The bullhead ride to the forest of forever fall was rather smooth and calm. Pyrrha was enjoying the view outside the side bay doors, which were currently open.
"Sooo…" Pyrrha heard Blake begin, which was curious because Blake was normally rather blunt about things, "The Red Ranger huh?"
'Who?' Pyrrha thought.
"Yes I hear they're a big deal out in the reaches." Ruby said without looking up from her notebook and scroll.
"I'll say." Jaune said.
"Who's this Red Ranger?" Pyrrha asked, totally at a loss for what they were talking about. She saw Blake open her mouth to say something before Nora from team YRVS started talking.
"She's only the most fearsome Huntress to have ever roamed the reaches of Vale!" Nora said excitedly,
"I'm surprised you haven't heard of her." Jaune said, "I mean even I know about her"
"Who is she?" Weiss asked.
"She's a huntress who is well known throughout the reaches," Jaune said, "She's also known for being, zealous, about justice."
"She tends to deal lethally with anyone she deems as a threat to people in the reaches." Ren clarified, "Some believe that her method for dealing with criminals makes her no better than them, but many villages in the reaches hail her as a hero."
"They say she's really fearsome and fights like a wild animal!" Nora said, "Like she was raised by wolves."
"That is unlikely." Ren said, "there are some who don't believe she even really exist though, she's never been caught on any cameras within a city, and nobody who claims to have met her seems willing to describe her, as well as many of the stories about her sound rather fictitious."
"Have any of you met this huntress?" Pyrrha asked being intrigued. Everybody shook their heads, except for Blake and Ruby, who was still engrossed in her notes. "Blake?" Blake paused a moment before she shook her head.
"I never met her but I know someone who did, so she's not a myth." Blake answered.
"Ruby?" Pyrrha asked. Ruby immediately perked her head up and looked around. Seeing that everyone was looking at her Ruby sighed.
"I may know who she is." Ruby said.
"Whoa! Really!?" Jaune said, surprised.
"I told you I worked as an investigator in the reaches, right?" Ruby said, "I'm good at what I do."
"So? Who is she!?" Nora asked excitedly.
"A private person who only wishes to protect people from monsters, no matter what skin they wear." Ruby answered, "There's a reason that anybody she's helped is unwilling to describe her." The rest of the ride to forever fall was fairly silent.
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As she stepped off the bullhead Yang took notice of how Ren and Nora seemed to drift over with team RANB. She didn't know when they had become such great friends with the team but at least it was one less problem she had to deal with. She was just about to walk away when she felt an arm grab hers. She looked over to see that both her and Weiss had been grabbed by team RANB's leader.
"Let's go collect the sap together." she said, it was phrased like a suggestion, but the tone of voice brokered no argument. It was the same tone that Yang's late mother had used on her whenever she was in trouble, eerily so. Wordlessly she and Weiss were dragged along until they were well out of earshot of their respective teams.
"What the heck is wrong with you two?!" Ruby said as she spun around to face them.
"Excuse me!" Weiss said indignantly.
"You two have been alternating between screaming at each other or ignoring the others existence since school started and it's been dragging your team down." Ruby answered curtly, "So? What's the problem?" she crossed her arms and waited for the two to answer. Yang had it with this, she didn't care about Weiss, or her team, she just wanted to get through Beacon so she could set out on her search for her sister.
"Why do you care?" Yang asked.
"Because I do, I need no further reason than that." Ruby said, before she softened her voice, "You're training to be the protectors of the world, what could possibly be more important than working towards that goal?" It took a second but it seems that Weiss was the one who answered first.
"I don't think that a KILLER should be a huntress." Weiss said. Ruby paused, Yang wasn't sure if it was because she was hurt or if she was trying to calm her temper down.
"Weiss what would you do if someone was trying to kill you?" Ruby asked,
"Well, I'd disarm-" Weiss began.
"You're dead." Ruby interrupted.
"Wha-?" Weiss was flabbergasted and obviously not used to being interrupted.
"Weiss, I have a speed semblance," Ruby said, "even then I'm often not able to disarm somebody, It's not as easy as martial arts instructors make it seem, and many people can fight without their weapon. Sometimes the only way to stop bad people from doing bad things is to kill them."
While Weiss seemed to be considering what Ruby said, Ruby turned towards Yang.
"Yang, why haven't you been involved in your team?" Ruby asked.
"Listen, I'm not here to get along with anyone," Yang said, "I'm just here to get my huntress license and begin my grand adventure."
"Aren't a large part of grand adventures the people you meet along the way?" Ruby asked, "isn't that what all those children stories say?" Yang winced remembering the stories she used to read to her younger sister.
"Making connections hurts too much if your friends are just going to leave." Yang said.
"Doesn't it hurt worse to never make connections?" Ruby pressed further, "Besides you don't have a choice."
"What do you mean by that?" Yang asked.
"You're a team leader now Yang," Ruby answered, "you already have those connections, people who rely on you whether you want it or not."
"Yeah well maybe people shouldn't rely on me," Yang answered, "They tend to end up dead."
"Yang." was all Ruby said softly before she turned and started talking to the two of them, "look you two are teamates, partners even, you will have to work together and get along. I mean we're only in our first couple months of Beacon and it will be four years of work. Your constant fighting has already caused your teams grades in pretty much every class to drop and its troubling your teammates."
Yang and Weiss shared a look, 'What is she talking about?'
"Did either of you even bother to wonder where they were last night? Or the night before?" Ruby asked. Yang thought back, Ren and Nora had left at some point during her and Weiss's argument two nights ago, and last night they hadn't even come to the room. "They were in our room trying to get some sleep because they can't get it in yours."
Weiss looked guilty.
"Look I'm not saying you two have to particularly like each other, or become a perfect leader overnight," Ruby said, "but just give it a shot please?" after she finished speaking she grabbed the empty jar she had brought along and began filling it at a nearby tree. After her little talk Weiss and Yang looked at each other shrugged and began filling up their own jars. They continued in silence for some time, probably an attempt by Ruby to let them think on what she had said. This continued until one of Cardin's team ran into the clearing yelling "help!" at the top of his lungs. Ruby was up first, in fact she was standing in front of Cardin's team member asking what was wrong in a flash of rose petals.
"There's a big Grimm that I've never seen before!" the boy cried, "Dove and Russel are in trouble!" Ruby had her weapon out and had already sprinted deeper into the forest by the time that Yang and Weiss had even managed to gather their weapons. They followed the trail of rose petals to find where the, still very much injured, Faunus girl had run. Along the way Yang began to notice that there was a rubber line strung between two trees and several jars full of extra sap sitting next to the strange contraption. A quick look back confirmed for Yang that the crude device had indeed been aimed at the clearing they had just left. Yang could already guess at who their target had been, and she was currently running at Mach 3 to save those who would have been her tormentors. Yang set that thought off to the side for now and readied Ember Obitum for whatever fight lay ahead of her. Upon entering the clearing Yang was met with the sight of a red blur dashing around a very large Grimm sporting large claws and horns on its head, which was vaguely bull-like. Yang remembered Qrow mentioning a Grimm similar, it was called a Wendigo and was slightly sturdier than an Ursa Major, and almost as fast as a beowolf. In other words, not an easy fight. She could see that Ruby had already managed to land several shallow cuts on the beasts legs but nothing deep enough or high enough to do much real damage. Yang looked over to the side where the other members of CRDL were lying in a clearing, they appeared to have been injured but how badly Yang couldn't tell. She looked over to Weiss to see the girl readying her weapon to jump in the fight.
"Schnee, secure the wounded!" Yang shouted, it was the first order she had ever given as team leader, and she didn't know why she gave it. Weiss paused then looked over to where the injured boys were, she nodded and ran towards them. Meanwhile Yang hefted Ember Obitum and in a burst of flames jetted into the fray with the Wendigo. The Wendigo appeared to be quickly learning the pattern of the red blur slashing at its legs as it sped by. Yang arrived just in time to block a downward swipe that would have connected with said red blur.
"You're injured! What the heck do you think your doing?!" Yang hissed to the girl that had paused to take a breath beneath her.
"Everything I can." Ruby answered. "This is a Wendigo, their belly armor is a little thicker than most other Grimm, back armor is weaker." now that was something that Qrow hadn't taught Yang.
"Got it." Yang answered. Ruby nodded then returned to being a blur of rose petals, while Yang redirected the Wendigo's strike to land next to her. For the next while Ruby continued to distract the Wendigo while Yang used the length of her burning scythe to lay heavy deep gashes into the almost unreachable back of the ganly Grimm. Yang and Ruby began to follow the pattern of Yang would strike it and fall back Ruby would rush in and get it's attention before leaping out again as Yang moved to strike. It worked for a couple minutes, until Ruby lost her balance on her turn and fell. Yang quickly moved in and took the hit the Wendigo aimed at the smaller huntress. Her Aura took the hit and fed it into her semblance, allowing her to force the Wendigo off of her and sending it off balance. At that moment Weiss returned from securing the injured boys.
"Schnee immobilize it!" Yang shouted, Weiss nodded, and rushed past the pair. With a flourish of her rapier ice formed on the ground which then sprouted up to catch the Wendigo's limbs in solid ice. Yang turned to Ruby who was just getting up from where she fell.
"Red!" Yang didn't even have to explain anything further about her plan. Ruby seemed to move intuitively, like she could read minds. Ruby quickly stepped on the head of Yang's scythe just as Yang swung and sent the smaller girl flying above the Wendigo. Once she was over the Wendigo's head she twisted in midair and began to fall towards the creature, but she missed. Fortunately Ruby seemed to notice this midfall and reached out grabbing one of the Wendigo's horns, swinging around it and landing on the back of the Wendigo's neck. She then drew her sword and stabbed in right into the base of the Grimms spinal column. The grimm fell as Ruby leapt off of it, the moment it hit the ground Yang brought Ember Obitum in it's greatsword form down on its neck. The semblance enhanced blow beheaded the Grimm.
"Students! Are you all right?!" Mrs. Goodwitch called as she burst into the clearing, eyes drifting from the rapidly disintegrating Grimm, to the trio of slightly battered girls, to the injured boys hidden behind an ice wall.
"We're all right just need a minute." Ruby said as she sat down, a little too hard if the wince on her face was any indication.
Mrs. Goodwitch looked back at the dead Wendigo and muttered "Another one, what is going on?" Meanwhile Yang looked over at the red girl next to her, hood still perfectly perched to hide her face, it would have been impressive if it was intentional, but Yang didn't get the sense that she was that kind of person. Yang's drift moved from Ruby to Weiss.
'Maybe, maybe I should try' Yang thought, 'maybe having friends could help me find her. Maybe.'
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Jaune shuffled nervously as he waited outside an alley for Ruby to finish whatever she was doing.
"Hey." Jaune was rather pleased that he managed to keep a scream, a very masculine scream from escaping him as the girl in question suddenly appeared next to him.
"You sure we should be out here with, you know?" Jaune asked. Ruby tilted her head and looked at him.
"If I gave up every time I got hurt I would've died a long time ago." Ruby said, "Besides it actually helped with my side of the investigation."
"Oh?" Jaune said,
"Yeah, didn't even have to lie about it, the White Fang are very simpathetic to Faunus who get hurt by discrimination." Ruby answered. Jaune nodded.
"Makes sense, what did you find?" he asked.
"One: these heists are part of a bigger scheme, much bigger." She answered, "Two: they've got a pretty big heist planned for the end of next month. How about you?"
"Hmm, I think I might have a clue on the second one." Jaune said.
"Yeah?" Ruby asked.
"Most of the dust companies in the area are going to be restocking at the end of next month," Jaune answered, "because that's when a major SDC shipment is coming in."
"Did they mention how this shipment is coming in?" Ruby asked.
"They did." Jaune answered as he fished out his notebook, something Ruby had insisted he carry, "It's coming in by freighter."
"So, the docks then." Ruby said, "that would be the location a shipment like that is most vulnerable, too early and they'd have a battle one the high seas, too late and they have to rob all those dust shops over again."
"So what're we going to do then?" Jaune asked.
"We're going to hit them when they try to grab the shipment." Ruby answered, before turning to walk away. "C'mon we still got time, lets work on your swordsmanship."
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"Hhmm, pity." A white haired man said as he examined the feed his robot was sending to him. It showed the impression left in the dirt from where the Wendigo had fallen. "I was hoping to recapture that one. Oh well, nothing to be done now." he turned off the screen, "I guess I'll get back to working on the rest then."
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A/N IT! IS! DONE! Well at least until the next chapter. But yeah I finally finished this chapter, it took a bit to work through a few bouts of writers block. So yeah, I'm not gonna talk a whole lot at the end of this one, just letting y'all know I'm still working on it even while I'm also working on my other projects. Hope you enjoy.