Explosions filled the air as two sorceresses pointed their instruments of destruction at one another, sending fire, ice, lightning, gale force winds, and even monsters made of white aura at one another, all to no avail.

The older and slightly taller of the two grunted as she tossed her wiry spectacles aside due to the lenses having cracked and being covered in soot. She also took the time to loosen her hair from its tight bun as the flames she and her opponent had thrown at one another hadn't been kind to her blond locks, but neither had they been gentle with her opponent who untied her bun so that her own singed white hair tumbled past her shoulders.

The younger woman unsheathed a parrying dagger from the hilt of her saber, and charged the sorceress who stood her ground despite wielding nothing more than a leather riding crop.

Both the saber and dagger radiated red dust while the crop's tip glowed purple just like the woman's eyes. She effortlessly deflected the saber upon contact, but the parrying dagger was making it difficult for the veteran huntress to find an opening, and she dared not make the mistake of engaging or trying to parry a parrying dagger.

With a flourish from her crop, purple glyphs surrounded them, and when the swordswoman tried slashing and stabbing her simultaneously, the larger of the two blades came down hard on the wielder's right hand.

The dagger clattered to the ground as the swordswoman's aura flashed, but in a fit of rage she slashed at the sorceress with renewed ferocity, finally scoring a hit even if it was just against her purple vambraces.

The elder huntress seemingly teleported away courtesy of stepping into a glyph, but the swordswoman charged again, not bothering to retrieve her other blade since it would only give her opponent an opening of attack, which she knew from experience would be deadly.

She also decided not to attempt anymore glyphs as they all seemed to backfire anyway. She may have been the best glyph practitioner in her Specialist unit, but nobody on Remnant could hold a candle to Beacon Academy's combat instructor.

She raised her saber looking to end the battle with one final flurry, believing her best bet at victory or at least survival was to exhaust the older huntress who was no longer on active duty, and who rarely combatted opponents hand to hand anymore.

The sorceress barely had time to blink before the assault came, and the two were like flashes of white and purple light as their auras collided with one another before their weapons ever could.

More glyphs surrounded them, creating weak torrents of flame and lightning, but the swordswoman barely acknowledged them. To even create glyphs under such physical demands was a testament to the other woman's mastery of the art, but the older huntress was tiring quickly, and despite her skill, couldn't create anything even remotely threatening.

'Finally,' the swordswoman thought to herself. 'After all these years I finally have you...'

She had always worried that the sorceress' overreliance on glyphs would lead to her death someday, that a battle would rage too long and her aura pool too exhausted to see it through to the end. The Specialist had seen it happen to far too many huntsmen over the years, but the combat instructor merely continued creating glyphs, each one weaker than the last.

"Winter! Look out!" screamed a young woman from the sidelines.

The swordswoman registered the tone of the high pitched voice and her name being called, and instinctively began retreating when electricity shot up her leg.

'Trapped!' she thought, but before she could dispel the glyph, fire struck her sword hand and caused her aura to flicker once more.

She maintained her grip on the saber, but a moment later the air began being sucked out her lungs, and she had no other choice but to drop the blade and try dispelling as many glyphs as she could using both hands.

She flared her aura in the shape of a sphere, causing all nearby glyphs to disappear and for the pain racking her body to momentarily cease, but as she tried summoning a new blade into her hands, this one over six feet long and glowing white, the riding crop found itself pressed against her throat.

The swordswoman took several long, labored breaths as she stared at the sorceress who was doing the same, a threatening look in her eyes, and finally she dispelled the blade before it could be fully summoned, all the while still keeping her chin held high and her dignity intact.

"I surrender," she rasped, her mouth dry from both exhaustion and the air still sizzling around them.

The riding crop lowered, and with a flourish, the woman's blades returned to her. "Excellent work, Winter," the sorceress said, her stoic expression gradually morphing into a proud smile. "If you hadn't decided to get up close and personal, you may have finally had me."

Winter sheathed her blades shaking her head. "You're the one who taught me it's not the power of the glyphs that win duels, but rather how you use them. I have more glyphs at my disposal and more aura than you, but there's not much I can do when you continually throw everything back in my face, literally." She gestured toward her singed hair and clothes which mirrored her opponent's but to a more severe degree.

"After all these years I still have much to learn, Miss Goodwitch."

She bowed slightly, and the other woman patted her on the back and offered her a shoulder to lean on. Slowly and carefully, they began making their way back to the bleachers of the brightly lit training room, where a young woman with snow white hair was waiting impatiently but knew better than to interrupt the two huntresses.

"If you continue calling me 'Miss Goodwitch', then I will have no other choice but to refer to you as 'Major Schnee'. Or would you prefer 'Lady Schnee' like when we first met?"

Winter let out a soft laugh but hissed when she took a step and felt a tingling sensation travel from her foot all the way up her spine. "Alright, Glynda it is, but even after all these years it still feels inappropriate to call you that. Oh, and don't think I've forgotten about our bet. I'll double your fee just like I promised."

Glynda nodded in satisfaction but didn't seem as pleased about the small fortune she had just earned as much as she was talking to her former pupil again, and carrying her off the battlefield just like old times.

"You don't know how proud I am of you, Winter," she said, her gaze drifting to the lone figure unable to stand still atop the bleachers. "And I'll make sure your sister's even stronger by the time she's your age. She's in good hands, I promise you that."

Winter laughed again. "You're the only reason I was able to convince Father to let her attend Beacon. He may still hold a grudge against you, but even he's willing to admit you were the best tutor I ever had, and the best glyph practitioners at Polaris are amateurs compared to you."

The woman's aura bubbled with pride, and her former pupil couldn't help but sigh as she leaned in closer, making it look as though she merely needed the extra help walking rather than needed her mentor's soul touching her own after too long apart from one another.

"I'll be sure to tell them you said that," Glynda teased. "They'll never live down the shame, and I expect you'll receive dozens of apologies fearing that they may have fallen out of your good graces, if they were ever in your graces to begin with."

"I suppose it's a good thing you're at least an Atlesian then."

"An Atlesian raised in Vale," she reminded with a sideways glance. "And no, I will not be your head combat instructor or your deputy headmistress when you take over for Ironwood."

"I didn't say a word."

"No, but I can hear the offer now."

"You'd never have to worry about money ever again," she said with a sly grin.

Glynda grinned back at her. "After this trip I don't believe that'll be an issue. Between the money I made being your private tutor and my huntress commission, I could retire now if I wanted."

"Alright, fine." Winter blew the hair out of her eyes, disappointed but unsurprised. "Next time your contract is up, at least let me buy you dinner and make an offer. Then Ozpin will either have to match it or give in to certain considerations. It's the least I can do, and whatever you're being paid, it's not enough..."

Glynda blushed and gave her a squeeze. "That's very kind of you, Winter. You don't know how happy I am that becoming a huntress hasn't changed you for the worse like it's done for so many others. If anything, becoming a huntress has helped melt that Schnee heart of yours. Not only do you look just like her, but you're also beginning to act a lot like your mother. From when I knew her, I mean. For however short a time that was..."

*sniff*

Winter didn't say a word, only squeezed her mentor tighter and hid her face when she heard her little sister's voice. She had motioned for the girl to remain where she was, but as usual she only partially obeyed, and came running once the pair approached the bleachers.

"Winter, are you alright?" she asked, taking her weight from Glynda to help sit her down. "Do you need-" she tried raising her sister's pant leg but Winter slapped her hand away, not wanting her to know that she could walk just fine.

"I'm alright, Weiss, but what did I say about interfering in our match?"

The teenage girl lowered her gaze ashamedly. "I apologize, Professor Goodwitch," she said, meeting her soon-to-be combat instructor in the eyes. "I saw my sister in danger and reacted on instinct."

Goodwitch nodded. "Quick reactions are to be commended, Miss Schnee." With the snap of her fingers, her glasses materialized on her face, fixed and without so much as a scratch or smudge. "However, had this outburst happened during one of my classes, you would have just volunteered yourself for the next match. I hope you're ready to begin your lessons a little early."

Weiss stuttered for a moment before forgetting herself and staring at the legendary huntress with her mouth hanging open. Winter closed it for her, struggling not to laugh or even smile at the poor girl, especially when she had once had the same reaction when in her presence as well, and occasionally still did. Her sister was having to make up for years of substandard tutoring in just a few short weeks, but if anyone could get her caught up and ahead of the curve it was Glynda Goodwitch.

"R-right now?"

"Whenever you're ready will suffice," said Goodwitch. "I would however suggest getting dressed and retrieving your weapon. Unless of course you believe you can defeat my Arma Gigas summon here and now?"

Horrified, Weiss turned to her elder sister for some kind of signal of what she should say or do, and Winter subtly gestured that she should go and get ready as quickly as possible.

"Yes, ma'am. I'll be ready in just a moment." Goodwitch didn't say a word, merely watched with a steely gaze as the teenage girl turned and ran back into the ready room as swiftly as her legs could take her.

Once she was out of earshot, Glynda collapsed onto the bench and grabbed a pair of water bottles, handing one to her former pupil.

"Father's right," Winter sighed, shaking her head. "She's not ready to attend a huntsmen academy. I'm not even sure if she's cut out to be a huntress..."

"She's better with a sword than you were at her age," said Glynda, giving her shoulder a comforting squeeze. "And she also has a wider array of glyphs than when I took over as your tutor."

"I know, but her aura's also far below that of the average first year huntress in-training. I did everything I could to help her, but just like the rest of my family, I'm not exactly the best teacher. The only Grimm she's ever seen in person are juveniles without armor, and she still hesitates even while fighting my Beowolf summons. She's also missing her dominant eye, and she's undersized..."

Goodwitch nodded, having noticed the girl's height and scarred eye for herself, as well as how little she ate during their dinner the night before. "Daily combat training cured you of your lack of appetite, and it'll cure her of hers as well."

"I hope so, but she's still barely five foot tall, Glynda. How's she supposed to fight Grimm when she can't even reach the top shelf of her locker? If a Beowolf pins her to the ground, she'd be helpless..."

She hung her head and Glynda scooted closer, raising her pupil's chin so they were looking each other in the eye. "Small, yes. Helpless, not for long," she promised. "You asked me here for a reason, Winne. I'll make sure she receives the best training a glyph practitioner could hope for, and that she's partnered with girls who'll keep her safe, be actual friends to her, and help her grow as a person. She needs to do this, or at least try. You and I both know that staying with your father would be the worst thing for her right now."

Winter nodded and wiped her eyes, smiling at the usage of her old nickname. "Just promise that you'll take care of her, Glynda. Take care of her as if she were me. Please..."

Her mentor nodded, and with the flick of her riding crop, their clothes began to adjust themselves to how they appeared prior to the battle, and wiped her former pupil's cheeks with her hand. "I'll treat your sister as if I shared my very soul with her. You have my word that she'll become a true huntress someday just like your mother, and that she'll outshine even you. I may even know just the girl to help melt that Schnee heart of hers as well..."

Winter raised a brow and Glynda quickly shook her head. "Trust me, you're better off not knowing. Just know that she graduated top of her class from a prestigious albeit unconventional combat school in Vale. She has the warmest heart I know, though I will admit that I have thought about cutting it out a time or two, as well as the rest of her family's hearts for that matter. I'm just lucky I don't have to worry about her little sister for another couple of years."

"Sounds like you've got everything planned out then," she said with a laugh. "Ozpin's influence must be rubbing off. Just promise me that you won't let him include her in any of his schemes. She may not realize it, but she's essentially going to be his hostage for the next four years." Her eyes twinkled and she embraced the woman, burying her face in her shoulder just as she had so many times in the past. "Please take care of her, Glynda. She's all I have left..."

Glynda hugged her and dried her eyes, and as if on cue, Weiss returned looking flustered and out of breath, wearing an impractical-looking combat skirt and wielding a rapier that more resembled her sister's parrying dagger in size.

She patted her former pupil on the back, flaring her aura so that they could have a brief, silent conversation with one another that they promised to finish later, before smacking her on the rear with her riding crop just as she had back whenever the spoiled heiress had dawdled or forgotten her manners.

"I'll take good care of her, Winter. You have my word."

(A/N: Thank you for reading and I hope you enjoyed. I've had the headcanon of Goodwitch being a private tutor prior to her employment at Beacon for several years now, and I really liked the idea of her having tutored Winter as a teenager prior to attending Polaris (Atlas Academy in this universe). Other than that particular headcanon, this story just came to me on a whim the other day and I thought you might enjoy it. Despite only sharing one, maybe two scenes together, I really like the idea of Glynda and Winter being close friends after their relationship evolved from mentor and pupil, though Winter obviously still views Glynda as her mentor and possibly even as a motherly figure, or perhaps something even more. I also liked the idea of the Grimm Weiss faced during the "White Trailer" actually being a summon as I wasn't entirely a fan of how the event was portrayed in the manga, and this was just a fun little compromise I had.

RWBY and the cover photo of Glynda Goodwitch from "RWBY: Amity Arena" are both properties of Rooster Teeth.

All credit goes to my Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, who has blessed me with this story as well as wonderful readers such as yourselves. God bless)