A/N: Hello! Welcome to my story. It is a sequel to my other fic (CFVY Chronicles: First Years) but you don't need to read that to follow this one. If I reference something from the prequel, I will add an author's note to explain it.

The story is CFVY-centric but there will be some chapters from other characters' perspectives. The name in the title of each chapter shows whose point of view we're following.

Enjoy!

XXX

Darkness.

Musty air. Damp soil underneath my stomach. Tiny creatures running on it. Tiny feet scampering. Tiny claws scratching on walls. Could be rats.

Could be worse.

Dripping of water from the ceiling. The flurry of wings. Bats. Just bats.

Probably.

Onward. The exit was onward.

Palms pressing hard against the rocky surface, clinging on it as if it was a lifeline. I propelled myself forward. My elbow hit on the walls of the tunnel encircling me. Narrow. Too narrow.

Trapped.

A skeleton buried under the depths of the earth, carrying the weight of layers and layers of rock and soil. Sleeping under the ground people would walk on, until something caused it to be found again. An excavation, maybe. "Human. Female. Twenty or so. Looks like she took a wrong turn and got stuck. Poor thing, she was so young, too. It must've been gruesome…"

Breathe. Just breathe.

I couldn't breathe. My chest was too tight. Heart pounding, writhing like a trapped animal against constrictive walls. Like my body in that tunnel. Stuck.

There was something I'd learned in training, something I needed to do, but –

Fear. Crashing in my mind like a flood, erasing all other thought. All-encompassing. Overwhelming.

Just breathe.

Help. Send a signal for help. That was the thing I'd learned. If you get stuck, ask for help.

Get the scroll, my brain told my hands. But my hands didn't move. Frozen. Sweating. Spine in tremors, captive, helpless. Muscles shaking violently, uncontrollably. But my body wouldn't move on command.

A bell chimed.

The sudden transition from darkness to light made me shut my eyes. Eventually, I opened them again slowly, breathing heavily as I re-oriented myself. I was sitting on a chair in a pleasant room. I was still wearing the simulation helmet, attached via a cable to a machine next to me. I removed it. My hands were still shaking, and there was real sweat on my back.

"It's okay, kid. You're okay."

Professor Sherman took a chair next to me and offered me a flask. He was in his fifties, stocky and gruff. He had a reputation for unorthodox methods and blunt speech. He taught Field Survival to upperclassmen, but he also gave personalized training for phobia management to students who needed it. Immersion-based training, he called it. It involved gradual exposure to the source of the fear, first by progressively harder simulations, then, if possible, using the real thing. Whatever the real thing was.

I opened the flask and took a sniff. Coffee. Strong. But I thought I could smell something else mixed in there.

"Is there alcohol in it?" I asked, more out of curiosity than anything.

He regarded me sternly. "Kid, I've been teaching here since before you were born. I know what I'm doing." Before I could apologize, he cracked a smile. "Of course there's alcohol in it. Just a few drops, mind you: just enough to settle the nerves. Don't worry, you won't get drunk. And don't get used to it. I allow it exceptionally in early sessions, for students like you who like to bite more than they can chew. It can help in a pinch, but it's not a real fix."

I took a sip, then another. To his credit, he let me take my time. Just sitting silently by my side until I'd recovered my composure.

"So, you think I bit off more than I could chew?" I asked eventually.

"You started out alright. Large cave, a strong flashlight. Nothing too bad. You navigated it well and made it to the exit. Then you decided to skip three levels of difficulty."

"You didn't try to stop me."

"You wouldn't have listened."

Fair enough.

"The simulation allows for safe experimentation", he addded. "In such a setting, it's better to let students figure out for themselves when they're being stupid."

"Thanks", I said dryly.

"Look, I know your type. Second week of school and here you are, already challenging yourself. It's admirable, but there's a balance."

"Nothing wrong with planning ahead", I said. "Missions can involve all sorts of situations. I just want to be prepared."

"And you don't want to let your team down." It was not a question, so I did not respond.

"That is right", he continued. "If you can't function, the team fails. You've got a responsibility to them. But, Coco… " First name usage. A rare deviation from the academy's normally formal etiquette. He was going to give me real talk, wasn't he. "If you want to achieve this goal, you need to start simpler and do the work progressively. You won't help anyone by overtaxing yourself. And this is overtaxing. I've seen your records: they paint a picture of academic excellence and high competitiveness, backed up by equally high talent. It must be frustrating for you, having such difficulty with something... but it just means you need to take it slower. You are not inadequate if this one thing doesn't come easily to you."

Yep, there was the dad speech. And I couldn't even take issue with it, because he was right.

So I just I nodded, slowly. "Same time next week?"

"You got it, kid."

XXX

"Two Schnee Dust Company warehouses in south Vale have been robbed by unknown perpetrators", Lisa Lavender's voice said through my headphones. "Whether these were isolated incidents remains uncertain. Authorities were asked about a possible link between these thefts and the recent similar attack on Dust-selling shop 'From Dust 'til Dawn'; however, they have responded that it is too early to make any conclusive statements."

I lowered the sound of the news podcast a bit, focusing on my surroundings to confirm I was still going the right way. Beacon buildings could get rather labyrinthine at places, although you got used to it after a while.

"In other news, investigations continue to uncover the perpetrators behind the terrorist attacks on Golden Wall street. In the Faunus-majority area, residences and businesses were burned down and destroyed. No arrests have been made as of yet. Restoration efforts are being organized, with the White Fang pledging its support to the affected neighborhoods. High leader Sienna Khan openly suspects racial motivations, but local authorities state there is no evidence to support that claim. This has been Lisa Lavender, bringing you the latest news around…"

I turned it off.

Well, that was short. I had actually been near Golden Wall Street recently. No one was allowed to get too close, but the little I'd seen was sombering. The podcast had mentioned no deaths or hospitalizations, but the damaged was so extensive that it seemed extremely unlikely the attacks had only affected property. And this had taken a backseat in coverage to the Dust robberies, which were much smaller in scale and impact.

My thoughts were abruptly interrupted as I got knocked over.

By… a tornado of rose petals?

The tornado sped past me towards the end of the corridor. Then, seemingly changing its mind, it turned around and propelled itself in my direction again. I barely had time to react – how do you defend yourself against sentient rose petals, anyway? – before the tornado came to a still in front of me and assembled into an adorable child.

"Sorry!" she squeaked.

Short, baby-faced. Chin length black hair with reddish streaks. Through my daze, I approvingly registered her outfit: grey shirt under a black pinaforte, contrasting against a red skirt and hooded cloak. Perhaps it wouldn't win any fashion contests, but it was unique, and somehow it suited her.

I sat up, wincing a bit. She had collided against my stomach with the speed of a typhoon and the force of a truck. It was a little embarassing, actually: I was Coco Adel, goddammit. Record-breaking student, leader of the best team of our year. I was supposed to be trained against that sort of thing, and the kid looked like she was twelve or something. Did she even go here?

"I'm really sorry!" she repeated. "I was looking for the Great Hall, but..." Her eyes scanned the corridor; her face fell as she came to the obvious, if unpleasant, conclusion. "It's not here!" she announced miserably. "I thought I was supposed to take the turn at the end, but it's a dead end. Oh, I'm going to be late, and I promised I wouldn't get lost again. We're all going to get in trouble, and Weiss is going to kill me…"

"The Great Hall is in a different building", I informed her, as gently as I could. She sounded like she was at the end of her rope. Seriously, did she go here? Maybe she was visiting an older sibling, although it was a bit early for that. "Actually, I –"

"It's in a different building?" she shouted. "Oh, man, why is this place so big? Did they build it to be confusing on purpose? There should be a map or something!"

"There is", I said. "You can install it on your scroll. Students are given instructional materials about these things on their first day. Didn't you read them? But perhaps you're not a student. Are you visiting someone?"

She gave me this deeply offended look. It was still adorable. "I so am a student! I have a weapon and everything!" Next thing I knew, there was a giant scythe in her hands. It was pointed towards my general direction, though not in a threatening way. She had reached into her cloak to unleash it, which meant it had been stored somewhere in her clothing in a more compact mode. Pretty standard Beacon student stuff. So she really did go here. "See?"

"Okay, okay", I said soothingly. "That's a cool scythe. I like it."

That cheered her up a bit. "Thank you! I'm glad you like Cressie…"

"Cressie?"

"Crescent Rose." She hugged the handle with the same loving tenderness that a mother might bestow upon her firstborn child. "That's what I named it. I made it myself. It's also a sniper rifle! Isn't it a beauty? I always liked making weapons. It's so much fun!" Her face fell again. "On the other hand… I'm not very good at navigation."

For someone so potentially lethal, she was quite headpattable. "If you're a student here, shouldn't you have been in the Great Hall before? After initiation, at least?"

"I've been there a couple of times, but I was always following someone." She scratched her head. "There should be a physical directory map somewhere... maybe I should try to find that. Say, could you give me directions to the directory?"

"Screw that, you're coming with me. I'm going to the Great Hall as well."

She perked up. "Yeah! That's a great idea! Much better than mine… I would've probably gotten lost trying to find the directory… I'm Ruby, by the way. Ruby Rose."

"Coco Adel."

We started walking.

"Where is your team?" I asked. How could they leave her wandering about alone like this? It was kinda like abandoning a puppy… specifically, a very cute, excitable puppy with a very big, destructive weapon. "If you have such trouble finding your way, they should be helping you. You should talk to your team leader about it."

"I am the leader", she explained miserably. "The leader… is I."

Oh boy.

"It's harder than I thought", she continued. "You see, I was accepted two years early..."

"How'd that happen?"

"Well… I stopped some people from robbing this Dust shop."

"'From Dust til Dawn'? You were there?" That was mildly impressive.

"Yeah. The whip lady was there too. She got real mad at me, but Ozpin thought I fought well, so he invited me to his school."

That sounded like something Ozpin would do, sure.

"Yang was super happy about it. I don't know what's gotten into her lately –"

"Yang?" I really needed to get around to watching the initiation clips. It was not compulsory for upperclassmen to be present in the team formation ceremony, but the initiation clips were stored and you were kind of supposed to watch them eventually, to get an overview of the new people.

"My older sister. She got in this year, like me. She made a real fuss about it, too. I told her there's nothing special about my knees, they're perfectly normal…"

"Huh?"

Ruby did not elaborate. "We ended up on the same team, and I thought it would be awesome. She's always been there for me, she practically raised me. But since we've gotten here, it's like she's become a different person. I mean she told me she's proud of me, but she keeps talking about how I should make my own friends and stop relying on her so much."

This brought up old and slightly guilty memories. "Ah… yeah, I used to do the same thing with my younger brothers in summer camp. I was trying to foster independence, get them to stand on their own. You know? If you had a close relationship with your sister until now, she's probably doing it for what she sees as your own good. Just taking it a bit overboard. She'll probably dial it back if you sit her down and tell her how you feel."

"I guess I could talk to her", she mused. "I mean, we live in the same dorm. She can't avoid me forever!" Then she made a thoughtful face. "But Blake could. That girl is an expert at disappearing."

"Another teammate of yours?"

She nodded. "She likes books. I like books. I thought maybe we could bond over that."

"Right, okay."

"But she really likes them. Did you know that people who really like books spend a lot of time in the library? And when she's in the dorm, she barely talks. She's so quiet. You always have to prompt her to say anything at all, and even then I'm never sure what she's really thinking."

I thought back to my first year: Yatsuhashi had been reserved at first, skeptical of my leadership style, and secretive about his Semblance. Velvet had been avoidant and wary. "Well… some people take longer to feel comfortable in a team. Blake could have her own baggage that you don't know about. Besides, it's only been a few days. Take an interest in your teammates, make sure they feel like they can talk to you... but don't try too hard. Eventually, they'll open up on their own time and terms."

"I hope so", she said, not sounding very convinced. "It could be worse, I guess. At least I didn't explode on Blake."

"I… beg your pardon?"

"I said I didn't explode on Blake", she repeated more slowly. Then, realizing the actual source of the confusion: "I kind of exploded on Weiss on my first day. It was an accident, really! She was carrying all that Dust. Who needs so much Dust, anyway?"

"Weiss, as in Weiss Schnee?" I knew the girl superficially: there was some overlap in our families' social circles1. She conducted herself carefully, with all the manners and graceful poise that her station in life warranted. Some called her stuck up. But she always gave me the impression of putting on a façade in public, even moreso than the average socialite. Appearance-wise, she was a mere slip of a girl: cute, but nothing to write home about. She had an older sister who was more interesting.

"That's the one", Ruby confirmed. "We're supposed to be partners, but she wants nothing to do with me. I thought a team was going to be like a family. That we would go on amazing adventures together and become best friends. I've been trying so hard to get Weiss to like me, but… it's like everything I do is wrong."

She sounded so discouraged. I tried to think of another experience I could use as a reference point for advice, but drew a blank. Fox and I had hit it off immediately, and he'd been nothing but supportive.

Under a steady stream of biting sarcasm and playful trolling, sure. But essentially supportive.

I was going to have to wing it on this one. "Look, you said you've been trying to get Weiss to like you. Maybe, instead, you should start by trying to get her to respect you."

"What do you mean?"

"Well, after you bumped into me, you mentioned Weiss was going to kill you for being late. I know it wasn't quite literal, but you weren't completely joking, either. Then you spoke a bunch about how you've been trying to please her, and nothing about the reverse. Don't you see a problem there? You're Weiss's team leader. She should be trying to prove herself to you."

Ruby made a thoughtful face. "But… doesn't that go both ways?"

"It does. But it sounds like you're putting in the effort and she's not."

Ruby shook her head. "Weiss is very hardworking. She takes her training extremely seriously."

"I was talking about her attitude. When you work with other people, acting helpful and professional is part of putting in the effort. It's not some optional, nice-to-have thing: it's just as important as training."

Ruby shrugged doubtfully. "But… what if the problem is with me?"

"What exactly is her problem with you anyway?" I asked. "Has she said what specifically it is that annoys her so much?"

Ruby kicked the floor in front of her. "She says I'm too childish. That I can't be trusted with the responsibility of leadership. That my behavior is immature, I don't pay attention to classes, I clown around too much –"

"Do you?"

She scratched her head. "Maybe? Sometimes. It's hard to stay focused all the time! There's lots of people you have to pay attention to, and some of these classes feel so… long."

I made a sympathetic face. She hadn't mentioned Port by name, but she didn't need to. "Yeah, no, I get that. Look, you don't have to be best friends immediately. It sounds like Weiss's problems with you stem from an inability to respect you. She doesn't feel you're up to the task, and because of that, she doesn't accept you in the position. So… show her you're a dependable leader. Act responsible. Set an example. Organize the team through tasks. In other words, lead. If Weiss has legitimate feedback, take it seriously, but don't let her walk all over you. If you're consistently competent and assertive, she'll start feeling more comfortable having you in charge. Ideally you'll get to a point of mutual respect, where you both feel like you can trust and rely on each other. And that's a good foundation for a friendship."

Ruby pondered this for a moment. "So… you're saying I should be more assertive."

"That was part of it, yeah."

She scratched her head. "Okay then, uh… I'll try to think of some tasks I can guide team RWBY through. Maybe we can work on our room… it's kind of cramped…"

"Okay, yeah. Sure. That's a start."

"I'm going to order everybody around, just like a drill sergeant!" Ruby announced happily.

That was my fault, wasn't it? "So… a year ago I would be fully behind that approach. And I know I said to be more assertive. But according to my teammates, it's possible to go too far in the drill sergeant direction."

"Oh." She made a thoughtful face. "Okay, then. I'm going to put things to a vote! Decisions shall be made via fully democratic processes, that… uh…" She scrunched her nose, searching for the right words to continue. "That follow the appropriate guidelines and… regulations! Yeah! Regulations."

I suppressed a smile. "That's a good option to have in the toolbox, but it doesn't work in all situations. Sometimes, you have to just call the shots."

"Then this is confusing", Ruby said, frustrated. "There's so much stuff for a leader to think about. Everything depends on you, but not really, because you also have to learn to rely on other people. But not so much that you'll be a load. You have to listen to everyone's opinions but also make decisions, and you have to balance it all so that you won't be a tyrant or a pushover. There are things you can try that work in some situations but not others, and there's no guarantee that anything will work. You can ask other people for advice… but any advice you get can work for the person who's giving it but that doesn't mean it will work for you. And it's not like there's some manual or anything! So you have to wing it and learn as you go, and you could do your best and still get it wrong."

She didn't have to call me out like that. "Well… yeah. Pretty much."

"Hngh." Ruby stayed silent for a while, probably pondering the complexity of life and the meaning of power. Meanwhile, we had reached the Great Hall.

"Don't fret too much about it", I offered as we entered. "It'll all work out. In Atlas, we say that patience is the hole through which excellence whistles."

"Hm?" She looked at me questioningly; then, her face lit up. "Of course! I'm going to get a whistle!"

I blinked. "What?"

"A whistle! That way, it'll be easier to get everyone's attention. And then I can ask them to vote! It's the best of both worlds!"

"Um… okay, that's a train of thought." Kind of random, but she looked happier now. So… that was good. I supposed.

"I can also use it to send signals! And coordinate team exercises! Coco, that was a genius idea!"

"Thank you, but it was just a proverb. I didn't mean it so literally –"

"Oh look, there's my team. Hey!" She waved enthusiastically. "Hey everyone! Your dependable leader is here! Look, Weiss! I made it on time because I'm very responsible! Okay, maybe I'm a little bit late…" She turned to me. "I'll catch you later, Coco. Good talk! Thanks for all the advice. And thanks for the whistle tip!"

"I did not –"

But she was already off in tornado form, rushing to join her team. I looked for my own. It was pretty easy: Yatsuhashi was towering over everybody. The tips of two bunny ears were perking up near his shoulder. I followed them downwards to see Velvet's happy little face as she waved at me.

"Where were you?" Fox sent as I approached.

"Give me a break", I sent back. "I've had a long day of training, and… I think I adopted a child on my way here. Did I miss anything important?"

"And the matches will take place next Thursday in the colosseum", Ozpin concluded. "Interested fourth-year teams should inform Professor Goodwitch by Friday."

"There's going to be an event where student teams fight professional Huntsmen", Yatsu explained. "Professors and a few invited guests. A full student team against one pro Huntsman at a time. I think it will be instructive to watch."

"Oh. That's cool. Can we participate?"

Fox shook his head. "Fourth-year teams only."

"That's bullshit."

"Now I must move on to something more serious", Ozpin continued. "As you may have heard, Golden Wall Street has been the target of terrorist attacks. Houses and businesses were destroyed. Local defenses are currently shattered, and emotions are running high. Until restorations are complete, residents will be in heightened danger for Grimm attacks. That means the affected neighborhoods will need protection… and Beacon is going to help."

There was a general murmur of agreement.

"Teams of students will aid in guarding the neighborhoods on a rotating basis. Your exact placement will depend upon your year, with higher-year teams being assigned to more dangerous areas. And… since the White Fang is helping with the restorations, you will need to coordinate your efforts with theirs; in other words, work with them."

"What?"

I turned towards the source of the shout. Weiss Schnee. She was a bit hard to see in the crowd, partially hidden behind a much taller blond girl. The shout seemed to have been involuntary, but she was now talking and gesturing wildly at her teammates, inaudibly but vigorously. She wasn't the only one with a strong reaction. This time, the crowd's murmur was more divided.

The White Fang. It had started out as a paramilitary group to defend the newly-acquired Faunus rights after the war. Organizing self-defense training. Medical programs offering care for animal traits that regular doctors didn't know how to deal with. Food banks for Faunus who needed them. Literacy programs for Faunus children with inadequate or non-existent access to schooling.2

But there was another side to it. Conflicts with law enforcement. Mutual shootouts, with each side claiming the other had started it. Accusations ranging from theft and property destruction to more serious things. Speeches by prominent members that were full of fury, calling for change by any means required.

For most of its history, it had not been a fully unified group with a strict hierarchy, but rather a collection of individuals with common goals. There were local leaders reporting to kingdom-wide leaders, who in turn reported to a high leader; but, especially as the group expanded, subgroups operated with a large degree of independence.

Ozpin raised a hand to call for silence. "I understand that this is a divisive decision, but please remember that we are Huntsmen first and foremost. On the job, we are politically neutral. We take no sides. We simply protect everyone who needs it. You will find that your job sometimes entails working with people you may not see eye to eye with on other matters."

The crowd settled down, at least enough to let him continue.

"Finally, and moving on to something more pleasant, Beacon is starting a peer mentorship program. Professor Goodwitch will explain it in more detail."

Glynda took the floor. "The general idea is for upperclassmen to help freshmen integrate smoothly into Beacon. Participation is completely optional. As an example, upperclassmen could organize an activity. It can be anything you think would have been useful to you in your first year, such as a workshop or a field trip. It can also be something social. If necessary, you can speak with a professor to help plan it. Then you oversee it, help out and answer questions. Freshmen can also arrange meetings to discuss anything that concerns them: for instance, ask for help with study planning, or get advice on interpersonal issues, team conflicts, and, if relevant, leadership. Of course, professors are still available for such discussions, but sometimes it can be easier to speak with a peer."

Well, that was interesting.

"Sounds cool. Let's do it", I sent. "What do you all think?"

Yatsuhashi nodded. "If my experience can be of use to others, I believe it is my duty to share it."

"I think it's a nice idea", Velvet sent. "I'm not really sure I'm suited to mentor anybody, but I'll do my best to help."

Oh, Velvet.

"Sure you can, V", Yatsu replied, smiling and nudging her. "They'll love you."

"Yeah, and if they don't, send them to us", Fox added. "We'll take care of it."

"Fox!"

"I'm kidding, I'm kidding. Mostly."

"What do you think, Fox?" I asked.

"Eh. It's not really my kind of thing, but if you all sign up for it, I will too", he sent. "Just don't put me in a position where I have to do a lot of talking."

XXX

A/N:

1 I headcannoned Coco as Atlesian before the books came out: based on the background I gave her, her mom is the CEO of a weapon manufacturing company and her dad the head editor of a fashion magazine (CFVY Chronicles: First Years, Chapter 2: Fox – Settling in). I decided to keep this background because it doesn't contradict the plot of the show or the books, and it could come useful later on (eg Velvet will need hard-light Dust after the embargo; Coco's mom might help with that.)

2 I made some changes to the White Fang. Originally I was going to add a note spelling them out, but I think it's better to give the story a chance to show them. If they are still unclear after chapter 6, I will consider an explanatory note.