DISCLAIMER: I own nothing RWBY related

Cardin arrogantly smirks as he hefts his mace onto his shoulder. At the opposite side of the arena, Jaune stands in casual neutral posture, making no move or intent on drawing his weapon.

Glynda presses a few buttons on her Scroll, extracting the contestants' status and displaying them above on a large screen. When she does, a wave of mutters and whispers ripple through the students who are watching. Glynda narrows her eyes at the displayed information, then suspiciously looks at Jaune.

"Mr Arc. Would you care to explain why your Aura is in the red?"

'What?'

Jaune looks down at his Scroll, verifying that his Aura was indeed reading at about 10%. His mind races to explore the possible explanations. He looks back up at Glynda with an innocent and confused expression.

"I do not have the slightest clue Professor Goodwitch. Honestly, I feel completely fine."

Cardin loudly scoffs, "I bet that your Aura is so weak that the system can only barely register your levels. That would also explain why you took down that Ursa the way you did. Your weapon did all the work."

'He is abnormally antagonistic towards me. Up until now, I did not even know someone named Cardin Winchester exists.'

Jaune raises an eyebrow at Cardin's comments.

Glynda sighs and adjusts her glasses.

"Mr Arc. I can not let you participate with a clear conscience regardless of how you feel. Go back up to the stands, then see me after class."

'...'

"Of course, Professor Goodwitch," Jaune politely nods.

Cardin crudely laughs, "Lucky you Jaunie! Go hide behind your team!"

Back up on the stands, Jaune whispers to Pyrrha, "Do you know why that Cardin fellow is behaving like that towards me?"

Overhearing his question, Yang leans in with a grin.

"Remember that Ursa you killed in Port's class? Some of the Grimm goop landed right in Cardin's mouth. Made him vomit!"

Unable to resist, Yang barks with laughter, triggering the others in their vicinity to join. Several stands away, Cardin glares at Jaune.

"Thank you Yang, for making it worse," Jaune sighs.

"No problem-o," Yang grins.

"So, do you really not know why your Aura is reading at such low levels? You are not exhibiting any symptoms of Aura exhaustion," Pyrrha asks.

"I've not the slightest clue," Jaune responds. "Perhaps it is a glitch with my Scroll. I will be meeting Professor Goodwitch after class anyways, and hopefully get this sorted out."

*** After class ***

"Please follow me, Mr. Arc," Glynda curtly says.

An awkward silence falls between them as they make their way towards Beacon Tower. Once they step into the elevator, Jaune finally asks, "Professor? Where are we going exactly?"

'Suspicious.'

The elevator stops and dings, indicating they'd arrived at their destination.

"You'll see in a moment. Come, follow me." Glynda briskly steps out from the elevator. "Please leave your weapon here."

Jaune slightly narrows his eyes, but complies, leaving Crocea Mors by the elevator door. He follows Glynda through a large office door.

"Professor Ozpin," Glynda announces. "I've brought Jaune Arc."

'Ozpin? The headmaster.' Jaune pauses for a moment, before following Glynda into the office.

"Excellent. Thank you, Glynda." Ozpin gestures to a chair. "Please, take a seat Mr. Arc."

Jaune decides that complying is the best course of action. For now.

Ozpin picks up a steaming mug on his desk and takes a sip. He then leans forwards, resting his elbows on the desk's surface.

"Do you know why you were brought here?"

Jaune's mind races through his memories.

'Do they know? How could they? This world seems to operate without the knowledge of cultivation. Wait... fake transcript... shit.'

"I don't know, sir," Jaune shakes his head.

"Hmm," Ozpin's eyes narrow. "To be quite frank, Glynda and I have good reason to believe that you are not who you claim to be."

Jaune's eyes widen.

'So this is about the transcripts. Did they know from the start?'

Jaune decides that admitting to the crime would be much less painful. At this point, he can only hope that his honesty would lessen the punishment. Though losing his spot in Beacon would cut him off from vast knowledge, it is far better than being sent to prison.

He sighs, "Okay. You've caught me red handed. I admit-"

Jaune pauses, finding himself restricted by an invisible force.

"Is this not a bit of an overreaction?" He carefully asks.

"No, I do not think so, imposter," Glynda coldly responds. Her riding crop is pointed directly at Jaune.

Ozpin stands up from behind his desk and tightly grips his cane.

"You have exactly five seconds to answer my question before Glynda crushes you to death. Who are you?" Ozpin demands.

Jaune quickly responds, "My name is Jaune Arc. Everything else on those transcripts are fake, but the name is real."

An awkward silence fills the room.

"What?" Glynda and Ozpin display genuine expressions of confusion.

'What the hell? It's not about the transcripts?' Jaune's eyes widen.

"Um... Please forget anything I said about fake transcripts? I was joking."

Ozpin finally breathes out heavily and sits back down into his chair.

"No. We were well aware of Jaune Arc's fake transcript from the very beginning... At this point, it may be easier to just show you. Glynda, please keep our guest secured."

The headmaster reaches into his desk and presses several buttons. A holographic screen appears at the center of the office. As Jaune silently observes, he silently circulates qi/Aura through his body, just in case he needs to attempt an escape.

"Tell us whether or not our reactions are warranted after watching the following footage."

The footage reveals a section of the Emerald Forest. All is calm, until a blur shoots past the hidden camera and crashes into the ground at maximum velocity. As the dust and debris settles, a crater comes into view. In the center lays a bloody, mangled body that vaguely resembles a human. Broken bones jut through the skin and the limbs are bent at impossible angles. It would not take a genius to conclude that this individual was very much dead.

'This is not good...'

Then, the corpse suddenly begins to glow. Bones snap back into place, and the splattered blood recedes back into the body as if time were flowing backwards. After a few short moments, all signs of damage disappears, and the body's chest begins to rise and fall. The boy's eyes snap open and he looks around in confusion, before sitting down in meditation. The footage stops.

Jaune remains silent and mentally weighs his options. He does not stop rotating his qi as Ozpin's intentions are not yet clear.

"And what is your conclusion based off of this footage?" Jaune slowly asks. "Earlier, you asked who I am. Are you implying that I am not Jaune Arc?"

Ozpin's eyes grow sharp.

"I have met Jaune Arc in the past when he was a younger boy, and I can say with certainty that you are not he."

'He is thoroughly convinced that I am not Jaune Arc, and at this point, nothing I say will sway him. Lying would do nothing but dig a deeper grave... However, it is strange that Jaune Arc's memories have no recollection of ever meeting Ozpin...'

He finds himself between a rock and hard place.

Jaune sighs, "Fine... it is as you suspect. I am not the original Jaune Arc you seem to be so familiar with."

"So who are you?" The sharpness in Ozpin's eyes do no disappear. "Reincarnation?"

Glynda softly gasps from the side.

'He is familiar with the concept of reincarnation?'

"I suppose in a sense, it is reincarnation. As for who I was, it is none of your business," Jaune finishes sharply. Despite being restrained, he does not show fear.

"Then... are you an enemy?"

Jaune laughs, "Whether I say yes or no, you will doubt my answer. How about this instead?"

He tilts his head up to the Heavens and recites, "I swear upon the Three Realms and the Heavens that I am not an enemy of Beacon Academy, so long as Beacon and its entities do not intend mortal harm upon me. May the Heavens smite my soul should this oath be broken!"

The air around them seems to rumble in response to Jaune as he feels the oath take hold. Glynda and Ozpin exchange confused looks. The Three Realms? The Heavens? What was that otherworldly rumbling?

Jaune notes their expressions.

'They are not aware of the existence of Heavenly oaths, which means my suspicion is correct. At the very least, the existence of the cultivation way is unknown to the vast majority of Remnant. This is especially odd, considering that I can sense a hint of divinity from Ozpin.'

"There is common saying that actions speak louder than words. Why don't you try for yourself Ozpin? Utter the same words as I'd just done, but swear not to intend harm upon me so long as I uphold what I've promised with my oath."

"Excuse me?" Ozpin raises an eyebrow.

"Just do it," Jaune sternly says.

After a pause, Ozpin says, "Very well... I swear upon the... Three Realms and the Heavens... that so long as this individual in front of me upholds his oath, I will not willingly bring harm upon him. May the Heavens smite my soul should this oath be broken."

Once again, the air rumbles, and Ozpin shudders as the foreign sensation of the Heavenly oath take hold upon his soul.

'What was that sensation?' Ozpin's eyes widen. There is a strong urge within him telling him not to harm Jaune, else he would come to regret it.

"That was a Heavenly oath," Jaune says. "Now, we are bound by our respective oaths. Should either of us break it, the offender's soul will be erased from existence. You should know by now that I speak the truth."

Jaune smiles at Ozpin, sending a shiver down his spine.

"You can feel it can't you? The constant voice in the background urging you not to break the oath?"

Swallowing the lump in his throat, Ozpin carefully asks, "You're not going to require Glynda to do the same, are you?"

Jaune shakes his head, "She could not even if she wanted to. The Heavenly oaths have no effect on those considered mortals. Otherwise, you can see how they would be easily abused?"

Ozpin's hand tightens around his cane.

'Is he like Salem? Or myself?'

"Would you care to explain? Are you implying that you are immortal?"

Jaune gives Ozpin a strange look.

"No, of course I'm not immortal. Just because one is not mortal does not mean he/she is immortal. It is not a binary matter such as mortal and immortal. There is a vast spectrum. For example, humans are naturally limited by around 100 years of life. Someone who transcends that limit would be considered to be non-mortal."

Ozpin looks rather unconvinced, and Glynda reflects a similar look. As far as Ozpin is aware, his case is rather unique due to the direct workings of the God of Light, while Salem's was a curse inflicted upon her by both the Gods.

"And... how would one transcend such a limit?"

"Through a practice called cultivation. To put it simply, practicing cultivation allows one to break through their mortal restrictions, granting increased lifespan and strength. The mortal realm is called Houtian, and those who become stuck in this realm will likely slightly surpass the 100 year limit, but is still within the realm of reasonable for normal human age. When a Houtian practitioner successfully breaks through to Xiantian, is when you can call one to surpass human possibility."

"I... am having a difficult time following. Cultivation? Houtian? Xiantian?"

Jaune sighs, "Just consider Houtian as super-human. While, Xiantian is beyond human."

"As for cultivation itself, I'm rather surprised that it is not common practice. For a world to have zero knowledge of it is nearly unheard of."

"Then are you a so-called Xiantian?" Ozpin asks. "That is what you call non-mortal realm, correct? That is why you are able to swear the oath?"

"I have barely taken my first steps into Houtian," Jaune responds. "The reason why I am able to take the oath is due the Heaven's deeming my memories beyond mortal boundaries. As for yourself... I'm sure you know why you're able to take the oath."

Glynda's mouth drops in shock. Jaune had just casually uttered one of Ozpin's greatest secrets.

Ozpin visibly flinches at Jaune's comment.

'He knows, or at the very least, has an idea of my true nature. That is why he so confidently told me to take the oath. One was in part to verify his suspicion and the other was to protect himself. This man is extremely cunning... Despite the oath, there is no telling if he truly is an enemy or not.'

"Why is your Aura reading in the red?"

"I am not sure," Jaune calmly responds. "Perhaps it is related to my reincarnation."

'Though I have my suspicions, I will be keeping those thoughts to myself...'

"I see," Ozpin quips before taking a sip of his coffee. "Glynda, let him go."

She flicks her riding crop, undoing her Semblance.

Jaune rolls his neck and casually asks, "So what now?"

Ozpin leans back into his chair.

"Your existence is not something anyone could have predicted. But... it would be foolish to not adapt to the situation and take advantage. I'm curious. What are your goals?"

Jaune simply smiles, "For now, I'd like to enjoy my life as a seventeen year old boy."

Ozpin sighs, "Very well. You're free to leave Mr Arc."

With a nod, Jaune stands and turns to leave. He does not stop rotating his qi until he reaches the bottom of the tower.

"Professor, is he trustworthy?" Glynda asks worriedly. "Would it not have been safer to imprison or eliminate him?"

"Perhaps you're right," Ozpin's expression turns serious. "But doing so would mean we are content with our current situation. Also, that is no longer an option due to the oath I'd carelessly taken. The silver lining is that in a twisted way, he is trustworthy, and we need not worry that he intends to brings ruin to Beacon. However, do not let his appearance fool you, for I suspect that he is even older than I."

Glynda's eyes widen. From what Ozpin had told her, Qrow, and few select others, Ozpin's true age should range in the thousands!

"Would... you like me to keep a constant eye on him?" Glynda asks.

"Keep an eye on him when you can, but avoid outwardly spying on him. If at all possible, I'd like to be allied with him."

Ozpin's eyes grow tired.

"I can only hope that this is not a mistake..."