Chapter: Teaching Interlude

The brunette woman appears in the classroom without warning. She leans on her knees, gasping for breath.

"Are you okay, Danny?" one of the third year students asks.

The woman waves off their concern. "Just need to catch my breath." She gulps the air a few more times, and then straightens to face the teacher.

"Thanks for texting me, guys," she tells the teenage students watching her. With a sigh, she walks over to the sleeping professor. "I'll be back in five minutes to teach today's class. Topics are on the Scrollsite; pick something you haven't covered yet, and write it on the board."

She runs her fingers through the teacher's hair, whispering in his ear, "Qrow, I'm taking you home."

The man jerks, blinks, and then stares at her. It takes him a moment to get his bearings, and then he rolls his eyes. "Let's go."

The two professors disappear.

The few students used to this stride up to the board, topics already in mind. A few more follow up. Others chat and wait.

Danny pops back a few minutes later, striding towards the center-front of the room. She turns with a sharp twirl, holding her hands out in a 'what can you do' gesture as she smiles.

"Hi, everyone!" the woman gets a few 'hi's back. "I'm going to be your substitute history teacher today." She turns and finds a blank space to write her first name on the board. "Some of you know my spiel by now, but I've still got to do it. Vale schooling laws require me to introduce myself as Professor Askans. Please, don't call me that. My name is Danny. And today we're learning about…"

The brunette frowns and switches for an eraser. "Sorry, can't do the Schnee Dust Company." She erases the many SDC logos scattered on the board while students moan in the background. "It's Professor Branwen's favourite to rant about. Since there's nothing about broken semblances, I take it you've done it… I know you had a test on Vacuo last week, so that's out too."

She pauses over the last three options. Nodding, she turns to the class. "Alright, hands up for Faunus Arts." She counts and waves them down. "Soul marks?" A larger number. Mostly those not in Hunter/Huntress training. "Vale/Vacuo boarders?" Two people.

"Soul marks win," Danny says with a shrug. She walks around the teacher's desk and sits on it, facing the teenagers. "Those of you who are creating your own weapon would have been warned on this when you're nearly finished. Otherwise, this isn't a topic to be shared in normal conversation, understood?" She gets a couple nods. "I'm serious, everyone. In Vacuo, even mentioning soul marks is taboo. An Atlas citizen has to register every mark they have. Mitral loves to ignore it, and we're the only school in Vale that introduces it to non-Hunter/Huntresses. So, I need to be sure you are all okay with us covering it."

No one denies continuing the subject. Expressions range from interested to hesitant.

"You're free to leave if you find this uncomfortable," Danny tells them softly. "This isn't something you'll be tested on. Your textbooks don't cover it, and if you don't want to hear anything about soul marks, no one will blame you."

No one gets up.

"Okay," Danny takes a deep breath. "So, does anyone have any questions about soul marks?"

Three hands shoot up. Danny picks the non-Hunter/Huntress of the three.

"How do soul marks appear?"

Danny smiles brightly in amusement. "Honestly? The best answer I can give you is magic." A lot of people groan at that. "Soul marks appear on weapons after they've been named, if you have your aura unlocked, and if you put your soulmate's life above your own. The aura one is self-explanatory, while that last one is personal because only you decide what it means to 'put your life on the line'. For the weapon, it could be something to do with treating your weapon with care, respect, or ownership. You name it, it's yours, your weapon reflects you, and all that junk you hear older Hunters and Huntresses say.

"The first sentence your soulmate expresses to you – not the first thing you hear or see from them – is written on your weapon. The how and why is unknown. Some people get tiny words, while other sentences take up a whole weapon. It all depends on the type of person your soulmate is when you meet them. So, I stick by my answer. Magic. … Anyone else?"

The silence is broken when five people put up their hands.

"How common is it to get soul marks?"

"Depends on the person," Danny says. "A person could go their whole life without ever glimpsing one of their soul marks. That is actually normal. Some Hunters and Huntresses only ever get their soul marks in the heat of a battle. Those will fade after they've protected their soulmate. I find it takes an unusually strong amount of love and selflessness to keep a soul mark. And you can't just think 'oh, I'm going to put my soulmate first' and see a mark. If your soulmate has the personality of a person you hate, you aren't going to see the mark until you've met them and learned to accept the qualities you don't like about them."

"Then can soul marks fade?"

"… Yes," Danny nods slowly. "It's rare that soul marks are always on weapons. Most come and go depending on circumstances. Actually, using your semblance is the one for-sure way to make a mark fade. A semblance is used to keep you alive. Only extremely special circumstances change that."

The same person hesitantly raises their hand.

Danny nods sadly. "Yes, they can be gone forever." The student looks conflicted, while the in-training students slump at the thought. "If your soulmate dies, then there is no way for the mark to come back… and yes, it is possible you won't hear them before they die. The mark is what they say when they communicate to you for the first time. This is one of the main reasons soul marks aren't talked about. To many Hunters and Huntresses, their marks are sacred. It is scary to realize that you would put someone else's life above your own, and worse if they are gone before you know them.

"It's why Vacuo won't talk about it. They keep things that precious close to their hearts.

"Atlas keeps track of soulmates; to make sure you won't turn against them for the ones you love.

"Mistral doesn't have time to deal with soulmates. Between politics and bloodline traits, they don't end up with soul marks often.

"Vale would love it if people forgot soulmates existed. The Witch and The Wizard story originated in it's capital city. You can find a soulmate version in our library. That fairy-tale is the closest thing you'll get to truth in a Vale book about soulmates. With all the fake rumours about soulmates in the main city, Beacon had to remove it from their lessons.

"But I'm going off," Danny says weakly. "Next question?"

A lot more hands go up.

"What's the normal amount of soul marks?"

"Two or three if you're a successful Huntsman or Huntress," Danny answers automatically. "Very rare, or a short career with no travelling, leaves you with one. The highest recorded was twelve, and only one of those twelve didn't have another soulmate."

"What does it mean to be a soulmate?"

Danny smiles brightly. "Anything you want. Most often, it means that you can fight in perfect sync with each other. No extra training required. Lots of people end of best friends because of it. Being anything more than friends is… hard on a person. Especially if they have other soulmates that their partner doesn't have. You'll hear about 'love squares' if you ever ask freshly-graduated teams about soul marks. There's always one. But that doesn't mean-"

She cuts off as the bell goes. The students start packing and Danny hops off the desk.

"Your professor should be back tomorrow. You can ask any of the staff about soul marks, but I'll be going more in-depth next time I substitute. See you around."

A/N: Thanks for reading!

Thank you, Phoenix8221, for your review! Hope you enjoyed the chapter!

Thank you, Littlest1, for your review and I hope you enjoyed the chapter!

Have a great February, everyone

Edited: April 12, 2017. Now includes Team RWBY Soul Marks

Team RWBY (Known) Soul Marks:

Ruby (7):

'Salutations!' - ? (Season 1, Episode 15)

'Ah, it's a pleasure to meet my sister's partner.' - ?

Weiss (1):

'Weiss Schnee, heiress to the Schnee Dust Company, one of the largest producers of energy propellant in the world' - ? (Season 1, Episode 2)

Blake (2):

'Hel-looooo!' - ? (Season 1, Episode 3)

Yang (1):

'Blake.' - ? (Season 1, Episode 3)