby was trying to make the conversation more awkward, or to push to the point where the truth came out. She had seen discussions go both ways with the method. "Did… Did he tell you what happened?"

"He hasn't told us anything," Jaune this time. Blake could see his eyes on the bed, shaking his head as if to clear his thoughts. "Probably doesn't even know that we know. I can't even say we were lucky to find it out. Kind of want to forget it myself." The world was not kind enough to allow that.

"How did you find out?" Ruby was asking. That struck an odd chord with Blake.

Ruby was passed out, asleep, and not even aware of the world when this conversation between Elrora, Jaune, and Pyrrha occurred. So how could she have information?

"Ruby," Blake started. "What do you think we found out?" The faunus-in-hiding was never surer of her decision to question then when Ruby's eyes felt to the floor, her hands playing with each other just beneath her chest. She was hiding something, that was plain as day.

"Rubes?" Yang asked now. She must have caught on. "Did he do something to you?" Maybe not.

"Wha-? No!" Ruby almost shouted back. She bit her lip, shutting the door before stepping into the room. "I did. Well… we both did." Blake swallowed on a ball of saliva in her throat, wetting the airway to keep herself from coughing.

"What does that mean?" Yang's voice was getting low again. The last thing they needed was Yang jumping to a bad conclusion. Thankfully, Ruby was not only her leader, but sister. She knew what to do.

"Link, or Elrora, I'm not sure who, offered to sing to me while we were flying." Ruby looked very uncomfortable talking about this. "I told Link he was amazing and then Elrora asked the question. I thought it'd be nice so I said yes. We landed on the dorm so I could get off and then she went to stand on the edge of the roof."

It all seemed pretty innocent so far. It was just as easy to see Elrora preferring the edge of the building to its center. It modeled a tree branch more appropriately, or perhaps the high cliffs their race usually perched on. It was hard to say.

"I sat down next to her, because it's hard to stand and listen to people. She was waiting for me to get comfortable and didn't say anything." This was avoidance if ever Blake heard it. "But… then she did start to sing."

"What'd she do?" Yang growled out. Even Blake had to admit. As far as protectiveness went, this was animalistic in nature.

"Nothing!" Ruby let out loud enough to blow off some of Yang's steam. "She just sang! A-And it was beautiful. I couldn't understand a word, but she just sang into the wind and it carried and I felt myself getting tired and tired listening to it but I didn't want to fall asleep but I kept holding on and then I started to hold onto her feathers and she stopped and I was worried that-"

"Ruby," Weiss spoke her name quickly, forcefully enough to get the girl to finish her rambling. "Calm down and relax. We aren't angry at you, we just don't understand what happened? We're… concerned about what Link said."

"He said?" She asked, eyes blinking.

Why was that odd to her?

Maybe she really didn't understand what was going on. That only made this situation far more precarious than before.

"Yeah," Jaune picked up. "Pyrrha and I were talking to him, no… her, Elrora, while you were basically knocked out in her arms. Mentioned that you reminded him offpihfphfphf." His words were well and truly muffled beneath Pyrrha's strong grip. Blake gave the duelist and thankful sigh.

"It was just odd to see him holding you like that while you were asleep," she started speaking from where she cut off her partner. "Jaune and I were not prepared for the sight, and Yang was kind enough to take you back to your room before Link left."

It didn't seem to convince Ruby. No matter how young she was, Blake's leader was far from naïve and ignorant. One look at her sister's near flaming hair and sharp red eyes let her know something else was going on. She could not chalk it up to coincidence. Still, it left the question hanging in the back of Blake's mind, just what did Ruby think they knew?

"Elrora picked me up when I started to get really tired," Ruby spoke on, her voice almost a mumble now. "I-I just kinda fell onto her started saying I was fine a-and she said she knew I was but she didn't want me to fall off of the roof." She sucked in a large breath of air, probably to keep herself calm. In that moment, she was almost mistakable for Yang, given the volume. "It was kinda awkward at first, but then she kept singing and I just kept getting more and more tired. I just kinda… closed my eyes and listened."

Blake risked a glance to Yang. She didn't look any angry than before. Then again, Grimm were typically calmer than how she looked now. Tension was still well and present in the room. At least it wasn't getting worse.

"Then I called her mom."

Space itself was louder than JNPR's room right now. Blake dared not move a muscle to even glance at her teammates. She kept her gaze solely and focused squarely on Ruby, her leader. She could see the girl struggling with her tears now, her hands turned into fists against her chest. This was not how Blake thought the day should end.

"I… I-I don't know why I said it," Ruby's voice was shaking. "Elrora just… it wasn't Elrora. It was Link. He just kept rocking me and saying I should rest and then I heard more singing and I didn't care because I felt safe." She spat the words out, arms being thrown to her side.

Blake saw Yang take a clear step forwards.

"I felt safe for the first time in forever and I was so happy that I wasn't reminding someone of mom or being told it was all going to be alright when it wasn't and I didn't need to feel bad or fake a smile or anything I just… I just…" Ruby started to shake her head violently from left to right, like she was getting ready to scream.

Yang wrapped her in a tight hug before she had the chance. Fast as Blake had come to expect from her leader, Ruby had her arms around her older sister, fists balling into the back of Yang's uniform. She was shaking, visibly by Blake's eyes, but still was holding back any tears. The rest of the room was not so lucky.

Blake could heard Nora sniffling, most likely holding her pillow the same way she had when they entered the room. A quick glance showed her Jaune in a defeated slump on his bed, looking anywhere but at the sisters. Pyrrha was doing the same, but with knees pulled up to her chest. Weiss looked loss. Blake didn't pity her, because she felt the same.

"Shh…" Yang's voice eventually spoke again, calm and soothing. It was so different than the rage filled one from before. "It's okay Rubes. You don't gotta be sorry for anything."

"B-But you were mad at m-me," Ruby sputtered out pitifully from her embrace. Blake her hand twitch at the words. "Y-You were sc-creaming about Link a-and how it was his fault, b-b-but it wasn't, it wasn't. It was my fault. It was all my fault. I-it's… It's always my…"

"No," Yang spoke decisively. Her own head was shaking. "No, Rubes. I wasn't angry about that," she mumbled the words into her little sister's hair. "I was just confused and messed up. You know how I get. I just didn't know what to think when you were in Big Bird's arms."

Blake still had to talk to Yang about that name.

Blake heard her team leader suck in a wet breath of air, probably close to spilling however many years of pent up regret. It was never a kind thing to watch. They really shouldn't be doing this, especially in front of them.

"Perhaps it would be best if you returned to your room." Of all voices, Ren spoke up. Blake stared at him and she wasn't alone in that regard. "It is late and the confusion with Link has been clarified. Now would probably be a good time to get some rest and let the worst of these thoughts just… fade away."

Good choice of words.

"I agree," Weiss followed quickly. "This has been a rather textbook definition of a long day and the only remedy for that is a good night's rest. Now," she clapped her hands as if to end the conversation. Blake had no argument this time. "We can discuss this in the morning but Yang, Ruby? Why don't you two go settle first? Blake and I will follow."

"M'Kay," Ruby responded before her sister had chance, didn't look like she had much of an argument anyways. Said blonde led her little sister out of the room, one arm over her younger sibling whom leaned into her. Blake saw the mouthing of a clear 'thank you' towards the group. Nods were the only response given.

When the door shut, Blake could practically hear the muscles relax in the room.

"Ah geez," Jaune let out. "Is there any way for this to get worse? I really want to know before we're blinded sided again. Not a fun feeling." Blake only shook her head as she took a deep breath herself.

Her eyes scanned the room for a vacant spot she could huddle in. She settled for a far wall corner, twisting so her back was against it. Then, slowly, she slid her way down until she sat upon the ground.

"So, to summarize," Weiss began to speak. "We, through deductive reasoning, found out that Link saw Ruby as his daughter, if for a moment. Now Ruby has confessed that she saw him, or appropriately Elrora, as a surrogate mother."

"And Yang was about as happy about that as you could possibly imagine." Blake waved her hand with the words. The really wasn't a need to go into more detail than that.

The memory was fresher than a salmon caught from a stream.

"Is it really bad that she thinks that?" Nora spoke up. She was almost unheard with her mouth against her pillow. "It's like Jauney said, just because she said that doesn't mean she thinks Mr. Green or Ms. Gold are actually her mommy. It was sad, but is it bad?" Her odd nicknames for the individuals involved aside, there was a small point she was missing. Blake had to fill it.

"Ruby and Yang's mother is dead." There wasn't much new tension to create. The news must have been expected given the reaction. "I don't think Yang wants Ruby to latch onto anyone we've just met, no matter how amazing he is."

"Then what do we do?" Pyrrha asked. "Ignore it? Pretend this never happened? Act like Ruby was the one who was at fault? Does Link even suspect we know?" All good questions.

"He may suspect, but I doubt he knows," Weiss continued. "He left before we reached any spoken conclusion. For Ruby, as… questionable as it may seem, I feel leaving the situation alone for now is best." She could have been a little less callous about it.

But… she had a point. Bringing it up again only would have made the future interactions with Link and his friends difficult, infinitely more so if Elrora was ever seen again. If Ruby only thought of it as a small mistake on her part and Link was unaware then, with luck, it could have been forgotten. Too bad luck was something she refused to gamble on.

"I've got a worse question," Jaune spoke up again, raising his hand in the air from his laid back position. "And I really don't want to ask it."

"Well, you have to now," Ren answered. The amount of truth in the statement was worryingly large.

The sigh Jaune gave meant he knew as much. He pushed himself up till his hand supported him, posture horrendous as he slouched forward.

"Link's here looking for his friend, right?" Blake nodded with Weiss, both hearing the testimony from his fairy companions first hand. "And he, like, really values his friends, too." More of a statement, but yes, it was true.

"What is your point?" Weiss asked. Jaune sighed at her words, leaning on one hand to allow the other to scratch the back of his head. Blake had a gut feeling she was going to hate what was coming next.

"Okay, why would this guy, who values his friends enough to literally carry their memories with him, leave his own kid to try and find a friend?"

The answer made an unfortunately heavy amount of sense to Blake.

Enough for her to raise a hand to her lips in shock. It wasn't hard to imagine, but it was so damning to do so. She could see Weiss trying to conjure her own reason, but her logic was not in family. It was in worth.

"Because his friend… is all he has left." Blake hated the words as they left her mouth.

She could hear Pyrrha give a small gasp with the words. Jaune's groan was accompanied with him falling back on his bed, the usual curses leaving his mouth. Blake muttered a few more of her own. Because now all she could see was Link in the face of such a horrible thing.

Knowing his friends were dead, his family was dead, and he was looking for the last friend he didn't even know was alive…

"Not a word," Weiss suddenly spoke up. "We are not going to speak a word of this to Ruby, to Yang, to Link, or anyone else." Blake had a similar mindset, though unspoken. "I don't care what you want to call it, a pact or agreement, but we are not going to risk emotionally damning three people. Understood?"

"Of course," Ren agreed first. Nora nodded her head vigorously next to him. Jaune raised a single thumb into the air in agreement. Pyrrha took more time, putting a hand on Jaune's knee, taking in a slow breath of air. But her nod of concurrence was clear as glass.

"Good," Weiss nodded. The motion quickly weakened. "Good… now… I need to rest. Thank you, all of you, for the time. Blake?" She held her hand out to the faunus-in-hiding, her face expectant. No arguments were given.

Blake pushed herself from the wall, walking towards the heiress and taking her hand. Small nods were given, her own way of offering thanks. A quick twist of her wrist, a few more steps, and they were back in the hall. Just as many motions with just as much time, and they were in their room.

Perhaps luck was on their side, because Yang and Ruby were asleep.

More specifically, Ruby was asleep with Yang. She was cuddling into her older sister, hugging her as a small child would a large pillow. The scene was as heartwarming to Blake as it was cruel. Her curiosity wanted to ask what the mindset was of her leader, wishing so greatly to be a Huntress while bearing this weight.

But the other half, the more experienced of the two, knew better.

They were siblings only half-way in blood, sharing a father, not a mother. Yet Yang watched over her younger sister with the intensity of a hawk, Ruby doing her best to show that she was anything but a child. It was what made moments like this all the more damning. She breathed a heavy sigh through her nose, calming herself from this… long day.

"Get some rest," Weiss whispered to her. She was already stripping to her night gown. It appeared that the events so far had put modesty on the side-lines. "We have much work to do tomorrow." Blake knew she was right. She just wasn't sure they had the same agenda.

Blake still didn't know how to tell the heiress about Impa's words.

"-and following recent White Fang activity, General James Ironwood has declared airspace above Vale to be Military property until the conclusion of the Vytal Festival." The noise of the television droned behind the bar, hardly audible normally. It had a voice now only because the bar was dead and empty.

Usually it was in the middle of the day.

"When reached for a quote, the Council said that other more important matters were being dealt with, and they trusted General Ironwood with the safety of their citizens." No voices were raised in objection. There were hardly any present to do that.

The only mouth available was drinking third glass of whiskey.

Tap

The empty glass settled on the bar top, the man behind it staring at his lap. It was hard to lift up your head when it was being weighed down by alcohol. And he had drunk a lot of alcohol.

"In other new, Lisa Lavender reports on more exciting news happening across Vale. Specifically, in the Hunter Academy of Beacon." Now that was worth a head tilt.

It made his head spin like it was a boat at sea, but to at least see a part of the screen was worth it. That is, as long as it wasn't another bait story to get a few more views. Wouldn't be too surprising if it was.

First thing he saw was the familiar face of Lisa Lavender, eyes squinting at the camera. Her hair was about as pale as her skin, and she looked like a ghost ready to reap a soul. Too bad she wasn't a huntress. She'd have done a lot of good scaring the bad out of some punks.

"Thank you Aurora," the reporter began. "And yes indeed, there has been new news from Beacon Academy, surprisingly uplifting after the fiasco with the Grimm Invasion only a few weeks prior."

Snort. That was a laugh.

The Grimm didn't invade, they were baited. But saying the Grimm attacked was a lot easier to swallow then the Military were duped. His head swung at the idea. It righted itself enough for him to stare at the screen for a bit longer.

"Professor Ozpin, Headmaster of Beacon Academy, has taken on a surprising new addition to his faculty list." And up on the screen popped a picture of the Wonderful Wizard himself, cane and all.

Would have been perfect if he was just coming out from behind some screen, or maybe stroking a beard he didn't have. Or just maybe, he'd taken too much alcohol in the system. That was possible.

"In an unprecedented display of achievement, a recent addition to the Academy, inducted only two weeks ago, is now a registered faculty member to the students." Huh… that was pretty damn impressive.

Maybe the drinks were just getting to him. That didn't sound like Ozpin would do. Either it was stupid, which Ozpin wasn't, or it was out of caution, which was still stupid to do out in the open. So no, it was too stupid to be real.

"The new Professor, denoted by records to be Link of Hyrule, has another accomplishment to his name." Must have been a hell of a thing to rise that quickly. "He is the first faunus Professor to teach at Beacon Academy."

He blinked. Twice. Thrice. Whatever, the hell came after that to mean four.

A picture of the apparent 'prodigy' showed up on the screen. He was a faunus alright, with ears that long. Probably part wolf or something, maybe a jerboa. Those were some mean ears. Kinda funny that they were on the face of some little girl's fantasy hero.

Seriously, it was the booze. It had to be whiskey. Cause the faunus on the screen looked like a heroic knight out of a kid's story. Yeah, he looked cool, given that the picture was taken with two mini-drones floating around him, oddly colored, but he'd seen less convincing photoshops on the news before.

"Glynda Goodwitch, and established Professor of Beacon Academy, was pinged for comment on the unusual events. She had this to say:" The witch actually had something to say?

Well that was worth a little more focus. And up on the screen was the Anti-Wicked Witch of West. Hair combed, face preen, and eyes narrowed into daggers shaper than Grimm's teeth. The usual, basically.

"Link has gone through all legal channels regarding Beacon, the Military, and the Council. He is a certified Hunter. All else that needs to be said is that he is a capable Hunter who will teach the next generation well." Short, sweet, but never nearly enough to eat.

That was Glynda all right.

"It is to be said that Link has claimed, by what few records are available, to be affiliated with an undiscovered country outside the four kingdoms," Lisa spoke on. Maybe the alcohol had something extra in it, cause no way was Ozpin going to suck up that lie.

Then again, he was acting like there was a fire sale going on…

"Recent videos have circulated through the net of Link. For note to our watchers, all videos were captured by third-party contributors who wished to remain anonymous." That meant students that didn't want to be called to Ozpin's office. Smart kids.

Lisa was taken over by another square block, this one showing the beginnings of a scroll's record function. It picked back up some kind of top-down view of a duel. He recognized it as the Beacon Yard, just outside of Ozzy's tower. He could see the faunus standing in front of a bunch of other students.

And he could see that he had up some kind of ward blocking all their bullets. Well at least his Semblance was upfront and obvious. Useful, but pretty lackluster. Did a good job against all those bullets though.

Didn't help that the audio was crap. Probably because of all the tykes yelling and screaming in the video. He could see Glynda watching from the outside of the field, on her pad like she always was.

Then the Link guy threw a boomerang and created a hurricane…

He blinked again. The hell was his Semblance?

Didn't have time to worry about that, because when the twister flew back to the faunus, he basically punted the three kids off the grounds… maybe into orbit. The vid didn't capture what happened to them.

"As you can see, his abilities in battle show his abilities as a Hunter," Lisa continued as the screen went away. She definitely wasn't a Huntress, because any actual Hunter would have a million questions. He had a few, but whiskey said it was all okay… "But further videos show capabilities beyond normal uses of Semblances or Advanced Military Weapons."

The screen popped up again, this time in the classroom. He remembered the classroom, and the blowhard who loved to talk in it. The same faunus was at the front now, wearing the Beacon uniform and holding something in his hand. Too far away to tell what it was.

Whatever it was, he put it to his face and started to scream. Then it all went white. Good way to end a movie, especially hammered. Got him to smirk. But when the screaming was gone and the white filter with it, the faunus was gone.

And in his place was a literal walking fish, built like lamp post.

Oh yes, he was hammered, and the video on the television was the proof.

No way was he ever soberly going to say he saw a video of a faunus transforming from wolf to fish and back again. That wasn't even throwing the electric show on a bone guitar that was clearly captured on some student's scroll. The hell did that work even?

"As shown, Link has expressed many abilities that apparently give his claims of foreign descent enough precedence to be validated by both Beacon and the Military. How this was done, however, we were told is classified." Classified like the White Fang's creation at least.

Damn if it wasn't fun to watch though. The half-pint of a faunus had some moves up on the screen. Sure, they were all about as well captured as a night after drinking half the bottle… or the entire bottle… but it was still a good show. Whiskey was fun.

"Currently, Link is teaching the students of Beacon Academy Combat Training and Action," Guess if you're going to learn the art of war, it'd be from someone who looks like the enemy. "No further information is available at this time. However, we are hoping to learn more once the week ends and the students of Beacon begin to tell us more. I'm Lisa Lavender, and back to you."

The screen went back to the other reporter now, someone much less interesting, cause they were a lot less attractive. But hell if that wasn't something to know about.

The dude looked ridiculous, and like it or not, hiring a Faunus right in the middle of a scare was something only someone like Ozpin would come up with. But seeing as he could count his crows on the Council doing what shouldn't be done, it sounded like James came through by making the Link fella Hunter.

Still, he had only half the information, but at least he had a means to get some more. Had to be a good story behind the faunus becoming a teach, cause getting Ozpin's trust wasn't that easy. His hand rose to grab the bottle next to his drink, getting ready for round… double digits.

But he pushed the bottle over the edge and onto the floor. He groaned as he shattered behind the counter. Figures, bad news with good news.

"Oooh, do you need a hand, sweetheart?" A smooth voice spoke next to him.

A very slow groan left his throat. Then there was the worst news.

"You seem a bit… loose." Of course, he'd met someone like this in the middle of the day. Well the dude was doing an excellent job at tightening him up.

"Nope, I'm good. Just… enjoyin' the day," he responded in a raspy voice. Still hadn't looked at the guy. He was pretty sure that if he swung his head, he'd fall right out of the seat. Last thing he needed was this creep putting hands on him for "good" reason.

"I'm sure there are superior ways to enjoy one's day," the man kept going. He could hear the creep purring. "But if you prefer the dark quiet of a bar with the buzzing of television, perhaps a bit of company would be enough to lighten your day."

Luck wasn't strong enough a word to attribute to this guy. If he was short on three drinks of whiskey, the creep would be just as many feet below the floor.

"Look… you…" he began carefully, hand pointing towards the man outside his vision. He took a slow breath of air, raising his head in the process. It took a lot of effort, just the way he liked his drinking to end. "I'm not swingin' that way and the scotch ain't gonna help you. I've got my quota of bad decisions with the stuff."

"Darling, I would swing any direction you wanted." He let out a very long groan at those words. Some people just didn't know when to quit. "Can you at least offer me a look in the eyes before you deny."

Yeah, that… He'd do that… Then he'd turn the creep into the gender he clearly wanted to be.

Another deep breath was sucked into his lungs, enough to straighten his neck and back. His hand pushed on the bar's edge, twisting his chair till he was eye-to-eye with the creep of nature.

The alcohol was the only thing him jumping out of his seat.

The creep was staring at him with one good eye, the other hidden behind a way too well combed set of white hair. It was hanging far enough down to hide the entirety of one side of his face. Really didn't help that his lipstick, yes, lipstick, was colored the same white as his hair.

Lips pulled into a coy grin, the super creep's eyes were the darkest grey he'd ever seen, enough to make him think the guy was seriously ill. Actually, no, that wasn't it. The dude's skin was what made him look ill.

The creep had skin like dying grass, way beyond anything that would've passed for healthy. Hell, the only keeping him from wondering if the creep was all right was prior knowledge. No way was this freak all right in any use of the word.

But if all that weren't enough, the creep was dressed like he'd walked out of a Halloween Party.

Probably did.

The most ridiculous red cloak was over his shoulders, falling over his chest and hanging off of his back. The front of the thing was just a bunch of fabric literally pointing at his crotch. And the rest was split three ways behind him.

And if all that weren't enough, his suit was skin-tight and white. So skin-tight that it might have explained the creep's behavior. Weird things happened when you had the blood to your brain cut off.

And no, the giant golden belt did not help.

"Captivating, aren't I?" For literally all the wrong reasons.

"Well, I do owe a thank you now," he spoke honestly, shaking his head to make sure it was jumbled. "Pretty sure nothin' could've sobered me up faster than looking at you."

It was insult. But the creep was laughing.

"Oh I understand. I'm quite the sight for all the misinformed." And he struck a pose, of course. Hand on his hip, other palm flush against forehead. But he still had an eye open. "But the offer is still open… and waiting."

And that's when his tongue came out of his mouth. It was just what he needed to get the last of the whiskey out of his head. But there was at least one, just one, other benefit to it.

It's length made it pretty damn clear the dude was a snake faunus. Still a creep though.

"And it's gonna wait in the cold." He was sober now. Sober and gone. He fished some Lien from his pocket and slapped it on the countertop. Didn't count it, but it was enough.

The bartender was gonna need the extra tip if this super creep was hanging around.

His chair spun around and his feet hit the wood floor. His boots clanked with wood, his lifting from the stool. Any fatigue he used to have was pretty far gone, at least after seeing that thing.

"Leaving already? But handsome, we haven't even shared names." As if he needed any more motivation to get out of there. His boots were working at the floor as he almost jumped to the door.

"That's what we in the business call a win-win." He pointed to the sky as he pushed past the door.

He needed somewhere else to find a good drink.

Ozpin lightly sipped at his coffee as he looked over his table. A multitude of images were laid over it, each one taken at a different time point from a different area on his campus. They were gifts, of a sort, from Glynda's surveillance mini-drones, constantly circling the grounds to ensure the safety of his students.

Now though, they had a secondary purpose. Specifically, the monitoring of his newest teacher, the Hunter from Afar, as he was kind to call him. Well, her in this case.

Impa, the marvelous example of discipline, appeared in each photograph he gazed at. The morning sun behind him gave only a slight glare to the screens, but he could still clearly see her at work. Her diligence in class was over a few dozen of the pictures.

Glyphs of pale blue and fiery red appearing before students that had won their duels, dark azure ones overlaying destroyed sections of ground, and then darker circles overlaying and repairing the grounds. It was slower than Glynda's telekinesis, but the end results were the same.

However, those were only a few of the pictures. Ozpin refilled his tea as he looked over the images that were taken following the class. He saw Impa, the same professor that had performed at a stellar level in class, speaking with many of the students about his campus.

The hands on approach with team CRDL was of interest to him, if only because he was sure the team of bullies would soon find themselves outside of his walls and without a source of income. The black sheep if you would.

Yet Impa had appeared to give a…. demanding lesson to their leader, enough that he did not retaliate against her as Ozpin had suspected he would. Cardin Winchester was an impulsive brute, if put honestly, but the brute portion to his character was grand, enough so that Ursa Majors were at his level in strength.

The story Impa told him must have been grand to have Cardin prefer lying on the ground then getting back up. That would be an interesting development, Ozpin was sure.

Penny was more expected of the encounters Ozpin observed. She was the first student to fight Link, Impa as it were, as well as his newest student to the academy. The decisiveness of the battle was something Ozpin found little room to debate.

The amount of lead way Impa offered Penny was questionable, but she surely did not offer any favoritism for the girl. The conversation that followed, however, along the western portion of his campus, showed something else.

Impa was taking the time to converse with her, offering what looked like advice from a skilled huntress to a young student. Penny absorbed the information, though that was as he expected of the aura-infused android.

The conversation lasted until Impa departed, giving some other form of advice over her shoulder. What Ozpin did not miss, though Impa likely did, was the look of content that Penny Polendina wore.

It was something worth framing.

Ozpin had a few more images upon his table as well, those not of Impa, but of Elrora. They were still of his newest hire, helping the students he still likely called friends. Unfortunately, it appeared to be a conversation where the words meant more than any action he could perceive.

The young team RWBY seemed to shift from admiration, to trepidation, resent, then returning to thanks all within the span of a single conversation. It was something incredible, but far too improbable to predict the exact subject of their lecture.

It only became doubly so at the last set of images detailing Link, in the body of Elrora, holding young Rose as a mother would a child. Ozpin set his tea down on the table as he stared at that one. It would have been the subject of much debate in any other circumstance, but he knew better than to assume with Link.

If a single complaint was lodged, however, he would have to settle the matter personally to keep the Council from marching into his campus. They only needed one reason, so he had to do his best to give them none.

Ozpin's eyes shifted up as the small ping of the elevator met his ears. His smile returned, knowing who it was. A quick sway of his hand sent all of the images across his desk away, to whatever digital folder they were housed in. They were out of sight for now, and that was all that mattered.

That left him, his office, and a nice cup of tea the only objects of interest. The elevator opened and out walked Impa of the Shiekah.

"Impa," Ozpin greeted, bowing his head and holding up his cup. "I trust you are having a pleasant morning. I do hope that I have not inconvenienced you with my request." The woman across from him only shook her head as she walked into his office, posture as firm as it was the first time they had met. Power was in her every stride.

"Not at all," she returned. "I have no sessions scheduled today with the students and only a minor meeting with your young doctor." Doctor Oobleck as it were. "And I can surmise the purpose of this meeting."

"Oh? And what do you suppose it is?" It was a word game now, but that was how people of wisdom tended to speak. If Impa's age was no jest, she'd have that to spare. Said woman crossed her arms before she responded, a sly smile working over her lips, just visible above the leather scarf she wore.

"It is only the day after I began my work at your Academy in earnest," the faunus started. "If not to judge my actions thus far, you are hoping to see what I think of the position. It is a wise course of action, overseeing new members to the court."

Faculty was the preferred term, not court, but it was just another small difference he could easily overlook.

"Precisely," Ozpin confirmed for her. "I'm glad we are so quickly on the same subject. Please, have a seat." He motioned to the chair before his desk with his free hand. She nodded towards him, taking the few steps necessary to reach the chair. She twisted it before sitting in it, spinning it back to face him.

"Though if I may begin with another question, where are your fairy companions? They did not strike me as the pair who would not wish to attend this meeting." Her hands were folded in her lap, out of his sight.

"Tatl and Tael are talking with Doctor Oobleck," Impa returned. "They have much to discuss, as Tatl said. Though those words hold truth, I know she would rather stay and speak with her brother and likely informant than hold a conversation with me."

Now that was interesting.

Why would the golden fairy not wish to be around Impa? It would have to be this woman, as the small creature was furious when separated from Link. It was not a question he could ask aloud, however. Too forward, especially with a woman who stared at him with such sharp red eyes.

"Differing opinions," Impa said. It caught Ozpin, humorously, off guard. "Though Tael and I enjoy stories, Tatl and Impa… we do not share much common ground. So when my presence is required or requested, the two make themselves sparse where we know it to be safe." Hmm, interesting.

It also gave credence to why he had not yet heard of Impa before yesterday.

Still, that raised questions over just what differing opinions the two had trouble working out. Ozpin could recall Qrow and Ironwood being far and away from good friends, yet he could count on them to fight side-by-side if need.

That was, however, drastically different from simple conversation. Perhaps if they were just avoiding a fight, it would make sense. That only made stretching out conversations with Impa undesirable for all parties.

"I can understand the sentiment to avoid conflict," Ozpin finally spoke. He could not allow silence to perpetuate between the two of them. "It is a difficult task those of the mediation position must often oversee to." A hint, nothing more, but definitely enough for Link and Impa alike to catch up on. Both were quick on their feet.

"Indeed," Impa returned. "It is why I will be spending the day with them both as myself." That meant Link, or at least Ozpin assumed so. "We have not yet had a great amount of time to explore the Academy, and a day without duties to perform is the best one to spend exploring."

"Agreed, and I hope there is much you find," Ozpin spoke truthfully. The more interested Link was in Beacon, the less chance there was of him leaving for any stray reason. Link was wise and strong, but still ignorant to the forces their land. This was not his land of Hyrule.

"As do I, but we can speak on that during another time," Impa changed the subject. "I would like to focus on your thoughts regarding myself or, perhaps specifically, how you feel my actions compare to those of your other instructors." Ozpin grinned, tea mug on the table, leaving his lips unobscured.

"Then I must say that you did a marvelous job during your scheduled hours," Ozpin began, honestly and forthcoming. "According to the initial reports Glynda gave, no students were harmed during their sanctioned duels in thanks to your ability to mediate action when a victor was decided. Furthermore, despite a lukewarm initial reception, the Instructor Duels have already garnered much attention across the Academy. How these are to be perceived by the student body, however, will have to wait until we have seen more than a single test sample."

Impa slowly nodded with her words. It was difficult to judge if it was because she was agreeing with what he was saying or judging him as well. He could stop neither, and drawing attention to it would be in poor taste. So Ozpin continued.

"Your seeking out of students following the class was not expected, but showed dedication to their growth outside of your scheduled hours." It truly did. "I am curious to see if this will lead the students to work harder, or perhaps to reevaluate themselves. Most likely a mix of the two."

"I would hope for just that," Impa spoke in return. "Some of your trainees are quite remarkable, in both skill and ability to adapt. Penny Polendina and Weiss Schnee were two I have an honest interest in as well."

Ozpin had the photo of her conversation with them both, but he would say nothing of it to her.

"Yet Cardin is a man who needs more than simple lessons if he is to improve. I wish to see him do so, for a Knight of his size, loyal to a cause he believes in, is a fearsome foe."

"Indeed, he would be," Ozpin agreed. "Though Mr. Winchester, be it his intentions or the decision of fate, seems to have more of a role in showing others what not to be."

"Then I will change that." The sharpness of her voice was impossible to miss. "For only fools and cowards say that what is must be due to fate's design." Ozpin gave no outward sign that it offended him. It intrigued him more.

Impa had so far displayed excellent control of her emotions, very similar to Glynda in truth. But now he saw a crack within her armor, a small flaw that he could simply not turn his gaze away from. It was hard to judge exactly what it was though.

The list of possibilities too great. He kept it in his mind as their conversation continued. It was not something he could afford to forget.

The ticking of the grand structure beneath his office was all that kept the air from being void of noise. An eager part of his mind wished to speak up, but he suppressed it. He knew Impa had slipped. By the small crease in her lips, so did she. Now the wonder would be how she would either recover or repress what was said.

"I have a question for you, if you are open to one." Repression it was. But the question could sometimes be as telling as an answer. Ozpin took a slow sip of his tea before nodding. Impa nodded in turn. "Very little has been spoken to me regarding the land I am now in. I know of your rulers and threats, the training of Knights, and perhaps a fraction of what you plan for your future." Ozpin would have to figure out what the last one was. "But I know very little else. The birth of this Academy, the Kingdom that lays beyond it, the division of its people, all are still mysteries to me."

"Would you not be able to explore these mysteries on your own? I believe you can." That was a lie. Ozpin was fully well and aware Impa could do just that. It was hard pressed for anyone to stop Link or her. But sometimes trust was proven when correcting, not merely agreeing, with what one said.

"I do not believe I can," Impa answered, to Ozpin's unshown satisfaction. "Your leaders and Military are still uneasy about my presence, treating this Academy as a neutral ground as it were. I am sure a single mistake on my part beyond these natural walls would lead to them taking some grand action against me."

"And without knowledge of the land, a single mistake would be likely to occur." Now Impa nodded her head. Ozpin was satisfied with both answers. Denial of his false opinion but acceptance of his honest conjecture.

In the very least, Impa was not hiding intentions from Ozpin, at least not poorly. Her ability to read others was marvelous, as Glynda pointed out during her eye-to-eye and mini-drone observation. Still, he needed to know more.

"Why ask me?" He posed the question innocently enough. "I am sure your friends would be more than willing to speak with you."

"I believe they would," Impa returned. "But you forget, or perhaps did not perceive. I was once in a position of power very similar to your own." Ozpin hadn't forgotten. They were both teachers and leaders of a dispatch of Hunters, though by different names. "You were also the one to give me a position of authority above the trainees, though my friends they still remain." Interesting points, and Ozpin believed he saw where they were heading.

"And so now you believe it is my duty to ensure you are properly informed of the circumstances you are teaching within." Perhaps a bit fluffy with the dialogue, but he doubted a woman like Impa would be unable to see through them.

"Precisely," she agreed with a nod. "Though more to it, I would not have a foreign dignitary be lead and taught by trainees when they are do the respect of a full knight." Ah, so it was more than that.

Doubtlessly more the influence of Impa than Link, but the pride they had would make asking information from those lower in rank unacceptable. It was not something Ozpin, truthfully, had considered, if only because Link's openness with all other aspects of his Academy had been with little argument. It was interesting. That meant a great deal of more thought would have to go into his friends, their actions and motivations.

"Very well," Ozpin spoke. "What would you like to know of? I can do my utmost to answer any questions that you have."

"I thank you for that, but," Impa lead off, to Ozpin's curiosity. "My first question is more personal, though not intrusive. Simply asked, do you have much you wish to know of me?"

Ozpin was forced to blink. Even through his shaded spectacles, the action was slow and deliberate. Here he was stepping over glass to make their conversation neutral yet informative, and Impa had simply asked the question aloud. That must have been Link's hand. Impa appeared too… wise for such a trip in her words. It was all very interesting. Enough so that Ozpin found his grin growing with the insinuations of her words.

"Indeed, I do," he answered honestly. "More than I believe you are willing to answer. I believe you gave a suitable reason during your first class. Glynda made careful note of the small lecture."

"The Unknown and the advantage," Impa spoke knowingly. "One of the first lessons given to trainees before they begin their work in earnest. Knowing where their strengths lie before deciding on what paths to take. The Unknown is both the most obvious and the most impossible to understand."

"I have no arguments to that point," Ozpin spoke. And he truthfully did not. He listened for a moment to the clicking of gears around him, the heart and soul of the clock outside his tower. There was a not a single unknown about it to him. And yet, to everyone else, it was a mystery. The advantage lied there.

"Perhaps then we can have an exchange of information," Impa supplied.

For the first time her hands rose up from her lap, resting on Ozpin's long table. They held nothing but each other, no mysterious items within.

"A little of what I know for an equal amount of what you know. An insurance that we are not overstepping bounds or asking too much of the other."

Ozpin began to chuckle. He meant no insult by the action. Far from it. He was more impressed with Impa's choice of words than many individuals he had in his office before. They all had agendas to complete, Impa included, but she was without a doubt the first to supply one in a way he could not simply turn away from. Be it her or the Knight beneath, both were becoming far more interesting to him with each passing moment.

He was glad to see his gamble to invite the faunus to his grounds had been won in his favor.

"I think that is a wonderful idea," Ozpin supplied. "But I have a small twist to it, if you will." One of Impa's brows quirked, easy viewable with her lack of hair-bang line. Ozpin didn't speak. This was the time for show.

He set his cup down, setting the hand on his table, bringing the built in Scroll system to life. Impa lifted her hands off of the table quickly, surprised by the light display that illuminated the hard surface. She wasn't used to it, but Ozpin could tell she was far from scared of it. His finger ran over the smooth surface, tapping on small figurines, shapes made through the formation of different light bands. Each tap made them perform a small action. Some grew, some disappeared, and others even multiplied. A locking system as it were, but one he knew better than the cane he held.

The green luminescent table brightened as he tapped on the icons he desired, running code and setting up the program. With black and white luminescent lights, shapes began to form. Spinning into creation, a square tile was made, large enough to reach across from Ozpin's chair to Impa's. A graphical transition washed over the tile, detailing it with black and white squares imbedded within. As it did, familiar shapes formed on opposite sides of the board.

Sixteen pieces for Ozpin, and equal number for Impa, and four rows of empty space between them.

The rose up from the table, turning from simple two dimensional images to multi-directional displays. They had the shades of black and white to them, appropriate for the sides of the table they each were set to. The sizes of the pieces varied appropriately and their details significant enough to prevent confusion. In truth Ozpin preferred a smaller board and more personal display, but there were times with a show of might was necessary to build strong bridges. This was just one.

When the table was finished and set, a holographic display popped up next to Ozpin, the hard-light technology showing him the board on the table. He heard a small noise come from Impa, likely between a surprise gasp and curious hum.

"This is chess," Ozpin began. A brief talk was necessary. "It is a game designed around strategy and cunningness. Each piece you see moves across the board in a different way, and each one of them is capable of capturing another piece."

Impa made not a word as he talked, red eyes watching him, switching back to the display beside her own seat, and back to him. She was watching and listening, that meant he had her attention. Excellent.

"There isn't much point in a game that you don't understand the rules for, so allow me to quickly show you what this is." Ozpin made careful note that Impa didn't shoot down the idea of a game at all. She was still listening, still intently hearing him out. That meant that she was likely willing to hear of his plans.

He tapped on the holographic display, lighting it up and allowing his hand to move over the pieces.

"The rules are simple enough. Pawns are the small pieces that line the first row. They can only move forward one space. On their first move, they can move two spaces forward. However, they cannot attack another piece if it is directly in front of them. In order to claim a piece, they must move diagonally."

As he spoke, he made motions with the piece, showing how it slid forward and back. His motions across his hard-light display were matched along the table, the pawns drifting across the surface soundlessly. He watched Impa follow their movements, studying them intently. She was likely making strategies already. Ozpin knew he would be.

"The remaining pieces are call the court pieces," he continued. "They are the rook, the bishop, the knight, the queen, and the king."

As he spoke of each one, his finger tapped on them, lighting up his white pieces in a bright display. Impa's red eyes followed them, and Ozpin followed hers. Even through his spectacles it was clear she was absorbing what he was saying. If only all of his students were as attentive as she was.

"The rook can move any number of spaces forwards, backwards, or side-to-side. The bishop the same, but only in diagonal directions." Ozpin's hand swept away a few pawns on his display, their larger three-dimensional counterparts soundlessly falling over on his table. He moved the castle piece and high bishop as he had shown, both unhindered by the action. "The knight is different in that it can only move 1-2 spaces, but can do so in any order, in any direction, and is unhindered by the pieces before it." He showed his knight leaping over the pawns, the horse figurine on the table doing the same.

"Now the queen and king are where the real power lies," Ozpin continued on. "The queen is oft called the most powerful piece, as it can move in any direction as many spaces as she wishes. You may think of her as both the bishop and the rook." He showed the display again, Impa's attentive eyes focused. "The king is much the same, but has more in common with the pawn. That is, he can only move one spot at a time." And again he showed the display on the table.

Impa had drawn her hand to her chin as she watched, lips pressed into a tight line as her red eyes followed the pieces. If she wasn't interested in playing, she was doing an excellent job at making it appear otherwise. Ozpin would have challenged her to a game under even normal circumstances, given the attention to which she showed. Perhaps he would during the coming weekend. It was a good way to think of matter less crucial to the ones that normally swam through his mind.

"The objective is simple." He spoke, preparing to finish soon. "You must claim your opponent's king to claim victory. The loss of all other pieces doesn't matter, so long as you hold the king in hand at the game's end."

"An interesting game," Impa finally spoke, eyes on the board. "A symbolic showing of the power in the king, though the strength in others. Weakening through the loss of your comrades not necessarily meaning your own end. A misfortune, but not a defeat." Ozpin grinned at her words. She did the same as she looked up to him.

"You have a grasp for this already, don't you?" He was sure she did. Chess was a game high in skill, where the most experienced could defeat the novices with bare thoughts. But a strategist who knew the workings of the board could put masters through the rings, once they knew how to read the opponent they faced.

He had no doubt in his mind Impa, or perhaps Link, was such a foe.

"What other considerations are there?" She asked. "What would happen if the pawn reaches your board's end? Or is there a declaration one must give upon victory?" Ozpin chuckled at her quick deductions.

"A pawn that reaches the opposite end is crowned a queen," Ozpin clarified. "A rewarding but dangerous path to pursue. When it comes to the match itself, if you have my king in the sights of one of your pieces, you must declare 'Check'."

Ozpin turned back to his display, picking and move individual pieces until such a pattern was shown. Impa's king within sights of his knight, a single move away from being done in. The board changed from a black and white checkered mat to a faint yellow glow.

"The table is smart," Impa noted beneath her breath. Ozpin just caught it. "Then I must either move or defeat the piece that threatens the king." He nodded in turn.

"Precisely," he did so for her, one of her pawns knocking his knight over. The board changed back to his monochrome pattern. "But, when the game is at an end, and you have trapped my king entirely, it becomes something else. 'Checkmate'."

A sway of his hand removed near all of Impa's pieces, save for the dark king that stood tall yet alone on her side of the board. He placed his rook at the opposite end, his bishop just beside it, and his queen before the current king. The board now shifted into a dire red. The game was won.

"An interesting game," Impa noted. From the hand on her chin, a single digit rubbed at her lower lip, red eyes peering over at the board. Her eyes shifted away to the hard-light display, hand hovering over it as if teasingly.

She tapped on it, keeping her eyes on the holographic board set on the table instead. Practicing perhaps, she watched the movements she made repeating themselves on the virtual board. Pieces were raised then dropped, spun and reset, and a few odd ones claimed. Trying out a new tool, but she was learning it swiftly. Very quickly, in fact. Enough for Ozpin's brows to raise…

"This is truly something I would enjoy to play." Impa spoke, or perhaps Link. It sounded a bit more carefree. "But why show me this just after the deal I proposed? Do you wish to speak over the game?"

"An honest thought," Ozpin complimented, but ultimately shot down. "But my intentions were a bit more… devious." The friendliest kind, of course. Hard to say it was a naughty form of trickery if he was being honest regarding it.

He took a small sip from his mug.

"The story of chess is an old one, jokes and legends regarding its purpose." Stories were always the greatest way to lead into lessons.

"My personal favorite is of two generals who values the lives of their soldiers more than their own. Knowing this about the other, they agreed to meet and play a game of equal stance to determine who the victor of their war would be. Defeat would be not only the loss of the war, but their own lives."

Ozpin watched as Impa watched him. He let his mug sit on his lips for a moment longer than necessary, hiding the grin of satisfaction as she watched him. There was a lot to be said when a powerful force took an interest to your words.

"They played together for some time, each one doing their utmost to not risk any individual piece they had. But as the turns continued on and time marched forward, hesitant decisions turned into damning choices. One general finally lost to the other, and as soon as he did so, he bowed his head for the other to claim him."

Impa breathed slowly at the words, not hiccupping or sharpening her eyes. Interesting.

"Instead, however, the victor general only asked that they play again, telling to each of their kings that a draw had been reached. Curious, but thankful, the other general agreed. So then at the first of each week, in a temple built for solitude, the two played against one another. As they did, words began to be exchanged, nervous actions changed to pleasantries."

Now her head was nodding with Ozpin's words. She was understanding the message, good. It would make his proposal all the easier to speak.

"In time, the two kingdoms reached peace, as declared by their generals. Both said the other was too great a tactician to risk any true war, for it would only lead to the death of both sides. The kings agreed that the loss of themselves was not worth the death of the other, and so peace was obtained."

Ozpin stared at the holographic display, knowing more than he said. "I find the idea one to chase, a path that leads to continued prosperity over perpetual death."

"I feel only mad men would disagree with you," Impa noted, her lips turned once more into a small grin. That was not her tell, but it was something to take note of. "And I will confess, this game interests me. Perhaps now you can speak what I already suspect." Ozpin had an utter lack of surprise towards her words. Even a first year leader could deduce what the purpose of the game's introduction was.

"Instead of trading information where one can simply end the conversation, I propose we place bets with our pieces." Ozpin let his hand roll over the hard-light pad next to him. The board spun with motion, the best method he had for deciding the order of turns. The pieces were already reset. "For each piece we claim, we may ask the other a piece of information we do not know."

"An incentive to not sacrifice pieces needlessly," Impa noted easily. She was quick, or perhaps it was Link. Both showed exceptional skill in that regard. "But will claiming a pawn truly be worth the same as slaying the queen?" Very fast, indeed.

"No," Ozpin shook his head. He placed his forearms on the table, leaning over the three-dimensional pieces that rose from it. He could still very clearly see Impa, and she to him. "I feel that we have different… degrees of questions. Inquisitions that start from mild curiosities… but grow quickly into age-old secrets."

Impa breathed deeply at his words. She was considering what he was saying, easily following his logic. That was easy to do when both parties were wise in the ways of planning and strategy. It was almost a relief, talking to someone that didn't require heavy handed leading.

"The pawns are questions that might be raised in idle conversation," Impa started, her hand noting the board as she spoke. Its quick spin was beginning to slow, already starting to set the colors for each side of the board. "The rook through knights are more pressing issues, a worry of our past or coming future. The queen is a secret we hold dear, one that we speak of only in hushed whispers and keep off of parchments."

Ozpin nodded his head with her words. Those were all the logical order he had decided on as well. Though the wording was far different from his own, the core meaning was not difficult to extrapolate. The king, however, would be the deciding one. The board slowed to a stop, just in time, and Impa placed her hand over the crown jewel of all the pieces.

"And the king is the secret we'd die to keep." Far different from his own words, but the levity was nearly the same.

"I'm glad you think the same as I," Ozpin noted, nodding his head towards her. "But I am curious what you think. We do not need to play if you wish not to. It was only an idea I had."

This was a bluff. Ozpin direly wished to play this game. It was the only chance he had of learning more of the foreign faunus and his ever growing pile of tools, trinkets, and arts that seemed to both shame and amaze the students and Military. Learning something as small as the method to their creation could fortify Beacon against the threat of the real queen...

"I must warn you then, Headmaster," Impa began, using his title intentionally. "I am wise with Impa's age and cunning with Link's intelligence. Gambling against me is a dangerous prospect."

Her grin was sharp with danger, of that Ozpin was sure. He returned it with one of his own.

"Many have said the same for me, Shiekah," he spoke her clan's name as she had his title. "It is why I lead the most prestigious school in all of Remnant, training the greatest Hunters and Huntresses in the four kingdoms."

Their grins were almost feral towards one another, but Ozpin felt as if he were sharing it with an old friend. Impa appeared to think little different. This game would tell.

"I agree to your bet, Headmaster," Impa raised her hand with her words. It was not in a position for a shake, but the stiffness of it was likely meant to convey the same meaning. Ozpin mimicked the action after a moment, sharing in her quick cultural agreement. Nods were passed then, and hand lowered.

The game was ready to start.

"As you have the white pieces, you may begin," Ozpin quickly offered and lowered his hand, settling them both back on the table. His excitement was almost palpable, but age and time had made his senses sharp and emotions controlled.

"Very well," Impa spoke. Her hand swayed towards the screen to her side, index finger touching on the piece.

Ozpin watched as the third pawn from her left lit up at the touch, the bright luminescent lights increasing in intensity at the contact. She lightly pushed it forward, the piece on the table mimicking the action. It stopped when it had moved forward two paces. Her move was done.

"Interesting," Ozpin noted. It truthfully wasn't, but a completely silent game was more annoying than enjoyable. He reached for his hard-light screen, touching the dark pawn to his far left. He pushed it forwards two paces as well, quickly ending his turn.

Just as quickly, Impa moved her second pawn forward in the same manner as the first. Her bishop had an out now. Perhaps that was her goal. Unfortunately, it left her own pawns exposed. Ozpin pushed the pawn to the right of his left bishop forwards a single space, just enough to allow the diagonally inclined piece to slide away. That would came during a latter move.

But then her right knight moved, jumping from the G1 to F3 position. It made Ozpin's brows quirk for a moment, but he quickly righted them. Perhaps Impa was not so quickly inclined with the game. It was a risky move to have the knight roam first. He could assumed, possibly, that it was a measure to keep his pawn in check. But it was merely a pawn; taking it would expose her knight to his rook. That would be a blow. But it would be interesting to watch.

Ozpin lightly moved his pawn forward one more space, putting right in line with the knight. He watched Impa carefully, studying her for a tell. At most, he saw her eyes shift from the hard-light interface to the holographic display. Not a tell, but it was interesting. She was thinking. Hard.

Impa's fingers roamed over the hard-light pad for a moment, doubtlessly debating which of her supposed moves to make. That was something. She wasn't thinking of the next moment, but the move several turns down the line. It made sense, as that was how chess was played. He who saw further ahead than his opponent was the victor.

And he saw his patience rewarded when Impa moved her 7th pawn forward a single space. It was right in line to claim his pawn, the one that had move three spaces prior.

So it was a bluff on her part. Getting Ozpin to move his piece forward so she could claim it one of two methods. Whoever struck first, both parties would be enjoyed to grab two pawns and two court pieces. He chuckled mirthfully at the thought. She was far from average then. Excellent. Still, Ozpin wasn't one to play on the enemy's grounds. Not when he could help it.

On the next move, his bishop moved to take the second pawn she had moved, position B4. The first take of the game. The sacrificial piece was moved to his side of the board soundlessly. Ozpin grinned. A pawn meant a simple question, and she was likely prepared for any he would ask.

"Do you consider me a friend?"

She looked up from the board, seeing Ozpin grinning back at her. Her eyes were still the sharp red they had been since their first interaction just the day before. One of Impa's hands cupped her chin while the other lay over the table just before the holographic board. It was a position of thought, but she was gazing at him. It wasn't the question she expected, but it was just as easy to answer.

"I do," Impa answered. "You have earned my respect with your words and trust with actions. That is what makes a friend."

The words had weight to them. Weight that Ozpin saw was heavier than gold. A casual question answered in the most superb fashion.

But it was her turn now.

Taking the bishop wasn't possible currently, but it mattered little. With its current set up, it could only afford to take another pawn, but placing it next to her king and queen. It was too early in the game and too far away for it to pose a risk to his own pieces. Clever, but not quite enough. Impa was playing off of a foreign strategy. The only advantage was that Ozpin was just as unknown to her. Best then to play to his instincts.

Her pawn took its second move, removing the first pawn Ozpin had pushed forwards. Just as he had suspected she would, and just as it had for him, Impa drew his pawn to her side of the board, claiming it. Now it was her turn for a question. His eyes flashed to Impa's, seeing that she was waiting patiently for him. She could ask only a simple question, but he felt the more needed question was the same she had posed.

"Do you consider me a friend?" She spoke, earning a small grin from Ozpin's features.

It was good to ask, if only to ensure you were not on the poor end of a relationship. It would be simple enough to lie about, as all causal questions were, but this was a casual not amongst enemies or strangers.

No, it was being played by two individuals, who though only short in time since their first meeting, were something more.

"I do," he answered. An expected answer, but a good one nonetheless. "And I keep my friends close. It's the best way I know how to keep them safe. I'm sure that is a sentiment we share."

She chuckled at his answer. Low frequency, deep pitch chuckles. Perhaps forced, but the sentiment was clear. Not interesting, but still good nonetheless.

It was his turn now. He didn't want to play into her hand and take the pawn. That would be foolish. He could, however, take the silly move. A mocking term, to be sure, but played in order to complete through an opponent's strategies. It worked well when faced with an uncommon foe. If anything, Impa was that.

So, taking hold of the knight just beside his exposed rook, he moved it up two and over one, setting at position H6, right in the way of the rook's path. Impa didn't react, not visibly. Her tells were either good or she was well trained to hide surprise when it mattered little. He hoped he was doing the same.

Now she moved her bishop into play, the one exposed to her left. A single square, but enough to allow it movement to the opposite end of the board. Ozpins' pawn blocked Impa's bishop from taking his rook, but it was a still a reminder than there was now a sniper of sorts that had him in sights. He replied calmly to the action.

Ozpin moved his fifth pawn forward to places, making a line with the movement. It blocked little and posed a threat to little else, but not every move resulted in an ultimatum. Some were made in order to ensure better results further down the line. And the best way to do that was to limit Impa's movements. The pawn kept the knight and other pawns from encroaching further.

Then Impa's right rook took a single step left. Would have meant nothing before, but with her pawn removed, it too had the power to sweep across the board now. Interesting. She now had three court pieces in play. Perhaps that were her move. He could follow suit. And he did so by moving his king forward a single pace. It wasn't to have the king be in a position of threat, it was to have the queen be prepared to avenge the rook.

Impa twisted her lips as the sight. It made Ozpin hastily search is memory of Glynda's observations, noting any time she made the motion before. He could not recall one. It may be a tell, or it could simply be an action of thought, hard to say, difficult truthfully.

In a slower motion than before, Impa pushed forward another pawn. A2 to A3, a single move that gave it direct sight of his bishop. Ah, another set up. Claiming it would allow her bishop to claim his own. They were fine moves, but only that. Looking ahead a single turn mattered little.

Though Ozpin found himself less inclined to be hasty with his judgement. He was focusing on the present very much himself. Still, he wasn't about to waste a bishop.

Ozpin moved the piece a single point back, still within killing sight of the pawn, but out of its reach. Its reach, and all other pieces. A wasted turn in truth, but those sometimes came in decisions of war. A waste in the moment of, but coming back turns later to make their actions clear.

Almost humorously, Impa then moved her bishop across the board, claiming his unmoved pawn. He blinked at the action, unsure why she had taken such a risky move. Even as his piece floated to her side, there wasn't much she could do from there. His rook was vulnerable, but his queen was within eye-shot. It was curious, but he would have to think of that in a moment.

"Why are Hyli… apologies, faunus seen as lowly members of society? I've heard notes of it, but never a reason for it." Oh the philosophical questions. Those could take hours to explain. He didn't have that kind of time, even in a clock tower.

"Difficult to say," Ozpin honestly returned. "The reason changes depending on the person you ask. Some say it is because of jealousy, for faunus have more astute hearing, ability to see in the dark, and greater variety to their numbers. Others might say fear, as the White Fang have done nothing to encourage newer discussions."

Both were honest answers.

"But some would even say it is because they are different enough and in small enough numbers that they simply have fallen into the unfortunate category." Impa nodded at his words, slowly.

She took in a deep breath with shut eyes, hand still gripped at her chin as she did so. Perhaps she had seen it before in her near eon of life. Maybe it simply made sense when you knew human nature. That would require him claiming one of her pawns to find out. No rushing though, that was how defeat was had.

Instead, he removed his knight, spinning it back over until it sat beside her bishop. It was out of harm's way now, though no more a threat than before. Better they both sit in 'bunkers' then him be in gun's sight. It was Impa's move now.

Curiously, she moved her other bishop a single spot up. Interesting, because her own knight blocked her from moving in any new direction. It was the clearest sign that she was going to move it next turn. Still, that gave him two moves to plan. First, a false opening. That was easy. Ozpin pushed the second pawn from his right up one spot, 'exposing' his other rook. That would be remedied next turn.

As expected, Impa's knight moved once more. What was not expected was it settling into a position within striking distance of Ozpin's own. And now he saw the general. No matter what move he made, he would be at the better loss of one of his pieces. Either take the knight with his own, but lose the same knight to a pawn. Or save the rook, but then lose his own knight. It looks like a secret of more weight was going to be exposed shortly. Very interesting. Who said chess was boring?

Still, best to ask first in the very least. Moving his knight from F7 to G5, Ozpin claimed Impa's first court piece.

He knew the question he wanted to ask, well worth a simple inquiry, with hope. Amongst leaders of Hunters and Knights, honor was unneeded to be spoken to be understood. He would soon find out how truth this was.

"What is Elrora's semblance?" Ozpin asked before he explained. "I trust over the coming Instructor Duels with the students, yours will be able to be perceived, if over the course of months. Elrora, however, seems to only possess flight. Marvelous as that is, I suspect there is more to it."

Impa watched Ozpin silently for a moment, likely deliberating on his words. She could deny if she wished, as there was nothing binding to the game, but even unspoken, his respect for her would drop if she declined. In the very least, he would be able to resist asking a question of his own. That would be suitable.

"A shrill cry," Impa returned. Ozpin raised his lower lip at the statement. It made sense for an avian, even if it seem plain compared to his theories. "As the queen to her people, she led them in the Migratory Winds. Said winds could spread them far and wide across different lands, so she would call into the sky, like a beacon of sound. It was impossible to ignore." Perfect sense then.

He was glad the audio was being recorded in the conversation.

Taking notes would have simply been in poor taste. Though Ozpin honestly wouldn't have minded if there was a… computer glitch at the opportune moment.

Said moment was when Impa's bishop did as expected, sliding across the table and grabbing his unmoved rook. A court piece in a precariously safe position. The claimed piece moved to her side of the board.

"How would you rank your own abilities as a Hunter against your comrades?" Impa asked the question with both hands grasping her chin, thumbs dipping into her scarf. "As a former leader of Knight's, I can attest that strength is very much a requirement. But your strength appears to be your mind before your body. So how do you compare your strengths?"

Ozpin honestly put little thought into the matter. It wasn't uncomfortable per say. Simply unneeded when he could not very well trust himself to do everything whilst trusting no one else to manage just as much. He stood at his best when on top. But, if he were to answer honestly…

"I am capable of dueling and likely gaining victory over Glynda and Ironwood even if both were to come at me as partners."

He had no jests in his words. But he had no details.

"If you wish to know what I can do, you will need to claim a higher piece." Ozpin tapped on his queen, letting the tall dark piece from its unmoved position.

"You are wise to hide that," Impa admitted. "A poor choice for a leader to brag of the roots of his power." The expression seemed like one he could follow. Ozpin gave it, as his students may say, the old college try.

"A wise distraction is to draw attention to the leaves that eventually fall." Impa blinked at his words. But that was not all.

Her ear twitched. It was hardly noticeable, even with its great lengths, but it was there. Maybe it could be mistaken for a muscular impulse, but Ozpin doubted it as intently as he did the strength of the council alone. There was simply too much strength behind the woman and the time too inopportune. Very interesting. So that was how she took general surprise.

Perhaps wisely, further words were kept at bay. It was Ozpin's move and he was feeling… pleased. This was a most entertaining game.

It was why he grabbed his unmoved bishop, lifting and placing it two squares diagonal in the only direction it could move. It was not a move he would have made if wanted the game to end swiftly.

No, the move accomplished little to nothing and Impa knew that. He could tell she knew. The small quirking of a brow with a gaze focused on him. Ozpin hid his grin with a mug in hand. He knew she would take his piece next.

That was fine. If anything, he wanted to share as much as he could with her as she to him.

It was the greatest way to build trust amongst leaders. Former though she were, Link was the leader of his friends, even if only in memory.

It was to his utter lack of surprise but content satisfaction to see Impa slide her right most pawn diagonal, the piece snatching away the knight that stood there. It drifted to her side of the table again and Ozpin prepared himself for whatever the aged faunus may ask.

"I have found Blake Belladonna to be a… faunus, similar to myself." Her choice of words shifted from Hylian. Ozpin heard the word on the tip of her tongue, unspoken. "I am curious if you know why she hides who she is. I do not believe it is simply the need to 'socialize'." Good that she saw that too.

Ozpin gave a deep sigh before he spoke. He wished it wasn't his secret to tell, if she was to be the mentor and teacher to the teams, secrecy was not how trust would be fashioned. Not if they remained after questions were asked.

"You are familiar, if only by name, with the White Fang, correct?" Impa nodded at his simple question. Good. "Blake Belladonna is a former member."

Ozpin took careful not of the lack of response from Impa, not even a twitch of her brow. Interesting.

"She fled from the organization when they began to target the lives of citizens in order to push their agendas. Her morals for equality told her they were becoming hypocrites through their actions."

"Hmm…" Impa hummed. Her head tipped to move the hand on her chin to cover her mouth. It was a topic that required though. Quick acceptance would be more questionable than anything else. "She appears to still have great levels of distrust in her team though. Perhaps that is the reason why." Interesting.

"And where did this conclusion get drawn from?" Ozpin asked now, looking across the table towards Impa. She only looked up at him, moving a hand to tap at the hard-light display beside her.

Now Ozpin found himself chuckling. Clever, very clever. But his next move was for a piece he already planned to take. It was worth the question he was going to ask. Taking his bishop, Ozpin smoothly moved it to cross the pawn at C4, taking out another one of Impa's pieces. Instead of posing the question again, he merely raised his hand towards her. She laughed; Ozpin was quick to deduce that it was Link who was chuckling inside.

"I gave an unspoken test to her, to see her worth as a Shadow to her teammates." Ah yes, the terms she used during the first introduction of her class. Those had questions associated as well, though far more casual then king-piece worthy. "Feeding her a truth that contradicted the assumptions of her teammate, I hoped to see Blake pass the information off. Instead she appears to have kept it hidden. You have likely given me the reason why."

"And I suppose this information is something I must take another piece for?" Ozpin asked again. Impa only kept her hand on the hard-light display, moving her hand to offer a grin of her own.

Even if they were not gambling with knowledge, this was a match Ozpin would love to play again.

Impa's next move took not piece, instead merely moving her left most rook a single space forward. It had an out now, but little more than that. Two paths it would likely take from there. Ozpin would have to heighten the pressure on the other side of the board. Fortunately, there was such a move for him to make. It didn't even require a sacrifice on his part.

Taking his own rook, he slid the piece forwards towards Impa, stopping only when it took another one of her pawns. That was three now, and Ozpin was starting to chuckle at the idea that he was running out of conversation topics. Impa's quick breath of a chuckle implied her own thoughts.

"I take your word that you are very long lived, and I do so with little evidence in hand." It was the truth, though Ozpin often took statements made when lying served no purpose as honesty in themselves. "Though I am curious at what age, were you still alive, would be considered an elder."

"Truthfully?" Impa posed the word as a question. Ozpin only nodded once with a small grin, his own hand beneath his chin, holding up his head with the back of his palm. "A thousand years' worth of memories is what makes an elder to the Shiekah, and I am one."

That made Ozpin blink.

"Did you believe you had finally found a woman who spoke of her age honestly?"

That made Ozpin chuckle. Interesting indeed.

It wasn't hard to see why Oobleck had refused to sleep in the past few days. The information the fairies were giving him were likely enough to fill libraries with, if not several decades' worth of journals in cultural studies. He would read every word.

Impa kept the game moving, however, sliding her left most rook right two spaces. It, unfortunately, but it right in line with his bishops. A move he fully anticipated. Ozpin let his hand slide across the hard-light display, moving the bishop positioned at C4 dip down to A2. It was right in line with his Knight. She would have to move it order to prevent him taking it.

Instead, however, Impa did the opposite. She left the Knight alone, moving instead her bishop at G7. It slid diagonally three tiles, stopping when it was in striking line of his rook, closer to her end of the board then Ozpin's. Interesting. He honestly hadn't thought of that.

It was an interesting move, and not one made by many players of chess. Reason being? It was what some would call a slaughter. No matter the move he or she made, at least two court pieces would be lost from the board. If either were bold, it could climb to five.

Five pieces in five moves. It was a gamble of the highest regard in the game, especially against one such as himself.

She was no fool, of that Ozpin was sure. Impa had proven her wisdom and cunning twice now in the game, thrice if he counted their conversation of questions. So why would she make such a move? An amateur's mistake? Possible, but it didn't seem likely…

Confusion was replaced with surprise as Impa produced a mask from beneath her uniform.

Ozpin had all the time to blink before it was placed over her head, drowning the room in light. No scream, no ring to deafen the ears, just a light bright enough that Ozpin had to squint even through spectacles.

When the light died, his eyes looked forward. He saw not Impa, the General of the Shiekah and former caretaker to Hyrule's royalty.

He saw a child, dressed in green with hair to match.

Ozpin watched as the child stood on the chair that Impa once sat on, hands on the table to look at the holographic chess board. As she stared down at the game, he gazed at her.

She had youthful eyes of blue, a frilled top layer of clothing that seemed free as leaves on a tree, a darker under-layer that befit the bark of the same figure, and a headband about her head, denoted by a dark brown emblem of some make. That, and she was small, child-like small.

"Who are you?" was the first question that came to his mind. He thought it was appropriate to speak such a thing, especially when his partner in the match had suddenly been replaced with a figure that was some minute fraction of her age. That was being generous for the child, assuming she was in her double digits.

She didn't answer, at least not immediately. Instead, she stood in the seat that Impa once sat in, just reaching the height that the white-haired faunus had before her. It made it slightly easier for Ozpin to see the pointed ears that came from her head, long as Link's and the same shade of peach.

She was grinning, softly like a child. Ozpin was sure he was not.

Oh, he wasn't scowling. That was a most inappropriate action to take on a child he had just meet. But an upturned frown of confusion seemed well and appropriate. The expression across his lips only darkened when the small girl did speak.

"If you want to know, you'll have to take a piece," she spoke while pointing at the board before them. That was not the answer he wanted to hear. But… it was one that a soul with a tactical mind would place.

Was this a move of Link's? A move in the game that was off the board?

Interesting. Interesting and brilliant.

"Very well," Ozpin returned. If nothing else this would make for a fun memory later. "But may I propose we hold on questions until the moves are done. I have a suspicion we both have a series of questions to ask." The girl giggled at his words, lifting one hand from the table to hide her smile.

"Of course," she replied in a tone between chipper and understanding. Odd, coming from a child, especially when there was no overdone sense of seriousness to it. She sounded aged even, in tone and tone alone. "Then please start." Ozpin nodded at her invitation.

His bishop slid down a single space, claiming the new girl's knight. She swept her own bishop back down towards her side of the board. It took his rook the same way. Ozpin used his bishop once more, claiming the rook the girl had used to threaten his pair of bishops before. And then, to end the slaughter, a queen moved for the first time. It moved but a single space, like a king, taking the bishop without leaving itself in the way of harm.

Two court pieces a piece were settled on opposite sides of the board. A knight and rook for Ozpin, a bishop and rook for the girl. The same number of questions with the same level of secrecy. He felt a grin pull at his lips. Despite the horrid nature at which he was playing, there was a level of cheer behind opening doors with such simple moves.

"I will start by asking once more, who are you?" Ozpin watched the girl carefully, her head light bobbing left and right, mid-length emerald hair swaying with the motion.

"My name is Saria," the girl finally introduced herself. An appropriate name. "I'll say a bit more because you asked with a rook." Her small finger pointed towards his side of the board. Her smile never faltered. "I am of the Kokiri, the race that Link was raised within. A child of the forest, but never an adult. Hidden from the whole of the world. A secret in ourselves."

A secret race? Quite an open secret for Tatl and Tael to talk of it when Link was beginning his test some week ago. Though perhaps their existence was not the secret. It was no secret the Military tested new weapons regularly, but the where, what, and how were all unknown. Perhaps this was that kind of secret. Ozpin had merely found the who and where. The what, however…

"Then you are Link's friend from his youth," he spoke it as a statement, not a question. He hoped not to ruin his other secret card with such a trick. Saria, unfortunately, only grinned with teeth now. Not a no, not a yes, an answer in between. Unfortunately again, that opened too many doors. "Must I use a question to know your relation to Link?"

"No," Saria answered faster than Ozpin expected. That was generous. "A pawn is all you need for me to tell you that, but I don't enjoy answering questions." That was conceited.

An interesting character through and through. Ozpin reminded himself closely that this girl was likely older than she appeared, but her appearance still meant she had an unfortunate end. Still, now was not the time to think on such a thing.

"I hope you understand that if you follow such a line of thinking, I'm under less an obligation to answer your own questions." Ozpin phrased his words carefully. Cause and effect was what he wanted to show, not threats of power. The latter only ended with animosity. "I would prefer if we had straight answers for honest questions."

"Oh, I can," Saria continued. "But I find it better to lead someone to an answer then hand it to them. Finding answers offers a lesson. Giving answers only leaves you yearning for more. Wouldn't you rather have lessons?" Her head tilted as she asked the question, leaning over the table the small amount her lithe body could.

Ozpin quirked his brow, raising his mug to his lips at the question. He was sure now. This was a move on Link's part. Interesting, clever, and ingenious. How better to prolong a game of questions than creating new ones?

"Lessons are grand to hold," Ozpin offered, but did not relent. "But answers are what a leader needs to protect those under him. I give lessons, as do you, but now is not the time to give them to each other. Do you agree?"

The Headmaster's grand reward for his question was an innocent pout from the girl across from him. Marvelous.

"Fine," she relented. "But only if you promise to give honest answers, too." Well, it was easy to promise what he already offered.

"Agreed," Ozpin noted with a small raise of his cup. He set it down beside the holographic board. "Now, if the question before was worth a pawn, then may I ask what it is that the Kokiri wish to keep secret from the world?"

Saria's pout disappeared as she took in a short breath. Probably controlling herself before she answered. No matter the answer, Ozpin knew he wouldn't expect it.

"Before my death, I was nearing my second millennia." No he did not expect that at all.

Now Saria was chuckling, probably at the slack jaw Ozpin realized he was wearing. Hard not to, when the girl was the elder to a woman who looked fit to be a mother at best. The land Link hailed from was now one he longed to see.

"Surprised?" Saria asked the obvious question now. "Kokiri planted the seeds of the forest. We watch them grown and live in them as homes. When one grows too large, we plant another, and the cycle repeats. I was not there in the beginning, but I watched the Lost Woods form from the forest we grew, too large and too grand for any soul to safely traverse."

"That is… surprising." Ozpin noted as simply as he could. It was difficult given the task. He hoped the next friend Link mentioned was not created at the dawn of time. It was nearing the next step. "But I suppose that would be a secret worthy of hiding from the world."

"Because the world is wrought with people who take more than they give." There. Right there.

Ozpin saw it. He noted it in his mind, memorized it, and did his best not to forget it.

At the mention of more than she meant to, Saria's ear twitched. It was the same as Impa's. And, if he watched long enough, perhaps the same as Link, when he did speak. It wasn't a tell of lies, far from it. But it was a tell of discomfort. Small, delicate, but too significant to ignore.

"My turn now," Saria returned. "And don't forget, you promised to answer honestly." That he had, and that he would. Ozpin nodded his head.

Another deep breath from the young… looking girl. Perhaps it was Link making the motion over her. Impossible to say, honestly.

"I can tell you have much sway beyond the land of your Academy. Enough that the General of a grand army and the leaders of the people take your word with seriousness," she started to say. Ozpin was curious where this would lead. "But I am knowledgeable enough to know that no leader of a castle keeps his men only close by. So, do you have Knights that roam the lands beyond Beacon's grounds?"

Ozpin felt a small grin pulling back at his lips. There was wisdom worth two millennia in those words. Plenty enough to show her age was not a jest, just enough to keep him on his toes. It appears that Link didn't ask her out merely to throw him off his focus. Her questions were, after all, different from Impa's.

"I do," the headmaster returned honestly, as he promised. "And more to that, I'll tell you that they are among the greatest Hunters and Huntresses I have ever been privileged to work with. Not because they are merely strong, but because they are loyal, as I am to them."

"Admirable." Saria spoke with a note of finality, but still the child-like chipperness that gave her words an odd ring. It kept Ozpin just shy of comfortable. Likely the purpose. "But now I got a big question, so let me know if I need to win before I can ask."

A question such as that was inevitable. Still, Ozpin was curious what the young Kokiri would ask.

"What lies beneath your tower, Ozpin?"

That wasn't Saria. That was Link.

Ignoring the question, Ozpin could tell immediately that it was Link who spoke. The grin was present, but the gleeful words were gone. The seriousness, his name, the shortness of the words. It was Link who asked. But that only gave the headmaster a person to address.

The question itself was so much more. How did he know of it? How did he possible catch wind? He had not been on Beacon grounds for long enough, not nearly enough. Perhaps he was wrong about this mysterious faunus. Glynda may have proven him false once more.

"I have ears longer than your hands and more experience with noise than a bat blinded by light," the girl spoke again, Link the speaker. "Twice now I've rode your lift, and both times I can hear the hollow echo beneath. There lies something down there, and I'm curious what."

So not a spy, perhaps not. Still, it was far too close for comfort in Ozpin's thoughts. Too close, too important, and most assuredly worth more than a simple rook.

"First, I commend you on your senses Link," Ozpin began, the girl bowing her head with a grin that began to show teeth. "Second, I am unfortunate to say that is definitely a secret worth a king." Saria's expression didn't change.

"Hmm, I thought so," Saria spoke again, and it was Saria. Ozpin was sure. If nothing else, he was gaining ground on reading the differences between the two. "But that's okay, because that was a lesson by itself."

Oh.

Ozpin began to chuckle. Chuckle to laugh hard enough to draw his hand to his mouth to cover his mirth. His eyes lightly shut as his chest rumbled with the sound. He could hear the emerald haired girl across from him giggling as well. She knew what he had figured out, but he had done so too late. Of all the people who had pulled one over on him, figures it would be a child in body alone.

"That was very clever of you, Saria. Or perhaps it was Link." Ozpin was no longer sure. That was the consequence for focusing too heavily on area. That was the drawback of being one man against two faunus. Perhaps their shared mind gave them double the room to ponder and think. It certainly seemed that way.

"Thank you, and it was me. Link is glad it worked." Well, that was good to know. "But for a question worth your bishop, can you tell me about Jaune? I have suspicions he is… less than he appears." Ah, that was certainly well within a court piece's value.

"Less is not the word I would choose," Ozpin answered, lowering his hand from his mouth. It felt good to laugh like that. "Jaune Arc is the descendent of a war hero. In fact, each father in his family has been hailed as a great Hunter in their own right. He was lucky enough to have a mother to match. His misfortune is his lack of proper training."

"Is that not why they are here?" Saria asked, hands leaning off the table as she spun around her seat. She was motioning not to his room, but the Academy, of course. Ozpin could not help the stray thought that the Kokiri of Green fit his emerald hued room well. "Is this not where Knights are made?"

"It is the final step before they are such," Ozpin continued. "They must prove themselves first, the true basics of training. Instead, Jaune faked his letters and recommendations to gain access. He only continues to stay because his promise and skills as a leader far outweight his minor offense."

"That makes sense," Saria listed with a nodding head. "It is difficult for a sapling to grow when it stands in the shadows of two great oaks." An appropriate metaphor in every regard.

"Indeed," Ozpin agreed, "And I am hoping to give him the light and care to become such a giant of the woods." He sipped his coffee as he finished. Quite the conversation such a few quick moves made. "You know, you're color matches Beacon well?"

"Color?" Saria questioned, looking herself over in confusion. Her frilled top layer danced at her quick motion. "What do you mean?"

"I know you dress for the forest," Ozpin began. "And your hair matches you well. But green is a favored color of my own, emerald to be precise. I merely find the shade of your hair and color of your clothes to fit the atmosphere well."

She blushed at his remark. Hopefully, with all forms of prayer, that was Saria.

Well, he should play a little more defensively now at least. He moved his remaining bishop to board center, D4. Not much a threat, but it kept track of the pawn that was nearing the end of the board. A crowned queen would not be a good.

Saria, however, had another move. Her hand reached up to the hard-light display, pushing her bishop across the board with it. Ozpin watched as it swiftly claimed one of his pawns. That was not what he was focusing on.

The bishop was near guaranteed to take his knight, queen, or even worse, king. Quite a move indeed. His fault, he supposed, for focusing more on questions and less on the game. Ozpin could hardly blame himself, even now.

"Does Glynda like to go shopping?" The question made Ozpin look up from the board. Saria's face was full of childish innocence, despite being as far away from a child as possible. "I just wanna know if she'd be someone I could ask to go into the town with me." An innocent question with good motive.

"Yes," Ozpin returned. "But you'll have to set up a time. She enjoys a good shopping trip, but she adheres to her schedule even more so." Saria looked remarkably unsurprised by the statement. Or perhaps that was here merely watching the board with interest.

Ozpin could escape. He could move his queen back and allow the bishop to take his knight. But it was a move that risked putting his king in check with the remaining bishop and king, not to mention the rook which made a veritable line of defense. Taking the bishop meant the loss of his queen, and that meant a heavy question as well. Dangerous.

The game was as interesting as Ozpin expected it to be. He would admit first he let his curiosities for his newest member of Beacon get ahead of him, having him now in a precarious position he otherwise wouldn't be caught dead in before. A fine thing they were alone, a poor thing that he was a man of his word.

He sighed, a deep and tired sound. Like a band-aid, he mused.

Ozpin moved his queen to take Saria's bishop, rolling her white piece over to his side of the board. The images flickered at the image. He had a question now at least, but it hardly seemed worth whatever she was going to pose next. No, that wasn't true. He had to give a light toss of his own head.

This was not a game against the Salem. This was him playing against a foreign faunus, trapped as a stranger in strange lands. No matter the question, his answer, or the opposite of the two. That was all it was. He let out the breath of a chuckle. Perhaps he was due for a break from Beacon.

"Hardly seems worth it," he mused aloud once more. "But can you list for me the number of tools Link has brought with him?" Ozpin's hand lightly raised as he spoke. "You need not expose any secrets to their creation. I just want to know their shape and number. They are being promised to my students after all."

"Worthy students," Saria seemed to interject.

Likely Link in truth.

"And that is not a problem! Link has the Magic Sword, Gale Boomerang, Megaton Hammer, Fairy Bow with Fire and Ice Arrows, Iron Boots, Pegasus Boots, Golden Gauntlets, Power Gloves with Chain-Chomp, Longshot, Great Fairy's Sword, his Mirror Shield, I believe 9-10 bottles with Witch Brewed Potions, Magic Rod, Flame Rod, some Deku Nuts and bombs, Spinner, Roses's Baton, and Gilded Sword! But Link lost his Magic Shield in those Badlands, as you called that dead earth."

That was quite the list. Perhaps it was a non-issue for him to be promising those to the students. At least so long as the fear was running out of motivation… The actual consequence of such powerful foreign artifacts, however, could wait until a student actually succeeded in their quest.

"Of course, his friends all have their own items as well. Things that we carried with us and he brought to keep us happy." Saria played with the band over head as she spoke. Curious. "It's the kind of guy Link his, helping even the memories of his friends."

"Indeed," Ozpin started. "Link… you have struck me as a man who has great love for the life of others." He knew the faunus was listening beneath the memories of his emerald haired friend. "I hope you remember as much with your next move."

That was Ozpin's ploy. He only hoped it worked.

Saria smiled kindly at him as she swiped her finger across the board. Ozpin saw his queen roll over, skittering soundlessly across the holographic display until it ended up on Saria's end of the table. Her grin was rather… prideful.

"There is a lot I can ask with the queen, right?" Saria ask if the question weren't obvious. Ozpin merely nodded, all that the inquiry deserved to have. "I could ask a lot of things I don't know about you, probably things that Glynda doesn't know either." Ozpin knew teasing when he heard it. He dealt with it as was appropriate. Passive observation.

"But you have a different question." The grin turned into a subdued smile. She was still adorable, the picture of what Ozpin was sure many would wish from a daughter, the apparently immortality aside.

"Tatl and Tael told me everything about what happened while I was in the Badlands." This was a path Ozpin had expected. "They told me about how Ironwood betrayed me because of the Council's orders, his quick action to aid, but most importantly, that he was not allowed to discuss what they had found in those dead lands."

Interesting. Now why was that the most important?

"Tatl is really good at reading people," Saria continued. "And she told me that as soon as the Council was exposed, Ironwood turned to help in every way he could. Apparently, he knew you well enough to know about your plan." Ah, so Link had seen that well into the few words exchanged. Truly he was a wise Hunter.

"So you suspect I know something of the Military's operations?" It was a question he had only minimal knowledge of.

"Close," Saria continued. "I want to know what they had found in the Badlands."

Ozpin hummed at the statement. It was something worthy of curiosity, especially to someone who was new to all things in the world. In the right light, it was worth a queen piece, though Ozpin was having difficulty labeling the question. Curiosity or objectiveness? If he wanted to know, that was probably worth another piece himself.

"They found ruins," Ozpin began. "James told me through several reports that they have found ruins that are far larger than the borders of many kingdoms. Built of stone, marble, and ancient tongues, it appears to be dated before the discovery of Dust."

"I could have guessed that," Saria stated. Ozpin wasn't insulted, as he believed she could. "But there has to be something more if they wouldn't even talk about it." That was why he believed she, or he, could. They were wise.

"You are correct. In truth, we found two things. First, a veritable fortune's worth of Dust." Ozpin lifted a single index finger as he spoke. "Most of it is of the fire or lightning affinity, but a fair amount is also of darker hues, suggesting either a grand age or siphoning use for it. Both have not been seen before, but the location makes heavy research impossible." And that was the truth. Hard to promise the life of scientists with Ancient Grimm prowling close by.

"Hmm, and the second?" Saria asked. Ozpin nodded before he spoke on.

"Second, the Grimm appear to be drawn to the location. I am unaware if your own kingdom ever deduced it, but the dark creatures are drawn to negative emotions. Hate, fear, greed, they are all what the Grimm thrive on." The lack of change in Saria's outer appearance likely meant she was aware. "Yet, no matter how greatly we induce this emotions surrounding the region, Grimm are still naturally more drawn to these ruins. Like a sparkler next to a firework, the draw is incomparable."

Saria was thinking, likely of a question she wanted to ask. Ozpin had a good idea what it was. How then did the Grammite come for him? Well, even an adult can be distracted by a sparkler next to a fireworks show. That's not to say no attention would be given, merely temporarily diverted. Still worth the question, but the answer was obvious.

"I thank you for your answer, Ozpin," Saria spoke. She bowed lightly from her seat, still kneeling in it to see him across the table. It was amazing that she was just tall enough to not knock her head onto the surface. "And I promise to keep this information guarded as well."

"And I thank you for that," Ozpin returned. "Now, shall we continue?" Though in truth, there wasn't much of a game left to be had. The winner was, unfortunately, becoming obvious. Ozpin was not on the end he preferred to be.

The game was almost over, and he had not a leg to stand on.

He moved his king up and over, a sing move to hide it from the now present queen. Saria's pawn moved one space closer to home, sitting comfortably at G7. Next move and she could likely crown a new queen. That would be… unfortunate. But it looks as if the game is not going to end the way that he hopes. Still, maybe he could roll out one more move.

Ozpin lifted his lone knight, moving it until it sat beside Saria's queen. She could take it without consequence, but he gambled on the fortune of herself being grander than the idea of his defeat, though the two were closely related. Thankfully, his gamble won out.

Saria pushed her pawn forward a single space, and a new hard-light display jumped up to her. She gave a small noise of surprise, but it quickly dropped as she peered at the screen. Ozpin had seen it enough to know it display the court pieces she could claim. Bishop, rook, knight, or queen. The best choice here was the obvious one. The emerald haired girl grinned before she made her choice.

Almost instantly, a faint glow of white overtook the pawn she had moved, completely obscuring it from view. It resembled a dull sun for a moment, too bright to identify yet not so much it hurt. It was also silent as shadows. Quickly though, the light subsided, and in the place of the once plain pawn was now a tall and elegant queen, looking at Ozpin from his side of the board. He was loathed to admit the journey was a grand one.

He sighed heavily as he moved his knight around the queen, Saria's first queen, once more. It was easily in striking distance, the same as it was before, but now he would be able to claim her queen if she attacked. Ozpin was under no illusion that it was a good move. The knight threatened no piece, it's location was the most obvious trap he had ever created, and Saria could end the game in a single move.

A look at the girl across from him told him his thinking was not incorrect. Her grin was lopsided, hands lightly tapping on the table as she watched the board. Like a cat preparing to jump at a trapped mice. All she needed was the tail wagging behind her and she'd be set.

But then she claimed his knight, with her queen no less. Ozpin only smiled lightly at the action.

"You know," he began as his knight was taken to her side of the board, one less court piece for him to own. "Many would take that action as a move made from pity."

"It is," Saria answered without ever a dip in her smile. "I just believe that you are wise enough to know there is more to it than that. After all, this is only a game. What's the point in a game that isn't fun?"

Chess or not, Ozpin would love to be able to speak to the young girl further. She seemed to embody the art of a secret, something he thought himself privy to.

"True," Ozpin answered. "Then please ask your question, so I may make the move to ask mine."

"Then… I wish to know the reason for the animosity between you and the Council." Her small hand pointed at him as she spoke, over the holographic board they played across. "I know not all rulers get along, but it seems there's more to it with you. It is just a feeling, but my feelings have never been wrong before."

In another game, at another time, Ozpin would have to ask the Kokiri about these feelings of hers. Perhaps they were what she used to live for so long, or perhaps were the fruits of her age. The chicken or the egg, as it were.

"Recently, there was an attack in Vale, perpetrated by the White Fang." Ozpin trusted her to remember the names. "This was after I swore I would be able to keep the city safe during the upcoming festival. Naturally, my failure has cost me the favor of the Council, their confidence as well." It truly was that simple.

"Festival, I believe I remember Ruby mentioning something about that." Saria spoke. More likely Link, as Ozpin was sure Saria had not yet been shown to others. "Perhaps I will need to wait for another game to ask, but why is this festival so important?"

"That is a question that can be answered with secrecy," Ozpin began. "And I will tell that the Vytal Festival is a celebration held between the four kingdoms. It is a sign of our state of peace, the collection and collaboration between our kingdoms. The failure to protect the town it would be held in has postponed it, but not cancelled outright."

"So the Council is waiting to open the festival again," Saria concluded. "It must be difficult. Protecting something as important as the union of four kingdoms." Ah, slight mistake.

"Oh no no," Ozpin slightly waved with his hand as he spoke. Saria's blue eyes looked up at him, blinking behind her emerald bangs. "We are far from unified. We have our borders and cultures, separated by land and people. We have peace, not unity. There is a clear difference between the two."

"Ah, yes, of course, my mistake." The girl swiftly bowed and raised her head. It wasn't something Ozpin thought Saria should apologize for, but it would be ruder to ignore her offering. He nodded his head in turn.

With a small smile though, he tapped the hard-light display for what he knew would be the last time of the match. With it, he sent his bishop over a single space, claiming Saria's first queen. Though not her only own. It seemed to be a trend with Ozpin and his enemies, he mused.

Saria took in another slow breath of air, her third in their game, but kept her eyes on him. It wasn't a mystery why. He had a good number of questions he wanted to ask, a great number of mysteries that all deserved to be solved. And yet… it was too much too soon.

He could tell Saria was holding back on her questions. A scare here or fright there, she asked little more than the state of the world. She had no inquires about exactly what he was capable of, the strength of their numbers, or anything that delved into his past. Odd, considering how two of the mysteries Impa named before the match began where of Beacon and his own origins. Perhaps she was being kind as well.

Well, there was no use in spoiling good terms between friends.

"Link, I have a question regarding your friends." Saria didn't seem off put by the introduction. "Specifically, in terms of capabilities on the battlefield, who would you describe as the strongest? But, to make it worthy of the queen, why?" The former was court piece worthy. The explanation to the answer was a queen's role.

Saria shut her eyes, head tilting back as if in though. Her hands moved until only their tips were on the edges of the table, though she looked to still be kneeling in her seat. Ozpin took the time to fold his hands beneath his chin, resting his head on the pair of them. There was no need to move more than that, as the game would be over by Saria's next move.

"It's difficult to say," she finally spoke. "Strength is defined differently by context, and I have always thought all of my friends as strong. And… Link has always been strong to me." Interesting, the shift between Link and Saria was impossible to miss. "But if I were to guess, you want to know strength by the measure of clashing steel, correct?"

Perhaps a bit fluffy for Ozpin's liking, but the assessment was the same. He nodded towards he words.

"Well, I'd have to say it's sort of a tie," Saria answered. Ozpin raised a brow, prompting the Kokiri to detail further. She did so. "There is not such a thing as single tree fit to grow in all lands. Willows flourish by water, oaks in great plains, and gildergreens in the shadows of others." Her point was well made, and it was surely her point.

"So they have different strengths against different enemies, correct?" Ozpin clarified what he already knew. Unneeded when he was amongst familiar parties, but Saria was as foreign as the word could possibly allow.

"Yes," her emerald hair bounced with her nod. "But… now I need you to make a promise again." Well that was fast. "Link's friends are his friends. They're secrets are theirs, and because of that, Link holds them dear. Don't tell others about what I am to say. Don't let others know." It wasn't desperation, but the pleading in the voice was unmistakable.

"I agree," Ozpin spoke resolutely. And he did. The secrets of friends were not meant to be shared. But this was a special case, given Link's special circumstances. A lesser evil, Ozpin reason. "I will speak of your words to no one."

Saria relaxed at her words, slightly.

"Impa, Lana, and Darmani," she spoke the names a bit too quickly for Ozpin's taste, but he memorized them regardless. He had met two before, though the middle only briefly. The last, however, was an unknown to him.

"Impa has fought in more battles than I have lived years," Saria began to explain, answering the worth of the queen. "If I were to grow a tree for every fight she endured and claimed victory in, your Emerald Forest would match it in size. Her focus in each battle is as legendary as the blade she carries. No mistake is made twice. When it comes to experience, there is none who is more knowledgeable than her. That is not even to mention her ability to learn from those she faces."

Knowledge was the trump in battle. Experience was the key to obtaining more of it. Impa, by Saria's words, had more experience than teams of hunters combined. Small wonder she was the trainer of Knights, let alone the one Link believed best to head class. It was no small comfort to know his students were far from receiving the short end of any stick.

"You met Lana, but only twice." Indeed, once before Link left for the Badlands and again on his unique return. "The gates showed is one of three, and each allows her to commit to actions the untrained would see as witchcraft." Well, by her own admission, she was the White Witch. "Gate of Time, of the Guardian, and of Souls. She may not look it, but with her gates there is little Lana is incapable of doing. She can move bodies across any length of distance, produce nigh-impregnable shields, conjure bursts of magic that would rend castle walls, and even store equipment within them. Her only limitation is the imagination." A soft limit, if history had taught Ozpin anything.

It was likely a more challenging question to know the means by which the gates worked, let alone their unique properties. Selective warping as he observed was impressive enough, but if it was only one use of many, and Saria described the uses as infinite, it would make her a foe impossible to prepare for. A true terror to any enemy, a likely target amongst the Grimm. But, she was now in a mask of gold, so defeat was possible, morbid and loathe as Ozpin was to harness the thought.

"You have not met Darmani." No, Ozpin had not. "But he is called the Hero of the Gorons. In one life, he was the first to slay a mighty dragon that terrorized his people. In another, he braved the terrors of ice and snow to bring spring to his village."

Fond stories, strong tales at that, but it told Ozpin little of what he was capable of. Saria spoke of great respect to the fallen hero, however. It would be impossible to tell why until Ozpin met the man.

"Darmani is a Goron, and the pinnacle of what they can be," Saria fell back onto her feet as she spoke, kneeling still. "He can lift stones larger than this room, bathe in magma that may melt steel, digest material as hard as rock, and move faster across the land then even a horse without rest. But more than those, he can swing a hammer of any size to crush a foe of any strength. Mountains tremble with his blows. "

Now Ozpin felt his brow raise. Those were doubtlessly impressive feats, especially once put together. Curious then, how much had to do with his position as this… Goron, and what may be his drawback.

"Those are most impressive," Ozpin admitted aloud. "I will confess that I am curious about your friends, especially after those tales."

"They aren't tales," Saria corrected. "Tales are stories, legends meant to entertain. What I told you are what has happened or what they may do. The tales that come with their names are different, but all end in the same way." Ah, there was the rub. Best to avoid that ground further. Still, it didn't mean the land behind it was not worth exploring.

"Those are all impressive regardless," Ozpin spoke again, "But if your first Knight was worth Elrora's semblance, then I believe taking your queen entitles me to know how, if at all, your friends are so strong." It was a risky move, he knew, but leaders needed to take such risks. It was unclear if Saria was a leader of her forest, but her age made her wise as one. Doubtlessly.

"Hmm," the young appearing girl hummed. "I guess I can…"

Hey eyes diverted in thought, though Ozpin could not stop the idea that she was in truth speaking with her other half. It was still a wonder how two minds occupied the same body, and do that they did. Enough so that the body itself seemed to change. There were a thousand questions Ozpin could ask about Link's masks, but the more detailed ones, the ones that would possibly allow himself and others to replicate the process… it would take a king for that.

"Impa's strength comes from her age, where she wasted not a day in all her years." Saria began. "Darmani's comes from his race, the pinnacle of a kind that was born from the earth. There isn't much more to tell about them." It was still good information to have regardless.

He was sure Saria and Link were doing the same with the ruins of the Badlands and secrets of his students. Perhaps it was improper of him to tell, but they're secrets did affect him. Afterall, they were secret only because they were apart of his academy.

"Lana though… it's more like she was destined for it." Interesting. Very interesting. Strength from fate always was. "A young Gerudo, an outcast from her own kind, her strength was given to her when she accepted what she could not have and embraced what was already hers. Be it an answered prayer or a blessing of fate, she came into a power of such might that many herald her in the streets." To anyone else, it would have been cryptic.

To Ozpin, he recognized the words like scripture to a priest. The implications of them were deep.

But… it wasn't time to focus on that. Like anything with life, it was possible to pursue a path too quickly. There was no rush, not yet at least. Link and his friends were instructors at his school, friends to boot. No reason to risk either just because he didn't know all that he needed to yet. Besides, he was sure it was the same with the faunus to himself.

"It is your move now," Ozpin led on, positioning his hand over the board. "And I suspect it is the last move." Saria looked at the board herself, blue eyes looking over it before drifting towards her hard-light display.

Her finger lifted and pressed on the newly-crowned queen, lighting up the white piece on the board. It hovered for a moment, as if she were deliberating what to do. Interesting. Was she willing to risk more questions for a later victory? No, that wasn't it. If it was such the case, she wouldn't have disposed of her queen so swiftly. She was thinking of something, but Ozpin did not know what.

It mattered little, for in the next moment, Saria moved her finger up a single space.

"Checkmate," she declared simply. And so it was.

King in check, all moves blocked, and taking the queen let to capture by the rook. Complete and total capture. It made Ozpin release a slow sigh of regret. Perhaps he had been too eager to prolong the game. A mistake on his part, but one he felt minimal regret for. That, however, was dependent on whatever question Saria had.

Ozpin watched her expectantly, waiting for the question she would ask that he could not deny. A part of him was worried she would inquire on the basement where Amber was being held. Telling Saria and Link would only lead to questions that could not go unanswered. However, though friends they were, they were not friends of such level to tell of that.

So if she did ask, unfortunately, he would have to tell a lie. Hopefully it would be forgiven in time.

"Ozpin," Saria spoke his name. He waited patiently for her next words. "Can I ask for a favor instead?"

Ozpin lifted his head from the back of his hands, blinking as he stared at the girl. She didn't appear to be nervous or fidgeting in a way that showed discomfort. But neither did she have any signs that she was leading him on an intentionally false path. She was asking for a favor instead of a question, honestly. Interesting.

"Well," Ozpin recovered. "I assume you mean in place of your question, correct?" Saria nodded wordlessly. "I don't see why not, but I will have to be stricter with the favors I can offer. Depending on what you request, it may require a favor from your part as well."

"I know," she returned. "And I know that it might. But I have something that I wish to do, but I need your favor first. I don't want to do something that could ruin our friendship. That's harder to repair than a fallen tree."

Impossible was the word there. Ozpin had seen many things, but he knew the futility of trying to raise a fallen giant. The best you could hope for was growing something new from the remains. That was the intended path of nature.

Still, this was something Ozpin wanted to hear. He tapped on the table, bringing up the small menu that controlled the chess display. The game was over, so its presence no longer needed. A few taps on a few red boxes and the holographic images disappeared, the hard-light displays with them. It left the human and Kokiri across from one another, the gears of his clock tower churning beneath them.

"Please then," Ozpin offered with his hand once more, not a distraction between the two. "What is it that you want me to do?"

"Well, not so much for you to do, but to allow me to do." Ah, an action that would likely cause controversy. She, or he, wanted Ozpin's blessing before they took the action. Wise again, though many would call asking for forgiveness superior to seeking permission. Leaders did not have such a thing. "I am from the Kokiri Forest, bordered with the Lost Woods, and home to trees of all shapes and sizes. Before my passing… Link was given seeds to rare trees, our favorite trees."

Interesting. Not just the words, but the pause. Usually it was a sign their memories would shift, Link to Saria or Saria to Link. Here, it remained Saria. Interesting indeed.

"I want your permission to plant the seeds and help them grow. I'm very good at doing that." Ozpin believed her. But that wasn't enough to grant such a request. Small as it seemed, it was just that that gave him caution. It seemed too small to forgo the king piece.

"I see no objection to the request," Ozpin began. "But I must ask just what these trees are. Do they bear fruit? Is there some property to their wood that is desired? Or is it something else?"

"I will not lie nor hide when seeking a favor," Saria began, almost like a reminder to herself. "They are magical seeds, meant to nurture trees that grow only in the strictest of conditions. I very much doubt they exist anywhere in your land now, but they can do amazing things when prepared properly."

"And I assume this is one of those many secrets the Kokiri keep?" The young-appearing girl nodded to him. Ozpin hummed before he spoke again. "Even if I were to allow you to grow them, a tree takes much time to be nurtured. Years in fact, near a decade before most bear suitable fruit, seeds in your case. Do you plan to watch over them for that long?"

"Oh, it wouldn't take that long, not nearly." Ozpin only raised a brow at her words, leaning over his table as he did so. "Like I said, I'm very good at helping trees grow." She smiled with the words, not saying any more.

That was her trick.

She wouldn't say more until he either gave permission or asked the right question. The chess game may have been put away, but this was a new one entire. Promising answers to questions and riddles that begged to be solved.

"Saria," Ozpin started. "Am I to assume that you will be showing me something spectacular should I agree to your request?"

"Very likely," Saria returned without hesitation. "The Kokiri can grow trees in a great number of ways. Slow and strong, quick and lean, however they need to be. A forest is grand not for a single type of flora, but for the collection of their diversities. Would you disagree?" No, Ozpin would not.

"This is one of your lessons, isn't it?" He recalled her words from earlier. "Letting me answer to learn a lesson." Now she giggled at his words, small hands lifting to her youthful lips.

"You are wise," she noted in turn. "But that's why I trust you. You've given much trust in me, in Link and all his friends. I want to show that your trust is not misplaced. How else then by exchanging favors?" Ozpin could think of no other ways. Favors were the currency of the powerful and wise, were Lien and Dust no longer had a place.

He found his grin almost face splitting.

"Very well," Ozpin agreed. "I will grant you permission, so long as you specify to me where exactly you are hoping to plant these seeds. I assume you've already have an idea."

"Oh yes," Saria began, reaching beneath her frilled top. She swiftly pulled out a plain brown bag, looking to be the linen of a rag, held together by a rope curled around its top. It held the same red mark as her bandana did. Interesting. "Two in fact. One I really needed your permission first."

"Oh?" Ozpin questioned. That was interesting as well. "And where would this be?"

As an answer, Saria only looked up.

Ozpin followed her gaze, if out of habit, but saw only the ceiling to his office, the same tint of green as the glass of his desk and jewel that sat in the tower. The meaning of her action was obvious though, and it made Ozpin's grin twist into a curious smirk. His brows raised to match.

"The seeds grow their strongest when they are planted right," Saria started, though Ozpin did not look towards her. "For the seeds of a Whirlwind, a tree needs to grow where the wind is the swiftest and strongest."

"Atop my tower would match," Ozpin agreed. "And I have given permission already. Perhaps I was too hasty in that regard, the consequence of my age."

"I'm rather sure I'm older than you," Saria returned with a teasing tone. Her age showed indeed. "But I am not asking to grow a forest giant atop your home. At its largest, these saplings will be the size of your desk. Though… on its side of course."

"Of course," Ozpin chuckled with the words. This situation was humorous in ways he did not expect. A trading of secrets turned into a game of chess only to change twice more into a discussion of flora.

Link and his friends truly were something else.

"Well then," Ozpin started again, standing to his tallest. Saria followed him with her eyes, neck craning to do so. She turned her chair and hopped out of it, her tallest being dismal in comparison. His waist height at best. "Shall we see to planting those seeds? I'm curious to see just what you'll do."

Saria's smile was brighter than a dawn-breaking sun. Ozpin had to remind himself that he was the youth in comparison to her.

"Of course, but please let me find Tatl and Tael first," she requested, reasonably at that. "I promised them they could help me plant them when it came time. Fairies are connected to the trees as much as me." Ozpin nodded with her words.

"Certainly, it gives me time to gather Dr. Ooobleck and Glynda, if you don't mind that is." Saria shook her head at his request. He knew it meant permission. The smile was more telling than the waving head. "Very good, then I'll see you back here shortly."

"I will, thank you again Ozpin," Saria spoke as she jogged back towards the elevators. Her hands were wrapped about the seed holding bag, giggles emanating from her. Though his office was large, it took her little time to reach the elevators, pressing the needed button for the doors to shut.

Honestly, Ozpin was curious if Link would change back before he left the tower. It was likely, of course, given how well he guarded the secrets of his friends. As note, Ozpin double tapped his table, letting the same display as before arise, and his fingers ran over a camera image, bringing up the security feeds for his tower. His eyes settled on the elevator cameras immediately.

It appeared that Link had already changed back. Interesting.

That was the apt word to describe Link. From first meeting to now he had never ceased to be just that. If not his abilities, then his friends. If not his friends, then his knowledge. If not that, then his secrets. There appeared to be no end to any of the three.

Much was certainly learned over the game. Abilities of his friends, history for others, but most importantly perhaps, the strength of his strongest allies. They were all things to memorize and keep close. Who knew when they would be needed?

Ozpin hoped not at all. But he knew better.

Dr. Oobleck knew he was not a simple man. He had goals that would make most men groan, aspirations that would make hunters turn away, and even ideals that the most honest of men would be tempted to bend. He had resisted all those urges, always striving to obtain the most valuable and used income in history. Knowledge.

Knowledge was what built great nations, protected from any force, crafted unstoppable forces, and saved innumerable lives. There was no other item, solid or intangible, that was more beloved and priceless than that of knowledge. And he knew a lot. His title was even a credit to it, doctor. Yet, here, as a teacher amongst young Hunters and Huntresses striving to enter the world, be began to learn more and more about a subject he was not even fully aware of existing before a few short days ago.

That was a whole other kingdom of Remnant, Hyrule.

"So the monarchy of Hyrule has sovereignty over the other races as well? Do they share in power or pay tribute to the central government in a taxation form? Or are they tariffs?" Each question was simple, simple questions that had simple answers. Unfortunately, the light and dark figures he spoke to didn't seem to think it that way.

"Do you have any idea how long it's going to take to answer just one of those questions?" The brighter of the two, Tatl, responded. She was louder, more defensive, confident, than her darker counterpart. "Ask one, let us answer, and then ask another. It isn't that hard to figure out."

"Apologies," Dr. Oobleck spoke, more formality than honest declaration. "To start then, how does the monarchy of Hyrule stand in comparison to the other cultures and races?"

"Best metaphor I got for it? Probably like Ozpin to the rest of you professor guys." Oobleck tilted his head at the analogy. Curious, why was that. "See, you're all in charge of your trainees, yeah? What they do, the grades they get and like, right?" Dr. Oobleck nodded his head. She was correct thus far. "But like Ozpin watches over you while doing other stuff, too. It's kinda like that."

"A micro-management system?" Oobleck returned with a curious inflection to his tone. Intentional, as that was highly irregular for governmental societies, especially large ones as Tatl and Tael both had described Hyrule to be.

"Close, yeah," Tatl agreed. "But see, every race had their own like king or queen or something like that, but Hyrule's king was kinda the undisputed go-to guy. Can't remember there ever being any real tension over that, mostly because none of the other races had what the other wanted. Hylians didn't have a use for lava like the gorons did, and while water was nice, the Zoras lived in a cave, massive as it was. Not really the place high-class nobles want to relax in, ya know?"

"Lack of conflicting needs leads to stronger relations across tribes," Oobleck simplified the words. "Yes, yes, that makes sense. Finding no conflict where no reason for conflict existed. Remarkable." It truly was. But that raised a hundred questions as well. "Then how did trade work between these different races? Was there anything to trade when there was nothing of great value held between them?"

"Too many questions again Super Buzz," Tatl spoke up, using a name that Dr. Oobleck loathed. Super in intelligence he may be, he had no and possessed no relation to a buzz, so the super was therefore a misnomer as well. "But I think Tael can take this one?" Oh, her younger brother.

Said dark fairy rang lightly as he floated around his brighter sister, she doing the same to him. They both illuminated Dr. Oobleck's desk in a way that a simple desk lamp could not do. Likely because of their impressively energy efficient bioluminescence. Those, however, were questions that needed much more time to answer.

"Um, ah," Tael stumbled for a moment. Expected given the timid creature's usual conversations. "Most of the time, between races like Gorons and Hylians, they trade things that would like help the other, but one couldn't make. A-An old Ikana king once said that, um, 'A true gift is a thing that can only be born in one place'. So, i-it's like that. That is, um, they trade things that the other's really can't make without the other."

"Preservation of rare objects and abilities, of course!" That made as much since as no conflict with no reason. "Cannot risk unfamiliar relations due to the necessity of preserving trade for these rare materials. Please, what are examples of these? Art, language, tools?"

"A-All of them, I think… yeah." Tael went on. Oobleck noted everything done with extreme detail. "L-Like Link once got the Chief Goron's help by playing him a Kokiri song." A song of the forest for men of the mountains. Poetic and sensible. "O-Or another time he, um, was able to bring cure-all eye-drops from a Hylian Professor. No one else knew how to make them." Information and art, the most sensible of currency.

"Excellent, wonderful," Oobleck found himself speaking the words as he wrote down every word the dark fairy said, complete with his own side notes as well. The notes took up more room than the words themselves.

There was simply too many questions to ask all at once. Tatl would be annoyed with him, which would slow their discussion rate. That was unacceptable, currently.

"Alright, stop there," Tatl spoke up.

Oobleck did as asked, tilting his head towards the bright fairy. He wasn't nearly done writing, but he knew it would take weeks to finish summarizing the results of what he had learned, months the more he found out and deduced.

"You've been asking us questions all day, myself just about all of yesterday, and Tael the day before that."

"Correct," Oobleck agreed, but why was she bringing that up? "That was our agreement, correct? Sharing information so that I may best be able to limit the possible areas you and Link would be able to explore in search of your friend? Cultural studies of a foreign kingdom such as your own is immensely valuable."

"Don't I know it, but that's kinda why I want you to stop." Confusing words, but Oobleck let her speak. There must be a point somewhere. "See, we've been giving you lots of info for the past few days. Where's the give and take?"

Give and take? Was that implying that they no longer possessed what they were offering him? Nonsense! This was knowledge, a commodity that could be shared amongst infinite number of parties without ever being reduced or subsidized in value. Perhaps that was a mistranslation in linguistics? Not his major field, but he had dabbled enough to know… oh!

"You are curious about the state of my own information for you?" Oobleck questioned. The half a moment of silence was suitable answer enough for him. "Of course! Silly of me. Apologies, simply wrapped up in the immeasurable amount of data you have provided. Exhilarating as it is intoxicating, in truth."

"Yeah, yeah, we get it, what we know is worth a field's worth of rupees," Tatl seemed to brush off his words. Rude, but perhaps efficient in regards to time. "But seriously then, what have you got? Anything? Cause I hate flying down as street I'm told I can't go back on."

"No need for concern! I have been doing an equal amount of research into possible areas where Link's, or yours, or both, friend resides. Difficult, given vast unknown of individual and length of time regarding list sighting and present day." Oobleck spun in his chair, to reach towards his secondary stack of papers. "However, rewarding."

"Rewarding?" Tatl echoed his words. That meant she heard him, but not understood him. Distinct difference between the words. "So you did find something? What was it?"

"No, nothing solid yet," Dr. Oobleck spoke as he dropped the papers down on his desk in front of the fairies again. Thick and heavy, but diminutive compared to his own notes regarding the culture and social structure of Hyrule. "Conjectures, yes, but theories and hypothesis need minimal variable tests to offer ground for which further evidence can be researched and documented. Ideas, indeed, but not yet manifested in reality."

"Then you have nothing," Tatl spoke again. Very rude. Rude and incorrect.

"Negative, I do indeed have something." Oobleck let his voice rise with excitement as he searched for a specific manila folder.

Folders were better than scrolls. Easier to keep track of data, harder to fabricate and alter. It was obvious when images were doctored or altered when they could be held in one's hands. Video, audio, and especially text based documents, however, were all easily manipulated in the context of code. Merely high density data streams all fitted together. The real world, however, was chemical, and no amount of engineering had brought the master of that specific element yet.

"Ah, here we are." Oobleck spoke up as he produced the folder he wanted. Marked by a date specified nearly twenty solar rotations ago, light in content, but heavy in context. He opened up the folder to show the images that lay across it. "A Dust mining operation deep in the Forever Fall Forest. Abandoned after two seasons by the Schnee Dust company when insubstantial gains were produced from the operations. Deep in Grimm Territory, requiring heavy investments in Hunter and Military personnel to ensure protection of works."

"So it's a ghost mine pretty much?" Tatl asked another question. She asked a lot of questions. Oobleck liked that. A pity then that she found too many in a row to be bothersome. It would have made conversations much more enjoyable if she had.

"Yes, but it has properties matching those described by Tael as suitable for fairy gatherings." The darker of the two rang at his words. Oobleck smiled towards him. A positive action towards a timid creature. Required for long term contact to be profitable. "It is secluded, near a source of great energy, and in a dangerous location as well, it has already breached ground, meaning it has many rooms suitable for isolation."

"That is good," Tatl confirmed. Excellent news. "But is this everything? I mean, we're giving you all of Hyrule's history here, or about all that we got to offer. This is… something that Ice Queen would know, right?" Ice Queen? Ah, Ms. Schnee, yes, she'd have information, a credible source as well. But Oobleck was a superior well of information. He knew that.

"Of course not!" He defended the accusation that he produced minimal results. "I have also eliminated many areas that are red-herrings, so to speak, regarding the possible location of Link's lost companion."

He flipped, observed, and closed the highest folder on the pile. "Mistral desert columns. Isolated, expansive, but devoid of life, Grimm or otherwise."

Oobleck grabbed another pile from the folder, marked by a large red X through it. It was one of the first documents he had discovered and analyzed. "Vacuo thermal sights. Heavy population due to profitability of geothermal energy. Dangerous, deep, but too well-explored too often. Long-term isolation highly unlikely."

"Alright, alright," Tatl spoke up to her words. "You're getting me, I got it. You are doing your part. At least you have one good file out all of those… things there." Things? That was insulting. There were no less than one hundred and forty three heavily researched areas that Oobleck had scoured through.

"Yes, but don't insult," he returned. "I will likely have possible areas for research in the coming week. One, possibly two, worthy of investigation. Will be exciting, intriguing."

"Of course it will. When is exploring deep dark caverns ever boring?" Dr. Oobleck smiled at Tatl's words. She was correct, of course. Exploration was an area of great energy and interest. He was happy to see she agreed.

"Sis, that's dangerous though." Ah, apparently Tael was not so inclined towards the spelunking life-style. "We gotta be sure before we go anywhere right?" And he was correct as well. Exploration without a goal was merely traveling. A different form of activity without nearly the same end-goal pay-off.

"I know, I know," Tatl replied, her voice sounding similar to one of Dr. Oobleck's students. "Just wanna make sure we're not getting sharked here. Time knows what I'd do if that happened." The unpredictability of anger, yes. It was a difficult for even the victim to describe. Thankfully Dr. Oobleck had no such intentions for the fairies or their faunus companion.

They were too full of knowledge and too open to share for him to wish anything but long lives for them all.

"I'm thinking that's enough for one day though, right?" Tatl spoke up again. "Better part of an hour, too. Not like we don't have our own things to do."

"Of course, yes, a wealth of information provided," Oobleck agreed. He knew the consequences of abusing any source of information. "We can continue at a later date, of course. Fill the remaining time with simplification of data and further research into Navi's proposed location. Time consuming, both of them, but worth it."

"Glad to hear it," Tatl returned with a quick ring. Her brother followed suit, but slower and more subdued. Obvious why. Younger sibling next to older and more experienced kin. Naturally recluse, usually, true in this case. "Then I guess we'll see you later Super Buzz." Deplorable nickname, however. Still, superior to forgetting his higher education.

"The same," he returned before quickly rising from his seat. "Now allow me to open the door. Difficult for your size, I'm sure." There was a series of rings from Tatl, likely of annoyance, but just as many came from her brother. A language not of syllables and constantans, but higher pitched rings. Intriguing, but Oobleck paced his curiosity. There was much more to study before he explored alternate languages.

He reached the door swiftly, a multitude of his papers flying through the air. Inconsequential, he knew where they belonged. Just as swiftly, he grabbed the door handle to his room, giving it a quick twist in combination with a pull of his arm. As expected, the heavy door opened without an issue.

But unexpected, there was someone in wait. With details, a heavily discussed foreign faunus gowned in green.

"Link!" He heard Tatl shout his new guest's name. Said foreign faunus, fellow faculty member, blinked up at Dr. Oobleck before turning a grinning face towards his fairy companion. He held out his hand, which the golden fairy flew around swiftly before settling on his shoulder. "Geez, I was wondering when you were gonna get here. Glad to see you're all you this time." Obvious meaning behind the words.

"How was the meeting?" Tael spoke now, softer and more reserved than his sister. Naturally. Oobleck observed Link's move, carefully, but there were hardly more than twitches, accompanied more with gestures than anything else. It appeared to be perfectly comprehendible to the darker fairy. "That's good. I was, um… nervous, when you took so long."

"No kidding, I was beginning to think you were gonna leave us here with Super Buzz all day." Still insulting, more so in fact.

"I am still here, Tatl," he spoke clearly, addressing her as he would his students. Link looks up at him, no sense of guilt in his eyes. Understandable, as there was no need for any. "But now, curiosity! What meeting were you within this morning Link? Answer unrequired, but appreciated."

"He was talking to Ozpin," Tatl spoke up for the emerald garbed faunus. "Probably had to do with how his first day of teaching the newbies went. Since he's still in one piece, and no one is chasing us, I'd say that it was alright." Odd parameters to measure against, but Oobleck suspected the same. Perhaps not the first in chain of communication, but far from last.

"Excellent, then I hope for future discussions regarding foreign cultures and historical recordings." Oobleck nodded quickly towards the trio, happy to see Link grin back. Smiles were always a positive thing. Almost always, otherwise ominous. Not true in this case. "Then I suppose I will bid you good day. Much to note, even more to research. So much more." Dr. Oobleck moved to shut the door. But he was stopped.

Link had placed his hand on the door, stopping it. He gave Dr. Oobleck a look, one that appeared almost expectant. Said doctor wasn't sure what to make of it. Instead of speaking, which the higher-educated man wouldn't have understood, Link offered more silent words to his companion on his shoulder, switching gaze to Tael when he rang. The conversation continued as such.

As it prolonged, Oobleck was left to wonder if he was one language or two he was observing. Were the fairies' language different from Link's? Was Link's different from Oobleck's own? If either were true, it made their ability to communicate nothing short of astounding, marvelous in fact. A thankful coincidence between their cultures. Likely implicated a recent traveler between two nations, close enough in time to prevent significant change in language. More questions for another time.

"That's awesome!" Tatl's voice gave Oobleck a start. "Nice going there Link."

"What? What is awesome? Is it also astounding, stupendous, and curious?" Those were all independent inquiries, all very important. Tatl was the one to respond to him, naturally, among the three.

"For you, definitely all of the above."

Glynda was at ends right now.

Currently, she was supposed to be reviewing the receipts from Beacon's purchases for the past few weeks, conversing with James about the renewal of the Vytal Festival, and, perhaps most importantly, documenting the teaching habits of Link and his deceased friend Impa. None of those could possibly be noted as unimportant by any party, be they a part of Beacon or not.

Instead, however, she found herself standing outside of Ozpin's office.

She was standing on the roof of Ozpin's office.

Glynda Goodwitch was standing on the roof of Ozpin's office with a short skirt, light breeze, and only the sheer altitude keeping the students and faculty far below from recognizing her. Light as the breeze was, it wasn't helping.

It made the glares she was sending Ozpin justified.

"If you continue to look at me like that, Glynda," he began, eyes forward across the metallic surface they stood on. "You very well may reheat my coffee."

"I'd very much like a warm beverage myself," she returned easily. "Perhaps in my office where the air is controlled, wandering eyes can't see, and work is productively finished." She wrapped her fingers across pad, drumming on it tensely. Practice made sure she wouldn't fracture the translucent screen.

"Oh Glynda, where ever did your sense of adventure go?" Ozpin chuckles with his question. "I was under the keen impression that this would be something worth documenting." Glynda puckered her lips before responding.

"I find the amount that has happened in the past week alone has more than satiated any desire I have for the adventuring sort, sir." It was a curt response, but a needed one. It was what the headmaster of Beacon deserved for insisting on such a reckless activity. Honestly, classes may have been light today, but that didn't mean her own work followed suit.

"In honesty though, I believe we both will want to witness what Saria has planned." The words made Glynda's stare soften. She was around the Headmaster enough to know when his playful-yet-wise wordplay was exchanged with a true conversation. "She gave up asking me a deep secret in order to request this favor. I have my own curiosities as to what I will see."

Glynda didn't answer him, not aloud. It was true that her own curiosity was peeked, especially with the recognition that there was a new friend Link had introduced Ozpin to. What she could do, at least what she promised to do, was something that had to be seen.

"Would care to elaborate, in the very least, why she requested to plant seeds and asked to do so atop the tower? A tower constructed of high grade steel and various metal alloys?" Glynda managed to tap a few commands across her pad, her mini-drones finding Link, his own luminescent mini-drones, and Dr. Oobleck in tow. She was glad the wind, light as it was, wasn't making it difficult to hold her Scroll.

"That is a part of my own curiosity Glynda," Opzin answered. "It is what Saria requested, stating that the lack of soil would be a non-issue. If nothing else, we will learn a bit more about Link's friend, will we not?" He tilted his mug towards her, grinning as he did so. It was a look Glynda was loathe to recognize. Confidence towards unknowns.

"Well, I certainly hope it is worth disrupting my own schedule," she finally answered. "There is much I should be doing, not to mention preparing the numerous requests that have come in for Link's Instructor Duels."

That did force Ozpin's lips to shift. Not into a frown, to Glynda's unspoken disappointment, but enough that his confident grin was replaced with a thoughtful line. He took a sip from his mug, hiding said feature. It would work on the students, but not on her. She had too many angles with too many drones to not see what he was doing.

"Who are some of the candidates?" He asked finally. Glynda, however, now had a foothold she didn't have to relent to. This wasn't something he needed implicit knowledge of. Still, there wasn't much gained by hiding the information from him.

"I will be stating that to Link once he arrives and finishes this demonstration. You know I dislike repeating myself." Didn't mean she couldn't have fun. He grinned at her words, lowering his mug to do so. At least he understood her mirth.

Glynda tapped on her pad, watching as Link and company entered the elevator. She observed as he produced a golden mask in tandem with the door shutting. It was of little surprise or note to see Oobleck fawning over it, poor word choice aside.

It was a detailed mask, absolutely golden. It had varying shades of the color, but all sides of it shined. The outer rims were like rays of the sun depicted in many illustrations, the mask itself maintaining only a simple hole for a nose to breathe and eyes to see. The quality of the mask was likely in the materials used, memories, once more aside.

"It appears they have arrived," Glynda noted to Ozpin. He began to walk towards her with her words, feet tapping across the metallic surface. His cane lightly tapped in tandem. He looked over her shoulder at the pad. "And Link is preparing the entrance of his friend." Then she saw him put on the mask. "Correction, he is introducing his friend."

A now well-known flash of white took up her screen, blinding all of her mini-drones. When it disappeared, a small girl was left in her wake. She was not familiar or well known.

"There's Saria," Ozpin noted over her shoulder. Glynda observed what little she could of the girl, blocked by the rather exuberant Oobleck that was doting over her and the luminescent mini-drones fighting him back, rather fruitlessly. "Rather charming, isn't she?"

"Difficult to judge with no sound and through a one-way glass," Glynda noted in kind. She could, however, note the small things about the girl.

Her choice of emerald clothing and hair was a parallel she could not ignore with Ozpin's. Perhaps it was one of the reasons he was relenting to this favor. The other sure fact was the heavy amount of ease the girl was portraying.

She was rocking back and forth on the balls of her feet, looking up at Dr. Oobleck with a patient grin and seemingly not a care in the world. There was a hint of mischievousness in her gaze. Even through the cameras of her mini-drones Glynda could see that. It was a learned observation from looking at her students for so long. What she was planning, if anything at all, remained to be seen.

"Oobleck looks suitable entertained," Ozpin noted again behind her, chuckling into his mug. "It's no small wonder why." Glynda graced his words with a small rise of her lips. Of all the professors, current or past, that had worked at Beacon, Dr. Oobleck was undoubtedly the most enthusiastic of them all. Due in no small part to his thirst for knowledge.

"Indeed," Glynda agree aloud. She lightly tapped a few commands on her Scroll, the image of the group fading from view. It was no mystery why. "And I'm sure we will soon be hearing why." She pushed away a rogue bang the light wind had freed.

As if in answer to her words, a small pod rose from the metallic roof. It wasn't far from where the professor and headmaster stood, shaped just the same as the elevator, for good reason. With a quick hiss of steel and gas, a pair of smooth doors opened up, showing the occupants of the small chamber.

"-and an unbelievable amount of research may be done for your youthful appearance! Lazarus Pit and Fountain of Youth stories hold new precedence when shown next to you and your fellow companions!" Glynda was wholly unsurprised by Oobleck's fast paced words, even less so by the subject of them. "Wonderous amounts of possibilities! Beneficial to faunus and human alike! Medication, hospital reservations, biomedical research, all rewritten with-!"

"Hey Super Buzz! We're here!" Tatl yelled over the professor, ringing highly to match her words. It was enough to give the frazzled doctor a pause, and the small girl beside him a diminutive giggle. Glynda turned her eyes to her, looking down as she looked back up.

"Glynda," the girl spoke her name as if they were pleasant friends. "It's nice to meet you. Nice for me to meet you, that is." She skipped, literally, across the metal roof of the tower before holding her hand up and towards the taller professor, taller by at least twice the girl's height. "My name is Saria of the Kokiri."

"Glynda Goodwitch," she returned politely. "You are the fifth of Link's friend I have seen, but I confess only the third I have been introduced to." Their hands connected and shook lightly. Weak was the first though Glynda had in reference to Saria's grip, though that was likely due to the girl's diminutive stature.

"You'll meet them all eventually," the emerald girl spoke easily. "Link values his friends, in all ways. He knows keeping their memories locked away is not how any of them would want to stay." She sounded wise for her appearance. It justified what little Ozpin spoke of the young girl. "I believe your professor would agree."

"Doctor," Oobleck spoke up expectedly, given the title. "I spent several years and near half a decade to earn the title. Though you are correct, memories that is. Memories make up knowledge. Hiding memories is hoarding knowledge. Detestable, truthfully." Glynda noted the sly smile Saria adopted with the words. It raised a few questions in her own mind, which doubtlessly meant dozens for Ozpin and hundreds for Oobleck.

But there were things to be done and this little excursion of an activity was wasting precious time.

"Shall we begin then?" she spoke to the small girl, tapping across her pad to align her miniscule drones. Too small to see but clever enough to record. "Unless there is a ceremony you must perform."

"There usually is," Saria spoke. It was difficult to tell if her smile was teasing Glynda on purpose or not. "But I don't feel other Kokiri, and the forest is far from this high." Curious limitations, the blonde professor admitted. She needn't record it though. Oobleck would satisfy that requirement in spades.

"Interesting, is it a ceremony of festival rights? Or perhaps one that requires heavy oversight to ensure proper performance and future reference of success?" Oobleck had produced a series of blank pages in front of himself, quill in hand to right. Saria only grinned towards him, an expression Ozpin was mimicking yet hiding behind his alabaster mug.

"What is it that makes something a festival? Why are you dependent on the eyes of others?" Saria answered questions in turn to Oobleck. To his credit, the doctor didn't so much as blink. A tweak of the head at best. Saria giggled before she spoke on. "Ceremonies are meant to ask the unseen forces for aide in what is about to be done. The eyes of others are proof that no misgivings or mistakes were made."

"Obvious," Oobleck replied swiftly as ever. "Obvious yet required. Of course, simple balance of powers to prevent over reliance on any one part or act. Question again, what powers do you speak of?"

"A question for another time Super Buzz," Tatl spoke up. Glynda was fortuned by the mini-drone's words, from time to time. "We were answering your questions for like two or three hours. Pretty sure that's enough for one day."

"Right, of course, apologies," Oobleck hastily replied once more. His paper and quill were not put away, however. Likely wanted to document whatever was about to happen. Glynda could hardly fault him. "Then what is happening? Unsure of why we are here, this high, on steel. The purpose is to plant seeds, correct? This terrain is insubstantial to impossible to produce any vegetation on that requires soil and root based nutrition system."

"It's not impossible," the more diminutive of the two mini-drones spoke. "I-I mean, it's been done 'fore. Kokiri are caretakers of the forest. Saria can do it." He quickly fell into mumbling as all eyes fell on him. Unsatisfactory for a teaching role. Perhaps that was why Link kept him out of the Arena during combat yesterday.

"No need to worry, Tael," Saria spoke to the dark mini-drone. She hopped lightly with her words, like a child. It was difficult to take Ozpin's words that this girl was anywhere above the double digits in age. "I can do this. I promised the Sprout that I would and Ozpin said that I could, so now I will."

It was difficult to make many things out of that statement. Whether it was Link or Saria speaking, Glynda didn't know. Who this Sprout was, Glynda didn't know. Her near ancient dialect for speaking, Glynda had been told of but she wasn't sure enough yet to say she knew. It made the girl as much a mystery as Link was himself. Perhaps that was the end goal.

"Then perhaps you may begin," Ozpin suggested lightly, his mug swaying towards the girl. The mini-drones rang with their improperly coordinated audio speakers at the motion. "I mean to imply no haste, only that we do not take longer up here then we need to. We are instructors to the students, and the longer we are up here, the longer they are alone down there." That was a forced excuse, a poor example even by Glynda's own standards. It did, however, get the Saria to twist her lips. It was the first time in their brief interaction, Glynda saw her smile fall.

"Alright," she said. As she spoke the word, she was reaching towards the under-layer of her emerald clothing. "I only need to two things to make sure the seed grows properly. Once I'm done, I only need to check on it at dawn and dusk. Is it alright for me to come back here?"

"Of course," Ozpin agreed. "Though I am sure you will have no trouble finding your way to this height alone." He gave the young girl a grin, one Glynda could tell from the side was one of knowing. Saria returned it in kind, her hand still searching beneath her lighter-shaded clothing. Oobleck was writing the interaction down with great speed.

Without saying a word more, Saria pulled her hand back from her clothing, producing a pair of pouches. They were leather bound and small compared to the many other tools Glynda had seen Link produce. She knew better than to assume size was everything, especially given Link's short stature in comparison to Beacon as a whole.

The girl, Saria, walked a short distance away from their group, feet tapping across the metallic surface as she did so. The wind was light around them, but enough to keep silence far and away. Thankfully far from strong enough to make Glynda's blond locks an annoyance. When Saria stopped moving, she settled to her knees. Glynda started to record off of her mini-drones feeds.

Her fingers undid the string of her satchel, letting the dirt spill out from inside of it. It was not what Glynda was expecting, but made a large amount of sense in context. It was a small amount though, hardly enough for two handfuls. But by Saria's light grin, tapping of the soil with pale palms, it was enough for whatever she needed.

She reached into the other satchel now, finger and thumb reaching in side as her blue eyes gazed into the darkened bag. Her tongue stuck out cutely almost, much like a child trying to reach into a cookie jar. She even adopted the winning smile when she reproduced her hand, a sure look of accomplishment. In her hand, small as one phalange bone, was a seed. That was unsurprising. What was surprising, was the shape of it.

It was a paler blue than the young girl's eyes, looking like a midday's blue sky. It had twirls about it, spun up like a wrung cloth. It had a thick and heavy top, ending at a small yet visible point. There were many things that could be attributed to the shape of the seed. Thankfully, as Glynda had predicted, one of Link's mini-drones filled in on the unanswered questions.

"It's a Gale Seed," Tatl spoke up. Oobleck's quill was audible as it ran across the page. "Gale seeds are seeds that hold the power of the wind inside of them. If cracked open, by one knowledgeable about their abilities, it can send you across the entire Kingdom of Hyrule." That seemed unlikely.

"Fascinating," Oobleck spoke in a hushed whispered. He was likely treating this as a demonstration, doing his respect to not interrupt Saria. "Though curious, the amount of internal pressure to hold such a fierce amount of air, let alone the force to move one across several leagues of land mass, would make the shell impossible strong. Perhaps a rich fibrous encapsulation?" Tatl rang at his questions, likely more annoyed than anything else.

"I-I don't know how they work, I don't, really," Tael spoke up for his sister now. Glynda kept her eyes on Saria, watching as the girl placed the seed on the little amount of soil, thumb pushing it into the loose mass. "But, u-um, they're supposed to grow a-at really high places. They need to, actually. Cause they need to feel the wind all the time in order to make the seeds. I-If the tree ever stops feeling the wind, it'll start to die, almost instantly. Really." That was also unlikely.

"Truly fascinating!" Oobleck's voice grew with the words, but immediately shirked when he realized his rise in volume. Ozpin, bless or damn his soul, merely sipped on his mug as she watched both the exchange of information on Saria's machinations with said seed. "A plant that is able to harvest the change in pressure systems to produce seeds. Likely a biological evolution to allow mass spreading of the seed. Larger area for fertile lands means larger chance of success. So this place, the tower, Ozpin's tower, chosen due to the high altitude. Wind constant, a factor of natural pressure systems."

Glynda heard Ozpin hum at the conclusion. She was suitably curious about the words as well. She could accept any number of differences between their cultures, usage of Dust by consequence. This, however, seemed almost implausible by what they knew of basic biology. Implausible, but far from impossible.

"Now you're getting it," Tatl agreed with Oobleck assessment. "Honestly I'm kinda surprised this is so shocking for you. Don't you grow your own plants in certain places for a reason? By Time, you were just saying you didn't think you could grow through metal, doesn't that mean you know where you want to plant?" It was difficult to tell, with her ringing and swinging wings, if she was facing Oobleck, Glynda herself, or Ozpin.

"Soil basic, obvious," Oobleck responded before Glynda could so much as take in a breath of air. "A requirement for vegetative growth. Similarly between human and faunus both requiring sustenance in the form of digestion. Nigh unnegotiable. Air, however, is odd, different. In a metaphor, as if I needed a vehicle of some sort to stay alive."

"Bad metaphor," Tatl spoke Glynda's unspoken thoughts. "But if it's that hard for you to ge-"

"No, not difficult," Oobleck interrupted Tatl. The fairy gave a quick ring of annoyance, her younger and darker model flying close by as she did so. The doctor was busy scribbling over his papers. "Makes sense, though not obvious. Too many questions to describe as obvious. Simply, odd, different, located so far outside normal biological functions that it requires thorough vetting and analysis."

"That would be for another time, Oobleck," Ozpin spoke up now. His can lightly tapped the metal roof with his words. It got the doctor's and mini-drones' collective attention, her own included. "I believe Saria is ready, are you not?"

"I am!" The young girl spoke with a cheer. She was standing up again, the small amount of soil located between her legs, crumbs of it spilling off under the gentle wind.

Glynda gave her only a sideways glance, triple confirming her mini-drones were located in suitable positions to record whatever would happen. Close for detail, but not so close it may interfere. A difficult balance to reach, truthfully, but time and practice had made her unparalleled when it came to managing the devices.

"Very good," Ozpin noted before taking another long swig of his mug. When he lowered it, he stood to his tallest with his cane in front. "Then whenever you are ready."

Saria bowed in response, Link's two mini-drones flying about her before settling off and away. A clear sign that Glynda had to keep her own drones some distance back. They stopped just above her shoulder, Tatl doubtlessly watching her Scroll. It was of little consequence.

The young girl took a step back, placing the mole hill's worth of dirt between herself and the onlookers. She crouched, not kneeled, over it, head bowing as if in prayer. Glynda saw with her mini-drones positioned behind Saria that she was reaching beneath her over-dress again. This was likely the second item she spoke of, but by Glynda's count it was the third. But when the girl produced the tool, she understood a bit better the number scheme.

She had produced a bag of mystical seeds, a small amount of dirt, and now a staff that was longer than Saria was tall.

One of them clearly did not belong with the others.

Glynda's eyes trailed over the item for a moment before her eyes settled on her pad, observing the tool from every angle available to her. In comparison of direct height, it was well over two heads taller than Saria was, even at the angle the young girl was holding it. It was closer to Glynda's height than the small Kokiri's. Flowers bloomed across it, golden like the sun and appearing to be radiating the same form of light. A thick golden band sat over the top of it, red ribbons trailing down the opposite end. Vegetation grew everywhere else, vines of green that either showed the age of the device or some highly clever use of biological specimens. Glynda could not be sure which. By the face Oobleck was making, shown in the background of one of the drones, he was desperate to ask said questions.

"The Faron Spear," she heard Tatl whisper into her ear. The ringing that accompanied her words were soft as before. "A branch from one of the oldest trees in the Kokiri Forest trimmed and blessed by one of the eldest spirits of the woods. Named after the latter, case you can't tell." Glynda couldn't, but she kept note of it beside the many screens on her Scroll. She knew Oobleck was doing the same, likely biting down his tongue at the same time.

Saria left little time to observe the spear she held. She swung it out in front of her, like Glynda imagined how a novice cricket player would swing. She did once, twice, then the third time raised the spear high into the air. Glynda had the slight fear that the weight of the spear and distance Saria held it would force her to drop it. It was a fear that did not come to light.

Instead, the Kokiri twisted the long piece of wood in her hand. It fell in a half circle, its spear changing from aiming skyward to pointing towards the soil on the metal roof. The tip of the bark grazed at the soil, reminding Glynda of playing with sand on the beach. It stopped when it was pointing directly into it, straight as unaltered tree.

Saria's other hand gripped the diaphysis of the spear, her first hand releasing the top of it. She had to, as she was lowly lifting the spear into the air. Glynda would have made note that it was due to the length of the wood instrument again, taller than Saria was, but her attention as well as all of her drones were focused squarely on the soil itself.

Namely the sapling that was rapidly growing from it.

Glynda recognized ringing coming from over her shoulders, doubtlessly Tatl laughing at her own expression. One of her drones caught sight of Oobleck writing at a pace that only he was justified to use, papers being crumbled more than folded as they were shoved away for later reference. Ozpin was staring with statuesque focus. Glynda was the same, though her eyes were shifting across the screens of all of her mini-drones.

They all showed the same thing. Sight after sight, image after image, Saria was producing a sapling in the bare amount of soil, one that was growing with every passing moment. It grew up in tandem with Saria's spear, its height only ever tall enough to touch the very tip of the wooden device. Its climb was slow in truth, but in comparison to how a true tree grew, let alone fern, it was faster than lightning infused Dust.

She was whispering something as well, almost unheard with the gentle breeze that was billowing over the tower's surface, but it was there. Not clear enough to clear, but loud enough to recognize. Glynda only noted it. She was too transfixed on the still growing tree. It was no longer a sapling. Saplings didn't reach her chest in height.

What reached her in chest height was well above Saria. The girl had spun her Faron Spear around as the tree kept growing. From a twig of bark were now branches and leaves. Leaves that sprung forth like a tulip in new growth, petals folding out as the rest of the steam reached upwards. The metal of the roof gave a slow cry of pain as the size of the tree had yet to stop its growth.

Saria's took visible steps backwards, her arms reaching outwards as the spear in her one hand continue to rise into the air, pointing now above what the girl could reach. The tree did not stop growing. It was developing a canopy now, foliage thick enough to hide the multitude of branches that sat at the top of its trunk. Its trunk was far past the thin sapling it was only minutes before. Now… it was easily too thick for the young girl to wrap her arms around it.

Then Saria flicked her spear sideways, imitating a wand. Her mumbling ceased with the action. She then looked towards Glynda, smiling.

"It turned out well. I'm glad."

Glynda noted the tree once more. It was a tree only slightly above herself in height, though stout in appearance. It had foliage along its canopy thick enough to make sight through it impossible. It was colorful as the Emerald Forest and appearing as if it had been growing for decades, not minutes. All of that, of course, was noted beneath the fact that it was quite literally rooted into a metallic roof of Ozpin's High Tower.

"Incredible!" Oobleck shouted, taking Saria's words as a sign that he could question again. "Such rapid growth in such a short period of time! Managed to supply a sufficient amount of nutrients to allow a strong structure to form!"

Without waiting for permission, and shoving the multitude of papers into his unkempt shirt, Oobleck dashed forward and began to knock the trunk of the tree, head pressed to it tightly and eyes wide behind his thick glasses. His mad grin was the most obvious detail about him currently.

"Non-holographic, completely self-sustained." He noted aloud with unbounded glee. "Too preliminary to assume proper amounts of chlorophyll and cellular walls in leaves, need to do carbon chain tests on bark to ensure proper biology, but no signs otherwise. Marvelous, stupendous!" Glynda was only able to glance at him as he threw his arms into the air.

Saria giggled at his excitement, the young Kokiri tip-toeing needlessly about the tree. Her top layer of her dress billowed lightly in the wind, her shoulder length hair doing the same. Her smile was just as obvious, though far more subdued as the doctor's. She really didn't appear to have either knowledge or care for the weight of her actions.

But Glynda did. She looked towards Ozpin, and he to her. Ozpin knew as well.

"I'm glad you found such joy in it," she noted lightly, her hand brushing against the tree she had produced. Tatl and Tael flew about her as she did so. "It has been sometime since I've grown a tree so high, but I am happy it turned out so strong. Now I only hope the wind produces marvelous seeds. It will though. This is a good spot."

"Your semblance is truly amazing, Saria," Oobleck noted, his voice not lacking in sheer joy. "Truly an art that can benefit Remnant in ways unfounded! Replace hazardous chemical altering of organic compounds, mass produce high yields of fruit and legumes, possibly stave off hunger in decrepit slums. Unlimited possibilities!"

That was not a semblance.

Vast and nigh-unlimited as they were, that was not what Glynda and Ozpin had just witnessed. She was sure, very sure. She had watched the act through all of her mini-drones, with far more detail than any huntress would.

It's wasn't a manipulation of her soul. It was magic.

"I have helped others in the past before," Saria spoke easily. Glynda noted how her attention moved to Ozpin. Her smile had yet to change. "That is what I was born to do, what I believe all of us are meant to do. Use what we have and make to aid others in their own growth." The words were full of wisdom, but Glynda was wise enough herself to pick them apart.

"Saria," Ozpin started again. "That was… a common act among the Kokiri?" He questioned carefully. Obviously. "You did say that you're people planted the seeds of the forest."

"Incorrect, Ozpin," Oobleck, of all people, answered. The fairies rang lightly with his interruption. "Kokiri responsible for mass production of vegetation through Hyrule, correct, but not all responsible for the growth, not short term."

"He's right," Tatl finally spoke in. Glynda only passively, lightly passively, noted how long it took her to speak up. She expected nothing from Tael. "Most of the Kokiri manage or groom the trees. They don't do anything about sudden growth spurts. Ain't their field."

"Interesting," Ozpin spoke lowly, so lowly. He took a sip from his mug quickly after. Glynda hoped the tattle-tale that was the golden mini-drone would speak on. She was right.

"You bet it is!" She shouted almost cheerfully. "Only one of the Kokiri get to plant the seeds of the forest, and you gotta believe that it's a big deal."

"Of course! The ceremony!" Oobleck shouted the word that Glynda had nearly forgotten, nearly. "A tribute to spirits and higher powers for bestowing you with power. A thanks for the ability to grow and strengthen home. Obvious, but brilliant!"

Tatl rang towards the energetic doctor, Saria smiling up at her. She pocketed the Faron Spear as she did so, the long mass disappearing into the dress of the girl as did all of Link's items before. Glynda hardly gave it a thought. There was so much more to focus on.

Perhaps ironically, the next big statement came from the quieter of the two drones.

"Well… Saria has been doing it for a long time," he noted lightly, his body ringing lowly with the words. "She is the Sage of the Forest."

Glynda cracked her Scroll.

It was a jerk of a reflex, a sudden twitch that was matched by the widening of her eyes. She controlled herself quickly, as was her training. Straightening her brow, brushing off the cracked screen of her pad, taking a slow breath of air, the usual actions with shocking news. That didn't decrease from how monumental an announcement that was.

There were far too many similarities.

"Sage?" Ozpin was the one who asked. His voice was characteristically calm even in the face of unreasonably heavy news. "If I assume correctly, that is quite a title to possess."

"You bet!" Tatl began again, excited as ever. A clever ploy on Ozpin's part. "Cause the things she can do because she's a sage are-"

"Better spoken for a different time," Saria interrupted. The mini-drone rang with her words, but Glynda noted the smile the young girl offered. It was sharper than any point on the tree she had grown. Tatl gave another ring, perhaps of dismissal, before flying about the now named sage. "I've accomplished what I needed to and I thank you, headmaster, for the permission."

She gave a low bow to Ozpin, in truth small as befitting her size, but it was still done. Ozpin just as easily returned his own, though with far less energy as he balanced his mug and cane. Oobleck mumbled questions into the gentle wind.

It was an end to conversation. Glynda realized that. A bow was like a handshake, a way to end communication before two parties parted ways. A clever ploy on the girl then, a clever tactic, a move that Ozpin had warned the young girl was fully capable of making. But Glynda was caught between the question of who truly acted. Saria or Link?

Said question was pushed aside as Saria turned from the pair. She gave another short bow to Oobleck, he returned with a deep and overdone one himself. The mini-drones rang at the motions, Saria patting the tree. Then began to walk by it. Glynda's schedule, so well engrained, came to mind.

"Saria," she spoke up, her voice betraying none of the shock she was still recovering from. "Before you go, I have a small update for scheduling to discuss with Link." The girl turned to her with blue eyes framed with Emerald hair.

"Oh?" She questioned aloud. Her smile had never faltered, but it did grow a touch at the declaration. "Oh wonderful! What has changed?" Given what changes to Link's schedule had been in the past, the excitement for the announcement was rather… odd.

"Well, to begin, you have received a great amount of discussion from the students on public forums," Glynda began, fingers tapping away at her pad. She did her best to avoid the hair-line crack that now ran through the material. It, blessedly, affected little. "Though the commendations are split evenly with criticisms. Truthfully it's a positive showing for a new professor in this field."

"That is good," Saria answered in kind. "It means they are thinking. Simply loving something means you don't question it. And if they don't question it, then they will not learn as much as they could." Glynda looked up from her pad for a moment to see the Kokiri grinning back at her. Truly odd, if that was to be considered wise.

"Yes, well," the blonde professor spoke on. "What is of more of note is that two individuals and one team have requested to face you in the Instructor Duels." She hard Ozpin's feet tap across the metal surface, likely to face her as she gave the information he requested what felt like hours ago. "It was truthfully two and two, but one of the teams has withdrawn their bid to face you, for now at least."

"Oh? And who were they?" Saria's head tilted with her words, the dark and light mini-drone following, though without the same angle to their wings. Glynda knew enough about basics physics to know that they would have flown side-ways if they had attempted it.

"Team CRDL, requested and withdrawn by their leader Cardin Winchester." Glynda could see on three different mini-drone feeds the grin that Saria wore. It changed. It was always there, but now it was… softer perhaps. Kinder. It looked as if she were pleasantly pleased with the news.

"Then perhaps he is taking my words to heart," Saria spoke, or truthfully Link. Saria had not spoken to team CRDL, Glynda knew this. Her own mini-drones would have picked up the feed if she had. "I hope I can converse with him then later."

"Perhaps, but of those remaining, Team SSSN, visiting from Vacou, wish to duel you. They have opted to request a bout with Elrora." Saria's brow lifted with the words. "This of course, means you may request the location. I need to know now, preferably, so the duel may commence tomorrow."

"Just outside the hall," the Kokiri returned quickly. "As long as Elrora can fly, it is a place she can fight. I'm sure you knew that." The smile brightened with her last sentence. And, again, Glynda did. But the previous few weeks, let alone months, had made it dangerous to assume anything.

"Of course, I'll be sure to clear the airspace," Glynda spoke as she noted as such. It would be simple to ground nearby Bullheads for a designated timeslot. "Of the two individual competitors, one is another visiting student from Vacou, requesting to face you, Link."

"Ah, that's not smart." Glynda heard Ozpin give a small snort of amusement beside her. A part of her hoped it was done to hide his billowing thoughts. Tatl rang with the words as well, highly at that. "But a request and an agreement are just that. Hopefully he learns a lesson during the fight. I can fight him the arena." Too simple to be Saria, had to be Link, thankfully.

"Very well," Glynda noted with another mark on her Pad. "The last student is surprising, but perhaps less so given your activities yesterday." Saria twisted her head at the statement, so Glynda continued. "You are being requested for a solo-match by Yang Xiao Long."

Saria almost beamed at the words.

"Oh wow!" She spoke excitedly by the words, even hoping with them like a true child. "That is very surprising. I wonder why she's doing that? I haven't an idea and that doesn't usually happen. Maybe I'll learn a lesson now." A fun though to be sure.

"Indeed, though you may learn one shortly," Glynda let off. She was hoping, a dark side of her at least, that her next bit of news would force Saria's smile to drop for the first time. Dark and tainted as it were. "It appears that either through the aid of her friends or her own effort, Yang has spent a great amount of time reading over the agreements for the Instructor Duels. It has ended with her finding what she believes, or possibly could be, the loop hole."

"Hmm?" Ozpin spoke up now, hum loud enough to not be a simple noise of curiosity. "And what is this 'loop-hole'?" He thought it was a trap as well. Glynda did as much.

"Yang can request which of Link's friends she will face as well as the location of their duel, but with the trade-off of requiring her to move Link's aura into critical range." The dark side of her was despondent to see Saria's grin still as present as ever.

If anything it was a bit softer, as she was moment ago.

"That is wonderful," Saria spoke honestly. Her mini-drones hovered and spun around her. "It means there are still surprises to be had here. I was wary of how strong your knights were, but it appears that even the warriors, when motivated, can find ways to use their strengths in new ways. Their diligence to plan before they prepare is evident." So it was a trap.

"Indeed," Oobleck spoke up now, his self-rambling finished. "Never doubt the intelligence of a motivated individual. The unstoppable force, or the immovable object. Situational, but immutable." He was still jotting down notes as he spoke, eyes and fingers poking at the tree as he did so. It was likely an act that would continue for sometime. If Glynda knew her colleague, it would be well into the night and perhaps the next morning.

"I understand," Saria spoke in return. "But now I must ask, which of my friends does she which to face… and where?"

"In the roofed arena, she wishes to face Elrora." Glynda noted carefully Saria's expression. It appears that those statements were what satisfied the colder part of her soul.

The emerald girl's grin fell.

It was short, hardly a moment at that, but enough for her drones to collected footage of it through several refreshed screens. They were automatically saved as were all documents on her Scroll, but it was good she remembered it without a reference. But just as quickly, the smile returned. As Ozpin would say, interesting.

"I see," the young Kokiri spoke again. When she looked up at Glynda, her smile was broad once more. "Then you are right, I have indeed learned a lesson. Perhaps it is one I can exercise in the coming days." She turned towards Ozpin before she spoke again. "Ozpin, thank you once more for holding to your agreement. It will take some time, a week at most, but the seeds will begin to grow. Perhaps then I may show you their strength."

"Of course, Saria," Ozpin returned. "Perhaps we can speak further of other topics, if you have the time. I do find conversation with you quite enthralling." Unfortunately, it appeared that Ozpin's ploy was as obvious to Saria as it was to Glynda.

"Another time we may. For now, I have somewhere else I need to be." She turned and nearly skipped across the metallic roof of the tower, green layers of clothing truly billowing now in the effort. Tael and Tatl trailed after her, both oddly silent in the past few moments. Dust fell behind their path.

Glynda was too focused on them to not realize Saria had jumped off the edge of the tower.

Her eyes quickly felt to her Scroll, mini-drones moving to collect a better image of the girl as Oobleck and Ozpin made their own movement towards the edge. She was the first to give a sigh of relief, though not a feeling that quenched the endless amount of mystery that continued to bubble about the girl. It appeared, as all Huntresses do, she had a landing strategy.

Specifically, in the form of an extremely large leaf that hung above her head. Glynda almost wished Tatl or Tael were present to gossip about the item. It would have to be Tatl, because she gave information. Tael spun stories.

"She'll be fine," she heard Ozpin declare, a conclusion Glynda had already reached. "If I were to guess, she's likely to find a new location to plant a sapling. Likely in a spot that has fewer restrictions on it, physically and politically. Both Saria and Link are aware of their precarious position at Beacon." Yes, that.

"Perhaps," Glynda supplied, sliding her Scroll for the first time since she stood on the roof. She did so softly, to prevent the glass from breaking any further. Repair was necessary. "But I must admit that her power has me concerned."

"To me as well," Ozpin agreed, walking towards her with cane and mug in hand. "Of all the things I expected to see, the full growth of a sapling so quickly was not among them. At most, I assumed protection or the expansion of soil. Not the actual change of life."

"I am more concerned with her title, Ozpin," Glynda found it time to cut to the chase, bush beating aside. "Tatl and Tael both named her a sage. A sage, Ozpin."

"Indeed," the headmaster returned in a far more grave tone. His eyes shifted to see Oobleck, the doctor moving from the edge of the tower to the growing tree and back again. He appeared to be debating something else. "And it raises questions not only of Link, but of his friends and their connection to our own land."

"Then you're thinking the same thing I am." It was more a statement then a question, a declaration of truth. The nod that was returned only solidified it.

"Past or present," Ozpin began. "Saria appears to be a Maiden of Spring."

Chapter Text

This duel was simpler than Link expected, and he had not expected much.

"Gah!" The young man across from him let out, forced back by a quick kick to his center. It was an easy strike to connect, the man's blade too large to be used as an offensive weapon as he was attempting. Link's own sword, though miniscule in comparison, was much easier to strike and defend with.

If nothing else, it was a good tool to distract his opponent.

Judging solely by the number of blows Link had made with the back of his hand and sole of his boot, the number of openings this young man kept making were obvious. It was only more glaring when placed next to the number of times he had struck Link.

That was none.

"Agh, dammit!" The man finally cursed as Link swung his foot low, pulling out his leg. The man fell onto his back, heavy sword pulling him down the remainder of the way. Before his head hit the floor, Link twisted his Magical Sword at the man's neck. Said fighter stiffened as he felt the steel on his throat.

Match.

"Winner by disarmament is Link," Glynda supplied in an even tone. She was as unsurprised as Link was. Still, the match was won. Link removed, spun, and pocketed his blade back in its sheath. It still felt odd, not having a shield on his back. But that was a worry for only when he needed it. Now was not the time.

However, judging by the light moan, roar, and grumbling of the crowd, there were a few amount of bets to cash in. That made Link grin. It truly did like the Academy again.

"You gotta be kidding me," the man spoke from the ground, curling up until he was sitting slouched forwards. "How come I couldn't get a hit on you? You weren't even moving all that much."

"It's called deflection, Carrot Top," Tatl swooped in to speak. Link grinned at the fairy, always keen to point out the flaws of others. The nickname was a nice touch, especially given the man's rather pointy green hair. "You got a blade that big, you gotta know how to swing it. All Link had to do was hit in the right place at the right time and you lost your vote for where it was gonna end up."

And she was right. It would have been difficult to deflect a blade so large, but the boy's strength didn't appear to be suited for the tool. Strong indeed, strong enough to swing the blade, but not nearly enough to control it. Like a child trying to lift their parent's sword.

"Oh c'mon, then how was Impa pulling off that stuff yesterday?" The man argued back, hand waving towards Link as he spoke. Huh, he must have assumed he had a chance when he saw the Shiekah fight. The difference between strength and skill, obviously.

"Because she's strong enough to swing the Biggoron Sword without praying that it would hit." Tactful as always. It was even nearly her name. "Sides, match is over. Go build some muscle or stop overcompensating, then you'll probably have at least a small chance." Link shook his head at her words. Too far.

"Tatl," Glynda spoke up, thankfully, before the man on the ground could yell in protest. "Advice aside, I suggest you do not insult the students, especially those that are visiting from other kingdoms."

"Yeah, yeah, I get it." Link wasn't entirely sure she did. "Let's just move along. Good try Corran, better luck next time." Now he sighed with the fairy's words. A friend as true as the sky was blue, but hardly one that was easy to get along with. Link, however, wasn't done.

He reached his hand out to the man, offering it. Corran, looked at it, likely wondering if he wanted the help. After the insults, Link could understand his hesitation. Thankfully though, it appeared that his honor was worth more.

A calloused hand grabbed Link's leather gauntlet, a small force shared between the two. It lifted Corran of the ground, standing to height just equal to Link. He let out his own sigh before nodding towards Link. He returned it, but then offered a little more.

Link placed his hand on the man's shoulder, ensuring eye-contact. Corran looked back, blinking at first. But Link held his gaze, letting the man know he had done well. A poor choice of an opponent, a poor belief he would win, but that was sometimes the odds of a fight.

Fighting despite such odds was a sign of bravery. That was something that could not be measured or overestimated. Corran had done well, and Link believed it.

The small grin that grew over the man's face said he got the message.

"Thanks," he returned. "Just didn't expect to loss so quickly. Kinda my fault for not listening, huh?" Link only nodded, but patted his shoulder regardless. There was no animosity after a duel.

At least there was not meant to be. The boy nodded once more before walking away, large blade slung over his shoulder like a bag strap.

Link took in and let out a slow sight, blue eyes trailing the stands. The room was quieter than the first day, though far from silent. Murmurs still filled the packed room, more than one filled to the brim with excitement. Like children in an orphanage watching the Knights walk by. It felt no different than that. The feeling was only made stronger when familiar faces appeared in the crowd.

Penny, sitting close to team RWBY with a fidgeting posture. She was excitable and the match must have done little to help. The girls beside her were all of equal appearance, though the white haired Weiss was diligently taking notes. It was something he was happy to see, the studiousness. It meant they were truly trying to learn from him.

It was shared by Jaune Arc, the boy that so nearly looked his double. He was further over from team RWBY, still sitting with his team. He had a Scroll in his hand, the device that was anything but a true scroll. Ruby had said it could take pictures like a Pictobox, perhaps the boy was trying to perfect his posture. That was important as well.

But he was most pleased to see Cardin Winchester. His appearance meant the test went well. It was one test amongst many, but a test nonetheless, and the boy passed. He had shaken off his broken pride long enough to come to study. By Glynda's words yesterday, he had already begun to learn. Hopefully Time would allow his tutelage to continue. Link did want to see what he could be as a Knight.

"There are two more Instructor Duels remaining," Glynda spoke once more. Link could see her eyes clearly trained on the Scroll in her hands. "Both the team and individual sessions have requested to face Elrora of the Watarara."

"And they're both in for one heck of a beating," Tatl added on. Link heard snickers through the room. It only made him wonder how appreciated her words were. "But seriously, let's hurry this up. We want the kids to fight each other. No way they're gonna instantly improve against Link." A point to be sure, but Link was just as confident that was not their reason for challenging them.

Or, in one case, for Yang to challenge Elrora.

"Agreed," Glynda spoke, surprisingly. "Thankfully Corran's match lasted shorter than I estimated." The snickering became laughter, followed by a voice of protest in the crowd. Link shut his eyes and shook his head, though his own small grin present. "The next of today's three matches will be outside, as agreed upon by Team SSSN and Link."

"Wait, Sun is up?" He heard Ruby ask. He recognized her voice. Curiosity mixed with surprise. Judging by quick whispers, and few whoops of cheer, it was an announcement they told few of.

Given what Glynda had told him of the visiting trainees, the choice of silence was odd.

"Link," Glynda spoke his name. "I will escort the class outside, to save on time. Why don't you prepare and meet us in the garden." It was more a confirmation of a plan than an order. They had agreed to it yesterday. He nodded towards her before turning and walking into the room of lockers.

He rotated his shoulders as he entered the room, barren of life but humming aloud. It was Glynda who had told him that it was the DC motors within the lockers, humming due to their constant cycling motion. He wasn't sure what they were or their purpose, but knowing it wasn't a sound he was imagining was enough for him.

"You took your time with that kid, didn't you?" Tatl asked suddenly behind him, spinning around before settling before his gaze. Link only grinned, shrugging his shoulders towards her. "Figures, can't just knock these kids out and call it day."

Of course not, that wouldn't teach a lesson. Link knew that as well as any instructor who had ever taught another. The longer a lesson lasted, the more one learned, but only so long as they were paying attention. Tatl rang with trodden wings at his expression.

"Right, right, I get it, can't do anything half way." She gave a quick ring and sprinkle of light. "Seriously, these kids are lucky to have you as a teacher. Hopefully at least you know that." Tatl flew about as she spoke, doting over lockers as she did so. And honestly, Link did know.

He knew because the test was going well. The big one and all of the small moving parts.

Ruby and her team valued his advice and easily forgave him. Jaune and his partners, though short in meeting, didn't appear any more or less wary about him. Glynda acted every bit the Knight he was used to, following orders with curiosities without hesitation. Oobleck was enthralled with his world. Port was kind to talk to.

And Ozpin… Link felt thanks and wariness about the man. He had done much to protect him, to ensure he was not thrown into a strange world without knowing up from down, but he was a leader of Knights training those looking to be Knights themselves. It was a position of power that required wisdom, strength, and cunning. Link had heard plenty of testimony to the first and second, but not a word of the third. Of the third, he had only experienced.

If it was years ago, Link would have been thankful for it. But he was older and wiser himself. He knew there were no leaders, no leaders that stood for any great amount of time, that didn't act without thinking of subterfuge and trickery. It was what made his position here successful, using rules made by others to place Link in a position of power that would keep him from being a fugitive.

It was why he gave thanks to Time, but it was why he was wary.

If he could so easily do as he did, what was he doing behind Link's back? It was not a question that was easily forgotten, let alone easily answered. There were clues, plenty of them, but too spread out with too few parts to make sense alone.

An empty basement. Curiosities of specific friends. Trepidations for Saria's magic. They were connected, but Link hadn't a clue how.

"Link!" Tatl's voice shook Link from his thoughts. He jostled his head, scratching the back of it sheepishly. "Geez. I get you like to think a lot, but I'm pretty sure from the stampede going on outside Glynda's got the kids moving. You better hurry up if we don't want another lecture from the Triple B." He chuckled at the name. Hopefully he wouldn't have to explain it anytime soon.

He produced the Bremen Mask, the holder of all that was Elrora. A sigh escaped his lips as he stared down at the alabaster mask. There wasn't much he was going to enjoy during the fight. The Watarara fought in no wars and preferred flight to fight. But that was not what he was deploring, what was to come.

Team SSSN was an unknown to him. Strong, enough so to earn the respect of Glynda and Ozpin, but little else was known after that. He would need Elrora's sharp eyes and patience, but he knew he could win. He was an Unknown, too.

But against Yang… he knew well enough why she wished to face him. It was what he was loathing. The match would harsh, but so too would any words they exchanged. A soft sigh let his lips again. His thoughts were becoming melancholy, which meant it was time to move again.

To keep the advantage, he had tests to perform and Unknowns to exploit.

Link placed the mask on his features, feeling Elrora's memories merge with his again.

"Take care Rouru. I will always be watching."

"I got ten Lien saying SSSN lasts five minutes."

"Five minutes? You're bein' too kind, dude. Twenty here says they don't last two."

"I'll get in on that, ten again saying they last for ten minutes!"

"Oh you're on!"

"I got a good one, how about three members of SSSN get wasted and the last surrenders?"

"Nah man, they're a tight team. You got a better chance if that was CRDL getting ready to be wasted."

"Would fifty Lien make you reconsider?"

"Heck no, just means you're giving me free money!"

"How about a knockout within the first minute? Hell, first thirty seconds!"

"Oh! I say two minutes. Gonna take more than one good blow and that bird we saw in the sky was big enough to carry Blake like she was a dufflebag. She's gonna need time to do anything real!"

"Laying down thirty Lien on that, anyone else?"

"I got forty for two-minutes!"

"Fifty again for first minute!"

A slow and controlled sigh left Blake as she overheard the visiting students. Betting over fights was hardly something new, by any measure. That didn't mean it was any less disgraceful. That was with her being kind and not including that they were betting on Link, a faunus.

"It's amazing, honestly," Weiss spoke up beside Blake, arms crossed and nose scrunched in disgust. It was a wonder that wasn't her normal appearance. "Only our second session with Link in as many days and they've already begun to bet on their performance."

"I don't know, I think it makes sense." Blake was loathed to recognize her partner's voice. "At least they're all betting that Link is gonna be the one taking the win, right? So far all I hear is talk about how fast SSSN is going to end up in the shade." Was that a pun? If it was, it was deplorable. The groan from Ruby told Blake as much.

"It's a contrite and foolish act," Weiss shot back. "If they are so flippant with their money, they should better invest it in risky start-ups than placing it in fights that are as sure to go one way as the other."

"You're talking about the odds, princess," Yang answered in kind. "And the odds are saying that SSSN isn't going to so much as land a hit on Big Bird let alone beat her."

"Big Bird, Yang?" Blake finally found it time to question the name. "You are speaking of a foreign and former queen, and you refer to her as a character from a child's cartoon?" She raised a single brow as she spoke. Blake was well aware the impact it would have.

"I think that means she's endearing!" she fruitlessly spoke back. "Who doesn't know Big Bird? Better than calling her any nickname Tatl could come up with. Like, what does Triple B even mean?" It wasn't a question Blake had dedicated even a moment's thought to. Now was no different.

She looked up into the sky to, hopefully, drown out the banter around it. She focused on Ozpin's tower, far enough way to not be considered a boundary, but tall enough to always be in view. She saw the student dorm's some small distance away, but the academic halls nearly all around them. Considering the garden they were standing in, it made perfect sense. They would have had to walk through archways to get to the remainder of Beacon's grounds. She could see someone else had fought her recently, judging by the cracks and indentations in one of the far walls.

It was amazing she noticed that much, given the number of students that crowded the area. Much like Link's initiation, they stood on rafters about the building and climbing the few jutting walls to get a better view. She hardly faulted them, as she was likely to do the same once Elrora did arrive. She would not risk missing the fight because she had a poor seat.

"Seems like everyone's against us, huh?" Blake turned to see a familiar golden tailed faunus walking towards them, bare chest and all. At least now he had a golden staff slung over his shoulder. "Whatever happened to strength in numbers and all that?"

"Considering who you're getting ready to run up against, pretty sure that doesn't apply here," Blake returned, letting a light grin take her lips. "When it comes to Link, you haven't seen nearly as much as we have."

"Aw c'mon Blake, you're wounding me here," Sun put a hand to his chest, faking injury. She gave him a snort for his efforts, though she heard Ruby giggle lightly at his antics. "But seriously, why's everyone thinking the bird is gonna be hard to put down? You know, in a purely honorable fight sort of way."

Blake had seen turtles recover faster.

"Because she's huge!" Ruby chose that moment to officially join the conversation, doing so with a jump from beside Blake with arms spread wide and cape billowing. "She's really big with wings that stretch out really far, too. I bet they're twice as long as Crescent Rose from each tip, and my baby was made to maximize the strength/size/weight ratios."

"In a more technical sense," Weiss added on to her partner's words. "Her size means she can push a great amount of air in order to gain flight. Add to that the speed of her accelerations and seemingly lack of fatigue Blake or Ruby have yet to see her suffer from, and she's not someone to take lightly. And you are still forgetting that Link is in there, too."

"Just because she can give doesn't mean she can take," Sun replied confidently, or at least he attempted to. The smile was a nice touch, if overdone. "Sides, Neptune's been hunting birds in Vacou for a long time now. They're big and they do got a lotta pull in those talons, but they're light, like really light."

Blake hadn't considered that, mostly because it was hard to judge the weight of someone who was carrying you.

"Birds have hollow bones to limit their gravitational force," Sun's blue haired partner walked in now. Blake was blaming the size and conversations for making it difficult to sense them. They were mostly filled with jabbering and bets. "It means their fragile and can't take much force before break." That was not the way to enter a conversation.

"Are you intending to break Elrora's bones in this fight?" Blake raise a brow again at the tall youth. He stammered useless at her stare. Good to know her had less confidence than Sun. Unfortunately, he did have looks. Weiss reminded her of that.

"Blake, honestly," the heiress began, as if dismissing the maiming of Elrora. "Elrora's aura will protect against such horrific injuries, but it does mean she'll have to deplete a significant pool of her reserves to prevent damage to sensitive areas." Of course she knew that. But Blake was caught. Weiss had a point.

"Yes! Yeah, thank you Weiss," Neptune spoke breathlessly to the ice queen. She returned smile in return, batting eyes and all. Blake failed to prevent her eyes from rolling. "I-I'm not trying to hurt anyone. I just think it's smart to attack someone where they're weakest, ya know?"

"Well, yeah, that makes sense," Ruby added with a resounding decrease in her usual energy. It took Blake on a moment to remember why. "But Link's not gonna be easy to beat, especially with Elrora's help."

"Hey, if we can't do it, I'm sure her next challenger can." Sun added on, grinning at the team leader. But Blake was caught on that. Did he know who was fighting next?

The questions fled with the wind.

No, that wasn't right. It simple felt that way to Blake.

She felt that way because of the rush of air that blew past her seemingly out of nowhere. A distraught yell came from Weiss, Ruby… and she believed Neptune as well. She raised her own hand to prevent her hair from whipping into her eyes. Good thing, too. It made it easy to see the new entry to the garden and likely the reason for the sudden blast of air.

"Apologies for being late," Elrora spoke, standing to her tallest as she did so. She wasn't facing Blake or her team, eyes sideways and focused on Goodwitch, likely. She did still have her wings wrapped about her like a robe, several head lengths above Blake. It was good to see her smile was still present. "I had to check on the trees. I'm happy to see they are doing well." Trees?

"Please refrain from running personal errands during your class time, Link," was the immediate response Professor Goodwitch gave. It was cold, but maybe that was because she was speaking next to an avian faunus that seemed to project warmth. "But you did not take an unacceptably long amount of time. I believe it has allowed Team SSSN to prepare."

It was only when the professors' collective gazes moved that Blake realized the hush that had come over the crowd. She had to take another moment to remind herself that no one aside from her team had seen Elrora so close up before. Even with it being her fourth time meeting the past queen, Blake could feel the awe of her presence.

"Is Team SSSN prepared?" Glynda called out, eyes looking towards them. No, looking towards Sun and his team. Blake took a sardonic amount of pleasure when she noted the pause her faunus brethren had before answering. It appears that he just noticed how much he had bitten of.

"Uh… y-yeah, totally." Sun spoke up, once massive bravado blown apart. Blake blamed the air blast for that. She was thankful for it, too. "Just um… shouldn't the garden be cleared out?"

Oh, that was a good point.

Without a word from Goodwitch or Elrora, the students rapidly began to vacate the garden. Blake felt no less than a dozen or so students push past her, eager to reach the best vantage point. A vantage point she desperately wanted to have as well. She turned, scanning for any spot she could quickly reach. The trees would be unacceptable, most of the roof space was taken, beneath the roofs was not a good idea to watch Elrora fly… oh there really were few spaced.

"Hey guys!" she heard a familiar yell, turning to see her partner. "Got a few spots saved for ya!" And indeed Yang did. Waving at them from the edge of the roof, Yang had a few decently sized spaces of roof left to climb up and claim. Probably a good thing she was there as no one would second guess the blonde when she said something was hers.

But… how did she get up there so quickly? Did she leave early? When?

Well… those questions didn't matter right now, at least to Blake. There was a match to see and a faunus professor to observe. She had given excellent advice before and Blake really wanted to see it in action. Even as she took the few steps necessary and quick leap up, she remembered the words Elrora told them. That their fight, her distraught feelings towards her lesson, would not be forgotten, but it would not weigh on her mind.

And when Blake settled next to Yang, feeling her partner put an arm about her neck for her usual form of cheer, the faunus-in-hiding could see the avian still smiling. She didn't appear upset or uneasy at all. In fact, she looked as she had described, at peace.

"So… you're Elrora," Sun spoke. She could just make out his voice. She was likely the only one in the crowd, Velvet aside. The advantages of being a faunus never ceased, but neither did the hatred. "Gotta admit, you're a lot bigger in person."

"I am told that often," Elrora spoke. "Though I confess I have heard little of you. Likely a consequence of my short time here, I'm sure." Her smile never fell as she spoke, but her eyes did shift. There were still a few students making their way out of the garden. "May I meet the rest of your team before the match begins?"

"'Course! This here is Neptune," Sun hastily introduced. "My partner and ace with the ladies, just after me of course." If she was insulted, Elrora didn't show it. She merely bowed towards the young man, who returned the action nervously. His shaking is what made it nervous.

"Next up we got Scarlet. He can see just fine with the hair, trust me." Said team member Blake had not met personally. Sun's comment was rather obvious though, given the thick bang of hair that covered one of the boy's eyes, dyed the color to match his name. "Then we got Sage over here. Not really sagely, but his tea is second to none, let me tell you." The final member was darker skinned than the rest, but with a hair color that matched Link's opponent from earlier. He merely nodded his head at Elrora, but the grin was as clear as Sun's.

"It is an honor to meet you all," Elrora returned graciously. It seemed like all of her words did, even those that bordered insults. Blake hadn't forgotten their last conversation. "And I look forward to this bout we have planned." Blake was sure, if only due to her hope that Sun was as kind as the sun he was named after, that his grin was confident, not sardonic.

"Trust me, it'll be a blast. None of the ladies ever regret getting heated with Sun Wukong around." Blake was starting to hope the gamblers were right in their odds. Two minutes tops.

"Well then, I certainly hope I don't cool you off too soon." Blake had no idea how to take Elrora's comment, either literally or figuratively. Ruby groaning next to her did not help. "But, I think the garden is ready for us."

And it was, at least as well as it could given the near impromptu match.

It was only slightly larger than the usual arena, made only more apparent by the sudden vacancy of students. A few odd patches of flowers existed around the perimeter, enough to make it qualify as a garden of sorts, but they were far from exotic and only a single tree rose through the grass, only a head's length taller than Elrora herself. Blake was uncertain it would survive the fight.

Ms. Goodwitch, however, was still tapping along her Scroll, the only other person in the garden aside from SSSN and Elrora. She was likely organizing her drones, placing them in key locations. Or, more likely, heightening the magnification depending on how high Elrora flew. Oh, and she would fly, there wasn't really much else other than a certainty for that.

"This is gonna be fun." Blake heard Tatl ring next to her. It almost made her jump. Almost. But she wouldn't be scared by things that couldn't hurt her, literally. "It's been a long time since I've seen Old Gold actually do anything else but fly, talk, or sing."

"She doesn't fight often?" That was some random student Blake didn't recognize. His question was valid though, enough for Tatl to answer.

"Nah, Watarara don't do that. No reason to fight really," Tatl spoke of with rings. Blake only could tell by a quick glance that she was still facing the garden below, evidenced by her wings. "No land they need to fight for and they feed out of the sea, lakes, or rivers. They are literally made for flight or fight."

"Crap, so like, those guys have an actual chance?" It was a thought Blake nearly spoke aloud, but was repulsively thankful someone else did. The high ring Tatl gave was answer enough, but her words did help.

"Oh no, those guys are screwed."

Blake would have laughed, much like Ruby was doing, if she weren't listening to Goodwitch speak.

"Is team SSSN prepared?"

Each member of the group produced their own weapons at the question. Sun's bowstaff swung around, detaching itself until a pair of nun-chucks remained. Neptune's trident of a weapon unfolded and extended, reaching a length greater than his own height. Scarlet produced a broad cutlass, the hammer of a pistol cocked behind his back, poorly hidden. Finally Sage's weapon was… another very large broadsword. Was he related to the previous competitor?

"Are you prepared, Elrora?"

The avian faunus only nodded towards Ms. Goodwitch, an action that was telegraphed by her large size. She said she was ready, but nothing looked different. Then again, she had already thrown out the idea of ever guessing what Link or his friends did to prepare for anything.

"The match will then commence in 3…"

Blake's nails dug into the steel of the roof with little effort.

"…2…"

Team SSSN tensed, members with ballistics taking aim at Elrora.

"…1…"

Elrora wasn't moving.

"Begin!"

The air exploded.

It was likely only because Blake had dug her nails into the roof that she was kept from being rocked in her seat. It didn't keep her hair from whipping violently back, complete with a few screeches of protest from the other students around her. She did have to squint though, the wind drying out her eyes almost immediately.

A few blinks though and she was able to see again. She saw that Elrora was gone. Thankfully it wasn't hard to guess where she was. A quick crane of Blake's neck and she looked high into the blue sky. The gold of Elrora's feathers was easy and plain to see.

Even if she was far enough away to be considered a speck of sand in the sea.

"In the name of Time, Link," Tatl drooled out with slow rings. She sounded as if she were hit with a shockwave, which she very likely was. "Do you always gotta make a point with these things?"

"Oh wow! She's really high up!" Ruby cheered next, recovering the fastest from the students. Students that were still wiping dust from their eyes various levels of cussing. "She's flying really fast now! That's way faster than before!" Despite the simplicity of her words, Blake had to agree with her youthful leader.

Elrora had ascended at a speed that was far faster than when she had offered Blake a ride before, and that was when she thought the flight was already at impressive speeds. She could still remember the weight of gravity being multiplied during the banks and dips.

But if she had reached a height in the sky far above Ozpin's tower, in a manner of seconds at most, Blake doubted she would have had feeling left after the flight.

Blake managed to look away from the speck of gold long enough to see Sun and his team in the garden. See them pick themselves up with adrenaline filled speed. It made her chuckle, even as she noticed Ms. Goodwitch was no worse for wear, at least superficially. No telling how she felt about having her hair literally wind-blasted.

Sun was quick to help Neptune up, the taller boy righting his weapon and pulling goggles over his eyes. A smart move against the wind. Sage and Scarlet were doing the same, though Scarlet was loading something in his pistol, sheathing his blade. Sage was… digging his sword into the ground? Oh, for support. That made sense, even if it was defensive.

But then Neptune's trident collapsed, prongs of the sharp end condensing into a long barrel. The trigger emerged from the long handle with a support at the same end. It settled into the crux of his shoulder nice, appearing to be, by all accounts, a less intimidating version of Ruby's own gun. Ruby's gun was a sniper. Oh.

Blake blinked as their plan came together. Slightly miffed senses for their target aside, it was a well thought out idea. Chose the enemy that they had the largest advantage over then use it. It was how battles were won and those were what decided the wars.

"Oh, it appears it was not a rushed decision on their part," Weiss spoke up besides her. She had likely reached the same conclusion. "Neptune is a superb shot, one of the main reasons he so often is in the back lines of his team's formations." That sounded like a mixture of observation and interviews.

"I wish him the best of luck," Blake returned sardonically. "He'll need it to hit Elrora that high up and far away." But Blake could tell that Elrora had evened out. It was a guess at best, but the expansive size of her wings wasn't getting and larger or smaller. It was like she was circling, waiting, for what she did not know.

She did catch sight of Sage adjusting his ground-embedded blade, moving the hilt of all things. The actions made sense when Neptune positioned the end of his barrel over one of the crossguards, kneeling down and taking aim through his lenses. Sun sat behind him, hands crossed as if prepared to use his semblance.

Likely was as a defensive measure. Scarlet was merely waiting to the side, pistol aimed but little more than that.

The crowd was full of hushed whispered, students talking about either Elrora up in the sky or whatever SSSN was planning below. Blake already knew the latter and had experienced the former. Now she was waiting for who would move first. It didn't take long.

"There she goes," Tatl gave the announcement to her team. And her words were true.

Elrora's golden form began to fall towards the ground again, wings tucked and small form rapidly growing. She was launching beak first, likely to counter wind resistance, and even more likely to deliver a brutal blow. It would take reflexes moving in the span of nano-seconds to stop her.

"Any day, Neptune," Blake heard Sun say to his partner, even as the crowd became louder. She heard Ruby and Weiss exchange excited whispers mixed with planning. "Really don't want to get hit by an eight-foot cannonball right now."

"Almost got it." He spoke in return. His weapon adjusted on Sage's sword. Said team member was holding the actual sharp end of the blade in the ground. "Almost there."

"Better be soon," Scarlet added on. "Don't think I can hit her if she's moving at light-speed." So they did have more to their plan. What, Blake wasn't sure. She was sure it wouldn't be long before Elrora was here.

"Almost, almost…" Blake held her breath as the avian faunus was closing in on the ground. If she ran into the team now, it would be like a bowling ball to a series of pins. The image brought a mirthful grin to her lips.

The crack of a bullet didn't ruin her smile.

The sudden ungraceful tumble of Elrora did.

She had all the time to gasp as she saw the golden avian's dive bomb turn into a spiraling descent. Her talons rolled over head, wings unfurling as the force of whatever Neptune fired hit her. Elrora was too close to the ground to recover in time. She was too close to give Blake anytime to do anything but suck in air.

The boom of her impact wasn't nearly as loud as she expected, but it still felt like a bomb had gone off at the sound. Worried whispers were already reaching her ears as the dirt was still beginning to billow. And billow it did, with a cloud of it thick and dense enough to make only the outline of gold visible. SSSN either to their credit or trickery, didn't waste the moment.

"Scarlet, now!" Sun yelled, his red-haired team-mate jumping forward with his flintlock aimed. In the span of his leap, he threw his scabbard forward, the blade spinning into the cloud of dust. Blake heard the twang of steel before she saw the golden wing of Elrora. She didn't expect her wings to be that strong, but apparently Scarlet did.

Scarlet fired his gun the moment his sword had hit its target. When he did, two things became clear to Blake. One, why he threw his sword first instead of firing his gun. Second, just what was loaded in the device. The answer to the first was to make sure Elrora was either distracted or right where she needed to be. The second was a net.

They fired a net at Elrora like she was prey. Blake almost felt herself hiss when the net surrounded the golden figure.

The dirt had almost settled, too dense to stay in the air like dust. In the span of seconds, Elrora had been grounded by a bullet, distracted by a sword, and captured by a net. Blake didn't know if she should feel jubilation for Sun's plan or terror for Elrora's predicament.

"Holy crap, they got her!" The student behind Blake yelled, a common chant that was making its way around them. Blake listened only passively. She kept her golden eyes focused on the avian faunus, struggling to raise her arms above her chest. The net was strong.

"Is she done for already?"
"That's it?"
"Guess size really doesn't matter."
"Aw, man, I was hoping for something better than that."
"Leave it to a faunus to know how to fight one. Ah crap man!"

Every phrase Blake heard made her nails dig deeper into the metal she sat on. She was, for once, thankful to hear Tatl's ring rise in pitch and volume almost in tandem with Blake's rage. No question she was getting flustered, just as much a curiosity over what.

"Hey! It's not over yet!" That was Ruby. Blake listened to her. "No way Elrora's done already." Blake was on her side. Unfortunately, so was Sun. He had kept his hands prepared the moment the match began, and now it had paid off.

Only another second or two after the net had hit Elrora, his semblance flared to life. Via Sun, yellow ethereal copies of himself, controlled to do whatever Sun commanded. One of those commands? Detonation. Blake didn't need to know Sun to know what was coming next. Apparently neither did Weiss.

"Oh my!" She heard the heiress yell as Sun's doppelgangers ran forward, the boy staying behind with his team, hair and tail glowing yellow. The only gold Blake was focused on where the pair of ghosts chasing the caught bird. "They may actually win!"

"No, they won't." Tatl spoke up, her voice sounding strained. "But you're gonna want to cover your ears." What?

Then the garden exploded in a whole new way. That was the only way Blake could describe it.

SCREEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE

A piercing sound ripped through the air and destroyed any semblance of thought in Blake's head. Her hands whipped to her ribbon, shoving down on her hidden ears till they were crushed against her skull. It didn't help.

She grit her teeth as she curled into herself, desperate to muffle the sound anyway she could.

EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE

But it just kept going, so she growling. For once, she didn't care how many eyes were on her. It just hurt and she didn't know how to make it stop. She was rolling over the roof, writhing desperately to make it stop. But it wouldn't. It just kept going like a grate against her skull.

EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE

She felt another pair of arms wrap around her, pulling her into an embrace that she greedily welcomed. Her head was shoved against a muscled shoulder, a tight grip holding her close. Blake curled into the embrace desperate for a way to muffle the noise, humility be damned.

EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE

Blake was sure she was crying as well, but any sound she made was muted under the screeching air. It felt like every fiber of life was cringing and twisting at the noise, making the air shatter like glass and dig into her skin. She squirmed and fought deeper into the embrace she was wrapped in, hoping to bury her head in it like sand.

The noise had to stop, it needed to stop.

EEEEEEEEEEEEeeeeeeeee…..

Then it did.

The absence of sound felt like a cold blanket being thrown over Blake amidst a fire. A relieved sigh left her lips, but neither set of her ears could hear the sound. She could hear little at all. She didn't dare move from the embrace she was wrapped in. Not yet at least. The fear clamped on her heart that the sound would roar again. She didn't dare risk exposing herself until she knew she was safe.

Those same arms wrapped around her so tightly slowly began to massage her, comforting her like she imagined one would a pet. Blake loathed to admit the touch was helpful, soothing enough through the current vacuum of noise that she didn't care immensely for it.

Contrary to what she was told would follow exposure to high decibel noise, there was no ring that followed the sound. It really was a vacuum, but one that was slowly letting noise seep into it. If Blake could describe it, with shut eyes and embraced by someone who silently cared for her well-being, it was like water seeping through a blanket.

"-azy… mo…go-tim…ag!" There was no sense to what Blake was hearing, but her hearing was returning in the least. She took slow deliberate breaths as the varying voices began to grow in volume, doubtlessly the crowd of students that had been watching the fight with her. She was just as sure it was them talking as knowing none of them suffered quite like she had. The benefit of her faunus heritage.

Her eyes slowly blinked, looking up to see Yang holding her close. Blake didn't jump from the embrace nor shirk in shyness. She trusted her partner and this was only proof she would protect her. Still, the hard grimace over the blonde's face didn't do her any favors. Blake double tapped her sternum, heavy breaths moving through her throat as she attempted to pop and adjust her ears.

"… emblenc? Thing cou… imm to… livion!" That was Weiss screaming. Even though it sounded as if there was a concrete wall between them, she could make out the heiress's voice. Yang slowly released her, keeping a hand on Blake's shoulder as she moved to settle back on the roof. The cool of steel on her bottom helped to quicken the return of her sense. She blinked her gaze a few times, complete with a shake of her head

Her hearing still wasn't back, but she didn't need it to see Sun's team on the ground of the garden, writhing in pain. No wonder why.

"…arned you though. Can't say I didn't." Blake put a finger to her human ear, twisting the digit inside of it in a vain hope to help her hear better. She dared not adjust her bow. All it would take was one curious gaze to see her to make the pain truly without gain. "When all you think about is how fa… didn't both to … ilities, right?" Tatl was still moving in and out of her hearing, but she was far more audible than before.

The faunus-in-hiding shifted her eyes about her, blinking to clear the painful haze they were in. She saw a great many of the students around her holding their own heads, rocking in place to soothe their skulls. Most had a great amount of grimace, but little more than that. Oh yes, Blake realized, her faunus heritage had once more blessed her with receiving the worst of the noise. But there was another faunus that had her concern.

Blake watched as each member of Sun's team alternated to roll on the ground, hands to their ears and weapons discarded in their writhing. She could assign little blame to them. Sun she felt he most pity for. His head was literally pounding the ground, likely as a means to exchange one pain for another.

That she could place blame on.

"Well… we can guess Elrora's semblance at least, right?" She heard Ruby ask. It was likely only the short distance that allow Blake to hear every word the young girl said, but it was still far from clear. Even further from incorrect. "I thought it was gonna be something like flying or wind. Not… screaming?"

"Calling, actually," Tatl corrected. "Elrora lead the Watarara because her voice could be heard across leagues of plains and through an entire forest. When you're a group of people that fly everywhere, it's kinda easy to get separated." No small wonder then how helpful a call that could deafen those could be then.

"Hey, I think Glynda's calling the match." Another student behind them spoke.

Blake looked towards the garden to notice that, indeed, the blonde professor was waving hands towards Elrora to announce the winner. Said avian faunus was free of her net, likely removed during the painful session Blake had just endured. Her gaze however, slightly unfocused but still sharper than average, could see the worried gaze across the faunus.

Even as Glynda tapped on her pad, stepping away, the former queen took deliberate steps towards team SSSN, kneeling down as she came close to them. Her primary feathers dragged across the grass in a manner that would doubtlessly stain them, but she appeared to pay no mind. Her hands were instead on Sun and Scarlet, holding them with her large hands.

Blake couldn't hear her, not right now at least. She wasn't surprised given the pounding in her skull the screeching had done.

"Are they going to be alright?" Weiss asked, her concern evident in her voice. Given how Neptune was curled in the fetal position, rifle nearly thrown across the garden, little wonder once more why. "That could cause a lot of trauma."

"If Elrora was going all out, probably could," Tatl spoke as an answer. That was not what Blake caught on.

"All out?" She spoke back, noting how dull her own voice sounded. She almost cleared her throat before she remembered it was her ears that were damaged, not her vocal chords. "Elrora was holding back?" Tatl answered first with a ring.

"See those windows," the fairy pointed out, almost just as pointedly ignoring the pained students in the garden. "See how they're not broken into fine shards of glass?" Wait, Elrora could do that? "That means she was holding back. And before the question comes, last time I saw her going all out, she basically yelled loud enough to make a few wolfos' heads explode."

That was a gruesome image. At least Blake's hearing was recovering enough to hear every syllable and ring from the fairy.

"…uggle it… ow breaths… deeply…" Her hidden ears began to twitch as they started to hear the words from further away. Specifically, those being spoken by Elrora to team SSSN. It was still hardly considered clear, but it was thankfully closer to what she was used to. "I apolo… perhaps a… ime."

"Nah, no…" Sun began to speak now, waving hands in the air with his forehead still pressed firmly on the ground. Elrora's hand was along his back, her primary feathers dragging. She seemed to care more for the team than her wings. To Blake, that showed great compassion. "Just… ite." At least the faunus on the ground wasn't any worse for wear.

"That was cool though," Ruby spoke with her usual grin. Blake half suspected that was due more the recovery from the screeching. "Kinda funny that she can sing you to sleep and scream till your ears bleed." That was not something Blake was going to comment on.

"…ought it was in the bag," Blake's sharp ears heard Neptune speak now. She focused on the garden again, though her ears were still a bit sensitive. "You know how hard it was… out of the sky like that?"

"Truthfully I am impressed with the accuracy of your device," Elrora answered. She was easier to hear, likely because she was not out of breath like the others. There was irony in the statement that the one who screeched till others screamed was doing just fine. "And the rest of you displayed an excellent level of cooperation, one proceeding nigh immediately after the other."

"Lotta good that did," Sun answered now. He was louder than the others, naturally. "Still beat us like we were eggs at breakfast." He was starting to stand, somewhat. At least stand with two feet and arms on the ground, dragging his head like the pressure helped. Maybe it did. "How were we supposed ta go up against that?"

"I cannot tell you an expedient method to beat me," Elrora said simply. Blake suspected that was Link. "I can only say that as a team, huddled so close together, it was easy to focus my voice on you." Oh, so they should have spread out. That made sense, against any opponent actually.

Attacks that covered wide areas were either weak, unfocused, or only a one-time use.

"Not like spreading out was gonna make that bird call any less ear splitting," Sun retorted, as Blake counted on him to do. She was tempted to count the seconds until he did. "More like earplugs or something, right?"

Elrora didn't speak to his words, but Blake could see her grinning, even from said distance away.

"Not sure how well cotton in the ears is gonna fight off that much noise." Tatl returned next to… Blake. Wait, did she hear them? Maybe fairies had excellent hearing as well. "Eh, well, not like it matters. It ain't like you got enough time to get prepared before facing her, right?"

That made Blake whirl on her. She wasn't the only one.

When Blake's eyes fell on the golden fairy, sitting atop Ruby's shoulder, all members of her team were staring at her. There was no question Yang was doing the same. There couldn't be, not with how much gossip she picked up on.

"Excuse me?" Weiss questioned first. "I'll have you know that our team hasn't even done enough practicing let alone research to pick which of Link's friends to duel with." If she were standing, Blake was sure Weiss would have her hands on her hips. For now, all she had was the upturned nose. "I think that screech from Elrora rattled your wires."

"Wires? You think I'm some kind of puppet?" Tatl rang as she jumped of Ruby's shoulder, circling the heiress. "Sides, I'm not talking about your team. Wouldn't be around you guys right now if you were." That was a thought. Blake could see Ruby almost gave a gasp at the idea. She held it in.

"Then who are you talking about?" Blake questioned in turn. She didn't get a response, at least not a verbal one.

Instead, she saw Tatl turn towards her, dragonfly-like wings pivoting behind the golden ball of light. Her ringing was quick and fluctuating, like Blake would imagine a child who just learned how to whistle. But she wasn't saying anything. Why was that?

"Do you need me to procure anything for you?" Blake heard Elrora ask again, her tone soothing and full of empathy. Motherly was the word Blake nearly refused to use. "Perhaps it would be best if you were to lie down for sometime."

"Yeah, we'll get right on that," Sun returned with one of his smirks. A small bark of laughter came just after. It made Blake's brow raise. "Just as soon as we see the next fight with you, am I right?" Her eyes joined her brow.

Sun did know who Elrora was fighting. More than that, he knew that it was Elrora who was being challenged. By who? She was not like Mikau or Impa, not formerly introduced to the school yet. It was far from a mystery who the golden avian with wings was, but her name wasn't given out in any announcement the hidden faunus had heard of. And with her ears, missing that was highly unlikely.

"Very well, but do be careful," Elrora relented almost immediately. "Your sense of balance will likely be skewed and I would despise myself to see you be injured further." She could heard Neptune groan at the words even as he nodded in agreement.

They were all starting to stand at least, one by one on shaky feet. That was as good a sign as any that they were far from seriously injured. A pity that she couldn't see their aura levels outside. The downside to choosing the opponent, Blake supposed.

"With Team SSSN's submission, we may now move onto the last Instructor Duel for the evening," Ms. Goodwitch spoke up. Any chatter in the crowd was instantly quelled by her voice.

Elrora stood to her tallest as well, arms folded to her shoulders once more. She never looked anything less than a golden giant, especially next to Ms. Goodwitch. She was smiling though, and that was something Blake was grateful to see.

"Invoked by subsection clause IV.F, paragraph two, the challenger has permission to choose both the instructor she wishes to duel and the location of the fight."

What?

"What!?" Blake flinched at Weiss's verbose question. She was not alone among the cacophony of noise that seemed to explode from the crowd. Blake made out every question, demand, and cuss word that followed, not to mention the look of absolute shock that seemed to roll over Ruby's features just next to her.

"Quiet down," Ms. Goodwitch's voice reverberated over the garden. The noise quieted, by Blake's faunus ears could more than hear the silent cussing and demands for answers. "The draw of the clause is that the duel is restricted to only solo-matches requiring a critical aura level from said instructor."

Oh, well that made more sense. It meant you had to actually beat Link or his friends. That still seemed like one heck of a battle. It seemed to satisfy a few voices in the crowd, but Blake could still very much hear Weiss biting her nails in annoyance.

If she knew where he was, she was sure the Vacou student was doing much the same.

"The combatant has chosen to face Elrora back within the Arena, and the match will commence promptly in order to prevent any more waste of class time." Blake made a note of Ms. Goodwitch's personal opinion on the subject of these duels. Kinda hard not to figure it out after that statement.

Blake felt Yang move next to her, shifting like she was trying to adjust something. No… that wasn't right. The feline faunus turned to see her partner moving to stand, getting balance on the uneven rooftop. What was she doing?

"Ms. Xiao Long, you will have five minutes to prepare."

Blake felt her heart drop like stone.

"Are you kidding me!?"
"Blondie figured out that rule?! Seriously!"
"Holy crap this is gonna be big."
"What's going on?!"
"Y-Yang?"

Even among the multitude of voices whispering, shouting, or simply commenting on the announcement, Blake could easily pick up her young team leader speaking among them. Speaking with a shaky voice, unsure words, and doubtlessly an ocean's worth of confusion. If she dared to speak, Blake was sure she would have been in the same category.

No, that wasn't right. Looking at Yang sharply now, focusing on her teammate, she felt something else. Blake looked at Yang's hard gaze, her stiff posture, her clenched fists, but more than anything else, her ill-confident smirk. She really had planned this. She had planned it all behind their back. Blake didn't feel like Ruby. She felt like Weiss.

Simply, she was pissed.

"Yang! What are you thinking?!" Weiss didn't care if she looked every bit the brat others assumed her to be. She was not about to let this happen. "Why are you challenging Link like this? What chance do you think you possibly have?!"

"Against him, not much." The simplicity of her words made Weiss nearly tear her hair from her head. She settled with banging it against the nearest locker, the metal vibrating with the impact. "Sides, I'm not facing him, I'm facing the Big Bird of Bird Calls. I think I can make her scream."

"You don't get to make jokes right now!" Weiss whirled again, point her finger as if it were her blade. Yang only continued to ignore her, strapping on her gauntlets with a deceiving amount of calm. "Putting aside everything we've just seen, ignoring the fact that Elrora, her highness, literally beat an entire team by screaming at them, for what possible reason do you think this is a good idea?!"

"Cause I found that handy little loophole in the contract," Yang spoke as if that were all she needed to say, smirking with the comment. "Is the princess jealous I read a contract better than she could?"

"Princess is upset for the same reason as the rest of us, Yang," Blake snarled the words and, once more, Weiss was thankful the faunus and her were on common ground. "We agreed, unspoken but agreed, that we would be fighting Link as a team. Now you're charging off to face Elrora like it was destined to happen!"

To that Yang didn't respond. It allows the locker room to be filled with an eerie quiet, complete silence kept at bay by the cacophony of students in the arena. Muffled and filtered through several layers of metal and concrete, but impossible to ignore.

However, just as difficult to put out of mind was the blonde brawler of team RWBY casually donning her fighting attire and Ember Cecilia. Weiss saw it akin to the calm before a storm. Too bad Weiss was already past the point of brewing.

But she was a Schnee, the heiress to a company and second in command within their team. She had to be poised, controlled, and relaxed. The latter of the three was impossible, but she could manage the first two. A very slow breath was taken in, relaxing her chest, and loosening her muscles.

It did nothing for her jaw, tight as the rope of a sail's mast.

"Xiao Long," She spoke the blonde's name like a curse. "What are you even attempting to accomplish with this? I will not accept any lie about profit or excitement. Were that the case you would not have ceased to brag to us about fighting." Weiss knew she was on the correct path of questioning when Yang paused mid clipping of her brace, lavender eyes staring at her.

"Instead," Blake took over. "You were hiding this from us, from everyone. Even when Sun and his team took on Elrora you didn't utter a word." Another pause flowed through the room. "You planned this with them."

That was a realization Weiss had not reached.

"Told them about Big Bird and how she acted, they promised I could go second. Best way to learn is through observation, ain't that what you say all the time, Weiss?" Yang attempted, poorly, to don her grin again. Weiss only deepened her snarl.

"Yang, why are you doing this?" It was about time Ruby spoke.

Her voice was like a hammer to Yang's cool demeanor, something Weiss was thankful to see. The brawler turned to see her younger sister leaning against the lockers, holding her cloak tight against her body and hood up. That was the high sign. Ruby only wore her hood when she didn't know what to think.

Blake and Weiss both said nothing as Yang stared at her sister for a moment, both waiting for the eldest and most impulsive member of their team to respond. Anything Ruby drew out of her was better than their cold logic could.

"Sorry Rubes, can't really say much till the match gets started," Yang, unfortunately spoke. Weiss scrunched her face to keep herself from screaming.

"Well, if you are going to continue to plug your ears and act like a child, I'm going to petition to have this duel postponed," Weiss spoke her hands to her hips. Yang looked at her with a crooked gaze. "I'm sure that no one else on our team will object to the notion." She looked up at Blake, seeing the faunus nod towards her. Ruby didn't move, but her silver eyes did look at Weiss. That was enough for her.

"Unfortunately that will do no good." Weiss did span not resist the groan that came from her lips now. She turned towards the entrance of the arena to see Ms. Goodwitch walking in, high heels clacking lightly against the ground. Her Scroll was still in hand, eyes to it even as she moved forward with purpose.

Tatl flittered in behind her, ringing and letting dust fling from her poorly designed servos. Weiss couldn't dedicate more than a sentence to the mini-drone. There were simply so many more important things for her to worry about now.

"As Ms. Xiao Long has already has agreed to this duel outside of being a member of Team RWBY, the say of the remainder of her team does not hold weight." Her words were like a judge's guilty sentence. "Only the instructor or student participating have the say of the match's continuance."

"And don't bother asking Link to be smart about this," Tatl nearly spat the words out. Weiss would have chalked it up to a failing speaker, but she had heard the mini-drone speak clear as filtered water before. "Already tried to get him and Bird Brain to put this thing off for later. All he did was chuckle and say 'she already impressed me once, so I want to see her do it again'."

"Once?" Blake spoke before Weiss could. Both shifted their gaze away from the new locker room entries to stare at Yang again. The brawler had only moved enough to let her arms hang between her spread legs. If she were moving, it could have been mistaken for stretching. As it was now, she looked to be sulking. "Yang, what did you do?"

"She didn't tell you?" Tatl spoke up again. "Bimbolocks here apparently read through Link's little rule book about these fights and figured out she could choose the opponent and place if she believes she can knock Link all the way to death's door!" Weiss's eyes were wide as saucers. She even heard Ruby gasp. The heiress could not speak for her partner, but so much had just fallen into place.

The additional condition of choice with the limitation being the removal of the soft defeat. But judged as if she were a team of one, but at the benefit of being able to say who and where, even if it was as deplorable as fighting a bird within its cage. Yang was going to face Elrora in the worst spot for the faunus, with the idea of beating her to critical aura levels. Weiss saw the same realization cross Blake's face.

"Yang, don't do this," Yang's partner whispered desperately. Hiss may have been the better word for it. "I don't know what you're feeling and definitely not what you're thinking, but this is a bad idea and I know some part of you must get that." Yang didn't respond.

"Oh good, so she's as mute as Link usually is," Tatl scoffed with a high ring at the blonde's posture. "Great, awesome, that's freaking perfect!" Her ring was much higher this time. Weiss was inclined to agree with the drone. "Nothing like a deaf, dumb, and mute kid looking for a fight. Nope, nothing, really can't match this level of ignorance!"

It was hard to tell if the golden mini-drone was ranting aloud or insulting Yang. Weiss was still on the side of its logic.

"Eh, shout all you want, I'm still gonna clip the bird's wings." Weiss heard a gasp before she could even raise her own hands to her lips. She stared with saucer-like eyes at Yang, the blonde only smirking darkly at her own words. What was she thinking? Was she thinking at all?

"Yang, please don't do this." Never before, not even during the first week of class, had Weiss wished for herself to be the team leader so desperately. At least someone else instead of Ruby. "I-I know I messed up a couple of nights ago. But you should, you can't take this out on Elrora. She was being nice, we asked her for help. Just… don't this, please."

"Sorry Ruby," Yang returned so quickly it left Weiss unsure if it really was Ruby's sister speaking. "Spent a good amount of time thinking on this yesterday. And you know that if I spend time thinking on anything, there's no convincing me otherwise. One of my charms."

"More like anchors!" Weiss shouted back. If Xiao Long insisted on being so impulsive, then so would she. "You're jeopardizing the good nature of our relationship with Link all for some petty misunderstanding you don't even get! A wrong phrase from one person and you're flying off the monkey bars like someone just slapped you!"

She took a few deep breaths, doing her utmost to control her rapid breathing and pounding skull. She was getting a headache over this brute. Weiss tried to tell herself Yang wasn't worth it, not right now. But apparently she had that much in common with her teammate. Sometimes logic was secondary.

"In case you forgot, Ruby messed up, too." She flung her arm at her partner, who almost shot back at the motion. Weiss was rewarded, however, with Yang giving her a death stare. "Oh yeah, get mad at me. Get mad at anyone who even so much as gets close to Ruby. Guess what Yang? She made a mistake! So did Link! And right now, so are you!" Her hand whirled to point threateningly at the blonde.

Unfortunately, Yang only settled for snorting at the appendage like it had offended her. Weiss was once more tempted to real the hand back and slap the obnoxious teammate of hers. At least Blake and Ruby would listen. But this brute? She didn't have a single brain cell dedicated to thought!

"Why don't you act like the big sister you're supposed to be and start apologizing?," Weiss started, pulling back her hand to comb it through her long ponytail. She had to keep her appearance professional, even in her school uniform. "It's not too late to just make this some spontaneous decision and nothing more. You still have the power to call this off."

"Yeah, but I'm not going to." Weiss bit her lip to keep herself from screaming. "And since it's almost time to start, why don't you guys go get a good seat in the bleachers. I'm sure JNPRs gotta have something, right?" She was still attempting to joke!

Even as she stood up to her tallest, towering over Weiss like the brawler she loved to be, she had a grin on her face like this was going to happen no matter anyone's action. Weiss had enough vision out of the corner of her gaze to see Blake's glare of disdain. Good thing it was an emotion they shared. A pity Ruby felt more self-pity then actual anger for her sister.

"Ms. Xiao Long is correct." Ms. Goodwitch spoke up. Weiss looked at her, pleading silently. The professor did not do so much as blink. "Please return to your seats. If we are to continue the class after this match, we cannot afford delays. Tatl, I trust to you make sure they leave the lockers?"

"Yeah, yeah, I will," the drone responded with as much commitment to the idea as Weiss felt. None at all. "But write it down on that light board of yours that I'm not happy about this. And by the looks of it, no one else is either!" Good thing her visual protocols were working.

"Noted, but please leave now." Ms. Goodwitch turned on her heel with the words.

Yang walked past Weiss and right up to the professor. She didn't even offer a glance through her blonde mane. She was either focused on the fight or determined to ignore them. Both were deplorable in the given situation.

"Let's… let's go." Weiss heard Ruby speak. "Yang won't listen to us, but we should at least watch her fight." She didn't even sound happy with her own orders. Tatl balancing on her hood, her usual gold now tinted a red that matched Ruby's cloak, didn't help. But… if Weiss was objective, which she always was, her leader had a point.

They couldn't risk appearing belligerent simply because things didn't go their way.

"Fine," she returned, disdain and displeasure clear on her tongue. "But we are going to have a serious conversation with Yang following the fight, agreed?" Weiss saw Blake nod harshly at the words. Ruby did the same, though with far less energy. Then, without another word, they began to leave for the elevator.

They rode up silently, hearing the noise of the student's permeate through the concrete and growing louder with every inch the platform rose. When they were among the stands again, the discordance of noise was near deafening. To Weiss it was almost like Link's first day all over again. A rouge thought wondered if there would ever be a normal day of training again. A part of her almost knew there wasn't.

Weiss was wholly unimpressed when she heard the now familiar cries of bets being placed.

"I'm taking twenty Lien Yang bites in a minute!"
"A minute! You're being too generous, man. I got twenty on thirty seconds!"
"How about fifty she doesn't even get in a punch!"
"How about fifty that she gets in the first punch!"
"You're screwed with those odds."
"Hey! You guys!"
"Tell me that if you take the bet!"
"I'll take it and double it! A hundred Lien says Yang doesn't get in a punch!"

Weiss heard the clipped voice of Jaune shout over the crowd. The buffoon was easy to spot, waving his hands like a child getting his parents attention. Given his overall skill in combat, it was an apt metaphor. Weiss felt sympathy for his partner once more, looking up at him with concern in her gaze.

"We got seats saved for you!" At least he paid his debts.

"C'mon," Blake spoke up next to Weiss, leading their team up the stands. Weiss waited for Ruby to follow. She couldn't risk her team leader attempting to sneak away, or worse, interrupt the fight. For all she knew the impulsiveness was genetic through their father.

But even as they marched up the stairs, the heiress felt the nagging idea to pull the hood off of her teammate. It simply didn't suit her. The cloak of red did compliment her well, especially when her semblance was active. But at the moment… it just made her look tiny and fragile. Weiss loathed the look. Only the mini-drone perched atop the hood like parrot kept her from committing the action.

"I'm sorry, but… did you know?" Weiss heard Pyrrha ask as they shuffled towards their seats. The words were almost missed through the noise of the crowd. Unfortunately, Weiss heard them almost perfectly.

"Not even a hint," she answered, disdain clear in her voice. She would not pretend to defend Yang for this action, not while she still had the chance to rectify it. "She apparently is fighting for some misplaced honor against Elrora."

She scoffed at the idea even as Jaune and Pyrrha exchanged nervous glances. Small mystery about what.

"She hid it completely from us likely because she knew we would disagree," Blake added on. She sat down besides Ruby, making sure their young leader was comfortable. Weiss sent a grateful look towards the hidden faunus. It was returned with a nod.

It was amazing, truthfully. How much Weiss and Blake agreed on when they had a common problem to work on.

"Why am I getting the same feeling as when Link first fought in this place?" Jaune asked aloud, hands dragging down his face. It was an action Weiss wouldn't possibly mimic. "Except now I feel like Yang is the one in trouble. Am I wrong?"

"No," his teammate answered, thankfully. Ren took a deep breath before he spoke on. "But I feel as if this could turn… sour for either party." Another unfortunate truth.

Weiss rung her skirt in annoyance and their uselessness. She'd have to make Yang care for it latter. It was her fault, running off to make this kind of rash decision without consulting the team. The brute!

"Quiet in the audience," the words rung out loud and powerful in the arena, much clearer than in the gardens. Ms. Goodwitch's voice was unmistakable. "We have our last Instructor Duel for the day. Following this normal class will resume for the remaining… three and a quarter hours." If she weren't so mad, Weiss might have made note of how Link had decimated a team and single challenger of hunters in such short time, with preparation included of course. However, she did not.

"The fighters are Elrora of the Watarara," Ms. Goodwitch spoke the faunus's name again. "And her challenger Yang Xiao Long." Weiss felt a hiss slowly seep through her lips once more. Perhaps she was becoming too much like Blake.

The noise of the crowd picked up slightly as Ms. Goodwitch marched out of the arena's center, likely to take her position out of interference's way. It left time for Yang and Elrora to stare down one another. And there was no mistaking what Yang was doing was staring her down, looking her best to be intimidating. It failed to impress Weiss next to a faunus that was only slightly shorter than double the brute's height.

"Yang Xiao Long," Elrora began, standing some distance away. "I must admit that when I was told of your research into the limitations of these duels, I was impressed to hear you were the first to find one of the small loops I had created." Weiss was loathed to admit she was as well. It was not something time would easily let her forget.

"Yeah, well, you'll do anything for family." The heiress's fingers tightened on her skirt, nothing else for her to grasp. She would have preferred steel, at least it would have taken time for her to snap it. "And you're someone that I really need to knock down a peg."

"I am… not sure I understand," the golden faunus returned. "Have I insulted you in some way? I offer my apologies if I have. I never had such intentions." Weiss believed her. She knew the rest of her team and JNPRs did as well. Yang, from her ever growing sneer, did not.

A cold fear crept up the heiress's back, heightened only when she looked at Ruby, her cloak tight against her.

"We need to stop her," Weiss whispered desperately to Blake, already knowing futility when she saw it. The faunus-in-hiding only returned a sharp gaze of her own, complete with a bit lip. Her thoughts were the same. "What can we do? What can we say?"

"Nothing," Blake, unfortunately, hissed back. "I know her well enough to know she'd die and kill for Ruby, no matter how misplaced that sense of protection is." Both girls shared a quick glance at their leader.

Said girl was pulling the hood of her cloak against her head hard enough to disguise it for her hair. Silver eyes still stared desperately out from the cowl. Tatl, ringing a bright red atop it, did not help. Weiss ground her teeth in irritation.

"You remember a couple of nights ago?" Yang started to question aloud. Weiss was feeling her stomach drop. "When you gave my team a quick talk and one-night flight around the campus?"

The whispers were getting louder.

"She's not seriously going to say that, is she?" Weiss heard Jaune harshly question his partner, desperation thick in his voice. There was no question what he was referring to.

"I recall answering a call from your team leader to discuss methods in which to improve your abilities," Elrora began. Either Link was playing dumb or he had a remarkable ability to hide his emotions. Weiss knew well enough that he was not unaffected by what had occurred. "Following a misunderstanding, I offered to show your team the freedom only a Watarara can experience. Ruby was first to volunteer, but I recall you being close behind her."

Good, excellent, humble her, a strong tactic to defuse a situation. Weiss knew antagonism would work poorly on Yang. This, however, placating a situation with past events, tended to mellow the blonde out, only so long as the right moments were referred to.

"Sure was," Yang caught on near instantly. "And I was pumped up for it, too. Can't think of much else to get the blood flowing like a roller coaster off the wheels." To that, Elrora tipped her head. Weiss settled with slapping her forehead. Still, the comments were preferable to what she feared. "But that was before my little sis fell asleep on your back."

All fears returned.

Majority of the whispers became outright conversation.

"Y-Yang?" Weiss felt the oddest mixture of both her blood boiling and freezing at the voice. She risked a look towards Ruby, seeing the young team leader the same as before, but now with a hint of dew around her eyes. It was horrific to witness.

"And you took her from me before laying her down to rest," Elrora continued despite the noise of the students. Why wasn't Ms. Goodwitch interrupting? This seemed like an excellent time to postpone the match! "I can understand if this is a situation of embarrassment. That is easily rectified. But… I cannot help but feel there is something else that is bothering you. Is there?"

Were birds naturally curious? If they were, Weiss was starting to truly regret Elrora's question.

"Oh yeah there is." Apparently, Yang felt it prudent to crack her knuckles. Likely an attempt to appear menacing. She failed. "But if you haven't figured it out yet, then I'm sure you'll put two and two together when I'm putting my fists to your beak."

Elrora responded exactly how Weiss prayed that she would.

"Very well. I hope you impress in battle as you have with your preparation for it." She bowed when she finished. Weiss nearly let out a groan of relief, but wisely held it in. Ms. Goodwitch, finally, chose time to speak.

"Are both fighters prepared?" Elrora nodded with the question. Yang let her undeserved smirk flare before she did the same.

Looks like this would be settled without any grievances being aired, at least no more than already had. Oh, Yang would still be getting a talking to and beating if the Schnee could help it. There was no doubt Blake would help with the endeavor. Ruby would oblige, if only out of spite for her sibling's deplorable actions.

"Then may the match commence in 3…"

Elrora's wings fluttered as her hands moved from her shoulders. Yang settled into her usual battle pose, complete with clenched fists and raised elbows. That was when the blonde member of Weiss's team began to move her lips.

"… 2…"

Weiss watched Yang's mouth move, but didn't hear a word come out. Elrora merely continued stare down the smaller girl. She was truly a girl in Weiss's eyes now. Weiss, however, noticed the jolt in Blake's gaze.

"… 1…"

She noticed the quick widening of the dark faunus's eyes the same time she saw Elrora's beak open, any perpetual grin lost.

Her eyes were wide and posture no longer regal, no longer with arms close by, feathers scraping the ground. What happened?

"… Begin."

With a boom the battle begin.

Weiss thought, hoped, the sound was the rush of air Elrora gave off before with her flight. But she was wrong.

The golden avian was still as stone, hardly moving. Yang was the one who took off, her Ember Cecilia firing like rockets. She had closed the gap with a speed Weiss believed only Ruby could match.

So within the first half a second of the duel, Yang landed a clear and brutal punch across Elrora's beak.

Like a ruptured pillow, the former queen of the Watarara flew from where she stood, by no will of her own. Her once tall and elegant form was sent spiraling, parallel the ground as her wings flailed uselessly. Her body skipped and skidded across the ground, appallingly, until she slammed into the far wall of the arena.

Any sound Weiss made in shock was lost to the impact the avian made against the far wall and hand covering her lips. It was a vicious crack that echoed through the arena, horribly complimented by 'ohs' and yelps of pain in the crowd.

But Weiss could hear, clear as day, Tatl screeching above them.

"That stupid bimbo!" The mini-drone screeched. "How did she learn that?! What is she thinking?!" Weiss didn't believe she had the voice to ask what Tatl meant, nor the time. Yang was charging the ball of feathers that was Elrora.

Her brute of a teammate was charging again, fist already raised like a guillotine. The imagery was nightmarishly accurate, enough that Weiss felt a tightness in her chest she refused to give thought to. It became a difficult task when Elrora had yet to do more than sift on the ground, her beak peeking out from the mess that were her wings.

It quickly ducked back in when Yang threw her fist forward, beating her fists against the ensemble of golden feathers. The brute was yelling as she beat at the blanket of feathers, hitting the mess that was Elrora like a blanket.

Weiss had to look away, so she did look away. Her gaze shifted to the only thing she could possibly justify to look at. The aura level display. She wasn't sure if what she saw was good or bad, not yet at least. Yang was leading, which was non-surprising.

Elrora, however, had only lost a fourth of her aura.

Perhaps it was overzealous to say only a fourth. From a single blow, that was a tremendous lost, giving credit to Neptune's previous thought of weak bones leading to greater loss of aura. However, the levels were hardly decreasing since then.

Weiss could see from the corner of eye Yang continuing to throw her weight into the former queen, but it didn't… show on the aura scale. Rather, it was hardly moving if at all.

"This is crazy! Is Yang gonna win?!"
"My Lien!"
"Grimm and Dust, this is brutal!"
"Why ain't the match called yet?! Isn't this one sided?"
"So much for the mighty faunus. Just a bunch of flukes I guess."
"C'mon Elrora! You can do it Link!"
"Keep the lead Xiao Long!"

What if Yang did win? If she did… Weiss wasn't sure what she'd think. Would she even be entitled to still be mad at her teammate? Of course she would, but… results were what made the future move forward. Weiss had to risk a glance to the others. She wasn't rewarded with any revelations.

Blake looked angry, just as angry as the heiress believed she would be. The word for it, pissed. Where the collective attention of the student body not on their pier beating the pillow feathers, she would have warned Blake about baring her fangs.

Ruby… she couldn't see Ruby.

Her partner had pulled her hood the last inch it would give, completely hiding her behind a pocket of red and shadows. Tatl still sat on her head, artificial wings beating with what was likely a malfunctioning servo. JNPR, as a collective, were various forms of shock, though none more than Pyrrha.

Then another bomb stole Weiss's attention away.

Her azure eyes shot back to the arena just in time to see Yang flying across the floor, tumbling no differently than she had sent Elrora before. She recovered quickly, unsurprisingly given her usual dexterity, but Weiss had her attention elsewhere.

She had it on the golden faunus, the former ruler, standing to her tallest again with wings outstretched to their fullest.

Even inside with only artificial light, Elrora looked every bit the queen she said she once was. The shear difference in size with her wings outstretched made that only clearer.

"That was a smart move Yang," she spoke easily, as if she weren't just being used as a poor punching-bag. Blake hissed from next to her, but Weiss ignored it. "But you wasted your chance."

That was ominous and Weiss loved it.

She watched as Elrora began to slowly crouch, wings bending at the assumed elbow. Her golden feathers straightened with the action, turning to look more like swords than long strands of carefully organized keratin. They covered her torso quickly, hiding her green dress beneath layers of gold. They lightly blinded her eyes, shielding them almost. But when she was done, not a part of her was exposed or non-threatening.

Weiss could only describe Elrora's physique as massive, in the kindest of regards, but the faunus looked to be taking a posture that made it menacing. Her words sealed it.

"Now it is my turn."

When Yang had thrown her first punch at Elrora, Coco nearly screamed in frustration.

She'd just lost a hundred Lien to some lucky strike on the blonde's part.

She knew there had to have been some kind of trick to it, something she did or said or whatever to make an opening, but that didn't matter. Point was she got a hit and with it a good chunk of the bird's aura. Couldn't say if it was enough to win a solo duel, but it was enough to make everyone else nervous. Honestly, she was in that huddle.

It only got worse when Yang really started to assault the blanket of gold like it had personally offended her. Coco was nervous because her other forty Lien was on Elrora taking the win within the first two minutes. Within the first thirty seconds and all that had happened was some freshman proving she had the chops to take on some Grimm-slaying, body-changing, badass faunus. It would have been cool if Coco didn't have money riding on it. Then her luck turned around.

Yang was blown back, Elrora was standing, and Coco felt Velvet almost collapse into a puddle of relief besides her. She patted the girl sympathetically. It only got better when the bird began to talk, making her sickly sweet voice sound like it was hiding venom. Bird's may not have been poisonous, but Coco was willing to bet those Wawa faunus were the exception.

It only became clear as air when Elrora charged.

A golden wing swung at Yang before Coco even realized how close the bird faunus was to her. The blonde ducked, luckily, but not without a good jump backwards. Hardly mattered by Coco's eyes, seeing the massive size difference between the two. The bird's wing was literally the same as Yang's entire body.

Yang jumped back again when Elrora took another swing with her other wing. A swing, that is, but spinning around like she was a top. It was only then the leader of CVFY realized that something was up with those feathers. Feathers were like hair, she knew that much, which meant they were pretty wavy. When Elrora swung though, it looked like they were literally cutting the air, like a knife and butter.

It was weird, but not as weird as Yang trying and failing to land a hit on the faunus. Apparently the first hit really was luck, because when Yang started swinging, Elrora started moving. It was like her size didn't even matter to her. She bent left, leaned right, jumped here, swooped there, all dodging the brawler's fists like they were infected. And the bird was smiling! How did that even work with a beak? Coco would have to ask Velvet later.

Elrora still hadn't landed a hit on Yang, but it wasn't looking like the smaller girl was going get any kind of advantage back. Coco bit her lip, hoping that Beacon's newest prof was going to pull out something amazing. She really didn't want to lose half her allowance on one stupid bet. But the dance kept on, Elrora proving herself agile despite her size and Yang resorting to a bit of screaming with her punches. Aggravation did that.

"C'mon!" The blonde finally yelled loudly. She did it just as Elrora raised a wing as she twirled, deftly avoiding a haymaker from the boxum brawler. "Are you just gonna dance around me the whole time! That afraid to really fess up and-"

Coco felt a thankful grin split her face when Elrora caught Xiao Long's fist with her own hand.

It hardly stopped there. Just as the blonde made a move to swing with her other fist, Elrora caught it on the outskirts of her other wing, somehow redirecting the blow. Those feathers were strong, but not as strong as the grip she then put over Yang's hand. The bird had the blonde trapped like a parent would a child, holding their arms still and outstretched. It was funny, really.

It was really funny when Elrora lifted Yang into the air, holding her at arm's length like she really was a child. The thrashing didn't help the brawler's image. The size difference was really working in Elrora's favor now, especially when Yang couldn't even kick the bird amidst her movement. The feathers may have been hiding a lot, but the look of aggravation over the blonde's face wasn't one of them.

Coco's snickering wasn't left alone for long. She heard laughter begin to ripple across the crowd, a few snorts turning into mad chuckles at the situation of it all. It really didn't help Yang's case when her face became flushed red. She half expected her to start crying like a toddler. She already had the tantrum down.

"That's mean," Coco heard Velvet whisper beside her, as if she deplored the action. Coco didn't agree, not in the slightest.

"I think it's pretty smart. Being funny's just a bonus." Honestly she may have meant the other way around, but it was six of one and half a dozen of the other.

"Well… Yang does deserve it, a little. At least for what she said." That made Coco look away from the match. Her fingers pulled down her glasses by their frame, giving Velvet a look that only her teammates could decipher. It didn't take long for her faunus to register it. "I-I'll tell you later. It was just something mean Yang said when the match started." Well that explained how she got in the free hit.

"Is this your big plan?!" A shout from the arena interrupted the conversation. "Just hold me like this till I get bored and give up?" Well the tantrum was really here now.

"Not hardly," Elrora answered back to the struggling girl. "I'm having a debate whether or not to scream at you."

If anyone else had said that, Coco would have thought it was a joke. But the memory of the visiting team's defeat by screech was anything but forgotten. Coco felt Velvet pull her ears down against her head, preparing for the worst case scenario.

Her own arms moved as well, ready to embrace her teammate if worse came to worse. She saw Yatsu do the same.

"But I think after this match your teammates will need to have a long discussion with you. Damaging your hearing will do no one any favors." Maybe it was her experience, but Coco could pick up the threats in those words. There was more than one.

They sounded like they came from a mother scolding their child. Actually, that was kind of appropriate. The threat sounded like one you would give to a child. Did that mean a spanking was coming? Coco would gladly forfeit her second gamble to see that.

"So I'll settle with the idea that my beak is harder than your head."

Once more the conditions where the statement was made kept Coco from chuckling in mirthful humor. Yang's bull headedness may have been legendary amongst the freshman class, but Elrora's words didn't exactly inspire the idea she'd be testing the blonde's memory.

WHAM

Coco winced as the sound of bone-to-boneorwhateverabeakwasmadeof ricocheted through the arena. The cry of quick pain from Yang didn't help. It only got worse when Coco realized she didn't even see Elrora peck at Yang. And it had to be peck. She couldn't think of any other words for what a bird would do with their beak.

WHAM WHAM WHAM

"Gah!" The verbal cry from Yang came with 'oh's' of pain from the crowd. Coco found herself among them with one fist to her lips and the other held up like a guard. It looked painful, sounded painful, and judging by the literal pecking away at the blonde's aura meter, it was painful.

"You're getting harder to hold," Elrora spoke up as if she weren't trying to cave in Yang's skull. Coco vowed silently she would never underestimate anyone who spoke kindly again. "Perhaps that is what you are capable of, pain is your gain. … Then I suppose I'll have to finish this before you become too strong."

WHAM WHAM WHAM WHAM WHAM

WHAMWHAM WHAMWHAM WHAMWHAMWHAM

WHAMWHAMWHAMWHAMWHAMWHAMWHAMWHAMWHAM

"Match called," Ms. Goodwitch's voice spoke up over the beating of beak and bone. Coco nearly let a breath of relief. She wasn't sure if she'd be able to have dinner if she kept hearing that noise.

Elrora dropped Yang to the ground unceremoniously, taking large steps back with her taloned feet. They were wrapped up in her golden wings again, leaving the blonde to roll on the ground in hardly disguised pain.

Coco, honestly, was just impressed she was screaming in pain.

"Victor by aura depletion is Elrora," Ms. Goodwitch announced once more. The fanfare was subdued to only a few claps, cheers, and groans of people having lost their bets. Once again, Coco was among them. She counted out the bills begrudgingly even as she heard Velvet release a breathy sigh of her own.

"So," Coco spoke up as she thumbed through the single digits. She said goodbye to them remorsefully. "Does that make up for whatever Xiao Long said?" She didn't expect much of an answer from her teammate. Velvet was a quiet girl that resembled more a lion than a rabbit. Calm and collect until threatened.

"Well… it depends on what Link thinks." Link? Wasn't it Elrora who Yang was fighting? Coco pulled out her hundred Lien before she gave her the bunny faunus her usual look. Velvet didn't even have to turn to know it was being given to her. She knew better after almost two years. "Yang did say something really… really mean. But I don't think she'd want it spread around."

Coco snorted at the comment, but she didn't push it.

"Yeah, whatever," she dryly added on. "Here's hoping it was worth losing me fifty bucks." At least the five to one odds made her forty come back to cover some of her loss. Not nearly enough though.

A sudden flash of light made her raise her head, looking into the arena to see the massive bird gone.

Gone was Elrora, in was Impa.

Impa, looking down at Yang with crossed arms and long ears, shook her head at the girl.

"You had much going for you Xiao Long," the faunus-version of Goodwitch spoke up. Coco doubted she was the only one who made that connection. "But you gambled too much on too little information. Perhaps if you had spoken with your team you all may have devised a better plan of attack."

"Oh don't gimme that…" Yang groaned with hands on her head still. Coco was amazed she could talk at all. "Just because… cause..." But she wasn't exactly free from all pain.

"Enough," Impa commanded to the groaning girl, taking the few steps forward that Elrora had taken back. There may have been an extra step or two in there to match difference in height with the bird. When Impa stopped, she was kneeling in front of Yang. "You're plan of attack was well thought out and your distraction at the match's beginning was brilliant. But…"

Coco couldn't hear anything else she said. Beneath her glasses, her eyes furrowed in confusion. Impa was leaning towards Yang, doubtlessly whispering. Whatever she was talking about, it must have had something to with whatever Yang had said at the beginning. One look at Velvet with hands to her lips as if to keep her mouth shut told her she was right on the mark.

"For now, however," Impa spoke up once more, standing to her tallest. Her arms were on Yang's shoulders, lifting her up as well. The girl groaned at the motion but Impa either didn't care or felt she deserved it. "Return to your team. I recommend you all spend the remainder of the class time to converse with each other."

"I recommend against that, Impa," Goodwitch cut in now. Pretty far from surprising when the faunus prof just told a bunch of freshman to skip class. "Future conversations can be done on their own time once the remaining student duels have finished."

"True," Impa replied easily. "But I have high doubts that they'll be able to focus on the matches while they stew silently amongst one another. It's best to air all wounds. Time cannot heal what it cannot see." Goodwitch only replied with a long low sigh. It sounded like one of defeat.

"Very well," Goodwitch replied. That was shocking now. "You are the professor after all, complete with all the shortcomings."

Talk about a back-handed compliment.

"Ruby Rose, Blake Belladonna, Weiss Schnee, and Yang Xiao Long, you are all excused for the remainder of class. Though I greatly urge you to follow Impa's instructions and spend this time wisely."

Across the arena, Coco could see Yang's team members standing up and skirting around the students. Too far away to see much. But… wow they were booking it. Were they hurrying up to help Yang? She was pecked like a stubborn nut, so no wonder if they were. Theeeeen they walked right out of the room. Now that was a wonder. Yang left slowly, one foot in front of the other. The crowd murmur as she went.

"Still not gonna fess up what all that was about?" Coco asked Velvet teasingly, hoping to stir up the pot just enough to hear something good. She was rewarded with only a quick shake of the girl's head. "Figures."

"Match victor by disarmament is May Zedong," Impa spoke with a verbose voice. Said student gave a silent signal of success, a small 'pump' of her fist. Her opponent, one Russel Thrush, gave an insolent signal of failure, smashing his fist into the metal ground.

Glynda watched, equally mute, as Impa strode from the wall of the arena towards the pair of students. Russel was grumbling with his head to the ground, picking up his knives as May retracted her high-caliber rifle back into a compact form. The blonde professor of Beacon made note of the victor, method of success, and time for defeat. Her fingers hovered over additional notes.

"An excellent use of decoys in order to gain the upper hand, May," Impa congratulated the young teen with sincerity. A good trait to use. Positive reinforcement lead to positive results. "But be wary to leave yourself an escape when attempting such a method. Should an opponent either ignore or dispatch of your trick to early, you cannot allow yourself to become trapped yourself."

The girl nodded at her words, smile still unfaltering. Unfortunate. It was difficult to measure the level at which May took in Impa's words, likely a complimentary fault of the high from her victory and cryptic method of speaking. Still, it was advice that could not be said was ungiven.

"Russell," Impa spoke now to the Beacon student. He grumbled up at her. Rude, but Impa made no sign that she was insulted. "You were at a natural disadvantage during this fight, against an opponent that excelled in range combat whilst you prefer close-range quarters." Clever, Glynda noted.

The shortest member of Team CRDL lost a bit of his grimace at her words. She was not belittling the success of May, but offering an out for Russell. It was clever, a fine way to make a student focus on her words, but only if Impa was wise enough to follow. Glynda had little doubt now she could.

"Difficult as it may be, you must make your own decoys or distractions in such a scenario," the Shiekah pointed out, arms lightly crossing as she did so. Glynda noted the slightly pumping of the elder faunus's fist. "Pellets of smoke, bangs of noise, any small thing to divert the attention of a threat allows for the precious moments necessary to close the gap. Do you understand?"

"Y-Yeah… yeah…" the boy nodded his head towards her. Glynda noted his appearance more than anything else, torn. He was not sure to thank her for her aid or scorn her. The reason for the latter was obvious to any faculty or student had been around team CRDL. "So like… what? I turn myself into a ninja?" A few students snickered at the idea.

"That," Impa began, hopefully brushing off the sarcasm of the boy. "Or you learn to coordinate with your team. You are the Shadow, undoubtedly. Much like May is to her team." The Shiekah's arms unwrapped to extend an open palm to the young sniper. She blinked at the comment, but said nothing. "Neither of you are to be seen when the battle commences. You are either the sources of confusion or the quickest end to an enemy, for I believe neither of you can take a heavy blow."

To Glynda's utter lack of surprise, Russel raised his nose at the comment. It reminded her of dogs, dogs getting ready to bite the hand that fed them. May, on the other hand, did her academy justice with a simple nod of understanding. If only her own students had such discipline.

"Now, let us continue." Impa waved both students away. They turned in opposite directions as they walked off. Glynda made a few more choice notes on her pad before closing the file. It was stored away by data and student names, easy to find again at a later date. "We have time for one more duel before the class has ended."

Glyna made a quick look at the clock attached to her datapad. Impa was correct. With roughly ten minutes until next lecture, it allowed for one duel. Possibly two, but it was unwise to hope for anything to go according to plan. By Ozpin's own words, Impa was a faunus that had more experience than any other Huntress he had met. Wisdom was a gift naturally given to her.

"However, instead of simply assigning two trainees, I have a different lesson in mind."

Glynda looked up from her pad in tandem with the whispering of the students. She remained quiet, but cautious.

"I have a simple question, one I'm sure many of you can answer with a bit of thought. Answer correctly, and I'll allow you to choose your opponent, within limitations." Impa pointedly looked at Glynda with those words.

The blonde instructor let out a slow sigh. It felt like she was with Ozpin once more. But, if she was, then there was an end Impa was purposefully moving towards. She had been responsible thus far. A curt nod was enough for Impa. The nod in return showed that.

"Now, Squires of Beacon." Glynda made note of the new address. Curious as to why they were not simply trainees. "Who can tell the best measurement of strength?"

With the question asked, and noted on her pad, Glynda saw several hands rise in the crowd, some quicker than others. She watched Impa's red eyes scan the crowd, likely looking for the student that had the promise to answer the question.

"Jaune Arc," Impa spoke pointing the stand. Glynda erased her last deduction, clearly false.

"Yeah, um…" the boy hummed as she stood, raised hand now scratching his head. "Isn't strength, like, how much you can lift? Or how hard you hit?" Not incorrect by my applications, but Glynda could see without her glasses it was not the answer Impa was looking for.

"That is only one criteria of the true measurement of strength," Impa spoke. Her voice was not mocking, which was good, though Jaune did hang his head as he sat down. Predictable, "You, with hair of green and dark cloak." Glynda looked up from her pad to follow Impa's gaze. They ended on Reese, a visiting student from Haven.

"It's called a sweater, Ms. Teach," the girl responded. If she was mocking Impa, the faunus gave no indication of either realization or care. Glynda made no move to inform or correct. She was no longer the teacher, after all. "Kay, now, strength is a measure of control. The more power and strength ya got, the more you can do and make happen. It's why the strong survive, cause they can make things happen." She sounded confident.

"A valiant definition, but lacking in a crucial area," Impa spoke, either heedless or apathetic to Reese's look of annoyance. Impa made not of the girl's grumblings as she sat down. "Now you, with the locks of red and chestplate." Locks? Glynda noted the odd word with quick notes to it being a term from Impa's age. The girl, however, was unquestionably Octavia, a visiting student from Shade now.

"Um, thank you for calling on me," the girl politely began, earning a slight nod from Impa. Respectable. "Now strength, when used to describe a warrior, is usually relating to their will or soul. The more strength they have, the greater their will to continue. It translates into their Aura and their ability to continue a fight. It's why we are drawn to the strong." Glynda nodded her head at the definition. Impa did not.

"A fine message, but a definition, that is not a measurement of strength." Impa's response made the girl flinch lightly, but she bowed before retaking her seat.

Murmurs filled the crowd now with a lot fewer hands. Likely a combination of a lack of confidence and already spoken answers. A great many of hands fled after Jaune Arc's words. Perhaps there was no definition. Glynda would not put it past Impa to create a question whose answer was nothing. It would translate well to their being no finish all or fix all for combat.

"Cardin Winchester," Impa spoke now. Glynda sighed at the name. She prepared another report for misconduct on the boy. She watched him stand, his teammates looking at him expectantly. The rest of his classmates, better understanding of the child's brutish nature, were less than impressed.

"Strength isn't measured by what you can destroy, but by what you can create."

His words weren't what made Glynda pause. It was Impa's response.

"Correct."

The blonde professor looked up with a slight gape in her jaw at the word. More murmurs and whispers from the crowd did no favors for making the situation any more alien. It was only heightened, in Glynda's mind, when she saw the smile across Impa's face.

She looked… proud.

Was it truly not possible for Link and his friends to not cause a performance with their every action?

"Tell me though, from curiosity, how did you reach that conclusion?" Impa continued on. "If the response of your classmates was not clue enough, it was an unobvious answer. And in truth I did not expect to hear it." Glynda marked her previous thoughts as half-correct. "Yet you spoke with not only confidence, but without hesitation. Why?"

Glynda could see all eyes turn to the tall leader of team CRDL. He sucked in a large breath of air at the attention, scowling without speaking. His arms were crossed harshly, probably as a means to keep himself from throwing them forward and yelling. But it was control, and more control than she expected from the boy she had seen taunt and ridicule others for joy.

"My dad would tell me about it on good days." Glynda made a careful note of his choice of words. "Kept going on that if we only saw the strong as people who could break things, we'd make a pretty f…freakin' broken world." She was also glad he caught his own cussing. "The strong ones are the guys who can make something from nothing. The cowards are the ones who try and break it."

Glynda was sure of herself, one hundred percent so, when she saw a smile flow across Impa's features. A smile with pulled lips, white teeth, and kind eyes. It was so much more than the satisfied grin or focused frown she had seen so far. She could only see one word to describe it. Pleased.

"Very… very… well spoken, Cardin," Impa congratulated with a nodding head. The boy smirked proudly in response, unsurprisingly. But now, perhaps he deserved it. "So as promised, who do you wish to face?" As Impa's arm swung out, Cardin's grin dropped. That was curious.

His features fell, looking to his left. Glynda noted Russel Thrush, the boy who had just lost the previous match. He was looking back up, pointing at someone across the arena. It was impossible to tell who and they were speaking to quietly to make out words. The rest of the students were whispering, but nothing more than speculation at that.

Slowly though, Cardin began to shake his head. One of his hands reached up to grasp his face, aggravated at something. There was no indication what, but several things Glynda could speculate. His teammates suggestions, his own ideas, the attention he was receiving. The answer was impossible to discern.

"Actually," Cardin finally spoke up. "I'm… I'm good. I don't feel like gettin' in a fight right now." Glynda must have misheard him. She and the rest of the class.

"… Very well, Cardin Winchester," Impa spoke. Maybe she had misunderstood the boy, too. But with her senses it seemed unlikely. The smile was subdued across the faunus's features, but her grin was still present. "I hope you continue to spend your time wisely."

The boy gave a gruff noise as the response before sitting. It was far more than Glynda expected of him. The class murmured with the exchange, Glynda making careful note herself of it. She preferred it to one that caused mayhem, damage, or some notice to the Military or Council, but it was still enough to shift the path of her thoughts.

"Let us end the lessons early for today," Impa spoke on. The action was against Glynda's opinion, but she kept mute. There was a reason for the words, after all. "Before the sessions next week, I ask each of you to perform a small task. There is no report or measurement for it, but if done correctly, it will benefit you immensely."

Glynda opened up a new file on her Scroll. A part of her realized Impa likely paused for such an action. One part was her own honed senses for the actions of others. Two parts were the red eyes the faunus gave her. Either way, it was appreciated.

"You're built into teams to help one another improve, divided again into partners that you rely on for the duration of your training. It is a commendable way to produce knights of the next generation. However, limiting yourself to the group you are in will hinder your ability to grow." A strong introduction for the next assignment. "Over the next few days, before the next class, I would like each of you to converse with another team. Talk over a meal, practice your forms in your free time, spend an evening together. Simple as it may sound, it is something I wish for you all to try."

It was an interesting request, but one Glynda could see the immediate benefit in. Teams often were made of individuals that shared similar mindsets, or developed such over the years together. Conversing with other teams, speaking to those from other schools, would teach about areas of the world many of the students likely had come from. It was a good lesson, if the students chose to follow it.

"For now, that is all. Have a good day," Impa bowed slightly with her words, the group of students rising as well. The faunus wasted little time walking towards the exit. However, Glynda was not done.

"Impa," she called to the Shiekah before she left. It saved time to talk now. "I have a quick question for my notes. Why did you address the students as squires instead of trainees? I find it hard to image something happened to change that."

"But there was," Impa replied. Curious. Glynda raised a brow to show she was. "Trainees are what are referred to the new blood of the academy, younglings that are looking for a future. Squires are those that know what they want, but are still working to claim it." Ah, so a difference in life's goal. It made sense, but only in the logic.

"Then what happened to make you see the students with such a change?" Glynda tapped on her pad as she spoke, noting the answer with her own thoughts. Both were equally valuable. "I have hard time believing you have spoken to all of them by now."

"I have not," Impa admitted. "But I have spoken to enough to know I was underestimating their commitment to the Academy. They are squires, no longer trainees." She turned as she spoke. Glynda made no move to stop her.

She had what she needed. Class was over. Glynda had little concern for where Link would go now. She was well aware he had 'unknowns' to check on.

Even if he was only giving her half answers.

"Cardin, why didn't you fight?" Sky asked the question like it wasn't on Cardin's mind already. He grunted at his teammate, curling his hands deeper into the back of his head. "I mean, c'mon man, you coulda picked on Jaune and whipped the floor with him. Why didn't ya?"

"No point," he grumbled out, leaning harder against the tree. He hoped it break. At least he would have done something productive today then. "I can beat up Arc in my sleep. What's the point?"

"The point?" Russel now. Dust, why Russel? "The point is to show that we're a badass team! I got my butt handed to me by that sniper chick. Who knows what would have happened if that faunus put Dove up against someone like Emerald."

"Hey!" The boy countered, but ultimately said nothing else. Yeah, Dove wouldn't talk back, not his style. Not usually.

With how the day was going though, Cardin wouldn't have been surprised if he had. Another soft growl came from his throat. Nothing about this was good. He got the question, said some junk his old man had told him when the bottle wasn't on his lips, and he was right? It was bull!

Everything else he'd ever seen had told him that wasn't true. Military ruled cause they could kill anything and anyone. So they were strong. Council could tell anyone to jump and they'd start making machines to jump even higher. They were in control. People who made things? They were the ones who followed the guys who could break things. That's how it always worked.

He let out a yell as he swung his fist.

"Whoa!" Sky let out, ducking his blow. Good, his fault for standing too close. "You 'kay there Cardin? If you need something to hit, you should have just picked Jaune." Cardin glared at the blue haired spearman.

"Shut up!" he all but yelled at Sky. He relented immediately, hands up and backing up. "Just… not now. I gotta deal with this right now."

"Impa gave praise for all the wrong reasons, didn't she?" Dove guessed. Cardin wanted to yell at him, too, but at least he sounded like he got it. Figures Dove would understand, spent enough time around other guys to get it. Beneath other guys. "She seems quite vexing with her knowledge, but at least she is being fair with it."

"Seriously Dove?" Sky shot back at his partner. Right, partner. "You're gonna get on her side of the park? After the crap she pulled on us before. She beat Cardin to a pulp like two days ago!" Cardin glared until he felt heat cloud his eyes. Didn't do more than that. Sky deserved something, but a mace hit woulda been too much.

"Oh hush, you agreed before it was a poor choice to face her as well." Dove countered right back. Yeah, he did, but Cardin agreed to it in the end, too. He shut his eyes with another annoyed grunt, fixing his hands back against his head. "And you should know that her side of the field is as close as I'll get to her." Good thing they were partners.

"You're both idiots," Russel spoke up. "Sides, only reason we didn't thrash on the faunus was cause she had too many fights of her own to pick. Ain't no fun in beatin' on someone too tired to fight back." Yeah, he got it. Cardin nodded with his partner. He could count on Russel to see straight through the fog.

"I am glad to know that is why we did not fight."

Cardin whipped his head to open his eyes, seeing just who he didn't want to see. Impa, the faunus hiding another faunus, the bitch with red eyes. He could feel his legs tensing, ready to jump at her… but he didn't. That'd be stupid. And Cardin Winchester was not an idiot.

"What're you doin' here?" He asked with a growl. She better back of. He made sure his team gave her a pass, but if she was here to rub something in his face, oh, she was gonna get it. "Don't you got some princess to pamper?"

"In truth I have two reasons for being here, Cardin." She didn't even flinch at his words. He scoffed. She was hiding something no doubt, trying to rile them up. Faunus always did that. Just look at the White Fang. "The first was to congratulate you." Bear traps in the middle of the street were less obvious.

"Yeah, right," Cardin all but scoffed. She wasn't worth scoffing at. "Thank us for answerin' some test question? Sure that's what this is."

"The only individual to answer the question correctly, and only two days following my demand you begin to think of your own action," Impa went on. She didn't seem to get what he was saying. Funny, considering that she could probably hear a lot more with those big ears of hers. "I make no jest of what you have accomplished, Cardin Winchester. I asked of you something and did as requested. It is more than I believe many squires your age would do."

"Squires? What are we playin' Jails and Grimm now?" Sky asked up. Good question in Cardin's mind. But given how loopy this faunus had to be to think he/she/it was from another kingdom, might just be doing that.

"I am… not familiar with the game." Impa replied. At least she sounded confused. Good acting, but animals always were good at playin' around. "But there was another reason for my visit with you and your team." Her words moved from Sky and to the rest of Cardin's team. He gave a sneer. She ignored it. "I know you heard of my next assignment for the teams of Beacon and academies abroad. A simple one, but a task I am aware many struggle at."

"What, hookin' up with some friends?" Russel jumped in. He laughed at the question. Cardin joined in. His partner knew how to take apart a dumbass comment. "Ain't that hard to go downtown and learn something knew on the streets. You seriously thinking we're gonna learn anything new from talkin' to a bunch of losers?"

"Is that a rhetorical question?" Impa replied. Cardin didn't know what to make of her eyes. They were red, like the first time he saw them. But now they were what… darker? "Because I find it unlikely you were referring to others as 'losers' when you yourself were defeated only a few scant hours ago."

Cardin put up his hand to catch Russel. His partner hadn't even moved yet, let alone lunged, but he knew his team. Russel was a mad dog when let off the leash, and Impa, the dumbass faunus, was taunting him. Better get the real bitch to back off before things got ugly.

"Why are you here, Impa?" Dove chose to speak up. Good on him. Most of the chicks liked listening to him talk. Too bad the reverse wasn't true. "I pray you are not intending to inflict more harm for pleasure." Tough as she looked, Cardin was pretty sure she wasn't gonna do that. At least last time she had 'reason'. This time she had nothing.

"Hardly the case, Dove," she spoke back. "In fact, I am hoping to assist five students at once." What did that mean? "I am aware you are all looked… unfavorably by your peers." Cardin sneered at the woman. What did some long-eared faunus know? "However, there is another student I know of who is unsure of herself, least when it comes to meeting new faces."

As she said that, Impa stood aside. It was only then Cardin noticed the girl standing behind her. He recognized her at least. She was the girl that challenged Impa the first time she stood up in class. The ginger who looked like her IQ was single digits. Freakin' sweet…

"This is Penny Polendina," Impa introduced, not that Cardin cared. "She was transferred to this academy nearly the same time as myself." Still didn't care. "As there are few groups here who are so welcome to speak to new members, I was hoping your team may be more receptive to her."

"Salutations!" The girl greeted. What was she, some kinda Schnee Greeting card? "It is my absolute pleasure to meet you all! I sincerely hope we can be the bestest of friends!" Seriously, who talked like that? No, better question, who the heck danced when they spoke? Penny was doing just about that.

"Uh, hey," Russel spoke. Cardin swore the dude's voice almost cracked. Smooth as rocks. "Name's Russel. Thrush if ya wanna be, um, what's the word, cordgid? Yeah, close enough. It's, uh, sweet ta meet ya." Penny tilted her head at his words.

"Sweet?" She asked. That was what she was confused about? "Sweet involves a sensation of taste related to sugary textures, usually products that are meant to be high in electrolytes. Do you think I taste sweet?"

Cardin snorted air before started to laugh. Oh Dust and Grimm, that was good. That was really good. He could hear Sky laughing far harder than he was, Dove probably being his usual quiet self. Russel wasn't talking. Cardin shook his head before looking back at Penny, sure the girl was gonna be running off by now. Instead, she was just blinking at them. Impa had a hand on her shoulder though. Kinda hard to not figure out why.

"Misunderstandings aside, I believe it is easy to see that Penny is not the individual most used to conversation." That was like saying rock wasn't the softest stuff on Remnant! "However, she is one of the most well-trained and honest souls I have ever met. I know she will become a Knight worthy of song one day, just as I am sure of you, Cardin Winchester."

That got Cardin's attention. Any mirth in his laughter was gone like the wind. Was this girl like him? Seriously? Best Impa said was that he was too sure of himself. It was bull, but he relented a bit to show she was wrong. Best way to humiliate someone was to prove them wrong. But this girl, she was like that? No way, he couldn't believe it.

"I'll leave you to talk, be it now or sometime later in the week's end." Impa took her hand off Penny as she said that. Both she and Cardin looked at Impa. He could still hear the rest of his team either getting over their laughter or just watching. Better be the latter. "Please let me know how it went, but be aware there are no obligations. This is all merely me trying to make you all the greatest Knights you can be."

Then she left, seriously, that like that was it. Impa just folded her hand behind her back like she was some sagely woman before she walked off. Cardin bit back the comment that she was old enough to be some wise woman. That would have proved her right. He wasn't gonna do that. Instead, he turned his attention to Penny.

The girl couldn't have been more than up to his chest in height, shifting on her feet like she didn't know which way to fall. He snorted at her. That made her just blink at him. What was with her? Did she not know that meant to leave?

"So… you are Cardin Winchester?" She asked like she didn't know. Cardin raised his brows, asking in the universal language if she was serious. She must have been illiterate to not read it. "I was told you strong when it came to muscular exercises, is this true?" Well… he could take a compliment.

"Oh yeah," he returned, nodding his head as he flexed his arms. He could feel the steel of his pauldrons groan at the effort. Not even metal could stand him. "I could throw a Goliath with these babies. Nothin' but hard work to get them as good as I do."

"That is extraordinary!" The girl's shout almost made him jump. Almost. It did make Dove and Sky stop their jeering. "I have only ever been able to lift an Atlas Class-IV Mech, and that was only for a few milliseconds at best, but to generate enough force to throw a Goliath enough distance to generate a significant velocity is amazing!"

Was this girl serious?

"May you please demonstrate your strength with me? It would be an excellent thing to document for further conversations! Oh, I know! Why not attempt to move me with your superior strength?"

Was this girl serious?

"You think' that's a smart thing sweeee… gal?" Russel tried to catch himself. He failed. "Takin' on Cardin ain't no joke."

"His grammar aside, Russel is correct." Dove had all the elegance of a tree, honestly. "Cardin is the leader of the team for more than merely his imposing posture. I have little belief that you will be too heavy for him. Kindly as I can say this, you cannot be more than a hundred pounds, and that is being generous." Cardin may not have been the suavest guy, but he knew that wasn't generosity Dove was offering.

"Oh, that's no trouble." Penny put her hands on her hips, pushed out her chest, and put on a smile that Cardin thought looked more real on a box of cereal than this ginger's face. "I'm combat ready and ready to go!"

"Oh yeah," Cardin spoke up. He let a small grin take his lips. "Then let's see it."

Ruby didn't know what to do. She was in her team's room, sitting on her bed with her cloak wrapped around her. She had the hood up, tightly against the top of her head. The rest of her team was in the room, too. However, Ruby was the only one in her bed.

Yang was sitting on the ground with her head in her hands, Weiss was yelling at her with her hands on her hips, and Blake was standing next to her with her hands on her arms. Ruby wished their hands were holding weapons. Fighting was so much easier to deal with than arguing.

"Aren't you going to say anything?" Weiss continued to seethe at Ruby's sister, voice hissing like a snake. "You may as well have embarrassed all of us with your antics today and you don't even have the confidence to say a word to us in apology?"

"Sorry, I pissed you off princess," Yang groaned. "But can you give me five hours to get over this headache? In case you forgot, I literally got my head pecked in."

"You deserved that!" Weiss shouted back. "If it wasn't Elrora, I'm certain Blake and I would have done much the same!" Ruby wouldn't have hurt her sister, ever. It looked like Weiss knew that. She was her partner… "We were just told to leave the classroom because of you. Do you have any idea how humiliating that is!?"

"You insulted her and Link with what you did," Blake spoke up now. While Weiss was all bark, Blake had all of the bite. Ruby pulled on her cloak a little harder. She hoped it didn't rip. "I'm not even going to feign ignorance with what you did at the match. That was by far the most underhanded and deceitful thing I have ever seen you do. Yang… I thought you were different." She snarled the words.

"And I thought I'd have a Motrin or somethin' here… ugh," Yang groaned as she spoke the words. Weiss and Blake weren't getting to her. Ruby knew they wouldn't. No one ever could when Yang was like this, beat up or hyped up.

"You're going to be dealing with that migraine until you give a good reason why you did that!" Weiss shouted again. "You didn't just make yourself look bad, you made all of us look bad! All of us! That includes your sister." It did?

"She's right Yang," Blake continued. "You looked like a fool for challenging Elrora without talking to us, we look like idiots for not realizing it, and Ruby looks irresponsible for not stopping it." Oh… that was her job, wasn't it? She was the leader.

"Lay off her…" Yang mumbled, head massaged between her hands. "Just… give me a few hours and we… can… agh." This wasn't going anywhere.

"This will continue until you properly defend yourself, Xiao Long!" Weiss continued her yelling. "I have yet to see you do anything but put your fingers in your ears and drown us out like a toddler!"

This was getting out of control. This was really bad. Ruby bit her lips as she felt the fairy on her head shift around. Why wasn't she speaking up? Tatl… she usually was loud.

"Tatl?" Ruby asked in a small voice, hoping the fairy could hear her over her teammates arguing. She didn't want to be heard right now, at least by them. The fairy on her cloak gave a quick ring. Weiss's yelling didn't falter. "Why aren't you yelling at Yang? You seemed… pretty mad earlier."

"Cause I'm sure anything I have to say is gonna come out sooner or later." Ruby didn't know what that meant. "I mean really, I can get anyone to listen to me, but I think your stone-thick sister is getting a lot worse from those two." That was true.

"Okay," Ruby spoke simply. She didn't want to talk too much, not right now.

It was easy to talk to someone when they were quiet, to get them to talk more. That was the best part of being a leader. She could encourage people to talk. But arguing? She didn't know what to do. It was talking with yelling, and asking people to talk only made the yelling louder. She'd seen it happen a lot with Yang before, especially with her dad.

If they were yelling, Ruby had to be quiet. If she tried talking, they yelled louder until she left. So quiet was good right now. Quiet was what allowed her to hear a ring in the room.

Ruby looked up from the hood of her look, trying to see what it was. Tatl was still on her head, so it wasn't her. The rest of her team was on the ground, Weiss and Blake continuing to berate Yang. But then Ruby saw exactly what she thought she would.

Tael was hovering by the door. How did he get in?

He didn't say anything, didn't make a loud noise at all. That was what he usually did. Instead he flew up towards Ruby, his lavender light brimming off of his wings. The rest of the girls didn't notice, not that it surprised Ruby. They were… focused on something else. When he was close enough, hovering just in front of Ruby, he spoke.

"Hey Ruby. Hi sis," he spoke quieter than usual. Ruby knew why. It was obvious. "Um… so it was bad?"

"Honestly Tael, if I wasn't waiting here, I'd be beating up the blonde until she was a pulp on the ground." Ruby gripped her robe harder. No one was in Yang's corner, were they? Only her, she was the only one who always stood up for her sis. The opposite was true, too. "But really, I'm pretty sure that if she's ignoring the rest of her friends, I'm not gonna be able to insult her in a way that would matter."

"Don't make Yang mad," Ruby whispered, not looking up to Tatl or Tael. "She already feels bad enough. She really does."

"She feels pain, no kidding," Tatl spoke up. Ruby wondered if she was still quiet because Weiss was still yelling. Probably. "But she ain't gonna change unless she actually feels bad. Pretty sure Elrora said it best, pain is her gain."

That was true… But that didn't mean she liked it. Ruby had seen her sister do a lot of things, but she'd never hurt herself on purpose, ever. Not even when dad had accused her of the same thing. Yang wasn't like that. She got hurt trying to help Ruby. Just like dad. Just like mom…

"But um… I-I came in cause I could hear the yelling outside." Ruby wasn't surprised by that. She was more surprised Jaune or one of the professors hadn't come by yet. "But S… she's waiting outside, to come in." She?

"Oh goody," Tatl spoke up. Ruby couldn't tell if she was really excited or talking like she was in the locker room, sarcastic like. Weiss's screaming didn't help. Neither did Blake cold words. "Guess someone has to open the door for her. Wonder who's that going to be?"

Ruby didn't make a show about getting off of her bed to do just that. She jumped from the swaying bed to the floor with hardly a sound. She'd gotten good at sneaking out back home. Now it was just sneaking around her team. It was really easy, seeing as Yang wasn't even looking and Blake and Weiss were focused on her, backs turns. Tatl and Tael made not a sound.

She reached the door with her hood still pulled up. It didn't seem right to take it down yet. It didn't matter. Ruby gripped the door to the room, cracking it as quietly as she could. She didn't need Weiss screaming at her, too. Ruby knew it had to be Link outside the door, probably as Impa or Elrora. It had to be one of them after what Yang did.

She instead saw a small girl clothed in green. She was wearing a green dress with green hair and long ears.

And she was smiling.

"Hello," she spoke up to her, small arm waving politely, ignoring the yelling of Weiss inside. "May I come in? I think we need to talk." Ruby almost fell backwards when she moved away from the door, letting the smaller girl in. She bit her tongue to keep from talking, at least for now. She didn't want to leave the door open for too long. Screaming was easier to hear when nothing was in the way. "Thank you."

"Ruby?" Said team leader whipped her head towards her team at her name. Weiss and Blake were looking at her, Yang still having her head in her hands. Weiss' fury was far from gone, but at least she wasn't yelling. "Are you going somewhere? Or is someone at-" her voice fell off. Ruby could guess why.

The young girl of green walked in front of Ruby, barely making it to Ruby's stomach in height. She felt Tatl jump off her head and fly about the girl, Tael making a ring as he followed suit. Ruby watched as she strode into the room purposefully, easily. She seemed… happy. Why?

Ruby's mind was on how small the girl was, so small. She looked like she should still have been in grade school, preparing to start at Signal, let alone walking around Beacon. Her clothes were double layered shades of green, lighter atop of dark colors. And it was a dress. A dress like Link's tunic…

She had ears like Link too, just as long and pointed. Tatl and Tael flew about her like Link, ringing like Christmas bells. And her eyes were blue like Link… so much like Link… Wasn't hard to figure out she was a friend of Link's.

"U-Um," Ruby spoke for what felt like the first time in hours. "Who are you?" It felt stupid to ask, but she had to. She slowly pushed the hood off of her head, letting her see the girl looking back at her, smiling. She seemed really happy.

"My name is Saria," the girl spoke easily, matched by the fairies that continued to halo about her head. "And I'm here to speak with the four of you." Her arms swung with the words, pivoting on her heel. Ruby looked at her team.

They looked horrified, terrified actually. Blake's lips were trembling, Weiss looked pale as her hair, and Yang… she looked like she was really sick. Ruby had no idea why. Yeah, she was surprised, sure, but wasn't this a good thing? Link was her and here! This was so much better than just arguing at one another.

"Um, Saria?" Weiss spoke up, her voice just managing to sound more alive than she looked. "I… apologize, but we weren't expecting anyone. E-Especially not you."

"Not me or not Link?" Ruby wasn't sure what to say. She just kept staring at the girl. Did Weiss know her? No way, Ruby had met all of Link's friends even earlier than everyone else. Besides, when was Link alone with Weiss yet? "But please wait a moment, I need to make sure Yang is okay."

"Huh?" Ruby's sister asked, eyes widening even as she rubbed her temples. "Uh, no, I'm good. Just need, agh, a few… hours." But Saria was already walking towards her. Ruby watched with her hands to her chests, balled into fists. She was going to see something cool, she knew it!

"I do not have hours and neither do you," Saria continued to speak. She sounded like Ozpin, if he were half his height, a different gender, a few decades younger. Ruby giggled at the idea. She'd have to tell Weiss later because she kept giving Ruby a mortified look. Why? The screaming was done… hopefully.

"Seriously, I'm-" Yang's voice cut off as Saria put her hands on Yang's hair. That was… different, but Ruby trusted Saria, well Link. She knew he wouldn't do anything to hurt them… without really good reason. Tatl and Tael didn't seem to make a big deal about it either.

"Please hold still," Saria spoke again. Her voice was softer now, like she was whispering. "I am going to help you." Her eyes shut as she leaned towards Yang. Ruby's sister almost backed away, but stopped when their foreheads met. Ruby was pretty sure the pain was what kept Yang from jumping up still.

But then Yang's eyes slowly closed. That was probably because of the pain. She just sat there with her head against Saria's not doing much. Her hands slowly fell from her head, letting the smaller girl's slowly drift to Yang's temples. That was weird, but it wasn't bad.

Then Yang's hair began to glow. And Tthen Saria's began to glow too.

Ruby's lips made an 'O' at the display. She wasn't shocked, not really. She'd seen Yang's hair glow enough that she was used to it. Saria was just new, but it wasn't shocking. But it was awesome to watch! Saria's hair looked like Ozpin's tower with how bright it was, and it was even brighter with Yang and Tatl and Tael. It was like it was Christmas, no wait, it was like that movie, the Nightmare Before Christmas. Something horrible happened then something amazing!

Yang was breathing softly as Saria slowly moved her fingers over her temples, keeping her calm and not saying a word. Tatl and Tael were ringing lightly, but they always did that. Ruby had never seen Link or any of his friends do this before. She'd have to ask how, if he could tell. It was awesome!

Then Saria leaned back, blinking her eyes as her hair's glow began to dim. It was kinda disappointing, but it was still cool to watch. Yang was next, but Ruby had seen the blonde glow fade a lot before, usually after some tree had been chopped down with the flat of her hand, or a section of the forest. She blinked her eyes open, moving her lips like she was wiping away some drool.

"Wow," Yang whispered, raising her hands to her head again. Saria dropped hers to allow her to do so. Yang grabbed her head and bent it. She moved it like she was trying to crack her neck. Nothing new there. But she wasn't grabbing it in pain or… anything. Wow! "I feel great, like I just got up from a good nap. It's sweet."

"I'm glad," Saria returned as she rose to her feet off of her knees. She was still barely taller than Yang on her butt. "It would have been difficult to talk to you if you could not hear me." Yang's smile fell. Well, she was about to be lectured. Not even Ruby liked that.

Ruby watched as Saria twisted on the ball of her foot, twirling her emerald dress. She stopped when she looked up at Weiss. She flinched away from the smaller girl. That got Ruby to blink. What was wrong with Saria, she seemed pretty amazing so far!

"Weiss," Saria spoke. Weiss almost jumped. Now Ruby was really confused. Weiss was so excited to see Elrora, and even more than that with Mikau. That didn't even include how she was getting lessons from Impa… eventually.

Why was Saria scary all of the sudden?

"You are wise member of your team. You learn as you watch and plan as you think. Tell me, who do you think I am?"

"You're…" Weiss started, but stopped herself. She looked at Ruby. Said girl twisted her head. Something was really wrong now. She could tell. Did it involve her? Well, she had to fix that.

"What's wrong?" Ruby asked now. If it was something she could fix, she had to fix it. "She's Link's friend, right? Who else would it be?"

"Right, of course," Blake spoke up now. Ruby beamed to her teammate. Of course she was right. "That's who Saria is, Link's friend. And you are also Link, too." Blake knelt down to Saria's height, looking at the girl that turned to her. The former looked deathly serious, especially with her golden eyes. Saria was just smiling.

"Is that who I am?" Saria asked back. That only confused Ruby even more. She but a hand to her chin to show it. "I am Link, in that he is here, but I am just Link's friend? Is that what you see when you look at me?"

Ruby started to get a cold feeling on her back. She rubbed her cloak to warm the spot. It was weird considering how warm she had been before. What was with those questions those? It was really creepy how Saria asked that, especially with the smile. Something was going on and Ruby didn't know what.

"You're more than his friend," Yang started to speak up. That was good. But she sounded like she did before the fight. That was bad. "You're a part of his family, aren't you?" Oh, she was?

"You are very close, Yang," Saria spoke in return. The cheer in her voice was starting to sound… wrong. Ruby couldn't put a word on it. It was like she was smiling when she should be screaming. But why would she be doing either?

"Okay, seriously, what's going on?" Ruby asked with her hands to her hips. Blake and Weiss looked at her, but both of them looked like they were chokingchocking on something. "Something fishy has been going on since the fight and I want to know what. Don't make me yell it. I might not yell a lot, but when I do-"

"Saria's Link's daughter." What?

Ruby felt her words wither and die in her throat. Her hands jerked off of her hips, like they couldn't hold onto them, or anything. She just stared at Weiss, staring at her partner like she'd been struck. It felt like it… and Weiss looked like it, too.

"Saria," Weiss started, looking at the girl who was looking back at her. She wasn't smiling anymore. "Saria is Link's daughter. We found out because of a slip of his tongue a few nights ago that he had one. Then we found out that he's out here looking for his friend… because he doesn't have a daughter to go back to."

Ruby couldn't say anything. It wasn't that she didn't want to; that was wrong. She desperately wanted to. She wanted to scream what Weiss was talking about, ask what she meant, demand an answer. But nothing was working. Her throat felt caught.

She looked at Yang, waiting for her sister to act like she always did, jumping to the rescue. But she just kept sitting there. Did… did she know? Was it true?

"I-Is it?" Her voice managed to squeak out the words, but they felt as weak as her legs were right now.

Saria just kept looking at her without saying a thing. She just kept looking up at Ruby because she was a child and she was dead because Link was there, too. But if she was dead and she was Link's daughter than that mean the failed her and she did die and it was so much worse than Ruby could imagine and she didn't like it, she didn't like it and she wanted it to stop.

"That's not true!" Blake, of all people, shouted. Ruby stared at her, still unable to do more than make wet weak words. But Blake… she looked ready to roar. "Saria is not Link's daughter. She's the opposite! She raised him!"

H-Huh?!

"Blake," Yang spoke now. Ruby didn't know what to do when her sis sounded like that. She just didn't. "You think I'm gonna buy that twig-weak excuse? You think she's anyone else?"

"It's true, though," Saria, finally, spoke. Ruby didn't even remember she could. "I raised Link from the moment we found him in the Kokiri Forest. I kept him safe until he left for his own journey."

"Liar!" Yang screamed.

A part of Ruby wished her head still hurt. Then she wouldn't be screaming.

"You wanna screw with my head, go ahead, but if you're gonna stand there and act like a manipulative little stain on the earth, then I'm gonna risk jail time by putting you six-feet under! 'Sides, how in the Grimm would Blake even know that!"

"Because we met before," Saria spoke back, cheerfully. Ruby wished she was screaming now. It would have been easier. "We met when Link first hurt that girl Garnet, after she threatened to take Tatl from him. We spoke at length before she took to the skies with Elrora. Did she not tell you of me?"

Saria skipped over to Blake, looking at her teammate with wide eyes and a cold smile.

"I thought I gave permission."

Ruby turned her eyes to Blake. All the fury her teammate had was gone. She was hiding her eyes again, looking like she was ready to jump for the door. But it was shut. It was shut tight and Ruby was standing too close to it to let her leave. She'd have to open the windows first, too.

Saria… planned this?

"Is that true, Blake?" Weiss spoke now. She was hissing. Ruby didn't know if that was better than screaming. There was so much she still didn't know! "You knew about Saria? You knew about her… and you didn't tell us?"

"Is that what matters right now? Me keeping a secret about a girl I met by accident?" Blake asked as if she were trying to be sharp. Ruby thought of Penny. "You were the one who didn't want to tell Link we found out about his family. How do you think he feels about that?" Why weren't they asking Link? H-He was right there… just underneath Saria.

She wasn't smiling.

"And that matters?" Weiss asked back, standing her ground with a glare. "Why aren't we still going off on Yang for bringing up Link's dead kid during that fight!?"

Ruby forgot how to breathe.

Her body felt cold, frozen even. She didn't like it. She didn't like anything about this. She looked at Yang, and Yang was looking at her. Was she crying? Was Yang crying? It was too blurry to tell. It was too hard to think.

"W-What…" Ruby didn't know what to say or how to say it.

"You are all children," Saria spoke again. Ruby didn't know if she could look at her. She wasn't a kid, she couldn't be. She was too mean. "You keep secrets that are not meant to be held, but use the ones that you were entrusted to poorly."

"This isn't… i-it isn't usually like this," Blake was speaking. Ruby didn't look at her. She didn't know where to look. The ground was nice though. She sat on it. It made it easier to hide herself.

"I know," Saria kept talking. Ruby wanted Tatl or Tael to talk. Tael was shy and nice, Tatl at least didn't mean it. Saria… she sounded like the bullies as Signal. She didn't like it. "I know you've all been walking over twigs, taking careful steps and long measures to not disturb the peace you have. It would be endearing if it weren't so fragile."

"What do you know?" Weiss was hissing again. Ruby didn't care. "You… You just show up in Beacon because of some fluke, making it to a professorship with even more luck, then you have the gaul to start this talk with us!?"

Ruby didn't like this anymore. She wanted to have fun with her friends. This wasn't fun at all.

"And what's more, every time we talk to you this happens! If it's not because you're so dense you cannot comprehend how wrong it is to kill then it's because you insult us for what made us who we are! Maybe I was wrong about Yang, maybe she should have reminded you of your kid!"

This was bad. This was really bad. Her knees were getting damp, so were her cheeks. Ruby's throat was hurting.

"Are you done?" Saria asked. "Are you done blaming me for the inevitable?" Ruby sniffled to clear her throat. It wasn't working. Then she felt something wrap around her side.

She stiffened as she twisted, seeing Yang there by her.

Ruby didn't hesitate a moment later to fall against her sister. Yang held her close. Yang was nice like that.

"I am responsible for much of the sorrow you have now. But are you ignorant enough to think that I am the only person in all of existence that could cause this?" Saria was still talking, but Ruby wasn't sure she was listening. She just focused on Yang rubbing her back, slow circles. It felt nice.

"You're not," Blake answered. "But you are the only one who's come here to break something."

"I knew you were a wise one, Blake." Saria shouldn't sound happy when she said that. "I'm hoping you are wise enough to know that I do not wish to break what you have. Hardly that. No tree of the forest grows when it is broken. That is a fallacy." What did that mean?

"Oh, great, so now we're supposed to take comfort in the idea that you're hurting us just enough to anger us? Perhaps your brute of a land doesn't know it, but that's called sadism." Ruby didn't know enough to say if Weiss was right or wrong. She didn't know enough about this.

"Close," Saria answered. "The correct word is necessary."

The room was quiet then. Ruby preferred it. It felt better when it was quiet, especially after people were yelling. It meant they were either going to start to talking or stop seeing one another. She hoped it was the former, because that meant things would get better. She didn't move away from Yang.

"You have a wonderful team about you. You are all strong in ways I would never think of the young to be capable of." That sounded nice. "You can run fast as the wind, disappear into smoke, command the runic circles, and even turn the worst of pain into the greatest of strength. Those are things that I cannot help but be impressed by. But you are not a team. You are individuals thrown into a group and asked to trust one another with your lives. That never works."

Well… it wasn't nice, but at least Saria wasn't blaming them anymore. Weiss and Blake weren't screaming. And Ruby could feel her throat relaxing. That was a good thing.

"Instead you hide information your team could benefit to hear." That… was probably for Blake. She knew about Saria. "You use the secrets you've discovered to hurt others." Ruby felt Yang stiffen against her. She held her sister now. "You lay blame at the uncontrollable over your own actions." Weiss? Maybe. She wasn't saying anything. "Or you duck your head and pretend the world away when you do not know what is happening."

That was meant for her. That was for Ruby.

"If… if it seems as if I am being overly harsh to you. I am sorry." Actually, she did sound sorry. Ruby sniffled once more as she slowly moved her head up. She felt Yang loosen her grip.

Saria was standing in the center of the room still, hands behind her back and both of Link's fairies resting on her head. They looked sad, too, with their wings all bent and not making a single ring. Blake was sitting on her bed, almost curled up into it. Weiss was next to her, but she was standing. They weren't looking at anyone.

"I have been trying to help others, but your team is different. Cardin needs to grow in maturity. Penny needs to learn to think for herself. Jaune's team needs a lot of confidence." Ruby wanted to giggle at the comment, but she couldn't. She still didn't feel great. "But you're team, the designation of RWBY… none of you have any trust."

"That's not true," Ruby spoke up. That was being generous. She whispered the words. But it was enough for Saria to hear her. The girl looked at her with blue eyes, eyes that looked really sad, too. Maybe she did feel bad. It didn't mean Ruby felt better.

"It is Ruby. You know it is." She accused. "It isn't your fault, not completely. Elrora was right when she said you need to accept your past to find peace. But you need to accept each other to gain trust."

Her arms were out now, looking at them all. What did she want?

"I don't like giving answers. You don't learn lessons if you are given the answer." What did that mean? "But… I don't want to see anything happen to any of you. You all helped Link when he came here. You all did. Even… even if right now you can't say it, you're his friends."

"I-I am. We are," Ruby's voice still felt weak. She felt Yang hold her closer. Saria was smiling at her again.

"Then please," Saria continued. "Take what I have said and do more than think with it. Act, discuss, learn from it. Find the answer I am so desperately trying to lead you, too. Once you find it, I know you will be happier. You all will be. I promise."

"That's a hard promise to keep," Yang growled from next to Ruby. "Pretty sure you know best that nothing lasts forever." Ruby didn't like where this was going.

"No," Saria agreed. "But I do know that you could be happier than you are now. And I do not mean in this small moment. This will be only a sore bruise in a week's time. But if you can speak to one another without fear of the other pulling away… that is trust that cannot be said in words."

Ruby watched, engrossed, as Saria placed her hand over her face. She understood, Ruby really did.

"I'm sorry, again." She kept going. "I'll say it as many times as I must tomorrow, but that is all I will say today. There is much for all of us to do and I hope to see you better later."

Then she left.

Ruby wished she could have left in some way that would have seemed amazing, but she didn't. She just opened the door and walked outside without another word. Tatl and Tael were on her head. And then she was gone. A shut of the door sealed it. It sealed her departure as sure as it had left her team in the room alone.

It was really quiet. It was really quiet especially when Ruby remembered all the screaming that was happening earlier. Now it sounded like they should have been asleep. No one was writing, or reading, or doing anything. She was just thinking. Saria wanted her to do that. But… what did she need to think about?

Ruby didn't know what to think. What to do. Say. Anything. She was the team leader and she couldn't do anything. She really did just wait for things to pass, just like she did back home when arguments happened. Fights were easy to win, homework was simple to finish, but arguing… Ruby didn't know what to do. And because she didn't know she… failed.

"I'm a failure."

It felt like a confession.

"Rubes, no-" Yang started to speak, but Ruby didn't want to stop. She had to say everything.

"I'm the leader and I failed you guys. I-I didn't stop Yang from fighting or Weiss from screaming or help Blake talk." She pushed her head deeper into her knees. She didn't want to look at anything. "I just hid myself away and pretended it wasn't happening. I made it all go away until I knew it would stop because it always stops. It stops whenever Yang and dad yell at one another and then everything's better. It's supposed to be b-better when people starting talking so I didn't do anything a-a-and now it's so mmm-much worse and it's my fault it's my f-f-fault i-itt-t-t-"

Ruby couldn't keep speaking through the tears that pushed past her eyes. It was impossible when her throat made her sob. She was shaking in her sister's grip, the same embrace that was holding her even tighter than before now. She curled into it, desperate to stop shaking, to stop feeling. She hated it. She hated not knowing what to do. She hated not having an answer. She hated one thing more than anything else.

Ruby hated that she wasn't good enough.

"I'm-I'm-I'm-I'm-I'm-I'm-" she kept trying to speak, but every time the word came out, a hiccup of a sob kept anything more in. She couldn't say anything and she so desperately wanted to. Why couldn't she be good enough? Why wasn't she ever good enough? She wasn't strong enough or fast enough or smart enough or any-

Something grabbed her from behind. Something heavy settled over her and it felt like a blanket. It made Ruby suck in a large breath, shaking as much as her body was against Yang. Then it started moving, like it was trying to pull her close.

"It's okay Ruby," Blake spoke. Blake, the faunus that Ruby realized was now holding her from behind like a precious doll. "You're not a failure. You are far from a failure in any regard. You are a better leader than any one of us could have been." But it didn't matter.

"I-It isn't enough!" Ruby felt herself screaming. It was the first time she yelled all day. It felt painful, like it really hurt. It really did hurt. But at least there were words. "I-It doesn't matter if it's not enough! I'm not good enough! I-I-I-I-Ieeeegh." Her voice drowned itself as Blake and Yang continued to smother her.

"You are not a failure, Ruby." Weiss… Weiss said that? Ruby lifted her head to see her partner staring at her. There were black marks under her eyes and they were getting longer. "I know failure when I see it Ruby Rose. I can say with certainty… absolute certainty that you are not a failure."

She was leaning towards Ruby, putting her hands on her cheeks. Ruby felt them wipe away at her tears, holding her head still. Weiss looked really sad, but Ruby sounded worse. Weiss kept talking.

"It was unfair of Link or Saria to place any blame on you," she kept talking. "Blake kept a secret, Yang made a plan, I lashed out, but you? You really didn't do anything, because there was nothing you could do. You or anyone else."

She placed her forehead against Ruby's, leaning into the smaller girl. It was Blake and Yang that kept her from falling over.

"You're are not a failure Ruby. I-I know failure. You are not a failure." Ruby leaned into Weiss's touch. She kept talking, kept speaking of how right Ruby was even when the younger girl knew she wasn't. She kept telling her she was okay when she knew she wasn't. But Ruby didn't want her to stop.

She didn't want any of them to stop. She didn't want Yang to let go of her, she didn't want Weiss to stop talking to her, she didn't want Blake to leave her, she wanted to stay where she was. She felt… better. Ruby felt her tears stop falling, her throat relax, and the wrenching sobs turn into slow breaths. She was cooling down, she knew, just like dad and Yang would call it.

It was good… letting it all out. It felt a lot better than before. Weiss slowly stopped speaking, leaning back but without taking her hands off of Ruby. Blake rubbed her head against Ruby's neck, stopped only when Yang put her hand on Ruby's head. She didn't stop her sister. They both needed this. They all needed this.

She was the leader and she knew why Saria did what she did. She knew why they had to break, at least Ruby was pretty sure she did. Otherwise it wouldn't have felt as good as it did now. Yin and Yang, like dad would call it. He called it that whenever he said Yang had to find her Yin. The thought made her giggle, and the giggle killed what little tension was left in the room.

It was good.

"So… what now?" Yang asked as she rubbed Ruby's hair. She didn't want her to let go. It felt too nice.

"We could get something to eat," Blake spoke up from behind her. It felt weird having someone talking like that, but Ruby didn't mind. They were talking. That was what mattered. "It is almost time for dinner."

"We have worked up an appetite, haven't we?" Weiss let out a chuckle as she spoke. It sounded amazing. It sounded perfect. "I would prefer cleaning myself up first. Can't walk out appearing as if we had a substantial argument."

"Can we just talk?" Ruby asked. She really wanted that. "I think we should talk first. Then we can eat." It wasn't an order, because those were bad. But she was the leader and this felt right, talking.

"Course we can sis," Yang spoke encouragingly, her arm shaking Ruby like she hadn't just cried her eyes out. "You… wanna talk about Saria or something else."

Else, the else was more important right now. Saira did say this would be a bruise in a week, and that was okay. There were more important things to talk about. There were her own secrets she needed her team to know.

"Actually, since I screwed up first, I think I should go first," Yang continued speaking. She didn't take her hands off of Blake's head. "That okay with you guys?"

"It's a fair beginning to show you're sorry," Weiss spoke up. It didn't have any of the usual metal Ruby usually heard in her partner. "So… I'm willing to listen to what you have to say."

"I am, too," Blake spoke up next. "But only if I go next."

"We'll all get at turn to talk, I-I'll make sure of i-it." Ruby's voice was still shaking a little as she spoke. Throat still wet with unshed tears. She took in a deep breath to force them down. "But… Yang can go first." She felt her sister hug her from her side, the reassuring stiffness Ruby had felt a million times before. She savored it now.

"Where to start… I guess it's about what happened after the whole train incident. I met someone back on Beacon, same woman who helped me fight that ice-cream girl…"

Link laid down on his bed, eyes to the ceiling and out of energy.

It had not been a good day.

"Well that was its own little box of fun," Tatl spoke up from beside him. He didn't turn to look at her. "Who'd a thunk that those girls would be so much trouble? Oh yeah, me!" Link wished, almost desperately, he could take some comfort in his friend's familiar attitude. He couldn't.

"Sis, now's not a good time for that," Tael spoke Link's thoughts. The darker fairy usual did. "They were really hurt, too…"

"Oh? They were? Maybe they should have licked their wounds before biting Link then!" Her sarcasm quickly turned to ire. "I mean seriously, who in the name of Time brings up your daughter like that!?"

Link let out a long sight at the question. He didn't want to talk or even think of the topic. Tatl knew that as soon as she heard him.

"Still, if anything good came out of this, kinda proved those 'close-knit' kids were about as tight as leaves on the ground, am I right?" She rang at the words. Link heard it even as he stared up at the ceiling. She was right. "Blake couldn't talk straight about Saria and Ruby had about as much control over her team as Talon did his Cuccoos. They're gonna need a lot more work than even the Red Giant if they're gonna shape up." Red Giant? Ah, she meant Cardin Winchester.

"They are really young though," Tael took over now. "I-I mean, Link was young too, you were at least, b-but they're not fighting yet, right? They have time to grow. Isn't that… that's important." Link was glad to hear him speak a statement, not a question.

"Yeah, and Weiss did remind me of the Gorman brothers, stuck up for no reason other than pride." Link heard her give a ring with the words. Tael gave his own low one in return. "Still… she did have a point at the end there."

Link knew exactly what she was talking about. It was one of the many thoughts plaguing him currently. Next to the wonder of Ozpin's plan, just above the connections Team CRDL would make with the Military trained golem, but far below that of his main goal. It was still a thought he did not discard.

"You mean… how Link makes them… uncomfortable." Link almost chuckled at the word. Almost. He did a lot more than that, or at least had caused a lot more than that.

You didn't cry when you were uncomfortable. You cried when you're peace was shattered.

"It's not something you ever really enjoy doing." Tatl didn't ask Link about how he felt anymore. She knew. Time had the effect between companions. "But, if the Gerudo taught you any lessons, it's something you have to nail down quickly. Nothing will kill a team faster than fake trust."

"It wasn't fake, was it?" Tael's down shifted quickly from assured to questioning. "They… they seemed to really trust one another. A-And Ruby and Yang are sisters! Doesn't that mean they trust each other?"

"Tael, you and me are a special case," Tatl began to answer. "Most siblings keep secrets for the fun of it. Heck, we don't even know if the rest of that team know one of those girls is a Hylian in hiding. Those are the kind of things that'll kill you."

"I-It would?" Tael was thinking literally. Link enjoyed the irony, given the fairy's penchant to speak at length regarding tales and stories. "How?"

"'Kay, like, remember how Super Buzz was talking about those White Fang creeps? What if the cat keeping her lips shut keeps their team from making up a solid plan against them? You know how much info a Shadow could get like that? More than some Gerudo wearing fake ears." A simple plan, but a viable one. It was all hypothetical though, even the extent of knowledge. "That's not to mention that she didn't say a word about Saria to the rest of her team. Heck, I'm willin' to be she hasn't told anything to the Ice Queen about Impa yet."

That was, unfortunately, a bet Link would have to agree with. It was a critical piece of intel that any true Shadow would not withhold. Her failure to tell the Mage, to tell even her leader, was a dire mistake on her part.

A long sigh left Link's lips. He threaded his fingers through the locks in the back of his hair, resting his head against his palms. Legs outstretched and crossed, bed beneath his body, Link's eyes slid shut as his thoughts continued.

Cardin's team would likely gain much from speaking with Penny. It may just be humility without the mockery, but it was more than barbs being thrown at them without spoken reason. It would at the very least be the first hand they needed to improve. Much the same could be said for Penny. Cardin's team may not have been the perfect candidate for her to expand her imagination, but you did start a ladder withtter o the lowest rung. Link would not say that to either of them.

Team SSSN, the four who appeared to not have any armor or coordination between them, had done an amazing job in challenging Elrora. Given only a little more information on her and they likely would have won. A precaution there, a tactic here, and they would have been swift. It was a sobering thought, especially against the usual ease Link had won his fights up until now.

The rest of the individuals in class seemed to be doing well. Impa watched them all with intent. It was because of that they she knew their intent. Just as much as she watched them fight, they observed her judge. It made one very small thing clear. She was loathed. They were loathed.

It was not hard for Link to see why. He was knew here, an Unknown of the highest rank. Only his name and the surface of his abilities were understood and it was enough to have the leaders of the land want him. Ozpin was among them, but he appeared the lesser of the evils, for now. He was an Unknown as well. Unknowns everywhere, at every twist and turn.

The unknown had the advantage, but it also held the hatred.

Link turned over in his bed, facing the wall as he shut his eyes. It had been a long day, too long a day. There was still much to do tomorrow. The Gale Tree atop Ozpin's Tower had to be checked, the Pegasus Tree within the Emerald Forest would likely need grooming. A spot still had to be picked for the Ember Tree, if one at all. That was not to mention what would occur with the teams he had assisted. So much to do and even more to worry about.

"Conking out, Link?" Tatl asked from behind him. Link waved a hand in the air for confirmation. He heard the fairy ring in response. "Yeah, been a long day for all of us. Can't argue against the RR."

"But there is so much I have to tell you about!" Tael almost whined. "Dr. Oobleck and I had a great talk, a-about the Gerudo Tales a-and the Zora Mythos and the Festival of Time and so much else." Link smiled, though none could see it. It was good to see Tael telling stories to an eager audience. The fairy needed that.

"We'll talk about it tomorrow bro," Tatl responded. "We're gonna have plenty of time, trust me." Link heard the low ring of response from Tael. It made the next few words obvious.

"Okay," came the subdued reply. "But it is important, I promise." Link had no doubt it was.

With a gentle sigh to bury his regrets, Link lulled himself to sleep.

Things were not going according to plan. Adam hated that.

Their group was too small to allow multiple deviations to large plans. Too many changes too quickly discouraged fighters, made confidence drop, and usually resulted in miscommunication. Those were the kind of things they steered away from.

But apparently that wasn't the case recently. Recent needed great emphasis. Their attacks were called off with the postponing of the festival, the fool criminal was broken out of a high-security unit by his men, and to top it off, some grand new player had stumbled into Beacon. Great enough that even the Red Witch had held off on speaking to him. She knew that wasn't wise.

But Adam was remiss to agree with her decision, the decision to wait and gather intel. He hated changes to grand plans, but he loathed mistakes even more. Learning about this new guest, then student, then show-toy, then even instructor at Beacon had proved enlightening. If not, it was something worth a script for a play. But regardless of what it was, it angered Adam to no end.

A faunus from a foreign nation, a man that should by rights understand the plight of the White Fang, and he was not just another dog for the Beacon. But more than that? He had these "memories" of his friends. He was ten warriors in one, the example of the greatness the faunus could be, and all he did with it was teach children how to fight and make a show of himself.

Disgraceful didn't do the situation justice. Adam snarled even with the thought of all the wasted potential, of all that could be done with this foreign faunus. Link was his name, a simple name for a man that was anything but simple. If only he had stumbled upon them before the children of Beacon. Then they would have had the soldier to show the true strength of the White Fang!.

Instead, now they had an enemy. A "potential" enemy.

Adam wanted to speak to this faunus, near desperately. He was no doubt lied to and brainwashed by the fools at Beacon and clowns in the Military. Told thing that simply were not true. Now he fought for what he believed was right, but not knowing he was actually damning his own species. Adam knew he could show him the truth.

It would take few words, a short conversation, to pique his curiosity. Point out a lie the staff of Beacon had weaved for him, tear down the posters the Military had put up for him; that was all it would take. A pique in curiosity was the first step to leading someone to the truth.

Adam could then show him the suffering of the faunus, the prejudice against them. He could show how his people were treated on the streets of Vale, make it clear it was the typical approach across all the four kingdoms. And, if Link were the "knight" he continued to call himself, he would see the horror of his ways.

Then Adam would have a new warrior for the White Fang. He would have a new ally.

Instead, all he had were hypotheses for what could be. Nothing that was certain.

He played with the hilt of his blade, letting the steel slide in and out of the sheet. The sound of the gliding metal did his mind ease, kept him from dreaming of the impossibilities. Dreams were important, but reality was what mattered. He had to keep his thoughts in this world, not of the one he was trying to make. Adam was the leader of the White Fang, the man who had turned their organization of good cheer and mockery to one of power and purpose. His dream was being formed, but he still had work to do.

"Any word from the contact?" Adam twisted his head towards his lieutenant. A bulky faunus with loyalty that ran deep. Adam shook his head. "Then why don't we start taking things into our own hands? We have the men, we have the strength. We can do something other than waiting for the Red Witch." Yes, her, her and all of her plans. She was the reason Adam was in this loathsome position.

"It's too risky," Adam replied, hating his own words. Even with a mask, the scowl was clear. "A single mistake could jeopardize all of our plans. Too much has been done over too long a time. A single mistake… and everything we've done would be for nothing."

"I'm not saying to do something drastic," his man urged. "Something small, but clear. A sign that we aren't waiting, that we are still here. If the humans stop thinking about us, the Grimm will start looking for us." Yes, the troubling truth.

"Do you have something in mind?" Adam questioned back, shoving his blade all the back in his sheath. "Otherwise, I'd ask you not waste my time." He would not admit his time, at the moment, could be wasted.

"I do, actually." Adam gave his full attention to the lieutenant. "Many of the vendors from the festival are setting up in Vale, trying to stay afloat until the Festival is up again."

"We aren't attacking them." Adam shot down instantly. "If they get spooked, too many people may decide to forgo the festival. If fewer people attend, the plan is meaningless." Oddly, his lieutenant nodded at the words.

"I know, but the point is they didn't have time to set up for this," he continued. "They are getting supplies sporadically, taking what they can without the risk of going home. Every day that goes by someone debates about leaving before the festival." Adam knew the truth of the words. Too many of the vendors were unnative to Vale, visiting from foreign kingdoms. They had more to gain at home, so long as the festival continued to be postponed.

"Are you suggesting we help them?" Adam asked. "Go back to those charitable roots that nearly withered and died? Fear is what works here. Fear of us leads to attraction for the Grimm."

"But," his man continued. "What if we replaced their men with our own?"

It was unseen, but Adam raised a brow. This plan was interesting.

"Many of the stall owners are wanting to go home, so what if we were able to organize a method to allow it? They go home, our men take over the stalls for cheap pay…" He led on. The trail as obvious.

"We put men on the inside to spread the word of what's going on." Adam found himself smirking. "It is risky, but not in a way that can't be easily rectified." And it was. A quick assassination, a loss of an asset, that was the worst of it. It would not reveal a thing of the Red Witch's end goal.

"Then do I have your approval, sir?" His lieutenant asked. Adam rose as he answered.

"You do, but bring me a list of the stalls and shops that don't agree." There was a point to it. "It will make it easier to sow hatred if we show they see faunus as beneath even labor."

"Of course," the lieutenant bowed as he spoke. "I will spread the word and give my report by tomorrow's end."

Adam smiled as the man left. Apparently there was some good to be had.

Chapter Text

Link had an idea. It wasn't an idea to accomplish any grand task or set off some important event. It was just an idea, a small one that usually came naturally. It was an idea that most people wouldn't even consider an idea. To them, it would be common sense. To Link, given the rather extreme events of week past, it required a train of thought for him to recognize it. But when he saw it, he knew he had to do it.

It came to him while he was caring for the Whirlwind Tree, ensuring the branches were unbroken and the steel of the tower allowing the root system to grow. It looked odd, even to Saria's sagely eyes, but not healthy. Like a deku scrub that had planted itself upon Death Mountain, that was all it was.

The idea stuck with him as he tended to Saria's Trees in the Foreverfall, both the tree that sat in the midst of constant heat and the other that was surrounded by exotic plants. It was one that Saria agreed to, her wisdom of centuries telling of the benefits that would come from it, and only the restrictions its denial would provide.

The concept came when she looked at the horizon, Saria's eyes trailing the tall buildings that appeared to be scrapping the very sky. He had flown over it once now, but had seen it every day. It was the far off jewel that begged to be entered, but he had never had the chance. Now, however, there was nothing stopping him.

"You want to explore Vale?" Ozpin parroted his requested. A mug in one hand another gripping the clear glass of his Scroll, his eyes were trained on Link, looking through the violet spectacles. "I have no objections to you going out, but why ask me?"

"Because I will need a guide, of course," Saria's words flowed from Link's mouth. Tatl and Tael rang about her head as he spoke. Tatl was laughing at Tael's uncoordinated flight. "It is a town larger than any I have seen before. I fear that comes with risks I will not be aware of."

"The correct terminology is city," Ozpin began, setting down his Scroll. "But you are correct with your assumption. There are many… unpleasant surprises. Most are regulated to the darker areas, but without a guide that boundary is difficult to see."

"Precisely," Saria agreed, grinning as she did at all the young who found their answer. Link felt the pride she felt. But there was still more to say. "As there is little for me to do today, other lessons requiring other attention, I thought it would be a good idea to see the… city as well."

Ozpin nodded from across his table, sipping on his mug. Saria's eyes couldn't see the form of his lips, be they a frown of concentration or a grin of understanding. That was intentional on his part. But it wasn't something she needed to point out, Saria or Link.

"I agree with all accounts," Ozpin finally answered as the mug left his lips. "It would be rather difficult to defend the benefits of a teacher that isn't even aware of the populace around them." Justification for a later argument, doubtlessly. If he was trying to teach her a lesson, he would find there were precious few left for Saria to learn. "But then I suppose you have someone in mind to accompany you?"

"There is," Saria's voice answered Link's thoughts. "It is an unfortunate matter of circumstance they were chosen. I cannot ask for your aid, as an instructor's swift departure from their Academy is often a troubling thought." He raised a brow at her, but his lips were still held in a slight smirk. "As you said before, Glynda would need time to plan and therefore would be against travel to the city."

"Then I suppose you would wish for Dr. Oobleck to accompany you?" Ozpin answered with his own question. It made Saria giggle, him thinking that he could best her in wisdom. Age taught wisdom and none were older than Saria. Link knew that implicitly, especially now.

"I would, but he has buried himself in both the study of my culture and research for my friend. My reasons are a little selfish, just a little, but I don't want him to stop," Link spoke honestly with Saria's voice. He wouldn't disrespect her memory with a lie. Ozpin, for his part, nodded his head in understanding. He wasn't surprised.

"And Professor Port is unavailable due to his lectures today," he continued on, a single finger from his hand scratching against his chin. "You know, I consider a list with no names on it a rather short list." Saria giggled at the words.

"Indeed, but the possibilities are not limited to merely the teachers," Saria began. Link knew the lesson she wanted to teach. Sometimes it felt like a game, even to him. "I believe there are many on Beacon who have no classes today, no lessons to learn on the grounds."

"Ah," Ozpin let out almost immediately. He understood. Link never thought of him as a fool. "You suggest one of the students accompany you." Saria nodded at him. He smiled back. That was a good sign, usually. "I again see no objection. Students are free to do as they wish during their own time, be it the study of Grimm or training of their abilities. If one of them wishes to travel to Vale with you, I see no reason to stop either of you."

"Excellent," Saria responded, grin bright as the sun she so nearly embodied. "Now I can ask the real question." Ozpin's grin fell only a hair at Saria's declaration. It was matched with the slight raise of his brow. Link chuckled mirthfully from behind Saria's mask, letting his friend guide him. She knew best.

"Oh? What might this be? Are you to ask for a favor?" Ozpin was having fun with his questions, too. Link didn't need Saria's eyes to see that. He didn't need to wear her memories to know she enjoyed it all the same.

"It is, but not an obvious one. Not too obvious if you put in too much thought. It may be unobvious because nothing I've done so far has been the usual." Link already knew the answer, but he wasn't the one receiving a lesson. In honesty he didn't know if a lesson was necessary. But Saria was old, and age meant the desire to teach.

"Now I'm curious myself," Ozpin admitted, setting his mug down before lacing his fingers together. "Please, ask away. I'll give an honest answer to whatever the request." Saria gave a bright smile, hands folded behind her back before she spoke on.

"May I please have some money?"

"And he said yes?"

Jaune was honestly more impressed than surprised. Not that he wasn't surprised. Oh no, that was definitely on the books still. But asking money from the head of the school for a day trip and then actually getting it? It felt like it would be easier to fight an Ancient Grimm bare handed then do that.

Then again, Link had probably done that.

"Oh yeah, it's all true!" Tatl spoke up, voice ringing with her words. "You have no idea how hard it was to keep myself from cracking up. Tael had to pretty much smother me to keep quiet."

"I-I thought I'd be bad if… you started laughing." The darker of the two drones added on, flying about their room without a place to land. His wings were slightly downcast, but Jaune didn't know what to do about it. "That would have made it a bad thing, probably… Yeah."

"Okay, just putting aside how absolutely lucky you guys are," Jaune began with raised hands. They were there more to steady himself than anything else. "Why are you two here telling us this? Class is over and the rest of us have studying to do."

"Eh, studying is such a loose term," Nora spoke up. She was wearing her headphones while lying down on her bed, but Jaune was pretty sure they were off, or broken. Given how loud they usually were, it was probably the former. That would be a good thing, maybe. "I think it's better to call it 'have-fun-for-our-half-day-off'."

"Comment aside, I'm actually equally curious," Pyrrha spoke up. Jaune's partner was shutting her notebook, probably reviewing her notes. She was smart like that. "It's not as if you're here to ask us to go to Vale with you, right?"

Neither fairies answered. Silence was a bad thing. Jaune was very sure of that. Given Pyrrha's pause, she probably felt the same.

"Right?"

She asked again, but no response was given. Jaune saw Nora lower her headphones and stare at the golden and dark fairy. Even Ren had set down his book to stare at them. That took something significant.

"Well…" Tael began. "Saria was being honest when she said everyone else was busy, a-and you guys did help us at that base thing, a little… more than others did." Jaune knew who others was. What he didn't know was where this was going.

"Um, yeah, give me a sec," he started, cursing himself again for always being the fish in the shallow pool. "Are you saying Link, dressed as his friend, asked Ozpin, the headmaster of all of Beacon, for money, which he gave, and for us, like my entire team, to take you guys out to Vale, as in the city?"

The fairies rang next to one another. If they were talking, Jaune couldn't hear it. All he could hear was his heart thumping loud enough to echo in his head. This was a big deal. It was like some high-end escort mission that Hunters got paid big lien for. That was a good thing! But the escort was another killer Huntsman, or Knight, that just needed a tour guide more than anything else. That was bad, but not really bad.

Nora didn't seem to mind. Her usual grin had turned cheek-splitting. He was a little afraid of what it would do when the fairies finally answered. Ren looked like a Grimm in the headlights of a sniper rifle. His book was shut and body completely still. Pyrrha looked alright, but not really relaxed. It was like how she looked before she stepped into the combat ring. Jaune wasn't even sure how he could imagine he looked right now. It was hard to keep a solid composure the longer the silence stretched out for.

"Well, in so many words," Tatl finally spoke up, drawing out the words. That wasn't good. "Yeah, that about sums it up."

Jaune hid his face in his hands, slapping them for the clarity of pain.

"Oh! Oh! We're going on a field trip with Link?!" Jaune resisted the urge to groan at Nora's enthusiasm. Her naïve enviously blind optimism. "That means we get to study AND have fun AND get to meet someone new! That's three things in one! I've gotta get changed pronto! C'mon Ren!"

That was all the heads up both males of the group had before Nora dragged her silent teammate to the dresser, throwing it open with some effect. Jaune had to turn away at Ren's silent gaze of plea. There was nothing to be done.

"Um, we appreciate the, uh, invitation Tatl," Jaune heard Pyrrha begin to speak. He turned to see his partner standing now, speaking to the two fairies. Wonder why she only addressed the one. "And I'm sorry but… I don't think now is a good time to go out to Vale?" Why did she ask it like a question?

"Nope, definitely isn't," Jaune took over, nodding his head for emphasis. No reason for confusion then. "We've got a lot of homework to catch up on in Oobleck's class and Port has us researching some of these Ancient Grimm that lurk deep in the Foreverfall. We just don't have time to go right now." He might have been exaggerating, but that wouldn't hurt anyone. Right?

"I don't know about that," Tatl spoke in return. She sounded confident. Why? "Cause Ozpin was pretty clear that you guys finished your homework faster than most of the other teams. Something about the Invincible Girl's natural talent and the White Knight's dedication." Jaune had honestly no idea where any of this was coming from. Was she lying? "Plus you guys are forgetting your other assignment." Now he paled.

"We have no other assignments," Ren spoke up.

Thank the Dust for Ren.

"Though you may be referring to the request Impa gave in class, to have us socialize outside our circles."

Damn the Grimm on Ren.

"Yup, and since you're already thick as thieves with RBWY, CRDL talking to the Golem Girl, and the rest of the teams chatter boxing already, we checked, that leaves just you guys." Tatl seemed really proud of what she was saying. Jaune was conflicted about stopping her. He pushed it aside, because he was the leader.

"W-We can find another team," Jaune rapidly began to defend. "I-I-I'm sure CFVY o-or someone else would wanna talk with us. We can talk about homework!" Yeah, that made sense. They could socialize and get their homework done. It was a twofer!

"They're busy talking it up with that Mercury and Emerald pair," Tatl listed off. Maybe she really did have tabs on all the teams. "Wanna try again."

"No… No, I'm good." One and done, just like he was used. On the receiving end and all. A dejected sigh left him as he fell back onto his bed. At least it was still soft.

"Do… Do you not want to be with him… Link?" Tael's question felt like a sword at Jaune's back. There was no way to answer that question. His eyes opened to their fullest with the words. "I-I know Link can be quiet a lot, but… b-but he really does see you guys as his friends. Do you?"

"Yes! Heck yes!" Jaune shot up. That was an easy question to answer. "Oh yeah, he's our pal." He gave a pleading look to Pyrrha to back him up. He knew he could count on his partner. The smile she returned was gratifying.

"Link is someone I feel we can both confide in and trust," Pyrrha agreed, smoothly as ever. "I believe most of the unease comes from his now higher position as our professor, not to forgo his now famous presence in Vale."

What?

"Wait, what?" Tatl spoke up now. She mimicked Jaune's question aloud. "Link's famous out there? He's never even been there, they don't even know what he looks like. Is this one of those news-spreading-like-wildfire things?" It sounded like it to Jaune, too.

"Nope, just good old socialization!" Nora perked up. Jaune noticed she jumped with her words. She was only wearing a bra…. There was jiggling. He looked away. "Link's been aaaaall over the public places in the CCTS. There's, like, thousands of pictures of him! Oh! This one's a gif!" Huh… that made sense actually, a lot of sense.

"You mean that Communication Network thing?" Tatl asked. "I thought that was just a faster way to send letters. There's something more to it?" Jaune blinked before he reminded himself just how foreign Tatl and Tael were.

"Uh, yeah!" Nora spoke up as jubilantly as ever. Jaune risked a peak, happy to see Ren and tied a thicker shirt around her. Must have been used to it, lifelong friends and all that. "Why do you think there were so many other kids at Combat Practice? Training? HA!"

Well Jaune thought they were.

"Nora is correct though," Ren spoke up. He was busing fitting the rest of the fabric over Nora's head. She didn't appear to mind, or even notice. "Link is a veritable celebrity in Vale now. His name may not attract attention, but I rather doubt no one will mistake his garb of green and faunus ears." Those were kinda eye-catching. Like Ruby and her cloak, if Jaune had to guess.

"That's not even to mention you guys!" Nora went on, lifting an arm to point at the fairies. It only reached half way as Ren continued to thread the shirt over her. "Everyone's gonna recognize Link's friends floatin' around like that!"

Huh, that was a good point. Jaune hadn't really thought about it too much, but Tatl and Tael kinda were odd balls. He really didn't mean to make a pun.

"Duh, you think we don't know that?" Does that mean they did know it? "Why else do you think we want you guys to go with Link? We talked with him and we both realized we really wouldn't be able to get a feel for the place, not with how crowded you all say it's supposed to be." Tatl didn't sound really upset. More like… disappointed? Hope it wasn't at them, but with Jaune on the team, he couldn't discount it.

"Um, okay," Jaune began. "But don't you guys, like, stick to Link all the time? E-Except for when you're talking to Dr. Oobleck. I mean… how often are you apart?"

"Not a lot," Tael answered. His voice was always quieter than his sister's. Kinda remind Jaune of himself, like a lot. "Whenever he's not helping one of… you guys, I guess. B-But he's always with one of his other friends when we aren't." Huh, that… was true wasn't it? It made sense then why it was such a big deal for them to be separated at the Badlands. Link wasn't wearing… with?... any of his friends. Guess that was why it was a big deal.

"But you still aren't coming?" Jaune continued. It was a little difficult, but he took the ring from Tael as confirmation, the bob helped. That, and the lack of Tatl making some honest remark of his personality. "Then does that mean Link is going to be w…with one of his friends?" Jaune caught himself, thankfully. Messing up would be pretty bad.

"Yup, that's what Link's doing now," Tatl explained. "Tryin' to think of who would be best. Have to pick it right or this whole trip is just gonna be a wasted day." Jaune bit his tongue to keep himself from making the comment of how it was wasting their day.

"I'm sorry to ask, but who is accompanying Link?" Pyrrha asked. That was a great question. "I apologize again if I am being too presumptuous, but I feel that Mikau and Elrora would attract too much attention. And we may not be… relaxed around Impa." All true points. Jaune smiled at his partner, proving just once more how perfect she was. No clue why she was blushing though.

"Well look at the detective over here," Tatl started out. That didn't sound good. "But shouldn't you be worrying about what to wear, or what to do?" What did that mean? It definitely wasn't good. "I mean you're going to be showing Link, your teacher, the city of Vale! What do you think is going to happen if he gets a bad opinion? What do you think he'll do if you guys try and take advantage of him?"

What?

What!?

Was she serious? What did she mean? All Jaune could tell was the golden fairy was glowing ominously with a voice to match. She was barely ringing with her words. It was like she was being totally serious. That mean this was really bad! Jaune must have started to show his panic, cause Pyrrha had an arm on his shoulder in an instant.

"That's mean, sis," Tael spoke up. Jaune gave the fairy his undivided attention. "You know Link just wants their help. We'd only get in the way…" Wait, so it was a joke? But… oh, Jaune felt a headache coming on. It was like he was back home with his sisters again.

"C'mon Tael, you know we talked about this." Tatl's voice was back to normal. So she was joking with them? Geez, Jaune made an additional note not to get on her bad side. He was pretty sure he wrote that down somewhere. "Link wants to explore without causing a scene. We're so alien here that everyone's calling us mini-golems instead of fairies. If we were to follow Link into that city…"

"…We might all be put in danger," Tael finished. Did they practice that? No, it was probably because they were siblings. Jaune remembered his sisters doing the same thing with their stories, stories that usually ended up with him breaking something valuable. "I know, I know…" The fairy was starting to ring again. And boy, it sounded dejected even to Jaune.

"C'mon Tael, you gotta cheer up!" Tatl took over. Did they even remember they were in Jaune's room? "We're gonna be doing a lot of talking with Ozpin while Link's gone. These guys can handle showing him a good time, right?"

Oh, that question was for them.

"Yeah, we can handle it," Jaune found himself speaking. He felt Pyrrha grip his shoulder a little tighter. Hopefully that was for support. Probably, she was the best partner he could ever have. "Link is our friend, too."

"Yeah!" Nora shouted with a jump again. The shirt she was wearing meant less jiggle. Ren crossed his arms with satisfaction. Jaune would salute him later. "Link's done so many cool things, why wouldn't we be his friends! Plus now we can show him a bunch of new things and see him go all 'wow!' and 'cool!' when he sees what's in Vale!" She made a face to match each exclamation. Jaune never had any doubt she was the most energetic student in all of Beacon.

"Well that's good," Tatl answered back. "But seriously, thanks guys. My brother and I do want to go, but if we've learned anything from the past week or two, its that we're gonna have to bend our promise." Promise? What promise was that?

"Um, if I may ask, what is the promise?" Pyrrha spoke Jaune's thoughts. Partners indeed! That was a great thing. "If it is private I apologize."

"Nah, it's nothing that secret," Tatl gave a quick ring with her words, dust lightly falling around her. "Before we came here the three of us promised we'd stick together no matter what. Ya know, like a team. Kinda what you guys are doing while you're here."

"That makes sense," Jaune spoke, head nodding with the words. He was really glad it made sense. "So that slight bending you were talking about?"

"We may have to… split up," Tael took over. He gave slow ring with his words. It sounded like a sigh. "But we're never going to actually leave. Like, um, Link will be back tonight. S-So it's not like we're leaving or anything."

"Yeah, but it's hard to tell a fairy to leave their companion. We get kinda violent when that happens." That Jaune could believe. He could believe it because he saw it. And felt it. There was still a welt on his head where Tatl knocked him out. "So that's why you guys are going with Link. Sides, I'm pretty sure he's got your back in case anything goes sideways."

Jaune made extra sure to not ask what could go wrong. A thought was as far as it got.

"Do you have any suggestions for where we should go?" Ren spoke up again. He even had his hand raised. Good old predictable Ren. He's the teammate Jaune wouldn't mind being abandoned on an island with, right after Pyrrha. "I do not know the differences between your capitals and ours, but Vale is a very large city. It would take several days to just walk the perimeter of it."

"Huh, really?" Tatl asked. She didn't sound impressed. Weird. "You've got Hyrule and Gerudo Valley beat. But if I had to guess, Link's gonna want to see what stores they have. I mean, you've gotta sell some pretty sweet stuff here, right? Given those crazy weapons you guys all carry."

It was probably one of those perspective things, cause Jaune could pretty safely say Link had the craziest and most what-the-hell weapons he had ever seen in his life. But, then again, those were mostly from the help of his friends, which meant that they weren't weapons, because they were people, once. It was starting to sound like politics. It made Jaune groan.

Knock KnockKnock-Knock Knock Knock

The wrapping on the door made Jaune lift a brow. That was a weird knock. But, then again, it was probably less than 1 on the scale when put next to foreign faunus fighters and magical masked memories.

"Who is it?" Pyrrha called, she lifted her hand off of Jaune's shoulder as she stepped towards the door. The fairies lightly flew about as she passed them, ringing through the air.

"It's me!" came a voice that Jaune definitely didn't recognize. "Part Link, part Lana, and all ready to go!" That answered one question.

"Lana?" Jaune found himself asking. "No wait she said, Link. She's Link's friend, right?"

"Figure that out all on your own?" Tatl asked back. Jaune gave a weak motion with his head. Not even he was sure what he meant with it. "But yeah, that's her. Link probably figured she'd enjoy the city the most, plus would get the least attention. Gonna have to hold onto that dream." Jaune had literally no idea how to take that. He didn't even know if it was good or bad. But if he had to guess, bad.

Pyrrha undid the lock on their door before swinging it open. Tael gave a quick ring about the frame of the door, probably looking to get to Link first, or Lana, whoever he/she preferred to be called, just like pronouns. They until they said otherwise. The door was open, but Pyrrha was blocking the way. That didn't last long.

"Hello," Pyrrha began, sounding just as noble as ever. "My name is Pyrrha, it is a pleasure to meet you. Please come in." His partner moved to the side to allow Link/Lana/Them into the room. And as soon as he saw the new arrival, he blinked.

Her blue hair was easily the most eye-catching part about her. If it wasn't the color, it was the fact that it was put into one long ponytail off to the side. It waved with every jump she made. Her clothes were sort of like Link's, at least in color. Actually, only in color. She had a frilly skirt like Ruby's, but emerald green. Her top was the same way, a tube-top. It left her midriff bare for the world.

Her arms were covered in either extremely long gloves or they were a part of her top that had the shoulders cut off. The first one seemed more likely. Her stockings were there too, a darker shade then her skirt, but still really easy to see. Every part of her clothing had some long-wavy floral design on them, looking like they belonged more on whatever Ozpin wore.

He couldn't ignore her cape though, if it could be called that. It just hung over her shoulder, stopping at her elbow and barely covering half of her chest…. Jaune intentionally didn't focus on that. The cape was blue though, a bit darker than her hair, but really easy to see against all the green she wore. Wonder if that was on purpose.

"Thank you!" The blue haired girl spoke in a bubbly voice, followed by a skip into the room. Tatl and Tael flew about her as she did so. The girl raised her hands with a bright smile as they did, letting the fairies weave about her body. It was actually kinda fun to watch. "There you two are! I was wondering where you went off to."

"You really think we were gonna let you go off to Vale without giving the escorts a good talking to?" Jaune didn't miss the emphasis on the words. He doubted anyone did either, except maybe Nora. "Sides, they deserved to at least know why we weren't going to be tagging along. There are enough questions floating around without creating anymore." To that JNPR's leader had no argument.

"Perfect!" The girl, Lana, not Link, threw her hands up into the air as she yelled the world. Tatl and Tael followed the fists up. Jaune was trying to figure out if that was practiced or not. "That means we can just go out and have a good time! No questions, no worries, and no awkward chemistry to get in the way." One of those comments was not like the other.

"Yes, well… Lana," Pyrrha began. The girl turned to face her. It was only then Jaune noticed she had a smile almost as bright as Nora's, almost. "I am glad that you are eager to… ask us to accompany you, but we are, or were, unprepared for this."

"Yeah, we were, uh," Juane started before fumbling over his words. "Just talking about how sudden this was."

"I wasn't!" Nora pitched in. At least she was predictable? No, she wasn't, and that was bad here. "I was just getting ready!" She did a twirl to show off what ready meant. Apparently, to Jaune, Nora's version of ready meant changing clothes. It made sense, the kind his sisters always told him.

"And you look amazing!" Lana shouted back. Jaune felt a bit of dread at the shared energy. It only got worse when Lana skipped over to Nora. Even Ren backed in what must have been fright. That made it really bad. "You're bright, colorful, and just ready to be you! Link's memories did not disappoint."

"And you look sweet, sunny, and green as grass!" That was the wrong way to use that expression… even if Lana's clothes did look green as grass. Was that bad? "Oh, it's so amazing to meet you! It's great to meet any of Link's friends. You're all so different and colorful and cheery and friendly and strong and-"

"I believe Nora is saying it is kind to meet you, Lana," Ren took over. That was a good thing, a very good thing. He bowed towards her. "Though I know it is a secondary introduction for you to us."

"Ah, you're sweet," Lana spoke with a wave of her hand. It was her, Nora and Ren confirmed it. But Link was still in there… Jaune felt a shiver imagining him moving like Lana. It made him shake. "And right, too. You must have a good memory. Maybe you're the Mage of the team!" She pointed at him with the words.

"Y-You mean those titles you said before, right?" Juane tried to pick in. He knew Ren didn't like to talk, unless he had to. Leader's duty and all that. "Like the Warrior, the Shadow, Mage, and Unknown, right?" Lana bobbed her head excitedly at the words. The smile helped.

"Yup! Right on the Rupee!" The what? "The Mage is the big thinker, remembers a lot so he can say a lot when he has to. You gotta work on that last one though, huh?" The grin meant Lana was joking. Jaune hoped the grin meant she was joking.

"Looks like you're all set here though," Tatl spoke up. She rang as she flew around Lana again, Tael joining her. The blue haired girl, and she was a girl, twisted with the motion. She really was enjoying herself. "Guess we'll head off for old Ozpin then. No better way to spend a day then to spend it talking to some drab wizard in his tower."

"Ozpin's a wizard?" Jaune whispered the word. He was really glad he whispered it because he knew how stupid it sounded.

"Aw, you sound sad," Lana made a pout with her words. A pout that had hunched shoulders and drooping arms. "Now I'm gonna feel bad about leaving you guys here."

"I-It's okay," Tael spoke up. "Ozpin said, well he told Saria, that he had stories. I-I like stories, a-and he, um, he'll take care of us. I trust him at least." Jaune swore that if he were a fairy, he'd be Tael. Maybe.

"That's great, really great!" Lana's mood shifted on a Lien. In a motion that Juane would never dared to make, she scooped up the fairies in her hands, holding them close in a sort of hug. They rang loudly at the motion. Lana either didn't care or knew what she was doing. Jaune gambled on the latter. "Then you better tell me all those great stories when I get back, kay? I promise to let you guys know everything I see, too. Deal?"

"Deal," Tatl spoke up. "Now let go Sparky. You're grabbier than a baby." Lana only giggled before she swung her arms out, releasing the fairies. They twirled about before stopping, ringing as they did before. "But seriously, take care Link." Oh yeah, Link was here. Jaune kept forgetting.

"I'll be fine," Lana spoke up. No, Link, that was the address. "Now you go see Ozpin. I'll see you soon, promise!" The fairies rang as Lana waved her hand, waved it like Jaune had seen cartoon characters do. The fairies flew through their rooms lock and out of sight. "So, I'm ready to go! Are you ready to go?"

This was seriously happening, wasn't it?

Jaune didn't really ask himself that question till Lana was staring right at him. Him, Pyrrha, Nora, and Ren. Smiling with a face that looked like it belonged on a freaking adolescent girl more than their pseudo-instructor. It wasn't odd, really, going into town to relax on a weekend. But… it was Link being their teacher that made it odd. But this was Lana, but also Link, but also their friend. Juane wasn't comfortable around so many butts.

"I'm ready!" Nora shouted. That was sort of good. "And Ren is ready, too!" Well… Jaune guessed he was. He was changed at least. That was the same amount of good. "Now we're waiting for Jaune-Jaune and the Invincible Girl!"

Jaune flushed at the name. A quick look at his partner said she was doing the same.

"I-I guess we are going, huh?" He relented, scratching the back of his head. Didn't itch, but it calmed him. "Let me just… get on a jacket, a-and I'll be good to go."

"I'll need some time," Pyrrha quickly followed. "A-and some privacy, please." That one he did guess. Pyrrha was more like his older sisters. Kinda the opposite from show-off-your-bra Nora.

"Okey-Dokey! We'll be outside!" We? Jaune didn't have a chance to ask what Nora meant. One second she was grabbing Ren's sleeve, the next she was pulling her partner and the newly introduced friend of Link out of the room. Neither looked like they minded. With a shut of the door, he and Pyrrha were alone. He let out a long sigh.

"Jaune, are you alright?" Pyrrha asked. She asked that a lot. She had to, because he was a bad leader. Made sense he wasn't right a lot.

"Yes, no, I-I don't know." He shrugged, standing off of his bed and pulling out his uniform. He had to change fast, at least so Pyrrha wouldn't feel shy around him. "I just like to think about things a little more. This seems fast, really fast, like Nora on a sugar rush fast."

"Y-Yes, it does." Why did she stumble? Oh, probably because he was taking too long. He was just standing there with his shirt off. Must have made her impatient. He turned around to grab his sweater, pulling it over his head. "Do you not want to go?"

"Eh, sort of," Jaune admitted with a shrug. That was to adjust his sweater. Too much cloth. "I just think it'll be awkward with Link. You know, friend turned teacher, in charge of our grades, reports to Ozpin?" It was awkward in public school. Wasn't it the same in Hunter Academies?

"I'm sorry Jaune, but I believe that is why Lana is here. I mean, not Link in person." Jaune didn't see where she was going. She must have read him, like she did everything else. "We've met Link's other friends and they've all had a turn teaching us, or showing us something new. We've never met Lana, at least in person, so Link must believe or hope that we'll see her as just a friend."

"But… that kinda sounds like he doesn't want us to know that we're hanging out with him," Jaune put on his chest plate as he finished speaking. Good to go on his end. Now he just need to leave for Pyrrha. That would be good. "I mean, I-I guess I see how he's trying to make it less awkward. But doesn't it sound kinda sad? Having use a friend as a sort of stand-in to hang out with your… other… friends…" Jaune just got it.

And it wasn't a good thing. A slow groan left his throat as he looked up at the ceiling, eyes closed. Of course it couldn't be straight forward. Of course he and Pyrrha picked out the worst piece of logic in all of this. Did it with Elrora now they were doing it with Lana. At least no one died this time around.

"I'm just gonna… wait outside, okay?" He looked towards his partner as he spoke, pointing at the door. He froze like ice when he actually opened his eyes.

Pyrrha was already stripping, only her bra and underwear showing. Her face was as red as her hair. Jaune was pretty sure he was the same. He wasn't thinking of anything else. Not a thing. Just Pyrrha in her underwear. Just Pyrrha with her tone muscle, bare skin, and very clear underwear. Jaune did the only thing he had the brain cell left to do. Speak a single word.

"Gold." That was bad.

"I'm just saying Jaune might not be the Warrior in your team," Lana spoke up from the other side of the Bullhead. She was waving back and forth, similar to children waiting in an office. "He ran out of the room so fast that I almost missed him! That's how Shadows are supposed to move and no one on your team really looks like a Shadow."

"But your description of a Warrior is that they can take heavy blows for their team. Jaune… can take those blows." Pyrrha did a remarkable job of turning Jaune's inability to dodge a blow into taking an intentional one. But her point did still stand. Ren was aware of that.

"I know, and I thought he was a Warrior, too," Lana agreed, but that was short lived. "But he ran faster than I've seen Gorons roll, and Gorons roll faster than a horse can run!" Her arm swung out with the description. It didn't help Ren visualize a Goron or their 'roll'.

"Can we just… call it adrenaline?" The topic of the conversation spoke up. He had his head in his hands and hands on his knees. It was a small mystery why. "I was in a… rush…"

"It's okay, Jaune," Pyrrha returned, rubbing circles on his back. Ren wasn't sure how much good that would do through his armor, but it wasn't worth voicing. "Just focus on your breathing." A weak moan was all the reply his team leader gave.

Ren let out his own sigh as he leaned back against the Bullhead. It had a soothing hum to it, the metal that is. When the engines ran on their flammable dust, the micro-combustions made the metal vibrate in a quick rhythmic pattern. Focusing on it helped soothe his mind. The soothing sensations brought clarity.

It was important Ren enjoyed the clarity now, or more specifically the peace that came with it. It was highly unlikely there would be much time to relax once they reached Vale proper. Between Lana's clearly high level of energy and the curiosity that naturally came with any foreigner, there were be little end to the number of shops, stores, and questions that would appear. It was not going to be a day he could relax in. A pity.

"Are you okay?" The question came up. Ren cracked an eye to see Lana staring at him, head tilted comically to the side. Far enough that her single tail of hair hung off her head without touching any other part of her body.

"I'm alright," Ren replied honestly. "I'm just thinking about the future." It was the perfect reply, or the one he had used the most on Nora. Just vague enough to be short and sweet, but gave just enough details that there wasn't a question to follow up with. Practice led to perfection.

"Okay!" Said blue-haired spoke back, just as Ren had predicted. "Just be extra sure that you take some time to think of how the future can change. The future's never a straight line!" She swung her legs with the words, like she was walking down some path. Ren saw that clearly because he had opened his eyes wider to look at the girl.

"That was very philosophical," Ren commented, looking at the blue-haired youth. He did not forget Link was there as well. "Is that a mantra you were taught or personal experience?" He could feel Nora staring at him. Most likely because he was asking questions. He didn't like to ask questions. Ren preferred research over questioning.

"Some of 'A', mostly 'B'," Lana replied, lifting one of her hands for each category, shifting left and right in her seat. She appeared ready to jump out of it. "Like, whenever I think of Time's plan, I never woulda thought I'd be aaaaaallllll the way over in this land. I thought I'd be in Hyrule forever! But here I am, helping Link by helping his friends!"

Interesting. It sounded simple out loud, but Ren knew from his own deep though sessions that realizing the variability of life was not a simple task. Too easily forgotten and just as easily scorned when plans did not come to flourish. Yet Lana, this peppy girl that appeared so similar to Nora, realized aloud how much the future could change.

"Aw, I thought you were going to ask another question Reny," Nora pouted next to him. "Oh! I'll ask a question for you! Lana, what's your favorite color?" Practice and repetition aloud Ren to hold back his sigh for Nora's antics.

"Green, definitely green," Lana smiled brightly with her words. "Green is bright and cheerful and really hard to miss! Who wants to be forgotten in the crowd? Oh, maybe blue though. It's just really hard to stay mad when you see the blue sky. It's why I have a cape! I just cover my eyes with it and I'm all peaceful!"

Ren could name many people, including himself, who would like to be forgotten in a crowd. However, he also wore green, the excuse Lana made for avoiding being forgotten. That was an issue. If green was truly so noticeable, perhaps he should change his own outfit. At least the blue made sense. Few women disliked their own hair color and kept it.

"Green's my favorite, too! Now what about your favorite food? Is it chicken? Cause I think Link's is chicken." Nora must have been referring to the first meal they shared with Link, when he had devoured the chicken salad in debatably record time. Ren didn't note that Nora remembered. He wasn't surprised by it.

"Fish, has to be fish. I love fishing and fish are easy to catch and there are so many different kinds of fish that it is definitely fish!" Lana had a rather energetic nodding of her head with her words. When she stopped, she was licking her lips. "Now I'm hungry. We should eat when we get to Vale."

"Oh! Yeah! We know a great place by the harbor!" Nora's announcement got Ren. He didn't know of any place. He looked at his partner briefly, seeing her focus solely on Lana. He looked over her to see Pyrrha giving him an equally perplexed look. Jaune was dry heaving still. "It sells great fish! At least I hope they sell fish. What kind of food shop by the water wouldn't sell fish? It'd be like a Dust Shop that didn't sell Ammo!" there was some truth to the metaphor.

"That sounds awesome! What else is there? Fishing boats? Trollies? Oh! Are there games to play? I bet they have a lot of prizes!" Lana's voice was almost a mirror to that of Nora, except maybe a note deeper. It would be difficult to draw further comparisons until Ren saw how Lana acted in public. He could not forget that Link was still very much a part of this girl.

"I believe there will be games, though there normally aren't," Pyrrha spoke up again. She looked at Lana briefly, but gave her focus on Jaune, unsurprisingly. "With the Vytal Festival postponed, many of the merchants are trying to maintain their stalls for as long as they can. It has to do with profits, but I'm sorry that I don't understand it well enough myself."

"That's okay," Lana waved one hand as she leant heavily on the other. Her smile was bright as ever. "I don't know much about owning a store myself. Just buy, sell, and make sure you got enough Rupees by the end of the day." There was that word again. She used it before back at their room. Perhaps it was the name for her currency. "But if there are gonna be games, then we're gonna have to play!"

"Yeah!" Nora shouted back. Ren was remarkably unsurprised. "A whole day eating and playing games with friends. That's like the best day ever!" Almost in exact tandem with his childhood friend's words, the Bullhead have a noticeable jump in vibrations. A slow groan from Jaune accompanied it. Ren was unperturbed.

The sudden jerk merely meant the landing gear was being prepared. That was good. It was a short flight from Beacon to Vale. It would honestly take longer to reach the harbor. Ren at least assumed that was where they were headed. He wasn't sure how strict Lana was with going there, but he knew Nora far more than well enough. If she wanted to go, they were going.

Just as Ren predicted, the back door to the Bullhead opened to show them on solid ground. He watched Jaune make his way off the ship first, Pyrrha quickly behind him. He would be alright. Nora skipped off the ship with Ren just behind her. He turned to see Lana approaching from behind. He had to remember that this was her first time. Even if she was as adventurous as Link, it was still a whole new world, nervousness was common place.

All those thoughts were promptly destroyed when Lana skipped, jumped, and twirled around the Bullhead landing site.

"Wow!" She let out on an excited breath. "Oh wow! It's all so much bigger up close!" As if to emphasize her point, the girl tilted her head back, staring up at the skyscrapers that towered over the landing site.

They were impressively tall, but Ren had been around them along enough to see them as merely a part of the scenery. That was true for most people he supposed. But as he only just recently reminded himself, Lana and Link were far from the average Vale citizen.

"They really do scratch at the sky, and each one looks like they could hold an army, and they're so smooth and bright! How do they stay that bright?!" Lana twirled with her words now, which only confused Ren. Though admittedly not as much as Nora's antics. She stopped only when she was staring the rest of his team, eyes wide with wonder. "How can you possibly explore this all in one day?"

"Uh… you can't," Jaune spoke up weakly. Ren couldn't and wouldn't fault him. Dry heaving was tough to speak through. "People visit the city for like, I don't know, weeks to really tour it. Pretty… pretty sure we're, uh… uh…" Ren caught his leaders words and continued on.

"We were hoping to visit only a certain area today," Ren spoke up. "As the plan was made only in the time we agreed with Tatl and Tael, there was only ever going to be one or two spots to visit."

"Ren's right," Pyrrha continued. "Even more the major areas, it would take days to really learn everything you could. But, and I apologize if I am assuming too much, if you wanted, all of us wanted, to enjoy ourselves, then I believe we should go to-"

"The harbor!" Nora yelled. Ren was unsurprised. "We're going to the harbor to eat fish, play games, and watch the sunset over the ocean! That's how you have a good time, right?" Her voice asked a question, but there was only one answer.

"That's a great idea!" Lana spoke as if they hadn't already discussed it. Didn't they already talk about it? In the ship not but a few minutes ago? Ren let out a small sigh at the confirmation of his memory. "Then let's head there now! We can eat and talk about what to do. It'll be a two for one!"

"Hooray! Double Event!" Nora jumped with her words, apparently titling whatever Lana had described. Ren had already resigned himself to follow the pair. He looked over to see Pyrrha and Jaune in a short conversation of their own. He was nodding towards something she said, managing to stand up as he did so. He was recovered at least.

Ren let out a small sigh, unheard and unseen by those around him. He could heard the traffic of Vale from the air deck. A few horns blaring, conversations carrying over the crowds of people all attempting to talk over one another, sirens off in the distance, true city life. It was nothing he felt any love for, though that did not mean he held scorn. It was just another place to live in.

Though, given Lana's apparent joy every time she looked out at the scenery, he could start to see how differently she saw it. Ren was hard to guess, but Vale was likely many times larger than anything that existed in Link's land of Hyrule. To a novice's eye, it must have looked similar to a myth coming to life. That was humorous, because Link's ever action and friend he showed did the same for him.

"C'mon Ren!" Nora suddenly shouted, grabbing him by his sleeve and dragging him forward. They were quickly swallowed by a crowd. That didn't stop Nora's voice from reaching him clear as day. "If we want to have time to play and eat before night, we gotta go!"

Ren sighed, a sound now truly swallowed up by the crowd. The crowd that was pushing against him the further they ventured into it. One part of him worried for Lana. Then another reminded him that Pyrrha would likely harm a child before she betrayed any promise she made to Link's friends.

The best thing to do now? The same thing he always did.

Wait, listen, and act accordingly.

Lana was excited. Link knew that.

Of all the friends he had made and lived with, she was the one who was always the most eager to see more. She never was satisfied with what was in front of her. There was always more to learn, to see, to experience. So it made sense she should be here when he saw Vale for the first time, true and proper.

And to be honest with her memories as well as his own, it truly was a marvelous place.

Lana's neck ached as she strained to see the tops of the buildings, now so much taller than they were from the leagues away before. They layered glass that traveled their height, marking the floors to which one could stand. They towered or any memory Link or Lana had of grand structures, comparable even to the mass of Death Mountain itself.

The sleek metal that coated the walls shined with the sun that bore down upon them, near blinding to Lana's eyes and brighter many things Link had seen. That was not to mention how the towers stood side-by-side as if crafted in such a manner. There was no one building that rule above them all. It was so unlike Ozpin's Tower of Beacon, the Military Fort in the Badlands, or even Hyrule Castle above the Market. There was no tower to rule, but all were still great. It was almost poetic.

Lana loved the size of the buildings, but she hated the size of the crowds.

People were moving against one another in the street, feeling more like a river than road to walk on. Sudden blares and sirens came from points both near and far, but not a soul turned to see them. Lana head's head whipped at every one, her hair waving with the motion. It was making her feel paranoid. It made Link feel tense.

The odd thought wondered if it was always this busy, always so difficult to move. It was no wonder then Beacon was kept so far away. There was no possibility to think, let alone practice, in this density of people. But it was the perfect place to act. The Gerudo in Lana say and the memories of Link both saw it. Too many eyes looking everywhere but where it mattered. All that was needed was a loose hand to grab at a spare pouch and one would be a few Rupees richer. The trained hands of Gerudo Maidens would be able to walk from a crowd this dense without having to work again for a full moon.

That was… if the people used Rupees still.

Lana's twisted as she felt the small slip of material Ozpin had given Saria, and by extension Link. He called it Lien, he called it plastic, but it was currency.

It was too small, to easily hidden, and too difficult to grab. It was the thief's foe, but the merchant's friend. The change was annoying, but it made sense. It was one of the few things that made sense in this new world.

Link, following the commands of Lana's memories, was being led by Pyrrha Nikos. Lana followed out of obligation and trust. Link followed for the same reason. Pyrrha was the one Squire at Beacon who best resembled the Gerudo. Her long red hair, light but armored clothing, and diligent manner to her form. Her grip on Lana's hand was strong, leading her through the crowd with purpose. But if she was talking, Lana couldn't hear it. The crowd and her hair made it really hard to hear. She couldn't even see the remainders of their team.

The further they pushed through the noisy crowd, the smaller the buildings became. It wasn't something Lana noticed at first, and Link didn't take note until she did. It was hard to focus on the sights when the crowd was loud enough to deafen sound. But it was true. They were still high enough to need her neck craned to see, but they moved from pushing against the sky to merely reaching for it, going further until they were only pointing at it. Bit by bit, they were dropping.

And the further the buildings dropped, the quieter the crowd became. Not quite, but quieter.

"…most there!" Lana's ears finally heard Pyrrha should through the crowd. Even shouting it was hard to hear her. The sensation itself wasn't foreign, but it was usually at grand celebrations, not a market street. Was this a market street? Neither Lana or Link knew.

But at the very least, the crowd was getting thinner. Lana was brushing up against fewer people. It was like they were moving out of the river and back to shore. It was something Lana felt relief for. Link could understand. And when they finally reached a point where both could hear again, Lana sucked in a breath of air as if she had just come up from water.

"Oh, wow!" she let out with the breath she had taken in. "That was really crowded! Like very crowded. Is that normal?" She looked towards Pyrrha as she spoke, the Gerudo releasing her hand.

"No, at least in this part of town," Pyrrha answered. That made some sense, being busier in some parts then others. "I think it's because people are still trying to figure out what to do until the Vytal Festival is running again. That, and, well, they are all tourists." Lana wasn't sure what that meant. Link told her memories it meant travelers. They understood.

"Personally, I blame the weekend," Jaune spoke up. Lana forgot about him. She felt bad for it. Link had, too. They both felt a little poor, forgetting Link's apparent Gerudo doppelganger. He was looking out of breath. "Traffic always picks up on the weekend. It's kinda like a law of nature. Alright, not really, but you get what I'm saying, right?"

"You just know how people are going to react based upon the day of the week?" Lana's words spoke of sincerity. Link's thoughts were already aware of the answer. "That's amazing! You must be one of the greatest leaders ever! I bet you could defeat a whole bunch of monsters with enough planning, couldn't ya?" Jaune was taken aback. Lana chuckled in her thoughts and Link joined her.

"I-I think we should find Ren and Nora! Yeah, that's a good idea," Jaune spun on a dime. They weren't in a crowd, but there were still people. Lana preferred their number. Enough to make it clear they were in a city, but not so large she couldn't see the ground. "We just gotta find the store Nora was talking about… and only she knew about…"

Oh, so Nora was the only one who knew? Lana tilted her head, curious about the girl's words before. Link wondered the same. Neither of their mixed memories could decipher what she meant.

"Well she did say it was by the harbor, because of the fish," Pyrrha spoke up. "Maybe we should start there?" She sounded unsure. That was weird, because Lana was sure that was a good idea.

"I agree!" Lana spoke up, grabbing the red head's hand again. She 'eep'ed at the contact, but most people did. Link didn't mind. Jaune didn't say anything either. "Then let's go to the water! I'm sure when we start seeing the boats we'll be there." Then she began to walk again.

"W-Wait! Lana! Do you even know where to go?" Pyrrha asked as she stumbled along. Link knew the direction, so Lana did as well. It was obvious when looking at patterns.

"Wherever the crowd's the thinnest, duh!" She looked over her shoulder to cheer at the Gerudo. Pyrrha's expression did not show a lot of confidence. Jaune's rarely did, so it wasn't surprising to see the same. "I mean, that's what we were doing up to now, right?"

"Well… close," Jaune answered as she jogged up to the pair. His pace turned to brisk when he was by their side. "But it might get more crowded by the harbor."

"Jaune's right. The three most crowded areas of any city are usually going to be the shopping areas, transit points, and shorelines," Pyrrha spoke in agreement. She was keeping up with Lana now, which was good. But Link felt Lana twist her head without missing a beat. He knew why.

"Wow, you both really know how this place works, huh?" Lana's lips pulled into a grin. Link knew why without her memories. "You two are perfect for each other!"

In the same moment of time, Pyrrha face flamed red and Jaune fell onto the ground. Lana laughed cheerfully at the display. Link chuckled in her mind. Teasing was fun.

He knew why Saria enjoyed it so much.

"H-H-How about we hurry up?" Jaune let out stuttering as he got to his feet. His jog had nearly turned into a run. "Follow me! Yeah, follow behind me." He started to take off even faster. Lana kept up behind him, skipping with Pyrrha's hand still in her grasp. The red-head hadn't said another word. Link thought it was because she was shy. Lana knew it was because she was too afraid to speak.

The buildings were still shrinking, but the crowd was changing, weirdly. Pyrrha must have been right, because the further they followed Jaune, the thicker the crowd became. It didn't reach the shoulder-to-shoulder-too-crowded-to-be-fun sort of way from the airship, but it was enough to seem like Hyrule Market. Link liked it. Lana was indifferent.

Then, after turning around a short building, short by comparison, they were there.

Lana's blue eyes could look out across the water, watching it meet the smooth horizon. There was no Beacon from where they stood, only clouds and the seemingly endless sea. The crowd around them was large, as the Gerudo had predicted, but not nearly as loud. They were full of people young and old, dressed in attire that seemed fit to work or fit to ruin. Some were relaxing, some were eating, some were talking, and others were working. Lana noticed it passively. Their full attention was on something else.

Their main attention, their focus, were on the large structures sitting in the water, tied to the large docks, and being loaded and unloaded like trollies. They were boats. But they couldn't be boats.

Boats were wooden.

Boats were large, for sure, but they were made of wood and designed to float. Steel didn't float, at least as not as far as Link or Lana knew.

Magic could help, wood could drift, but metal couldn't float.

So why were all the boats made of metal? Why were they all so huge! They matched the size of Molgeras, a few even larger than that! They were too large, too wide, and too tall to possible be considered boats.

They had to be sitting at the bottom of the water.

How could they be floating? Lana was starting in awe, head swiveling to see every part of it. Link was thinking with what she saw, unable to reason any of it.

"Something wrong, Lana?" Jaune's voice jerked Lana's vision. It disrupted Link's thoughts. "This can't be that different from the city, right?"

"Are you kidding?" Lana asked sincerely. "These boats are made of metal and steel. Those things, they fall to the bottom of the ocean. Thunk!" She hit her small fists together to mimic the sound. Link had heard it in many of the temples he had explored. "How are they floating? How are they there? Are they really ships?"

"Whoa, whoa, calm down," Jaune raised his hands at her words. He looked worried. Lana wanted answers. Link did, too. "I, uh… I-I don't know the science for how they float, but I'm pretty sure it, uh… it has something to do with density and water displacement. Like, the density of the material displacing water is less than the water, or something like that."

"That doesn't make any sense," Link spoke through Lana's voice. "Boats are made of wood because wood floats. These are made of steel, so they should sink. How are they not sinking?"

"Lana, I'm sorry but we don't know," Pyrrha spoke up now. She place a hand on Jaune's shoulder as she approached. She must have been glad Lana had let go of her hand. Link could understand why. Lana couldn't. "I can say that nearly all ships are made of metal or high-grade polymers. The science behind them is sound, reliable. How… How about we talk about when we find Ren and Nora? I'm sure Ren would know."

"Yeah! Ren, he'd have a better idea," Jaune jumped at the idea. "Ren's like a walking CCTS search menu. He'd know how they float. All we gotta do is find them, alright? All we gotta do is find that shop now. That shop… on the harbor… packed with visiting shops… and customers…" Link noticed how much quieter his voice became with every word. Lana noticed how dejected he began to look.

But he was right. Lana had not noticed at first, not when she was so focused on the somehow-floating-metal boats, but there really were a lot of people. It wasn't nearly as bad as before, because she could still hear Jaune, but it was still full enough. So where were Lana and Ren?

"Let's try the stalls first," Pyrrha spoke up. Lana looked at her, which made the red-head flinch. Link didn't understand why. Lana was sure it had something to do with her quietness. "If Nora said it was a place she'd been to before, but the rest of us had not, it was likely a stall that was meant to be here temporarily."

"Yeah, that's right," Jaune picked up. He clearly liked the idea. "Cause if it was a store here from before everything got set up, we would have at least recognized it. But new stores, that's a bit more difficult."

"So we get to go stall to stall looking for a your teammates in a crowd of constantly changing people?" Lana summarized the situation as best she could. She didn't need to see the look the two exchanged, she knew she had the right idea. Link thought nothing. "I love it! Then let's get started!"

She grabbed them both by the hand, leading them through the crowd once more. Lana was glad to be here. Link was glad she was happy.

"Nope, haven't seen 'em," another stall manager spoke. To his credit, he did it while flipping through a couple dozen meat paddies on a grill. It still wasn't the response Pyrrha was hoping for. "It's been loud here, but nothin' too bad."

"I understand, and thank you for your time," Pyrrha returned politely, offering a quick bow before turning away. She could make out the man saying his farewells before turning attention back to his customers. He was a businessman, so diligence to his job was not to be faulted.

But that did make it the second dozenth stall Pyrrha had talked to and hadn't recognized Nora or Ren. A slow sigh left her lips, muffled by the constant chatter of the crowd. A part of her wasn't too surprised that it was Nora and Ren that got lost, knowing the hyperactivity of their valkyria member. Still, she had hoped that it was her and Jaune who were separated.

"No luck?" Jaune spoke up beside her, seemingly materializing through the crowd. She shook her head at the question, the answer obvious. "Yeah, us either." He turned with a nod towards Lana, the blue haired youth spinning on her heads whilst looking about the crowd. "Starting to think that Nora dragged Ren to the opposite side of town."

"That would be unfortunate," Pyrrha returned. "Nora seems to be the only one who can relate to…" her words drifted off as Lana gave her full attention to the red-head. She took in a breath of air to disguise her sudden ending. "But maybe we are just looking in the wrong area."

"Pretty sure she was talking about the harbor on the Bullhead," Jaune returned. "I mean, she even mentioned the store with the fish. Even I want to find that store now. All this searching is getting me hungry now." He scratched his forehead while bending his neck, trying to duck his face from view. Pyrrha smiled to him, silently.

"It has only been a little over half-an-hour since we arrive, and that is not counting moving through the crowd," Pyrrha began to list. It was no different that summing up what an opponent had to offer. Listing the details removed the unknowns. It made situations easier to deal with. "So it's very likely we simply haven't spent enough time looking for them yet. After all, knowing Nora, they're probably moving around as much as we are.

"Can't argue with that," Jaune spoke with his usual grin, the smile he gave whenever someone helped him relieve some of his stress. Pyrrha would have bore the weight of his world entire for him to continue to smile like that. "Guess that just means we have to find a good place to look from then. I mean, stall hopping was a good idea, but I think it'd take us the rest of the day to get through them all."

He wasn't wrong, Pyrrha knew that. There had to be at least four or five dozen stalls, all of them packed with tourists and Vale locals looking to enjoy cuisine or activities from beyond their borders. It was like the Mistral tournament in that regard.

The crowd was certainly shifting too much to mark any one area 'searched'. Pyrrha was even willing to bet that a few of the stall managers she'd spoken to wouldn't even recognize her.

"Well… maybe we should find some higher ground," she suggested, tactics moving through her head again. "It may be hard to find them at eye level, but Nora's red hair and Ren's outfit would make them easier to see in a crowd." It made sense in her mind, the only trouble was finding 'higher' ground.

This was not some foreign land they were searching through. This was Vale Harbor.

"How about the stage?" Pyrrha looked at Lana, watching the blue haired girl point over the crowd.

The stage was just that, a stage. It wasn't the kind of platform Pyrrha would find herself on, not normally at least. This one was more akin to a performer's stage, up high and showing off whoever stood on it. Pyrrha was up there whenever an announcement was made of her victory. The speakers were set up to the far sides, a few smaller ones secured atop a metal frame up high, and a steel reverse-amphitheater was built around it all. Its purpose was obvious, to keep all attention to those standing on the stage.

"It's huge," Jaune spoke up. "But I really don't think they're selling food over there." Pyrrha giggled at his words. At the very least, he wasn't wrong.

"Food? Oh! I wasn't talking about Ren and Nora," Lana quickly clarified, her hands waving in front of her as she spoke. "I was asking what it was for. I thought your festival was over in the woods, at least that's where Ozpin told me." Was that Link talking? Must have been. Pyrrha was honestly glad. It was easier to talk to Link then a girl she didn't recognize.

"It's a secondary location," Pyrrha explained. She had seen it before at the Mistral Grand Tournament. "When there is too much traffic in one area, they host another event to keep the crowd entertained. They usually play music or some other kind of show."

"Oh! Oh! I wanna try!"

Lana shouted as she jumped waving her hands to and fro. Pyrrha felt a pit in her stomach grow. That wasn't good.

"Uh, Lana?" Jaune spoke up. Oh, please let him have a good idea. "There isn't anything going on right now. The tournament is postponed, so they are doing anything." Right, that was a good point. Pyrrha felt a bit of the pit in her stomach fill at her leader's words.

"Then why is that guy moving around up there? Is he cleaning?" Pyrrha already felt a bit of dread as she followed Lana's hand, pointing back on the stage. There was a man wearing the white clothing of the maintenance crew, moving and setting up wires to devices Pyrrha couldn't see.

If it were Link, Pyrrha was sure she could convince him to merely watch or come back later. If Tatl or Tael were here, they would probably be able to talk sense into whomever of Link's friends were present. But Lana… Lana appeared to be like Nora in front of an enemy Grimm. Only gods themselves could sway her.

"He's… doing maintenance," Pyrrha answered carefully. "He's probably trying to make sure all the equipment is still okay. If something were to happen to it before the tournament was back on track, they'd have to replace or move it."

"Then let's help him!" What?

Pyrrha looked to Jaune for an answer to the obvious question. He only looked as bewildered as she felt. It wasn't a moment later she felt her hand being gripped by Lana once more, led off towards the stage.

"I bet if we do a bit of a show up there, that'll prove everything's A-Okay!" What!?

"Wait, Lana!" Jaune yelled. A few people in the crowd turned to look at them, but Pyrrha couldn't feel even the slightest regret at hit. Stopping Lana was priority one. "We're not supposed to go up there! Yo-Yo-You have to have clearance, a-and a security pass, and bunch of other things!"

"Then we'll aaaask nicely!" Lana skipped, skipped towards the stage. Pyrrha was nearly falling over her feet, dragged by her hand and weaving through the crowd. "Why wouldn't they be happy to see us trying to help them? I bet they'll be super thankful!"

No, they wouldn't. Vale didn't work like that. The real world didn't work like that!

"Besides, up there we can definitely look for Nora and Ren. I bet they'll come running to us when they see us up there!" That was… no, wait, that was bad. Was she suggesting they all go up there?! Pyrrha was feeling the onset of a minor panic attack, the kind she might have after being thrown on stage fresh from a fight.

"This is a really bad idea, Lana!" Jaune was yelling. Oh thank the Dust he was saying that. "C'mon, please think about this!" Despite his words, or the lack of weight behind them, they were still closing on the stage. No that wasn't right. They were there.

"It's a great idea!" Lana countered. Pyrrha was beginning to pray to whomever would listen for Link to talk since to his friend. She loathed the idea that he endorsed this line of action. "We'll find Ren and Nora and I get to see what the stage is like here. How can a bad plan have so many upsides?"