Parc's hovel

It was surprisingly bright within the tunnel, Glynda thought as she glanced to the middle aged wooden torch indented into the wall. In her mind she was wondering why someone in the modern world would make use of such an old form of illumination. Ead mounted torches and even portable dust lamps were plentiful nowadays.

Not to mention the danger of using actual fire beneath the earth for the risk of breaking into some pocket of gas was just too high. Let alone setting off a dust explosion from the heat of the flames licking any aerosolized dust particulates.

Thankfully, Beacon and the surrounding forest didn't have any particular deposits that could be hit. Certainly not so shallow into the earth. 'Atlas would raid us if we did,' she snorted derisively. If she knew anything about dust, it was that Atlas, or well, a certain organization centralized in the kingdom enjoyed making a monopoly of any dust veins around the world. Constantly outbidding at auctions for defunct mines and potential dust harbouring ground.

Not to mention how Ironwood would have a field day thinking he could get some free raw dust so he didn't spend as much arming his army with SDC provisions and could instead send that Lien off to other militaristic means of 'protecting the world' he had concocting in that over engorged head of his.

"Just how deep is this?" she mumbled, her eyes narrowing to slits while her ears flared at an echoing thunking noise growing closer with every step she took. It hadn't been long since she first saw the man first dig himself down, thirty, maybe forty minutes total and yet she felt like she had descended kilometers below the earth. The amount of time it should have taken to dig so much should be days, weeks at the least.

But that only brought up another issue, just where was all of the excess soil? It had to be going somewhere but she had seen nothing up above and all that was down here was thickly packed dirt and pure stone walls the deeper she drew.

Then, as the echoes of metal hitting stone grew louder, she began to hear a faint, hum and rhythmic tune beneath it. Her human ears straining to make sense of what she was hearing.

"I am a dwarf and I'm digging a hole, diggy, diggy hole, digging a hole."

The lyrics drew her to a pause, her step halting as her brow raised and lips curled to a stunned tilt. He wasn't wrong, she thought, but whether or not he was a dwarf was another question. Returning to her step, Glynda continued listening to the man's surprisingly decent singing. Doing her utmost to ignore the lyrics of getting drunk on mead and something about suckling on stone teats.

It wasn't too much longer when she could see what seemed to be an end to the endless descent as at the end of the tunnel a brighter light made itself known to her. The tunnel arching smoothly with chiselled stone bricks.

In the arch of the door way, a shadow appeared, not of a man, but of a door of wood and metal that was quickly placed into the doorway with several thumps of what she was guessing was a hammer connecting the hinges keeping it in place.

It was a stark contrast to the rough walls of the tunnel, seeming so perfectly crafted. A relict of normalcy in something so aged looking.

Approaching the door with a scowling squint, Glynda stopped. Lingering behind it for a moment as she tried to listen for any sounds from the other side. The usual singsong singing and thumping of someone laying things into place were all that came though.

There were two possible ways to enter, forcefully, which would involve destroying the door and possibly causing a cave in or two.

Knocking.

When she did click her knuckles against the wood, she crossed her hands over her chest. Her hips pumping out to one side as she laid most her weight on her right leg. She knew he had heard her by how the singing stopped as well as the thumps.

"Who's there?"

If the video wasn't evidence enough to the intruder being a man, his voice certainly was.

"Open the door and I will tell you." She pushed her glasses back up her nose.

"That sounds like something a robber would say."

Today was not the day to be sassy with Glynda Goodwitch. Nursing her temple she spoke, "sir, you are currently intruding on a piece of land owned and regulated by Beacon Academy, illegally mining beneath its earth possibly stealing precious resources that would otherwise belong to Beacon and the city of Vale. If there is anybody robbing someone, it is you. Now open the door, you illegally installed, in your illegal mineshaft, so I can speak with you face to face."

Silence, and then a click as the door opened with a slight, aged creak and there stood Parc, though Glynda didn't know his name just yet.

Staring at the hinge of the door with a frown, Parc pulled out a can of oil and poured a few drops onto it. Swinging the door lightly to test its squeakiness. Nodding affirmatively when no squeak came.

His attention focusing onto Glynda not a moment later. "Evening," he grinned, a sparkle coming from his pearly whites. "Come in," he moved to the side his hand held out to the room to lead her inside and she entered. Glancing around the empty room size of her own staff room with walls of stone a dark wooden ceiling and a light oaken flooring.

"It's not much, but it's a beginning," Parc said shutting the door behind Glynda to walk deeper into the room. "Planning to put a nice big bed over there," he pointed to the opposite end of the room where it was empty.

"That is interesting and all, but you have yet to identify yourself and tell me exactly what you are doing in the Emerald forest." She questioned, her green eyes burrowing into Parc's skin like a knife laced with lemon juice and salt sending shivers down his spine.

"Oh, right, Parc Evans," he bowed in an over exaggerated manner, "at your service. As to why I'm here, simply building myself a home I'll be using for a while."

"I can see that. But why?"

He quirked a head her way, letting out an understanding gasp, "oh, I'm guessing Ozzy didn't tell you?"

Her expression soured in realization, "you're the one who sent those two girls to us then?"

"Yep. Should be doing pretty well getting through the forest by now. Wouldn't be surprised if they already got to the ruins and were making their way back."

If only he knew that those two were watching from the sidelines as teams RWBY and JNPR struggled with a Deathstalker scorpion and a giant nevermore.

"I don't doubt it," her voice doubting, "now what is it Ozpin didn't tell me? What was in that letter you sent him that has been making him more distracted than he usually is?"

Parc turned away from her, beginning to pace down to the opposite end of the room, "nothing he'd want you knowing about, that's for sure. All you need to now, is that because of that little secret between us. I'm now going to be working as Beacon's newest teach. Salary still in discussion."

The worst part of that mind fuckingly idiotic statement was that Glynda had no doubts Ozpin would actually do something like accepting a new teacher out of nothing. "I'm sure he did," she grumbled. "I'm going to need you to come with me. I believe this conversation needs his input as well."

Parc smiled at her, his head lightly shaking. "Sorry Glynda, but," he opened his arms wide to his hovel, "as you can see, I've got a house to set up." Adding in his mind, 'and a very big hangar bay.'

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As per the usual with me, i am having second thoughts about what to do for the next world, Fate will probably still go through but I'm thinking I'll look into something else. Any interest in a Taimanin series world?