63 Ch 62: Jaunedice (3)

"Yes! Yes, after the Great War and prior to the Faunus Rights Revolution--more popularly known as the Faunus War--" Dr. Oobleck was zooming around in front of the class as usual as the first years had their last class of the day, "--humankind was quite, quite adamant about centralizing Faunus population in Menagerie." Oobleck paused for a moment to point at Menagerie, an island continent to the south of Anima that was two-thirds desert, with his pointer. Then, he darted around to the side of his desk, took a sip of coffee out of his mug before using his speed to disappear from the student's sight for a moment, and reappear in front of his desk.

"Now! While this must feel like ancient history to many of you, it is imperative to remember that these are relatively recent events! Why the repercussions of the uprising can still be seen to this day!" Oobleck continues to zip around the front of the classroom, sipping his coffee and talking.

"Now! Have any among you been subjugated or discriminated against because of your Faunus heritage?" A few of the Faunus students hesitantly raise her hand, including the small winged Faunus girl from earlier, who now had bandages around her wings, after her teammates each put a reassuring hand on her shoulders.

"Dreadful, simply dreadful! Remember, students, it is precisely this kind of ignorance that breeds violence! I mean, I mean, I mean just look at what happened to White Fang! Now, which one of you young scholars can tell me what many theorize to be the turning point in the third year of the War?" Weiss raises her hand, "Yes?"

"The battle at Fort Castle!" Weiss answers.

"Precisely!" Oobleck confirms, "And, who can tell me the advantage the Faunus had over General Langune's forces?"

Jaune had been struggling to stay awake the entire class. He was barely maintaining his consciousness with the help of Ray's rubber balls stinging his nose and ears. That changed, however, when Cardin, who had been lounging behind him with his feet up on his desk, stealthily took out a small wad of slimy noodles he had saved from lunch and tossed them down the collar of Jaun's shirt.

"Hey!" The feeling of something cold, wet, and slimy sliding down the back of his shirt caused Jaune to start fully awake and jump in his seat.

Seeing Jaune's apparent enthusiasm, Oobleck dashed over, "Mr. Arc! Finally contributing to class! This is excellent! Excellent! What is the answer?" the doctor asked as he stared intently into Jaune's face, leaning over the ignorant young man's desk.

"Uhhh… The answer…" Jaune squirms around as he tries to think around the icky feeling of the noodles sliding down his back.

"The advantage… that the Faunus…" Jaune looks around desperately to find an answer and spots Pyrrha gesturing at her eyes while mouthing the answer to him.

"...had over that guy's stuff…" Seeing Jaune hadn't understood her, Pyrrha cupped her hands around her eyes.

Unfortunately, Jaune still didn't get it, "Uhh… Binoculars!".

Jaune looked quite pleased with his guess until he heard his classmates laughing at him. Pyrrha slaps a hand to her forehead, and Cardin pounds his hammy fist on his desk, chortling. Dr. Oobleck is not so easily amused and takes a sip of his coffee before zipping back behind his desk, "Very funny, Mr. Arc! Cardin! Perhaps you would care to share your thoughts on the subject!"

"Well, I know it's a lot easier to train an animal than a soldier." Cardin's remark drew glares from the majority of the class as Oobleck shook his head in disappointment.

[Yeah, some humans are a lot dumber than animals.] Ray thought to himself, starting to seriously consider if it might not be better for everyone, Cardin included, if he just 'reprogrammed' the bully.

"You're not the most open-minded of individuals, are you, Cardin?" Pyrrha scolded the bully.

"What? You got a problem?" Cardin tried to threaten her.

[You bet we got a problem. Or are you really so dense you can't feel all the death glares you are currently receiving.] Ray was seething inside at Cardin's blatant racism. He had heard about what Cardin had done at lunch and had given him another detention after checking on how the Faunus girl was doing and having her team escort her to the nurse's office to get her wings treated. Ray was currently trying to think of the best punishment for the jackass. For now, his best idea was having Cardin muck out the academy's chicken coops and stables, under increased gravity, of course, but he was starting to think he should come up with something 'better'.

"No, I have the answer! It's night vision. Many Faunus are known to have nearly-perfect sight in the dark." Cardin growled and mocked Pyrrha silently under his breath at her correct response.

"General Lagune was inexperienced and made the mistake of trying to ambush the Faunus in their sleep. His massive army was outmatched, and the general was captured." Blake followed up before turning to Cardin and narrowing her eyes at him, "Perhaps if he'd paid attention in class, he wouldn't have been remembered as such a failure."

Cardin gets up from his seat with a threatening growl, his fist clenched, looking like he wanted to start a fight. However, he was forced to sit back down by the teacher calling out to him, "Mr. Winchester! Please take your seat." Jaune laughs at Cardin's embarrassment and ends up drawing Ooblecks attention to himself, "You and Mr. Arc can both see me after class for additional readings."

"Oohhh…" Jaune moans.

"Now! Moving on!" Doctor Oobleck zooms away to continue the class.

After class ends and all of the students have left, including Ray. Dr. Oobleck has Jaune and Cardin sit in the front row. After a quick gulp of his favorite vise, Oobleck starts talking to them about why he asked them to stay behind.

"You two have been struggling in my class since day one! Now, I don't know if it's a lack of interest or just your stubborn nature, but whatever it is..." Oobleck pauses to take a longer sip of coffee, "It stops now! You've worked hard to gain entrance to this school, and we only accept the best of the best, so I expect you to act like it. History is important, gentlemen! If you can't learn from it... you're destined to repeat it. Pages fifty-one to ninety-one! I want an essay on my desk by next class! Now! Run along."

With that, Dr. Oobleck turns into a green and white blur and whizzes out the door, past the only student to have stayed behind to wait. Pyrrha was leaning against the wall behind the door, waiting for her leader. Jaune exited the classroom next, followed by Cardin, who didn't forget to give Jaune a firm shove, knocking him to the ground, before stalking off in a huff.

"You know, I really will break his legs." Pyrrha reminds Jaune of Nora's suggestion from lunch earlier that day as she helps him back to his feet. Jaune just sighs at her reassurance, but Pyrrha suddenly gets excited.

"I have an idea! Here, come with me!" She grabs a confused Jaune's hand and drags him after her down the hall.

Pyrrha leads a reluctant Jaune back to the dormitory and up to the roof. There a dejected Jaune finds himself on a flat section of roof about as big as their dorm room that gives a clear view of the glowing green orbs in Beacon Tower.

"Pyrrha, I know I'm going through a hard time right now, but I'm not that depressed." Jaune says to a confused Pyrrha as he looks over the edge of the roof at the four-story fall, "I can always be a farmer or something..."

"N-n-no!" Realizing with horror Jaune's misunderstanding. Pyrrha dashes up to him and pulls him back away from the edge.

"Jaune, I know you're having a difficult time in class and that you're still not the strongest of fighters. So… please, as your teammate, let me help you." Pyrrha clasps her hands in front of her, begging, as she asks Jaune once again to let her help him. Jaune just looks at her with dead, defeated eyes, not saying anything.

Pyrrha tries to press her idea before he rejected her again, "We can train up here after class where no one can bother us! Nobody will need to know!"

"I don't-" Jaune starts to say, but Pyrrha cuts him off, unwilling to accept his rejection so easily this time.

"Jaune, everyone needs a push from time to time. It doesn't make you any different from the rest of us. You made it to Beacon! That speaks volumes of what you are capable of!" Pyrrha desperately tries to persuade him.

"You're wrong." Jaune mumbles as he turns his back to her, "I-I don't belong here."

"That's a terrible thing to say! Of course, you do!"

"No, I don't!" Jaune snaps and whirls around to face her in anger. Seeing the bewilderment on her face, Jaune turned his back to her again so he won't have to see the disappointment on her face as he finally reveals his secret.

"I wasn't really accepted into Beacon…" he mumbles, ashamed.

"Wh-what do you mean?" Pyrrha asks, confused and afraid for him.

"I mean, I didn't go to combat school. I didn't pass any tests. I didn't earn my spot at this Academy!" Jaune's voice gets progressively higher as he confesses until he finally turns to face her again.

"I lied! I got my hands on some fake transcripts, and I lied!" He has finally gotten his heavy secret off his chest, but he doesn't feel any better for it knowing he has disappointed the person who believes in him the most.

"What? But… why?" Pyrrha tries to understand.

"'Cause this is always what I've wanted to be!" Jaune turns his back to her again as he tries to explain, "My father, my grandfather, and his father before him were all warriors! They were all heroes! I wanted to be one, too. I was just never good enough."

"Then let me help you!" Pyrrha approaches her hurting leader and places a supportive hand on his shoulder. Despite this new revelation, she refuses to abandon him. But Jaune still isn't willing to accept and slaps her hand away, anger and frustration clearly etched into his face as he whirls back around to face her again.

"I don't want help! I don't want to be the damsel in distress! I want to be the hero!" He shouts at her.

"Jaune, I-" Pyrrha tries to say as she takes a step back, hurt and shocked at his outburst, but Jaune doesn't let her.

"I'm tired of being the lovable idiot, stuck in the tree while his friends fight for their lives! Don't you understand? If I can't do this on my own... then what good am I?" Jaune laments as he hugs his left arm with his right, trying to comfort himself.

Seeing him obviously hurting like this, Pyrrha tries to reach out to him one last time, but Jaune leans back, away from her touch.

"Just… leave me alone. Okay?" Jaune almost sobs. Accepting that there is nothing she can do to get through to him right now, Pyrrha reluctantly lets her hand fall.

"If that's what you think is best…" Pyrrha sadly hangs her head and leaves. [I guess Ray was right. He really isn't ready to accept any help yet.]

As the sound of Pyrrha's retreating footsteps fades, it is replaced by the sound of mocking laughter coming from the edge of the roof. Jaune stops his pacing to face the sound and sees Cardin climbing up over the edge.

"Oh, Jaune." Cardin mocks as he looks at the unfortunate boy like a predator eyeing its prey.

"Cardin!" Jaune squeaks out in fear.

"I couldn't help but overhear you two from my dorm room." Cardin gestures behind him and below the edge where he had come from. Right below the ledge is an open window leading to Team CRDL's dorm room, where he had been sitting on the sill when Jaune and Pyrrha had arrived. "So, you snuck into Beacon, huh? I gotta say, Jaune, I never expected you to be such a rebel!"

"Please, Cardin, please, don't tell anyone!" Jaune begs.

"Jaune, come on! I'd never rat out a friend like that!" Cardin reassures in a tone that is anything but reassuring.

"A… a friend?" Cardin approaches the stammering Jaune and drops a 'friendly' headlock on him.

"Of course! We're friends now, Jauney boy! And the way I see it, as long as you're there for me when I need you, we'll be friends for a long time." Cardin releases the struggling Jaune and steps back as Jaune falls to the ground, gasping for breath.

"That being said, I really don't have time to do those extra readings Dr. Oobleck gave us today. Think you could take care of that for me, buddy?" Cardin leans down to ruffle Jaune's hair with a cruel smile on his face.

"That's what I thought." He chortles as he walks back towards the edge, leaving Jaune on the floor rubbing his throat.

"Don't worry, Jaune; your secret's safe with me." Cardin laughs at Jaune as he disappears over the edge and returns to his room.