Chapter 11:Field Trip

"They were here," Ironwood said, raising his voice. "Ozpin, they were here!"

He slammed his fist onto Ozpin's desk, as Ozpin put both of his hands onto his forehead, looking quite stressed. They were going over about what had happened during the dance, and none of them were happy.

"We're very much aware of that! Thank you, James," Glynda said, sounding angry.

"Fantastic! You're aware! Now are we going to do something about it or should we just stay the course and continue to ignore what's right in front of us?!"

As they kept talking, an beep sound played, signifying that someone had arrived on the elevator.

"Come in," Ozpin said, as the only student who saw and fought the intruder came in.

"Sorry it took so long," Ruby said. "Someone accidentally hit all the buttons on the elevator on the way up here. It wasn't me."

"Thank you for coming, Ruby," Ozpin said. "How are you feeling?"

"Okay, I guess. I'd feel better if my bad-guy-catching record wasn't O-for-three" The three adults stared silently at her. "Okay, so that's the tone we're going for, got it."

"Ruby," Ironwood started, going up to the red-haired girl. "I feel it's appropriate to let you know that I think what you did last night is exactly what being a Huntress is all about. You recognized a threat. You took action. And you did the very best you could."

"Thank you, sir," Ruby said, as Ozpin began to speak.

"Now, the general here has already informed of the events that... transpired last night, but now that you've rested, we were wondering if you had anything to add."

"Was anyone else with her," Glynda asked. "Did she look familiar to you at all?"

"I... I don't know. She was wearing a mask, and she never said anything to me. But I know she fought with glass. I don't think that was her Semblance, though. Her clothing lit up whenever she attacked."

"Save for the glass, that sounds like the woman I fought the night we met Ruby," the professor said to the others.

"Embedding Dust into clothing is an age-old technique. It could have been anyone," Ironwood stated.

"Wait. You think this girl is connected to Torchwick and the White Fang," Ruby asked.

"It's possible," Ozpin explained. "But we still lack the required evidence to link the two together."

"Actually, I think I remember her saying something about a hideout, or something, in the southeast. Just outside the Kingdom."

"Interesting."

Glynda was now confused. "I thought you said the intruder never—"

"Thank you for your cooperation, Ruby," Ozpin said, interrupting the professor. "Why don't you go and spend some time with your team? You have a big day ahead of you."

"Any time," Ruby said, as she began to leave.

"And Miss Rose…" Ruby looked back at the headmaster. "Please try and be ... discrete about this matter."

"Yes sir," Ruby said, leaving the tower, and back to her dorm. As she opened the door, Blake, Legion, and Yang zoomed to her as Yang asked "What happened?"

Ruby laughed nervously as she explained to them what happened last night.

All of them were surprised, but proud of their leader.

"Well, I think you handled it well," Blake said.

"I hope so" Ruby said, as she saw Weiss, who had not said anything. "What's wrong, Weiss." Weiss kept staring at one thing…"Wait a minute…where's Bill," Ruby asked her team, as Weiss kept staring at Bill's bed .

"We don't know," Yang asked. "We didn't see him since last night."

"Ruby…" Weiss went up to her partner. "Was there anyone else with you?"

"Well," Ruby said, as Weiss began to shake her.

"WAS THERE ANYONE ELSE WITH YOU!"

"Yes! T-the Assassin!"

"What…what happened to him?"

"The, the woman knocked him out, and they disappeared."

Weiss was silent, and started to tear up.

"Whoa, Weiss, what's wrong?" Weiss looked at Legion, who started to nod.

Weiss looked at all of her teammates and said "Bill…is the Assassin."

"WHAT?!"

"Well there we have it," Ironwood said. "We send as many troops as we can to the southeast, find out exactly what's going on, and eradicate any forces that stand in our way."

Glynda growled in frustration. "Why must your answer to everything involve a triumphant display of military bravado!? You treat every situation like a contest of measuring di—!"

"Glynda," Ozpin quickly said, interrupting her.

"Well, he does."

Ozpin turned to them and said "She's right. As much as I too would love to end this situation once and for all, we must remember that this may go beyond Vale. Beyond Beacon. And if this truly is part of some master plan for which we know not the final move, we mustn't be so bold. Nor can we risk the spread of panic."

Ironwood looked at the headmaster and said "I have served you faithfully for years... but if you mean to tell me that your plan is to hold the defenses, and wait—!"

"It is not! You're a general, James. So tell me, when you prepare to go to war, which do you send in first? The flag bearers, or the scouts?"

"Bill was the Assassin all along," Ruby asked.

"Yes," Weiss sadly said, with a sniffle.

"B-but how?"

"He used his holograms to make a decoy."

"That…actually does make sense. Did he use his semblance to quickly disappear?"

"Yes…"

"Weiss, I'm so sorry that-"

"That isn't everything," Weiss said.

"What do you mean," Blake asked.

"He's a…Faunus."

"Wait, Bill is a Faunus?!"

"An Eagle. He had the eyes of one"

"That's why he had those glasses on," Yang said. "What else did he keep from us?"

Weiss looked up, and said "He…like Blake…was also part of the White Fang."

"What," everyone, except Weiss and Legion, shouted.

"And…he was once there leader…"

"Again, WHAT?!"

That's when Blake finally knew…"Weiss, is that why you were mad at him at the dance?"

Weiss sniffed again. "Yes," she mumbled.

"Maybe you should've let him explain, Weiss."

"I wasn't thinking straight, ok! And…he said he was going to explain today."

Blake was feeling bad for Weiss, when she remembered about one thing.

"Wait, if Bill was in the White Fang, then Le-"

"It means I'm a robot designed by the White Fang," Legion said, scaring everyone. "No."

"No," Ruby said, confused.

"I was designed by Richard Auditore, and only by his resources."

"Richard Auditore…you mean Bill's father," Weiss asked.

"That's right."

"Wait…he made you all by himself?"

"Yes."

Before anyone could say anything else, Ruby saw a cylindrical package on 'Satan's desk.'

"What's that," Ruby asked.

"I don't know yet," Yang said, picking it up. "Dad sent it to us. I thought we could open it together!"

"Ooooh! Something from home!" Ruby zoomed to Yang and climbed onto her back, trying to get package. Yang opened it and a hairy, black object fell to the floor, and laid there. Then, it started to shake. The object transformed into a creature, as the team stared at it. The object was really a black corgi dog. It barked twice, as Blake jumped into the air in shock, and Ruby going up with excitement.

"Zwei," she shouted, picking up the dog and petting it.

"He sent a dog," Blake said, still scared.

"In the mail," Weiss replied, shocked as well.

As Ruby kept petting Zwei, Yang said "Oh, he does stuff like this all the time!"

"Your father or your dog," Blake said, now on Ruby's bunk.

"Probably both," Legion said, fascinated on how the dog survived inside that small package.

Weiss went up to the corgi and said "Are you telling me that this mangy...drooling... mutt is going to wiv wif us foweva? Oh, yes he is, oh yes he is! Oh, isn't he adorable!"

As Weiss was smooching the new member, Blake said "Please keep him away from my belongings."

"What's wrong, Blake, dog got your tongue?" Blake glared at the robot. "What, is it not funny?"

Then, there was an announcement over the PA. "Would all first-year students please report to the amphitheater?"

"Well, we can't exactly leave him here while we're gone for the week," Weiss said, as Ruby put Zwei down. Zwei looked around the room and saw Blake, who looked frightened. He decided to cheer her up, going over to the bed, trying to get to her.

"Look, there's a letter," Yang said, bringing out a piece of paper. She read aloud "Dear girls, I've got to leave the island for a few days, so I'm sending Zwei to you to take care of. Enclosed is all the food you should need. Love you both, Taiyang."

She put the opened part down, as dozens of cans of dog food came out, piling onto Zwei.

"What is he supposed to do with that," Weiss asked, as a can opener fell out, bouncing on the dog's head.

"Well, that settles it," Yang said, going out the door. "Come on, Zwei will be here when we get back!"

As Blake jumped across Satan's Desk, avoiding the dog, Weiss said, in babytalk "Oh, I'll miss you so much, we're going to be best friends, I can't wait to see you, I can't believe how cute you are."

As they walked out, Legion said "Well, she forgot about Bill easily"

"Well, maybe Zwei will help her out," Ruby said.

"Yeah…until then, I'll cover for him." He went out the door, but came back, saying "Seriously, you're gonna have to explain how he survived the trip."

As Legion left, Ruby looked down at Zwei, who was still in the pile of cans. She then smiled, as she had a great idea.

Ruby came in after her team, wearing a large backpack. She went by the other student's luggage, and placed down before rejoining her team.

Glynda shouted "Quiet! Quiet please. Professor Ozpin would like to share a few words before we begin."

Ozpin went up to the mike, and said "Today we stand together, united. Mistral. Atlas. Vacuo. Blood Gulch. Vale. The five Kingdoms of Remnant. On this day, nearly eighty years ago, the largest war in recorded history came to an end. It was a war of ignorance, of greed, and of oppression. A war that was about much more than where borders fell or who traded with whom, but about the very idea of individualism itself.

"We fought for countless reasons, one of which being the destruction of all forms of art and self-expression. And as you are well aware, that was something many could not stand for. As a result, those who opposed this tyranny began naming their children after one of the core aspects of art itself: color. It was their way to demonstrate that not only would they refuse to tolerate this oppression, but neither were the generations to come. And it was a trend that is held to this very day. We encourage individuality, expressionism, and unity through diversity.

"As I have said, today we stand together, united. But this bond cannot exist without effort. Which is why today, while the rest of the world celebrates peace, Huntsmen and Huntresses will work to uphold it. As first year students, you will be tasked with shadowing a professional Huntsman or Huntress on a mission. Some of you may be taken out of the Kingdom for several days. Others may work within the walls for the rest of the week. But no matter which path you choose, remember to be safe, remember your training, and remember to do your very best."

As the speech ended, Ruby said "This is perfect! All we have to do is shadow a Huntsman working in the southeast!"

"Yeah," Yang followed. "We'll follow them around by day and give them the slip by night!"

"Let's check "search and destroy"," Weiss replied. The five went up to the mission board, finding search and destroy.

They finally found it, as Ruby said "Here we go! Quadrant 5 needs Grimm cleared out!"

"Well, it's in the southeast," Blake replied.

"Sounds perfect," Yang said in excitement.

"Hurry up and enlist us," Legion said, as Ruby began to type their team name. However, the screen says that 'first years are not allowed to take this mission.'

"Wonderful," Weiss sarcastically said.

"Any other ideas," Blake asked.

"We mail ourselves there," Ruby said excitedly.

"What's up with your family and mailing yourselves," Legion asked, his eye turning yellow.

"Well, that's one option."

They turned to see Ozpin, with his usual mug in his hand.

"Unfortunately, we determined that the concentration of Grimm was too extreme for first-year students," he continued. "It seems that particular region is rather popular. In fact, I have the sneaking suspicion that you four will make your way there no matter which job you choose."

As he said this, Ruby received glares from her teammates, as she rubbed her neck "Whatever makes you say that," Ruby asked.

"I'm still curious how you all found yourself at the docks last semester. I'm interested to know how you really learned about a hideout in the southeast. And I certainly wonder why witnesses reported seeing robots and rose petals in a dance club some time ago."

"Um…well…"

But before she could finish, the headmaster said "I doubt I'll ever find the exact answers I'm looking for. So how about this: instead of waiting for you all to break the rules, why don't we just bend them?" He started to type on his scroll, as the mission board accepted there enlistment.

Ruby smiled, as she said "We won't let you down. Thank you, professor."

"Do not thank me for this. Teamwork and persistence have carried you far. But you must understand, the things that await you beyond the protection of the Kingdom will not care. Stay close to your Huntsman at all times, and do exactly as he says. He will be leading you on this mission, and he can have you sent back to Beacon, if he finds your skills to be unsatisfactory. Good luck."

Before he left, he turned them and said "And I hope you find your teammate." He left, surprising them.

"That wasn't exactly uplifting," Yang sadly said.

"But it's the truth," Blake replied, in the same tone.

"I just confused how he knew about Bill," Weiss said.

"It's gonna to be tough, but I know we can do it," Ruby said, trying to cheer her team up.

Then, a student ran by them, shouting "Hey! Team CFVY is back!" RWBY+L turned to see the students gather around CFVY, as they were walking back to their dorm.

Velvet was in between her teammates, Fox and Coco, as she was stopped by Blake, who said "Velvet? Are you okay?"

"I'm fine," Velvet replied. "I had Yatsuhashi to look out for me." She gestured to her giant teammate.

"Your mission was supposed to end a week ago! What happened," Weiss asked.

"Nothing happened. It was just ... there were just so many..." She looked up to see the worried expressions on the girls' faces. "Oh, but don't worry. You first-years are just shadowing Huntsmen, so you should be fine."

"Right," Yang said, still unsure.

Velvet noticed one member missing. "W-where's Bill?"

Weiss was about to shout at the bunny Faunus, saying "He's with me! Back off, bitch," when Legion said "He's, um, back in the room. He…got food poisoning from the dance last night. So he won't be joining us."

"Oh, I'm sorry to hear that. Tell him I said hi. And be safe, okay?"

As she left, Weiss scoffed. "Can't she figure out that Bill and I are together?"

"Well, Bill was kinda the first person to help her," Yang said.

"And maybe we shouldn't worry about our romantic lives," Legion replied.

"He's right," Blake started. "We're just first year students. One of the best teams at Beacon had trouble."

All of them were having doubts, as Ruby said "Come on, guys! We can do this. We've never backed down before, and we're not going to start now."

Blake smiled. "Right"

"Besides, it won't only be us out there! We'll be fighting alongside a genuine Huntsman!"

"Yeah," Yang said, pumped up for their first mission.

All of them were now having doubts, with stunned expressions on their faces, after they discovered who they would be shadowing.

"Why, hello girls," Oobleck said, swinging his arm in excitement. "Who's ready to fight for their lives?"