After everyone decided on a pattern of who would go with JDGS each round, the Phil cup was set to begin. Ruby was first up while everyone else watched from the stands. For the first round, were fighting against 'Team Jungle Vice', consisting of four of the simian Heartless, or Power Wilds as Jiminy had dubbed them, and three Soldiers. Yang and Blake watched all the more intently, to have a clear idea of what to expect when they got into the fray.

In the midst of the rather simple battle, Jaune managed to slay a Soldier with ease that surprised him. "Hey, I think I'm getting the hang of this!" he said confidently. Though he let that confidence go to his head as he attempted to do a flourish, only to receive a cruel reminder that they were still in the middle of a battle when a Soldier blindsided him with a kick. Phil shook his at Jaune's blunder and yelled out, "Agh! Come on, kid! Remember rule number XVI! don't turn yer back on yer foe!"

"Sorry Phil!" Jaune called back, pushing himself to his feet, just in time to raise his shield and stop the Soldier's claws. After a brief struggle, Jaune managed to shake the soldier off and thrust forward with his shield. A gesture which was suddenly met with Goofy slamming his own shield into the Heartless from behind. The resulting strike sandwiched the Heartless, resulting in a loud CLANK from their shields impacting.

Sora found himself face to face with the last remaining Power Wild. As he did, the shimmer of green on his Keyblade caught his attention. He had no idea why or what it was, but deep down he had a similar feeling to when he learned how to use his other spells. So, he raised his Keyblade up and he yelled out the word that came to mind as the breeze around it seemed to grow stronger. "WIND!"

The next moment, Sora was surrounded by a visible, swirling current of air. The Power Wild lunged at him with its claws. Though the attack struck home, Sora noticed it didn't hurt him as much as it normally would have. Was it because of this new spell he discovered? He didn't stop to think of why, because like Phil said, never turn your back on your foe. One thing was clear to the surprised spectators. This spell was working like a shield. Taking the moment to strike back, Sora charged at the Heartless as it sat there, momentarily scratching its head like a canine.

As Sora took that opportunity to slaw the confounded Power Wild, Ruby and Donald finished off the last Soldiers together as Goofy and Jaune looked to see their team won. As the team celebrated their victory, Ruby turned to Sora, her eyes drawn to the visible currents of wind that were gradually fading away. "Whoa, Sora. Is that a new spell?"

Sora looked around himself, the wind still billowing everywhere he was. "Yeah, I think so. It'...a little different from the others."

"That's the Aero spell," Donald explained. "At the base level, it surrounds whoever the caster wants and reduces any damage the target would normally take. It's also more advanced, like the Thunder spell. So try not to overuse it." As Donald explained this, he looked at the duck with a mildly annoyed expression. "Wait a second, Donald. If you know all this, why don't you just teach me everything you know about magic?" Sora asked, earning an equally annoyed frown from the duck. "Because if I did, you'd just use it all again and again and wear yourself out. Then you'd be a sitting duck. You still need to learn restraint."

"What!? I wouldn't do that!" Sora protested, earning a raised eyebrow from Donald. A silent reminder of the time he did that very thing in this very arena the first time they came here. "...A-Again." Needless to say, Sora's little addendum was even less convincing.

"Wow, that Keyblade's full of surprises." Yang said, impressed by the weapon in question. She hadn't seen nearly as much of it as Ruby did, but what she saw was definitely interesting. "Still, I wonder how a little guy like Sora was chosen by something so important. He doesn't exactly seem like much of a fighter." she added, her tone shifting to one of fittingly sisterly concern.

"Honestly Yang, I'm as confused as you are...That felt weird to say." Weiss interjected, taking a moment to digest the words that came out of the sunny pugilist's mouth. It wasn't the first time she'd agreed with Yang, but it was just as odd as the first time. It wasn't often she actually questioned before jumping in.

Blake seemed to keep her opinion to herself as she silently watched Sora. Comparing his skills to Ruby, it was clear he wasn't nearly as experienced a fighter as them. Even Jaune had more experience than him, harsh as that was to say. Sure he seemed to have a lot of natural talent and enthusiasm, but given what happened before their world was destroyed, if Sora ever ran into...No. She she didn't want to think about that right now. She didn't want to think about HIM.

"Alright kids, good first round! Time to tag out yer partner for the next round!" Phil announced, catching everyone's attention. "Ruby, yer switchin' out with Weiss!"

Hearing that, Weiss immediately hopped to her feet, a confident, bordering on smug, expression on her face. "As barbaric as I find this, I'll oblige." she said. A mildly haughty statement which earned a concerned interjection from Pyrrha. "Um, Weiss? Rule number XXIV. Don't get cocky."

Phil pointed a finger toward Pyrrha as she recited one of his rules. "What she said. So watch ya don't end up rippin' that fancy dress o' yours tryin' to show off, Twinkle-Toes." he lectured, earning a huff from the Schnee heiress. "For your information, I have been trained for this since I was young. And second of all, this is not a dress, Phil! It's a combat skirt." Weiss corrected.

Ruby zoomed over to the stands, hearing what Weiss was saying, and smirked confidently. "Yeah!" she stated as Weiss held her hand out to for Ruby to deliver a low-five. Combat skirt respect!

Rolling his eyes, Phil walked off and waved the two friends off. "Sure, sure. Whatever you say, sister. Just get in there." The last thing he wanted to deal with was overconfidence of the haughty sort. A vice that the Schnee heiress seemed to have quite a propensity of.

The next team Sora and the others would fight were 'Monkey and Magic' consisting of a Power Wild with nine of those color-coded magic wielding Heartless. Two Green Requiem, two Red Nocturne and five Yellow Opera's. The battle began with a preemptive strike from Team JDGS and the ever so graceful and dignified Schnee heiress. A stark contrast to Ruby who couldn't keep still in the stands as she thrust her hands up into the air, throwing air punches with every blow her friends and teammate dealt the Heartless. "Yeah, Weiss! Beat em down! Show em who's boss! Let em know that Team RWBY is the best te-"

"Ruby, could you PLEASE not do this right now!?" Weiss called back to her over-enthusiastically cheering leader, skewering one of the Yellow Operas. This was just like that demonstration in Professor Port's class...Well perhaps not exactly like it. She had to admit she was a bit...brusque with Ruby back then. But this wasn't the time for reminiscing!

Ruby, of course, pouted in response and sat back down. "Look kiddo, I get wantin' to cheer for the fighters, especially if they're yer friends, but ya gotta make sure ya don't distract em. Kay?" Phil said, patting the despondent huntress on the shoulder. Ruby's only response was a pitiful little whine.

As the match went on, Yang focused her eyes on Sora, watching how he fought. Particularly as he discharged that familiar dome of power that stunned the Power Wilds surrounding him, leaving them vulnerable for a group performed coup de grace. "I gotta say. He didn't look like much when I first saw him, but it looks like Sora's the real deal after all." she said, genuinely impressed.

"'Course he's the real deal! I wouldn't be trainin' him if he weren't!" Phil said proudly...before shifting his eyes smoothly, at least in his mind, toward Yang again. With a lick of his hand and a wipe of it along his balding head and a big, silly, attempt at a charming smile, he hops onto Yang's lap, distracting her from the fight with something much less...pleasant. "And ya know, sunshine...I'm real too~" he said in a ridiculously attempted suave, air smooch accompanied voice. All it got him was a grossed out Yang who grabbed Phil by one of his horns and threw him to the other side of the stands.

"WAAAAAAAAAAAH!"

As Phil flew to the other side of the arena, Donald and Goofy each slew a Yellow Opera with a strike of their weapons while Sora and Weiss slashed and skewered the other two two. With only one of them left and a couple Red Nocturnes, whose fire was intercepted by Goofy and Jaune's shield. Within moments, Weiss dashed over to them with the aid of her glyphs, slaying them with extra grace and precision. A display which made Jaune sigh as Sora, Donald, and Goofy celebrated their victory. Weiss kept her composure and smiled confidently, giving her side-ponytail a swish with her hand. "Just as expected."

Pushing himself up and shaking the impact induced dizziness from his head, Phil turned and wandered back to the other side of the stands. "That gal's got a lot to learn about humility."

Weiss returned to the stands herself, sitting beside Pyrrha as she tagged out with Blake. As they prepared for the next round, Sora remembered something from the...less-than stellar flight back to Traverse Town. "Hey, Blake. I meant to ask when we came back to Traverse Town. When we got off the Gummi Ship, I thought I saw something in your hair when your bow was loose."

Blake shrugged, trying to act nonchalant as she realized uneasily what it was Sora potentially noticed. "Considering you spun us out of control and nearly crashed us into a meteor? My hair was a mess and so was everybody else's. But it's not worth thinking about."

Sora couldn't help feeling skeptical about Blake's response, though before he could inquire further, Donald marched over and pointed in accusatory manner. "Yeah. And our clothes were filthy from all that rolling around on the floor because of YOU. No more piloting the ship for you. Ever."

The duck's decree made Sora whine with annoyance. "Aw, come on Donald. That was a long time ago." Sora said. Why couldn't the duck just let it go? "It hasn't even been a full day since then." Donald's response was...more than enough reason, perhaps. At that point, Goofy realized that once again the tension between Sora and Donald was rising. Getting between them, he spoke in a concerned yet cheerful tone. "Now now, fellahs. We're here to fight in a tournament. Not each other. Right? So let's just try to be friends, okay?"

Donald and Sora glared at each other wordlessly after Goofy's reminder of their priority. A concern that Jaune and Blake shared as they looked at the arguing pair. Angry as they were, the captain was right. They weren't here to fight with each other, despite how much they drove each other up the wall. "Fine." They both said after a synchronized sigh.

As they finished preparing, made a mental note to make sure her ribbon was more secure. Sora was a good kid based on first impressions, but she wasn't sure how he would react to what she really was. On the other hand...Sora didn't seem like the sort of person who would discriminate someone over such things. But she was more worried what Sora would think about the fact she was part of a group like the White Fang...She could think about it another time. They had a cup to win.

"Alright everybody! Time fer round three!" Phil announced boisterously. "Team JDGS vs Big Feet!"

As his announcement rang through the arena, four Power Wilds materialized before the group, but suddenly two more familiar goes fell from the sky with a double clank. Sora, Donald, Goofy, Jaune, and Blake went wide eyed with surprise at the vaguely familiar pair of feet that crashed down behind the simian Heartless. "Wait a second. Aren't those feet-"

"Alright junior heroes! Go get em!" Sora's observation was cut off as Phil announced the beginning of the round. Now was the time to fight, not reminisce...not that heartless were worth reminiscing over. So off they went to vanquish their monstrous foes as true heroes must. And so they did, with Goofy and Jaune using their shields to stop the first two Power Wilds while Donald and Sora set them ablaze with fire spells.

The last two Power wilds all bounded toward the group, making a beeline for Blake. The sharp eyed girl waited for them to lash out at her before suddenly vanishing. The next moment, the remaining two simian were cut in two with expert precision.

"Woohooo! Go Blake! Go team SRDG! And, uh, Jaune too!" Ruby cheered boisterously from the stands, only for Weiss to grab her by the shoulder and sit her back down with a huff.

With the Hammerlegs the being the only opponent left, everyone turned and ran to surrounded it. The pair of lower limbed Heartless stomped hard towards Donald, leaving small shockwaves from the impact where it hit. Donald and Goofy used the same team attack as before, shields raised to block the attack. The recoil of their defense caused the Hammerlegs to rise then plummet hard, laying on the side. Sora took the opportunity to damage them as much as he could. The ability he gained from the glowing sphere Cloud gave him was used again, making him dash forward with his Keyblade aimed ahead. It didn't stop after the first strike this time because Sora turned right around when he gained his footing and went towards the opponent again in the same way. It happened a third time, making them vanish. "That's the power of the Keyblade!" Sora said triumphantly as he swung his weapon in front of himself like a windmill blade.

"Does he have to show off like that? His childishness is almost as bad as Ruby's." Weiss said with unapologetic derisiveness, earning an offended, "Hey!" from her partner. As Blake returned to the stands, she was already next to Weiss, saying, "Weiss, I don't think you're one to lecture others about showing off." Earning an equally offended, "Hey!" from the Schnee heiress.

"Oh, let him have his fun, Weiss." Yang said cheerfully as she stood and stretched out her limbs and loosened up her joints, "Just like I'm about to." finishing up with a cracking of her knuckles. She had been looking forward to this.

After they took their time to rest and relax, the next round eventually started. This time Sora and the group, with Yang now filling in for Blake, were up against 'Team Magic Alert' consisting of ten opponents: five Red Nocturnes and five Yellow Operas. "Hey! There's so many! That's not fair!" Donald said once the fight started.

Yang, however, wasn't in t he least bit deterred. If anything...this was just what she was hoping for. "I say...the more the merrier!" she said, activating her Ember Celica gauntlets and rushing in with reckless abandon towards the group of enemies. As Yang started to pummel several of the Heartless, they all converged upon her attempting to gang up. Something she immediately threw a wrench as she leapt into the air, smiling ever confidently as she reeled her fist back and shot down to the ground with her fist impacting the ring. The force of her punch sent out a great shockwave that sent the Heartless all flying.

The resulting shockwave made Sora, Donald, Goofy, and Jaune stumble slightly. But when they saw the ring of stunned Heartless, they almost immediately sobered up. Already, they had an advantage. One that Yang was beginning to capitalize on as she began pummeling several Yellow Operas at once, even throwing one into a Red Nocturne before they could even jump in. Yang was figuratively cutting a swath through them all by herself. "Wh-Hey! Leave some for us, Yang!" Sora called out, brandishing his Keyblade again with the rest of his team following behind. "Heh. Sorry boys! First come, first SERVE!" Yang joked, grabbing one of the Red nocturnes by the...hat? head? Before using it as a cudgel on its fellows.

"Whoooaaaa mama!" Phil exclaimed, genuinely impressed with the blonde huntress's ferocity. He knew that these girls all had something special about them, but he was liking Yang more and more. Though clearly still for...specific reasons.

Ruby and Weiss both let out sighs as they saw Yang already giving the Heartless a one-woman wallop. She had a habit of getting herself into such situations, being the thrill seeker that she is. Though at times, she could be even more of a showoff than Weiss. A comment that Ruby decided not to say out loud this time.

Blake however didn't share any of those thoughts. She was more focused on the match itself. Though she couldn't help smiling faintly at her partner's sunny enthusiasm, even in battle. At least when they weren't desperately fighting for their lives. It reminded her of the time they met in the forest for their initiation into Beacon. Undoubtedly one of her fondest memories.

Of course, in the midst of her reminiscence, Yang had managed to singlehandedly pummel their foes, with the rest of the group getting only one each. But regardless, they won the match. A victory topped off with Yang punching her gauntlet clad fists together. But also..."I guess you could say Magic Alert was...a False Alarm!"

The entire arena went silent in the wake of Yang's pun. Her teammates groaned in an almost painful manner, Jaune and Donald both facepalmed, Pyrrha seemed to be struggling to keep composed despite the pain of the pun, while Sora looked at her with a confused expression. Goofy on the other hand, "...A-hyuck! Oh, I get it! Cause they were an alert but not that big a deal for ya! Nice one, Yang!" was genuinely amused. A sentiment which made Yang beam. Finally, someone who understood the magnificent art of puns!

A sentiment NOBODY else here shared. "Oy vey, that's a detraction in the appeal factor." Phil muttered. If this was what he had to look forward to every time Yang was in a battle, these cups were going to get a LOOOOOT longer.