I do not own RWBY.

The Scientist

Velvet Scarletina was a soft spoken, well mannered, kind young second year in the Beacon Academy for Huntsmen and Huntresses. She was well trained, capable of… well, the same as anyone else in the second year of this prestigious, four year school.

The only thing that might set her apart from the majority of her peers were her long, brown, rabbit ears. Unfortunately, that was enough to earn the ire and harassment of the Purists. Humans, that is, that felt Faunus, like Velvet, were animals and nothing more. Racist was a kind description, really.

The young woman sighed sadly as she watched a large first year with mahogany red hair start to approach. The cruel smirk on his face was a promise of pain and annoyance. He'd get away with what was to come, whatever it may be. None of the staff would stop him, and if she did, she'd be the one in the wrong, beating up an underclassmen and all.

She resigned herself to the pain when, suddenly, there was an interruption to the scheduled abuse.

A young man with large, round glasses, wildly spiky red hair, and an ecstatic grin, sat across from her rather abruptly. He presented a hand with well manicured nails but with calluses indicative of a life of hard work.

"Allow me to introduce myself," he said, his voice slightly raspy and somewhat energetic, "I am Syler Greene and I am a Scientist. It is a pleasure to meet you, Miss…" he left that hanging in the air for her to give her name.

"Oh," she said, blinking in surprise at the sudden, but pleasant, interruption of annoyance she had expected, "I'm Velvet. Velvet Scarletina." She shook his hand and his smile widened reaching his eyes.

"Fascinating, Miss Scarletina, simply Fascinating!" He shook her hand briefly but vigorously, then retracted to set both of his palms on the table in front of him, "Your accent is different than those around us, may I ask where you call home?"

The Faunus girl tilted her head to one side, but shrugged, "I'm from a small, outlying village, about a hundred miles north of here called Cairn."

"Delightful," he said, pulling a notepad from his white lab coat and a pen from the front pocket and eagerly writing down what she said, "I'd like to ask some mildly invasive questions about your anatomy. Nothing deeply personal, or perverse, but if you feel, at any time, that I am prying into a topic you would much rather leave unexplored, do not hesitate to tell me to bug off," he clicked his pen with a sense of finality, his smile still rather winning as he set down the note pad and steepled his fingers together in front of himself.

"I, uh… alright?" it was more of a question than an agreement, but the young man took it with a cheerful clap of the hands. She looked over his shoulder to see Cardin, the cruel first year that had been approaching, moving for a different target.

"Splendid!" he seemed to almost be bouncing with repressed energy, "Before we get into the Juicy Bits," she could hear the emphasis, "let me ask you a few standard questions. You have your Aura unlocked?"

"Yes," she said, glad that it was a simple topic so far.

"And while I understand it is standard to keep the details of it secret, may I know if you have discovered your Semblance?"

"Oh, yes," she felt there was no harm to that.

"Marvelous," he hadn't taken any notes, yet, but she could see that his hands were itching to grab the pad, "Now, I only recently discovered that I had an Aura, I've yet to unlock my semblance, but I have been able to make some simple discoveries and I would hope you would help me with their application to see if others can replicate them," he held up his hand, and he was briefly covered in a green glow, then his hand came alight with fire, almost startling the poor girl and gaining attention from most of the students and a glare from Miss Goodwitch. He saw the blonde woman and waved at her with his flaming hand. Her eye twitched and she turned away.

"I thought you said you hadn't unlocked your Semblance?" Velvet asked.

"Oh, this," Syler held up his hand, "This isn't my Semblance, this is physics. I'm using the energy of my soul," his grin widened like a predator as he looked at his hand wreathed in fire, "to stimulate movement in the molecules of the surrounding air, creating friction, leading to flame," he snapped his fingers and the flame was snuffed out, "I would like to see if you would be able to do the same. First, if you please, try to apply the same effect without an explanation, then I will provide a step by step instruction," seeing her hesitance, he sweetened the deal, "I am willing to pay you for your time, as incentive."

"Oh, no," Velvet said, waving one hand at him, "That won't be necessary," she then held her hand before her, letting it glow in an icy blue for a moment, but as she stared at her palm, nothing happened aside from the glow.

"As I thought," he nodded, "Now, if you would be willing to try again, try the following: Imagine that your Aura is two planks," he waited for her to nod then went on, "Now, rub the two planks together as fast as you can. Oh! And be sure to keep a protective layer around your hand. It would serve no one any good to see you hurt," his energetic smile turned kind for a moment and she smiled back.

Trying to do as he instructed, she first called on her Aura again. It was second nature, now, to have it form a protective barrier against harm. The hard part was crafting the two 'planks'. It took her a solid minute to get them going and by then, she had barely got them moving. She looked to Syler, but the young man was staring at her hand eagerly.

Finally, after three minutes of trying, she got them to move together fast enough to get smoke and then a small spark of flame.

"Magnificent!" the young man hooted, breaking her concentration as he furiously scribbled on his note pad.

"I'm sorry it took me so long," she said, fascinated by the reaction he had gotten her to form. It would be a hell of an edge in battle, and she would eagerly pursue it, now that she knew it was possible. Heck, she would even teach the rest of her team about this.

"Nonsense," the young man said, adjusting his glasses, beaming at her, "It took me an hour to get it to work. You are a magnificent student to get it so soon. Now, I'd like to move on to the more significant questions."

He had just shown her that anyone with Aura could use fire as a weapon without it being their Semblance. That was apparently not significant.

"Number one, your second set of ears," she drooped a little, "are they fully functional?"

"Yes," she said, a little sad that he was asking about her Faunus features.

"Are they sensitive to touch?"

"Very," Velvet nodded.

"May I touch one?"

Velvet hesitated then leaned her head forward, putting one of her ears in his reach, waiting for the pain to come. The day had been going so well, too.

"My girl," he said seriously for once, "You are far too good natured. This is clearly making you uncomfortable, and for that I am sorry," he didn't even touch her ear, even though he wanted to.

"What?" she asked, eyes widening.

"I am deeply sorry," he said again, taking one of her hands in his and looking her in the eye, "I am a Scientist," he told her, "I am particularly interested in genetics, but a student of all fields. You and your kind are something that never evolved on my world. In my excitement to study you, I failed to realize that my inquisition might be seen as racist and invasive," his lips once again slowly slipped into a smile, "I assure you that I mean you no harm, nor wish you any ill will, and want nothing more than to know more about you."

The kindly girl began to blush rather heavily.

"I… I…"

"Now, understanding that, may I touch one of your ears? I will not be testing your claim of sensitivity, I wish only to feel the texture," he gestured at her extra appendages.

Still blushing, she once more tilted her head forward.

The thumb and forefinger of his left hand touched her ear lightly and rubbed it gently yet firmly. It didn't feel good, per se, but it was not uncomfortable either.

"Velvet," the voice of Coco Adel, her team leader, came, "Is this guy bothering you?" Syler let go of her ear at the cold voice and Velvet looked up. Coco was beside her and Yatsuhashi was standing behind the Scientist, a firm hand on his shoulder. Syler did not appear to be disturbed by the subtle threat as he looked up at the much larger teen.

"No," she said, quickly, "This is Syler, he…" she trailed off for a moment unsure of how to describe what exactly was going on.

"Hello," he said to Yatsuhashi, "My name is Syler and I am a Scientist. May I ask you a few mildly invasive questions?" he stood up and turned around to offer his hand to the taller young man with a large sword, "If at any point you feel my queries are obtrusive or offensive you may feel free to tell me to bug off."

Velvet watched as Yatsuhashi stared at the offered hand like it was attached to an alien. She wondered if he would teach her partner how to use fire as well. She wondered how many people he had asked these questions. She wondered if she was even the first Faunus he had interviewed.

She wondered where the hell he came from.

+-999-+

Ten days prior to his meeting with Velvet, Syler could be found lying in a crater, burnt and bloody, through no fault of his own.

Witnesses would say that the street spontaneously exploded and left behind a teenager.

Of course Ozpin was called in to investigate.

Of course he would send Glynda Goodwitch in his stead to get to the truth.

When the severe woman moved into the medical ward where the young man was being tended to, she found him fully awake and aware, and only mildly singed from the explosion. He appeared to be looking for something, though he was confined to the bed.

That is not to say that he was restrained, but he was not leaving the bed, though he appeared to desperately want to.

"Young man," Glynda said sternly, " My name is Glynda Goodwitch. I am here to ask some rather pointed questions."

"Oh, finally," the teen said, "An authority figure. Perhaps you can help me," he looked around the room one more time, "You see, I have lost something rather important to me, if only for the nostalgia. I might actually be better off without it, but it was rather important to me."

The woman sighed, "What is it you have lost? The doctors have likely placed it in storage for you."

"Forty years."

There was silence for a moment as Glynda stopped looking in the closet for a watch, or other knick knack, and slowly turned to look at the young man.

"What?"

"Indeed," the young man nodded sagely, "I was fifty seven yesterday."

The blonde could already feel a headache forming.

"I can verify my I.D. if you can get me in touch with my facility in Sweden," he said, rubbing his chin, "I'll probably have to bring up a few things Archie would rather keep secret-"

"I don't mean to interrupt," Glynda interrupted, "But where is Sweden?" she knew it wasn't anywhere in Vale. Maybe Mistral, or Atlas?

"Oh?" The young man looked at her suddenly, the intensity almost startling her, "I just remembered that I have failed to introduce myself. I am Syler Greene," he smiled, holding out his left hand, and when she took it he continued, "I am a Scientist from a planet called Earth."

It was not long at all before Syler was sitting before Ozpin. The wise headmaster of Beacon Academy stared over his glasses at the young in body scientist who was causing Glynda to frown more and more severely with each passing minute.

"...And a secondary evolution of man with the features of animals?!" he asked, writing furiously in a notepad, "Where is the evolutionary divide? What caused such an anomaly? Can they breed with standard humans? Are they limited to a single species, or-"

"This is Headmaster Ozpin," the blonde interrupted him, her brow twitching, "He will be able to answer many of your questions." She gestured at the grey haired man in the brown jacket.

Ozpin raised a brow. This was, no doubt, retaliation for one thing or another that he had saddled her with. He took a sip of his coffee.

"Glynda," he said, watching her stiffen suddenly, "Professor Peach will be busy with another project in the week to come. You will take her place in the trip to Forever Fall," he took another sip as he saw her shoulders sag briefly then regain their usual rigidity as she made a rapid exit before he gave her another order.

"Wow," the young man said, whistling lowly, "You could cut the sexual tension with a steak knife."

"I don't know what you mean," Ozpin said, brushing aside the topic.

"Moving right along then," Syler said, flipping back a few pages in his notepad, "I've been lead to assume that you are not just a headmaster for a prestigious academy, but a head of state, in a manner of speaking. I have no doubt you will have questions of your own, so I propose a most beneficial deal. You will ask a question, then I, the two of us doing our best to answer to the fullest capability," he smiled then, clicking his pen, "Rest assured that I have no interest in your politics and require only information about your scientific advances."

"Very well," Ozpin agreed, though he knew that he would answer no question that he felt could be used against the four kingdoms, "I will go first. How did you supposedly come to this world?"

"Well, I was minding my own business, committing atrocities against God's design, when, Bam!" he clapped his hands together, "Lightning struck me, and here I am."

There was silence for a moment.

Then, Syler laughed, "Sorry, I couldn't help myself. I was working on a genetics project, attempting to prod the D.N.A. of man into a new, more evolved form," he shrugged, "I was getting no results, but my colleague, thirteen floors down, apparently was. At least, I believe so. Lenny was working on a Super Hadron Collider, a device designed to force molecules to impact with one another at the speed of light in an attempt to replicate the origin of the known universe. I can only assume that he attained some form of success, seeing as the last thing I remember was the earth shaking and an explosion of blue-black fire and electricity."

"Oh…" That brought up more questions. Far more.

"Number One," Syler said, "What is the purpose of this academy? Miss Goodwitch informed me that it educates Huntsmen and Huntresses, but I find it hard to believe that this is simply teaching individuals how to track game."

"It is not," the headmaster regarded his coffee for a moment, "Our world is beset by creatures of darkness called Grimm. Their only desire is our destruction, or so it seems. They need not eat, nor do they breed. They are spawned of the darkness, attracted to hate and anger and fear. Huntsmen, Huntresses, they are beacons in the darkness, repelling the Grimm. This academy teaches its students how best to do so, helping them master their Aura, educating them in the best use of their Semblance."

The pen scribbled so fast across the page that it was a surprise not to see any smoke.

"Much as I would like to believe that a world without Grimm would be utterly peaceful, I doubt such was the case. What can you tell me about your weapons?"

"Not a lot," the scientist admitted, "Honestly, there has never been a day in the last century that some part of my world has not been at war with another, though most countries were at peace. I am from one of the more prideful and outspoken nations, and we were at peace, mostly, when I left for Sweden. I can tell you very little about our weapons because I was not interested. The only thing I know for certain is that our most destructive weapons had become useless, not because a defense was discovered against them, but because using them would destroy the land, corrupt the air and poison the water. And if a single country were to use one, all would, and there would be but a few, scant corners of the globe that would not suffer the fallout," Syler looked Ozpin in the eye, still smiling, "I don't know how to make one, but that is probably for the better."

"I would not ask that of you," Ozpin said without hesitation, though he knew of men and women that would.

"Good," the smile was back, "My turn, and, if you don't mind, I would like to fuse two questions into one, should you be amenable."

The headmaster nodded to the young man, "Go on."

"Splendid!" he flipped back a page, "What, in detail, are Aura and Semblance?" he looked up, eagerly, "On my world we know of Aura, of a kind. It is mostly a belief in energy, an extension of the self through the aetherium. What are they here?"

"That is… not wrong," he said, setting down his cup, "Aura is the power of the Soul. It is something that must be awakened by others, but sleeps within all peoples. Semblance is a manifestation of your soul, unique to only you. No two Semblances are the same. Some are similar, nearly identical, even, but the details will be different. We have three students that I can think of who have extremely enhanced strength, but each of them do so by different methods."

"Magnificent, truly magnificent!"

Ozpin waited for Syler to finish writing things down to ask his question, "Are you capable of recreating the inventions of your world? Those not made to be weapons, but for convenience. Things that you can see that we do not have, but would do better with."

"Certainly," the young man nodded, "Although not many. Your world is, by majority, more advanced than mine. Robots, for one, are not half as advanced as the models I've seen on your broadcasts here," he quickly began to sketch something onto the pad then held it up for Ozpin to see, "You see, this was the model I saw. It was capable of autonomous action, advertised to be guarding one of your kingdoms day and night without rest. Our robots are merely man shaped remote vehicles that move rather clumsily. At least, they were when I last checked, a couple of years ago." The picture was of one of the Knight class ground force robots.

"That is alright. As you have said, that is an area in which we need no aide," the headmaster hummed for a moment, "There are things, though, that you feel we could do better, things you can help with." It was not a question.

"And I will," the Scientist nodded once more, his grin growing almost scary as he spoke his next question, "My turn. Will you unlock my Aura? Should I have the potential, that is."

Ozpin took a long slurping sip of his coffee, staring into Syler's neon orange eyes, as he thought about the request.

"Certainly."

The grey haired man moved around the desk and gestured for the young man, the elderly Scientist, to stand up as well. Practically vibrating in place, Syler stood. Ozpin put a hand on his shoulder and stared at the other man for a moment, sending his aura into the spry body, trying to touch the soul of the Scientist.

Some would do this using a chant, something to help them focus their energy and touch the core of another. The headmaster of Beacon did not rely on such things.

The result was immediate and visible on the skin of the young man in the lab coat. It was a swirling acidic and forest green.

"Hmm," Ozpin said, "You have quite the reserves."

"How can you tell?"

"Usually, there are two ways," the headmaster informed the scientist, "The first and most common is the use of your Scroll-"

"Scroll?" Syler began to frown at first, then nodded, "Right, your version of Cellular Phones."

"Yes, it is used to track the amount of energy you give off," the grey haired man smirked, "I'll let you figure that one out yourself."

"Oh? A Test?" Earlier in the conversation, Ozpin might have described the look on Syler's face as predatory. Until just this moment, he didn't think he really knew the meaning of the word. There was a light in his eyes, a fire, and it glinted strangely through his glasses.

"You may consider it so, but nothing will be awarded to you should you pass," another sip of his coffee, "The second way is the activation itself. It takes a certain amount to unlock the Aura of an individual, equal to half their initial potential. It can be taxing on the unprepared. It is the reason it is usually done by an experienced Huntsman. Few and far between are the talented prodigies who would take more than a quarter of the reserves of an adult Huntsman. You," Ozpin said, looking directly into the young man's eyes, "Possess more than the average, but I would hesitate to say an overwhelming amount, of Aura."

"Well," Syler hummed, rubbing his chin, "I've a lot to think about. Thank you for indulging me. Is there anything else you'd like to know from my world?"

"Only one," the headmaster said, becoming fully serious again, "The explosion that sent you here. How did it do so?"

"I can only guess," the man in a teen's body said, "To truly tell you what happened, I'd have to recreate the process, and I do not think that is advisable. As said, it was an explosion that destroyed at least thirteen floors of a building meant to contain such a thing. Honestly, if my best guess is even partly true, more likely than not I no longer have a world to go back to.

"As far as we can tell," Syler continued, "The origin of the universe started with an explosion so massive that mortal imagination can not fully comprehend it. If Lenny was able to recreate that phenomenon, at something as small as one one billionth of the original, my entire galaxy is most likely gone."

"And yet you don't seem overly displeased, or mournful," Ozpin took note.

"Well, to be honest," the scientist said, "I was fifty seven just a few days ago. My parents were dead, my friends were in my home country, living out their lives with children and grandchildren. My colleagues weren't close with me, nor I, them. I was married to my work, happily so, and did not have a lover to call my own. If what I think happened did, then it was a horrifying loss, something to be mourned," his smile, though, didn't falter, "However, I am here, in a world not my own, with power," he glowed green, getting a raised brow from the grey haired man, "I never dreamed to exist. I can not be the only one shunted to another reality. That means there is hope for others."

"That still doesn't explain how you got here. Do you have a theory?"

"One that is simple to say but impossible to prove," Syler nodded, "The explosion itself was so powerful that it ripped through very fabric of space and time. The real question is, why did I lose forty years of age in the transition?"

"A good question, though I have one of my own, about you," Ozpin finally got around to something he had planned on since the very beginning of this meeting, "How are you in a fight?"

=-90003-+