Fridays were Beacon's honorary 'dress down' days. Most classes of the day ended by mid-afternoon, and upperclassmen planned their schedules to avoid Friday seminars at all costs. The few classes that did run were filled with pajama-clad underclassmen with every intention of heading back to sleep once their class was over. Teachers weren't very much unlike their students, often wearing somewhat informal attire. Professor Goodwitch wore a her usual outfit sans cape under an official Beacon Academy hoodie about two sizes too large- she wasn't about to just throw all of that structure and discipline out the window on the first day of this class. The sweater was warm, cozy, and her favorite shade of green, one of the few things that comforted her in the school.

She'd made it to the classroom about twenty minutes early and placed a syllabus on each desk. The classroom was chilly and smelled of ink, parchment and sweat. A large teaching space, it was used for hands-on classes such as her Aurology class, providing more space for the larger and more destructive students to push their limits without hurting others, or the building itself.

Professor Goodwitch watched her class lazily file into the large room, most of them carrying thermoses of warm coffee or tea. She enjoyed early morning classes-students were calmer and less disruptive. They were also more likely to ask questions and participate for some odd reason she hadn't quite yet understood. Unfortunately, they were also a lot more likely to be late; her watch struck 10:30 and there were still more empty seats than she was used to on a class's first day.

"Good morning, students. My name is Professor Glynda Goodwitch, and in this class I'll be training you all in the art of Aurology. Here you'll learn how to weaponize your Aura for use against creatures of Grimm and other enemies." She took a moment to sip her tea- Earl Grey with a dash of cinnamon and teaspoon of honey. Looking around, she couldn't help but be peeved that ten students out of the registered thirty-six still hadn't arrived.

"The next student to come in-" The door creaked open and a familiar, azure-haired young man tried to sneak his way inside her classroom. She recognized the student instantly.

"Mr. Vasilias." Her smooth, measured voice easily carried to the back of the class.

"Me?" Neptune snapped to attention, caught off guard by the sound of his name. He was wearing gray sweatpants and a dark red, hooded sweatshirt, 'Haven Academy, Team SSSN' stitched in gold letters across the back. He held a thermos in his left hand and a pad of paper in his right. It was glaringly obvious he'd just woken up, from his hair to his clothes, he was a stark contrast to the young man she'd met yesterday.

"Please come to the front of the class. You've been volunteered to be part of our first demonstration." She pulled her chair out from behind her desk and into the middle of the stage of the classroom. Neptune nodded nervously and walked to the seat, shooting his infamous smile, wink and two-finger pistol at Blake and Nora as he passed them. He left his notepad and thermos on an empty desk in the front row and took the offered seat before finally sitting down. Professor Goodwitch straightened her glasses before taking a sticky-note from the supplies on her desk and posting it on Neptune's forehead.

"Your goal is use your Aura to prevent me from taking the note for as long as possible." It was a simple exercise, one that could be studied by the other students and learned from. Her plan was to get them to identify any mistakes Neptune might make, and follow up with instructions, giving the class advice on how to best avoid them. Any mistakes he'd make were likely to be common amongst his peers.

"If I stop you entirely can I not be marked late," he asked sheepishly, a playful grin stretching across his lips. A few students in the class laughed while others flinched, all too familiar with the sting of Glynda's riding crop they were sure would follow. She considered it for a moment, already raising her riding crop, but her mind went to last night's grades. The young man had bought himself the smallest hint of leniency as her only student to correctly answer the entire handout.

"I'll consider it." Challenging Professor Goodwitch to an Aura battle wasn't a particularly smart idea, and the students in the room familiar with her knew it. Aura was a skill the woman had excelled in from an early age. She incorporated it into nearly every aspect of combat and even used it in her day-to-day life for more mundane tasks. Reconstructing concrete streets and fixing food-fight destroyed cafeterias required a lot more skill than she let on. However she was serious about using these classes to teach; dominating her students would only tire them out and leave them angry or upset, not eager to learn. Aura battles were exhausting. Two or more individuals would engage each other, trying to overwhelm their opponent with their energy. If it was a physical battle such as this one, poorly cast shields would crack and shatter under the force of a stronger Aura, rebounding and hurting the caster. Such rookie mistakes would be fatal against the unforgivable fangs and claws of Grimm. Professor Goodwitch worked hard to train these student ensuring there wouldn't be any rookie mistakes- or mistakes of any nature- however she made sure to hold back most of her power during these exercises and use only enough to test them, showing where they'd need improvement and where they excelled. She was sure that if each student that left her class continued their training, they'd be able to defend themselves in even the most dire situations. That was what mattered most to her.

"If you wish to stop at any time, just speak up and I'll end the exercise." Neptune nodded before sitting back in the chair, clenching his hands and taking a deep breath. He gathered himself, closing his eyes again and began to concentrate, focusing his Aura the best he could.

Professor Goodwitch collected her own breath and reached for the note. She found his barrier about six inches from his skin- a good distance; any further and one's Aura would be vulnerable to failure, stretched too thin to be of much protection however any closer and a blow from a large Grimm would still connect. Professor Goodwitch pressed forward while the class watched in anticipation, some of the more engaged and observant students silently taking notes. She adapted her Aura, invisible claws extending from the tips of her fingers pierced the barrier he'd created. His Aura was thick and fluid, pushing into it was like pushing into viscous molasses. Most students his grade level were unable to personalize their Aura like this. Normally, a student would've created a strong, hollow shield around themselves much like an eggshell. These beginner barriers used minimal Aura and concentration to create, but were much too fragile against even medium sized Grimm. Using one's personality and quirks to better their mastery over their Aura was an advanced technique introduced in this class. Mr. Vasilias seemed to be at least two or three years of training ahead of his classmates.

She manipulated her Aura further, curious to see just how experienced Neptune actually was. Pushing down deeper through his defenses proved just as difficult as she'd hoped. She found it choppy on the surface, like waves during a heavy storm, and thicker and more viscous the deeper she probed. It was obvious he'd had a fair amount of practice early on in his life to reach such a level at his age. She pushed deeper, hoping he'd surprise her even further.

Neptune groaned, he could feel her getting closer and closer to her goal. None of his teammates had ever been able to breach his shield, but Professor Goodwitch was making it look easy. She was strong- obviously much stronger than he was- but he wanted to impress her.

"There has to be a way to stop her," he furrowed his brow, collecting his thoughts. He was able to form half of a plan as he strained under her probing. Concentrating all of his Aura he did his best to mirror a powerful current. Warm water rises over cooler water, and he tried make his Aura act as if it were warm water, creating a powerful upwelling. Taking a deep breath, he pushed outwards with all his might.

Professor Goodwitch almost pulled away, surprised by the sudden change. Never had a student resisted her for so long, and never had a student tried to push her out. Students this advanced were few and far between, and Professor Goodwitch couldn't help but give a pained smile. He was good, but he still had a lot to learn. With just a touch more effort she split the current of energy in two, making way for her prying fingers. She snatched the note off his forehead and the demonstration was over. Neptune opened his eyes in confusion. He'd been concentrating so hard on his barrier, he hadn't even felt the note rip off his skin.

"Wha-that's it?" Still in shock, he hardly believed the sticky note Professor Goodwitch held between her fingers was the one he'd meant to protect.

"You may return to your seat now." Professor Goodwitch smiled and motioned him to his desk. Neptune sighed and wiped a bead of sweat off his brow. Checking her watch, the professor's eyes widened in surprise. The demonstration had lasted nearly seven minutes- she hadn't planned on losing so much time. She spoke quickly, fully planning on making up that lost time.

"During the Great War, Medical Officers Frank DuFresne and Emily Grey discovered that Auras can be manipulated while being cast. The skill is difficult to master…"

.

Professor Goodwitch dismissed the class three minutes late, her exhausted students gathering their supplies and trudging out of the room.

"Mr. Vasilias? May I have a word with you," she called out to him just as he was leaving his seat.

"Oh? Sure, Ms. G. What's up?" Neptune nervously walked back to the professor. He was sure she'd chew him out for being late, among other things.

"Not a good first impression, Neptune."

"That was good work. You exceed your grade level by far," she remarked. Neptune's shoulders dropped and he made a small sigh of relief as he realized she wasn't going to discipline him.

"Oh! Nah, it was nothing. Not enough to keep me on time, anyway," he smiled, crossing his arms over his chest. His eyes were a deep blue, framed well under his thick eyebrows. She looked down into them for a few moments, considering an idea she'd had during lecture. He was skilled- too advanced for this class, that was obvious. However this was an introductory course, mandatory in every academy with no way around it without pre-approval from both Haven's and Beacon's headmasters. In spite of it all, someone of his caliber could be a useful teaching assistant. Testing every one of her students would push even her stamina to its limits, leaving her much too tired to grade papers and exams after lectures. She normally employed the assistance of one or two students in the class to prevent just that. Finding an assistant so early on in the semester was a godsend. It'd take a heavy weight off her shoulders and she believed Neptune deserving of the responsibility.

"How would you feel about assisting myself and your peers in this class?" The proposal was vaguer than she'd hoped, not one she often got to practice.

"Sounds cool. What do I have to do?" Neptune wasn't too sure what Professor Goodwitch had in mind, but he knew helping his professors was an easy way to get his foot in the door with a lot of jobs and projects.

"Maybe if I could get access to the science labs I could get to upgrading my weapon…"

"You'd be assisting me with the grading of papers and tests of your peers. It shouldn't be too much work for someone like yourself," she explained, twirling her crop absentmindedly between her fingers. She normally refrained from doing it around students, but the habit was hard to kick.

"Uh… sure, Ms. Goodwitch. Sounds cool." That wasn't something he'd expected, but easier than he'd hoped it'd be.

"Thank you, Mr. Vasilias. I appreciate your assistance. My office hours for this class are two to three on Mondays and six to seven on Wednesdays. Are you available?"

"Yeah. My schedule's pretty open," he responded, ending with a barely muffled yawn.

"Sorry, Ms. G…"

"Have a good nap, Mr. Vasilias." She nodded at him, letting him know he was dismissed. Taking his thermos, he made his way back out of the classroom.

"Make sure you arrive to class on time, Monday," she called after him.

"Of course!"

As soon as he was out of earshot she let out her own yawn.

"If I can get some rest now, I could sneak in another hour and a half of sleep before Headmaster Ozpin's staff meeting," she bargained. The more sleep she had, the more productive she was, and she was always determined to be as productive as possible. She gathered the keys to the classroom, her clipboard and her empty mug and started walking towards her room.

.

"Put a shirt on, Sun." Neptune smirked, his hands up to protect his face. Dropping his guard for just a moment to wipe sweat off his brow.

"No way. We've got an audience," Sun cackled before executing an exemplary spinning back-fist. Neptune just barely ducked under the blow, returning with a quick jab to Sun's open underarm.

Saturday mornings was gym day for Team SSSN, however Neptune and Sun had unsurprisingly overslept and made it to the gym just after their teammates had finished their own exercises.

"How do they always wake up so early?" Neptune had always been confused by this; no matter how late the team had been up the night before, Scarlet and Sage would wake up bright and early. Sun chuckled and wiped some hair from his face, snapping Neptune back to the present fight. Great combatants, their dynamic while sparring seemed as much of a performance as it was a battle and Sun's muscles and Neptune's confident swagger quickly attracted a small crowd of of their peers to the match.

"Sure you won't be too embarrassed when I win," Neptune quipped, contemplating where to place his next few strikes.

"Bring it." Sun leapt with a strong kick that barely connected with Neptune's shoulder, managing to knock the taller teen back. Neptune quickly turned the uncontrolled slide into a roll, landing on all fours, his Aura already healing the throbbing pain as he lunged forward with his counterattack.

Kick, punch, flip-kick, elbow to the jaw. They gathered a larger and larger crowd around them- nearly thirty strong- feeding the flames of their newfound fame.

"You tired yet," Neptune goaded, shaking hair and sweat away from his face.

"No way! I do this all the time," Sun laughed, dropping his hands in a show of confidence. His tail swung loosely behind him, barely touching the ground as he bounced on the balls of his feet. Neptune timed the bounce perfectly and with a deep lunge, tucked his foot around Sun's and kicked. With his own foot trapped, the Faunus had nowhere to go but down. He reflexively stuck a hand out, ready to turn the fall into a flashy cartwheel, but Neptune was prepared for Sun and his athleticism. Pivoting on his planted foot he spun, bringing his leg around in a wide arc and sweeping Sun's hand out from under him. Sun landed on his chest, the fall knocking the wind right out of him. Straddling his friend, Neptune wrapped his arm around the blond's neck and squeezed, waiting for his friend to submit. Instead, Sun tried to tickle him with his tail.

"Quit that! Sun!" He arched away from the fuzzy tail, trying to avoid it as much as he could.

"I'm not doing anything." Sun struggled against Neptune's hold on him and bucked his hips in a final attempt to knock his teammate off.

"Tap out," Neptune squeezed a little tighter, giving the boy some incentive.

"Okay, alright!" Sun tapped the ground three times and the match was finally over. Neptune sighed in relief and slid off his friend before looking around in confusion. The crowd of excited onlookers they'd gathered had disappeared.

"Where'd they go," Sun asked in confusion, a mixture of disappointment and relief coloring his voice. He dusted himself off before grabbing a towel to wipe sweat from his arms and chest.

"No idea. Lucky for you no one saw you lose." Neptune found the crowd and quickly realized what'd stolen their interest.

"Hey. Is that Professor Goodwitch?" The crowd had gathered around another sparring match, Professor Goodwitch and Dr. Oobleck were squaring off, sizing each other up as their match started. Neptune moved in closer, eager to watch. Unlike their own match, the two professors looked absolutely brutal on the mat. Doctor Oobleck was blindingly quick, his fists flying at Professor Goodwitch faster than the eye could track. Goodwitch in turn kept her fight style swift and precise, timing each of his strikes and waiting for an opening in the barrage of fists.

"Go, Dr. Oobleck!"

"Get him Ms. Goodwitch!" Each student picked a side, either for their favorite professor, or the professor they needed a better grade from.

Goodwitch struck Oobleck with a quick knee, connecting to his gut before following up with an open-palmed thrust aimed at his chin. Oobleck recovered from the knee almost immediately, grabbing her wrist and spinning around before capturing her in a choke-hold. Professor Goodwitch's face quickly turned red as she struggled against his hold. She had seconds before the fight would be over. Neptune watched, silently cheering on his teacher.

A swift stomp and Glynda distracted her opponent long enough to pull his arm in tight against her chest. Instead of trying to tear it off of her neck, she jumped forward and rolled in midair. The taller man followed, his back slamming into the floor, only to be followed by her shoulder connecting with his gut. The wind knocked out of him, Doctor Oobleck tapped out. Fight over!

Neptune cheered along most of his peers as Professor Goodwitch helped her colleague up off the mat. Straightening her glasses, she nodded to the crowd before making her way out of the crowd.

"Make sure you all are studying just as hard in your classes as your are in combat," she admonished. She wasn't one to bask in the limelight of a victory and she walked purposefully away from the students that'd gathered around. Most headed back to the exercise machines and groups they'd left to watch the match.

"That was awesome! Oobleck was all pap-pap-pap! And Goodwitch was all fwomp-slam! These professors are awesome. Right, Neptune... Neptune?" Sun didn't even realize Neptune had left him behind, running to catch up with his friend as the taller boy walked to the center of the fight ring. Neptune reached down and grabbed something that glittered gold.

"What is that," Sun asked curiously.

"Goodwitch's ring. She must've dropped it..." Neptune wiped the ring off on his shirt before following the professor's path through the gym. They found her a few minutes later doing leg presses, pushing nearly half a ton of weight. Her reps were slow, smooth and deliberate, holding held the weight for five seconds at the apex of each rep before letting out her breath as slow as was necessary. Neptune decided against disturbing her, taking time to admire her workout routine instead. He counted ten, twenty, forty, forty-six. Neptune held his breath, urging her on with his own will. She grit her teeth, her hands clutching tightly at the grips and her legs shaking under the weights, but refusing to set it down. Forty-seven. She was like a machine straining passed its limits, her body rippling with the effort. Forty-eight... Forty-nine. Neptune held his breath as she pushed the fiftieth rep with what looked like every fiber of her being. Professor Goodwitch set the weight back and locked it in place, finally sliding off the machine and toweling off.

"Hello there Mr. Vasilias. Mr. Wukong. What can I do for you two," she asked curiously, grabbing a dark purple and green water bottle. She sucked down at least half the bottle before looking back to the two students.

"Professor, you-"

"We found your ring. Must've dropped it during your sparring match. Show her, Neptune." Sun smiled, interrupting Neptune and draping an arm around his friend. Neptune shrugged, feeling moderately uncomfortable about the lie as he handed her the ring.

"Oh, dear. Thank you for returning this." Professor Goodwitch turned the ring over for a moment before slipping it on her finger.

"Thank you boys, very much. I can't believe I was careless enough to drop this," her voice trailed offf as she slipped the ring back on her finger.

"No problem Ms. Goodwitch." Sun nodded and wrapped his tail around his teammate's wrist, dragging him away. Neptune cast a final glance back, the professor was looking down at her ring with a nostalgic look on her face. As if it were an old friend she'd almost lost. He was glad he'd returned it.

.

"Textbooks still must be ordered, first-aid must be restocked twice over, Dust must be in oversupply! Sir, you can't possibly believe the school is satisfactorily prepared for this many students!" General Ironwood and Headmaster Ozpin had decided to conduct an impromptu meeting Sunday evening and the two still hadn't reached a decision on how the miscellaneous costs of thousands of individual students would be covered. Professor Goodwitch was understandably agitated and she couldn't help but feel as if she was the only one who could see just how much work still needed to be done.

"Glynda. These matters will resolve themselves before they even become problems. They always do." Ozpin's measured drawl wrapped around the room, smothering her words like a thick, oppressive quilt. It took the bite out of her words, leaving them nothing more than simple worries.

"These students are the best at what they do. It's in poor faith to assume such a hefty medical cost." General Ironwood commented, taking another look at her itinerary.

"That figure was on the low end," she had to refrain from shouting at him.

"James!-"

"If there're any smaller matters that must be handled before the year finds its rhythm-" Ozpin stopped to sip his coffee. Despite how often the Headmaster had a coffee mug in hand, he somehow managed to sound perpetually exhausted when he spoke.

"-alert us, and James and I will handle the cost."

Glynda bit her tongue, holding back her frustration. Somehow most of the responsibility had assigned itself to her shoulders again. It wasn't as if she abhorred the extra work- she actually thrived off shouldering these sort of responsibilities. She simply wished the work be recognized for what it was: hard, exhausting work.

"Does that seem fair, Glynda? You are the most suited to handle these sorts of jobs." The General spoke as if she were some exquisite bird, performing some menial task in a cage. Again, she bit back her sharp retort as she was reminded of exactly why she'd ended their relationship all those years ago. Somehow he always managed to surprise her with his crass demeanor.

"At least he's consistently disappointing."

"Of course, General… will that be all," she responded, her measured voice hardly concealing the anger boiling.

"Of course, professor. Your input is greatly appreciated," Ozpin said graciously. His compliments were always well given and sincere, however Glynda just wanted to get out of the office and back to work. With a nod, she walked out of the room, not bothering to acknowledge the general attempting to catch her attention.