A/N: I've been really busy lately, so this came later than I wanted it to. Plus it's a little shorter than the other chapters. But I think it came out okay despite all that. As always, feedback is appreciated, and enjoy!

Chapter 6: Search Party

"That princess has some damn nerve, doesn't she?" Yang angrily commented as she shivered in the cold. "What a prissy brat, always whining over everything-" "Yang. Shut up", her sister countered, an angry glare coming from her eyes. "Ruby, don't tell me you're actually defending her, are you? She's the one who just sprinted off into the night because she has issues. She's not normal." Ruby was visibly more upset with Yang's last statement, and Blake stepped in between the two. "Yang, first of all, there is no such thing as 'normal'. It's too arbitrary to have a solid example or definition. More to the problem at hand, Weiss does have issues, yes, but those aren't her fault. I can't exactly say her childhood was a happy one…" she trailed off. Blake lowered her head and reminisced shortly about how her involvement with the White Fang hurt Weiss, but she snapped out of it shortly and raised her head to the sisters. "If there's anything I learned being with the White Fang, it's that the past can't be changed, but we can make the future a better place for ourselves and others. Let's find Weiss and make sure she has a chance to do that." Blake started walking away from the two, who really had no choice but to follow and hope that Blake knew what she was doing.

Weiss was breathing heavily. There were far more Beowolves than she had calculated and her Aura was beginning to dwindle. She was moving, defending herself from each swing or pounce the Grimm could attempt. Using the Dust was her last resort as she kept matching moves with the creatures coming after her. She gave herself some distance to catch her breath as the now thirty or so Beowolves circled around her and waited.

"None…of...this…is working."

The Beowolves charged, red eyes glimmering with the intent to kill. Weiss had one last idea. If it worked, she had a chance. If it didn't, there wouldn't be much left of her, and she knew that. She wasn't frightened by the prospect. She was attending Beacon Academy as a Huntress-in-Training, a place for the very best. She smiled softly as she waited for the right time to make her move.

The seemingly broken and dispirited Weiss Schnee regained her confidence, if only for a moment.

"Blake, are you sure?" Ruby looked on at the mouth of the Forest of Forever Fall. "There's no way Weiss would go here in the middle of the night…right?" Blake kept looking on. "It's more of a gut call than anything, really. But somehow I think she's here." Yang muttered something incoherently behind them, likely about how she was sleepy or mad at Weiss, but the other two paid no heed. Ruby turned her head to Blake. "Plan?" "Isn't that your job, leader?" said the Faunus with a smirk. Ruby looked back into the mouth of the forest, the darkness of the insides of the forest making her squirm with concern for Weiss.

"We're all going together. It's too dark for any of us to do it by ourselves safely. Plus, we should all be there when we find Weiss." Ruby didn't speak with much confidence, but the point was made. "Blake, if you can pick up any sounds that could lead us to Weiss, alert us and we'll follow. Okay?" Blake nodded. "Let's go." The trio walked into the forest, with Ruby hoping and praying internally that Weiss would be okay.

Weiss counted under her breath as the Grimm closed in.

"Three…"

When they were about fifteen meters away, they all picked up speed, closing in for the first strike.

"Two…"

Regardless of how her maneuver turned out, she would deplete most of her remaining Aura, rendering her defenseless after completion, making her an easy target.

"One…"

She inhaled and exhaled very slowly, preparing herself for what could be her final encounter, with no fear in her heart and no regret as to what she would do.

"Now."

She made her move. There was no turning back now.