"Did everyone rest up?"

"If you think ten minutes are enough to rest up, then yeah."

Jaune sighed at Yang's respond. He knew ten minutes ain't enough to replenish all of their strength. Unfortunately, he also knew that the more time they wasted here, they will give more time for other Grimm to attack them or, worse, criminals finding them again.

At least my finger's fixed, Jaune thought as he fixed his helmet once more. I'm throwing this away tomorrow but for Nora's sake, I'll wear them until we get back to school.

Jaune decided to find a different location from their previous spot, where the knocked down criminals were still laying around. Hopefully they haven't woken up and even if they did, I hope they go somewhere else and not here.

Everyone, at the moment, had all rested up and restored whatever strength they could muster. Even Ruby had regained consciousness in that ten minutes period. She stayed close to Yang, holding onto her if she ever passed out again.

She's been quiet ever since… I hope she's okay.

"It'll be better than the enemies finding us. The more time we waste, the more risk we will be taking," Arslan said, in respond to Yang.

Thank you, Arslan. Such a dear.

"I know, I know…" Yang sighed. "Just frustrated, is all."

"Understandable but now it's not the time to be wasting time dwelling on something trivial. We need to focus on the task at hand."

"Yeah, yeah! I know!" Yang, started to get more frustrated, said to her.

"Um, guys… Please don't fight," Jaune said, eyeing the two if one of them decided to start a fight against one another.

"I don't understand why we would start a fight," Arslan said, blinking twice at him as if he said something weird. "I found nothing wrong with what I just said."

"No… But I wish you wouldn't be so blunt," Jaune said, smiling awkwardly at her. In return, she smiled awkwardly as well.

"I see, I apologize," Arslan bowed her head towards Yang. "I will try to be more tactful moving forward."

Yang looked to be dumbfounded for a moment. She was probably surprised by Arslan's sudden action, because Jaune also felt the same. "Well… As long as you realized your mistake, we're good."

The others looked upon the two and their interaction. He couldn't speak for the others but for him, this seemed weird.

"Well… That was a thing," Reese chipperly chimed in. Glad I'm not the only one feeling that way.

"Okay, now what?" Ren asked, Nora stayed close to him. They still managed to stay together even when they got teleported. Not even the world seems to be able to separate the two.

"We need to go back to the gate, hoping others will be there as well as the teachers," Jaune said. "Question is; How?"

"But what if we go there, the teachers and the rest of our friends aren't there? What if the criminals are already waiting for us there?" Weiss questioned, still not on board with Jaune's idea. Can't blame her but right now, we don't have much choice.

Step

Step

The sound of sudden footsteps towards them and all of the students presented pulled out their weapons, eyeing the approaching newcomer; One of theirs.

"Calm down, guys. It's me," said Dove as he walked towards them, eyebrow furrowed. He was probably annoyed by the fact all of them thought he was an enemy.

"Sorry, Dove. We're a bit jumpy right now," Reese said, apologizing on behalf of them.

"After what I just experienced, can't blame you," Dove said casually as he stood right next to her and Cardin. "I got ambush by a couple of Beowolves. After finishing them off, walked straight and ended up meeting with you guys."

"Lucky! We got to fight a lot of Grimm and criminals," Reese puffed out her cheeks in annoyance. "It's very tiring!"

"Ish… Sound like a pain, if you ask me," Dove commented. "Guess I got lucky, then."

While that small talk turned into a full-blown conversation with everyone, a certain thought plagued Jaune's mind.

"Hey, Cardin," Jaune called out, which surprised Cardin himself. "Your Semblance can alter your body into steel, right?

Cardin stayed silent and continued on glaring while Reese looked between the two nervously.

"Look, I know you still hate me but back when we teamed up just a few moments ago, you didn't shove me out," Jaune said, staring right into his eyes, backing down wasn't an option for the Arc boy. "That means, you're willing to help me but you won't speak to me unless you want to. Is that about right?"

Cardin stayed silent throughout but Jaune knew he had caught his attention.

"I learned from Ruby that Pyrrha's Semblance is Polarity; An ability to control metal. Now, what I want you to do is to alter your arm and try to find any sort of thing that feels like a magnet. If there's one, then we know where she is and hopefully the others will be there as well."

Cardin didn't mutter a word during that and proceed to do exactly what he was instructed.

Jaune let a small smile graced his face. Glad he's still willing to work with me. It might be hard to fully have his trust again but it's not impossible.

Tap

With his shoulder touched, Jaune looked back to see Reese smiling back. She was happy that the two could somewhat worked together, even if Cardin didn't say anything.

Reese proceed to stay beside Cardin and waited for any sort of signal from him.

"I didn't know you two hated each other," Yang said as she walked towards Jaune and stood right next to him.

"No, only he hates me, I don't," Jaune responded.

"Now I know why you defended him back at the mess hall," Weiss chimed in on the conversation. "The thought of you and that guy having a history did not crossed my mind in the slightest."

"Can't blame you," Jaune replied back. "He made it very clear he didn't tolerate my existence back then."

"Got one!" Reese called out to them. True to her word, Jaune noticed that Cardin's arm was visibly shaking, clearly indicating that it was being pulled by some sort of magnet.

"Okay, guys! Let's move!" Jaune exclaimed and all of them started walking towards the direction where Cardin founded the signal.

O - O - O - O - O

All of them walked quietly and all readied themselves if any enemies, be it Grimm or criminals, decided to attack them.

Cardin and Reese up front, the rest followed suit.

As Jaune walked, he noticed Ruby was being quiet throughout the entire walk. She even stood further behind Yang, making the older girl throwing a few worried glances towards the younger girl.

He slowed his pace to match hers.

Once she registered that Jaune was walking beside her, she looked up. Jaune smiled at her but he only got a half-assed one in return.

"You okay?" Jaune asked.

"… Yeah, I'm fine," she tried to reassure, but even she herself wasn't convinced with what she just said.

"Really? Is that why you've been so quiet, so far?" Jaune asked, noticing Yang herself slowed down her pace with the two and walked beside Ruby, the opposite side of Jaune.

"You noticed, huh?" Ruby let out a deep sigh. God, she's too young to feel that old.

"I might not look like it, but I noticed a lot of things when I need to," Jaune explained and maybe for the first time, felt pride in his observing nature.

"Really, now? I wondered what other things you noticed," Yang chimed in, crossing her arms underneath her- Nope! You're not getting me, Yang!

"What?! No! No! No! That's not the things that I noticed!" Jaune, red in the face, turned his face away from Yang, causing her to burst out laughing.

"Aww~ Am I not to your liking? I'm sure I can change your mind if you and I give it a go," GOD, HELP ME! THIS GIRL IS TRYING TO CORRUPT THIS PURE HEART OF MINE!

"Argh! Stop, stop, stop, stop!" Jaune shook his head, trying to get the naughty thoughts out of his mind. He would not be corrupt by the temptation of lust and he would make his mother proud, damnit!

Then, they heard the sound of giggles; Ruby's giggles.

Jaune smiled down on the younger girl giggling away. Gone was the quiet act and now the exchanges between the two made the girl they knew to return. He and Yang looked to one another and both smiled happily, knowing their exchanges worked, even if was unintentional.

"Ready to talk about what's gotten you quiet?" Jaune asked once again, trying to find answer for her sudden change of behavior.

Ruby sighed, probably knowing he won't stop until he got something out of her, "It's just… When everyone was fighting, I was on the ground, passed out. Not only that but I had to be protected by Nadir too, just like during the Entrance Exam. I just felt so worthless."

Jaune wanted to interject but Yang stopped him with nothing but a single glance, knowing her sister wasn't finish talking.

"I'm an idiot," Ruby continued. "I used up my Semblance at full power just to kill off the Grimm. Then I ended up missing the rest of the criminals back then. All because I wanted to prove I can do it, that I'm not someone to be protected. Then, I got too exhausted and passed out, leaving the three of you to fight them.

"I feel like I don't belong to be here."

Jaune had no idea that Ruby felt that way.

"You know what, Ruby?" Jaune said, catching her silver eyes. "You are an idiot."

That caused two types of reaction; 1. Ruby to widen her silver eyes, making it rounder than before. 2. Yang's red eyes glaring back at him, as if she would make his day a living Hell if he didn't pick his next words correctly.

"H-hear me out!" Jaune nervously tried to subdue the situation so that Ruby won't cry and Yang to punch him.

"The reason why I called you an idiot because you didn't need to prove anything," Ruby was surprised by that, clearly wasn't expecting that. "Just because you're two years younger than us, doesn't mean you have to prove anything. You got here for a reason Ruby, know that."

"But-"

"No but! Ozpin saw something in you that not a lot of people could," That's true for me too. "You got in here and that's enough proof to tell you that you do belong. Sure, you got knocked over once or twice but so did I. Hell, I broke my entire right arm punching that Goliath back at the Entrance Exam and when I was fighting Cardin.

"The road gets bumpy every now and then but that doesn't mean you won't arrive at your destination. You don't have to prove anything to us, you just have to fight with us. Okay?"

Ruby kept on staring back at him, all the while following the rest of their friends.

Ruby looked down and wiped some of the tears that started to come out. "Thank you, Jaune. I really need that. Thank you so much."

Jaune nodded to her and looked back to Yang, who was finally stopped glaring and started to gently smile at him.

"Didn't know you were good with words, Jaune. It feels like you're an older brother talking to a younger sister," Yang commented, smile still presented. "Do you have a younger brother or sister back home?"

"Ahh… No, I don't," Jaune said. "But I did a lot of practice, though."

"Practice? What do you mean-!"

"DUCK!"

With a sudden shout from Cardin, we all did what was instructed. All of a sudden, an Ursa was sent flying pass them, knocking down some of the trees of the forest. The Ursa then evaporated into nothing, leaving behind ashes of what once a bear-like Grimm. Jaune looked up only to widen his eyes, surprised.

He saw the gate of the Emerald Forest, so Jaune plan came to fruition, even if it was unexpected. The rest of their friends and teachers were also there, as well as the criminals and Grimm. Everyone was at a clearing near the gate and were too busy fighting to notice the approaching group.

"So, all of us are here. Great," Nadir nonchalantly commented.

Jaune analyzed the situation at hand, both good and bad. His father was fighting against four criminals and they seemed a lot better than the criminals they fought before. Professor Port was fending off more criminal, about fifteen of them, alone. His aunt was sending Grimm flying left and right, but the problem was there was a barrage of them.

She's going to be exhausting if they keep on piling up.

The students, on the other hand, had it a bit easier. Pyrrha was fighting off against a couple of criminals herself, but she seemed obviously exhausted. Bolin and Russel joined together and faced off against multiple Grimm. Sky was protecting Blake on the ground, probably injured, eyeing up any enemies nearby.

"Okay, I got a plan," Jaune looked back to his friends, gaining all of their attention. "Ruby, you're on sniper duty. Find a high ground and stay put. If you find any of the enemies gaining an advantage during the fight, you shoot them but don't kill them."

With that, she can protect others without needing protection.

Jaune looked directly into Ruby's eyes, "Think you can do it?"

"You got it, Jaune!" Ruby exclaimed, already on the move to find her spot.

"Arslan, Yang, you guys go on and help Bolin and Russel. When you guys are done with that, go help with the others." both of them nodded, accepting their roles rather quickly.

"Jaune, I want to fight with Pyrrha," Dove interjected, causing Jaune to be surprised for about a moment before gaining his composure. "I know how she fights, that makes me worthy of fighting alongside her."

Jaune thought it through for a moment and nodded, "Okay, but you're taking Cardin with you."

Dove nodded, not finding the request to be a hindrance.

"Weiss, Reese, you two help out with Professor Goodwitch," Reese nodded automatically, while Weiss seemed to be hesitant. Then, Jaune added, "I'm sure if you help her, she'll give you extra credit."

Just like that, Weiss agreed to the plan. She's too obvious, sometimes.

"Nadir, since I know you hate doing something for too long and too much," with that, Nadir perked up. "So, you're going to cover Blake while she's recovering, and Sky will look after both of you."

Nadir suddenly grabbed hold of Jaune's hand, grip tight.

"Thank you," Nadir simply said and Jaune simply nodded, giving him a thumbs up.

"Ren, Nora," Even I can't seem to separate the two! What the Hell?! "You'll be with Professor Port. Do be careful not to get in his way, he seems like someone who appreciates his masterpiece and don't want to be bothered. Just take out the people that's he not focusing on."

"Aye, aye, Fearless Leader!" Nora saluted and Ren nodded. They really come in one single package. If you get one of them, you're getting both of them.

"What about you, Jaune?" Ren questioned.

"Me? I'm gonna fight with my Dad," Jaune looked towards his father, still fighting against the four criminals. "I've been my Dad's partner for quite some time now, so I know exactly how he fights. Beside, he only got four criminals on him, I think I can manage."

Jaune looked back, eyes serious.

"Move out!"

O - O - O - O - O

Of all things, I have to get myself injured.

Blake thought as she tried to increase the rate of her regenerative process. A lone Beowolf managed to leave a deep cut from its claw, after exhausted herself from using her Semblance.

Now, she was on the ground while Sky was guarding her as she was recovering.

Step

Step

Blake and Sky looked over to their left and found Nadir was running towards them, riffle ready if any of the enemies decided to ambush them.

Knowing who was approaching, Sky turned back and said, "You're late."

"Hey, don't blame me. We were sent away far away from here. Trust me, it's frustrating for us as much as it was for you," Nadir said, as he started creating a barrier around Blake.

"Us?" Blake questioned.

"Yeah, the rest of the gang's here," true to Nadir's words, Blake saw the rest of her classmates helping the rest of the people at the clearing. "Sky, use your Semblance and fog us."

"I don't know… I don't want to use more of my Aura as I already am," Sky replied, eyes always focused.

"Don't worry. If you used up your Aura, we'll still have mine," Nadir said, riffle pointed at every directions with tiny holes in the barrier.

"If you say so," with that, Sky activated his Semblance and thick smoke started to come out of his body, fogging them from any other eyes. Blake had seen him used his Semblance back at Combat Class and as fast as it came, the match was over.

"And you," Nadir looked down to Blake, gaining her attention back. "We're doing this for you. So, you better speed up your recovery."

"Glad that you're treating me so delicately," Blake said, sarcasm on full blast.

"Good," Nadir nonchalantly replied.

Blake shook her head, smirking while speeding her regenerative process twice as fast. Two people were protecting her, she had to make their work worth it.

O - O - O - O - O

"Hey, Yang~, how're you doing?"

"Not the time, Russel!"

Yang said as she punched away a few Beowolves away from them at the moment. Arslan and Bolin was fighting at their side while she and Russel were at the other side. Why do I have to be his partner, right now?

Arslan and Bolin seemed to be comfortable fighting next to each other. When Arslan done striking an opponent with her palm strike, Bolin will come in and finished it off with his staff. They're synergy is ama-!

"Duck!"

A sudden shout from Russel managed to make Yang avoid the incoming slash from a nearby Ursa. Damn! What a rookie mistake! I've should've been more cautious. Stupid, Yang!

Before the Ursa could launched back, however, it was attacked by multiple throwing knife, courtesy of Russel Thrush.

"You're welcome," with a grin, he went back to attacking the rest of the Grimm.

At least he's useful for something.

O - O - O - O - O

They just keep on coming… At this rate, I'll be too exhausted to help the others.

Pyrrha thought as she continued to fight off the criminals, all of them seemed compatible with their katanas. Some got knocked out but there's still some that were stubborn enough to fight on.

I'm getting more exhausted by the minutes. I should have one of us help me. Damn my pride!

One of them decided to attack but before he managed to get a hit in, a sword blocked the attack, a familiar one.

"Having a tough time?"

She looked over to her protector and it was Dove with Cardin started fighting against one of the criminals.

"Not at all," Just thank him! Pride, come on!

"Of course, you're not," Dove shoved off the criminal, getting a few distance away from them.

Out of all people, Dove wasn't the one I think will come to help. Especially, after our last encounter.

Pyrrha and Dove readied themselves, more confident knowing she's now had a better chance on surviving this battle with the criminals, even if Cardin decided to fight on his own.

O - O - O - O - O

"Professor! We're here to help you!" Nora shouted as both her and Ren ran towards the axe-swinging Beacon's professor. Ren shook his head, smirking at how Nora always announcing their presence.

"Oh? Oh!" Professor Port looked back and, somehow, smiled down on them as he threw one of the criminals into another criminal, knocking them down. "Students! How are you doing in this fine hour?"

"Never been better!" Nora exclaimed, grinning ear to ear. "We're here to help you!"

"Nora," Ren called out. "I think he heard you the first time."

"Ha ha ha!" Professor Port heartily laughed as he swung his axe once more when another criminal tried to attack him. "I appreciate your assistance! But do be warn, when I got into the groove of things, I may not notice any of you. So please be careful when you're fighting around me."

"Aye, aye, Professor!" Nora saluted, started swinging her giant hammer at the criminals.

Ren shook his head and started shooting down at the criminals.

O - O - O - O - O

"Girls, I appreciate your help, but I'll appreciate it even more if we-!"

"Reese! We need to deal with the one on the ground first!"

"Die, Nevermore!"

"… work together," Goodwitch sighed, sending another Boarbatusk flying into an Ursa. She truly appreciated their help but if the two couldn't work together, this would take longer than usual to finish.

It all started with Reese decided to go airborne and wind shooting the angered Nevermore. Then, Weiss decided to chastise the young lady for her reckless abundance.

Now, all three of them were doing their own task.

I don't know why but for some reason, I want to scold Jaune for sending me these two.

O - O - O - O - O

Finding a comfortable space on one of the forest's tree's branches, Ruby laid down on her belly as she adjusted Crescent Rose.

"You got here for a reason Ruby, know that."

What Jaune said to her a moment ago kept on repeating in her mind, as if on loop. It baffled her how a simple sentence could be lingering in her mind and kept on replaying it.

I know he said I don't need to prove anything, but I still feel like I do.

She sighted her target through Crescent Rose's scope; An Ursa fighting against Weiss and she seemed to be struggling a bit.

Target; Head. Wind; East. Distance; Proximately 1040m. Angle; 30 degree.

After analyzing her shot, she took a moment to stabilize her weapon to have a clear shot. Once she was 100% sure she would make the shot, she took it.

BANG!

Through her sniper scope, she saw how the Ursa fell down. She also saw how Weiss looked around her, clearly confused as to why the Ursa died so suddenly.

Ruby chuckled as that was the usual reaction she got whenever she made her shot, Yang herself had made the same reaction.

But I'll prove myself by doing my best. I won't make any reckless attack again. I will hold my own weight instead of being a dead one.

I'll make Yang, Dad, Uncle Qrow and Jaune proud. I'll make you proud, Mom.

O - O - O - O - O

These four are clearly on a different league compared to the rest of the criminals.

Jackson dodged a barrage of kicks from one of the criminals while simultaneously blocking attacks from a goddamn umbrella. I swear, criminals these days are getting too creative with their weaponry.

"Feeling tired yet, Mr. Huntsman?" the previous female asked, trying to provoke the veteran Huntsman.

"Please, this is considered normal Tuesday for me," Mouth! What are you doing?!

"Well, I guess we just have to up the pace, then," Me and my big mouth! Hopefully Jaune doesn't get that from me.

A sudden cane came up to him while Jackson was busy with the ongoing attacks from the two criminals.

Clang!

A sword knocked the cane away from the veteran, a familiar sword. Noticing the distraction, Jackson pushed away the two criminals. He then turned around to see his savior, only to be greeted with a dark slit on a sallet helmet. Then, upon seeing that, his instinct took over.

"Argh!" he screamed, quiet scared at the look of the person's helmet.

"Calm down! It's me, damnit!" his savior shouted, a familiar voice coming out of his mouth. Wait… That's-

"Jaune! It's you! Sorry, I didn't know since-!"

Before Jackson could finish his sentence, he blocked an attack by one of the male criminals with his sword. Jaune did the same as a female criminal used a flame blade from behind his father.

Both father and son protected each other.

"We'll talk later! Let's finish these guys off!" his son shouted, determination in his voice.

"Damn right!"

Now… Time to make my son proud!

O - O - O - O - O

Hello!

I hope you enjoyed reading the latest chapter!

First, I'm deeply sorry for the late update. I have some personal issue I have to deal with, and I can't be bother with writing this story for quite some time. Also, after the finale of RWBY Volume 6, I was left disappointed. That also contributes with my writing pace. It feels like I'm losing my passion for this series as a whole and not just RWBY Fanfiction.

But I'll try to put that disappointment to the back of my head and continue writing this story.

I'll do my best!

Oh! The whole gang is here! Hooray! If you noticed, I sprinkled some things in this chapter that will come later on in the story. Some already established relationship, certain characteristics and all that jazz.

Had any criticism? Please, by all means, leave a review. Criticism is always welcome.

Again, thank you for reading.