Luckily for Talon and Michael, the students were changing by the time they arrived in the ballroom. Talon scanned the room and saw Professor Port moving a chair to rest next to two chairs that he had presumably already placed there. "Well, our 'punishment' begins." He and Michael shared a smile. Glynda really could've picked a better punishment for the two boys. Michael had pulled all nighters many times back in Atlas when he was in a bar or when training under Talon's direction. Talon, being a scientist, would sometimes stay up for weeks before sleeping. This was something they were accustomed to. "Go report in to Professor Port. I'll be there in a bit." Michael nodded, then jogged over to the three chairs. Talon walked around the ballroom twice. Once to get a feel for how big the room was, and once more to put cameras in spots that would give him the best view of all of the students. On his second round of the room, he walked past a girl sitting against one of the walls reading. The girl was wearing a black, long sleeved, yukata-style shirt with white edging over a purple undershirt, and a matching skirt. A black obi was wrapped around her waist and tied with a black and white string. The girl had a black bow in her hair. He wasn't sure, but he thought he saw the bow twitch the tiniest bit. I must be imagining things. He threw his last camera on the arch of a window next to the girl. It made a whirring sound that was barely audible unless he listened closely. Surprisingly, the girl looked up right at the camera. She looked a little irritated as she shifted her gaze to him. Her eyes… The amber eyes that looked back at him looked like gems. Talon didn't- couldn't- break eye contact. Talon, don't stare. The girl spoke before he could find words.

"Could you move that camera, please?" Talon felt stupid. He felt like his thoughts were being carried by snails.

Come on, Talon. You've stared down 10 Ursai without flinching. You stopped Archangel- almost for good. You've faced an angry Weiss multiple times. Don't tell me you're going to let a girl's pretty eyes defeat you. Say something. "How can you hear it? My senses are heightened beyond a normal human's senses, and I can barely hear it." He noticed the bow twitch again. Wait… Is she… The girl lowered her book a little bit.

"I guess my senses are a bit better. Now, about that camera…" Talon managed to look at the camera. Now that he wasn't looking her in the eye, his thoughts came sharper and clearer. He recalled one of his lessons to Rie.

"Remember, Rie, control. Control is key." Boy, I wish I could put that into practice right now… Ok, time for a bit of mental meditation. Talon pictured a dull, dirty sword floating over a pond. The water rose and enveloped the sword. Lightning erupted from inside the water, and the water fell away. When the lightning ceased, the sword was covered in flame. A wind blew from the east and blew the fire out. The blade was now gleaming white with light from within. The light pulsed as darkness came from all around. The sword seemed to draw in the darkness, and the light and darkness mixed. The sword, once barely a weapon, was now an embodiment of the most powerful weapons of all: balance and control. The entire exercise lasted only a few moments, but it was enough for Talon to rein in his emotions. He looked back at the girl, only this time he was in control of himself. "I'm sorry, Ms…" The girl looked him in the eyes.

"Blake Belladonna."

"Thank you. I'm sorry, Ms. Belladonna, but I cannot move the camera without sufficient reason. Do you have a reason that I should?" Blake narrowed her eyes at him.

"Because it is annoying and breaking my concentration. Could you kindly move it?" Talon made a point to observe her bow from the corner of his eye as he spoke.

"I really am sorry, but that is not a good enough reason." There! He saw what he was looking for. The bow undoubtedly twitched this time. Much like a cat's ears would twitch in agitation. She's a Faunus... Why is she hiding that? Talon thought to ask her, but decided against it. She probably has her reasons. The two stared at each other, then Blake sighed. She got up and walked a few feet away. Talon watched her as she sat down, and smiled. Now, that wasn't so hard, was it? Talon nodded to himself, then walked back to Michael and Port. Port looked as though he was trying very hard to fight a smile and avoided his eyes. Michael made no such effort; he was grinning mischievously and appeared to be making sure Talon noticed it. Oh boy. What now? Port spoke up first.

"You handled that situation well, it appears. You got her to move, at least." Talon thought he heard a little bit of mirth in the older man's voice. Why was that? Talon decided to ignore it and looked at Michael.

"And what are you grinning about? If he told a joke, I'd like to hear it." Michael shook his head, laughing a little bit.

"That's not it." Talon eyed his friend suspiciously.

"... Then what is it…?" Michael laughed some more, then put his hands in a form like he was holding a saxophone. Oh no… As Talon suspected, Michael started humming out a romantic song- which sounded a lot like Careless Whisper, if he wasn't mistaken. He nodded over to Blake as he "played" his song. Port couldn't hold it anymore and started laughing. Talon wasn't amused. "Oh, ha ha. Very funny." He said sarcastically. He would've hit Michael again, but he wasn't really mad at him. Oh sure, he was irritated, but not mad. "Can we be serious for a second? We" he pointed at himself and Michael "are being punished, remember? I don't think you making saxophone noises implying that I have a crush on one of the students is what Glynda had in mind." Michael stopped humming the song and laughed.

"I guess you're right, Talon. But you HAVE to tell me what happened over there." Talon remained neutral faced.

"Whatever do you mean, Michael?" Michael gave him a sly smile.

"Don't play that game. I noticed that you couldn't look away from her." Talon did a double take.

What!? Was I that apparent? If he noticed, then… His eyes shot over to where Blaken was. She wasn't looking at him or anything other than her book. Talon would've breathed a sigh of relief if it wouldn't have proven Michael's point. "It's just polite to look someone in the eye while you're talking to them. What's wrong with that?" Michael's smile got wider.

"Nothing. But that isn't why you didn't break eye contact, was it? I noticed you had to pretty much tear your eyes off of her. You like her, don't you?" Talon raised an eyebrow.

"Where do you get a silly notion like that? She's a student. I'm a teacher. Nothing would come of it." Michael looked like Talon said the funniest joke in the world. Port finally recovered from his laughter.

"Well, I think you should back off Professor Frost." Talon looked at Port.

"Thank you, Professor." Port nodded, then he started in on him.

"So, what about her do you like? Her eyes? Her hair? Can you see into her soul and like what you see?" Talon was fed up. He reached over and thumped Port on the forehead. Port mocked being hurt and dramatically rubbed his head. When Michael laughed, Talon thumped him too. After his annoyance was spent, he did find the subject matter a little bit funny. The three laughed and shifted the conversation onto other things.

Blake had her face buried in her book. She refused to look at the boy. Partly because she was irritated at the boy, but mainly because her face was beet red. Now that she wasn't arguing with him, she let her mind's eye linger on his features. He was SO handsome! I wish I had thought to ask his name. Oh well. I guess I'll have a chance to later this year. Blake realized she was swooning over a boy she had just met and knew nothing about. She also realised she didn't care. She felt her ears wanting to twitch in excitement. She willed them to stay still, but felt them twitch a few times. Not enough to give it away, but still. She needed to calm down. This wasn't like her. She'd met plenty of handsome boys in her life, and only one had made her feel this way before. She'd found out later that that particular boy wasn't who she thought he was. She didn't want a repeat of that. She took a deep breath and lowered her book a little bit. She started reading again, and noticed that it was getting too dark to read. She reached in her bag that she had brought with her and lit a candle. Much better. Now maybe I can read without any interruptions. As if on cue, she heard what sounded like that girl who got into an argument with Weiss earlier being forced to do something against her will. Blake lowered her book, then narrowed her eyes. The girl was being dragged by an older blonde girl. Will I ever be able to read this book?

"Hello!" the blonde called out in a sing-song manner. "I believe you two may know each other?" Blake knew the two weren't going to leave her alone unless she played along.

"Aren't you the girl who exploded?" She corrected her previous thought. The blonde wasn't going to leave her alone unless she played along. This girl looked like she wanted to be anywhere but here.

"Uh, yeah! My name's Ruby! But you can just call me Crater Fa… Actually you can just call me Ruby." The girl rubbed the back of her neck in embarrassment. It was kind of adorable.

"Ok," Blake said, laughing a little bit as she said it. She tried to get back to reading. She hoped the two girls would leave now that she had played her part. The blonde dashed her hopes.

"So… what's your name?" Blake sighed.

UGGGGHHHH! "Blake." The blonde wasn't taking the hint.

"Well Blake, I'm Yang. I'm Ruby's older sister! I like your bow!" Blake tired of this game. She was getting irritated.

"Thanks!" Now leave! Please! Her head started towards her book.

"It goes great with your… pajamas!" Was this girl stupid, desperate, or both?

"Right…" She tried to read again, and nearly threw her book at Yang when she spoke.

"Nice night, don't you think?" Blake was fed up at this point.

"Yes. It's lovely!` Almost as lovely as this BOOK!" The girls didn't get the hint, so she tried again. "That I will continue to READ." Again, they didn't get the hint. Fine, I'll have to spell it out for them it seems. "As soon as you LEAVE!" Thankfully, they both finally understood. Yang turned to Ruby.

"Yeah, this girl's a lost cause." Finally! Yang turned to start walking away.

"What's it about?" This caught Blake by surprise. She didn't expect Ruby to speak up at this point.

"Huh?"

"Your book. Does it have a name?" Blake didn't know how to react.

Well, what's the harm in telling her what it's about? "Well… it's about a man with two souls, each fighting for control over his body." Yang seemed like she wanted to leave.

"Oh yeah… That's… real lovely…" Ruby stepped forward while she spoke.

"I love books. Yang used to read to me every night before bed. Stories of heroes and monsters… They're one of the reasons I want to be a Huntress!" Blake laughed.

This girl is just too adorable! "And why is that? Hoping you'll live happily ever after?" Ruby shrugged.

"Well, I'm hoping we all will. As a girl, I wanted to be just like those heroes in the books… Someone who fought for what was right, and protected people who couldn't protect themselves." Blake smiled at the young girl.

"That's very ambitious for a child." Her smile melted into a frown as she remembered her own past. "Unfortunately, the real world isn't the same as a fairy tale." She looked up at Ruby.

"Well, that's why we're here! To make it better." Yang, who had been growing more and more proud of her sister as the conversation went on, looked ready to burst.

"Oh, I am so proud of my baby sister!" She hugged her. The two started fighting. Blake couldn't help but laugh at the two.

"Well, Ruby, Yang, it's been a pleasure-" She heard a very annoyed voice address the two sisters.

"What in the world is going on here!?" The two sisters stopped fighting and all three girls eyes were drawn to the newcomer. Correction, newcomers. One was Weiss Schnee, and she didn't know the other girl with her. The girl she didn't recognize spoke, rubbing her eyes.

"Yeah… Some of us are trying to sleep." She yawned after saying this. Weiss and Yang locked eyes and the two girls took a threatening step towards each other.

"Oh! Not you again!"

Yang was about to throw down with the stuck up princess- or heiress or whatever she was- when someone stepped in between them. She stopped dead when she saw the boy's white hair and tail. "Hey, Ice Queen." Yang nearly laughed when she heard Weiss stomp her foot.

"Michael! I said to stop calling me that!" Michael shook a finger at Weiss and clicked his tongue disapprovingly.

"Two things. One, I'll stop calling you Ice Queen when you stop acting like one. Two, it's Professor Frost now. Please try to remember that." Yang couldn't hold it in anymore. She nearly doubled over laughing. Michael led Weiss away towards a redheaded girl and left her there. Weiss started arguing at first, but stopped when he mentioned Talon's name. Rie was also laughing at this point. Michael walked back and got right in Yang's face. "Well, we meet again, Blondie."

Yang got her laughter under control and looked at the boy. "Well, normally I'd chew you out for that. However, considering what you did to Weiss, I'll let it slide. I want a rematch from you, by the way." The boy smiled.

"Sure thing, Blondie. I'll give you one right now if you want!" Yang smiled.

Well, I like the cut of his jib. I'll still have to humiliate him if I get the chance in response to what happened in Junior's… "Sure thing, Ice-Man. Let me get my Ember Celicas and we'll get started." Michael shook his head.

"Nope. We'll fight unarmed. Right here, right now." Yang's smile widened into one of excitement.

Oh, this will be fun! "Whenever you're ready Ice-Man." Everyone else backed off, making a sort of ring around the two.

"Bring it on Lava Girl!" Michael yelled. Yang was about to start moving towards Michael when she saw someone appear behind him. She heard a loud SMACK as the newcomer's hand collided with the side of Michael's head. Hard. "Ow! What was that for, man!?" Michael turned and looked at the newcomer. It was Talon Teknos.

"That was for two things; 1, starting a fight with a student and 2, yelling at a student. Now go back to Port." Michael raised a hand in protest.

"Look, she started it!" Talon gave him a flat stare.

"I don't care who started it. I'm finishing it. Now," He raised his arm and pointed to the opposite end of the room. "Go."

Michael looked like he was going to say something, but decided against it. He left, shooting Yang a glance as if to say "This isn't over." Yang smiled and waved goodbye to him- just to get on his nerves. Talon turned to her.

"I apologize for his behavior, however you weren't much better." Yang smiled slyly, and gave Talon a strong right hook. Not strong enough to break anything, but still strong. Ruby and Rie gasped. Blake just put her face in her book, pretending to read. Talon put his hand to his face as he looked at her, shocked. "Wha-"

Yang cut him off. "That was for making Rosey and I wait so long, Gearhead." Talon's eyes held a look of confusion at first, then she saw the light bulb go off as he apparently now recognized her. Or the name, at least. He smiled, and returned her right hook just as hard if not harder. Good. He remembers the old song and dance. Ruby finally spoke up.

"Yang, what's going on!? What just happened!?" Rie looked at Talon and said a few words of her own.

"Talon! I can't believe you! What about all your lessons on self-control!?" Blake still had her face buried in her book. Talon and Yang held up their hands to quiet the two girls.

"It's alright, Rie." Talon said, laughing. "Firebrand and I used to do this all the time when I visited Vale. It's kind of like our way of saying we respect each other." Rie looked stunned. Ruby looked at Yang.

"Really?" Yang nodded.

"It's like we're saying 'Hey, you're tough enough to take this punch,' to each other." She said the meaning with faux toughness. She and Talon laughed. Ruby and Rie looked at each other and shrugged. Ruby went and laid down and Rie returned to where she and Weiss had come from. Talon turned to leave, but Yang caught his hand. I thought my feelings had changed since then, and I was right. However, now that he's in front of me, I feel it all rushing back. Talon looked down at her hand, then at her.

"Yes, Ms. Xiao Long?" Yang had no idea what she was doing. She knew he probably had a girlfriend or something by now- how could this perfect specimen of mankind go so long without one- but she wanted him to return her feelings.

How can he return my feelings if he doesn't know they exist? Well, here goes nothing… "It's just, you were going to leave without your reward." Talon raised an inquisitive eyebrow.

"Oh? And what have I done that deserves a reward?" She knew he was suspicious of what she was doing because of the tone of his voice. She knew that tone. That sweet yet dangerous tone. It was the tone he used when he wanted to know something and didn't want you skirting around the truth or problem.

"Well, you kept your promise." She said, innocently. She walked closer to him and placed her free hand on his shoulder lazily. "Anyone who keeps a promise from so long ago deserves a reward." Her heart was racing. What am I doing!? He's a teacher now! Not the child you had a crush on! No, come on. You can do this, Yang. Talon looked at her with no emotion in his eyes. He was the perfect image of calm.

"Really? And what reward did you have in mind, hm? A drink at a bar? Maybe a gift of some kind?" Oh, he knew that wasn't at all what she meant. She could hear the warning in his voice. His mouth asked cluelessly, but what his tone said was "I'd suggest that you pick one of those." She was losing her nerve. She had to figure out a way to make him see her true intention. She drew herself closer to him and looked up into his eyes. His beautiful blue and green eyes. She drew her face closer to his.

"Well, what reward would suit such an accomplishment?" She asked breathy. He stared at her for a long moment, then hugged her.

"I would ask for no more than this, sister," he whispered as he hugged her. She nearly died in horror. He knew exactly what she was implying from the start! He didn't call her sister on accident, that's for sure. Was that all Yang was to him? Was that all she'd ever be? Was she truly not his type? Was there someone else? A million questions like these swirled in her head. She thought she was going to be sick. Talon kept hugging her, and she hugged back. She had tears in her eyes. At least Talon was empathetic enough to know how much his words would've hurt her and kind enough to be there for her when she needed him. It was why she had begun to crush on him as children. And he was kind enough to tell her outright instead of leading her on.

Truly, he is the perfect specimen of mankind… I just wish he was mine… They hugged for a time, then Yang finally backed away. She looked at him and smiled.

"You ok?" He asked, genuinely concerned. Yang nodded, then rubbed her nose. Talon took two fingers and gently wiped away the tears that were falling down her face. She hadn't realized that she had been full on crying until that point. Great. "Well, I suggest you get some rest. You have a big day tomorrow." He was back to being all business. "Sleep well, Ms. Xiao Long." Yang nodded.

"Thank you, Professor Teknos." And she meant it. Talon nodded and headed towards where he had sent Michael. Yang looked around to see if anyone was looking at her. No one seemed to be. No one except Blake, that is. She'd forgotten Blake was there. Blake had her book in her lap and was looking right at Yang. Yang was a little irritated and opened her mouth to snap at the girl, but decided against it. She walked over to lay next to her sister and tried to get some sleep. Her dreams were full of memories of a little boy she used to know. A little boy named Gearhead.

Hey guys. I realize I have not been saying this in the chapters, but I am not involved in RWBY in any way, shape, or form. I am simply basing my story off of it. I hope you guys enjoyed this chapter. Thanks!