All Warblers read this!
We sort of forgot to mention this earlier in the year, but before the first Warbler meeting, the Captain and Council sat down and had a discussion. Or, rather, Sebastian lectured the other three, and they couldn't find much to argue even though they didn't like him taking charge.
Sebastian is determined that the Warblers will place first this year, and he will do whatever it takes to get them there. The captain and council had better be on board 100%. None of this "well, we might not win..." He knows that logically, yes, it's true, it's possible the Warblers could be beaten by another team. However, it is vital that their attitude not be "well, we might not win." Their attitude needs to be "HELL YEAH WE ROCK!" and it needs to start at the top. That means the captain and council can never tell the team to be sensible and plan for a loss, just in case. If they lose, they will deal with that loss after it happens. They will not, under no circumstances, put their team in a loss mentality before the competition even happens. Other members may say "we need to be sensible," but the ones in charge need to be 100% positive and confident in the team. He doesn't particularly care (Ron) if they don't believe they can actually win. The only time the captain and council are allowed to express doubt is when they are in private meetings with just the captain and council. Their doubt cannot poison the team. If confidence goes against your nature (Ron), suck it up or resign your position.
(the (Ron)s mean that while he doesn't necessarily call out Ron's name, he does look over at Ron with a Yeah, I'm talking about you expression.)
Confidence alone will not win them Nationals, though. At least one practice a week must be dedicated to their next competition. They can goof around/practice informal performances in the other one, but one a week is strictly competition-based. He also recommends they try to schedule some less-formal jam sessions, whether they go find an open-mike bar or hang out in the basement of a dorm or in the green space or the common rooms, and just have a standing time/date where whoever feels like it can gather and sing together, play instruments, whatever. Fun sessions for bonding that are not at all competition-driven. The other three agrees that this is a good idea, so for now, let's assume that the Warblers have a "hey, every other Sunday afternoon, if you've got the time, feel free to meet us somewhere and we'll just hanging out and make music" date.
Sebastian also wants the Captain and council to have clear and distinct roles in the team. He proposes the following: Raf is the Captain, the unbiased final arbitrator. As the Captain, his job is to stay out of any Warbler drama. He is in charge of the direction of the team as a whole, preparing for competitions and performances, but he does not involve himself with the day-to-day activities of the team. That is the council's job.
Ron is the Rules Lawyer. His motto needs to be "By the Book." Ron's job is to know the rules and lead the meetings. While inflexible, he should be fair.
Cay is the Nice One. His motto needs to be "I'll talk to the others." Cay's job is to soothe any ego bruises among Warblers, to keep the peace, and to be the diplomat. It's his job to listen to the concerns of the members and take their issues up to the council and captain. Cay's the one the Warblers need to love and trust.
Sebastian is the Disciplinarian. His motto needs to be "You get one warning." Sebastian will be the only one dealing out punishments and coming down on misbehaving Warblers. He's a strict enforcer of the rules and is meant to be the one the other Warblers dislike the most.
Now, Sebastian says, while these are their PUBLIC characters to the team, absolutely none of them act on their own. Cay's motto actually applies to all of them--no council member should act without privately consulting the other two unless the issue is really extremely minor. Any discipline Sebastian deals has been agreed on by the others. Any rule Ron interprets has been agreed on by the others. Any changes or benefits Cay negotiates has been agreed on by the others. They must always present a united front and never act in contradiction to each other. However, by having distinct roles, the Warblers will know which one of them is best to talk to if they have problems, and they can know what to expect from each one.
Most of this was Sebastian's doing. Cay listened and nodded along, but he didn't like Sebastian coming up with their roles completely on his own. Sebastian argued that if they could think of better roles, go for it, but by virtue of Cay wanting to discuss their roles as a group, he's pretty much proving that he's a good fit for the "Nice Guy" role.
Ron wasn't happy about Sebastian's attitude toward this at all, but he reluctantly agrees with Sebastian's points. He gives Sebastian cold smiles whenever Sebastian calls him out with a look, and looks incredulous at Sebastian's discussing acting like a group, all "wow, you know how to do that? this is a new attitude from you" without actually saying any of that. Ron wants to stress that the Warblers are more a family than a well-oiled machine, and the group needs to trust their leaders and feel like they have a voice in the running of things. Sebastian agreed and explained that this makes the informal jam sessions and Cay's role as the liaison between "the group" and "the leaders" the most important. He also points out that Ron is proving his role is a good fit too.
Sebastian agrees with Ron's concerns about creating a divide in the group if the leaders are too leadery and the group too unrepresented. There should be enough separation that the Warblers feel like someone is actually in charge and in control, but they still need to be a team together. Too little separation and you get the issue like where parents try to be their kids' best friends. Too much separation and you get the alienation. Hopefully, informal jam sessions and stuff help keep the friendships strong, while clearly defined roles keep a firm hand on the tiller.
Raf also didn't like that Sebastian came at it with a more "this is what we're going to do" mentality than a "Here's what I think, what do you think?" mentality (sure, he allowed them to give their opinions at the end, but he honestly wasn't going to change the plan much). He does agree, though, that Sebastian's plan is pretty much what they would have decided to do anyway. He's a bit miffed about being a glorified secretary, but at the same time, he does know that that's what his role is. He wishes he could have been on the council, though. As it stands, he'd be happy to help out with council stuff as much as possible without stepping on toes, and he thinks the council needs to get together on a regular and frequent basis, even if it's just coming early or staying late at their meetings. Sebastian agrees to this and is a little miffed he didn't think to add that himself.
So... that's what the Warblers have been structured like this year! During meetings, Sebastian and Ron are perfectly civil to each other--they don't like each other, but that won't come in the way of a Warbler success!
Also, for the next month, month and a half, Sebastian and Tak's room is full of half-hidden Halloween candy. Sebastian went overboard. Feel free to let your characters drop in for an "Easter egg" hunt whenever they need a fix.