Fandom High School

"Ahhh, now, if I am not mistaken," Shunsui gushed when everyone was gathered around the portalocity office once more, "this will, indeed, be our last venture into extreme napping, at least in the capacity of this class ♥! Naturally, I encourage you all to pursue your own naps, be they extreme or be they mild, to your heart's content, and I only hope that I have provided an excellent springboard of inspiration for such endevours ♥. With the summer heading our way in full speed, I figured our next and final location will be a good one for us to cool down for a bit ♥."

"So, prepare yourselves, sleepy ducklings ♥! We're on our way to Sweden this time, to go nap our morning away in a hotel made completely of ice ♥. Let's go, shall we, before it all...melts away ♥?"


And, with that, off they were to Icehotel, because, really, did these classes even need much introduction?

"Now, before we embark on our next extreme napping adventure," Shunsui met the class as usual outside Portalocity so they could gather before being whisked away somewhere ridiculous for the sole purpose of having a nap, "I will say that I hope no one has a particular allergy to silver or that there are no hidden werewolves among us, or else you might want to sit this one out ♥. So far, we've taken ourselves to some very impressive heights with our naps, but today, we go the opposite direction, and pay a visit to this world's deepest hotel accommodations in the Sala silvermine of Sweden ♥. With hundreds of years of history of extract precious metals from the earth, this complicated network of tunnels and chambers now serves as a spot of intrigue and a spot for napping ♥. There are, of course, tours of the mines available, should you so wish to pursue such a pastime, but that is hardly the thing we came for, neh ♥?"

And with that, the portal was soon ready and they were off to slumber amongst the silver.

"Good morning, sleepy ducklings ♥, " Shunsui greeted the class as a few good minutes after the designated started time for any lollygaggers, before they got set off through this week's portal to their napping destination du jour. "I do hope none of you are particularly afraid of heights, because, if so, you might want to sit this one out, or at the very least find some soul to cling to through the ordeal, because today, we will be traveling to the Skylodge Adventure Suites in Peru. Said to be the next best thing to sleeping in a condor's nest," he seemed slightly amused by that, though whether it was for why would anyone want to or perhaps that's what I need to pursue next was anyone's guess, "the suites on the side of the mountain should fit us all quite comfortably, but if you wish to pursue a more personal nap or one with just two or three others, there are smaller ones, as well, so we do have options ♥. Normally, one must actually make the long, arduous trek up at least 400 feet of mountain terrain, but, lucky us," and he grinned contentedly at the portal awaiting them, "we have a direct line ♥.

"I suppose you could still do the hike if your intrepid heart so desires, but...that does rather defeat the purpose of the class, neh ♥."

"So, if you have any questions, please feel free to ask them now or when we arrive, and let us get to taking our napping experiences to new heights, shall we ♥?"

For their very first meeting, this Art of Napping lesson would not be nearly as extreme as one might think from the title of the class, but the amount of pillows in the room would easily fit that description. Not the lounging, decorative, sitting pillows that would usually adorn Shunsui's classroom, although there were a few of those, set in a circle in the middle of the piles of pillows like a sea of clouds. All different types and sizes, even historical ones that were decidedly not as soft and fluffy as some of the others. And Shunsui sat, legs folded in front of him, pouring himself a cup of tea from the teapot set before him, and gestured as the students came in.

"Ohayō gozaimasu, my fellow nap enthusiasts ♥," he greeted them with a sort of lazily cheerful drawl. "Come in, come in, have a seat ♥! If you're anything like me, then our particular decor of choice for the day is already getting you in the mood for napping, but there are just a few pesky little housekkeeping things to take care of first ♥. But I do have some nice, relaxing, sophoriphic chammomile tea for you to enjoy if you so desire, so, please. Have a cup, get comfortable, and we shall begin ♥."

And once it seemed that, for the most part, everyone had managed to do just that, he got things underway. "Welcome, of course, to the Art of Napping, Extreme Edition, although that part will come in our following sessions, not so much today ♥. Today we will merely be getting to know each other and getting to know our preferences with that ever-important napping factor of what pillow you may be usuing ♥. This will be our only meeting here in the classroom; all others will involve a bit of travel, so I hope your adventuring spirit is in good relations with your napping one ♥.

"But today? Good tea, good company, good pillows ♥. I would like us all to take a moment to introduce ourselves, maybe tell us a little bit about your napping experiences, and perhaps if you already have some experience with extreme napping, let's hear about that as well ♥. If anything, I'd like you to try to think of what your own personal most extreme nap may have been ♥."

He took a sip of his tea and sent his contentedly sleepy gaze around the circle.

"Any questions before we begin ♥?"

The class was back in the large peaceful garden with the quietly soothing river and all those ubiquitous cherry blossoms that week, and they would be gathering the large pagoda with its exceptional offering of comfortable pillows and mats and blankets, as well as a nice offering of warm, relaxing teas.

"Good morning, ducklings ♥," Shunsui, seated comfortably at a spot in the rough circle he invited them all to join. "Today I thought we'd take a small departure from the act of napping, and make some time for talking about it, or, more specifically, about stories and napping ♥. After all, stories and sleep are often very closely connected; many children grow up with their restless energy stilled into slumber by the soothing influence of a bedtime story, neh ♥? And many cultures have tales and legends tied to sleeping. There are some that say our ancestors reside in our dreams, and it is through them that we may communicate with them, seek advice. Some cultures believe in a 'soul sleep,'" he couldn't help smile a bit at the name, "where one may receive messages and guidance from the gods whilst they are sleeping. My own culture has something we call a Jinzen, a deep medative state even deeper than the deepest sleep where we can communicate with our Zanpakutō ♥."

There was a soft smile, a hand resting comfortably, familiarly, on the hilt of one of his swords.

"Many cultures also have ways of protecting us from bad dreams, to preserve the good nature of our naps and slumbers. Dream catchers to act as a filter, demons to protect and consume the bad ones, even dolls that one tells all their troubles of the day to free them from the burden of them so they don't make it into their dreams ♥.

"And then, of course, there are stories of sleeping itself. I grew up with tales of great beasts and spirits that slumbered deep within the Soul Society that would stir in awaken during times of great need or great agitation. Some stories will paint too much sleep as a burden or a curse, such as that of the sleeping beauty who was to slumber until awoken with a kiss, some stories have one falling asleep only to wake up again in some strange new fantastical world, other have people fall into a nap only to wake up many years later to find the world around them changed. Imagine being able to nap for a hundred years like the fellow in the American story ♥!" Shunsui chuckled a little. "As often as I may have tried, I have, alas, never been afforded such a luxury ♥.

"But enough preamble," he said with a grin, "lest you all fall asleep merely listening to me go on ♥. Today, I'd like you all to share some of your own stories of sleep, all of our own little vignettes of slumber to serve as little bite-sized bedtime stories before we squeeze in a few winks of our own ♥. Who might have a good one to get us started ♥?"

It was mostly the relative (albeit seemingly random and individualized) ease of the danger shop that saved Shunsui's students from having to do today's activity in the actual park, in the already building sumer heat, which may have been an extra annoyance for so many beginners. That, and the fact that he'd sort of forgotten about the whole 'informing the class of a relocation' thing, and by thet iem he remembered, he just couldn't be bothered. So the danger shop it was again, ironically, for a class on napping, but where else could he put together an almost perfect simulation of the park but with the most pleasant weather imaginable and the faint scent of cherry blossoms in the air with barely any additional effort on his part? And he was incredibly proud of himself, too, for how well he'd done with so little work.

he started class with a deep inhalation of that slightly-scented air and let it out with a happy sigh.

"Ahhh, the park ♥!" he said. "One of my favorite places on the island for a nap, although sometimes there are detriments to napping like weather that may get in the way ♥. Hardly a concern for a truly expert napper, but since most of you are just beginning on your journey toward nap excellence, I figured a more controlled environment might be fitting for today's lesson ♥. Which involves the incredibly versitile and often universal park bench nap ♥. There are many benches in our own dear little park here on this island, and I have gotten to know the benefits and issues with nearly all of them in my time here, and now it's up to you to experience some of those things for yourself ♥. Not every park bench is the same, and neither will your invidiual needs for a park bench. What is good for the gander might not always be good for the goose ♥! So today's class is to explore your various park bench options until you find one that is right for you, and then to go ahead and spend the rest of your class time practicing your actual napping ♥. Simple. Straightforward. Dedicated practice is always the right path toward success ♥!"

Or this was just an excuse to spend the morning napping in a park without the summer heat.

It was all about perspective, really...

As an incredibly lazy man, Shunsui was truly starting to appreciate the wonder that was the danger shop for this particular class, which apparently involved far more need for aids and the like than most of his previous classes. Because with the danger shop, he didn't even have to gather together all the different kinds of pillows they would be discussing that day, he could just program them, even though literally every type of pillow they'd be talking about that day were actually available in the store that he owned, but, well, that would be a whole 'nother trip, and things would need to be carried, and this was clearly just more...efficient.

"Ohayōgozaimasu, my sleepy little duckings ♥," he greeted them once everyone seemed settled and ready to begin. "Please, help yourself to some relaxing tea, if you would like, and I hope you're ready to learn today, because we shall be embarking on a very important topic when it comes to the Art of Napping, and that is pillows ♥. We had a small introduction to pillows last week in the building of our napping nests, of course, but now we shall take a deeper exploration of the various different kinds of pillows there are, so that you might be better able to choose what sort of pillow might suit you best for your best napping experience ♥."

And so here he launched into an overview of the history of the pillow, starting in way back in ancient times and the development of the stone pillow, with many examples that he encouraged them to try, just as he would with all the other exampes that would come about as he discussed various different fillings, from down to synthetic fibers and foam, even hair and straw and wood, as well as different covering, from silk to cotton to burlap, different sizes and fuctions, and how a pillow doesn't need to be a bed pillow to make a good napping pillow, or how it doesn't need to even be a pillow at all, or that a pillow is not a requirement for a nap, but it will more than likely enhance the napping experience.

"Now, of course," Shunsui continued with a faint smile, "a pillow may not be readily available, but do not fret, because most of us are actually equipped with an excellent pillow and that is your very own arms ♥ Not to brag, of course, but I am such an expert at using arms for pillows that my photobook, produced and published by the Shinigami Women's Association, was entitled 'Using My Arms as Pillows,' which just so happened to sell out faster than any other photoboook from our dear SWA ♥!"

Of course, that was merely because the Shinigami Women's Association didn't print as many of Shunsui's book, so naturally it sold out faster due to the lack of volume alone, but Shunsui didn't know that.

He did know an incredible amount about using his arms as pillows, though, as the class was quick to learn, while he dismantled the various methods and positions, from the Slouching on your Propped-Up Fist slouch, perfect for situations where you were napping at a desk or a counter, to the much more efficient and preferred Double-Under-Head Arm Cross, which made napping on one's back a delight and good for lumbar support, to the ever-adorable Double-Tuck Side-Sleeping Arm Pillow, which was not personally one of Shunsui's favorites, but he could understand the appeal, and there was, after all, no wrong way to use one's arms as pillows.

And if any of this was particularly long-winded or boring, especially with the particular low, droning drawl of Shunsui's voice, that was all part of the design, because not only were they being taught about pillows, but they were also being prepped to be in a better state for napping once he was finished.

"Now, if anyone has any questions about pillows," he finally concluded, "I will happily take them now, but," he was hoping by the point every was just going to be wanting to use the pillows or already were, "we shall use the rest of the class to explore all these different pillow options so that you may discover which suits you best for your own individual napping needs ♥."