Rookiehood 101, Tuesday, Period 4

[raspberryturk]

When Reno stepped into the classroom today, he was... dressed somewhat unusually. It wasn't that he wasn't wearing his usual suit, mind. It was more that his white button-down was now in a remarkable state of tie-dye, and there were multicolored ferret-footprints up and down his jacket. Not to mention the random blue streaks in his hair, and the technicolor ferret that was ravaging the contents of the wastepaper basket over in the corner.

Perhaps surprisingly, he was grinning.

"Yo, Rookies!" Mako, the ferret in the basket, honked counterpoint to Reno's greeting. "This week, I'm gonna talk a little about that chip you might have sittin' on your shoulder when you step into a new situation, yo. You know the one, I'm thinkin'. It's that little voice in the back of your head that makes you damn sure that you're gonna get in there, and you're gonna be better than anyone else who ever did the job, and how dare whoever is sittin' three ranks above you not take the job as seriously as you do when you only been around for like a week, and they've been there for freakin' ever, yo."

He gave Elena a pointed look at that, his grin not wavering in the least.

"Some Rookies learn to lose that chip a bit slower'n others, but when they figure it out, they do a damn good job of it, yo. See, thing is, there ain't nothin' the matter with wantin' to do a good job. But when you get past the point of doin' the job, and you get into a place where you're sacrificing yourself for it, you've just stopped being whatever it is you're trying to prove you are... And you've started bein' a damn fool."

He shifted his weight a bit, almost uncomfortably, and then he leaned back against his desk, arms crossing over his chest.

"When you do what you're doin', make sure it's for the right damn reasons. Ain't gonna impress nobody by shuttin' yourself off just to prove you're better, yo. So this week, we're going to do a nice, simple assignment. No syrup, no Jell-o, no feathers even though they were funny as hell. Just talk about what you think the difference is between doin' the job for the sake of doin' what needs to be done, and doin' it because you got somethin' to prove."

A pause, and then he pulled a gold coin out of his pocket and flipped it. "Makita, you won the coin toss, yo. Go stand by Elena, there, Rookie. Maybe see if she knows anything about how to get ducks outta a kitchen while you're at it, yoto."

[Open!]

Functional French, Tuesday, Period 2

[one-who-goes.livejournal.com]

Class had been directed to meet in the danger shop today, and the shop itself was set up to resemble the main hall of a large, contemporary train station.

"Bonjour," Henry said once the group was assembled, shouting a bit to be heard over the noise of trains and NPC bustle. "Welcome to the Gare Saint Lazare. Here, have a vocabulary sheet. Your goal today is to find out a few things -- you want to find the next train to Le Havre and buy a ticket for it, and you want to find out where the nearest Métro station is and how to get there. The room's been programmed so the simulated people will only speak French at you, but they will speak slowly and repeat themselves until you get it." Unlike real people in an urban train station anywhere, but this was only the second week of class.

"Once you've done that -- get a snack, get a magazine, people-watch. I'm here if you need me."

And then he sank onto a bench from which he could keep an eye on all six students.

Maritime Mammals, Tuesday, Period 6

[takesaftermom.livejournal.com]

Summer had originally planned to take her class to the beach but it was raining, so she handwavily let her students know to meet in the Danger Shop.

When the students entered the room, they'd notice it was set up as an exact replica of the beach. There was a stretch of white sand and there were numerous tidal pools to be found.

If the students looked out at the ocean, they could see a pod of dolphins surface every once in a while as they parallel to the shoreline. A couple were curious and kept riding the waves in toward the beach.

"Hi everyone," Summer began, as her students settled in. "I was hoping for an actual beach day but since the weather's not cooperating, this will have to do." She smiled, hoping her students would have fun either way. "Today's a day to just have fun. Explore the tide pools, have fun in the water -- it's up to you. Enjoy yourselves."

[OCD coming up.]

Library, Tuesday.

[death-of-hope.livejournal.com]

Another Tuesday, another library shift. This one found Anemone setting on the coffee in Mr. DeTamble's office, and drawing pictures of her Alots.

She missed her Alots, darn it. They'd made a good napping spot.

Breaking The Glass Ceiling, Tuesday

[on-her-korhal.livejournal.com]

"We've all got to start somewhere," Kerrigan began, pacing in front of the class with lithe grace. "Whether you've just gotten smashed to the ground, or you're wide-eying your way in. Anything worth having is something you have to fight for. In order to fight, you need to be aware of your assets."

She stopped in front of the table, and leaned her hands on it, looming. "These can be physical. Military. Monetary. But your first and foremost asset is your... image." She gave it a pause. "People are eager to help a lost sheep. An unlikely ally that comes out of nowhere when the times are most desperate will be more easily taken into the fold. Or use someone else's image; sometimes, if you want to be effective, the most important first step is that you find someone who'll say what you'd like other people to hear."

Like Matriarch Raszagal. May she rest in peace. "If you want to get anywhere, you need to know what your target is so that you can work out how to get there. I realize this sounds obvious, but half the idiots in this multiverse have flamed out because they couldn't concentrate on their goal."

In case you'd thought last week was just a generic introduction session. "Think about those who stand in front of that goal. What do they want to accomplish? Why are they in your way? How do they expect you to behave? Play on that - and then exaggerate one attribute so they'll buy into it the way you want them to." Which was clearly very ethical. "Personality is your primary asset." Beat. "After that, guns... but we'll talk about that later..."

"I want you all to do a little roleplaying exercise I've thought up," she continued. "Pick someone you know, or someone you've already wondered about. Try to figure out how the other person thinks of you. Subtly." She put down an apple. "You want food. The other person has it. Convince the other person they want to give it to you. If you are succesful, or loudly put down, switch."

Beat.

"Take the fact the other person knows you want the food as a challenge." She never said her workshop was going to be easy.

[[ wait for the ocd up! have at! ]]

Magic of Baking [Week 2, Period 3]

[justwantsquiet.livejournal.com]

When students filed into the Home Ec room, they'd notice that instead of Alysha, a younger and less confident blonde would be leading class today. Sookie stood at the front of the classroom, about a dozen muffins on a platter before her. She'd done her homework, thanks.

"Hey, everyone!" Sookie said, waving cheerfully and keeping her shields as steadfastly in place as she could. "Um, Ms. Gale couldn't make it today, so I'm going to fill in. For those who don't know, or don't remember me from last week, or whatever, I'm Sookie. And since last week we did cupcakes -- or decorated them, at least -- I figured this week we'd go with something similar to kind of go with 'em: muffins."

She picked up a perfectly-crafted blueberry muffin, showing it to the class. "This little guy is like a cupcake you can eat for breakfast. They often have fruit and nuts and things, but sometimes you can just make straight-up chocolate muffins, and those are good, too. And again, basically naked cupcakes that you can get away with eating for breakfast."

She clapped her hands together, and gestured to a stack of papers. "Figured we'd take it kind of easy today. Pick out a muffin recipe that you think is suited to your skill level, and try and make a full dozen of them. Ingredients are moddable in the fridge or pantry, and feel free to work with a partner. I'm around if you need help."

She paused, and worriedly added, "Please don't set yourselves on fire if you can help it."