Elementary

— Cinder Fall

***Elementary*** is the fourth chapter of *RWBY: Witch Hunt*.

## Plot

The Atlesian Academy of Specialized Intellect. Much like the rest of Atlas, this place seemed to boast about itself. It was a place for people who wanted to make a difference in the world, but in a different way than those who trained to be Huntsmen and Huntresses. The power of the mind was valued here above all, and most didn't bother with Semblances, unless they had been unintentionally unlocked in some fashion beforehand. This is what made it the perfect place of study for the second-year student Arthur Watts. The most physical training he had done was at the preliminary training school, Castaway Academy, which was solely for the sake of being allowed entry into the AASI, and Arthur's training only resulted in him having an understanding of how to use his Aura, and how to use his lightweight, lanky body to his advantage. Sure, he could hold his own in a fight now, but the battlefield wasn't where he belonged. That's where his eventual creations belonged.

Despite only being a second-year student, Arthur had made a name for himself. He was the envy of his fellow second-year peers, and respected by the upper classmen, who he rivaled without question. And the staff considered him a suave troublemaker. Each semester, Arthur would be in some form of trouble for changing his schedule. Arthur had managed to, on several occasions, hack his way into the school's network. Usually, he only did this because he wanted to adjust his classes to those someone in his grade wouldn't have otherwise. The preliminary classes were just too easy, child's play compared to what he saw in himself. He respected the fact that a protocol made sense to have in place, but decided it didn't need to apply to him. He was the exception, and very obviously not the rule. His second semester of the second year had just begun, and he suspected he would be called to the headmaster again for the same reason he had all previous times. The precedent had been set already, so Arthur made sure his rescheduling was listed with his call sign: a cursive capital W.

Arthur was far more interested in technology than anything else, but as he had to have a minor to go along with his Militarized Technology major, he opted for Medical Science. He was headed for his first class of the day, coincidentally just down the hall beyond the headmaster's office. Well. Coincidentally to anyone who hadn't known what Arthur had done. Rather than only change his classes, he had also changed the classroom in which the class would be held for the next eighteen weeks. If he was going to be called in to discuss what would ultimately result in him continuing with the more advanced classes, he may as well be in a position where he can easily get to class right after.

"Watts!" a voice called from the headmaster's office right as Arthur had passed by.

Arthur smirked to himself. 'Right on time.'

Backtracking a tad, Arthur turned and entered the room with a braggadocios swagger. He sat himself down in front of the desk, setting his bag down next to the seat. The desk had a nameplate which read "Headmaster Xavier Athens." Xavier, the balding man sitting opposite Arthur, rubbed his eyes and bridge of his nose with a single hand, his glasses resting above the fingers.

"...We've had this talk before." Xavier sighs and lowers his hand, adjusting his glasses.

"And it's resulted the same each time."

"Arthur, I am completely and annoyingly aware of just how capable you are. But those classes you're skipping. We need you to take those for the sake of logistics, the sake of keeping the flow of the school in check. Yes, they don't fit with your abilities, but they're necessary for graduation."

"It would be beneficial for you to consider an advanced curriculum."

"Advanced curri- Arthur, this school IS the advanced curriculum! And that curriculum has rules that need to be followed! You can't simply bend the world to your every whim."

"Hm. And here I thought that was the entire point of this establishment." Arthur pompously adjusted his tie, causing a glare from Xavier. "It's almost embarrassing."

"Excuse me?"

"Those preliminary classes are simply to fill out a resume. It doesn't necessarily make sense, considering the only part of the resume anyone cares about is the final portion, but I could simply add them into the resume myself once I'm through with the important things."

Xavier leaned forward in his seat, his frustration growing. "You're going to adjust your own grades? That's grounds for expulsion, even more so than the actions you've already done."

"Expulsion?" Arthur scoffed. "Do those glasses blind what's right in front of you? The expulsion process requires the system I'm already obviously very familiar with. I can simply undo it, and nobody outside the grounds would be any the wiser. As for on-grounds? Well, you wouldn't want it getting out that there's a rogue individual wandering your halls claiming to be a student, now would you?"

Xavier leaned back in his seat, Arthur having his cheeky smirk all the while. Arthur was right. A scandal like that would tarnish the school's reputation. Aside from having a non-student travelling the grounds, the school would be the talk of the town that their top security network was being easily hacked by a star pupil. Xavier had dealt with Arthur's kind before, but if it weren't for the fact he knew Arthur had no Semblance, he'd have assumed his cunning nature was his power. He was on an entirely different level than the rest. If Xavier didn't play his cards right, he'd be played by Arthur.

"Arthur. This is going to be the last time I let this slide. Your classes next year will all be ones you're more fit to have, regardless of you hacking into the system or not. But if this happens again..." He narrowed his eyes "There will be consequences. Understood?"

"Yes, yes, of course." The uninterested, apathetic tone in Arthur's voice grated on Xavier's ears.

"Now... Get out of my office and to your damn class."

"I was already doing that. You're the one who called me in here, remember?" Arthur smirked as he grabbed his bag, stepping away. Xavier sighed as Watts left the room, his frown turning to a smirk as he gave a light chuckle.

It had been a month and a half since the semester began. As per usual, Arthur was excelling in his studies, and excelling at making no friends. Of course, that didn't matter to him. He understood the importance of social interaction at the school, but he didn't feel a need to do anything more than that. Just interactions, no relationships. He was pulling another late night in the academy's study hall, using one of their computers along with one of his own.

Multiple screens were better than one, after all. The rest of his desk was aligned with empty snack wrappers, and empty cups which once held Atlas' own Huntsmen brand coffee, which filled the current cup Arthur was sipping from to keep himself awake. Thankfully, this was a weekend, so if he was asleep the next day, it wouldn't be an issue. He glanced at the time on the screen. 3:30 AM. Groaning, Arthur stood up, stretching his arms and legs, and bending his back, making sure to crack his knuckles. Unable to keep his eyes away from a screen for too long, he pulled out his scroll, and looked over the most recent news headlines.

"Atlas Academy Team CRML Missing in Menagerie Mission"

"Schnee Dust Company Strikes Gold in Vacuo"

"Former Cadet James Ironwood Promoted to Commodore"

The typical common news stories such as these never interested Arthur. They were commonplace, and as far as Arthur was concerned, nothing new happened often in the floating city. Such an advanced and populated place ought to-

A notification appeared on Arthur's scroll. From Headmaster Xavier.

"Watts. My office. Now."

Watts scoffed, and quickly got rid of his mess. Shutting down the school's computer, he used rings on his fingers to quickly close his own computer before he stashed it away in his bag. "Like a charm." He smirked to himself as he lifted the bag and headed off.

Arthur took a single step into Xavier's office, only to have his face be filled with surprise upon seeing two Atlesian guards either side of Xavier. Arthur's confusion mixed with anger.

"What is this?"

"I was hoping you could tell me."

Xavier placed his scroll down, and projected the screen up. The grade listings of a fellow student, Jordan Maroon, appeared. All of them had been lowered to F's, with Arthur's signature cursive, capital W in the corner. Arthur's eyes narrowed at Xavier through the semi-translucent projection.

"You've been quite the trouble in the past, Arthur. But this is a new low. Hacking into our system and depleting a student's grades?"

"That's preposterous. I haven't any relations with any students whatsoever, positive or negative. What reason would I have to do this?"

"Perhaps it was to get the attention off of your back and onto someone else's. I doubt you hadn't noticed that we've been keeping an additional eye on you. Or perhaps you simply wanted to call my non-existent bluff. Either way, you made the mistake of leaving your calling card." Xavier motioned to the W. "I told you, Mr. Watts. You've exhausted your chances."

Arthur sat down and examined the situation. Xavier was certainly risking the scandal of the century if this got out, but the presence of the guards made it seem like the secret was going to be kept safe. Was he intended to feign innocence? True, he hadn't done anything. He had no reason to, and in fact, didn't even recognize Jordan's name at all. He knew the face, as he had a few classes with him, but, as with any other student, he hadn't interacted with him, not anymore than a class may ask of him, that is. All that aside, even the most simple of explanations, such as the idea this was staged, can come off as an attempt to get blame off oneself.

...No. He'd seem like a petulant child doing that tactic. The best course of action in this case...

"Fine. You caught me."

....was to play along.

Xavier cleared his throat. "Yes. We did." He clearly hadn't expected such a response. "You know what that means then."

"Of course." Arthur stood slowly, so as to not alarm the guards too much. "I'll pack my things and be on my way." He lifted his bag and stepped towards the door, stopping just as he left. "Thank you, Headmaster."

"For what?"

Arthur simply smiled as he took his leave, and Xavier shook his head.

Lights lit up the apartment Arthur saved for himself when necessary. The AASI was not without frat parties of its own, which could be noisy on-campus. This place was where Arthur could work in silence, as well as away from any potential prying eyes at the academy. As for why he didn't just go home, the Watts family was about as close as Arthur was with any of his peers. Serene and Mirage, Arthur's parents, married out of necessity for financial reasons, and Arthur himself wasn't in the plans. He had accepted that just fine, no point in moping about being an accidental birth if he could forge a purpose on his own. They had no reason to want him to come home, and Arthur had no reason to go home, either.

Arthur sat his bag on the counter, pulling his personal computer back out. He waved his hand in front of it, his rings glowing ever so slightly. On the projected screen of his computer, Arthur was able to look over all possible information regarding Headmaster Xavier. Resumes, childhood memories, business partners... even certain things he wouldn't dare share with anyone.

"Well, then. Let's see what's all here."

## Characters

* Arthur Watts
* Headmaster Xavier Athens
* Jordan Maroon *(resume)*

## Trivia

* The title of the chapter is a nod to the phrase "Elementary, my dear Watson," said by Sherlock Holmes, acting as a reference to Watts' allusion being John Watson. It also acts as a pun, referring to the chapter's academic setting, and that setting being elementary for Watts given his already superior intellect.
* Headmaster Xavier Athens alludes to Marvel's Professor Charles Xavier. Aside from the shared name Xavier (which is Catholic in origin meaning castle, bringing to mind any colors of materials used to build a castle), both of them are the heads of schools for gifted individuals, and are bald/balding. "Athens" brings to mind the Greek city of the same name, evoking whites or faded off-white shades.
* Watts' parents are a nod to Irene Adler (Serene, whose name may bring to mind greens), and James Moriarty (Mirage, who could bring to mind any spectrum of colors), both characters of the *Sherlock Holmes* franchise, same as Watson.
* Jordan Maroon is a nod to CaptainSparklez, whose real name is Jordan Maron. "Jordan" is a river, bringing to mind blues, and "Maroon" is a deep red. This name is also intentionally similar to Sparklez's parody of his real name, which is Jardon Maroon.