The Mandatory Training Arc, Part 2!

A/N: Welcome, one and all, to the latest, greatest chapter of Weiss Reacts! Jeez, I seem to be forgetting to update this too much. Well, there's a scene I've been wanting to write for a long time, and you can probably guess by now who's involved if the arc (no pun intended) focuses around Jaune.

Anyway, enough random spoiling stuff, let's get on with the chapter!

DSICLAIMER: RWBY belongs to Rooster Teeth, otherwise RWBY Chibi would be out already. (I WANT MY CHIBI WEISS NOW)

All mentioned franchises and characters belong to their respective owners.

"Wooohooo!" Nora cheered. "Road trip! Road trip!"

Jaune rubbed his eyes, blinking. "Nora, how are you so cheerful this early?"
"It isn't early! Silly Jaune!"
"It's five in the morning." The knight pointed out, yawning. "How are any of you up so early?"
"This is when I get up to do some training before breakfast." Pyrrha admitted. "It's rather quiet at this time and nobody else is usually around."

Blake shrugged. "Coffee, Jaune. I know why Oobleck likes it so much now."

The students- consisting of teams RWBY, JNPR, with Winter, Norn, Rook and Velvet invited as another team- were outside waiting for their ride out from Beacon that morning, heading up north to the mountains, where a Grimm nest was due to be cleared. It had been decided that to clear that was their training exercise and that they were to train themselves for a week as well as clear the nest- two birds with one stone, as it were. Qrow was also outside, blearily rubbing his eyes as he stood next to Ruby.

"The things I do for you, pipsqueak." He sighed to himself, looking down at her. "You sure this'll work?"
"Positive." Ruby gave him a thumbs up. "If Jaune thinks he's good enough to protect Pyrrha, then he'll stop worrying about her! And even if he doesn't, it'll remind him that his girlfriend's a badass! It's a win-win situation!"

"That sounds like something one of those Antic Order crazies would think of." Qrow muttered. "You sure you're not in it with your sister?"

"Heeeey!" Ruby pouted. "That's not fair. I'm just watching out for a friend."
"…I'm just saying." Qrow shrugged, taking a swig from his flask. "….ah. That's our ride."

The roar of engines sounded through the air as a small Bullhead flew through the air towards the pad.

"Excuse me. Is Miss Nikos coming with you?"

Pyrrha turned around to see Professor Cassandra approaching them, her blonde ponytail bobbing slightly behind her, with a large, rectangle suitcase in her hand. Evidently, so did Qrow, judging by his response.

"Are you the chaperone Ozpin forced on me?"
"No, Mister Branwen. Is she present?" The instructor inquired again. The spearmaiden waved.

"Yes, Professor?"
"Ah." Cassandra blinked at her, before turning to face away from her, unclipping the suitcase and opening it, pulling out the contents. "I have something for you that you might want to have, Miss Nikos. I think you may find this useful."

She presented to her a cuirass similar in design to the one was wearing right now, with more metal plates covering the leather parts of her original armour. Notably, where the top of the armour was low-cut, revealing the top of Pyrrha's chest on her current armour, the new armour extended up to her neck proper. Her shoulders were protected by circular bronze plates, covering more potential weak spots. The whole piece seemed well-crafted and well-smithed, but there was something about it that made it seem as if it was crafted years and years ago.

Pyrrha examined the cuirass, by hefting it to test its weight and texture, blinking. "…..is this for me?"
"It's an upgrade for your current armour, Miss Nikos." Cassandra explained. "I felt you needed one. Your current outfit is quite vulnerable to projectile attacks, even with your Aura. This cuirass trades some lightness for more defensive capabilities. I think you'll find the armour fits you perfectly; the school has a record of your measurements and so I was able to extrapolate from that. "

Weiss raised an eyebrow at the exchange, mentally noting it down for later.

'…..last I saw, I don't think the school keeps that kind of thing on record.' The heiress noted.

"…..thank you, I suppose." The spearmaiden took the cuirass. "Professor, I-"
"That is all I have to say to y-you." Cassandra seemed to choke slightly, before mastering herself. "….I hope you and your friends have a safe trip, Miss Nikos. Please, come back safely."

"W-wait-"

With that, she turned around and left, walking off before Pyrrha could thank her properly.

"…Huh." Pyrrha blinked, examining the cuirass again. "…..did that just happen?"

Jaune tilted his head. "…yeah. I think that just…..happened."

"Alright." The spearmaiden frowned, looking down self-consciously at her outfit, surreptitiously comparing it to Cassandra's armour. "…this isn't that exposed, is it?"

"Just put the thing in its case and get ready to get on." Qrow ordered. "We should hurry. Oz'll kill us if we stay long enough for everyone to get up."

"I thought we had a chaperone?" Winter pointed out. "Aren't we supposed to wait for them?"
"They'll show up eventually." The Hunter reassured them. "Hopefully Oz gave us someone good….."

Later….

"Remind me again." Roman grumbled, his hat covering his face as he leaned back in his seat next to Qrow. "Why am I here?"
"Hey. I didn't invite you for your congeniality." Qrow struck back, taking a drink from his flask. "Oz's orders. He wanted two chaperones for this thing."

"So drag Cinder along. Or Goodwitch. Or one of his other goons." Roman snapped irritably. "Just wake me up when we get to the place, I need some sleep. Can't believe I've got to be stuck here with ten of the craziest kids in the academy….."

He shuffled in his chair, adjusting his hat again and closing his eyes, grumbling. Qrow shook his head, lying back in his chair, shaking his head.

"At least Cinder would've been a lot less irritating." The Hunter muttered.

"Wooooo!" Nora cheered, her face planted directly onto a window as the forest flew past. "We're so high up! I can see our school from here!"
"We're not that far up from the trees. This is how far up we were during initiation, Nora." Ren pointed out helpfully, in the seat next to her.

Yang, behind them and sitting next to Velvet, nodded. "Actually, yeah, that reminds me! It feels like yesterday, we were first years, being launched off a cliff. That brings back memories.

You know, back when Jaune was a complete newbie, and we were all young and foolish…."
"I think some of us haven't grown out of the foolish phase." Weiss remarked irritably. "Still, you're right. It really does feel like yesterday that we were a bunch of fresh Huntresses.

It really puts it into perspective that this is the last year we're all spending here."
"Took us this long to have a training arc." Yang whistled. "We're slacking terribly. Oh, that reminds me. Doesn't Jaune, you know, get airsick? Did anyone remember to bring some pills for that?"
"I have some." Pyrrha offered helpfully. The brawler raised an eyebrow.

"You get airsick?"

"Sometimes. I mainly brought them because I thought Jaune might need them." The spearmaiden explained as Yang turned away, nodding as if she'd revealed some sort of interesting fact. She turned to tap her partner on the shoulder. "Jaune, do you need-Jaune? Are you alright?"
"Huh?" The knight snapped out of his fugue. He blinked. "O-oh. What?"
"Airsickness pills. Do you need any?"
"Oh. No, thanks." He shook his head. "I'm fine."
"…..you've been quiet." Pyrrha noted, frowning. "Are you sure you're alright? You know you can tell me anything that troubles you."

'…..dammit. Do I tell her about what Professor Faust said?' Jaune thought to himself. '…..I mean….I've got to tell her. She deserves to know about this.

But…..dammit, what if she doesn't believe me? I don't want her to think I'm just telling her that so she won't go on any more missions….'

"I…um….I'm just a little tired." The knight lied hastily. "Yeah."

The spearmaiden frowned, detecting the falsehood, but deciding not to question Jaune about it for the immediate moment. "…..well, we did leave Beacon quite early."
'….I'll tell her soon. I just need to find a better moment than….this. Yeah, that's it, a better moment.' Jaune nodded to himself.

Weiss, who was watching the two, turned to Ruby, whispering to her. "You know, I hope you know what you're doing."

"Trust me!" The reaper implored her. "I know exactly what I'm doing!"
"Jaune's still pretty down." The heiress pointed out. "If he's still this down while Pyrrha's right next to him, I hope whatever this plan is works."
"Relax. It's a simple plan! I got his dad to talk to him and get him psyched up for this and this whole training trip's going to be awesome!"

Weiss shuffled in her seat. "I'm half thinking you just did this to get out of Beacon."

"Hey, two birds with one stone! We get to have a nice camping trip, Jaune gets some self-confidence It's going to be fine!"

"…I hope you're right." The heiress nodded slowly. "It'd certainly make for a nice change in the mood around here lately."

Winter giggled. "Oh my. This reminds me of the last time I went on a trip like this. This is all rather nostalgic! I feel almost like an adventurer venturing into unknown territory!"
"Whoa there, cowgirl." Rook whistled. "Yer kinda eager."
"This might be quite fun. Just ten friends, in the mountains, training together! It'll be just like in the movies." The lady chuckled. "I think it might be a good bonding experience!"

"Yeah." The cowboy chuckled. "Hey. Maybe…..if there's time, I could, er, teach ya how t'hunt. Y'know."

"I know how to fire a rifle, Mister Leblanc." Winter pointed out, tilting her head. "What do you mean?"
"No, I mean, like, trap things and stuff. If we're headin' out to the forest, I could, err, show ya how ta trap animals…." Rook rubbed the back of his head, looking embarrassedly down.

"Oh! That sounds most interesting!" Winter giddily announced. "Perhaps we might!"

Yang blinked. "Is Rook asking your sister out on a date, Weiss? No, is he asking her on a date to put bunnies in trap pits?"
The heiress clenched her fist, growling. "He had better not be. I may have to hurt him if he does."

"Awwwww, is the little sister getting all protective?"

"Shut up." The heiress growled. "How come you don't ever react like this when I'm out with your sister?"

"Because I was trying to hook you and her up the whole time?" Yang shrugged. "I don't care if you two are screwing like bunnies behind my back. I tried to hook you up in the first place."

"S-screwing like bunnies?!" The heiress sputtered, embarrassed. "W-what are you….why?!"

Qrow turned to the back. "Alright, ladies. You can quit squabbling now, we're on our descent. Get your bags and get ready to get off."

"Alright, Mister Branwen!" Rook nodded to him, hastily standing up and helping Winter take down her bag first before grabbing his.

Weiss sighed, settling in her seat. "Well. One week, cooped up on a mountain with all of you to drive me insane.

Please don't tell me you didn't bring any of your stupid antic stuff."

"What am I going to do, make you wear your panties on your head?"

"You'll find some way of irritating me." Weiss muttered. "I just know it."

Later….

"We're here." Qrow raised his hand to signal the group to stop walking up the dust path upon the hill they were on.

"You didn't have to carry that for me." Pyrrha reminded her partner, as Jaune trundled up the path behind her, looking around, with two bags, one crimson and one gold, slung on each shoulder. She chuckled. "I could've handled it myself."
"No, I….uh…..felt like it." The knight replied. "Trust me. I wanted to."

"Well….thanks, anyway." She smiled at him, before surveying the site they were to stay at. "…..is this yours, Mister Branwen? The site?"
"No." The old Hunter replied, taking a swig from his flask as he took one glance at the hill behind him, where the rest of the students were trudging up. "It belonged to my mom. Demeter Rose."
Pyrrha's eyes widened as the name parsed in her head. "S-surely you don't mean-"
"I mean that Demeter Rose. Yeah."
"T-that would make Ruby and Yang-"
"Her granddaughters. Big surprise." Qrow remarked flippantly.

"B-but…." The spearmaiden looked stunned. "She's…she fought five Goliaths! R-Ruby never said-"
"She fought five Goliaths. Held the gate during the Siege of Vale singlehandedly against the rebel forces. Took down a Fafnir almost barehanded and flew the thing over Vale City once before slaying it. I know, I heard the stories." The Hunter reminded her. "She was my mother, I'll remind you. Some of the older folks I know call you the Demeter of your generation."

Jaune blinked. "W-wait a second. You don't mean to say that that's Ruby's grandma?"

"Look. I'll tell you stories around the fire or something. Just take a look around the place already. Knowing Torchwick, he's stuck at the bottom of the hill with his bag."

The Hunter walked off, leaving the two to examine the campsite they were to spend a week at.

It was a rather dusty affair, with a large clearing where they could pitch tents. A small charred circle lay in the middle where fires had once been set. Several paths wove through the trees to other areas of the campsite, with a few target stalls visible just beyond the trees, and a few-obviously fake- Grimm heads were mounted on stakes here and there. A small dusty signpost was next to the pair, with the only discernible word being 'Camp', the rest being too covered in dried mud to read.

"This looks…homely." Jaune blinked. "…..maybe it'll look better with tents in."
"Compared to where I was staying with the Hunters on that mission, this place looks amazing." Pyrrha noted. "I'm pretty sure we were staying in an old sewage canal…."

The knight cringed. "That must've stunk. Well, both ways."

"It wasn't too bad…as long as you didn't tread too far in."

Ruby was the next one to approach the campsite, looking around. "…..this is it?"
"Yeah." Jaune nodded. "This is where we'll be for the next week."
"Grandma used to tell me stories about when she was up here! Oh, this is going to be AWESOME!" Ruby cheered. "Just us friends and Uncle Qrow, training in the mountains! This is going to be an awesome week!"

Pyrrha chuckled, sighing. "Ruby, you get excited so easily."

"Can you blame me?" The reaper replied. "This is going to be the best! Week! EVER!"

Then the sound of crashing equipment, as Roman, at the bottom of the hill, was crushed underneath the tents they were going to sleep in. None of the three could hear anything specific, but judging from the angered tone, Roman was likely spouting rather crude language as he flailed under the weight.

"…we should go help him." The spearmaiden pointed out, running towards the nonsense. Jaune and Ruby nodded before following her down.

…..

Meanwhile, elsewhere on the mountain…..

"…..dammit, man. Well, now what? We're stranded on a mountain in the middle of nowhere with no way of getting back to Vale. We're gonna get eaten alive out here!"

"It was your idea to hijack the Bullhead! If it wasn't for you, we wouldn't BE in this situation!"
"Yeah, well, whose dumb idea was it to go Grimm trapping in Mountain fucking Glenn? We got busted 'cause of you!"
"You two, calm down."
"Calm down? Yeah, you can calm yourself down. They even got that girl from the TV to go after us! The one who won all those tournaments! What was her name again? Purna or…..whatever, who gives a damn?"

Three men sat down on rocks in the middle of the forest, nursing a small fire. The pilot had long ejected, along with the guards. Not a week ago, they were in Mountain Glenn, trapping Grimm for transport to various criminal groups or bored rich citizens who needed something to play with. Not a week ago, they had been busted for it, exposed by a group of Hunters who had been tracking them for a long while. Less than a day ago, they had hijacked the Bullhead sent to transport them back to Vale, flying it out and discarding the ship somewhere where it couldn't be found.

The word was only likely getting out now, giving them a day head start before the Valean authorities went on a manhunt.

"…..Dust." One of the men, a tall, muscular individual with a scruffy beard and a large gun with a long, wide barrel- designed for taking out large Grimm such as Nevermores with one shot- sighed. "What are we supposed to do now?"

"We find a way out of here. I dunno, get back home, get out to Vacuo." His neighbour, a small man with a pair of sickles at his waist, with triggers on the hilt and various mechanical parts screwed on, a small switch allowing on the handles allowing it to change forms. "We could probably make it out there, maybe make some money trapping more Grimm."
The last, a spindly stag Faunus with small antlers and a whip, coiled around his belt with segmented parts and a sword hilt, rubbed his chin thoughtfully. "…..that is, if we make it to Vacuo-hm. Wait a minute."

He pointed up, as his coworkers followed his finger to see a Bullhead in the distance, descending to land on the other side of the mountain.

"…who'd be landing here?" The big man inquired, blinking. The stag Faunus chuckled.

"Hunters. Probably a small group." He noted. "If there's only one Bullhead, can't be that big."

"…I see what you're getting at." The small man tapped his chin. "So, a bargain?"

"Got it in one. We should probably find a place for our own, though." The Faunus noted, pointing towards storm clouds approaching the mountain. "Ain't no sense heading off now. Considering how big this place is, we're not going to get to that today.

It'll take us a day or two to get over there. Still…..whoever those guys are, they're our best shot of getting out of here.

Vacuo, here we come."

To be continued…..

A/N: Woo, suspicious stuff. Anyway, FINALLY next chapter we'll have some proper training going on!

So, I hope you enjoyed that, leave your ideas, suggestions, criticisms, comments, reviews and thoughts, and I hope you have a GREAT day! Until next time!