Big Issues

AN: I'd like to thank imasavageyouraca for the follows and faves. Otherwise, I was hoping to get this posted earlier but life got in the way a bit. Not much else to say but I hope you all enjoy the chapter!

Grindstone

Yang panted after her run while sucking on the freeze pop she had earned. In a month, she had shaved her time down to under ten minutes to lap the yard along the treeline and she could now maintain a jog the entire distance. It still left her exhausted to do so but her recovery time was quickening, but that just meant that her other workouts would come that much faster. Even so, her normal pants needed a belt now to stay up correctly.

And today, she was exceeding the goals set by her torturers… trainers. She was really feeling the need to fill her stomach to capacity and she was pushing herself to make sure that she got her prize of being treated to Hestia's.

"A prize, date, and a day off tomorrow… it's gonna be mine!" She muttered to herself as she stretched after the run before she would have done another set of pushups, situps, squats, jumps, and pullups. The latter being the hardest with one arm and her own weight, but she was regaining her strength and her waistline was shrinking, making the task easier.

And she was hoping that Denko wouldn't be called away during her day off from training… she planned to have her own 'workout' with him. If fighting Grimm would become their foreplay, she couldn't tell but she also wouldn't mind.

"Doing pretty good there, Yang!" Iris called out as she kept track of the blonde's progress. Denko was occupied inside the house at the moment with Taiyang.

"I hope after this- we can get- to actual sparring!" Yang pumped her arms for her pushups as she was propped up on the rocks, her belly touching the ground each time. The touching was admittedly getting a bit harder, not because of her weight so much as her having to dip lower just to make the contact in the first place.

"We'll get to that when we think you're ready." The flower themed girl reminded the hefty girl as she watched. "I'll give you a bit of credit for being able to talk during your exercises. It wasn't that long ago that you were barely conscious after this much of a workout."

"Yeah- yeah." Yang huffed as she kept her arms pumping. They had provided her with a small log the size of her left forearm so she could set her stump on it and push on that so she wouldn't lose strength in the diminished limb and actually regain it.

An hour later, the girl finished her exercises and was now allowed to come inside and enjoy the air conditioning, even if she was confined to the wooden chair rather than the couch while she was still covered in sweat.

"Looks like you earned yourself a trip to Hestia's." Tai was beaming at her, proud to see that his eldest was getting her spunk back, even if she was considerably bigger than the last time he saw her with that old spark.

"Woohoo!" One and a half arms were raised in victory as she stood and began a victory dance. The other three in the room couldn't hide their laughter at the sight.

"Alright, go get yourself cleaned up and changed. I'll make sure the laundry is going before we leave." Denko gives Yang a small push towards the steps.

"You don't want to help me this time?" The girl asks quietly, glad that Iris was talking to her dad to keep him occupied.

"Just go, I'm sure you're hungry." Denko laughs but she could see that he wouldn't have minded but with others in the house they would rather avoid the awkwardness of risking being heard having their fun.

Half an hour later, Yang bounded down the stairs as fast as her legs would carry her… the boards groaning under the impacts of her weight. She was once again dressed in her usual brown pants and jacket with the right sleeve tied up. White sneakers on her feet were dirtied from the training earlier but they were her only shoes aside from her boots from Beacon. And the orange tank top was fresh, even if it exposed plenty of skin from her stomach and cleavage.

"Let's get going!" The bouncy blonde dragged her boyfriend out the door as her father and Iris were standing by Zippy waiting for them.

"About time! Hop in!" Tai calls out as Denko holds back Yang long enough to make sure the door is locked and closed. They had the back seat to themselves in the red car and they certainly didn't mind.

—-

It was amazing how much energy maintaining one's aura actually took. Especially when it is kept up all day. From the moment Yang woke up to when she fell asleep, she was tasked with keeping her aura active at all times. Through her workouts, meals, and relaxation… even on her days off from physical training she had to keep it up.

The reasoning wasn't just to help her strengthen her already large aura reserves but more to help her spend the energy. To maintain an aura, the user must do so willingly. Practice was required to keep it up for longer than a few minutes and the user would have to maintain it as naturally as breathing if it was to be of use in a fight or even to help protect them from the elements.

Having to keep her aura active all day every day, a vast amount of energy was needed and she had that energy stored within her and waiting to be used… even if it was stubborn to be used. Add in the energy requirements to keep up the exercises that Yang was put through to get her ready again for combat, it was little wonder how she worked up an appetite that was only rivaled by the other Huntsmen and Huntresses in the buffet restaurant. Plates were stacked high and quickly on the table, making Iris glad that she wasn't on tonight's shift to bus the table or refill the food lines, not that she didn't add her fair share to the pile.

It didn't help the establishment that there were some other Huntsmen and Huntresses here tonight to make the food vanish, and not the students or teachers from Signal either.

"This food is exquisite!" A man in the corner wasn't exactly quiet when he spoke. A plate was cleared and he zipped back to the line in a blur, and between the speed and the frazzled green hair, he certainly caught the attention of a few other patrons.

"Barty?"

"Taiyang?"

"Hey! It's great to see you again. What are you doing on Patch?" The blonde man greeted the taller man with a smile.

"Truth be told, we were actually going to be seeing you tomorrow!" Oobleck responds with a bit of embarrassment.

"Well then, let's get our food and come back to our table and talk to the rest of us." Tai offers as he jerks his head in the direction of two other blondes and a purple haired girl. "Wait… 'we'?"

"Oh-ho!"

"Well… that solves that mystery." Tai shrugs as he recognized that boisterous laugh anywhere. "Pete's here too, huh?"

"Indeed we are." The Doctor waved to his friend and the much older man got the picture, quickly taking his plate and drink to the other table to join his friends and students.

"What are you doing here, Doc?" Yang asks as she works her fork through her chicken alfredo, surprised to see her teacher from Beacon here.

"Oh, I am not alone, Miss Xiao Long!" Oobleck told her as Denko made a bit of room on the table next to him.

"Ah! Some of my favorite students! How are we doing this evening?" The elderly, short but very stocky man with an impressive mustache joined the table.

"Professor Port?" Denko was surprised to see the men, figuring that they would be busy with things in Vale.

"Barty, Pete, welcome to Patch." Tai says as he drops into his own seat. "Glad to see you still remember Yang and Denko after all of this time. Things certainly have changed since then."

Nobody missed the slight movement of their eyes to Yang's right arm and girth; the loss of one and increase of the other. Thankfully, neither drew attention to that, instead going to the relative stranger at the table.

"And who might you be, young lady?" Port asks suavely.

"My name is Iris." She answered somewhat put off by the elderly teachers 'charms'.

"He did something similar to me on the first day of school." Yang whispered to her friend.

"What are you two doing here? I don't think we needed any kind of support with Grimm?" Denko provided a distraction for the other blonde.

"Oh, we do have lives outside of the classrooms, despite appearances and other misconceptions." Bartholomew answered easily. "But we were given a week off from helping with the rebuilding efforts to recharge, if you will."

"Ah, yes!" Peter laughed. "Glynda insisted that we use some of our vacation time but we insist on staying close, just in case."

"Yes, just far enough away to get her to relax about us getting some time to relax." The taller teacher chuckled, bringing smiles to the three blondes but Iris didn't know who they were talking about.

"Ah, Glyndie. Does she still have a stick up her yet?" Tai jokes as he takes a bite from his baked potato.

"Really, must you be so crass?" Port retaliated quickly.

"C'mon Pete, you know what I mean." The Signal teacher responds casually. "Even when we were students she had no sense of humor. It was always rules this and rules that."

Yang and Denko couldn't hide their laughter at the man mocking the now Headmistress of Beacon Academy.

"Well… um…" Oobleck was having trouble finding words to defend the woman while also refusing to lie.

"We didn't just come here for pleasure." Peter was able to change the subject well. "We came here with a large load of personal items for those who have come to Patch during the rebuilding efforts in Vale."

"Yes, yes! Earlier today when we arrived, we were able to distribute many to those living at Signal Academy and will be taking the remainder across the rest of the island as needed." Oobleck adds.

"That should help with things around here." Iris muses as she takes a sip of soda.

"Yes, it was heartwarming to see the childrens faces light up as we brought them toys and treats! Ho-ho!" Port laughs, his hands on his belly shaking like a bowlful of jelly.

"I'm sure they did, Pete! Those kids needed a fresh source of hope, there's only so much that providing places to stay and a school can do." Taiyang tells his fellow educators.

"On to brighter subjects, we were hoping to stop by your home tomorrow sometime." Barty says, somehow finishing his plate without anyone noticing.

"Really? Come on by whenever you get the time. We spend most of the day training anyway so we'll be around." Yang tells them with a shrug.

"I'm off tomorrow anyway so I'll be free aside from helping Yang train again." The father tells his friends.

"Excellent! We'll be over bright and early! That way we can get an early start on things." Oobleck seemed to have something he wasn't saying and neither was Peter.

—-

"How's this area, Mr. B? Sienna?" Sun asks as he leads the White Fang leaders through the jungles on the mountainsides. Kali and Blake were following behind the others but it was Itazura and Ilia pulling up the rear.

Speaking of rears, Ilia seemed to keep falling back with her eyes drifting to the tail swishing in front of her, sometimes drifting to the much larger paired lumps ahead of them both.

The area was already sparse of trees, the rocky terrain being poor for the larger plants to grow well, though there were plenty of smaller plants in the cracks. But where they were, they could look over the forests to view Kuo Kuana and the ports, even the entirety of the shallow bay that made up the western coast. Blake could even see the cliffs that sheltered Kokomo Beach to the south. To the east, they saw the vast deserts of Menagerie; the thinning trees down the slopes of the mountains that eventually gave way to scrubland. Beyond that, it was mostly rocky outcroppings, dry canyons, occasional patches of vegetation, and a few swirling dust devils. Not to mention the few Grimm that were able to be seen with the naked eye on the ground and in the sky.

"Hmm… this spot isn't too far from our main settlement, there isn't as much land to clear as I would have expected, and it would have a good view to watch over everyone." Ghira notes as he looks around. His coat ruffled in the near constant breeze at the elevation but he was used to that from living in a coastal town.

"I'm thinking that some of the school could be built into the mountain. A few tunnels to connect buildings anchored and set into the stone itself." Sienna adds. "Could even have the tower sunk into the mountain a fair bit so that it wouldn't be as exposed to attacks and the weather."

"That could work. Use the excavated stone to help build some of the structures, maybe a wall on the eastern side to discourage the Grimm." The panther man builds onto the ideas.

Kali walked up to them with a clipboard in her hands and making some simple sketches of the mountain top and the building proposals. Even so, she was adding a grand hall to her sketch roughly just behind where they are now with the tower not too far ahead of them, complete with a circular building around the tower. Beyond that along the ridge, a large training hall. Actual classrooms she was putting down the mountainsides a bit to make use of Sienna's ideas.

It was simple and there was room for a lot of improvement but this would be helpful for the plans once they get the local survey team up here and their engineers. Final plans would have to be made when the other kingdom's assistance would arrive, but Kali was sure that she would be in an overseeing position of the project than anything else. Ghira still had his duties to Kuo Kuana and Sienna had the White Fang.

She looked around to see her daughter with the young man she brought home standing near the edge of a large boulder for a grand view of their home from above, the sight of Blake finally relaxing and beginning to enjoy life again. Seeing her daughter happy again lifted a great weight from her mind, even if her daughter was now the physical great weight in her life.

Ghira and Sienna had moved away from the rest of the group as they continued the plans, which included the strong possibility of a grand balcony or few down the northern cliffside.

"You know, a road is gonna be needed from town to here." Itazura says to the cat woman.

"Oh, I know. But we'll worry about that when we're close to start building." Kali tells the fox with a smile. "Maybe once things are settled, we could add some plants to the courtyard to give it some color."

"Think some of the sand dredged from the harbor would be good to use if we dragged it up here?"

"That's not a bad idea. I'll add that to my notes."

Ilia simply hung back to watch and listen to everything going on around her. What she would have to report to Corsec and Fennec would be fairly trivial but it was information nonetheless that they may need.

—-

"Again!"

Jaune went through the routine for the thirteenth time under Pyrrha's watchful eyes. His feet were solid as he swung his sword and kept his shield in optimal position to defend as needed. His swings were as sharp as the blade in his hands, the edge making the air whistle as it passed through.

"Looks like you have all of the basics I can teach you down solidly." Pyrrha compliments as Jaune finishes the set.

"Well… um… you did kinda drill them into my head since we started our training together." The blonde knight shrugs.

"Perhaps, but the basics are basic for a reason. You've come so far since last year that it's amazing." The Spartan gives him a bright smile. "Your growth actually makes me wonder how strong you would be if you had started training earlier."

"Really?"

"Sometimes I think that you could have rivaled my own skills if you had."

"Maybe… wait. What?" Jaune's eyes went wide as his head snapped back to his trainer. There he saw the champion fighter smirking at him. "Really? You're gonna tease me about that?"

Pyrrha kept her smirk on her face as she walked closer to him, not afraid to put a little more sway in her hips than normal, her thick hourglass form helping greatly in that regard. And her green eyes were locked on his blue one the whole time.

For Jaune, seeing her walking to her made him feel like he was being hunted, but he was willing to face the challenge. That and he couldn't help but notice her body and how she moved, not really having thought about that since the dance half a year ago.

That thought process also tweaked the memory of when Pyrrha pressed up against him the night of the attack on Beacon. They had kissed and for those moments there was no awareness of what was happening around them, just a Knight and Spartan lost in their own little world of intimacy.

And those same thoughts also occupied Pyrrha's mind as well.

"Maybe a little." Pyrrha's smirk turned to a grin as she walked by, knowing that she had eyes on her. And she could almost feel the gaze lower. "But… from this point on, you will have to create your own style of combat. Your weapons and skills are not the same as my own and so they will need you to fight as you… with you."

"Um… you're starting to sound like Ruby with that." They shared a quick laugh at the weapons nerd. "Any advice on where to start?"

"How about some unarmed combat training?" She had the same look as when they began training together on the rooftop at Beacon… and something else that he couldn't quite place. But it was getting him excited.

—-

Ruby woke up in the middle of the night to the sounds of her friends' names echoing through the trees. Sitting up, she saw that their sleeping bags were empty and the fire was down to coals.

Quietly, she used the poker stick to stir up the coals and added a few small sticks to provide her some light to see where she was going. And she followed the sounds of her friends.

The sounds of combat were familiar to her and she had no surprises when she found Pyrrha and Jaune sparring, though the fact that the only clashing metal she heard was their armor impacting the others was certainly different.

The girl pulled her cloak around her a bit more, mostly to keep it from blowing like a bright flag from the breeze in the small clearing. And she watched as the pair exchanged blows.

Pyrrha easily had skill, agility, and weight over Jaune but he was actually physically stronger and more durable, though no slouch when it came to the agility since he had slipped into a dance routine that was adjusted for their fight.

But she turned back to the campsite and left them alone when Pyrrha flipped Jaune over her hip and straddled him while pinning his arms.

"I'll just let them do their thing. I was never there." Ruby muttered to herself once she was sure she was far enough away to not be heard. Of course, now she had to go back to sleep so they could be ready to go in the morning.

—-

Back with Jaune and Pyrrha, they needed a few moments to realize their position and separate so they were now sitting next to each other in the grass. But their position had brought that moment back at Beacon to the front of their minds again.

"Pyrrha?" "Jaune?" They both spoke at the same time only for them to redden more than their previous efforts had already made them.

"You can go first." Jaune managed to get out.

It took the Spartan a few seconds to work up the nerve to speak again. "Jaune… I, um… I think we need to talk about… that night."

"Yeah."

"I… was ready that night to face my death." Pyrrha barely spoke louder than a whisper but that was all she needed. Despite the warmth of the summer night, she felt goosebumps on her arms. "But… I couldn't do that without being honest with myself… with you."

"So, you ah… kissed me?"

"It was all I could think of doing at the time." Pyrrha admitted, her face nearly as red as her hair as she turned away.

"How- how long h-have you felt that way?"

"I'm not really sure. But by the dance I could feel it."

"I'm sorry."

"Pardon?"

"I'm sorry." Jaune was staring at the grass between his feet with his head hanging in shame and regret.

"Isn't that normally my line?" Pyrrha attempted to interject some humor, if only because she wanted to release some of her own stress. At least she managed to get a small chuckle from him.

"But… do you still feel that way?" Jaune was hesitant to ask but his own feelings demanded an answer.

"I don't think they've ever faded." Was the reply, making him stare at her in shock. In return, Pyrrha was both relieved that she had admitted that out loud while scared at what he might do now that she did.

"Hehe… hehehe." It started out low and quiet but the laughter from the blonde grew in intensity the more he did.

"Jaune? Are… are you okay?" She raised a hand, unsure if she should touch him with how he was acting.

"Haha, I'm… I'm fine Pyrrha." The laughing was brought under control but his smile from them remained. "Phew! I really needed that."

"I guess so?"

"It's just that… we haven't had too much of a reason to laugh for a while. Felt good to let it out." He admits easily and sees Pyrrha nodding in agreement.

"I'm told that laughter is good for the soul."

"Pyrrha, I'm sorry." The change was sudden.

"For what?"

"I was an idiot to not see how you felt about me before. Looking back now, you must have been frustrated that I was chasing after Weiss since before initiation and ignoring you." His voice was full of self-loathing and regret.

"I wouldn't go that far."

"Really? You mean you weren't ticked off about me trying to woo Weiss while you had to sit back and watch?"

"Well… if you want me to be completely honest… I was a little annoyed about that." Pyrrha told him, watching as he hung his head at those words, accepting the reality of the situation. "At the same time, I was disappointed in myself for not acting on my own feelings as you were to Weiss." That got him to snap his head towards her.

"What?"

"Jaune, you were usually honest about your feelings on a lot of things. Your attempts to be with Weiss." His head dropped in shame. "You told me about cheating your way into Beacon." He slumped over even further. "All of the training you needed to catch up with everyone." His mop of blonde hair was now between his knees.

"But like I said at the dance, you treated me like anyone else. When we met, you didn't even know who I was and when you did, you never changed." She told him with a smile, pride in her tone. "And when you finally committed to really pushing yourself after dealing with Cardin, I haven't seen anyone who was so devoted to their training or to show so much growth so quickly."

"You were the one training me." Jaune mutters without lifting his head.

A gloved hand pulled him upright and kept him up by gripping his shoulder. "Jaune, no matter how good a teacher is, they can't do much if the student lacks commitment for what they are being taught. And you have proven to be among the most driven students I have ever seen or known of."

"Still doesn't make me feel better about ignoring your feelings."

"Perhaps, but how do you feel about me?" Most of the nervousness that Pyrrha had about this conversation had vanished, or at least had been overridden by her concern for Jaune.

The blonde knight let out a huge sigh as he gathered the courage and his wits. "Pyrrha…" He looked at her directly. "You are the most amazing person I know. You're smart, beautiful, and strong…" He needed a deep breath. "And… if… if you want to, um… we could see where things go?" He lost any confidence he had by the end as nerves took hold.

And for nearly a full minute, nothing happened. Neither of them said anything or moved beyond their eyes looking for any signs of deception or rejection. Even the wildlife around them seemed to have gone quiet.

Then Pyrrha's face broke into a wide smile. "I'd like that very much."

Jaune's eyes went wide at the acceptance, never having had a girl who really wanted to be with him in that way. His stunned silence combined with his innocence in this field made him too much for Pyrrha to resist giggling at him.

"Really?"

She didn't know if he was asking about her accepting or if he was indignant about her laughing at him, and it only made her laugh harder as things clicked even more. But she was able to get some words in through it all.

"Yes, really. But… maybe we should take things slow and figure things out as we go."

"Uh, um… sure! Let's go slow." He agrees before a wave of exhaustion hit the knight, making him yawn widely. And yawns proved to be infectious as Pyrrha was soon mimicking him. "But um… maybe we should go to bed first?"

The Spartan didn't care if his words could be mistaken for going into the same bed- not that they could as they didn't have beds, just sleeping bags right now- she was simply content with how this night had gone. Besides, she had more than a few dreams where they had shared a bed while at Beacon, especially on the nights where he had nothing but his boxers on after a shower in the room. The onesie pajamas he wore then seemed to be so much of a tease after those moments, like knowing that her mother had a gift for her but had it wrapped.

"Yes, let's get some sleep. It's a long way to Mistral and we'll be together the whole time."

They returned to the camp to see that everyone else was asleep yet and the fire had been given some new fuel a while ago. Nora had scooted a bit closer towards Ren, nothing new since she seemed to do that often in her sleep. Quietly, they added some more wood to the fire to give it new life and they now had light to help them take off their armor before slipping into their bags, weapons next to them like everyone else.

—-

The next morning found the knight and spartan acting as they normally did, but if one watched closely they would see that some tension between them had been lifted. As a result, they were a bit more relaxed with being close, even touching at times.

If the others on the team took notice, they didn't say anything.

And they set off for the next town… three more days away if the Grimm were light and weather fair.

—-

The attack came quickly. Three men had jumped the trio from Atlas on the road outside of Mistral with some very deadly weapons and traps triggered to raise nets to cut off their escape attempts.

The largest went for Farkas, the broadsword in his hands singing through the air and slashed at the faunus. The blade was deftly dodged and his clawed gauntlets were deployed and he was striking back in a flash, the larger man letting his momentum to carry him out of range. He didn't even come to a stop before he pulled aside his trenchcoat and reached inside, a handful of shuriken flung at the wolf at high speeds.

Farkas was able to dodge some while deflecting the others but that gave the swordsman time to close the distance and they clashed sword against claws.

Likewise, the fur covered man with a mask over the lower half of his face came at Winter with a pair of short swords that the tubby Specialist was able to counter with her own blade. The man was roughly her own size and just as quick, landing on the ground and leaping back at her for another attack. And the cycle continued with Winter remaining on the defensive as her opponent seemed to bounce around the 'arena'.

The smallest man came after the shortest of the Atlas team with a warhammer nearly as long as he was tall, Weiss jumping out of range of the swing before leaping at him with her own sword for a stab. Her attacker proved to be skilled; using the shaft to deflect all of her attacks and turned his defense into an attack to make her back off.

Weiss had known and dealt with Nora well enough to know how to fight a hammer wielding opponent, though this one seemed to be more defensive than the hyperactive ginger. Still, she refused to back down and leapt back in to continue her offensive, the fur covered man's aura taking hits from her nimble blade as she found holes in his defense.

Several times the man countered with the hammer, one making Weiss bend back halfway at the waist to let the mass of steel pass by where her head had been. Another had her jumping over a sweep to land behind him, only to find he had anticipated that and smoothly transitioning to the new target, only missing as his white target cartwheeled away.

Her next strike struck hard, sending the man to the ground and tumbling away as his aura crackled, barely hanging on. That didn't mean that she came out unscathed, the hammer swinging into her hip sent her to the dirt as well, though her aura was able to take the worst of it… and all of the extra padding took the rest.

The man reached for the hammer again, only for a boot to stomp on his wrist. One connected to a thick leg and very pear-shaped young woman who was now pointing her rapier at his throat. "Stay down."

Winter seemed to having an easier time, if only because she didn't have to move too much because her opponent came to her. Unfortunately, with all of his jumping and swings of his swords as he passed, he was difficult to hit. The man attacked and was gone by the time she could even attempt to counter after blocking. It wasn't that she hadn't gotten her own hits in, but they were grazing and he managed the same with her.

The man jumped off a tree and came at her spinning like a drill… until he slammed into a glyph created by his target. The white glyph turned from white to black and the snowflake pattern spun faster and faster with the man suspended in the air by the glyph until the spinning came to an abrupt halt and he was launched into the tree that he had jumped off of. The impact took off some bark and he tumbled into another tree with his head spinning.

Farkas seemed to have the hardest fight since the other man had reach over him with both the weapon in his hands and the occasional thrown weapon. But that didn't mean that his attacker was having any success in his assault, the faunus proving to be nimble and slipping around the sword while deflecting and dodging the shuriken.

"C'mon! This isn't even a warmup!" The wolf taunts before catching the sword between the claws on his right gauntlet and twisting his wrist to wrench the large weapon out of the man's grip. That was followed by a sweep of the legs and an elbow drop to the sternum, only ending once a knee was holding down an elbow, one hand gripping hair and the other holding the claws over his face.

In short order, the three men were stripped of all weapons and bound to a tree with some vines. "Now… start talking. Who sent you?" Farkas let a bit of a growl enter his tone. While the glacial glares that the Schnee sisters gave the captured men pause, it was the summoned Beowolves stalking around the tree that made them begin talking.

—-

Weiss threw off the skunk hood as she went to the river to wash out the hair dye and makeup that made her look like the man she had impersonated. Next to her, Winter was doing the same. Farkas actually had the least to do for his disguise, simply wearing the clothes of the leader was enough combined with acting like him.

But it was having to stand there and listen to Lil' Miss Malachite talk that got her irritated… and she wasn't afraid to let it out. Winter watched as her sister removed the makeup in the most violent way possible that wouldn't draw blood with water… at least she hoped that she wouldn't hurt herself doing so. But she was still seething on the inside; it seemed that their father was still after them and determined to have them under his thumb. Granted, they didn't have solid evidence yet but the motivation and habits of Jacques Schnee were well known to many who knew him personally.

But the fight with the three men had been nearly a week ago and they had used them as a way to get the information they have now. Impersonating the bounty hunters to find intel on themselves was a stroke of genius by Winter. Speaking of the three men, it was time to let them out of the cave that Weiss had frozen over the entrance before they went to Mistral.

"Where did you learn to do this stuff again? I think you brought it up in training a couple months ago." Weiss asks Farkas after she had cleaned up and gotten dressed in her own clothes.

"Mostly from growing up on the streets a lot when I was a kid. But I got some Huntsman training as I went into the police academy, specialized in being undercover and the criminal groups. Got my big score when I took down a trio of pig faunus who were planning a massive bombing attack across Atlas and Mantle. Blew them out of their safehouse and straight into prison. That's when Ironwood took notice and tapped me to become one of the Ace Ops." Farkas explains with no small amount of pride.

"I didn't know you were a cop before." Weiss comments as she plunges her Fire Dust enhanced sword into the ice to begin melting it.

"It's not a big deal, I was only one the force for about three years but it was what I did during that time that gave me the promotion."

"The fact that you were the best combatant the Atlas Police Force had was also a good part of it." Winter adds.

"I suppose that helps too on my resume." Farkas grins as he scratches his head.

A minute later, the ice was melted away enough for the wolf faunus to break it apart and haul out the three men. "Alright, you three are clear to go as you please." Farkas tells them as he cuts their bindings as the sisters return their clothes and weapons.

"Was tying us up really necessary?" The apparent leader asks as he inspects his large sword and clothes, noting that they had been cleaned.

"We simply needed to make sure there was no confusion of seeing the three of you twice so soon." Winter informs the men as they quickly dressed, keeping a tree between herself and them for privacy.

"Exactly." Farkas agrees. "Now if anyone does ask, our teams did fight but Grimm interrupted and you lost track of us. Got it?"

"Sounds good to us." The shortest man grunts, though he seemed to be happy to be back in his furs.

"Then we'll let you go on your way. It may be best that you take some time before heading back to Mistral to help sell the story." Weiss adds as she begins walking back towards the road, Winter following soon after.

"Perhaps we can work together under better circumstances in the future." Farkas waves goodbye, leaving the men to their own devices.

—-

"Let them proceed as they wish. We'll let them do the work for us. But when the time comes for what is needed for the good of the faunus, we expect you to be ready." Corsac says with a small smile after Ilia gave the brothers her report on the plans for the Cross Continental Transmit Tower and the Huntsman Academy to be built around it.

"It is still early springtime but the majority of the construction could be completed by autumn… assuming things go well." Fennec adds.

"That is dependent on how much our 'allies' provide in support and materials, but it should be true that the necessary components would be established and operational within a few months." Corsac corrects.

Ilia waited a few seconds without being addressed before rising. She wore her mask as usual when dealing with the brothers and she felt that she was done with them tonight, turning to the door.

"Do keep up the good work, Sister Ilia. For the good of the Faunus." Fennec tells her as her hand was on the doorknob.

"For the good of the Faunus." She repeats before exiting the office.

—-

"Father?"

"Yes?"

"I was wondering, would it be possible for you to give me this particular upgrade?" Penny used her connection to the diagnostic computers to send her idea to her fathers interface.

Pietro's eyes widened as he examined the plans which included details of materials needed and schematics. "Are you sure about this, My Dear? This would be another system you would have to adapt to along with the others I've already installed on you."

"I'm sure Father. I wish to be a bit closer to my friends and that system should help me do so."

"Hmm… you are nearly rebuilt completely and this would be the time to add this new system if it was planned." He gave his daughter in her chamber a sideways look, figuring that this was just another one of her personal quirks combined with a minor act of rebellion she was known for… along with being part of being the teenager she was meant to be like.

The elderly inventor and scientific engineer let out a sigh as he mentally went through Penny's systems and this new one, figuring out exactly how to make it work correctly. A second glance at the plans she had sent him and a few commands on his terminal had the proposed schematics being transferred into the overall designs for Penny, the computer doublechecking and identifying every point that would need to be addressed for this.

"This could work… and its variable by design." He mutters as he goes over the completed plans. "Some minor adjustments will be required in the end but they are minor."

"So it can be done?" THe hopeful daughter asks.

"It can and will, My Dear. It will delay your return to the world a few days as I put everything together but it will be worth it for your happiness."

"Sensational!" Penny cheers. Now she just needed for Weiss to return, almost hoping that she'd arrive after the upgrade that was approved was installed in her. There were also her other friends who she wished to share her time with, especially with her first true friend, Ruby Rose.

—-

Professor Peter Port and Doctor Bartholomew Oobleck walked up to the Xiao Long/Rose home early the next morning. The taller of the two carried a backpack with some items for the family and guest. They could have easily rented a car but neither felt the need to as they are both seasoned Huntsmen who found the hike from the hotel to the home in the woods to be enjoyable and minor compared to what they had been doing to keep Vale and Beacon as safe as possible from Grimm over the past nine months.

They were also curious as to what training Yang was being put through. The girl was known for her intense workout routine during school and to be quite honest… she looked as though that training had never happened when they saw her last night.

There were a few subtle clues to what had happened since the attack on Beacon from their dinner guests but they also never brought attention to it to acquire details for answers. Perhaps they would find out during their stay for the day. Hopefully there wouldn't be another incident like last night where a plate was dropped and the crashing ceramic on the tiled floor had made the plump blonde stiffen up with fear on her face, requiring Denko to calm her down with some soothing words and touches… as well as a small brownie.

AN: We have quite a few things going on at once... in the chapter rather than temporally. But the little mysteries and surprises will be answered soon enough. Until then, I'll leave you all to guess what they may be. But at least Jaune and Pyrrha FINALLY had their talk about their feelings. We'll have to see how they move on with their lives with that knowledge.

As always, reviews are always welcome!