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Staff Meeting
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Post by Deleted on Jun 27, 2009 12:47:50 GMT -5
Seb sat nervously at the table, rapping his fingers against the top, sliding his chair on the back two legs, balancing and landing on the front four again...standing and pacing, sitting back down.
He didn't know why he was so nervous. Maybe because he was one of the newer teachers, that he had no gift or mutation...not yet anyway, or that he had nothing better to do than twiddle his thumbs and wait for the others to arrive.
Tobias sat quietly, unmoving, in his own chair and his icy blue eyes followed Seb's movements. "Relax," he muttered to Seb, finally lighting a cigarette. Tobias was determined to forget that he had shown weakness on the track field.
He flushed out all emotion after the incident and was now cold and calloused, waiting. He took a deep inhale, listened to the paper peel away as the flame caught hold of it, and sighed. "Sit down."
Seb obediently sat. He looked around the room. The florescent lights hurt his eyes and they reflected off the stark white walls and tile floors. The drink machines hummed silently and the smell of dinner cooking hung heavily in the air.
Students voices mingled into wordless vowels, buzzing like bees, and blissfully unaware of what was to come. Well, at least they were for now.
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Post by Tempest on Jun 27, 2009 14:10:54 GMT -5
Caroline entered the teacher's dining room, a grim look on her face. Not only did they have to inform the teachers about the threat Raze posed, they also had to vote for one of their number to serve as a proxy for the headmistress, who was out doing Foresta business elsewhere.
She noticed that Seb and Tobias were already in the room when she entered and she nodded a curt greeting to the two. "I suppose Seb already told you," she said to Tobias, "that the Headmistress is away?" She sat down near the two, but far enough away from the head of the table to indicate her own opinions about where she stood in importance amongst her peers. Sure, she had ideas, but she knew there were people much older and wiser amongst the staff.
Speaking of which....
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Jonathan entered the room, shortly followed by Nikolai and Emilio. They had all received messages regarding a staff meeting. It had been worded in a manner that had made it clear it was of the utmost importance. Nikolai had arrived before the other two, but he had lingered outside the room, unsure whether he was going to be of any use; he had expressed his insecurities concerning his job as groundskeeper. Johnny had told him not to worry about it; he had gotten a message to attend and so he must.
He glanced from face to face, reading as much emotion as was shown on each, then took a seat next to a young man he had not met before. The other staff member seemed nervous and Jonathan cleared his throat and asked in a calm voice, "How serious do you think the issue behind this staff meeting is?"
He was unsure who actually knew something and who didn't, but he might be able to gauge what was going on from the general overtones and emotions in the room. He noticed that Nikolai sat closest to the exit and Emilio sat next to his sister. His eyes returned to Tobias, his demeanor utterly tranquil.
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Post by Deleted on Jun 27, 2009 14:26:44 GMT -5
Tobias, who was sitting directly opposite from the head of the table (depending on how you looked at it), shrugged and flicked the ashes of his cigarette into his altoid-ash tray. "Serious enough," he responded. Seb hadn't told him that the Headmistress was away, but he didn't let the slight air of disappointment show on his face.
His gaze flickered to Emilio and he brought his cigarette to his lips. It was his understanding that Emilio didn't fancy Tobias in any way, so the look was nothing more than an acknowledgment that he was in the room.
Seb smiled weakly at the older man and began chewing on his nails. He was conflicted. He wanted to say that of course Tobias knew how serious it was, that it was his fault...but he couldn't betray Tobias like that.
He wondered if he should introduce himself to the others. He only knew just the two...but was it the appropriate time? Should he keep quiet? He looked at Tobias, who shrugged. Seb tried to ease into his chair...to relax. These were capable people.
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Post by faux on Jun 27, 2009 14:40:58 GMT -5
Xavier walked into the room, out of breath from the long walk. Well it was long for him, his classroom was on the other side of the school grounds. Waiting a minute to catch his breath before he took a seat. He didn’t really care where he sat, just taking the closest to him. It was clear to him though that he was getting more out of shape than he remembered.
“Sorry, I’m a little late,” he murmured quickly, he had came as soon as he got the email. Looking around the room at everyone’s face, the nervousness and unknowing, he realized how big of a deal this was. “What’s this meeting for anyways?” he asked, his brow burrowed witha much more serious look.
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Post by Deleted on Jun 30, 2009 13:46:08 GMT -5
Melody skipped and hopped into Foresta Academy, humming to her favorite tune. It was her first day teaching here, and she couldn't WAIT for the classes to begin. Her phone started ringing to "HoukiBoshi", and Melody pulled it out. An email was sent by one the teachers, telling her to "report to the Teacher's dining room immediately". Melody sighed. Evidently, she would have to wait before beginning her career as a music teacher-a magical one at that! Melody giggled. Her "happy bubble" wasn't popped yet, though it had shrunken quite a bit. She continued skipping towards what she hoped was the dining hall. On the way, an apple hit her head. "Ow!" she yelped, and looked around for the culprit. A crow sitting in a tree seemed to laugh. Melody frowned, and sang a loud, raucous song. The crow flapped away, cawing. Melody smiled vindictively, then felt guilty. She sighed. Her happy bubble was popped. Finally, Melody arrived at her destination. If any remains of her happiness still lingered, they were swept away with the expressions of her fellow teachers. Melody had the impulse to sing a funeral march, but resisted. She knew it would be totally irrelevant in this situations. She grabbed a chair and eased herself into it, having a feeling that this would be a boring, tedious meeting...
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Post by Tempest on Jun 30, 2009 19:32:35 GMT -5
Caroline's face was grim, but determined as she rose to her feet to address her colleagues. She might have let Tobias or Seb do this, but Seb seemed a little on-edge and Tobias's feelings regarding Raze might still be too acute for reason, even if his current attitude was quite admirable (albeit frighteningly detached). Caroline inferred from the sounds of the students that sounds from the faculty meeting might be able to reach the students as well. With that in mind, she cast a boundary around the room that immediately muted the sounds of the student cafeteria and would keep the meeting from reaching the students before the staff was ready to tell them about what was going on. Therefore, she didn't need to raise her voice very loud in order to convey her thoughts. The English teacher's tone held a measure of conviction and authority she felt matched the gravity of the situation. "Not all of our number are here tonight, but I don't think it's prudent to wait any longer. A couple days ago, a man visited on behalf of the government. A Special Agent Raze. He was looking to provoke somebody into giving him a reason to come in with others to study our school." Caroline's eyes rested on each teacher in turn. She was trying to appear calm, but authoritative; her aim was just to put people on their guard, not to panic them. However, she couldn't hide things because they were frightening. The students would be better off not knowing some of the things she was about to say, but the teachers would have to know.
She continued, her hands resting on the tabletop. "We are unsure of who he will be bringing with him, though I expect it might be a mixed force of scientists and other special agents. He has made it clear, through his actions and speech, that his intentions are not in the school's best interests." She looked down for a moment, her tone hardening. "In fact, I am of the impression that he might be trying to shut down the school... or worse, put it under permanent governmental control if we give him reason to do so."
Caroline's eyes rose again and they lingered on Tobias before her gaze leveled at each of the other teachers again. "Furthermore, Principal Kandless is away on Foresta business, so we need to nominate one of our number as her proxy. Whoever that is should probably call an assembly to talk to the students to put them on their best behavior." She searched her mind, wondering if she had forgotten anything. Coming up with nothing to say, she sat down again.
She glanced to her half-brother. He had a blank look on his face, which could have meant two things. Either he was trying to hide his thoughts and emotions, or he hadn't understood her. With Emilio, it was sometimes hard to tell.
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Ender's listened, his face absolutely calm. Sure, it was a pickle, but he felt that the situation was salvageable. He gave what he hoped was a comforting look to Nikolai, who looked as though he wanted to bolt, so extreme was the edge of nervousness to the man's ramrod-straight posture. The old man couldn't remember Nikolai being this nervous even for the Hector incident... then he reflected on what Ms. Harlequin had said.
It must be the scientists, he noted to himself as he tried to gauge the emotions of the other teachers. He would wait to hear their reactions before voicing his own, he decided.
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Post by faux on Jun 30, 2009 20:08:52 GMT -5
Xavier’s green eyes blinked from behind his reading glasses at Caroline as she spoke. They had a coldness about them, but it wasn’t directed at anyone unparticular, but more on the topic that was in the air. The words she said comprehending, but somehow not making sense at the same time. How can they do this? he thought, his hand stroking his beard he had been growing out lately, so it would be nice and full by the time winter rolled in. He looked down at the table, thinking if there was a way to get around it, but there never was when it came to the government. “This is unorthodox,” he finally spoke up. “Are they even allowed on our property? Isn’t there some way around it?” he asked in his husk voice.
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Post by Deleted on Jun 30, 2009 23:17:05 GMT -5
LIFE ACT 1 - SCENE 126 THE TEACHER’S DINING ROOM
Stage lights remain up from the last scene. The stage is set up to be a teacher’s dining room – The audience should be able to tell, because the stage is filled with adults. One of the teachers – Caroline – rises to deliver some news. Azmythera enters, sliding through the door and locking it silently behind her.
Azmyth crept over to the corner of the room, hoping she hadn’t missed anything. She didn’t want to draw attention to the fact that she was very, very late to the meeting. Though, she wasn’t worrying too much on that matter. By the grave looks on everyone’s faces, Azmythera could tell that this was a serious and dark situation. Her muscles tensed of on the thought of it. Though, why on earth did they need her here today? She was only a green house keeper, a drama teacher. She didn’t have a useful gift, either.
Azmythera remains standing in the corner, refusing to sit, not wanting to attract attention. Short pause. She listens intently as Caroline provides the meeting’s purpose. Azmythera keeps a gloomy look on her face.
It was just how she had predicted it; the situation was grim indeed. In her pockets, she had a pad of sticky notes and a pen, but she couldn’t think of anything to say in this moment. It seemed like all of her optimism had died on her.
“Best not to say anything,” she thought, pursing her lips.
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Post by Deleted on Jul 1, 2009 19:31:57 GMT -5
Something was missing. She was supposed to be doing something, but what was it. She had showered, gotten dressed, and was completely ready for any student who might come in. She had even put on her white jacket, the one she rarely wore. She felt that it made her look too doctor-y when she was only the school nurse. Amy ran a hand through her hair and sighed. Hmm. What in the world could she be-OH NO.
Amorina had completely forgotten about the meeting. She calmy jogged to the dining hall as fast and quietly as she could, cursing herself the whole time. Something nagging at her was teling her that this meeting was very important. And she had probably missed it.
"Oh stupid Amy, why can't you ever remember anything? That's what the calender is for, so you can write down dates and then not forget them!"
Reaching the dining hall, she took a deep breath and slowly walked into the room, mentally yelling at her clicky heels.
"Sorry I'm late..."she muttered, taking a seat farther from anyone else. She didn't even bother looking around the room; she kept her eyes on Caroline. She had a feeling she had missed the general point of this meeting though..
[bahhhhcrap]
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Post by Tempest on Jul 2, 2009 8:36:23 GMT -5
Caroline watched as Amorina joined them and felt Emilio almost snap to attention. She wondered what was going on between the two; Emilio would only go quiet when she asked. Caroline smiled gently, saying, "I'll fill you in." She would have, in any other situation, waited until after the meeting. However, it might affect Amy's vote for the headmistress's proxy if she was left in the dark.
Quickly, she recounted (albeit with less detail) what she had told the others. After that, she added her response to Mr. Calvino's question, "Nothing is really unorthodox when it comes to the government and it's sense of self-preservation. Sure, it doesn't seem right, but by the time any litigation is filed, they would have done some damage. Besides, our position is rather... precarious... since any outright resistance would make it appear as though we had something to hide."
Caroline sighed and leaned back in her chair, her expression pensive. "Unless I'm mistaken, the best thing to do is allow them to come on campus freely, but on our terms. If we make a fuss, we will effectively be giving them control. We need to show them that this place is a school first, a stronghold for sometimes-dangerous people second. If we do not do anything that would lead them to believe that we are dangerous, we can kick them off the minute they do something wrong." After this, though, she shrugged. "However, I cannot be the only one here with an idea of how to handle this. I would like to hear your input."
As she watched, old Jonathan Enders, a science teacher of some sort cleared his throat and said, "No matter what we decide to go along with, we also need a backup plan. There has to be something to fall back on if things go awry. I can contact an old acquaintance of mine, see if he can work the system to get them to call off their dogs." He looked around, apparently trying to gauge the other teachers' approvals of this plan.
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Post by Deleted on Jul 2, 2009 10:41:09 GMT -5
Tobias had listened quietly this whole time. His eyes had darted from one teacher to the other, cold and uninviting. "The dangerous students should be given more attention," he murmured slightly as he lit another cigarette. He tilted his head back and let loose thick streamers of smoke.
He flirted heavily with the idea that it would be best if he left, but he kept quiet. The others didn't know that it was his fault. Not yet anyway. He was the one that had caused all the damage, and now they had to suffer? Perhaps it would be better if he just gave himself to Raze.
~~~~~
Seb had relaxed once the atmosphere of the room had settled. Why had he been more worried than all the others? He had skills to protect this school just like anyone else...even if he didn't know what they were yet.
He watched the others file into the room, both pretty women that seemed to ease right into the conversation. When Tobias had spoke, Seb listened carefully for any hint of a meaning between the words, but he had been unemotional and cold.
Seb thought for a moment before speaking. "We should defiantly see if we need to nudge and tweak our curriculum. I mean, I don't want to sacrifice what I feel is the right way to teach...but soften certain things and strengthen others." He kept his eyes to the table top, not knowing if what he said was good enough or if it would just embarrass him.
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Post by Deleted on Jul 2, 2009 10:52:18 GMT -5
The news was disturbing to say the least. The government had never been fond of them, but she never thought they would just barge into the school demanding anything. The situation would be different if this Agent What's-his-Face came into the school to observe them and hadn't given the impression that he was going to cause harm to the students or staff. Amy played with her hair as she thought this over, leaning against the table on her elbows and crossing her legs.
She didn't know exactly what to do. A part of her wanted to take this guy and hand him over to their most dangerous students and let them have him. The other part of her knew better. They had to act like any other school, even if that meant keeping some students from using their gifts. The idea of a back up plan was one she whole-heartedly agreed with; if their plan of acting like a real school did not work, they needed something else to help them out. One teacher said something about the classes being taught, that some should be pushed more than others.
"The classes that have to do with controlling powers and such should be pushed more, I agree,"Amorina said. "I have to say, I think a Plan B sounds more of a necessity than something to be thought over. These government people are here for something, and if we don't give it to them, I wouldn't be surprised to find that they are willing to take it by force. Even if our numbers are not as great as theirs, we have more power. But this is only Plan B. Plan A should be to act like a regular school, to keep the children acting as normal as possible and to discpline those who go against our little announcement to Behave."
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Post by Deleted on Jul 2, 2009 13:08:29 GMT -5
Melody's eyes darted around the room, the crease in her eyebrows deepening with each comment. True, she had only been here an hour or so, but she knew how important this school was to her parents. Having the government here would be...disaster. Melody was reminded of the time officials had barged into their parents' house, holding machine guns and threatening everyone for no apparent reason. Two minutes later, they realized they had the wrong address. The officials quickly but sincerely apologized and left.
Melody had a feeling that this time it would be worse. It wasn't easy to mistake Foresta's location; After all, it was an island in the middle of the ocean. And that brought up another question in Melody's mind: how could this official even find the school if he/she didn't have powers...?
Melody cleared the questions and worries from her mind and resigned to listening to everyone's opinion. She agreed with the strange lady that had just come in, the one that looked like a butterfly. It seemed best to just follow the government's orders, but not directly. What was that famous poet's line? Something by Emily Dickinson. "Tell the truth, but tell it slant..." she murmured.
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Post by Deleted on Jul 2, 2009 20:48:20 GMT -5
Azmythera takes out a pen and her sticky notes. She clicks the end of the pen as loudly as possible, to make it known that she has something to say.
“I think it’s best to not only have a Plan B, but we ought to have an emergency procedure for every possible outcome that this may bring to the school. Things like “Where will we take everyone if the school is shut down?” would really have to be considered. After all, there are plenty of kids here who don’t have anywhere else to go.”
She clicks the pen loudly again for extra measure, then shows her writing to the rest of the room.
“I should have brought a whiteboard,” she thought silently. “Oh well…” The tense atmosphere in the room reminded her of an August Strindberg play - a pause between every piece of dialogue – what mattered were the things not being said aloud. Sure, everyone was giving their opinion, but everyone’s feelings hung in the air.
(ARRGH! Short post. Can someone just read it out loud for her?)
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Post by Tempest on Jul 3, 2009 8:43:10 GMT -5
Caroline nodded with each new bit of input. At least everybody was on the same page, more or less. They all knew outright fighting would be a bad idea as a primary plan. At Amy's mention of their having more power, she ducked her head and commented, "I would assume they have more power until they revealed otherwise, Ms. Riddell... In fact, Raze himself has shown us that he is now Gifted, where he might not have been before..." She shook her head and sighed, obviously irritated at that fact.
Emilio stood briefly to take Ms. Whittred's note, which he promptly handed to Caroline. The English teacher read it aloud and nodded, saying, "It is good to have more than two plans, but we need to be able to keep things simple. It's impossible to plan for every turn of event when the possibilities are ever-changing. However, having an evacuation plan is always a good one, even if we're not in this situation." She looked around the table. "I wonder why we never had one before..."
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Jonathan was proud of these young people. They were behaving exactly as they should be in the face of adversity rushing to meet them. He sat up a little straighter in his chair and commented, "I'm lead to believe that some of the parents of our students are wealthy. We might be able to convince some of them to house small groups of our students in the event that we need to evacuate. It might be safer, in fact, to split the student body up so each one of us would lead a group out. Just like a fire drill. The chances of panic would be lessened, I think, and they'd be less likely to round everybody up."
He paused, then added, "I admit, it's not a perfect plan since it relies on the goodwill of the students' families, and the government is just as likely to try to pick people up from there... but they would certainly be more wary about their actions when they involve normal people and their private property. Also, it could potentially take a while to build a safe place for our students to stay; time we do not have."
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Emilio made a face, then spoke up, his voice somewhat quiet. "I am... little help to the cause... but I will try to... predict... oh... Dios mio." Here, he said something in Spanish to Caroline, who then translated.
"What Mr. Cardenas means is that he will keep an eye out on the future. He cannot predict everything, but he'll give it his best shot and warn us if he sees something coming."
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