sally summer // magical lass! (magicalsally) wrote in neopolis_logs, @ 2010-10-10 18:44:00 |
|
|||
Entry tags: | !log, sally summers, theodora endischee |
LOG.
WHO: Sally Summers and Professor Endischee.
WHAT: A student-teacher conference about Sally's new powers, and Theodora being somewhat furious when she hears the whole story.
WHEN: Start of the third trimester.
WHERE: Theodora's office.
STATUS: Complete.
One of the things Theodora Endischee loved most about her office on the Academy campus was its gigantic windows. She had asked after the room shyly early on in her interviews; how long did it bask in morning exposure, was this building built with the ocean view in mind, and were window boxes allowed? To discover that she’d been assigned this room on her first day was a soothing balm in what was otherwise a time fraught with anxiety, and she’d funneled all her nervous energy into decorating her tiny environ. Almost eleven months and one zombie riot later and the chamber still reflected her aesthetic sensibilities: a Ganado rug, linen curtains that fluttered with the breeze that she allowed in, a collection of framed prints, and a couple of overstuffed chairs for the odd passerby to settle into.
She was dusting her prized woodcut when the door creaked open, just barely. It was of a great seascape and, if one paid the picture just the right amount of attention, it sighed and creaked with the ocean’s peaks and falls. Over the professor’s head, a twirling mobile of birds sang softly in the great swaths of morning sunshine; in the barest bit of background, an electric kettle began to sing.
“Miss Summers, I presume?” The professor hoped as much, given her quiet plans for the morning and how loathe she was to veer off from schedule. There had been a basket of muffins she brought in, after all, and enough of an anticipation that someone other than Nora would want a cup of proper coffee to bring in her larger French press. Not that she wasn’t adverse to sharing with other faculty members, but – well, much like anything else concerning the Professor Endischee, she took her office hours very seriously. “Come in, if you are.”
"Good morning, Professor Endischee!" It was, in fact, one Miss Sally Summers, and the door opened fully, revealing the young woman. She was, for once, not bouncing off the walls with energy, instead doing her best to contain her usual unbridled energy given that she was meeting a teacher for a Serious Discussion, and not just spazzing out work that was late or generally just being herself. But she wasn't able to completely suppress it - the spring in her step and the broad grin on her face certainly gave her away, as did the brightness in her eyes as she glanced around Theodora's office. It looked so - perfect! Everything had it's place, and there was no clutter or mess or anything. Sally's room was the exact opposite - it wasn't that she was messy, it was just that she had so much stuff, and nowhere to put it all! Books and crystals and various spell ingredients were piled all over the place, as well as the usual teenage mess of clothes, magazines and dvds.
"Thanks for agreeing to meet with me," she said brightly, with a smile to match. Even when she was trying to be calm and collected, she couldn't help but be chipper. While Sally's mood could rapidly turn dark, her natural state was to be generally happy and bright, and mornings were her favourite time of day.
“Certainly.” And with that, Theodora made her familiar trek to the back of her desk, vague gestures to the refreshments made as she went to her seat. “I realize morning meetings don’t usually agree with the collegiate temperament, so you’re free to take a muffin, if you wish. And there’s a kettle on, if you like tea. Or coffee, there’s – there’s that, too.”
But she figured that Miss Summers was a competent enough youth to pour herself a warm beverage and help herself to pastry, so she settled down in her chair and made her usual listening posture of folded hands on the blotter. Or, perhaps more specifically: her hands were folded over an open notebook and uncapped pen, waiting for the invariable amount of notes she was about to undertake. Although she’d heard – and, indeed, witnessed – some of Salome’s unexpected forays into more powerful magic, this was the type of story she wagered would need to be recorded in some way in order for her to properly process.
“You have the floor, Miss Summers. As background for yourself, though – I think I know a bit, if only by virtue of being your professor. Something about power flux, yes?”
"Thanks!" She helped herself to a muffin, though didn't take up the offer of a hot drink. She did quite like tea, and was known to abuse coffee in order to keep herself awake during all-nighters, but she didn't really need the caffeine boost right now. Or really anything she could accidentally spill, she was remarkably accident prone and she didn't want to interrupt the meeting with her being clumsy.
"Well," Sally began, then took a deep breath. "I should probably start back at the start - like, with my birth, And my family history. I don't know how much you know about the Adnos women, but we've always been sorceresses. Like, way way way back. Family history says we are direct descendants of Ariadne, but, like, how can you verify that? That was like, thousands and thousands of years ago. But anyway, as long as anyone can trace back, we've all been sorceresses. And it's always been the youngest daughter who inherits the powers, being the one born at the height of her mother's power and wisdom. But when I was born, something... I don't know, it went wrong. Or I guess it did, or I was defective or something, because I didn't inherit anything. Like mostly everything I could do before now was because I studied a lot, you know? And my sisters would bring me magical items and I bought some, and I learned how to channel the energy of like crystals and stuff. But none of it was my magic, you know? And my mother sort of... disowned me for it, so I grew up with my dad on the mainland. And then I got sent here for some high school and stuff because I kept doing magic at the boarding school I was at and even though I totally saved this person's life, I had to learn how to use it responsibly and whatever. So that's what I've been doing in Neopolis, except then." Sally paused for a break, looking down at her hands for a moment and taking a breath before continuing.
"During the zombie attack my mother's club was attacked, and I guess she was feeling a little shakey or something, and so she was staying at my sister Angmar's place - she's my guardian while I'm in Neopolis, because my other sisters mostly work overseas and stuff and my dad doesn't really understand Neopolis stuff and he doesn't really care much anyway. Except I was staying there as well because it was the school break, and then she was doing this ritual one day because she wanted to try to have another daughter, who could inherit her powers since I didn't, except I walked in on it, and I must have messed it up or something, I don't know, because now I have the powers I was supposed to be born with, except they don't really... work the way they're supposed to. Or at least, I don't think they do, sometimes I can't do anything at all and sometimes I make a bunch of stuff happen without meaning it - like I cast this spell on the dorms and no one could talk for awhile, or once I woke up and a bunch of stuff in my room was floating. And sometimes, when I sneeze, I blow these really cute pink fireworks everywhere."
And that was it. Sally let out the last of her breath, looking earnestly at Theodora. That was her whole story! As long as rambling as it was.
Well, the note plan had gone to shod right there. Theodora often forgot that listening to Sally Summers was like watching a rollercoaster, or perhaps the Tiniest Verbal Volcano That Could. It explained, at least, why she often called on her at the most inopportune of times during class – right before the bell, in the middle of a lab that needed quiet attention, just as she needed to go to the office to have something signed off on. But given that many of her pupils were so taciturn in the face of knowledge, it was hard to begrudge Sally’s effervescence in the face of her subject of choice; so too was it difficult to mind her bursting forth on a subject that had indubitably sat on her person for a considerable while.
Still, it took Theodora a few moments to digest; in lieu of a vapid, hanging jaw, she grasped her teacup and took a considerable drink before being able to digest all of anything. If nothing else, she had to check herself quite carefully before moving forward. A dismissive mother, suddenly having to cope with a wealth of powers at her disposal – if Professor Endischee wasn’t careful, she’d be taking this tale a touch too personal than an employee of the Academy probably should. The cup went down and Theodora’s formerly practiced posture went into something considerably more informal: a slight lean forward, chin to the heel of her palm. For the moment, she would only attempt to analyze.
“Allow me to repeat the main points, in my favor. Your mother was disappointed to find out that you were not the heir of a magical tradition that dates back millennia, so she gave you to your father,” and she had to bite back anything that sounded remotely like without so much as a by your leave, “and you endeavored to explore magic through crystal engineering. This changed when your mother and sisters held a ritual shortly after the destruction of the zombie apocalypse and you suddenly came into your thaumaturgical inheritance in… well, spades, it seems.” She paused, as was one’s want when wishing for affirmation, but Theodora felt confident enough with her summary to not stay too long.
“Providing that such news brings us to the… well, here and now, I feel as if I should ask: am I the first adult other than your mother that has been informed of this?”
"Um, well, it was just my mother who was doing the ritual, but otherwise. Yes. That's it." She chewed on her lip, relieved that she'd finally been able to tell someone, but still feeling pretty nervous about the whole thing. It was - well, it was the biggest thing that had ever happened to her, and it was still really confusing.
"Well. Umm. My sisters know? But other than that. Like. Crowley and Violet know about it - or well, not the whole story but just that something changed and stuff." Her face fell for a moment, and she looked stricken. "Should I have told someone? I mean, some of my professors know that things have changed because I'm able to do different stuff in their classes now than what I used to be able to do, but should I have like, filled out a form or something for the school?"
“Oh?” There was a half-minute’s worth of idle surprise before Sally’s statement sunk in, after which Theodora shook her head with surprising vehemence. “No, Miss Summers, I—I wasn’t making a point to have you labor under the impression that this was purely for bureaucratic matters.” The professor’s jaw began to bunch, her eyebrows knit, a strange glint surfaced at the corners of her eyes – and, in what might have been a move just as surprising to Theodora as it probably was to Sally Summers, her hand reached across the table to give her student a comforting touch.
“I merely want to impress on you my surprise – and indigence – that you.” She took a pause and in that moment, Theodora Endischee came to terms with the fact that her half-hearted promise but a handful of minutes ago to not make this personal was probably quite obliterated… and that she was okay with that. “That you should be at a point in your life where you lacked an adult that you could trust to say such things.” She let her anger at the absent mother go unsaid but it sat heavy in her eyes and the way that the birds in the corner were suddenly not singing anymore.
“You’ll have to forgive me, Miss Summers, it’s just that— well.” Another cough, some distant staring. “The whole of my life has been one similar situation, and not knowing what your magic is capable of and how to reach it can be terrifying. Furthermore, it’s my job to make sure that you’re the master of the proverbial domain, if one is to get down to essentials.”
"-- oh." Sally blinked a moment, somewhat overwhelmed by Theodora's reaction. Sally Summers had learned from years of neglect to be independant - even her father had barely paid attention to the young girl, letting her be raised by the help until she worked out how to look after herself. The closest she'd had to adult family members were her sisters, the girls contacting her despite their mother's wishes and looking out as best she could. Actual attention from adults was rare, especially when it was the kind that was encouraging, and not because she was in trouble or she was being annoying again.
After a few moments, a tentative smile broke over her face. She knew she could work things out for herself, at least eventually, but she also was very well aware of the fact that it would definitely not be the same as having proper instruction. As much as her mother was pressuring her to work with her, being mentored by someone who cared about her and not just preserving the family legacy meant so much more to her than anything. Sally had always strove to be recognized for what she could do, what she could accomplish, and here was someone doing just that, and willing to help her even more.