The clock was ticking.
I checked the time on Paz's watch as... as... oh, why did I do that? I thought it was worth it to screw around! Turns out, breaking into restricted school property and nearly having my four asses handed to me doesn't make for a good time. At all. And now I have to sit here and endure the pain all through detention. The only consolation here is that the pain has faded substantially since yesterday and I'm out of my casts. Seriously, do I want to feel yesterday's pain again? Hell no, I could barely sleep last night. Oh well, I can practice isolating the pain to my two injured bodies, for better or worse.
Maybe it'll work, maybe two of my bodies will die from shock.
Who knows?
At the very least, I don't have that much homework. Guess putting my studies first works, just like how it did since combat school.
Speaking of which, why don't I do my homework right now? I've powered through pain before, during the numerous times Emi was beaten by her biological father, and I can power through pain now. Oh, and there was also the time some Sanctum bullies picked on me before I punched their faces on my second day there.
Yeah, that's how I got into detention for the first time. I don't regret it, though; Mistral was one of the worst places to be a Faunus anyway, and whatever the state of the world was decades ago, there's a reason the White Fang formed in the first place.
Now, back to homework. Doing it would be complicated had any of my arms been broken, but then again, I could have just solved it by having a body write it for another.
Not sure if a second visit to the Headmaster's office would be worth it, however.
Welp! I cracked my knuckles and started doing my homework. Mmm. Mmmmmhm. "Describe the impact of Plant Dust on agriculture." If I recall, Plant Dust made it possible to farm crops in places where it would otherwise have been difficult, if not impossible, to grow them. Not only that, but it also made the growing of trees for fruits like bananas much faster.
Hold on, better check the answer...
I pulled out one of my Dust textbooks and flipped through its pages. Yep, I was right. I wrote down my answer and moved on to the next couple questions. As I sat there doing my homework, I heard the doors open behind me, so I turned to see who it was, and sure enough, Ash was here.
Wait, why is she here?
"Ah, Ms. Koler! Just in time for Saturday detention!" Oobleck, who was sitting at—"Why don't you take a seat?"
...I swear, Dr. Oobleck always speaks faster than I can think.
Anyways. Ash took a seat near her and set her briefcase under the desk. She rested her elbows against the top of the desk, placed her palms around the bridge of her nose, and closed her eyes. She took a deep breath; I swear she sobbed for a bit. She looked worse for wear, too; a neat girl's uniform (I swear, she alternates between uniforms every day) was betrayed by disheveled hair, a red face, and bags under dead eyes.
"Lemme ask a simple question: would you like to discuss why... you're—"
Before he could finish, Ash snipped, "No, thanks."
Yeah, I can already tell she's not taking detention well.
Well then, back to doing my homework.
. . .
Aaand done.
What time is it now? 1:45? Well, great; just one hour and 15 minutes until I can finally get out of here. At least I know now not to break into closed-off areas. Well, that, or at least be smarter about i—no! I can't slip into those old habits again! I know I can just do something else than that, but what if I can't muster the energy for that?
What then?
. . .
"Well!" Huh—wha–"Anyone ready to explain why they're here?"
Oh yeah... I almost fell asleep. Well, I guess I'm about ready to speak up, unless Ash has anything to say...
"Alright, fine," Ash began. "Got provoked by someone who should be sitting here in my place."
...Paisley.
"And how did this someone 'provoke' you?"
"Said things to set me off and I ended up buyin' it. Things like, y'know, 'oh, I feel reeeal bad not seeing you in our dorms.' 'Why are you still up to your usual antics? Should'a stopped the moment ya got into trouble.' All that other bullshit."
Oobleck nodded and wrote in his notebook. "Bad history, hm?" he asked.
"Yes!" Ash's fists tightened. "She's been nothing but a party pooper. She silenced people, intimidated others, all that as a student council president back in Alsius. She only likes people who'd rather suck up to her than challenge her stuck-up... 'decisions!' And if she can't change someone's mind her way, then out they go!" She breathed heavily; the painful memories were all starting to come back to her (I think), and it was as though she'd experienced them just yesterday. "Maybe it's just me, but I know she's still at it, but Ozpin wouldn't listen, and it's all thanks to her!"
Oobleck was understandably perturbed by her unraveling emotional state. "Ms. Koler, take a deep breath..."
Ash trembled in place as tears descended down her cheeks, slowly brushing them away with the side of her hand. "I'm sorry," she began, "am I being unfair to her?" What? "Will–Will I–"
"You're not in trouble, don't worry," Oobleck said. "Normally, I would go straight to teaching some good behaviors to proactively prevent further visits, but it appears your situation is—" He adjusted his glasses. "—quite complicated."
"So what're you all doin', then? It's a looong history that, frankly, should'a been looked into by the big bad board over at Alsius long ago."
"Which is why I'm considering starting an investigation of my own."
Oobleck's statement had stunned Ash. That's new... was this the first time anyone else other than students believed her? Maybe I'm reaching for conclusions here, but that might be the start of something important. Maybe, maybe not. For all we know, either Paisley catches wind of all this, or Dr. Oobleck here goes nowhere in his little investigation. All we can do now is to sit down and pray for something good.
"You're serious?" she asked.
"Yes," Oobleck said, "after all, this isn't the first time something like this has happened."
Ash let out a sigh of relief. Yeah, I don't blame her.
"All I'll say is to be a little careful going forward and to just let us know if you see anything fishy. There is also therapy, for which you may schedule appointments if things become too much." Ash and I nodded. "I can't guarantee positive results, but I do hope your future appointment is rather... therapeutic."
Oh, you bastard.
"As for you four," he said, looking at me, er, Paz and her friends, "care to explain how you got here?"
Paz took a deep breath. "We tried to chase after Emi and drag her away from the Emerald Forest before she could cross into it, but alas, she was already there."
"I," Emi proclaimed, "wanted a break from the monotony of Beacon, so I went into that forest. I thought it was gonna be a joyride from start to finish, and to be honest I'm sure it would've been, but. Talan and I got hurt." She paused; she wasn't sure if she was digging herself in further or not, and that was getting on her nerves, but eventually, she continued. "If I'd known it was going to hurt and get my teammates in trouble, I wouldn't have done it."
Dr. Oobleck nodded and wrote in his notebook again. "Let's start with what you described as the 'monotony of Beacon,'" he said. "Indeed, we hear complaints about the sameness of school weeks. I don't entirely blame them; from what I could tell, their average day would be to wake up, go to class, do their homework, squeeze in what little free time they have, go to sleep—rinse and repeat."
"Well my days have been more or less that, except I go to sleep between class and homework."
"So would your friends," Ash joked. You know what, I can't argue that. Taking up to four classes at once takes a lot of energy.
"I see." Oobleck took a drink from his coffee mug. "May I make a suggestion, Team PLET?"
"Do tell," Livio said.
He took a deep breath. "There's a rather extensive city," he began. "There's shops and restaurants, but there's also arcades, parks!" He briefly raised a finger with enthusiasm. "And there's places for all kinds of sports, a stadium, a community center, malls, a museum, and even roller and ice rinks for crying out loud!"
What was he saying towards the end again..? Wait, isn't that just—
"Vale, Vale."
"...Oh."
"And over at Beacon's own dorms, we have a fitness and sporting center if you prefer to go there. And of course, we have a large open area usually reserved for large events—the Vytal Festival for example!
"All I'm saying is, the next time you want to take a break from the usual 'all work and no play' business, there are plenty of opportunities that are both legal and safe." Oobleck took another si- "Got it?"
"We hear you loud and clear," Talan said.
"Excellent!" Oobleck enthusiastically pumped one of his fists. "So there you go, a wide range of options for fun and leisure!"
Well, it's settled. I can simply take the boat, train, or airship to Vale and then do whatever I feel like doing. Wait, but if I do that, then would I be well-rested enough for some activity? I mean, maybe not by much, but every little bit helps.
We'll see.
"Anything else you'd like to say before you are dismissed early?" Oobleck asked.
"No," Paz said.
"Good!" Oobleck happily smiled. "You are dismissed!"
Alright, I got off the bench and made my cheerful way out alongside Team PLET. And along the way, I snagged my trusty ol' briefcase.
So what do we got for today? Blow off steam, cry—no. That's not my jam. Besides, not everything was bad today; Oobleck saying he'll get his hands dirty so I won't have to deal with... her... anymore soon was great! I didn't even have to stay in that other dorm for that. Now, what else... Invite Paz to hang out, do some cool stuff together, volia? I mean, totally! I ought to not look like shit first and... yawn... sleepy, so tomorrow'll have to do.
Speaking of that Paz fella, well... she's been a lil' weird around me. Scratch that, Paz and co. have been a lil' weird around me.
I mean, they're not that girl, which, being honest, is a hard thing to achieve. In fact, I'd be more worried about you than me if you were to somehow achieve that so-called "goal." Anyways, I may be high, but sometimes they were just quiet. I can understand if it happened once, but thrice already? C'mon, don't tell me something's going on. Be a total shock if it was.
Then again, they'd ought to do worse than Paisley at this point.
So, whatever.
"Say, Paz," I said.
"Huh?" All of 'em said... hold on, all of 'em?
"She's talking to me," Paz said.
Over in that corner, Emi looked at her funny, but soon realized her mistake. "Ohhhh!" she exclaimed.
"Care to hang out at the cafeteria t'morrow, 1 PM?"
Paz scratched her chin and looked awkward to the side or whatevs, cat prolly got her tongue. Well, Paz? Aren't you gonna say it or not? Heh. Even when you're not doin' magic or evading Grimm like crazy, you're still kind of a dumbass like the rest of us. Ah, Ms. Paz, never change!
Never change.
"No thanks," she said.
See? It ain't the end of the world. Plus, I can always text them later or something, which, depending on the kind of people they are, may not be sayin' much, but I appreciate a change of minds.
"No? A'ight," I said with a shrug. "Well catch you 'round, then." I threw up a piece—peace sign—and headed off to Team PLET's dorm.
And along the way, I pulled out my Scroll and started texting...
[cafeteria 1 tmrrow?] asked Ash.
I stared at that message on Paz's phone. She's still offering me to come to the cafeteria? Well, she's persistent, for one thing. In fact, given her, she might even grant me a 30 minute grace period.
Hmmm... I dunno, I'm not sure if I can risk it. I mean, I just made a flub around her, and she gave me a suspicious look!
Actually? I don't think I've ever gotten far interacting with people with all of me around them. Farthest I've gotten was brief conversation, and those happened once every day at best. I was afraid that at some point or another, I was gonna screw something up back in that room, and hell, I even almost screwed up on the way out, but... that somehow didn't happen? How? Was it just me being afraid? Was Ash doubting herself? Whatever that was, well, the good news: now's my chance to break new ground!
So, here goes nothing.
[Sure.]
