Guys...we're so close. I can taste the end. It tastes like tears and garlic.

"So Ruby and Weiss are totally dating now, right?"

"Jaune!" Pyrrha gave the blonde-haired boy a sharp but playful elbow to the gut. "Mind your own business."

She turned back to Blake and Yang, whispering conspiratorially. "But it is quite obvious that they are, so tell us. Is it official?"

"Hey!" Jaune exclaimed. "Come on Pyrrha, no fair!" The spartan simply grinned mischievously.

"Hush now Jaune, can't you see that Yang's trying to speak?" Jaune looked ready to respond, but upon noticing that the blonde across the table indeed did have her mouth open, he sank back into his seat and glared at Pyrrha.

"It's hard to say really." Yang began. "They do spend an awful lot of time together, and we know for a fact that they've kissed..."

"More than once." Blake cut in. Yang nodded, grinning as she continued.

"But you guys know how Weiss is. The ice princess would probably wait until the day she proposes to even let Ruby know that they were dating in the first place!" Yang laughed at her own joke, Blake chuckling slightly as well.

"Hmm." Pyrrha began. "It does seem like 'feelings' are not one of Weiss's best areas. Frankly I'm quite shocked that they've managed to grow so close, seeing how they're just so different from one another." She was interrupted by Jaune clearing his throat rather loudly and giving her a pointed look, and blushing, she turned back to her friends. "But I suppose opposites do attract."

Jaune winked at Blake across the table, who grinned back, until her ears picked something up from across the dining hall. "Heads up, lovebirds inbound."

Blake had to kick Yang hard in the shin in order to stifle the blonde's giggles as Ruby and Weiss approached the table, hand-in-hand – a fact that did not go unnoticed by anyone present.

"Hey guys!" Ruby's voice was bright and cheery as she practically dragged Weiss over to the table and plopped down beside her sister on the bench. The heiress's face was unreadable as ever, but Blake thought she might have picked up a ghost of a smile as the girl sat down beside her partner.

"Where are Ren and Nora?" Weiss asked, oblivious to the scrutinizing looks being shot her way by the table at large.

Pyrrha was the first to shake herself out of 'snoop-mode' and offered a genuine smile. "I would imagine that they're still out training. Nora has been working Ren very hard in order to improve his stamina, so I wouldn't expect them back for a while."

Yang leaned over and whispered in Blake's ear. "Working hard to improve his stamina huh?" At this, the Faunus turned beet-red and playfully smacked her girlfriend's arm, trying desperately to suppress a giggle when Yang wiggled her eyebrows suggestively.

"BLAKE!"

The girl in question shot up at the sound of her name being called from across the room.

"YANG!"

Sun Wukong burst out of a nearby crowd and sprinted towards the table where RWBY and JP sat, knocking over several people in his haste to reach his friends.

"Guys! Ozpin asked me to get you! Says it's extremely important so you better go now!" He panted, doubled over in exhaustion.

Blake's eyes met Yang's, and that was all they needed.

Are you ready?

Yeah.

Blake nodded to her other teammates, who leaped up to join them. "Sorry guys," Ruby began. "No time to explain now, but we promise to tell you everything later." And with that, team RWBY sprinted out of the dining hall, leaving Jaune and Pyrrha dumbfounded as they looked to Sun for answers, who simply shrugged.

"Hey, I'm just the messenger."

Blake's mind raced as she stepped into the elevator with her team. Did Qrow really find the White Fang? He must have, what other reason could Ozpin have to call for us so urgently? But with thoughts of the White Fang, there came inevitably thoughts of...

Adam. I know it's impossible, but I hope you're not there...

As if Yang could sense her girlfriend's train of thought, she reached over to place an arm around her shoulders. "Hey." The blonde turned Blake's head so their eyes met. "Whatever happens, I'll always be there with you, I promise. We'll get through this together."

"Yeah! We can beat these guys, you'll see!" Ruby piped up, beaming at the group, with Weiss nodding in agreement.

Blake nodded and offered up a weak smile. "You're right guys. I'm not going to mess it up this time, and Yang..." She turned back to her girlfriend.

"Yeah-" She was cut off as Blake drew her into a passionate kiss, letting all that was unspoken pass between them silently, no longer needing words to convey it.

"Ahem..." The sound of Weiss clearing her throat brought the pair back to the world. "Focus, we're here to do a job. Save the...celebrations for afterwards." She cocked an eye brow at the still-intertwined duo.

Yang quickly broke away and saluted enthusiastically. "Yes Ma'am!" To which Weiss rolled her eyes while Ruby and Blake giggled quietly.

"Ah, there you are girls. I'm glad Mr. Wukong was able to deliver my message quickly." Ozpin spoke calmly as the elevator door opened and the four girls entered the room.

"Ah, I see you've brought your teammates as well." Ozpin nodded contemplatively. "Yes, I suppose it's for the best."

"Qrow!" Ruby explained as she dashed to her uncle and threw her arms around him. "I haven't seen you in forever!"

"Please kiddo, let's try and keep some air of professionalism about for now." Despite his words, the man grinned as he hugged her back. "Hello Blake, feeling better I hope?" He nodded at the Faunus over Ruby's shoulder, who smiled in return.

"As much as I hate to begrudge families some time to catch up, I'm afraid the matter at hand is of the utmost importance. Ozpin's voice rang out, not angry or annoyed, but serious and concerned, which was enough to silence the room. "Now, Qrow, if you would."

The old scythe-wielder nodded, and lay a map of Vale and the surrounding area on Ozpin's desk.

"It took quite a bit longer than expected to pinpoint the location that the Fang have been using. At first, I assumed that it would be someplace inside the city, with easy access to the docks," he indicated the harbor on his map, "otherwise it would have been very difficult to pull off their most recent attack. But after a few days of searching, my efforts proved fruitless, and it became obvious that the White Fang were no longer based in Vale." Weiss interrupted him.

"So where are they?" She was not a fan of the roundabout way Qrow told his story, and her naturally-occurring impatience was beginning to show.

"I'm getting to that dear," Qrow replied calmly. "Now, just north of Vale there is an abandoned submarine base, most likely left over from the war, and it would seem that not many people know about it anymore." He pointed to a spot a few miles up the coast from the kingdom. "It's secluded, easy to defend in the case of a Grimm attack, and right now, it seems to be the most likely place where these devils could be holed up." Ozpin nodded his agreement before speaking.

"And if they are there, it's possible that they could be trying to restore the base to full operation, along with the submarines still docked there." Ozpin took a sip of coffee before continuing gravely. "If this is the case, then what happened at the docks is just a taste of the destruction that the White Fang could cause with a fleet of fully-armed, covert war machines."

So it was a submarine that did it, that day at the docks. Clever. Blake thought to herself.

Yang continued where the headmaster had left off, speaking slowly and pensively. "They could attack any kingdom, at any time. There would be no way to know where or when until it was already too late..." Blake finished for her.

"Not to mention disrupting inter-kingdom commerce. They could destroy entire shipments at once."

The full gravity of the situation finally dawned on the four girls. This wasn't just about the safety of Beacon, or of Vale, but of humanity as a whole.

But they would not back down. "Tell us what we need to do professor." Ruby spoke confidently, ever the leader, first to dive into the fray. Her teammates nodded, expressions determined, and Ozpin sighed slightly, a small smile on his face.

"I suppose there's no convincing you otherwise?" He was met with glares from Blake and Yang. "I wouldn't have thought so. I admire your courage children, but I do implore you to use the utmost caution while you are out there. Despite all your training, and all your skill, do not forget that you are still just that: Children. While most White Fang members are not innately skilled, they have experience and numbers, both of which can be deadly to the young and brash."

Ruby began to speak, but Ozpin wasn't finished. "In light of this, you four are not taking down this operation on your own. You are to investigate the base, verify that Qrow's information is solid, and try to determine the true endgame. If at all possible, do not engage the enemy, and do not alert them to your presence. Is that understood?"

The four girls nodded. "Yes sir."

"Very good." He looked sadly towards his students. "Truth be told, I would rather you four left this to someone more experienced. But I understand why you feel the obligation to go yourself, and I will not try to stop you." He looked pointedly at Blake and Yang specifically.

Qrow spoke up. "You will be transported to the location in question tomorrow morning. Please take this time to prepare yourselves."

"Actually sir..." Ruby glanced at her teammates, who nodded. "We're ready now."

"I see." Qrow raised his eyebrows before shooting Ozpin a questioning look.

The old headmaster stared at the four, eyes searching, as if he could read directly into their hearts. He nodded.

"Very well, now it is. Good luck."

The plot returns. Did you like it? I've been sitting on that submarine thing for weeks now, just waiting to finally use it.

Anyways, let me know what you thought!

Peace out.