First Day of Class

[A/N:

Apologies for the wait, but I write when I feel like it because forced writing doesn't end up being the best for me. In that same fashion, I had a harder time writing this chapter because it's in one of those strange spaces where I didn't exactly plan anything, so it took a while for my will to write and my preparations to balance out. I would apologize, but that's just how it is sometimes.

That being said, I'm not sure how I feel about this chapter. I'm happy I could write as much as I did in this chapter, but I can only hope it is as good as I want it to be.

A small note before you begin, there are different forms of dialogue both so far and in general that will appear in this story. These aren't hard-set rules, more to help those who might have a hard time with how I'm writing these bits.

'' = Not necessarily dialogue, but pertains to inner thoughts/conversations.

"" = two people talking to each other

[-] "" = Multiple people talking, their name/moniker is put before to know who says what.

{-} "" = At least for now, it is mainly the communication made via scroll. The name in the {} is what all in that chat see. Even for a two-person messaging, like done in this chapter, unless the people choose to make it private the nicknames are visible both ways and can be changed by either individual.

That's all I can think of for now. I hope you enjoy this chapter, and I'll have the next one out when I do.]

- - - - - - - - - - - - -

For the next few days, we simply got into the swing of things. This included unpacking our stuff, choosing our showers, and exploring the campus, but the day before classes started a small incident occurred in the dorm room.

You see, I had unintentionally got out, dried, and dressed at just the right time for Eugene to not properly see the entirety of my body without the decently heavy fog from the hot showers and baths that first night and since then I have only showered at different times than him.

So when I walked out of the bathroom into the living room on the final morning of no school without my shirt on, as I wanted to just chill and cool down before getting dressed completely, a small gasp made me look over to see Dawn and Celestia exiting the bedroom as Eugene sat on the couch, with a paused news report on screen.

[Dawn] - "Argento…"

The concern in her voice made me confused until I looked down at my bare torso and realized what she was looking at. Because of the hot shower, all of my scars were just a little more prominent, especially now that I was out of the water and in the cooler air.

Now in Remnant, at least the one I am in, scars aren't an unusual thing to have. Almost everyone has one or two they got from taking damage, let alone those who pursue a career in combat-oriented fields.

But I have hundreds all over my upper body alone, and at just 17 that is saying a lot about how I lived before now, or better yet how I barely kept living even after taking all this damage. They aren't very obvious when I am just in my normal state, since they are all as healed as scars can be, but fresh out of the shower they all pop just enough to see them all.

[Argento] - "Ah, right - those."

[Dawn] - "How did you get them?"

[Argento] - "Painfully, for plenty of them. Others I was too occupied to fully comprehend, and some were no doubt just nothing compared to others I had gotten just before them."

[Dawn] - "But we're only 17! What could have possibly happened to cause-"

Before she could continue, Celestia put a hand on her shoulder, and when Dawn looked at her she just shook her head. Eugene stood up, walked over to my side, and put an arm around my shoulder.

[Eugene] - "It doesn't matter what caused them because that's in the past. What's important now is that we, as a team, ensure none of us have to gather more scars by having each other's backs. Right?"

[Dawn] - "… yes, you are completely correct. Well, we should probably hurry and shower or the breakfast rush will happen."

With a bit more of a forced smile than her normally bubbly one, she went with her clothes and into the bathroom more rushed than usual. Looking over at Celestia, I saw a similar pile of clothes in her arms and assumed they would go in together.

Noticing my gaze, Celestia simply nodded and went in after Dawn. Taking a second to look after them, the thought to tell them came just as fast as it left. We may be a team now, but that was something I haven't even shared with Yang or Ruby, and at this point, they're basically sisters to me.

[Eugene] - "Don't worry about her, you know how good Celestia is at leading the mood of a room."

[Argento] - *Sigh* "I know, but I hope Dawn doesn't get caught up by this. If anything, as the team leader it's nice to know she's concerned about a teammate simply because of their scars."

[Eugene] - "Well like I said, how you got them doesn't matter. But just so you know, in my eyes you just gained a whole lot of respect."

"How so?"

"Well, you know of my tribal origins, so to explain a little of how they work, at least ours, we didn't have anyone with a medical Semblance. Most often our warriors would do their best to always take damage with their aura shields to not need medical attention, but it wouldn't always work out that way.

Because of this, the warriors in my tribe with the most battle scars were the ones that held the most respect, because they showed they would fight to their final breath to keep the rest of the tribe safe. So no matter how you got those, in my eyes they only make you more worthy of your leadership role."

"Well, I appreciate that. Now let's get dressed, because if they take long enough we'll have to rush as it is to make it in time."

<Dawn POV>

My mind couldn't help but wander as I took my clothes off, but unhelpfully it was going all over the place. It wasn't until I turned on the shower and stepped into a freezing cold shower that I yelped and snapped out of my daze.

"You okay Dawn?"

Jumping slightly at Celestia's voice behind me, having forgotten she was coming to shower with me, I slipped backward but was stopped from falling by a soft pillow of electric blue feathers. Quickly getting back up, I shyly nod as I reach into my shower and turn the water to hot.

"You weren't responding to me earlier in the changing room, so I assumed something was up."

"Yes - I mean, no, but also kinda?" I wasn't able to stop my words in time, so I just sighed as we stepped past our adjacent curtained showers before continuing to talk.

"Anything a little input from a friend might help with?"

"Well, I just worry I might've overstepped a boundary earlier. Both you and Eugene so easily picked up on it, but there I was trying to pick apart his past."

"You didn't have a tough childhood, did you?"

"No, I was raised in the mid-residential district of Vale as an only child. My parents own a small business so we've never been short of money, and they're very open about their love for each other and me. But what does that have to do with this?"

"Well for others, like me and Argento, our pasts are a little more complicated than that. Some of the things that happen are a little tougher to talk about, so it's best to let it come up naturally instead of poking and prodding,

Don't get me wrong, I'm equally as curious and concerned about what could've caused him to get so many scars, but having a few I'm not quite ready to share myself I know the feeling of not being ready; so while I highly doubt he'd be annoyed with you over something so obviously caused by your concern for him, don't take it personally if he is."

Silence reigned over the room as we turned off our showers, having finished, and drying off we went back into the changing room to get ready for the last day of no classes. As I clip my bra, yet another sigh left me.

"Thank you, and I see your point, but did I really miss that cue just because I didn't have a harder childhood?"

"Afraid so. There are some parts of life you just have to experience to learn, but hopefully, you'll be more likely to pick up on them now."

Looking over at Celestia I see she is dressed in a loose, pink open-backed t-shirt to accommodate her wings with darker jeans and sports shoes on. Thinking once again just how beautiful she is, and jokingly thinking how sad I am I'm straight, a light tap with her wing brings me back to it as I start slipping on my outer clothes.

"Now come on city girl, we don't wanna keep the boys waiting too long."

<Argento POV>

It was later that afternoon while resting in the room before dinner that Dawn apologized for her intrusion into my life. Since the others were there when she did, I gave them all reassurance that I would share it one day, but for now, we had to focus on learning who each of us is now.

Taking little time to eat and get ready for bed, the next morning, the first of many days of class came fast. Waking up at exactly 6:30, sooner than the others due to my automatic inner alarm clock, I began my morning ritual of going to the bathroom, brushing my teeth, and setting my hair into its more comfortable form of a long ponytail with slight bangs.

Taking close to no time I open the living room window, letting in a cool morning breeze and rising sunlight, and without thinking twice I simply jump out. Being a Huntsman-in-training has many benefits, one of which is that my entrance and exit points are now multiplied by a degree.

Speedily approaching the ground a faint golden shimmer covers my body at the last second, suddenly vastly slowing down my speed, causing my landing to be perfectly soft and barely disturbing the blades of grass around my feet. Setting off without dallying, I jog around the part of campus our building is in for the next 45 minutes, and when I reach the spot I landed several disks of gold appear as I launch up and through the window.

Landing softly, I make a quick stop at the bedroom, noting Dawn still sleeping, Eugene dressed in his school uniform, and Celestia groggily sitting at her desk chair.

[Argento] - "I'll make my shower quick, one of you should probably wake sleepyhead two up soon or you won't have enough time before breakfast."

Just getting a nod from Eugene and a noise of affirmation from a drooping pair of wings, I grab my uniform I set on my chest the night before, my scroll, and make my way to the shower. As I undress I hear my scroll go off, and quickly opening it I see it's a message from Ruby.

{Petals} - "Morning Argento! I wasn't sure when your classes began so I painfully waited to ask how Beacon is so far?! Did you meet your team? Are they nice? Will you be visiting any time soon??"

{Golden Boy} - "Good morning Rubes, and today is my first day of classes. Other than that the campus is nice, the staff are nicer, and the dorms are massive. Yes, I made my team, and yes they're nice, and I'll visit as soon as I have the time. Are the Firecracker and Taiyang not keeping you company or something? Missing me already?"

{Petals} - "Of course I miss you! Obviously, they're keeping me company, but I only have one brother! Also, Zwei says hi too, and that if you don't come home soon he'll start chewing on the stuff you left!"

{Golden Boy} - "Tell the furball that I said hi and that if he does chew on my stuff he can expect to not get any attention from me even when I do get back."

{Petals} - "Hehe, I'll make sure to tell him. But don't be a stranger, and if you're ever able to, at least stop by!"

{Golden Boy} - "Yeah yeah. I've gotta go, breakfast and classes begin soon so I'll talk to you later. Love ya, sis."

{Petals} - "Love you too bro!"

[Celestia] - "What's the dopey grin about?"

Having finished my shower and dressed in my uniform, looking up from my now-closing scroll I could see a half-tired and half-amused smile on Celestia's face. As a still yawning Dawn walks past us in favor of the warm shower that awaits her, I can only chuckle.

[Argento] - "Nothing much, just my youngest sister being a goober."

[Celestia] - "Ah, yes. Younger siblings can be that way."

Giving an understanding nod, she walks past me and pats my shoulder, stopping at the doorway to the bathroom area.

[Celestia] - "By the way, while I'm sure it's more comfortable, you should probably fully button your shirt and tighten your tie."

With the sound of the door closing, I look down and sigh. Even back on Earth I hadn't been much of a suit and tie person, so it seems in my distracted state I naturally went for what was most comfortable; in resignation, I finish the top buttons of both the white under-shirt and the black jacket while fully doing the red tie that was now half-tucked under the blue vest between the two.

By 7:50, the girls left the bathroom, and before we left the room I glanced at my team. Eugene's outfit was identical to mine, though he had a few accessories of what I now knew were blood beads. Dawn had the red plaid skirt, brown jacket, tan vest, and white shirt with a red ribbon tied at the collar that practically every female outfit had in common, but her choice of stocking length was thigh-high, ending a little below the rim of the skirt.

Celestia's outfit was, as one would expect, altered to allow her wings the freedom they needed. Like most of her "full-top" shirts, there was a decent portion of the fabric at her back missing, centered around where her back and wings met, and her stockings ended just before her knees.

Finally fully ready, we make our way out of the dorms for breakfast. While eating, I couldn't help but think about our schedule for the year as I looked around the massive hall that we were eating in.

From what I can tell, all 4 years are scheduled to eat at the same time for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. Each class is either 1 or 2 hours, and each meal is 4 hours apart. We weren't given a choice of electives for our first year, and everyone in our year will be taught simultaneously.

I had been slightly apprehensive about this, but as we walked into our first class of the day, the line of teachers at the front of the class made those feelings turn into confusion. It wasn't until class started, all students sitting with their teams and/or friends, that the teacher in the middle walked forward to be fully behind the podium.

He was an imposing man, standing at 7 feet tall, with bulging muscles barely restrained under his black and white three-piece suit, with an air of confidence that caused some of the weaker-hearted students to nervously shuffle in their seats. A very visible scar ran along the bottom left of his chin and continued downward, partially shrouded by the suit he wore.

He had slicked back, short gray hair that is gray from age as it faded to a bright, snowy white. He was of a more tan complexion, some wrinkles, and less visible scars dotted around what little skin was showing, and mixed with his deep blue, wisened eyes, and neutral face, he screamed "leader".

"Welcome to General Studies. I am Professor Faro Russo, and from the moment you step foot in this classroom until the moment I leave, I am in charge. Understood?"

Getting a chorus of affirmatives, ranging from silent to sounding like a strangled cat, he nodded his head in what seemed to be a pleased fashion.

"Good, then let us begin today with a rundown of how this class will work. In this class, you will be taught everything that is, for lack of a better term, mundane. This includes math, the different branches of science, Language, and more.

Behind me are a collection of professors who are not only qualified to teach all of these subjects but are also in charge of elective classes you will be allowed to take in your 3rd year. You will have this class, and more than likely all of us professors, for the next 2 years, so after I am finished with this rundown and questions are answered, we will do proper introductions, and the rest of the class will be a shortened lesson to let you get the feel of things.

That being said, how I run this class may be very different from what you are all used to. Each week you will be given a quota to meet, each quota will be different and will be filled with a variety of subjects, but we will not directly teach you anything.

Instead, you will be given everything you need to learn from, and you will do it on your own. You may ask questions to any of the roaming teachers whenever you cannot figure something out, but I strongly suggest doing your best to figure it out yourself before throwing in the towel.

Now, for those who may finish their quota early. You may turn it in whenever you finish, and as long as it is of a reasonable quality you are done with your work for the week. You must continue to attend class, but you are free to do as you please, as long as it does not disrupt those around you.

However, if you so wish, you may ask for more work in any area you wish to pursue. Whether that be next week's quota or a more in-depth dive into a subject you found interesting, we are here to point you in the right direction and guide you on your journey of discovery.

Keep in mind, just because you are at a combat school, that does not mean you must stifle your opportunities or desires for more out of life than a Huntsman License. This is the reason we have collected the elective professors into one class because their depth of knowledge and motivation cannot be replicated half-heartedly.

That is all from me for now, so we shall answer some questions and begin introductions starting from the very right. Names, electives we teach, and any other relevant information will be given, so pay attention if you think an elective is something you will be taking later on."

Within the first second of his monologue finishing, I raised my hand with intelligent curiosity sparkling through my eyes, something none of the professors missed. Though a few other hands rose as well, mine was faster and more self-assured, so I got called first.

"For those of us who finish our quota faster, is there a limit to what we are allowed to study while here? For instance, even though it probably is not part of General Studies, would we be allowed access to dust, aura, or semblance-based information?"

"Yes, you would be allowed to access the necessary information. As long as it is accessible through Beacon, you would be allowed to research virtually anything should you finish your quota early."

Satisfied with the answer Professor Russo gave, I smiled and nodded. Though there was a lot of information at once, it wasn't complicated and I was now quite looking forward to this class. The freedom to learn what we wish, if anything at all, as long as we finish our work early was the biggest boon to someone with my intelligence.

Back on Earth, it felt stifling to have to conform to the university teaching methods that lagged far behind my learning speed, so to have such free access to both the information and willing teachers got me a bit antsy for the start of class.

Alas, it would have to wait. After the introductions were finished and the example of how it would work was done, further exciting me, the bell signaling the end of class rang. With a short farewell, the professors left, and I couldn't help the sigh that left me, causing Celestia to look at me.

"Okay, why are you all worked up?"

"What do you mean?"

"Your badly hidden excitement, disappointment, and your rather bothersome sighing that you seemed to not notice you kept doing. What about that class got you going so much?"

"Ohh, well I'm just really looking forward to General Studies now."

"Why? Didn't you come here to become a Huntsman? I would've assumed you would look forward to the classes related to that."

"Well obviously I am, but I've always been a fast worker so to have a class that will allow me the freedom and time to research what I want as I want to? I'm already giddy thinking of what I can do in this class!"

"...You know, I didn't realize this before but you're a massive nerd, aren't you?"

"So what if I am? Got a problem with that?"

"No, just kinda cute how you could get so excited over something most would take for granted."

Hearing her response, a playful grin spread across my face as I exaggeratedly put my chin into the crook between my thumb and index finger. "Oh? Have I won you over with my thirst for knowledge? I'll have to say, that's a first. It's normally my devilish good looks."

"You wish! And I'd say you overestimate your ability to win over the ladies with such a shit-eating grin taking up most of your dumb face."

Giving a pout in the same playful manner, I pretend to huff and squint at her. "How could I be a nerd and have a dumb face? I feel that makes no sense."

Celestia responded with a grin similar to the one I had before I began pouting. "Oh trust me, it makes no sense. But somehow it's the only thing that fits such an overinflated ego."

A few seconds of staring pass before we can't help but begin a fit of laughter. In the middle of our laughing, I suddenly got a wave of deja vu as a shiver ran down my spine and the faint sound of a "fufu" went off to my left.

Spinning my head to look in the sound's direction, it was just Eugene and Dawn with amused smiles from our little show just now, and getting a confused tilt of their heads from my actions I just shake my head to remind myself that there's no way I could be hearing that.

It was then that a sudden gust of air blew past my desk, causing my battle senses to accidentally flare a little, but to instantly deflate once I saw the green-haired, bespectacled man that was practically chugging coffee while standing in front of the podium. What followed was a short introduction to the one and only Professor Bartholomew Oobleck, one of the more enjoyable side characters of RWBY in my opinion, and his subject, which I believe to be different from how it was in RWBY.

The full title of his class was History, Anthropology, Geology, and Sociology; or as he fondly called it HAGS. It was described as a class we would have for the next three years, though year three would be much less work since we would more often be out on missions or practical lessons that last long periods of time.

What followed was, from what I can tell, nothing too different from RWBY's first class with him, though it didn't go as far since there was more to cover at each point. I could already tell I would have to do my best not to lose attention in future classes, since most of this I'm not too concerned with learning more than what my memory catches, which will be everything.

And as the bell rang for classes to switch, I wasn't sure how I would feel about this next class, mostly because it was a subject I was already very familiar with and the teacher liked to go off about his exploits.

Professor Peter Port, in charge of Grimm Studies. As he described it, we would be going over the many different types of Grimm, their weaknesses, how to tell similar ones apart, and more. Some of which I was slightly interested in, but hopefully I would be proven wrong about this class because, despite his rambling about himself, Professor Port was another of the enjoyable side characters of RWBY.

During his lecture, he chose to bring up a student to fight a Boarbatusk, and though I could make quick work of it in many ways I thought it a good idea to leave it to someone else. It seemed my team was either like-minded or did not care to fight right now, as the student that was chosen made quick but sloppy work of defeating it; from what I can tell, he got over-confident and barely managed to take a big hit.

Finally, after the fourth hour, we had an hour for lunch, before we reconvened in the same classroom from before. The teacher was present in the room, with only a few of the other students being present before my team got there.

Once we were all there, she stepped ahead of the podium to get our attention. She was what I can assume to be 5 foot 8 with long, straight brown hair.

She had a gentle smile reaching her hazel eyes that accentuated the natural beauty she gave off, though some of the more perverted minds among the student body commented on the waste it was given she was nearly flat as a board.

Over said body she wore a shirt tucked into her pants with a belt around her waist, and on the belt were several metal canisters that simply had a small line around the middle differentiating them from each other. Over this outfit, she had on what I would describe as a lab coat, and she wore slightly heeled boots to piece it all together.

She was on the younger side, though it can get hard to tell sometimes because of the natural beautifying effect a better-quality aura tends to bring, so it was a safe assumption to say she was about the age of Qrow and Glynda.

"Welcome to Dust, Aura, and Semblance: Theory and Interaction, or DASTI for short. I am Professor Iridiana Agnea, and while this will only be a first-year course, a lot of the information should be review for those who went to combat schools before coming to Beacon.

Now to start, what is a Semblance? A Semblance is the unique form an aura can take when it is applied to the world in a particular manner. While a bit vague of a description, it does cover most bases.

Yes, those with a larger or higher quality aura can be born without the ability to have a Semblance. No one Semblance is unlocked the same way; some are born with it available, and others have to have a specific event happen for it to come about.

A friend of mine unlocked his fire-related Semblance as a child because he got too curious at a bonfire and touched it. It should have given him harsh burns, but instead, he was able to control the fire subconsciously and none of it, nor the heat it produced, managed to touch him.

I unlocked mine when I got a little too handsy with some Dust my parents accidentally left within reach."

To this, a curious hand shot up from the middle of the room, and after being pointed at she asked her question, like the civilized beings we are.

"If it's not too much to ask, what is your Semblance? We learned about the other teachers during their introduction of themselves but none of them mentioned theirs."

This made a thoughtful expression go across Professor Agnea's face until she ended back at the same smile she had since the beginning of class.

"Well seeing as it will come up later, I do not see the harm in telling you all now. My Semblance was aptly named Dust Manipulation."

Taking a moment to get a demonstration going, she reaches for her belt and grabs one of her blue canisters. Pressing a button on the top, it opens in a spiral motion, and dumping it upside down reveals water Dust. Instead of continuing down to hit the ground, it stops midair and begins to move in formation around the professor, until it finally goes back to the canister where it is resealed and put back on her belt.

"As I have just shown, it allows me to manipulate any Dust I come in contact with. This includes making unstable Dust stabilize, and in the presence of an abundance of a particular resource, I can produce some in exchange for the element around me. There are many details about this I could go over, but I won't.

Instead, it brings me to my next point; the interaction between Semblance, Aura, and Dust. While we will be going over this in detail, an individual's Semblance can have a varying effect on how Dust works, and in some cases, it will not have any noticeable effect.

Aura will always affect Dust in some way, it is one of the easier ways to destabilize it, but that is the most some will be able to do with their Semblance. Because of the unique nature of Semblances that makes two people rarely have similar Semblances, let alone the almost non-existent identical Semblances, it is only through experience that one can learn the interactions your Semblance would have with Dust."

Catching onto her specific wording, I can't help but raise my hand, to which I am called on.

"Your wording for similar and identical Semblances leaves room for exceptions, can I assume this has to do with hereditary Semblances?"

Now looking even happier than before, the professor gives a small jump as she gives small claps of excitement.

"That is precisely what I was hinting at, but because they are so rare not many people actually know of them - which is surprising to me, but then again not many people dive deep into Semblances as a whole.

You see, while they are quite rare, they do pop up more than those in the know realize. Many hereditary Semblances simply go unnoticed or unused by those who are unable to pursue lives that deal with using them, and that normally leads to them dying out.

That being said, they have a distinct advantage over others because while similar Semblances can help lead each other in the right direction, one that is hereditary is a nearly exact copy of the previous one, and therefore all the aspects, as well as the interactions with the world, Aura, and Dust, are likely already known; at the very least, it is already given a very large head start in comparison to those starting from scratch. That was a great question!"

Giving her a smile and a nod, she moves behind the podium to the board, where she proceeds to begin writing.

"Now, getting back on track. While most of you may have had a similar subject, we will begin at the basics and blaze through it as a review. If those who haven't learned this before, or those who forgot, need some help you can always find me, along with the rest of your teachers, at our offices at specific hours.

Do not be afraid to drop in if you are falling behind, because I will gladly help those in need. With the rest of the class, we will go over Aura as a whole. So to start -" She stops writing for a second, pointing to the board for emphasis, "- What is Aura?"

As the rest of the lesson goes on, going over things that were gone through in RWBY or that I learned on my own, I let my mind wander through the possible interactions my Semblance could have with Dust. As the class ended, with a sweet farewell from Professor Agnea, I couldn't help but draw a blank.

Because of time's naturally broad and non-impactful interactions, it is hard to imagine it doing anything great, if anything at all. It was a little disappointing, but I wouldn't trade this power for anything.

While I was stuck in my head, I didn't notice many of those in the room abruptly sitting up straight as the next professor walked in. And when I finally came out of it, I joined the remaining students with a confused look.

Now standing at attention before the podium was Professor Russo, holding the same neutral expression that commanded attention and obedience.

"From some of your expressions, I can see you wondering why I am here. While it is none of your business, just know that between the many professors in General studies there is not an overall large amount of work we have to do. While they teach electives, I have been chosen to teach you all Strategy.

Yes, the name of the class is Strategy, simply because it is not just one type of strategy. As the majority of you are going to become Huntsmen or go into jobs with some similar responsibilities, it is my job to help you know what to do in numerous situations.

There is the normal battle strategy, but that is simply the tip of the iceberg. Evacuation, Scouting, medical choices, and many more aspects that you may very well run into down the line. For the next year, we will go through a plethora of situations, both theoretical and physical.

That being said, you all know me already, so we shall begin this lesson by actually having class."

The lesson ended up being just as straightforward as Professor Russo made it out to be, and since it was something new I didn't have to fight to pay attention to him. It did help that he had the aura of a commander.

Finally, with the bell signaling class to end, right as Professor Russo left the room a familiar light-blond-haired Deputy Headmistress came into the room with an open tablet scroll in the nook of her left arm and her riding crop in her right hand. Before most of the students could process her early appearance she swung her arm, causing a loud snapping sound that startled many of the unprepared ones.

"You all know me, and you will address me as Professor Goodwitch. I am in charge of Combat Class, and while there will be some theory done in class now and again we will mostly be a physical class.

With that out of the way, everyone follow me to the arena. When we get there you are all to change quickly into your combat outfits and gather at the foot of the stage."

And with that very abrupt start to class, we all got up and followed her to our destination. Through the short couple-minute walk, mostly to help the students unfamiliar with Beacon's layout, a few quiet conversations began. It seemed no one wanted to get too loud with the so-far-stern Goodwitch.

Finally making it to the arena, all the students rush to get their combat clothes on, with only a few pacing themselves. Because of his outfit's general simplicity, Eugene was out sooner than most.

I followed him out soon after because I may or may not have slowed down time enough to get out sooner. Was it unnecessary? Absolutely, because even without it I would've been done soon enough.

But I couldn't help the excitement at finally learning where I stood among my classmates in terms of combat ability; my team doesn't count because they're only 3 of the other 99 students, and I've already fought alongside them. And only a few minutes later, we were all gathered at the foot of the raised stage, awaiting Glynda's start.

"It has been 10 minutes since the start of class. I will let you all off for this first week, but after that I expect this process to take no more than 5 on a slow day. Now, with you all changed and ready, I believe it's about time I elaborate a little further on what we will be doing.

You will be taking Combat Class for the next 3 years. In those three years I will be drilling into both your bodies and minds several ways to fight: both unarmed and armed, with or without aura, only or no Semblances, ranged to close combat and more.

Many who have taken this class before have complained about the variety I teach, saying they should be focusing on their style of fighting and nothing more. They were idiots."

A couple of snickers were heard around the class, and with a glance, I could see it was a few people laughing at their friends - probably because they had muttered the same thing just before she called them out.

"To those who have similar questions or thoughts, I ask you this. What would you do if you found yourself ambushed? Unprepared, weaponless, poisoned? There is never a certainty that you will be prepared for a fight, so if you had to before you restocked your dust and bullets, could you confidently say you would be able to fight properly and at 100%?"

As she continued listing more scenarios and possibilities, the students who had been treating this like their lower-academy years began settling into a more serious mindset, though only slightly. Seeing her lecture begin taking effect, Glynda decided to move forward.

"Moving on from that, there are some among you who think too highly of yourselves. I will not call them out, but if you are unaware that you and your classmates, though of the same year and age group, aren't all in the same realm of skill and power, then I will break that notion out of you if I must.

Therefore I will be calling specific people to this stage, or for some fights the whole arena, for today's lesson, all paired up for particular reasons that the more well-trained among you may spot before I point it out. The first duo up will be Sal Snow of SAND and Angel Grey of ASSH, and they will be fighting in the whole arena. Everyone else, into the stands."

[A/N: Those two are not important, at least they aren't currently planned to be but I might use the names if I need them again. I just thought it would add a little flavor]

Once all of the students who weren't fighting were in the stands, pretty spread out because of the amount of space, Glynda started the fight and floated up into the stands and ended up next to my team. Giving her a heartfelt smile, having had no chance to see her since she flung us off the cliff and then her speech, she responded similarly and faced forward to watch the fights.

A few fights passed, and I saw very easy-to-notice problems with each matchup. The first fight was a calm long-ranged expert against a close combat specialist who was in over their head, and the long-ranged student won.

While it was relatively easy for the majority to see why they were paired, the following matches would become more difficult to tell apart. Going from someone focused on slower, heavy hits against fast and lethal cuts to close combat specialists with different ranges on their weapons.

After the first few fights, Glynda spoke to me without moving her gaze from the fight on the stage.

"I'm glad to both see you here and in good health. It's been quite a while since we spoke, hasn't it?"

"Indeed it has, Professor Goodwitch." With the emphasis on her title and usage of her last name, she gave a quiet chuckle. "While I would love to catch up now, I believe it would be nice to catch up with Oz as well. When is the earliest I would be able to see him, and hopefully you, without interrupting your schedule?"

"Well as it just so happens, you have an official summons from one Headmaster Oscar Zoroaster Phadrig Isaac Norman for this evening at 19:00."

"Wow, that's one hell of a name."

[A/N: I looked around, but wasn't sure if this was canonically his name. It is for my story, though it's only half of the name I found since the full thing spells OZPINHEAD, and I decided to just keep the OZPIN part.]

"Well he's always been a fan of simplicity, so he says he just took the acronym of his full name for his non-legal name."

"I can see that."

A short silence ensued as we observed a duo that had harshly clashing fighting styles, with one side being ahead of the other. It was then a lightbulb seemed to pop into Glynda's head as she ever-so-slightly smirked.

"Hey Argento, would you mind helping me with something?"

"What would you like help with?"

"Knowing the background of this year's students, seeing how they've acted so far, and their records Beacon has access to, I believe this series of examples won't be enough. As this lesson is meant mostly to mellow out some egos, I think seeing a single student take them out one after another would definitely make a point.

I'm making this offer because I have full faith in your ability to do this, even with the handicaps I'll give you each battle. But be wary, this might make some enemies during the duration of your stay, especially if you decide to take your lessons as seriously as we believe you will."

Giving her request some thought, I glanced around the room, observing some of the personalities she was no doubt talking about. A good couple were on my shitlist for obvious discrimination, so I couldn't help but start giving a cackle that I did my best to suppress.

Though my best was not enough to suppress it, because my team and Glynda looked at me, three in surprise from my sudden outburst and one in amusement. As I finally got my cackle under control, an uncharacteristically feral grin spread across my face as my body began tingling in anticipation of the beating that was about to come.

[Glynda] - "I'll take that as a yes then."