Growing Pains (Private: Honeydew Monarch)

[Ax L Rose]

Tick-tock.

The classroom clock clicked its way forward into the inexorable future. Seconds turned to minutes and slipped away from the lonely bird faunus as she sat and she waited in the quiet, currently otherwise unoccupied classroom. She'd had plans to meet a friend here, but said friend was a no-show. They also weren't answering her texts. She fidgeted as she waited, her knee bouncing with steadily growing impatience. Soon enough she couldn't bear it anymore. Classes for the day were over, and from this hour on the building was gonna be mostly empty. She couldn't wait around here forever.

The wait eventually grew to be too much. Ax rose from her desk and hopped up onto the desk, grabbing her guitar case and resting Electra Heart on her knee. She'd give it just a little longer, but that was no excuse to sit here being bored, doing nothing. Softly glowing blue strings formed into being from one end of the haft to the center of the blade, and she experimentally plucked a few strings to get a feel for how loud she was. The classroom had surprisingly nice acoustics, so she opted for a volume that could be heard in the halls beyond, but that shouldn't carry so far so as to get her in trouble.

What a time to be back at Beacon. Here she was, feeling more estranged from ever from her best friend... meeting new people left and right of varying dispositions. It was nostalgic, if only because of how intensely busy and absent most of her peers had been in her life as of late. Since she'd returned from Atlas over the summer and had finished adjusting to her new cybernetic limb, things had been so quiet... it felt a little like she was starting over.

She reflected briefly on some of the more recent faces she'd become acquainted with. She imagined the steely-looking mask that the new first year, Al, wore. She remembered Bartok and his big ears and his shameless manner of expression. She remembered that bitch that disrespected her out by the skyway. And stars... a mere several days ago she'd gotten into yet another serious bar fight. She was lucky she ditched the scene when she did, before someone at Beacon caught wind and she got in trouble yet again.

Ax was supposed to be good at connecting with people, right? So why did so much of what had happened as of late felt so... superficial to her? Socializing seemed to only be getting harder lately. She let out a sigh and decided to let some of it out. She began to strum her guitar, low notes to compliment a soft, somewhat shaky singing voice. She hadn't warmed up, but she'd find her groove along the way.

"I’m feeling so mindless,
Like we’re wasting our time
Just sitting here, its true, there’s nothing left to do but...
Twist these knives deeper into our chests that fill...
Full of rage, we’ve bred in our fucked up heads,
And it's making us insane!
So fare thee well, oh dear, this was my biggest fear
Let's go our separate ways..."

By the time she finished the first verse, this started to feel more natural, but it also felt kind of sad. She embraced it - whatever twisted, complicated emotions she had to deal with right now weren't going to go away on their own. This was a process... she'd do what she needed to do to feel okay again.

"Estranged, deranged, and I’m freaking out,
But I can’t explain myself at all!
Speechless like a cat has caught my tongue,
It’s been so long since I have felt this numb...

Your words weigh on me every day, my friend...
And all the time I spent convinced
That I was such a shame.
Are you freaked out? I said I’m gonna skip town
For the second time this week...
I’ll pack my bags so quick,
I’m such a lunatic,
A disaster with a face...!"

This verse made her think of Nym. Her heart ached at the thought. There truly wasn't a better way to describe Ax now - she really was just a disaster with a face. She strummed and sang on into the chorus again, Ax's angsty song carrying out and beyond the classroom, no longer moderating her volume as she was before. No one was gonna care. Even the faculty were probably all busy in their offices, or heading out for the day, right?

"Oh my god it's so sad, that things have gotten this bad,
So who is there to blame?
It’s neither you nor me, this catastrophe,
That's washed us both away..."

[Professor Honeydew Monarch]

Today's classes had already ended, and Honeydew personally had little to do, given how early in the semester it still was. She had only just received her first papers to grade, a simple homework assignment for her history class that she'd collected today, all about the historical events that led up to the Color War. Not the most interesting subject, in her opinion, but definitely an important one.

The Professor had been making her way through the halls with the collection of gradeless assignments held in one arm with the textbook she used for class underneath, looking the studious type in her red-framed glasses and a neat dress blouse and skirt, hair tied back. True, she preferred her combat uniform, but it always helped give her an air of authority to dress the part when dealing with classroom days, it was a necessary evil.

However when she approached the room she'd been planning on using for a little quiet in order to get her work done, she slowly began to hear music once she came within earshot. Not just music, somebody playing it themselves, and singing. Somehow the voice sounded very familiar to her, but she couldn't quite place it, but since it was coming from where she was going, it wasn't long before she slowly pushed open the door to the classroom and realization hit her as to why she'd recognized the voice. It was a student, one Amarathine, if she recalled correctly. Wait, that wasn't right. It was Ax, now, wasn't it?

She stopped at the door for a moment to listen to the song, finding it humorous and somewhat fitting. An expression, perhaps? Had Ax been waiting here for something?

But soon the rest of the song brought a much less cheerful set of lyrics, and she couldn't help but raise an eyebrow. Perhaps this student was more troubled than she let on? From what Honey could remember, Ax was a particularly problematic student, or at least she had been, but in her third year now, she'd turned that around a fair lot and seemed to have gotten over a great deal of her childish behavior. So, by her account, it seemed a little out of place that this particular student would be upset. Was there not plenty to be happy about?

When the song reached its ending, Honeydew stepped into the classroom fully, and stalked calmly over to the desk at the front, placing her papers on it and not acknowledging Ax at first, until she took her seat at the head of the class. Then, she looked up at the girl, cocked her head slightly to one side, and smiled.

"Hello, Miss Rose, I hope I'm not interrupting," she said softly, and started shuffling papers about on the desk in front of her, organizing them into neat piles then picking up the first one and thumbing through it, looking at the answers.

"If I had to guess by your song, though, it seems that something might be bothering you. Care to enlighten me? Or, if you'd rather not, you're welcome to stay here and keep playing guitar. I've got nothing against a little music while I work." Truth be told, it didn't matter to her, she was getting pretty good at speaking with students about things that bothered them, and she was exceptional at multi-tasking, so she'd been told before.

[Ax L Rose]

She was halfway into a refrain of the final verse of the song when Ax became acutely aware of the fact that she had an audience. This led her to freeze, bringing a somewhat abrupt end to her performance as she held her hand over Electra Heart's glowing strings to silence them. Ax had done a good job of steering clear of trouble with faculty as of late... mostly her strategy was to avoid faculty as much as possible when she didn't immediately need help with something. That strategy had served her well: She'd gone from being completely forbidden to take part in school events and extracurricular activities in her first year to being a workshop assistant in her third. She was not pleased to see Professor Monarch here, but she didn't intend to give the woman any incentive to discipline her even if the woman seemed to be in a relatively pleasant mood at that immediate moment. Ax hopped up to stand at attention from the desk she was sitting on, like she was in the military.

"Professor," Ax gave a quick but rigid greeting, nodding her head. While Ax didn't look outwardly anxious, her quick, clipped response probably said plenty. Ax then grabbed her guitar case off the floor and hastily started to put Electra Heart away. She was using an unoccupied classroom without permission, technically, even though the last class held in this room had ended not altogether that long ago.

Ax's eyes narrowed slightly, suspiciously, as though curious and maybe slightly concerned about whatever this exchange was about to turn into as Honeydew spoke on after her greeting. It seemed to her that the professor wanted to help somehow. The bird's shoulders noticeably slacked a little when the professor gave her permission to stay and continue playing. She didn't exactly race to get back to performing, but her initial concern that she might be about to get into trouble was more or less assuaged for now.

"...you're not interrupting anything important, no. I was... supposed to meet a friend here after class. But they never came. I was just trying to kill a little time... see if they were just running late or something..." Ax rose a hand and rubbed the side of her neck awkwardly. It wasn't super comfortable to admit she had basically gotten stood up by a friend to the professor.

[Professor Honeydew Monarch]

Honeydew's light smile didn't waver while she looked on at the student despite her sudden militaristic demeanor and apparent rush to remove herself from the company of a Professor. It didn't bother her that Ax seemed skittish, in fact she was used to it, especially from students with a record like her own, however that very same record did indicate she wasn't quite the same troublemaker as she had been a couple years ago. Her mind ran over what she knew of this person. She was from Atlas, that explained the more militant response, a former problem student, again it checked a box for her, and evidently, she'd been somewhat upset to find that her would-be companion had never showed, which probably ruined any plans the Faunus might've had for the day.

No, everything seemed to be perfectly in order, as far as she was concerned. No cause for alarm or any need for disciplinary action. Small rules such as the use of unoccupied classrooms during off hours were the least of Honeydew's concerns with the new students having just arrived at the school, a third year like Ax wasn't passably on her radar for strict intervention or harsh warnings.

She set the stack of papers she'd sorted aside for a moment, and for a second, her eyes narrowed, squinting at Ax while her brain recalled yet more information about the student.

Hadn't she seen this person before, back in Atlas? She was quite sure she had, in fact, though for a moment it was hard to place where, but when it clicked, it clicked quick, and her eyes widened again in a small display of sudden interest.

"You were in a pop group back in Atlas, yes?" she asked in a rather straightforward manner, placing one hand atop the papers on her desk while she let the other one rest in her lap for a moment, leaning forward slightly.

"I thought I recognized your voice. Strange that I didn't make the connection two years ago. You were in my History class, right? Sorry, I don't mean to sound like I'm interrogating you, it's just rare that my intel hits me late. I'm sorry about your friend, I hope they weren't the one that inspired the choice of lyrics. Ah, but you don't need my condolences, I'm sure. Such is the life of a student, social butterflies like yourself have many more chances ahead of them." She offered a nearly imperceptible nod and a warm smile to the girl, apparently trying her best to seem friendly.

"If you don't mind me asking... Was it your musical background that influenced your choice of weapon? I've seen many others like it, but I always wonder why people choose function and form over more basic designs with the singular purpose of destruction in mind. Quite a marvel of technology you've got there, though." Her voice was colored by genuine interest directed toward Electra Heart. Having served in the Atlas military herself, she'd seen a lot of high-tech weapons over the years, her own included, but it had always been an elusive thing to her, the reasons why some students chose to combine weaponry with musical instruments. It was kind of fascinating, actually, to make beautiful music with an instrument designed for death on the other hand. Had she seen Ax fight with it before? She couldn't recall, she saw many, many students in the sparring ring.

[Ax L Rose]

Ax felt uneasy the moment Honeydew leveled that narrow-eyed look at her, a strange feeling creeping down her spine as though Honeydew was looking beyond her eyes and into some place Ax wasn't entirely comfortable with. Ax averted her gaze - she had no hope of meaningfully intimidating Honeydew into backing off. The best she could do was endure the professor's scrutiny with as much dignity as she could muster while she executed on a quick plan to leave as soon as possible.

Ax had picked up her guitar case when the Professor spoke. A second later, without looking, Ax set the guitar case back down. So they were doing this. This hadn't actually happened yet, but she'd been sort of half-preparing for the day it did since she was first accepted into the school. Nothing good could possibly come of a professor taking an interest in those old days, really. But of all the professors to push, she hadn't expected it to be Honeydew of all people.

Ax turned to look over at Honeydew with an uneasy expression, her jaw briefly locked in place before she nodded.

"The Baby Blues. Most people don't know," Ax answered, seeing no reason to not be truthful. No one was here. Maybe there would be a point to Honeydew mentioning this stuff.

Ax listened intently as the professor continued to speak at that. Ax's unease seemed to wax and wane as words progressed - she wasn't getting a great read on what interested Honeydew about it. If this really was just some sort of musing over a neat quirk of Ax's history, maybe this wouldn't be so bad after all. Ax could play it all off, maybe sign a CD sometime and call it a settled situation.

"I'm already over it. And no, the song was about someone else. Someone better," Ax clarified. She raised her chest slightly, folding her arms in front of her after that. She felt vaguely annoyed at what Honeydew seemed to be implying.

"What, do you think Electra Heart is too complex? Do you have ideas for how I could streamline, simplify its functions?" Ax asked. She knew she was asking what might as well have been a trick question. Honeydew couldn't know the full mechanical details of her weapon off the top of her head, even if it was possible she had access to schematics somewhere on the grounds.

But that wasn't the point. The point was that Ax knew damn well she had a marvel of technology on her hands, and Honeydew wasn't the expert about this particular subject. Ax was.

[Professor Honeydew Monarch]

Honeydew was fairly aware that she wasn't the best when it came to interacting with students on small levels like this, and really, she'd inserted herself rather boldly into a subject that wasn't really her business, but while she was aware of these things, she only let them inform her so much. Students were still students, after all, they had myriad complexities each and every one and it wasn't really her job to keep informed about their individual lives. Of course, that fact made it a little bit more tricky to engage in light conversation, especially when the student involved seemed particularly in a situation that changed their disposition toward the antisocial.

After that reception, though, she'd thought Ax might just up and leave. It was kind of strange that she didn't, actually. But maybe she felt glued here just because of Honeydew's authority? It wasn't like she was going to stick her in detention for removing herself from a place she wasn't technically supposed to be.

Her eyebrow quirked, though, when Ax's attention seemed redirected toward her weapon.

"Ideas? Well, not necessarily. I'd need to know more about its construction. You understand, I'm sure. I guess I just find it curious that so many students these days have multi-purpose weapons. Seems more and more common every year, or maybe I'm just gettin' old. Gotta happen some time, I guess. As for me, I just prefer good old fashioned rifles, swords and shields, things like that. I s'pose you could say I'm traditional," she said, giving a hefty shrug of her shoulders at the thought. Traditional to the bone, she could almost hear Lyra snickering in her mind.

"Anyway... If you don't have anywhere else to be, I suppose I wouldn't mind the company while I grade these papers. Feel free to stick around if you still want to wait it out for your friend. If you start playing again, though, I might make a request," she stated in a joking manner, giving a tiny 'hah', then turning her eyes back to the papers in front of her, and starting to mark the first of the pages. She was a multitasker, she could talk and work and listen if Ax wanted to stay. Maybe she'd get to answer a few questions of the bird's? That could be fun. Might take her mind off the monotony of grading.

[Ax L Rose]

A part of her had been hoping maybe she'd get a read on Honeydew's intentions by this point. So far she wasn't sure what she was picking up. Either they were in sync, or they weren't connecting at all. Useless fucking semblance. Well, at least Honeydew had gone along with what was, in retrospect, a kind of vaguely panicky subject change on Ax's part. She wasn't sure what to think about anyone bringing up those old days with her old band. Either Honeydew knew a lot and was up to no good, or Honeydew didn't have the full picture and didn't know any better about bringing it up. The impression Ax was leaning toward at the moment was the latter.

Ax listened quietly and intently as Honeydew spoke, though her brow knit together slightly partway into what the professor was saying, as though Ax was having momentary trouble following along. As soon as Honeydew invited Ax to stay, Ax's eyes almost imperceptibly widened. She wasn't sure what it was exactly about what Honeydew had said... but it struck her as sort of sad. Lonely, even. She couldn't help but feel a pang of regret, even if she wasn't confident her "insight" was anything other than purely imagined. Her lips twitched briefly into a bitter frown, but she forced the unhappy expression away when her eyes flicked back to the professor.

"...it's still a bit hard to talk about. I kneejerk sometimes," Ax explained after a moment. She would have to hope that Honeydew understood. She didn't commit fully to sitting down, but she seemed to ease up a little, leaning a bit so her thigh bumped up against the desk. She then immediately changed the subject again, in case she didn't make it clear enough that she wasn't exactly jumping at the chance to agonize over deep-seated emotional trauma.

"Multi-purpose weapons are practical. Not every fight is all controlled conditions that enable everyone to play to their specializations. If you wanna survive in a modern world, you've gotta be versatile... and not everyone has a semblance that lets them change the rules," Ax rose her voice a little as she spoke, unconsciously compensating a little for their distance and the fact that Honeydew seemed very accustomed to enunciating for a classroom. She tried on a smile after that, but it was still a little bit of an uncertain gesture.

"Even the guitar part is pure pragmatism, Professor. It's a long story how Rose and I got around to figuring the guitar setup would be practical for dust-casting, but trust me. Electra Heart gets results that pretty much speak for themselves."

[Professor Honeydew Monarch]

This girl seemed to be an analytical sort, Honeydew thought to herself as she watched Ax's slight shifts of expression. A lot on her mind, perhaps? She'd been there, she could relate, though she didn't expect that she'd be relating as much as she did when Ax suddenly mentioned the subject was hard to talk about. Her band? The... Baby Blues, wasn't it? Remembering the name, though, allowed Honeydew to suddenly recall details that had slipped her mind before. Alarms, klaxons, an urgent summons arriving at her office. A pro-Faunus terrorist cell that had detonated a bomb at a concert. At her concert. Honeydew suddenly experienced a wave of guilt when she realized what she'd done, bringing up a very sore subject indeed and so casually at that, and for a moment she frowned herself, but it washed away as quickly as it had come, leaving a neutral expression on her face.

The change of topic suddenly seemed like a much more welcome idea. She focused instead on what Ax was saying, every so often glancing back at the papers on her desk.

She had to smirk slightly, though, when Ax inadvertently took a jab at her Semblance. Did she know about it? Not many students did, she couldn't recall if Ax had ever seen her in action. Maybe, but still, she wasn't wrong, she had a point. Honeydew's Semblance was definitely more useful in a combat scenario than many other people's, and she guessed that Ax's form of ability perhaps wasn't as practical for tactical situations than her own.

"Ahhh, so it's Dust tech? Well, that explains that. You've got a point, though, versatility is the spice of survival," she said, putting her personal spin on the old adage.

"Well, in that case, I'll look forward to a time when I can see it in action. You're a third year student, correct? You'll be a graduate soon enough, and I'm sure I'll have a chance to watch Electra Heart shine when that happens. I thought I saw some hardlight earlier, though. It's been awhile since I've seen anybody use it in an unconventional way, you know... Not as a shield, and all that. I guess you're exactly the kind of student Beacon seeks to produce, if you can innovate enough with old components to produce something unique and new. Bravo, then." Her voice was back to humming with a subtle energetic optimism, but she did like to see students bringing their unique ideas to the table. After all, the Grimm were a relentless enemy, and without the new generation, without the innovation they brought, it was quite possible that the ever-changing great threat might overcome them sooner than expected.

[Ax L Rose]

All the signs were there that Ax was a little bit of a 'unique' student. The way she began to bounce her knee, the way she fidgeted with her fingers before she seemed to find a comfortable way to stand with her arms folded... her wandering eyes roaming about, always thinking. Ax was mentally hyperactive, in part thanks to conditions antagonized by her permanently active semblance. Honeydew had to know. Ax's emotions were tangible, and the more the Professor opened herself up to Ax, the more that connection could work two-ways. It was a risky proposition as far as the rocker-bird was concerned. In her experience, more powerful people tended to want to find vulnerabilities they could use with her semblance. It was always about control with these people.

She nevertheless felt a hint of guilt that crushed the wind from her lungs for a moment. It wasn't misplaced - she was quick to harshly judge her superior. But the guilt also came from Honeydew. Apparently she felt she misstepped somewhere too. It earned her a point of sympathy from the rocker-bird.

"Dust-tech indeed," Ax replied, keen to downplay the interplay between their emotions. She, in fact, seemed to ease up a little more, looking pleased that Honeydew should give her thinking some credit. It seemed the young, ambitious student was a bit susceptible to praise.

"I am," Ax answered when asked about being a third year. A broader smile soon arose on Ax's lips as Honeydew spoke further. She was saying all the stuff that Ax liked to hear! Thoughtful insight on her weapon as well as a bigger compliment than any faculty had given her in weeks or more.

"...ah, professor. You're gonna make me blush," Ax admitted with a small grin, finally taking a seat back on the desk. She turned her head thoughtfully over to her guitar case. She could stick around and play a little. It might not distract the Professor too much, right...? She drummed her metal-plated knuckles against the surface beside her thigh in thought.

[Professor Honeydew Monarch]

Honey grinned at Ax's reaction to her small bit of praise. It seemed to have removed some of the weird tension that hung in the air, and for that she was thankful. She hadn't quite pieced together the effect that Ax's Semblance could be having here, in fact she didn't remember what it was off the top of her head, though her student files had likely mentioned something about it here or there, though ultimately she figured the tension was just related to the situation more than anything else, anyway.

She concerned herself a bit more with the papers in front of her while she took a few seconds to herself to collect her thoughts. She wasn't a stranger to people such as Ax, she herself could sympathize with the general on-edge feeling of being some place where plans were ruined and unexpected circumstances arose in their place. It was a feeling that she personally hated with a passion, in fact.

After a moment of silence, and she'd finished grading another paper, she spoke again.

"So what sorts of music to you like to play?" she asked idly, her eyes trailing first along the next paper in front of her, then flicking upward toward Ax to peer at her from behind red-rimmed glasses momentarily.

Honeydew's music tastes were perhaps a bit old-school, as were most of her apparent qualities, she liked classic rock, considered simply rock in her own school days, things from fifteen, twenty years ago that many students weren't even aware existed, but somehow she felt like Ax might know a song or two she could ask for by name. Wouldn't that be interesting? Being personally serenaded by a student while she graded papers? Today certainly was a bit different than her usual, quiet norm. She was enjoying the break in routine.

[Ax L Rose]

Ax settled back into her spot sitting atop the desk, reaching for her guitar case and cracking it open once more. It became quiet in the classroom save for the occasional sound of a pen marking paper and the static hum of Electra Heart's glowing blue strings as they once more coalesced into being. She rested the guitar blade on her leg and then pulled out her scroll, momentarily distracted by various notifications as well as her indecision about what she wanted to play next. Really, hanging out with a professor wasn't really her preferred way to spend her time, especially when she had so little of it. She figured if her friend didn't pop up in the next ten minutes or so, she'd leave.

Her eyes shifted back up to Honeydew when the professor broke the silence.

"Many many kinds. Most kinds. Well... not as much pure pop anymore. As you can probably imagine, ah... back in the old band my creative input was actually kind of limited," Ax spoke up casually. She didn't keep up with any of her old promoters, old fans, or anything like that really - those old days were as dead as dead could be - but Honeydew had asked about it and there was a part of Ax that couldn't help but think it'd probably be a bit jarring to hear what kind of stuff she gravitated toward most now that she wasn't bound by any kind of contract or studio control.

Still... the idea did occur to her to maybe try playing one of her old songs and give it a little twist on the fly. Maybe another time.

"What about you, professor? What do you jam to?" Ax asked, figuring she'd use whatever she learned to inform her decision about what she'd play next.

[Professor Honeydew Monarch]

There was something to be said about having a student around while she worked. For some reason, it made her feel the need to keep her professional demeanor about her more than she normally might, which had a good deal of influence on her focus. She'd been keeping a steady pace until she'd paused to address Ax. Her answer to the question didn't surprise her, though. Music production, from what she knew, when it came to the famous bands, at least, wasn't entirely about what the artist themselves wanted. A shame, really.

"Ah, yes. The typical profiteering of Atlesian nobility, doesn't surprise me. Sad to restrict the young mind's creativity like that. I'm sure you're perfectly capable of handling a few songs of your own, if you're capable enough to stick it out around here for three whole years." She let out a soft chuckle. Talent was far less scarce than most people assumed, and she regarded any given student of Beacon as talented and bright. They wouldn't be here otherwise.

The return question, though, disarmed her slightly. Why she hadn't expected it was beyond her, since they were discussing music, but it was enough to make her stop and think for a moment.

"Well, back when I was your age, I liked a lot of things, I guess. Pop, rock, electronica... But I guess my tastes have matured somewhat and now I lean toward the classics. Mostly rock n' roll from twenty, thirty years ago. Stuff I grew up with. Newer music doesn't compare in terms of nostalgia, after all, and part of me misses my training days. Certainly more innocent times, those were." She made a face, puffing out her cheeks and exhaling while she shook her head back and forth a couple times. Exasperating to think about. She'd come pretty far, but everything between now and then was pretty heavy footage to recall. Good times and bad, though, she had to wonder when the day might come that she got nostalgic for that period in her life as well. Active duty had its ups and downs.

[Ax L Rose]

At first, because the professor was dividing her focus, Ax wasn't entirely confident that she was paying attention. She was a little surprised at what she heard next, having expected perhaps a more noncommittal or mild reaction to what Ax perceived as problems with the industry more so than the kingdom at large. Instead, Honeydew seemed pretty willing to lambast Atlas' nobility. For some reason Ax had been expecting a more... diplomatic take, but it wasn't like she minded. Everyone who lived on that big floating rock could go fuck themselves as far as she was concerned now.

Ax nodded in comprehension as Honeydew continued. She had to fight a laugh at what the older woman had to say (along with her expression) as she elaborated on her tastes. While she didn't consider herself to be anything resembling a historical expert, she had a hard time imagining Honeydew's earlier days as anything resembling more objectively "innocent" times. It mostly just sounded like something an old person would say. Regardless, Honeydew had done an excellent job of narrowing down her tastes. Ax had a song in mind now, though it might've been from a slightly earlier time than she'd initially specified. A slow smirk spread over Ax's lips.

"Alright. You'll probably know this one then. Here's to you, Professor!"

Ax began to strum her guitar gently. She wasn't trying to perfectly cover the instrumentals of the track, and she improvised a bit with it as she went. What mattered was capturing the spirit of the song - she wasn't exactly focused on getting it to sound exactly like the original anyway, since she didn't have a full band and her voice was obviously very feminine. Her eyes fell shut as she began to sing along with the tempered roar of Electra Heart.

"You need coolin', baby, I been foolin'...
I'm gonna send you back down to schoolin',
Way way down inside, honey, I need ya,
I'm gonna give you my love
I'm gonna give you my love,
Oh!
Want a whole lotta love,
Want a whole lotta love,
Want a whole lotta love,
Want a whole lotta love...

You've been learnin', baby, I've been yearnin',
All those good times, baby, I've been yearnin'!
Way, way down inside, honey, I need ya...
I'm gonna give you every inch of my love,
I'm gonna give you my love, woah!

Want a whole lotta love,
Want a whole lotta love,
Want a whole lotta love,
Want a whole lotta love..."

Ax's eyes lowered down to her guitar and she focused on her fingers and their positions on the frets, launching into an improvised little solo. The volume of the guitar was pretty respectful for the room they were in, but thus far she'd really belted out the words. Her background as a vocalist was standing out significantly more than her apparent skill with her guitar up until this point where she finally got to show off some of her technical skill. Electra Heart was also a little glowing light show, but Ax kept the electricity nice and low, figuring that Honeydew was still naturally going to have her focus drift a bit while she was working.

"You've been coolin', baby, I've been droolin',
All those good times, baby, I've been misusin'!
Way, way down inside, honey, I need ya,
I'm goin' to give you every inch of my love,
Goin' to give you my love, woah!

Want a whole lotta love,
Want a whole lotta love,
Want a whole lotta love,
Want a whole lot..."

She strummed a final time, before stilling the strings and silencing her guitar, but clearly she wasn't finished yet. She paused for a moment before her voice broke the relative quiet like a brick through a window, though far more pleasant to listen to.

"Waaaaay down inside...
Woman, you need..."

She strummed a few times more before she summoned her maximum star power and channeled it into the word that followed.

"Looooove!"

She was clearly showing off now with how long she held that note and how powerful her delivery was. She began to play the guitar again as she belted it out, a grin on her lips.

"Shake for me girl,
I wanna be your back door man!

Keep it coolin', baby!
I keep it coolin, baby!"

She repeated the final words a few times, though her showing off was far from over. She continued to sing and repeat a few parts of the song, improvising with some of her vocalizations. Soon, the song came to a natural end, and all of the built-up electricity in the blade seemed to coalesce into her cybernetic right hand and her gauntlet.

[Professor Honeydew Monarch]

Honeydew was curious to see what Ax might select to fit her tastes. There were plenty of great classics that she could pick from, but she was more curious to see what kind of music from her generation that a younger woman might know. It always made her feel more excited about the next generation when they could share some musical knowledge that bridged the gap of their years, and honestly, from what she knew about Ax's musical nature, if anybody on campus were to know a song or two to impress her with, it'd be this flashy Faunus.

She was watching the girl as she prepared to play, curiosity glittering in her darker-than-the-student's blue eyes. This would certainly be interesting, and dare she say it, fun. Fun while grading papers, now that was new. Maybe she'd have to think up a scheme to have Ax become her classroom assistant so she could entertain her on slow days? Nah, that'd be mean, no need to hold the song bird captive. She chuckled quietly to herself for her internal joke, but the amusement was palpable on her features.

She got back to grading while Ax began to play, and after a few second, she paused again to look up at the girl. Oh? What was this? A very familiar guitar riff, she knew immediately what was coming next. This was a song that certainly brought back memories...

"Mmmm, Ded Zepplin, now there's a nostalgic noise..." she purred, and for a time she watched the girl as she performed, she appeared quite impressed and enthusiastic about this, leaning forward a bit in her chair, setting her elbows on her desk, and resting her chin on her hands for a moment. She crossed her legs, and smiled, and after a few more seconds, her eyes closed, and her head swayed back and forth a little bit with the timing of the song.

She remembered first... A smell. Fresh cucumber and roasted potatoes. Then, she remembered a girl, dancing, a long, white-and-black ringed tail. It was Lyra, her best friend, singing along in her head to this song. One of Lyra's favorites. They were out in the forest, camped for the night on a mission, and they'd brought along a boombox since they hadn't been expected to run into any Grimm for the first couple days on patrol. The Lemur had been so excited, a ball of energy as always, dancing about the camp and even getting Allonzo to join in. She'd been able to tell, that mission in the forest, that was when her teammates really started falling for each other for real. A few months after that, she'd caught them smooching in their dorm room when she'd left for a while to get some food. Honeydew chuckled again at the memory, and went back to her grading while she started humming along.

Very nice choice.

By the time Ax had finished, so had she, she'd gotten in the zone and the stack of papers had disappeared in minutes. She definitely needed to try this again, maybe live music was the key to getting her into the rhythm instead of bogging down in frustration?

Soon as Ax had finished the song, she started to clap lightly, grinning a grin for the Faunus.

"My my, had I known you were a fan of the classics, too, I might've given a request sooner when you were out in the Gardens or something. I'm impressed, I didn't think you young ones were keen on such... Influential music of my day. Where'd you learn that one, if you don't mind me asking?" she questioned, then folded her hands on her desk.

[Ax L Rose]

Ambient performance had never really been Ax's style. She was fine with a little passive strumming on street corners and park benches from time-to-time, but the usual goal when she played was to get people to actively pay attention. She was quite pleased when her eyes flicked over to Honeydew and saw that the professor was actually watching and not just focusing exclusively on her work.

As Ax's song continued, Honeydew's attentions naturally drifted back to her work. Fortunately, Ax could still tell that she was enjoying her performance thanks to some of the effect the ambience seemed to have on Honey's mood. More importantly, Ax was having fun showing off and singing this particular song. It'd have probably been more fun if she was playing it for someone she could actually flirt with, though... Honeydew was gorgeous, of course, but Ax had never gotten much of the impression that she was particularly susceptible to flattery or praise from students like herself. There were other kids that tried their luck and flew too close to the fire in the case of this professor. This particular bird didn't intend to risk her feathers so needlessly. As the song reached a conclusion, Ax stilled the strings and gently bowed her head, a satisfied grin on her lips.

"I can't remember all the songs I practiced back when I was really little? But I started young. Pretty sure I taught myself this one by ear, just listening to it over and over, if I'm remembering right. I uh, I didn't really know how to read music or tabs or anything back then," Ax admitted, raising a hand and rubbing the side of her neck. Her curriculum back with her father had mostly involved different styles of music. She and this song went way back though... her eyes flicked upward thoughtfully for a moment before she looked back at Honeydew.

"I've been listening to this kind of stuff since I was a little kid. Got really into old school rock, metal, and punk mostly while I was a bored kid trying to occupy myself at the public library. If I was a human girl, they probably wouldn't have cared that I wanted to play guitar, but the dorm attendant was always getting on my case about bringing "sex, drugs, and rock n' roll" to the school," Ax rolled her eyes, raising her fingers and gesturing the quotes with her fingers.

"I'm relieved to see that instructors here in Beacon are at least sometimes a little more open-minded," Ax noted.

[Professor Honeydew Monarch]

Honeydew idly listened to what Ax had to say about the music. She rested her elbows on her desk, leaning forward a bit, keeping her eyes on the student. She had always found that giving her full attention to the students one-on-one like this did a lot for them; it told them their teachers were listening, it told them what they had to say was valuable, and it boosted their confidence, their general mood. But aside from that, what Ax had to say was legitimately interesting to her, as this particular student had been on her radar for a couple years without them ever having the chance to speak to one another directly.

One of her fondest memories of her time at school was the music. When she'd been going through Beacon, so many classic rock artists were still just 'rock artists', they hadn't become legends in their own right quite yet, they'd still been putting out new music, and every time an absolute jam had released, it had been played far and wide across the campus many times a day. It hadn't been uncommon to hear it bumping in the dorms, only to walk outside and run into another student's radio, playing a different yet equally influential song... Ah, those were the days. She still got that effect every so often with the students around campus and their music, however her preference would always be with the songs of her youth. The newest music was far different from the music of her adolescence.

Ax's description of what happened in her schooling wasn't uncommon. She really felt for the plight of the Faunus students here, especially since her two closest friends were Faunus, and she'd served with them in the line of duty for years. Never once had their skill been anything less than comparable to her own, and they'd served with distinction, even saved her life on multiple occasions. Closed-minded bigotry really got under her skin sometimes.

"Yes, well... All things considered, despite what they might've told you, I believe that 'sex, drugs, and rock n' roll' constituted about half of the fun I had back in my own school days. And, given the fact that I'm a human, I would like to think that their argument holds no water." She chuckled lightly, then leaned a little sideways to rest her head, tilted, on one of her hands.

"But I'm glad you think so. We Professors would do well to remember what it was like being of the same age of the students we teach. It's a far easier road to sympathize with your students than it is to criticize their behavior. I've often found that with a little guidance, and connecting on their level, students can flourish once they understand we're on their side. Right and wrong can be taught, and it's more effective, in my opinion, to become something of a role-model for them, an example of what's right and good, rather than stepping on their necks and trying to stamp out what's wrong. Most students try to be good people, and if you show them what 'good' looks like, they'll naturally curb their own bad behavior until they've become a model of excellence..." she said, trailing off, her eyes upward, thoughtful. She had rambled a little bit, but it had been on her mind lately, after all the students were important to her and there had been a couple cases of her needing to do just this, to lead by example and guidance, recently. It also helped to lend an ear to their problems, too, but that was a different set of skills all together.

"I don't mean to bore you with the philosophy of effective teaching, though. Unless of course you're interested in teaching yourself? Hm... Have you ever considered, you of such background, perhaps teaching music to your fellow students? It's not a glorious job, and perhaps requires a lot of patience, but given your set of skills, I could see your talents being an essential part of other student's extra-curricular learning. Might even be some extra credit or additional merit in it if you do. Just something to think about. Of course you'd need a staff sponsor." The way she'd framed it, and the way the inflection of her voice had been used, it was pretty obvious that she was saying if Ax had interest in doing this, she'd probably be willing to sponsor her. A music class on campus would've been something wonderful, but the logistics of that weren't easy. It'd be a fair amount of work, and from what she'd remembered of thumbing through Ax's student files a year or so ago, attentiveness wasn't one of her strongest characteristics. Still, maybe?

[Ax L Rose]

Ax's lips curved into a satisfied grin at what she was hearing, and she laughed softly right along with the Professor.

"Exactly. These kids... they were all perfectly capable of corrupting themselves just fine on their lonesome. They never needed lil' ol' me for that!" Ax muses, her tone playful.

Honeydew sounded like she subscribed to a similar school of thought regarding teaching as Professor Valiente did, though Ax noted that Honeydew's way of expressing it sounded pretty... technical? It made her feel like she was listening to someone read something off of a brochure. It was fun to think about, though... Honeydew was a rock-lovin' lady with a big truck, and she wore her scary teacher mask when she needed to. Ax had a scary mask of her own.

"Nah, I'm not bored by it," Ax spoke up reassuringly and coolly. She wasn't sure about teaching in the long run yet... but she couldn't help but consider it. Having a good teacher had pretty much saved Ax's trainwreck of a life from spiraling even further. She looked down for a moment, clearly contemplating Professor Monarch's words before a wry grin showed up on her face.

"Heh, teachin' music. I don't know if I'd be any good at that. The way I learned music was..." Not healthy. Brutal, honestly. Sure, back in the day when she started young, it was for the passion. Later though... well, Ax didn't really know how kids were supposed to study music in a normal environment, really.

"...not exactly traditional. That said... I mean, I would consider mentorship or something though. So far, I was thinking when I graduate, I'll probably stay active mostly in the Vale region for the first year or two..." Ax let her hands off her guitar, but it stayed motionless where she left it. She tapped her cheek thoughtfully.