I know this is technically being posted two days after the last chapter, but going over the last edits of this chapter took a bit longer than expected. But I'm posting it very early this morning, so close enough.

I do not own RWBY nor My Hero Academia all rights belong to Monty Oum and Kohei Horikoshi and their respective publishing companies.

I do not own the cover image.

Chapter 17: Hopes and Burdens

Three Months Later, Gran Torino's Apartment

"You ready, kid?"

"Yes sir!"

"Good." Gran Torino took a deep breath before using his Jet Semblance to leap around the room at breakneck speed. Izuku stood perfectly still and closed his eyes as Torino zipped around him, making him like the epicenter of a hurricane. He brought forth One For All, feeling its power flow throughout his entire body, but not in the way he had before, in a new, refined way.

One For All: Full Cowl 10%!

Izuku's entire body was enveloped with green electricity identical in color to his Aura as he opened his eyes. By this point, he knew that following the veteran Hunter with the naked eye was pointless, at least with where he was at by this point in his training. Therefore, he continued to stay still and let his soul reach out and sense the room around him, searching for the soul of his mentor. He waited and waited until the moment he felt Gran Torino's Aura approach him.

There! Izuku used the speed granted to him by his Semblance to duck underneath Torino's attempted tackle from behind. He quickly pushed himself up off the floor as Tornio used his Semblance to stop himself right in front of Izuku. Torino unleashed a quick flurry of punches and Semblance-enhanced kicks at the Hunter-in-Training, to which Izuku responded by bringing his arms up to block. The pain from the impacts stung hard, but he stopped him from hitting anything vital.

Torino smiled, content with Izuku's reaction time, before launching himself away. He ricocheted off the wall repeatedly as Izuku returned to his original pose, waiting for him to feel Torino's return.

Let's turn it up a notch.

Gran Torino took an even deeper breath before rocketing at Izuku's lower body from his eight o'clock. This time Izuku couldn't react fast enough, causing Gran Torino to sweep the teen's legs. Izuku was stunned but refused to give up just yet. He quickly got up before switching strategies. He loaded up Peacekeepers with Ice Dust and shot out Ice Scales around the walls on the places where he figured Gran Torino would be most likely to land.

"Not a bad strategy kid, but who says I have to land on the walls?!" Gran Torino came in for a third attack, this time from above towards Izuku's four o'clock. Before he got there, however, Izuku turned towards him and launched an Ice Scale directly at him. Torino managed to dodge, but not without the scale leaving a scratch a few inches above his left eye. Izuku took the opportunity and jumped at Torino, planning to deliver a swift punch.

Unfortunately, Izuku would have to wake up pretty early in the morning if he ever wanted to outspeed Gran Torino. In a flash, the retired Hunter was out of sight. Izuku didn't have time to react as, having put a little too much force into his leap, ended up tumbling and impacting the wall, his body limply hanging upside down on the floor. Torino landed with a thud in front of the boy, crouching down to get closer to eye level; not that much crouching needed to be done.

"Not bad, not bad at all. Though you did get a little cocky at the end there, didn't ya?"

"N-Not exactly one of my prouder moments. Even when I stand still like that, my Aura Sensing isn't great, which doesn't give me enough time to react to you when you go that fast. So I shot Ice Dust both to try and make you slip and to try and get you to speak. I figured I could use your voice to try and figure out where you were."

"Man, it would've been nice if Toshinori had half the brain you do!" Torino said with a laugh. "You did manage to put a scratch on me when I was going near my top speed, so I'd say that's good enough. We can take a break for lunch."

"Oh thank the Gods."

"I'll go make us some grub while you clean up the mess of ice you made," Torino said as he walked towards the stairs down to the first floor of the apartment. In preparation for Izuku's training, the third floor of Gran Torino's apartment had been made into a sparring ring, completely empty and with reinforced walls. Fifteen minutes later, the two of them were on the first floor of the apartment eating.

"Well kid, based on that spar, I think it's safe to say that you can use Aura Sensing, even if it's only over a short distance," Sorahiko said. "Show me Aura Coating."

"Right." Izuku brought his knife up in front of his face. He closed his eyes and took a deep breath, feeling the energy of his soul move around within him. Slowly, the knife was surrounded by a thin layer of Izuku's Aura, a faint emerald glow shining around it.

"Good, didn't take you terribly long either. And, seeing as you've had a good grasp on Aura Distribution for a month or so..."

"S-So does that mean…"

"Yep, you passed. And with what, three weeks until the festival starts? Not too shabby."

"Alright!" Izuku cheered, raising the knife into the air.

"Don't get cocky there, kid." The wind was briskly taken out of Izuku's sails at Sorahiko's words. "Being able to use all three of those techniques is good, but yours aren't very refined. Your Aura Sensing only works for a fifteen-foot radius at best. I was hoping you'd be able to cover double that distance by this point. And don't forget the fact that it took you a long time to figure out your whole Full Cowl thing."

"I-It only took four and a half days for me to figure it out!" Izuku protested.

"And I told you to do it in four!" Sorahiko retorted. "Plus your cap on it is 10% constantly, with 12% in a pinch, not enough to put you cleanly above your peers."

"I guess you're not wrong. Plus most of the people in my year have been using Aura Distribution and Coating for quite a while now. This has basically just been catch up."

"Don't downplay yourself too much there, kid. You've got a good mind for battle, and you tend to pick up on things quickly. You might not be on par with them in some aspects, but you're still able to compete."

"Thank you, sir. Now that I think about it, it seems like All Might kinda exaggerated how bad this training would be. I mean, sparring with you can be pretty intense and it leaves some nasty bruises, but it's not exactly traumatizing."

"How many times do I have to tell you to cut the 'sir' crap when we're not training? Just stick with Sorahiko. And if you were Toshinori then we wouldn't even be having this kinda break. He could pretty much handle One For All right out the gate so all I did was spar with him until he was ready to puke."

"I guess if it works, it works. Still seems extreme, though."

"It was, but I'd never forgive myself if I half-assed Toshinori's training. His future was entrusted to me by a dear departed friend of mine."

"You knew All Might's predecessor? He's never told me anything about the guy. What was he like?"

"He hasn't?" Sorahiko was taken aback. Before he had time to answer, an alarm went off on Izuku's Scroll. He pulled it out of his pocket and looked at the screen, only for his eyes to bulge out in realization.

"Oh crap, I forgot! I still need to pick up replacement parts for Kacchan's gauntlets! Sorry but I have to leave quickly or I'll miss the airbus back to Beacon! I'll see you next time, Sorahiko!" And in a flash, Izuku was out the door, leaving Gran Torino with a lot to ponder.

You haven't told him about Nana yet? After over a year training him? I guess I shouldn't be surprised. Those warm memories have been tainted for the both of us, haven't they? Sorahiko sighed as he got out of his chair and walked over to one of the walls he had lined up with pieces of paper. Some were from decades ago, back when he was an active duty Hunter. Some were from just over six years ago. And others, sadly, were from a few weeks ago. He'd hoped he'd never had to use the information on these papers again. But, unfortunately, it seemed he'd have to go once more unto the breach.

Because that man was back.

One Month Earlier, Beacon Tower's Elevator

"It's been a while since I've been here. This place looks exactly the same as last time." Gran Torino said.

"I've never known the professor to be a fan of change," Glynda responded.

"You guys have any clue what he's called us up here for?" All Might asked.

"Not in the slightest," Ironwood responded. The four of them, at the behest of Ozpin, had been called up to his office on quite short notice. It wasn't exactly unusual for Beacon's Headmaster to call for impromptu meetings with his closest allies, but that was usually one on one, not with a group this big. It put worry in them all, even if they refused to show it.

"How's the arm been treating ya, kid?" Torino asked. Ironwood flinched for a moment before putting his left hand on his right arm.

"Good, it rarely acts up anymore. And I'm not exactly a kid, ya know. I'm forty-four."

"Well seeing as I'm in my seventies you people'll always be kids to me," Sorahiko said with a laugh.

"You certainly don't fight like you're that old. I hear you've been putting Mister Midoriya through his paces quite well." Glynda said.

"Training the boy's been getting me back into the groove. Almost makes me wanna go on a mission, see if I've still got it."

"Maybe that's not the best idea. You probably wouldn't be able to move anymore if you got a serious injury, given your age." All Might said.

"Life's no fun if you don't take a few risks now is it, Toshinori?"

"I still haven't even gotten a chance to meet your successor. I've been too preoccupied with Stain to find the time. How has his training been going?"

"The kid's got a long way to go, but he's a fast learner, that's for sure," Torino responded.

"His performance in my class has improved quite a bit this semester. He's gotten a much better handle on One For All thanks to Sorahiko's training."

"I'm sure you'll get along great whenever you get the chance to meet Young Midoriya," Toshinori said with a smile. The elevator dinged and its doors opened. Ozpin sat at his desk looking rather grim. Peach was standing next to the desk, concern on her face as she turned towards them.

"You look quite perturbed. Has Caligula been pestering you?" Glynda asked as the four of them walked up to Ozpin's desk.

"Not more than usual, but that is not the reason for my demeanor," Ozpin said.

"I just received the full DNA Analysis on Nomu." Peach said as she placed her Scroll on Ozpin's desk. The two quickly synced up and a hologram was displayed in the air above, showing dozens of documents. "We discovered that most of Nomu's DNA came from a petty thief from here in Vale who disappeared roughly a year ago."

"Most of its DNA?" Ironwood asked.

"Correct, there were four additional people's DNA in him. We believe he's been altered through numerous experiments to handle the massive strain his Aura placed on his body, as well as to handle multiple Semblances."

"So he really does have multiple Semblances?" Sorahiko asked.

"After running multiple tests on his Aura, we confirmed that he did have a Hyper-Regeneration Semblance, alongside Shock Absorption. We also determined that he had Semblances which enhanced his hearing and reaction time." The four newcomers all tensed up, All Might and Sorahiko especially.

"And you're absolutely sure this isn't one extremely strong Semblance with a lot of capabilities?" Glynda asked.

"Take a look for yourself." Peach said as she pressed a button on the Scroll. All the documents except for one shrunk down while the remaining one enlarged. It was a scan of Nomu's chest. Above his heart was a multicolored orb with an uncountable amount of veins stemming off from the orb to the rest of his body. "We checked every database we could, including the ones the Hunter's Guild doesn't like people looking at. We found no records of a person ever having an Aura with multiple colors like Nomu's. According to our current understanding, this shouldn't occur naturally."

"Meaning?" Ironwood asked.

"Based on all the information gathered, we are certain that Nomu was given additional Semblances."

Glynda and Ironwood both struggled to find a response while Peach just stared at the floor. Sorahiko's grip around his cane tensed up. And as for All Might…

"That's impossible…" All Might instantly inflated into his Hunter form. His entire body glowed a bright yellow, engulfing the room in the sheer presence of his Aura.

"All Might?" Glynda asked, fear present in her voice.

"Your results are wrong. You have to double-check them."

"We ran three separate trials here in Beacon and had called in two specialists from the Hunter's Guild for a fourth. Every one of them yielded the same results." Ozpin responded. The pressure from All Might's Aura began to crack the walls and the glass. The shaking of the room almost caused Peach and Glynda to fall over.

"Then you need to run a fifth! Glynda and Sorahiko were both there, they both saw the body! We killed him! I killed him!" The cracks became even larger.

"All Might please calm down!" Ironwood said.

"Please we can discuss this!" Peach pleaded.

"HOW AM I SUPPOSED TO CALM DOWN IF HE'S STILL ALIVE?!"

"TOSHINORI!" Gran Torino slammed his cane into the ground, the impact echoing throughout the entire room. "Believe me, we are all equally distraught by this news, but we cannot let our emotions overtake us! We will all see this through to the end, but not if we are blinded by anger!"

A silence like death found its way into every corner of the office.

All Might took a deep breath before reverting back to his true form. His gaze hardened as he wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth. He looked towards Ozpin.

"Call in whoever you can from the original strike team. We're going to need them and more if we want to finish the job."

Present Time, Beacon Academy Cafeteria

"So who's ready for the dance this weekend?" Yang's open question ringed in the air as Teams RWBY, MSKI, and JNPR, sans Tenya and Blake, sat together.

"Aww yeah! It's gonna be the best! You four'd better not mess this up." Nora said as she pointed at Yang and Weiss.

"What're you worried about? With me, Mina, Weiss, and Momo planning the whole thing, you're basically guaranteed for success. Plus we've got Professor Yamada on DJ. It'll be the best dance of your lives!" Yang responded.

"Precisely, though I'm not sure if Professor Yamada is exactly suited to perform at a mostly formal dance," Weiss commented.

"Well having a teacher help us plan the thing was the only way Ozpin would let first-years take the reins for it. Besides, Mina and I will be sure to make it not too formal."

"For the last time, we are not throwing a rave!" Weiss yelled.

"At least a rave has the potential to be somewhat interesting if a fight breaks out," Katsuki said.

"Nah, raves rarely, if ever, have any fights. You not a fan of dances, sparky?" Yang teased. "What's the matter? Can't dance?"

"I guarantee I can dance better than you, blondie! I'm just more excited for the mission afterward."

"With everything that's happened with the BRTC, White Fang, and Torchwick, we've basically already been going on missions," Pyrrha said.

"Yeah but this'll be our first official mission. Plus we'll be shadowing a professional Hunter for a full week! It's gonna be awesome!" Ruby said.

"See, even the brat gets it!"

"Hey!"

"I, for one, am looking forward to the dance," Jaune said boisterously. "I'll be sure to have a hot date too, and it'll all be thanks to my suave moves."

"Do you have suave moves?" Shoto asked innocently.

"O-Of course I do! I just can't bust them out for any occasion. It has to be the right place and the right time." Jaune assured.

"Oh."

"Don't let him fool ya, pretty boy. If he had suave moves he and Weiss would've been on the same team after initiation." Yang said. She, Nora, and Katsuki got a good laugh at that, with both Ruby and Ren holding back chuckles of their own. Jaune, flustered, simply sighed. If her facial expression was anything to go by, Weiss was quite irritated as the memories of the blonde calling her "snow angel" flooded back. Pyrrha sulked as the laughter slowly began to die down, while Izuku's face became slightly red. "We're just messin' with ya, Jaune. I'm sure you'll have a pretty girl around your arm when you walk into the ballroom." Weiss took a deep breath before turning her head down the table.

"What about you, Izuku?" She asked, causing Izuku to break from whatever thoughts had been flowing through his head.

"I-I don't know. I honestly kinda forgot about it until Yang brought it up."

"Aww, come on, green bean! It'll be a blast!" Yang whined.

"I-I'm not saying it won't, I'm just not particularly excited about it, I guess," Izuku said as he scratched at the back of his head. Weiss frowned slightly, but quickly covered it up.

"I believe the word you're looking for is ambivalent. A feeling which I share." Ren said as he took a drink of his tea.

"Likewise." Shoto agreed.

"You guys're still gonna go, right?" Ruby said with a hint of worry, to which all three boys nodded. "Good, at least I'll have more people to stand next to as I suffer the bane of lady-stilts." Ruby shivered, her head collapsing against the table at the thought of having to wear high heels.

"I don't think they're the ones we have to worry about not going," Jaune said. The attitude of the table took a turn for the depressing as everyone silently looked towards the two empty seats at their table.

"Don't even get us started." Ruby sulked.

"Blake's been even more distant than usual," Weiss said.

"She's been getting increasingly paranoid for the past few weeks, not that I can exactly blame her. First Tukson, seeing that Lieutenant guy, then the Fern couple. It's all combined to completely fuck with Blake's head. I don't even know if she's been sleeping at night for the past few days." Yang said.

"We haven't confronted her about it, but I'm guessing she's gonna say no." Weiss lamented.

"What about on the Tenya front?" Pyrrha asked.

"We can tell he's still shaken up, obviously. That said, he hasn't really been turning down invitations to do things. He doesn't miss any team exercises, and his grades have still been good this semester. I'm guessing we should be able to get him to go." Izuku said.

"Not that it'd be surprising if he said no," Katsuki retorted.

"Well, if that does happen, then it's our job to make sure he changes his mind! Same goes for Blake too! Let's all agree now, everyone on all three of our teams will be at the dance this weekend!" Ruby said, standing up to be more dramatic. Everyone around the table gave an affirmative.

They would look out for their friends, even if they weren't welcome.

Later that day, Beacon Academy Sparring Room

"You ready, Eijiro?"

"I was born ready!"

"Perfect. And you, Shoto." The teen nodded at Izuku's words, crushing an Ice Dust Crystal in his hand. Izuku took a knee and brought up his exposed right hand. Eijiro lowered his stance and brought his arms up in a crossed position. "Ice Blast!"

Shoto slammed down his right foot and generated several ice stalagmites in front of Izuku. The green-haired successor used a Mistal Smash, breaking the ice off the floor and launching it towards Eijiro. The ice collided hard against him, knocking him off his feet and launching him back several yards.

"Aww hell yeah, that looked awesome!" Sun cheered from the sidelines.

"Took you long enough to get the aiming down, Deku." Katsuki taunted.

"Not even one little compliment? Shame on you."

"Can it, stowaway! And why're you even here? Shouldn't you be studying for the rest of the finals?"

"Pfft! I've got nothing to worry about! Me and my team are more than prepared! We've got the whole 'Cs get degrees' thing on lock."

"Mistral must be digging the bottom of the barrel if you're team leader."

"Hey!"

"We should try to make it faster. It takes too long between you calling the move and getting the shot off." Shoto said.

"I'll make sure to charge up a smash before I call it so we can do it faster. P-Plus it gets a bit painful doing it multiple times in a row." Izuku said, looking down at his right hand, his pinky through pointer finger badly broken. At least it wasn't his entire arm this time. "You ok, Eijiro?" He asked as he stood up.

"Y-Yeah, j-just a little… c-cold." He responded as he walked over towards the two of them, rubbing his arms as he shivered.

"Are you sure you should be doing this without a shirt?" Shoto asked.

"Nah, that would ruin the vibe of my gear. Plus, why would I need a shirt or that kinda stuff when I've got my trusty Semblance?" It was true, Eijiro's Semblance, Adamantine Aura, was pretty handy. It allowed him to temporarily increase the durability of his Aura surrounding a certain part of his body, making it so that it was damn near impenetrable. In fact, his Aura became about as durable as the Aura of top-ranking Hunters. Anything in regards to a lack of flashiness it certainly made up for in practicality.

"Thanks again for basically letting us use you as a training dummy," Izuku said with a chuckle.

"Hey, don't sweat it, man! Anything to help a bro out. Besides, it's kinda training for me too since I have to use my Semblance on a pretty large chunk of my body, even if it is only for a few seconds."

"So what's next on the list of super combo moves?" Sun asked.

"Well, I can't do anything until my Aura heals my fingers… something which I should probably get to wrapping up right now." Izuku said as he made his way over to the first-aid kit on the wall.

"And here I thought your shitty Full Cowl let you control your Semblance? You almost got my hopes up thinking you might be able to give me a decent fight soon." Katsuki taunted. Izuku was put off by it, but that was outweighed by the happiness brought by Katsuki actually remembering what his technique was called.

"The next one we wanted to try was Explosive Express, but we need Tenya here for that," Shoto said.

"Where is he anyway?" Eijiro asked.

"No clue. We messaged him half an hour ago but no response. It says Four-Eyes hasn't even read it yet, too." Katsuki responded.

"Should we go look for him?" Sun asked.

"He'll turn up, if for no other reason to apologize to us," Katsuki mumbled out the last part as he stood up from the bench he'd been sitting on. "Shitty Hair, Icy-Hot! We're doin' Flash Freeze next!"

"I'd like to wait a bit as well. I'd rather not use too many Ice Attacks in quick succession." Shoto said.

"Just heat yourself up!"

"I don't ever bring Fire Dust into the Sparring Arenas."

"...tch. Fine, we'll wait for you to heat back up." Katsuki said as he reclaimed his seat.

"So, any of you guys got any exciting plans for the dance?" Sun asked.

"You mean if we're going with anyone?" Shoto asked.

"Well, duh! That's, like, the most important part!" Sun responded.

"I feel like you might be putting a bit too much emphasis on the whole 'date' thing, man. You don't need a date to have a good time at a dance, especially if you go with some friends." Eijiro responded.

"You're just saying that cause you already have a date," Sun said accusingly.

"Who're you going with?" Shoto asked.

"Mina. I asked her to go with me a few days ago. She and I go way back to when we were in Combat School, so it was kind of a no brainer. Plus, I'm pretty sure she, Momo, and Ochaco would've killed me if I even tried asking anyone else."

"Well congrats man, you two make a cute couple," Sun said as he gave a thumb up. Eijiro blushed at the word "couple" but he smiled back nonetheless. "What about you, Katsuki? Anyone caught your eye?"

"Nope. I'll probably leave early unless something interesting happens." Katsuki scoffed.

"That sounds about right," Sun responded with a laugh.

"You gonna man up and ask Belladonna?" Katsuki asked as he looked up at Sun. The Faunus' laugh quickly died down as he scratched the back of his head.

"Yeah. I'm gonna ask her today after Goodwitch's class. I'm a bit nervous about getting a yes though, seeing as she's been extra 'Blakey' recently." It wasn't as though Sun didn't understand why, though. He'd seen why she was afraid firsthand, after all.

"Relax man, you've got it in the bag! We're all right behind you." Eijiro responded with a toothy grin. "What about you, Shoto?"

"I won't be going with anyone either."

"You're kidding me, right?! Yang told me you've been asked out by three girls and one dude in the past five days alone!" Sun yelled out, flabbergasted.

"I don't see your point." Sun's eye twitched a bit at Shoto's response.

"You've been here for almost four months, how have you not realized he's the densest person alive yet? Blondie's been calling him 'pretty boy' since the first day of school and he hasn't taken the hint." Katsuki said.

"...For the love of all that is good in this world please say sike right now." Sun said as he pinched the bridge of his nose.

"Bro, you should ask her out!" Eijiro responded.

"Who?" Shoto asked.

"Yang, obviously! You could ask her out right now and she'd absolutely say yes!" Sun said.

"Yeah, dude! Just bust out a nice, genuine smile and you'll be an absolute ladykiller!" Eijiro said.

"My smile will kill women!?"

"..."

"..."

"Like I said, the densest person alive," Katsuki grunted.

"This puts that whole cherry popping thing into a whole new context," Eijiro said.

"W-Wait, did you just say cherry pop… you know what, nevermind. Let's just table this discussion for another day." Sun said, fingers pressed against his temples.

"I know you're not the only one with a bunch of admirers, I'm pretty sure it's the same way with Weiss." At Eijiro's words, Izuku perked up. He'd only been half-listening to the conversation, but now it had his undivided attention.

"I know Jaune has tried flirting with her before. Are there others?" Shoto asked.

"From what I've heard, she's been asked out at least twice already. I know Neptune has been talking with her a bit for the past few weeks. He said it's been going alright, but, well, this is Neptune we're talking about, so you can never be entirely sure." Sun said.

"Oh, hey, what about you, Izuku. You got plans to ask anyone to the dance?" Eijiro asked.

At that moment, Izuku's mind was racing for an answer. He knew what he wanted the answer to be but… Jaune's probably gonna ask her out at some point soon, and, if Sun's right, so will Neptune. Plus there are already other people who've asked her and probably plan on asking her. Besides, even if there weren't anybody else, would she even say yes?

"...No, I'll probably be going by myself." Izuku said as he gazed at the ground.

"Hey, don't look so down about it. Like I said earlier, there's no shame in just going with some friends." Eijiro said.

"Don't worry, it'll be a blast!" Sun said.

"Y-Yeah, I'm sure it will," Izuku responded with a half-forced smile. Katsuki looked at his partner with a thoughtful yet annoyed gaze.

Idiot.

*SLAM*

"Sorry I'm late." All eyes turned towards the door as Tenya burst through, fumbling around with the straps on the armor covering his right arm. "I'm afraid I lost track of time completely! I'll make sure to not let this happen in the future."

"Hey man, don't sweat it. Happens to the best of us." Eijiro said.

"All we've done so far was practice Ice Blast," Shoto said.

"We're taking a break until Shoto and I are ready to go again," Izuku said.

"We were just talking about the dance this weekend. You going alone or do you have a special someone in mind?" Sun asked with a mischievous grin on his face.

"The dance? Oh, no I don't have anyone in mind. A-Actually, I wasn't planning on going at all." He responded.

"What do ya mean you're not going?" Sun asked.

"W-Well, I-I have been rather busy recently so I'm not sure if I'll be able to make the-"

"You've got bags under your eyes." Tenya flinched at Katsuki's words. "You were late cause you passed out from exhaustion, right?"

"I… I-I don't-"

"Tenya… is this about Tensei?" Izuku asked.

Tenya's entire body clenched up. His gaze traveled down to the floor and his fists clenched.

"Look man, not to be rude or anything, but just because your brother got hurt real bad doesn't seem like a good reason to not go to one dance." Eijiro said as he scratched at the back of his head.

"Yeah, plus having a fun night out with some friends should help you forget about it all, even if only just for a while." Sun said.

"I-It's not about my brother's injuries." Tenya burst out. "It's about Stain." That put even more worry into the five of them.

"W-What about Stain?" Izuku asked.

"I don't really think there's much to be done. We just have to leave this to the professionals." Shoto said.

"Assuming they finally catch him, that is." Sun mumbled.

Tenya remained silent.

"Tenya, you aren't thinking about going after him, are you?" Izuku asked. Tenya's face, though not fully visible as he was still looking at the floor, lost some of its color.

"He's killed fifteen people since he attacked my brother. Thirteen soldiers and two Hunters, and two dozen have been sent to the hospital by him. All Atlesian. How am I supposed to just sit here and not do something?" Tenya's body began to shake.

"We're not saying he's not dangerous, Tenya. We're saying that we're not equipped to handle him." Shoto said.

"If we don't do it then who else will?! He's been running rampant for months and yet no one's been able to take him down! Not Ironwood! Not any Valean Hunters! The Hunter's Guild pretends he doesn't even exist, dammit! Someone has to put an end to his rampage!"

"And you think you're gonna be the one to do it? He's killed pro-Hunters on his own multiple times. You're not even the best fighter in our year, let alone all of Beacon. You won't be coming back if you go after him." Katsuki said. While Izuku, Shoto, Eijiro, and Sun were all put off by his bluntness, they couldn't disagree with the assessment.

"Not if I'm the one who takes initiative! I've looked over all the reports from all of his crimes over and over again. Just a little bit longer and I'll have everything I need to figure out how to beat him. The longer it takes for me to figure it out, the more time he has to hurt innocent people! I-If I just power through the rest of the information I need to look over and piece everything together then-"

"What does it matter if you know how to beat him if you won't be awake enough to fight?" Katsuki asked rhetorically.

"Tenya, we want him to be brought to justice too. We want him to never be able to hurt someone the way he hurt your brother ever again. But you can't obsess over this. If you do, then you'll only end up hurting yourself." Izuku said.

"...my brother asked me…"

"Huh?"

"Tensei… his injuries were too much. His career as a Hunter is over. That's why he asked me to inherit his name. He asked me to take the name of Ingenium!" Tenya brought his gaze up to meet those of his friends, tears in his eyes. "How can I ever be his successor if I don't complete the mission he started?!" Silence rang throughout the room. Tenya's entire body began to shake. He stormed out of the arena, whipping away the tears as he did so.

"H-Hey, Tenya, hold on!" Sun called out, taking a few steps towards the door.

"Don't." Katsuki quickly responded.

"What do you mean 'don't'? He's your teammate, dammit!"

"Four-Eyes is already at his limit. Go after him now and it'll just make things worse."

"So you're just giving up on him?"

"No, Kacchan's right," Izuku said, drawing the other's attention. "We aren't giving up on him. We're going to help him, but right now I think he just needs some time to think."

Present Time, Beacon Academy Hallway

"My name… inherit my mantle… can you do that for me?"

No! Of course I can't! Not yet! Once I've taken him down, I will. I promise, Tensei!

Tenya rushed down the halls, viciously wiping away tears as he headed towards the Library. Or back to the dorms. Or to the Weapon's Workshop. It didn't matter where he was going, as long as he was somewhere he could just think. He had to get back to his work. He still had more rumors to search through. Then he could piece everything together. Then he could find Stain. Then he could beat him. Then he would be able to sleep. Then his brother would have justice.

As he kept walking, he felt the strength leave his legs, almost tripping on his own feet. He was exhausted. Aside from the forty-minute accidental nap he'd just taken, he'd been awake for almost forty-eight hours. He shakily made his way onto one of the benches that lined Beacon's corridors. He held his head up towards the ceiling, wanting to keep the remnants of his tears from falling down his face.

He wondered if his brother had ever felt like this. Had Tensei though the world was collapsing around him? That the weight of responsibility threatened to crush him, to snuff out his entire existence? He just wanted it to be over. He wanted this nightmare to end.

"Are you alright?" The feminine vice pulled Tenya from wherever those dark thoughts were leading him. He looked at the woman before him, having to double-check if she had actually said anything. Based on the way her amber eyes inspected his face, it was evident she had. "Perhaps that was a silly question."

"O-Oh! No, no, I'm quite alright!" Tenya attempted to ensure as he brushed his eyes with his hand. "Just lost in thought. P-Pardon me, but I don't think we've actually had the chance to talk to one another. You're…"

"It's Cinder." She responded.

"Right, right, Cinder. You're teammates with Mercury and Emerald, now I remember."

"Don't worry about it. There were already enough names to know before we all came here for the Vytal Festival." She responded with a giggle. "Are you sure you're alright? You appear to be quite distraught. And tired."

"Please, there's no need to worry about me. I assure you I'm just fine."

"I saw you walking down the halls, you know. You stormed right past me without even noticing me."

"I-I did? I apologize if I startled you, I-I just-"

"That was a lie. But that fact that you were so unaware of your surroundings that you didn't notice tells me that you, in fact, aren't alright." Tenya pursed his lips in response. He felt like a little kid who'd been caught reaching his hand into the cookie jar. Even someone he'd never interacted with could read him like a book.

"I-I have… been under quite a bit of stress recently. I… there's something I need to do… or, I think I need to do… I-I don't know." Cinder nodded along.

"I can understand that. People who spend their lives on the battlefield have to have drive if they wish to succeed. If I may, what exactly is this duty of yours?"

"I… I'd rather not say. Please don't take offense."

"None taken. Honestly, this is probably a bit intrusive for a first conversation." Cinder giggled.

"N-No not at all. I-I appreciate it, being able to… vent, I suppose."

"Glad to be of assistance. If I may offer one more piece of advice." Tenya was surprised as the look in Cinder's eyes changed at the drop of a hat, from inquisitive and caring to a look of… hunger. "If you want something, take it. Use your drive, your passion, as the wings to carry you to your goal. This world has no place for those who will not do." He barely had time to think before she was gone, already past the corner, off to who knows where.

Those words. They were cold. A brutal mantra devoid of empathy, especially with how she said it. It sent shivers down his spine. However, her words weren't wrong. And he knew it. There was no way he would ever be able to bring Stain's spree to an end if he lacked the conviction to do so. He took a deep breath as he pushed himself to his feet. He would have to give Cinder a proper thank you the next time he saw her. For now, he needed to go to the Library. He still had files he needed to access.

Stain was still out there, after all.

As for Cinder, she strode down the halls with confidence, proud at the little performance she'd just put on. After learning that one of Stain's victims, Ingenium, had a little brother here at Beacon, she'd been silently keeping an eye on him. Before today, she was confident that he had been planning to go after the man who'd almost killed his brother, but his words now were tantamount to confirmation in her eyes. All she had to do was give him that little bit of encouragement. Couldn't have him getting cold feet on avenging his brother.

Having a seventeen-year-old boy killed by a serial killer would certainly tarnish Beacon's reputation. It would bring outrage from all over the world, as well as make the people of Vale all the more fearful. Something which would make her plans fall into place even easier.

Besides, it's not as though she gave him bad advice. Those were the words she'd heard when she first met the person she worked for now. The person she owed her life to. They'd moved her to the point of being where she was now.

As far as she was concerned, Tenya Iida should be grateful he got to hear them from her lips.

Unknown Bar, Vale

"You're in a bad mood." Roman said as he and Neo walked into the Grim Legion's Bar. Tomura sat in one of the middle seats, not even acknowledging Roman as he walked up and took the seat next to him. "Still upset over the whole Stain-thing not panning out, huh Shiggy?"

"That was your idea to begin with, not mine." Tomura hissed.

"Don't look at me! It's not my fault you and Kurogiri fumbled the negotiations." Neo nodded along at Roman's statement, infuriating Tomura even more. "What exactly did happen that night, anyway?"

"Apparently Stain isn't the kinda guy you advertised him to be. Maniac's a big Hunter Fanboy, apparently."

"Seriously? We're still talking about the dude who's killed five Hunters, right?"

"'I'd never team up with someone with the goal of killing a Hunter like All Might.' That's what he said before he came at us."

"Well that's quite the shocker. And what happened after that?"

"We fought, obviously. It ended in a stalemate. The bastard said he wait to see 'what the seed of conviction within me yielded'. For a mass murder, he sure does love to fluff up his words. What took you so long to ask, anyway? That happened months ago?"

"When I learned from Kurogiri that you were both alive I figured you'd rather not hear Stain's name for quite a while. Plus I've been quite the busy bee myself, Shiggy.

"And what has the Flame Bitch been up to?"

"From one nemesis onto another, huh? Well, I assume you've already heard rumors about everything happening in the southeast. That's been running me ragged, working with all those White Fang. Plus she's been having me kill off ex-Fang members too. Guess she wants to make sure she's in those psychopath's good graces."

"If that's the case, I hope your pay is more than sufficient." Roman almost jolted out of his seat as the eerie voice of Kurogiri spoke, the mist man now entering the room from the door on the other side of the bar.

"Oh don't you worry, Neo and I are making a pretty penny off this gig, I can assure you." Roman said to which Neo nodded and smiled at.

"That's great and all, but I'm pretty sure I ask what she was doing, not what work she was paying you to do." Tomura said.

"I'm afraid I'm not allowed to tell you that, Handyman. She's explicitly asked me to keep that a secret from anyone who asked. And seeing as she's the one paying me the most Lien out of anyone in the city I'm afraid it'd just be bad business to tell you."

"That bitch really does piss me off, trying to make her party as big as she can and leaving the useless NPCs for me."

"Hey hey, no need to be so down about things, Shiggy. I didn't just come here to be the bearer of bad news. Apparently Stain's little crusade here in Vale is causing people from all over the criminal underworld to flock into the kingdom. Some wanna try and piggyback off his success and see if they can't make a name for themselves, while others want the glory of killing him."

"Your point?"

"You're still looking for new additions to your 'party' right? If I see anyone worth your time, I'll send 'em your way. Hell, I'll even escort them here myself in case things take a turn for the worse like last time." Roman proposed.

"...Fine, but we're not paying you shit until you produce results." Tomura said.

"That's all I need to hear. See ya around, Shiggy, Kurogiri." Roman said as he and Neo walked out of the bar. The metal door behind them closed with a heavy metal clang.

"..."

"Yes, I'm sure this was the right decision. It'll add a bit more to our plate, looking for strong people and Cinder's work, but it'll be worth it." Roman said, turning down towards Neo.

"..."

"No nothing's bothering me. Ow! Don't kick me in the shin, Neo! It's just… the longer this keeps going the more it seems like things are getting out of hand. Never thought that agreeing to help out Cinder would lead to as far it has. At first, I thought it would just be working with a powerful person, but the more I learn, the more I realize just how big this thing goes. She's not the boss of things, not even close. If someone with her strength is getting ordered around like a dog, then I don't wanna be anywhere near whoever's holding her leash. And as for Shigaraki well… I don't know what his real endgame is, but I doubt it will end well for anyone involved."

Roman and Neo walked out of the building the Legion's Bar was hidden in. It was raining with a strong breeze. "Looks like walking isn't exactly an option." Neo tugged on Roman's jacked. He turned down and she put her Scroll in front of his face, showing that she had already messaged one of their men to pick them up in a car several minutes ago. "Good thinking, Neo." Roman looked up into the cold, gray sky.

"Once this is all over, we'll disappear like ghosts. Cinder, Mercury, Emerald, Shigaraki, Kurogiri, Stain. None of them will ever find us. They'll be things of the past. Then, with all the money we've got, we can do whatever we please." Neo's expression reflected her nervousness, and Roman not looking her in the eyes while speaking betrayed his calm façade.

They both knew things would only escalate from here. They just had to hope they would both come out of things alive.

Team RWBY's Dorm Room, 3:00 A.M.

"THREE FOUND DEAD IN FIRE, NO CAUSE HAS BEEN DETERMINED."

Blake kept reading the headline over and over. The light from her Scroll illuminated her face as she laid down on her bed with her covers pulled over her entire body. She kept her ears on high alert as she stared at the screen, wanting to know right away if her teammates woke up in the middle of the night.

The article had been published an hour ago. It was the updated coverage of a fire that engulfed a small convenient store towards the edge of the City of Vale's territory. After reading the headline once more, her morbid curiosity overcame her fear, and she scrolled through the article, speed-reading it until she found where the names of the deceased were.

"Due to the damaged state the bodies were in, police have been unable to determine their identities, and they have not been able to reach the owner of the shop at this time. It is believed that the dead include one Human Male, one Human Female, and one Faunus Female."

Great, now she would have to wait until the names came out, then she'd have to figure out if the woman had been in the White Fang. Not an easy task, but she still had a couple of notebooks from back then. She liked to call them notebooks, but they were basically diaries of her time in the White Fang. That was her only resource for figuring out who was in the Fang and when now that Tukson was gone.

This was far from the first time she'd done this: sitting on her Scroll at night, waiting for news reports to see if any mysterious deaths had occurred, or if there were reports on Vale's criminal activity. She didn't enjoy it by any means, but the thought of more people dying kept her from getting any good sleep.

She silently reached one hand out from under the covers below her bed and grabbed the book she kept underneath it. The Man with Two Souls. She ran her fingers along its cover, feeling the familiar grooves worn into it by time. She never did get it signed, but that honestly didn't bother her. Having it the way it was now felt right for some reason. There was a time where she'd almost forgotten about its existence, but she was glad she had it here with her now. And she didn't intend on leaving it behind.

There was still some pain associated with holding it like this. It reminded her of the person who gave this to her. How long had it been since she last saw them? Four, almost five years now. The mere thought threatened to bring tears to her eyes. The things she said. The things she did. Would she ever be forgiven? She thought about sending a message, but she wasn't even sure if she would be able to reach them. Tukson had made it seem so simple, but…

No. She didn't want to think about that now. Professor Ozpin had told her after the incident at the Docks that he wouldn't let her involvement in the Fang get public, but if she sent a message explaining where she was now, who knows what would happen.

She looked at the time on her Scroll. 3:23 A.M. She should get to bed soon. Three hours of sleep hardly counted as a good night's rest, but that was pretty good for her as of late.

Just as soon as she checked over the news reports one last time.

A/N

That's Chapter 17, done and done!

Chapter Commentary

-Finally, Izuku has Full Cowl! I upped up what he's able to use, as with how much longer it's taken him to get it than in canon, his body should be able to handle a bigger strain now. Plus he can use all three of the Aura Techniques brought up last chapter! I know it's not the best to have all of that happen offscreen, but I didn't want to bog down the pacing of the story with a lot of training. I'll probably bring up what his Aura Training entailed specifically at some point, but it's not super relevant. All that matters is that he can use Aura Distribution and Coat well, and Aura Sensing to an alright extent.

-I always figured that All Might would've had a much more anger-filled reaction to learning AFO was alive than in canon, so I went with that here. Now you'll have to wait and see what Ozpin and Co. plan is now that their worst fears have been confirmed.

-Poor Jaune, he never has the best of luck with women (especially when it comes to realizing when they actually do like them). Not too much else to say with this scene. I didn't talk about Team CFVY not being there to actually plan out the dance as I haven't brought them up at all in this fic yet. IDK if I will, since they don't do much in the show itself. They do have some interesting development in After the Fall, and I assume the same is true in Before the Dawn (which just released as of my writing this). Maybe if I ever decide to rewrite some of the earlier chapters I'll add them in.

-I'm guessing you guys are pretty surprised that Izuku isn't asking Weiss to the dance. I went with him being too nervous as while Izuku has been growing, I don't think he's at the point of having the confidence to ask Weiss out. Fear not though, they will have their moment at the dance. I promise. I also changed up Kirishima's Semblance a bit. I think it would've been a bit weird if he had Aura and skin hardening, so I changed it so that his Aura just becomes a whole lot stronger. We also see one of the first Team Attacks for MSKI. I have a lot more of them to show off in the future, but right now Ice Blast is the main one you guy's see until we get to the Vytal Festival. We also get Tenya coming clean about going after Stain. Hopefully you guys like his little breakdown, so to speak.

-Cinder is one conniving little bitch, isn't she?

-I'm looking to forward to what I have planned with Roman for the rest of this fic. I think of him as just being a regular guy trying to make the best of his situation in life, and that he wants to make sure he and Neo survive. Unfortunately for them, they've partnered up with people who have quite grand ambitions.

-Finally, more of Blake being angsty. I've enjoyed writing this section for both her and Tenya, but I think I'm ready to move on to the finale of their respective little arcs now.

Reviews:

Earl John Diawatan- I'm not sure how many Class 1-B characters I'll include in this fic, but they won't be here any time soon. They might show up in the tournament and in Mistral though. Thanks for the encouragement with BlakexMomo. I don't think I'll go with BakugoxKirishima though. It's a quality ship, but at this point, I'll probably be going with BakugoxRuby.

1jesus- Thanks!

Dcraus- I'm still not taking requests.

Guest- I don't know if I'll any more chapters like Chapter 16. I enjoyed writing it, and I think it turned out alright, but I'm not sure if I'll find a place for it. I don't have any planned, but it's not out of the question.

Next chapter is the big dance! Burning the Candle is probably one of the best episodes in the entire show, so I hope to do it justice.

See you guys next time!