A/N - I think I've been reading too many webcomics about mmo worlds/games because i miss playing them. I've more recently have been hearing theory crafting videos about the riot mmo that will eventually be made and it's definitely very hype for me even though it won't be coming out for years.

Anyways, enjoy the new chapter.

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Sweat poured out his body as he ran, his blond hair falling over his eyes, yet a quick whip of his head to glance at the danger he was in gave him all the information he'd needed. He willed his body, summoning every ounce of energy in himself to break his limits, his aura and body both screaming to come to a calm, yet he persisted. It wasn't until he heard his impending doom mere inches away that he had to accept the outcome of what was to occur.

"On your right." Pyrrha had exclaimed as she breezed by him, heavy yet controlled breathing as her face was burning just as much as her bright red hair. Reaching their preassigned 'finish line', she jogged in place rather than stop, turning with a smile on her face as Jaune soon managed to reach the line, collapsing onto the ground right after.

The clear blue skies filled his vision as a silhouette of his teammate made her way into his view, offering some water to him with a friendly smile. Accepting the offer, Jaune soon sat up, downing the bottle as he thought back to the start of this training with Pyrrha. Waking up earlier than the others wasn't entirely surprising, especially considering the efforts they went through just yesterday, yet just as he finished getting changed into lighter clothes to start the morning with his exercises, Pyrrha had asked if she could join him. He happily accepted the offer then, figuring that warming up and exercising with someone was infinitely more enjoyable than alone, what caught him off guard was just how good she was compared to him. Stretching was simple, both making small talk between themselves as they loosened their muscles. It was during the rest of the training that Jaune learned two things about his new teammate.

Pyrrha was, funnily enough, very competitive. He had made a joke about his training regiment, knowing that he had once gone through it with Rosa when she had asked him what his training was like, and she called him a madman for doing that daily. He was caught off guard when Pyrrha had soon asked if he thought she couldn't do better, which then led to an agreement between the two. The second thing he learned made him regret that agreement just as quickly.

Pyrrha was a celebrity athlete. He had only discovered this fact when, after losing at the first three exercises, he had asked her how she kept up as if she was the one showing him the routine instead. She explained how her normal training was usually a little more intense whenever she gets ready for tournaments, so she is used to pushing her body further on a regular basis. The interaction afterwards still made Jaune confused with her however.

"Tournaments? What were you competing in?" He asked as she seemed to freeze for a moment, she turned to him, a smile on her face not unlike the one she had this morning when she asked to join him.

"It was the Regional Fighting Tournament held in Minstral." She looked down to her hands as they sat on a nearby bench momentarily. "A lot of prospective hunters go to test their skills. Usually those that do well get scouted by Haven Academy to attend there."

"Wow, sounds intense. I take it since you're here you didn't do well either, huh?" Once more she seemed frozen as she soon turned to stare at him.

"What? No, I-"

"Don't take it to heart, Pyrrha, If there's a tournament here in Vale, I know you'll do well." He continued, giving her a bright smile. She seemed to be processing his well wishes for a second before laughing hard. Leaning back a bit in shock, Jaune waited until she finished, unsure of what sort of joke seemed to pass over his head.

"No, Jaune, I did well. I won, in fact, three times." She smiled at him again, this one a little more warm as he blushed, scratching his head.

"O-oh? And here I was trying to sound all cool when I just sound like the biggest idiot in the room." He chuckled as she shook her head.

"It's fine, Jaune. It actually makes me feel better that you didn't know." She got up, extending her arm to him. "Now, are we ready to finish this up, or have you not finished catching your breath again?" He saw the fire in her return, and he couldn't help but smile back at her, grabbing her arm back and standing, facing her with the same determined look.

"Oh please, you're the one who sat down first."

Needless to say, the rest of the morning went along with the same results. Pyrrha, having a definite advantage thanks to her experience, beating Jaune, who's only determining factor was his own determination to at least edge out one exercise.

The score stayed in favor of the red headed champion the whole morning, but that didn't once stop Jaune.

|•|

By the time they had returned, Pyrrha thanked him for the morning and asked if they could continue to train early, which he happily accepted once again. Inside their dorm, Blake had finished getting ready, Yang was still asleep and Jaune, having sweated more that morning than any other time his dad had trained with him, took a quick shower and changed into his uniform inside the bathroom, letting Pyrrha hop in before going to wake Yang.

He attempted shaking her lightly and calling her name. When she continued snoring, unbothered by the attempts, Jaune tried calling her name a little louder. Her response was to turn in her bed, mumbling something about beauty sleep. Jaune, not wanting his teammate he was responsible for to be late, then tried something that worked regularly on his sister Saphron.

"Hey Yang, you're cool if I use some of your conditioner, right?"

"Touch it and you won't need it for long!" Jolting up, Yang turned to him quickly as her normally Lilac eyes burned red for a second. Holding both hands up, he smirked at her just as the sound of the shower stopped in the bathroom.

"Sorry to scare ya, Pyrrha just finished showering. Hurry up and get ready, classes are gonna start soon." He explained, grabbing his bag on his bed and rushing out before she had a chance to reply. Things were lively, for sure. Not as lively as his home, but then again nothing could probably compare to that. Dealing with his sisters really gave Jaune a lifetime supply of skills just from having to juggle as much as his sister's attention as his mom did. He was, by no means, a jack of all trades, but his sisters would regularly use him to get something they had wanted, whether it was a body to act as a rack for shopping or someone to do their hair while they ranted about their upcoming dates.

Jaune leaned back against the wall to his dorm as he waited for the rest of his team, both excited and nervous about what their first days will look like. As he pulled his scroll out to check their team's schedule, he heard a cacophony of noise from RRSN's dorm across the hall, along with the door opening and closing. Jaune looked up to see Ren, much like himself, leaning against the wall and waiting for his team.

"Didn't take Nora for a morning person." He chuckled, as Ren gave him a very tired look.

"She's more of an… all the time person. She's only so loud now because she realizes that she missed a chance to get some pancakes from the cafeteria, so I promised her to make some later if she could get ready in time for class." He explained. It looked like Rosin, much like his team, had been exhausted come finding their dorm, and had chosen to prepare everything in the morning.

"That can't be easy," he gave Ren an encouraging smile as he held a fist to his chest. "Well if you need some help, feel free to ask me. I may not look it, but I have a few tricks up my sleeve in dealing with sisters." Jaune pulled up a recent photo his family had taken when they had gone to visit Saphron and Terra after the news of Adrian's birth. It showed the full size of the Arc family in the Cotta-Arc household, new nephew and all.

Ren's eyes widened as he looked back up at Jaune. "Are they… all sisters?"

Jaune chuckled a bit, pointing to his mother who stood next to his father. "Everyone except her, that's my mom standing with my dad."

"It seems like you had as exciting as a childhood as me and Nora did. Hopefully the two of us will do well in easing said excitement whenever it crops up." Ren gave Jaune a smile just as the door to JNBY's dorm opened, his three teammates stepping out in their uniform.

"Huh, looks like we won't be the last to class after all." Yang smirked, looking behind Ren over towards her sister's dorm. "How'd the night go for you all?"

"It wasn't too eventful, thankfully. This morning, however, seems to have allowed the situation to settle and things are… eventful to say the least." Ren shrugged, a loud crash and Nora's voice coming through with a 'got it!' caused the four of JNBY to flinch from the assumed pain, Jaune did notice, strangely enough, Ren's lack of surprise.

His face must have shown some confusion as Ren simply sighed, before explaining "Nora usually causes things to be eventful."

Yang's grin had grown a bit and they all meandered around for a minute or so before Jaune checked the time on his scroll, having checked the layout for Beacon to know how to get to their next class. With a quick farewell and gathering of his teammates, they headed out to their first class of the day, Grimm Studies with Professor Port.

Jaune could already feel the excitement build at the thoughts of his first official class studying Grimm.

|•|

Jaune coincidentally gave a small funeral and prayer to his now dead excitement as Professor Port dragged onto another story that digressed so far off the topic he had originally started in, that he was almost positive that it might be on purpose at this point. He didn't know the man, and far be it for him to assume anything about it, but he was sure his sister had once done this a few times whenever she wanted to avoid talking about a certain topic. Talking to avoid responsibilities or something similar, he wasn't sure, but what he was sure of were a few things.

He could probably, like most of the others, get away with taking a few more naps in between the stories seeing as Port himself didn't feel the need to call them out on could also just as likely learn some interesting aspects about Grimm if he paid enough attention, like how casually Port mentioned that Boarbatusks have a softer underside and generally fall onto their heavier backs when thrown off their own momentum in between his heroic triumph against a horde 'big enough to wipe Vacuo off the maps.'

Of course, that choice required him to pay too much attention to a man recounting everything about his finer youth, and boy did he not skip past how often he would make the ladies swoon, as if the thought of their teacher's romances were exactly what he needed to preoccupy himself.

Jaune instead chose to work on his aura control, refining his hold on it more and more like his father had taught him before. Keeping a pencil and paper in front of him, Jaune sat straight, closing his eyes as he felt the invisible barrier around him slowly die down, minimizing itself until it was a single point against the back of his hand. Spreading from that point back to encompass him took more effort, however it held no issues for him. He then felt it swirl and form beyond him, which confused him since he hadn't willed it to do such. He followed along with it, feeling the guidance of his aura reaching out for something he wasn't quite sure of. He felt it brush against the tip of his aura just barely out of reach. Once more, he willed himself to follow along, feeling it just barely against his aura and this time tried to grasp it when-

"... Mr. Arc?" His concentration lost as his eyes snapped open, many eyes on him as he was dumbfounded in this situation, not unlike being caught so openly sleeping in class.

"S-sorry, Professor Port, could you repeat the question?" He asked ashamedly, still unsure of why the entire class was now watching him as well, even his team. The small amounts of shock showing on their face meant it wasnt out of amusement, did he perhaps do something that hunters normally don't do?

"I simply asked if you perhaps were excited for any other classes that you felt the need to practice Peach's Aura Manipulation and Studies before you ever entered the class in the first place, Mr. Arc."

"W-what do you mean professor, I was just uhh…" Looking quickly for an excuse, Port seemed to have beaten him to the punch.

"What you were doing, Mr. Arc, is glowing. Now while I for one think a huntsman who goes above and beyond to excel in the field, you must dedicate each block of time for each lesson the professors have prepared. Seeing as how you have thoroughly prepared your aura, I would like to thank you for volunteering in this next demonstration and ask that you get into your hunters gear and join us back again." Port, for all intents and purposes, had seemed to drop the jolly demeanor that he had been showing the class for the past hour and a half.

Jaune could only nod with a "yes professor", making his way down the tables with his head down, not caring to look at all the eyes that were staring intently at him. Once out in the hallway, his hand soon came quickly into contact with his face, as a depressed groan escaped his mouth. Finally allowed to settle on what had just occurred, Jaune stared at his hand, remembering the warmth that he had been reaching for with his aura.

What even was that? His semblance? Was it really just an aura technique he stumbled onto? So many questions filled into his mind and nothing his father had taught him really helped. Maybe Port was just doing what he was doing throughout his class and just giving small hints for how he should approach it. Professor Peach was brought up, her class specifically when he had caught his attention. Maybe Professor Port wanted Jaune to speak with Professor Peach later about what he experienced.

Jaune hurried back to the class, now equipped with his huntsman gear as he stood ready towards the entrance of the class. A curtain held over what was obviously a metal crate containing a Grimm, and if that didn't say anything about the power Port had Jaune didn't know what did. He kept an even stance as Port continued on about his lesson.

"Now, Mr Arc has gladly volunteered to show us his huntsman's spirit, so let us all observe just how he handles and dispatches a grimm." Port explained as the cage shook violently. It was a toss up but based solely on the size of the crate, it definitely wasn't anything elder or above. Jaune hoped that it wasn't something that flew like a Nevermore or a Lancer, confident as he was in taking out grimm, it was another story entirely if he had to aim his chain at something that had a lot of agility. The potential of Port bringing something that dangerous into a classroom where no one was prepared to fight was low, however, so Jaune chose to secure himself for something to run at him.

Time slowed, the cage opened, eyes widened and fierce red met piercing blue as the grimm identified it's victim. With a shift, the grimm, a Boarbatusk, shot out of it's cage, aiming to pummel and squish the human in front of it. Holding his shield steady, Jaune pumped aura into his arm, torso, and legs, allowing the force of the hit to easily travel through and dissipate into the ground. Just as he finished, the near titanic force of the rapidly spinning grimm shook the knight, but did not move him. Sparks flew from the shield due to the scraping of the Boarbatusk's bone-like exoskeleton grinding against the hard steel of Catena Vigil. With a shout, Jaune activated the gravity dust lining his shield, shoving the creature off into the air.

Seeing an opportunity, Jaune aimed carefully before releasing two of the chains of Catena Vigil, piercing the grimm's softer underside. Retracting the chains, the grimm's momentum shifted once more, dragged furiously towards the shield once more, only this time unable to curl and defend it's weakness, the only thing it could do is await it's passing as the knight readied his sword. With a cry, Jaune struck true, cleanly sinking his sword into and through the chest of the Boarbatusk. As the fiend began dissipating, the class let out a series of claps and cheers, Pyrrha and Yang excitedly as he looked to Blakes smile and soft clapping.

"Very good, Mr. Arc. You seem to have at least paid a little attention to the lesson then, always look to make your advantage out in the field. If you know the prey's weakness, then look to exploit it in ways that let's you dictate the fight." Port explained, moving back to the chalkboard. "I want you all to study up on Beowolves, Ursa, and Nevermore weaknesses and be prepared for it to come up next class. Thank you again, Mr. Arc, for making the demonstration succinct and allowing us to witness how a huntsman should conduct their hunts!" As he thanked him, the class once again clapped for him before the bell rang for the end of the lesson.

Exiting the room, he was stopped by Ruby and Nora, who both excitedly recapped the lesson in their own wondrous ways, sound effects provided by Ruby while Nora embellished what they all witnessed not thirty seconds ago. Laughing all the while, the two teams began to make their way to the cafeteria for lunch before private studies were to take place.

With JNBY and RRWN making their way to the large cafeteria, Ruby questioning Jaune on his weapon and once again offering her maintenance skills in exchange for looking it over, Yang and Nora offering to spar, with Pyrrha adding in that she wouldn't mind a round for herself. Blake and Ren quietly followed the group, adding in a sharp quip every now and then as Weiss congratulated his performance, noting how quickly he was able to think about grabbing the Boarbatusk out of the air. Jaune chuckled, giving his thanks as he mentioned being complimented on his thinking ability by his father when he was training him as well.

"But it's still crazy! Like you're such a good leader Jaune! You're cool, you're skilled, you think faster and react like a leader should! Meanwhile I'm…" She trailed off, her eyes darting over to Weiss momentarily as the Schnee heiress simply scoffed and turned away quickly. Nora looked more than slightly annoyed but Ren gave her a pacifying touch as Jaune looked to Ruby.

"Thanks Ruby, but I didn't start out like this. Dust, if you had seen me back three years ago I'm sure every single one of you would do so much better than me. I barely knew how to handle a sword let alone how to actually use aura." He chuckled to them as he kept walking, he had noticed a quiet lull over them briefly before he turned back to them. "Something wrong?"

"Y-you said 'three years ago'?" Pyrrha seemed weird, not nervous but… eager? Or anxious with anticipation for something that Jaune couldn't quite identify.

"Yeah, grimm attack almost killed me so I had to get my aura unlocked. I've been training with my dad since then but I wasn't anywhere close to how I am now. Why, is that weird? I-I'm sorry if I said something wrong, I'm still not really used to Huntsman culture and-" He was stopped by his partner patting his shoulder, looking up to lilac as she grinned at him.

"Well Grimmslayer, If you can get this good in less than half the time it took for us to get where we are now, I cannot wait to see how far someone like you could go. Most huntsmen start as young as ten, and their aura develops with them. What kind of training did your pops give ya?" She looked delighted, which probably did not bode well for his physical health in the near future.

"First it was building up my body with aura and exercises, then it was swordsmanship, then hunting with him. I only barely started on fights against other huntsmen before I was accepted and had to get ready to head to Beacon." The group finally arriving at the cafeteria, decided to put a pin in the conversation, each person heading towards their food of choice before finding a table large enough for all of them. Jaune sat first, having a plate full of barbecued meats of varying cuts, some veggies on the side, and a large drink. Digging into his meal before the others inevitably used up his time to eat to explain himself, he was soon joined by Ruby, who somehow had a large stack of cookies balanced on her tray, Nora, who similarly had pancakes stacked higher than herself, and Ren, who had a decent looking salad.

Recalling her question earlier, Jaune took the chance and looked to Ruby before speaking. "Ruby, about your question earlier. I don't think you're worse of a leader than me. Sure I'm strong and smart about my fights, but you actually have good battle sense too. Yeah my team took out the Deathstalker, but you managed to set up a coordinated attack with your team against that Nevermore. You are proficient in weapons, your semblance makes you too quick to catch, meanwhile I'm a standing statue. Be confident in yourself, you deserve to be a leader!" As Jaune finished, Ruby could only stare with tears in her eyes as she nodded, a big smile on her face.

"Thanks Jaune, that means so much!" Ruby wiped her tears out of her eyes. "Okay, enough sappy! I will do my best! I'll show her I have what it takes!"

Jaune smiled, biting into his food once more before thinking over once more.

Her?

|•|

Weiss Schnee, heiress to the Schnee Dust Company, skilled huntress, and above all a wonderful scholar in her own right. She was always rewarded for her hard work, being allowed to study at Beacon being a prime example of such.

As it stood however, Beacon itself seemed to pay no mind to her hard work.

Her initial desired partner was instead partnered to another huntress, which she didn't think was a bad thing, since she was still friends or on friendly terms with her either way, so she could always still hang out with Pyrrha.

Her problem stemmed from her being partnered with and commanded by an immature, hyper energetic, annoying brat of a student that somehow tricked her way into Beacon two years early! It was beyond embarrassing for her to have been looked over by someone shorter than she was!

Weiss brought this up the night before, and while nothing was really achieved, it made her irritable. How did Headmaster Ozpin allow someone like her to be a team leader? Sure her skills with her scythe is great, but combat skills seems to be all she had. She was not fit mentally nor maturity-wise to be a leader, much less her own leader. Jaune at least seemed capable if his performance so far was anything to judge off of, so why had she been forced to deal with such an insane team.

Ruby herself was a problem, since she obviously wasn't fit for being a leader, but Nora as well was like a bottle of pure dust! She was ready to explode at any time, whether it was with her loud and obnoxious morning routine of screaming out loud of her dreams or even her seemingly infinite energy. Ren was the only sane pillar she clung to, and even then he would still side with Nora over her.

Weiss looked back at the table, being last due to her specific meal prep that she asked one of the cooks to prepare for her, and stared over at how happy and giggly these children were behaving. With a decision in mind, Weiss made her way to the group as she looked over at Blake, the black haired girl that had partnered up with Pyrrha. Maybe she could convince her to swap teams with her.

Regardless, Weiss knew she'd need to speak to Ozpin, and soon.

|•|

Well, Weiss is still acting very Weiss, I hope the ending bit puts into perspective the train of thought Weiss would have at this point. Obviously things aren't going to go exactly as she likes, but this choice actually opens up more for me creatively, since this will be the driving force for Weiss and Blake talking since Blake would absolutely love to do anything else but be forced to interact with the Schnee Heiress.

Jaune notices Ruby acting as he used to, so he'll be hyping her up until shes confident in herself. He will also need to deal with his own issues, however, as sometimes too much is, well, too much.

As always, leave some feedback, and thank you all for enjoying the story.