fandomhigh | Interdisciplinary Studies, Class 2, Friday, Period 1

"All right, kids," Squall said, as he tossed the sign-in clipboard in their direction. "Today we're going to actually learn something useful. But first--"

He produced a bag from behind his desk, reached into it, and pulled out a single-serving-size packed of Fig Newtons. "Turns out, the guy in THIS universe who invented all the stuff I'm about to tell you was named after these cookies. Or whatever." He shrugged. "Hey, I was in the store, okay? And they're good." He chucked a few packets hard at each student, and then lobbed a few in high arcs over the class. "You see the shape they make when they travel? That's a parabola. Because of a constant downward force. Write that down."

"So, today we're going to learn some of the basic principles on which the universe works. Except not really."

Squall fixed the class with a level gaze.

"What I'm about to tell you is a lie. A useful lie. In fact, it's so close to the truth that you'll never be able to measure how wrong it is." He shrugged. "Unless you're travelling really, really fast. Or you're dealing with things that are really, really small. Still, this isn't actually the way the universe works, just a close approximation. I'm not going to tell you the REAL equations, because they're complicated and don't make any sense."

"So. First. Every action has an equal and opposite reaction. If I push on the wall, the wall pushes on me."

"Second. 'An object in motion tends to stay in motion, and an object at rest tends'... whatever. Things don't move unless you push 'em. Got that?"

"And third." He wrote "F = ma" on the board. "That's the big one. Force equals mass times acceleration. When you apply a force to something it accelerates. And when you understand that equation, you unlock all kinds of secrets of the universe. Or whatever." He pulled out a stack of papers that looked remarkably like they had been photocopied out of a physics textbook. "And my notes say I got those in the wrong order. So... Ah, who cares."

The next 15 minutes that followed were just Squall copying things off the papers onto the board. Lots of math was involved, and little explanation.

"Okay, so. Now we're going outside. I've got water balloon launchers and water balloons. Get into groups of three and try to shoot the balloons as far as you can. Experiment with different angles and see what angle gives you the best distance -- if you were following the lecture, you should already know." No, you shouldn't. "Don't aim at each other, or at any buildings, while I'm looking at you."

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It's a long one. You should have gotten some snacks.

Somewhere after "Parabola" Mel had already finished her Fig Newtons (Which were no where good as twinkies) and was snoring softly with her head on the desk.

Squall walked over and brought a yardstick down on the desk an inch from her ear.

Mel hopped up on her chair in a martial arts defense posture.

"LURKS! WHERE? HUH?! WHAT?!"

"Good reflexes," Squall said, with a note of approval. "But maybe next time you should pay attention."

"To what? Were you throwing more cookies?"

Luckily, the Fig Newtons double as snacks! They're strange tasting, though - but Roxas is eating them anyway. He'd probably eat dirt if someone dared him.

Rikku doesn't have a hand free for snacks. Not when she's scribbling madly and trying to keep up.

Science is cooooooooool.

Cassandra learned long ago to eat whenever the chance presented itself. So while she sort of paid attention to the first part of the lecture, she quickly decided that she knew all of that. Motion is sort of what she did, after all.

Which meant that the second half of the lecture was spent gathering whatever Newtons were not claimed and/or eaten by other students.

Mmm... figgy.

As they were heading outside, Squall lurked over her.

"You didn't come see me after class," he accused. "You better be getting help from someone else."

Cassandra blinked and looked up, "Katara."

Sora stared blankly at Squall during most of the lecture.

Johnny took detailed notes on the lecture, understanding the way the arcs worked, but not the math behind it.

And because he had promise, he was still wearing all the goop Blackheart had put on his face earlier (http://community.livejournal.com/fandomhighdorms/1216816.html).

Jenny had Fig Newtons AND cigarettes, which already made this class more nutritious than many a dinner she'd had.

Ino tried the Fig Newtons and made a face. Nasty. She nibbled on them though as she wrote her notes up.

Hey, at least she understood some of it.

Interdisciplinary Studies, Class 2, Friday, Period 1

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