"Knock, knock!"

Yang sighed from her sister's cheerful call. "Rubes, you have to actually knock on the door."

"You're no fun," the leader pouted and finally knocked on the door.

In seconds, the double doors creaked open to reveal trickling darkness. The silence didn't stop the team from walking in.

"Uh," Yang muttered. "Anyone home?"

Blake scanned around the darkness, not seeing a thing. "He called us here, right?"

Ruby rubbed the back of her head in confusion. "Yeah."

Suddenly, the lights turned on as a figure rounded the corner. It was Ozpin, who looked a little rushed as he took a seat in his signature chair.

"Hello students," Ozpin greeted as he spun in his chair. "Sorry about that, I was finishing some paperwork."

The headmaster yanked out a pile of papers from his desk and presented them to the team. Each member picked up a paper and read. It had details about the upcoming mission.

After Ozpin sipped his coffee and gave them a little time to absorb the information, he spoke.

"I have an important task for your team. Unfortunately, this mission requires more than the usual amount of hunters and huntresses, which is why I need your team. You are freshmen, and gaining experience is critical in this path of life."

From reading the first paragraph, Weiss' eyebrows rose like she was unimpressed. "You want us to eradicate a beowolf den?"

"Simple enough, yes?" Ozpin nodded.

Blake knew there was something unsaid. "What's the catch?"

From her phrase, Ozpin leaned back in his seat like he was waiting for the question. "The small town of Marfa has lost their last hunter due to an ever-growing beowolf den that is led by four alphas."

Visibly, the team stiffened in shock.

"Four alphas?!" Yang blurted, not believing her ears. "That's unheard of."

Ozpin nodded. "It appears these alphas realized that working together makes the overall pack stronger rather than killing each other. It's a rare display of higher intelligence, indeed. Which is why you must use more caution than when you normally deal with alphas."

Ruby used a solemn tone, one her team didn't hear often. "When will we be dispatched?"

"In a couple of hours," Ozpin revealed, locking eyes with the leader. "An airship will pick you up at two o'clock. I'd suggest you pack and prepare as necessary. Marfa is colder this time of year, with some snow on the ground."

Weiss glanced away from the papers since there was a lot to read. "What are the details?"

Ozpin's hands rested under his chin and he gave his students his full attention. "Marfa is protected by a mountain range. You will travel through there and after that, you will follow the river. In the outskirts, you will find Marfa."

When he finished his sentence, his hardened gaze landed on all of them. His glasses sparked under the lights.

"Many citizens have been killed because of the increasing number of grimm. As a result, the village population is dwindling. Their security needs to be tightened, which is where you come in. You will be there for a couple of days to protect the citizens until they can find a permanent hunter to remain there."

"That's horrible…" Yang couldn't help but mutter.

"Indeed," Ozpin agreed. "Your team must eradicate that beowolf den and any nearby grimm that dare approach Marfa. Be efficient in removing them."

Ruby beamed her headmaster a smile. "Don't worry. We won't hesitate."

Each member nodded in understanding.

"Pack essential items you may need and be ready to leave soon."

"Understood," Weiss spoke for them.

After Ozpin gave them a nod, the team knew it was okay to leave.

"You are dismissed."

The team was out of the room as quickly as they came. They roamed the halls with excitement breaching their minds. It was apparent, but mostly in Ruby. She was practically bouncing off the walls.

"Let's kill them all!"

Blake smirked from her excitement. "I wouldn't want to be a grimm in the reaper's path."

Eccentric, Ruby flung out her scythe and dashed back to their room.

They watched her rose petals dissipate and Weiss broke the silence.

"Remind me to hide her coffee."

"You got the tickets, Rubes?"

Proudly, Ruby presented the four printed tickets to her team. "Yep!"

Now, they were finally at the airship station. Each member had their own little suitcase as luggage. It took longer to pack than they would've liked, but they made it on time for their flight.

"Who's ready to slay some grimm?" Ruby asked, her eyes drooping.

Weiss crossed her arms in disappointment. "You're already crashing?"

"No way!" Ruby retorted with some spunk, hunching a bit. "I'm raring to go, what're you talking about?"

Weiss wasn't falling for it. "You are so going to fall asleep on the flight."

"Am not," Ruby pouted and grabbed her partner's arm. "Seeya guys at the gate!"

"Dolt, what're you- agh!"

Without warning, Ruby zipped away. They were a blur of red and white petals as they zoomed past dozens of travelers. In the distance, Weiss' startled yelps and chidings echoed throughout the station.

Blake sighed as she watched them vanish. "You did this," she glared at her partner.

Yang only shrugged. "At least we'll get to our gate faster this way."

Together, the partners followed the other half of their team. It was easy to do, considering the path the pair forged left dozens of startled travelers in their wake.

In no time, the team gathered at the gate. As expected, Weiss was still scolding her leader about proper traveling etiquette.

"Don't use your semblance, you dunce!" Weiss exclaimed. "You almost knocked over some poor lady!"

Ruby attempted a dry laugh. "Hey, I moved out of the way in time!"

"You wouldn't have if I didn't push you!"

Blake playfully rolled her eyes as she crossed her arms. "So that's who the scream belonged to."

There were many brief gasps, but only one startled screech.

"Rubes, not cool," Yang commented, which earned a sigh. "Anyways, who wants lunch? I'll get us food."

"Oh," Ruby raised her hand like she was in school. "I can get it for us. You stay here."

Weiss spoke, being a picky eater. "I'm fine with anything except sandwiches."

Thinking that was an odd request, Blake looked confused. "That's probably the only thing they have here."

Ruby pretended to write that down her order on her scroll, never losing her smug grin. "The hunkiest, meatiest sandwich there is, coming up."

"Hey!"

"Ruby'll find something for you," the blonde reassured. She sounded confident even though she didn't know her teammate's tastes that well. "What do you want, Blake?"

"I'll come with."

"Alrighty then," Yang accepted with a grin. "I'll take a cheeseburger. Don't worry, we'll behave ourselves."

From the thought of being left alone with her, Weiss scowled. "Wait, I'm going to be stuck with the brute?"

"Feelin' the love, princess."

This time, Ruby grabbed Blake's arm and darted to the nearest shop. "Later!"

When they disappeared in the sea of people, Weiss glared at her teammate. Yang could've sworn her eye twitched in irritation. Together, they sat and waited for the other half of their team.

Lyrics from This Game: "Won't hesitate. I know we won't lose our way. And this road we've chosen's no mistake." - The team, not hesitating to get out there and save lives and kill grimm.

Stay dandy,

~Toto