The flight from Atlas to Vale took hours. Jekyll was in a private Bullhead along with Amber who was still in a comatose state. To pass the time, Jekyll kept checking her vitals for any sort of significant change. The fact that there still wasn't anything at all frustrates him. There were no other medical practitioners there for a second opinion and he was given a list of things that he needed to check should Amber be in any need. As far as they knew, Amber was only being brought to Beacon to be transferred to a proper hospital. Reading the instructions made that clear.
After what felt like the hundredth time, Jekyll's own body finally gave in to the ache and pain, forcing him to take a seat and get some rest. His eyes still focused on Amber's figure in the pod as his eyelids grew too heavy for him to keep open. Being a human in this world has its drawbacks as opposed to being a proper Servant. He thought that he could have adjusted easily given that he was human once but sadly, it was not. While not having to worry about magical energy was a definite boon, he had to worry about his own bodily needs: food, water, health and more. With his apparent profession in Remnant, one needs to add the Grimm on top of that as well as the fact that he is now part of some secret group.
His sleep was light as he was easily awoken by the slightest of disturbances. A shift in altitude, the ship leaning ever so slightly, any announcement made to update their current status, nothing was missed by Jekyll during this silent flight. Left alone with his thoughts as he dozed off, he pondered what his life would be like once he made it to this Beacon Academy. The headmaster there had said that he was supposed to be some laboratory technician for the school. His duties and responsibilities were mostly to take note of the different tools and devices that were stored, used and damaged in Beacon's laboratory. Managing the stockroom, he was to be an assistant of the professor of Plant Science, Thumbelina Peach. Why it is called Plant Science and not Botany was not something really worth pondering over.
His thought then went to the name of this professor. Thumbelina Peach. Thumbelina. Like the fairy tale of a well-known author who has a rather snarky mouth. Jekyll wasn't sure if that was a mere coincidence or something that he should be looking into. From his studies, much of Remnant has been built on the stories known to him as fairy tales. It was the driving force that sought to make sense of everything around them. Much like the fairy tales, each one was based on some truth or were meant to be one that is easily understood and comprehended by the common folk, often children. Usually, those tales are cautionary like never interacting with strangers when alone or how one should always pay their dues that they owed. Now that he thought about it, it would seem that headmaster Ozpin was ringing a few bells. I wonder what my fairy tale would be like. It was most likely a cautionary one, like a tale of a mad scientist who would unbalance the nature of the world just because of his experiment. Fitting, I suppose. He patted his chest, calming his increasing frustration that he caused himself. Should have been ignorant, instead.
After some time, there was an announcement that signaled their descent. The seat-belt sign was turned on and Jekyll made sure that his was tightened. Unlike in Atlas, the descent into this Vale place took longer. At least that meant that Vale wasn't a floating city. Otherwise, he would have had to ask if there was anything wrong with the ground that many people would rather live on a rock floating in the sky. The lights from below was enough to give Jekyll a bit of a view of Vale. A city life by the looks of it. There was little blurring over there but with the lighting of the different buildings, most of the people there are probably working night jobs, are in the comforts of their own home, or enjoying the night life. The landing lights were situated many meters away from the cliff-side. It would seem that this Beacon Academy is close to the oceans which were found way below. There appears to be a long, series of steps that would lead down to that body of water.
The landing wasn't as smooth as it was in Atlas. Either that, or that feeling were Jekyll felt like he was about to fly of his seat if he hadn't had his seat-belt on was actually the normal one. Atlas was at least smoother in that regard. It took few more minutes before the signal for him to get up was given. It came in the form of the seat-belt sign being turned off. The bullhead's doors opened and Jekyll nearly fell on his back when Amber's pod began floating in midair, covered slightly in a purplish glow similar to that of aura.
Outside the bullhead, Jekyll had seen the two people from that video call in person. Deputy headmistress Glynda Goodwitch, with a flick and a swish of her crop, is the one responsible for the lifting and carrying of Amber's pod as it seemed to listen to her commands. With precise gentleness, the pod never moved like it was lain on something solid as Amber was being transferred. Her movements were professional and her steps were even. Jekyll was frankly more impressed that she managed to do so in heels.
With her was Ozpin. He was exchanging a few more words with the pilot before the bullhead's doors closed behind him. Soon, after it had been inspected, repaired and refueled, the bullhead then began to take off once more. The winds from the ship nearly caused Jekyll's jacket to fly off. Ozpin didn't speak to him until after the bullhead was airborne. It was too loud that any spoken word would fall on deaf ears.
"Come, Mr. Jekyll," invited Ozpin. "You must be tired from your journey. The night is still young and I'm sure you would like to gather your bearings of your new workplace. Once again, I welcome you to Beacon Academy."
Thus far, Ozpin had been courteous and kind. He was patient and spared no detail when it came to his roles and responsibilities as part of Beacon's staff. Most of those, he had already learned since before he had arrived. The headmaster also answered Jekyll's questions but was careful and would cut him off whenever there was someone else walking down the hallways, usually a janitor. Despite the school year having not started, there were apparently a few students who have opted to stay in Beacon who have taken up supplementary classes or simply chose not to return home for their own reasons. A curfew was implemented and it was during this time that Amber was being brought here when everyone should be at their dorms. As an added measure, they took the route where the halls were mostly empty.
The hallways of Beacon were larger than that of Atlas Academy. It was more colorful, as well. Granted, it wasn't saying much considering that it still had the usual grays that is evident on the walls but the doors were like that of polished wood and the curtains were red. The window's panels were golden with the lights having a cooling blue to their color, a calming color that would soothe anyone at this time of night. The carpets were red and there were actual potted plants that decorated these halls. Some of these halls even led down to balconies providing the beautiful view of the ocean, the forests and even the cities depending on where they were. Despite the fact that the halls were mostly empty, anyone could feel the life from these halls.
Jekyll was led down to an elevator. At this point, their conversation turned quiet as the hum of the elevator's descent filled the silence. Glynda had already gone ahead as the two had to wait awhile before the elevator could led them there. There was a secret area that is only accessible to a certain few as Ozpin had to input a password of some kind before the option to go to floors lower than what was initially there were presented.
Reaching their destination, Jekyll was met with a dimly lit hallway. It had similar enough appearance to the upper floors with the difference being that it was lit by green colored lights. The walls eventually came to a stop as the area had begun to widen. The floors were man-made still but the walls at this point appeared to be made of stone and dirt. It was like a tunnel that was slowly being dug into and built. Further walking down this hallway, Jekyll caught sight of the pod that Amber was staying. It would seem that the pods were already constructed ahead of time and set up here. One thing that did catch his attention, was the fact that there were two pods. One of them had Amber while the other was empty. He asked Ozpin for the reason.
"In an ideal scenario," answered Ozpin. "I would like that we would find Amber's attackers, subdue them and have those power return to their rightful owner."
Jekyll nodded. That answer satisfied his worries. For a moment, he had thought of something else. It was a terrible to thing to assume as it wouldn't do well for him to make enemies left and right and considering that Ozpin was going to be his boss after this night. The two continued to approach the pods as Glynda can be seen in managing the machines and was checking Amber's vitals. She was with someone else.
Glynda's companion had her brightly-colored, yellow hood down. It was a startling contrast to the dimly lit areas of this cavern, like this companion wanted to be seen. On her navy-blue belt was a shovel. Her hair was raven-black and her eyes were the color of emerald-green. She was nodding as Glynda was giving her instructions.
"Right," the companion answered. The two turned as they noticed Ozpin and Jekyll's arrival. "Headmaster Ozpin," she said with a bow. "Everything has already been set up."
"Good," replied Ozpin. "I'll leave the security measures to you then, Professor Greene." The headmaster gestured for Jekyll. "May I introduce you to Henry Jekyll? He is to be our new staff starting this school year." Ozpin turned to face him and gestured for Greene in a similar manner. "Henry Jekyll, this is Ann Greene, Beacon's professor of stealth and security."
Jekyll reached out his hand to shake as a courtesy. "Pleasure to meet you, Professor Greene."
"Likewise," replied Greene. She looked at him and trailed his figure only to stop at the shirt he worn beneath his jacket, noticing the object that he had underneath. "A knife, I see. Does it have a name?"
Jekyll looked down to his knife. How had she noticed that? While he wasn't deliberately trying to hide his weapon, he was certain that it wasn't that easy to spot. He had it there simply because it was the most convenient place for it. "A name?" he asked.
Greene nodded. "Most huntsmen and huntresses name their weapons. What's yours?"
"I haven't really thought about it." For a moment, Jekyll tried to recall his lectures as fast as he could. It must have been one of those unwritten traditions. With how Remnant after the Great War emphasized individuality and creativity, naming their weapons was an extension of that. "I mean, it is just a knife."
Visibly, Greene was happy with the answer. "I can respect that. Weapons are just tools to be used. Giving them any special name has a tendency of making people attached to it. Be it sentimentality or dedicated use, a weapon is but a tool to be used for its purpose then put away when it is done." Her eyes drifted elsewhere. "It wouldn't do if we're useless without it."
Jekyll raised an eyebrow and looked to the other two for answers. Neither Ozpin nor Glynda were willing to say it but they both wore expressions that basically said that it was personal. Given the class that he would have manifested as, it would be fitting if he never had given it a name outside of what it is already called. It is just a knife.
Seeing his opportunity to step in, Ozpin said, "Mr. Jekyll is to be our laboratory technician."
"Peach's assistant?" Greene replied. She eyed Jekyll from head to toe once more; this time, she was more inquisitive and wrinkles formed on her forehead. She asked him, "are you per chance, a frog faunus?"
Jekyll tilted his head in confusion? A frog faunus? What does that have to do with—oh wait, Thumbelina. He shook his head. He was familiar enough with that tale.
"That's good," Greene said, massaging her forehead. "I'm still surprised we weren't sued for racial discrimination for that."
"I wasn't exactly made aware that Peach was uncomfortable with frogs," Ozpin defended. "Had I known that, I would have accepted other applicants instead."
"Right," Greene said with a roll of her eyes, clearly wanting to move on from that. "The security measures have bee placed. Now if you'll excuse me, I'm going bed. It's getting late even for me."
"Great timing as well," Ozpin replied. "You and Jekyll here will be neighbors from this night onward. Why don't you show him to his room?"
"Of course we are." Greene rolled her eyes. "Come on, Mr. Jekyll. They'll be fine here."
Ozpin and Glynda stayed behind. Professor Greene moved rather nonchalantly and without care as she led him back to where they had come. With a press of a button, the two of them went back up and returned to the lit hallways of Beacon Academy. Afterwards, Jekyll was led down the lefts and rights of these hallways until they managed to find their rooms. It was situated rather far from the rest of Beacon Academy. Located at the western side of Beacon, there were others there already. Jekyll guessed that those were students who preferred the coolness and silence of the night to train or are simply stargazers by hobby. The two made their way further up some stairs until they were led to a smaller hallway. Most of these doors had empty labels on them. He found his dorm when it was situated across Greene's room and next to Peach's room for both of their rooms were among the few who had labels on them.
"Don't worry too much about the noise," said Greene. "It's really quiet at night around here. Really the first sign of any sort of noise will come in the early hours of morning thanks to one particular early bird. You should be fine."
Jekyll bowed and gave thanks and the two parted ways there. When Jekyll opened his door, he noticed that it was more spacious than the one he had back in Atlas. It was still small but offered more room to move in. His things were already there by the bed fit for one with two fluffy pillows. There was another door in the room that led to the showers and Beacon was kind enough to provide him with towels. There was even a small table with a lamp should he have any need for it. On that table there was a small card on it. It was a welcome card. The windows by the bed had red curtains tied by a golden knot. The view outside was that of the forest that was near Beacon Academy. Underneath the shattered moon, Jekyll could feel at peace looking at those green trees. The way they sway with the gentle breeze and the quiet tranquility it had on him was calming. Jekyll could definitely appreciate if this was to be his normal view. Even without the threat of him, he could always just enjoy this view for the sake of the view. It eased his tired bones that the shower he had minutes after was quick.
The next morning was a beautiful morning. It was as if Jekyll really had gone to a fairy tale with how the birds outside were singing and the sun was shining. The refreshing night's sleep was what he had needed after that long trip. Aches that he didn't know he had prior were gone as he felt himself lighter and nimbler. The view outside was just as exquisite with the clear blue skies, little critters going in and out of the distant trees and bushes. Figures of Grimm lurking in the far distance. Wait, Grimm? Jekyll had to double check and it was indeed true, there were Grimm in that forest and they were this close to Beacon. Are they allowed to roam free? Or were these weaker versions for the students' training?
Shaking his head, Jekyll stepped out of the room and was met with a rather familiar scent. He could recognize the smell of bacon and sausage. His stomach grumbled as he followed the scent. He found himself in what appears to be both a kitchen and dining room for the people residing in the dorm. Professor Greene was already there at the table but it was the other man that caught Jekyll's attention.
Gentleman was the best way to describe him. Wearing an apron, the man was the one responsible for preparing breakfast. The table had four plates ready with one for Greene. One of them, Jekyll presumes, must belong to this fellow and unless he was mistaken, the third was for him and the fourth for someone else. He had dark purple hair which was well-combed and had a little shine to them. When he turned and noticed Jekyll standing by the doorway, he grinned, revealing the shiniest set of teeth that anyone ever did see.
"You must be Henry Jekyll!" he exclaimed as the stove's flames died out. He wiped his hands with a cloth and he extended it to shake his. "Harold Mulberry. Weapon Maintenance. You're just in time, breakfast has just been prepared. Come! Come! Sit!"
Jekyll really couldn't resist as he was brought to sit next to Mulberry. The professor of Weapon Maintenance put down both his and Jekyll's breakfast. Jekyll's eyes widened at the sight of it. He wasn't sure what it would be called in Remnant but he recognized it from his own world: it was a full English breakfast. The bacon and sausage that he had smelled earlier were there. Fried eggs, grilled tomatoes, mushrooms, black pudding and beans were all there on one plate. On a separate, smaller one, there was toasted bread. The only thing that was missing was the beverage.
"Tea?" asked Mulberry. "Or coffee?"
"Tea," replied Jekyll, much to Mulberry's joy. It made Jekyll happy as well. Tea was nice. "Thank you."
"No," said Mulberry. "Thank you. Finally, somebody here with good tastes." He then gave Greene a bit of judgmental look. Following his sight, Jekyll noticed that Greene had coffee with hers, instead.
"That's two for two," replied Greene, not at all bothered by Mulberry. She continued to sip her coffee as she ate her breakfast.
"This time," he replied with his fingers pointed. "You have an excuse because of last night. The same cannot be said every other morning."
The two continued to go back and forth. For every legitimate argument Mulberry had made, Greene had another. It felt like old news at this point with how they were already aware of each other's counterpoints. Jekyll continued to eat his breakfast in whatever way his heart desires. His tea was black which made it better for him. The two's debate became like background noise as he savored each bite.
A third person then entered the room. When Jekyll turned to see who it was, he nearly chocked on his sausage. If exhaustion were ever personified, it would bear this person's face. Her peach-colored hair was all over the place with strands leaping out like it begged to be free from the scalp. The messiness of her clothes made crumpled paper look smooth. The darkness beneath her eyes trailed down on her face and was blacker than a moonless, starless night. One of her slippers was missing. It took minutes for Jekyll to notice that the feathers of her wings—which were akin to that of a swan—looked like they could fall of at any moment. The woman was short in height and was swaying back and forth like the ground beneath her was perpetually shaking.
"Ah, Peach!" said Mulberry, not at all surprised at the sight. "Another late night again?"
"Uh," she replied.
"The usual, then?"
"Uh."
The breakfast was wrapped in some lunchbox which Peach took multiple tries before she finally grabbed hold of it. Her body swayed as if pulled by the weight of the lunchbox.
"Jekyll," Greene said. Her tone was apologetic. "Your first job as assistant is to get Peach back to her room."
Leaving behind his breakfast still unfinished, Jekyll aided the apparent Thumbelina Peach back to her room. He pushed and pulled as he hold her tight lest she falls. Her mouth appeared to be moving but no sound could be heard. Is she alright? He thought.
When he opened the door for her, he was met with a rather messy room. Papers were scattered on the floor with open books scattered on the table. The only thing that was remotely clean was the unmade bed. Peach tried to put the lunchbox down on the table only for Jekyll to catch it. She was off by many centimeters. She then fell on the floor and resumed her sleep like she hadn't just met the tiles headfirst. He didn't even see her aura flicker.
What happened to her? Sighing, he carried Peach back to bed and pulled the blanket. She seemed to be snug as her snores started to become more audible. Jekyll returned to the kitchen and asked if anything was wrong with Peach after witnessing that sight.
It was Greene who answered by saying, "similar to my case. Peach was entrusted with the Emerald Forest and was doing a scan of the area in preparation for the initiation of new students. Grimm activity in the area has been odd lately and she has been sampling the different plants there to see if there is anything going on."
"Has she found anything?" Jekyll asked.
Greene shook her head. "Spent all night looking at the data probably. Frustrated her to no end. Ever had that feeling before? Needed answers and not sleep?" She put down her cup of coffee. Her voice was then filled with concern as she asked, "you seem to be an academic type of fellow. Think you could at least help her out during those times? She definitely needs some help and I'm certain she'll appreciate it. If not, make her rest. By the Brothers, she needs it."
Mulberry had a similar look. These two professors are clearly worried about their colleague. Jekyll didn't have the best first impression of Professor Peach but with companions like these? People who she could trust to have her back like that? He couldn't help but feel both envious and nostalgic of that. I should never have closed myself, Mr. Utterson, Dr. Lanyon. For a brief moment, he wondered if he would ever find someone with whom he could trust enough.
Jekyll nodded. "I will," he said. "I promise you that."
"That is all we ask," replied Mulberry. "You're shaping up to be a good man, Mr. Jekyll and I look forward to our coming days as colleagues." He extended a hand which Jekyll shook.
"As do I," said Greene, doing the same. "Give Peach some time to rest and you'll see she is actually alright."
As breakfast was finished, Mulberry invited Jekyll out on a walk in the halls of Beacon Academy. He was given a tour of the different rooms and offices that were there and a copy of the map of the school was sent to his scroll for a quick guide. Mulberry appeared to be rather chipper during the early hours of morning. He mellowed out once midmorning came and he seemed to be like any other professor thus far. Jekyll was also introduced to the other professors of Beacon Academy. The history professor, Dr. Oobleck and Grimm studies professor, Peter Port. The introductions were rather short as the two had other things that they needed to attend to but they still extended their hopes of a wonderful working relationship.
The students were few as most were back at home. Mulberry assured him that Beacon's halls would be lively once the older students return and the new students come in. Jekyll was also informed that for this year, Beacon would be hosting this event called the Vytal Festival which would mean even more students in the form of transfers. It is for that reason that the number of dorms seem to be rather plentiful relative to the number of students.
Jekyll's tour ended by the afternoon and the two returned to their own dorms. Peach had awoken by then and appeared much better than she did that morning. Her feathers had been preened and was better groomed. She looked at him inquisitively and must have realized soon after that he was to be her assistant.
"You must be Henry Jekyll," she said. "Sorry about earlier. Busy day."
"I understand," he replied. There was no lie behind it. Jekyll understands the perils of the academic. He extended out a hand and said, "I'll be in your care, Professor Thumbelina Peach."
Peach took his hand and shook it. "Welcome to Beacon Academy, Henry Jekyll."
/-/
Cinder Fall looked over the information and attached images sent to her by Arthur Watts once again. She despises having to rely on the man for anything for he had a tendency of emphasizing her failures. She couldn't argue back on this one though. With their cover as students being unsafe thanks to the warning of their agent, she couldn't afford to take any risks and thus her team had to "drop" out of Haven Academy. As factually correct her report was, that insufferable man decided to rub it in that she should have accounted for all possible events, like the sudden appearance of that other interloper was something that could be accounted for at all.
The image attached was wrong, though. The person was nothing like the one that Cinder and her subordinates encountered that time. Her only basis was the information that Arthur Watts provided which he had obtained from hacking into Atlas' systems; they might not have a mole but Watts was knowledgeable enough that they didn't need it. Henry Jekyll—whose face was the one being shown in the file—must have been the fake one; the name he wrote down was the mask meant to hide who he really was. He had just been accepted into the system and into Beacon Academy. While it would prove problematic if he would recognize her but it was not him. This face he wore was nothing more than a mask, hiding the true individual within. Cinder doesn't just believe this. Cinder knows this to be the absolute fact.
This Henry Jekyll had emerald-green eyes which was nothing more than a mere façade. The eyes of the man that attacked Cinder had crimson-red and that was true individual. Her eyes drifted down to the name of his so-called semblance. The one she had faced that time must have been this Edward Hyde.
AN: I didn't expect that Peach's first name (based on RWBY wiki) would be, and thus alluding to, Thumbelina. Then again, considering RWBY and fairy tales, I probably should have expected a character alluding to H.C. Andersen's works at some point.