In the backyard of a little cottage on the outskirts of Mistral, ten brightly-dressed teenagers stood across from each other in two teams of five. The first team had red handkerchiefs tied around their wrists, while the other team had blue ones tied in a similar manner. The sun was setting on yet another day, and the air was warm but rapidly cooling as night quickly approached. A gentle breeze blew across the "battlefield", making the hair and clothes of the battle-ready teens flap and flutter dramatically in the dying day. On the porch of the cottage, a disheveled-looking man with scruffy black hair sat with a flask in his hand and a stern look in his eyes, as he watched the kids gather in front of him like they were preparing for war.



The team closest to him, the "Red" team as it were, consisted entirely of teenage girls dressed in all manner of clothing and wielding all sorts of weapons. A black-haired girl with an enormous red cape and an even bigger scythe unfolded in her hands. A white-haired heiress with a blue dress and a rapier in a practiced stance. A black-haired Faunus girl with a big white coat, twin black blades, and feline ears that twitched reflexively at every sound. A fiery blonde bombshell with a brown overcoat and yellow fists at the ready, one of which was entirely mechanical. And another Faunus girl with long brown hair tied back in a ponytail, wearing only a tank top and shorts to reveal much of her freckled, chameleon-like skin, with an electrified whip drawn from its holster.



On the other side of the grassy field, dubbed the "Blue" team, stood four young men and one woman that were just as varied as their opponents. A blonde-headed boy with white armor, holding an ivory sword in one hand and a gold-trimmed shield in the other. Next to him stood a long-haired martial artist, dressed in green and pink and carrying two bladed pistols. Then there was a red-haired, stout-looking girl with a blue jacket, a massive silver hammer, and a determined grin on her face. Then a young boy, barely old enough to be considered a teenager, with brown hair and a simple cane in his uncertain hands. Finally, a Faunus boy with a white shirt and a long yellow tail, armed with a crimson staff and a smug smirk.



"Okay, team," Ruby said confidently to her teammates, "Here's how we're gonna do it. We'll open up with a bit of Freezerburn, make a smokescreen to catch them off guard. Then I want Blake and Ilia to make a break for the treeline, and hide. Yang and I will cover your dash with some suppressing fire, while Weiss does a summon to charge forward in our place. I think a Boarbatusk would work just fine, wouldn't you say Weiss?"



The white-haired heiress nodded. "That should work. It's a nice quick summon, and doesn't take too much Aura. What then?"



"We let them close into melee range, and go from there. Yang will keep Nora locked down, and Weiss and I will handle the others. If it looks like any of us are in trouble, I want Ilia and Blake to assist. Move in and strike quick, then fall back into the forest. And Ilia, please, for the love of Dust, do not use your whip-thingy on Nora."



"Don't have to tell me twice," mumbled the chameleon Faunus as she rubbed her ribs. "I still have the bruises from last time. Won't make that mistake again, believe me."



"And remember, this is just a friendly match between friends, but it's also a training exercise. Don't pull any punches, but don't go overboard. Everybody ready?"



Weiss nodded, the cylinders on Myrtenaster cycling between Dust rounds. Yang smirked, cracking her mechanical and non-mechanical knuckles. Blake and Ilia also nodded, crouching low as they got ready to use their Faunus-borne agility.



"Alright then," said Ruby as she hefted Crescent Rose into a firing position, "Let's go! Let's show them the power of team...uh..."



Ruby was about to say "RWBY", but stopped herself short as she noticed Ilia's crestfallen face. She had to remember that it wasn't just them anymore - she and her friends had found allies that wanted to fight with them, and it would be rude not to include them in the rallying cry. Still, Ruby felt a little bad that she hadn't yet come up with something as clever as Jaune's "ORNJS" team name.



"Team...uh...RWIBY? RIWBY? RWBIY? Oh whatever let's just do this!"



That flustered outburst kicked off the match, as the Blue Team charged forward in formation, with Jaune at the front with his Crocea Mors shield raised. Ren and Nora sprinted behind him, while Sun and Oscar brought up the rear. Weiss plunged her weapon's tip into the ground, creating a field of ice that encircled the Red Team. With an explosive punch from Yang, the ice dissolved into a thick steam, creating a cloud of white smog that blanketed the battlefield.



Blake and Ilia sprinted for the treeline, using the smokescreen to their advantage. Shots from Ren's StormFlower guns flew out and sprayed wildly, but all the rapid-fire rounds missed and struck only empty air. Ruby buried the tip of Crescent Rose into the ground, using the scythe blade as a sort of bipod to aim and fire high-caliber sniper rounds at the charging Hunters. Yang added to the barrage with a salvo of shotgun shells from her gauntlet and arm, while Weiss summoned a glyph beneath her feet and around her weapon. An instant later, a spectral, snowy-white Boarbatusk materialized out of thin air, squealing and spinning in place before rolling out of the fog and into the group of very surprised looking teens.



Jaune must have been terrified of the sudden summon surging towards them, because he skidded to a halt and held his arms out to stop the others. Only when he raised his shield did Ruby see what Jaune was really doing; his eyes were filled with determination, not fear, as his hands glowed with pure white light. Almost immediately, a thin veil of white energy expanded outward from his shield, as it was amplified by both his Aura and his Semblance to create a barrier for his entire team. The Boarbatusk struck the shield head on, sending Jaune skidding backwards a few inches; the young man held his ground, however, giving Nora a chance to swing her hammer upwards to strike the Boarbatusk square on the chin, making it squeal as it flew through the air.



"That's...new..." murmured Weiss as she watched the Boarbatusk land squarely on its back. "I didn't think he would gain control of his Semblance so quickly after unlocking it."



"Yep, our little Jaune is growing up so fast," said Yang as she wiped a nonexistent tear from her eye. "But so have we. Let's do this!"



And with that, the burning blonde blasted both barrels behind her, the recoil of her weapons propelling her forward. Ruby and Weiss soon followed suit, dashing forward in a haze of rose petals and a floating glyph respectively. Jaune had just willed his Auric shield away and stabbed the Boarbatusk through the unarmored belly when he saw three Huntresses charging towards him, making him raise his shield once again. Yang planted both feet on his shield and leapt into the air, launching an explosive slug from Ember Celica that forced the group to scatter.



Yang immediately closed the distance between herself and Nora, launching into the fight with a flurry of explosive punches. Ruby cornered both Sun and Jaune, while Weiss found herself fighting both Oscar and Ren. Even though Ren's ninja-like strikes and Oscar's quick, mundane cane strikes were both as fast as lightning, Ruby was confident that Weiss could handle herself. She was a Schnee, after all.



The question was, could she, a young silver-eyed Huntress, handle two strong, fast, and extremely handsome blondes that were circling around her?



The answer was almost certainly yes.



Jaune made the first move, swinging his sword in a wild flurry at the young Huntress. She blocked each strike with the shaft of her weapon, before retaliating with a leaping kick that collided with his shield. Sun moved in next, swinging his huge staff at where Ruby had been a moment earlier. She disappeared in another flash of rose petals, appearing behind Sun and partially form-shifting her beloved Crescent Rose, closing up the massive scythe blade but leaving the shaft and stock extended. The result was a large staff-like weapon - not as powerful as a scythe, but easier to handle in close-quarters situations.



Both Sun and Ruby swung their staffs at each other with blinding speed, sparks flying as metal met metal again and again. Jaune planted his sword into the shield's sheathe, making it collapse horizontally but extend vertically. He hefted his massive two-handed sword over his shoulders, and he was just about to join the fray when a bladed pistol tied to a ribbon shot out of the treeline, wrapping itself around Jaune's waist. With a surprised yelp, the blonde Huntsman was pulled backwards, and disappeared into the forest, leaving Sun and Ruby to continue their furious duel.



Meanwhile, Weiss dueled against both Oscar and Ren with graceful precision and poise. Oscar's strikes with Ozpin's cane were focused and controlled, matching her fencing style almost perfectly. Ren, on the other hand, preferred hit-and-run attacks from Weiss's blind spots, firing off a salvo of Dust rounds before closing in with two sweeping strikes, followed by a backflip away accompanied by another burst of fire. She tried to use her glyphs to break away from her duel with Oscar, only for the young farm boy to immediately close the distance. She considered summoning a Beowolf to keep Ren busy, but realized she'd never be able to find an opening to do something so time-consuming. She tried firing streaking Dust blasts from her weapon to knock Ren away, but he simply dodged every projectile she threw at him.



She looked to the treeline as she parried another one of Oscar's blows. "A little help would be nice..." she said through gritted teeth.



If Weiss had possessed super-sensitive hearing in that moment, she would have heard a reluctant sigh coming from a bush. The next time Ren leapt towards her to attack from behind, a yellow-coated whip lashed out from the forest and wrapped itself around his ankle. Ren felt a jolt through his system as he was pulled away, before hitting the ground hard and getting the wind knocked out of him. Weiss leapt over Oscar's head as a figure suddenly materialized behind him, launching a spinning kick that knocked him over and on top of the floored ninja. A white glyph formed underneath both of them, sending them both flying upwards and away from each other.



"Never thought I'd see the day when I'd be helping a Schnee," muttered Ilia to herself as she snaked her whip back into its collapsed state. "Mom and dad are probably rolling in their graves now..."



Weiss had a razor-sharp retort ready, but held her tongue. She knew that most Faunus held no love for the Schnees, especially not the one standing in front of her right now. The old Weiss would have just dismissed her as inferior, but the new Weiss had an understanding of how awful her father really was. So she opted to instead put a hand on Ilia's bare shoulder, causing her to almost reflexively jerk back in response.



"Ilia..." said Weiss simply, "...thank you."



Ilia's skin and face cycled through several colors all at once, from red to blue to green to purple. Finally, she settled on her normal skin tone, with one exception - her freckles were a bright pink instead of their usual brown.



"You're welcome" she mumbled before turning around and pursuing Ren. Weiss simply smiled to herself and readied her rapier, as Oscar rose to his feet in front of her. He gave a chuckle - far too wise-sounding to come out of a simple farm boy.



"That was quite different from the Miss Schnee that came to Beacon almost a year ago."



Weiss rolled her eyes. "A lot of things are different, Headmaster. And why are you the one talking? I thought we agreed that it would just be between us Huntsmen-in-training."



"That may be true," said Ozpin with a freckled smile, "but considering that I must learn to use this body eventually, I would consider myself a 'Huntsman-in-training'. Now then, ready yourself Miss Schnee. I will not go easy on you."



"I'd be disappointed if you did," said Weiss, launching herself into the fray again.



While Ruby and Weiss fought their own battles, Yang and Nora were locked in a powerful brawl. The hammer-wielding thunder maiden swung her mighty Magnhild wildly, but the fiery blonde was quick enough to avoid the enormous instrument of death. As Nora got ready for an overhead smash, Yang closed the gap between them and grabbed the falling hammer by the handle with her metal hand. The servos and motors whirred and whined in protest as both girls pushed with their colossal strength, fighting for control over the hammer. A literal sucker punch from Yang struck Nora in the gut, knocking her back and making her let go of the hammer in shock. With one hand, Yang threw the hammer behind her, feeling the earth shake as it hit the ground.



Rather than make a dash for her weapon, Nora opted to instead settle into a boxer's stance, bouncing on the balls of her feet as she readied her fists. With a grin, Yang accepted Nora's invitation to brawl it out, opening with a powerful right hook. The Valkyrie ducked under the swipe, following up with a quick one-two right to the jaw. Although her Aura absorbed the blow, it still stung like hell - and Yang was gonna make Nora pay for it.



The two girls engaged each other in a flurry of fisticuffs, trading blows and punches with one another with enough force behind each swing to split a stone in half. Yang felt her Aura start flagging as she tanked most of the blows, but dished out almost as much damage as she was taking in. A mechanical fist drove itself into Nora's stomach. A powerful uppercut smacked Yang square in the jaw. A strong headbutt struck Nora right between the eyes. An even stronger headbutt followed in retaliation, sending Yang stumbling backwards.



The blonde Huntress doubled over for a moment, panting as she rested her hands on her knees. She saw Nora do the same, wiping the sweat off her brow and the spit from her lips.



"Had enough yet?" taunted Nora.



Yang chuckled. "You kidding me? I'm just getting warmed up."



Nora groaned. "A pun? From you? I'm just shocked."



"No you're not," said Yang with a grin, "That's why you're losing."



Nora chuckled in response, before settling back into a fighting stance. "We'll see about that. Ready when you are, Blondie!"



Yang sucked in a deep breath, before throwing herself back into the fight.



While Ruby and Sun continued their high-speed melee, Blake suddenly reappeared, knocked out of the forest by a powerful-looking swing. Jaune leapt out an instant later, converting Crocea Mors from a two-hander back to its usual sword and shield formation. With the highly defensive Huntsman in her way, Blake would not be able to flee to the safety of the forest again, and every time she tried to shadow dash past, she'd find a big shield rammed firmly against her face.



Growling, Blake changed tactics, running full sprint at Jaune with Gambol Shroud in each hand. Anticipating the attack, the blonde Huntsman grinned as he shifted to a low stance, holding his shield forward and ready to block any attacks. At the last possible minute, Blake leapt and planted both feet firmly on the shield, using her opponent's defense as a springboard to flip backwards before shadow-dashing forward to the ground. Jaune was momentarily staggered by the feline Faunus's jump against his shield, leaving him open for a sweeping strike to his legs once Blake hit the ground. Combining both halves of Gambol Shroud, she swung her weapon like a baseball bat, smacking Jaune with the flat of her bladed sheathe and sending him flying.



The battle seemed to be going well for Ruby's team. She and Sun easily matched each other blow-for-blow, and Blake's natural speed allowed her to easily catch up to the flying Jaune. Yang and Nora were still engaged in their punch-out, but the fiery blonde's Semblance was due to trigger any second now. And Weiss and Ozpin were sparring furiously, while Ren and Ilia chased each other across the battlefield with electrified whips and flying bladed pistols.



But then several things happened all at once.



The first was that Ilia's electric whip surged forward towards Ren, who dodged it with practiced ease. That wasn't the bad thing. The bad thing was that Ren was counting on Ilia to do that, and so he had placed himself between Ilia and his partner before she struck. So instead of hitting her target (Ren), Ilia's whip came into contact with the last person she'd wanted to zap.



Nora grinned as she caught the tip of the whip in her hand, chuckling maniacally as she felt the electricity surge through her body. Her Semblance turned all that power into pure Aura, supercharging her and making her ten times stronger than she already was.



Ruby spared a second to glance at Yang's fight, which ended up costing her. Sun only needed an instant to change his staff into a pair of nun chucks, and another second was all he needed to launch into a furious combo. Ruby felt herself get struck down with several flying strikes, followed by a barrage of shotgun shells that sent her flying across the yard and into Jaune's shield. The unexpected flight and sudden stop knocked the wind out of her, and Jaune used that opportunity to sandwich her between the ground and his shield.



"Aura's in the red," he said matter-of-factly, a huge grin on his face, "Looks like you're out."



"Yeah," groaned Ruby, "guess so." She couldn't stay mad for very long, though - the sheer joy that was on the Huntsman's face was just too sweet to sour with a bad attitude.



She just hoped that the rest of the team could pull off a win without her.



Ilia was the first to fall to Super Nora, who yanked on the whip and pulled the chameleon Faunus towards her. The other hand was already in the form of a fist by the time Ilia came close, delivering a blow that knocked her into next week - and her Aura into the red. Yang kept herself between Nora and her hammer, but was easily swatted away by a backhanded blow from Nora as she made a break for her weapon. Not to be deterred, Yang activated her Semblance in a fiery glow; red eyes full of rage, she tackled Nora before she could reach her weapon, sending them both tumbling to the ground.



Blake made a dash for Weiss, who similarly backpedaled away from Ozpin as soon as she found an opening. They both met up at the edge, and looked out at the four Huntsmen rapidly closing in on them.



"Any ideas?" asked Blake.



"Just one," said Weiss, Myrtenaster already in hand, "Buy me some time!"



"Are you sure?"



A massive glyph with four swords appeared beneath Weiss's feet, and her voice was strained as she tapped into what was left of her Aura.



"I hope!"



That was reason enough for Blake to leap into the fray, engaging all four Huntsmen in one frantic melee. She used her thinner blade to block the rapid attacks of Ozpin and Ren, while her bladed sheathe provided some defense against the heavier blows of Sun and Jaune. Whenever she had an opening she would shadow-dash away from the fray, leaving her opponents to strike only empty air as she fired pistol rounds at their exposed flanks. Despite her agility and finesse, Blake couldn't avoid every attack, and bit by bit she felt her Aura flagging.



She spared a second to check on her partner, whose hair was aflame and eyes were blazing as she grappled with the supercharged Nora. The rumbling sounds of thunder and explosions boomed across the battlefield, scaring away nearby birds and setting off a few car alarms. Yang seemed to be holding her own against Nora, but even she couldn't last forever - her Semblance was meant for quick finishes to fights, not prolonged punch-outs.



"Sooner would be better, Weiss!"



"I'm doing this as fast as I can!" the heiress snapped back. The Summoning already took a while, but trying to focus on it when gods of fire and thunder were brawling it out made concentrating an even harder feat.



Blake was almost out of Aura when she heard the telltale sound of heavy armor rattling and giant boots making contact with the ground. Weiss's strongest Summon - the Arma Gigas she had fought while training to become a Huntress - had finally arrived, and hefted its massive sword on its shoulders as it bowed towards its master. Weiss curtsied in response, then pointed at the very-shocked-looking boys that had just a moment ago been pummeling her friend.



The Arma Gigas had no eyes, yet it still glared menacingly at Jaune, Ozpin, Sun, and Ren.



"Uhh...ideas?"



"I vote we run, Mister Arc."



"Hey, that sounds good to me."



"I agree."



And run they did, not that it made much difference. The Arma Gigas swung its massive sword, sweeping the ground and aiming for the group of scared young men. Ren and Sun were agile enough to jump over the blade and land on it as it passed under them; Jaune and Ozpin were not so fortunate, and both of them were sent tumbling away as their Auras crackled around them in flashes of white and green.



"Yeah, okay," panted Jaune, "run away from the giant knight. Great idea, sir."



"Hey, don't blame me," said Oscar, "tell the old man. It was his idea."



"Of course, he retreats back into your mind when we really wanna talk to him. Tell him he can kiss my -"



"Already did. He's chiding you for language now."



After Ren and Sun landed on the giant blade, they immediately ran down the length of it towards the arm. The Arma Gigas saw them running and tried to swat them away like they were flies, but the two agile Huntsmen dodged the hand that tried to knock them off. Sun swung his staff around him to build up enough power to strike the head, only to be struck mid-air by a flying, swinging kick from Blake. Ren leapt over the shoulder and fired Dust rounds at Weiss, but the Arma Gigas moved its sword to block the bullets with the flat of its blade. Then before the young man had a chance to react, the Arma Gigas swung forward, smacking Ren with the flat of its blade and sending him flying back into the ground. A pained yell from Sun as Blake used him as a landing cushion marked the end of his participation in the match as well.



Nora immediately made another break for her hammer, smacking Yang out of the way when she tried to tackle her again. The knight swung its sword, but Nora was as fast as she was strong, and she easily dodged the giant blade of doom and death. She broke her run and power slid towards Weiss, grabbing her hammer as she soared past it. The knight raised its foot to stomp her, but Nora braced herself and pushed against the massive boot with the shaft of her hammer. The two of them looked like an ant pushing back a Goliath's foot, but Nora held her own and pushed back with every ounce of strength she had. But she was so caught up in her contest of strength with the massive titan that she didn't notice Blake throw her bladed pistol to an enraged Yang; with a practiced swing, Blake swung her ribbon around her, creating an arc of yellow flame in the air as she used her partner as a battering ram. Yang let out a guttural roar as her mechanical fist connected with Nora's face; with one mighty blow, the battle was finally over.



"Yes!" yelled Ruby, leaping to her feet and raising her fists in the air. "Way to go, Red team! And good job Blue Team! That was a great fight!"



The beaten, bruised members of Blue team all gathered around Ruby as they groaned and clutched their wounds. The fire in Yang's hair smoldered until it faded entirely, and her crimson eyes returned to their usual shade of lavender. Weiss let out a breathy sigh, and the Arma Gigas disappeared in a flurry of snowflakes. And Blake held a limping Ilia with an arm draped over her, keeping her steady as she caught her breath.



"Oh, jeez," said Nora, her usual chipper voice laden with regret, "I didn't hurt you again, did I?"



Ilia shook her head. "No, it's fine. I just don't have as much Aura as the rest of you guys. Haven't really needed it, what with being a spy and all. Usually I try to avoid fights if I can."



"A wise way to live life," said Ren, "Except in this context, unfortunately."



"Yeah, these guys tend to get into big fights a lot," chimed in Sun, "You should have seen these girls when they took on a giant robot! Or when they turned the cafeteria into a war zone!"



"Yeah, that one was fun," agreed Jaune, "Still, I think we need to have a rule against Weiss bringing in her big knight. That thing is seriously overpowered."



"I wouldn't have even considered it," said Weiss, "If someone hadn't broken their promise to stay out of control. I lost half my Aura to that stupid poking attack alone."



"Hey, I can't exactly control when he wants to take over," Oscar protested, "I guess he sensed I wasn't doing well enough."



"You did great, Oscar," said Ruby encouragingly, "You've really come a long way since we started training. Even before Ozpin took over, you demonstrated a lot of control over both your Aura and your attacks. Ozpin would be extremely proud of you."



The young farm boy blushed in response to Ruby's praise.



"And Ilia, you did really well too," said Blake, "You kept up with Ren extremely well, and you used your environment to your advantage wonderfully. Good job."



Now it was Ilia's turn to blush again, her freckles turning pink.



"What's wrong, kids?" teased Yang, "Can't handle a bit of praise from pretty girls?"



"Yang, no." Ruby turned from her sister to her uncle. "Uncle Qrow, feel free to chime in. How did we...do?"



Ten teenagers turned to the adult that was supervising them, only to find that the old Huntsman had completely dozed off.



Ruby sighed as she shook her head. "Yep, that's my uncle."



"More like drunkle, amiright?"



Yang's bad pun was met with an equal mix of groans and laughter as the sun set on another day.