AN: Overwhelming majority for those who want to skip initiation and some of the actions scenes. Thank you all for the support you have shown for this story and for me.
"Russel Thrush. Cardin Winchester. Dove Bronzewing. Sky Lark. The four of you retrieved the black bishop pieces. From this day forward, you will work together as Team CRDL, led by... Cardin Winchester!" Several in the audience gave a standing ovation as the four students walked off the stage.
"Jaune Arc. Lie Ren. Pyrrha Nikos. Nora Valkyrie. The four of you retrieved the white rook pieces. From this day forward, you will work together as Team JNPR. Led by… Jaune Arc!" Pyrrha bumped Jaune's shoulder congratulating him while Nora jumped on to Ren. The team had bonded quite well
"Finally: Blake Belladonna. Ruby Rose. Weiss Schnee. Yang Xiao Long." Ozpin motioned over the four as they stand before him. Weiss had stood proudly, fully expected to be named as the team leader. "The four of you retrieved the white knight pieces. From this day forward, you will work together as Team RWBY. Led by... Ruby Rose!"
"Yay, sis! I'm so proud of you!" Ruby was desperately trying to breathe as gave her a bear hug.
"Now, normally hunters-in-training are divided into just four-man teams." Jace stared tentatively at the headmaster. He did not want to be put in the spotlight. It will only cause a lot of teen boys to try to one-up him in order to impress girls. "But with the current resurgence of Grimms, four hunters are no longer sufficient for many missions. As such we are introducing a specialist rank for Hunters-in-training, The Ranger."
"This rank will only be awarded to those whom showed extraordinary skill in the field." Jaune also realized what Ozpin was doing and smiled at Jace, who just lightly shook his head. "Rangers will be sent on high risk mission and if needed, will reinforce standard four member teams in heavy combat. That being said, I am proud to introduce our first Ranger, Jace Arc!"
The crowd cheered as Jace stood up and smiled.
Ruby was running laps around Jace as the teens walked towards their dorms. "You were awesome! I mean you took down the deathstalker all by yourself!"
Jace cracked a slight grin at the childish team leader. During the initiation, he had smashed the De Guerre against the skull of an ancient deathstalker and somehow caved it, resulting in the Grimms death. "Nah, my brother and his girlfriend did all of leg work. I just cleaned up." Pyrrha and Jaune blushed profusely while Ruby continued to circle around the black haired prince. Yang's smile slightly faltered at the implications. She did not know why, but it bothered her.
"Well I have to go now. My dorm is this way." Jace's scroll rang again, "oh Jaune, we got a package from home, come later."
Jaune got the message immediately, "Yeah, I just need to unpack. Hope Josephine sent some more of her delicious pies."
Jace said good bye to everyone in the group and then proceeded to wherever his scroll is taking him.
He walked along the side of the dorm building, across the Maze garden to the side. The teen could hear the commotion inside the building as his fellow students excitedly got into their own team dorms. Soon, he reached the end of the dorm building. Perpendicular to the residential building was the dining hall, and right next to that, facing the garden to Jace's right was a house.
A manor to be exact.
"Are you serious?" Jace had to check that his scroll actually pointed to that building. And sure enough, the blue pathway on the GPS ended exactly the front door of the three story tall mansion.
All of the windows on the mansion are tainted so none could see into them. Its walls were made of ashen grey stones, adorned with thick ivy, and sculpted with intricate designs and words in a language Jace does not know. The gate was monstrous in its design and decorated as if the maw of a monster, waiting for its prey. A roundabout formed by shrubbery in front of the house, as it flowed out of the garden adjacent to the dorms.
The prince approached the building slowly, taking in all of magnificence of its construction. As he got to the door, a blue hologram on the door lit up, and the words "Place scroll here" lit up.
"Well, this is new." Jace had noted that none of the other dorms had scroll scanners. It is probably used for covert planning or safe keeping.
The hologram flashed green and the doors automatically opened.
Inside, the atmosphere was hollow, deserted even. It wasn't dusty or eerie, but the lack of lighting casted a darkened tone on the interior. There is a main lobby very much like the palace back in Arcadia: a sweeping staircase built of hardwood and embroidered with gold along with a large chandelier above a circular emblem, imbued into the floor. The emblem was one of a phoenix.
"Not bad. Not bad at all." Jace looked around, trying to find the light switch. A quick search and proved fruitful as the teen found what he was looking for on the other side of the lobby, next to a swinging staircase and a passage to another room.
As Jace crossed the room, he quickly sent a message to his brother, informing the latter of his housing location. As he turned on the lights, Jace peered into the other room. It was a fully equipped kitchen. "Actually, this is pretty nice."
The black haired prince had just gotten some refreshments out of the refrigerator when his phone started ringing.
Bzzzzz. Jaune Arc is at the door. Bzzzz
The message was followed with a live feed from the front door above two buttons, one read Open, and the other, Lock.
"Jace?" Seconds after the younger brother pressed the open button, his older sibling called from the door.
"In here!"
"Man, why do you always get to live in fancy places?" Jaune shook his head as Jace tossed a drink to him. The blonde knight had taken off his armor and was wearing his hoodie and jeans. "It's the same with that little place you got in Havensward."
"Hey, I am not the one who lives in a literal palace." Jace smirked back. "Oh, by the way, you still owe me for that deathstalker."
Jaune was in a bit of a bind when he and Pyrrah angered the deathstalker and he was forced to promise Jace one thing if the younger brother took cared of the Grimm. "Fine. What do you want me to do?"
Jace smiled deviously "I want you to ask out the Heiress."
"Why?" Jaune did not hate Weiss, it's just that he can't not stand arrogant people.
The younger brother just maintained his grin.
"Fine."
As soon as Jaune agreed, Jace added more conditions on, "Oh, by the way, you have to continue until you successfully get a full date out of her."
"Wait! What?"
"Hey, you agreed to to it."
"Fine, so what did you call me here to actually talk about?" Jaune decided to move on and sat down on one of the high stand chairs by the island. "I take it this torture is not the only thing you have to tell me."
"Yeah, hold up." Jace's smirk disappeared as he took out a small gadget the size of a large marble and put it onto the table. As soon as the device touched the table, it activates with a blue glow. "Ozpin is probably listening on this conversation."
"Ok, what is this about?"
"Winchester is going to announce new policy allowing Arcadia to secede. Ozpin wants to connect it to the CCT grid while keeping the old private system. Also he want to inviting Arcadian hunters to attend the Vytal Festival."
Jaune absorbed the information without saying a word.
"What do you think we should do?" Jace spent most of his time operating in the field, so when it came to politics, he relied on Jaune's advice.
"We should go along with him. Ozpin doesn't care for the council, he is after some old timey mission of his own." Jaune paused to think for a second. "Also I will continue mobilizing our covert field ops, while dad gather allies in Vacuo and Mistral."
"I can't help you with that anymore. Ozpin has me on a tight leash intelligence gathering."
"I don't mind that as much. One question though, who are we up against?"
"One of Ozpin's old friends apparently." Jace just finished his sentence when his scroll started to ring again. Someone else was knocking on the door.
"Well speaking of the devil." The live feed showed the headmaster at the gate of the manor. Jace quickly put the jamming device back into his pocket before pressing open. "Let's get going."
As the brothers walked into the main lobby they were greeted by the professor walking with his signature cane.
"Hello Mr. Arc, I see you have already gotten quite comfortable with your new arrangement." Ozpin smirked slightly at the blonde prince holding his drink.
"Well, it is all thanks to your excellent hospitality, Headmaster." Jaune did not falter at the provocation.
"Well, just don't let the soft life get to you, it is quite the temptation."
"How can we help you, Professor?" Jace interrupted the faux exchange.
"Well, I would like to discuss about your first assignment." Ozpin chose to be straight forward. Lying to his allies is always a risk, one that often backfired on him in the past.
"What about it?" Jaune was about to ask to leave, but both Jace and Ozpin motioned for him to stay.
"I have a suggestion as to where to start." Ozpin leaned onto his cane. "Not far from the business district is an area filled with poor residents. They are primarily Faunus and White Fang support is strong in that region."
"May I take one of the students with me?" Jace also leaned on to the railing of the swinging staircase.
"Who do you have in mind?"
"Blake Belladonna."
His dark grey eyes, shined amusingly.