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 Posted: Sat Jun 27, 2009 2:35 pm
Sometimes, the gossip didn't really get to her; it slid off of her, for she had learnt to ignore it. It was, after all, a part of whom she was, and Hazel had also learnt to live with. She was proud of her choices, and if she had been able to go back in time, she was sure she'd do it all the same again.
There were times, however, when the old Teacher was in a bad mood, where the gossip she thought she heard behind her back made her snap. It seemed like today was one of those days, for the old female had snapped a pair of unruly sentinels whom had dared imply the fact she was not the most appropriate to be teaching anyone about choices, given her own past ones.
After giving the pair a piece of her mind, Hazel had retired to a dark branch and sat brooding, mumbling lightly under her breath. The force of her grip on the branch (even despite her age) making a distinct sound in the otherwise mostly silent night air.
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Posted: Sat Jun 27, 2009 3:25 pm
Some time later a second female approached, on wings that were perhaps not as silent as they should be. Granny had made a full recovery from her injuries after the violent storm last spring. The only physical reminder was a few oddly shaped feathers on one wing that tended to make her flight a bit less stealthy. Not that it mattered much, it only made it a bit more of a challenge to appear unexpectedly behind naughty students.
"I thought I might find you here," she said casually as she landed in the same tree as Hazel and started preening, "Those youngsters were awfully loud I think. And rude. One almost bumped into me and all he could do was to... I'm not going to repeat it, but I got the feeling you might have ruffled some feathers."
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Posted: Sat Jun 27, 2009 3:40 pm
Crack, crack, crack went the bark as Hazel dug and retracted her talons into it, to the point she might have caused herself a huge embarrassment by being caught unaware on a breaking branch, had Granny not landed on it and distracted the other teacher's destructive behavior. For a long moment, Hazel remain silent, then she frowned as she turned to face her colleague, "I snapped," she said, as if admitting to it was essential, "I shouldn't have done so. It's unladylike, and only places me at those ruffians' levels," her feathers puffed out in annoyance, apparently aware she had done 'wrong' but not entirely sorry about it, "Still!" she continued, and as she did so, her feathers puffed out even more, to the point the old teacher might have looked comical, "They plucked my feathers with those remarks. How dare they! How dare anyone!"
Pride was one of the few things Hazel had left from her youth. Apparently... she had loads of it to spare still, "Despite knowing I shouldn't have snapped, I'm very glad to hear I ruffled some feathers. Serves them right!" she sank back down into her grumbling for a few more seconds before her gaze slid towards the other teacher again, as if curious as to what exactly happened, but polite enough not to ask.
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Posted: Sun Jun 28, 2009 9:00 am
Granny watched in silence as her colleague voiced her frustrations. There was a lot that could be said about Hazel's choices in life, but in her opinion it wasn't polite to insult someone you didn't agree with. And if it was something she disliked, it was adults behaving like that.
"They can consider themselves lucky they're not my old students," she said, "I would have plucked their ear tufts for that kind of language, adults or not. Sometimes I wonder if younger Teachers really know how to teach their students basic manners."
She took pride in making sure that her charges learned all vital skills for becoming successful members of the clan, as well as making sure they turned out courteous and polite. She figured she had succeeded so far, even if there were a few exceptions with Sentinels that hadn't quite turned out as she had hoped.
"How have you been lately," she asked, deciding that a change of subject might be in order, "Still holding classes I assume?"
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Posted: Tue Jul 14, 2009 5:44 pm
"Hmph!" came the resonating sound of agreement from the other teacher, "I don't question them, they should know better than to question me! Whatever happened to 'Respect your elders' anyhow?" had it not been for Granny's presence, it was quite possible that Hazel would have sunk into rather the magnificent sulk. However, the other female's presence and the fact she agreed with her on the key points seemed to have smoothed out her temper quite a bit.
She was well aware not everyone agreed with her point of view or her decisions. Opinions were varied and personal, and she accepted them... so long they were kept to oneself and not voiced unless she asked for them, "I'm not too sure if it's the teachers' fault, the Minders, the parents or the chicks themselves! Manners aren't what they used to... and we're not quite what we used to either! We can pray to Noctus this changes though and the young ones learn to behave better or at this pace... Noctoa will be going to to owls."
The change in subject was appreciated, obvious by the way the old teacher visibly deflated, letting out a soft breath of air, "I shouldn't be angry. Things have been well, actually. My granddaughter has a suitable suitor, and they'll be happy, I'm sure," her eyes returned to the other female, nodding her head, "Oh, yes. Till the day I drop, I'm afraid. They'll have to drag me out of there, screaming and flailing unless I'm dead. I couldn't bear the thought of leaving those fledgelings," technically, that wasn't the only motive; Hazel despised feeling useless and her work as a teacher made her feel like she was doing something for the Clan. The idea of doing near to nothing, even at an old age was horribly despicable to her.
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Posted: Wed Jul 15, 2009 1:23 pm
"Oh, I know what you mean," Granny said, "The day I stop teaching is the day you'll see me fly down to the forest floor."
'And never return' was the unspoken part of that sentence. It wouldn't do to be a burden, and she expected Hazel to understand. Their backgrounds were very similar ways after all, even if their lives were vastly different in other aspects. Mates. Choices. Linnéa was both fascinated and vaguely repulsed by Hazel's chicks and the mission to keep the Chestnut type strong. Still, she couldn't help being a little bit curious about the whole affair.
"A chestnut suitor," she asked, and her voice sounded strange even to her own ears. She cleared her voice before continuing. "Your children have done well I assume?"
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Posted: Sat Jul 18, 2009 4:01 pm
Hazel found herself nodding in agreement with Granny's words, "Indeed," she murmured, "It just wouldn't do to be a burden after all!" she huffed lightly, waving a wing, as if in mild dismissal, "I'll never understand those lazy few that get by through life by doing nothing but leeching off from others. A disgrace to the clan, I tell you!" she snorted.
"A chesnut indeed," even while it was true Granny was polite, Hazel could still detect the vague amount of awkwardness within the situation and conversation. She said nothing about it though, for her colleague was well in her right to have her own opinions; specially when she was being so horribly polite about them. Curiosity was just fine, and the old teacher was happy to satisfy it, for with knowledge might come understanding, "A fine lad," a nod followed the statement before she turned to face the old female, "They've done a lot better than a lot of pure breeds I know, that's for sure!" a pause and a sigh, "Sometimes I wonder; did I do well?"
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Posted: Sun Jul 19, 2009 11:58 am
The long silence before Granny spoke again said a lot. She didn't mean to be rude, but Hazel's question made her think about her own choices in life. She was not one to regret the past, but sometimes she couldn't help but wonder what would have happened had she picked another flight path. No sense in dwelling on that however.
"I think," she finally said, "Only Noctus knows if we did well. We did our best. I don't think I could have made the same choices you did, but that's me. I don't know if my choice was better."
She snapped her beak shut with a faint clack and studied her talons.
((OOC: Sorry it's a bit short. I just wanted to post what I have before I crash))
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Posted: Wed Jul 22, 2009 7:28 am
The silence that followed was not insulting; it merely showed Hazel that Granny was taking her time, pondering the question seriously. If anything, it showed the old teacher that her colleague valued her enough to ponder her answer thoroughly. It was a sign of respect, and Hazel appreciated it, evident in the way she patiently waited for the other female's reply.
When it came, it was clear Granny's answer had not been the one Hazel had expected; in a way, she had been expecting to be chided for her choices. It was an opportunity a lot of sentinels she'd had the displeasure of knowing would have taken, no doubt. However, while the answer had not been expected, it was greatly appreciated. A smile broke through the old teacher's features... gentle, soft, relaxed for the first time that evening, "I couldn't have said it better myself," she said, then let out a sigh, "It seems that I'm not too old to be taught a lesson or two yet. Funny, that."
Ruffling her feathers, Hazel reclined herself against her perch, no longer tense, "I admit I feel much better now."
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Posted: Thu Jul 23, 2009 5:09 am
It was nice to finally see Hazel relax and shake off the rude words from before. Those Sentinels were not worth it, but Granny knew from long experience that it could be hard to stay unaffected at all times, even if you knew it wasn't really worth the energy to be angry.
"I'm glad," Granny said, and she sounded completely sincere. "I have a feeling Teachers might have the opportunity to learn more than most. Why my dear students teach me new lessons every day... But you must tell me more about this grandson in law you're getting. One of your old students perhaps?"
Granny had got the impression that most minor types favoured their own Teachers even if Chestnuts seemed less prone to forming closed colonies. In fact, she had only had one Chestnut student during her long career of teaching. Wildtypes and Deep Woods were the most common fledglings in her classes, but that was to be expected after all.
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Posted: Mon Jul 27, 2009 12:23 pm
"This is true," Hazel bobbed her head in agreement as the other teacher spoke. While it was true that she stood in front of her class of (mostly) eager fledgelings, they often taught her things too. She was sure the young ones didn't even realise as much, which was extremely amusing when the old female paused to think about it, "Oh, yes!" she said, "Where are my manners; of course I should tell you a bit about him. Where should I start?" it was most a rhetorical question though, as she settled herself more comfortably on her branch, "Needless to say, when I caught wind of whom they intended to pair my granddaughter with, I had to go off to meet him."
It made sense in her mind to take a peek at the lad to see if he was a worthy match; not that she had any doubt Hollysong wouldn't be able to do a good job. It was... well, she figured it was a 'grandmother' thing, in a way, "He was charming, really. In an... adorable sort of way. The poor lad practically tripped over himself in an attempt to please me," she clicked her tongue within her beak as she spoke, "I found it endearing, though. I was half expecting to find some pompous fool that was full of himself, and instead I found someone awkward yet eager to please. He's a good lad."
A wave of her wing as she continued, "He's no student of mine though, sadly. I can take no merit for him. That said, he had a Serpe. vile creatures, those, scared the soul right out of me."
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Posted: Tue Jul 28, 2009 12:54 pm
"Oh, off course," Granny agreed. It was only natural to want to check up on the lad after all. And in her opinion it was Hazels duty as a family member to do so. As the other teacher explained more about his awkward ways Granny couldn't help but smiling. She could imagine Hazel intimidating most males into submission if she put some effort in it, but it was good that the mate that had been picked out for her granddaughter seemed to be a nice one.
"Ah yes," Granny said, "You can always train them to some extent, but it's never good to start with a male that's completely full of himself."
As a former Gatherer she had used her fair share of companions, but she had never liked the reptiles much. Why get a companion that had a potential to be that dangerous? She shook her head and clacked disapprovingly as Hazel told her about the scare.
"I've never cared for those companions myself," she said, "And a Serpe wouldn't have been of much use to me. If there are eggs later on it would have to go, wouldn't it? What does he do for a living by the way? Hunter or Apothecary perhaps? And you haven't told me his name."
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Posted: Sat Aug 01, 2009 11:56 am
Hazel nodded; if she had to list Drywood's faults, the Serpe would be the single thing she truly disliked about him. But it was just a companion, and such things could be dealt with. "I don't have much of a use for reptiles myself, too, but he says the Serpe's invaluable to him, and I'm inclined to believe that no Keeper would have given a dangerous creature to anybody who didn't absolutely need one. He seems to be quite capable at controlling it, too, and when it comes time for eggs, I'm sure that he will make the right decision. His name is Drywood, Drywood the Apothecary." She paused for a moment. Linnéa knew plenty of Sentinels; if it turned out that she knew Drywood, her opinion would be quite interesting to obtain. "Have you ever met him?"
She briefly wondered if, when her own mating had been arranged, her family members had gone to any of this trouble to ascertain the character of the male chosen for her, if her grandmother had sat and gossiped about her granddaughter's future betrothed. She'd like to think that it did happen much like this.
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Posted: Sun Aug 09, 2009 2:01 pm
"Drywood," Granny exclaimed, smiling proudly, "Oh, how delightful to hear that he's doing good."
It was a pleasant surprise that Drywood was the mysterious fiancé. She remembered when she first met the small fledgling, and what his Minders had told her about him. It was nice to hear that all her work with him had paid off and that he was apparently an upstanding member of the clan. And about to be mated to a fine young female too. Hopefully the resulting chicks would be mostly Chestnut looking and not flawed in any way.
"He was quite the talonful as a child," she confessed, "But with some time and effort he became a fine young male. Proof that a good upbringing and a good education can turn most of our little troublemakers around. Teachers these days are getting too soft I think.
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Posted: Sun Aug 09, 2009 11:03 pm
"Oh, so you do know him! Yes, he really has matured into a delightful young gentleman, and I can see how much he learned from your teachings; his manners, after all, are impeccable," Hazel hooted, a touch of glee in her voice. She was thrilled to discover that her colleague had been a part of her future family member's upbringing; Linnéa was a good Teacher, as well as a very proper Sentinel. "I'm awfully glad Mr. Hollysong found a male who'd been taught by a teacher who knew what she was doing." She smiled kindly at her friend, thinking of the ruffians she'd come across. "You both did an excellent job." She felt at ease now, knowing that Drywood hadn't been acting to impress her. Perhaps this would turn out to be a good night after all- news like this could easily make the disrespect of the owl-headed youths she'd encountered a trivial thing indeed.
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