Board Thread:General Discussion/@comment-32.208.226.199-20160526161241/@comment-26018514-20160905045638

^I look at it as 2 different subsystems we are taking about when discussing active aura that use the same energy pool:

1. defensive(reactive) aura- This is aura's normal state and it reacts only to defend the body from damage after it senses the damage, it conforms to the body and likely does not generate past the skin unless activated, likely remaining sub-dermal to prevent affecting senses like touch and protecting vital organs

2. offensive(active) aura- This is when aura is mentally focused to condense and/or move the field, often to protect vital points on their body(like feet in a "landing strategy"), activate dust, or protect their weapon(allowing it to do more damage) possibly even severing the normal protective field from the body entirely(leaving it unprotected)

The only times we've been shown things like scarring or bleeding were likely cases of the latter of #2,(with extreme cases like Ironwood, Pyrrha, and Amber being already completely depleted Aura), except for Jaune's injuries, which were done with inactive aura and still appear to be mostly skin deep. After "activating" the aura it probably changes the natural diffuse concentration of aura from around the vital organs to concentrate on the dermal layer by default, likely protecting the huntsman better but creating a more constant energy drain.