Author's note: GUESS WHO'S BACK. BACK AGAIN. IT'S SLACK FROST. TELL A FRIEND.

YEAH, that's right, boysangirls, I'm back from the dead. Or rather, I wish I was. Still in college, unfortunately. But I've had some free time on my hands and thanks to the fact that Orion's movin' up in the world (actually, minor sort of major halfway somewhat spoiler alert, Orion's gonna— but I'm not just going to tell you, am I?), I've finished chapter seven! I'm getting all A's and high B's in school and I finished the dumbest project of the year, so I'm free to write again! And not just write things to satisfy my boiling brain, but actually write things to happy-ify you guys!

Hm? What was that?

When's chapter eight coming out?

ahem...

Well, onto the reviews! Only four this time...? shame...

Phantommanchild: ". Indeed and how are you doing? This is phantomanchild btw I just lost my computer and account... sad"

Well, my friend, I guessed who you were when you told me your name. I'm going good, by the way. Trucking along, writing. Sobbing uncontrollably into my pillow that I'll never have the free time to do absolutely everything I want. Mostly writing, though. Currently working on chapter eight, actually, but I need some help from our lord and savior Sleepysaurus Rex because he is the only reason I can reasonably write this fic and because I do need his help with worldbuilding stuff in chapter eight.

fuyuki365: "Sorry, I meant the theme of "the path was closed" from p3 but you already answered it. With the luck Orion has, I feel that he'll get one of Salem's kids as a velvet room attendant."

Muhuhehehahahahha... I have plans for everything, you see. After all, Orion isn't actually the P3 protag, of course~ Merely a boy living in it. This will play a hefty role in the future. Most notably, chapter eight. Of course, I will keep Orion as P3 canon as possible, but hey. I've read plenty of Persona fics. The shit people can do with Personas in those is so, pardon my French, FUCKING cool, there will be mild deviations from canon abilities in the future. Nothing groundbreaking, but you can trust me when I say that, well... If every Persona has a personality and a way to talk to Orion... Who's to say that our boy's overactive imagination won't lead to... other additions to how Personas operate? Especially the stronger ones~

d8rkforcen1ght7: "He's screwed. Great writing, Can't wait to see his face when he meets the other PWs. Grima, Fell Dragon out."

Yes he is, why thank you, and mwehehehehehe...

AND ONTO THE CHAPTER!

nah, nah, I'm joking. In regards to up above, chapter eight's future is... uncertain. It's coming out, for sure, and I'm working on it as much as I can, but I truly cannot write it without the help of Sleepy, and he's... indisposed for the time being.

Now onto the chapter. Beta read, of course, by the master of fate, Wizz, and the god of existence, Sleepy.

CHAPTER SEVEN: Gettin' Schooled

I blinked awake and, heart pounding, stretched before leaping out of bed. I got dressed in record speed (the Beacon uniform was serviceable enough and I wanted to keep my Gekkoukan outfit clean) and gleefully jogged to the cafeteria.

The first day of classes! Finally! The year was really getting kicked off with this!

'If only you had devoted that sort of enthusiasm to your studies in the week before classes started,' Angel mused from my mind.

'First of all, I don't need input from my own personal peanut gallery,' I complained, accepting the breakfast tray from the lunch lady (orange juice and french toast today). 'Second, how do you know all that!?'

'I am thou, and thou art I,' was the singsong response. 'I know every thought you've ever thought, every memory you've ever made.'

'Then—'

'I remember what you first thought of my outfit when you saw me.'

My ears felt as hot as the sun. 'Now you listen here—!'

'Now, now. You are merely human. You are bound to have indecent thoughts on the occasion. Beyond that, you are a Wild Card. Regardless of the thoughts in your head, you are worthy of praise.'

I blinked, finishing a piece of french toast and chugging my orange juice. 'Oh. Uh… Thanks?'

'But it's best not to cast judgement so fast,' Orpheus cut in. 'He has yet to sign a contract to last. Despite his knowledge of us from the past, he still has the future in coming to cast.'

'What did I say about rhyming!?'

'You do have a point,' Angel replied to the metallic singer, and then was silent for the rest of breakfast.

Pixie giggled, though, once I'd finished my meal and was walking towards class. 'Don't worry. Even if Angel's nothing more than an arrogant prude, you've still got me.'

But the vampiric grin visible in my mind's eye made me a little less certain about what Pixie meant by that.

'Boo…' she pouted. 'You're so boring…'

Good grief, I was gonna end up with some kinda split personality disorder! How did those fanfiction protagonists exist without going insane!?

Well, by being in a fanfiction, I suppose… But now I had to find my own way to stay sane.

'Just try to keep in mind that this isn't your original body,' Pixie giggled again. 'I suppose one could say that you're an… artificial Persona-user.'

That nearly stopped my heart. Yeah, no. There was no way I could forget what happened to Chidori and her artificial Persona. I put my hand on my neck, swallowing slightly.

Orpheus and Angel chided Pixie that even if the body wasn't originally mine, it had become so when I decided to willingly embrace it as my new one. But I just couldn't shake what the mischievous Persona had said.

"Yo! Orion!" a heavy hand slammed onto my shoulder and, in my surprise, I nearly crumpled to the ground. "Whoa there!"

I straightened and turned to face Cardin. "'Sup, Cardin?"

"Nothin' much," the bigger boy grunted. He snorted, smirking slightly, and gave me a light (for him) punch on the shoulder. "What's wrong with you? You seen a ghost or somethin'?"

I paused for a moment. "No, not really."

That threw the guy off. "Uh, the hell's that mean? Anyway, I wanted to come and ask you a question because I couldn't find you after that whole thing yesterday. Me and my team's already talked about it."

We began to walk towards our first class which, surprisingly, wasn't Professor Port's Grimm Studies. It was Doctor Oobleck's History of Remnant. I was confused by that at first, when I saw that Grimm Studies was the last class of the day, but then I guess it made sense. After all, when Weiss went and talked to Port on the rooftop, the sun was going down and everything.

"So, I meant to ask yesterday, whaddaya think about the animals coming to Beacon here?" Cardin asked.

I stopped walking. What?

"What?" I echoed my own thoughts out loud.

"Y'know," Cardin rolled his eyes. "The 'faunus,' or whatever. Doesn't matter what ya call 'em. Still just animals."

I stiffened. "And why do you call them that?"

Cardin narrowed his eyes. "You tryin' to stick up for the freaks or somethin'?"

I backpedaled slightly and, trying to keep as many lies out of my words as possible, replied, "I just asked why you called them animals, man."

He blew some air out his nose. "Well, they are. Tryin' to act like people, but they're freaks through and through. Horns, ears, tail, whatever."

I got a little bold. "Did… did they hurt you as a kid, somehow?"

Cardin snorted again. "Nah. But back when I was in primary combat school, a group of 'em roughed up some of my buddies after they said faunus shouldn't be allowed at the school."

"But… didn't your buddies start it, then?"

"Hmph. Humans are at the top of the food chain. Me and my buddies at the top of that. Other humans, or those animals, should just stay put where they're at. That's just life."

Right at that moment, I had never wished I could take back something I'd said more. I'd… thought that Cardin originally had some kind of reason for hating faunus. He… really just hated them unconditionally!? Dear whoever-it-was-that-revived-me-back-to-life, please don't let this moron be irredeemable.

"Well, the way I see it," I tried choosing my words as carefully as possible, "it's more like actions that make an animal."

"What're you gettin' at?" Cardin arched an eyebrow. "You are defending 'em, aren't you?"

I pressed on. "Here, think about this. I think anybody can be called a monster, but anybody can also be called a saint. Like, consider a human serial killer known for slaughtering children. Or consider a faunus single-handedly saving a city."

Cardin was silent for a moment. "I… I mean, I guess? But then the faunus's just a heroic animal. Like those rescue dogs in mantle who sniff people out of avalanches."

He was irredeemable, wasn't he…?

I sighed and resumed walking. "Well, whatever. Anyway, I'll answer your original question. What do I think about them attending Beacon? I guess I'd have to meet one and find out. If they're cool, then they're cool. But if they're not, then they're not."

Cardin shrugged, falling into step next to me. "Fine. 'S long as you're not one of those morons who always goes outta their stupid way to say those animals are on the same level as people."

My eye twitched and it took everything I had to not slug him across the face. I'd known racism was a thing, obviously. Back on Earth, I'd nearly lost some friends because of it. But I'd never met someone as far gone as this. And to make matters worse, I'd promised myself to make him a better person. I try to make a point to never break promises to myself, but I could make an exception…

No, no, that wouldn't be right. I'd just start breaking more promises… No, I'm stuck with this guy. I don't even know how to delete a Social Link. Didn't even know if it was possible at all.

I mentally groaned as we reached the lecture hall and stepped inside. I tried to be subtle about it, but Cardin had to notice that I'd chosen to sit as far away from him and his team as possible.

I was still surprised I'd still not seen any of either Teams RWBY or JNPR yet, but I remembered that they'd both gotten a late start. How on Eart—Remnant had Team CRDL managed to be on time, but not the other two!? Last night, Ozpin had clearly said that classes start at nine am sharp.

Did they just forget? Or were they just not listening? Well… Considering Nora and Ruby… Probably the latter, actually.

The two teams poured through the door, tumbling over each other and panting, mere seconds before the clock hit nine. I stifled a laugh.

Doctor Oobleck deadpanned, unamused. "Ruby Rose, Weiss Schnee, Blake Belladonna, Yang Xiao Long, Jaune Arc, Nora Valkyrie, Lie Ren, and Pyrrha Nikos. I do hope you do not plan to make a habit of being late to your first classes of the day!"

"No, sir…" was the eight-strong chorus.

"Good! Now, take your seats! We have a lot to cover and only so much time to cover it in! So let's begin, shall we!?" the caffeine-addicted profess—doctor, whoops, began speaking at top speed, sounding even more like an auctioneer than Ruby. "My name is Bartholomew Oobleck, and I'll be having none of that 'Professor' nonsense in my classroom! I did not earn my doctorate for fun, thank you very much!

"Unlike most other schools," he went on, "Beacon prides itself in a much more thorough understanding of history than just the usual Great War, Faunus Revolution, or creation myths that other schools may teach! For that reason, we will not only be starting from the very beginning, but we will be covering everything in the history of known Remnant! Now! Please open your textbooks to page fifteen and we can begin with the beginning of known Remnant history!"

I sighed, complying. I had thought Remnant history would be fun to worry about, but during my studies over the week before classes started, I'd found that, while more entertaining than Earth history, there was still so much of the same. Small conflicts too small to call wars, plagues, diplomatic expeditions, the whole kit-and-caboodle. And we were starting from the very beginning!?

"Three hundred thousand years ago, the first modern Remnant humans evolved," Oobleck began. "There have been historically anomalous discoveries of ancient structures older than that, but there have been no signs of humans existing before that time, so they have mostly been dismissed as scientifically inaccurate findings."

And the green-haired doctor was off like a shot. At least his speed was such that I wasn't lulled to sleep, but I gave up on taking notes around four seconds in when Oobleck was about a page and a half ahead of where I was.

Classes that day were fairly simple. Mondays— well, speaking of which, I actually found this fascinating. The Remnant word Monday actually comes from the ancient historical holiday of "Moonday." The first person who ever actually looked up in the sky and saw that the moon was shattered declared a holiday and so now it remains the first day of the week even now. Anyway, Mondays had History of Remnant with Doctor Oobleck, Math and Physics with Professor Peach, Weapon Maintenance and Development with Professor Port, and Grimm Studies also with Professor Port. After that, our afternoons were pretty much free to work on projects, spar, train, visit Vale, whatever, really.

History of Remnant went… well, I suppose. Oobleck lost almost everyone except for Ruby and Weiss right out the gate. Ruby's own superspeed probably kept her on track with the hyper doctor, but it probably didn't help that she just didn't seem to care one iota about it. Weiss, on the other hand, had the penmanship of someone hired to transcribe an auctioneer. Truly, I envied her.

Math and Physics were… well, they were pretty much what you'd expect. Math was math, it seemed, wherever in the cosmos you were. Physics, though, was a little different. It was a mixture of regular physics (though gravity on Remnant seemed to be just a little less than it was on Earth) and chemistry. Each type of Dust had its own place on Remnant's version of the periodic table. That's the part I was actually paying attention to.

Weapon Maintenance and Development was fun enough. I didn't have to do much. My sword was just that (though Professor Port noted that he'd never seen the material it was made out of) and I didn't trust myself to be able to put the Evoker back together if I took it apart. I mostly spent that class period wandering around and looking at everyone else's setups. Jaune seemed mostly stumped with his stuff and nearly had a panic attack when he took apart his shield. He forgot how to put it back together and everything and had to have Port and Ruby help him out in putting it back together.

But Grimm Studies… Well, I guess everyone reading this journal has probably seen the show, right? I slept through most of class.

"Monsters! Deeeemons! Prowlers of the night!" the portly Professor Port declared, stamping one of his boots hard on the marble floor, snapping me out of my nap and back to the waking world. "Yes, the creatures of Grimm are known by many names! But to one such as I… they can only be known as prey, ha-ha!"

Port didn't really seem discouraged by how his joke fell flat, though, and continued on unfazed.

"And so shall you too! Once you have graduated from this prestigious academy."

The maroon-clad professor whirled on his heel. "Now! As I was saying, Vale, as well as the other three kingdoms, are safe havens in an otherwise treacherous world."

"As one of them seems to have taken rather literally," I murmured to the student on my right. The boy snorted.

"Our planet," Port went on, "is absolutely chock-full with monstrous baddies that desire nothing less than humanity's utter ruin! And that's where we come in! Huntsmen! Huntresses!" he winked and I tried to pretend that I didn't know why and at whom he was winking. "Individuals who have sworn themselves to protect those who cannot! Individuals who have sworn to defend the very world itself!"

"Eeeeyup!" came a cry from the back of the room. Everyone turned to stare at the black haired boy standing with his fist raised. He sat down rather quickly.

Port plowed on, unperturbed. His speech about Hunters of Remnant had ended and he was now giving his life story. Wonderful.

I set my head down on my desk to resume my nap. There was no lying about it; I could not stay awake when this man was talking for an extended period of time.

"It's a shame," the boy next to me sighed, laying his own head down on his textbook. "The older students have told me Professor Port's stories actually contain rather important and meaningful messages about courage and justice. It's a shame, though, that almost no one ever learns them because no one can pay attention to all of it…"

His eyes closed and he began snoring away, drooling all over a diagram of a Nevermore and making it look like it was crying.

I sat up a little straighter and tried to listen to Port's story. He was rambling about how his grandfather smelled like cabbages. I couldn't see it, I'm not gonna lie. No way this had some actual messages of importance hidden away. Not a chance. And there was no way I was gonna get the message…

Not… with… my eyes… feeling so… heavy…

"Now," Port was saying, "my mother and I were understandably surprised, you see, when the group of Ursai suddenly seemed so enraged. However, we both deemed it best that we grab our picnic baskets and prepare for battle."

What…? Picnic… baskets…?

I shook my head lethargically, trying to make sense of it all. My eyelids drooped lower…

"And BAM!" with Professor Port's shout, my face hit the desk at top speed. Nursing my aching nose, I straightened to see most of the class staring at me.

Port arched an eyebrow. "Mister Tafel, are you alright?"

"Y-yes," I stammered. "J-just surprised is all…"

"Well if you say so…" Port cleared his throat. "Now, where was I? Ah, right. BAM!" he clapped his hands together. "And the Beowolf was trapped within the cage!"

Wait, he'd finished his story already!? Don't tell me I'd actually slept through all of it!

"So, as it turned out," Port said, proudly, "the beast was no match for my sheer tenacity and I returned to the village with the Beowolf as my prize!"

Huh!? When did he get from fighting Ursai with his mother to capturing a Beowolf!?

"The moral of this story, you may ask?"

I was so lost… Just so, so lost… This guy was impossible!

"A true Huntsman must be honorable!"

Honor!? What honor!? No honor required, I say, when capturing a Beowolf!

"A true Huntsman must be dependable!"

Well, I know I can depend on a certain someone if I've ever got trouble falling asleep at night…

"A true Huntsman must be strategic, well-educated, and wise!"

Hmm… I wonder if Professor Port's stories worked on the Grimm… Might be how he caught the Beowolf before I woke up… He began reciting a perfect account of his seventh birthday party and the thing was knocked out instantly, no doubt.

"So! Who among you believes they possess these traits!?"

And I, being an idiot who'd entirely forgotten the weight of this moment in the story, shot my hand straight in the air and exclaimed, "I do!"

Five feet to my left, Weiss gave me nasty glare as her hand was held at a similar elevation.

"Oh-ho?" Port grinned almost… evilly. "No need for the disappointed look, Miss Schnee! You and Mister Tafel will both have your time to shine. Now, why don't the both of you come down here and prepare yourselves. Hop to it! Your enemies won't give you time to prepare, but I will! Make the most of it, short though it is!"

Five minutes later, Weiss had returned from the locker rooms in her regular combat outfit. I was glad the Beacon uniform looked similar enough to my Gekkoukan clothes that I didn't have to bother changing. Professor Port said something about always being prepared and then hefted two cages out from behind his desk that most definitely couldn't have both hidden back there.

The white haired girl stood at my side, glaring at Ruby as the rest of her team cheered us on. It made me pretty happy to know I was worthy of their cheers, honestly. But… wherever Blake had gotten the flags that said "Go RWBY!" and "Go friends!" was a mystery to me.

"Ruby, I'm trying to focus!" Weiss snapped in response to the red reaper's cheer.

"O-oh… Sorry…"

"Alright! Then if everyone's ready, let the match begin!"

Professor Port's musket-axe flashed out and the cage doors swung open. A Boarbatusk squealed, leaping out and scrambling for purchase with its hooves on the hard marble floor. The other cage spat out a Creep Grimm, one of those two-legged mini-dinosaur things.

While the Boarbatusk turned to face Weiss, the Creep's tiny, glaring eyes focused on me. I pulled my Evoker from my pocket and looked at it, feeling a sudden burst of uncertainty. I hadn't bothered bringing my sword because I could just use this, but…

Everyone's reaction to when I'd done it in the forest…

The Creep lunged and I sidestepped, quickly, as the tractionless Grimm skidded past me and slammed into the student stands.

I raised my Evoker, grandly. "Now, everyone, do not be alarmed! I assure you, what I am about to do is completely safe!"

I raised the silver, gunlike object to my temple and ignored the gasps from everyone, especially Professor Port.

"PERSONA!"

The gunshot, as usual, was enveloped by the sound of shattering glass as ethereal blue mist whirled around me. The chill of raw, unfiltered power poured through my mind and grabbed the aspect of myself that I'd held at the forefront of my mind.

"I am Thou, and Thou art I," Angel sang, materializing behind me, wings spread wide. "I am Angel, the enforcer of Heaven."

Yes, that's right. Sometimes, everyone's gotta put on a show.

I gestured with my Evoker. "Sukukaja!"

Angel twirled and green light gleamed around me. The world sharpened and I found the Creep moving just a bit slower than before. No… No, I was moving faster.

Mwehehehe…

I sidestepped another lunge and, with another pull of the trigger, Angel was back.

"Hama!" I commanded, pointing at the Grimm.

Angel sang another note and a glowing, gold circle appeared under the Creep's feet. It grunted, uncertainly, shifting its weight and staring at the circle. Then, glowing paper charms flew up to surround the Grimm, plastering themselves to its black skin. With a startled grunt, it reached for a charm with its teeth… and disintegrated into nothingness as the spell finished.

The world grayed and the multitude of cards appeared before me. No new Personas… drat…

I did manage to select a coin card, though, and I felt the Lien just appear in my pocket when the color returned to reality.

Angel vanished and I took a bow. Right behind me, I heard a thump and a hideous squeal as Weiss most likely finished off her Boarbatusk.

"Bravo!" Professor Port burst out into applause. "Bra-VO! Well, class, it seems we are indeed in the presence of two up-and-coming Hunters! Now!" he glanced up at the clock. "It seems we are out of time for the day, so that's class! Be sure to cover the assigned readings, everyone! Class dismissed and remember! Stay vigilant!"

"Constant vigilance…!" I muttered to myself, before chuckling.

Weiss stormed from the room before her team could reach her. Ruby flinched and hurried after her.

"What… was that all about?" Jaune asked.

Yang sighed. "Figured as much. Those two just don't mesh well, I guess." the blonde brawler slammed her fists together. "Lucky Weiss is Ruby's partner. They're gonna patch everything else up, otherwise I woulda pummeled her already for treatin' my sister like that."

My eyebrows went up. "Wiggity-wack, yo."

I leaned out the door and saw just a trace of Ruby's cape peeking out from around the corner at the end of the hallway. I hurried out of the room, ignoring the questions directed at me, and towards the arguing girls.

"Ozpin made a mistake appointing you as leader," Weiss finished with more venom than a cobra and stalked around the corner, past me. She nodded, primly. "Hello. Despite your… attitude and unorthodox way of fighting, you seem to be rather proficient at it."

"Oh, uhh… Thanks?"

She sniffed slightly and was gone.

I turned the corner to see Ruby, standing stock still, staring at her feet.

Ruby looked up at me. "Oh… hey, Orion…"

I thought for a moment about how to approach this. "What's eatin' ya, li'l reaper?"

Ruby looked almost tearful. "Do… do you think Ozpin made a mistake appointing me as the leader of Team RWBY?"

I thought for a moment. "Hey, let's take a walk. Find a bench, or something, to sit on. Classes are over for today, anyway. We've got time."

Ruby dutifully trudged after me out into the courtyard, where we pointedly avoided the other students milling about and found ourselves a nice bench.

"So unload upon me your troubles," I proclaimed, dramatically.

Ruby gave me a confused look before letting out a soft "Heh…" and smiling ever-so-slightly. The smile vanished, though, and she slumped. "Weiss told me that I've been nothing but a child ever since initiation… She said I don't deserve to be the leader…"

"Huh," I mused, leaning back. "Seems pretty harsh." I thought for a moment, trying to remember what Ozpin had said to Ruby. No dice. I don't remember things that specific. "Well, I don't think you don't deserve it. You were the one who came up with the plan to deheadify the Nevermore, right?"

"Um… I mean, I just suggested—"

"But you did, didn't you?" I pressed. "You suggested it and they listened. And it worked. I'd say you're a good leader, Weiss is just jealous. You're charismatic, cheerful, fun to be around overall… You don't even need to be strong or powerful or anything, though you definitely seem to be. A leader's got that spark that everyone just wants to be around. And I'd say you've got that."

Ruby looked at me with… some kind of wide-eyed expression. I wasn't good enough at reading emotions to know what exactly. "B-but… Weiss is my partner… She's smarter, I bet… she's older, she's been training longer… she's prepared to be a leader way more than I have…"

"Is that what she told you?" I asked. Ruby slowly nodded. "Then just match her. You're younger and yet you still got appointed as a leader. Show her your stuff! Make everyday that fight against the Nevermore. I… don't really know how to say it," I admitted. "A leader's more than just a title. It's… a responsibility. Show her that, no matter what, you can pull through at top speed. Because you can. I've known you for a day and I know that much."

Ruby stared.

"Mister Tafel," Headmaster Ozpin made himself known right about then, walking towards us. "I do believe you have a way with words you've never really shown me before."

"P-professor Ozpin!" Ruby stammered.

"Young Orion is quite right, you know," the silver-haired headmaster winked. "I've made more mistakes than any man, woman, or child on this planet, but I truly do not believe selecting you as a leader is one of them."

"And it's not just because Team WRBY doesn't have a nice ring to it, is it?" I joked.

Ozpin chuckled. "No, indeed. That's just a helpful coincidence."

I laughed.

Ruby smiled and let out a laugh. "Then… me being a leader—"

"Is not a mistake," I confirmed. "Even if you may not see it, the potential's there."

Ozpin nodded. "You and Mister Arc showed a remarkable ability to gather and lead others down in the Emerald Forest. Miss Schnee did not. It's as simple as that."

"Thanks, professor," Ruby smiled at the man.

"Nothing for me?" I sighed. "Woe is me, woe is m—MMPH!?"

I was cut off as Ruby's vice-like grip caught me around the waist. It was a short hug, but it knocked the wind out of me.

"Thanks, Orion…" she muttered. "That… made me really happy. You're a really good friend, you know?"

I grinned, recovering my breath. "Anytime." and the world dimmed.

I am Thou, Thou art I.

The Power of Thy Bonds has Strengthened.

Thou shalt have our blessing when thou choosest to create a Persona of the Sun Arcana.

I arched my eyebrows as Ruby pulled away. I'd expected that, if Qrow was a Social Link, Ruby would be one too, but the Sun, huh? Fitting, I suppose.

"Just let me know if you're ever feeling down, or just want someone to talk to," I said. "I'm always down to talk."

Ruby positively beamed like her Arcana's namesake. She stood up.

"Ah," Ozpin added, "but if I were to give my personal opinion, I would say that Miss Schnee's ire stems from at least her belief that you should spend more time studying."

Ruby blushed. "R-right, sir. I'll get right on that."

Ozpin smirked. "Of course, Miss Rose. You have a wonderful evening now."

She nodded and rushed away.

Ozpin turned to me before gesturing to the bench. "Mind if I join you?"

"O-oh, no, go ahead!"

Ozpin sighed, sitting down. "You truly have a heart of gold, don't you, Mister Tafel?"

I blinked. "Ah, nah, it's nothing like that. But Ruby's, I dunno… too pure to have to go through things like that. I mean, she's two years younger than everyone else, still got into Beacon, and then Weiss goes and says those things? It's not cool."

"I must agree," Ozpin replied. "If those two girls fail to get along in the future, I may have to take things into my own hands. For a girl as prideful as Miss Schnee, or for a girl as impressionable as Miss Rose, this first year especially will have a great impact on their very lives in the future."

"In more ways than one," I agreed.

Ozpin nodded. "Though, you yourself are barely sixteen. I would argue that you are almost as impressionable as Miss Rose."

"O-oh," I blanched. "Did I not tell you? Before I woke up here in Remnant, I was nineteen."

Ozpin let out a bit of an amused exhale from his nose, his lips curving upwards. "I see. Rather old to be falling asleep in class, then, hm?"

I felt my cheeks and ears burn like a million degrees.

"S-say, Headmaster," I suddenly said, totally blatantly not trying to change the subject. "Why did you invite Ruby into Beacon early? I… I'm sorry, but I just can't believe what I've seen in the other world that you just invited her to Beacon because she stopped a robbery."

"Is that what you saw…?" Ozpin hummed. "Curious…"

"Did… that not happen?"

"No indeed," Ozpin admitted. "Perhaps circumstances must be different in another world, but according to Mrs. Rose, when she and young Miss Rose were at the Dust shop, Roman Torchwick surrendered almost immediately upon meeting the legendary Huntress."

My jaw dropped.

"Then… then how did Ruby get accepted?"

"The next day, Miss Rose and her mother were at the police station to give their statement and an unidentified Huntress, who we know to be Cinder Fall, thanks to you, arrived to break him out. Both Summer and Ruby fought against them, but the criminals managed to escape…" Ozpin steepled his fingers on his cane. "Mrs. Rose and I agreed that it would be safer to have Ruby here at Beacon. Not only did she indeed prove that she is a formidable warrior despite her age, she is now most likely known to Cinder Fall and her associates as a silver-eyed maiden, which you no doubt know about."

I nodded.

"Summer, Taiyang, and Qrow all agreed that would be the safest option and so we arranged Miss Rose's early application and acceptance."

I nodded again. "That… makes sense… I'm… just still floored, though. Back in my world, Summer was dead long before… well, any of this."

Ozpin leaned back with a smile. "As a matter of fact, your fellow Plainswalkers who preceded you saw to that. Summer was indeed quite near death when she was rescued."

"Oh dear…" I folded my fingers and pressed my index fingers together against my lips. "That… changes things… Maybe it's only something from my world, but have you heard of the butterfly effect?"

Ozpin gave me an appraising look. "I have indeed, Mister Tafel. And I understand what you're saying."

"If we want to keep my knowledge of the future," I muttered, more to myself than Ozpin, "then we're going to have to keep Summer Rose as far out of it as possible…"

Ozpin nodded. "It's always hard making sacrifices, but this may be for the good of Remnant as a whole."

I punched the bench. "I feel sick, doing this. I'm going to my room…"

"Of course," Ozpin stood. "The Queen has truly made our lives difficult, forcing us to work from the shadows like this."

"Step one," I joked without humor, "stop the Fall of Beacon. Step two, kill an immortal…"

Ozpin sighed. "Let us hope you never have to in your lifetime…"

I am Thou, and Thou art I

The Power of Thy Bonds has Strengthened.

Thy Blessing from Us Has Greatened When Thou Choosest to Create a Persona of the Emperor Arcana.

A rank up, as well as a new S-Link? Ozpin's… what, rank three already? What a day…

I stood as well and, with Ozpin making his way back towards Beacon Tower, I headed towards the student dorms feeling like an asshole.

Just inside the door, I caught a glimpse of practically glowing gold. I turned to see Yang leaning against the wall in that typical, anime-type "I've been waiting…" pose.

"'Sup?" she said, pushing off the wall and walking over to me. "I've been waiting to talk to ya. You took your time with Ozpin, huh?"

I tried to kick my regular cheer back into place and laughed. "Yyyup! Turns out shooting yourself in the head in school can, in fact, be frowned upon by the faculty!"

Yang laughed. "No kidding! Anyway, man," she got a more serious look on her face, but her genuine smile confused me. She patted me hard on the shoulder. "Thanks for talkin' to Rubes… I, uh… saw you guys when you first sat down on the bench… She… really looked like she needed it."

I grinned. "We're friends. Of course I'd want to cheer her up. Besides, I'm always down for giving advice. Offer's open to you too, whenever you need." I let my grin shift into a smirk. "Well, only if the fiery Yang Xiao Long has anything that little ol' me can even solve."

"Don't make me sound like some kind of unsolvable puzzle!" the blonde chuckled, punching me lightly on the shoulder. "But sure." she reached up to ruffle my hair, only for it to flop down over my right eye like before. "If the Great Yang Xiao Long ever needs your help, I'll let ya know."

The world dimmed. My eyes widened. 'No way. No way! This was not happening!'

I am Thou, Thou art I.

The Power of Thy Bonds has Strengthened.

Thou shalt have our blessing when thou choosest to create a Persona of the Star Arcana.

The world returned to normal and Yang gave me a surprised look.

"What's with the look, blues?" she arched an eyebrow. "You, uh, remember something bad, or somethin'?"

I flinched, shaking my head. "N-no, just… I'm very confused about something… er… that I remembered… I, uh… I just… I gotta go!"

And I sprinted away to my dorm, slamming the door shut behind me and clutching my head as I felt a headache coming on.

'Three Social Links in a day!? Two new ones and a rank-up from Ozpin!?'

I scrambled for my desk, grabbing a piece of paper. 'I need to write these down… There's no way I'm gonna remember these otherwise. That… would be bad.'

I carefully wrote down the Social Links I had so far, rank one for Fortune, Chariot, Magician, Fool, Sun, and Star, and three for Emperor. Qrow, Cardin, Jaune, all of Beacon, Ruby, Yang, and Ozpin… How was I going to advance those!? I had to balance studying, training, and my own personal downtime with all that!?

Goddamn, there's no way I could do this unless I really just treated life like the game.

But… I couldn't do that. These people were real. It was in a universe I'd only known from fiction, but they were real. They had families, lives, pulses, heartbeats, they breathed, laughed, walked, talked, everything. I couldn't just… play it like a game. It was bad enough that I had to basically force bad things to happen for the sake of the world, but playing people like they were NPCs…

Not even I'm that fucked up.

I rubbed my eyes and lay down on my bed, conflict warring in my head as the sun dipped below the horizon.

Chapter 7 extra:

Spending the first week balancing Cardin and Jaune's Social Links was the most stressful thing I'd ever done in my entire life. On the bright side, I, uh, think I started a prank war…

Cardin's first act of war against Jaune happened after breakfast one day. The much bigger boy bumped into Jaune in the line for food and Jaune yelped, quickly getting out of the way. Cardin smelled weakness like a shark smells blood.

Manipulating from behind the scenes (read: giving personal advice to both Jaune and Cardin at separate times), I managed to get Jaune to retaliate against Cardin's bullying with attacks of his own while keeping Cardin from going too far and undoubtedly hurting Jaune and getting in trouble with the teachers.

My personal favorites of each side were when Cardin rolled Jaune down the stairs so fast he resembled Sonic the Hedgeboarbatusk and when Jaune opened up a bag of marbles on the same flight of stairs the very next day, right before Cardin walked down them.

Turns out Cardin can sing soprano while doing an Irish clogging dance down a flight of stairs at two-times speed. Go figure.

Of course, Cardin decked me across the face hard enough that I spun like a top when he found out I was helping Jaune come up with the pranks. He didn't seem really mad, though, and actually admitted he was having a little bit of fun thinking up more creative ways of getting back at Jaune.

His bullying didn't stop, though, so, nursing a throbbing nose, I headed back to the drawing board. At least I'd gotten them both to rank three.

an: y'know what's funny? when ozpin said "helpful coincidence," my grammar checker on google drive genuinely tried to correct it to "happy accident" and i need to know why.