Chapter 14: Forever Fall

The vast expanse of Forever Fall stretched beyond the northern wall of Vale all the way to the sea. The distinctive red trees and grass gave the place an eerie sense of being stuck in time; like the land was perpetually on the cusp of change.

The first year Beacon students flew over the crimson forest in dark gray planes. These vehicles had a round body that extended into a tail, with two wings that ended in rotating jet engines.

The small fleet circled a ruined structure in the middle of a large clearing, hovering above the trees as their side doors opened to allow the students to repel down into the forest.

Of team RWBY, Weiss summoned a series of glyphs to walk her luggage down as the rest of her team skidded past on ropes while wearing large backpacks.

Jaune practically fell out of the same aircraft, sliding down his rope and landing on his back, his aura crackling around him as he held his mouth. The rest of his team dropped to the ground, helping him up.

"Gather around, students!" Glenda Goodwitch called from the center of the clearing, standing on a fallen pillar. She waved her riding crop as the aircrafts departed. "Professor Peach is going to explain your Survival Science assignment."

"Thank you, Glenda," an older woman stepped beside her. She had aged white hair and wore a blue shirt with tan pants, her hands covered with large brown gardening gloves.

"In our class, we've learned about the wildlife surrounding Vale and the ways we can use it to survive here," she explained in a soft voice. "Today, you'll be putting that knowledge to the test. You will be making camp near this spot while gathering sap from red spurn trees.

"This sap is an excellent food source, and extracts from it are used in a variety of ways," Peach said while holding up a jar of what looked like a red jam. "One such use we haven't touched on is its inclusion in grimm lures."

"On that note," Glenda interrupted, "do be careful while you are out here. We have huntsmen watching the perimeters, but the creatures of grimm are known to gather near such natural resources." Many students shared worried glances with one another.

"Being afraid will only attract the grimm, Glenda," Professor Peach said with a smile. She turned to the students, arms spread wide. "The city has given you all permission to hunt, fish, and forage anywhere in Forever Fall. Feel free to do so while waiting for your jars to fill."

"Each student will need one jar, at least half full, to receive full marks," Glenda said, gesturing to a large crate that had been delivered with the students. "Team leaders, please meet me over here to receive the jars and spiles for your teams."

"And remember to have fun!" Peach added as they left the ruins. Professor Peach joined a conversation with another set of students, answering questions, while Glenda began organizing a line among the team leaders.

Ruby and Weiss headed over, silently marching in sync until they were both in front of Glenda. She looked at them nonplussed, levitating the equipment toward Ruby.

"I know we are in the midst of making the… unusual preparations to swap teams, but for now, you two are still partners." Glenda said, shooting them both a glare from behind her glasses. "I expect you to work together during this trip, as amicably as possible."

Ruby took the jars while saying "Yes, ma'am!" with a vigorous nod.

Weiss scoffed, turning away.

"I thought Yang was kidding about that," Nora said to Jaune as he returned with their jars.

He shrugged. "It helps when I'm strapped down in something like those bullheads," he said, handing his team their equipment for the trip. "But, yeah, it's a problem."

"Not one you can't overcome," Pyrrha said, smiling warmly at her leader. He smiled back, but before he could go on, a hand clamped onto his shoulder.

"Mind if I borrow you, Jaune?" Cardin said, dragging the boy away from his team and over to team CRDL. Team JNPR glared at him as he stole their leader.

Cardin turned to his team while still gripping Jaune's arm. "Alright boys," he said. "Give 'em here."

Sky nonchalantly handed his jar and spile over to Cardin, who thrust both his and Sky's equipment into Jaune's arms. Russel gave his tentatively, and Dove refused.

"I'm not playing along with this, Cardin," he said, meeting Cardin's glare with his own. "I don't care why Arc thinks he needs to help us out; he's not doing my work."

"Can't you relax?" Cardin asked. "Like, ever? You've been cramping my style since team CRDL formed, and honestly, I'm getting sick of it." He towered over his teammate. Dove didn't flinch.

"Actually," Russel spoke up, looking at Jaune. "Could I have mine back?"

"No way," Cardin interposed an arm between them. "Arc here is going to have a grand old time doing all that work, aren't you, buddy?" He shot a venomous glare at Jaune.

Remaining composed, Jaune dryly said, "Sure am, friends." He then spun on his heel and left, returning to team JNPR.

"Are you sure I can't break his legs?" Nora asked Pyrrha as Jaune returned holding team CRDL's jars.

"Jaune, what's going on?" Ren asked as their leader placed the jars on the ground.

"Nothing much," Jaune said. "At least, not for much longer." He looked up at Pyrrha, who was slowly coming out of a shocking realization.

"Come on!" Nora pleaded. "Just one leg? Please?"

"Sorry, Nora," Pyrrha said, looking down at Jaune, almost angry. "I'm sure our leader knows exactly what he's doing."

"What do you think you're doing!?" Weiss shouted at Ruby. The girl in red panicked, jostling Crescent Rose, which was stretched into a war scythe, causing its blade to carve through the tree she was drilling into. The thing fell with a sad crack.

"I was… making a hole to collect the sap?" Ruby said, holding up her spile sheepishly.

"With a scythe?" Weiss continued her tirade. "That'll never work! The most you could make is a big slit!" She smiled devilishly. "You might as well chop down the whole forest with how careful you are."

Ruby bristled at the comment, but remained composed. "Why don't you try and make the sap holes, Weiss," she suggested. "Your sword would be way better at it than mine."

"Myrtenaster will be doing no such thing," Weiss said, producing a small hand drill from her bag. "Unlike the rest of my team, I came prepared."

Ruby looked at the tool, then folded Crescent Rose down into its travel form. "So, are you going to drill, or should I?"

Her question briefly flummoxed Weiss, who had expected a retort.

"You can do it," she handed the drill off to Ruby. She paused, then said, "But I'll need to supervise to make sure you're doing it right."

"Of course," Ruby said, rolling her eyes and moving over to another tree. She placed the drill against the wood and began digging into it. Weiss made no complaint as Ruby removed the tool and placed her spile into the hole, giving it a firm tap with her weapon.

"That's mine done," she said, placing her empty jar under the tap as it began leaking droplets of red. She turned to Weiss with an outstretched hand, asking, "Do you want me to do yours?"

Weiss balked. "What's with you?"

Ruby blinked. "What do you mean?"

"I-" Weiss started, then reconsidered, and finally said, "Aren't you mad at me?"

Ruby paused, frowning. "I was. Maybe I still am. I know you don't want to be teammates with me, or Yang, or Blake, but… that shouldn't mean we can't be friends." She gave Weiss a smile.

Weiss stared at her, baffled.

"Hey Ruby?" Yang's voice called from closer to the clearing. "Do you have any more stakes? I… broke a few." The girls turned to see Yang holding up a set of smoldering tent spikes. Her gauntlets had been activated.

Ruby laughed as Weiss started chiding Yang. "Did you really try placing tent stakes by shooting them?"

"It was an accident!" Yang said, retracting Ember Celica into their bracelet form.

"Sure, Yang," Ruby said. "There should be extras in the tent bag. Weiss and I are going to set up our team's taps."

Yang looked between the two of them with mild concern before tossing her jar and spile over to Ruby. "Alright. Good luck!" She returned to setting up their camp.

Weiss wiped a small smile off her face as Ruby turned to her.

"You… actually want to be friends with me?" Weiss asked.

"I do," Ruby said confidently.

Weiss reappraised her, then sighed and said, "Fine. Just for this trip, we can be friends."

Ruby beamed, and the two started talking about where they should set up the other tree taps.

Early the next morning, Jaune was strolling back to team CRDL's camp, or rather, Cardin Winchester's camp, with his four jars full of red sap. Cardin was poking at a dying fire while Sky was staring into the distance.

Upon seeing him, Cardin jeered, "Hey, you're pretty good at that sap collecting thing. Ever considered being a farmer?"

Jaune ignored his taunt, walking right past Cardin and his buddy. Cardin stood, shouting, "Hey, Arc!" He stormed up to Jaune, blocking his path.

"Yes?" Jaune asked lazily.

"Where do you think you're going with my team's sap?"

"You mean my team's sap?" Jaune retorted. "Nora wanted to try some with Ren's pancakes, so-" Cardin placed a hand on his shoulder, squeezing tightly. Jaune glanced at the hand, sweat forming on his brow.

"You're going to leave those jars here," Cardin said coldly, pointing to the ground, "or I'm going to finish what I started in the arena."

"Hey, Cardin," Sky spoke up. "Maybe we should just-"

"Shut up!" Cardin snapped at Sky. "Get the box."

Sky flinched, then obeyed, retrieving the box- the one that Jaune had stolen -from Cardin's bag.

"This way, Arc," Cardin said tersely, leading Jaune through the woods with a rough hand. He followed, and they walked back toward team JNPR's campsite, coming to view the place from the hill to its southeast. Nora was fast asleep, sprawled over a mattress, while Pyrrha was rolling up a sleeping bag. Ren was setting up a portable griddle next to a small, foldable table filled with ingredients.

"What is he doing?" Sky asked Jaune in a hushed voice.

"He's going to make pancakes," Jaune whispered back. "Like I was saying, I really need to-"

Cardin gripped Jaune's arm as he tried to stand from where they were laying.

"Not yet," he whispered. "First, you're going to throw a jar of that stuff at her." He pointed at Pyrrha.

"Why?" Jaune asked flatly, his eyes narrowing.

"Know-it-all there is going to get a hundred stings from your little present," Cardin began explaining. "You see, that report you did for me said that rapier wasps are attracted to that sap stuff. So, we cover our target in it, and then release the buggers." He smiled wickedly down at Pyrrha.

Jaune grimaced, his fists balling.

"Whoa, hold on," Sky said, shifting the box away from himself. "Rapier wasps? That's what's in here?"

"You scared, Lark?" Cardin taunted. "Get ready to throw them after Jaune does his thing." He looked at Jaune, then stopped. The boy had stood and walked away, leaving only one jar of sap behind.

Cardin shuffled to his feet, trudging after him. Jaune was brushing himself off when Cardin shoved him into a tree. The boy hardly faltered, his aura deflecting most of the force. Two more jars fell from his grasp, landing on the ground.

"What's it now, Jauney Boy?" Cardin said, baring his teeth. "Think you can worm your way out of this one?"

"I don't think I need to," Jaune said, placing his last jar of sap behind the tree. He rested a hand on his sword. "We never did finish our match."

Cardin's glare hardened. He hefted his mace, taking an offensive stance. Sky jumped between the two, hands outstretched.

"Guys, chill out!" he said, turning about. "You can't fight here! There are students, and teachers, and- grimm!"

Cardin laughed while Jaune looked in the direction Sky was pointing. A large mass of black was trudging through the forest, knocking over trees as it approached them.

Dove Bronzewing came running out of the tree line. He passed them without stopping, sprinting away as a massive black bear appeared before the boys.

Blake was catching fish in the nearby stream when Russel Thrush burst out of the forest behind her. She reeled in Gamble Shroud on its ribbon, tossing another salmon away as she folded her arms. Russel was panting, clearly shaken by something.

"You, uh…" he faltered for a name.

"Blake."

"Blake," Russel said, coming to. "Right, Blake. We- We gotta get out of here." He looked back at the forest nervously.

"Why?" Blake asked, narrowing her eyes.

"An ursa," Russel said. "A large one. It tore up my campsite and chased Dove away."

"You didn't just kill it?" Blake said, dismissive of his story.

"We tried!" Russel explained. "Our weapons bounced off its hide! I- I don't know what it is, but it's going to hurt people if we don't find help." He met her eyes. Blake could only see concern in them, but she turned away, gathering her fish.

"I don't trust you," she said. "You hang out with Cardin, and he's not a good person."

"Yeah, I know," Russel said, groaning. "I've only been partnered with him a month now; but that's not important!"

"It is to me!" Blake shot back. "And I'm not going to help someone who condones his actions!"

"What?" Russel looked baffled. "I don't condone anything Cardin's done! He forces his work onto his team, he vanishes between classes to do god knows what, and he keeps trying to pick fights with everyone he can!"

Blake blinked at his condemnations, turning around. "You don't know what he's doing between classes?"

Russel sighed. "I'm taking a remedial course online. Between that and the work Cardin orders me to do, I don't have much free time." He shook his head. "Seriously, though, we have a giant ursa on the loose here. Could I get some help?"

Blake thought for a moment, then nodded, gathering her weapon and following after Russel.

The boy snatched up a rock as they ran, held an arm out for Blake to grab, and tossed it above the tree line. He closed his eyes and used his semblance to scan the area. The creature had stopped a ways ahead, turning and slowly advancing after three figures.

Russel retracted his senses as the stone began falling, taking in a sharp breath as his aura warbled from the strain. Blake shot him a glance as he told her what he saw. She nodded, then pointed in a different direction.

"Get my team," she ordered. "I'll see what I can do."

Jaune, Cardin, and Sky were being forced back by a ten-foot tall monstrosity. The grimm was shaped like a bear, the typical form of an ursa, but it had thick, boney armor padding its paws and skull, with spiky protrusions sticking out of its back. It didn't roar; instead, it trudged forward on its hind paws, breathing out a low growl.

Jaune and Cardin had their weapons out, facing the beast tenaciously, while Sky was trembling, loosely holding his halberd. The grimm swung a paw forward, and Cardin swung his mace to batter it away. The head met the claw, and then fell away, smacked from Cardin's grip in a blast of fire.

The boy blinked, then ducked away, running to put distance between him and the creature. Sky followed shortly after, taking his leader's cue. Jaune grimaced as they left, racking his mind for a plan.

The ursa didn't relent, swaying forward to crush Jaune with its other paw. Jaune swiped at the limb as he moved back, and his sword left a small cut on the creature's palm.

The grimm bellowed out a loud, pained roar, like it had never been cut before. Birds took to the sky in the distance as the forest itself seemed to shake.

As the grimm looked down at Jaune, a black knife streaked at its head. The blade bounced off, then the wide hilt let off a gunshot, retreating to the hands of Blake Belladonna. The girl sighted on the ursa from a tree, letting off several more rounds that all plinked harmlessly off the creature's hide.

The grimm ignored her, moving slowly toward Jaune on all fours.

Thinking back, he lifted his shield to try and reflect sunlight into its red eyes, but the angle was too far off. The beast trudged forward, its paws shaking the ground.

Cardin rounded from behind Jaune, pushing him down as he hurled a jar of sap at the ursa, covering it in goo. Behind him, Sky tossed the box of wasps at the creature. It bounced off its nose, landing in the grass with a dull thud.

"That thing is very well packaged," Jaune noted before scrambling away.

With their plan in shambles, Sky turned and fled, running right past the grimm. Despite his fear, the ursa ignored him, growling as it continued after Jaune, who retreated with Cardin.

"You got a plan yet, Arc?" Cardin snarled, hefting Sky's halberd.

"Working on it," Jaune said, looking over his shoulder. In the distance, he could see a cliff leading down to more forest. "We could try and get away," he said to Cardin. "Jump down that cliff."

"And die like cowards!?" Cardin dismissed his idea. He pulled a trigger on Sky's weapon, causing the hollow end of the shaft to release a streak of lightning at the grimm. The electricity sparked against its face, but the ursa's boney helm remained unblemished as the energy vanished.

As the grimm readied a lunge, Jaune swung his blade, landing a hit in a chink in the armor, leaving a cut across the thing's cheek. It howled and flinched, turning as Cardin split from Jaune to get a different angle.

The ursa stood, towering over Jaune as he backed away, inching closer to the distant cliff. It growled at him, then a bullet struck the side of its face, jerking its head.

Back down the clearing the creature had made, Ruby had Crescent Rose sighted on the beast, barrel smoking from firing a high-impact sniper round.

As the grimm turned, Jaune slashed at its belly, shaving off black fur and nicking it with the tip of the blade.

"Ruby!" Jaune shouted. "The cliff!"

He pointed behind himself, then braced his shield. The ursa slapped him with a paw, sending him flying close to the edge, his body flashing white.

He never saw Ruby nod as she turned to her gathering allies. "Yang, Pyrrha! Watch that side!" She shouted, pointing toward where team CRDL had viewed team JNPR's campsite. "Blake, Russel! Keep our flank clear! Weiss, with me!" She examined the battle as the combatants took their positions.

Cardin rushed in, raising Sky's halberd high. It struck the ursa's back, landing among boney spines. The creature batted him away with an annoyed arm, trudging over to kill Jaune, who was now recovering.

"What are you doing?" Weiss questioned. "We could all just rush it!"

"Weiss, I need you to boost me with a glyph," Ruby said, ignoring her. "I'm going to knock it over the ledge."

"That's a stupid plan!" Weiss chided, "I'm not going to-"

Ruby gripped her collar, eyes fierce. "Trust me," she said. "Like initiation."

Weiss faltered, then nodded, preparing a glowing white glyph for Ruby to jump on.

As she fed her semblance fire dust, Jaune had the grimm focused solely on him. He slashed wildly at it, leaving knicks across its form as it loomed.

As it raised a claw to strike him, Ruby shot into its back, kicking it forward at Jaune. The boy held up his weapons, panicking, until a force dragged him out of the way.

He and Ruby watched the monster plummet dozens of feet into the forest below.

To the side, Yang looked away from Jaune's miraculous dodge and noticed Pyrrha holding out a shaky hand in an odd shape.

"What's that for?" She asked, pointing at it.

Pyrrha blinked, coming to. "Oh," she said. "Uh, well… you have your rage, Ruby has her speed; my semblance is polarity."

Yang gave her a confused look, so Pyrrha elaborated, "I can manipulate metal like a magnet."

"Ooohh," Yang cooed, smiling, "That's really attractive!" She gave Pyrrha a set of finger guns.

"Right," Pyrrha said, hushing her voice. "Would you mind keeping it a secret?"

"My lips are sealed," Yang said with a wink, "Magnetically!"

Pyrrha stared at her, anxious and disappointed.

Yang turned serious for a moment, asking, "How did you know about the ursa?"

"Dove barged into our camp," Pyrrha said, standing up. "He nearly knocked over Ren's griddle in his panic." She shrugged. "Guess I'll be heading back then. We're having pancakes, if you're interested."

Weiss stomped up to Ruby. "What was all of that?!" she demanded. "I'm sick of feeding into your need to show off!"

Ruby breathed out, then explained, "That was an ursa major. They're primarily solo hunters; but if I had been wrong and it was just a large ursa, we would have had a whole pack of them to deal with. If that had been the case, having our strongest fighters ready to intercept them was the best plan.

"Since I assumed it was a major," Ruby continued, "I knew our weapons wouldn't be able to pierce its hide. Our only choice was to knock it off the cliff. In fact, that fall might not have killed it!" She pointed over the cliff where the grimm had last stood.

Weiss was stunned by her explanation for only a moment. Then, she became angry.

"You-" she tried to object, raising a finger at Ruby.

She met Ruby's eyes, seeing nothing but confidence.

"I-" Weiss growled, her face twisting in frustration.

She huffed and spun, leaving the clearing without further argument.

As their conversation ended, Jaune helped Cardin to his feet, gripping his hand tightly to have their own aside.

"We're done."

Cardin blinked at his whisper, meeting his eyes before glowering.

"What do you mean, 'done'?" he hissed back.

"I had a friend switch up your records," Jaune said, his voice hushed. "They've been replaced with a forgery. If you mess with me or any of my friends ever again, I'll see us both expelled from Beacon."

Cardin's eyes went wide, then he furrowed his brow, challenging, "You wouldn't-"

"Try me," Jaune said coldly. He whipped his hand away from Cardin and walked off, retrieving his jar of sap and returning to his campsite with Pyrrha.

Cardin took a step after Jaune, then paused, frustration growing across his form. He grunted, then huffed away, retrieving his mace and making his way back to his camp alone.

"Thanks for the help, Blake," Russel said, holding out a hand to shake hers.

She took it tentatively, breaking the contact quickly before motioning to Cardin. "Are you going back with him?"

Russel grimaced, then nodded. "He's my team's leader. I don't really have a choice."

"You always have a choice, Russel," Blake said. "You never have to follow someone who isn't doing the right thing."

"It's hard to stand up to him after he saved my life," he admitted, hanging his head. "I know you're right, but I'm not strong enough to really make a difference."

"Not alone," Blake said, smacking his shoulder and pointing at Dove, who was approaching them.

"Hey, Russel!" the boy came over, elated. "Glad you're alive, man! Hey, team JNPR invited me to have pancakes; wanna join?"

"Didn't you help bully their leader?" Blake asked, folding her arms.

"What?" Dove said, putting his hands up defensively. "That was all Cardin, honest! That guy never should have been picked as our leader."

"Did someone say pancakes!?" Ruby came out of her stupor, becoming elated as she rushed off to team JNPR's campsite.

"I still have fish to gut," Blake said, motioning back the way she'd come. "Have fun."

"What are we doing up here, Jaune?" Pyrrha asked. The two of them had just returned from their class's trip to Forever Fall, arriving late in the evening. They now stood on a balcony above their dorm floor, ensuring Cardin wouldn't interrupt them again. "Planning to confess?"

"Not quite," Jaune said, mirroring their conversation from a week ago. "I, um…" He trailed off, unsure of what to say. Eventually, he blurted out, "I'm sorry. I was a jerk; you were only trying to help, and I cut you off, and-"

"Jaune," Pyrrha interrupted. "It's ok." She smiled as he turned toward her. "Your team really misses their leader, you know.

"We should get going," Pyrrha said, turning back to the entrance. "Nora got Ren to make pancakes again. There won't be any syrup left if we-"

"Wait," Jaune called. She turned around, seeing Jaune holding his arm awkwardly. "I know I don't deserve it after all that's happened, but… would you still be willing to help me? To become the 'best fighter I can be?'"

Pyrrha briefly turned around to hide a smile. Then, she composed herself, marched over to Jaune, and pushed him over. He fell backwards onto his rump.

"Hey!"

"Your stance is all wrong," she said, standing over him with crossed arms. "You need to be wider, and lower to the ground." She offered him a hand, which he took gladly.

She pulled him up and said, "Let me show you how it's done."