It had been one wild rollercoaster of a trip, but Ash and Pikachu were finally back at Beacon. The towering spires, the familiar buzz of students, and the smell of cafeteria food that Pikachu oddly missed—it all felt like home after the chaos in Atlas.

But before Ash could even catch his breath—

"ASH!"

A blonde blur came barreling towards him at full speed.

"Wait—Yang, wai—!"

WHAM!

Ash was yanked into a bone-crushing hug, his face squished into Yang's shoulder as her arms squeezed the life out of him.

"G-Ghk—! Can't… breathe…" Ash wheezed, eyes wide as he felt several joints pop in places they weren't supposed to.

"Pikaaa…" Pikachu winced in sympathy.

Yang's eyes shimmered with relief and slight irritation. "Do you know how long you were gone?! You ghosted us! I was two seconds from storming Atlas myself!"

From a few feet away, Ruby stomped over, hands on her hips, looking half concerned, half exasperated.

"Yang! Let go of him! You're going to crush him!" she scolded.

Yang pouted but reluctantly loosened her death grip. "Fiiine…"

She released Ash, who immediately collapsed to the ground like a ragdoll, wheezing and rubbing his ribs. "I think… I heard something crack…"

Ruby crouched beside him with a sigh. "Welcome back, Ash. Next time, send a message or something, okay?"

Ash nodded, still breathless. "Noted… no more disappearing acts…"

Yang grinned, ruffling his hair with a bit more gentleness this time. "You better not. You missed all the drama here. Also—never leave me alone with Weiss for that long again. I almost lost it."

Ash chuckled weakly. "Deal… just as long as I don't have to survive another Atlas girl gauntlet…"

Pikachu snickered beside him. "Pika pika." (No promises.)

Yang raised an eyebrow. "Wait… what happened in Atlas?"

Ash paled. "N-nothing! Absolutely nothing!"

Yang's eyes narrowed in suspicion, and Ruby tilted her head curiously.

"Oh yeah?" Yang leaned in with a devilish grin. "Then why's your face red?"

Ash groaned.

He was never catching a break, was he?

Weiss sighed, pinching the bridge of her nose as Yang continued to mess with Ash like a cat playing with its food. "Honestly, Yang, must you flirt with every breath?" she muttered, then turned her attention to Ash. "Still… I am curious. You were in Atlas for quite a while, Ash. What exactly happened over there?"

Even Blake, who had been quietly leaning against a nearby pillar, perked up with interest. "Yeah, I've heard stories about the Atlas military, the Schnee Dust Company, and even rogue Huntresses. Must've been eventful."

Ash rubbed the back of his head, sweat already forming as he chuckled nervously. "Uhh… y-yeah, you could say that…"

Ruby grinned, elbowing him lightly. "C'mon, spill it! I wanna hear everything!"

Yang smirked. "Yeah, lover boy. Don't leave out the juicy parts~"

Ash's face turned pink as he waved his hands defensively. "There's nothing juicy! It was just—uh, sightseeing! And, um, nearly getting blasted! Totally normal stuff!"

The girls weren't buying it. Blake raised an eyebrow, Ruby leaned in with anticipation, and Yang looked like she was about to interrogate him.

But before Ash could stammer out a single fib—

"Heeey, Beacon boy~!"

Ash froze.

His blood turned to ice at the way-too-familiar sultry tone.

"Oh no…" he whispered in horror, slowly turning his head.

There, standing just behind him, was Bianca Prisma—one hand on her hip, her bright green eyes gleaming with amusement as she tossed a casual wave in his direction. "Miss me?"

Weiss's jaw dropped slightly.

Blake narrowed her eyes.

Ruby blinked in confusion.

Yang's expression shifted from smug to dangerously curious.

"…Who's that?" Yang asked slowly, eyes flicking between Bianca and Ash with a raised brow.

Bianca smirked and walked up beside Ash, wrapping an arm casually around his shoulder. "Oh, I'm just an old friend from Atlas. You didn't tell them about me, Beacon boy?"

Ash let out a broken laugh, sweating bullets. "I-I was just about to…!"

Yang's eyes narrowed. "Old friend, huh?"

Ruby leaned in closer. "Ash… you said nothing happened…"

Blake crossed her arms. "This is getting interesting."

Ash gulped, looking at Pikachu, who simply gave him a slow, judgmental blink.

"Pikachu… don't look at me like that…"

Pikachu shrugged.

Even with Bianca already making things awkward, Ash's luck somehow got worse.

"Yo, Bianca! Found him!" Roane's voice cut through the courtyard like a whip.

Ash's eyes widened in horror as the rest of Team BRIR strolled up behind Bianca, each member wearing their own brand of smug.

Roane gave Ash a sly grin, twirling a loose dreadlock. "What, no hug for me, Beacon boy?"

Ivy crossed her arms with a sharp smirk. "Wow, you didn't tell us you had a fan club waiting for you back here. Aren't you popular."

Ruda waved, her goggles pushed up onto her forehead. "Huh, didn't expect this many girls around. You always this surrounded, or just when we're around?"

Team RWBY's expressions shifted immediately.

Yang's arms crossed, her eyes narrowing. "Okay, who are these people?"

Weiss folded her arms, glancing between the newcomers and Ash. "And why do they all seem so... comfortable with you?"

Blake raised an eyebrow. "...I thought Atlas Huntresses were supposed to be professional."

Ruby blinked. "Wait, is this the 'nothing happened' part?"

Ash practically waved his arms in panic. "Guys, it's not what it looks like—!"

Bianca leaned into his side again. "Oh relax, Beacon boy~ We're just saying hi."

Roane smirked. "Yeah, your boyfriend's just been stalking us across Atlas. Harmless fun."

"I'm not your boyfriend!" Ash snapped, blushing furiously. "And I wasn't stalking anyone!"

Ivy chuckled, ignoring his outburst. "Funny, I distinctly remember someone blushing when I asked him out…"

Ash's face went bright red. "That was a joke!"

Yang took a step forward, eyes narrowed. "Hey, hands off!" she asked, her voice cool but dangerously low.

"Oh? Did we hit a nerve?" Roane said sweetly. "Sorry, but when you spend time with real Huntresses, the training wheels start to look a little… wobbly."

Ivy snorted. "I mean, look at him—Beacon boy was begging us to show him the real side of Atlas."

"That's not what I said!" Ash flailed.

Blake put a hand on Yang's arm, restraining her as her fists started to clench. "Yang…"

"I'm fine," Yang growled. "Totally fine."

Ash quickly jumped between the two teams, raising his arms like a referee. "Okaaay, okay! Let's not throw hands over this! BRIR—could you please stop calling me that?! I have a name!"

Ruda just giggled. "Aww, but you react so cutely when we do."

"Yeah," Bianca chimed in. "Beacon boy just rolls off the tongue."

Ash groaned and covered his face. "This is a nightmare."

Pikachu chuckled in amusement.

Ruby leaned toward Weiss and whispered, "We should've never let him leave Beacon."

Weiss nodded. "Agreed."

Roane's sharp gaze landed on Weiss next, a mischievous smirk curling on her lips.

"So this is the Schnee heiress, huh?" she said, arms crossed. "Honestly expected someone taller… maybe with a bigger personality."

Weiss's eye twitched. "Excuse me?!"

Ivy chuckled, stepping beside Roane. "You mean to tell me this is the Weiss Schnee? Rich girl from the top of the Atlas ladder slumming it with Beacon students?" She leaned in mockingly. "Daddy cut off your allowance or something?"

Weiss's face went red—not from embarrassment, but anger. "I chose to attend Beacon. I didn't need—"

"Sure, sure," Roane interrupted with a smirk. "Bet your name still gets you the best seat in the house though. Must be so hard being you."

Ash's stomach dropped. "Guys, c'mon—can we not—"

Then Ivy's eyes drifted toward Blake, who had been silently glaring the entire time. "And what about you, cat girl? Beacon letting anyone in these days, huh?"

That did it.

Blake stepped forward, ears twitching, eyes cold. "Watch it."

"Oh no," Ivy grinned, clearly amused. "Did I strike a nerve? Relax, we're all friends here."

"Say that again," Blake warned, her tone dangerously quiet.

Ash stepped between them. "Stop! Please—just stop. This is getting way out of hand."

But Bianca only giggled, completely unbothered. "Maybe we should just take Beacon boy back with us to Atlas. He'd have way more fun without all this drama."

That pushed Yang over the edge.

The blonde Huntress stomped forward, fire practically in her eyes as she glared Bianca down, her fists clenched and glowing faintly with heat.

"You're not taking anyone anywhere," Yang growled.

Ruby quickly tried to hold her back. "Yang, don't—!"

But Ruby was casually and comedically shoved aside, sliding a few feet across the courtyard.

"Worth a shot," Ruby muttered from the ground.

Bianca raised an eyebrow at Yang's intense glare, lips quirking into a smirk. "Aww, you jealous? Don't worry, we're not looking to steal him."

Roane leaned in with a teasing whisper, "Unless he wants to be stolen."

Ash threw up his hands in complete exasperation. "I should've stayed in Atlas…"

Pikachu sighed and nodded. "Pika pika…"

Weiss stepped beside Blake, both looking unamused.

"I suggest you leave. Now."

Roane just smirked.

Ivy looked ready to throw another jab, but Bianca raised a hand casually. "Alright, alright. We'll back off. For now. Don't want Beacon boy too rattled."

The BRIR girls turned to walk away, laughing amongst themselves.

Ash let out the biggest sigh of his life. "Can someone please tell me why older girls love messing with me?"

Yang, Weiss, Blake, and Ruby all answered at once.

"Because you're adorable."

"Because you're hopeless."

"Because you don't stop blushing."

"Because you walk right into it!"

Ash groaned again. Then he glanced at Pikachu for support. "Pikachu," he said with dread.

"Pika?"

"Next time… don't let me leave Beacon."

Pikachu nodded solemnly.

Well, this ends a fun series. Keep an eye out for another future hangout series with Ash and girls from another series.