Fandom High School

Jono was going to be leaping on the 'no classes' bandwagon today, because any week that had the radio broadcasts mentioning people dying seemed like a good week to not make students walk to the school. Crazy, crazy truth. So he'd sent out an email early in the day, one that stated in no uncertain terms that no manner of live entertainment was worth his students' lives, and then he'd made his way in to the school anyway.

There was no way to be absolutely certain that all of his students had seen the message, of course. But, on top of that, if he arrived first thing in the morning and stayed at the school through the day, he could just hang around outside of the school building to try to keep an eye out for any students who might be trying to make their way in for classes regardless. He was pretty sure the killers out there weren't wandering this close to the school, but he wasn't about to take any chances with the safety of the student body.

... Even if they did seem to be coming back after dying.

[OOC: Open, with Jono hanging around outside, keeping an eye on the space between the school and the dorms all day!]

Today's Live Entertainment class had been told to meet at Fast Eddie's, where Jono (thankful to be back in proper clothing after yesterday's Portalocity kerfuffle) handed each student a roll of quarters as they walked through the front door.

"Right, then. Rather than doing battle with Portalocity twice this week, especially after last week's… unique field trip, and since they went and stole my bloody trousers yesterday, I thought we might take in some of the entertainment that the island itself has to offer. And then I realized that aside from my own bloody theatre and the cinema, there aren't exactly many options."

Really, he couldn't win, could he?

"But there is the arcade. A collection of games to be played, along with all of the bright flashing lights and noise that comes with it. I'm calling it close enough, because you have to get off your behinds and go outside in order to experience it. It's got a different feel than sitting on your arse at home with a game console, doesn't it? So, take your quarters and have fun for the rest of the period, or however long it takes for you to run out, or whatever makes you happy. I'll be over there at the pinball games, but there are racing games and shooting games and there are pool tables somewhere, and lord only knows what else. Go on, then. Set some high scores or something."

And that was that.

[Open!]

"Conventions," Jonothon said, with a slight look of disdain on his face as he addressed the students at their usual Causeway meeting spot, a box of cheap digital cameras at his feet, "are an excellent place to go if you'd like to meet people who share your interests. They generally include things like discussion panels which cover various topics, vendors tables for people who have merchandise to sell, celebrity guests, and a large quantity of slathering fans who might or might not care about their personal hygiene, or who think that slapping on a pair of pointed ears makes them cooler than everybody else. People will gather to share their love of things like comic books, Japanese animation, steampunk, or Galaxy Quest, and tend to finish the weekend broke, and exhausted, but having enjoyed themselves."

A beat.

"Hopefully having enjoyed themselves. I tend to find the crowds overwhelming, personally, so I chose a comparatively smaller convention to drag you lot to. We'll be going to the wilds of Canada, where we'll be taking in Hal-Con, a combination science fiction, fantasy, and comic book convention, to appeal to those of varied tastes. Technically, it doesn't start until tomorrow, but Portalocity gave us a group discount on Friday passes so long as we used them on a Thursday, and I'm not actually going to ask. Feel free to grab a camera before we step through the portal, but be courteous when taking photos of celebrities and cosplayers - people in costume - alike. Ask permission first. Keep in mind that costumes do not constitute blanket permission to be jerks to anybody. And if any of you run into the Fifth Mister from the Mister What series, please, ask him for his autograph, for me?"

Shut up.

[OOC: Open, and welcome to Halifax!]

Today when the students met on the Causeway, Jono was actually dressed in fairly normal clothing, compared to his usual long jacket and army boots garb. He was wearing a turtleneck sweater and some jeans, actually looking quite at home in his own skin today. He was even smiling a little.

"Today," he said, nodding at the group assembled, "we're going to an artsy coffee shop, one more established than The Perk here on the island. We're going to sit down, take in the ambiance, drink some manner of hot or cold ridiculously overpriced beverage, and appreciate whatever entertainment they happen to have up on their stage. We're most likely to witness some manner of acoustic music, or perhaps some spoken word poetry. Your expectations as a live audience here are going to be somewhat more relaxed than they were, say, at the opera. You can sit and listen, or simply treat the entertainment as a sort of ambient sound, a mood-setter while you relax with a coffee and visit with friends. Not all environments require your rapt attention, though in places like this, occasionally you'll sit down and witness a rare talent that demands it all the same."

He waved the students through a portal into a coffee shop that resembled the Perk, with booths and tables and art made of coffee beans hanging on wooden walls, where a band was just packing up and leaving the stage off in the corner of the room. As students ordered beverages or found a place to settle, a man took the stage, getting himself settled, and he started to speak. It wasn't music, no, but there was a sort of lyrical quality and truth to his words that had many of the coffee shop patrons turning their attention toward him.

"When I was a kid," he began, "I used to think pork chops and karate chops were the same thing…"

[OOC: Open!]

"I told Portalocity to just surprise us and just pick an outdoor sporting event of some sort today," Jonothon admitted, standing on the Causeway a few extra steps back from the class, hair a little more tousled than usual and an uncharacteristic smirk on his face. "I think we could all use a break from this bloody island, at least for an hour or two. The fresh air will do us some good, hopefully, and there was no way in hell I was coming up with a proper class this week."

At least he admitted it.

"So, I want you all to be on your best behavior out there in the stands. I'm not in any mood to figure out how to bail you from an ancient Roman prison or something, this week."

Without any more ado, because honestly, getting off the island couldn't hurt any of them today, he waved his students through the portal, and into… a set of bleachers that were raised a fair distance off the ground. From their shaded seating, they could see that there were fourteen people flying out over a field. Half of them were dressed in robes of blue with silver arrows on them, the other half was wearing robes of black and yellow stripes with a wasp on the front, and all of them were riding around on… broomsticks.

Jono just sort of stood in the stands and stared for a minute before clearing his throat and taking a seat.

"I actually have no bloody clue what this is," he admitted. "But I suppose we might as well sit down, watch, and find out."

Enjoy a professional Quidditch match between the Appleby Arrows and the Wimbourne Wasps, students.

[Open!]

Jonothon was rocking his tricorn hat and shoulder parrot today, thank you all very much, as he waited for his students to join him on the Causeway.

"Today, we're going to go and see another sporting event," he stated, once everyone had arrived. "Because I can't get this bloody hat or this damn bird to go anywhere, I had to find something that'd be welcoming to a pack of oddballs dressed as pirates, today."

The bird on Jono's shoulder squawked, and then added, "Arr, mateys! We be goin' ashore t'see a real keelhauling! I got me trusty hat and parrot, and ain't never seen a more scurvy group of bilge rats than ye!"

"Er… thank you."

"Brawwk!"

Jono and the bird stared at one another for a moment, before Jono shook his head and nodded toward the portal.

"I hope you like baseball. We're going to Pittsburgh to see today's Pirates game."

Jono couldn't care less about baseball, himself. He'd far sooner be watching football, instead. Proper football. The kind where the ball actually spent a fair amount of time touching the players' feet.

The parrot, who had no idea what baseball was, hesitated for a moment before just saying, "Avast!"

Jono shook his head and fed it a cracker from his pocket, and then waved people through the portal. He could say more, but anybody who had ever had a large parrot screeching in their ear could probably imagine why he wasn't in a hurry to encourage it to speak more.

[Open!]

This afternoon's class was, according to a note that Jono had left on the board in the classroom, to meet him on the Causeway, where he was waiting for them in his usual long coat and army boots attire. He waited a few minutes there for everyone to arrive, since it wasn't exactly a long hike from the school on an island Fandom's size, and then he launched into what was going to more or less pass for a lecture today.

It was going to be shorter than usual, since his throat was still feeling a little on the raw side. He was pretty certain his students would cope, somehow.

"Welcome to Live Entertainment Appreciation," he greeted, giving a look around at the students assembled. "I'm Jonothon Starsmore, just Jono or Jon will suffice, and I'll be your glorified babysitter for the semester. If you're here, I'm going to assume that you either have some interest in the entertainment industry, or you really wanted to avoid taking classes that involve actual academic material. There's not a hell of a lot of rhyme or reason to the little field trips we'll be taking every Thursday. I suppose pretty much the only common thread tying them together is that they involve going to experience something live, generally as members of an audience."

Exciting? Jono would probably look more thrilled if he hadn't found out about this class on the weekend, leaving him with a handful of days to prepare a syllabus around trying to help win a war in another reality from afar.

"A few basic rules before we step into our portal. First, we stay together, as a group. I'm not coming back to the island without any of you, especially since these trips are going to take us to some places that are rather far from here and there's a chance you'll have to do battle with Portalocity alone otherwise. Second, you're all representatives of Fandom High while we're out there. Behave as such. If I have to step in to tell you to stop acting like idiots, I will put serious thought into keeping future classes in the Danger Shop, and that will be a shame. It's lifelike as hell in there, but not even a sim can properly replicate the atmosphere of a live event. Plus, I'll probably spend the rest of the semester picking on you. I'm a vindictive bastard like that."

Well. He was.

"I'm going to take a quick headcount before we take off. As you get in line, introductions. Name, class, and one form of entertainment you've always wanted to take in live."

When introductions were through, he waved the students through the portal. On the other side, they'd step into a quiet hallway, from which Jono ushered them into a much noisier section of arena seating.

"Welcome," he said, taking a seat himself, even as he bunched his shoulders slightly, obscuring the bottom half of his face from view under his upturned coat collar, "to the roller derby. If you've never heard of it, sit back and watch. It's fairly self-explanatory. And if anyone wants popcorn or drinks, they're on me when the vendor comes around."

Yes, students. This was Jonothon's idea of a brief class introduction lecture. Enjoy the Roller Derby, all.

[Open!]