"As understandable as the elder Winchester's grief and pain may be, it's not right of him to pass that onto his son, nor for his son to express such in class. I explained so and instructed him to meet me after class." Oobleck sighed and leaned back, nursing his thick, black, tar. "It should have ended there, but unfortunately, Miss Valkyrie seemed to disagree with him and caused an argument. Mr Lark quickly sided with Mr Winchester, while Miss Valkyrie's partner and friend sided with her."
"And before you know it, the team is split in two," Glynda finished. "It's always difficult when emotions and ideologies clash. From what I've seen, Nora Valkyrie and Lie Ren are close friends. Having the two of them on the same team was bound to cause tension, if only because they will side together against the other two."
"It's as you say. Mr Winchester feels his leadership is threatened, and I don't think Miss Valkyrie truly understands how often she tries to determine what the team should do. When Mr Ren agrees with her, it instantly looks like a challenge against the leader and breeds more tension."
"They're not the only team that is struggling," Peter said. "I had Miss Nikos sit next to her partner Mr Thrush in class, and I've never seen two people look more out of place. I'm not sure who to feel sorry for. The poor lad looks like he doesn't know what to say, and she sure isn't talking to him."
Yes, and that entire team was another headache in the making for her. Partners were supposed to be close, and even in Team CRSN, the partnerships were that – with Mr Lark siding with Winchester in most arguments. Pyrrha Nikos and Russel Thrush hadn't seemed like an entirely bad partnership at first, but something had clearly happened.
Now, the two couldn't so much as speak to one another, and often sat on opposite ends of the classroom. They weren't antagonistic, thankfully. They just avoided one another… all the time.
"Not for the first time, I wish teams didn't exist at all," Ozpin sighed. "I'd abolish them, but it's an international custom, so it's not that easy."
The three of them grumbled their agreement. The silence would have continued from there, but for their host coming back with a tray in his hands. She took the distraction for what it was and happily turned to face him.
"Here you go," the young man said, laying out a large plate in the middle of the table. "I hope you enjoy."
Glynda's mind went blank.
She was not an overly feminine woman and never had been. She conducted herself as both a professional and a woman, but she didn't find things cute or pretty. To her, everything needed a function, a purpose. But when he laid the plate down and she was presented with the sight of a small collection of deserts – each one miniscule, but also widely different – she couldn't help but bite her lip and stare.
They're adorable…
"I didn't quite expect this much," Ozpin mused, lifting one of the cakes between his finger and thumb. It was far smaller than the slices she'd seen in the display cabinet, more a single bite in itself, but there were many more of them, and of a wide range of different cakes. Ozpin popped his in his mouth, and judging from his expression, was quite satisfied with the result.
"I wasn't sure which cakes to give," the waiter admitted. "I didn't want to charge you too much, and I didn't think you'd want more than a single slice each, but we have at least thirty different kinds of cakes. In the end, I decided to take smaller cuts of all of them and make mini-cakes."
"It's like a platter," Peter cheered, reaching out to take one and sample it. "Incredible. I love it!"
"They are rather well presented," Oobleck agreed, helping himself. "It also eliminates the need to choose, and lets us sample various different flavours." He nodded to the waiter. "That's quite the clever idea, young man. Perhaps you should add something like this to your menu."
"Do you think?"
Yes. Absolutely. It wasn't just the convenience of it, but the look. Glynda picked up one and stared at it, and it was hard to even think of eating it. He'd not just cut a slice, but actually used some tools to shape it like a tiny little cake. Somewhere deep in her mind, hidden behind locked doors and chains, a little girl squealed at the sight of such an adorably cute thing. She wanted to take it home and keep it as an ornament. It really was just thatcute.
"I think Miss Goodwitch approves," Ozpin teased, and it wasn't until she noticed their gazes on her – even the waiter's – that she realised how much she was staring at the miniature treat. Her cheeks darkened, and Ozpin chuckled. "It looks like you have a winner, Mr Arc. I'm sure many of your other customers would love such an option."
"Several of them are already looking," Oobleck pointed out. He was right, too, for they were receiving quite a few not-so-subtle looks; the kind you might receive at a restaurant if you ordered something unusual or appealing and everyone else wanted to know what it was.
The young man laughed and scratched the back of his head. "I guess I should. Well, it's not a bad idea for sure. I'll have to run it past my consultant."
"You have a business consultant?"
"W-Well, I have a customer who knows a lot about business. She's not really doing work for me, but she always has advice, and I listen to what she says." He smiled to himself. "She's pretty demanding, but she means well. Or I think she does… it's hard to tell sometimes."
"Excuse me," a feminine voice called. It was one of the two girls by the window, two third-years Glynda recognised by name and team. They smiled flirtatiously at the young waiter, who quickly went red-faced and rushed over to them. "Can we have whatever it was they just got? That looked amazing!"
"Huh? Uh, yeah, sure. I'll have to make some more, though. It might be five minutes."
"We can wait," the other said. "Can we have another round as well?"
"Sure."
"Thank you, Jaune~" the first cooed, stroking his arm. "You're really so sweet."
"A-Ah, I should go make your drinks!"
"He's certainly popular," Ozpin said, amusement thick in his tone as he popped another treat into his mouth. "I'm pleased to see him doing so well. This is a nice place, and he deserves the success it could bring."
"I hope he doesn't take them too seriously," Glynda sighed. "They're only flirting, and I'd hate to see him think otherwise."
"I'm sure it will be fine, Glynda."
"You knew his name," Oobleck said. Glynda paused in her own conversation, quickly realising what her companion meant. Ozpin had referred to their waiter as Mr Arc, and there hadn't been any introductions. Even if they went by the name of the diner, he would have said `Jaune` before a surname.