Dust Watch and Learn, Kid (private with Copperfield)

[Forrest Waldstein]

This was the first time Forrest had been summoned by one of the professors after class hours. He walked down the now-familiar halls of Beacon to reach the desired classroom, his mind racing as to why he had been called to Professor Copperfield's classroom.

Why does he need to see me? Did I flunk a test or something? I distinctly remember studying quite a bit... Forrest anxiously recalled as he continued thinking of possibilities, which only added more worries to his preexisting anxieties.

Despite being a good student, he did struggle a bit more than usual in Dust and Semblance Usage, mostly because he did not grow up with any practical applications of using Dust. Oakhearth was an isolationist village due to "logistics complications" and the fact that it was rarely, if ever, marked on most maps of Remnant. Those "logistics complications" often referred to the dense forest that Oakhearth was surrounded by, and also the lack of roads that lead to it. Also, the situation was compounded by the fact that Oakhearth certainly was not a mining town, and trade deals to and from Oakhearth were few and far between. Thus, Forrest grew up without the average understanding of Dust. He knew enough about Dust that you could find in a textbook, but lacked practical experience using it.

He eventually reached the door to the classroom, hoping that he alleviated any visible anxiety.

Come on Forrest, just let him know you're here now... Forrest took a deep breath, and raised a clenched fist to knock on the door. He hesitated for a moment, but steeled his will and knocked on the door a few times. He waited maybe ten seconds before taking another deep breath and slowly opened the door.

[Professor W B Copperfield]

The creaking door would open to a dark, cluttered office. Stacks of folders, papers, books, bits of tech(some disassembled) up to Forrest's knees, shoulders, and above his head. These fill the room, only a small walkway kept clear to a desk that looked as old as the school. In a chair behind the desk sat a man taller than average, feet up on the desk, head leaned back. A t-shirt was drapped over his eyes like a sleep mask. His hands were clasped together on his stomach, and his whole body was relaxed. Slowly he shifted and tensed, and one hand slowly reached up to lift the T-shirt. An eye spied out at the young Huntsman. It blinked. Lowered the T-shirt, he sighed.

"I overslept. Hold on." He groggily brought his feet down from his desk, avoiding a mug as if he had memorized it's position even with the T-shirt still over his eyes. He let out a long breath through his nose as he sat up, took the shirt off his face and picked up the mug. It was half-empty, and cold coffee swished around in it. He drank it in a few large gulps, shivered, and pulled a piece of paper infront of him, looking it over.

"Mr. Waldstein," He said a moment later, "You don't know much about Dust, having been from Oakhearth, right? They're still pretty isolationist, last I checked."

[Forrest Waldstein]

As Professor Copperfield became aware of his presence, Forrest instinctively stood up straighter. This was an old habit drilled into him by his great-grandfather in his formative years, used to show respect to whoever he was speaking to. An unintentional, yet positive side effect of this habit caused Forrest to develop good posture. He patiently waited for Professor Copperfield to wake himself up. Once he was ready, Forrest walked into the room, trying to avoid the scattered mess strewn over the floor.

"Yes, Professor. I admit that I don't have much practical experience with using Dust..." Forrest politely replied. It pained him to admit it, but the professor was right. His knowledge of Dust was somewhat lacking due to a lack of practical experience with it. He knew enough about it just from reading textbooks to get by, though.

"Also, Oakhearth still maintains an isolationist attitude toward the rest of Vale. You may already know, but there's a couple factors that contribute to Oakhearth's isolationism." Forrest continued, pausing to see if Professor Copperfield knew the reasons why. He figured that he would know, given how most professors had knowledge of their student's respective backgrounds.

Forrest briefly glanced that the paper out of curiosity, wondering what was written or typed on the paper.

[Professor W B Copperfield]

Taking a peak at the paper, he'd find that it was a quiz from the previous week. Another student's quiz, yet to be graded.

"I don't know all the factors as I'm not professor Wednesday," He said, rubbing his eyes when Forrest took a peak. "But last I passed through a decade or so back, well not passed through, it was kinda hard to find and get in, but you have an elder there who was alive during the Great War. Towns that are outside the main cities that survive for as long as Oakhearth has usually have some secret, and I was trying to figure out what it was. Thought it was a special kind of dust or a blending technique or something. Anyway, he and I disagreed on some... fundamentals, things got heated, and I left. That was your great grand-father, right?"

"And Dust is a Huntsman's second best tool in their arsenal, you should learn more about it and how to use it better. It's powerful, easily stored, found virtually everywhere, and combined with your greatest tool it's certifiably... what do you kids say these days?" He asked, snapping his fingers repeatedly as he thought. "On fire? Bright?"

[Forrest Waldstein]

Recognizing that it was another student's quiz, Forrest's gaze returned to making eye contact with Professor Copperfield.

"Yeah, my great-grandfather Silvanus has been the leader of Oakhearth for several decades by now." Forrest replied, thinking back to his home for a brief moment.

"That definitely sounds like my great-grandfather. He's stubborn, argumentative, and at rare moments, downright belligerent. You'd be surprised to hear it, but he is the most steadfast, honorable, and intelligent person I know. I suppose the wisdom and pain of living two lifetimes would make him so... bitter..." Forrest stated somberly.

Forrest nodded in agreement with Professor Copperfield as he went on about Dust.

"Sorry, I'm the wrong person to ask about that." Forrest added with a small laugh and a smile.

[Professor W B Copperfield]

"I am surprised to hear that. Most young people would only see the negatives and write him off. Good that you see more than most. Though, I still disagree on some of his..." He shook his head. "That doesn't matter. And two lifetimes? He's older than he let on then, the coot... Anyway, I wanted to see if you were interested in taking some time out of your day to gain some practical experience with Dust. The crystals, how to handle it properly, ammo, etc. Basic stuff. Enough people live around it that there isn't a class on it, kind of like the fact how you're not supposed to drink from the spray bottles under the sink doesn't need to be taught. I got more than enough Dust and going over the fundamentals is always good practice for me. What'dya say?"

[Forrest Waldstein]

"I don't blame you for disagreeing with my great-grandfather. I guess you could say he's a bit... old-fashioned in some aspects. Even if he means well, he can come off as abrasive. I mean, he started training me to be a Huntsman when I was only five years old because he wanted me to be the strongest version of myself that I could be. He always told me 'in order to protect others, you need to be able to protect yourself'." Forrest elaborated. Despite his complicated relationship with Silvanus, it seemed that Forrest still holds a great deal of admiration and reverence for his guardian.

Forrest nodded excitedly as Professor Copperfield made his offer to teach Forrest more about Dust. He absolutely couldn't pass up this opportunity to learn more about Dust. This would certainly make him a more well-rounded student, and would also compensate in areas of knowledge he was lacking in.

"Yes, please. I appreciate you taking the time to teach me more about Dust, Professor." Forrest responded politely yet eagerly. Learning about Dust in a practical manner intrigued him greatly.

[Professor W B Copperfield]

He smiled at the kid. "So while we disagree on some things, we agree on others. I'm old-fashioned myself, and he's right. If you can't protect yourself, you don't have a prayer of protecting others." His knuckles rapped on the desk and he stood up, towering of the young man. "Well then, lets go someplace far less combustible. We'll grab some Dust on the way." He stepped around the young boy to lead the way out of his office. He locked the door behind them, with an old fashioned skeleton key no less, and pocketed it before heading off down the hallway, heavy coat almost hugging his legs.

Once in a smaller training room, he held three Dust Crystals. Ice, Fire, and Lightning. He held two in one hand and one in the other, arms poised as if ready to toss them. "First question, Forrest. Dust Crystals. Are they stable enough to juggle safely?"

[Forrest Waldstein]

Forrest nodded in agreement with his statement about agreeing on some things and disagreeing on others. As they left, Forrest tried to imagine what the lesson would end up being like. Needless to say, he was excited to handle Dust for the first time. As they entered the training room, Forrest's eyes wandered around, observing the many different training apparatuses in the room.

Wow... I should definitely take advantage of this room more often... Forrest thought as they walked past all the various combat training equipment and machinery.

When Professor Copperfield seemed just about ready to juggle the Dust crystals, Forrest felt a sense of unease creep over him, his body visibly tensing up. He could have sworn that he read or heard somewhere that Dust was a very volatile source of energy.

"UH-WAITAMINUTE! Isn't Dust explosive?!" Forrest sputtered as he threw up his hands defensively, hoping this was just an elaborate ruse and that he wouldn't actually juggle the crystals.

[Professor W B Copperfield]

"Correct!" He seemed just a little relieved that he hadn't needed to actually juggle them. "Dust is very explosive. Just a little jostle, and I mean even a goodsneeze, could set these off. However, little known distinction that's very important. They are most volatile while being manipulated by people. Getting juggled or sneezed on by people could set them off, but If I..." He tossed the Fire Dust crystal over his shoulder a good ways. It clattered and spun on the floor, harmlessly. "Do something like that, nothing happens. Do you have any idea why that may be?"

[Forrest Waldstein]

Forrest was a little relieved that Professor Copperfield would not actually juggle the Dust crystals. He did, however, flinch just a bit as he tossed the fire Dust crystal over his shoulder. The professor asked him another question, and once again Forrest went searching through his mind palace to find the answer to that particular question. His book-learned knowledge seemed to be carrying him through this part of the lesson.

"Dust reacts to the Aura of Humans and Faunus." Forrest replied, hoping the answer would suffice despite being fairly reductive.

[Professor W B Copperfield]

He snapped his fingers. "Correct again! Our Aura can activate and effect Dust, so while within a person's general space they become more volitile. But a good crack or bullet can still make one explode. So, lets apply this knowledge where it might come up in your future. Not many people think about this, but given what I just told you, where would you expect Dust to be on a... say a train. For fuel and maybe for cargo, where would they put it?"

[Forrest Waldstein]

Where to put Dust on a train? That's an oddly specific question... Forrest thought as Professor Copperfield asked his question. Forrest's knowledge of trains was somewhat lacking, but he tried his best to answer the question.

"Ideally, kept far away from people and the passenger cars, given what happens when they're in contact with Aura. Either the front or back car of the train." Forrest answered.