The young rose shook the stupor from her head confused at to what she had pumped into she looked up only to lock eyes with the icy cold blue eyes of Weiss Schnee. Ruby offered a small smile but to this, the heiress simply scowled and turned on the balls of her feet before beginning to walk away much to Ruby's confusion as she quickly clambered to her feet.

"Wait! Where are you going? We're supposed to be teammates…"

Sadly, the Heiress does not seem to care as she storms off into the forest before making it through the thick brush only to find Jaune stuck to a tree trying and failing to pry Pyrrha's spear from the bark above him.

Quickly weighing up her unfortunate options, Weiss reluctantly decides to settle for the lesser of the two morons and turns back around going back through the brush and re-joining Ruby much to the young girls delight but Weiss is quick to cut in that this by no means makes them friends while dragging the girl along by her hood.

Watching the two girls head off while still pinned to a tree Jaune calls out asking if anyone was gonna help before finding Pyrrha standing just below him with her arms crossed.

"Do you… have any spots left on team Jaune?"

"Very funny"

Back at the cliffs, the ongoing initiation is being viewed by the two professors and the younger Ozpin however a pit forms in his stomach when he looks at the simple interaction between Pyrrha and Jaune much to his confusion before attempting to shake the feeling off however this does not go unnoticed by the two professors besides him however they choose not to bring it up to him as it is no doubt confusion for the boy after all. Training as a warrior all his life would never have prepared him for the concept of his first crush or for being smitten with someone.

While the professors turn back to continue evaluating the students, they find Ruby chasing after her Heiress partner who has her focus set on the objective of the relics instead of her partner trailing behind her.

"What's the hurry?"

"I will not let my mission be delayed because you're too slow! I swear if I get a bad grade because of your- what the?"

Before Weiss can continue, she is taken aback by Ruby speeding past and then around her using her semblance confirming that she is not slow so there is no need to worry. Then going on that just because she is a little unsure of how to deal with people, she understands just fine how to deal with monsters such as the Grimm as she once again zooms off leaving a trail of rose petals much to the heiress's annoyance before a growl echoes behind her signalling the Grimm.

Weiss quickly spun herself around and raised her rapier Myrtenaster to block the incoming claw of a Beowolf a bipedal werewolf-like creature with black fur and white bone plates, forcing her back she found herself surrounded by more Beowolves each eyeing the kill before them. To this Weiss raised her rapier targeting its point at the creature she had just blocked a moment ago and thought back to her training.

'Remember your training Weiss. Head up, shoulders back, right foot forward but not that forward. Slow your breathing and wait for the right time to strike… And now'

But while the Heiress revolves the dust cylinder in the hilt of her sword and dashes forward ready to unleash a fire backed strike the target before her, is cut down and replaced with a certain Rose causing the Schnee to stumble to adjust her attack and sends a gout of flame to the right incinerating a nearby tree.

As the two try to regain themselves Ruby is swiped back by another Grimm causing her to crash back into the Schnee causing the two to argue over who was the one at fault. A short howl from a nearby Beowolf brings them back to their senses as they prepare for a fight, but before the two can engage Weiss sees the fire of the tree slowly spreading after the tree fell and insists, they need to move as the creeping flames engulf some of the Grimm around them. Shortly after both girls reached a small hill and looked back to see a small fire engulfing the area they were just in sparking another argument between the two with Ruby unsure why the heiress has such a problem with her and Weiss being unhappy that Ruby showed such a lack of co-ordination and rule during the fight.

After Ruby cut down the tree beside her as a means to calm down the two continued onward in silence however neither noticed the large black and white barbed feather that glided to the ground after Ruby had cut down the tree.

On the other side of the Forest Yang found herself coming face to face with two Ursa minors while searching for her younger sister. Readying her gauntlets Ember Celica Yang dove to the right and cartwheeled backwards to avoid the charges of both of the oversized bear-like Grimm. Bringing her fists up and assuming a boxer's stance as the first Ursa charged at her again this time Yang brought her fist forward and fired a shot from her gauntlets for good measure as the Ursa was shot backwards by the attack. With the first on its back currently, the second Ursa charged forward but was uppercut and kicked backwards by the blonde brawler. As both Ursa regained their footing Yang questioned the two on if they had seen a small girl in a red hood but all she got in return was a snarl as the second Ursa once again charged at her. cartwheeling backwards again Yang commented that the two creatures could not hit the broad side of a barn.

Cutting off mid-sentence Yang recognised an all too familiar strand of golden hair floating down in front of her, quickly understanding part of her precious hair had been cut the brawler's eyes glowed from their usual lilac to a burning red as her semblance activated and her anger skyrocketed. The beasts confused at the sudden change Yang roared out that they were monsters before releasing a burst of flame from her hair and stampeded forward and firing a torrent of shotgun powered punches at the second Grimm before it was blown back and through the trees behind it. As the first Grimm rose to its back legs to attack it however froze before crashing forward revealing a sword with a length of silk attached to the handle embedded in the creatures back. At the other end of the silk line was the ravenette Blake who emerged from the brush and pulled the silk line returning her weapon Gambol Shroud back to her

Yang and Blake locked eyes and smiled now being partnered together before the blonde cockily announced that she totally could have taken the fallen Grimm.

Towards the very tip of the forest a short way from the temple they were supposed to locate, Jaune and Pyrrha continued their search before Pyrrha commented that the distant gunfire was most likely other students facing off against the Grimm. Walking forward behind the spartan Jaune had a branch snap back at him sending him onto his behind with a shallow scratch on his cheek, Pyrrha seeing this quickly apologised before asking why he simply did not activate his aura to act as a shield to the strike. This only seemed to bring confusion to the boy's face as Pyrrha questioned further if he even knew what aura was. To this Jaune merely scoffs and states that of course he does before asking if 'she' knew what Aura is?

"Aura is the manifestation of our soul. It bears our burdens and shields our hearts.
Have you ever felt like you were being watched without knowing someone was there?

With practice, aura can be our shield. Everyone has it. Even animals."

To this explanation Jaune questions if the Grimm would also have auras but Pyrrha dismisses this noting the creatures they fight lack a soul which is why they are the way they are and lack any actual aura. After understanding some of what Pyrrha says Jaune exclaims that an aura is like a forcefield causing Pyrrha to chuckle. Pyrrha then places a hand on Jaune's cheek and tells him to concentrate with this the two emit a faint glow, Jaune's being white and Pyrrha's being crimson before Pyrrha takes a step back seemingly exhausted worrying the boy.
"It's alright, I used my aura to unlock yours, but the energy that now protects you now is your own."

With his aura now unlocked the small scratch across Jaune's cheek closes as the two then resume their hunt for the relics.

While Jaune may not have understood aura, Talon does and seeing the two interact put a darkened cloud over the male's mood and only helped to grow the ever-present pit in his stomach. What Pyrrha had done was not just simple kindness by using one's own aura along with another's would leave a small link between the two something that Pyrrha was also no doubt well aware of. To this Talon opted that he takes a quick walk giving the excuse that he still wanted to explore and ensure the grounds were still as he recalled offering a forced chuckle and joking that they both no doubt remembered his awful directional sense. As Talon began his walk, he was cut off by the voice of professor Goodwitch calling out to him.

"With anyone else such a forced excuse would have worked but do you honestly forget who raised you. You obviously show some level of care for miss Nikos why not stay and talk to her once they come back."

"I, I have no idea what you're talking about. How could I have grown such affections for someone I barely know. I mean I met her this morning it's far too early to build such a bond with someone right? Besides you always told me love makes you feel a warmth inside to see them happy but whenever I see her happy with him all I feel is an uneasy coldness."

Watching the boy she raised as her own walk away so downcast left a bitter taste in Glynda's mouth. Though she would not admit it out loud she was protective of her two boys, Talon and Gideon alike seeing them happy always took priority for he even though as a professor she knew it shouldn't. Returning to Ozpin's side with a look of gloom Glynda quickly shook it off returning her attention to the ongoing initiation.

"Our last pair has been formed, sir. Nora Valkyrie and Lie Ren. Poor boy, I can't possibly imagine those two getting along. Still, he is probably better off than miss Nikos. I don't care what his transcripts say, that Jaune fellow is not ready for this level of combat."

Closing her scroll Glynda sighed that they would find out either way soon enough and that with the current paces the groups should reach the temples shortly. Turning and beginning to walk away again Glynda questioned what exactly Ozpin had used for relics this year but the professor did not respond instead too focused on the young Ruby Rose sat upon the floor as Weiss wandered back and forth clearly lost.