A little something for being so good at your job (tag Killian) on Elective Hall

Selina Skies

January 02, 2021 9:06 PM

A little something for being so good at your job (tag Killian) by Selina Skies

Once upon a time, everyone had been Selina’s responsibility. They still were, in some senses, but as the roles at Sonora expanded, and now that they had a reliable contractor for those things that weren’t covered by the school’s expertise, she was able to divert more and more people to other sources of help. When Anya had first started, her lack of organisational skills had very much been Selina’s problem, and she still wasn’t quite sure where Anya fell in terms of whose help she needed, but she seemed to be managing well enough with what she was getting. Where it was a new case, however, it made sense to start them off with Sonora’s Captain of Organisational Skills. She also thought the student in question might have an easier time getting along with Killian than with a boring old lady like her. They had certainly exchanged more than one terse word in class.

Hence a little sheet of parchment, with the green border that marked it as school-related correspondence, flapped its way into Killian’s office and hovered pointedly in his face.

Dear Killian,

Looking at first term tests, Oz Spellman is passing with good grades. However, homework is frequently late, incomplete, obviously rushed etc. It seems like it’s more an issue with self-organisation than academics, and therefore, more your area than mine. Might be as simple as glaring pointedly at him during study hall, but have asked him to come and meet with you this afternoon to talk about it.

Thanks,
Selina.

13 Selina Skies A little something for being so good at your job (tag Killian) 26 1 5

Oz Spellman

January 02, 2021 9:17 PM

Caught out by Oz Spellman

Oz was not really sure about the guidance counselor. First off, his classes were super weird. Sometimes he did guidancey things like make them write a homework plan, but he also made them think about relationships (gross) and had run a meeting for the school play. Maybe it was cos they were just beginners and they didn’t really have to properly think about the future yet, although he did keep pushing elective courses and careers pamphlets in their direction in between the weird relationship and personality quizzes. On the plus side, they called him ‘Mr’ not ‘Professor’ and he hadn’t even been all strict and eye-rolly when Oz had called out to ask if that meant he wasn’t a real teacher. Mr-Not-Professor Row seemed like he might be kind of a laugh, if Oz had been like - he tried to do some quick mental estimating - loads older and capable of going and grabbing a beer. But he wasn’t sure how much he liked the idea of being guidanced. The lessons where they did weird stuff were better than the ones where they actually talked about real stuff.

Still, Professor(-definitely-not-Ms) Skies had said he had to, so here he was. He knocked on the door and entered, trying not to feel immediately guilty and annoyed just because he was one on one with a teacher.

“Professor Skies said I have to sit with you to do my homework or something?” he clarified his understanding of why he’d been sent here.

13 Oz Spellman Caught out 1514 0 5

Killian Row

January 07, 2021 8:45 PM

Don't worry, I'm super great at my job. by Killian Row

Killian generally preferred to dress nicely because he felt that looking smart made him also look handsome. He was right about that of course, but that wasn't to say he didn't look handsome dressed in messy jeans and a tee shirt either, so the point was a bit moot. Still, there was something to be said for confidence and the aura an outfit gave off. Sometimes, he was a little disappointed that he thought that much about it. However, particularly when he had meetings with students who were being referred to him, he liked to make a point of setting a different tone for his after-school-hours meetings than his classes. So while he'd worn a pair of nice trousers and a sweater to class, he'd switched the outfit out for a pair of comfortable jeans and a plain grey tee shirt - something still reasonably nice if necessary - and was notably more casual when Oz arrived.

"Hey," Killian said brightly, grinning when Oz knocked. Stacks of paper would be mostly put aside today, as he'd want the desk to be cleared for Oz to take up as much space as necessary. It was a strategy he employed with students who tended not to take up enough space; give them all the space they could possibly want and you'd see exactly how much they really took up. Then, you could slowly encourage them to take up more until they started outright asking for help. To avoid it seeming like making a mess of the desk would be a punishable offense though, it always started messy. So, while stacks of paper were clearly all over the place when Oz first entered, Killian sat back and waved his wand to clear them before he sat down.

Oscar "Oz" Spellman - year one, Pecari, twin brother in Crotalus, probably needed a hug, sassy and pretty excited about dirty jokes.

"Or something," Killian agreed when the young boy came in. "Do you know what homework you need to work on?"

There had been a time in Killian's early professional days when he might have tried to play up some connection to the student, maybe joking about how he'd once been unorganised too. Still, it wouldn't even take a student being halfway observant in Killian's office to note that that was unlikely to be the case and getting called out for lying to someone was never the best way to start a relationship with them. There were other ways, though, that he could acknowledge that it wasn't Oz alone who had these difficulties.

"I usually keep a list of things that I need to get done so I know what I'm working on when I get started," he offered, getting a variety plate of biscuits and hot drinks out for Oz. He thought he'd probably prefer soda but wasn't about to stuff him with sugar and caffeine before bed, so he'd gone all Jean-Loup on the moment and had a vegetable tray and lemon water delivered as well. "And food because I think reading takes way more calories than people think. How do you stay organized?" he asked lightly, pouring himself a glass of water. "I know it's a big transition coming to Sonora the first year."

22 Killian Row Don't worry, I'm super great at my job. 1450 0 5

Oz Spellman

January 08, 2021 7:38 AM

I'm not worried by Oz Spellman

Mr. Row was dressed like a person, not a teacher (or guidance counselor) and it was weird. It was one of the things about this being both the place that they all went to school but also lived, that you got far more glances into the staff’s People Lives than normal. Like, he sometimes saw Professor Xavier showing his little girl plants in the garden, and he saw the staff eating their meals almost every day, and now here was Mr. Row wearing a t-shirt.

He watched the stacks of paper get levitated off the desk, still slightly openly staring at the use of a wand. It was one thing in class, he’d sort of got used to it there, but it felt different when magic just happened at you, or even near you. He also thought the piles of paper were pretty intense, and wondered whether Mr. Row was super busy or whether this was just what life looked like when you didn’t have a computer.

“All of it,” he shrugged, when Mr. Row asked what homework he needed to work on. He wasn’t sure what he made of his own remark being echoed back at him, or the fact there were snacks. Mr. Row seemed like he was trying really hard to be nice, which made Oz wonder why. He took a carrot stick, cos it seemed sort of rude not to, although he wasn’t exactly sure he wanted to be un-rude.

“I dunno,” he shrugged, when Mr. Row asked how he stayed organised. It was a fairly accurate response, in that he wasn’t really sure how to answer, and clearly he wasn’t really in possession of a solid organisational system. Although he did know, off the top of his head, that he had a reflective diary due to for Potions and that it was due later than the Charms Q&A but would probably be harder to write. He could probably also pull the information for other subjects from the corners of his brain if he sat and thought about it, but that was a big ‘if.’

“Did you come here?” he asked, a hint of doubt in his voice at the likelihood of that, as Mr. Row talked about transitioning to Sonora being hard. He suspected Mr. Row had just meant ‘I know…’ in a general sense, rather than because he had personally done this.

13 Oz Spellman I'm not worried 1514 0 5

Killian Row

January 09, 2021 11:50 PM

Aren't you though? Maybe not about my job though. by Killian Row

OOC: I'm assuming that Killian is better at his job than I would be and would love feedback if he does something especially egregious in terms of guidance counselor-ing. BIC:

Killian nodded. He had all of the work to do too, so he wasn't about to judge Oz for that. Also, the Pecari wouldn't be here if he wasn't having problems getting stuff done (well, there were other reasons people might come see him but Selina was not usually the sender of students who were breezing through classes), so Killian wasn't exactly surprised to hear that. "Do you have a favorite class?" he asked, smiling as he prodded Oz' interests. "Start with writing all of it down with due dates, as best you can, and then we can figure out what to work on first," he suggested, retrieving a few sheets of paper from his desk and passing them to Oz. Some of the paper was basic parchment, ideal for lists or drawing, whatever Oz preferred. Some of it was blank calendar pages, in case a more chronological approach was better for him.

He also had some idea of what his colleagues had assigned students at any given time, although he wasn't kept completely up to date on it. He was involved enough in staff meetings and kept good enough notes to have an idea what units were going on in the various curricula, and he heard enough students talk about various projects to have some ideas from that as well. Plus, a lot could be accomplished with a what about X class? or do you have any essays due? sort of prompt.

"I went to Hogwarts when I was your age," Killian said, mildly surprised by Oz' curiosity. People's questions always revealed a lot about themselves and Oz was revealing that he was interested and curious in other people and other things around him; so the problem with homework wasn't disinterest, although it could've been greater interest in something else . . . like another person? He'd seen Bonny swing between reclusive and loving enough to know that people coped with transition in different ways. "It's sort of similar but it's in Scotland," he explained since he doubted Oz was really up on his knowledge of magical institutions of learning. "But it was hard to transition to Hogwarts, and it was hard to transition to Sonora when I started working here. Everything's different and you're away from the familiar, maybe for the first time. It's a lot to deal with on top of trying to remember where the Defence classroom is and which professor wanted which essay due when."

22 Killian Row Aren't you though? Maybe not about my job though. 1450 0 5

Oz Spellman

January 17, 2021 9:28 PM

Nah, I'm cool by Oz Spellman

"Hogwarts?" Oz asked, slightly incredulously, "Aren't warts like lumpy disease things? Like, you went to pig disease school?" he laughed. "Sounds gross. No offence."

"No," he replied to the deeply uncool question of whether he had a favourite class. He didn't really know how he would have picked. Charms was obviously useful but he resented Professor Wright too much to say it. COMC and Herb were both fun but didn't exactly seem that important. DADA was obviously useful but just what the heck (also, the regular lady was back which meant he didn't get class with his head of house any more). Transfig was... Transfig was meant to be really, really hard but Oz didn't actually think so. Not yet, anyway. And if boasting about academics had been something he was prone to do, he might have liked it for that reason, but it absolutely was not, and anyway Professor Skies was Henry's head of house. "Henry's the bookish one," he told Mr. Row with a casual shrug that, if the guidance counselor was paying attention, didn't fully disguise the edge in his voice as he'd said that.

"I know where my classrooms are, I'm not stupid," he muttered as he took the writing materials he was offered. He eyed them up with a sigh, both at the task ahead and what he'd just said, and the fact he was probably 'being cheeky' and tried to settle down to work. Although making Mr. Row pissed enough at him that he abandoned his attempt to try was sort of tempting, it wasn't his favourite approach. And it was a pretty drastic solution, one he had to be sure about resorting to. He began to write a list, in surprisingly decent-ish handwiritng. He added items slowly, pausing between each in a way which he hoped passed for natural thinking time, versus deciding how much to confess of how aware he was of his assignments. He hated the thought of Mr. Row thinking he was stupid, but also they could easily waste a good few weeks with him pretending to let Mr. Row get him into the habit of using a planner and making lists. It was a hard juggling act between not being an actively bad student and not being too much of a good one. He added the potions and charms homework, and the due date for one of them. He added 'Herbology - Label Plant Diagram (complete)' because it made him feel a bit better about himself. Then he stalled.

"Scotland is in England, right?" he asked. "Is that why you talk like that? How come you and your daughter don't talk the same?" he asked.

OOC: Author is well aware that Scotland isn't in England. Oz just likely wouldn't know that.

13 Oz Spellman Nah, I'm cool 1514 0 5

Killian Row

January 17, 2021 10:59 PM

As a cucumber. by Killian Row

Killian grinned. "Lumpy sweat things I think," he returned, having wholeheartedly agreed that 'Hogwarts' was a terrible name for a long time. "Sonora definitely got the better name."

He shrugged at the assertion that Henry was the bookish one, noting that that seemed to be a sore note for Oz. "My brother's favorite class was Care of Magical Creatures because he liked being on his feet without getting in the dirt," he said. "You don't have to like a class because you like the books." He wanted to point out that you didn't have to be stupid to get lost, but didn't think that was really a comment that Oz wanted to get into addressing. Killian knew Oz wasn't stupid, he was more worried that Oz didn't know Oz wasn't stupid. When the youngster seemed to struggle though, thinking hard about the task, Killian started thinking that maybe Oz didn't know that though.

"Writing them down while you're in class can be a great way to keep them straight," he suggested. "Do you take notes in class usually?"

He smiled a little at the question about his accent, suspecting that Oz was maybe equal parts curious and disinterested. Still, asking questions was always a good thing for a student do; it was easier to help a student learn when and how to ask questions rather than get them to start at all. "I am from Ireland," he said. "Scotland and England are separate countries, but they're close to each other and they're both part of the United Kingdom. So my accent is Irish." He grinned because of course he did, although it shifted some as he thought of his 'daughter'. "You mean Bonabelle?" he asked, assuming that's what he meant. Because that's all he could mean. He forced the knot out of his stomach. "She's my niece. She grew up in London, so that's why she sounds different than me. Are you and Bonabelle friends?" he asked, enjoying the thought of Bonabelle and Oz hanging out because it would probably be good for both of them.

22 Killian Row As a cucumber. 1450 0 5

Oz Spellman

January 18, 2021 6:05 AM

That's me by Oz Spellman

Oz shrugged off Mr. Row’s comment about what his own brother was like. He’d meant Henry was good at school. It didn’t have to involve literal books. But Mr. Row could be okay, judging by his reaction Oz’s comments on the name ‘Hogwarts,’ and he had a brother, both of which he made a mental note of.

“Sometimes,” he shrugged evasively, when Mr. Row asked about taking notes. Sometimes teachers made you write, so then he had to. He wasn’t exactly lining up to do it for fun though. He should write down his homework. Wow, genius suggestion. Problem solved. Still, he nodded and slid a calendar page into his bag to show willing. He could mess about pretending to use that for a week or so if it made Mr. Row feel like he was helping.

“I thought the United Kingdom was the same as England?” he stated. He was pretty sure he had heard those used to mean the same. “Like, they say the president of the United Kingdom is over, and then on the news, he’s English,” he pointed out.

“No, she’s a girl!” Oz stated, looking at Mr. Row like he’d grown an extra head or two when he asked if Oz was friends with Bonabelle. Okay, some girls were less weird than others, but as a species they were pretty bizarre. “Like, she has bows and stuff in her hair,” he emphasised, just in case Mr. Row had not realised the degree of girl they were dealing with here. “I’m sure she’s fine or whatever,” he added because it was Mr. Row’s niece, “But I hang out with the guys from my house,” so Bonabelle failed on two counts. “So, is her dad the brother you mentioned? Does he sound like you or her? Does he wrestle dragons or something for a living and is that a real job?” he asked, carefully, carefully lowering the pen he’d been writing his homework down with.

13 Oz Spellman That's me 1514 0 5