Macro Notes:

Themes: Self-worth, ideas vs reality, deciding when to put one's own happiness first.

Focus of the story:

Big Bads:

Salem: Now funding/assisting the radical arm of the White Fang. Never shows up, but she's the little things that make life difficult.

Adam/Roman/Neo are all bigger deals than canon. Roman is forced to play along by threat of Tyrian to the face, Adam gets into canon earlier and is the sort of threat that forces people to disengage or die.

Sienna Khan is eventually roped into agreeing with them when Adam's actions kill an anti-Faunus politician with a lot of influence.

Don't Skip Signal:

Raised by a Hunter vs raised by civilians

Being at the top of the class

High failure rates

The Grimm side of teaching kids to be soldiers

Making the weapon/working with the ideological angle of being a Hunter (you can't just use a gun and a knife).

Signal Arc

1) First Day. Theoretical scores are good, practical scores are good. As time goes on, SI doesn't move past the center of the pack. It'd be fine if he wanted to be a soldier or policeman, but it's not enough. He's mimicking, not innovating, and can't settle into one style.

2) A circus comes to town. Goes there, sees stunts that have to be Aura-infused. Ends up talking to a performer who's on their day off, and tries to juggle. Fails, but still interested in it. The next day, he adds a little flair. It's objectively worse than his normal fighting style, but it's more fun.

3) Has a lot of spare time and knows that over-training, even with Aura, is a thing (mental, not physical, exhaustion). Decides to spend some time at the circus, and starts learning a few tricks. Combat scores start to go back to his baseline, and his practical scores drop a little.

4) One of the acrobats gets injured in practice, and they need a spare. It's during a school day, and SI blows off so he can sub in. Kills it. Misses a day of school, but it's one day. Right?

5) SI starts performing himself, and is good. Building camaraderie with other performers, learning other tricks, and even making some money. Skips more school. He's still there for major tests, but people are talking behind his back.

6) School calls. Tai is pissed. SI realizes that he's f**ked up. Circus has been in one place for too long. He has to choose.

7) Spends all weekend forging his weapon with Ruby. The circus moves on, SI shows up to sparring class with a new outfit and a new weapon. Demolishes one, then two, then LOTS of other students using an unorthodox but extremely effective fighting style and "creative" tools (including water balloons filled with pig's blood, what is basically pepper spray, and tactical flirting). Finishes the year with barely-acceptable grades, but makes up for it with a Hunter's persona, which he finally gets on an emotional level, as opposed to an intellectual one.

Interlude: Ruby PoV. We see how mature she is, what she thinks of Midas, and the new tricks she's thought up. Reveal that where Yang and Tai teach her sense, Midas teaches dirty tricks via stories about people like Loki, Taylor, Hershel and the Hanukkah Goblins, Tyrion Lannister, the Joker, and Ender Wiggin.

Graduation Arc

People can try hard... and fail. Two tests, one theoretical (Law, Psychology and other stuff) and one practical (a mock mission with lots of oversight and a high failure rate).

1) SI is in a group of students and wonders at the number of potential hunters. Yang and he are close, but while Yang has a fair number of friends (and Ruby even has a group), he's more or less alone. While that's fine, it's not satisfying.

2) Girl approaches him, asking for help. He's confused (doesn't think it's that hard) but agrees to work with her.

3) After a few sessions, the girl asks for a private training. He gives it. There are a few things that could be interpreted as innuendo. He suggests more meetings, she agrees. Yang overhears this at lunch, explains to him that she thinks they're dating, trigger Semblance (Gallant-lite emotion/Aura sensing, along with Grimm detection). Sudden increase in combat skill (b/c he can get a little more warning about attacks).

4) Now that SI is aware of the romance, he tries hard to be worthy of it. She notices the change, he explains that he didn't know, they both laugh. We learn a little more about both of them, and the study sessions are elaborated upon. He tries to focus on the content, she focuses on the romance. Yang/Ruby/her friends medaling hijinks.

5) Midterm thing (big test) is coming up. It's a practical, where students get thrown to the Beowolves (Teachers ready to interfere). SI is hyped, the girl isn't but they agree to team up. They have a heavier-than-usual session, but stop short of straight-up sex. Groping, though.

6) Test comes and the girl is not ready for it. She's scared, doesn't like fighting Grimm, and part way through flakes out, running to a teacher and quitting. SI is devastated and teams with Yang for the rest of the test, and the two of them clean house, along with two or three other students.

7) They meet after the test, and the two of them have a heart to heart. SI is not going to give up being a Hunter, and the girl wants a lower-risk job. They part with a kiss, but they both agree they're two different people. The girl goes into a different program, one for police officers, and SI goes to the new classroom, where people who passed the test are. It's Yang, him, and four other people, from a class of dozens. He sits down, and there's a time-skip to Beacon.

Interlude: Ozpin. We get his thoughts on bringing Ruby into Beacon early (it's going to happen), on how things are going (an improvement), and Midas's latest film idea (an animated film about a fish that got lost). Close on him considering the Salem problem, along with a few other things, like Leo's removal and the meaning of extra realites.

Character Notes

Teams:
SI/Weiss & Pyrrha/Ruby: PRSM (Prism)

Jaune/Yang & Nora/Ren: RAYN (Rain)

Individual Character Arcs:

Weiss:

Ruby: Needs to learn that Ruby is worthy of respect, and that also that silly doesn't mean weak. Also needs to learn to let people try to help her.

Pyrrha: Needs to learn how to separate professional and private life. Sure, try to talk about paying the Invincible Girl for lessons and becoming the most powerful girls in school together, but Pyrrha needs you as a friend.

Midas: How to get along with people who have different opinions on what matters, the novel.

Weiss: Learn that the Schnee name is just a name, it's what she makes of it. Repairing her relationship with her father, Whitley, and Willow.

Ruby:

Weiss: Un-fun doesn't mean evil, and sometimes you do just have to listen to the people up top. More to the point, Weiss isn't like family, and getting used to her is going to take time.

Pyrrha: People want different things from different people. Sometimes, they don't want to give stuff. Ruby needs to learn boundaries with Pyrrha, what she can/can't ask for, and when she needs to step up and be assertive for Pyrrha.

Midas: Big brother wants to hang out with other people and you need to spread your wings. Also, you need to learn how to be his peer, which means earning and giving respect.

Ruby: Growing up and learning humility.

Yang:

Jaune: Learning when to press him and when to hold back. Not everyone is Hunter-trained from birth, and her roughhousing scares people.

Nora: They feed off one another, sometimes getting a little too hyped up.

Ren: Leave the boy alone.

Yang: Abandonment issues and letting Ruby take serious risks.

Jaune:

Yang: Yang is a lot MORE than he's used to, and while she ends up toning it down he also has to deal with some ego-deflation.

Nora: How do I manage all this craziness?

Ren: His only bro, who also doesn't talk much.

Jaune: Learning the expectations of being a Hunter, as well as what is/isn't okay. Tries to hit on Yang. Once.

Nora:

Yang: Feeding off one another, but learning to do it responsibly.

Ren: Growing a little more mature and asking him out.

Jaune: Not everyone plays as rough.

Nora: Coming to terms with being a bubbly bubble bubble while also being mature. Think Ruby but less "I'm the best!" and more "Okay, so this is what adults do!"

Ren:

Jaune: How do I interact with males?

Yang: Why does Nora think Yang is hitting on me/I kind of like Yang hitting on me.

Nora: When Nora asks him out, how does he respond? "I'm not quite ready."

Ren: Having more emotion than literally a sloth. Or her just isn't a huge part of the story.

Pyrrha:

Ruby: Interacting with children. That, and learning what it means to have a partner.

Weiss: Weiss comes from a very different background, and that changes how she interacts with people.

Midas: Some people want you. Some people don't. You want some people to want you, so go out there and be fucking assertive.

Pyrrha: Learning how to be a "normal" girl, as well as BEING FUCKING ASSERTIVE.

Initiation

Yang and SI on the plane, talking shit with Ruby, who got there for being just that good. SI spies some of the main cast, but doesn't go over to them. Starts playing mental-matchmaker. Yang also asks why he has two backpacks and a shield, SI says not to worry about it.

Leaves Yang for a hot minute to scout out the competition. Walks with Weiss, comes across as weird but not an idiot. Ruby walks with him, and he watches them blow up a little with a smile on his face. Meets up w/ Yang again at Ozpin's speech (it's different). Night of, convinces Jaune not to wear a onesie, unlocks his Aura, and gives him a backpack. For initiation. Spies Pyrrha across the hall, looking lonely, and takes a moment to say high. They chat, he doesn't talk about her fame and she doesn't tell, and he jokes about initiation, which she goes along with. They say goodbye and he goes to bed next to Yang and Ruby after swapping stories.

Day of initiation, SI finds Jaune chatting up Weiss next to Pyrrha w/o his backpack on. Drags his ass away and fixes that, explaining that he needs to pull the tab when he's in the air. Cue call to cliffside, cue some oddly-worded questions to Glynda, cue a student being launched, cue use of explosives under the shield to get a head start, use of parachute, and map knowledge to get to the ruins w/o touching the ground. Decides to let the cards fall where they may and waits at the ruins, twirling a knight piece and singing.

Meets Weiss, who glyph-dashed to the end, thinking that they would be graded on their performance. Argument over leaving (Weiss wants to because marks, SI wants to see future teammates). Ruby arrives and picks the other knight piece, which Midas has... mixed feelings about. Pyrrha is next, goes wooden at seeing Weiss again, but Midas jokes "fourth, huh?" at which point a pseudo-argument starts.
Then Nora, Ren, Yang and Jaune all arrive, Deathstalker in tow.

Run to overpass, decision to fight when no one wants to chance the bridge. Weiss takes charge and Jaune backs her up. Ruby and Weiss move to hinder mobility, Pyrrha and Jaune start blocking pincers, Yang and Nora go badass on the head, and the SI and Ren deal with the tail.

Teaming ceremony. People go back to their rooms. Yang's a little sad she's not on a team with family, Midas low-key jokes about sneaking into Jaune's room to sleep in the same bed, like when they were kids, and Nora adds a bit about how she still tries to do that with Ren, who walks into the room and collapses on the bed. PRSM in the room, people agree to leave future discussion/plans for tomorrow morning because DAMN that's tiring.

Settling In

Morning habits are revealed. SI, Weiss, and Pyrrha are early risers. Ruby is not. The three of them go running. RAYN has Nora and Ren up, but they're cooking downstairs, not training. Yang and Jaune are out of it, and the run escalates into a race between Midas and Pyrrha while Weiss remains sane and completes her laps at her own speed. Back at the room, Weiss calls dibs on first shower, walks into the bathroom, then leaves, red-faced. Ruby was already there and didn't have the curtain closed. SI blinks and asks Weiss if she's into girls. Weiss says yes, but she's not into jailbait. There's still a blush and the SI sits back and thinks while Pyrrha is standing there awkwardly.

Port's class, and exposition on academic schedule at Beacon. Ren uses it as nap time and Nora tests how many things she can balance on Ren's head. Yang and Ruby nod off. Jaune is clearly out of his league. SI, Weiss, and Pyrrha try to take notes. SI becomes obsessed with finding out the true meaning behind Port's lessons, and Ruby tries to show off by killing the Boarbatusk. It doesn't work.

Oobleck's lesson is more engaging, if only just. He focuses on going over the syllabus, which is pre Great War to modern Faunus Rights movement chronologically. This draws a laugh from Cardin, which sparks the whole discussion. SI discovers Weiss is low-key actually racist, ends up arguing against her, and things are... not great. Class ends and they're frosty, with Pyrrha and Ruby looking on nervously.

Goodwitch's class. Random fights until Goodwitch can make people fight comparable opponents, starting with team PRSM and an OC team of second-years. PRSM dominates. Pyrrha doesn't take a hit, Ruby loses but makes the second year feel so bad they almost ring-out (taunts primarily), Weiss manages to win a fight while taking minimal damage and the SI beats his opponent into the ground with their own spear and some dirty tricks. Goodwitch calls SI and Ruby in to discuss ring manner. They point out that it's an effective strategy and other people are welcome to try it. Goodwitch asks for a list of things that they use, and she'll veto the ones she thinks go too far.

Come the afternoon, Weiss already wants to start working on homework. Ruby complains, Weiss insists, there's a small fight. Midas and Pyrrha siding with the opposite partner and defuse it, but they both know it'll be part of a bigger problem. Ruby asks for storytime with Yang, Midas doesn't joke about it (Ruby's a little steamed) and they leave to let Pyrrha and Weiss talk. The Xiao Long/Rose/Laurel group go to a lounge, talk for a bit about their teams, get the Guardians of the Galaxy part one, and when they go to bed Ruby has a bit more grace, Weiss accepts the apology, and things are less bad.

Yang Interlude: She pulls Jaune aside after combat class and tells him he's not good enough. Jaune says he has to do it himself. Yang allows him to do this if he can land one hit. He doesn't. She shows him basic footwork. Jaundice arc avoided.

Pyrrha interlude: She's not used to doing things in groups, so when Midas tells everyone "it's movie night" she has no idea what to expect. PRSM goes out to Vale, lines up at the theatre, and Pyrrha and Midas put on a fake light-saber fight while they wait in line. Time skip to after they've finished A New Hope, everyone is excited. Ruby wants to make Crescent Rose a lightsaber, Weiss talks about how the movie got the economics and scale right, and Pyrrha notes that she saw Midas's name on the list of producers. Ruby explains that he's a storyteller, and from then on Pyrrha is an occasional visitor to Ruby's storytime.

Fallout

Oobleck's class. The Faunus issue has come up again and he and Weiss are going at it. Oobleck tells them to go into the city and do research. Ruby and Pyrrha nervously offer to help them after class, but the two of them refuse, citing a need to prove the other wrong.

They go into the city and it's bad. Like, 1940's Harlem bad. Midas is fucking confused and Weiss is more or less grimmly content. Midas asks how she can stomach this. Weiss reveals that the White Fang have been WAY more aggressive than canon. Midas mumbles to himself, and Weiss also reveals that she's lost family to them. Midas asks who. Winter. They return to Beacon and Midas doesn't go to story time with Ruby.

When Weiss and Pyrrha get, Midas has to be woken. When they go running, he doesn't rise to the challenge. Port's lesson is a blank page, Oobleck only gets token participation, and in Goodwitch's class he loses Yang by aura out. Ruby asks what's up. He gives an evasive answer. Weiss comments that Pyrrha, Ruby and Yang had asked her what he saw, she told them, and she's just as much in the dark as anyone else. She asks him what's up. He doesn't answer.

In Port's class he comes to a conclusion. He fucked up. Maybe this is better. Maybe it's not. Either way, he is at least partially culpable. As a result, it's up to him to unfuck this goose. He starts planning. In Oobleck's class he's pressing for ways to improve the Faunus situation, which still irritates Weiss, but also offers some relief to his friends.

Friday arrives. He tells everyone he's going out, and not to expect him back until Sunday. He tells them he's off to chase tail. At a hotel room, he goes full Joker, heads to Junior's, and asks him for information. It gets violent, he uses a different weapon and his Semblance, he cleans house, and Junior gives him the info. He leaves. His card.

Saturday night he raids the White Fang storehouse. Semblance lets him avoid being spotted and he goes Far Cry on the place until there's one room left. They prepare to leave and he tries to snag one of them. It doesn't work because the other person knocks them out of the way. The new assailant and Midas engage in a running battle, and while he's better than the new person, it's the difference between him and Ren or him and Weiss, not him and the Malachite twins. He gets close and throws a hit. Clone. "Holy shit. Blake." Blake runs and he's got a whole new series of questions.

Interlude: Roman. We get the skinny on how the White Fang are gearing up for a major offensive in Vale and using Roman to acquire armaments and space. Roman is not cool with it, but Blake and Adam are fucking scary. We see him talk with Neo about murdering the two of them to GTFO, but they aren't ready yet. Close on him smoking a cigar, head whirling with plans.

Blake Arc:

SI is confused as fuck when he gets back on Sunday. Yang comments that he doesn't have any love bites, so he takes off his shirt and shows them the whips from where Blake managed to land a few hits. Weiss throws a pillow at him, Ruby and Pyrrha blush, and he sends a suggestive wink Jaune's way. Situation defused, classes resume.

He's turns over what Blake being in the White Fang means, and decides that he needs to go out and figure stuff out. On the other hand, friends. So he needs to convince them to leave him alone on weekends, and he also needs a way to Vale. The solution is clearly to buy a car and sleep in Ports class, staying up way late to go out and fight terrorists. This can ONLY GO WELL.

Purchases a purple supercar he does not know how to drive. That is to show off to the crew. The real crime car is a non descript Toyota Camry equivalent that's parked next to it, "clearly" another student's, with the real plates covered by stolen ones. He goes into town late at night, hits up a second place and runs into only mooks. Leaves a calling card, with "miss u bae" written on the wall in lipstick.

Fast forward. He's clearly tired, but he's smiling and laughing and tells everyone it's just school getting to him. True enough, his grades are slipping. Weiss expresses outrage, he jokes, Ruby is concerned. He's losing a lot of his little contests with Pyrrha. On the other hand, he got called "that clown mother fucker!" at the fourth warehouse, so he's clearly doing something right. He takes a night off. Then another one. Then he goes out again.

This time he runs into Blake. Problem: Neo shows up shortly after. SI manages to not die thanks to surprise sniper fire, and he bugs the fuck out after asking Blake for a peaceful meeting over coffee and teasing her with a line from Ninjas of Love, which she reacts to.

SURPRISE, it's Ruby. She noticed he was messed up early on, and worked with Pyrrha to keep track of where he was going at night. They always left when he was wrapping up. When he asked how they kept up, Ruby says that she ran. Pyrrha? She took the supercar. Of course. When he gets back, Ruby puts him into bed, but she also makes him promise to talk to everyone. He does.

Interlude: Blake. Just after the fight, we see what the White Fang have become, a true-blue terrorist group. Blake and Adam do not get along. They can work together, but it's clear that one of them wants big flashy thing while the other wants assassinations. Blake goes to bed, reading a book, and starts thinking about meeting this clown guy.

Team Blake Arc

Midas gathers everyone into a room. He explains that he's been going after WF these past few weeks. Yang explodes, Pyrrha is angry, Ruby is sad, Weiss worried for him and asks why, he seemed pro-Faunus. He is. On the other hand, terrorism is bad. Fanatical ideologies are bad. He should know. He remembers home. Ruby and Yang's eyes are bugging out and he plows on. The White Fang need to either shut down or get new leadership. And for a reason he needs to be involved. Ruby offers to help. So does Yang. He looks around the room. Jaune is the next to offer. Pyrrha, Ren, and Nora follow suit. Weiss shakes her head and agrees. Revenge is a dish best served ice cold. Yang groans.

Jump cut to another night. Midas and Jaune are cleaning house at a smaller warehouse. Ruby is off in a sniper's nest, providing cover, Jaune is using a sword and shield that don't look like Croeca Mors and has a motorcycle helmet with a knight motif. They call the police, Midas leaves a card, and they leave. We get a recap of the past few weeks and the operating procedure:

Random number of days between strikes.

Three person patrols.

Midas or Pyrrha have to be one of the three.

Everyone has a new weapon and a new persona. For Jaune, it's a small change. For Weiss, she's wearing a black raincoat and weiding a Dust longsword. Pyrrha also has to dress up, but she weant for the Harley Quinn route, with knives and a short sword. Everyone has new weapons and outfits, bankrolled by Midas and Weiss.

One day Yang comes back and shows Midas a note. It has Blake's emblem on it, along with a riddle that you'd have to read Ninjas of Love to understand. When he deciphers it, he learns that Blake wants a meeting in plainclothes and that the date is tomorrow. Midas wants to go, Weiss wants an ambush. Cue an argument. Weiss asks why he wants to save a terrorist. He gives her a speech about group dynamics, drawing upon examples from Earth. He points out that Weiss knows a lot of them, and asks if she can sympathize. She can't. She says there's something different about bombing a coffee shop from making a board decision. Midas agrees, but he's still going to do it and he wants Weiss's word that she won't interfere. Weiss promises she won't strike first.

Parley. Blake and Midas meet in a coffee shop by a bookstore. Weiss, Pyrrha, and Yang are nearby. They're awkward for a bit before finally getting down to business. Blake asks how he knows her, Midas evades. He asks how a girl who reads so much can be a terrorist. She answers that it was a lot of doing the wrong thing for the right reasons, and that it got results. Midas agrees, but he also points out some of those results aren't great. Blake nods. She wants out. The White Fang are gearing up for a real attack, something big, and while Blake is down with assasination, a civil war serves no one. Midas asks if she'd be willing to speak with his boss. She doesn't trust him enough yet. He asks what he can do to inspire trust. She tells him to stop attacking. Midas shakes his head. How about more of these coffee dates? Talk, build empathy, and when she feels comfortable do whatever. Blake agrees and they set a schedule.

Montage. Nights fighting Blake and Roman, and running away from Adam and Neo. Mornings talking with Blake, a friend nearby if things go south. At first it's about anything other than work. Then he broaches the subject through a book, asking how Blake would do it. Slowly, they start talking about effective and ineffective methods of changing public opinion. Weiss is growing more and more tense, Pyrrha is worried, and Ruby is cautious. Everyone thinks this can only end poorly. Midas thinks they're overreacting. Then halfways through his cup a bull faunus with red hair shows up and tells Blake to come with him.

Refuge in audacity. Midas claims that he's on a date with Blake and demands to know what's going on, all while pressing the panic button. Blake tries to de escalate. It doesn't work. Adam throws a punch. Midas hops out of the way. Ren and Nora in their alt-ID's show up outside, and Midas pretends not to know them. Adam and Blake come out, then flee. Ren and Nora pursue for as long as they can, but the Beauty and the Beast are too good at evading authorities, and Midas can't team up with them in public. When they get back, Weiss demands that the meetings stop. Midas disagrees. Pyrrha backs Weiss, as does Yang, Nora, Ren, and Ruby. The last one shocks him. Jaune abstains, but he also tells Midas that he will tie him to his bed if he has to.

In the coming days, the raids are increasingly unsuccessful. The White Fang are getting better and better at compartmentalizing, and eventually Midas, Weiss, and Ruby are out patrolling with no target in mind. Midas is scanning with his Semblance, but it's just a bunch of Faunus up late at night. After a long, empty, frustrating patrol, they head back. He starts changing, checks for teachers, and realizes they've picked up a tail. He, Weiss and Ruby pursue and catch the spy. It's Blake, looking a lot worse for wear. She wanted out, and after being discovered Sienna Khan was going to transfer her back to Menagerie. But you're working with a Schnee!? Weiss is ready to kill, Ruby is NOT okay with that, and Midas determines that the situation is fucked enough to call Ozpin.

Ozpin sits in his office, looking at the nine of them with a flat expression. Ozpin explains, in great detail, why this was an unbelievably bone-headed thing to do. He gives each of them a once-over, picking apart their motivations, until he comes to Blake. There, he asks her why she decided to come here. She talks about not being okay with mass-murder. Assassination? Yes. Ozpin sips his coco. Then he explains why he's not going to expel them. Basically, it's a waste of prime hunter material and (more to the point) they didn't get caught. They will get a "pass" on their transgressions. Instead, they are to stop going out at night, leave all this to the proper authorities, and help the school for free. They all agree, and Midas and Blake are held back while the rest of them leave. Ozpin addresses both Blake and Midas. Blake he gives a much more thorough interview, which leads into awkward questions she still answers. After being assured she's not going to kill a student, he dismisses her to RAYN's dorm. Midas he asks why. Midas explains the sense of culpability. In return Ozpin explains that he understands all of his reasoning, but he was wrong. Midas agrees, but also says that he couldn't do nothing, citing deontological reasoning. Ozpin sighs and dismisses him, parting with a note about also making mistakes.

Interlude: Weiss. We learn about her view of her team, as well as her level of fear towards Blake. The next morning she goes to breakfast with a dagger (like Russell's), Midas frowns, Pyrrha nods, and Ruby objects. Blake understands. Blake and Weiss in class together as a "transfer student." Weiss is really ramping up the casual, sometimes blatant racism. They meet in the communal bathrooms (Midas is showering in the personal one and Ren in RAYN's), Weiss is staring at Blake's naked (and lightly scared) form all the damn time, and eventually it blows up into a shouting match. Blake explains all the shit she's gone through, Weiss explains the shit she's gone through, lets out a tear in frustration, and eventually they both are emotionally drained. Blake explains that she just wants out. That it's not worth it. Weiss explains that she also wants that, but she can't get it. A tiny amount of empathy springs up and they leave, cleaned and less murdery than before.

Timeskip: First mission.

Things have a new status quo. Weiss, Pyrrha, and Midas are all still waking up early to train, Ren and Nora still get up early to cook, and everyone else sleeps in. When they go to class, Blake is there in the back, staying silent. Weiss has toned back on the overt racism, and is more or less just socially conservative. He and Pyrrha have started their games again, and Blake listens in on storytime with his sisters. He and Blake exchange books, and Blake's been mingling with RAYN a fair amount.

Goodwitch, after combat class (we get a snapshot of him fighting with Weiss) announces that first missions are coming up. Midas sends a text to Ozpin, who texts back "yes, I will be careful. Mountain Glenn is safe." Midas heaves a sigh of relief, and after changing Weiss decides to go pick out missions, and the team follows along. Eventually, they settle on Grimm extermination after everyone besides Midas vetoes morale improvement. Midas shrugs and rolls with it. They've got a week to prepare, so Midas does the logical thing and buys some booze. On the way back to Beacon he sees Yang, who had the same idea.

There's a party. Well, more like a hang-out with a minimum drinks limit. Ruby nurses her one drink for a LONG time, Ren watches Nora with increasing levels of despair, Yang and Jaune are having a grand old time, and Pyrrha and Weiss are a little more bubbly than normal. Blake... is morose. That is, until Yang glomps her between herself and Jaune. Turns out, Blake is going with team RAYN on a sherif-shadowing mission. This calls for another round of drinks. Eventually, Ruby falls asleep and goes back to the dorm, a bottle of vodka runs empty, and Yang does the logical thing. Kisses will be random, and team PSM heads back to the dorm before midnight, a new memory in their minds. Pyrrha leans on Midas a little more heavily than he expects, but they all get to bed.

Timeskip. RAYN left a day earlier with Oobleck, Blake in tow. Team PRSM departs and Weiss goes over the expected area of engagement, method of engagement, and priorities, which are yourself, your team, civilians, and Grimm, in that order. Ruby objects. Weiss explains why it makes sense. Pyrrha and Midas agree. Ruby appeals to denatology. Weiss says that if she does that she'll tell the bullhead to turn around. Ruby can tell he's not joking. She agrees. Cue emergency transmission.

It's a village, besieged by Grimm. Ruby says to help. Weiss says yes and the bullhead starts moving. Pre-combat checks for everyone. Weiss is on the radio and pulls out the new detail. Multiple ways to engage are thought up. Eventually, it's decided that Weiss and Pyrrha will play defense while Ruby and Midas go out and try to lure away the Grimm. ETA thirty seconds. Five. Four. Three. Two.

One. Midas and Ruby fall out of the sky and into the horde. Beowolves, Ursa, and a single King Taiju. Midas zeroes in on the big target, while Ruby does her trailer thing and Beowolf arms start flying everywhere. Sniper fire and freaky projectiles rain down from above as Weiss and Pyrrha move towards the town. Epic fight is epic, culminating in some trapeze-looking stunts that end with half a dozen implements in one head as Ruby cuts off the other. Then they head back towards the town.

Pyrrha and Weiss are holding the line. More than that, they're doing it without tiring. Weiss has iced up walls to concentrate the Grimm into one place and Pyrrha's the goddess of victory we've always known her to be. Midas is awestruck for a full second before he notices she's counting. Then he runs towards the largest pack of Grimm he can see and gets stabbing. Mild time jump and the Grimm are gone. Midas wipes away some sweat, Ruby is staggering, Weiss is leaning against a post, and Pyrrha's looking flushed. The villagers come out, thank them, and they end up deciding to stay to make sure the place stays safe. Weiss calls Beacon and a Huntress will be dispatched, but for now they need to sit tight.

Here, we get an in-depth look at what being a Hunter means, beyond thinning the Grimm from time to time. They're supposed to bring happiness and joy to the people, push back negative feelings. At first, everyone is doing it wrong. Ruby accidentally talks about dead people, Weiss terrifies some children, Pyrrha misreads people and tries to treat them as fans, and Midas is entirely too cavalier. End result: thanks, but fuck you.

The next day the team is more subdue. It works, kinda, but they're not actually making things better. Day two is a failure, but at least they're not backsliding. Midas takes first watch, and he juggles some knives while trying to think up something. He notices kids watching, then gets an idea.

Next day, he strings a tightrope between the two tallest buildings that are still standing in the town. Ruby promptly drops everything and waits for the show. Weiss and Pyrrha follow, along with a lot of the other kids. Once the crowd is large enough, Midas walks out to the middle and shows off his circus skills.

This cues everyone to use their specific talents. Ruby starts working with kids, engaging with them on their level and playing games with them. Pyrrha gives the teens some basic lessons on shooting, showing off her genuine skill and giving angry hormones an outlet. Weiss works with the adults, helping them plan out new zoning codes and managing paperwork surprisingly well, all while making white-collar humor. Midas keeps doing his shows, and encourages other people to step up and show off when he's between acts.

After a few days, the town is in MUCH better shape, both emotionally and physically. Actual Hunters come by to alleviate the pressure, and they give the team complements. On the bullhead back, Midas falls asleep. When he wakes up, his hair has been braided.

Dance Arc

When they get back, Sun has shown up as a student from Haven. Blake is more openly frosty with him than canon, but he's also more reasonable than canon. Midas encourages Blake to give Sun a shot, and even offers to go with her as back up. Blake agrees, and the three of them head into town. Blake and Sun start the "date" rocky, but do a little bonding over a film (Blake read the book). The real surprise is when Midas and Sun hit it off, with actual chemistry in a hot/cold, ying/yang sort of way that ends up with them playing off each other's jokes extremely naturally. Blake comments on this when they get back, but Midas waves it off as just friends stuff.

One oddly-sexual dream later and suddenly the SI is questioning everything. Weiss had planned dancing lessons for everyone ("A Schnee will not be thrown around on the dance floor!") and the SI helps Sun figure out some of the moves with Blake in very close contact. Clarify that there are two competing wants: on the one hand, Eclipse. On the other, Sun is hot. And nice. And strong. And GDI hormones. Talks with Oobleck, and we get some exposition on the depth of the difference between Remnant and Earth Prime.

Group date, with Weiss, Neptune, Sun, Blake, Ren, Nora, SI and Pyrrha. Tries to make attraction go away via exposure therapy but the more Midas learns the better Sun gets, and conversely the less interested Blake seems. Exposure therapy fails, and a few accidents have them closer than the SI would want.

Sparring match, where Midas gets beaten, but it's close. After the match, some interesting dialogue leads Midas to realize it might be more than a crush, and when Sun asks for tips on how to ask Blake out it destroys him

Midas tries drowning out the frustration/jealousy/other in training or music or something. It doesn't work. He's sullen and depressed for the rest of day, and when Sun comes around he confesses that it's all Sun's fault. Sun doesn't realize what he means and Midas runs off.

Day of the dance. SI is hanging out on a roof with a bottle of liquor. Weiss comes by and kicks/talks some sense into him. A shower, a makeshift toga, and some last-minute advice later and he's at the dance. He interrupts Blake and Sun and asks for a dance. Sun hesitantly gives him Blake's hand, but he passes it up and takes Sun's, letting him lead.

Things are said, clarified, and generally sorted out. Sun clarifies that he doesn't feel the same way. Midas accepts it, finishes the dance, and says thanks. He joins Pyrrha as a wallflower and as a certain song comes on asks if they want to be lonely together.

Tournament Arc

Round one is when team PRSM meets an old female friend from Signal. Midas flashes back, he and his counterpart on the other team strip to their drawers and the fight begins. PRSM wins, primarily because the other team hasn't been inoculated to smack talk and sudden nudity yet. To be honest, neither were Weiss or Ruby, but Pyrrha kept her cool and the three people who fought normally decided the battle.

Midas has lunch with Blake, who's become friends with Sun over the course of the build-up. There's a bit of tension between Sun and Midas, but Pyrrha defuses it with a comment on the fight. From their it descends into the discussion of tactical nudity, and things go a bit better. They end up getting drinks to round out the victory, and they all go back to their dorms buzzed. Pyrrha's clingy, but he's clingy too.

Team PRSM meets with Papa Schnee and Whitley, who are both less assholish than canon. This comes from the loss of Winter and Willow, and while they're much more openly racist than Weiss is, there is a clear and obvious love. Jaques is a changed man, and he thanks Midas for looking after his daughter. When the subject of dating brought up, Weiss says that another has their eye on Jaune. Midas blinks, turns to Pyrrha, and puts the pieces together.

RAYN wins their match, primarily on the back of Yang and Nora. Jaune does manage to lock down another student for the entire match though, and he's flushed with victory until they have to announce who moves forward: Yang and Nora. Meanwhile, Midas and Pyrrha talk. The reasons come out (fair treatment, reasonably handsome, pleasent personality, able to keep up in the ring), and while internally Midas is like fuck, what happened to Arkos?, he also accepts her feelings and offers to give it a go.

After watching Sun and Neptune beat BRNZ's two, Pyrrha and Midas go out on a date. Once they are acting sufficiently awkward, the two of them use their semblances to peg all the spectators with carnival food from twenty paces away. Yang and Weiss leave under fear of ruined hair, while Nora leaves under fear of ruined Ren (by Yang). Once the spectators are gone, the two of them play carnival games, cheating and competing to see who can rack up the most ridiculous number of prizes. Midas wins, but that's only because he took the three-card monty guy for all he had and used the money to buy them dinner. At the end, there's a quick kiss, and Midas is over the moon.

Doubles: Pyrrha and Midas fight Coco and Yatsu... and win. Part of this is that they both have effective immunity to Coco's ranged attacks (Semblance + Skill in both cases), part of that is total melee superiority. There's a lot of super-close combat, with Pyrrha and Midas keeping Coco near Yatsu to force him to limit his swings while using Dust to keep them from running. It ends with out by Aura in both cases, and the leave triumphant and untouched, maybe a little more grabby than they need to be.

RAYN wins their fight against Nebula and Dew from NDGO, and Yang mentions how she and Nora nearly came to blows over who'd go to the singles. When this question gets thrown at Pyrrha and Midas, it turns out they both assumed they'd be the one going to singles. Cue challeneges, cue posturing, cue duel at noon tomorrow. Midas says that he'll use his trick, Pyrrha says to prepare for her own. Three different Checkov's Guns are set up, with Pyrrha remaining mum about her own plan.

Duel day arrives and team SSSN, RAYN, and the Schnees are in the stands, along with a few second-string reporters for the bigger papers. Goodwitch agrees to oversee it, and thing pop off.

Key points:
Midas tries to cover the battlefield in steam. Pyrrha counters by tossing metal filings into the air, working them into Midas's clothes to track him. They're both fighting blind until Goodwitch waves away the mist, but that doesn't actually stop them.

Midas breath fire at Pyrrha, but she remembers from his first fight and doesn't get caught out.

Pyrrha catching some of his weapons with open hands and tossing them out of the ring, limiting his offense.

Midas uses a fucking lightsaber, invented by the nerds in the Atlesian military after the first Star Wars came out, and cuts Pyrrha's shield in half. It won't plow through Aura, but it'll hurt and it's not magnetic. So she shows her own trump card.

Pyrrha uses her magnetism to spin up a mini generator on her back, running a current through her weapon, making it immune to being cut in half.

By the end, Midas is in a black cloak, spinning around like crazy with a red glowing sword. Pyrrha's spear is blue with voltage, and people are calling it "literally the best fight." Both of them have low aura, and they go in for the final exhange.

The next day, Midas wakes up sore to an empty bed. We learn that he lost. Pyrrha is putting on a scarf and Midas hugs her from behind. They share a kiss, and we head to the stands. It's Pyrrha versus Sun, who is looking a lot more nervous. When he asks Weiss about it, she shares that the news reporters showed their fight. It was far and away the scariest one so far, and people are already talking about Beacon's Two monsters. Meanwhile, Sun is trying to fight Pyrrha, but she's simply too good. Yang adds that people were suprised to see the invincible girl take a blow, but Midas didn't get off easy. After all, he's got a chain of bruises on his neck. Ruby sees this and says that those are hickeys, not bruises. Yang pales and asks her sister where she learned that word, but Weiss looks between Pyrrha (who's beating the stuffing out of Sun) and Midas. Midas smiles and stretches, revealing a number of marks on his chest that look too regular and surface level to be from the brawl. Pyrrha finishes Sun, untouched, and salutes the crowd with her spear. Midas dashes down to the locker rooms, and when she pulls off the scarf she too has a few bruises. Midas joking asks if she's ashamed, but Pyrrha denies it. She just doesn't want people to think that Sun managed to land a blow. Close on a kiss.

Weapon

Vaudeville Chandelier

This is a Dust weapon, with eight main one-handed parts:

Hook w/ cord: Water
Axe: Air
Flamberge dagger: Fire
Ice Axe: Ice
Hammer: Gravity
Pick: Earth
Tuning Fork knife: lighting
Convex knife: general projectiles

All individual models can clip onto the cord for added reach, much like Gambol Shroud. Typically they're all attached to the cord outside of combat situations, hanging on him like a belt. In combat, he juggles several at once to have high versatility, occasionally using his foot and the cord to attack from an unexpected angle.