fandomhigh | How to Be Awesome, Tuesday, Period 3

This week, class was meeting in a regular classroom again, and Kate was perched on her desk, giving the students a little wave once they'd all come in. "Hi, and sorry about last week," she began. "Got sick, it was terrible. But I hope you had a good time with my boyfriend, and that he didn't blind anyone with his paleness."

Sorry, Bod, you really were terribly pale.

"Also since the topic was awesome in relationships, he probably undersold his own skills because seriously, dude came out here in my stead to teach you guys. He's awesome in relationships defined." It was possible your teacher was head over heels in love, kids, yeah. Feel free to double check that that cute ring really was on her middle finger instead of her ring finger. "Anyway, yeah, I hope you had a good time and that it was educational. 'Cause we're gonna move on now. And because my last week was decidedly unawesome with the sickness and all, that's what we're gonna cover today."

A beat.

"Uh, things that are unawesome," she clarified. "Not my illness, you don't need to hear crap about that. Anyway, yeah, sometimes you just need to be able to spot the things that aren't awesome in order to stay on a course of awesomeness. And that's not always so easy. Because things might seem super awesome when you're putting on a costume and posing for paintings and making like music videos and stuff, but it can turn out way less so when you have lame and skeezy dudes Skypeing you." True story. "So what I wanna discuss today is how to spot potentially unawesome things. Situations, relationships, maybe even just picking the wrong thing to drink at the wrong time, whatever you can come up with. Or you can just keep it general and talk about how something potentially unawesome might make you feel and how that could be a warning sign. Any ideas?"

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"Definitely," Raven agreed. "Though I'm not sure someone like that can really be called a 'friend'."

"Maybe," Rapunzel agreed with a little frown as she played with her hair a little. "I mean, sometimes you know people for a long time and it's hard to think of them any other way, even if they say mean things to you, right?"

"If you've known them long enough, and they're important to you, then you should be able to tell them to stop being mean," Raven said. Huh, now she was suddenly thinking about Charles. "Though I guess sometimes if it's been happening long enough, it's not always easy to tell that it is mean."

"Sometimes it can feel like they're just trying to give you advice," Rapunzel said thoughtfully. "So maybe their intentions are good, but if they make you feel bad about yourself, it's probably best to just know not to listen, right?"

She had a lot of trouble with that, still.

"But if all they do is give you advice to be better, but never acknowledge the stuff you're already really good at, then you won't end up listening to anything they say."

"Yeah," Rapunzel agreed quietly. "But it's hard to just...cut people like that out of your life, when you've known them so long, even if they make you feel bad. At least, for me it is."

Even if she hadn't really talked to her mother in over a month, except for one letter that she wasn't even sure made it to her.

"Have you tried talking to them about it?" Raven asked gently. "My brother tries to order me around all the time, but when I call him on it, he's really good at backing off and giving me the room I need."

Or at least he got way more subtle in how he ordered her around.

Rapunzel shook her head. "I actually just assume she knows better than me and is right when she tells me stuff I'm doing wrong, because she's older and stuff," she admitted. And plus, Mother knew a lot more about the outside world than Rapunzel did -- or had, anyway. "That's really nice of your brother, though. Is that a case of good intentions, too, with the bossing you around?"

Raven nodded. "He knows I mostly want to fit in at home, but I'm not always very good at it."

"Does he help you with that? Or try to?" Honestly, given what Raven had shown her she could do, Rapunzel couldn't imagine someone having an easier time fitting in.

It was made slightly more difficult when one took into account her tendency to turn blue and scaly when she was upset or tired.

"He does," Raven confirmed. "He's very good at getting along with almost anybody. I can be a little hot-headed."

Sure, let's call it that.

"I would never have guessed that," Rapunzel said, absolutely sincerely. "That's so nice that you have someone to help you out, though!"

"It's easier around here," Raven admitted. "People are way less dumb about other people being different."

"I'm learning that," Rapunzel agreed with a quick nod. "Hardly anyone's tried to mess with my hair. I kind of thought that'd be more of a...thing."

Yet another thing her mother had been wrong about.

"You mean like put things in it or something?" Raven asked. "Or . . . tying it to things?"

It was a lot of hair. She could actually think of any number of interesting things to do with it.

"Throwing it out windows so I get dragged along, cutting it...." Rapunzel added, shrugging. "People barely even ask about it now. It's kind of great. I can forget I have hair at all!"

Raven did not entirely believe that. "Do they ever trip on it?"

"Not yet but I'm really worried Anders is going to, one of these days," Rapunzel fretted. "It takes up kind of a lot of room, you know?"

Yes, Rapunzel. Everyone knew. It was in the room with you.

"I kind of guessed," Raven said with a smile.

How to Be Awesome, Tuesday, Period 3

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