The encampment was stirring with movement when they woke. As Ruby and the others started making breakfast, she saw teepees being taken down and put on pack horses. Seeing that Yang was taking care of breakfast, Ruby trotted over to take a look.

"Whoa," She murmured, seeing the horses stamp their hooves. She slowly attempted to pet one from when Mako tugged her away. "You haven't been around horses, have you."

"Um, no." Ruby said, "We don't have them in Vale. And the only wild animals out in the forests were small ones like marmots or rabbits."

"Well, know that if you pet one from that angle unexpectedly, it will kick you as hard as it can." Mako said. "Horses are good creatures, but only if they know you." He looked over to her team and said, "Shouldn't you be helping with packing?"

"Yeah, I will." Ruby said, "Why are you guys moving?"

"Because we do." Mako shrugged, "We've stayed here for many days now, and Grimm may find our scent, even though we hide it. Also, we fear that you may have attracted Grimm as well."

"Sorry about that." Ruby rubbed her head, but Mako shook his head. "It doesn't matter." He opened his mouth to say something else, but his head whipped around as the sound of a horn drifted through the air.

"Ashes!" He cursed, "Grimm have been sighted." He listened to another horn that played several notes. "Nevermores. Two of them." He gestured to the sky, where Ruby could see two faint specks.

The warriors jogged over to Mako ready for battle, but Ruby said, "No, we'll take care of it. It's our job."

"Child, you don't need to." Another clansman said. Ruby cut him off by unsheathing Crescent Rose and flourishing it in front of the tribe. "Me and my team can handle it."

Mako smiled. "Oobleck spoke highly of you. Very well, then. Go."

Ruby nodded and jogged back to her team. "There are Grimm nearby coming up the hill. We have to take care of them."

"Alright! Let's get some action!" Yang said. She jumped up, almost spilling breakfast as she did so.

Team RWBY headed off quickly, their weapons unsheathed and loaded. They ran further up the hill, getting ready to fight the huge birds that would prey upon them. "We need to distract it and bring it here." Ruby said, looking at the birds that were still high up in the air. "Weiss, Blake."

"On it." The two of them chorused. Weiss started muttering under her breath, preparing to cast multiple Force glyphs. Weiss had decided to concentrate training on a few set of glyphs instead of having a broad knowledge of many. While she had neglected training her Elemental glyphs, she could not only cast a dozen Force glyphs at a time, but also store and release more energy in them than ever before.

She now cast as many as she could, and she and Blake were propelled into the sky, using the glyphs like stepping stones. Weiss let the Glyphs beneath them dissolve, concentrating on casting more and more. When they were level with the two Nevermores, Blake jumped up and used her Semblance to draw the attention of the Nevermores.

Weiss wasn't the only one who had improved upon her Semblance. Blake could now produce more shadows of herself. Three images of Blake flew to meet the Nevermores and Blake landed on top of one of them. She then dug one end of Gambol Shroud into the neck of one and flung out the other end of her weapon to Weiss, who was clutching at the underbelly of the other Grimm. Her ribbon that normally covered her ears connected the two ends of her weapons, and it stretched across the bodies of the two Nevermores. Weiss and Blake both pulled and the ribbon grew taut, then slowly dragged the two Nevermores into a collision.

The two Grimm tumbled to the ground, losing half their altitude before regaining control of their senses. As they did, Weiss and Blake deliberately fell in view of the Nevermores, who now pursued them down towards the ground. Weiss used another Force glyph to cushion her and Blake's fall while Yang started firing Ember Celica that exploded on contact. Next to her, Blake started shooting bullets, knowing that she was only annoying the Grimm but buying time for Weiss and Ruby.

Weiss was now charging a single Force glyph with as much energy as possible. It was white when she first invoked it, but it had turned steadily greyer and was now a pitch black. Ruby stood on it, charging her own Semblance, feeling the muscles in her leg tighten. When both were ready, they gave the signal to Blake and Yang, who lured one of the Nevermores down in front of Ruby and Weiss. Ruby then grinned as she pushed as hard as she could, streaking like a red comet straight through the Nevermore's chest.

To Yang, it seemed as if Weiss had fired a red laser through the Nevermore, and she laughed as it came crashing down. She turned to Weiss and said, "Think you can handle more Force glyphs?"

"Please, don't insult me." Weiss' face was contorted in an excited grin that only occurred when she was testing her limits. She waved her rapier and four glyphs appeared in the air for Yang to jump on. Yang jumped up and grabbed onto the wing over the remaining Nevermore. She used the feathers like handholds to swing her way to the place where the wing joint met the body.

She then started firing huge cartridges at the wing. Within four punches the wing was hanging by several threads of sinew that hung like strands of rubber. Off balance, the Nevermore crashed into the ground, sending screeches echoing off the mountains. It slowly got up on its claws and flapped its remaining wing, but before it could regain its senses, Blake dashed towards the Nevermore's head and used Gambol Shroud to slice out its eyes.

The four girls stood for a moment breathing heavily while the Grimm in front of them disintegrated. All of them were sweating from the exertion, but they grinned in satisfaction.

Yang broke the silence. "Um, guys, some bad news. I've almost run out of ammo."

"Well, maybe if you didn't shoot a cartridge every time you threw a punch, you wouldn't be." Weiss said. She did have a point. Yang had a tendency to use her explosive guns against even Beowolves, when just punching them would have done the job.

"It's a good thing we're going back to Vale, then." Yang said, "You guys ready to go?"

They all nodded and went back to their tent, which they still hadn't taken down. On the way, Ruby saw Mako looking at her with a small smile on his face. She started to walk towards him but he nodded towards her team, and went back to help preparing his and his clan's departure.

Ruby hadn't kept track of her ammunition, and when she checked, was glad to see that she still had reserves for about two weeks, provided she used close range combat as much as possible. Weiss had organized and rationed her Dust, and didn't need to check how much was left. Blake didn't rely on the pistol built into the handle of her katana much, and ammunition wasn't a problem for her.

Ruby kept her spare ammunition near the top of her pack and help stuff part of their tent into her pack. Within minutes, she and her team were ready to move out back to Vale.

The four girls had left a thriving city and returned to an occupied warzone. After another week of travel, they walked up a mountain and saw Vale nestled in Vytal's coastline. The sun had almost set, and while there were still streaks of orange in the sky behind them, night had fallen over Vale.

Even from a distance, Ruby could see that Vale had changed in the month they'd been gone. A wall had been erected outside of Vale, and even from a distance they could see bullheads flying across Vale with huge searchlights. "This looks bad." Blake said. "Things might have even gotten worse."

"Maybe we should camp here and enter Vale in the morning." Weiss said, "I don't want to get mistaken for intruders."

"I just want to sleep in a bed." Ruby said, "Can we please go now?"

Weiss nose scrunched as two desires—one for caution and the other for comfort—warred within her. She then sighed and said, "We won't be detained, Blake. We're Hunters. Let's go."

Yang whooped and the four of them descended into Vale. Within half an hour, they were at the outer wall that had been quickly put up since they were gone. Up close, it was a lot higher than it had seemed. It was about four metres with steel rivets and nails clearly visible. It wouldn't win any awards for artistry, but it was sturdy, made out of the same material as airships.

Without needing direction, Weiss made a large glyph that catapulted the four of them over the wall. Weiss dusted off her dress as she landed. It was an old habit that she hadn't let go of, even though her clothes were permanently stained after only occasional washings in rivers.

Then she looked up into a dozen guns.

"Maybe we should have looked for a door." Yang whispered. The four of them were surrounded by several officers from the Vale Police Department (VPD) and half a dozen Atlasian robots, a gift from Ironwood.

"Hands up!" The officer in charge said.

Yang squinted at the man's badge. "Hey, Nemo! No need to be so hostile."

"That's Nero." Nero said, "And you should listen to a police officer."

"We're Hunters returning from duty." Weiss said indignantly, "What right do you police officers have pointing guns at us?"

"Yeah, you guys should be protecting the people." Ruby said, "Not threatening them."

Nero shuffled his feet. "Just show me your identification and get on your way. But next time use the gate. It's about a kilometre that way."

The four girls handed the Nero their Hunter IDs, then walked through the agricultural area of Vale. Yang pointed at a bus stop and said, "Hey! Let's try and get one."

They had only been out of Vale for a month, but all four of them had forgotten that inside a city, walking wasn't the only method of transportation. They made their way eagerly to the station, but saw a sign taped to the normal bus schedule that said, DUE TO CURRENT CIRCUMSTANCES BUSES ONLY RUN FROM 8 AM TO 5 PM. APOLOGIES FOR INCONVENIENCES CAUSED.

"Well, that was a letdown." Yang sighed. "Ah well, we've walked all this way, might as well walk some more."

"I never knew walking could be so boring." Ruby moaned, "Even killing small Beowolves was more interesting than this."

"I think it's a sign of how much we've improved." Weiss said, "Before, it would have been difficult for us to kill that many."

"No. One. Caaaares." Ruby made a face at Weiss while staggering about like she was about to faint.

"I don't know why I bother." Weiss rolled her eyes. They arrived at one of the main roads that led to the residential area of Beacon. The road stretched for kilometres in front of them, but not a single vehicle was to be seen. Yang grinned. "Hey, you know what would make this more fun?"

"It's a little late to give Ruby a personality change." Weiss said.

"Well, the roads aren't being used." Yang said, with a glint in her eye that Ruby always associated with trouble. "And we want to get back to Beacon quickly."

"No." Blake said.

"Aw, come on!" Yang said, "You haven't even heard what I've got in mind."

"You want to race, don't you." Blake didn't even phrase it as a question.

"Well, yeah." Yang said, "I mean, we haven't had fun in ages."

"If this is what you call fun," Weiss said, "Then I think you've been smoking whatever those barbarians in the wilderness were."

"C'mon, afraid you'll lose?" Yang grinned, "I thought you'd been working on your force glyphs, or was that just a lie?"

"Um, Yang, my Semblance is speed." Ruby spoke up, "There isn't much contest."

"Oh, is that so, little sister?" Yang grinned, "Well, maybe things have changed since we've been out there. Maybe I've gotten faster too."

"This is stupid." Blake said, "You guys do what you want, I'll meet you at-"

"Yoink!" Yang yanked away Blake's ribbon that she had just put on to hide her cat ears. She hadn't bothered with it out in the field, instead keeping it attached to Gambol Shroud for convenience. Now it hung in Yang's hand.

"Well, Blake, looks like you're racing after all." Yang grinned. "See ya!" With that, she blasted off onto the highway and fired off a few more rounds to propel her even further.

Yang whooped as the wind blew her hair back, and she looked behind her only to see Ruby dash past her in a flurry of rose petals. This wasn't surprising, but Yang also knew that Ruby's Semblance couldn't be sustained for long. Behind her, Weiss hadn't moved from her starting spot, preparing her glyphs with maximum power. Blake had abandoned the road, heading through the fields in a direct line to Beacon.

Yang hit the ground running and grinned at the burning sensation in her chest. Her Semblance was to store and release energy. She had stored and saved a lot during the day, and now used it to its full effect. She was on fire, literally and figuratively, as she charged down the roads, causing flames to erupt at her feet with every step she took. She looked around and saw Weiss hopping across her glyphs a hundred metres away, while Ruby was already halfway through the residential area, hopping from building to building.

Yang ran into the residential area of Vale, which meant they were about halfway there to Beacon. She tore through the streets and laughed as she let herself go. She let go of worrying about Ruby and stopped thinking about Ozpin. She stopped thinking about growing up and being soldiers, and just reveled in being a kid.

Yang grabbed onto a street lamp and swung around to quickly changed directions. She fired Ember Celica to shoot herself onto the rooftops, but as she did so, she suddenly saw a figure in red watching her from an alleyway. Before she could get a closer look, the figure was gone and Yang had already ascended to the rooftops of Vale.

In the distance, Yang could see the lights of Beacon glowing on the cliffs. She took in the view of the huge canyon that Beacon was on top of, and remembered how she and Ruby had looked down from the airship they had first come to Beacon in. But she immediately focused on the present as Blake jumped up alongside her. Yang didn't know how Blake had been able to keep up, but quickly concentrated on her partner in front of her.

Blake darted in for her ribbon wrapped around Yang's arm, but Yang dodged away and kept on running towards Beacon. Unfortunately, Blake suddenly appeared in front of her, causing Yang to backtrack. Then the image disappeared, and Yang realized that Blake had used her Semblance to distract Yang. Blake took this opportunity to once again lunge for her ribbon, but Yang jumped away and shot Ember Celica at Blake. As the cartridge was about to hit Blake, Yang worried about accidentally hurting Blake.

Then Blake disappeared.

Or rather, the image created by Blake's Semblance that had sparred with Yang for the past fifteen seconds disappeared.

Yang stopped dead in her tracks. She knew Blake could send out shadows of herself, but never knew they could last for so long. Yang realized that Blake used her Semblance to stall Yang while Blake caught up.

Then the real Blake scrambled onto the rooftop and threw the hilt of Gambol Shroud at Yang. Yang twirled away, only to see Gambol Shroud disappear. Apparently Blake could now create brief shadows of Gambol Shroud. Yang comprehended all of this as Blake lunged in and snagged her ribbon with her real weapon.

"Aw, guess you got me." Yang said, thoroughly unapologetic.

"Not funny, Yang." Blake said. She tied the ribbon around her feline ears. "You know I hate walking around without it."

"It was fun, wasn't it?" Yang said, "I bet Ruby and Weiss are already there."

"Probably." Blake said. "And the race did help take my mind off things."

"What things?"

"Torchwick, Cinder, the White Fang, all of it." Blake said.

"Not that again." Yang said, "You just want something to worry about."

"Tell that to Ozpin." Blake said, "He's the one that's worrying. Besides, I get the feeling that Torchwick wanted to be captured."

"Well, it's not like we could have done anything in the field." Yang said, "You worry too much. But we'll do something now that we're back, just like last time."

"I would advise against that." Came a voice from behind them.

Blake leapt backwards, asking, "Who are you? I didn't even hear or smell you." She looked at Yang to coordinate a plan of attack, only to see her partner fly at the person eavesdropping on them.

"Uncle Qrow!" Yang yelled, "I haven't seen you in ages!"

"Well, Ozpin's been keeping me busy." Qrow said. Blake had heard about the one who taught Ruby how to use a scythe and the one who saved Yang and Ruby from being ravaged by Grimm. She supposed after hearing Yang and Ruby idolize their uncle Qrow, it was only natural that he didn't look as awe inspiring as Blake had envisioned him.

Qrow had red eyes that matched a red cape like the one Ruby wore, though his was far more tattered and faded. He dressed neatly, with a grey dress shirt and formal black trousers. He smiled as Yang asked, "Why are you back at Beacon?"

"The same reason you are." Qrow said, "But I can't say too much. Ozpin wouldn't want me leaking information. The man can be pretty secretive."

Blake reckoned that was the understatement of the year, but instead asked, "How long were you listening?"

"Well, when I hear cartridge shells being fired in the very heart of Vale, I had to check it out." Qrow shot a pointed look at Yang. "You're lucky I was around, or else the Atlasian patrols would have had you tranquilized and in a cell."

"So you were watching us race?" Blake asked. The idea of being spied on without her knowing it unnerved her. How good was this man?

"Well, once I called off the guards, I went to make sure Ruby and the Schnee girl made it to Beacon okay." Qrow said, "Then I came here again."

"And you told us not to investigate?" Blake asked.

At this, Qrow's smile faded and he stared intently at both Yang and Blake. "Ozpin keeps me updated on what you girls have been doing. And I approve."

"You do?" Yang asked.

"Of course I do." Qrow said, "Hunters have to be vigilant at all times and take the initiative. What you did with the White Fang was good. But there's a difference between that and doubting your commanding officer."

"We aren't doubting Ozpin," Yang said, full well remembering the debates they had had regarding Ozpin's sanity in the wilderness. "We just want to see if there was more to Torchwick's plan."

"By disobeying Ozpin's orders, you're sowing doubt among the ranks." Qrow said, "We stood against the Grimm only because we stuck together, and we have to keep it that way."

Yang sighed. "Okay, uncle Qrow."

Qrow smiled and said, "Well, business calls. I have to go. But if all goes well, I might be seeing you some more in the future."

With that, he leapt off the rooftop and disappeared behind a building. Yang turned with a grin to Blake and said, "Let's call this a draw?"

"Whatever." Blake said, "So that's your uncle Qrow. He seems, pretty easygoing."

"Yeah, he is." Yang said, "Although Ruby told me he could get a little harsh when training."

Blake nodded. "Well, let's go meet Ruby and Weiss. Hopefully they're not strangling each other."

As it turned out, Ruby was sleeping in their old room while Weiss was nowhere to be seen. It had only been a month since they were gone, but the room already felt foreign. For one thing, someone had come in and taken down the two bunkbeds. The ropes that one bed used to hang on lay in a pile along with a note.

Tai Yang would throw a fit if he knew that his precious girls were sleeping in such a hazardous environment. I felt like it would be breaking our "bro code" as he puts it, if I allowed such a thing to happen.

Sincerely, Qrow

"Well, he certainly gets around." Blake said. She looked at her pile of books and realized that the books which had held up the bedposts of the other bed were arranged neatly on her bookshelf. She blushed as she realized Qrow had put volume 3 of Shinobi Desires in its correct place, along with all her other books.

"Yeah, he and my dad are both a little weird." Yang said. "Well, enough talk. I'm exhausted."

Yang and Blake had already tossed their worn backpacks to the floor, and Yang eagerly rooted through her drawers for clean clothes. She shrugged off her dusty travelling clothes that had more holes than fabric, and relished the cool feeling of cotton on her skin.

She didn't say anything to Blake, because both girls could sense the joy and contentment of the other. Yang fell into her bed before realizing that they hadn't turned off the lights yet. But Blake threw Gambol Shroud at the light switch, plunging them into peaceful darkness.

Yang woke in a pool of moonlight and a fast beating in her chest. At first she only saw darkness, but as her eyes adjusted, she saw a tall figure standing in the doorway. With a soft gasp, she leapt to her feet, but before she could load Ember Celica, the figure pointed out the window and disappeared into a pool of shadows.

Yang's heart was beating quickly as she looked out the window as instructed and saw a tall woman in a red dress and black tights walking through the terraces of Beacon. She considered waking the others, but knew, deep down, that only she had been woken for a reason. This figure had been tailing her, and even saved her life when she had lost the fight against Neo. But that time the woman had disappeared before Yang could say anything, and she was sure it was because there were others around.

All of this flashed through Yang's mind in the form of instinct and impulse, and she strode to the window and opened it. She was afraid that the thunk of the window opening might alert Blake's keen ears, but even she was worn out from months of travel and light sleep.

Yang fell to the courtyard with a thump that seemed to echo through Beacon, but no one paid attention. She saw the woman in red waiting by the fountain and, as if in a trance, Yang strode towards her. As she did so, she felt a strange feeling of nostalgia and anticipation, like when she went back to Patch to see Tai Yang, or when she and Ruby visited Summer's grave. She stared at the mask of a Grimm, and unblinking eyes stared back from behind the mask.

"Who are you?" Yang asked. Blake had described Adam's Grimm mask, but somehow Yang didn't get the fanatical and murderous vibe from this woman.

Then the woman took her mask off, and Yang's heart beat faster in her chest. Behind the Grimm mask was a surprisingly round face with red eyes that twinkled with a mischievous intensity. She smiled and said, "Yang, we have a lot to talk about."

Yang blinked and took a deep breath. This seemed too surreal. She was staring at what seemed to be an older version of herself with black hair in Beacon. All the while the moon seemed to radiate off the woman's clothes, bathing her in a strange glow.

"My name's Raven." The woman said, "And I have what you want."

"And what's that?"

"Answers." Raven looked earnestly at Yang as she talked. "As I said, Yang, we have a lot to talk about. But not here." She looked towards the sky. "Ozpin's crow isn't around, but he still sees very far with those eyes of his, and we're not very far away from him."

"And why should I go anywhere with you?" Yang asked. "Why should I trust you at all?"

"I don't expect you to trust me," Raven said, "As for why you should come? I can give you answers that you've been searching for ever since I left." She then unsheathed a red sword that was almost as tall as Ruby and slashed the air with it. A whirlpool of black mass swirled into existence and Raven walked through it without a second thought. The portal remained open, tempting Yang every second she looked at it.

She could walk away. She could think it was a trap. But that was never an option. She took a step forward, then another, and then another. She walked through the portal. She had never backed down, and she wouldn't start now.

Okay, so there's the next chapter. I added in a fight scene just so we get a decent idea of where the girls are in terms of martial ability. If you have thoughts about this chapter —any at all—then don't hesitate to tell me.

Thanks! Hope you enjoyed reading this.