Concerning bonfires...

[Prof. Michael Freeman]

Professor Freeman, Shihab in tow, arrived at Headmistress Cutty's office and knocked. This was going to be interesting.

[Shihab]

Shihab had run a bit of a gambit of possible reactions internally, including rebelliously angry, righteously angry, proudly angry, an aura of punkish glory, and was currently sulking rather sullenly, arms folded, glaring at the ceiling. He wasn't convinced Professor Freeman wasn't enjoying this a bit too much, and made up his mind to ask about the bubble trick as soon as possible. It could help him and Mannie quite a bit, as concerned uppity demon-kin. In the meantime, it was a threat over his head, and one that was -quite- effective, as he had no wish to have his dignity pummeled further. Playing the badboy was a lot more fun when your superiors could not crush your badboy image with one finger.

[Portia Bianca Rosalind Cutty]

"Good afternoon," Cutty said, once she opened the door. She was smiling at both Freeman and Shihab, with no external suggestion that she was concerned, or even especially curious. "I take it there is a reason you have brought a student here, Professor Freeman?" She checked her watch for the time. "I'm presuming something happened in your class?"

[Shihab]

Shihab did a double-take of wide-eyed innocence, and looked up at Professor Freeman shockedly.

"Oh, Professor! You were headed to Headmistress Cutty's office the whole time too? How awkward! I was only coming in response to your note in as timely a manner as I could manage, Ma'am!" He pauses, looking curiously back and forth between them in as shy a manner he can manage to duplicate.

"Of course, the Professor's time is far more important than mine, and I'll gladly bow out and allow you to go on with your business!"

His smile is cheerful, innocent, and completely flagrant; if he had a hat, he'd be Bashfully Fidgeting with it.

[Prof. Michael Freeman]

Professor Freeman sighed a sigh that sounded remarkably like "act your own age already" would in Urdu.

"I believe you wanted to speak with Shihab concerning a bonfire, headmistress." Professor Freeman said. "I merely came to ensure that he arrived."

[Portia Bianca Rosalind Cutty]

"That's a relief," Headmistress Cutty replied. She was ignoring Shihab's antics, for the moment being, it seemed. She sounded quite sincere. "And thank you for bringing him, Professor Freeman. Is there anything else you need before you leave, professor?"

[Shihab]

Shihab wrestled, for one moment, with his act of acting innocent, and then for another moment with his other act of acting like he was acting innocent (or something), then shrugged and made a face, muttering, "I never get to have any fun," in Basque, just for... well, fun. He'll probably play with this language thing for a while, just testing limits. It might get crazy when he discovers fictional languages...

[Prof. Michael Freeman]

"No, that is all, thank you," Professor Freeman said, bowing slightly to gracefully exit the conversation.

Glowing letters appeared above Shihab's head, just far enough back to not appear in his peripheral vision. They said "If you like, I could provide discreet supervision", and would vanish moments after Cutty read them.

[Portia Bianca Rosalind Cutty]

"Very well, Professor Freeman; I shouldn't tie you up any further then if there's nothing else. I'm sure you have more important things to take care of," Cutty said, leaving an open answer. She opened the door further, to allow ample room for Shihab to maneuver past her.

"Mr. Shihab, if you would sit at one of the chairs in front of my desk, please."

[Shihab]

Shihab nodded, and sat, rather... normally. He did turn, though, to watch Professor Freeman leave, a slightly curious expression on his face.

"What about Lojban?" he called after the professor. "Maori?" Turning back to Cutty's desk, he shook his head a bit ruefully. "Being the mortal isn't as much fun."

[Portia Bianca Rosalind Cutty]

Cutty nodded farewell to Professor Freeman, and carefully shut the office door before she went over to her desk. "Now, Mr. Shihab, would you please tell me your plans for this bonfire of yours?" she asked, before she sat down. Her expression was rather neutral.

[Shihab]

Shihab leaned back a bit, thought for a moment, and nodded. "Alright, fair's fair," he said calmly. "I planned to dig a pit out in the beach-- a loan from a friend has spared me that effort, fortunately-- and carry as much dry wood out from the forest as I could; I'd hoped to get it hot enough to leave a bit of glass, maybe." He grinned a bit, and continued.

"So I figured we'd get some chicks interested in showing-- and that more dudes would show an interest, really... I'm not sure why it's been so quiet. Picking up some food in town, maybe some dishes for those of us who don't indulge in good old barbarian fun, and just get away from all the hallways and authorities for a night. Just food, fire, and fun. And hopefully friends."

He shrugged again, still leaning back a bit in his chair, somewhat nonchalantly. His expression, too, had remained neutral, except for the ever-present half-twinkle-- now that he'd lost any sort of audience, there wasn't much point in keeping up the act.

[Portia Bianca Rosalind Cutty]

Cutty smiled, for a moment. "Yes, that does sound fairly harmless and well intentioned, all considering," she began. "However, I would hope that you understand that a bonfire can be quite dangerous if not taken care of in a responsible manner."

"Beyond that, I would hope no alcohol will be involved. While I am personally willing to stand to the wayside and allow you all to have a night of enjoyment, I will not condone that. " She looked at Shihab mildly. "Each and every student here is my responsibility, and it would not look well upon the school or its staff if the local police come upon your bonfire and find anyone drinking."

[Shihab]

Shihab bit his lip for a moment, thinking. "Bonfires are dangerous like going to this school is dangerous, then," he said. "Because I don't know if you have realized this, being, as you are, in charge. But the people here, they are crazy. And powerful. And did I mention completely insane? Professor Freeman, there. He speaks Arabic in a dialect that I have only heard once, in a c-- historical context literally older than this country. And he's one of the sane ones. I think. There's a half-demon who seems to spend most of his time either terrorising those around him or trying to get back to the netherworlds. Your groundskeeper considers a localised blizzard an appropriate response to a lit match on a concrete enclosure. And the zealots! Don't even get me started on the zealots!"

He paused. "Where was I going with this? Ah, right. I don't think any student who's managed to survive a month in this-- pardon the expression, it seems to fit-- madhouse, will be in too much danger from an open flame less than a minute's run from the ocean."

"I did plan on keeping it a secret from the administration, mainly because it's an established fact that any festivity worth it's salt is one that involves freedom from The Man. But, if you insist, we'll nix the drinks. Wouldn't want to get the fuzz involved, anyway-- that'd bode pretty bad for all about." His brief moment of maturity passing quickly, the half-human began to careen back into normal (for him) speech patterns.

[Portia Bianca Rosalind Cutty]

Cutty smiled somewhat, once Shihab had finished his short monologue.

"Not quite. Choices and decisions are what makes a person dangerous or not. Each one builds upon another, between what occurs to them and what they choose themselves, as well as how it is framed. Opportunties and events where there is no guidance or anyone to step in to take control if anything goes wrong are dangerous. You are all young men and women," she said, her smile growing, "who have not yet reached your full potentials. Not many in the student body have the responsibility or understanding that they need in order to be fully functioning adults in the world, nor do they have the ability to control themselves properly. Impulse control seems to be beyond the average student- for the moment."

"Mr. Shihab," she continued softly, "Your bonfire has the potential to be dangerous. None of the professors or staff will be there, due to your instistence of having it be only students. You will be the one in charge, as the main organizer. You will be responsible. Will you be able to do what is needed, required if something goes awry due to the fire itself or the students that will gather there?"

[Shihab]

Shihab raised an eyebrow. "I'm not sure I agree, Headmistress. A chainsaw is just as dangerous when you're using it to chop down a tree as it is when you are, say, chasing down endangered pandas with it. Likewise, the fact that these-- we, I guess-- are mostly well-intentioned doesn't erase the fact that any of us could do a lot of damage. Making good choices most of the time doesn't erase the possibility of bad choices gone horribly wrong." He paused. "I've been spending entirely too much time in the library," he said, making a wry face.

"Anyway. The bonfire won't be dangerous in and of itself-- I do have a bit of talent where fire is concerned, and I'm confident in my ability to take care of that part of the equation."

After a moment, he nodded thoughtfully. "Yes. I'd planned on talking to Less, maybe Susan, and a few of the more balanced kids helping set up beforehand, make sure we had a plan if things turned pear-shaped. Does that sound alright?"

[Portia Bianca Rosalind Cutty]

"I suppose then that we shall just have to agree to disagree then," Cutty said, with no rancor in her voice. "And yes, it does. I will put my full confidence in your ability to take care of the fire itself as well as the event itself, then."

She intertwined her fingers gently and set them down on the desk as she looked at Shihab evenly. "Is there anything else you would like to speak of to me, before you leave?"