Haruto was limping through the streets of Vale when he was approached by a man with a cane. He didn't seem very threatening, but Haruto wasn't sure what to think of this new world he found himself in, so he didn't drop his guard. He didn't know how he got here, but the last thing he remembered was fighting the leader of Akatsuki Pein in the crater once called Konoha. Next thing he knew, he was lying in an alley sporting several wounds that the fox either refused to heal, or couldn't; he really hoped it was the former. Drawing a knife from his pouch, he eyed the stranger with caution.
"I don't mean any harm," said the man. Haruto looked at him with confusion. What did he just say?
"Who are you?" asked Haruto. The man returned his confused expression.
"Well, this is going to be a problem… " he said to himself. He took a step towards Haruto, who took a step back. The man must have sensed what Haruto was thinking, as he placed his cane on the ground, and offered his hand to him. Haruto was still hesitant, but lowered his knife. The man pointed to himself and uttered a single word. "Ozpin."
"Ozpin?" Haruto asked, the word feeling strange in his mouth. The man then nodded, and gestured to him. Haruto pointed to himself, and replied, "Haruto Uzumaki."
"Uzumaki?" asked Ozpin. "You're clearly not from around here, are you?" Haruto looked at him questioningly, before the man extended his hand out to him again. Haruto got the gist of what he wanted. He wasn't an enemy, and wanted to show him that. Haruto's stomach then growled, making the man raise an eyebrow. He then gestured with his hands that he was eating something. Nodding, Haruto then took a step closer. "Let's get you something to eat, Uzumaki. "
"Haruto," he tried to clarify. "Call me Haruto." The man nodded, and picked his cane off the floor and began to walk out of the alley. Haruto tried his best to walk alongside him, but his injuries were still too painful. Once the two were in the light of the streetlamps, he noticed Haruto's state. Concern washed over his face, convincing Haruto that he indeed was a genuinely nice guy… although that cane of his seemed very unusual. Why would he need to carry around a weapon like that all the time?
"Let's get those wounds looked at first," he said to him. Haruto looked at him confused. Ozpin laughed to himself, and then pointed to his bloodied clothes. Haruto shook his head, he hated hospitals. The man gave him a look that he could roughly translate to "get help, or no food." He then pulled out a strange little device with a transparent screen that began to talk in that same strange language. "I found an interesting young man, but there seems to be a language barrier. Can you call in Doctor Oobleck, I'm sure he will enjoy this. Thank you Glynda." Haruto wordlessly followed the man, still having a few doubts in his mind.
A few minutes later, Haruto found himself on board of a strange vessel that floated above the ground. He tried his best to seem like he wasn't fazed, but he quickly realized he wasn't doing a very good job. Ozpin gave him an amused smile, but said nothing. After what felt like hours of flying in that deathtrap, they arrived at what resembled a castle. He looked at Ozpin questioningly, but the man just stepped off the ship and began walking to the school. Haruto quickly caught up, and began to look around the place taking it all in. As he looked in awe, he was caught completely off guard when a green-haired man zipped towards him speaking at a rapid pace.
"My, is this the boy you were talking about Ozpin? He certainly doesn't seem strange, although those markings on his face make him resemble a Faunus, even if he should have a more pronounced feature, such as ears or a tail. Where did you find this boy? His clothes are covered with holes, and what looks to be dry blood. Was he suffering from Aura exhaustion? "
"I found him in the streets of Vale. I observed him protect a couple of Faunus before he ran off. As you can see, he is suffering from many injuries, and—"
"What injuries?" asked Oobleck. "I'm afraid I don't see anything wrong with the boy, aside from his state of dress." The man then looked at Haruto, who was now scratching his stomach. His wounds were gone! But how would he be able to recover his Aura so quickly? Regardless, Ozpin turned back to Oobleck.
"It seems that they've healed on the trip over here. Now, I promised this young man something to eat, so let's go on inside. Oh, and the reason I called you is because he is speaking a language I have never heard before. It sounds reminiscent of Yatsuhashi's name, but I don't believe that anybody still spoke that ancient tongue. "
"Hmm, very curious indeed. I need to go grab some supplies from my classroom. I'll be back in a few minutes. " The caffeinated man then zipped away, leaving a confused Haruto. Ozpin then placed a hand on his shoulder, and gestured to him to follow once more.
As soon as Haruto was presented with food, he began to stuff his face with plate after plate, leaving Ozpin an amused expression.
"Well, his appetite is certainly healthy," a blonde woman said dryly. Haruto got a vibe that said she didn't trust him, which he couldn't fault her for, as he felt the same way. He decided to ignore her for the time being, and enjoy the copious amounts of food in front of him. It wasn't ramen, but it would do for now. A few minutes after he finished, the green haired man returned, with a box full of things and several notebooks. "What is all this Oobleck?"
"This is how I plan to communicate with him," he said to the woman. Haruto began to get a bit annoyed at being talked about as if he wasn't there, but bit his tongue. It wouldn't have done him any good to speak anyway. The green hair professor then took out a few items from the box, and laid them on the table with a note card next to them. Picking up a cup, he showed it to him, and wrote something on the paper next to it. "Cup."
"Cup?" asked Haruto. "That's a cup, " he added. Oobleck then showed him the paper with strange markings on it. Instantly Haruto's eyes lighted up, and he took the paper and wrote cup on it. Oobleck then showed him a book, then a lighter, and other things. Haruto named each one, except for a few that he didn't recognize. The first being a small vial of what appeared to be colored sand, the second being the strange device that Ozpin used to call Glynda, and the last one being a black figurine of what looked to be a grisly monster.
"It seems that he recognizes a lot of what I showed him," Oobleck reported. "But it seems he doesn't know what Dust, Grim or scrolls are. This is very curious indeed. If I may, I would like to continue trying to decipher his language so we may better communicate, Headmaster. If my calculations are correct, we should be having polite conversation in a year."
"A year? " asked the blonde woman." We don't have a year, Professor Oobleck!"
"Doctor," he corrected.
"Doctor Oobleck. We have our new freshman coming in three months. We can't afford to have you neglect your students for this kid."
"Now Glynda, I'm sure we can figure a way around this, but she is right, Doctor. Is there any way you can accelerate the process?"
" I'm afraid not, Ozpin. His language is so ancient, that finding the proper documentation to translate is simply next to impossible. It doesn't help that it appears he has three different alphabets. Most of these symbols seem to be simple, but then there are the sharper characters that seem to be used for certain words, and the last is just a complex character that appears to have multiple meanings. If you look at what he wrote for tree, and this piece of wood. The characters appear identical, the only difference is what comes before or after. His language is much more complex than ours, and it would take ages for me to become fluent enough to begin teaching him our language. Unless he is more of a scholar than I, I'm afraid that we won't be able to properly communicate."
"I see," replied Ozpin. He looked at the boy with a sad expression. "I'll give you until the week before classes are in session. Just try your best, Doctor." Oobleck nodded, though his time limit had obviously bothered him. "Alright, we'll leave you to work. Don't work him too hard."