You Say Overkill, I Say Due Diligence [open post]

[summerdude]

Magnus copies the sign onto seven different pieces of paper. It reads:

WANT TO LEARN NEW SKILLS? ME FREAKING TOO. I (Magnus Chase) Will Trade Lessons In Any Of The Following For Something You Know:

• ASL (Alf/American Sign Language)


• Camping (pitching tents, campfire safety, celestial navigation)


• What To Do If You Find Yourself Lost In The World Tree Yggdrasil


• Pickpocketing (But only if you promise to use it for good (stealing ONLY from dickhead rich people) and ONLY if you have to!)


• Swordfighting for Beginners (I am intermediate but Jack is advanced and he can help!)


• What It REALLY Feels Like To Die (NOT ADVICE!!!)


• (Trans)Gender Identity and Fluidity (from the perspective of a cis guy) (Alex-approved content only)


• What To Do If The God You're Talking To Is Super Obnoxious Particular


• Why Falafel is the Best Food in the World

All skills welcome! But if you know any of the following I am especially interested: Cooking, Geometry, How To Declare Your Love To Your Partner, Hand-to-Hand Combat, Balancing a Budget, Writing Poetry, Social Studies, Codebreaking.

(Sorry but I will not learn pottery from anyone but ♥Alex Fierro♥. I hope you understand.)

PS if there's enough interest we can maybe do full classes where everybody gets to take turns teaching and learning?

He adds a note about the areas where he can most frequently be found and then posts one sign in each of the two kitchens he's encountered, one by the welcome table, one on the door to the greenhouses, one in the library, one on his bedroom door, and one by what he believes to be the most-populated lounge. Then, with a great deal of eager anticipation, he goes about his day.


[A note from Magnus's typist: Open indefinitely!]

Comments

[wickedwit]

"The both of them, yes. I would they could meet." Another admission, but it's very easy to admit things in front of Magnus's easy sympathy. Claudius wishes he could tell Gertrude a story about the beautiful boy he met and fell in love with -- but he can't ever return to his own world. His role in that story that ends in her death. Somehow it's safer to imagine Galahad and Gertrude meeting, unlikely as it is¹. "Galahad sets me at ease even when he himself is uneasy. We share something, a kindred feeling, so I could sit quietly with him in a raucous hall and feel reassured by him. When I was younger and clumsier in conversation, Gertrude would share such comfortable silences with me. She's perceptive, insightful, and she has that welcoming way about her. She'd see Galahad's virtues -- which you know are many -- and understand how to speak with him." And speaking with Galahad is a worthwhile, precious gift. Naturally Claudius would want it for someone he loves.

¹ This is a shameless use of the dramatic irony lever.

[summerdude]

"What, like it's hard?" Magnus asks; he's never had any difficulty talking to Galahad and can't really imagine why anyone would. He guesses Galahad can be a little quiet around other people, though? But Magnus also doesn't really go for crowds, so.

Wait. That was probably rude. He grins at Claudius, a little self-effacing, and gestures at all the plants around them. "By the way, can I help with any of this? Can you show me?"

And then he says, "It's nice when you know someone who gets it. Galahad definitely gets it, you know? There's this song I heard back home that goes, like..." He tries to remember the lyrics. It's not one that he loves, but it's one his mom used to play at least once a month. He hums for a moment, then sings, "'Have you ever been alone in a crowded room? Well I'm here with you.' That's, like, the ideal, right?"

[wickedwit]

"I really do need to listen to more of your world's music," Claudius muses out loud. "Whenever you quote from a ballad, it's something poignant and relevant¹." Waving aside that thought and giving Magnus a smile, he says, "I can show you a few things that need gardening, if you're willing. First, let's go look for a magnolia tree and get that cutting."

¹ For example, the poignant, relevant verses of 'No Scrubs.'

[summerdude]

"Oh, I'm willing!" Magnus hops easily to his feet and extends a hand to help Claudius up.

[wickedwit]

Claudius takes that hand with warm gratitude, and once up, will lead them away to the garden's magnolia tree for their first experiments in propagation.