Far Too Deep into the Forest (Teachers)

The forest, was it an amazing show of nature's beauty or a place where a man can go to be reminded of how impossibly difficult it is for someone to find peace and quiet outside of his own home and sometimes not even then. Especially if one had nearly always in his possession, a sword which could speak to you telepathically, and if that sword was like an annoying child you couldn't just ignore, and also couldn't leave alone for any slightly extended period of time. Sometimes Revan just needed to get away from it all, and a walk through the popular forest on a weekend had nearly crushed his spirit. One could not find a spot that few would pass by and even fewer would see, or at least not without walking further than the bulk of people would. It was not as if Revan could just teleport himself to his favorite spot every time he came to the forest, though he had theorized that such an ability could exist.

How long had it been since he began to walk, it was far enough for Grimm to be more prevalent for sure. It would rid him of the problem that came from people, but only by replacing it with another problem, one that was arguably worse. However in this secluded area Revan had yet to see any people or grimm as if they were driven away from it. The area was a small circle about five feet around surrounded by trees. Inside there was a near perfect circle the size of the space drawn out in the dirt in what looked like chalk. There were designs of different styles and shapes all around the rim of the circle, and though no such person existed, one who had seen Revan's blade would recognize the style of the runes. All the circle needed were some candles, incense, and a five pointed star inside and it would look like some ritualistic circle out of a long lost religion of nutcases.

Revan still din't understand how the runes worked, but he had figured out that this particular set of runes made his blade no longer able to communicate with him, and even lessened the power of the blade in general. Of course this entire circle would have to be drawn to make the effect and the more imperfections in the drawing the less powerful the circle would become, making a circle larger than this too much work for too little pay off. Revan had prepared this spot for his meditation long ago, and had rarely needed to fix it. People seemed to avoid the spot as if they would die if the tried to much as to disturb the circle, but even more grimm had not passed through once and thus not broken the circle. Perhaps it was luck or maybe the runes had some effect on outsiders too.

Solid earth did not make the most comfortable seat, but to be able to get away from the world in perfect seclusion was something that Revan would easily trade for a padded seat. He sat in a meditative posture as he began to relax his body down to the slightest muscles, and as he began to truly listen to nature Revan could hear a stream gently running in the distance, and birds singing their tunes. Revan did not want to think about all the questions that plagued his everyday life, those were to be left to the rambling sword that was Lightning Insanity, or at least until Revan left his circle. It was a routine Revan had followed for some time now trying to get out and relax at least every other week, and it had worked for him in the past, but Revan had the sinking feeling that things would change sooner or later. He opted to not dwell on these thoughts however and just relax while he had the time.

Viviane had received her acceptance to teach at Syne a few weeks back, but instead of heading straight to the school she requested to arrive later so she could familiarize her self with Twilight Forest. As the forest was going to be her secondary classroom she had been granted permission to do so and had methodically tracked her way through it avoiding as many grimm as she could and fighting those she couldn't avoid like she had been doing for the last five years. When she started she had a basic map of the forest and a compass to keep herself in the right direction. Now she has several hand draw maps and tons of notes on the various grimm, wildlife, and plant life of the forest.

As deep as she was in the forest Viviane naturally had her ornately hand crafted armor on, including her tiger face guard/helmet. She, however, doesn't have her gauntlets on so that she could have full use of her hands. She instead has the gauntlets attached to her right hip for easy access she she need to arm herself. Thus adorned she stumbled upon a young man, roughly her own age but possibly slightly younger, meditating in a weird runic circle.

Out of general curiosity she quietly approached the man from the edge of the clearing, making sure to stay hidden in the foliage, so that she could study him and decide if he was a potential friend or enemy. After several moments went by with out much movement from the guy she shrugged and climbed a tree to take a look at her maps to see about how much longer it would take to reach Syne. Upon realizing it would just be a handful of hours to get there and taking into consideration the mans age Vivi came to the conclusion that there was a decent chance the man was a professor at Syne, though had no idea why he would come all the way out here. Even more perplexing was the runic, almost ritualist, circle he was sitting in.

Nimbly hopping down from the tree Viviane stepped into the clearing and approached the meditating man rather quietly, but not in a way to actually try and hide her presence. As she got closer to him, and by virtue the circle, she began to get an uneasy feeling that sent the hairs on end. While she didn't feel in danger she did feel as if she shouldn't be here. As such she stopped her approach and spoke, in a voice that had a bit more growl than she had anticipated, to the man to gain his attention.

"Are you a Professor at Syne Academy Mister?"

It wasn't much in the way of socialization but would get her the answer she sought, assuming he actually responded to her with an answer. As she stood their waiting for an answer she assumed a relaxed stance so as not to appear threatening to the man. Unfortunately as used to having the helmet on right now as Viviane was she didn't realize she should take it off. That coupled with the growl in her voice could potentially make it quite easy for the man to misjudge the situation.

The wind was not quite still yet perfectly serene in the forest environment, and as was usual Revan was able to meditate fro a good while without interruption. However Revan knew to keep his guard up just in case, the further reaches of the forest were known for grimm encounters. Revan had his blade still strapped to his side and was half expecting it to start rambling even in the cancellation circle. However Revan knew that was not going to happen the runes were too effective for that. The runes were never something Revan cared to mess with lest he created more crazed inanimate objects, but these particular runes had stood out for him a dream some time back. He did not however trust these runes and tested them extensively before truly using them, but it was times like these that made him happy that he did.

For quite some time the calm was kept and the forest was relatively quiet except for the occasional rodent crawling up a tree or the calming song of a bird. Not all stayed truly calm because at some point during his meditation Revan heard someone begin to speak, but Revan did not stir in fright or surprise, but only moved to speak to the person "Now what would a professor from Syne be doing out here, especially if they seemed to not be being cautious enough? That is not cautious enough to notice your approach. Of course that brings the question whether I did indeed notice your approach and just am not phased or something else entirely. Tell me this would a professor from Syne allow someone to sneak up on them in a hostile environment without a backup plan?"

Revan still moved no more than to speak, and he stayed fully relaxed as he did. His eyes had yet to even open as if he was not afraid. Perhaps as if he did notice her approach and felt she was not a threat, or maybe it had to do with the circle that he sat in. However even the circle was small enough that a fast enough attack could be dodged by no physical action even if warned, and Revan had refused to move even a muscle so he would have no way of dodging. Was it a semblance maybe, or something even deeper. Whatever it was it could be more than slightly unsettling.

"I wouldn't disturb that circle though, there's a good chance that I'll know the moment you do no matter how quiet you are." Revan warned hinting that it was the circle he sat in that made him feel so secure, even if that wasn't the actual case. Revan loved playing mind games, and for him it was always fun to mess with someone, whether he knew them or not. However Revan did notice from the voice that this particular prospect was not anyone he knew from the academy, and even few were bold or stupid enough to venture this far into any forest containing Grimm. So this person was Either stupid Revan found that one quite likely, they could have also been In the academy and Revan has just never seen them, that was unlikely because students had a knack for knowing teachers more than the inverse, or maybe this person was new or even well trained without going to the school.

The mans calm nature some how managed to get under Viviane's skin and made her hope he wasn't her colleague after all. That being said there was seemed little chance that was going to be the case. As far into the forest as he was meant that he was at least a fellow hunter which is enough to call him her colleague. His words also seemed too cryptic and defensive to suggested he had no connection to the school.

In response to his questions Viviane replied with her own, in a less aggressive tone than she had preciously spoken with her other question. "Why would someone who isn't a teacher be this far into the forest so near to Syne Academy. Indeed why would any but a hunter or huntress be this far into the woods? You clearly aren't a student as by your age you are either a hunter or you are not. As for why a teacher would allow someone to sneak up on them the answer comes do to arrogance really.

If such a teacher assumed no one would come this far out he may not have prepared for being snuck upon, at least not by anything besides grimm. And even should a teacher prepare for it every preparation has its flaws and weaknesses. Now should you prove to be neither a hunter nor a professor then I would have to assume you have the confidence to be this far in the forest alone from another source,..." At this point while Viviane's voiced did not get necessarily aggressive it certainly gained an edge. "or organization?"

On that note Viviane put on her gauntlets in preparations for any potential fight that might ensue from this encounter. In a calm and even voice, that was full of confidence, she asked the man once more. "Are you or are you not a Professor of Syne Academy?"

There was an almost palpable tension in the air even as the person who was trying to communicate relaxed her tone, and her own words seemed only to be hasty assumptions. Revan did not say any of his counter arguments, however he could name a type of person who without training would wander forests like these, as he had been one himself in the past. Revan also had a reason that was without arrogance to let someone sneak up on him another assumption that this person had made, however whoever this person was she made a good point about plans having flaws.

"You know what I always say about people making assumptions. You make an ass out of you and umption. Though one umption you obviously have more than enough of is gumption, talking to someone you have no information about with a tone like that." Revan made what he thought was a witty remark, however he said the aggressive statement in a manner that was too calm. Revan still moved no more than to speak and stated no more in response to his or his lack thereof status as a professor, mainly because of how she asked the first time, and didn't even consider the organisation part because of a similar edge to this persons tone.

"It was calm an quiet before you came along and that brings me to my next question why is it that you would be out here in this dangerous forest." Revan pondered, his tone just as calm as in the rest of his statements. Even for a man who was just meditating Revan was too tranquil considering the tension surrounding the situation. His face barely even moved other than to talk as if he was a manikin with a moving mouth, Revan even had swallowed his breaths enough to make the slight movements of breathing hard to see.

Twilight Forest was honestly every bit as beautiful as Luka remembered from her time as a student at Syne Academy and the paths hadn’t gotten any harder to navigate if any at all. Somewhat surprising honestly but she wasn’t going to make a fuss about it. It simply made going out for herbs, berries and other ingredients for medicines easier to do. All around her the light danced through the leaves of the tall tress casting beams of light scattering all through the woods. It truly was a beautiful sight for the young woman. Between the day she was having and the outfit she had decided to wear for it Luka was positively radiant with happiness as she walked along. And indeed what an outfit she had chosen. The bulk of it seemed to be a stretchy sort of material which made sense due to her rather sizable bust and how they seemed to be fit for working out in. Purple shorts with a lighter lavender section rested on each side of her hips graces her pelvis and ended at her waist where a darker purple cloth wrapped around her toned stomach. The shorts themselves only went down to about mid-thigh. The rest of her legs were covered (mostly) by a pair of matching colored knee-high socks, one of which had fallen around her ankle rather than staying in place like its companion.

Her top was a two piece top composed of a long sleeved, skin-tight undershirt the same lavender color as the sides of her shorts while a looser purple short sleeved top covered it, producing a large opening in the middle normally meant for her breasts to be on display if it weren’t for the undershirt. Both shirts were only long enough to cover just past her rather impressive bust. Her feet were covered by a pair of hiking boots matching the rest of her outfit in color and strapped to the back of her waist was a bag she had been using to collect her medical ingredients. Humming along to herself as she walked however she stopped as soon as she started hearing the voices off to her side. Part of her knew she should have been sneaky about what she was going to do but that didn’t matter to her as she simply walked towards the sounds without any intent to keep herself hidden. Stepping out into the open she saw one of the teachers from the school, a man by the name Revan.

“Hey Revan!~”

Viviane was growing more annoyed by the moment as she conversed, or tried to converse, with this mysterious man. Where it was the strange vibe of the circle of runes the man was sitting in, those of the man himself, or simply her prolonged time alone, Viviane was simply unusually on edge for some reason. While she could never truly be called a proper lady she certainly was more well mannered than she was right now.

As she pondered the mans words Viviane came to the conclusion she needed to cool her head and sense she had her gauntlets on this was achieved by abusing a tree. Turning tail she walked away from the man as she approached the nearest tree to her, which happened to be the one she had previously climbed. Taking a fighting stance she raised her fists up in front of her, much like a boxer, with her right hand held slightly higher than her left hand while also being closer to the body.

With a blur of movement she then jabbed out with right hand hitting the tree trunk with a right handed cross followed with a left uppercut. Once she regained her footing Viviane proceeded to throw a barrage of quick punches while she used her foot work to 'dance' around the tree. Whenever a tree branch got in her was she simply used the jaw mechanic of her gauntlets to snap iy of the tree to allow her passage. This proceeded for probably 3-4 minutes before she stopped upon hearing the arrival of a new person.

As Vivi made her way over to her, a rather beautiful her at that, she over heard her statement to the man. While it was but a simple to word greeting it provided Viviane a crucial piece of info, the mans name. Having cooled off at the expense of a tree Viviane took off her gauntlets and placed them once again on her hips before taking on her helmet and placing it in the bent cradle of her left arm before sitting down just out side the edge of the man's, Revan's, circle of rune before speaking.

"I would like to apologize for my rather rude behavior just now Revan. To answer your question I am out her learning my way around this forest for a multitude of reasons revolving around myself being a huntress who has just recently moved back to the Bellmuse Kingdom after being in Vale for the past 9 years or so. Beyond just getting acquainted to the forest as a grimm hunting ground I am also preparing to use it as my classroom on several occasions as I start teaching at Syne Academy as a Wilderness Survival Professor."

Having said all she felt like disclosing to the man for now Viviane turned her attention to checking out the angel who graced herself before her in a beautiful purple and lavender work out outfit. From the looks of the plants sticking out of a pouch on the back of the woman's waist Viviane predicts the woman had been out gathering various herbs though for what She was uncertain with out a closer look at the hall, though what few parts of the plants she could see sticking out it was clear that at least some of the herbs had some medicinal qualities to them.

With a smile and a wave Vivi starts an interaction with the woman. "Hello Miss I am Viviane Tigresse. If you don't mind me asking, but what is it that such a beautiful angel like yourself is out this far into the forest for?"

For quite some time, maybe only a few minutes, Revan could hear the punching at and snapping of tree trunks done in quite the aggressive manner. However the source as quite apparent, it seemed that once again Revan's mind games went a bit too far. Revan found this burst of rage quite funny, and would have laughed had it not been for the meditative state that he was in, though the constant distractions weren't helping that. Sheer will was the only thing keeping Revan in his meditative state, though the state did help remove the edge off of the concentrations. It was as if a sword were being swung at his head, and his best best was to not stop the sword or defect it, but to take the hit head on, and act as if it didn't happen.

It was apparent that a new factor had come into play when the person who had just gotten out of a fit of rage became completely calm, and even acted somewhat more respectfully. Revan did not want to jump to conclusions, but it did seem that a voice he had heard yell his name, was the reason of this strange behavior. The voice which called to Revan was a familiar one, if not quite that of a friend, Revan recognized the voice of a colleague, her name being Luka Valentine. Someone who might be called eye candy by some, but many people had differing tastes and Revan could not think for all people, not that he would if he could. Luka was the school nurse and good at what she did, but she had a personality that almost seemed to contradict itself.

Revan was however still drawn in to the stranger as Luka approached. Quite interesting how quickly you calmed yourself after blowing off some steam, don't you think? was what Revan wanted to say, but he held his tongue, as to wait for slightly more interaction between Luka, and whatever was the name of this person who now sat in front of him. Revan did figure he could say hello to Luka without interrupting the flow of things too much however. "Greetings comrade." Revan joked, whilst remaining largely still.

Indeed more interaction immediately gave the answers Revan was looking for. A rather simple analysis of the words this person, who had just identified themselves as a Viviane Tigresse, said revealed a few things about at least her personality, and maybe a little more."Don't you find it interesting that in almost, but not quite three hundred words, you had not found it necessary to introduce yourself, but when speaking to Luka here, you introduced yourself in the first six words? Revan interrogated Viviane, but the comment was not needed on Revan's part, because the words already spoken by Viviane herself reveled all the needed answers.

Revan welcomed Luka in a typical Revan fashion by calling her a “comrade” rather than by her name when greeting her. She sighed but she supposed she was used to it. Besides, something else caught her attention. A woman with tiger ears, an obvious Faunus, had greeted her before introducing herself as Viviane and asked what an angle like Luka was doing so far out into the forest. Luka could only chuckle before Revan seemed to dig into Viviane verbally about how she hadn’t been able to introduce herself to him within the first three hundred words but she had openly given her name to Luka in only a matter of six. “Oh relax Revan. Not every needs to be a reason for you to have that stick up your butt.” Luka told him before turning her attention back to Luka. “Besides~ I’m sure she says that to all the big busted girls like me.” She giggled.

“But to answer your question Viviane I was out here looking for some herbs and ingredients for medicines to use back at the school. But I should ask why you’re so far out here Miss. Viviane?” She made it a question that she was expecting an answer to.

Viviane was barely paying any mind to the man she had previously been in a verbal confrontation with now that a more pleasant individual was in the small clearing. As such she almost missed his words directed at her and before she could make a retort the young woman made a response which caused Viviane to smirk. The next thing that came out of the woman's mouth made Viviane blush ever to slightly. Catching the lull in conversation Vivian spoke up responding to both parties. "Maybe if you gave off a warmer aura I would have greeted you much the same as this radiant comrade of yours. And I can assure you Miss ..., I don't greet all big busted girls like you this way, just the ones I want to get to know better."

The woman's next few words confirmed Viviane's suspicion that she had been gathering herbs and also went to show just how long the woman had been near the clearings Viviane was once again asked what she was doing out in the woods. With a smile she gave her reasons yet again. "I am slowly making my way to Syne as I prepare to begin my post as the new survival teacher. I plan to use these woods for various lesson and felt I should familiarize myself with them again. It has been several years sense I last was in them as a child what with being a graduate of Beacon and then on assignment in the wilds of Vale. When I heard of this new school I couldn't pass up the chance to teacher future Hunters and Huntresses in my native country. I am a little nervous though as I haven't been in a school setting in quite a few years let alone ever taught in one before."

"Wait didn't you hear Luka?" Revan inquired "I had the operation last week, and they removed the stick from my butt. Though I do like to keep it around should I need to beat someone with it." Revan laughed tactlessly at his own joke, his sense of humor often left people wondering if Revan ever made any serious remarks. Even in laughing Revan barely moved, but now that he had mostly exited his meditative state Revan stood slowly as to not shock his muscles by standing up suddenly.

"Well my aura is usually sanguine, and they say blood is not only warm, but a warm color so I don't see how my aura it could be any warmer." Revan made a joke that only he would get, and to one who knew his past would be in even worse taste that most any of his other jokes. Now that Revan was standing he decided to leave the circle which he stood in and with that he nearly collapsed, yet was able to keep his footing if only barely. A rush of sound and thoughts came rushing into his mind, all from his cursed sword. Took you long enough. The blade projected it's words into Revan's mind. Once he regained himself Revan acted as if nothing had happened and went right back to cracking jokes. "Why do I get the feeling that you want to get to know all big busted women better?"

After waiting a little while more Revan heard Viviane tell the abridged version of her back story to Luka. Revan had not been surprised that Viviane had not told such things to himself, but was surprised at how fast Viviane was opening up. This advancement made Revan want to make another joke even if he was exhausting his supply. "So you don't spill your entire past to the cautious wanderer, but you do for the first busty woman to pass by? Sexism much? Anyway you may have tiger in your last name, but you might want to change that to cougar with how strongly you're coming on."