Dreams Do Come True

by DragonoftheEastblue

Do you believe in destiny? I certainly do, and so do two young Huntsmen-in-training who are about to have their lives changed forever. A retelling of events from the end of the Beacon Dance where Jaune realizes and accepts Pyrrha's feelings, and takes the first step on a journey he never knew was waiting for him. World-building/Canon-Restoration. Arkos, Boop, BlackSun, Iceberg, etc

13. Ch XIII: Until Your Last Dying Breath

Chapter XIII: Until Your Last Dying Breath

In the private skybox overlooking the arena, Huntmasters Ozpin and Ironwood were standing at the bar surrounded by Team RROI and LION. Qrow had expectedly positioned himself behind the bar, helping himself to the vast array of liquors, but also making himself useful and mixing drinks for the others.

"I cannot thank you boys enough for your help these past two days" Ozpin said graciously, looking far better than he had all week. "While the Kingdom of Vale cannot officially thank you for your service, please accept our thanks on behalf of all Valian citizens."

"Grand Veneur, it has been truly a great honour to aid you in defending Vale, as well as restoring Mistral's honour by capturing these traitors" replied Olivier, holding only a glass of sparkling water. "Tell me however, what shall be their fates? Will they not be transferred to our custody to be taken back to Helike to stand trial?"

"Given the sensitivity of the situation, they will remain my prisoners until I see fit. They still need to be fully interrogated, to which we will then decide what we shall do with them" answered Ironwood, very much looking forward to what they would learn from them. "Furthermore, you boys haven't even graduated from Haven as Huntsmen yet; therefore you don't have powers of arrest."

"With an official co-signed letter by two Grand Veneurs, we would..."

"You want to dispense justice in the name of your Kingdom, we get it" interjected Qrow, sliding a pint of pear cider to Allen, who was propped up on a stool in the process of tuning his lute. "But we've been dealing with these bastards for over half a year already. You've done your part and we're grateful, but let us handle the rest."

The Cuirassier captain eyed his peers carefully, being sure to not display any of his frustrations. (A/N: I honestly never expected to include an author's note in the middle of the story, but I feel as if I need to. While "peers" is typically used to refer to those of your status, in this context, I am using it in the sense of "peerage", as in "a member of the nobility in Britain or Ireland, comprising the ranks of duke, marquess, earl, viscount, and baron". In the context of RWBY, as well as my rewrite, the Huntmasters have political power, and have effectively been seen as Lords for centuries. I hope that clears things up.)

"I understand. And what of Pyrrha?"

"She has already been informed of the current situation" reassured Ozpin. "All that remains are the following two matches to give James' men enough time to clean up the remaining White Fang forces."

As if on cue, the doors of the skybox opened to reveal Winter walking hotly towards them.

"Ah, Miss Schnee. Welcome back" greeted the silver-haired Huntmaster. "Given that you are here, I take it that the mission was successful."

"Yes, why didn't you give me your latest sitrep?" Ironwood asked facing her, as he knew the look on her face meant that something was wrong. "Where is Adam Taurus and his men?"

Winter was quiet for a moment, standing straight but bore a very uneasy expression.

"We managed to capture some of the White Fang members, as well as recover pieces of intel that were within the warehouse our informant spoke of" she reported.

"How many casualties?"

"None of our men were injured or killed, sir."

"Very good, Major. And Taurus?"

Winter paused again, shifting uncomfortably. "We...do not know, sir."

Ironwood and the others watched her carefully, not entirely sure what she was getting at.

"Spit it out, Schnee" the older Atlassian ordered, placing his drink on the bar, and resting his arms behind his back, returning to his usual formal self.

Winter swallowed the lump that had been building since she left her men at the warehouse, and took a breath to steady herself.

"Adam Taurus and his men vanished, General" she said in a strained yet strong voice. All safe Ironwood blinked in confusion, whereas he lowered his head slightly, his eyes focused on the elder Schnee daughter.

"Full report" he said steadily.

"My battalion engaged the hideout with the other three, fully surrounding the warehouse to ensure that no one would escape. There was a short exchange of fire with some lookouts, but it was over as fast as it had begun. We then stormed the warehouse, where a few White Fang members surrendered to us without a fight. However, that was all we found. Instead of hundreds of men that our informant warned us of, and confirmed after he spoke with Taurus mere minutes before we attacked, there was nothing left safe some technical information. We then found the tunnel."

"The tunnel?"

"Yes, sir. We found a long underground tunnel in the floor of the warehouse crossing beneath the streets, and stretching to the river. At the end of the tunnel, we found a submarine launch with evidence that suggests they had sailed in some form of submersing vessel."

"So they really did manage to raise and repair that sub..." the General muttered under his breath, which the Major heard. "So you just missed them. That is a shame."

"But it does not add up, sir" insisted Winter. "That class of submarine can take around one hundred men aboard. There were nearly a thousand stationed here to attack Albion. It is no stretch of the imagination to suggest Taurus was aboard the sub, but where in Remnant did all of his men go? It is as if they vanished into thin air."

"Could they have more than one vessel?" asked Ozpin.

"The White Fang have no such military capability or funding to acquire military armaments besides small arms; something the Mistralese Council and Military have ensured to enforce" Ironwood replied. "That sub was sunk due to some crudely made sea mines off the coast of northern Mistral in the Atlassian Sea. That's what the White Fang are good at; bombs."

"How did they raise it then, I wonder" Qrow commented, taking a mouthful from his drink.

"We could contact the Jörmungandr and scramble the wing to do a full sweep of the Valian side of the Sea of Souls before it reaches open water" the Major suggested.

"Even if they could make it in time, they would not be able to locate and destroy the sub" shot down Ironwood. "None of those jets are fitted with ASV radar, let alone any that can penetrate the sea if the sub reached its maximum depth."

"Can we contact the Valian Navy? Perhaps they have hydrophones placed in the Sea of Souls that we could use to locate the sub. If not, then their jets or our own could scramble and drop sonobuoys-"

"And cause such a disturbance for nothing? That sub is one of the best of the Kraken fleet, and you know better than I do, she is long gone, and we don't have anything at the ready to find and intercept her. The rat has slipped away once again, and that is the end of it."

The white-haired woman looked at her commanding officer in restrained frustration. It was clear to his eyes that she was wracking her mind for some sort of plan to recover the submarine, not wishing to give in so easily. Finally, her eyes fell in defeat.

"I'm sorry, General" said Winter, prostrating herself before him with a deep bow, greatly ashamed by failing in her mission.

"That's alright, Major. I would consider Operation Foxhunt a success."

"Sir!" she cried, straightening herself and looking at Ironwood in shock. "We failed in capturing or killing Taurus! The mission was a failure!"

"Yes, but the enemy has fully retreated, defusing the invasion before it began, thus saving the capital without it knowing it was ever in any danger" the Atlassian Huntmaster explained with a smirk. "I would call that a success, wouldn't you?"

"But sir!"

"Winter..." he said in a softer tone, his informal addressing causing her to twitch in surprise, as they were not alone, "the city is safe. That's all that matters."

The white-haired officer stared at her General in frustration before dropping her gaze to her boots, her hands to her sides balling into fists.

"He got away..."

Ironwood slowly walked towards the young woman and placed both his hands on her shoulders.

"I despise him for what he did in Mantle just as much as you do, though I also fully understand why this is bothering you so much. For you, it was not only a blow as a soldier and as an Atlassian, but as a Schnee for the pain he has caused your family. Don't let it discourage you like this. There will be another chance to take him down for good; you have my word" he reassured, though he continued when he saw it wasn't quite enough to raise her spirits. "You demand perfection of yourself. I deeply respect that about you, Winter. It's why you soared through the ranks so quickly and why I personally requested you to be my partner. You are the greatest Huntress in the Kingdom of Atlas. Don't let a small hiccup like this get under your skin, alright?"

Winter finally lifted her head and looked at her commanding officer, and saw that his words, eyes, and expression were all genuine.

"Yes, sir..."

"Very good" said Ironwood, patting her on the shoulder before returning his arms behind his back. "I'd say you've earned some R&R. Take it with gusto."

"Actually sir, I would like to see how my sister's team performs in the tournament finals."

"Don't bother. My niece lost so they're out" Qrow informed, sampling his drink once again. "Nikos soundly whipped her, so it's gonna be her and Wukong in grand finals."

Winter took a breath and exhaled through her nose.

"I see. I suppose it would be a shame to miss that final match."

"Yup. Can I make you anything?"

"Water; cold."

"Boring..."

Winter glared at him as he poured her a glass from a closed jug with ice cubes in it, and slid it to her.

"I suppose I should be taking my leave" remarked Olivier, before downing his sparkling water and placing his glass on the bar. "A la prochain (Till next time). Grand Vendeurs, mes amies, Madame." Tipping his hat to his peers and friends, he turned for the door and gallantly walked out of the skybox.

λΛλ

In the reserved seating, the group were munching away on snacks, patiently waiting for the tournament to resume. Each had found something to enjoy, which all matched their personalities perfectly. Ruby had a paper bucket filled with candy in one hand, and a large piece of cotton candy in the other. Weiss had found a booth selling Atlassian cuisine, and was breaking her disciplined diet to indulge in a fried piece of home called Kartoffelpuffer, a potato pancake, which she was sharing with Neptune, who very much enjoyed it. Yang was enjoying a couple of chilli dogs and a vanilla milkshake, occasionally taking candy from her sister's stockpile. Blake on the other hand had found religion in candied smoked salmon, something that she didn't even know was possible, but was slowly becoming a devout practitioner. She didn't have her mother's skills in the kitchen, but she was now willing to learn in order to have a steady supply of this delicacy. Nora had somehow found a giant soft pretzel, two feet in either direction, and was sharing it with Ren, who had a bag filled with other snacks he didn't have the heart to stop the ginger from wanting. Jaune was eating a southern Mistralese dish at Pyrrha's recommendation called a Gyro, which he found to be very good, but in sharing some with her, she couldn't help but state for the record that her mother's were better. Sun was eating a chocolate banana on a stick, after he had eaten several kebabs, which his teammates were still in the process of eating.

"Welcome back, everyone!" Port boomed. "I hope you're sitting comfortably, for we're ready to begin the semi-finals of the Vytal Festival Tournament! Let's not waste any more time getting to the match."

"Indeed, Peter! The roulette has done its job this year, so it shall be put to rest" explained Oobleck. "That is why I shall be announcing the next match will be between Pyrrha Nikos of Beacon, and Olivier Rouge of Haven!"

By this point, the crowd had become used to the unorthodox manner this year's tournament had been organized, and were just going to sit back and enjoy the matches. In this particular case, it was far easier to accept, as both the Mistralese and the Atlassians instantly recognized Olivier, and a match between himself and Pyrrha, was certainly not one to miss. In the reserved seating, Pyrrha's eyes rested on the wise and handsome face of the Team RROI captain, whose portrait sat across hers on the holoscreen. She sighed as she looked at him forlornly, which didn't go unnoticed by Jaune and Coco.

"What's up?" the blond asked. Before she could answer, Coco chimed in thinking she knew the reason.

"I know that look. Was he your ex or something?"

"N-No! Our relationship was nothing like that!" denounced the redhead, waving her hands defensively. "He is...everyone on Team RROI and Team LION are my mentors, however, Olivier was the one I spent the most time with training. So I suppose he would be my true mentor. I always planned to meet him again after training at Beacon, to show him I had heeded all of his lessons, and grew as a warrior. I just didn't think that I would be seeing him again so soon. It would be incredibly shameful if I were to disappoint him."

Jaune looked at his lieutenant understandingly, and took her hand as he always had.

"You won't" he said softly. "You're incredible, Pyrrha, and this tournament's shown just how much stronger you've become. Now go out there and show him that growth."

Pyrrha looked up at him, and smiled when she saw his confident grin.

"Yes, sir" she replied sweetly, and kissed him on the cheek. She said her goodbyes and strolled off to the arena, leaving her love and friends to spectate the match.

Jaune watched her go, of course, but while he did so, he raised his left hand with his index finger up, as if to make a point or to silence a noisy group.

"Not a word" he said without looking at his friends, knowing all too well what they were going to do. Nevertheless, they all began to snicker, proving they still had plenty of gas in the tank when it came to teasing the couple.

λΛλ

Pyrrha entered the arena and walked directly to her starting position. She took a deep breath through her nose and exhaled through her mouth, steadying her heart, which beat a bit quicker than she would have liked.

'It won't be a true match' she told herself, which was indeed true. 'We will no doubt put on an intense performance just as René and I did previously. There's no need to worry.'

'But the enemy has been defeated' said a little voice in her mind. 'Perhaps this will be a legitimate fight.'

'Because of the infiltration of the enemy, nearly nothing about this tournament has been legitimate' she argued. 'Only the matches between the real students who entered from the beginning fought true. This will be yet another match to extend the tournament for the White Army. It will be the match between myself and Sun that will be the true test of strength.'

The little voice faded as it had been soundly defeated, but nevertheless, she was still a little nervous fighting Olivier. Had she grown enough to please his high standards? Even if they didn't fight at their full strength, the older Huntsman-in-training would easily be able to judge her abilities, and see the flaws. Many of her beliefs that she acquired from her family, were strengthen and refined by what she had learned from Olivier, therefore his approval was something that greatly mattered to her. What would she do if she failed to match those standards? Pyrrha was then shaken from her thoughts as the crowd began to cheer, causing her to look up and see the young man in question, marching with a charming smirk on his face, as he held his red feathered hat to the crowd, acknowledging their cheers. When he stepped into the arena, his focus became entirely directed at Pyrrha, indicated by his smirk forming into a bright smile.

"Pyrrha, ma chère demoiselle (my dear young lady), how good it is to see you again" he said graciously, bowing low and holding his hat up and behind, before returning it to his head. In doing so, Pyrrha noticed the Master's Mark broach pinned to his doublet; something she had known that time was the only factor in when he would receive it. However, just as it was with Diego, she had not expected him to achieve master rank so soon.

"As it is for me, Olivier" she responded with a smile and bow of her own. "You and the others appear to be doing well."

"Very much so, though you appear to be doing far better than we expected. I hear that you have decided to sample some wine of the local vineyard. A jeunne homme by the name of Jaune Arc."

Pyrrha's cheeks flushed at her mentor's comment, but didn't allow it to fluster her.

"Yes, my captain, though his name is pronounced 'Jawn' not 'Jown'."

Olivier looked at his underclassman with a quizzical expression.

"But it is written as 'Jaune', which is the correct spelling for the Gaulois word for 'yellow'. Is he part Mistralese?"

"I do not know, actually. I can ask him when the tournament concludes."

"Do not trouble yourself, ma chère. I shall ask him myself when I and the others meet him" he explained. "We must judge him for ourselves to see if he is worthy of you, non?"

"Th-That isn't necessary, Olivier" she politely declined. "Jaune is just the sort of man I've been looking for."

"Oh, neither I nor the others question your judgement, Pyrrha, but that does not mean we do not want to know the man who has won your heart personally. We promise to keep our weapons in our scabbards."

As nervous as that proposition made her, Pyrrha was still rather flattered by her mentor's determination to meet Jaune in the name of her honour. That did give her comfort, as Jaune was clearly a man that shared their worldview of how a man was to treat a woman, and no doubt would satisfy their standards.

"Before we begin, I have one question, Olivier" she began, becoming more serious.

"Oui?"

"This will be another pseudo-match where you will throw by the end, won't it?"

The older Mistralese nodded glumly. "Regrettably, yes."

Pyrrha straightened at that response, sticking her chest forward.

"Then promise me that you and I shall have a true fight after the tournament ends" she demanded.

Olivier gazed back at her for a few moments, before an eager grin spread across his face.

"On my honour, Pyrrha Nikos" he replied, causing her to smile widely, as that was as good as gospel.

"Fighters ready?" Port's voice boomed throughout the Coliseum.

Olivier grasped the locket of the scabbard of his rapier, and pressed on a button with his thumb, causing the sword to jet forward, but stop right before it flew into the air. The beautiful swept hilt was now at eyelevel, with the top of the pommel just before the rim of his hat. He reached over to grasp his weapon with his face framed beneath his forearm and bicep, and drew the magnificently crafted blade that glistened in the sun. He then raised his gauntleted left hand across his chest, before throwing his hand to the left, fully extending his arm. His gauntlet then transformed into a buckler shield, eighteen inches across, with a golden lion's head with its jaws open on the boss, and golden fleur-de-lis decorating the cover by encircling the boss and touching the rim. The gold was eye-catching as it was contrasted with a brilliant azure coloured disk, which Olivier now displayed with pride after slapping it once with the flat of his rapier.

"En guarde!" he shouted, shield held forward and sword raised over his head in High Guard, pointing the tip at Pyrrha. The redhead drew Akoúo and Miló at once and performed a sword flourish after slapping her shield twice, which then caused Jaune to smirk.

'So that's where she gets it from' he realized. 'And she accused me of stealing.'

"Three...two...one...BEGIN!"

What happened next stunned all who were watching; either in the stands or watching at home. The two Mistralese bolted at one another like sprinters, and began a dance of death at break-neck speed. It was now very much apparent to Teams RWBY, JNPR, SSSN, and CFVY, that the Master's Mark was not just some pretty piece of jewelry. Olivier's every move was a calculated choice, without a single action made wasteful; a dramatic contrast to fighters such as Sun, Allen, Nora, and Yang, who either were incredibly flashy or over committal when it came to their fighting style. What also became apparent, was just how talented Pyrrha was for keeping up with him. She was a famous athlete, so of course she was remarkably talented. However, it was now clear just how skilled the young Huntress-in-training truly was, and how she had been holding back the limits of that skill. Sun, who would be facing her next, was now sitting up and leaning forward, paying very close attention. Weiss, it appeared, had indeed been telling the truth that master swordsmen would not swing their swords mindlessly against non-swordsmen, or fight at full strength against less skilled opponents. While she was not entirely correct in technicality, Olivier was indeed taking Pyrrha seriously by matching her abilities, stride for stride.

Or so the redhead thought, as when she thrust Miló and was blocked by Olivier's shield in an uppercut motion, he then suddenly brought it back down and struck Pyrrha in the face with the rim of the shield. It had certainly caught her off guard, dropping her on one knee, and she instantly tasted blood in her mouth, indicating that he had struck her with considerable force.

"I may be holding back, ma chère, but that does not mean I will be going easy on you" he informed, smirking cattily.

Pyrrha looked up at her mentor, and smiled eagerly; her competitive fire now burning. She then swiped at Olivier's legs in a clockwise spin, which he jumped into the air to avoid, before drawing his pistol and firing at her. Pyrrha raised her shield in time to block it, and was about to charge at him, when she saw him crash upon on her, forcing her to maintain her block. He kicked at her shield with both feet, knocking himself backwards into a flip, and as soon as he touched the ground, bolted at Pyrrha to maintain his pressure. Pyrrha was now in a fighting stance, ready for the attack, and returned fire by parrying the thrust and riposting, which Olivier returned in kind.

While the cameramen were very good at their job, controlling the drones to capture the action, only the experienced warriors could keep up with the fights. This match between the Mistralese was in a league of its own, and while most could not see the level of complexity of the match, they were all nevertheless holding their breath, unable to tell who was gaining the upper hand, if at all. That uncertainty was felt most by Pyrrha's friends, who had never before seen a fight as intense as this, surpassing even that of Pyrrha and René, which had been the leading match in that regard. Jaune stared in shock, as he had trained with Pyrrha for countless hours, and had watched her previous tournament footage, and he had never seen her fight like this before. He was very well aware that she had been holding back when they trained, but this showed just how wide the gulf between them truly was.

Pyrrha was knocked back by a thrust, and she skidded a couple yards, before throwing Akoúo at Olivier, who knocked it away with his buckler shield. Pyrrha had dashed the moment after she had thrown her shield, and brought down Miló in a two-handed strike, aiming for the exposed left side of her mentor's chest. Olivier transformed his buckler back into a gauntlet, and caught the redhead's sword in an iron grip. Without hesitation, he kicked Pyrrha square in the gut, and sent her flying into the sky, though she managed to call Akoúo to her with her Semblance and maintained her grasp on Miló. However, she wasn't sure if Olivier had purposely let her go, or he had simply lost his grip. Either way, the senior Huntsman-in-training was not done with his attack, as he swung his modified Charleville rifled musket off his shoulder. He passed his rapier to his gauntleted hand, and pressed the flat of the blade along the barrel while gripping the stock. Taking aim, he drew back the hammer, and fired. Like a crack of thunder, the rifle unleashed its payload at Pyrrha, a terrifying .50-140 calibre cartridge with a 638 grain bullet, which hit Pyrrha's shield and sent her further into the air.

Modern Huntsman fully utilized the advancements in firearms technology, sticking to semi-auto and full-auto actions, alongside large box, banana, and drum magazines. This allowed them to not only unleash a large volume of firepower, but have plenty to spare. Team RROI was all together different, seemingly trapped in the past with slow firing long rifles. However, they were not fools, for their rifles were modified with internal tubular magazines, allowing them ten shots fed by a loading port under the barrel. The low capacity was made up for by the sheer firepower of the cartridge their rifles were chambered in, which even in the hands of average Huntsmen, could break their collar bones if they did not shoulder them correctly. Team RROI were incredibly talented swordsmen, there was no doubt of that, however, they were also exceptional marksmen, and could lay waste to Grimm even when they were barreling down upon them or their allies. If a precise shot of their rifles did not kill a Grimm, then they would pair off and fire at the same target, which resulted in obliterating the heads of lesser Grimm. This was why when Olivier's shot hit Pyrrha's shield, it hit dead centre, for that was where he meant to put it.

Though the shot hit heavily, Pyrrha used the momentum to flip forward by angling her shield, and transformed Miló into its javelin form, before hurling it at him. Olivier rolled out of the way into a kneeling position, and threw the Martini long lever, ejecting the spent case and loading another cartridge, before firing off at Pyrrha right before she touched down. She knew he would do this and pulled right while raising her shield to cover herself, which was the right call as she deflected the bullet. Not wasting time, she began to run towards Olivier, dodging his shots as she drew onto her javelin, catching it and flourishing back into xiphos form. Knowing she was too close to hit with his rifle, the older Mistralese tossed his rifle sling over his head and grabbed the hilt of his rapier as he rose, turning his gauntlet back into a buckler. They returned to swordplay without pause for a full minute, before finally disengaging, and though Pyrrha was breathing more heavily, neither were out of breath, and they stared at each other unblinkingly. Instead, it gave the audience a chance to breathe, before turning into loud cheering, thoroughly enjoying the intensity of the match.

"You have developed tremendously, ma chére" Olivier complimented, making no effort to hide his pride.

"Thank you, though I'm just getting started" she replied, nonetheless feeling joy from his words.

"Unfortunately I must advise you not firing on all cylinders. One, to avoid any accidents, and two, you require as much of your strength as possible to carry on to the final battle, where your opponent will not be holding back."

"Yes" Pyrrha sighed, remembering that the result of their match had been predetermined.

"Do not succumb to melancholy, ma chére" he said kindly. "Think of this as training before our true match when the tournament is over. However, if you do not win, I will withdraw my promise to it."

Pyrrha knew that he was trying to encourage her, and knowing he was a man of his word, he gave her the peace of mind she needed to carry on. Taking her fighting stance, she prompted Olivier to do the same, and they gazed into each other's eyes, communicating without speaking that this would be their final exchange. Thanks to their many hours of sparring back in Argus, they would know when the right moment to throw would come. Although, knowing just how obvious Olivier's strength was, it would need to be a very convincing attack on Pyrrha's part. The senior Huntsman-in-training would not use his Semblance during this match, as it would raise immense suspicion that he lost while using it. It would be much easier for him to dismiss his loss by claiming that he chose to not use it to have a competition of swordsmanship, but by not telling Pyrrha this; her use of Polarity took him by surprise. If anyone would label that as underhanded on her part, Olivier himself would laugh it off, for who knew her as well as he, and would applaud her for being resourceful.

They resumed their fight, continuing to display their skill with the sword, but also added kicks to the fray, causing them to spin in circles of blinding combat. It seemed as if neither was gaining the upper hand, bringing the tension for the spectators back to where it had been before the first pause of the match. In the crowd, Jaune and the others watched the bout silently, fixated on it, and unable to pull themselves away to speak or even cheer. Weiss was enthralled by it, doing her best to take in every strike, parry, riposte, block, and reposition. To her eyes, it didn't seem that any action was wasted effort, showing how adept the two combatants were. Of course, Weiss was not as attuned to Pyrrha's combat abilities past her accolades, as she had not trained with her, nor watched all her previous matches with such intimacy to see if anything was amiss. Furthermore, given her focus on her studies and preparations to take over her family's company, she had not seen a match this intensive in person in a long time, making it even more difficult for her to see that the match was not going as it should.

Jaune on the other hand had noticed, however, that had been during Pyrrha's fight with René. Now, against Olivier, he had no doubt that she was fighting much more seriously. Pyrrha and her mentor were on a level that he had never seen before, outside of his own family, and were exceeding any previous tournament match he had seen during Pyrrha's years as an athlete. While it did humble him greatly that she was even more powerful than he thought, Jaune couldn't help feeling pride growing in his chest. This young woman, this Champion of Mistral, was in love with him, a thick-headed boy from the north who didn't realize her feelings until she told him. He made a little vow to himself to make sure to pray daily to both the Great Lancer and the Light for being able to win her heart without being aware he had done so. He just hoped that what he planned for them after the tournament would be enough to make up for his idiocy.

The Mistralese continued their heated battle, not letting up for a moment. Though while it appeared as if they were fighting mercilessly, Pyrrha and Olivier maintained eye contact, for they were waiting for the moment to throw the match. That moment arrived at last when the senior transformed his buckler back into a gauntlet, and grabbed onto Akoúo, pulling himself into the air above her, and tried to plunge his rapier at her. Pyrrha parried the attack with Miló, opening up her mentor, and kicked him in the chest, sending him into the sky with the help of her Semblance. Without hesitation she tossed her shield above her before jumping after it, using Polarity to keep the shield suspended, and then jumping off of it after Olivier. He swiped at her when she approached, but she managed to get around him by pulling onto his gauntlet with Polarity, allowing her to get above him and kicked him with an axe kick. As he flew back to the ground, he sheathed his sword and shouldered his rifle and began to fire at her. Pyrrha avoided the first shot as she chased him down, summoning Akoúo while she fell to protect herself. Using her Semblance, she pulled herself at Olivier, whose fall she had halted with said Semblance, allowing her to hit him like a freight train. Olivier hurtled towards the arena, and crashed with such force that the tiles within five yards broke beneath him in all directions, sending dust into the air. Pyrrha landed a few yards away, and she cautiously walked towards him, making sure to appear as if she was uncertain if she had defeated him. When she was just before him, Olivier did not move, lying on his back, hat lying beside him with his long hair a mess, and his rifle still grasped in his right hand.

Pyrrha was breathing steadily but heavily, standing before her fallen mentor, feeling neither triumphant nor angry as she waited for the verdict of the match to be called.

"Olivier Rouge has been knocked unconscious! The winner is Pyrrha Nikos!" announced Professor Port. "This means that the Grand Finals of the Vytal Festival tournament will be between Pyrrha Nikos of Beacon and Sun Wukong of Shade!"

The crowd cheered excitedly, as the match they had been waiting the entire tournament to see was now set in stone, and would take place in only thirty minutes time. As the stretcher-bearers carried Olivier out of the arena, Pyrrha walked back to the locker area from where she came. However, instead of making her way back to her friends, she sat herself on one of the benches and pulled out her Scroll from a locker she left it in. She tapped a message and sent it, before waiting for the reply. In the stands, Jaune felt his Scroll vibrate, and he fished it out, lifting his eye brows in surprise.

Pyrrha: I am going to wait for my final match here in the locker area. I would like to be alone to pray and prepare myself. I promise you that everything is fine. This is how I've always done things in regards to tournaments and competing. I'll see you and the others at the winner's circle :)

Jaune laughed through his nose and quickly wrote back "Good luck, my Invincible Girl", which he unfortunately did not see how it caused her spirits to rise, and put his Scroll away.

"Pyrrha's gonna wait for the final match in the lockers" he announced. "She wants to be alone to prepare herself."

"That's understandable" nodded Ren.

"So are we just gonna sit here and wait for the finals, then?" asked Nora.

"I guess so" said Yang, taking a sip from her milkshake.

"What about you, dude?" asked Neptune, looking at his captain.

Sun didn't respond, as he was still leaning forward with his head resting in his left hand with his thumb under his chin, and his index finger pressed against his lips. He had a rather pensive look on his face, and was clearly deep in thought.

"Sun?" said Blake, which unsurprisingly pulled him out of his musing.

"What?"

"Pyrrha's going to wait alone to get ready for your match, and we're going to wait here for it to start. What about you?" the Cat Faunus explained.

"Oh, OK" he replied, sitting up straight. "Actually, that sounds like a good idea. I'll see you guys later."

With that, he got to his feet and walked away from the others, vanishing around the corner as he reached the exit. This took them all by surprise, especially Blake, as he didn't even look at her as he left; something that he usually went out of his way to do. The raven-haired girl looked at Neptune, slightly worried, as she had never seen the blond with such an expression on his face.

"Is he OK?" she asked, a subtle frown on her brow.

The blue-haired lieutenant hesitated for a moment before replying.

"I...think so. I think he's just taking things seriously and wants to avoid being distracted" he explained.

Blake examined him for a moment, before looking back to the arena, trying to make sense of it all. She truly hoped that this wasn't some bad omen.

λΛλ

Pyrrha was sitting in a seiza position with her hands resting on her thighs, and her head bowed forward, eyes closed. She had a peaceful expression on her face, as she breathed deeply, slowly, and steadily. Before her lay Akoúo and Miló, completing the ritualistic process she had developed as far back as her start in competitive combat sports. Finally freed from the stress and anxiety of an impending assault on Albion, the young champion was able to fall back into some form of normalcy, and truly enjoy herself. All things considered, she had never felt better. She now was fully warmed up after fighting against Olivier, she had a strong opponent to fight against in the finals, she had good friends cheering her on in the stands, and a boy she loved who she would go on a date with after the tournament ended.

It had been a trying week for Pyrrha, taking her on a near Hellish rollercoaster of emotions. Learning the incredible truth that the Four Maiden's fairytale was true, that an attack was planned on Albion, and how she had been required to keep it all a secret from the people she loved most. It had truly been a test of faith, as well as a test of her values and principles. The greatest test of course was what occurred that morning with Jaune, which had caused more pain than she had ever experienced since her childhood. She was incredibly grateful that they had been able to resolve everything, and she fully intended to maintain her promise that she would tell Jaune the truth. She knew she would have to be more forceful with the Order, as much as it went against her nature. Her love for Jaune grew with each passing day, making her very certain that he was the One, and she would not keep secrets from him.

For now, she would focus on her match, giving it the attention she had wanted to since the very beginning. Praying, honing in her mind and spirit to be as tranquil as a mirrored lake, she let all of Sun's previous matches play in her mind. He was no doubt a strong opponent, but she was confident that she had a strategy to defeat him. It was now all about putting that strategy into motion.

"Welcome back one and all to the Vytal Festival Tournament Grand Finals!" Professor Port's voice emerged from the Coliseum speakers, alerting Pyrrha that the time had come. "As I am just as eager as you all are, let us get straight to it! In the Valian corner, fighting for Beacon Academy, four-time consecutive winner of the Mistral Regional Primary Tournament, hailing from the town of Argus of the Kingdom of Mistral, and lieutenant of Team JNPR, Pyrrha Nikos!"

Pyrrha's eyes opened at once, and she grasped her weapons, and attached them to her plackart. She removed her holy pendant, and slipped it into a specially made pocket just behind her armour in front of her heart, so that she would still carry it without it getting caught onto anything. She then walked out of the locker area into the arena once again, to the thunderous cries of the crowd.

Pyrrha! Clap clap clap! Nikos! Clap clap clap! Pyrrha! Clap clap clap! Nikos! Clap clap clap!

Thunderous was truly the best way to describe the volume of the cheers that the crowd was generating. Nearly the entire crowd was cheering for her, which wasn't a shock to anyone, as Pyrrha's fame was international. In this case, it was slightly more complex. The Mistralese, who now had no Haven team in the tournament, made up for that fact by cheering for their most famous young athlete, their pride of her on full display. The Atlassians, in nearly the same position as their neighbours, greatly admired Pyrrha's combat prowess and composure, thus cheered for her enthusiastically. The Valians, though fully aware that she was not a Valian herself, knew that she was fighting for their Kingdom, and had no issues whatsoever with her doing so. The Vacuans on the other hand, were keeping their powder dry, waiting for their fighter to make his entrance. Regardless of who was cheering, Pyrrha waved to the stands graciously with a bright smile, making her way to her starting position. When she reached it, Port began to speak again.

"And in the Vacuan corner, fighting for Shade Academy, gaining fame for his skill and good looks, hailing from Paraíso of the Kingdom of Vacuo, and captain of Team SSSN, Sun Wukong!"

This was what the Vacuans present were waiting for, and made up for their fewer numbers by being three times as loud.

Sun-Wu-Kong! Sun-Wu-Kong! Sun-Wu-Kong!

They clapped their hands and stamped their feet with every syllable of his name, which actually caused the stands to shake as if loud music was being blasted out of large concert speakers. The reason for this, despite the smaller number of Vacuans, was that many of the Faunus in the crowd, regardless of their realm allegiances, began to join in. Sun was one of the most famous Faunus in the world, and was known by many of his race across Remnant. For those that did not, they were certainly aware of him now. He emerged from his entrance of the Coliseum, arms spread wide and smiling a big opened mouthed smile. He rotated 360 as the fervour in the crowd grew when he appeared on the holoscreens, allowing himself to soak in all the applause.

"C'mon! I can't hear you!" he shouted, hyping the crowd by throwing his hands into the air.

The young ladies in the crowd, whether they were aware of Blake or not, screamed his name trying to get his attention. They unfortunately did not get it, as the Monkey Faunus' eyes found the girl that captured his heart, and giving her a heavily recoiling pistol gesture with a wink. Seeing that he was back to his normal self, Blake allowed herself to smile and blush at him, feeling touched that he once again wasn't paying an ounce of attention at the swarms of his female fans. After another few moments of acknowledging and hyping the crowd, Sun finally arrived to his starting position.

"Sorry about that, Nikos" he said, still smiling away. "You gotta get the crowd hyped for the match; you know how it is."

"That's alright" Pyrrha replied with a smile, fully understanding what he was doing. "You're certainly a natural as a hype-man."

"It's all part of the show" Sun retorted, folding his arms. "And given how polite you are, someone's gotta do it. I do have one thing to ask though."

"Ask away."

"Can you make sure that Jaune doesn't come after my ass after I kick yours?"

The redhead smirked. "If you can ensure Blake does not come after mine."

Sun threw his head back as he laughed. "She does what she wants so no promises."

"Fighters ready?" said Oobleck, causing Sun to draw Ruyi Bang and Jingu Bang, reconfiguring them into staff form, and Pyrrha to draw Akoúo and Miló, performing her signature flourish. "Three...two...one...BEGIN!"

With an explosive start, the combatants charged onto one another, weapons clashing together with a heated fervour. Both of them were acrobatic in their fighting style, though while Pyrrha's was far less flashy than Sun's, she nevertheless danced the waltz of combat, step for step. However, what became rather clear, was that Pyrrha was gaining the advantage. Despite having a much longer weapon, Sun was unable to keep the redheaded Huntress-in-training at bay, eating first a strike with Pyrrha's shield in the arm, and then a powerful knee strike to the chin. Pyrrha watched him flip away to put some distance between them, and knew that the hit had been solid, for he hadn't begun the flip beforehand to mitigate the damage. However, she very quickly began to feel uneasy, for she knew that he was much better than that, and allowing himself to be hit twice was strange. Had he possibly taken more damage than she realized during his match with Diego?

These thoughts were also shared by the Beaconites in the reserved seating, who were equally shocked by Sun taking damage, and then backing away so quickly.

"Is Sun OK?" asked Yang, wanting Pyrrha to win of course, but still concerned for the Vacuan Faunus who she had come to like quite a bit.

"Oh he's just fine" Neptune replied without a hint of concern in his voice.

"Are you sure? From what we've seen him do so far, making mistakes like those should be sending up red flags."

"He's just warming up" added Sage, equally as calm.

Yang and Blake looked at one another before turning back to the arena, where the combatants resumed their fight, and after another short exchange, Sun was knocked back by a powerful kick, and landing flat on his back.

"OK, something's up" Yang exclaimed, holding out her hand at the downed blond who was slowly rising to his feet. "And how has he not warmed up after his match with Pyrrha's mentor?"

"Because that wasn't a warm up; none of his previous matches were" Neptune explained. "Sun's biggest issue is that he takes longer than he should to get his engine going. He did better against Pyrrha's mentors, but he usually takes too long to feel out his enemy before revving up to fight seriously. He's been laser focused on fighting Pyrrha, so he's been holding back where he could, until he can let loose against her, and become...well..."

"Become what?" asked Blake.

The blue-haired lieutenant hesitated for a moment.

"You wouldn't like it." Blake frowned at this, not understanding what she had to do with this, which caused Neptune to smirk before looking back to the arena. "An animal."

Blake looked at him with consternation, and she looked at Sun, who was now on his feet, facing Pyrrha with a grin much wilder than usual on his face. The redhead noticed this as well, and examined him cautiously. There was a light in his eye that she had never seen before, like a fire that mesmerizes those who look into it. Although for Pyrrha, it made her tense. The way he had fought thus far had been very unlike him, and now this peculiar look producing an air of unease, left the champion disquieted. What was about to be unleashed?

Then without warning, Sun bolted towards her, and unleashed a typhoon of staff strikes, causing Pyrrha to snap to attention and defend herself. Immediately, she, and those watching the match, could tell that the Vacuan had raised the intensity tremendously, and Pyrrha needed to reset the pace to avoid being overwhelmed. However, Sun was not giving her that opportunity, instead forcing her to deal with his pace, and steadily turned up the heat. It was then that tide began to turn, as Sun landed a strike on Pyrrha's right side, and again on her left thigh. Pyrrha tried to close the distance between them to riposte, but he refused to let her advance, punishing her attempts with blows to the exposed parts of her body. His staff would slip under her shield, as it wasn't large enough to defend her long legs due to it being considerably smaller than a proper dipylon, and his reach allowed him to parry her sword and riposte without fear of trading attacks. The hits were not devastating, but Pyrrha knew they would be if she allowed this to continue unchallenged. The problem with this however, was that when she succeeded in getting passed Ruyi Bang and Jingu Bang's reach, Sun would quickly fire off a powerful kick that she was forced to block. Its power knocked her back, causing her to lose the ground she had gained. This was more than a stalemate; Sun had total control of the match.

"Oh fuck me sideways..." Jaune cursed in realization.

"What's wrong?" asked Ren, recognizing the tone in his captain's voice being dire.

"I just realized something. Sun is a polearm fighter, and a very good one at that. The universal advantage of polearms is their reach and their momentum. It doesn't matter how good of a swordsman, mauler, or martial artist you are if you can't get close to your opponent. Pyrrha's sword would be considered a shortsword, which already gives her limited reach. Even if it were a spatha or some other longsword, or she turned Miló to its javelin form, Sun's staff is still far longer. Her only chance is to get in close where it loses its effectiveness, but that's pointless because not only can Ruyi Bang and Jingu Bang segment down into shotgun nunchakus, Sun is very capable as a martial artist. And since Sun doesn't have much armour, or really anything that Pyrrha can grab with her Semblance, even if she disarms him, he'll still have the advantage. I only just noticed, but Sun isn't wearing his vambraces, which means he knew wearing metal would be an issue; trading less armour for more freedom. In short, this is the worst possible match up for Pyrrha."

The rest of the Beaconites opened their eyes wide, now understanding what was going on, and looked towards their friend with grave concern. Team SSSN on the other hand, merely watched the fight with content smiles on their faces, knowing that this had been the plan all along.

The match continued with Sun wailing on Pyrrha, as the champion tried to find a gap in her opponent's defenses, and develop a strategy to reset the pace. Her only option for now was to disengage and prepare for a new approach, but Sun was not giving her that chance. Separating his staff, he began a marching fire barrage, pursuing her when she tried to retreat, before getting close enough to try an attack around her shield. Striking high on her shield with his right nunchaku, he spun clockwise into a crouch, and struck her abdomen with his elbow, just where her armour stopped. Unlike Jaune, Pyrrha did not wear a full suit of armour, where if she had faulds, they would have protected her. Pyrrha gritted her teeth as she felt the pain of his attack, but managed to return fire before the blond could get away, by bringing down Miló and striking him with the pommel. It landed, but this time she could feel him turn his head away to mitigate the damage. Sun then continued to spin so that he could connect the nunchaku into a full half of his staff while in a sideways flip, before planting the tip of that half into the ground. Meanwhile he did the same with the other nunchaku, and reconnected it with the first, allowing him to push off the ground, and gracefully flip into the air, landing on his feet with a wild smile.

The crowd cheered at Sun's brilliant attack and retreat; the Vacuans overjoyed to see their countrymen had taken the advantage in the match against the Mistralese Regional champion. The Beaconites cheered for Pyrrha, encouraging her to the best of their abilities, hoping that Sun wouldn't get into her head. Jaune joined in the outcry of support, though he wished he could do more. Pyrrha stared down her opponent, where Sun couldn't hold back a laugh when he saw the look on her face.

"I suspected that you were holding back to a certain degree" the redhead commented, keeping her breathing steady. "However, I did not realize it was to this extent. You're much better than your reputation indicated."

"Well, isn't that a great complement" Sun replied, genuinely taking it to heart. "But as my dad likes to put it 'Never play an ace when a two will do'. You were my goal from the beginning, so I'm pulling out all the stops for this one. Hope you're not scared, Nikos."

Pyrrha gazed at him for a moment, before a slightly fiendish smirk appeared on her face. It was rather out of character for her, however, this was the first time since she came to Vale that she would have a challenging fight, and now that the enemy had been taken down, she could allow herself to be enthralled by the thrill of competitiveness. She performed a sword flourish, transforming Miló into its javelin configuration, and rested the shaft of the weapon onto one of the scooped indentations in her shield, the head pointed right at Sun.

"It will take more than a few lucky hits to scare me, Wukong" she replied in kind. Sun's grin widened, and he performed a flourish of his own, spinning his staff above his head before taking a stance with his left leg raised.

They paused for only a moment, before charging at one another once again. Before entering the range of their weapons, Pyrrha threw Akoúo at Sun, who avoided the shield by jumping over it with a full twist, and landed on his feet without breaking his momentum, continuing to run towards his opponent. Pyrrha immediately pulled back onto her shield with Polarity, which Sun only noticed at the last moment, and threw himself into a back flip, taking care to tuck in his tail to avoid having it cut off. The redhead had since closed the distance between herself and her opponent, then slid on her knees and legs below him, catching her shield by the modified centre grip with her left hand, and stabbed upwards with her javelin. Sun saw the incoming attack, and knocked it away with the first quarter of Ruyi Bang and Jingu Bang, using the momentum of the block to then spin clockwise and attack her with the other end of his staff. Pyrrha blocked the thrust with Akoúo as she pulled her left leg from under her, pivoting clockwise and rose to her feet. She tried to shield bash Sun while he was still airborne, but when she blocked his staff strike, he planted it into the ground and used it as an anchor point to kick her shield, and use it as a stepping stone to jump away from her.

Refusing to let him get away, the redhead threw her javelin at him, running after it. As she predicted, Sun saw the projectile coming, and he spun around to deflect it with a windmill flourish. Miló would have been thrown to the other side of the arena if Pyrrha hadn't grabbed it with Polarity, which she caught in mid sprint, and began to engage once again in polearm combat with Sun. This only lasted for a dozen strikes or so, when Pyrrha thrust from behind her shield, causing Sun to duck. She was about to knee him in the face, when she felt something wrap around her arm, and realized that it was Sun's tail, which shocked her, for its grip was far stronger than she would have thought. With his tail locked, Sun pulled her forward as he separated his staff into to two segments, one in each hand. He struck her behind the right knee which was unarmoured, causing her leg to buckle, and struck her across the face with his right staff segment.

Slightly stunned, Pyrrha allowed herself to be thrown by Sun pulling her arm with his tail as he caught her midsection with his shoulder, standing up. She recovered quickly however, and pushed off the ground with her hands to flip away, quickly facing him, as her training took over to never show the enemy her back.

'I can hear him scolding me now' Pyrrha thought, the face of her Guild Master from Argus materializing in her mind, which caused her to laugh to herself.

That scolding was warranted of course, as a great deal of his advice and warning had come to fruition. While not fully armoured, the greaves, poleyns, cuisses, and vambraces she wore, did a good job at protecting her. In conjunction with her shield and corset plackart, Pyrrha was well armoured, especially in comparison to other Huntsmen-in-training, which grew even further in scope with her fellow Huntresses, who did not where armour. There were limits however, and now they were coming into play. Akoúo was considerably smaller than a proper dipylon shield, which were between 1.10 and 1.50 meters in diameter, meant to cover the entire body, and would protect the unarmoured sections; in Pyrrha's case, those would be her upper thighs and shoulders. Akoúo was purposely made smaller to compliment her mobile fighting style, as well as making it easier for her to throw and control it in flight with her Semblance. Dipylons were also meant to be used in formation combat, which she would most likely never take part in during her lifetime, therefore a smaller version made the most sense. Furthermore, to compensate for Akoúo's size, she armoured her legs accordingly, which proved thus far to do the trick.

The problem that remained was that there was a major part of her body that was left exposed; her head. She knew, and had been told repeatedly to wear a helm of some kind, as it seemed foolish not to. However, given that she needed clear visibility to not only make full use of Polarity when controlling Akoúo and Miló, but full peripheral vision to see any metallic objects for her to make use of Polarity in combat, she chose to not wear any form of helm. She was paying for that now of course, as she felt the right side of her face throb in pain, though it was slowly fading. Perhaps she would have to have a word with her Master when she returned home.

In the stands, her friends watched with growing anxiety, seeing just how dominant Sun was against Pyrrha.

"He's good" Weiss stated, watching him reconnect his staff segments together. "He's very good."

"Of course he is" Neptune replied proudly.

"Isn't Pyrrha at her best in one-v-one fights?" asked Yang.

"Yeah, but everything else is not in her favour" Jaune reminded, resting his arms on his knees with his mouth pressed into his hands. "And then there's the issue of Sun's Semblance..."

At that moment, Sun dashed forward just as Pyrrha did, but then slid on one knee as he held his hands in prayer, cradling his staff between his index fingers and thumbs. He began to glow gold as he came to a stop, and three Aura clones emerged from his body, rushing Pyrrha. She halted immediately, and tried to position herself so that she couldn't be flanked, however, that instantly proved to be impossible, as the clones were just as acrobatic as the original, and it was not possible for her to keep up with them. Furthermore, the clones were not armed, so their goal wasn't to attack her with a tempest of staff strikes, but to punch and kick her, opening her up for them to grab onto her arms and legs. With not even a scrap of metal on the clones to control, Pyrrha tried to free herself with raw strength, but that proved unfeasible, for the clones made sure to grab her legs so that she couldn't break from the last clone's rear naked choke.

"This is bad!" cried Nora, beginning to feel genuine fear for her friend.

"She needs to break out of that hold before Sun attacks her himself" Ren added with a frown on his face.

"He can't–" corrected Jaune, but then stopped and felt his heart fall into his stomach, when Sun stood and ran towards Pyrrha.

"What?!" cried Team RWBY in unison.

"He's not supposed to be able to move while using his Semblance, isn't he?" exclaimed Yang, recalling to his match against Ian.

"Yes" confirmed Neptune.

"Well?!"

"He's been meditating."

Yang's mouth hung open in disbelief, not willing to accept on its face that Sun had learned to overcome the major flaw in his Semblance. In reality, the Vacuan Faunus hadn't learned to move while controlling his clones in a day, but he had practiced to move with three clones for thirty seconds. This was as long as he could manage, which was why he had avoided using his Semblance during the Singles Round, until he saw an opportunity to unleash it. The match with Ian had pushed him to his very limit, causing him to fall asleep at the bottom of the tree he sat under. Nine clones where the most he could create at a single time, and it would drain him completely, requiring him a great deal of time to recover his Aura, which was why he had avoided wasting any. It was also why he ate in between his matches that day, something that was normally ill-advised, but he needed to recover his strength for the final match against Pyrrha. Sun had indeed paid close attention to her bouts, and had slowly worked on a strategy to face her. Thus far it was working perfectly, and he now planned on winning the tournament right then and there.

Reaching Pyrrha, he took over his clones grapple, locking his legs inside hers from behind, using both hands to lock her sword arm, and kept her shield arm in place with his strong prehensile tail. Instantly the clones vanished, and Sun snapped to a strong grapple, pushing her to the ground, and applying pressure to her right arm.

"Well this is unexpected!" said Port in honest surprise. "Wukong is trying to get Nikos into a submission hold; most likely to get her to yield."

"Indeed it is, Peter! I don't think that I have ever seen a single match during my lifetime that ended with a submission!" added Oobleck, adjusting his glasses. "Knock-outs, Technical Knock-outs, and Ring-outs are the most common by a large margin. However, by the rules of the tournament, a combatant can win by either getting his or her opponent to tap out, either physically or verbally. While there is nothing in the rules that state hold or pins will result in a count, depending on the tournament, it may result in the proctors giving the victory to the grappler if the grappled cannot free themselves. As far as I know, Miss Nikos has never faced a grappler, as who would grapple a Grimm?"

"What will she do now then, I wonder?" Port continued.

In the arena, Sun maintained his hold on Pyrrha, steadily increasing the pressure.

"Tap, Nikos" he said strongly.

"I refuse" she retorted, speaking roughly but clearly through her teeth.

"You can't break out of this" he assured, increasing the pressure again, nearing the point that most would panic from the pain. "Just give in."

"Will you break my arm otherwise?" Pyrrha asked, showing no sign that the pain or the threat was affecting her.

"Are you nuts?! I'd never do that to you; friend or not!"

To add to his shock, Pyrrha grinned at this.

"Then this fight is far from over" she said, looking at him from over her shoulder.

Before the blond could say another word, he felt more than heard a loud pop, and he let go of Pyrrha in shock. Without hesitation, the redhead unleashed a powerful kick straight into the air, her boot connecting with Sun's chin, and sending him soaring into the sky. He managed to flip onto his feet before landing, but immediately felt his legs give, forcing him to stop himself from falling forward by using his staff as a crutch. He held his jaw with his right hand, and it took him several moments to get his head to stop spinning. To say his bell had been rung was an understatement, as not only did he feel his legs turn to jelly, but there was a literal ringing in his ears. Thankfully both were slowly subsiding, but he was nevertheless flabbergasted at what just happened, and he looked at Pyrrha wide-eyed, watching her rise to her feet.

In the reserved seating, all of their friends had leaned forward in shock, not understanding what had just happened. It was then Jaune who first noticed what was wrong, and he felt sicker than he had ever been. Pyrrha stood straight, allowing her sword and shield to drop to the ground, and she reached over and grabbed her right wrist with her left hand. The camera drones focused on her, and with high definition clarity, could see that her right arm was now sitting lower than her left, with a new divot in her shoulder. This was now being identified by some members of the audience, who gasped as they did, knowing it meant.

"Her arm..." moaned Jaune, causing the others to look at it and see what he saw, "...it's dislocated."

"Sun went too far" breathed Yang in horror. "Why didn't he stop?"

"He did stop" defended Neptune, his mouth hanging open.

"She did it on purpose" gasped Scarlet, equally stunned as his teammates.

"No..." said Weiss incredulously. "She wouldn't do that...she wouldn't go that far...would she?"

She turned, as did the others to Jaune, who was forced to look away from Pyrrha by Ren grabbing his arm.

"I...I don't know" he replied. "We've never had any accidents while training, so I've never seen her do anything like that. But I guess as a pro athlete she gained that level of competitiveness; plus she's probably used to such injuries..."

It was clear from both his tone of voice and the expression on his face, that the blond swordsman was grasping at straws, though there was some sound logic to his reasoning.

"I guess" Yang said slowly. "I've popped my arms out of their sockets before while training with my dad, and it fucking hurts. I'd never do it on purpose; but I guess it works since she got out of his hold."

"She's hardcore" added Coco, cradling her injuries subconsciously. "She didn't become a champ by just sitting on her ass."

They all looked back at Pyrrha, not knowing to feel impressed or fearful, as this action could cost her the match or worse. Jaune was of course the most worried of all, and he stared at her with dread, forcing himself to stay seated and not run to her aid. There was nothing he could do but sit and watch, even if he desperately wanted to stop the match. Victory wasn't worth that much injury in his mind, though his emotions were getting in the way of his thinking, as this was a friendly tournament, and not the battlefield. But he knew deep down, that she was a fighter, and she would not give up. She wouldn't forgive him if he got in the way, either physically entering the arena, or calling the proctor that they were throwing in the towel. She would have to fight till the end. He knew that Pyrrha had said otherwise, but for the first time in a long while, Jaune prayed that she would win and would come out without serious injuries.

In the arena, Sun continued to watch Pyrrha in amazement.

"Did you do that on purpose?" he demanded. "Are you fucking crazy, Nikos?"

Pyrrha pulled her arm forward, holding it straight by the wrist, and guided the ball of her arm bone back into her shoulder socket, groaning lightly as she felt it pop back into place. She was used to such injuries, and had taken the time to learn how to treat them during her career as an athlete.

"You said you weren't willing to break my arm, so I did what I needed to break your grapple" she replied calmly, rotating her right arm to make certain it was properly set, before stooping to pick up Akoúo and Miló.

"This isn't war! I don't like fighting girls as a rule, especially the girl of a friend, who's friends with the girl I like, but I'm taking this seriously because of how good you are. I'm sorry, but even if you were a guy, I wouldn't go so far as break a bone; not on purpose anyways. Does winning matter that much to you, champ?"

"You misunderstand" she replied cracking her neck "I did not train as an athlete for the glory or the accolades. I did not decide to become a Huntress for thrill or fame. I did it all to be the best warrior I could be, to protect people. That is a holy vow; so long as I draw breath" she retook her High Guard stance, "I will fight."

Sun gazed at her in astonishment. There was a fire in her eyes that he had never seen before, and he could feel them burn into him. Something had awoken in her, and she now gave off an air that caused the hair on the back of his neck, as well as his tail, to stand on end. It seemed that she too needed a while to get truly warmed up, and now she was literally firing on all cylinders. Despite his reservations, Sun ate off that energy with gusto, the worry and confusion in his face turning to wild excitement. He performed a staff flourish and ended it with a chest pound, pointing the tip of Ruyi Bang and Jingu Bang at his greatest opponent yet.

"Jaune is one lucky son of a Grimm to call you his" he said respectfully, grinning from ear to ear.

"Thank you, and Blake is equally lucky to do the same with you."

"Still working on that one."

This conversation would be their last of the match, and they resumed their fight with reinvigorated determination. Seeing that her injury wasn't affecting her, Jaune and the rest of their friends breathed a sigh of relief, but none could shake the feeling that this was but a warning of what was to come. Pyrrha had now reset the pace of the fight, matching Sun's earlier vigor with her own, and was even surpassing it. Sun was not letting up, not in the least, and kept pace to the letter, hooting and yelling in excitement. Taking a page from his book, Pyrrha was now incorporating kicks in her attacks, and was now making full use of Polarity. She had tried several times to wrench free his staff from his hands, but his grip was as fierce as ever, and it was frivolous to try further. Furthermore, she had noticed that Sun had taken care to remove any and all metal from his person, making sure that there was nothing available for her to grab onto. There were obviously small bits of metal such as buttons and zippers, but if she were to grip them with Polarity, they would simply rip free of his clothing, having not the strength to support his weight. Instead, she used it to not only manipulate her weapons in flight as projectiles, but to levitate her shield to block attacks while leaving herself free to move and attack with better result. This intensity resulted in them trading blows, but they continued to fight on, not giving either a chance to breathe.

Pyrrha then tried to use Sun's tactics against him, for she knew that she needed to get passed his defenses to pay him back for his previous hits. She attempted to strike his chin with the edge of Akoúo, and the moment the blond leaned back to avoid it, she kept it in place with Polarity, obscuring his view, and she attacked his open right side. It was then that what she had tried to avoid from happening during her other matches occurred, for Sun pivoted in his attempt to dodge, and Miló plunged into his abdomen. Pyrrha gasped in horror, immediately letting go at the sight of blood beginning to run down his side, causing her to blanch. She had meant to strike him with the flat of Miló's head, and even if the edge or point made contact, it should have been deflected by his Aura armour. That last second movement by Sun had been the cause, and now she stared at his wound, her mind going blank. All of this was visible to the audience, and all felt as Pyrrha did. Blake covered her mouth to stifle a scream of terror, feeling sick at the sight of the Monkey Faunus's impaling, not feeling such dread in many months.

While the Beacon faculty had done everything possible to avoid accidents occurring during the tournament, they knew that they could still happen. It was for that reason that they had medics on standby, ready to spring to action, as well as a match proctor just at the end of the arena, who was now signalling to said medics. However, all froze when to their shock, Sun reeled back and unleashed a powerful palm strike that knocked Pyrrha clean off her feet, and sent her flying thirty yards away. Every spectator within the Coliseum or watching remotely stared in macabre wonder as Sun stood unfazed with a javelin protruding from his body. He hadn't been fully impaled, no more than two inches had pierced him, and yet, it remained imbedded, not falling out due to the javelin's own weight. The captain of Team SSSN looked down at the polearm like a curious child with a new toy he had never seen before, and without hesitation, gripped Miló by the middle of its shaft, and pulled it out of him. He didn't even wince while doing so, and tossed it over his shoulder as if it were a crumpled piece of paper, smirking as he did. The proctor and medics stood with their mouths agape for a moment more, before coming back to reality, and began to climb into the arena, when Sun pointed at them without turning his head.

"Don't you dare stop this!" he bellowed, his voice making it clear he wasn't in any mood to be trifled with. "This is just a scratch, so this fight isn't over. Just hang tight cuz I'm about to end it and win!"

The shock of seeing Sun unfazed by his injury lingered to all watching, but the Vacuans in the crowd exploded in approval, excited and proud to see their countryman showing true grit. In the reserved seating, the Beaconites were beside themselves.

"He's crazy" said Yang stunned. "I mean I'm impressed, but he's crazy."

"I know the Vacuans are tough, but this is a bit much" commented Yatsuhashi.

"His Aura seems to have stopped the bleeding at least" added Ren, "but I don't think this fight should continue, for worse injuries are certain to come."

"Think he did it on purpose?" asked Scarlet calmly, which caused Blake to snap to him in bewilderment.

"Most likely" Sage replied, folding his arms with a nod.

"He's done crazier things" sniffed Neptune.

The Cat Faunus was beside herself as the rest of Team SSSN seemed to show not an ounce of concern for their captain. If they were telling the truth that Sun had allowed himself to be stabbed as to land a powerful attack on Pyrrha, then he was either insane or more powerful than any of them could conceive. Blake knew the boy threw caution to the wind on the daily, but this was going too far.

"Pyrrha needs to end this, for both their sakes" argued Weiss, looking to her friend with anxiety.

"Something's wrong!" Nora cried, drawing everyone's attention to the tall redhead, who had gotten to her feet, but wasn't in her regular battle stance.

Pyrrha was instead doubled over with her hands on her knees, her head bowed and unaware of what was around her. Jaune gazed at her in fear, but was too far away to decipher what was wrong, and the camera drones did not have a good enough angle to make it clear.

"I can't see shit" he cursed aloud.

"Here!" said Ruby, retrieving a small spotting scope from her belt, which Jaune took from her and brought it to his eye.

He was now able to see his lieutenant in crystal clarity, and he felt his stomach twist at what he saw. She was sweating profusely as she gasped for air, trying to catch a breath that wouldn't come; her chest rising and falling with only the slightest compression. Her legs were shaking, showing they had taken damage from the strike, that even the tight grip she hand on them could do nothing to stop their quivering.

"She can't breathe" the swordsman announced, unable to take his eye off her.

"That palm strike" Ren said suddenly, memories of old coming back to his mind. "I remember hearing about such a technique to stop ones opponent in their tracks."

"A solar plexus strike" Yang said, also recalling the technique. "My dad taught me it when he trained me to fight hand to hand growing up, but how did he hit her so hard through her armour?"

"Sun's dad is also a martial artist" informed Neptune steadily. "He's been learning to fight ever since he could walk, and those fists of his could break stone from when he was twelve years old. What's one piece of armour to a man like that?"

There was a great deal of pride in the blue-haired Vacuan's voice, and while he did feel sympathy for the current discomfort Pyrrha was experiencing, he would support his captain to the end.

At that moment, Sun ran towards Pyrrha, planning to keep his word and end the fight once and for all, and put the girl out of her misery.

"He's going after her!" shouted Weiss.

Jaune's eyes flew between Sun and Pyrrha, who hadn't yet recovered from the attack.

"Pyrrha, move!" he cried, knowing how hopeless his shouting was.

Somehow Pyrrha heard his cries, and looked to her right to see her opponent barreling down onto her. Her breath had still not returned, and she didn't have the strength to run or even defend herself. However, she did have her Aura. Using her Semblance, she pulled onto Akoúo, but instead of sending it at Sun, she brought it all the way to her, and attached it to her back. To those watching, they didn't understand why she had done this, and in all honestly neither did she, but she was making a major gamble of her own, knowing there was nothing else she could think of to do. All watched as Sun reached the Mistralese, and he raised his left leg high into the sky, intending to bring down a mighty axe kick right onto her head to knock her unconscious. With all the strength she could muster, Pyrrha leaned backward at the last possible moment, avoiding the attack, and wrapped her arms around his waist. She then poured her Aura in Polarity, latching onto Akoúo and all her armour, and with shocking speed and power, threw Sun into a suplex. He collided with the ground, and a massive explosion erupted from the arena, knocking dust into the air, as well as chunks of tile, some of which striking the barrier that protected the audience from such debris.

The massive plume of dust reached its maximum height before spreading in all directions, completely obscuring the fighters from the crowd and the cameras. All watching leaned forward, trying to spot them, but had no choice but to wait for either the dust to clear, or for Sun and Pyrrha to emerge. Teams RWBY, JNPR, SSSN, and CFVY were on the edge of their seats, unsure of the outcome. Ruby being the most sharp-eyed of the group, first noticed a figure in the dust.

"There!" she announced, pointing.

Jaune, still holding the young captain's spotting scope, brought it to his eye, and tried to see who was still standing. After a few moments, a grin mixed with relief and pride spread across his face.

Pyrrha walked out of the dust to the thunderous cries of the crowd, as she headed to where Miló lay, and picked it up.

"Unbelievable!" announced Port ecstatically. "After what might be a strong contender for the greatest suplex in history, it looks as if the winner of this year's Vytal Festival Tournament is Pyr–"

"Wait!" shouted Oobleck. "It's not over!"

Pyrrha turned around to see a dark figure slowly walk out of the crater she had made. Her eyes widened as Sun came into view, as did nearly everyone else, as he was smiling from ear to ear, despite bleeding from his head.

"What the fuck is he made of?" demanded Yang incredulously. Blake felt her stomach twist once again at the sight of his blood dripping down his cheeks and forehead, his smile doing nothing to put her at ease.

In the arena, Sun continued to shock Pyrrha by laughing.

"That's a great look you got on your face, Nikos. I wasn't kidding when I said that they make us tough in Vacuo" he remarked. "Now, let's finish this." He began to walk forward, forcing his opponent to draw her weapons once again.

Pyrrha did her best to take a fighting stance, but she felt her legs begin to shake. Sun had done a fair amount of damage, and his palm strike was still having an effect on her. She wasn't sure how well she could fight like this, if at all, especially that Sun appeared to be able to walk around just fine. She tightened her grip on Miló when he stopped walking, preparing herself for an attack.

And she waited, as did everyone who was spectating the match. But the attack never came, as Sun merely stood their smiling. Pyrrha squinted at him in confusion, unsure of why he was hesitating. Had he taken more damage than he was letting on, and he was instead waiting for her to make the first move? It was only after a few more moments that something dawned on her. Causing Jaune and everyone else watching to blink in bewilderment, she attaching her weapons to her back, and began to walk towards Sun. They held their breaths as she drew closer, and maintained that hold when she was no more than a foot away from him. Now close enough to him, Pyrrha took one look at Sun, before she turned and shouted to the medics waiting beside the arena. They sprung into action and joined the two combatants, and examined the blond before the proctor reached to his ear piece and spoke into it. In the commentator's box, both Port and Oobleck listened to him, and both their eyes widened.

"Sun Wukong is still standing, but is unconscious!" announced Port in astonishment. "The winner of the 40th Annual Vytal Festival Tournament is Pyrrha Nikos of Beacon Academy!"

The crowd erupted into cheers and applause, as did Teams RWBY, JNPR, and CVFY, whereas the rest of Team SSSN slumped back into their seats. Blake was the only Beaconite that wasn't cheering, as she was unable to take her eyes off the injured Vacuan Faunus.

As soon as the medic touched Sun, he suddenly reanimated and threw a punch straight at Pyrrha, who barely managed to catch his fist with both hands. He began to blink in confusion, not sure where he was, and began to look around at the thundering crowd.

"What just happened?" he asked. His eyes then landed on one of the holoscreens which was now displaying Pyrrha's portrait adorned with a winner's banner.

"I believe you lost" informed Pyrrha apologetically. "Rather impressively, as you were still standing when you fell unconscious."

It took a few more moments before Sun was able to fully register what he was being told.

"Damn it..." he groaned, letting is hands fall to his sides in defeat.

"Don't be like that Sun, you did incredibly well" she continued. "You're truly the strongest opponent I've ever faced."

The Faunus eyed her suspiciously, knowing she wasn't one to lie, but was still struggling with his pride. He finally sighed.

"You do realize this ain't gonna go well back home, right? The whole rivalry between the Kingdoms, and you being the big hotshot from Mistral; I'm never gonna hear the end of it."

The redhead gazed at the blond with a soft sympathetic look, before extending her right hand.

"Then how about we don't look at it as two celebrities fighting for glory, but as two friends training together to defend our Kingdoms" she offered.

Sun looked at Pyrrha's hand, and then to her genuine smile, causing him to laugh through his nose and grin softly.

"Ya, that'll help with my bruised ego a little" he replied before taking her hand and shaking it in peace.

"Will Yang Xiao Long please join her friends in the winner's circle so we may officially conclude the tournament" said Port. "After the medics properly bandage Mr. Wukong's injuries, of course."

"You heard the man!" shouted the blonde in question, and jumped to her feet, bolting for the exit.

Her sister and teammates ran after her, tailed by Team JNPR, SSSN, and CFVY. They ran through the halls beneath the arena to reach the opposite side of the Coliseum, with Ruby doing her best to not rush on ahead. When they reached the Mistralese corner, they could see through the entrance to the arena that the tiled floor of the arena had already been transformed with three designated squares in the middle. Standing before them were Huntmasters Ozpin and Ironwood, smiling proudly before Pyrrha and Sun, who was currently being fitted with a bandage around his head.

"I'll be back" announced Yang, and walked towards her friends to take her spot next to them. When she reached the arena, she was politely greeted by the Huntmasters, as well as her friends, before being instructed to stand on the square to Pyrrha's left.

"My young Huntsmen-in-training" Ozpin began, his voice sounding through the Coliseum as he spoke through a lapel microphone. "You have performed incredibly in this year's tournament, facing powerful opponents, and against overwhelming odds. You have fought hard in the names of your academies and your Kingdoms, and you have done them all proud. Every year I am pleasantly surprised at how talented the next batch of students are, and that this generation, is setting itself to surpass even my own. Therefore, it gives me great pride and honour to bestow onto you the decorations of the top three combatants of the Vytal Festival Tournament."

Ironwood opened the polished wooden case he was holding to reveal three beautifully crafted medals in the expected colours of gold, silver, and bronze.

"In third place, of Team RWBY of Beacon Academy, is Yang Xiao Long." The blonde bowed her head as Ozpin placed the bronze medal around her neck, and shook her hand. "In second place, captain of Team SSSN of Shade Academy, and proving quite clearly to be a son of Vacuo, is Sun Wukong." The Faunus graciously accepted his medal, and felt a tad better about himself thanks to Ozpin's complement. "And last, but certainly not least, in first place, lieutenant of Team JNPR of Beacon Academy, the Champion of Mistral, and one of the most talented, compassionate, dedicated, and truly marvelous young ladies I have ever had the honour of knowing, Pyrrha Nikos."

Pyrrha actually felt her cheeks warm at the praise, as she could tell it was truly genuine, and knew much had to do with her aiding the Order in suppressing the enemy's infiltration. She accepted the medal with humility, and bowed respectfully to the Huntmasters, honoured by their trust in her, even if she had begun to doubt them.

The three students then felt the ground beneath them slightly vibrate, and were surprised to see that the squares they were standing on were now rising, forming three pillars that became a podium. The three positions on the podium rose to ten, fifteen, and twenty feet respectively, allowing the excited crowd to take one final look at the combatants, and for the cameras to show them to the world. Yang threw her fists in the air, appropriately as a prize fighter would, while Sun, either ignoring his wounds or honestly did not feel any pain, beat his chest and shouted to the crowd with bombastic fanfare. Pyrrha, of course, did what she had done countless times before, by drawing Akoúo and Miló, and pointing her xiphos sword to the sky, basking in the cheers of the crowd.

From the frame of the exit, the others watched their friends with pride. But the one, who was the most proud, was Jaune. His eyes were magnetized to the beautiful redhead, feeling a level of pride in his heart that he had never felt before. It was more than pride as a captain or pride as a friend; it was the pride for someone that meant the world to him. Of course he had never lost faith that she would be the one to win the tournament, as did many others, but nevertheless, his heart swelled seeing her standing tall on the podium. Her beautiful eyes and hair caught the sun light, becoming just as radiant as the smile upon her face; the very same smile that took his breath away every time he saw it. It made him ask himself once again why hadn't he realized her feelings sooner? It was never a question about her beauty, as he had not a single issue acknowledging how beautiful she was. The answer of course was that he placed her on a pedestal as a woman after joining her on the pedestal as a friend. The culprit was his own insecurity, as it told him Pyrrha was beyond his grasp, while telling him that Weiss was entirely in his league. It was the same insecurity that convinced him to act like an entirely different person than whom he really was; that it would be the best way to attract girls to him. He had gone about it entirely wrong, and he had learned some valuable lessons. And while that list of lessons learned grew longer by the day, there was one thing that he had learned that he knew would change his life forever: he was in love with Pyrrha Nikos.

As the podium retracted back into the arena, the others finally entered the battle grounds, eager to congratulate their teammates. Ruby ran ahead of the others and jumped into her sister's arms, proudly hugging her as she was joined in by Weiss and Blake. Sun began high-fiving his teammates, who while all were disappointed that he hadn't won the tournament, were nevertheless proud of him for doing so well throughout. The blond Faunus accepted their praise with a grin, but it faltered when he looked at Blake, who also turned to face him. He suddenly found himself in Neptune's shoes, feeling disappointed in himself for losing with her watching. He had set his sights on the prize of winning the tournament, getting the girl, and returning to Shade triumphant in defeating the Champion of Mistral. And yet here was, in second place, losing the tournament, and standing before the girl he had fallen for, feeling ashamed.

"So..." he began, carefully rubbing the back of his head to avoid his bandage, "I looked pretty bad out there, didn't I? And now after talking a big game, I'm eating crow, or whatever that expression is. Pretty lame, huh?"

Blake looked at him with actual surprise, as his normal bursting-with-confidence persona was greatly dampened, almost to the point of him being shy. She honestly didn't think that was possible for him, but here he was, sheepishly rubbing his head as if he had gotten a bad grade on a test, and didn't know how to tell his parents. It was actually kind of cute, and proof that even the Vacuan with an endless supply of energy, could be subdued. The Cat Faunus was jerked from her thoughts as Yang nudged her with her elbow, encouraging her to respond. Taking a breath with her cheeks tinted pink, she did.

"You really are brash and you throw caution to the wind, doing really crazy things, and scaring me half to death" she said at last, before giving him a small but warm smirk. "But you were still pretty cool while doing it." Blake felt her cheeks warm further as her words caused Sun to look up at her, and return her smirk with his usual bright smile.

Lastly, Pyrrha was being hugged and congratulated by Nora and Ren, with Team CFVY interspersed with the others. Jaune was still behind them all, watching Pyrrha smile and accept everyone's felicitations humbly. At last, their eyes met, and like every other time they did, the world around them melted away. The blond began to walk forward, but needed to stop as Pyrrha ran to him and jumped into his arms, causing him to catch her by holding her legs. She wrapped her arms around his neck, letting her hair fall around his face, as they stared deeply and lovingly into each other's eyes. They could have stayed that way forever, if they weren't once again interrupted by their friends.

"You idiots!" hissed Yang. "The cameras!"

The couple looked around them to see that indeed, all the cameras in the Coliseum were now pointing at them, plastering their embrace on all eight holoscreens, and broadcasting to millions of televisions, computer screens, and smart devices across Remnant. They both blushed deeply, greatly embarrassed by not only forgetting where they were and acting so carelessly, but that they could easily feel the tension in the air. To all watching, they were expecting them to kiss; a perfect way to celebrate such a tremendous victory. In all honesty, why shouldn't they? They both felt that desire for weeks now, having a number of "perfect" moments to seal the deal, even if they hadn't yet gone on an official date. For Pyrrha, she had wanted to for nearly as long as she had known him, and Jaune, now realizing he had fallen for her, wanted to just as strongly as she did.

And yet, there was still that hesitation. For Pyrrha, she wanted to honour their agreement to go on a date, wanting to start their romantic relationship correctly, as she truly felt that Jaune was the man she was going to marry. As for Jaune, there was still something he had been keeping secret from Pyrrha, and he knew that he would have to tell her before crossing the point of no return. Nevertheless, having his feelings finally set in stone, he knew exactly what to do.

"Sorry, we kinda got caught up in the heat of the moment" he said to the shorter blonde.

"You really don't like listening to my advice, do you?"

"Not really, but I will take half of your advice, and ignore the other half" he replied.

All present looked at the captain confused, just as he slipped his left hand under Pyrrha's knees, changing his hold on the girl into bridal style, and without another moment of delay, dashed back to the arena exit. The spectators burst into laughter and cheers that turned into thunderous applause. While they didn't get the romantic kiss they were expecting, running away as if they had eloped was just as good. It unfortunately gave the sensationalist journalists a great deal of ammunition, but even the conversation of what would have been worse, what they had just done or kissing, wasn't even worth having. The world was now Jaune and Pyrrha's oyster, and nothing would get in their way.

Their friends, of course, were equally as enthused as the crowd, laughing and clapping as the couple took off. Yang shook her head in defeat, knowing there was no way to rein them in now, but had to be honest with herself that they were outrageously cute together.

"Those two are unreal" Coco remarked.

"Yes they are" added Yang.

"They're going to have a lot of children" added Velvet, which secretly everyone had been thinking for a while.

"How many, do you think?" her captain asked.

"Well, Jaune has seven sisters..." informed Nora, causing those who were not aware of this fact, to raise their eyebrows in shocked admiration.

"Oh those two are gonna be busyyyyy" chimed Sun, getting a hearty round of laughter from the others. "Right, let's blow this popsicle stand and head out! Now that the tournament is over, it's time to party!"

With that, the young Huntsmen-in-training walked back to the Mistralese locker area to make their way out of the Coliseum. Without the stress of the tournament getting in their way, they were now ready to enjoy themselves; to experience what may very well be the best days of their lives.

---

And that is the end of the Vytal Tournament! Ho boy, that was intense. I want to state of the record that I fully acknowledge that the tournament was a mess. Going through the canon version of V3 was a nightmare in and of itself, and trying to come up with a new version that made some sense, was a challenge. Having to bring in teams LION and RROI, characters that are from my full rewrite and weren't meant to be introduced until the main characters reached Helike, was something I wrestled with over a year ago. Also, I had to change Team LION, as Diego was invented for the story. Originally, his spot on the team was filled by a character mentioned earlier in the story, Wilhelm Imperial. I had planned for him to appear towards the end of the story to at least establish him, as well as show off both Winter and Ironwood, but I was force to drop it.

Nevertheless, this tournament was hard to work with, and it most certainly could have been better. I had to change the structure of the tournament itself, as well as drop entire fights. I had originally planned for Yang to fight Ivoire for example, but given that the tournament was "rigged" from the beginning, I had to make the hard call to cut things that made it clunky. I do hope that it was still entertaining to read, especially with what was occurring behind the scenes with the Order and Salem's minions.

Of course, the main point of this chapter was to show off Olivier, Pyrrha's mentor, as well as show off that Sun isn't a joke. As the series progressed, CRWBY went out of their way to make him a buffoon, and obviously, that hasn't sat well with me. This is why both he and Olivier will have more moments to shine, as they have important parts to play in this story, and the story overall. Also, this chapter was to show that Pyrrha isn't as delicate as V3 made her out to be against Cinder. Like Coco said, "She didn't become a champ by just sitting on her ass".

And that is that. Thirteen chapters, just like the show. We are done here. I hope you all had a lovely time reading this, and I thank you for everyth– yeah right! Could you honestly imagine ending it here? To make this story that short? I wouldn't even DARE to think of such a ghastly thing! We aren't even HALF way through this story, and I cannot wait for you to see it.

That being said, I do need to explain how things will be moving forward. Every remaining chapter of DDCT will be longer than the ones that came previously. This means that I will need more time to edit them. Of course, I've already broken my release schedule, so I'm just going to be content with making this story the best it can be. Furthermore, since RWBY is now on its official two month hiatus, I don't have to worry about rushing anything; which was why I wanted to get the last chapter out asap before CRWBY did any more retconning with Roman and Neo. I've been stressed enough as it is with what they've done to Ren and Nora while I was writing this story last year before V7, so I tried to nip it in the bud. Of course, nothing is sacred to CRWBY, but hey.

Speaking of which, about the latest episode. I'd like to make another prediction. I think that Salem will taunt Jaune with Pyrrha's corpse, or something to that effect. I expected them to insult Pyrrha one final time before the end of the show, and people have been afraid of CRWBY doing this for years, so THAT will be fun to see in the new year. I can only hope, that if it does happen, you can find this fic to cleanse your pallet...and your eyes...and your soul...

With that, I would like to thank all of you for reading this little story of mine thus far. Your passionate reviews have touched me greatly, and you've made this all worth it. I hope that I can continue to entertain you, meet and surpass your expectations, and satisfy you thoroughly.

Merry Christmas, Joyeux Noël, Buon Natale, Feliz Navidad, Fröhliche Weihnachten, καλά Χριστούγεννα, Wesołych Świąt, С Рождеством, God Jul, Gleðileg Jól, メリークリスマス, חנוכה, Dies Natalis Solis Invicti, Mother Nights, and Júl! If I don't release the next chapter before then, have a Happy New Year. Be safe, enjoy the company of your loved ones, eat and drink to your heart's content, be merry, and take care.

＼(o)(0)(o)／