Library, Thursday (November 5)

[wildandbrave]

Someone, and Cosette wasn't naming names, who worked down at the post office had persuaded Cosette to take some of her surfeit of leftover Halloween candy, so there was a large bowl of it on the circulation desk today.

Cosette, meanwhile, was going to be kept very busy all day reshelving. Books -- historical, academic, fiction, you name it -- about Christmas kept materializing in the returns bin. Or on the desk. Or in small stacks on the tables.

Honestly.

[OOC: NGL this outlet mall near me has had the obnoxious giant red Christmas ribbon on its roof for almost a month already. I might still be mad about this.]

How To Get By In A Hostile World, Thursday

[suitably_heroic]

"'Appearances are often deceiving'," Atton said. "That's one of those proverbs that seems to crop up everywhere, no matter what galaxy you're from. It's true, of course, but it's one of those things that despite repetition, most people don't really internalize."

He was sitting on the desk. They were in a regular classroom. Those were probably good signs for you today, kids.

"Which means it's something you can use," he said, hopping up on the desk. "It's kind of like the telepathy exercise we did a few weeks back: you want to distract the person that you're talking to in such a way that they don't get at some vital piece of information about you. Sex appeal helps, sure--" He eyed Isabela, "--but it can also be unwelcome, because it makes you stick out in the crowd. Usually it's best to go for something people will underestimate, or won't want to associate with. Be gross, but not too gross-- a regular amount of gross as expected of someone with your gender presentation. If part of you is able to tap into the vapid teenage girl thing, do that. Drop hints that you're shallow. Maybe act like you have a drinking habit you don't actually have."

Not that Atton knew anything about that one, or anything.

"Why is this important? Because we're in a class about dealing with big hitters when you're smaller," he said. "Like I said in an earlier class, the best way to even the odds is to mess with the other guy's head, because that's usually the part that isn't superpowered. Or super-popular, whatever your issues are. Get them to underestimate them. Keep them from asking too many questions. And then when you put a knife in their back, they won't see it coming at all."

Cough. Seriously. No experience with this whatsoever.

"'Course, this won't work if you're trying to play up something that isn't you at all," he continued. "If you're naturally confident about your sex appeal, stretch that out into lechery. If you're naturally cautious, make it look like cowardice. If you're brash, make it sound like you're reckless. Easily annoyed? Suddenly you're losing your shit over every tiny thing."

NO EXPERIENCE. WHATSOEVER.

"Now, I want you all to pair up and talk about your class schedules. Except the last thing you want to do is let the other person know your actual class schedule. The catch: you can't lie in response to a direct question. Find a way to convince the other person it's something other than it is by misdirection and playing things up. Then at the end of the class, I want everyone to tell the class what they've learned about their partner."