Chapter 16: The Song of Student and Teacher

In which Professor Goodwitch lays down the law, and Headmaster Ozpin lays down on a bench.

"The Grimm…protected you from other Grimm?"

"Yes, Professor Goodwitch."

"Then said your name?"

"Yes."

"Then brought your weapon back to you?"

"Yes."

"And you didn't see fit to report this until now because…?"

Yang watched Weiss wilt under the Deputy Headmistress' stern gaze. The entire field trip and their professors were hanging on Weiss' every word as Goodwitch dressed her down for her recklessness.

"People were already skeptical of the Grimm's intelligence – no, of its existence. Would you have believed me? But now, Team Castle and Professor Branwen can confirm my story's veracity. They saw the Grimm respond to me."

Uncle Qrow stepped in. "She's right, Glyn. I can confirm…how much of a frickin' moron she was!" He glared at Weiss. "You calmly walked up to a Grimm monster and tried to negotiate with it? It coulda killed you!"

"But it didn't," Weiss challenged. Yang recognized the defiance that Weiss normally exhibited start to return. It was good to see the Weiss-sicle stay frosty, even if she lost her cool. "Believe me, I've run over the initiation in my head many, many times. The Grimm was not going to harm me after everything it did to safeguard me that night."

"If this Grimm is out to protect you, Miss Schnee, then would you please enlighten me as to why it elected to spirit away Mister Winchester?"

"I can answer that one, GG." Uncle Qrow tossed his unamused colleague a jar full of yellow powder. Goodwitch reach inside, grabbed a fingerful, and sprinkled it to the ground. Sparks flew when it landed.

"Flash fire powder? Why would the Grimm care if Cardin had…?"

"Read the label, Glyn. Grimm bastard certainly could."

"For Wei– ah, I see. Detention, Mister Winchester."

Cardin looked entirely resigned to his fate. From what Yang had heard, detention would've been a walk in the park compared to what lurked in Forever Fall. Besides, if Cardin really had planned to fuck with Weiss over her pyrophobia, a little detention was more than deserved.

"Yes, Professor Good–"

"For what?" interjected Nora.

"For such childish acts of mischief that nearly endangered himself and those around him, Miss Valkyrie. His misbehavior could have gotten him killed."

Now it was Nora's turn to look stern. "He didn't ever use the jar, did he? I think we all would've seen another forest fire. And how could anyone have known that the Grimm would be able to read it? Until now, no one knew it wanted to protect Weiss, or that it was even in Forever Fall."

Goodwitch tried to speak up, but Nora pressed on. "As far as I can tell, Cardin's only 'misbehavior' was having some practical joke planned and deciding not to follow through with it. Is the poofy powder not allowed at Beacon?"

"Flash fire powder is not strictly prohibited on campus per the school's policies, but–"

"Then Cardin didn't do anything wrong. Don't worry. After this little 'prank gone wrong,' he and I will be having a little chat about the proper respect he should show other students. But that's something between Cardin and his team leader. Me. Not you."

Yang was gobsmacked. No one talked back to Goodwitch, and absolutely NO ONE countermanded a punishment she'd dished out. Even Uncle Qrow looked nervous on Nora's behalf.

Professor Goodwitch fixed her death stare on Nora, but Nora met it without backing down. Finally, Goodwitch let out an exasperated sigh and turned to Professor Port.

"Anything you've got to add to this situation?"

"No, my lady. I believe you've more than adequately–"

"Good. Qrow?"

"Glynda, if Pinkie here can stare you down, then I think she might be the only person on Remnant suited to handle disciplining Caramel."

"Very well. Cardin, I shall leave this situation in the hands of your team leader. You shall be let off with just a warning this time, but if you ever think to bother Miss Schnee again…"

"Professor, I think Cardin's had more than enough motivation to leave me alone," said Weiss. Surprisingly, Yang thought she actually looked sympathetic for Winchester, even though she'd been the target of his prank.

"In that case, I believe our field trip shall be cut short. Students, please place your jars of sap in the crate and proceed in an orderly fashion to the airship."

Yang looked down at her half empty jar. In all the excitement, she'd never gotten around to filling it up.

A pinkish-purple object flew towards her. Reflexively, she dropped her own jar and caught it. In Yang's clutches there now was a jar full of the sap. She looked up and saw Blake walking away from her.

Ozpin's cane poked Jaune's stomach. Then, it poked Jaune's stomach again. And again. And again.

"Keep your defenses up and your wits about you, Mister Arc!"

Jaune tried to bring his own training cane up to block the oncoming barrage of attacks, but Ozpin's own cane rapped his knuckles, causing him to drop it. For an old, apparently crippled man, the headmaster certainly packed a punch.

"Eyes on your opponent. Read my movements."

"I'm trying!"

In an attempt to control the flow of the battle, Jaune summersault to the left and tried to force Ozpin to where the rocks made the ground was less even. In a straight fight, Jaune's youth and vigor might have given him an advantage, but Ozpin had insisted there would never, ever be a 'straight fight' in the real world. Thus, rather than training in an empty practice ring, the two sparred out in Beacon's courtyard. As much as fighting with the headmaster was an impossibly uphill battle, Jaune had to admit that the unorthodox arena forced him to adapt to new surroundings and stay aware of them.

They'd started with Ozpin demonstrating some basic maneuvers with his cane, then Jaune following along with a training staff. Now that Jaune was able to imitate the headmaster's offensive and defensive move set perfectly, they'd progressed to sparring with the canes. When Jaune scored his first victory, he'd be allowed to train with Crocea Mors.

Unfortunately, today would not be that day. For all that Jaune kept (or tried to keep) his wits about him, he was no match for the esteemed headmaster. Ozpin's footwork was immaculate and allowed him to enable the bumpy terrain's tree roots and haphazard rocks. Jaune, on the other hand, stumbled backwards when a cane struck him on his head and tripped over a large stone sticking out of the soil. The same cane that felled Jaune found itself at his throat.

"I yield."

"I suppose you do."

Jaune dusted himself off as the headmaster found his way to a bench and sat down. Despite his victory, the old man looked quite out of breath. He noticed Jaune's concern. "Don't worry, my young friend. While my mind is as sharp as it was two thous– twenty years ago, my body grows more and more decrepit with each passing season. Unfortunately, my combat instincts did not seem to receive the memo. I'm quite prone to forgetting my limits and overdoing it in the heat of battle."

"If you don't mind me asking, what's up with the cane?" Jaune asked, looking at the headmaster's wounded leg.

He chuckled and opened a thermos of coffee. "Ah, that. The Long Memory was my weapon of choice long before I received this infernal limp. It is one of life's greatest coincidences that I would come to need it. Or perhaps it was an omen."

The headmaster poured a cup out of the thermos. "My leg was injured by a foe around ten years ago, around the time you would have been seven. The tendons were severed beyond repair, and I was forced to retire from hunting. Fortunately, I have several agents who may act in my stead when a field mission comes up."

Ozpin looked down at the thermos in his hands with a pensive face. It suddenly contorted in anger. "And every day I'm out of the field, I must worry that I've sent one of them to their deaths while I sit comfortably in my academy, sipping coffee and grading papers and–"

"Training me."

Ozpin raised an eyebrow at Jaune. Jaune sat next to him on the bench.

"Professor, you're not doing nothing. You may not be able to lead the charge any more, but you're teaching the next generation of hunters. I'd be a clueless monkey flailing my sword around at the Grimm like a baseball bat if you hadn't taken me under your wing."

"I…thank you, Jaune. Here, why don't you try a cup?"

Jaune's mother had always told him to never accept drinks from strangers, but it was probably okay in this case. He accepted the thermos and took a sip.

Simply put, it was horrible. The hellish, burnt flavor assaulted his taste buds as he held back from gagging. It was like choking on dirt that had been filtered through overdone toast and garnished with the blackened crust from an uncleaned grill. Jaune tried to smile when he brought the vessel away from his lips, but he failed.

The headmaster burst out laughing at his pupil's obvious discomfort with the brew. "I suppose it's a bit of an acquired taste," he admitted.

"Now ya tell me!"

Both men gazed at the setting sun. At this hour, students were few and far between, so the courtyard was essentially empty.

"Did you ever get the Grimm?" Jaune asked.

"The Grimm?"

"You know, the Grimm that hurt your leg."

"The Grimm that…?" Ozpin looked puzzled for a second, but he recovered himself quickly. "Ah, yes. The Grimm. The Grimm that hurt my leg."

"Well, did you?"

"No. It's still out there."

Omake

Jaune: How will I continue my training after we finish sparring with real weapons, Headmaster? Live missions? Hunting criminals? Destroying Grimm?

Ozpin: The FitnessGram™ Pacer Test is a multistage aerobic capacity test that progressively gets more difficult as it continues.

Omake 2

Jaune: I'd be a clueless monkey without you, Ozpin.

Sun Wukong: ℬ ℜ ü ℍ

Next Chapter: Adventure is Out There – We're all friends here, right?