Professor Francis watched diligently as the class went to work, demonstrating their skill with Dust. Many had fallen on the age-old practice of cutting crystals, with varied levels of success - after Amber presented her work, Professor Francis reviewed it with a critical eye before placing it back on her desk with a satisfied nod. "Excellent work, Ms. Aries. Earth Dust is infamous for its intractable nature. Cutting it so precisely takes a strong and steady hand."
A loud crackle drew her attention to Amber's left; Elva had succeeded in both cutting a Lightning crystal into a rounded shape and in nearly splitting it in half. Sparks flew from the gap with abandon before Francis made her way to the crystal. Placing a gloved hand on the crackling Dust, a dim light emanated from her hand before engulfing the crystal. The seam disappeared over the course of several seconds, the sparking dying down. "Chisels are poor tools for cutting Lightning crystals, Ms. Dias. They are, as you can see, quite fragile." She reaches into her coat and produces a notepad, taking a moment to scribble something on it before tearing off a page and handing it to Elva. "I would have you review this literature before the next class. That you cut a Lightning crystal at all with a chisel without reducing it to powder speaks to a steady, if unpracticed, hand."
Her attention then turned to Di, eyebrows quirking upward as her intention became apparent. Not many first-year students attempted to synthesize White Dust in their first class; fewer still succeeded. Francis watched in silence as the reaction took its course, offering no advice, until the refraction's result became clear - a dud. The flask was filled with half-inert Grey Dust, most of its power dilute and near useless. Francis collected the flask and stowed it in her bag - Grey Dust had some industrial and research applications, just not anything useful for a Hunter. "I commend the ambition, Ms. Blauw. Where other students fall back on simple cutting, you reached for something greater. That is something much more difficult to learn than any Dust technique I can teach. Make no mistake - with that attitude, you'll be making White Dust in your sleep by the time I'm done with you."
After assessing Jade's work and moving on, she came upon team MJSC's table, where Schwarz had just finished his own synthesis project. Professor Francis picked up the crystal, examining it with great care, before placing it back in a storage receptacle. She once again produces her notepad, scribbling on it for a moment before handing the page to Schwarz. "It seems I'll need to put some effort into challenging you, Mr. Zaan. I'd like for you to review this latest refraction literature by the month's end, where I will be testing you."
A whirring sound draws her attention to Claire's section of the table, where she had finished making her Balance crystal and was in the process of showing off its properties. With a small smirk, Francis picks up a Lightning crystal and gently taps the top of the Balance crystal - a small spark shoots between them and the crystal's spinning accelerates; soon it's moving so quickly its edges can't be tracked by the naked eye. A few seconds later it suddenly collapses on the desk, spent of all energy. "Two promising synthesists on the same team? How interesting." She flicks her attention towards Schwarz for a moment, before regarding Claire again. "I'll be giving you the same project as Mr. Zaan - in fact, I'm assigning the two of you to work together. You will both be assessed at the same time and receive the same grade. Am I understood?"
Matt, for his part, paid little attention to Professor Francis, his attention focused on the cut Earth crystal on her desk. It was strange -his's Semblance's 'sight' registered it like any other measure of worked stone; it was there and contained an Aura of its own, if different in nature than that of a human. And yet, when he went to take a closer look...
It was like that little crystal contained an entire world inside it. He'd have recoiled from the sudden sensation if he weren't already so used to the feeling of smallness that accompanied his Semblance's use. And no matter how deep he tried to look, it was as though it kept going - a depth that felt infinitely deep, or at least effectively so as far as Matt could tell.
Matt was pulled from his trance by a shift - an odd sensation, like something in the back of his mind had suddenly stood up on end, on guard. The same thing he'd felt yesterday, when...
Abruptly returning his consciousness to himself, he casts his vision about. Initially, he sees nothing out of the ordinary, until his eyes come to rest on team RFUS - or, rather, team RFS, as Umbra had appeared to vanish from her seat.
Shock and surprise welled up in his chest - they wouldn't try anything in this class, would they? duPrince clearly didn't care for many of his students, but Francis had made it very clear she wouldn't tolerate the sort of bigotry duPrince had so flagrantly displayed. He looks around, concerned - there were a lot of Faunus students in this class, and if she were doing this on Rufus's behest, any of them could be a target. He briefly considered bringing this to Professor Francis' attention, but the way she simply swept over Umbra's seat... could she not tell she was gone?
Matt internally gulps as something clicks deep within his mind. If Umbra could just make herself unnoticed; not even invisible, but simply ignored, even when she was right in front of you... that would explain a great many things about the last class.
Matt wracks his brain, trying to recall what he could about Umbra. She wasn't particularly racist, as far as he could remember - she just disliked people below her social station, which most Faunus happened to be by virtue of the racism of other people. And, if that were the case, there wouldn't be much he could do to predict what she would to next - there were too many Faunus students in this class, and there was no way he could protect them all. No, he had to work on the assumption whatever she was doing wasn't necessarily racially motivated, or he simply couldn't do anything.
Then, what else? Pride was the next thing to come to mind - Umbra never let a slight go, as far as Matt heard; no matter how small or even if any offense was intended. That had more potential. If that were the case, he mused, who would she target...
Another click as realization dawns on him. 'Henry!' If she were behind yesterdays' mysterious force, she definitely wouldn't appreciate a commoner like Henry spoiling her fun. Casting his vision to team MECH's desk, he sees them working diligently, no Umbra in sight. Except...
As he observes carefully, he notices some very strange, anomalous movements - vials of Dust shifting, levers pushing, that sort of thing. The effects are so subtle that Henry and the others don't appear to notice.
"Mr. Steele?" Matt almost jumps out of his seat in shock as Professor Francis' voice cuts into him, bringing him back to reality. He turns her way to see her with an eyebrow raised, tapping her foot impatiently. "We don't have all day, Mr. Steele. Your demonstration, if you would?"
Matt's mind goes into overdrive, moving frantically between his options. If Professor Francis hadn't noticed Umbra by now, it was likely she never would - not until Umbra wanted her to, in which case she would be back in her seat like the perfect little angel she was - so just telling her something was up wasn't an option. Nobody else seemed to notice something was off, either, including the other members of team MECH, meaning... it was all up to him.
Dust, Henry was screwed. Still, he had to try. Henry hadn't sat around and done nothing when Umbra was messing with him, and so neither would he.
"Y-yes, Professor." A plan - half-formed and desperate, but a plan nonetheless - begins to form in his mind. He had two goals - undoing whatever Umbra had done to Henry's equipment, and preventing her from doing it again. He might be able to do both of those things in one stroke, but first... he makes his way down to Francis' desk and picks up the crystal Amber had cut. He'd only ever read about mixing Dust with Semblance before, and usually in the context of changing, not enhancing. Still... it was worth a shot. He presses the crystal against his chest and breathes in deeply, extending his Aura into the crystal... and suddenly, his normal senses seem to vanish as he's dragged into the stone at his feet.
It was unlike anything he'd ever felt before. Normally, his Semblance let him indirectly sense the state of stone around him by interacting with its Aura - a sort of primitive sonar. But now... it was like his tactile senses had been extended to include every speck of stone within a hundred meters. He has to catch himself from falling over - expected an enhancement, for sure, but nothing this drastic. After a moment of adjustment, he gets to work, sifting through the newfound information with his memory of the class's layout guiding his perception. Through vibrations in the stone floor, he could tell where people where, just not who - but that didn't really matter, not for this.
Because while Umbra could hide from his normal sight, it seemed she couldn't hide from this one - and there was only one person who'd be standing right in front of team MECH's table. A deep breath, and he focuses on the stone at her feet, willing it to change. it becomes malleable and soft, like moist sand, and the weight of the person above her presses down on it, causing them to sink ankle deep. Before they can react, Matt cuts off his contact with that stone and it returns to its solid state. From the sensation he feels, the person was trying to frantically pull themselves out of the stone, and to little effect. Further, if the positioning and behavior of the other people in the classroom were anything to go by, they couldn't perceive his victim's newfound plight.
He smiles internally. 'Good, then I have gotten Umbra.' Time for the next phase of his plan - moving Umbra away from team MECH. Focusing again, he seizes control of the stone at her feet yet again, pressing on it in the direction of team RFUS's desk. Slowly but surely she is dragged in that direction, struggling all the way, until she is deposited back next to her chair. 'Mission accomplished.'
He pulls himself out of his trance, looking around slightly dazed - perceiving light was so different to perceiving vibrations! - before he sees professor Francis give a satisfied nod. He looks down at his skin, a mix of green and silver light dying down. "Semblance mixing. Interesting... I haven't seen it done with Earth Dust in a while. You are excused, Mr. Steele."
He gives a stiff nod and chances a look towards team RFUS - Umbra had apparently seen fit to make herself visible again, sulking in her seat. A quick scan with his Semblance confirms her feet are still very, very firmly planted in the floor. Oddly, when he looks under their desk, he can't seem to focus on her feet... she have been using her Semblance to hide her rather embarrassing position. She'd probably be able to free herself discreetly before the class ended, but for now... team MECH was firmly out of her reach. He poorly stifles a chuckle as he goes back to his seat - serves her right for trying to bully people like that!
