Chapter 4

Class had been dismissed, and Friday night was descending upon Beacon Academy once again. Many excited students have wandered the halls, preparing for a night out or else looking for something a little more fun. Xavier, on the other hand, had gotten into a routine over time and as he lit up a cigarette in his usual spot by the front gates to the school, a few passing students would wave or say their hellos. People knew where he would be after class most days, and most days that was hardly an issue. Today, however, it seemed there was someone with a weight on their mind that would seek him out...

"Umm... Hey professor." Came the nervous voice of Jaune Arc, who would proceed to sit beside Xavier, and almost immediately would stare at the ground in silence.

There was a moment between stiff drags when Xavier decided to break the silence. "what can i do for you, jaune?"

The question was answered with a nervous laugh before Jaune awkwardly rubbed the back of his own neck. He would swallow hard before looking towards Xavier finally. "Sooo... Plan on asking anyone out to the dance next month?"

Xavier thought about it for a moment. There was some big festival being held in Vale this year and the school was having a dance as a part of it. In truth, he had never attended a dance before, though the obvious answer was the first one that came to mind. "i'm a teacher, jaune... so... maybe? i mean, maybe if i wouldn't lose my job over it," He shrugged... wait why was he interested in that?

"Great!" Jaune piped up immediately, seeming to only home in on the part he was looking for. "So like... What's the plan? Like uh... Method of attack, right?" And, there it is.

"..." Xavier looked over at him with a raised brow and a sly smile, he almost laughed, but decided against it to not kill any shred of confidence he had left. "oh i see... so, who is she?"

"Uhhhhhh..." He blushed, looking down at the ground. His answer only came above a whisper as he seemed intensely embarrassed. "It's um... W-Weiss. Schnee. Weiss Schnee. Y-yeah..."

That... was certainly a surprise. "...really? huh," He hadn't ever really talked to her but... There was something off there. For one thing, even from what little he knew of Weiss, she was beyond out of his league. Maybe talking him down would be best, but just to make sure... "...well jaune, any plan of attack is something to be carefully considered, the direct approach is often best, just to come out and ask"

"Uh huh... And if that didn't work?" Jaune gave a shy but sincere smile as if trying to coax Xavier.

Xavier simply shook his head a bit. He was a bit surprised that Jaune already tried, but then again... "let's start with how you asked..." Jaune paused momentarily before managing to find the words, an attempted invitation while beginning to serenade Weiss had been answered with a door being firmly slammed in his face. In truth, Xavier had to stop himself from laughing as he placed his hand over his mouth in an attempt to mask his amusement as a concerned expression. Fortunately it seemed to work. "...well, i'm not sure how better to try it, but... do me a favor and grab that guitar of yours, bring it out here,"

Jaune blinked in surprise. "...Why exactly?"

Xavier gave a slow, mischievous smile. "because i'm gonna teach you something,"

"...Something to pick up girls?" Jaune asked hesitantly.

Xavier shrugged. "depends on the type of girl, but it's better to have some chance than no chance, right?"

Jaune seemed to consider it for a moment before getting up and leaving in silence. Xavier decided to wait for the length of another cigarette before leaving, to make sure the kid had the time to actually make it to his dorm and back if he was serious. Fortunately, he seemed to be. Just as Xavier was getting ready to crush out his smoke, Jaune reappeared, guitar in hand. "S-sorry professor, I had to keep my head down around Cardin and his team."

Xavier nodded. "yeah... trust me when i say i want to make sure you can stand up to them, with or without a weapon,"

Jaune gave a small, dry chuckle as he sat the instrument on his lap and began to tune it. "I'm... working on the 'with' part of that. But... I would appreciate more lessons for the 'without'..."

Xavier listened as the guitar was tuned, a few notes played, soon turning into chords as Jaune adjusted the strings, after a few moments, Xavier placed his hand on the neck of the guitar and pulled it over, admittedly without much resistance from Jaune. The blond seemed more nervous than anything, but Xavier soon put those worries to rest as he finished tuning the instrument while playing a few practice chords of his own, far different from Jaune's warmup scale. "it's... been awhile since i really played, but there's one song in particular that's easy to learn and you should never forget..." After taking a deep breath, and being handed a pick by Jaune, he began to strum.

Jaune watched and listened intently, the melody was deceptively simple, his fingers moving only for a bit at a time as he changed between two main melodies. After a few minutes demonstrating, Xavier would return the instrument to its owner, who smiled. "Yeah... I think I can handle that."

Xavier nodded. "okay, then listen closely, i'll teach you the words that go with it, but there's a catch,"

Jaune sighed. "Of course there is..."

Xavier laughed a bit. "oh don't be like that, it's simple," Jaune seemed to look back to Xavier with curiosity. "you just have to start the song with these words: anyway, here's wonderwall"

It was a little over an hour before Jaune said his goodbyes and walked away with a smile, having gotten the basics down fairly quickly to where he could practice on his own. Xavier felt content with this lesson, after all, no one in Remnant would get the joke. But he had to admit to himself that Jaune had talent, maybe he could find his own guitar and help him practice more... However, as the sun had nearly set, a thought occurred. His mind lingered on the promise he had made to Yang, and so he felt himself reaching for his scroll... Just as it buzzed, someone had messaged him.

It's Blake. I'm going out tonight. Do you want to do something tomorrow?

Xavier was taken a bit aback... Why would she message him if she wasn't available tonight? Also, where did she get his number? He thought about it for a moment, though the latter question was obvious as Yang most likely gave it to her. Soon he gave his own reply.

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tonight not any good? :p

Her response came after a few moments of silence, and it really wasn't what he had hoped for.

Sorry, I promised Sun tonight...

Xavier felt his fist clench around his scroll before he consciously realized it. Perhaps this was a sign, but then again, Xavier Mathis wasn't someone to give up very easily. Right as he began to contemplate his next course of action, the bulkhead arrived. It wouldn't be the last one for the evening but this would be something unique. The first to step off of it was, in fact, Sun Wukong. The tall, blond and handsome monkey Faunus seemed to take the environment of Beacon in with curiosity more than anything, though if the mischievous smile on his face was any indication, there were certain intentions behind that curiosity... That changed, however, when he spotted Xavier.

"HEYO!" He called out towards the familiar face. Xavier gritted his teeth to force a smile.

"sun wukong, can't say i'm surprised..."

"Oh, yeah man. Feels great to be here in Vale, ahh, so cold right! I was tooooootally in Vacuo until today right? Just got here." He laughed a bit, nudging his shoulder with intent as he lied... And then Xavier could see why. The airship was filled to the brim with students from Shade academy in Vacuo, all getting off for the first night here.

"of course, i was hanging out with someone else awhile back who had a thing for weapons and women, could be anyone," He lit up and took a drag before looking over at the ship to see how many students were arriving. "so, here to chat with an unfamiliar face or is there something you actually needed?"

"Ahh, you know, just saw you here and decided to say hey. Just waitin' on- MY BOYS!" He stood up as a group of three other men came off the ship, chest bumping with each of them in turn. "Uh! Uh! Uh! What up, slowpokes?" He laughed.

The second off the ship, a tall, dark and handsome young man, didn’t seem very amused by Sun’s announcement. "You have no idea how hard it is to come up with THAT many excuses..."

The next one to speak was a slightly shorter young man dressed in a stylish red jacket with bits of tactical gear on top of his street clothes, it gave the impression to the inexperienced of a soldier or perhaps a survivalist, to Xavier he seemed like a rookie. Especially with his bright blue hair that was obviously combed up, and the golden goggles that rested on his forehead didn't seem to give any tactical advantage. His first suspicions were practically vindicated when the subject of this analysis opened his mouth. "We had to blame Scarlet for taking you into the closet against your will like NINE different times."

Aforementioned Scarlet, whose slightly long, side-parted hair matched his namesake, blushed just as harshly as that color. "I REALLY didn't like spending that much time in the closet..." From Xavier's immediate observation of his boot-cut skinny jeans, and overall foppish style, he didn't figure that 'in the closet' had been much of an issue for some time. He had to stifle a laugh, especially at Sun's immediate response.

"Awww, c'mon man! My rep!"

"...this is your team, sun?"

"Yup! Team SSSN repping Shade Academy in the Vytal Festival!" He laughed a bit. "You already got Scarlet's name, so this is Sage and Neptune. Oh, the three S thing gets confusing, I'm the leader, not him." He points to Sage, the tallest member of the group who spoke first in this whole interaction. Sage rolled his eyes in response.

Xavier seemed to look all of them over before closing his eyes briefly, feeling out their aura, and finally nodding in approval. "i couldn't beat you all at once, congratulations,"

Neptune tilted his head a bit, making a face that was somewhere between confused and offended. "Is... that supposed to be a compliment? Who's this guy?"

"I unno. Friend of Blakes?" Sun shrugged, and Xavier couldn't help but grin at the all too perfect opportunity for a formal introduction. He extended his hand to Sun.

"professor mathis, hand-to-hand combat instructor"

"Whaaaat?" Sun's eyes widened briefly as that sank in. He laughed a bit, raising his hand to turn that handshake into a high-five. "Dude, nice! On some hot-for-teacher stuff, I get it." He... You know what, it was hard to tell WHAT Sun got out of that revelation. And once again Xavier was on the back foot, gods he hated this guy.

"well, i keep your secret and vice versa... welcome to beacon gentlemen, enjoy your stay," Xavier would give a small bow before cutting his smoke break short. With students arriving so soon, there would be an announcement that the faculty would be present for. Xavier would guide a few wandering students towards the mess hall before approaching the gathered assembly of teachers. "wasn't expecting a boat load of kids so soon..." He remarked to no one in particular, though several of his colleagues seemed to agree with the sentiment.

"Professor Theodore only sought fit to inform me of a change in scheduling the day the bulkhead departed from Shade Academy." Ozpin closed his eyes and adjusted his glasses as he spoke. That cool indifference was perhaps the closest Xavier had seen to agitation from the old man. Glynda would cast a concerned glance over to him before clearing her throat.

"We will just have to accommodate. The secondary building can be ready tomorrow night." Ozpin nodded and turned his attention to Xavier.

"I have an assignment for you. However, tonight it may be best to make yourself scarce." Xavier smiled lightly, those were just the words he wanted to hear.

"mind if i hit the town then?"

Glynda would give a stern glare towards Xavier. "Provided you stay out of any trouble. Understand that the visiting students from Shade, and soon the other academies, have similar status to visiting dignitaries. Anything you do, whether right, wrong or indifferent, reflects on not only yourself, but Beacon and Vale as a whole." She explained very curtly, and Xavier took it in with a slow nod.

"i'll just... keep my head down then,"

Ozpin would pat Xavier on the back, a simple gesture, but it caused the Rogue of Space to shrink a bit in embarrassment, giving a nervous smile. The Headmaster would simply dismiss him by saying "See that you do."

Xavier would begin to leave as Ozpin gave his address to the assembled students, both of Beacon and Shade. As he made his way out into the crisp evening of an early Autumn, the sun was beginning to set. And while flying in a machine was something he didn't think he would ever get used to, the view of the city from up above made the nearly paralyzing fear almost worth it. Cities were such an unusual and fascinating environment to Xavier, so many people living their lives in such a relatively confined space. He couldn't help but smile once he took in the miles and miles of buildings, the busy streets full of people both in cars and on foot, the general restlessness that filled the air, it was all capped off with the vibrant hues of the setting sun... Aside from something else he could sense. When Xavier stepped onto the Bulkhead he could have sworn he was the only passenger aboard, but now he was feeling a familiar aura... And another one that was more vibrant. The two did little to hide one another, and though he had an idea of who it could be, he didn't want to give it away that he knew.

Upon touching down Xavier sighed with relief as he made his way to the landing pad. After briefly taking in his surroundings at the terminal, he would close his eyes, attempting once more to sense the auras of those around him. He would light up the half-finished cigarette from his earlier break as he began to walk... And the two presences he could sense were following behind him. They kept a decent distance of a handful of meters behind him, though it wasn't difficult to sense the bright aura from before. Even though it was behind him, obscuring his sight, he could feel its light and warmth. It was powerful. Upon reaching the busy city streets, Xavier began to search for a random street he could turn down, something to slowly isolate the presence coming up from behind... But once he had turned the corner, the presence would pass him by. Xavier followed the flow of the crowd for a moment before coming to a stop. The light was distant by now, more feint, but he could still make it out... It wasn't following him.

"and that means they only hitched a ride..." Xavier would crush out the butt of his smoke on the sidewalk, earning a glare from a passer by, but he frankly didn't care. Blake may have been adept at stealth but Sun was a dead giveaway, and despite his better instincts... He decided to follow them. The moments would pass by slowly as he attempted to navigate this crowd practically blindfolded while keeping pace enough with Sun's aura to not lose them... Fortunately that became far easier as they approached a far less populated area of the city. Xavier opened his eyes once more once he realized that the crowd he had shielded himself with had begun to disperse. As he took in his immediate surroundings, a few things stuck out: Namely that a warehouse district kept along vast shipping docks should be more populated, even at this time of the evening. He closed his eyes once more to sense that Blake and Sun were apparently scaling a building, and with a weary sigh he opened them once more and turned into a nearby alleyway.

"blake... what are you getting yourself into?" He muttered as he shifted his Spiral Overcoat. This particular trick was one he hadn't used in some time, to change the cost so that it reflected most incoming light, causing it to camouflage his body. He would rely on eyesight to get close to the nearest warehouse before scaling it. It was hardly the effortless show that Blake and Sun made it feel like as he struggled to find proper grip, much less footing, without breaking something. While Ozpin's words echoed in the back of his mind, he didn't believe that whatever was happening tonight was just going to be a date...

Xavier would run across a few rooftops, leaping between them and catching himself with brief antigravity fields to avoid making much noise, coming to a stop when he landed on the opposite side of the rooftop that Blake and Sun were on. While he could sense them clearly, spotting them was a bit more difficult. Blake seemed to have a similar trick up her sleeve, blanketing them both in a wrap that seemed to be made of aluminum, with the setting sun not giving much heat to the metal, it wouldn't be too unbearable to wear, and wouldn't look dissimilar to any other metal fixture one would spot on a rooftop like this.

"clever girl..." Xavier only barely muttered, though froze in place when he saw brief movement. It seemed her cat ears weren't just for show. Nevertheless, they would return to their stillness... And from there, the situation would become a waiting game...