Pastor Carter (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
merciful_parable) wrote in ![[community profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/community.png)
fandomhigh2018-08-27 05:51 am
merciful_parable) wrote in fandomhigh2018-08-27 05:51 am
Entry tags:
How to Make Friends & Influence People | 4th Period | Monday
Carter bustled around the room, doing a fair impression of someone trying not to wring their hands (he was totally trying not to wring his hands) as he straightened the cushions that he and Fjord had settled on for the first class, rather than the usual desks and chairs, and tripled checked that his cookies were all neatly set out and that there was paper plates and napkins enough for everyone.
At least the sugar cookies with edible glitter on them, as per Summer’s suggestion, had turned out quite nicely. He was indebted to Summer, really....
He paused as he realized that, somewhere in all his quiet fussing, the class had filled up. And… And Fjord wasn’t here.
Oh. Well. That meant…
Carter straightened, looking a bit flustered as he did so. “Hello, everyone,” he said, feeling a bit overwhelmed at the very idea of teaching. “I am Pastor Carter, one of your teachers for, er, ‘How to Make Friends and Influence People’.”
Goddess, but that sounded terrible. It really did.
"I’ve baked everyone cookies today, so please, help yourselves. There’s also sheet of paper on the table, so if you have any food allergies, I would ask that you note them there." He smiled a bit anxiously. "I shouldn’t want to make something one or more of you couldn’t enjoy!"
That was right about the moment a short, wiry red-haired elf man bustled into the room, hair mussed, glasses perched akimbo on his nose. In his arms he was clutching a stack of books and papers, dropping them every which way as he went, only to fumble the whole lot of it onto the teacher's desk, muttering apologies under his breath in a thickGerman Zemnian accent the entire way.
"Sorry, sorry, didn't mean to be late, I hope I didn't miss anything, excuse me, pardon me..." He looked up all of a sudden, noticed the students on the cushions, then looked at Carter and seemed to startle for a moment. "Oh, oh dear. Am I in the correct room? This is the lesson about first impressions, is it not?"
Carter was… absolutely, and completely, out of his depth here. And totally flabbergasted by the appearance of someone who seemed to be lost. “I’m afraid not,” he ventured, after a moment. “This is about making friends, and today is introductions.”
"Ah, well..." The elf man straightened up a little, reached to straighten his glasses on his nose, and then said in a deep, strong, confident drawl that was totally counterpoint to the voice he'd been using just a moment before, "I do believe the two are rather thoroughly intertwined, Pastor. The right first impression and a strong introduction can both make a great deal of difference down the road."
Carter paused. Then kept on pausing.
"... Fjord?" he asked, rather doubtfully.
"It's the hair, isn't it? The messy hair is probably a bit too much." The elf raised a hand, and then everything around him seemed to shift for just a moment, leaving in his place a much larger, much greener individual, wearing leather armor and a comparatively easy smile. "Apologies, Pastor. I thought I might do a little something to make a point about first impressions for the students, is all."
Disguise Self was a perfectly valid teaching tool.
The apology helped to mollify him, though Carter was not particularly comfortable with either the lack of forewarning nor the fact that his co-teacher had thought to lie to the students on the first day.
"You did make a point," Carter agreed, rather mildly.
Fjord cast him a bit of a curious look at that, but turned to look at the students before speaking again. If he'd overstepped a boundary, he'd make a point to ask the man after class, rather than in the middle of the lecture.
"With any luck, I made the right one," he noted, crouching down to pick a few sheets of paper from the floor. "As the good Pastor has already said, I'm Fjord, your other instructor for this class. Today we'll be covering introductions, and keeping mindful about how we approach those introductions as we do them." He glanced at Carter, smiling wryly. "I imagine we both made very different first impressions. Taking a moment to compare what did and didn't work about either would make for a good exercise, after you've given us your names and a little something about you, perhaps."
Carter glanced at Fjord for a moment, then smiled at the class, as he said, "and, please, feel free to converse with your fellow students as the introductions go on. After all, you should all get to know one another during the course of this class."
At least the sugar cookies with edible glitter on them, as per Summer’s suggestion, had turned out quite nicely. He was indebted to Summer, really....
He paused as he realized that, somewhere in all his quiet fussing, the class had filled up. And… And Fjord wasn’t here.
Oh. Well. That meant…
Carter straightened, looking a bit flustered as he did so. “Hello, everyone,” he said, feeling a bit overwhelmed at the very idea of teaching. “I am Pastor Carter, one of your teachers for, er, ‘How to Make Friends and Influence People’.”
Goddess, but that sounded terrible. It really did.
"I’ve baked everyone cookies today, so please, help yourselves. There’s also sheet of paper on the table, so if you have any food allergies, I would ask that you note them there." He smiled a bit anxiously. "I shouldn’t want to make something one or more of you couldn’t enjoy!"
That was right about the moment a short, wiry red-haired elf man bustled into the room, hair mussed, glasses perched akimbo on his nose. In his arms he was clutching a stack of books and papers, dropping them every which way as he went, only to fumble the whole lot of it onto the teacher's desk, muttering apologies under his breath in a thick
"Sorry, sorry, didn't mean to be late, I hope I didn't miss anything, excuse me, pardon me..." He looked up all of a sudden, noticed the students on the cushions, then looked at Carter and seemed to startle for a moment. "Oh, oh dear. Am I in the correct room? This is the lesson about first impressions, is it not?"
Carter was… absolutely, and completely, out of his depth here. And totally flabbergasted by the appearance of someone who seemed to be lost. “I’m afraid not,” he ventured, after a moment. “This is about making friends, and today is introductions.”
"Ah, well..." The elf man straightened up a little, reached to straighten his glasses on his nose, and then said in a deep, strong, confident drawl that was totally counterpoint to the voice he'd been using just a moment before, "I do believe the two are rather thoroughly intertwined, Pastor. The right first impression and a strong introduction can both make a great deal of difference down the road."
Carter paused. Then kept on pausing.
"... Fjord?" he asked, rather doubtfully.
"It's the hair, isn't it? The messy hair is probably a bit too much." The elf raised a hand, and then everything around him seemed to shift for just a moment, leaving in his place a much larger, much greener individual, wearing leather armor and a comparatively easy smile. "Apologies, Pastor. I thought I might do a little something to make a point about first impressions for the students, is all."
Disguise Self was a perfectly valid teaching tool.
The apology helped to mollify him, though Carter was not particularly comfortable with either the lack of forewarning nor the fact that his co-teacher had thought to lie to the students on the first day.
"You did make a point," Carter agreed, rather mildly.
Fjord cast him a bit of a curious look at that, but turned to look at the students before speaking again. If he'd overstepped a boundary, he'd make a point to ask the man after class, rather than in the middle of the lecture.
"With any luck, I made the right one," he noted, crouching down to pick a few sheets of paper from the floor. "As the good Pastor has already said, I'm Fjord, your other instructor for this class. Today we'll be covering introductions, and keeping mindful about how we approach those introductions as we do them." He glanced at Carter, smiling wryly. "I imagine we both made very different first impressions. Taking a moment to compare what did and didn't work about either would make for a good exercise, after you've given us your names and a little something about you, perhaps."
Carter glanced at Fjord for a moment, then smiled at the class, as he said, "and, please, feel free to converse with your fellow students as the introductions go on. After all, you should all get to know one another during the course of this class."
Re: Introduce Yourselves!
He looked around and smiled at the class, even if it was a little bit strained.
Re: Introduce Yourselves!
"It takes a bit of getting used to, I understand," Fjord replied, giving a short nod in Simon's direction. "I myself am still getting used to the idea of being in a different world entirely."
The single moon thing still bothered the hell out of him.
Re: Introduce Yourselves!
"What's your home like?" he asked, curiousity winning out over confusion for the moment. "Is it really different from here?"
Re: Introduce Yourselves!
Fjord smiled faintly, closed-lipped, but with a sort of warmth in it all the same.
"I had to be taught about electricity the other day," he supplied. "If that gives you any indication."
He figured it might. It seemed to be everywhere, here.
Re: Introduce Yourselves!
'No electricity' + 'magic' + 'elf into green person whose species Simon couldn't name' meant Simon could come up with 'fantasy world', at least as a short hand description; while a small bit of his brain was still screeching at the idea, talking with Fjord about it actually was mostly settling him down about it.
He'd probably have a private freak-out later, but for the moment, "rolling with it" seemed the best option.
Re: Introduce Yourselves!
"Oh, have I got questions," Fjord replied, his smile going wry. "Most of them are about how to make use of items that I'm certain people take for granted otherwise. Making light, I've managed. Not a whole hell of a lot else."
Re: Introduce Yourselves!
"I guess it depends what kind of stuff you want to do," he said, after a moment. "Like, has anyone mentioned computers yet?"
Re: Introduce Yourselves!
Phones, yes. Computers no.
Re: Introduce Yourselves!
That... was probably less helpful than Simon wanted it to be.
Re: Introduce Yourselves!
"I'm gonna need you to back up," he hedged, "and explain 'stuff you can do on any phone' for me."
Re: Introduce Yourselves!
Re: Introduce Yourselves!
"Next week?" Fjord looked faintly bemused, but he certainly wasn't about to say no. "Any assistance you can provide on the matter will most certainly be worth waiting for. I would most appreciate any help you can give, Simon. Thank you."