Jaune was beginning to feel a little redundant in the conversation.

Mostly because he had next to no input in it.

"His Semblance has allowed him to access military secrets integral to the security of Atlas."

"Accidentally," said Dr. Oobleck.

"It doesn't matter whether he intended to or not. He is now in possession of classified information protected by Atlas law, and our treaties with Vale allow for the prosecution and extradition of individuals deemed to be suspects in crimes of a certain level, of which this one obviously applies."

"He's a child, James," said Miss Goodwitch. Jaune didn't much appreciate being called that, but he'd take it if it meant not being arrested.

"His age will be taken into account during sentencing."

"There will be no sentencing! I will not allow it!"

"You misunderstand your place in this, Glynda." Ironwood sounded angry. "Matters of law between Atlas and Vale are for the Councils to decide. Not a teacher from an academy. I'm here today speaking as a representative of the military and the Council of Atlas."

"Your undemocratically elected seats, yes," seethed the teacher. "I am aware of how your country's so-called election system works."

"You can insult it as much as you like but the law is the law. He has broken it. If you truly believe him innocent then you should be content to let him stand trial."

"And watch you parade him through a closed-doors military tribunal with no jury? Who would decide his guilt again? Oh yes, military judges – who owe their loyalty to you. How very convenient. I'm sure you wouldn't even allow witnesses for him since they would have to learn these so-called classified secrets of yours."

Ironwood bristled. "Are you implying I would run a corrupt court?"

"I'm not just implying it, James!"

"Calm. Calm." Ozpin held his hands up and out. "You are both taking this too far. We are allowing our emotions to run wild. This is all just an unfortunate misunderstanding, and I am sure we can solve the matter without coming to blows or having to ship one of our students off."

Jaune felt it was his chance to pipe up. "I don't even know what secrets I'm supposed to have learned. If it was the dream I saw last night then I didn't pick up anything from it."

"Lies!"

"Why would I lie? What do I have to gain? What would I even do with military secrets?"

"Also," said Dr. Oobleck, stepping in smoothly. "You were alerted to the nature of Mr. Arc's Semblance by Ozpin. One could certainly argue – in court if needs be – that you negligently allowed my student to access said secrets by staying here. One could even suggest this whole debacle as entrapment. You knew he lacked control of what dream he enters, and yet you kept yourself in Beacon instead of on your flagship where it couldn't have reached you."

"I was on my flagship," growled the man.

Oobleck paused. "It reached you all the way up there? I highly doubt that."

"That is immaterial-"

"It wasn't his dream," said Jaune. "I don't know whose it was, but it was strange. They were dreaming about computers. Nothing but that."

A cybernetic hand slammed down on the headmaster's desk, cracking off the corner. Ironwood was on his feet. "Silence! You are spilling military information, and under the Espionage Act, Section C, I place you under arre-"

"Espionage Act. Atlas. Section C." Dr. Oobleck tapped his chin. "Interesting law to quote. I do believe that is reserved for individuals who wilfully leak information on classified weapon systems. Specifically, weaponry and weapon-based technology relating to the military. Section A is vehicles, B is protective equipment and C is weaponry. Am I correct?"

"You are," said Ironwood, glaring at the man. "What of it?"

"Well, I just think it's interesting that you've all but confirmed that you have a classified military weapon here in Beacon." He glanced over at Ozpin with a sly smile. "Headmaster, can you confirm whether permission was granted for Atlas to station an unknown weapon here? I can't imagine our students' parents would be pleased with the decision."

Ozpin's hands were linked. "No such permission was sought, as I was, until now, ignorant of any apparent weapon held in my school." His eyes were on Ironwood. "Would you like to elucidate on just what this unknown weapon among the students is?"

Ironwood bristled. "A students' weapons are their own business."

"A good attempt at deflection," said Oobleck, "but it cannot be a weapon of one of the students. Those are all logged into their lockers and the system, and you certainly wouldn't be quite so rough on Mr. Arc if it was a weapon that a student might randomly use in a spar." He was smiling now. "I do believe you're withholding information from us, General. How very problematic. I dare say you might even be withholding information from the Council of Vale."

"That isn't relevant to this case."

"I think it is," continued Oobleck. Jaune had never thought the man this capable of picking someone apart. Dr. Oobleck always seemed like a teacher lost in his books and his subject, but there was an edge to him now. He was tearing Ironwood to pieces without even raising his voice. "After all, the only way Mr. Arc can be guilty of a crime is if you are also guilty of one. Isn't that right? It's a rather binary situation, I believe. Either you do have a weapon here that Mr. Arc discovered, in which case you are both guilty, or you do not have a weapon here. In which case you have mistakenly accused a student of something they cannot have done. Which is it?"

"Do you really think this will change anything?" asked Ironwood, bristling. "I am a general of Atlas, along with holding two seats on the Council. You cannot hope to accuse me of anything, let alone make it stick."

"But we could isolate all your students, search every one of them, and seize this weapon as a dangerous device smuggled into the school. We would also charge the one responsible. Why, we might even be able to accuse them of terrorism."

"You will find no such-"

"Penny Polendina."

The name meant nothing to Jaune, but it apparently meant a lot to General Ironwood because his jaw was hanging open.

"Oh, I'm sorry," said Dr. Oobleck insincerely. "Was that supposed to be a secret? If so, then you really ought to look into your operational security because I realised she wasn't human the first second she answered a question in my class."

Ironwood pointed. "He told you!"

"Mr. Arc was arrested by your men at breakfast and I ate in the staffroom with Peter and Tsune. You can ask them – and see on camera – that I never spoke to him today." Oobleck pointed. "Plus, he has no idea who the girl is. You can see it on his face. Tell us of this dream, Mr. Arc. Tell us what you saw."

Jaune recounted it quickly, before Ironwood could demand he not. "It was just a dream about electronics as far as I can tell. Maybe the person works with them or something? I never even saw their face, let alone heard a name."

"That changes nothing. And now fresh charges will have to be laid at Dr. Oobleck as well."

The teacher snorted, clearly not worried. "Good luck on that."

"I don't think you—"

"Enough." Ozpin spoke at last. "Mr. Arc, please return to your lessons. James, stay. We will be discussing the legal and political ramifications of your actions today, and, if needs be, I will personally speak to the Council. Bartholomew, please stay. I'd like to know more of this apparent weapon brought to Beacon when we are hosting the Vytal Tournament. I cannot begin to list the potential incidents that could have happened if such a weapon was unleashed on our students, or a team from another academy, and we didn't know anything about it."

"I will file for his extradition regardless," threatened the General.

"We cannot stop you. But be aware that I shall file for yours and Miss Polendina's immediate expulsion from Vale as well," said Dr. Oobleck. "And I will make sure information of that, and why, makes it to the newspapers as well. Don't worry, I won't spill any classified information. I'll just imply that Atlas attempted to cheat in the tournament with untested military equipment."

That was probably worse. Ironwood could lose his job over a scandal like that, especially if it turned out to be true, and Jaune had the feeling his being abducted by Atlas for leaking secrets would make it look true to anyone who dug into it. He didn't want to sit around and see how loud they got, however. He jumped up and was led into the elevator by Miss Goodwitch, who released a sigh.

"I will escort you back to class and attempt to clear up any rumours."

"Thank you, Miss Goodwitch. I... uh... I don't think it'll help any."

"Probably not." The older woman had her eyes closed. "It's rare to see Bartholomew so worked up about something, or so aggressive. It appears he's quite invested in you."

"He won't get in trouble because of me, will he?"

"Ordinarily, I'd say this is a very dangerous situation, but I've known that man a long time and I can tell you that he has the oddest way of coming out on top in most situations. He's always been rather knowledgeable as well. Strangely so. I swear the man is a lie detector, not to mention he seems to know everyone's secrets." An amused sound slipped past her lips. "I'd not normally bet on anyone against General Ironwood, but he might just pull something off. He's confident, if nothing else, and he isn't an idiot. I expect he's confident for a reason."

"That's good. I should thank you as well, shouldn't I? For sticking up for me both in the cafeteria and in there."

"There's no need. I will stand up for every and any student, no matter how poorly they perform in my class."

"..." Jaune slumped. "Was that last part necessary?"

"Yes. Train harder."

/-/

His team was on him the second he got to class. Team RWBY was on him a second later. Vanille five seconds later, fighting her way to the front and claiming his lap with a defiant and challenging glare at everyone else there.

Yang, the only one who ought to feel angry, cooed at how adorable it was.

No one else jumped him, but the absolute silence that reigned in the room made it clear they were listening in. Every single one of them. Even transfers, who didn't know his name, wanted to know why he'd been dragged out the cafeteria by two armed soldiers. That was the kind of gossip that spread fast, and curiosity hung thick in the air. Someone coughed, and at least ten people shushed them with angry hisses.

"How is this my life...?" Jaune groaned but kept his hands on Vanille's stomach where she'd dragged them around and set them. "Okay, I'm not allowed to say what happened—" He spoke in a stage whisper loud enough for most of the room to hear, "—but, in Ozpin's words, it was one big misunderstanding."

The audience found that boring.

"So, you won't be arrested again?" asked Nora.

Jaune winced.

"You won't be arrested again, right?" she repeated.

"It... uh... kinda depends."

"On what?"

"Whether or not the extradition request goes through."

And now the peanut gallery was interested again, whispering wildly to one another and fighting to get a look at him. Jaune shot Nora a flat look, and she laughed awkwardly. "Oops. Sorry. Uh. But what? Extradition for what?"

"I really can't say, and I mean that one very literally. It could get me arrested again!"

"In that case you need to invest in legal representation," said Weiss. "I will speak with my father."

"Uh. It's okay—"

"Jaune Arc." Her voice was clipped and sharp, much like her eyes. "We all know full well you can't afford a lawyer. I will speak with my father. You will accept my generosity. This matter is concluded. Am I understood?"

"Yes, Weiss! Whatever you say, Weiss!"

"Good."

Ruby giggled, and even Blake looked amused. Traitors, all of them.

"You sure your old man will be willing to help a friend of yours?" asked Yang. "Not saying I doubt you'll try, but I'm curious whether he'd be up for it."

"Normally, no, but he's been desperate for a way to discredit General Ironwood so he can get a seat on the Atlas Council, so I expect he'll be frothing at the mouth once he hears the story." She sighed. "It's all rather pathetic in my opinion, but it's already happening so I may as well take advantage of it. And Arc- And Jaune has been far less annoying of late. He is a friend." Weiss glossed over that quickly, as if embarrassed to admit it. "I would do the same for any of you. Don't read into it."

Vanille pointed at herself inquisitively.

"Not you. I don't even know who you are or what you're doing here." Vanille pointed down, and Weiss cupped her face. "Yes, I can see that you're sitting in his lap. I meant— oh, what's the point? Why am I even arguing with you? Let's move on from this."

"Onto what? Jaune being arrested is kind of the biggest news of the year."

"You guys set fire to the docks!" whined Jaune, pointing accusingly. "That's not a small thing."

"Eh." Yang waved her hand jokingly. "That's old news. No one cares about that anymore."

"Didn't you also ride a giant robot down a freeway?" asked Ren.

"Old. News."

"It was on the literal news as well. You caused tens of thousands in damage."

"Nah." Yang waved her hand. "Couldn't have been us."

"Must have been another Team RWBY," said Blake.

Jaune sighed. "You all suck."

/-/

Jaune had never seen armed soldiers in Vale before. It was enough to make him think he wasn't in Vale, except that he recognised some of the taller buildings. There were crowds of people, many of them distinct in ways that most dreams didn't provide. He could see faces, expressions, and hear individual voices. A man carried a crying girl who was black with soot, and two other people were supporting a man who was limping, his other leg torn off and wrapped with bloody bandages. It was a disaster scene, and people were doing their best to help people get out of it, even as soldiers and huntsmen held their ground, weapons bristling at what looked to be a... subway...?

The staircase down was packed with bullet holes and splatters of blood, and there were several huntsmen and huntresses making their way down into it, weapons held out before them and torches attached to their chests to shine downward. A loud voice rose up, speaking into a megaphone.

"All non-emergency personnel move away. I repeat, all non-emergency personnel move away!"

Police moved with riot shields to push the many hundreds of people back slowly, and it didn't look like they wanted to get past the police at all. They gave ground easily, none of them trying to get by, and a pair of ambulances quickly wheeled into the space created, the backs opening up and eight people jumping out pulling medical trolleys with them. They were covered in sweat, clearly exhausted, but they rushed to the many figures laid out on the ground and began working with the others there.

I've never seen a dream with such clear detail before. This is insane.

Luckily, no one in the dream saw him either. Police ran by him, emergency crews pushed trolleys through him, and no one asked why a random person was past the blockade. He didn't exist here, and it was that fact that made him think it okay to approach the tunnel. This wasn't real, so he wasn't interfering or breaking the law or making their work harder. Jaune reached the top of the steps as the team of huntsmen reached the bottom and fanned out. Above the entrance, a green sign with white text read, "Mountain Glenn".

He'd heard about that, but only distantly. As in, he knew of it but not much about it. The expansion attempt by Vale which failed some fifteen to twenty years ago. It had been a big deal at the time, and it was a big deal now. It was the reason the cities hadn't tried to expand since.

But no one in Beacon would have been old enough to be here as anything other than a baby.

Was this General Ironwood's dream?

"Great. He already hates my guts and now I jump into his dream. This'll go down well."

It was tempting to just hide up with the emergency responders and pretend he wasn't here, but Jaune found himself walking down the steps into the subway station anyway. It was quiet, and dark, with only a few lights flickering here and there. Shapes lay slumped against the walls.

Dead bodies, he realised, as he stepped in a pool of blood.

The Grimm hadn't made it this far yet, but he could imagine people fighting in the tunnel and being injured, and not being able to make it up the staircase before blood loss took them. There was gunfire down the tracks, in the direction a still train was facing. It caused the subway tunnel walls to light up orange at intervals, casting hideously long shadows of people and monsters back his way.

How frightening must it have been to be here? To be told to stand in a tunnel and plug the gap as citizens tried to flee Mountain Glenn, and as Grimm came with them, killing not only them but you as well? He couldn't imagine the courage it must have taken, and yet here they were. He liked to think he'd have stood with them if it happened in his time, but that felt like such an easy thing to say. There was no way of really knowing until a person was put in that situation.

Come the hour, come the man. I can only hope I could do as they do.

When he moved down the tunnel, he suddenly realised that things were becoming blurred. Lacking in detail. The fight seemed to stretch an infinite distance in front of him, as if he might walk and walk and walk and never reach it. He stopped, looked back, and realised the train was still just behind him despite his having covered quite a bit of ground.

"I guess the dreamer isn't that way." He turned back, away from the fighting. "Did they lose their nerve? Is that what happened?"

He could understand having nightmares about that, but they must have been down here or they wouldn't be able to see all this. It was just as likely they'd been injured, and that they were remembering that moment where they couldn't help their friends. A coward would have gone back up the stairs to the surface and run away.

Jumping down onto the tracks and having a horrible image of the train suddenly starting and rushing into him, Jaune moved back down the other way, away from the fighting. There were signs of people here and there, not bodies thankfully, but spent ammunition, equipment and the occasional discarded weapon laying just off the tracks. He came to the train and walked down the side of it, between it and the wall. There was only one track and one train. Maybe Vale had planned to add more once they knew Mountain Glenn was a success. Maybe if they had added more at first, they could have evacuated more people.

It was easy for him to say that with the benefit of hindsight.

"Sir, I'm planting the device now. Further orders requested."

The voice had come from ahead and to the side, up on the train of all places. He couldn't see anyone from his current angle, but it was the work of just a push of aura to float up and step atop the train's roof. Idly, he wished he had that kind of power in real life, because being able to fly would be amazing, he imagined he looked pretty cool touching down atop the train with his hands in his pockets like he didn't have a care in the world.

There, ahead of him, a dark figure was knelt by an open hatch, with a briefcase of some kind open in front of him. He had his head down, his hands inside the case, but he was speaking into a device of some kind. "Understood, sir. I will commence the—"

That was when Jaune recognised his green hair and the voice.

"Doctor Oobleck!?"

The man tensed and looked up. "I've been discovered. I—" He, too, paused. "You— Mr. Arc? Jaune Arc? What are—" He looked around, his eyes widening as he suddenly realised his odd location. "This is... a dream. My nightmare. Ahah. Of course, it would be this."

Doctor Oobleck stood, and he didn't look much like a doctor or a teacher at that moment. He was young, maybe only eighteen, with a tight dark-grey jacket strapped tight with pockets across his front, and baggy trousers that made him look like a soldier. He even had a gun slung over his back, and his hair was slicked back and cut short, almost like Cardin's. He wasn't even wearing glasses.

"One moment, please." He turned and picked up the device he'd been working on, grunted, and hurled it away into the station. He then touched a finger to his ear and pulled out a small silver bud. "Sir, this is Bartholomew Oobleck. I am disobeying orders. Fuck you. Have a good day." He then crushed it in his hand and smiled. "Ahhh, that was cathartic. I'll have to thank you for letting me do what I dearly wish I could have on the day."

"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to invade your dream."

"It's fine, Mr. Arc. It's fine." Oobleck looked even a little pleased, laughing as he shook the apology off. "If you recall, I invited you to enter my dreams before we knew your Semblance was hitting out randomly. We'll just take this as a late arrival. Besides, you've spared me the unpleasant memories. I'm grateful for that if nothing else." He spread his arms. "Welcome to the fall of Mountain Glenn. Not quite like the history books make it out to be, is it?"

"They made it sound a lot more heroic..."

"They would. History is written by the victor, and those in charge now have a selfish interest in making sure those pesky historians don't make it sound like they were bad leaders. Everyone wants to be remembered as a great figure. You can't trust most of what is written down, unfortunately." Oobleck pointed to the tunnels. "From here, this train would have been initialised, sending it forward with high explosives planted atop it. It would be said, in official words, that a brave huntsman chose to detonate the tunnel to save the city of Vale. The truth would be far different."

Jaune could piece it together. "You planted the bomb that closed the tunnel."

Oobleck smiled sadly. "I did. I was told that everyone there would be evacuated beforehand, and that I would be doing a great thing to protect the city. I didn't know..." He trailed off, then shook his head. "And I agonised over that for years before coming to the conclusion that I was as much a victim as anyone else. I planted the bomb, yes, but it was not me who started the train, and I would have never done such a thing if I'd known it would be thrown at my own teammates."

Good lord. This wasn't just a nightmare – this was a trauma. This was... It was probably PTSD, wasn't it? Oobleck wasn't saying it, and Jaune had a feeling he wouldn't, but this would explain why everything up on the surface was remembered with such sickening detail. This wasn't some memory in his head that had faded and become blurred in time. This was a scene repeated over and over, never once losing focus, and with not a single detail forgotten. Jaune didn't understand how the man could continue smiling.

"Did your team... make it out?"

"No. One lived, and he has never spoken to me since. He's a rather troublesome figure who hates the city for what it did. Not that it isn't understandable. But, that's not what we're here for. And don't look so surprised. Every teacher at Beacon was a serving huntsman or huntress before applying there. What, did you expect I went into the field in a shirt and tie?"

"It's just a surprise to see you so young."

"Don't be surprised if you jump into Peter's and lose your mind at seeing the kind of man who'd featured topless on the front of a fitness magazine. There's a lot of muscle under those layers, and he was a heartthrob in his youth. I must say it's a surprise to be this young again as well, though, in all truth, I can't really feel this imaginary body, so I'm not getting the benefits of it." He bounced on his heels. "I feel weightless but I can still move. Or am I imagining myself move? It's all rather fascinating. You know, people have been trying to master lucid dreaming for hundreds of years. You could be a real breakthrough in that kind of research."

"Uh." Jaune wasn't sure what to say. This was the first time someone had been cognisant of him in a dream. Cinder had figured it out after, likely after thinking about it while awake, but Oobleck was the first to understand it during the dream. "I guess? Is that something you want to test?"

"May I? Hm. Well, let's see if I can summon an old friend."

He closed his eyes and concentrated.

A woman appeared, bloody and broken. Her skull had been caved in, one eye was missing, and blood ran down her open mouth and across a chest torn open. "You killed me, Bart!" she shrieked. "You killed me! I loved you and you killed—"

She vanished, waved away by Jaune the second Oobleck looked like he might break into a million pieces. The man, in the body of a younger version of himself, trembled for a moment, and then laughed. It was a bitter sound.

"O—Of course," he stammered. "This is still a nightmare even if I'm lucid. I really ought to have thought of that. Of course, my mind would dredge up the worst image of her possible and assail me with the accusations I levied upon myself. Worry not, I'm okay. It was an unwelcome surprise but nothing I haven't had years to come to grips with." He reached up to adjust his glasses, realised they weren't there, then lowered his hand uselessly. "I really ought to know better than to play around with something I don't understand."

"I'm sorry."

"Not your fault. It's not your fault." Oobleck sighed. "Well, I suppose we can talk privately here if nothing else. I'll start by saying you needn't worry about General Ironwood. By now, you can probably tell I wasn't always just a teacher. I have a lot of very powerful connections, some of whom owe me rather large favours, and others who would do anything to not have me reveal their secrets."

"That's kind of ominous, sir."

"We're standing atop a train I set with explosives to detonate the tunnels to Mountain Glenn. Believe me, those who gave out those orders don't want them being unveiled. They'll gladly step on the Council to make sure any extradition request goes nowhere. If Ironwood even tries. The man was posturing and blustering, hoping to cow everyone into giving up without a fight. You'd be surprised how many people will do that, and not even bother following through."

"Even a general...?"

"His position simply means he has more responsibilities to deal with. Your indiscretion is but one of a million other things demanding his attention, and you're not going anywhere or easily dealt with. He'll delay it, and by that point it'll be forgotten. And, if not, I'll simply make it clear how unlikely it is for him to ever push the case through. It's the Vytal Festival. Vale isn't going to entertain a court case that could lead to a scandal." He waved his hand. "Trust me, the matter is in hand. You should focus on your training – both in using your semblance and for the tournament."

"Not that I don't appreciate all this but... why me...? Why go this far for me...?"

Oobleck simply smiled. "I don't know."

"Seriously...?"

"I have suspicions, Mr. Arc, but that's all they are. Perhaps I am defending you so staunchly because I wish to make up for having failed people in the past. Perhaps it is because you trusted me and I do not wish to let you down. Perhaps it is my interest in your Semblance that makes me not want to see you go. Or, perhaps, it is simply the right thing to do. Glynda defended you quite heatedly as well. We are defensive of our students." He shrugged. "It could be any of those and a thousand other things. People are too complicated for you to narrow justifications down to a single thing."

That was something he'd started to learn. He'd always thought Yang, Ruby and Weiss were fairly simple. Ren, Pyrrha, and Nora, too. Not Blake, obviously, because that girl was COMPLICATED in ways he didn't want to get involved in, but the rest of them had felt comfortably known to him. He'd thought he could describe them to anyone and get them pretty much down.

But that hadn't been true. He'd learned more since unlocking his semblance than he ever had before, and there was a lot of it that he didn't believe he had the right to know. Yang's fears, Ruby's inadequacy, Weiss' trust issues, Pyrrha's feelings for him, Nora's night terrors and Ren's struggles. Hell, he'd learned more about Blake too, despite not knowing what to think of her dreams of hanging her friends off meat hooks or being attacked and murdered by said friends.

Frankly, the less he poked into that the better.

But people were complicated. He'd known that, intellectually, but he'd never realised just how deeply that went, and just how much power he now had. Power over their secrets, over Oobleck's past, and even over the final things Amber would see before her death.

It was too much.

"I want to control this," he said, staring at the other man. "Help me, please. I'm sick and tired of forcing my way into people's heads and rummaging around in places where I'm not invited. I don't want to do this to people I respect."

"Not even if it helps them?"

"I'd do that," he said, "but with permission. I'm not asking or getting that right now."

"That's fair. Very fair. Well, Mr. Arc, we shall have to begin training on that, won't we? I want you to try and access my dreams again another night. If you can, then we shall practice with them within my mind."

"Thank you," said Jaune. "Thank you."

"Not a problem. Now, if I may, I'd rather appreciate it if we weren't talking at the scene of my most poignant trauma. I don't suppose you mind doing away with that?"

The world shifted with but a flash of aura, and suddenly they were in a clear meadow. Though Oobleck didn't know it, the meadow was one he'd taken from Amber's dreams. It was where they'd made camp, and eaten and chatted together deep into the night, during one of his irregular jaunts in her coma-induced dreams.

"That's better," said Oobleck. "Now, let's talk about how auras and Semblances interact..."