It was a good thing Professor Ozpin's office was as large as it was. Adam was surprised at the wide space – or rather he might have been if the current circumstance was different. But for Weiss, Teams Rowan, Cardinal, and Juniper – along with Velvet and a visibly furious Coco Adel – had all been marched to the tower and taken upstairs. Once they arrived at the top, they were ordered to wait by the elevator doors. Glynda had also made it plain that they were to do so in silence.

Professor Goodwitch and the Headmaster were speaking quietly at his desk. Adam looked at his teammates. Ruby returned his glance and shrugged. She pointed at him and then gave him a thumbs up, which her sister mirrored. He wasn't sure if he agreed with the sentiment or not. They were here because of his rash actions, after all. He only hoped that the consequences wouldn't be too severe. Professor Ozpin's face gave no hints, but they were about to find out. He waved them all over, and they reluctantly shuffled forward.

He glanced at each of them in turn with a placid gaze. "So, would anyone care to explain what just transpired in the dining hall?" The office erupted into cacophony as everyone tried to speak at once. This carried on for a few moments, and then Ozpin held up a hand, causing everyone to fall silent. "Let's try that again. Miss Scarlatina, would you care to explain?" Adam closed his eyes and held his breath for a moment.

Velvet paled and said, "O-of course, Professor." Her accent was that of a Menagerie native, something Adam had only ever heard a few times before. "Cardin was trying to demonstrate how easy of a target my ears could be in a fight," she went on, pointing to her long ears. "Aura isn't much use against submission holds. Adam thought it might be useful for me to see how it looked from the outside and used Cardin as an example. I... I guess things got a little out of hand."

Adam was stunned. He looked at her, and she returned his glance with a silent plea. Coco scowled, but it only lasted an instant. He understood what Velvet was trying to do. She didn't want to make trouble; her 'explanation' was weak, but she'd already put it out there. He wished that she hadn't included him in the lie – he already had enough of his own – but he had involved himself, after all. He had no one else to blame for that.

Ozpin quirked an eyebrow when she finished. "I see," he said evenly. "Is this true, Mister Taurus?" he asked, his expression unchanged. Professor Goodwitch was stone faced, and she clearly didn't believe a word of it. All of the other students were looking at him with a variety of expressions, save for Team Cardinal, who all looked straight ahead, out the window.

"That's more or less right, sir," he hedged. In a way, it had been, even if the situation would have devolved into something more obvious without Professor Goodwitch and her timely arrival. He stopped himself from hitching a shoulder and continued. Half a truth was still a lie, however, so he opted to keep it simple. "I guess we did get a little carried away." Yang scoffed and muttered something under her breath, which caused the deputy headmistress' eyes to narrow.

Glynda opened her mouth to speak, and judging by how her brows were drawn together it was to call them out on the truth. She had raised her arm and Ozpin held up a hand to forestall her objections. "Very well. I think we can all understand Glynda's concern. In the future, it would be wiser to confine impromptu demonstrations to the training areas set aside for such things." When no one immediately responded, he asked directly. "Do I make myself clear?" Everyone agreed in some fashion or other; Adam simply inclined his head, relieved that the Headmaster had given them a pass. "Good, you are all dismissed." They all turned and moved as a group to the elevator. "Mister Winchester," Professor Ozpin called out, "please remain with your team for a moment."

They all crowded into the elevator. Ruby tried to lean back out to eavesdrop on the private meeting, but Yang dragged her back into the car by her hood. Her sister protested and sputtered, and Jaune slapped the button for the ground floor before Ruby could wriggle free. The elevator doors closed with a thud, and the car was silent for a few moments.

The soft hum and quiet breathing of the nine students was finally broken by Yang. "What the hell just happened?" Every head turned in her direction, and she looked at Velvet. "Why didn't you say something? We would have backed you up." Adam tried to shake his head subtly, but his partner wasn't having it. "Oh, don't you give me that, Adam Taurus! It's bad enough that you went along with her story." She jabbed a finger into his shoulder to emphasize her point. He winced more at her tone than the poke. "Cardin is a jackass, and so are his teammates – why did you cover for him, Velvet?"

The rabbit-eared Faunus' shoulders sagged, and she looked to her team leader for support. The flat look Coco was giving her over the rims of her sunglasses said she wasn't going to help. "Velvs, that's a fair question. I've tried to talk with you about this already, and all you've said is that it's not a big deal. Come on, hon, talk to us." Adam could tell that, even though her tone was one of a concerned friend, there was also a hard edge to it, as if her patience had finally given out.

Velvet drew in a deep breath and turned her face upward to look at the ceiling. "I've dealt with people like him my whole life. Getting adults involved never goes well." Yang started to object, but she was cut off before she'd barely drawn a breath. "Please let me finish." The blonde scowled and huffed, but crossed her and held her piece. "Yeah, he's a bully, him and his friends, but you see one and you've seen them all. Eventually he'll get tired of it." She turned to face Adam. "Thank you, for stepping in, and all of you, too. I'm sorry for the trouble."

"Hey, it's no trouble, honest," Ruby chimed in. "We got let off with a warning, and I'm sure we'd do it again, but…" she trailed off as all eyes turned to her. "It's the first day. What's it going to be like after a few weeks? Bullies don't just stop because they get caught once."

"She's right," Jaune said, "but so is Velvet. Getting the adults involved almost always makes things worse." He said it without looking at anyone; it sounded like the voice of experience. "He'll just try harder not to get caught from now on."

"There's only one way to deal with those jerks," Yang said, punching a fist into her open palm and grinding it, something Nora wholeheartedly agreed with. A direct approach held some appeal for Adam, so part of him wanted to agree with her. Unfortunately, his first attempt had been noticed by the faculty – he was also certain neither of them had believed Velvet's fabricated story.

"So we can have another visit to the Headmaster's office?" he asked. "Save it for combat class." The elevator came to a stop and the doors opened with a ring. They filed out into the lobby and spread out. Yang and Coco both looked displeased, and most of the others looked uncertain or neutral. Nora was the sole exception; she seemed eager to plan Cardin's untimely demise, or severe maiming, at least.

Coco straightened her shoulders, resolved to put any discussion off until later. "I'm sure most of us have classes to get to. We'll see you all tonight." Velvet looked at her askance, but didn't put a voice to her question. "Come on, Velvs, let's go." The pair left the building without another word. Adam watched them go with a sense of frustration. He had wanted to avoid trouble, and this whole mess seemed like a terrible way to go about it.

Ren pulled out his scroll to check the time. "We only have a few minutes before our own class starts," he said. They all moved as a group to follow Coco's lead and made their way to the botany class. While they walked, Yang fell into step beside Adam. She didn't say anything right away, but he could tell she was less than pleased with how things had turned out.

She surprised him a few moments later. "You're probably right," she said.

"Pardon?" he asked. He'd hoped to avoid discussion, but as he had already learned, Yang tended to be very direct. It was charming in its own way, but it would probably wear thin over time.

"I've never really had to deal with bullies before. Signal is kind of small, and most of the kids are just there to train." She took a few more steps in silence before she resumed. "Ruby has a point, though. He's not going to stop. What if Cardin tries something a little more aggressive? Outside of combat class."

Adam felt a little bad for misjudging his partner. She might be quick to react, but she had just demonstrated that she could also put some thought into things. "If he does, we'll deal with it then. Do you really think he'd be stupid enough to try something more overt?"

"I think he thinks he's smart enough not to get caught," she replied. "Especially now that he knows he's being watched. You made a bigger target of yourself, stepping in to help Velvet, you know." He gave her a wry grin and a shrug.

"Too late to do anything about it now," he said. He wouldn't be surprised if he'd shifted Winchester's focus onto himself. The possibility was annoying, but he could deal with it. He was better equipped to handle it than Velvet seemed to be, anyway. What a girl like her was doing at Beacon was beyond him. If she were a skilled fighter, then he wouldn't have needed to act.

They entered the building and found themselves surrounded by other students on the way to classes.

"I was kind of surprised, but it's good someone did it." She punched him in the arm hard enough to smart. "That doesn't mean you're off the hook for going along with her story, though."

He rubbed his shoulder ruefully, "And what do you propose as penance, oh partner mine?" Her eyes lit up at his comment. He gave her a disgusted look as they entered the classroom. "Don't you dare…"

"It's funny you mention penance," she said. He drew a long-suffering breath. "It would be fitting for you to write a wrong – you can take notes for me." The smile on her face was wide and wolfish. "Do you ink you could handle that for me?"

He looked forward with a straight face and let out the breath he'd been holding. "I suppose that's a fitting punishment." Pealing laughter erupted from Yang just as they entered the classroom. Other students already seated turned to look for the source of the laughter, but the chatter continued as they returned to their conversations. Adam spotted Weiss near the front, bent over her book. He tapped Yang on the shoulder and pointed to their oblivious teammate. "How much do you want to bet she won't give us grief for getting pulled into Ozpin's office?"

Yang shook her head and blew a raspberry. "No upside for me, there. We'd get better odds for Nora actually breaking Cardin's legs."

"We're taking bets?" Nora said, grinning from ear to ear. "I could even-" her sentence was cut off as Ren muffled her with his hand.

"Nora…" he admonished her. "I'm sure they were kidding." They struggled with one another and she started taking playful jabs at his ribs. Pyrrha herded her teammates into the row behind Weiss as Adam, Yang, and Ruby sidled in next to her.

Weiss looked up when Adam bumped into her. "Where have you all been?" She managed to sound both amused and annoyed. He dropped his books onto the counter with a thump and sat down next to her, while Yang dropped into the seat next to his.

"Oh, you know," Ruby began as she took the seat on the other side of her partner, "just getting into trouble on the first day." Adam palmed his face, and Weiss scoffed. "Hey, it's not my fault. Adam kind of started it."

Weiss' head whipped around to fix him with narrowed eyes. "'Kind of'?" she asked. He leaned forward to give Ruby his best scowl, and Yang leaned further forward to say something when Professor Peach walked in.

"Good afternoon, class. I hope you're all ready to learn about the great subject of botany!" She moved to the front of the class and set a stack of folders onto the long table at the front of the class. As her name suggested, her hair was a soft, pinkish color that was held up in a bun by an elaborate pin. She wore a form-fitting white lab coat that reached down to her thighs, which were further covered by tall, shiny black boots. The ensemble was completed by equally shiny black gloves that stretched halfway up past her elbows.

For as much as Adam didn't want to admit it, she was sure to have everyone's attention in a way that most of the other professors would not – rapt attention from the boys in the class, at least. He didn't know if that was a good thing or not, but he dismissed the thoughts with little effort. He was here to learn.

If she noticed that she was having an effect, she paid it no mind. "Alright, class, let's begin by opening to page seven in your books," she began. "I know some of you have had trouble finding copies. Try to share for now, and if you need your own, come see me after class." Adam opened his library copy to a chapter entitled, 'Genus and Species: A Field Guide to Identification.'

Adam left botany with a strong sense of relief. Professor Peach, at least, seemed intent on challenging her students. He leafed through the several pages of notes that he had made with disappointment. Yang had made good on her threat and had not written down one single word. More importantly, she had occasionally elbowed him and pointed at his notebook whenever she wanted him to write something down. The science of flora and its many uses was extensive, and he'd had difficulty keeping up. He was now glad that Professor Port hadn't given him extra work like he'd asked earlier that day.

His review was interrupted as Weiss spun him around by the shoulder. "Explain yourself," she demanded. He would have been irritated at her tone and grabbiness, but the heiress was forced to look up at him. The perturbed look on her face, along with the pointed finger of one hand and the tiny fist on her hip was almost comical. He managed to keep a straight face, and was about to reply when Yang butted in.

"It's not completely his fault, Weiss." She turned her head to spare a frown for his partner. "He threatened to pull off Cardin's ear." The look on her face changed from one of aggravation to that of shock. "While he had a fistful of said ear." Weiss leaned back, and her jaw dropped open as she looked back and forth between the two.

Adam gave Yang a pained look. "You're not helping, Xiao Long." There was a gleam in her eyes, and he knew right away this was the rest of his 'comeuppance'. He was sure she'd let him off the hook eventually, but she was having far too much fun at his expense at the moment. Salve for her bruised sense of justice, he supposed. He just hoped that she wouldn't get the Heiress whipped up too much. He might actually not be able to keep from laughing if it kept up for too long.

Weiss finally recovered enough to speak. "I'm not hearing how it wasn't his fault so far." She crossed her arms, waiting for an explanation. Adam's neck muscles twitched as he suppressed a laugh. "Well?"

"Jeeze, who died and made you the Ice Queen?" Yang grumbled. "Winchester was picking on Velvet-"

"And just who is that?" Weiss interrupted. Her foot had begun to tap impatiently.

Ruby leaned in between them all. "She's a rabbit Faunus," she whispered. "Can we please move this back to the dorm?" Adam looked around and noticed that while a crowd hadn't formed, the foot traffic had slowed as they took an interest in the little knot of contention that had formed in their midst.

"Right," he said. "We can talk about it there." He looked down at Weiss, who clearly wasn't thrilled in the slightest. He pointed toward the exit. "Please?" he asked. She growled quietly and snatched her things from Ruby's proffered hand and muttered under her breath. She then turned and stalked away, back and shoulders stiff. They followed behind her, albeit at a slower pace.

"Well that lasted all of five minutes," Yang murmured from his left. He sighed and shook his head. Was it going to be like this every day? That long swim back to the city was starting to sound better every minute. "Seriously though, what's her deal? It's not like we got suspended or anything."

Ruby took a turn to let out a sigh of her own. "She's still upset with me. Plus, I saw her talking to Port after we had another argument in the hallway." She shouldered open the door and held it open for them. "I guess she didn't like what he had to say." With everything that had gone on in the last couple of hours, Adam had forgotten about the predicament Ruby was forced to deal with.

"Have you got any ideas about how to handle that?" he asked. She might be a prodigy, but he could tell that she was struggling with the reality of her new role. He hoped the advice he had offered her would be enough to help her figure things out. Any more than that would probably keep her from learning a valuable lesson.

She looked up at him as they continued to follow some distance behind Weiss, who had started to outpace them. "I think so. She seemed upset that I wasn't taking Professor Port's class seriously, so I'm going to work on that. I'm not sure how to do that beyond making extra time to study, though." She frowned in consternation. "I make no promises about being able to stay awake for all of Port's stories, though."

"Ha! I don't think that's unfair, sis." Yang shook her head. "I doubt anyone – not even our high and mighty Ice Queen – can manage that feat all the time." Adam nodded in agreement as they drew up to the dormitory entrance.

Weiss had gone ahead without them, and had scooted the chair of her desk out to face the door. That was where they found her when they entered the room. "Would someone please explain to me what in the world is going on?" She waved her scroll at them in an accusatory gesture. "The school message board is buzzing about some fight that almost happened in the cafeteria today." Adam jerked back at that. The school had an online forum?

Yang had opened her scroll and fiddled with it for a moment. "Huh. Goodwitch locked the thread." The statement caused Weiss to look at her device in annoyance. Yang shrugged and put away her scroll. "Basically what I said before. Cardin was tormenting Velvet by tugging on one of her ears."

"And your first thought was to grab one of his ears and threaten to tear it off?" Pure disbelief dominated her face. "Do you have any idea what you've done?" She stared at him as though he were a complete fool. Okay, the novelty had officially worn off. He was about to retort when Ruby stepped forward.

"What's the big deal, Weiss?" Ruby asked. "It's not like we all got into a big fight or something."

Weiss shot up from her seat. "You have got to be joking. None of you realize what's happening around here?" When they all gave her dumbfounded and confused looks, she tossed her hands up in the air and started pacing. "Let me give you a little lesson in geopolitics. That idiot you just embarrassed? He belongs to a family with considerable influence in every kingdom except Vacuo."

"So what?" Yang said. "So his family is kind of a big deal. What does that have to do with us?"

Weiss stopped pacing and gave Yang a withering look. "You can't possibly be that dense."

"Watch it, Ice Queen," Yang growled. Weiss stiffened and started to step toward her, which actually caused Yang to laugh and crack her knuckles.

Ruby jumped between them waving her arms, "Alright, calm down everyone!" She whirled on her sister and pointed at her. "You stop goading Weiss. We've got enough problems without fighting among ourselves." Then she rounded on Weiss. "And you! Stop treating us like we're complete idiots!" Her intensity caught them all off guard. Then, because she was on a roll, she turned on Adam. "And you! Uh…" He quirked an eyebrow as she deflated a little. "Actually, you're fine, I guess." She grumbled and flopped down onto the floor. "You were saying, Weiss?"

Ruby's partner calmed herself with closed eyes and a couple of deep breaths before speaking again. "As I was saying, the Winchester family has serious political capital with the councils of the three kingdoms. Where do you think the money to run these schools comes from, faerie godmothers?"

"Oh," Adam said as he came to a sudden realization. Ozpin asking team Cardinal to stay behind made more sense now, and that didn't bode well. Or, it could be like he originally thought and they were given extra attention for causing trouble. It was hard to say for sure, especially where the Headmaster was concerned.

"Indeed," Weiss said. "If you're going to pick a fight with someone, at least know just who it is you're provoking." She sat in her chair again and smoothed her skirt. "I can ask around, but you've probably made a very bad enemy today." Adam couldn't be sure, but she almost sounded impressed. It was almost as if she subscribed to one of Blake's maxims: Judge a person by their enemies, because it would give you a sense of who they were. He wasn't sure how he felt to be admired by a Schnee, if that's what it even was.

"Well," he began, "there's not much we can do but wait and see what happens." He stepped over to his desk and pulled out the chair. "In the meantime, I have notes to copy, then supper, and our meeting with Coco." He sat down and flipped open his notebook. Yang brought a fresh one for him to write in and slapped him on the back genially."

"What meeting with whom?" Weiss asked.

A/N - Hey there! Welcome to the end of another chapter! I want to thank everyone for their kind reviews and patience as I get back into the swing of things. I'm pleased to say that I've had a couple of ideas for this story that weren't in the original plotting, and I think you will enjoy it. To my two guest reviewers: No no no, there will be no harem in this household! As far as teased pairings, I won't say much, save that it isn't necessarily a certain thing - just what I've imagined for the story up to this point. Apart from making a handful of plot points, I'm a discovery writer, so my tales are prone to change with the narrative as it develops. Anyway, thanks for the read - see you next time! :)

Oh! One quick note, the design concept for Professor Peach was kindly granted for me to use by RainshadowArtist - be sure to check her out on Deviantart!