fandomhigh | Basic Strategy, Monday, Period 4

Class met in the Danger Shop today, which had been set up to look like a dimly lit dungeon, deserted save for a swarm of small, ugly beasts that looked a bit like purple wolves with lizard heads.

"Last week our subject was acknowledging things about ourselves we can't change or forget," Tyrion said without preamble. He was impressed with himself he'd gotten the Danger Shop to work, and it might have shown in his bearing. "This week, we begin a unit on making the best of what you have. You may be strong. You may be clever. You may be lovely to look upon. You may be rich. Unless the gods gave with both hands at your birth, it's unlikely you're all four. It's far more likely you're weak, stupid, ugly or poor -- relatively speaking, of course."

"Your choices are two. You can either concentrate on what you have a gift for and hope it's enough to get you through anything, or you can spend your life trying to master the things you're worst at in hopes of balancing yourself out. All things being equal, and assuming you're being honest with yourself about having tried to improve, I'd say you're usually better off focusing on your skills and making them as good as they can be. A swordsman does not prepare for battle by reading, nor should he, and it makes no more sense for a weakling to spend his days fiddling about with a sword. He might hurt himself."

But -- because this is my class, and I have the right to be perverse sometimes -- today we will start with a single kind of skill, and pretend we're all trying to improve our strength." He pointed to a beast. "Your job is to fight these lovely fellows. They've no ability to speak or reason -- all you can do is find a way to bash your way out of this one. After you've done that, we'll talk some more."

Before he released the class to fight the beasts, he added, "And by the way, Kate Daniels is my assistant now. Bother her if you can't find me."

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

You should focus on what you're good at, but that's not what you're doing today? What sense does that make?

PURPLE LIZARD WOLVES. WHAT. Where the hell was the exit?!

If Bruce was a bit proud that apparently the gods used both hands for him, it didn't show. He was too busy focusing on the monsters.

Yep. He could take them.

Susan fully understood and saw the point of the lecture, but he'd lost her on the activity. While she was curious as to what the wolf lizard things were, she wasn't in any hurry to fight them. It wasn't as if she was ever going to have to fight monsters in her lifetime.

She'd just quietly fade into the background where no one could see her and pull out the book she kept with her. Though to be honest she'd spend most of her time watching the other students in their efforts.

Given the choice between one of his father's lessons and the lizards, Lex would pick the lizards. At least they would only be trying to kill him.

Listening to what the little teacher said, Caroline couldn't help thinking that what she'd been lacking before (strength, duh) had been totally made up when she became a vampire.

Now to wonder if she was supposed to feel more perfect. She thought it was weird that it wasn't quite true.

Okay, those were... new.

Instead of listening too much to the lecture, Tony was already taking apart his phone for parts. If he couldn't just use the suit to, you know, not die, he'd come up with something else.

Ah, technology on the fly.

... There was much staring. Much, much staring. Huge blue-eyed staring.

Simon missed most of what Tyrion said, yes.

Poor, yes; weak and stupid, she'd been called both, so by about halfway through the lecture there was a defensive look in Stephanie's eyes.

But she thought she understood what Tyrion was getting at. Maybe. There wasn't exactly time to think that all the way through, see, with the lizard-wolf things (although she did approve of the color) to worry about.

Lucrezia began reciting a prayer. This was their class? He intended to slaughter them wholesale the second week? She was very quickly taking back every nice thing she had thought about Lord Tyrion.

James had a particularly strong reaction upon noticing the wolf-lizard chimera. His hand automatically reached for his non-existent sword. A beast combining two of his least-favorite memories, the constructed demon at the hilltop monastery, and the crocodile-sized rock serpent in the cave.

He scanned the room, noting the exits, and kept himself on the good side of any obstacles. This was madness!

Basic Strategy, Monday, Period 4

GENERAL CLASS STUFF [9/05]

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