First Lecture of the Year

[Professor W B Copperfield]

As the bell rang signaling that all students should be in their seats and they weren't, a man in a long brown duster coat looked up from his desk. On it looked like a few curved pieces of metal and a soldering kit, with a vial of fire dust off to the side.

He stood up from his desk and set down his pair of goggles and gloves, moving to the chalkboard. The white chalk in his hands clacked against the blackboard as he wrote out in large letters: 'MR. WHITEHORSE BLACKSTONE COPPERFIELD'. Then he drew a box around "Mr." And the letter "C". Turning around to the students who were finally settling in their seats, he rubbed the chalk powder between his index finger and thumb. He looked at it, puzzled, and would do so until the majority of the students noticed. In a rupture of orange fire, the chalk powder burst into flames that disappeared as quickly as it started.

Mr. C did not look impressed as he continued to look at his hand.

"Dust!" He announced to the class. "It's everywhere. And I don't mean what's on my desk and in your fancy Hunstmen tools, I mean the literal stuff. This room was recently opened for me to teach in. I just got the last boards off of the windows and have yet to dust the place. Found a skeleton in the closet! It was so disgusting and right on top of some of your desks that I had no choice but to burn it to ash."

He cleared his throat. "Interesting thing about the dry dust that makes you cough: If you get enough of it in the right ratio in the air, add a little spark to it-" He held up a thumb in the air and a small flame, the size of a candle, sparked to life on the tip of his finger. His eyes scanned the room, finding those who understood where he was going.

He put the fire out and his hand fell to his side. "But you didn't come here for me to talk about dust with a lowercase, you wanted the uppercase 'D'." He paused for the chuckles, to which he quirked an eyebrow.

A hand shot up. "Yes?"

"This room belonged to Mr. Mustard before you, it didn't just open." The student said.

Mr. C pursed his lips and his eyebrows raised. "Mustard? Wore a yellow bowtie?" He asked.

The student nodded.

Mr. C pointed a finger over his shoulder towards a closet. "Oh, then that skeleton must've been..." he paused for a second before clearing his throat and turned to the blackboard. "Moving on!" He announced hastily.

"Wait!" Protested another student. "Are you saying you burned Mr. Mustard's skeleton? That he's dead?!"

"No no no!" Mr. C turned around, still holding the chalk. "That was all a joke, I swear. I did not burn his skeleton." He paused for dramatic effect. "It's still in there."

There was a general excitement in the room, everyone talking and whispering. "Here, so I'm not fired on grounds of starting rumors," Mr. C started for the closet, "I'll show you." There was a real clamor from the students now, some of them shouting for him to stop.

Mr. C opened the closet door and went inside, rummaging around for a second before pulling out a life-size model skeleton with a yellow bow-tie around Its neck. It was obviously fake, but with the context and Mr. C actually retrieving it, two girls in the corner screamed.

Mr. C raised an eyebrow at everyone and pulled out a metal stand on wheels to hang the skeleton. "Technically," he said, "Mr. Mustard doesn't work here anymore. Therefore, it is not against school policy to make facsimiles and or portrails of him that may be interpreted as joking manners or offensive." He tweaked the yellow bow-tie to make sure it was just right. "Just a rule that doesn't include past faculty. They'll probably fix that now that I'm here."

"I'm your teacher now, and if you can't read my name from the chalkboard then I shouldn't help you. Buuuuut that's literally my job description and so I will. Call me Mr. C. Any try for a full name will just be too long and so Mr. C will have to suffice. Shall we get started?"

[Azoireda Ikteris]

Az tried to get to class on time, she really did. It was the first lecture on Dust of the semester, after all - she didn't need to get on the bad side of yet another professor (she'd blown her chance of getting on the good side of the one who wasn't a stickler for punctuality by arriving five minutes from the end of class).

She could only stare in shock as a man who was presumably her professor produced a skeleton from the closet the moment she opened the door. Her confusion only deepened when he explained that the (on closer inspection, clearly fake) skeleton was an... homage? to a past professor.

Ohhhhkayyy, she thought, shaking her head. Lucky for her, there was an open seat two rows back near the door, and she quietly sat before rummaging in her backpack for a notebook.

[Asterion Khryseos]

Aster was hardly the scholarly type, as friends, family, and teachers would no doubt attest. He was smart enough to get into Beacon, of course, and was by no means stupid - but it was clear that, past the veil of the polite smile and occasional nods, he was only feigning paying attention, and it was only the bare minimum that had set in. The teacher's name, the teacher that had been there previously, and that was about it. However, he found himself snapping out of whatever daydream he'd engrossed himself in when the sight of a skeleton being dragged out was shown to the entire class.

He quickly realised that it could only have been a fake one - or that the teacher was a madman that had somehow managed to hold it together through the vetting process - and sat up straighter. The display had caught his attention, if nothing else, and the rest of what 'Mr. C' had to say actually managed to sink in, rather than drift leisurely through one ear and out of the other. Once he'd snapped to attention, his posture straightening and the glazed look in his eyes fading away, Aster started watching intently. He hoped that his attention didn't slip again, or that it at least slipped when nobody was looking.

That second option quickly turned out to be out of the question when someone arrived and sat themselves down near him. While it wasn't someone he recalled having seen before, he offered a quick nod as a greeting, flashed her a friendly smile, and turned his attention back between his notebook and the teacher. Whether he'd jotted down anything useful was nigh-impossible to glean at a glance, however, as half of what he wrote was illegible chickenscratch, and without context, the other half was just a hodgepodge of words that didn't even seem related to the lesson.

[Al Ciendra]

No, no. no, no!
Al was already running late and literally running too, even though an angry hall monitor was shouting at her about not running in the halls, but even though Al cloud clearly hear him she ignored it and kept running, maybe she could make it to class in time ?!
The answer was no.
Al sighed, as she was standing in front of the closed classroom door, she wasn't super out of breath, but she was panting a little and took a second to gather herself before she timidly swung open the doors and peeked inside and...
Wow.
Uhm.

She saw a man, whose eye bags she could see from the door, presenting a skeleton as her old professor and there was a long name written on the whiteboard, so this was her replacement teacher.
Al just shook her masked head, straightened her blouse and skirt, and then made her way into the classroom.
"Sorry Professor Copperfield, for being late, the names Al Ciendra, I couldn't find my scroll."
She lied, she was just too busy training a little between classes and had forgotten about this class.
Regardless of his reply, she looked for a seat and spotted Asterion in the back row, smiling under her mask she headed to the back row and greeted him in her usual casual manner.
"Heya, Aster, hope you don't mind."
She put her bag to the side and gave him a short wave before sitting next to him.
"New Professor is kinda...strange, isn't he ?"
She whispered to him, obviously trying her best to not offend the professor.

[Professor W B Copperfield]

Copperfield noticed the late student amidst his explaination of the skeleton. Curly brown hair, bouncy, late? Not too much so, only a minute or two. If his memory was correct from that morning, that was miss Ikter... something. Semblance made her late to everything. He expected her to show up much later, so coming in before he really started class was a pleasant surprise.

The next to show up late however had no such real excuse. He had paused in his talking while he dug something out of a drawer in his desk, allowing Al Ciendra to introduce herself to the whole class as being late. He shrugged and kept what he had pulled out behind his back. He stepped away from the hanging skeleton, ignoring it.

"As it is the first class of the semester, most teachers are just talking about their syllabus and grading scales and all that stuff. But I'm not like that. We're going to be going over Dust and it's relationship to you in this class. I understand if your late the first class of the semester, there's a lot of stuff happening and it's all new and you had to find the room. I get it. In the future you might want to be on time. Not because I'll start deducting points or anything. I honestly couldn't care less about your grades. What I care about is you being able to keep yourself and others alive while out in the field. That's why I'm here. That's why I'm teaching this class. Your participation in this class reflects your willingness to have the smarts to use the tools that will be available to you post-graduation. You want to get killed when you could have stayed alive? You can sleep in. You want to save people? Make sure to be here."

From behind his back Copperfield produced what looked like a tuna can that rattled with something mettalic and one larger thing clunking inside. He carefully placed it on his desk. "I'll take any guess as to what may be inside this can, and what it's purpose might be."

[Azoireda Ikteris]

She wasn't the latest arrival to class. Given her Semblance, that was incredible, and Az couldn't help but smile and relax as two other students slipped in after her. Not that she'd normally be one to take pleasure in others' lateness, given her own perpetual state of being behind, but it was nice to know that being late for class was, at least on the first day, a normal problem.

The professor, Mr. C as he called himself, made a comment about grades not being important, and Az found herself perplexed. As a student, she wanted to agree that grades shouldn't be the most important part of a class, but as a student she also knew that without grades it was difficult to know if she'd actually learned what the professor had intended to teach. When Mr. C mentioned the difference between dying and saving people was coming to class, though, she realized that it seemed that all he wanted to teach was the things she'd need to know in order to stay alive. Which was more than she could say for some of her other professors.

The can clearly had something made of metal in it, but it also contained something that went 'clunk' rather than 'clank'. Given that this was a Dust class, it wasn't too difficult to figure out what that something was, but Az opted for a different option. Raising her hand halfway in a gesture of 'I'm gonna guess', she said, "I'm guessing that's... not your lunch?"

[Asterion Khryseos]

On being greeted by Al, Aster raised his hand back, nodding his approval and turning his attention back towards the front of the room. He still kept an ear out for anything she said, but his focus was ostensibly on the lesson, rather than her. The skeleton had more or less seen to that. He did, however, spare her a whisper back before he launched into his lecture proper.
"You think he's got anyone else hidden back there?" Aster asked, obviously just joking, but perhaps a little concerned.

Mr C not being overly concerned with grades was something of a relief - if slightly disconcerting, given how other teachers treated them. What truly got Aster's attention was the mention of smarts, and of how they'd keep a team alive in the heat of battle. That was what he really wanted to hear, and what he figured he'd actually excel at, rather than reciting dates from some moth-eaten textbook. Aster leaned forward a little, pen gripped tighter in his hand as he listened intently, hoping to catch some nugget of wisdom, some revelation that'd shed light on how best to cleave a Grimm in two and keep a team from being slaughtered.

His focus shifted towards the metallic... Well, whatever it was. It didn't seem like anything he was familiar with from where he was sitting, but from the sounds of it, it was likely something metallic. An explosive of some kind? No, that would be too dangerous for the first day. Another, smaller, can? No, that wouldn't even make sense. Trying to figure it out, Aster concentrated, his expression shifting quite visibly when his brow furrowed towards the tuna tin-like item. Eventually, he raised his hand a little, though didn't bother to tear his gaze off of the tin, as if staring at it hard enough would allow him to see through it.
"Is it a bullet?" He asked. He might have offered as wry an answer as his classmate on any other day, but it was clear that he was thinking too hard to dedicate any brain cells to a second train of thought.

[Al Ciendra]

"I would be shocked if he didn't!"
She replied, still staring at the man in front of the class, yet her gaze shifted to the closet as she giggled to herself and then whispered to Aster again.
"Wanna sneak in after class and check ?"
Typical of her, the loony wolf's first idea upon entering a new class, with a new professor, was to mess with him and spread more chaos.

Well, hearing that he was not gonna take grades seriously was a big relief and kind of made her regret that idea she just mentioned to Aster, but her curiosity and drive for chaos was a bit too strong for her to back down now.
Now using her head during a fight was hard, but she did agree that it was a good idea for her to practice this aspect of a battle exactly because she was bad at it, perhaps this professor could turn her into a master tactician ? She doubted it, but she would take note to pay attention during his classes...and not come late.

Al's ears perked up as she heard the thing inside the tuna can, oh a listening test, she was good at those, well at least compared to humans.
Metallic, something else in it, wait, that sizzeling ?
"Is that's a grenade ?!"
She asked, startled as she got up, with how strange this professor had been, she halfway expected him to throw the thing right at them.

[Professor W B Copperfield]

"Nope, not a bullet! Though it could make some." He waited for another answer that came by the way of Al, a Wolf Faunus girl that sat next to the Bull Faunus, Aster, who had asked the question. He blinked and paused, only because he wasn't expecting someone to actually get it. Then Azoireda half-rose her hand and guessed. Right, the girl's Semblance made her late to everything, even answering questions. This was going to be an interesting class.

"Well, both correct. It's certainly not my lunch, and a grenade is the closest you could call this thing." He tapped the lid of the tuna can before opening it, pulling out a reddish-orange cracked Dust Crystal. It was hot, but by rolling it between his fingers it didn't burn, and it was cooling off. "What was inside of this is simple. A Combustion Dust crystal, and a few thumbtacks and nails." He shook the can side to side while tipping it so the class could see, the metal bits rattling inside. "If I was to put this back together and throw it across the room, the sharp metal points would continue to agitate the already cracked crystal inside until it exploded. The explosion would send metal shrapnel everywhere. And I'd probably be fired. Though the staff here at Beacon seem pretty lenient with things..."

He cleared his throat and crossed his arms. "So yeah, it's an improvised grenade. Fairly simple and crude, nothing like my other gadgets and gear but something I have made on occasions when all I had was a shack, A blizzard outside with Grimm, and a few hours before they found me. Surrounded by old farming equipment, fishing tackle and some old Dust that used to power an old machine, I went from having been Aura-drained and defenseless to having armed myself."

"There will come a time in your career when you are in a similar strait. Just a few pieces of junk and some Dust. If you want to get out of that alive and save any civilians that may be relying on you, you need to know how to exploit the basics of Dust application. What makes them tick. And tick. tick. tick. Boom." He spread out his fingers as he said the last word. "So that's what this course is going to be about. We'll start off easy, making something like this tuna can, learning how to be safe with it, and we'll continue going higher until you can look at a machine and know how it works, and how you can make it work for you. There will be a final for this class, and it's simply to make some Dust contraption. Make a hoverboard, a bomb, a car, anything."

"Any questions so far? And I will allow you time for your Semblance, Ms. Ikteris"

[Azoireda Ikteris]

She was going to learn how to build grenades? As a frosh? Niiiiiice. Maybe now she could save a few lien on supplies.

"Just call me Az, it'll save time," she said with a wink when Mr. C mentioned her Semblance, before silently debating whether or not she WANTED extra time allowed for her Semblance. On one hand, it would be superficially helpful, especially in a classroom setting. On the other hand, she needed to get used to dealing with the effects of her Semblance in real-world settings, because she could hardly expect everyone she met to afford her the same courtesy, especially when they didn't know what her Semblance was - and she certainly wasn't about to just up and tell anyone she'd just met. Speaking of which, hopefully none of the other students got too curious about her Semblance following the professor's comment - she'd been embarrassed enough explaining it to her roommate when she'd first moved into the apartment she had stayed in prior to coming to Beacon.

Al, Aster, and Azoireda, huh? Lots of A names in this class.

[Asterion Khryseos]

Though he didn't reply verbally - unwilling to risk drawing the ire of the teacher while they were all focussing on what could be in that tuna tin - Aster still flashed Al a thumbs-up. Silent though he was, there was no mistaking the fact that the other half of the chaotic pair was on board with breaking into his storage closet and seeing if there were any other corpses stashed back there. The reveal of what was actually in the tin only made Aster more curious about what it was that was in the back of the classroom - though knowing that the teacher could just casually bring out an explosive like that made him very slightly more wary.

So, that was to be the way of things. Learning how to cobble together makeshift contraptions to help out in a pinch. At least it was something he had some experience in - Chimera was less of a weapon, and more a few materials that'd been laying around the village that he'd somehow managed to turn into a functioning weapon. How he was supposed to pull off a stroke of luck like that a second time, however, he wasn't entirely certain. He wasn't the sharpest knife in the pack at the best of times, and he wasn't certain he'd fare much better with improvised explosives. Still, he'd try. It'd hardly do to just give up on the spot.

It seemed he didn't have any questions regarding the subject, instead wanting to focus more on listening to the topic at hand - and it showed. His gaze was locked solely on his teacher, and his pen was gripped tight above the notepad. Aster's gaze would drift towards the makeshift explosive occasionally, however, and from the looks of things, it seemed like the sight of it was enough to set some cogs in motion.

[Al Ciendra]

Al pumped her fist as she saw his agreement, well, it was basically a given that he'd agree to her flawless plan!
She was also very curious to see what else, this already very memorable professor, had in store and storage for them, it was bound to be interesting.

Al smiled under her mask, her chest visibly swelled with pride, of course she would get it, his contraption was just too loud for her to not hear it.
But, she settled back down as Mr C kept explaining what he was doing here and what they would learn from him.
She had to be honest, she was very happy that she would not be graded in this class, because she'd fail, horribly.
There was a reason she was never going to pick up her father's business, she just did not have any talent for tinkering, whatsoever, but perhaps she could finally develop her tinkering hands in this class, who knew ?
Okay, even she could stuff a dust crystal and some nails into a tuna can, but she would really have to develop her eye to see those sorts of opportunities.

For now, she'd just listen to Mr C, he seemed to know what he was doing, from the huntsman side at least, his teaching methods were a bit questionable already.

[Professor W B Copperfield]

Azoireda, or Az, replied right quick this time. Seemed that she was getting a handle on working against it, trying to be quick. He nodded. "Az it is then."

He paused and waited, but recieved no additional questions. Everyone seemed pretty ready to listen and engage, and he was so thankful that this wasn't like his Dust and Semblance class. "Let's get a gauge on how much you can know about Dust contraptions. If you engage people in the field or an ally such devices, it might be useful to know how it works. Knowledge is a power greater than your weapons and Semblances." He made eye contact with everyone in the room that he could, barring Al's mask.

"You may not know a thing about Dust contraptions now, but you will. I'll teach you." He began walking towards the backside wall of the room, next to his desk. "Let's see if you can figure out how this works. It's pretty simple. Sorta." He said over his shoulder before clicking the heels of his boots. Small purple lights glowed at his heels and he put one foot against the back wall. Then the other. And as if physics had given him a pass, he began walking up the back wall of the classroom. His coat and hair all looked normal, hanging down towards his boots, which was forward for all the students. Copperfield continued walking until he reached the ceiling, standing upside-down with his arms stretched to each side. He made jazz-hands and said, "Tadaaa! So, can anyone tell me what's happening here? Wrong answers accepted. And someone please tell me why you all migrated to the cieling?" He turned his head, as if trying to see them in the correct orientation with a confused look on his face, like his students were the ones who turned upside-down and not him.

[Azoireda Ikteris]

Ooh, a 'figure this out'? Az liked those.

Mr. C tapped his shoes together and proceeded to walk up the wall, his boots glowing faintly with purple. "Gravity dust," she declared. "Can you walk through the air with those?" she asked a second later as a thought came to her. She honestly wasn't sure whether the boots needed a solid surface to orient or if having one nearby just made them easier to use. I wonder what would happen if someone were to put a moving platform in midair and he attached himself to it... Oh, right. She needed to be sure she actually heard his answer, or else what was the point of being in class?

[Professor W B Copperfield]

"Gravity Dust, correct Az! And no, I could not walk on air with these. Could anyone tell me why? And also, could anyone answer me how I don't look like I'm upside-down?" He took a second's pause. "Ok, I look like I'm upside-down because I am, but why isn't my coat or my hair falling downwards?" He patted his long and heavy coat with his hands and ruffled his hair, both settling on his body like they were supposed to.

[Asterion Khryseos]

The gears in Aster's head started turning, and he tried to recall what Deegan had told him about Dust beyond 'Aura goes in, explosions come out.' It was clear that he was thinking hard too - with a slightly furrowed brow, and a notably focussed expression, there could be no mistake that he was pushing his brain. Whether he was correct in what he thought he remembered, however, was another question entirely.
"'Cause air isn't solid enough to walk on in the first place?" He queried, figuring that, even if he was wrong, he wasn't so wrong that it was outright embarrassing. Probably.

[Al Ciendra]

It was hard to read the wolf faunus expression barring her mask, but the way her shoulders slumped and how she leaned forward was very telling that she was confused.
She was raking her head for a bit now, sure gravity dust explained how he could walk on the ceiling, but why did he look relatively normal ?
Wait...if he stood like that with gravity dust, then his clothes stayed like that...
"There's dust in your clothes!"
She exclaimed, and pointed at his...uhm him in general, she couldn't really see him clearly at this distance.

[Professor W B Copperfield]

"Once again, both of you are correct!" He said with a slight chuckle. "Air is indeed not solid enough, and there is Dust in my coat, but Gravity Dust-infused clothes would just be way too heavy. These are slightly more complicated than accelerating in a certain direction. If that was the case, when walking up walls I'd have to strain my muscles to keep me upright all the time, and upside-down blood would rush to my head and I'd eventually blackout. These devices work within my Aura, and anything within or imbued with my Aura are under the same effect: That being of accelerating at normal gravity-pulling speeds in the direction they are facing. Watch."

He pulled out a pink blocky pencil eraser from his pocket, a held it from one end. Gravity seemingly took over and it swung to face downwards, or for the students, upward. Copperfield did this a few times, demonstrating how when he held it from one end, it rotated so it was aligned with the current force of gravity. Then he let go of it, and it immediately dropped to the floor. "Little complicated, a bit higher level than tuna-can grenades, but we'll cover having Dust machines interact with your personal Aura. I reccommend not hooking up explosives to it."

[Azoireda Ikteris]

Az blinked as Mr. C explained more about his accoutrements. It would appear that her understanding of exactly how Dust interacted with other things was extremely incomplete.

Not that she'd been hoping otherwise, really. After all, she was in a class specifically about said interactions - she was just surprised by HOW inadequate her previous knowledge was.

Thankfully, it would seem that her inadequacy in this subject would shortly be rectified. Speaking of which: "I... don't think I'm operating on the same definition of 'machine' that you are, Sir," she said simply.

[Asterion Khryseos]

By this point, anyone listening closely enough to Aster's head would likely have been able to hear the gears turning - and looking closely into his eyes, it might have been possible to spot a lightbulb beginning to flicker to life as his brain engaged. "So is that gonna be anything like our weapons?" He asked, tilting his head slightly as he spoke. "You know, like how we can make stuff not break if we channel our Aura into it?" Aster was far from an A-grade student, but the fundamentals of Aura and its various applications weren't completely lost on him. If the current subject was anything like what he knew the basics of, perhaps he could figure it out a little easier.

[Al Ciendra]

Al was so lost.
She understood the part about how putting gravity dust in his clothes would cause too much strain and eventually cause him to black out.

But what was he on about regarding his Aura ?!
She just learned that she could block out sound using her aura and she was still not getting that technique 100% right.

Her shoulders slumped and Al propped her head up on the her hands.

Dust could influence her aura ?
That was super cool but also really, really scary!
But really cool!
Her head was suddenly racing with ideas and worries.

Her hands now holding the sides of her head Al looked worried as a bit of smoke came from her mouth with a fitting dragged out sigh.

And then he started doing things with his hand all the way up on the ceilling, why was her eyesthis terrible ?
Wait dust machines ?
Theres a whole course for that ?
Noooo she was content with a tuna can grenade for starters.

While trying to see what Mr.C was doing Al just kind of gave up, her metal mask hitting the desk head on as she just laid on the table.
"Too much info Mr.C, way too much freaking info."
She said before the teacher could ask what was wrong with a raised hand.

[Professor W B Copperfield]

Copperfield raised an eyebrow at Az's comment. "By 'machine', I mean a device that once given an input, does it's thing to create an output. I click my heels together, these boots turn on and do their mumbo jumbo. I click them three more times," He clicked his heels three times, and the purple lights dimmed. Copperfield hung in the air for a moment more before he twisted, as if he was doing a frontflip upsidedown as he fell towards the floor, boots clomping on the floor as he caught himself, then turned to the students. "And they stop doing their mumbo jumbo." He was secretly really, really proud of himself that he stuck that landing. "A machine to me is everything from a calculator to vehicles to firearms."

"And to answer your question Aster," There were three A names asking all the questions today. Odd. "That is exactly the principle that these and a few other devices of mine work on. Good job, gold star." He gave a quick thumbs up.

He turned his head to see Al smacking her metal mask into the desk, a hand held up in surrender. He chuckled with a smile. "Alright, I may have gone a little too far for the first day. Let's get back to basics. We can all build those tuna can grenades now if you want. I have few empty cans you can use, and we can test them outside. Purely an exercise and I'll walk you through the process. Or we can go back a little farther and safer, using Lightning Dust to charge your scrolls. No store-bought chargers required. Which would you like?"

[Azoireda Ikteris]

Ahh, so he was using a more... abstract, rigorous definition. Az could work with that.

As to what to start with, Az didn't have a preference, seeing as they'd probably do both at some point during the term. Though given Aster's comparison to weapons and Al's... headdesk?...

While she doubted that an improvised grenade was really all that complicated, she had a feeling that Mr. C might surprise her. On the other hand, it could never hurt to be able to improvise a scroll charger in the field, and calling for backup was something that she could see being several orders of magnitude more useful than blowing something up an extra 10% harder.

"Can we do the charger thing? That sounds neat." There was also that. Dust explodes, everyone knows that. Dust powers electronics, too - and while most people were at least VAGUELY aware of where the electricity they used on a daily basis came from, Az doubted many of her fellow students knew how to rig up a charger from scratch. She certainly didn't.

[Asterion Khryseos]

Aster couldn't quite tell whether his teacher was being sarcastic about his intelligence - or indeed, lack thereof. Nevertheless, he decided that it was probably best to not think about it too much at present. There were more pressing matters at hand, and more important things to pay attention to. He simply didn't have the brain cells to split between wondering if he'd just been slyly insulted, and trying to absorb whatever new information his teacher was going to impart upon the class. As such, he leaned forward a little more, twirling his pen in his hand, waiting for the chance to scribble down whatever chickenscratch passed for notes in his eyes.

Then came the question of what he would prefer to work on. He had to admit, the charger seemed like it'd be the most useful one to go for. Being able to keep a hunter's primary method of communication going while out in the field sounded a lot more practical than learning how to cobble together explosives, given that he could just buy actual grenades and take them on a hunt with him. But when it came to Aster, practicality was only part of the equation. The promise of a teacher not only letting him build, but also test jury-rigged explosives? His heart wouldn't let him say no.

“I’m voting for the bombs.” He said curtly, though with no small degree of eagerness. It was a tie, and assuming none of the other students piped up, Al would have to be the one to break it.

[Al Ciendra]

Al had already given up on this course, cool another subject she would struggle with and even more frustration she'd have to vent out on various sand bags and training dummies.
Smoke was still coming from her head as she laid on her table in defeat.

Until her sensitive ears picked up the next topic.
The thought of using an on the field charger that could ensure her teams only way of communication...was instantly tossed out of the window as Al stood up behind her table, hands on the wood as she yelled.
"I wanna blow up Grimm!"
If she wasn't wearing a big skirt today the whole room would probably be sble to see her tail wag in glee.
She looked at Mr.C for a few seconds like this, before sitting back down normally.
She yet turned to Aster, showing him an excited thumbs up as she now stared at her teacher with new found excitement.

[Professor W B Copperfield]

Copperfield counted on his fingers the amount of votes for each choice, and couldn't help but let out a laugh as Al went from utterly done with the class to excited to learn more. Or, at least excited for some explosions. He could respect that excitement.

"Seems like explosives have won the vote. I will teach the lightning dust thing for your scrolls, don't worry. Let's do that tomorrow, in fact. But today, we have explosives to make! Everybody pick up your stuff because we may not be back before class ends. Az, Aster and Al, since you were so involved today, would you mind helping me carry materials down? Everyone else, meet us down in the courtyard, we'll take a quick walk into the woods from there."

He turned around and went into the same classroom closet that he had pulled the skeleton out from, retrieving three cardboard boxes. One was light and rattled with all the tin cans and nails inside, the other made the dull tinkling sound from dust crystals, separated by cheap wooden holders. He almost gave Al the box with the Combustion Dust crystals before he hastily pulled the box back from her and handed it to Az. "Don't want you blowing up half the building, now. Here you go." Aster got the box of the tin cans and nails, and Al would be given two fold-out tables to carry. Copperfield grabbed a few plexiglass panels from the closet. The whole while he wouldn't leave the closet open, closing it and trying to keep people from being able to look inside as best he could.

He'd lead them, carrying large plexiglass panels through the empty halls of the school down to where the rest of the class was supposed to meet them. Once all joined up, he'd lead them about 100 yards into the woods surrounding the school. Close enough to get to their other classes, and far enough that the trees would block most sound and shrapnel. He just hoped there were most explosions than fire. He didn't want to be fired for burning down a forest. "Al, you can put fires out, right?" He'd ask as he set up the plexiglass panels for students to stand behind later. He'd direct the others to put the boxes on the ground, next to the tables once they were set up.

[Azoireda Ikteris]

Bombs it was - though at least she'd get her wish and learn to make an improvised charger, too, so that was something to look forward to.

Taking the offered box of Dust crystals, Az took off as fast as she considered to be safe while carrying it (which was probably a LOT faster than the recommended "transportation by ambulation" speed, but she wasn't scared of anything blowing up if she dropped the box - at least, she wasn't scared of anything blowing HER up if she dropped it). She made it down ahead of the rest of the gang and leaned against a tree while she waited - not that she had to wait long; the rest of the class weren't exactly taking there time to get out here: they'd been promised explosions, after all.

Mr. C's question to Al started Az's brain firing on all cylinders - did the other girl have some kind of pyromancy Semblance? If so, that was absolutely something she wanted to see. Speaking of Semblances that could put out fire, could hers put out fire? Hmm. She'd never tried before, but if there was ever a place to find out, it would be here. "I'm actually kinda curious about whether or not I can put out fires, now that you mention it," she said brightly as she set her box down on one of the tables after Al and Mr. C set them up. "Hopefully you can, Al, just in case I end up making it worse." Slowing down fire could go one of two ways, after all - it could either make the fire require MORE oxygen and fuel to burn per unit time, or LESS.

Az really hoped it wasn't less.

[Asterion Khryseos]

For someone carrying a box full of objects likely to cut and/or stab him if he so much as stumbled, Aster moved surprisingly quickly. How could he not? He'd been given the promise of sanctioned explosions. Not only was he being taught how to make explosives, but also how to use them - of course he was going to be eager about the whole thing. In fact, it seemed like the only thing that kept every ounce of metal from leaping out the box and into his face was a firm hand atop the box itself, keeping it closed and (relatively) safe.

"I'm sure we'll be fine!" He said, in response to the various concerns about fire that had been raised. He seemed remarkably brazen, considering the idea that they could be dealing with a fire raging out of control. It wasn't as if he even had a plan in case a spark got out of control - he just seemed to be into the whole idea of putting together makeshift bombs. He did at least manage to rein himself in enough to set the box down gently onto the table, however.

[Al Ciendra]

Yes, yes, yes, this was great!
Bombs, explosions and some very loud noises that would make her ears rings for days to come, but all the more important, FUN!
Al went to do her part with giddy excitement, especially as MR.C was handing her the combustion dust...but then he pulled it back.
"Wha- but, but..."
Her shoulders slumped a little as her ears drooped to her head, but that was okay...she'd get to carry two big and heavy tables instead, great.
With the wind swiftly taken out of Al's sails, her walk to the forest clearing was a little slow.
But she had taken her chance to look a bit at what they were working with, and a devious little idea had snuck itself into her mind, soon she was feeling much better, so she would carry on a bit more energetically.

As they arrived, Al had casually placed down the table, trying her best to stick to what Mr.C had instructed but she was just a little distracted.
Until the teacher called her up directly.
She perked up, from staring at the box of combustion dust and to Mr.C.
"I can."
Then the other girl, Az spoke up, kind of late to the question...was she slow on the up take ?
No, Mr.C did say something about her certain circumstances.
Al wouldn't question it.
"Sure, you can try first, even if you make it worse, it should be fine."
Al leaned her head to the side, showing Az an encouraging smile, even though she could not see it.

Then she turned to walk towards Aster, standing on tip toes to try and whisper to him.
"Hey, you see how big those can are ? I bet we can stuff way more dust into those than MR.C showed us, just take out the nails for even more, boom! Let's do that, kay?"

[Professor W B Copperfield]

"Of course you can put out fires, Az. Just might need water or a fire extinguisher." He winked. "But you mean with your Semblance. Are you able to extend the Semblance out to effect other things? If so, that'd be a great tool."

Copperfield would take items out of the boxes that Az and Aster carried down. A dozen or so wooden test-tube holders like for a science class instead held dozens of glittering orange Combustion Crystals, all spaced out from eachother and each about as long as a finger, a little thicker than two thumbs. In addition, they all had sever cracks running through them and clouding up the otherwise pretty sight. There were also a few boxes of short nails, and a large collection of tin cans, many of them with the labels for cheap tuna, chicken, and cat food companies. Aside from that, they were clean on the inside.

Once the tables were set up he'd let out a piercing whistle to cut the side chatter. "Ok people, listen up. What we're about to do is very exciting, but it's also very dangerous. These are not toys. I see you misuse or play around with anything here, I send you back inside and you get to watch everyone else make bombs. No warnings. Doneso. Capiche?" He looked at every student in the eyes, to make sure they all understood what he had just said.

"Alright now, bomb making 101." He wasn't actually sure where to start in terms of teaching how to make a bomb. What was the most important parts? And what knowledge did you need before you firmly grasped the concepts of those important parts? "When you make fragmentation grenades, or shrapnel explosives, like what we're about to do, you need the container, whatever it is, to put up an equal fight against the forces going on inside of it. If it doesn't, like say it has a flimsy lid, all the energy and deadly stuff goes out that one end, and maybe some still flies your way. Perfect example is the grenade I showed you all earlier in the room." He pulled it out now, without the nails or Dust crystal. "The lid could be opened easily, and in the case of that going off all the energy would have gone out the weak top right into my face. The can would still get ruined, but it wouldn't be optimal uncase I want it to go in a certain direction. But forget that for now, that's later. What you want is a tight seal. And also know that with these makeshift explosives that nothing is garunteed. It's inherently dangerous stuff and you want a solid barrier between you and your bomb at all times after it leaves your person.

"That tight seal can happen however you want to make one. This is training for making these in the field, afterall. Not in the best environments. If you have a source of fire you could try to weld or press the lid of your container back to it's original place. You could also try, like with our case, crushing the metal around the lid to lock it in place. Or something else that you come up with."

He plucked a singular Dust crystal from the wooden racks and held it up. "This is a damaged, or rather primed, Combustion Dust Crystal. You can see the cracks. That means it is damaged and unstable. It will react easily to our nails." He rummaged in his coat pockets until he pulled out a clear, perfect Combustion Dust crystal of the same size with no cracks. "I will teach you later, but it takes a delicate hand to get them to this place." He then turned and, with a mechanical, measured swing, he brought the Dust Crystal down onto the edge of the table. There was a cracking sound and the thunk on the table. Copperfield then held up two damaged crystals. "Trust me, I've had more blow up on me than I've made them successfully. DO NOT attempt what I just did until we reach that point in class. Your Aura would protect you for sure, but not school property. They are still pulling money from my paycheck for some other things I destroyed and I don't want that happening to you."

He gestured to the tables with the materials set on them. "So everyone, come grab a can, a handful of nails, and a single dust crystal. Go ahead and put the nails in first, then put the Dust in. Close the lid, and think about how you can seal the can without blowing it up. Shake it too much, boom. Heat it up too much, boom. Those of you who wish to wait to see if your classmates will blow up first, come stand behind the plexiglass barrier without a bomb, you'll make yours in a few minutes."

He almost let them go at that but hastily added, "And make your bombs away from other people and this table. We don't need a chain reaction happening, please. Alright, go!"