fandomhigh | How To Avoid Misadventure, Monday, Period 4

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misadventure

How To Avoid Misadventure, Monday, Period 4

"Hopefully, after this last week, you have all learned a very important lesson," Morrigan began, a smirk hovering on her lips. "Going off and exploring in a strange area without proper information is very very stupid."

Students in the class who were still sort of ashen? She's looking at you.

"Incredibly stupid," Alistair agreed. He felt all kinds of put out that he was agreeing with Morrigan, but there it was. "You may think you're doing good, but the truth is often more complicated than you're ready for. We showed you darkspawn several classes ago. Did you know that being scratched by one can pass on a taint far deadlier than the one you faced today?"

He wasn't so sure when he'd wound up being responsible about anything. Maker, if the clerics saw him now.

Probably sometime after he'd willingly ingested the taint. Morrigan would never understand the Wardens.

"The art of writing was not invented just so dusty old clerics could impress each other with the length of their sermons," Morrigan continued. "Tomes exist which document the oldest and most sacred of truths, and you would do well to learn about where you are, or where you are going, before you do it."

"This is our chief lesson in this series of classes," Alistair continued smoothly. "To avoid misadventure, you must be prepared. To be prepared, you must be informed. And so what we ask of you today is to inform yourselves of threats past and present, that you feel may affect you. You can do that by fetching books from your own rooms or the library, or..." He swept his arm across the gathered... computers, and completely ruined his whole noble lecturer thing by going, "...or use these clunky things. I have no idea what you'd use them for, but, you know." Beat. "Maybe give them a shake and information will fall out...? I think they're magical, or something like it."

"I still say they house demons," Morrigan deadpanned. "No proper spirit makes noises like those boxes."

"Can't be," Alistair said, staring at the computers now. "I've tried to cleanse them of magic before, but they didn't give as much as a squeak..."

...Yeah, maybe it was time to get to work now, students.

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Go fetch books from the library and then come back to class, or just use the classroom computers to look up bits of Fandom history. You can pair up, if you like, since the Buddy System is usually a good plan.

Were we really going to ask Gabrielle to peruse books? As if that was some kind of hardship?

The hardship was lugging the very large stack of books on Fandom history that she ended up collecting from the library all the way back to the classroom. Look, she had to peer around it to make her way back. It was a miracle that she she didn't bump into anything and drop the entire stack en route.

More than twice.

After the second time Gabrielle's books fell to the ground, Karla sidled up to her roommate and asked, "Want a hand with those?"

"Whose hand?" Gabrielle asked lightly, but with a hopeful look of yes, please, please, pretty please?

"I was gonna offer you one of mine, but if you'd prefer someone else's, I can go commandeer them?" Karla offered, holding out her arms for Gabrielle to offload some of her stack.

Gabrielle took a moment to look over the stack -- well, more like a pile at the moment -- and gathered together about a third of it for Karla.

"I think I'd rather have yours," she replied with a quick smile. "I know better than to tell you to be taking it easy today, but don't think I won't knock you over the head with one of these books if I absolutely have to."

Karla gave Gabrielle her most innocent expression. "Me? I'm being Lady Lazypants today. Classes and my shift at 'Dite's and I'll spend most of those sitting down."

And probably eating, too. She was still hungry.

"Don't try and fool me with your innocent look, your Highness," Gabrielle retorted -- indulgently, though. "Should I bring you lunch at work? I'm probably not the only one offering but as if you'd turn any of us down."

Karla happened to like having multiple lunches. Otherwise, she ended up breaking into the novelty chocolates because she was hungry. And grumpy.

"I certainly wouldn't complain if you did," Karla said, still trying to look innocent. "And you could make sure I'm not doing anything strenuous while you're there!"

See? It totally worked out!

"I'm on to you," Gabrielle told her, shaking a finger lightly. "Don't think I'm not . . . what do you want me to bring?"

Worked like a charm, it did.

"Food?" Karla wasn't terribly picky. "Whatever you're in the mood for will be fine with me. Just not anything too spicy, please."

Her third summer here and Karla still couldn't handle anything stronger than black pepper.

Gabrielle snapped her fingers. "So much for the salad made entirely of jalapenos, then," she teased.

Karla gave her the most pathetic look she could muster. "Why would you do that to me?" she wailed.

Gabrielle smothered a laugh. "Because I care so much? Or because I love getting you to make that face?"

"Meanest mean roommate," Karla said with a pout. She tried to sniffle. "Teasing me with promises of lunch..."

Gabrielle let her mouth drop open and feigned a hurt look. "Karla, I'm -- I don't know what to say!" she exclaimed, putting just a touch of a quiver into her lower lip. "What can I do to make it up for you? Half of a roasted animal of some kind? And chocolate mousse?"

"Well..." Karla said, pretending to give that some consideration. "I guess that could work. So long as there are no jalapeños involves."

Gabrielle clasped her hands and gave Karla an impossibly wide-eyed, pleading look. "Just tell me that it means there's a chance that someday, maybe, you just might consider forgiving me?"

Re: Activity: Research!

glacial_queen - 2011-08-08 21:08 (UTC) - Expand

Re: Activity: Research!

ancientbschamp.livejournal.com - 2011-08-08 21:18 (UTC) - Expand

Re: Activity: Research!

glacial_queen - 2011-08-08 22:02 (UTC) - Expand

Re: Activity: Research!

ancientbschamp.livejournal.com - 2011-08-08 22:22 (UTC) - Expand

Re: Activity: Research!

glacial_queen - 2011-08-08 22:36 (UTC) - Expand

Re: Activity: Research!

ancientbschamp.livejournal.com - 2011-08-08 22:38 (UTC) - Expand

Okay, so, admittedly, going to the library and finding books was not boring at all, but actually a lot of fun. Ariel had to abandon a few of her choices when she just started plucking out all the best ones off the shelf and then realized she had far too much to be able to carry. It was a hard choice, deciding which ones to leave behind, but a necessary one.

And then it was a matter of going through them, finding cool pictures and other fun stuff.

The computers seemed like Warren's best bet, today. The claws that seemed to refuse to fade were giving him a bit of a challenge when it came to typing out what he wanted to search, but at least being planted in front of a monitor meant that he could stay put and not really face anybody while he looked up invasions past.

... Harpies? Huh.

Mercy hesitated, then took a chance. "Did you - do you need some help typing?"

Warren winced a little, looking down at his hands. Yeah. Yeah, he kind of did. But he shrugged, jostling wings that were trying so very hard to shift from scales back to feathers again.

"I think I'm doing okay," he replied, trying not to sound too defensive. "I mean, if I take it slow, then I don't make too many typos, at least."

... He was using the phrase 'too many' very loosely. He'd almost worn a hole in the backspace key with the claw on his right pinky finger already.

Hank couldn't stomach reading, especially not about history.

But if he closed his eyes after every sentence or two, and pictured the scene in his imagination, it was almost like a comic book. He got through almost an entire CHAPTER that way!

It took special skill to Google like you were mad, but Quinn was managing it.

Elphaba had no problem gathering books to look through. After all, it was much of what she'd done, this past week. To little avail, but she'd learned many interesting things that were wholly unrelated.

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