fandomhigh | Fandom High Welcome Picnic, Front Lawn of the School, All Day: Part I

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!event: welcome picnic

Fandom High Welcome Picnic, Front Lawn of the School, All Day: Part I

It was a new year, and with the new year came the new spring term, and Fandom High was all set to welcome its new students, along with those just returning from holiday trips home. It was a familiar setting for the latter bunch: there was the requisite bonfire, with tables and chairs scattered around it, as well as the buffet table with ~~moldable~~ warm food and drinks.

And of course, name tags and lists of Big and Little Siblings as well as roommates. Yep, the weather was okay for early January, and Fandom was all ready to celebrate the start of a new term.

[OCD up! This is part one of the picnic, specifically for meeting siblings, roommates, and teachers. The rest of the picnic is happening here and here, in an effort to keep browsers from breaking for as long as possible. Since it's outside, the picnic is open to all students, teachers, and townies!]

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"I'm gathering as much," Po said, a little dryly. The pink pony hadn't escaped his notice, no, though he was keeping his distance. (And Evan's own appearance had also sparked a question or two, but Po was keeping those to himself, as it wasn't so very different from the tattoos spanning his own arms, was it?) "But I feel as though I haven't but scratched the surface by looking around here at how odd everyone is, have I?"

"Not even remotely," Evan confirmed with a smile and a nod. "There are people with powers around here, for one. Magic and technology and all kinds of things. And the island itself is just kind of... special."

That was his nice way of putting it.

"If you wake up as a little kid or as a girl or something, that's apparently normal around here. Still kind of strange, but not new." And oh, he hoped that Po wasn't going to accuse him of playing a trick or something. Or, worse, think that he was a little crazy. "It's mostly just stuff to get used to, and it's always temporary!"

Po just sort of stared at him through all of that, looking a little dazed, but held a hand up when Evan was done. "All right, wait a moment. I have many questions about what you just said, but first -- powers? What are powers?"

Oh, regionally-specific vocabulary. This would be fun.

"Um..." Evan glanced down at his informational pamphlet, and then decided that maybe it wasn't going to be as useful as he had hoped it was going to be. "Powers are... things that some people can do that normal people can't."

Wait. That was a little too broad.

"I mean, not that people who have them aren't normal, either! They're... abilities? Superhuman abilities." This always seemed so much easier to put words to in class back at the Jean Grey School. "Like how some people can create ice out of thin air, or change shape to look like other people, or walk through walls? Or... a lot of things?"

Did that make it at all clearer? Oh no, he was failing as a sibling already!

"Graces!" Po actually visibly relaxed. "You're talking about Graces. That's what they're called at home. I didn't think I saw any Gracelings, but perhaps you're better at hiding it here," he mused, glancing at Evan's eyes to be sure. He smiled, too, because he didn't need to be Graced to sense all that uncertainty, either. "That's...actually quite comforting, and not as weird as you might think. We have people with gifts like what you describe at home, as well."

"Comforting?" Evan was perking up all over again. "Really? There are plenty of people around with, um, Graces like that, actually. There was a club last semester that Billy and I ran together for people who could do stuff like that, mostly to train with them so that people could feel more comfortable with them."

He stuck his printouts into his pockets and scuffed a foot, smiling sheepishly.

"A lot of us... Gracelings, you said? There are plenty of different words for people with powers around here, you'll probably hear more than a few. But there are a lot of us who are used to having to hide them, back home. So around here, some people hold on to that habit. I'm sure there are people who get through all of their school years without anyone around them ever knowing the things they can do. And that's fine, if that's what people are more comfortable with. No pressure, you know?"

He was rambling again. Yep.

Po's smile slowly grew; another relief, that he might not be discovered -- and even if he was, he might also not be subject to exploitation. "In Lienid, you can't exactly hide," he admitted, a little bashful about that fact, and gestured to his eyes. "All Gracelings are marked by our eyes, and it's just a matter of time before we demonstrate what we can do. I'm lucky enough to have a Grace no one cares much about, and I'm a prince, so I'm ignored for the most part, but it's something of a curse at home for some. It sounds as though that may be a universal truth -- those with these 'powers' sound to be in a similar way."

"They kind of are," Evan replied, nodding even as he leaned forward to look at Po's eyes. Gold and silver? His own, ice-blue unless they were blood red, were hardly as interesting as that. "Where I'm from, a lot of the people with special abilities are called mutants, and... most people aren't really huge fans of us, no matter what we can do."

But the bigger and scarier the ability, the less people seemed to like you. And the more they seemed to respect you. Evan preferred to keep most of what he could do to himself, for the first reason, unless absolutely necessary.

"People fear what they don't understand," Po said with a little shrug. "At home, the Graceling minstrels who can sing in perfect pitch without any effort are far more popular than, say, mind-readers. Depending upon the person, it's viewed as a benefit to society, or an entirely unfair advantage."

"I've heard of world-class athletes who had their medals stripped because people found out they were mutants," Evan shared, "so I think I know what you mean by that. There are a few mind-readers from my world that are considered some of the strongest mutants there are, though. The school I used to go to is named for one, and used to be run by another. And one of our teachers there could read minds, too."

At least one.

Po quirked a little half-smile. "It sounds like it's not too bad a life for them, then," he replied. "People tend to be afraid when you can see what they really think, though, in my experience." He shook his head, as though clearing it, and added, "Luckily enough, my Grace is remarkably dull by comparison -- I'm Graced with fighting." He smirked, and added, "If there's any competitions of the boxing or sparring sort, I'd suggest putting your money on me."

Evan briefly considered telling Po about how afraid people really were of mutants back home, but decided against it. He didn't want to worry his new sibling either, after all. Especially not on his first day.

"Fighting, just in general?" He looked thoughtful about that for a moment. "I... can stretch my arms really long, which can come in useful in a fight. But I think just being better than most people at fighting, naturally, would be a way more handy ability to have."

"Hand-to-hand is my best, though I'm not sure I'd be a match for you," he said, looking surprised. "If nothing else, your Grace sounds remarkably useful for every day."

Never again would he need to fetch a stool to reach something above his head!

Evan was pretty grateful that he'd left things like 'flying' and 'eye-lasers' off of his list of powers, considering the surprise on Po's face. He smiled faintly, and gave his shoulders a shrug.

"My Uncle's been teaching me how to fight with my powers since I was eleven," he admitted. "So... I'm not bad, really. But there are people around here who are way better fighters than I am."

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Fandom High Welcome Picnic, Front Lawn of the School, All Day: Part I

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