Weiss Sieben narrowed her eyes, aiming her saber at the swinging monkey-Faunus, "So… Your compass happen to lead you to me."

Sun Wukong smirked as he hung upside down, gripping the branch above him with his tail, "No, I just walked in a random direction for no reason and just 'happen' to find you." His traveler's bag hung from his armpit.

She faltered for a moment, "I suppose that sounds ridiculous when you say it like that." But not for long, "How do I know you didn't attack my partner and steal her compass?"

His eyes rolled, "Duh, because I got my own."

Her glare didn't lessen; instead, a sigh escaped her lips.

He twirled his hand, "Look, I don't know what Theodora or Theodore or whatever he/she is calling him/herself is…" He blinked, freezing in his spot, "Hang on, I lost where I was going…" He suddenly let out a yell and throwing out his limbs, startling the former heiress, "Ah! I don't know what the academy's plan is, but this is up Vacuo's alley, alright?" He dropped from the tree branch, landing his feet, "Despite being a school for teenagers, survival of the fittest charges on." His bag now hung from his shoulder.

Her saber followed him, "And does that precisely mean?"

Sun teetered his head, "We're meant to survive out here. Judging by this compass nonsense, we have to survive out here as a team." He shrugged, "Doing that is a lot harder if no one knows each other. So, our resident Headmaster comes up with a way to force us into socializing."

"So, we're supposed to be a part of the same team," said Weiss as she cocked a brow.

He shrugged, balancing on a fallen log, "Probably, I mean it would be pointless for us to go through all of this introduction stuff without putting us on the same team."

She finally began to lower her saber, "True…"

"Now, we've met so the question is how do we get the band together?" He juggled his compass, "Well, this is an Anemoi. A compass with a gravity Dust shard to mess with the needle."

"Yes, I had guessed as much."

"Then you know that the shards are pulled to their original… mass? Yeah, let's go with that." He rolled it down his shoulders. "So, my guess is that they took a standard shard and broke it into two before taking those two and turning it into quarters." He popped it off his arm with his elbow before catching it with his tail. "The new shards are attracted to the other shard that made them two. Then those two shards will point to each other to become whole again."

"A long-winded way to form teams…"

Sun rolled his eyes, "Our Headmaster will probably say its fate."

"Do you really know our Headmaster that well?" asked Weiss.

"Heh…" His head teetered, "I know her well enough."

"Why is that?"

The monkey chuckled, "Let's say I… owes her my life… He's the reason I'm here."

"He?"

He waved his hand, "Heh, later." He leapt ahead of her, holding out his compass, "Come on, Ice Queen, we got a team to form and an Initiation to beat." Her own compass flew from her belt, combining with his and becoming a new Anemoi.

Weiss glared, stomping after him, "Wait!" She raised her saber, "I still don't trust you."

Sun jogged onward, "Then you can kill me later!" He adjusted the strap of his bag, "We don't want to be here all day!"

She muttered underneath her breath as she adjusted her own bag before jogging after him. Once her pace caught up with his, she asked, "What is your name, at least?"

He smirked, "Sun. I bet I know yours, but you know…"

"Weiss—Weiss Sieben."

"Did your parents name you after an heiress or somethin'?" laughed he.

"No, I was one."

He laughed, "Well, shit!" He nudged her shoulder, "Ha, maybe you're not so bad then." His head shook, "Never thought someone like you'd become a runaway."

"And why is that?" asked she.

His tail teetered like his finger, "Always thought Atlesians lived in castles—well fed, all nice, clean." He shrugged, "Why leave?"

She paused, filling the air between them in silence. Before slowly her answer came, "Family…"

He blinked in return, "Oh… Sorry."

"It's… fine." She smiled—for the first time, "Truly. I've had a few months to come to terms with it all."

He smiled in turn, "Heh, well, if it's any help, I know people with that… story." He shrugged as they trekked on, "If you ever need someone to talk to, I know a few who kinda know."

"Really?"

He nudged her with his elbow, "Yeah, runaways gotta stick together." He raised a brow, "You got people here?"

"He used to be my butler, but now…" she trailed off.

"Gotcha." He gestured to himself, "When we get back to Vacuo, I'll make he's safe."

"Safe?"

He joked, "Well, not like all of us runaways got hearts of gold."

"You have enough influence to offer… 'protection'?" questioned she.

"Eh, more like a warning. Not like I got an army at my beck and call, but I got a rep that I can use."

Weiss raised a brow, "Reputation as…?"

Sun puffed his chest, "A B.A.M.F.!"

The former heiress blinked, "B… BAMF?"

"BAMF."

"You say that like I'm supposed to know what that means."

It was his turn to blink, "You don't?"

"No." There was a bout of silence before she raised a brow, "Well?"

The monkey smirked, "What? I'm not gonna tell ya. Guess."

"Guess?"

"Yeah, that's the fun bit."

Weiss only sighed in response. She slowly raised a brow, "I suppose it's an acronym."

"Yep."

"I suppose it's spelled… B-A… M-F?"

"You got it."

"Are you going to give me a hint?"

Sun laughed, "Nope."

Another sigh.

-XXX-

Headmaster West sat at a small desk, playing with a deck of strange cards. This desk was far from her actual office within the main building of the academy. Her favorite seat was behind the school, sitting near the edge of the city's mound of rock. This seat provided her a view of the ocean of sand as well as the jungle that just hid over the edge of the horizon. On this desk, her scroll sat on a little stand and its top consisted of a reflective marble.

Her tablet vibrated before she tapped her screen to answer the call, "Yes?"

A male voice responded, "I am reporting in on Team Twenty-Five."

She laid out four cards, unveiling their tarot-markings, "Go ahead, Professor Crone."

"The team has formed their pairs and are now on their way to meet." He added, "Relations have formed. Surprisingly, Rose and Nightshade seem very cautious of each other while Wukong and Sieben have been dancing with some banter between them."

"Understood, report back when the team forms." She frowned at the cards' faces. She shook her head before adding, "When you can please do ensure that Zerzura is still standing. You are in the area, after all."

"Of course, Headmaster," replied Crone.

Headmaster nodded, "Thank you," before ending the call. She looked upon the cards once more, propping an elbow on her desk and resting her cheek in her palm. "Hm…" She looked upon the rolling hills of sediment, "A group of rather troubled children…" She looked upon herself, "The threatening mother may not work…" She smiled as she stood, slipping her scroll into her pocket. "Well, I've been meaning to revisit Theodore anyway."

-XXX-

Blake Bella—err… Nightshade followed the point of the large compass with her new partner following silently. After their rocky start, her newest partner went into a long bout of silence. The occasional glance over her shoulder unveiled a guilty look upon the red reaper's face. The silver-eyed girl walked behind the cat, maintaining a certain distance between them. Her hands were before her, fidgeting with her thumbs, as her eyes wandered from flora to fauna. Everywhere she wasn't.

Blake didn't mind quiet—she reveled in it, honestly. However, this form of silence itched up her spine. She could feel Ruby's gaze land on her back more than once. It faded fast. She could hear the intake of breath, like the reaper was about to speak. However, whatever words she had quickly died on the tip of her tongue. It reminded her of a certain someone's attention she had garnered a long time ago.

They had walked away from thick trees and canopies and were walking amongst thinner trees. They were closer together and made the trek more difficult. The pair now had to weave through the trunks and cautiously step over overgrown roots. Their traveler's packs got caught on the nearby branches before they snapped underneath the girls' pull. The pair pushed forward, snapping branches and trampling foliage. Blake came to a stop as the ears atop her head twitched.

Ruby blinked, "W-What is it?" Crescent Rose came out in full with a quick twirl, freeing her the space to wield it freely. She gripped it tightly, clenching her jaw and lowering her body. "Is there something out there?"

Blake hissed; voice nearing a whisper, "Careful!" The reaper deflated as she continued, "We don't want to draw attention." Her gaze shifted onward, "Something's moving out there."

"S-Sorry," she stuttered. "Can you tell what it is?" she then asked.

Her cat-ears twitched, "It stopped…" Her eyes narrowed, "We're being watched."

Ruby's back straightened as her aura caught up with the Faunus's senses, "Followed, too."

The car turned to the reaper, "You said your partner was familiar on Vacuo?"

"He's a local," she affirmed.

Blake began to walk forward, "We need to find your partner."

"Y-Yeah," she answered. "What are we going to do?" she questioned.

"We could cut through and rush forward—try and find our other halves faster, but… We don't know what's out there. We could get ourselves into a lot of danger."

"Yeah… I tried to do research into Vacuo, but… I didn't think to look into the rainforests or jungle—I'm not even sure anymore."

A faint smile graced her face, "I feel like I should've prepared more myself."

A creak and a stomp of a limb stabbing into the ground stole their attention away from each other. Blake's katana left her sheath, unveiling the black sword's violet blade. Her back met Ruby's as they looked upon the rainforest that surrounded them.

"Where was that?" she quickly asked.

Blake shook her head, "I can't tell… Everything's echoing. I can't pinpoint any of it."

Ruby looked over her shoulder, "Grimm… Can't be invisible, right? I haven't heard of one that could."

The cat frowned, shaking her head, "I… I can't say I doubt it. I haven't heard of one myself, but…"

"Well, we can't stay put," stated the reaper.

"Agreed…" She sighed, "Did your partner give any advice about Grimm in this area?"

Ruby thought for a moment, "Um… He mentioned that Grimm here are better at hiding than most…" She teetered her head, "Sometimes you just need to look up-" She shouted as her boot connected with Blake's back, "Move!"

Blake fell forward before rolling onto her feet and spinning to see Crescent Rose dragged upward by a set of vines. She looked above to see the giant mouth of some thin-bodied Grimm standing around them. Its lopsided eyes glared at her as it unhinged its jaw. Eight limbs came from its back, stretching over the tree-line and stomping around them. Her eyes widened when she saw tree trunks swing as the Grimm adjusted its stance as it tried to eat the weapon.

The cat quickly spun, rushing towards the Grimm's limbs. She used the nearest tree as a steppingstone before lunging at the tree-like leg. She recoiled when a new limb stabbed at the ground before her—pitch-black and armored in white.

Her form turned dark before a shadow formed in her stead, allowing her to step off it to avoid the limb. She spun through the air before her foot landed on another tree. Her leg bent before she lunged once more. With a swift swing, the Grimm's limb fell apart before she created another shadow to leap off of to cut her original target.

As she flipped through the air, her feet landed upon a tree. Only for that tree to rip from the ground, causing her to tumble through the air. She gritted her teeth as she fell, swinging her blade at the moving tree. The beast let out a high-pitched screech as she crashed onto the ground.

It waved its limbs amongst the trees before its other limbs slipped and it lost its balance. Its screech turned into a growl as it crashed into foliage.

Blake panted as she pushed herself onto her feet. She looked around to see nothing but the sprawling limbs of the defeated Grimm. "R-Ruby?" She rushed towards the fallen Grimm, "RUBY?!"

She heard a familiar voice cry, "Hiya!" before she saw another set of trees stumbled and faltered. Another thin-bodied Grimm crashed onto the forest floor. A red clock flowed after its rider with her armored fist embedded into its body.

Ruby ripped her arm free before her armored fist collapsed into a gauntlet, "Blake!" Her eyes were wide like she hadn't realized the nature of what she did. "What happened are you, okay?"

The cat let out a laugh as the living Grimm's limb swung. The limb crashed through the trees, splintering them into chips, as it swung at her. Her shadow manifested as an instinct, occupying her space and sending her over the strike. As it ripped through the black form, she spun through the air. Whilst in mid-air, her feet landed on the falling trees as she spun to face the fallen Grimm.

The point of her blade aimed at the Grimm's body before she lunged at it, skewering the fallen Grimm and silencing its existence.

Ruby jogged over to her partner, "Blake!" Her eyes widened as she caught her weapon, narrowly saving it from the dirt.

Blake rolled her shoulder as she sheathed her sword, "That… was surprisingly heavy…"

The reaper twirled her scythe, collapsing it and holstering it, "Eh? Really?"

The cat smiled before she shook her head, "You're a lot stronger than I thought."

Ruby smiled, "I'll take that as a compliment."

XXX

AN: Howdy, readers. So, we start out with our resident monkey and former heiress getting to know each other. They're interaction is a lot better than Ruby's and Blake's. Sun is a lot more open than Blake with lofting confidence over Ruby. He's able to take control of the conversation rather easily. He earns a wary trust due to his knowledge and familiarity of Vacuo and in particular with Shade's Headmaster. To simply put, he talks like he knows what he's doing and provides good points to support himself. Thus, Weiss goes along with him. We also get "Sweet-Summer Child" Weiss and her ignorance of BAMFs. Blake and Ruby are traveling and encounter Grimm. Blake wields a katana well as Ruby, due to her seventeen year-old status, can fight both with and without Crescent Rose.

Please pose any questions, criticize away, and thank you for reading!