Chapter 32: The Team

Cinder was having a very hard time sitting still. Not that she was uncomfortable, but that she was more than eager for her father to finish his work on her hair. Given that he had personal experience with cutting his own hair rather than having someone else do it, Djarin had become a natural when he was eighteen. So now, he found a good opportunity to use that knowledge to help his daughter with a new hairstyle.

"Okay, I'm almost done," the Mandalorian promised. "Just need to take care of this piece over your eye."

Cinder was looking in a mirror as she was sitting. Seeing what he was about to do, Cinder decided to stop him. "Actually, you can leave that," she said.

"Are you sure? It might be hard to see like that."

"I'm sure. My helmet can hold that piece back for me." Cinder moved her left hand to the piece in front of her eye. "Besides, I've always liked it like this."

"Alright then. I'd say we're about done." Djarin picked up the mirror Cinder had gotten from Weiss and held it close to the back of her head. And with the mirror on the wall in front of her, Cinder could see the front and back of her hair. "What do you think?"

"..."

Cinder carefully examined the new hairstyle her father created for her. Compared to the long, loose hair she had earlier, this was much shorter and almost looked like a boy's haircut. But Djarin was careful to leave a few pieces sticking out to look unique and to make it drop towards the left. And Cinder always liked how some of her hair covered part of her left eye.

"Looks great!" she said with a smile. Hopping off the chair and rushing to the door, Cinder looked back at the Mandalorian. "Can we go now? Can we go now?"

Djarin smirked as he rolled his eyes under his helmet. "Let's get your bags, first. Then we'll be good to go."

Ever since the day began, Cinder wanted to talk about nothing else than meeting her new teammates. A few days had passed since the preparations to make Cinder a student at Beacon Academy were put into motion. But now, everything was all set. Cinder had her own classes, schedule, uniform, and now she had a brand new dorm. All that needed to be done was to bring whatever she packed to the student dorms.

When they got to those dorms, Cinder examined every detail of the white halls with widened eyes and an even wider smile. She had explored the student dorms a few times before, but the different circumstances made the place feel like a whole other world to the teenager.

Djarin, although happy that Cinder was taking the first steps to be a Huntress, couldn't share his daughter's enthusiasm. He never thought he would see the day where Cinder would move out of her home and go to school all on her own. It may have been five years since the clan of two moved into Beacon Academy, but Djarin couldn't help but feel that Cinder was growing up too fast. For better or worse, things wouldn't be the same for the aging Mandalorian.

"Did you pack your weapons?" Djarin asked as he carried two bags.

"Yes," said Cinder, who continued to walk without looking back at her father.

"Your uniform?"

"Yes."

"Your textbooks?"

"Yes."

"Your armor?"

Cinder stopped walking. "For the millionth time, yes!" Cinder walked back towards Djarin. "Dad, don't worry. This is gonna be great!"

"I'm not worried."

"Yeah, you are." Cinder softly smiled as the two Mandalorians walked down the halls together. "I'm just as surprised as you are, this is a big deal."

"It's huge. And I'm proud of you. But..." Djarin quickly realized how he was sounding. "Sorry, it's nothing."

"No, it's okay." Cinder stopped walking. "You can tell me."

"I'm sorry, it's just... I don't think I was ready for everything to change so fast. Not just with you, but..."

Cinder frowned and put down her bags. "Is your Aura still acting up?"

"It's gotten better, but my Semblance is still depleting it faster than before." Djarin put down the bags and looked at his hands, remembering the day he learned that his Aura was depleting faster than before. "My age is starting to take my Aura. How long will it be until I can't hold my blaster? Until my armor slows me down?" Djarin looked back at Cinder. "Not long after that, I don't think I can-"

"Look after me?"

"..."

Cinder took a few steps away from her worried father and spread her arms. "Dad, that's one of the reasons why I'm here. Ozpin's been helping me with my powers, now Beacon's going to help me grow stronger in other ways. And I'll have my favorite teacher to help me too." The compliment made a dry chuckle escape from Djarin's throat. "Besides, there's more than one way for people to take care of each other. And whenever I need something, I'll be happy knowing that you'll be there for me."

"Always," the Mandalorian promised, feeling better about himself. "Sorry, I sound like a crazy person."

"Only a little," Cinder joked as she picked up her bags. "My room's just a few more halls down. Come on, old man." She began to laugh as she walked down the halls.

Djarin rolled his eyes at the comment. "Okay, that's not funny."

"Yeah, it is."

The clan of two had just arrived outside a white door at the end of the hall. Rather than walking inside, Cinder found herself unable to make a decision.

"I mean, I should just let myself in, right? It's gonna be my room. But what if the other girls are doing something? I'll just knock. No, wait. Maybe I should..."

Djarin could understand that Cinder was nervous at the moment. She was beginning to wonder what her team would be like. If they were friendly or not, if they were more organized or not, if they held her to a higher standard. Djarin would normally have these feelings about his daughter's well-being, but he had previously looked at her new team's files. It took some time, but he was confident that they would like Cinder.

To prove this point, Djarin softly knocked on the door.

Cinder nervously chuckled as she turned back to her father. "Thanks," she said.

When the door began to open, Cinder's nerves began to grow as fast as they initially came. She was so sure that the idea of a new, slightly younger girl being a part of a team of older students would make her teammates skeptical and maybe even hostile towards her. She expected her welcome to be halfhearted and not very sincere.

However, she was met with three smiling faces and an upbeat attitude from three taller girls.

"Hi there!" all of them said at once, expressing nothing but positivity towards their new teammate.

Once her worries were cast aside, Cinder slightly smiled and waved. "Hi," she quietly said. "It's nice to meet you."

One of the girls, a redhead in a red tank top and black dress pants, moved closer to get a better look at Cinder. "Wow," she said dramatically. "She really is younger. We might have a prodigy on our team!"

Another girl, a brunette in a light green summer dress and brown high heels, joined the first girl. "Whoa, I love your dress. Where'd you get it? Do you have a spare?"

Before the two girls could bombard Cinder with more talk, the third girl, a blonde in a blue shirt and jeggings, pulled them back by the back of their clothes. "Jeez, you two!" she said with a natural sense of authority. "Give her some space, she just got here!" Turning back to Cinder, she smiled again. "Sorry about that. We're just happy to meet you."

"Really?" Cinder asked, surprised at the idea of someone welcoming a complete stranger so easy.

"Of course. You saved us from missing a year at Beacon, didn't you?" The blonde looked behind Cinder to see the Mandalorian waiting to be let in. "Oh, right! You must be Mr. Darren, Cinder's father."

"Actually, it's Djarin," the Mandalorian corrected her. "But you're right about everything else. And you must be... Merriweather?"

"Call me Merri, everyone does." The blonde stepped aside. "Come on in."

Cinder and Djarin graciously accepted the offer and put the three bags onto an empty bed. Once Cinder brushed herself off of some dust at the bottom of the bag, she turned back to Merri. "So, are you the team leader?" she asked, judging by the state of authority she held over the other two girls.

"Well, yes and no," Merri explained. "Our last teammate was made leader by Professor Ozpin, but she's gone now." Merri pointed her thumb at the two girls behind her. "I'm mostly in charge of these two, since I'm the oldest. And I'm the only one with a head on her shoulders."

"Hey!" the two girls said simultaneously.

Cinder giggled at the joke as she extended a hand. "Well, it looks like you're our leader then. I'm Cinder, but I guess you already know that."

Merri took Cinder's hand and shook graciously. "Call me Merri." As she let go, Merri pointed to the girl in red. "This is my sister, Flora." She then pointed to the girl in green. "And my other sister, Fauna."

Rather than acknowledge their newest teammate, the sisters were examining Djarin and his armor.

"Is that real Beskar?" Flora asked.

"It is," Djarin asked.

"Does that mean you're a real Mandalorian?" Fauna asked, examining the helmet and marked pauldron.

"We both are," Cinder said. "I can, uh, see we need to get to know each other." Cinder turned to Djarin. "Dad, thanks for helping me with my bags. I can take it from here."

"Are you sure?" Djarin asked.

"Yeah, I wanna get to know everyone while I unpack."

Flora quickly took one of the bags. "We can help if you want," she offered. "It's not like we were doing anything else today."

"Easy with that," Djarin sternly said, remembering that Cinder packed her armor in one of the bags.

Flora looked up and smiled. "You got it, sir!" Just as she said that, the bag hit a bookshelf and knocked over a vase full of flowers. "...That didn't happen."

Cinder giggled and looked back at Djarin. Slightly lifting his helmet, she placed a kiss on his cheek. "We'll be fine, Dad," she promised. "I'll call you later tonight."

"Okay." Djarin made his way to the door while acknowledging the three girls. "It was... nice meeting all of you." Just as he opened the door and stepped in the hall, Djarin turned back to Cinder. "Classes start at nine tomorrow, don't be late."

"I won't."

"Call me if there's any trouble, I'll take care of it."

"I will."

"And... have fun."

Cinder smiled. "Try to enjoy yourself too, Dad. See you tomorrow." She softly closed the door and turned back to the three girls, who had placed all of her bags on an empty bed. Eager to start unpacking and getting to know her teammates, Cinder walked over and accepted Flora's offer for help.

When they saw how full Cinder's bags were, Merri decided that the entire room needed to be reorganized to help fit everything. Flora decided to help, leaving Cinder and Fauna to begin unpacking. And the first thing Cinder decided to unpack was her own Mandalorian armor, which had caught the eyes of the brunette.

"Oh. My. God!" she said as she examined the armor with her hands. "This is perfect! Look at the design, the detail! It looks like it can fit just about anyone!"

"Most Mandalorian armor is designed that way," Cinder explained, remembering how most Mandalorians wore very similar armor. "I've only met a few people who needed bigger or smaller armor." Cinder could see that Fauna was more interested in the design of the armor rather than the idea of it fitting anyone. "So, you seem to like how it's made."

"I do," said Fauna, who put down the helmet. "I'm actually kind of a fashionista. My sister's words, not mine." Fauna stood up and moved her hands across her dress. "I actually made this dress myself."

Cinder gasped as she looked at the detail of the dress, that it fit the teenager just right. And the decorated butterflies on it looked like a challenge to put on. "You made that?" she asked in awe.

"Took me some time, but yeah." Fauna twirled around and showed her work, which was almost seamless. "It's actually why I was curious about your dress. If I had to guess, you bought it in... Atlas?"

"It was actually a gift. But my friend got it in Atlas, you're right. How could you tell?"

"It's a little 'showy' to be from Mistral or Vacuo, not really their style. I would have guessed Vale, but that flower right there is the signature of an Atlesian designer."

Cinder looked at the blue-green flower on the right side of her dress, which was one of the features that stood out. While she always thought red was more of her color, she still liked the flower. And she didn't know that there were other clothes like hers that had a similar feature.

"Okay, this will be good."

Cinder turned around to see Fauna holding a metal stand with multiple beams. "This is a stand most designers have to put something big and heavy on," she explained. "We should be able to put the armor on it, given that you won't be wearing it very often."

"That... would be great!" Cinder said as she let Fauna put the stand down. "Thank you. I hope you don't mind sharing it, though."

"Oh, it's no big deal." Fauna began to carefully put the armor on the stand, making it appear that a person was wearing it underneath. "I was actually wondering if I could work on it while it's standing here."

Cinder put her helmet down and looked back at the older teenager. "Um, did you say 'work on?'" she asked, unsure what Fauna was saying.

"Yeah, to paint it over." Fauna reached into the bag where the armor used to be and pulled out a few cans of spray paint. "That's why you have these in here, isn't it? Besides, I never really liked silver." Fauna shuddered at the word.

"Oh," Cinder realized. "Oh, yeah!" Laughing, she pulled out more paint. "You're right, I've been meaning to paint it over. But we can worry about that once I'm done."

"Would it be okay if I helped? I kind of have a good eye for this sort of thing."

"Yeah, let's do it!"

Once the armor was set up, Merri and Flora had finished reorganizing the room. Despite her older sister telling her to wait, Flora had begun unpacking Cinder's second bag, which was mostly full of books. Cinder decided to help and get to know the eager teenager.

"So, Flora, where did you say you and your sisters were from?" Cinder asked calmly.

"Nowhere special, just a small village in Mistral," Flora replied.

"Anywhere I've heard of?"

"Well, do you know where Serenno is?"

"I've heard of it, I just know it's in Mistral."

"Well, we lived pretty close to it. About a day's walk."

"Oh, okay. That's nice."

"Not really. I never really liked Mistral."

Cinder chuckled. "You and me both. Other than the city of Mistral, the rest of the Kingdom isn't my favorite place to visit."

"Oh, so you're more of a city-girl, then?"

"You could say that." Cinder took out one more book and saw something in the bag that made her smile. "You could also say that I know someone special in the city." Cinder took out a framed photograph of her and Korkie together. Seeing how she planned to put it on her dresser, she decided to let her teammate know about him.

And the girl was even more enthusiastic than before. "Ooohhh, somebody has a boyfriend!" Flora said with a smile.

Cinder laughed as she walked over to her dresser and put the photograph down. "His name's Korkie. I met him when I was a kid."

Flora looked closer at the photograph. "Well, he's definitely got the looks."

"Not just that." Cinder joined her teammate. "He's talented, smart, and one of the nicest people I've ever met. He's training to be a politician, just like his aunt. And someone like him can definitely make a difference."

Flora laughed once more. "Well, I can see how much he means to you. But one thing you gotta do is know how much you mean to them as well. I've dated enough guys from the gym to know it's always about the looks."

"No arguments there." Cinder took off her earrings and showed it to Flora. "But given the cost and meaning of these earrings he got for me, it's good to know that I'm special to him too."

Flora looked at the earrings and trusted Cinder saying that they were expensive. "Damn," she said in awe. "Okay, I really gotta stop dating losers from the gym."

Most of the room was finished, and all that was left was to do was clean up from all the unpacking. Flora and Fauna decided to get some food to bring back, leaving Cinder alone with Merri.

"I should apologize about Flora and Fauna," said Merri. "It's easy for them to get excited, as well as go about people's business."

"Don't worry about it," Cinder said with a smile. "I'm actually glad they're like that. I was expecting some unease about someone like me joining you."

"Well, we didn't really like our last teammate that much. I don't know, she just seemed kinda off, y'know?" Cinder nodded as she put her Beskar blades next to her bed. "But Flora and Fauna seem to like you."

"That's good to hear. What about you?"

"Well, now I can finally get to know you." Merri sat on her bed, which was right next to Cinder's. "How about you tell me a little more about yourself?"

Cinder sat on her own bed and began to talk. "Well, I was born in Mistral, but I moved here after my dad found me. He got a-"

"Wait, I'm sorry." Merri put her hands up. "Did you say your dad found you?"

"Oh... yeah. I was adopted."

"Oh, really? Wow, I never knew Mandalorians would be open to adoption."

"It's part of our culture." Cinder twirled her necklace. "Orphans and abandoned children that are found by older Mandalorians can join them. My dad was actually like that when he was a kid."

"Huh. So you never knew your parents?"

"Well... no." Cinder looked out the only window in the room. "I've actually been trying to find them."

"No luck?"

"Not yet. Dad's actually been helping, he was able to understand why I'm looking for them." Cinder dried her eyes. "But even after I find them, he's still going to be my father." The young Maiden suddenly got an idea. "You and your sisters seem like you have a whole family. What's it like?"

"Well, I guess our ideas of parents can be flipped." Merri looked down at her hands. "We knew our father, but he left us when we were little. He even left Mother to fend for herself."

"Oh." Cinder regretted what she said, about Merri's family being whole. "Sorry, I didn't-"

"You didn't know. And it doesn't really matter anyway. Mother always took care of us. Made sure we were properly fed, clothed, bathed, and so on." Merri began to laugh. "To this day, I don't know how she did it. Taking care of triplets by herself." She then put a hand to her chin. "Actually, some of our maids and servants helped her, but it was mostly-"

"What, did you say you had maids? And servants?"

Merri looked back at Cinder. "Oh, yeah! Our family was the ruling estate of the village. We lived in this huge castle, it must have built over a hundred years ago."

"A castle?"

Cinder had been at the Schnee Manor and Kyrze Manor enough times to know that they were unlike any normal house. But an actual castle? That made it sound like Merri's family was royalty rather than just rich.

That's when Cinder realized that Merri and her sisters might be in the same position as Winter.

"You know, you actually remind me of my friend, Winter," she said.

"Oh yeah?" Merri asked. "How so?"

"Winter's the daughter of the president of the Schnee Dust Company. She was born into fame and fortune, and now she's going to be a Huntress. She wants to prove that she's more than a name, and she feels that she can do some good as a Huntress."

"Sounds great." Merri looked down at her hands again. "But our reason for being here is different."

"Why's that?"

"It was Flora's idea. You see, Huntsmen and Huntresses are scarce in Mistral. Because of that, we lost Mother and the village to the Grimm."

Cinder softly gasped and covered her mouth in shock as Merri continued her story.

"After we escaped, Flora kept insisting that things would have been different if there were more Huntsmen or Huntresses in Mistral. It was really hard to disagree with her, so we decided to come here. It's not the life Mother really wanted for us, but we don't have a whole lot left. And who knows?" Merri stood up and walked to the side. "Maybe we can make some friends here that can learn about Mistral. Convince them to help."

Just as Merri finished her thoughts, she felt a tap on her shoulder. Turning around, she saw Cinder extending a hand. "Well, team leader... it looks like you have one now." The teenager smiled and shook Cinder's hand once more, getting the new team of students off to a good start.

The next day, Merri and Cinder helped Flora and Fauna get out of bed and get ready for classes. Merri had plenty of experience with her sisters sleeping in and Cinder would always wake up with Djarin to prepare for his classes. Once they woke up, everyone was able to comb and tie their hair, get their uniforms on, and begin the walk to class at eight-thirty.

But rather than talking about class, Fauna was more invested in the school uniforms everyone was wearing.

"I still like these uniforms," she said as she walked and looked at her clothes. "Skirt's a little shorter than I thought it would be, but a good pattern design. I can see Beacon really likes red and brown, the gold's a good color too."

"So what's your rating?" Flora asked.

"Probably a seven. The colors are good, but this shirt is really uncomfortable." Fauna tugged at the white shirt underneath her dark jacket. "I bet the boys don't have to deal with this."

Cinder turned her head as she continued to walk. "Just be glad you're not at Atlas. I heard their uniforms are tight in the crotch."

The sisters laughed at the idea and Fauna realized she could get used to the uncomfortable shirt. Merri looked back at her Scroll as she continued to walk. "Okay, so our first class is with... Professor Port," she said. She and her sisters groaned, which caught Cinder's attention.

"Let me guess," the new student asked. "You don't like his stories?"

"No," each sister replied at the same time.

"Does he really expect us to learn from what he says?" Flora rhetorically asked. "All he does is talk about how great he supposedly was back in the day."

"I'm pretty sure he's making some of them up," said Fauna. "I don't even know what a 'Megalodon' is, and I don't think he does either."

"He probably uses them to forget that he weighs over two hundred pounds," Merri suggested.

The triplets laughed at the joke, but Cinder didn't join in. "Come on, he's still a good teacher," she said in the man's defense. "I used to sit in classes like his while my dad was working. If it wasn't for his lessons, I probably wouldn't have passed initiation."

"Yeah, well... I need to see him in action before I believe everything he tells me," said Merri. "Let's see what story we're gonna hear today."

Professor Peter Port was standing in front of rows of students and behind a desk and chalkboard, filled with pictures of Grimm. The students who walked in had taken their seats, and Cinder was talking to Professor Port.

"I heard of your recent acceptance into Beacon, young lady," he said with a smile under his thick mustache. "Congratulations!"

"Thanks, professor," Cinder said with a smile. "Sorry I'm a little late, though."

"Oh, not to worry! Professor Ozpin and the Blair sisters explained their situation to me. I'm just glad to see a team of Huntresses back to full strength. Now, your team had to miss a few assignments like today's report, but they'll receive passing grades for them all once they're handed in."

Cinder looked over to Merri, who explained the situation. "He assigned us a report on rare Grimm last week, but we were still looking for a new teammate."

"..."

Professor Port looked at the clock on the wall, which showed that ten minutes had passed since the class officially started. Looking at the rows of students, the professor slightly frowned. "Strange... I thought there was more of them last time," he thought to himself. Nevertheless, he decided to begin his class before more time slipped away. "Settle down, everyone!" he ordered. "Ever since you've become students at Beacon, I've had the pleasure to share all of my stories and encounters with the most dangerous of Grimm!"

"Unfortunately," Flora whispered to Cinder and her sisters. Cinder was the only one who didn't laugh, as she was paying close attention to Professor Port, something she learned to do while listening to the long stories.

"Now today, I finally get to hear all of your Grimm slaying stories!" Professor Port moved a few feet from his desk. "Last month, I've asked each of you to speak with your teammates and discover which of you had the most dashing and daring Grimm encounters of your life! I know, the essay I assigned will count for your first project, but the remainder will be your presentation of your story and the details of the Grimm. Now then, who would like to go first?"

Cinder looked back at the Blair sisters, who shyly looked down at the wooden desk they were sitting at. Feeling bad that they would need to catch up on a lot of additional work and not wanting their grades to plummet, she wished that she could help. Suddenly, the new student had an idea, which caused her to raise her hand.

"Professor, we can present first," Cinder said with confidence.

The sisters looked back at Cinder with confusion, as did Professor Port. "Oh, uh... I thought you would need more time," he restated.

Cinder stood up. "Well, we haven't really... finished our essay. But we can do our presentation now. It still counts for our grade, right?"

"Why, yes!"

Seeing no problem with the idea, Professor Port opened the floor to Cinder, who walked up in front of everyone. As she made her way to the front of the room, she could hear people whispering at the rows in front of her. She couldn't hear exactly what they were saying, but she could make out parts of the questions. While some were wondering who she was and how old she was, others were saying they heard rumors that she was related to the Mandalorian combat instructor. Thinking about how she might stand out as both a younger student and Djarin's daughter, Cinder decided to clear the air.

"Um... Hello, everyone," she said as she rubbed the back of her head. "I'm Cinder, and yeah... I'm a little younger here."

"Are you related to the Mandalorian here?" one student quickly asked without thinking. Other students began nodding their heads, wanting to know as well.

"Now, now, everyone," Professor Port said as he tried to make his class stay focused. "Let's not get off topic."

"No, it's okay," Cinder insisted. "I am, actually. He's my dad."

"Whoa."

The entire class, excluding the Blair sisters, were captivated by the fact. Some of them asked more questions, mainly about her age or if being a Mandalorian meant she could come to Beacon earlier. Cinder was expecting a lot of questions, so she answered them to the best of her ability.

"You see, my dad and I live at Beacon. In the faculty dorms. I've been training with him and listening to lectures here for about five years now."

One student, a skeptical girl with blonde hair, decided to test Cinder's validity. "So, you said you lived here for five years?" she asked. "And that you've listened to lectures here?"

"Dad was usually busy with teaching," Cinder explained. "To pass the time, Professor Ozpin let me sit in most classes and listen."

"So you would know a thing or two about Grimm?"

"Between the classes and my fighting, yeah, I know some things."

"Okay..." The blonde put a hand to her chin and looked through her notes. "How many Beowolves usually consist of a pack?"

Professor Port was starting to get a bad feeling. "Now, young lady-"

"Five, at least," Cinder replied. "Five usually follow an Alpha."

The girl looked back at her notes, and saw that Cinder was right. "How many teeth does a Grimm usually have, and which are the strongest?"

"Thirty. The strongest ones are in the front of the mouth, they can pierce skin with just a small bite."

Some of the students whistled and nodded, impressed by the girl's knowledge. The skeptical one began to see that she knew the basics of Grimm, so she decided to see what else she knew. "Okay, that's pretty good," she began. "So, what did you say your report was about?"

Cinder cleared her throat and looked back at the entire class. "My team's report is on the Angler. A rare aquatic Grimm that lives in isolated bodies of water, a lake for example." She began to relax as she explained more about the Grimm. "It's also one of the largest fish on Remnant, roughly the size of an Ursa Major. All of it's teeth are sharp, not like the ones on a Beowolf or Ursa..."

Cinder continued her report on the Angler, and even explained her encounter with one. She explained that while she didn't have the necessary weapons to kill it, she was able to scare it off and wound it. As proof of her conquest, Cinder passed her Scroll around the room, which had a picture of her holding the two teeth she claimed before leaving Nevarro. And once she finished her report, Cinder was met with nothing but applause from the students and Professor Port.

"Bravo!" he exclaimed with pride. "Bravo! It appears we are indeed in the presence of a true Huntress-in-training!" Professor Port turned back to Cinder. "Now, I'll just need your essay a week from today, but I'm sure you've already earned an 'A' from that story."

"Thank you, sir," Cinder said as she made her way back to her seat. Her teammates congratulated her for the report and thanked her for making their work a little easier.

The room heard five more presentations before Professor Port dismissed the class. Cinder and the sisters were the last ones to leave, but they were stopped by the student who was skeptical of Cinder's potential.

"Hey," she said. "Listen, sorry about putting you on the spot like that. I kinda... judge a book by its cover."

"Oh, it's okay," Cinder said. "I get it, I was kind of expecting a lot of people to ask about me."

"Well, I hope it wasn't too bad." The girl reached into her book and pulled out a piece of paper. "Have you considered joining some of Beacon's clubs? We could use someone like you on the Debate Team." The girl pointed a finger at Cinder. "Just know that I play to win."

Cinder laughed as she took the paper. "Um, thanks. And yeah, I actually like a good challenge."

"Well, challenge accepted." The girl turned around. "I'll be waiting, new kid."

The rest of Cinder's first day was filled with familiar classes. From Doctor Oobleck's lectures of Remnant's history to Professor Greene's studies of stealth and security, she remembered what she heard when she was a child as well as learn a few new things. One such idea was Professor Peach teaching her students how to mix green, red, and blue herbs to treat wounds when an Aura was recharging.

Cinder was happy to have officially taken these classes for the first time. But now, just before they were supposed to be practicing their own sparring, Cinder and her team had one last class in the day; Combat Instruction.

"Come on!" Cinder yelled back to her team, who were far behind her. "Hurry up!"

"Wait for us!" Fauna yelled back at the girl who was running a million miles per hour. "She's really excited about this one, huh?"

"Well, it's taught by her dad," said Merri. "And it's about time we learn some combat again."

"And I didn't really like Professor Goodwitch teaching the class," said Flora. "A Mandalorian can definitely teach us a thing or two."

"Make that another good thing our leader's departure gave us."

"Amen to that."

Merri saw Cinder pacing in front of the doorway to another room, which she quickly ran into once she saw her team had finally caught up with her. The sisters followed her to sit on stone benches and look down on a large arena below them. After more students came in and filled they room, they were greeted by Din Djarin. Cinder used an incredible amount of willpower to contain her excitement, but couldn't help but squeal a little as her father waved to her. After that, she did nothing but listen to his speech about the importance of fighting without Aura.

"Professor Goodwitch has been teaching you how to utilize what you've learned about Aura and fighting at your previous combat schools," said Djarin, who stood right in the middle of the large space while looking at the students. "Now is the time to learn how to defend yourselves when your Aura breaks, when you can no longer use your Semblance to your advantage. In times like these, the only things that can protect you are your weapons and the lessons you'll learn with me."

The student Cinder met earlier, the blonde member of Beacon's Debate Team, raised her hand. "Professor, it seems you have firsthand experience with this kind of ordeal," she said. "But hasn't that armor been able to act as a second Aura for you?"

"Somewhat." Djarin pointed his thumb to his chest. "This armor is stronger than most, and can protect me from standard attacks and Grimm claws. But while it may give you the impression that Mandalorians are invincible, that isn't always the case."

"Maybe so, but how can we fight a Mandalorian? A broken Aura against a secondary Aura wouldn't end well."

"That's when you think outside the box. And learn to beat the man beneath the armor rather than the armor itself." Djarin looked over the crowd and saw that one student came prepared with armor of his own, in case he would be chose to fight in front of the class. "Maybe you could learn after a match with Mr. Auburn over there. Bring your armor with you."

"Yes, sir."

The two students moved down to the space where Djarin was and stood across from each other. "Remember, weapons and Aura are prohibited in this match. Rely only on hand-to-hand." The Mandalorian moved to the side of the room. "Begin."

The students raced towards each other, the girl sending strikes to the boy's face. But the armored student was prepared for strikes like these and used the pieces of armor on his arms to block each strike. The blonde, whose hands were beginning to hurt, decided to go for the legs and kick him off the ground. Unfortunately, he jumped in the air before her kick could make contact with him.

Unfazed, he sent a fist to her face, but she blocked this with her hands and kicked him in the chestplate. Slightly backing up, he caught his balance and ran towards the girl again. She was running out of ideas to fight, there didn't seem to be any place for her to land a good blow. And since she was trying to think of a plan, she didn't see two legs jump in the air and strike her to the ground. She hit her head hard on the stone floor, and didn't bother getting back up.

"That's the match," said Djarin, who put his hand towards the armored student to make him stay where he was. He then looked down to the blonde girl and helped her stand. "You can use your Aura now." A gold light shone from her body and she began to feel her head and hands feel better. As she healed herself, Djarin looked back at the students. "Making a new plan when your old one fails is essential, but you can't lose focus on your opponent while doing so."

"I'll remember that, sir," the girl said, nodded and began to leave with the armored student.

"Mr. Auburn, stay where you are."

The armored student stayed where he was while the girl went back to the stands. Djarin looked back to the students again. "Armor, especially in combat, gave Mr. Auburn two advantages. Not only to protect himself, but also to give the impression that it can't be broken. It's safe to say Ms. Gelb got this impression in her fight, but you cannot. That's why Mr. Auburn won't leave the area until he is beaten by one of you."

Djarin began to look around the room for volunteers. Naturally, Cinder raised her hand first with excitement. A few students raised their hands afterwards, and Djarin picked a man with gray hair. As he made his way down, Djarin used his screen gauntlet to type something onto the blue light. Once he put his arm down, Cinder felt her Scroll buzz. Taking it out, she saw a message from Djarin.

"Sorry, Cinder. I know how excited you must be, but you could beat this student in less than a minute. I need the lesson to be longer than that."

Cinder looked back to her father and nodded. As soon as he started the match, Djarin sent one more message to Cinder.

"I have a lesson planned tomorrow that you can help me with. I promise."

Cinder smiled at the last phrase, since she was unable to recall a time when Djarin broke a promise he made to anyone. However, she wanted a chance to prove herself sooner rather than later.

And she found her chance a few minutes later, when Flora leaned over to Cinder.

"That's the third student this guy's beaten," she pointed out. "And now he's calling on people who don't have their hands raised? What if he calls on one of us?"

Cinder looked back at her father, who was looking across the room. Realizing that her teammate may be right, Cinder knew what to do.

"Flora, you know how to fight, right?" Cinder asked calmly.

"Well, yeah," Flora replied. "I've been reading my combat textbook more than Merri or Fauna."

"Raise your hand. Fight that guy."

"What?" Flora looked down at the armored student. "But nobody can land a good hit on him."

"It's because he's focused, he knows where his opponent is going to strike. Make him lose that focus, and then hit him where he doesn't have any armor. Call him out, make him angry."

"..."

"And put him on the offensive. He goes on the defensive first, to weaken his opponent's fists. Trust me, it will work."

"..."

After the next match with the armored student finished without victory from a challenger, Flora raised her hand. Djarin hesitated before he chose her, since he saw her talking to Cinder just a moment ago. Nevertheless, he decided to let Flora come down and fight the armored student.

"Begin," he ordered.

The armored boy stayed right where he was, only raising his hands and getting ready to defend himself. Flora remembered what Cinder had told her, how he would go on the defensive. So she sent a couple of fists toward him, which he easily knocked away.

"Ugh!" Flora moaned as she looked at her hands. In a jovial tone, she began to talk again. "So mean!" The students sitting above her began to laugh, not expecting her to say something like that.

Even her opponent let a chuckle escape his throat. "You think that's mean?" he asked. "You haven't seen nothin' yet."

Flora took Cinder's advice once again by flinching her index finger towards her. "Then c'mere and show me more," she said.

Confidently taking the challenge, the armored boy ran towards Flora with an extended leg. Flora saw that he wasn't wearing a lot of armor on his upper calf, so she quickly sent a punch to its side, making the leg uncomfortably numb. He put his leg down and attempted to walk the pain off while sending two fists towards Flora.

Unable to do anything to his arms, Flora dodged each strike as she looked for an opening. After her opponent sent one more punch, Flora moved to his back and kicked him. The force of the attack and the weight of the armor made the boy fall to the ground.

"Oops!" Flora said sarcastically. "Did I do that?"

The redhead was starting to annoy the armored student, which also made him start to get angry. Quickly getting off the ground, he sent his fists and legs at the teenage girl. They made contact a couple of times, but she pretended not to notice.

"Does someone have a fly-swatter?" Flora asked. "I keep feeling there's this tiny, plastic fly-swatter hitting my face." Of course, the punches made her body sore, but he didn't need to know that.

The audience laughed once more, making the student even more angry than before. His strikes became more reckless, and Flora was finally able to strike at exposed pieces of his body under the armor. The final strike was to the boy's unprotected face, which made him fall to the ground.

"That's the match," said Djarin, walking closer to Flora. "Well done, Ms. Blair. Making your enemy lose focus will end with a swift victory."

"Thank you, sir," the teenager said with a nod.

The armored student stood up and brushed dust off his armor. "Didn't think you had it in ya," he said, slightly complimenting the girl while disbelieving what he experienced.

"Like I said, Mr. Auburn, losing focus will only result in defeat," said the Mandalorian. "Ms. Blair was able to beat the man rather than the armor by doing what she did."

"I'll remember that, sir." Both students walked towards the door, leaving Djarin to dismiss the class while hoping everyone learned something today.

As the students were dismissed, they began to congratulate the armored student for lasting as long as he did and Flora for beating him. Cinder shared her congratulations as well, and then felt a tap on her shoulder. Turning around, she came face-to-face with the older blonde from earlier.

"I saw you talking to your teammate before her match," she said. "It doesn't take a genius to see that you gave her a good strategy."

"Well... just a pointer or two," Cinder shyly replied, unsure if she should be sharing the credit for Flora's success. And she was even more uncomfortable about the praise the girl was giving her.

The girl handed her a small card. "I have a lot to learn from you then. Maybe we can make some fun out of the lesson." With a wink, the girl walked away and left Cinder to look at the card. The contents were her name, Lilith Gelb, and her number.

And at the end of the number was an "X" and "O."

A heat rose to Cinder's face as she quickly put the card away. "Did I just get hit on?" she wondered as the heat disappeared.

"She wasn't the only one who saw you talking to Flora."

Cinder turned around to see Djarin raise a hand and playfully rub her head. "I'm glad to see you've learned a lot about strategy," he said.

"I had some great teachers," Cinder said with a smile, reflecting on all her lessons with her father as well as what she learned before becoming an official student at Beacon.

The last thing Cinder needed to do on her first day was some self-directed sparring. She and her team did it together and shared pointers with each other. Flora was even able to use her previous match to teach her sisters a few things about hand-to-hand combat.

The sparring even gave them a chance to show off their weapons. Cinder brought her black Beskar swords while each sister brought a handheld sickle.

"We grabbed these sickles when we left home," Merri explained. "When the Grimm came for us."

"They're good with Beowolves, but we couldn't really cut through an Ursa or Centinel," Flora added in.

"So we had a blacksmith in Mistral make them something special," Fauna said as she held out her hands.

Merri and Flora handed each of their sickles to Fauna, who combined them at their handles.

*CLICK*

Fauna took a few steps back and held out the three sickles. Combined, they looked like a large throwing-star and Fauna was prepared to throw it like one. Moving her hand back, Fauna threw the weapon into the air, which cut part of the upper walls and target dummies once it came down. It was so fast that Cinder had to duck down and watch it fly into Flora's hand.

"We can throw it and catch together," said the redhead. "When one of us is in trouble, we can throw our weapons and help her."

"That's amazing!" Cinder said as she got a closer look at the weapon.

"We call it the 'Flying Wing,'" Merri explained. "It's kind of simple, we know. But when we first threw it, we thought it looked like this giant wing in the sky."

"Huh." Cinder looked back to where Fauna threw the weapon. It was hard to explain, but the color and the speed of the flying weapons indeed made the spinning object look like the wing of a bird.

"Does your weapon do anything else?" Flora asked.

Cinder smiled as she combined her swords to make her bow. Taking a few arrows, she fired one after another at a practice dummy in the training room.

"Cool," said Fauna. "And nice aim, too."

"Thanks." Cinder took the bow apart and looked at her swords. "After living at Beacon for a month, I learned how students gave their weapons names. After that, I started calling them 'Midnight.'"

"Fitting name," said Merri.

"And that's not all." Cinder raised her palm towards the sisters, where it began to glow orange and give off smoke. "This is my Semblance, I call it 'Scorching Caress.'"

The sisters moved closer to look at the glowing hand. "Nice," Flora said. "What can you do with it?"

"Everything I touch starts to burn. If I'm holding an open wound, I can cauterize it." Cinder looked to the ground and saw a ripped piece of cloth. Picking it up, she used her Semblance to create a small fire. "It's not much, but the smallest spark can start the biggest-"

"Put it out! Put it out now!"

Cinder quickly looked back to see the sisters far away from her, fear all over their faces. Surprised at the reaction, Cinder did as she was told by dropping the burning cloth and stepping on it. Once she did, she turned back to her team in order to apologize.

"Sorry," Merri said first. "We... don't like fire," she said as she rubbed the nervous sweat off her forehead.

"It's a personal thing," said Flora.

"More like an irrational fear," said Fauna. "But a fear regardless."

"I get it," said Cinder, who began to relax herself. "I should have given you a warning before doing anything."

"No, you had no idea," said Merri. "Sorry for yelling."

"It's fine." Cinder began to forget the ordeal as she asked another question. "What can your Semblances do?"

Flora and Fauna seemed to freeze at the question, stumbling over their words a little. But Merri was able to make them stop as she gave a proper explanation. "Our Semblances are hard to explain," she said. "They're not something you can see, but something we can do together."

"Oh, so it's hereditary?"

"Yeah, which is unique. Fauna uses it most of all, when she makes her dresses. We take snapshots of things in our minds, and can replicate them in exact detail."

Cinder turned to Fauna, who was making a small glance to her sister. "Like a photographic memory?" Cinder asked.

"It's actually called an 'eidetic memory,' but you're right," Fauna explained. "Merri's right too, I only need my reference once and I can make a perfect copy. Of course, making a dress takes a lot of time."

"Oh, okay." Cinder nodded in understanding. "You know, that might be good for combat. We could try it now if you want."

"Maybe not now," Flora said. "It works better with hand-to-hand, since our weapons don't match other students. And while we can make copies, it takes a little time for us to feel natural with it."

"Well..." Cinder put down her swords and got in a fighting position. "There's no time like the present to start."

The sisters decided to stop their sparring when Merri suggested that they go to dinner. Cinder decided to stay in the training room just a little longer, to test something with her bow. She had just started to fire two arrows at once instead of just one, so she decided to control her grip as well as her aim.

After about ten minutes of practice, Cinder began to make her way to the cafeteria. The Scroll she had in her skirt pocket made a soft noise, and the teenager saw that it was a text message from Fauna.

"Hey, Cinder. We're all here, you coming?"

Cinder answered while walking.

"Yep. I'm on my way to the cafeteria now."

"Wait, the cafeteria?"

"That's right."

"Oh, man! I'm so stupid! I forgot to tell you that we wanted to have dinner in our room."

Cinder stopped walking. She was just outside the cafeteria, but she didn't go inside.

"Oh. Did you get takeout or something like that?"

"Even better. Come and see."

Cinder turned around and made her way back to the dorms. While doing so, she quickly made a call to Djarin.

"So how did the rest of your first day go?" he asked on the other end.

"It was great," Cinder replied. "I'm finally able to do more than just listen in the classroom. And I got to help my favorite teacher prove a point."

Djarin and Cinder laughed on their ends. "I'm at the cafeteria right now, you feel like talking more about it?"

"I'd love to, but my teammates want me to eat with them in our room. They say they have something better than what I expected."

"Okay, then. I'll check in on you another time. In the meantime, don't forget to do your homework."

Cinder rolled her eyes as she smiled again. "Yes, Professor Djarin," she said sarcastically.

"I would tell you have fun, but I can see you're doing that already. See you tomorrow."

"Bye, Dad. Love you."

Cinder hung up and used her Scroll to unlock her door. Inside, she saw Merri and Fauna sitting on the floor with plates and silverware in front of them.

"Ah, there you are," said Merri. "Don't worry, we're almost ready to start."

"Start what?" Cinder asked.

The door opened behind her once more, revealing Flora holding a tray with a piece of warm meat on it. "Dinner is served," Flora said as she put the tray down in front of her sisters. The girls marveled at the sight and began to dig in.

Cinder took a closer look at the food with wide eyes. It appeared to look like roast beef, which was an extreme rarity in Beacon's cafeteria. "Is that... meat?" she asked in excitement.

"Nothing but," Flora replied with a smile. "When we learned Beacon doesn't really offer much of it, we got some of our own." Flora cut the slab and handed a piece of meat on a plate to Cinder. "Here. Try some."

Cinder slowly took the plate and sat down. Everyone looked at her with excitement. Cinder looked down and smelled it. "It's... cooked," she realized.

"There's a small kitchen at the end of the hall," said Fauna. "With an oven large enough to cook our food."

"Come on, you gotta try it!" Merri said with a smile. "Take the first bite!"

Cinder took a fork and knife and cut the piece of meat she was given. Raising the fork to her mouth, she placed the smaller piece in her mouth and began to chew.

"Oh, my-" she said as she stopped chewing. Taking another small piece and repeating the process, she embraced the unique flavor of the meat. "This is delicious!"

The sisters laughed as they began to eat their own food. They also savored each bite, with Merri eating rather quickly. Most of the juice from the meat fell onto her plate, but there was some on her face. Rather than using a napkin, she used her fingers and licked the juice clean.

"Anyone for seconds?" Flora asked.

"I'm eating this thing clean," Fauna promised.

"I'm gonna beat you to it," Merri challenged as she quickly took another piece. "Hurry up, Cinder. Next thing you know, it'll all be gone."

Cinder took another piece of meat and examined it. "I don't think I ever had beef like this," she said with a smile.

"Well, nobody's ever cooked like Flora," said Merri. "And she always knows where to find the best food."

"This is just a little something shipped from Mistral," Flora explained. "I just knew it would be perfect."

"Mistral?" Cinder asked. "Huh, it's funny." Cinder took her fork and examined the meat. "I've had dinner at Korkie's house before, and I don't think I've had beef like this."

"Like I said, nobody cooks like Flora. It's kind of her gift."

"Always has been."

"Interesting." Cinder put down her fork and knife. "So, what's with the occasion?"

Fauna swallowed her food and looked back at Cinder. "Well, we actually eat like this once a day," she explained. "But you're right, this is special. This is actually for you."

"For me?"

Merri also finished the food on her plate and looked back at Cinder. "Well, duh!" she said with a chuckle. "We wanted to thank you for joining our team at such a short notice!"

"We were this close to being asked to leave," said Flora, who held her thumb and index finger less than an inch apart. "And you saved us from missing yet another assignment while we were waiting for a fourth member."

"So, Lil' Miss Prodigy, we cooked our best food earlier than we planned just for you!" Flora said before she hugged Cinder. "Thanks again."

Cinder was immediately caught off guard by the hug, but she returned it once she heard the praise and gratitude. But she was the one who should have been thanking them. "I feel like I should be thanking you," she confessed. "I had no idea that all of this was ready for me. If you didn't take me in, I'd probably be listening to lectures for nothing."

"Well, we couldn't have that," said Merri. "Gods know we wouldn't wanna listen to Port ramble just for the hell of it." All the girls shared laughter once more before finishing their dinner.

The next morning, everyone was getting ready to go to class a half hour before it started. While the Blair sisters were busy fixing their hair and uniforms, Cinder was having a conversation on her Scroll with Winter.

"Yesterday, I was able to show off my knowledge of Grimm and combat," Cinder said through her Scroll. "How'd your first day go?"

"Not as intimidating as I initially expected," Winter answered through the other end. "The morning drills and the classes weren't hard to get a handle on. It seems the only challenge I expect to have is strengthening my Semblance."

"Hey, don't talk like that. I mean, who taught Weiss how to make her first Glyph?"

"I did."

"And how long did it take for her to start climbing on walls with them?"

"Less than a week. I see your point, I just wish the older students didn't expect me to be a prodigy."

"I don't care what they expect of you, Winter. And you shouldn't either. If they don't like you at your best-"

"Then they don't deserve my best."

Cinder smiled as she sat up. "Come on, say it like you mean it."

"They don't deserve my best."

Cinder couldn't tell, but she had a strange feeling that her best friend was smiling on the other end. She was smiling too, happy to hear the reassurance in Winter's voice.

"Make sure you remember the same thing," said Winter. "I'm sure most students were taken aback by your father."

"Oh, you have no idea," said Cinder. "I'm sure they're expecting me to walk in with armor one day."

"Let them see the real you first. Then, you can worry about armor."

"Yes, ma'am." Cinder laughed on her end as she looked at the clock. "Alright, I gotta go. Classes start soon."

"Yes, my morning drills are about to commence. I should be in Vale in a couple of weeks. Until then, take care of yourself."

"You too. Bye."

"Goodbye."

Cinder hung up her Scroll and looked at the sisters, who were just about ready to start the day.

"Aw, I just remembered," Flora said as she finished brushing her hair. "Everyone's done with their presentations in Grimm Studies."

Fauna stopped brushing some dust and lint off her uniform to look up at her sister. "But that means-"

"It'll be story-time in about thirty minutes," said Merri. She and her sisters groaned in exhaustion, catching Cinder's attention.

"It won't be too bad," she said, attempting to comfort her team. "He only shares one at the start of class, one at the end... sometimes in the middle..." Cinder looked down and rubbed her arm. "Actually, yeah, he shares a lot of stories."

Everyone else groaned once more.

"But there's still a lot for us to learn!" Cinder offered. "Professor Port's strategy for each Grimm is exciting to listen to."

"It would be," said Flora.

"If he remembered to focus on strategy rather than kiss his own butt," said Fauna.

"Come on, let's just get it out of the way," said Merri, who walked loser to the door. "And let's not forget what else is gonna happen today. Cinder gets to show us-"

*KNOCK*

*KNOCK*

*KNOCK*

Everyone turned to the door, unsure who would want to see them before classes started. Nevertheless, Merri moved to answer it. On the other side stood Ozpin, Glynda, and Djarin.

"Professor Ozpin," Merri said as she stood back with a gasp, catching the attention of everyone else in the room. "This is a surprise."

"Pardon the intrusion, Ms. Blair," Ozpin politely requested. "But we were hoping to speak with you before you head off to class."

Cinder looked past Ozpin to see Djarin. "Dad, what are you doing here?"

"Ozpin convinced me to come," he answered. "He told me this was something that I might want to see for myself."

Ozpin nodded and looked back to the eldest sister. "Ms. Blair, I was hoping to ask you about the matter of your team leader and name. Has that been resolved?"

"I think it has, sir," Merri replied.

"We actually took care of it the other day," said Cinder. "I guess it slipped my mind, though."

"Not to worry." Ozpin nodded to Glynda, who took out her Scroll. "Now, it's normally tradition for Glynda and I to see who the team leader is, and I do have one of you in mind. Perhaps you all thought the same?"

"We have," Cinder turned to Merri. "After getting to know everyone, Merri and I decided that-"

"Cinder would be our leader," Merri finished.

"Wonderful," Ozpin said as he nodded to Glynda. "Then you'll be working to together as-"

"Wait, wait, hold on!"

Everyone in the room turned to Cinder, who was looking at Merri. "I thought we agreed you would be leader," she said. "You know your sisters better than anyone."

"Oh, I can take care of them," Merri insisted. "It's not like I'm new to the concept or anything."

"Hey!" Flora and Fauna yelled.

The girl in blue ignored her sisters as she continued to make her point. "But look at you, Cinder."

"Me?" Cinder asked. "What did I do?"

The sisters shared a short laugh before Merri answered first. "Well, for starters, you saved us from being kicked out of Beacon."

Fauna walked next to Merri. "And you know Grimm better than any of us," she said. "We got our first 'A' when you came to help!"

Flora joined the group next. "And you saved me from a trip to the hospital in your dad's class!" she included. "If you hadn't told me what to do and when, I wouldn't have done as good as I did!"

Cinder was happy to receive the praise from her teammates, but she was still unsure of her ability to lead a team. "But, I-"

A hand on her shoulder made Cinder turn to see her father next to her. "Answering a call for help, helping your team in times of need, making a flawless strategy, and inspiring others," he said. "If these aren't the traits of a leader, I don't know what is, Cinder."

"..."

Cinder looked across the room once more, seeing nothing but silent nods and smiles, each one giving support. Her time at Beacon helped her see what burdens the team leaders carried, what responsibilities and ideas they upheld. To say that she was inspired by each team leader she met would be an understatement, and Cinder amused herself with the idea of being like them.

But now, that amusement was over. She had a chance to make the most out of her education at Beacon, and she was ready to take it.

"If you all feel that I can do this, I accept the title," Cinder said. "I'll make you all proud."

"I'm pleased to hear that, Cinder," said Ozpin. "From this day forward, you and the Blair sisters will work together as... Team CMFF."

"Thank you, sir."

With that, Cinder led her team out of their dorm and towards their first class. Which left Ozpin and his company to slowly follow once they were out of sight.

"You were right," said the Mandalorian. "I couldn't be more proud to see this for myself." He turned to the Headmaster. "Tell me... did you see what her team just described about Cinder? Before making her leader?"

"I've spent five years getting to know and see the Maiden Cinder has become today," said Ozpin. "Her heart is in the right place, and her passion burns as bright as the fire she can create."

"That doesn't answer my question."

Ozpin turned to Djarin this time. "Cinder has honed just about every skill I'm capable of teaching to the Maidens. Now is the time to teach her that with great power, there comes great responsibility."

"Being a team leader is a good start to manage the burden she carries with her gift," said Glynda.

"..."

The Headmaster and his protégé turned to Djarin, both of them understanding his silence. "You disagree?" Ozpin asked.

"No, it's just... I don't want her to become too burdened," Djarin explained. "Back when she started training, she carried the world's problems on her shoulders. It made her act out, even start to hate herself." Djarin slightly looked down. "I don't want her to be like that again."

"I don't blame you," said Ozpin, who offered a comforting hand to the Mandalorain's shoulder. "But look how much your daughter has grown. She's wise for her generation, she understands herself and her strengths. Now all she needs is an opportunity to show who she is."

"...Maybe," Djarin said as he looked back up. "But don't burden her with too much. Not yet, at least."

"Of course." Ozpin looked at the time on Glynda's Scroll, which she was still holding. "Perhaps you two should be on your way. You wouldn't want to miss your first classes."

Djarin nodded as he used his Semblance to disappear. Glynda, however, didn't make her way to her class with the Mandalorian.

"If I may, Professor, maybe Djarin is right," she said. "Of course, Cinder has a tremendous responsibility, and being team leader will help prepare her for that. But starting her education two years early? Don't you think we're pushing her a little too much?"

"The thought has crossed my mind, yes," said Ozpin. "But didn't you see how excited she was to be a Huntress-in-training? And did you see her humility when she accepted the badge and the burden of team leader?" Ozpin began to walk down the hall, Glynda following suit. "I truly believe this to be her calling, and she's beginning to see it for herself."

"Maybe so. But about the Blair sisters? Do you believe they have a calling as well?"

Ozpin looked back at Glynda with slightly raised eyebrows. "This isn't the first year one team member wasn't able to miss a year at Beacon," she explained. "But this is the first in which we, or rather you, have decided to extend the deadline for them to find a suitable replacement."

"True, but I don't see any reason to include them in our efforts," the Headmaster promised. "If you must know, I found their story to be... quite moving. And I can't explain it but... they remind me of some people I used to know."

Glynda cleared her throat. "Well, I can see you have your reasons. I just don't want to get carried away with Cinder."

"You may be right. But let's see where Cinder's path takes us."

Glynda nodded and made her way to her first class. Ozpin, however, walked back to his office. When he poured himself a hot drink, he reached into his coat pocket. Taking out his own Scroll, he looked at the various pictures he had on it. The oldest photograph, the one he was looking for, was one he found in a museum a long time ago. It was an incomplete portrait of four little girls dressed in blue, pink, orange, and green. The portrait was found in a museum in Mistral, the girls were from an age long forgotten.

But not to the old man.

If the portrait was recovered intact, the curators would have seen an older man with pale blonde hair and a dark complexion standing behind them. They would have found an incarnation of Ozpin himself, standing behind his four daughters.

He wasn't lying to Glynda when he said that the Blair sisters reminded him of people he used to know. Three of Ozpin's four daughters seemed to live on through the girls he met when they presented their problem to them. It was truly a pleasure to have met them, as well as guide them through their ordeal.

But their meeting also made Ozpin miss his daughters more than ever. And wish things had ended differently the night he lost them.

Author's notes: hey everyone! Just wanted to point out a couple of things about this chapter.

1. Like I said, Chapter 31 is already published, I just deleted the announcement I made earlier. If you missed the announcement, it was just that my Q & A is now a forum on my profile.

2. Hope you like Cinder's new team! If you're wondering about their name, it's pronounced "Camouflage." Hope you like the name, it took me FOREVER to think of a color with the letters C, M, and F in that order.

3. Speaking of colors, you will be seeing Cinder paint her armor next chapter. But what colors will she have? Red and orange? Orange and gold? Black and orange? After thinking about it, I realized that a fun way to figure it out is... you decide! Let me know what colors you want to see Cinder paint her armor, and the most results will be her armor! I'm thinking she'll paint it either two or three colors, so you can pick up to three. So feel free to drop some colors (as well as your thoughts) in the comments!

To Cmedina1, sorry about the confusion. Hope I cleared everything up for you.

To 54godamora, I answered your questions via PM, but I still want to say thank you for your review. It really made me happy, especially your eighth point. I promise I won't let you down with the rest of the story, thank you for reading.

To GojiraFan455516, sorry to hear about school. I'm a little stressed myself, but I'm managing. Glad you liked the chapter though, hope you're doing better now. Thanks for reading.

That's all I have for now. Hope you enjoyed the chapter, please leave your thoughts in the comments, and I hope you all have a great day!