White Lies

Jaune rubbed his hands together nervously as he made his way towards what would be his biggest test in his new faux career. So far he'd done little but stand around and talk, yet now he was going to be doing what he was hired for, and that realisation was terrifying.

It was time to teach.

Or support a teacher anyway. Peter to be precise, since he was in charge of the Grimm Studies class, and it probably made sense for the student's first lessons in Beacon to be focused on what was their primary enemy. Jaune expected it to be more of an introduction to the school than an actual lesson, so hopefully he wouldn't have to do much. Also, Peter had been teaching alone for years, so was he even necessary?

Right now the students were most likely in the cafeteria getting breakfast, something he wouldn't have minded doing himself. Instead he'd quickly made a sandwich from the supplies thoughtfully left in his cupboards, and downed some milk before rushing to the classroom. From what he remembered of school, the teachers were always there before the students. That was just the way it was. So he would probably need to get to each class twenty minutes or so early.

That would also give him some time to do a quick recap on the syllabus and material, so he didn't make a fool of himself and get fired/arrested - delete as applicable.

Before he'd gone to sleep the previous day he'd made sure to send a message to his… contact? Within the criminal world… okay, maybe that was too strong a word, it was just someone Jaune had been put in touch with when he'd been looking for a forgery. But it was his only option. Thankfully the man had returned a message by the morning, simply stating that he could have it done if Jaune came into Vale, but that he would `owe him` a favour.

Tit-for-tat, Jaune was sure a simple crook wouldn't want anything too drastic from him, and he was earning good money now it seemed. He just needed to find a chance to go into Vale.

"Morning lad." Peter greeted as Jaune opened the door to the classroom and stepped inside. "Looking forward to your first day?"

"Somewhat." Jaune replied easily as he let his eyes look around the room. The layout reminded him a little of an amphitheatre, with seats arranged in a semi-circle, spiralling upwards and outwards, with a large display area at the front where Peter stood. There were a number of boards on the back wall facing the students, with diagrams of Grimm. As well as…. Wait, was that a solid gold bust of Peter?

"He's a handsome one, isn't he?" Peter whispered, as he clapped a heavy hand on Jaune's shoulders, making the younger man roll his eyes. Sometimes he couldn't tell if Peter was being genuinely narcissistic, or just sarcastic. Before he could comment on it though, his eyes were drawn to what appeared to be a cage, which was… shaking.

Jaune stared at it for a few moments, hearing some growling and snuffling from within. Considering the school, its aims and the class's name – it wasn't hard to guess what lay inside.

"Peter… did you bring a live Grimm to class?" Jaune deadpanned as he palmed his own face.

"Maybe?" The older man hedged. "Not that I'm saying I did, but if I did then we'll have a student face it, it'll be a real motivator!"

Part of Jaune, the honest side of him – which admittedly had taken a beating in the past few days, wanted to object to the idea. The students were experiencing their first day; they might still be tired from initiation. And wasn't it their job as teachers to protect them?

A larger part of him simply shrugged.

Better them than me.

Besides… Peter was a teacher, right? He surely knew what he was doing.

"Sure, why not." Jaune agreed with a disappointed sigh, aimed more at himself than the teacher. Morals – 0, Shame – 1.

"Shh, the students are coming. Don't tell them, I want it to be a surprise." Peter whispered sneakily as a few students began making their way into the room and taking seats. Jaune just stared at the man.

It was a six foot by six foot cage, shrouded within by darkness. With glowing eyes, shaking and growling coming from it. Stood in the middle of the freaking room!

Whatever. Beyond my pay grade. Jaune grumbled internally as he made his way over to the door as the last few students entered. With the clock ticking down to nine, it was probably time to close the door and get started.

Just as his hand touched the door knob itself, the wood flew open with great force, slamming his hand painfully aside, and leaving him open as something heavy smashed into him. His everything protested in pain as he slammed into the floor, before the wind was driven out of his lungs as a number of weights landed on his bruised body, pinning him to the tiles.

"Made it!" A familiar voice cried out in joy from above him, not that he could see anything with his vision blocked by shadow, smooth legs and…

Oh fuck me…

"Wow Blake." The voice of the blonde bombshell from the other day drawled. "That's bold of you."

Jaune's guilty pleasure was torn away from him as one of the smooth creamy thighs moved quickly, the equally smooth but incredibly hard knee slamming into the side of his face as the girl rolled off his face to protect her dignity. Cheek bruising from the pain, Jaune tilted his head to the side to see the black-haired girl who had been reading a few nights ago on her knees, staring at him with a dark red hue on her cheeks. Her hands holding her skirt down as she knelt on the floor.

On a side note, he'd been right. She did have amazing legs.

"J-Jaune!?" A panicked voice on top of him whispered, as his blue eyes left the embarrassed girl with the bow to look up towards the now panicked looking girl who was sat on his chest. With her legs either side of him, beneath his armpits. Despite the uniform he had seen the other students wearing, she still had that red hood poking behind her.

"Morning Ruby." He greeted with a sigh as he let his head roll back to the floor in pain. The girl squeaked at his greeting, but tried to wave back with a nervous smile. "Late for class?"

"Maybe…" She mumbled shyly, while she fiddled cutely with her fingers. Idly Jaune noticed a few other people picking themselves up beside him. Including the black haired boy he'd assigned to be a leader, and his red-haired teammate. It seemed only three or so had landed on him, which was pretty lucky.

"Such enthusiasm!" A deep voice bellowed as Jaune tilted his head back to look at Peter, who was watching the display with a smile on his face. "So eager to learn, an inspiration to us all!" Jaune simply rolled his eyes.

"Do you want to get off me?" He asked of Ruby instead, who blushed suddenly and literally vanished from his chest faster than his eyes could actually process. All that remained were a few rose petals for some reason.

Vision unobstructed, he could now see his nightmare. The blonde, Yang, was sat cross legged on his crotch, her crossed legs hiding anything from view, but hinting at everything.

"Yo." She greeted with an easy grin.

"Off." Jaune ordered before his hormones could get the better of him, he briefly considered bucking his hips to try and move her, but resisted in case it caused things to rub against other things… which would be the end of his tenuous self-control.

"Aww, you gave Ruby a choice." The girl teased, as she climbed to her feet and offered Jaune a hand. Jaune accepted it and the girl hoisted him to his feet with a strength that nearly tore his arm from his shoulder socket. Okay, so he should probably add super strength to the list of reasons why being in her presence was a bad idea.

As the students made their way to the seats, to the general laughter of most of the others, Jaune couldn't help but be strangely thankful of the aches and pains along his body. If he wasn't so focused on the damage that had been done to him then he'd probably have been blushing at the sights he'd seen – and that might have been noticed.

Still, having read up a little on aura, after he had realised his wasn't unlocked – he knew he couldn't show any of his pain since his aura should have shielded him. Instead he walked up and stood by Peter, making sure to keep an easy expression on his face.

"Monsters!" Professor Port bellowed suddenly, causing many of the students to jump, even as Jaune felt like he was being pushed forwards by the sheer force of it. "Demons, prowlers of the night… the Grimm have many names." He began striding in front of the desks as he said this. "But I like to call them… prey."

Oh Gods, he's going to do what I think he is, isn't he!? Jaune panicked, recognising the mannerisms and speech for what Peter had put him through while they were watching the students. He prayed he was wrong.

"Let me tell you a story…"

Arghhhhhhh!

~~~~~Professor Arc~~~~~

Ruby Rose struggled to stifle a yawn as she paid approximately 0% attention to the teacher who was rambling in the middle of the room. Only noticing from the corner of her eye the way he was waving his arms animatedly. Wasn't Grimm studies supposed to be interesting? Geez… they had rushed for this!?

The thought quickly brought a blush to her face, which she tried to hide behind her arms. Good Gods, that had been humiliating. Bad enough that they had almost been late to their first lesson, but to literally crash into and near enough smother a teacher? And worse, him!

Ughhh… way to go Ruby. Impressive. You're really going to impress him with your maturity like this.

Still, she thought, as the blush remained on her cheeks. At least he was more interesting than Professor Port.

Jaune. Or Professor Jaune, anyway. Instead of speaking he simply stood there patiently, his arms crossed behind his back and his face devoid of any real emotion. She could just make out the silver of his breastplate peeking over the top of where his jacket was buttoned, giving him a knightly figure. Not for Jaune the lessons and boredom. He was a hunter. He was cool.

She sighed dreamily as she let her silver eyes roam over him for a few minutes, noticing the way his blue eyes slowly scanned the students from left to right as he waited for the Professor to finish. She was sure if it was him talking, then it would have been much more interesting.

She did feel bad for Blake though. As embarrassing as it had been for her, sitting on her crush's chest… and it had been a really comfortable chest too. Blake had inadvertently flashed her teacher, and was clearly mortified. Idly, she looked to the side to check, only to see Blake burying her face in a book. Ruby couldn't tell if she was actively reading it, or just embarrassed.

At least she hadn't done anything like that.

Still, that didn't stop the fact that her attention was not at all on the teacher she was supposed to be learning from, as the pen loosely clutched in her fingers doodled away.

"Ruby!" Her partner hissed, trying to catch her attention with a furious expression on her face. Ruby caught it from the corner of her eye, but chose to ignore it. It hardly seemed she could do anything to please Weiss, despite that the other day at initiation she had promised to be less cold. She couldn't pay attention to the man, he was so damned boring. He was literally committing mass murder… of air.

Idly letting out a sigh she looked down at the paper on her desk, before blushing at the image she had drawn and scribbling over it frantically in black ink. A furtive look in both directions showed Yang with her face resting on one hand in apparent boredom, and Weiss, whose teeth were grating together.

"Who thinks themselves a true hunter!?" The boring old voice called out, even as Weiss' hands slammed down onto the desk in frustration.

"I do!" The heiress shouted back angrily, as she stormed to her feet.

~~~~~Professor Arc~~~~~

"I wonder what was up with Weiss." Ruby mumbled worriedly as she followed after Yang and Blake, who were walking out of the classroom together. She thought the fight had gone pretty well, and hadn't her advice helped Weiss find the weakness of the Boarbatusk?

"Eh, she's probably just cranky cuz the lesson was boring as Hell." Her older sister yawned back, holding a fist in front of her mouth. "I mean seriously, that guy can talk."

"I'm sure there were valuable lessons hidden in his tales." The quieter Blake defended, making Yang raise an eyebrow.

"And those were?" She drawled, causing Blake to flush slightly and look away.

"I didn't say I found them." She surrendered while Ruby giggled.

"At least Rubes got some nice eye-candy eh?" Yang teased suddenly, rushing forwards to pull her into a headlock. "I saw you looking sis!"

"Yaaaaang!" Ruby complained loudly, struggling as hard as she could to free herself from her sister's iron grip. On the other hand, with her face squashed into Yang's side, no one could see how badly she was blushing, which was a plus.

"I didn't see anything special." Blake deadpanned back as she rolled her eyes, making Yang smirk.

"You're just pissy cuz you flashed him." Blake hissed angrily at the blonde's words, though Ruby did notice her cheeks darken a little in embarrassment. Idly she hoped it was embarrassment more than the other girl being attracted to the guy. Maybe it was just a silly crush, but she didn't want to have to compete with someone like Blake of all people!

"I have no idea what you both see in the man." Blake grumbled as she turned away.

"Didn't you see how he placed himself between the Boarbatusk and the class? Like he was ready to protect us at a moment's notice." Ruby defended her crush, waving her arms even while she remained locked under Yang's elbow.

"He looked more nervous than protective."

"Nervous because he had to defend us all. No doubt he didn't want to fail." Ruby argued back. When the Boarbatusk had been revealed to the class, they'd all been surprised and shocked. Such a Grimm wasn't a big threat to most of them, but considering they were all unarmed in class it was still a risky proposition to fight it. But while most people had been focused on the fight between the Grimm and Weiss… she had noticed Jau- Professor Arc, slowly sidling his way closer to the mass of students, and away from the Grimm.

Even though it looked like Weiss would be fine… and surely the other teacher would have stepped in? He still moved closer to the mass of unarmed students, no doubt ready to give his life to protect them.

Like a true hero!

"Ugh." Blake grunted in frustration. "And your excuse, yang?"

The blonde finally released Ruby, as she tapped a finger to her lip as if in deep thought. Except Ruby knew her sister, and most thought with her wasn't exactly deep.

"Eh, I just like the chase and the challenge." She answered with a grin after a few moments. Making Blake moan even as Ruby rolled her eyes. "He's cute and all, but he'll have to go a little further to really get my blood pumping. But for now it's nice to have a guy who doesn't fall all over themselves around me."

Blake seemed to throw her hands into the air in disgust, choosing to ignore what she couldn't understand, even as Ruby smiled fondly at the two of them. It was nice to see her team getting on so well, and seeing partners get along. She just wished she could have the same relationship with her own partner…

"Guys, I'm going to see what's up with Weiss." She suddenly declared in a moment of clarity. How could she call herself a leader, or a friend, if she didn't try to solve the problem they had between the two of them? "I'll catch up with you both later, kay?"

Dashing off, Ruby spared a quick wave for her two friends as she headed back to the class, determined to do what a leader was meant to do.

~~~~~Professor Arc~~~~~

"Your first class, my boy, good job!" Peter complimented as he slammed his hand into Jaune's back repeatedly, the pneumatic force threatening to kill the younger man.

"T-th-anks!" Jaune accepted, as he finally got out from under the man's arm and began straightening his coat. "Don't you think it was a bit risky letting a wild Grimm on the class though? What if she hadn't been able to kill it?"

Knowing that without his own aura, or any real combat skills, he wasn't going to be able to do anything to stop it. He'd subtly wandered over towards the more competent students. Surely one of them must be some kind of badass martial artist, or had a semblance that shot lasers out of their eyes or something.

"Bah!" The man dismissed easily. "If she'd fallen to the creature then she hardly deserved to be here. Plus I would have intervened before any true harm was done. Or I'm sure you would have."

"Yeah… sure." Jaune nervously laughed back. Definitely no risk right? "Are all of your lessons going to be… practical lessons?"

"Alas, no." The older man bemoaned, even as his entire frame slumped. "Procuring live Grimm is an arduous and difficult task, fraught with peril and danger! Convincing Glynda to let me assign the task as homework is fraught with even more peril."

"Well that's a shame." Jaune hazarded as he internally sighed in relief. Thank the Gods Miss Goodwitch was there to stop this man.

"Beyond that though, my boy! I am shamed and most awed at your abilities with the young women!" The older man suddenly burst out, arms wide as though to envelop Jaune in a back-breaking hug. Thankfully he did not. "To garner such attention so quickly, even in my youth I might have struggled at such a task!"

"Okay." Jaune mumbled as his face flushed with embarrassment. "You realise that was a complete accident!? Right? They just ran into me!"

"Oh, my boy." Peter comforted as he shook his head in apparent amusement. "Strange are the ways of women, but nothing is done without reason. To you it might have looked like an accident. But to them! They were staking their claim, marking their territory!"

"Are you suggesting they were trying to pee on me?"

"Mysterious are the ways of women!"

"…"

"But you must resist it Jaune." The older man sagely advised with arms crossed.

"I realise that as a teacher, such would be frowned upon. I can control myself, don't worry about it." Jaune lied. Truthfully he didn't know if he would be able to resist if any of these girls were actually interested in him. If his ambition was to become a hero, then getting a girlfriend was like a dream even beyond that. And these girls!? Was this an academy for hunters or super-models!?

"Well they're of age, so it wouldn't be a big deal. But the main reason you need to resist is because I have ten thousand lien riding on you!"

Jaune paused and stared at the man.

"You gambled on me?" He deadpanned, somehow unsurprised at the admission coming from what he had at first assumed was a very professional man. Instead he just sighed and let his face rest in the palm of his hand. "Who else?"

"Just myself, Bartholomew and Ozpin."

Great, so his own boss was betting on whether he would crack under the pressure and abuse his position over the students of Beacon Academy? That wasn't exactly a comforting thought.

"Wouldn't you telling me about this count as cheating though? It would make me try to spite you all by resisting as hard as I…." Jaune paused as his mind clicked. "You bet I'd resist, didn't you?"

The older man simply winked as Jaune sighed. Sometimes it was so easy to assume the man was a few marbles short, but he certainly was sneaky when he needed to be.

"Professor Port!" A female voice shouted out as the white-haired teen Weiss Schnee burst into the room, before pausing. "Oh, I apologise if I am interrupting anything. I was hoping to speak to the Professor?"

"That's fine." Jaune offered as he stepped away. "I'll leave you with him." It was the least the man deserved, Jaune felt, as he slipped from the room and escaped. If she was going to press charges for the endangerment of a student, then Peter could solve it on his own!

In the meantime, he could make his way to the staff room for a well-deserved rest before his next class. Grimm incident notwithstanding, he'd been pretty lucky in Grimm studies to not have to say, or do, anything at all. Though he doubted his good fortune would last.

It was while he was lost in his thoughts that he heard some faint sniffling from nearby, making him slow his pace almost automatically as he listened in on the sound. You couldn't live in a house with as many sisters as he had, and not recognise the sound as someone trying to hold in their tears.

Aww man… Jaune's mind complained as he turned to head towards the sound. But coffee! Coffeeeee!

"Ruby?" Jaune whispered as he finally came upon the scene, seeing the small red-hooded girl with her face turned down towards the ground, shoulders stiff. At hearing his voice she seemed to leap backwards, quickly rubbing her sleeve across her face and grinning.

"Hiya Professor!" She greeted in a peppy voice.

"What's wrong Ruby?" He instead asked, knowing full well that he was a sucker for any cute animal looking injured, and that it only got about four hundred times worse when his brother instincts began to kick in as well. The girl's frame hitched a little as she let out a small hiccup, but otherwise refused to meet his eyes.

"Nothing, sir."

Letting out a sigh Jaune knelt down before placing himself against the wall so he was sitting down. Idly he taped the ground to his right, insisting that she sit next to him. He definitely hadn't ever thought that when he applied to Beacon, he would be trying to comfort a cute girl, who wouldn't answer him because she didn't want to break the student's cardinal rule.

Don't tell the teachers.

"You know, I said you could call me Jaune outside of lessons." A quick look in both directions told him that the corridor was pretty much empty. "I'm only a few years older than you, and it feels weird to be a teacher."

"Hmm…" The girl hummed noncommittally, drawing a sigh from him. The whole comforting thing had seemed a lot easier in his mind. Just walk up, say some nice words, she'd feel better, right?

"I still thought I'd be with my team now too." Thought I'd be ON a team… "But things don't always work that way. Things you don't expect go wrong, and before you know it, you're in too deep and there doesn't seem to be a way out."

Then suddenly you're responsible for looking after people who are far more competent and skilled than you are, but you're meant to teach them things you don't even know yourself…

"I'm not even sure what I'm saying. I'm not very good at helping people." He shuffled quietly next to her. "But you're in a better position than me, even now. You have your team, and you're good friends with them. You've got your entire career ahead of you. Everything should be bright for you. Which is why I'm not sure what's got you down."

"I'm a bad leader." The younger girl whispered, barely audible to him, though he caught it, just.

"Everyone is." He shot back quickly, causing her to recoil in surprise as she stared at him. Internally his mind whirled as he tried to recall the old lessons and tips his father had given him about being a hunter… but they had been when he was naught but a child. "Well, think about it… you've been a leader for what, one day, two if you count initiation? You haven't learned anything yet about being a leader. So how can you, or anyone here, be a good one?"

"Ehhhh?" The girl whined in confusion, making him frown. Okay, he really was bad at comforting people, that was official. He wanted to be able to offer advice from one leader to another, as his fake records suggested he might. Instead he drew inspiration from his own actual past.

"I hate these little labels." Jaune continued. "Weak, unconfident, not good enough. What do any of them even matter if you never actually get the chance to learn to be better?" It was the exact problem he had faced in trying to become a Hunter. He was so sure he could have done it… if they had let him into Signal. He would have worked harder than anyone, but he wasn't good enough… and they never gave him the chance to get better! "So I guess what I'm saying is that you shouldn't worry about it. Just learn, and try to be a better leader, then you will become a great leader."

"Those are wise words indeed Mr Arc." A voice commented from their left, causing the two to scramble hurriedly to their feet. The Headmaster of Beacon Academy stood watching them, a curious smile on his features. "You should listen to them."

"Headmaster!" Ruby gasped as she quickly tried to smooth her skirt. Jaune clambered to his own feet a little slower, wondering if he should be embarrassed at being caught like that by his employer.

"At ease Miss Rose." The older man offered with a smile and quick sip of his coffee. "I only truly caught the end of your little conversation, but you'll find that our new Professor is very correct in what he says." The white haired man smiled down at the both of them, and gave a quick nod to Jaune to show he supported his actions.

"Your leaders are chosen based on the abilities shown during the initiation, your very potential to become strong leaders." The older man continued as he stared into the middle distance. Despite the solemnity of the words, Jaune couldn't help but remember that they had actually chosen the leaders based on making the team names work. Then again, if what they were saying was true – it didn't matter who became the leader, because everyone here had the potential if trained right.

Sneaky.

"-and that is why you must keep your head high and push onwards, as a Huntress in training."

"I understand sir! Thank you, and you too Ja- Professor Arc." The smaller girl cheerily thanked them, before sprinting off with her enhanced speed. The two men watched her fade into the distance.

"That was a good thing you did there." His boss spoke softly once they were alone, his face falling back into a semi-neutral mask that Jaune could not glean any emotion or purpose from. Jaune scratched the back of his head nervously. He hadn't felt particularly kind or selfless doing that. His entire reason for helping her was selfish in the sense that she was someone he considered a friend… and that she had reminded him of his sisters. He wasn't sure he would have done anything to help, had it been some unknown person.

"As teachers it is our responsibility to guide and shape the future generations. We do this through our lessons, and where we can – excursions into the Grimm infested forests."

Okay, that sounded ominous, he really needed to get a chance to go into Vale and see that Roman fellow this weekend!

"However, even we teachers cannot account for all variables, and as adults far removed from their lives, we often cannot intervene in some of the more inter-personal relations that form. Or the problems that arise from them."

"Do you mean they won't come to us with problems because we're older than them?" Jaune guessed.

"They won't come to us." The Headmaster agreed, before turning to look straight into Jaune's eyes. "Someone more around their age however, they might feel more comfortable with."

Aw shit, he's planning something. Jaune's brain groaned as he shuffled under the older man's stare.

"What do you have in mind?" He simply asked, knowing that at the end of the day the man was his boss, and any idea he had, Jaune would be forced to at least attempt anyway. Damn contracts!

"I have long considered the position of a student counsellor. Someone who can be approached more easily by the students when they might need aid or support." The man once again looked at Jaune. "Someone more easily approached than myself… more trusted than Peter, calmer than Oobleck… and less intimidating than-"

"I think I get where this is going." Jaune interrupted blandly before the Headmaster could list every single member of the faculty, along with the reasons why they wouldn't be suitable for the role. Personally, he didn't think he would be any better. What did he know of the problems of students in their lives, or what could be done to help them?

"I am glad I was not too obtuse." The older man smiled back, though the expression looked more like he had successfully sprung a trap and was now admiring his prey. Jaune had no misconceptions about where he stood in the analogy.

"I know nothing of counselling."

"You knew nothing of teaching."

"I'm not qualified."

"No one else is."

Jaune sighed as the other man continued to sip peacefully from his coffee, waiting for him to bring up another excuse that he could dismiss with a simple one liner. The blonde instead just nodded.

"I'll consider it."

"That's all I ask. Walk with me." Ozpin motioned for him to follow as the two of them travelled through the corridors of the school. Jaune could see students moving about everywhere, some chatting, while others sprinted back and forth. Some were studying, most just having fun in a free period.

"There are many things at Beacon we cannot teach. Some things we wish we might never have to teach." The Headmaster's voice was calm as they continued their journey. "As students move on in their studies they will be sent on missions outside the safety of the Academy. Away from the protective eyes of our teaching staff. Anything can happen."

"Most of these missions end successfully, and without trouble. But sometimes things go wrong. Death, injury… mistakes. Whatever the result, these leave irreparable scars on teams. People often do not know how to handle the grief of a lost teammate. Or even to handle any arguments that might arise amongst themselves. When tensions are high, cohesion falls apart. Without having a suitable outlet for that stress, teams can fall to pieces. Friendships can be lost."

"Can't the teachers advise students? Mandatory classes after failed missions or something?"

"Those who need help, rarely accept it." The Headmaster sighed, as the two of them entered the staffroom, an opulent room with more comfortable couches and low coffee tables than they actually had members of staff. "Do you recall miss Velvet Scarlatina, from initiation?" Jaune racked his memory for the name… it was the girl he hadn't actually met in person yet, the bunny faunus. She had looked adorably cute, though perhaps that was the ears.

"I remember her, the faunus?"

"Indeed. Miss Scarlatina is years older than the rest of her teammates, yet was not made leader. That puts her in a poor light among the others of her year."

"Is she angry she wasn't made leader?" Jaune queried, not having expected that of the girl. She didn't look like she had the capability of being angry at anything. She had looked timid in his mind.

"No, Miss Scarlatina has no such arrogance or desire for the position. But the problem comes in how the decision might look to others. An older student; held back and put onto a first year team again… and not even as the leader. It makes her look weak, as though she was held back for incompetence."

"But you said it was an injury." Jaune interrupted, recalling the story about her old team, and how they were actually quite accomplished. Enough so, that they could still manage with just three members.

"Oh, Miss Scarlatina is quite the skilled combatant indeed. But unless she shows such ability, or explains why she was held back. The ostracisation by some of her peers will continue. The matter is only made worse by her heritage as a faunus." The man looked older as he said that, his hand coming to rest on a globe of remnant, softly rotating it.

"She's being discriminated against? Racially?" That was a surprise… least of all since Jaune had been convinced that no one really cared about the faunus. Sure he knew about the faunus wars, but his family had always seemed so uncaring if people had ears or horns, that he had assumed everyone else was the same…

It was also surprising since he was sure if Glynda saw it, the perpetrators would be killed.

"Can't we stop it, aren't we supposed to?" He asked uncertainly.

"Can we tell the Grimm to stop, if she is ever in danger?" The man asked back rhetorically with a deep sigh. "This is a combat school Mr Arc. The final school before they are released into the wild world we live in. We cannot afford to hold our punches or pamper people who might not be strong enough to stand up for themselves. If we do… then they will be killed beyond our walls."

Jaune's shoulders slumped, though he could understand the sentiment. It made a certain amount of twisted sense that a combat school would actively encourage the students to solve their own problems, ironically with violence if they thought it best.

"Ah, here." The Headmaster breathed softly, his hands ghosting over the globe until they reached the exact position of Beacon Academy. The name written in deep cursive script. There was a soft click, as the icon pressed inwards, the globe splitting in half as it opened. Jaune looked on in confusion at the fact that there was a secret compartment in a globe of all things.

Sat inside was a single silver thermos flask, which the older man took out carefully, before pouring some coffee into two mugs. Jaune accepted it slowly, letting the heat warm his hands.

"Sometimes a little coffee can help put things in perspective." The Headmaster whispered softly, as the two of them took a deep drink in synchrony. The effects this time were muted, but still drove the air from Jaune's lungs in an explosive sigh, taking with it all stress and worried he had first felt. Class had been great… Peter had been great… the Grimm had been great…. Those legs had been very great…

"Could the student counsellor help Velvet?" The words escaped his lips before his mind had processed them, the heavenly coffee giving him the clarity he needed to penetrate all of the Headmaster's subtle word games. He felt as though he could smell music being written, and feel the touch of atoms fusing.

The Headmaster turned to him, smiled softly, before clicking their mugs together in silent understanding.

"He could." Was the reverent answer.

It was work. More than he had wanted or anticipated, since he was nothing but a fraudulent liar playing at being a teacher. But he had managed to help Ruby. His mother had always told him about white lies, the little ones she gave to make him feel better. Dad was fine, the mission was just late… the dentist wouldn't hurt, sure it would snow this winter. Lies, but they had calmed him, and he didn't love her any less, because she did it to comfort him.

Could his lies do the same?

"I'll do it."

"Mr Arc." The older man welcomed. "I knew you w-" The moment was broken as the white-haired man's eyes widened imperceptibly behind his glasses, before he slammed the globe shut with a sudden lurch.

"Ozpin…" The unmistakeable voice of Glynda Goodwitch murmured as she strode up beside Jaune, her face was confused, a clipboard of notes clutched loosely to her breast. "What are you doing?"

One of the most powerful men in Remnant stared at her, before spinning the globe under his hands aggressively, a perfectly nonchalant expression on his face.

"Playing?" He offered uncertainly.

Glynda sighed as she massaged her temples.