fandomhigh | Cultural Understanding, Monday.

Entry tags:

cultural understanding

Cultural Understanding, Monday.

"By now, we are all aware that darkness stalks the island's shores," Morrigan began simply, once everyone had arrived. "So today, we shall simply talk. Each culture - not to mention each person - meets adversity in a different manner."

"Some people, especially the big, strong and quiet types, like to beat things up, or sit around brooding," Alistair said, his usual chirp very much absent, though the dry humor wasn't. "Which is a little boring, if you ask me. Have you ever tried to have a conversation with someone like that? I mean, with some of the templars, I'd taken up making faces just to see what they'd do."

You did not want to deal with a bored Alistair. Especially not during times of crisis.

"Others find their solace in nature, or by sharing their feelings with their friends," Alistair continued, "Me, I don't think there's anything wrong with a good joke or two. After all, what's a good end of the world if you can't laugh about it?" He sounded distinctly sardonic, though, edging towards downtrodden.

"Some of us have simply do not have a previous frame of reference for loss," Morrigan continued frankly, "-and may not not know what it is they should do with themselves. Others simply repress all feelings in favor of carrying on and not letting anyone know that something is wrong, which cannot be healthy." Yes, students, she's referring to most of you.

"So," said Alistair, a little bolstered by the fact that Morrigan was putting in an effort like this - not that he'd ever admit it, "We're here to talk. To share. To strategize. Or to make terrible jokes. It's up to you."

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

Whether or not you're coping.

Mercy Thompson

Karla

Ben Skywalker

Petra West

Billy Kaplan

Elphaba Thropp

It's short, but you can take notes if you really want.

Karla was just going to sit quietly and stew. And if one more person came up to offer their unwanted and ignorant opinions of what she'd done and why, she would cheerfully take the detention in order to commit an act of violence.

Ben gave her a quick glance before going back to his very important doodles about accountants.

Karla arched a challenging brow at him in return. Was their something, Ben?

Ben met her look squarely.

Still sulking?

Omg, 'there' fail! *Hangs head with ALL the shame*

Her smile was bright with a feral edge. *Bite me.*

So...probably not?

Think the teachers might object, Ben retorted.

His Force-sense was a complicated mess of emotions: an understanding of the craving to go home added to his dread that he didn't have one any more, an underlying hurt that she hadn't asked him to go plus guilt that he wouldn't have said yes, bone-deep annoyance that he'd gotten what amounted to an 'off to die, bye!' mental Post-It note from her, sympathy for being on the receiving end of Ender on a tear but a belief that Ender had probably been right...

It was tough being Ben this week.

Wasn't really a picnic being Karla, either. It was probably a good thing that's she'd stopped listening to radio days on Saturday, or she probably would have been even more inclined to tear someone's head off.

*I don't know,* she sent, though with slightly less antagonism. *Morrigan might sell tickets.*

Think she'd give us a cut of it? Ben asked. Not that I'm going to let you bite me.

~~That was Ender's job.~~

Karla bared her teeth at him for a moment. *You might be surprised how much practice I have at it.*

...No he wouldn't, Karla. He's met you.

He snorted. Not really.

There was a short pause before he added, That was really all the goodbye I was going to get?

At that, Karla dropped her eyes. She still thought she'd been doing what was best, but...goodbye by note was something she'd regretted.

*Would you have let me go otherwise?*

Maybe, Ben said, but you didn't give anyone a chance to find out. You just ran.

*Leaving was hard enough,* Karla said and he would be able to feel her guilt over that. It SHOULD have been easy. She'd known what she was supposed to do; there hadn't been any question in her mind about that. But actually making herself do it...that had taken some work. *I was worried that if I said goodbye, I'd let you talk me into staying. Not because I thought it was the right thing to do, but because I didn't want to go.*

Ben sent her a quick pulse of reassurance through the Force. I know you've gotten an earful or six about this already, he said, but when you're worried you might get your mind changed, it's generally because you needed someone else to say what you've been thinking anyway.

Karla just shook her head. *Ben...sometimes I worry that if someone tried hard enough, they'd be able to convince me to stay after graduation. I think about how nice it would be to go to college after I graduate here. Become an actress or a lawyer or something. Anything. Something that I'd have an actual choice in.*

She looked down at her notebook, wishing she didn't sound so damn...self-pitying. She didn't mean to sound that way.

*I was worried I'd be able to be talked out of it because the right road is usually the easiest one. And I'm just so damn tired.*

I'm more than a little familiar with the idea of obligations at home, Ben replied, but the first rule of warfare is to survive. Going back with no knowledge of how to stop what this is...that's just wasting resources.

The teachers are just going to open up the floor on this one. If you need to leave, that's fine. If talking helps, or if you want to try and make some sort of plan, go for it.

"For those that need something to do with their hands, I've brought some basics for making poultices and bandages," Morrigan said briskly. "If you cannot find something else useful to do, you may work for me for this class period."

Mercy quietly went over to get the materials and await instructions.

"Do you prefer working with herbs or making bandages?" Morrigan asked, not looking up from where she was grinding some things with a mortar and pestle. "If you can knit (http://www.ehow.com/how_2087578_make-leper-bandage.html), I may put you to work with the yarn."

"I'm sorry, ma'am," Mercy said quietly. "I don't know how to knit. But if you show me how I'll do either of the other two things."

"This is not a time to be demure, girl. If you have a strength, speak-up," Morrigan retorted, although not as sharply as she usually would sound. "You never know what may be useful until you say something."

"Although if you like, you may start with mixing equal parts of flaxseed and marjoram - this, and this - into a bowl and grinding them into a fine powder. We'll add that to some clay in a bit, and seal it into flasks to use at a later point. It works well for sprains, bruises, swelling, or abscesses."

"I've never done anything like either of those," Mercy said quietly. "I'm good at fixing cars, if that's useful. I'm also not bad at bandaging, but ours come premade."

She began mixing the herbs and grinding them as finely as she could.

They're around!

Monday.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

Cultural Understanding, Monday.

Sign-In

Re: Sign-In

Re: Sign-In

Re: Sign-In

Re: Sign-In

Re: Sign-In

Re: Sign-In

During the Lecture

Re: During the Lecture

Re: During the Lecture

Re: During the Lecture

Re: During the Lecture

Re: During the Lecture

Re: During the Lecture

Re: During the Lecture

Re: During the Lecture

Re: During the Lecture

Re: During the Lecture

Re: During the Lecture

Re: During the Lecture

Re: During the Lecture

Re: During the Lecture

Re: During the Lecture

Re: During the Lecture

Discussion

Activity!

Re: Activity!

Re: Activity!

Re: Activity!

Re: Activity!

Re: Activity!

Talk to the Teachers

OOC