A.N: So, a few big announcements, I created a TV Tropes page for Wild Hunt for a little extra advertisement. Feel free to add to it if you like. Just google "RWBY Wild Hunt TV Tropes" and you should get the link.

Also, for anyone who enjoys my writing and wants to see some original content, check out my profile, because I just added an update for my original novel: Age of Heroes.

Chapter 20: Golden Opportunity

James Ironwood found himself instinctively picking the wax out of his ear, a gross thing for someone of his station to do, but it was instinct, because he honestly thought he had misheard what Professor Ozpin was trying to say to him over FaceTime on their scrolls. "Could you...repeat that, Oz?" He requested.

"Certainly," Ozpin said, "it has come to my attention that the world, especially the people of Vale, has a very low opinion of the Kingdom of Atlas."

Ironwood held his face in the palm of his hand in exhaustion. "Something that I seem to be the only one concerned about." He noted, thinking about all those rich fools and stuffy military leaders who brushed off Atlas's lack of popularity with the rest of the world.

"James," Ozpin continued, "you and I both know this can't be allowed to stand. Divided, we are vulnerable."

"Ozpin, we were just as vulnerable united." Ironwood reminded him.

Ozpin shook his head. "James," he said sternly, "I'm not going to sugarcoat this. Your actions played a huge part in dividing us. I need you to understand that."

Ironwood grimaced at that statement. He honestly did not agree. Nne of what happened at the Vytal Festival would have taken place in the first place had Ozpin listened to him from the beginning. However, Ironwood held his tongue. The last thing he wanted right now was get into an argument with the only person he could count on to support him if the Atlas Council came after his position. And he certainly did not want to lose a friend in Ozpin too.

"And so, I'm suggesting a weeklong student exchange program. One team from Atlas comes to Beacon and a team from Beacon comes to learn from Atlas." Ozpin said simply. "We'll spend the rest of this week working out the necessary paperwork."

"I take it that it won't just be a team of students?" Ironwood inquired. "Will a member of our respective faculties be accompanying these students?"

"That is correct, James." Ozpin nodded. "I'll leave choosing the Atlas teacher to you, of course. I should inform you, however, that we have already chosen our representing professor and team for this."

"I'm sure you have. Glynda always was an obvious choice for events like these. Peter and Barty mean well, but they are...quirky. And Professor Peach is rarely around." Ironwood noted.

Ozpin could not help but chuckle at Ironwood rushing to such an assumption. "What?" Ironwood said flatly.

"You know, with how eager you are to see her, you really can't be surprised when sometimes we tease you about a possible schoolboy crush, James." Ozpin noted.

Ironwood frowned. "Oz, I'm far too professional to date a colleague like Glynda." He claimed.

"Don't worry, I believe you." Ozpin promised.

"Anyway, it's actually not Glynda, James." Ozpin told him. "Hansel will be the professor representing Beacon."

Ironwood went as stiff as a board, doing his best impression of an emotionless robot. The general heaved a sigh and found his voice. "I thought you said this was supposed to improve relations between Vale and Atlas." He said, already feeling the headache coming along.

Ozpin frowned at Ironwood's statement. "Hansel has promised me that he intends to do his best to remain professional. I expect you to do the same, James." Ozpin sternly told him.

"Oz, I'm not some child that needs to be reminded to get along with his siblings." Ironwood frowned at Ozpin's tone.

"And yet you both have no problem acting like children when you're in the same room." Ozpin reminded him. "At least Hansel has hot headed youth as an excuse to fall back on. A weak excuse certainly, but an excuse all the same. You are a grown man, James. And yet you can't seem to restrain yourself from talking down to him, treating him like a child, when he's just as valuable to our efforts."

"And I especially need you to be cooperative, as in his free time, Hansell will be investigating a new lead he discovered on Gray Jackal." Ozpin revealed, purposely hiding that the lead Hansel was investigating was a mole in Ironwood's own army. He would leave that news to Hansel.

Ironwood frowned. "Couldn't he just pass the information onto me and I could look into this lead for him?" Ironwood suggested.

"Do you think I didn't suggest that myself?" Ozpin frowned. "I don't mean to sound harsh, James, but Hansel does not trust you. The only way we were going to look into this was if he went himself. However, he does still need your cooperation."

"He doesn't trust me, and yet he still expects me to cooperate with him?" Ironwood deadpanned.

"Because I expect him to cooperate with you." Ozpin sternly told Ironwood.

Ironwood heaved a sigh. "Hansel knows the position he is in." Ozpin assured Ironwood. "And while I'm fully expecting you two to butt heads at least once or twice, I know I can trust him to remain professional and make sure all of this goes off without a hitch. What I want to know is, can I trust you to do the same?"

Ironwood nodded without hesitation. Personal feelings aside, he was a professional. "You can, Oz." Ironwood told him. "Send me the paperwork. I'll make the announcement to my school and we'll get everything signed and have one of our teams over at Beacon by next Monday."

Ozpin smiled and nodded, satisfied with that answer. "Thank you, James." He said gratefully. "I truly do believe this next week will be beneficial to both our schools and our kingdoms."

"I really do hope you're right, Oz." Ironwood managed to return the smile with his own. "I'll talk to you later."

And with that, Ironwood cut the connection between himself and Ozpin. At that moment, he turned his attention to an older woman who bore a striking resemblance to Weiss Schnee. "Well, Specialist Schnee, your thoughts?"

Winter Schnee folded her arms. "The idea has merit. If the people won't concern themselves with Atlas' reputation outside of our kingdom, then we're going to have to take matters into our own hands." She noted.

"A sound statement." Ironwood nodded.

"Although, I am with you in my concerns regarding Hansel Kobalt." Winter admitted.

"Are you speaking as an Atlesian Specialist or a concerned sister?" Ironwood inquired curiously.

"Both, sir," Winter replied, "I respected Weiss' decision to attend Beacon to get away from our father, but I did so under the belief that she would get a decent education. But now...I simply do not have any confidence in the academy. However, Hansel Kobalt's reputation alone merits concern. That is where my concern as an Atlesian Specialist comes in."

Ironwood sighed. "Oz acts like I have some sort of personal vendetta against the boy." He noted. "But every concern I have regarding him stems from the good of the many."

"I was never aware that you had a history with him, sir." Winter admitted.

"It's not like I talk about every person I argue with." Ironwood pointed out. "I'd be having a never ending conversation if that were the case."

"Would it be too much to ask why you and Hansel don't get along, sir?" Winter inquired curiously. "It just seems strange that you of all people would constantly argue with someone like that. It just seems beneath your station."

"Perhaps you are right, but it's always been like this." Ironwood admitted with a sigh. "I've been against Hansel's closeness with Oz ever since he was that scared and confused little boy that was dropped off at Beacon without warning."

"From the very beginning, I've always been concerned that he was a distraction for Oz, and for Glynda too. I just can't help but wonder if any setbacks we've experienced over the years, trying to maintain world peace could have been avoided if Oz was one hundred percent dedicated to his duties and not distracted by raising and training a flight risk of a child."

Winter frowned. "Sir, not that I don't disagree, but don't you think that's a little harsh? It's not like the boy had any control of where he ended up."

Ironwood almost pointed out that Hansel could have and should have ended up in foster care, rather than being raised and trained by someone who had more important duties. However, memories of the last time he pointed that out came rushing back and Ironwood felt his heart drop in sadness. Even he could no longer believe that.

"Maybe I am harsh, but harshness is a necessity sometimes when trying to maintain peace." Ironwood noted. "And even if I admit to that, it still doesn't assuage my concerns that he is a flight risk."

"As a soldier, Hansel is a very unique case. He's not beholden to kingdoms, religions, schools, that kind of stuff simply means nothing to him in the grand scheme of things." Ironwood explained. "The only thing he's one hundred percent loyal to is Ozpin, the man who took him in. And as the closest thing he's ever had to a mother, Glynda is a very close second."

"Is that a bad thing?" Winter asked. "While we've had our disagreements with him, it cannot be denied that Ozpin is dedicated to the world's safety and security. And if Hansel is fully loyal to Ozpin, that makes him loyal to Ozpin's cause."

"And what exactly would happen if Hansel found someone he admired more than Ozpin?" Ironwood asked curiously. "Or worse yet, what if he lost faith in Ozpin?"

Ironwood sighed. "The reality is, if that boy went rogue...if he turned against us, and was no longer restrained by the morals he learned from Ozpin, he would, without a doubt, become one of the most dangerous men in the world."

Ironwood found himself thinking back to the time he asked Professor Peach about the psychiatric profile she had done on Hansel when the boy was sixteen, a year before he went into the field. "Hansel possesses a near-pathological desire to prove himself, to complete whatever it is he has currently set his mind to. I can't really tell you what this stems from, because he was rather guarded during his tests, but it does worry me."

"His family was the same way." Ironwood admitted. "The Kobalts...there were none more driven to succeed than them. If there was something they wanted to do, something they had set their mind to completing, they would not rest until it was finished."

"I wasn't aware you had history with the Kobalt Family either." Winter admitted.

"One of my first jobs in the army was guard duty for a Kobalt, before...the incident that destroyed their reputation." Ironwood explained before sighing sadly, reminiscing about those days.

"Back then...I truly admired their family. Not only were they the most driven among us...but there has, and most likely never will be, a group of people with more love in their hearts than the Kobalts." Ironwood revealed.

"Love, sir?" Winter was surprised at Ironwood's choice of words.

"For the world." Ironwood explained. "The Kobalts loved the people of Remnant, more than anything. Everything they created, everything they ever did was with the desire to protect that which they love."

"It was that love," Ironwood grimly revealed, "that drove them mad in the first place."

Winter's eyes widened. "That is why he's a flight risk." Ironwood explained. "What sane general lets someone like that run freely without restrictions? I can assure you, Winter. I have no irrational hatred for that boy or his family. I just can't afford to take any foolish risks."

"Why did Professor Ozpin take him in?" Of all the things Winter could have asked Ironwood, that was a question that truly surprised him.

"If you believe all this, there's no way that the professor had not at least considered these possibilities. So why did he take Hansel in?" Winter was very curious about that.

Ironwood sighed. "I don't know," he admitted, "the only explanation Oz ever offered was that the boy needed love, not isolation."

Ironwood then gave Winter a completely serious gaze. "Schnee," he said, "I don't think I need to tell you this, but my feelings should not impact your interactions with him. Whether we like it or not, Hansel will be the one taking these students to Atlas. I expect you to at least try and act cordial with him, as I will."

Winter nodded in understanding. "I am a professional, sir." She said. "I won't make the same mistake I did with Qrow Branwen."

Ironwood then remembered the other reason Hansel was investigating. He decided to ask Winter's opinion on the matter. "What kind of lead do you think Hansel is investigating?" He asked curiously.

Winter sighed. "I wish I knew, sir." She admitted. "But, it appears that we will be receiving no such information until Hansel himself has arrived."

Ironwood sighed, visibly bothered by this. "Oz wants us to cooperate with Hansel, and yet they won't even let us in on whatever it is that's going on."

"Sir, not that I don't wish they were more open about whatever is happening, but right now, we don't have the luxury to be picky." Winter reminded him.

Ironwood sighed again. "I know," he acknowledged, "Atlas' reputation has taken a major blow ever since the Vytal Festival. None of the kingdoms trust us right now."

I wish they understood the necessity of my decisions. Ironwood thought to himself.

"Then, if I may be so bold as to suggest this, it may be best to play by Professor Ozpin and Hansel's rules and use this event to repair our reputation." Winter suggested.

"I was thinking the exact thing." Ironwood admitted. "I trust you to do your part as well, Schnee."

"Of course, I am a humble soldier, General. I will do my best." Winter promised.

"That's what I like to hear. Dismissed, Specialist."

Back at Beacon Academy, Team RWBY found themselves strolling to Hansel Kobalt's office together. All four had received the same message on their scrolls from the young teacher: Come to my office now.

"Did we do something wrong?" Weiss immediately wondered.

"Yang?" Blake eyed her best friend suspiciously.

Yang actually looked offended. "Why do you immediately assume I did something to piss off Teach?"

"Maybe it's because you've made a game out of teasing the professor." Weiss deadpanned.

Yang stuck her tongue out at that statement. "Real mature, Yang." Blake sarcastically muttered.

The quartet arrived at Hansel's office. Ruby hummed thoughtfully at the familiar sight. "Been awhile since I've been here." She mused to herself before knocking.

They heard Hansel's muffled voice on the other side of the door. "Come in!"

Ruby opened the door and led her team inside. Ruby was already used to Hansel's office looking like a dorm room, having already seen it. The rest of the team was a different story.

"This looks more like a dorm room than an office." Weiss said exactly what the rest of the team was thinking.

Hansel Kobalt was calmly sitting in an armchair, eating from a plate of chocolate chip cookies. Ruby's eyes immediately were drawn to the plate, almost hypnotically. Blake's senses perked up, smelling the faint scent of a recently opened oven. She turned to see a tiny kitchen. Did Hansel bake those himself?

Hansel noticed Ruby's trance-like stare, directed at the plate of cookies he had baked and rolled his eyes. "Here." He muttered, taking a cookie and tossing it at Ruby.

Ruby, much to the shock of her teammates, caught the cookie like a dog playing fetch and immediately began to nibble on it.

"I'm actually kind of jealous of the setup you've got here, Teach." Yang admitted with a smile. "We don't get a kitchen."

"How does this count as an office?" Weiss wondered. "This looks nothing like a teacher's office."

Hansel rolled his eyes again, hearing that statement for the third time in his life since coming back to Beacon. "Yeah, I get that a lot." He said. "This place was renovated specially for me when I started living and training here. As for the kitchen, if I'm remembering correctly, Glynda was the one who insisted on it."

"Anyway," Hansel continued, "sit anywhere you like. I don't care. I just need you four present-"

"SO GOOD!" Hansel almost leapt from his chair, startled by Ruby's sudden joyous squeal of delight. "This cookie tastes so good."

Hansel gazed at the cookies in surprise. "Really?" He seemed surprised. "Honestly, I don't think they're my best work. The spaghetti I made for dinner a few days ago, that was one of my better works. I actually had to leave some for leftovers the next day because the sauce soaks into the noodles more, and then it really tastes good."

"...You cook?" Weiss realized what Hansel was getting at.

Hansel shrugged. "Is that really such a surprise? Huntsmen need to know all sorts of skills to survive in the field. Not every day is eating out at nice restaurants."

"Glynda taught me to cook." Hansel gazed at the kitchen. "Whether it's roasting meat over a campfire or using actual cooking appliances, cooking is cooking."

Ruby finished scarfing down her cookie. She then gazed hungrily at Hansel's plate. Hansel frowned slightly and picked up the plate. "Everyone gets one." He told her flatly.

Ruby pouted before crouching like she was about to pounce on Hansel. Hansel gave Ruby a deadpan expression, knowing what was about to happen. "You really want to do this?"

"You bet I do." Cookies were serious business to Ruby Rose.

Yang face-palmed at the sight of the two staring each other down, knowing what was coming. Ruby then transformed into rose petals and flew towards Hansel, intent on stealing from that plate of cookies.

Hansel kept that same deadpan expression on his face as he casually moved the plate up and down, side to side, but always out of Ruby's reach. The rest of Team RWBY could only watch with a mixture of annoyance and awe as Hansel calmly kept the plate of cookies away from Ruby for about five minutes.

Heaving a tired sigh, Hansel reached out to the petals and tightened his hand into a fist. Ruby appeared in her physical form, her collar in Hansel's hand. She wriggled in his grip, trying to get free. "Enough." Hansel simply but sternly told her.

Ruby pouted. "I was holding back, for the record." She claimed. "I didn't want to make a mess of your room."

Hansel rolled his eyes. "How did you know you'd get Ruby by the collar if you did that?" Yang asked curiously.

"I didn't." Hansel replied simply.

Yang smirked. "What would've happened if you accidentally grabbed Ruby by her...ahem, budding roses." She teased, still thrilled with the knowledge she had gained last Saturday that Hansel was shy when the subject of women's bodies came up.

Ruby turned red at this while Blake and Weiss both glared at Yang for her crassness. Hansel managed to remain stoic, not wanting to give her the satisfaction. Inwardly, however…

Oh thank God, that could've been embarrassing. Was what Hansel was actually thinking. And how in the world was I going to explain something like that to Glynda and Professor Ozpin?

"She shouldn't have been acting so childishly." Hansel tried to deflect. "What would you have done."

"I would've asked if you enjoyed the touch and then I would've broken your jaw.' Yang said bluntly.

"Better people than you have tried, Xiao Long. In fact, better people than you have tried to do much worse." Hansel rolled his eyes. "Anyway, enough wasting time. I called you four here for a reason. And I'd really rather not waste my time not talking about that reason."

"We're not in trouble, are we?" Blake asked in worry.

Hansel raised his hand in reassurance. "Nah, nothing like that." He promised. "If you four were in trouble, I would've punished you during class, or added another parameter to this Saturday's detention."

"...So we're really still doing that every weekend?" Yang asked.

"What, did you think I wasn't serious?" Hansel looked at Yang in disbelief.

"...I was kinda hoping you at least had a very bad sense of humor." Yang shrugged.

"Does it count if I'm laughing at you four on the inside?" Hansel asked.

"You can laugh?" Yang countered.

Blake held her face in her palm, clearly unable to take another minute of Yang and Hansel in this weird game of one-upmanship they seemed to have. "Oh my God, oh my God, oh my God, oh my God, oh my God." She chanted.

Hansel folded his arms, relaxing into his chair. "Enough, I'm not going to get pulled into your pace." That seemed to be directed towards himself as much as it was towards Yang. "I called you four here because it relates to your education over next week."

"Our education?" Weiss was confused, and a bit worried. Last time Hansel did something that concerned their education, Ruby ended up pulling them into fighting some crime lord.

"In an effort to mend the relationship between Atlas and Beacon, Professor Ozpin came up with a stroke of genius of his own." Hansel explained. "Next week, a team and teacher from Atlas Academy will be traveling to Vale to learn here. A team and teacher from Beacon will be traveling to Atlas to do the same. Professor Ozpin and General Ironwood are working out the paperwork right now."

"A brilliant political move!" Weiss immediately exclaimed. "The academies are the linchpin of the kingdoms. Such an act shows we are still united in spite of everything."

"God knows Atlas could use some good PR after the mess they got themselves into." Hansel noted. "Still can't figure out how they thought any of the shit they pulled was a good idea."

"Wait, why are you telling us this, sir?" Blake inquired curiously.

"I'm surprised you haven't already figured it out." Hansel admitted before adding in his usual deadpan tone. "Congratulations, you four will be the team traveling to Atlas with me."

All four students gave their teacher a blank look at that statement. "Do...we get any say in this?" Yang asked curiously.

"None whatsoever," Hansel responded bluntly, "Professor Ozpin and I talked when he approached me with the idea and we immediately agreed you four were the best for this program for a variety of reasons."

"Awesome!" Ruby cheered, once again, catching Hansel off guard with her enthusiasm. "I've never been to Atlas! I've never even been out of Vale! This'll be so much fun!"

"Yang, we've gotta make sure we get as many souvenirs as possible when we're not studying!" Ruby said to her sister, who looked just as excited.

"I'm way ahead of you, Sis!" Yang cheered right back.

"You two aren't going to have any time for that." Hansel bluntly told them, but found himself ignored by their excitedness.

"Sir," Blake nervously spoke up, "I think you should find a different team to accompany you."

Everyone fell silent while Hansel stared at Blake, who was fidgeting uncomfortably. "That's not going to happen." Hansel bluntly told her. "We've already decided it's going to be you four, and that's final...didn't I just say you four had no say in this?"

Weiss looked at Blake, realizing immediately why she had a problem with going to Atlas. Frankly, so did she. So, Weiss decided to make sure Blake was not alone in this and spoke up herself. "Sir," she said, "I too have an issue with going to Atlas."

Ruby and Yang looked at their respective partners in surprise before slowly catching onto what the issue was. "Er...so do we." They said in unison.

"You two do not, in any way, sound believable after cheering about souvenirs." Hansel pointed out to the sisters. Hansel then turned his attention to Weiss. "As for you, Schnee, you don't have to confront your old man."

"You don't know my father, Professor." Weiss told him. "He'll find out I'm in Atlas, and he'll try to find some way to get me back under his thumb."

Hansel folded his arms. "Will you let him?"

"Excuse me?"

"Will you let him?" Hansel repeated. "It's a simple 'yes or no' question, Schnee."

"Sir, it's more complicated than that." Weiss told him.

Hansel shook his head. "It really isn't." He replied. "If you don't want him to do whatever it is you are so afraid of, don't let him. Remind him exactly of what I told him that day in the hospital."

Weiss' eyes widened in realization. "A Schnee on the frontlines is much better publicity for good old Jacques Schnee than some sheltered, shellshocked princess." Hansel reminded her.

Weiss looked at Blake in sympathy. Her worries had honestly made her forget how Hansel had managed to talk down her father before. But now, she was no help to Blake and her own concerns about going to Atlas.

Hansel then turned his attention to Blake, whose "bow" was suspiciously drooping now. "Now, why is Belladonna so concerned about going to Atlas?" Hansel mused. "Maybe it's because she's a Faunus?"

Blake turned pale while the rest of Team RWBY looked at Hansel in shock. "What?!" Ruby started sweating, immediately in denial. "No way is Blake a Faunus. That bow is just a bow. No way are they cat ears or something."

"Drop the bullshit." Hansel bluntly told the girls. "Using a paper-thin disguise like that is insulting to someone who's literal job is to hunt for and investigate evil. If I missed something that badly concealed, I'd have to laugh in my own face."

Blake sighed, now having realized the jig was up, and untied the ribbon around her ears, revealing that they were indeed ears. "How long did you know?" She asked softly.

"From the beginning." Hansel replied. "In fact, the whole faculty has known from the start, sorry to say. You may be able to fool your classmates, Belladonna, but I can assure you that disguise won't fool any professionals."

Blake's cat ears drooped again at this. Hansel heaved a sigh. "So let me guess," he said, "you don't want to go to Atlas because out of all the four kingdoms, Atlas has been the most notorious for how it has treated Faunus in the past."

"That's...one hundred percent accurate." Blake admitted. "I came to Beacon to avoid discrimination, to prove that it didn't matter what I was."

"So you decided to hide your identity instead of embracing it?" Hansel raised an eyebrow. "Doesn't that seem a little counterproductive?"

"What do you know?" Blake glared instinctively at Hansel. "You're not a Faunus."

"You're right, I'm not." Hansel nodded in agreement. "But I am someone who's traveled the world and gotten the perspective of a lot of people, human and Faunus alike."

"That's one of the perks of being hated by the majority of Remnant," Hansel revealed, "you're forced to become a wallflower and that makes you more capable of learning through observation."

Ruby's face fell at Hansel reminding them how much Remnant irrationally hated him. Blake glared at Hansel, viewing his words as trivializing the Faunus struggle. Hansel noticed Blake's look and sighed. "Don't get the wrong idea, it's not like I don't sympathize with the Faunus." Hansel told her. "Honestly, it's counterproductive to be that negative towards anyone, let alone an entire race. You'd think we'd know that, considering the monsters we have to face."

"But here you are, acting like the entire world's got something against the Faunus, without even recognizing that the world's also made great strides in trying to make things better for your kind." Hansel pointed out to her. "Don't you think that's a little bit insulting?"

Blake's ears seemed to droop even more at this. Yang, seeing her best friend's sadness, spoke up on her behalf. "Teach, ease up on her, Blake's just trying to do what she thinks is right for her people." She tried to mediate between the two.

"Be honest with me, Belladonna." Hansel ignored Yang, but was now speaking a bit more gently towards her. "What were you trying to accomplish in hiding who you are when there are plenty of Faunus students in all the academies who embrace their identity?"

Blake did not respond to that, making Hansel sigh. "This issue you have is all the more reason for you to go to Atlas next week. That place...it's definitely still stuck in the older times. Point being, it's time you face...whatever issue you have with your identity head on."

"You make it sound so easy." Blake was back to glaring at Hansel now, who remained surprisingly calm.

Hansel shrugged. "Whether it's easy or not really doesn't matter. You just gotta do what you gotta do, that's all."

"You can glare at me all you want, Belladonna." Hansel was now frowning at her. "But mine and Professor Ozpin's decision stands. You four are coming with me to Atlas, and that's final."

"Especially now that it's clear to me that this is also a good opportunity a few of you to deal with some personal shit that's holding your potential back."

Ruby raised an eyebrow at Hansel's choice of words. Holding their potential back? Just what did he mean by that? "This is your golden opportunity to grow as Huntresses." Hansel informed them. "And there's no way in hell I'm going to let any of you waste it. I've heard each of your concerns, and the decision stands."

Hansel then gestured to the door. "The four of you are dismissed. Just so we're clear, I still expect you four to show up Saturday for your detention. If you're pissed at me, you better not skip it to spite me."

As the four silently closed the door, tensing at the thought of another tough run, Hansel sank into his armchair, frustrated with how off-the-rails that conversation got.

"Fucking hell," he complained, "it really does feel like it's one step forward and two steps back when it comes to how I interact with these students."

Hansel shook those thoughts away, figuratively and literally. "I can't let that distract me though." He reminded himself. "This isn't just for their sake, it's for mine too. Gray Jackal has infiltrated Atlas. I can't let that continue, no matter what."

Elsewhere, in an undisclosed location, the King of Diamonds was sitting in a chair eerily reminiscent of an actual king's throne. In front of him was a simple table, and around that table were three other 'thrones' that were currently empty, the seats for the other leaders of Gray Jackal.

King was in no way bothered by the absence of his three fellow leaders. He knew they each had their own duties. In fact, had Jack of Clubs and his lone Number, 2, not thrown themselves into Jack's research in response to King's ultimatum, Jack would be here right now.

It was the same with the Queen of Hearts and the Ace of Spades. Between Queen tendering her opposition letter to Circe Ithaca's plan for funding and Ace off killing whomever she damn well pleases to advance Gray Jackal's agenda, the only leader of Gray Jackal who was not extremely busy was King himself.

Of course, once Gray Jackal began operating more openly, that would change. But, until then, advancing Gray Jackal's agenda was a job for people like the Ace of Spades and her assassination division.

Speaking of which, King had a call to make. Reaching into his pocket, the hulking, regally robed behemoth of a man pulled out his scroll before dialing an unmarked number for a FaceTime chat. Much to his surprise, a man wearing a mask with the number 9 inscribed onto it appeared onscreen instead of who he was expecting.

King sighed, immediately realizing what was going on. "Is Ace busy, 9?"

King could have sworn he heard a terrified, pained scream on the other end. "I apologize on behalf of Ms. Ace, Sir." 9 replied. "Unfortunately a military detachment in Vacuo got too close to one of our safehouses. Ms. Ace is busy...purging them."

King heaved a sigh. "Damn, Vacuo is still such a headache. Can you pass off their deaths as an ambush from the Grimm? Maybe from highwaymen?"

"It will have to be Grimm, but yes, we will, sir." 9 promised. "5, 6, and I will take care of the cleanup as usual."

King frowned. "I won't say too much on this matter is because this detachment nearly saw something they shouldn't have. However, inform our safehouses to exercise a bit more secrecy. There comes a point where even Grimm can't be used as an excuse."

"Understood," 9 bowed his head, "is there anything else you wish for me to pass onto Ms. Ace?"

"Tell her to contact our assassin in Atlas." King ordered. "It appears we may need a distraction so that the Crooked Man can continue operating as our agent in Atlas' military."

"As you command, King. Do you have a preference on the distraction?" 9 inquired.

"He's a serial killer, is he not? Just tell him to do what he does best, and if he succeeds, he'll have the right to challenge one of you three in becoming one of the Numbers."

9 frowned at this. "To be blunt, King, he has no chance."

"I know that, 9, but a little incentive never hurt anyone." King pointed out.

"Will that be all, sir?" 9 asked curiously.

"That will be all, 9, please relay everything to Ace." King ordered, cutting the feed.

In the deserts of Vacuo, 9 pocketed Ace's scroll and turned to where his superior was, seeing the results of her latest carnage…

John Henry Redman was a proud and strong Huntsman. In fact, he was also quite famous. This was the man who's Semblance granted him a boost in stamina that made him an utter nightmare to fight. In fact, that Semblance was how Redman became famous. A year ago, a settlement was devastated by the murders of several children. That despair attracted a small army of Grimm that intended to devour what remained of the settlement over the course of a few nights.

That would have been the case, had John Henry Redman not been there. With his warhammer in hand, the man defended the town for three days and three nights while the people hid in their homes. At the end of night three, John Henry Redman was victorious and not a single civilian had died.

It made John Henry Redman a hero, an image of the Huntsman's strength and ability to never yield in the face of overwhelming odds. It was why he was hired for some extra muscle for this military detachment.

It was also why it was particularly jarring to see this mighty, proud man on his hands and knees with a blank, broken look in his eyes, groveling shamelessly at the feet of the woman who had brought him to heel. Panting with fear, Redman kissed and licked the shoes of the woman known as the Ace of Spades. The top half of her face was concealed by a mask with the letter 'A' on it. A katana was casually being run across the ground dangerously close to Redman. Around them were the corpses of all the other soldiers.

It had not been a fight, it had been a massacre...

Redman then looked up at Ace with a fearful look on his face. "S-see," he said, "I can beg like a dog, just like you wanted. N-now, you're going to let me go, right?"

Ace just smiled. She crouched down and softly stroked the face of Redman like an actual dog. Redman flinched for a brief moment before relaxing into the caress, still trying to play the part of a groveling dog to appease her.

Ace then straightened herself out without a word. Redman looked up at her expectantly. Then, in a flash, Redman's head caved in from the side as Ace nonchalantly kicked him in the side of the head, killing him instantly.

She then turned away, seeing 9 and two others who wore masks with the numbers 5 and 6 standing several feet away from her. "Are you finished, Ms. Ace?" 9 asked curiously, clearly not bothered by his superior's brutality.

Ace casually strolled towards her subordinate. She then drove her katana into the back of a twitching soldier and nonchalantly crushed the skull of another trying to crawl away. She barely acknowledged them. It was like she was simply crushing insects in the road without even knowing.

"Yes," Ace said.

"Good," 9 nodded, "I just got off your scroll with the King of Diamonds. He's decided to give Jack the Ripper a chance to prove himself worthy of trying to become a Number?"

"Oh phooey." Ace frowned. "I'm happy with you three."

"Oh well," Ace continued, "I suppose if King is concerned enough to set Jackie loose on a mission, I might as well take it seriously. I do expect you to give me all the juicy details, of course."

"Of course, Ms. Ace."

"Oh, and don't forget to cover this up. We wouldn't want the Kingdom of Vacuo to suddenly become suspicious of us." Ace pointed out.

"Of course, Ms. Ace." 9 snapped his fingers and 5 and 6 followed him to creatively stage the scene in a way that did not make Gray Jackal a suspect.

9 gazed at the carnage left by his superior, than at the woman herself. Oh my Lady Ace, 9 thought wistfully, even when surrounded by carnage, surrounded by blood and gore, you are still an unmatched, peerless beauty.

Back at Beacon, Blake Belladonna was desperately trying to avoid lashing out at...anything really, by reading. However, based on the furrowed brow and angry eyes, that was not succeeding.

Yang noticed her partners distress and sighed. "You know we're going, no matter what happens, right?" She pointed out to her, displaying surprising maturity. "If Professor Ozpin was originally the one who came up with this plan, than that's it. There's not much else we can do."

"I know that, it's just so frustrating." Blake closed the book. "For someone who claims to sympathize with the Faunus, he doesn't seem to have a problem trivializing their suffering."

Yang frowned, uncertain of how to respond to that. Weiss spoke up. "Blake, no." She said simply. "He wasn't trivializing anything."

"Oh, so now you're taking his side?" Blake demanded. "Weren't you opposed to this trip too?"

"I still am." Weiss admitted. "And I'm not taking the professor's side. I'm just trying to look at this from multiple perspectives, something you encouraged me to do, once upon a time."

Blake fell silent at that statement. "I'm well aware that a majority of Atlas is still...horrible to Faunus, to say the least." Weiss admitted. "But Blake, don't you think the professor's at least got a point? That you need to at least acknowledge the strides we've all made to make things better?"

"I mean, think about it, Sun's a team leader from Haven. In fact, I believe Haven's Headmaster is a Faunus as well. Other than Cardin, Velvet is pretty popular here at Beacon. And then there was that Neon girl Yang went up against in the Vytal Festival. She was from Atlas Academy."

Weiss sighed before continuing. "I'm well aware we still have a long way to go to fix human-Faunus relations, but we've made progress, Blake. You can't just disregard all the progress we've made just because that progress hasn't been to your liking."

Blake sighed. "I appreciate the thought you two, I really do, but you just don't get it. Faunus being allowed to attend Huntsmen academies, Faunus being given their own continent, what you all see as progress and trying to mend relations is just people giving 'fancy gifts' so that we stop complaining."

Weiss sighed and gave Blake a sympathetic look. "Then what is justice to you, Blake?" She asked. "What's your idea of equality?"

Blake fell silent. She honestly could not answer that. All those months since she had left the White Fang, and she still had not found her own justice, her own idea of equality.

At that moment, Ruby Rose stepped in, playing peacemaker. "Okay, team, enough of the depressing stuff." She said with a smile. "I get it, okay. We're all nervous for different reasons. Weiss because she'll be in the same kingdom as her dad again, and Blake because...well, she's a Faunus in Atlas."

"And Yang and I are nervous because we don't know what kind of souvenir we should get Dad and Uncle Qrow." Yes, Ruby, that was a reason to be nervous.

"Dad perhaps, but I'm going to find some way to procure some Atlesian Wine for Uncle Qrow." Yang looked determined.

"But I really do believe that as long as the four of us are together, we can get through this, and we can come out the other end stronger for it." Ruby promised.

Blake almost said something to rebut Ruby, only for the young leader to silence her with her next words. "And don't forget, if Weiss' dad or some jerk who doesn't like Faunus decides to give any of us trouble...well, the rest of us will have your back."

Ruby's smile widened. "We're a team, after all, a sisterhood of totes awesome Huntresses." She reminded them all. "And that means we've gotta protect each other when stuff that wants to hurt us decide to show up for whatever reason."

"Yeah, hells yeah." Yang smiled. "Ruby's right. Weiss, Blake, neither of you two have to worry. If any trouble comes, Ruby and I will have your back."

Weiss was briefly taken aback by those promises before smiling. "Honestly, with how immature you two can be, I shouldn't be so ready to believe in either of you." She noted before adding warmly. "Thank you, both of you. I'm really glad to be a part of this team."

Blake was still admittedly irked by her argument with the professor, but managed a smile, genuinely touched by Ruby and Yang's hearts. "Thanks you two." She said softly.

"And now that we've got that out of the way," and just like that, the mood changed with Ruby's next question, "what do you two think we should get our dad?"

Weiss deadpanned. "Ruby, you dolt," she said to her partner, "we've never even met your dad. How could we possibly know what kind of gift he'd like?"

Thus began a debate between Ruby and Weiss about how helpful Weiss and Blake's opinion would be in souvenir shopping for Taiyang Xiao Long. And as the week passed, Ozpin and Ironwood worked out the necessary paperwork, which Team RWBY and Hansel would sign. By the time Sunday arrived, the quintet were waking up bright and early to board a flight to Atlas, ready to learn from the perspective of another school, intent on making good use of this "golden opportunity" as Hansel so eloquently put it.

However, Team RWBY would soon find out that their tangle with Don Anthonio Corleone was just the tip of the iceberg. Soon, they would find themselves being further pulled into conflict with an enemy just as dark as Salem herself...

AN: Ace-of-freaking-Spades ladies and gentlemen. From the demented mind that created a lord of chaos that caused a cosmic war out of hatred for his twin, and a depraved monster who "plays with" and then freezes women, comes this crazy woman. Definitely drew on my memories of Esdeath in writing that introductory scene. In fact, Esdeath's introduction was a heavy inspiration for it.

I've got two more chapters in the wings that Ryuzaki and I are reviewing. And then, we'll be taking a break to see how canon goes, since Volume 7 is going to take place in Atlas. From there, who knows, maybe post some Wild Hunt Chibi to tie everyone over. Either way, I hope everyone enjoys the ride.