The Emerald forest had finally began calming down. Fern and Lance had just engaged in a brutal sparring session. Lance was tired and laid on the grassy floor of the forest.

Fern stood over the boy, he shook his head. "You want to get better?"

Lance shook his head, closing his eyes. He was fatigued and couldn't even get up, bruises and cuts lined his body.

"Let me ask again, are you prepared to get better?" Fern asked.

Lance shook his head again. "Anything."

Fern sighed and nodded his head. He reached down and offered his hand to Lance, who looked surprised. Lance cautiously took Fern's hand and Fern pulled Lance onto his feet.

Lance's head felt like it was flying in the clouds above, he began to fall back over. Fern swiftly caught the young teen. Fern placed Lance's arm around his neck, supporting his student.

The two began to walk off, together. Lance was experiencing something new, he had someone to help him, someone to lean on when he couldn't face life's challenges alone. Lance couldn't help but smile as they both walked back.

XXX XXX XXX

Bronze, Silver and Iron sat in a large classroom. Glynda Goodwitch was giving a lecture at the front of the room. Ruby wondered where Lance was. Ruby knew it was usual for him to be late, but she hadn't seen him in any of the other classes prior to this one.

Ruby had saved him a seat, it was between her and Silver. Ruby's teammates sat next to her. She sighed and tried to pay attention, trying not to think about her friend.

Glynda stopped her lecture, she checked the clock on a wall. Glynda sighed and rubbed her brow in frustration, she looked at team BSIL, who was still missing Lance.

"Is Mr. Sage going to be joining us?" Glynda asked, obviously mad about Lance's multiple lates.

Silver was about to speak, but Bronze interrupted her. "He is not feeling well."

Glynda raised an eyebrow. "What is it this time, a cold, virus or broken bone?"

"Um…" Bronze thought about it. He answered with uncertainty. "All of the above?"

Glynda cleared her throat. "I'm afraid that this time your entire team has detention."

Sliver huffed and shook her head, she was furious and was tired of covering for Lance. Bronze nodded and looked down at the desk in front of him. Glynda sighed and went back to her lecture.

XXX XXX XXX

Lance raced down the halls of Beacon, he furiously trying to buckle his pants. If he had known what time it was, he wouldn't have sparred with Fern as long as he did. Lance quickly made it to Glynda's classroom.

Just as Lance was reaching for the door handle, the bell rang and the door burst open. All the students began pouring out of the classroom, trampling Lance. Lance was knocked to the ground by his peers, who hurried to their dorms, ready to end the day.

Lance laid on the ground, he sighed and muttered to himself, "Another missed class."

"Why are you on the floor?" Bronze asked, leaning over his teammate.

Lance looked at his team leader. He was too tired to come up with some witty come back. Lance sighed and stood back up. Silver stomped out of the class with Iron. She walked up to Lance and punched him in the arm.

"Ow! What was that for?" Lance asked, rubbing his arm.

"For getting us in trouble!" Silver stormed away.

Lance looked at Bronze and shrugged. "What should I do?"

"Talk to her, I'll help."

XXX XXX XXX

BSIL had met in their dorm. The door was shut, no one wanted others to hear them. Silver sat on her bed, arms crossed and glared at Lance. The youngest member of their team sat on Bronze's bed, next to Bronze. Iron leant against the door.

"So," Bronze said, shattering the tense silence. "Let's get this resolved."

"How about we address the issue?" Silver asked, still glaring at Lance. She pointed at Lance. "That idiot needs to come to class, what are you even doing?"

"I'm training," Lance answered.

Silver rolled her eyes. "For what?"

"I told you," Lance said, looking down. "I'm going to be the best."

"Ha!" Silver scoffed. "Why is that so important to you?"

"That's something that doesn't concern you."

"Well it is getting me detentions, so I think it does." Silver stood and walked over to the bed. "Why?"

"Drop it," Lance growled.

"Sil…" Bronze tried to protest, but she cut him off.

"Want to impress someone?" Silver asked, getting closer. "Like your mother or father?"

Lance looked at the ground. "Drop it."

"What? Don't have daddy's approval?" She asked with a mocking tone.

Lance looked up, he stared into her eyes. He opened his mouth and his voice began in a serious tone. "I'm an orphan."

Bronze sighed. "We should all…"

"You think that is hard?" Silver asked, trying to not laugh. Lance nodded and she scoffed.

Silver turned around and started walking away. Lance couldn't take it anymore, he hated how she looked at him, spoke to him, thought of him.

"What and you have it harder?!" Lance shouted, standing up.

Silver spun around and stormed back over to Lance. "Yes, I do."

"Like what?" Lance asked. Silver fell silent, she didn't want to say, not in front of her teammates. Lance stared at her. "What is it?"

She looked at the ground. "I told Bronze this, but I did some undesirable work when I was younger and even today."

"Like what?" Lance asked, rolling his eyes.

"I-I'm, a…" Silver was starting to choke on the tears that began to stream from her eyes. "Contract killer."

Lance's eyes widened. "What?"

"My semblance makes me a pretty good shot, turns out that people pay for that."

Bronze stepped forward. "The day of our mission, the assassin on the roof, was you?"

Silver nodded and Lance shook his head. He was experiencing a mix of anger and sadness for his teammate. Lance just took a few steps back and sat down on his bed.

Silver looked back up and scanned the room. "Well, anyone else have a messed up life?"

Bronze slowly raised his hand, surprising everyone. Lance the most, he always thought Bronze was the perfect everything.

"My… Parents fought a lot." He looked at the ground. "It kept me awake at night, especially when I heard her scream in pain."

Silver walked over quickly and hugged the male. "I'm sorry."

Bronze hugged the girl. "It's quite alright."

Bronze and Silver separated. The four looked at each other and everyone apologized, they all had messed up lives, but tears wouldn't make it any better. Lance sighed and began walking towards the door, he yanked it open and walked out into the hallway.

Suddenly a red blur rushed up to him, happily cheering, "Lance!"

"Oh hey Ruby!" Lance said smiling at the girl.

"We still on for hanging out?" She asked, tilting her head.

Lance nodded. "Of course, where do you want to go?"

Ruby grabbed Lance's hand and drug him away. She raced back to her room, dragging the boy behind her. She barged into her dorm, surprising the rest of her team. They all turned their heads to the door, each had mixed emotions of Ruby barging in with a boy. Blake didn't care, Weiss was grinning and snickering, and Yang was concerned.

Ruby pulled Lance through her room, happy that she finally had someone her age to talk with. Ruby sat him down on the floor and turned on her television, drawing her scroll. She pointed at Lance.

"Prepare to get destroyed!" She shouted, loading up a fighting video game.

The evening passed very quickly for the pair. They spent it playing video games, reading comic books, and talking about their classes. The rest of team RWBY watched, Weiss couldn't help but snicker the entire time. Finally, night ascended onto the dorm and Lance had to leave. Ruby walked him to the door and wished him a good night, she shut the door and turned around.

Ruby met the faces of the rest of her team. They all looked at her with suspense.

"What?" She innocently asked, tilting her head.

"She has a crush on him and doesn't know it, what a dounce!" Weiss thought to herself, snickering some more.

"Ruby, do you have a crush on Lance?" Yang bluntly asked.

"Ew no," Ruby quickly and calmly said, walking towards her bed. "Boys are gross."

The three girls looked at each other as Ruby laid down. They all shook their heads and grinned.

XXX XXX XXX

Lance flipped backwards in the pitch black Emrald forest. He had just barely dodged a shining blade. Fern tracked Lance as he flipped away, he clenched a longsword in each hand, the swords were usually sheathed in their royal blue sheaths. Suddenly Fern unleashed a barrage, he slashed around himself with lightning speed.

Lance held up his form arms and summoned two shields of ice, he began frantically blocking each attack. The swords collided with Lance's shields many times, slowly cracking them with each hit. Fern had become a blur to Lance and was increasing his speed by the second. Soon the ice shields shatter and Lance was left defenseless.

The boy tried to summon some more, but nothing happened. His coat didn't light up and no elements came to him. It was at this moment Fern struck him repeatedly with his blades. Lance was sent flying away, slamming into a tree that stood along the border of the clearing. Lance hit the ground with a thud and didn't get up.

"Is that all?" Fern said, walking towards Lance. "I was only using half of my speed, you'll have to try a lot harder."

Lance groaned and raised his head, struggling onto his hands and knees. "Why didn't my jacket work?"

"You expect me to know these things?" Fern rolled his eyes. He looked back down at the child before him. Lance had taken off his jacket and was examining it. Fern sighed. "Do you even know how that thing works?"

Lance looked up at Fern. He nervously laughed and rubbed the back of his neck. "Not at all."

Fern snatched the jacket from Lance's hands, he was obviously annoyed by Lance's carelessness. Fern examined the jacket, it was clear what was wrong with Lance's primary weapon. Fern sighed and ripped the jacket into two.

Lance's jaw hit the ground. "What are you doing?!"

"I've been meaning to do that for so long, you have been holding onto some ancient weapon, this jacket won't help you grow as a fighter or as a Dust Mage."

"Dust Mage?" Lance tilted his head.

Fern sighed again. "Masters of dust? The men and women who fight using the elements? Oh for crying out loud, ATLAS HAS THEIR OWN ARMY OF DUST MAGES!"

Lance leapt back in surprise. "They're that important?"

Fern nodded. "I thought that's why you were wearing this jacket."

"Wait, so why isn't my jacket working?" Lance questioned.

"Quit changing the subject!" Fern shouted, getting annoyed.

"I don't care about some army of people using dust," Lance said, waving his hands around. "Why isn't my jacket working?"

"Well besides the fact that I just shredded it, your jacket was out of dust," Fern said.

"So what, I just buy some more?" Lance asked.

"Heh, not exactly. Most people use dust sewn into their clothing, but after sometime the dust runs out. An age old technique that is still used today," Fern explained.

Lance sat down on the ground and looked up at his teacher. "So I just need to sew some more dust into my jacket and it will summon fire and all those other elements?"

Fern shrugged. "Or you could sew in other types of dust."

"Like what, lightning?" Lance questioned.

"I know a man who uses Iron as an attack," Fern said.

"What?" Lance asked, in shock.

Fern sighed yet again. "Don't you know anything about dust?"

"Only the basics."

"You can make all sorts of things by combining certain dusts in certain amounts, Dust Chemistry is very popular in the Atlesian military too." Fern bent down and poured out some dust.

Lance saw the different colors and immediately identified them. Fern was mixing a white dust with a brown one, Lance knew these were air and earth. Once the two were in a pile, Fern placed his hands on them. Suddenly his aura flashed around his hands and the two dusts activated. Fern removed his hands and a rod of iron was laying where the dust was.

Fern looked back at Lance and grinned. "This is basic chemistry combined with dust, it goes back to ancient times when our ancestors believed that all matter was created via the elements, we are able to use their beliefs and create anything out of dust. So, I am know giving you the chance to make your own dust clothing, this will allow you to cast dust more efficiently than pouring it out of cases."

"Well, what should I make?" Lance questioned.

"Whatever you want," Fern said.

"What can I make?" Lance asked.

"Whatever you can," Fern answered.

Lance sighed. "Thanks."

Fern smiled at the boy. "Well, I'd love to keep going tiny, but without any dust, you can't fight."

"Tiny?!" Lance shouted, leaping onto his feet. He leapt towards Fern and swung at him.

Fern smirked and stepped to the side, dodging the attack. Lance tried to stop, but ended up stumbling past him. Fern smiled and he kicked Lance in the back, forcing Lance to the ground.

"Get some rest, come back to me once you've gotten your dust abilities back."

XXX XXX XXX

Lance sat in his dorm, he had a book in his hand and was on his bed. Iron was taking a shower in the bathroom and Bronze and Silver were studying for a test. Lance had gotten little sleep the night before, he was busy reading up on dust and the art of infusing it into clothing, yet it had yielded little results. A pile of books was at his side, each one containing various info on dust and infused dust clothing.

Suddenly Lance shouted in anger, he hurled the book across the room. "Stupid, useless book!"

Silver looked over her shoulder and stared at her teammate. "Everything alright?"

"Yeah, just enraged," Lance said with a sigh. He reached the pile and grabbed another book. He cracked it open and began reading it.

Silver shrugged and turned back to her notes with Bronze. Lance continued his readings, he began to smirk. Finally he had found the right book, finally he could start work on his new weapon. But a problem remained and Lance had just thought of it.

"Agh! I don't have any dust!" Lance shouted.

XXX XXX XXX

Wind swept through the deserted streets of Mountain Glenn. Only grimm and other monsters roamed around the abandoned streets. Down in the deep caves that stretched for miles beneath the streets, there was a different story.

Fifteen people stood in the dark and damp cave. They were gathered in a circle. One of these beings stepped forward. His shaggy garnet red hair swayed from side to side.

"The time has come," He said, raising a hand to silence the others. "I am afraid we have been forced to act. Salem and her forces have promised us justice, while Ozpin has promised us the same, but both lie. They both wish to use us for a war that does not concern us."

"I say let them all burn!" A man shouted.

The red haired being looked over at the man, who stood behind him. This man stood out due to his golden hair and eyes.

"Now is not the time to rush in to a battle. I fear that our race-"

"Our race will die, we our the leaders of our race, we must act now!" The golden haired being shouted.

"Wut!" The red haired being shouted, raising his hand once again. Wut grit his teeth and clenched his fists, he looked at the ground. "I'm going to ignore your disrespect to your king!"

A man with jet black hair stepped forward. "Why not let the humans fight their own battles, I don't see much of a reason to get involved."

"Ego, I don't need your opinion."

Ego grinned. "I think you do, why not be a little selfish, let's turn a blind eye, then reap justice once everyone has been weakened!"

Wut stepped forward. "Coward, who even let you in here!"

"I have no idea, I really don't care about any of this," Ego said with a shrug. Wut glared at Ego, he was ready to attack. "But I know that your hatred towards humans is going to be bad news for me in the end."

"It is beneficial to kill the humans, we get both revenge and please him," Wut said.

Ego looked at Wut with uninterest. "Pleasing something that can't be pleased is useless."

The red haired being raised his hand once again and the two stopped arguing. "This conversation is over, I expect you all pick a side soon. Fair well."

Suddenly, the fifteen figures all vanished in the blink of an eye. Each had gone their separate way. Neither knew what the others were going to pick, but they knew that mass conflict was arriving soon.

XXX XXX XXX