Code Revealed - Meeting Demanded (Sept 4)
Jul 10, 2018 23:36:26 GMT -6
Post by Snick on Jul 10, 2018 23:36:26 GMT -6
With her discussion with Miss Buskirk done, Elizabeta headed for her Legacy house to talk with Mr. Glassman. Pausing only long enough to drop off her backpack in her room and locking up behind her, afterall she didn't want anybody messing with Eclipse, Elizabeta headed up towards Mr. Glassman's room. As she climbed the stairs she knew she should have just talked to him before she took the pictures. In a way she didn't feel the symbols underneath the rug were top secret, just the rituals done in that place was to be kept a secret. Not that they did anything weird down here, but she certainly used the small rooms in the basement for her own research time to time.
Normally she would do such things in her room but it wasn't really big enough, despite not having a roommate save her pet boa. Now that she had the storm blooms Elizabeta intended to work on a potion. But it would be pointless to start if it turns out her little risk with the pictures meant Mr. Glassman no longer felt she was worthy of the Novus Ordo Secolorum Legacy. Being kicked out of this Legacy was quickly becoming a worry for her. It was the last thing she wanted, save being kicked out of school. If Mr. Glassman really was disappointed in her, she will have to find a way to make it up to him.
She knocked upon his door and waited, doing her best not to dwell on the worse possible outcome of this meeting.
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The door drew open, and the man who had been so friendly and kindly disposed towards her the other day appeared to be gone. This version of Howard Glassman seemed quite coolly disposed towards the girl. "Come in, sit down, and don't say a word until I tell you otherwise." He said, taking off his glasses and setting them down on his desk as he waited for her to come inside. A wave of his wand, and the door shut behind her.
With that, Howard sat down behind his desk. "I can't even begin to tell you how disappointed I am in you right now, Miss Romani-Nicoli." He said, frowning. "Every student who pledges Novus Ordo Secolorum is administered oaths of secrecy about what manner of rites are performed here. Also, every student is tested in a manner similar to the one I arranged for you to take with Professor Llewellyn. Some of the students are easy to break. The boys especially; they'll blab every secret we have here if the right girl asks and bats their eyelashes at them." Here, his voice took on a feminine note. "'Oh, I've heard that the Skulls have a book that they keep all their secrets in. Can you show it to me?'" He narrowed his eyes, and resumed speaking in a normal voice. "But you, ohhhh... You take the cake, little girl. You failed the test before the first classes of the year even began."
"If you came in here practicing the apology or excuses that you're going to make, let me assure you that I don't want to hear them. I'm going to offer you a chance to redeem yourself... But first, you're going to tell me just what flaws in your character led you to fail this test so completely."
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Without a word Elizabeta did as she was instructed. She had not been thinking of making apologizes but more of how to make up for what she did. Apologies were just words afterall but actions...yes, actions certainly spoke volumes. She just hoped her actions didn't speak far more than they should have.
Once seated she focused on Mr. Grassman, facing his anger and disappointment head on. Yet she felt her blood run cold. Did she choose the wrong wizard to obey? No, she should have gone with her first instinct, talk to Mr. Grassman about what Mr. Llewellyn requested her. Yet he was a teacher, not some other Legacy wizard trying to find out what was done here and the symbols underneath the circular rug certainly wasn't used in any ritual she participated in. Turns out it was just a magical cipher, but that didn't excuse the fact she did as Mr. Llewellyn instructed.
"I should have went with my first instinct, to tell you what Mr. Llewellyn requested. I certainly would not have taken pictures for anybody else other than a respected staff member. Definitely not for any boy." Elizabeta stated truthfully. Even one of the good looking sophomores couldn't charm her or threaten her to reveal any secret of this Legacy.
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"Cute theory, but wrong." Glassman sneered. Then he grew earnest again, leaning forward to look at her. "You're what people in your generation would term a control freak. Obsessed with being the one in charge of your own life, your own destiny. You have a vision of achieving greatness, and you don't want anyone to ever be able to take that away from you or stand in your way."
He stood up again and walked over to one of the bookshelves along the wall, picking up a carved skull that he happened to be using as a bookend. "Hence going to Professor Llewellyn, and your focus on dueling club. Possibly dabbling in dark arts, maybe poisons or other illicit potions... All ways to gain an upper hand."
He shook his head and leaned back in his chair, putting on his glasses as he did. "Would you like to know why you keep losing whenever you challenge Ted? Fear. Most control freaks are craven cowards. You don't want to lose anything, so in the end, you lose everything. He threatened you, and oh, it was a master stroke..." He said with a dark, humorless laugh. "Threatened to send you off to be the TA for the Special Education professor. Well, in your mind, that would cost you everything you'd been working so hard to achieve with him. You had an important position that other students would claw and scratch to have, you couldn't let him take that away, so you let yourself be swayed into accepting a calculated risk over a sure loss."
"Your first instinct would have been correct." He said finally. "If you had come to me, I would be congratulating you on a job well done in passing the test I set before you in record time. However, since that is neither here nor now, we are left with the question of how you are going to redeem yourself. Tell me, Miss Romani-Nicoli, what are you prepared to lose to regain your place in this Legacy?"
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Elizebeta kept her eyes on Mr. Grassman, listening to every word he said and watched his body language. She knew people did give 'clues' in how they presented themselves, even subtle movements could reveal quite a bit about a person and what they were thinking. Even if they were lying or being truthful. It was a habit she did her best to keep up, and probably why she did not react badly to being referred to as a coward. He had not meant it as a challenging insult but just a statement of the weakness of somebody who wanted control. Elizebeta most certainly liked being in charge and if that very desire was leaving her weak, she damn well wanted to overcome that weakness.
"One must make sacrifices to achieve victory." Elizabeta repeated a saying she had heard or read about long ago. It now had a whole different meaning than she had thought before. It wasn't choosing personal life or certain pleasures inorder to focus on achieving one's goal but more...knowing what goals should be sacrificed to ensure success instead of trying to hang on to everything. But what was she willing to lose to ensure she regained her place here? Turn her back on dueling? But that provided a valuable skill, give up being Mr. Llewellyn's TA this year?
"I am prepared to drop being Mr. Llewellyn's TA." Elizabeta offered, but decided not to completely leave this as the only thing she will sacrifice. "Unless you have something better in mind, Mr. Glassman?"
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"Great sacrifices, eh? Well, what I have in mind for you doesn't involve spoon-feeding remedial Muggle academics to a bunch of "special" cretins." There was something incredibly nasty in the way Glassman pronounced that word. "No, I have a task in mind for you that is more suited to your abilities and your natural curiosity, and well-suited to the infraction you committed. Because you were willing to give away our secrets to an outsider, I want you to uncover the secrets of the lighthouse. Why it is sentient, why it does the things it does, from where it gained its precognitive abilities. Because this is no mean task I have assigned you, I will give you until the end of the school year to uncover the reason. If you do not, then you will come back from summer vacation to live in the dormitories, and every Skull -- past, present and future -- Will know your name and make sure that every door in your future is slammed shut in your face."
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The secrets of the Lighthouse...something she had always been curious about, almost as much as the mystery and madness of the Throckwattle Legacy House. She certainly knew who all this year's Keepers were. Fortunately several were ones she can easily influence. Only one was her age the others being much younger, perhaps they could benefit from an older friend who can prepare them for what was to come. Then there was Mr. Victor Castilla, how much does he know about the Lighthouse himself?
She also had a few aces up her sleeve, a talent nobody at school knew about, not even her teachers. There were several ways she can gather information and she intended to use all of them. But care must be taken too. Yes she will have to make plans and do a little patching up a few things too. Looking up into Mr. Grassman's eyes she gave a smile.
"I will not fail you, you will not regret giving me this chance to prove myself trust worthy of remaining a Skull." Elizabeta assured him earnestly. No, this challenge she won't shirk from. She won't fail him, and in completing this task she will satisfy her own curiosity about the Light House.
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Glassman allowed just the tiniest hint of a smile to cross his lips. A look of satisfaction. "I certainly hope so, Miss Romani-Nicoli. I am placing a great deal of faith in you to complete this task -- More faith than I have shown in any other student who has been granted this chance for redemption. Of course, few other of my students show the sort of potential that you have. I expect my faith in you to be well-rewarded. You may go now. I expect that, after the events of the council meeting, you might well have some bridges to mend." He said, motioning his wand at the door to open it.
Normally she would do such things in her room but it wasn't really big enough, despite not having a roommate save her pet boa. Now that she had the storm blooms Elizabeta intended to work on a potion. But it would be pointless to start if it turns out her little risk with the pictures meant Mr. Glassman no longer felt she was worthy of the Novus Ordo Secolorum Legacy. Being kicked out of this Legacy was quickly becoming a worry for her. It was the last thing she wanted, save being kicked out of school. If Mr. Glassman really was disappointed in her, she will have to find a way to make it up to him.
She knocked upon his door and waited, doing her best not to dwell on the worse possible outcome of this meeting.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The door drew open, and the man who had been so friendly and kindly disposed towards her the other day appeared to be gone. This version of Howard Glassman seemed quite coolly disposed towards the girl. "Come in, sit down, and don't say a word until I tell you otherwise." He said, taking off his glasses and setting them down on his desk as he waited for her to come inside. A wave of his wand, and the door shut behind her.
With that, Howard sat down behind his desk. "I can't even begin to tell you how disappointed I am in you right now, Miss Romani-Nicoli." He said, frowning. "Every student who pledges Novus Ordo Secolorum is administered oaths of secrecy about what manner of rites are performed here. Also, every student is tested in a manner similar to the one I arranged for you to take with Professor Llewellyn. Some of the students are easy to break. The boys especially; they'll blab every secret we have here if the right girl asks and bats their eyelashes at them." Here, his voice took on a feminine note. "'Oh, I've heard that the Skulls have a book that they keep all their secrets in. Can you show it to me?'" He narrowed his eyes, and resumed speaking in a normal voice. "But you, ohhhh... You take the cake, little girl. You failed the test before the first classes of the year even began."
"If you came in here practicing the apology or excuses that you're going to make, let me assure you that I don't want to hear them. I'm going to offer you a chance to redeem yourself... But first, you're going to tell me just what flaws in your character led you to fail this test so completely."
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Without a word Elizabeta did as she was instructed. She had not been thinking of making apologizes but more of how to make up for what she did. Apologies were just words afterall but actions...yes, actions certainly spoke volumes. She just hoped her actions didn't speak far more than they should have.
Once seated she focused on Mr. Grassman, facing his anger and disappointment head on. Yet she felt her blood run cold. Did she choose the wrong wizard to obey? No, she should have gone with her first instinct, talk to Mr. Grassman about what Mr. Llewellyn requested her. Yet he was a teacher, not some other Legacy wizard trying to find out what was done here and the symbols underneath the circular rug certainly wasn't used in any ritual she participated in. Turns out it was just a magical cipher, but that didn't excuse the fact she did as Mr. Llewellyn instructed.
"I should have went with my first instinct, to tell you what Mr. Llewellyn requested. I certainly would not have taken pictures for anybody else other than a respected staff member. Definitely not for any boy." Elizabeta stated truthfully. Even one of the good looking sophomores couldn't charm her or threaten her to reveal any secret of this Legacy.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
"Cute theory, but wrong." Glassman sneered. Then he grew earnest again, leaning forward to look at her. "You're what people in your generation would term a control freak. Obsessed with being the one in charge of your own life, your own destiny. You have a vision of achieving greatness, and you don't want anyone to ever be able to take that away from you or stand in your way."
He stood up again and walked over to one of the bookshelves along the wall, picking up a carved skull that he happened to be using as a bookend. "Hence going to Professor Llewellyn, and your focus on dueling club. Possibly dabbling in dark arts, maybe poisons or other illicit potions... All ways to gain an upper hand."
He shook his head and leaned back in his chair, putting on his glasses as he did. "Would you like to know why you keep losing whenever you challenge Ted? Fear. Most control freaks are craven cowards. You don't want to lose anything, so in the end, you lose everything. He threatened you, and oh, it was a master stroke..." He said with a dark, humorless laugh. "Threatened to send you off to be the TA for the Special Education professor. Well, in your mind, that would cost you everything you'd been working so hard to achieve with him. You had an important position that other students would claw and scratch to have, you couldn't let him take that away, so you let yourself be swayed into accepting a calculated risk over a sure loss."
"Your first instinct would have been correct." He said finally. "If you had come to me, I would be congratulating you on a job well done in passing the test I set before you in record time. However, since that is neither here nor now, we are left with the question of how you are going to redeem yourself. Tell me, Miss Romani-Nicoli, what are you prepared to lose to regain your place in this Legacy?"
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Elizebeta kept her eyes on Mr. Grassman, listening to every word he said and watched his body language. She knew people did give 'clues' in how they presented themselves, even subtle movements could reveal quite a bit about a person and what they were thinking. Even if they were lying or being truthful. It was a habit she did her best to keep up, and probably why she did not react badly to being referred to as a coward. He had not meant it as a challenging insult but just a statement of the weakness of somebody who wanted control. Elizebeta most certainly liked being in charge and if that very desire was leaving her weak, she damn well wanted to overcome that weakness.
"One must make sacrifices to achieve victory." Elizabeta repeated a saying she had heard or read about long ago. It now had a whole different meaning than she had thought before. It wasn't choosing personal life or certain pleasures inorder to focus on achieving one's goal but more...knowing what goals should be sacrificed to ensure success instead of trying to hang on to everything. But what was she willing to lose to ensure she regained her place here? Turn her back on dueling? But that provided a valuable skill, give up being Mr. Llewellyn's TA this year?
"I am prepared to drop being Mr. Llewellyn's TA." Elizabeta offered, but decided not to completely leave this as the only thing she will sacrifice. "Unless you have something better in mind, Mr. Glassman?"
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
"Great sacrifices, eh? Well, what I have in mind for you doesn't involve spoon-feeding remedial Muggle academics to a bunch of "special" cretins." There was something incredibly nasty in the way Glassman pronounced that word. "No, I have a task in mind for you that is more suited to your abilities and your natural curiosity, and well-suited to the infraction you committed. Because you were willing to give away our secrets to an outsider, I want you to uncover the secrets of the lighthouse. Why it is sentient, why it does the things it does, from where it gained its precognitive abilities. Because this is no mean task I have assigned you, I will give you until the end of the school year to uncover the reason. If you do not, then you will come back from summer vacation to live in the dormitories, and every Skull -- past, present and future -- Will know your name and make sure that every door in your future is slammed shut in your face."
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The secrets of the Lighthouse...something she had always been curious about, almost as much as the mystery and madness of the Throckwattle Legacy House. She certainly knew who all this year's Keepers were. Fortunately several were ones she can easily influence. Only one was her age the others being much younger, perhaps they could benefit from an older friend who can prepare them for what was to come. Then there was Mr. Victor Castilla, how much does he know about the Lighthouse himself?
She also had a few aces up her sleeve, a talent nobody at school knew about, not even her teachers. There were several ways she can gather information and she intended to use all of them. But care must be taken too. Yes she will have to make plans and do a little patching up a few things too. Looking up into Mr. Grassman's eyes she gave a smile.
"I will not fail you, you will not regret giving me this chance to prove myself trust worthy of remaining a Skull." Elizabeta assured him earnestly. No, this challenge she won't shirk from. She won't fail him, and in completing this task she will satisfy her own curiosity about the Light House.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Glassman allowed just the tiniest hint of a smile to cross his lips. A look of satisfaction. "I certainly hope so, Miss Romani-Nicoli. I am placing a great deal of faith in you to complete this task -- More faith than I have shown in any other student who has been granted this chance for redemption. Of course, few other of my students show the sort of potential that you have. I expect my faith in you to be well-rewarded. You may go now. I expect that, after the events of the council meeting, you might well have some bridges to mend." He said, motioning his wand at the door to open it.
