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[cardinalrule]

I'm doing something more important than staring at my phone. Leave a message.

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[fiddlestick]

Thank goodness.

[Zodiac isn't screwing the isekais over completely!! That's good!!]

[cardinalrule]

Humans are really alright with teachers living in those kinds of conditions? Maybe you should work for Zodiac instead.

[fiddlestick]

Haha, to be fair I think my colleagues live in nicer places. I'm still finishing college so a lot of my money is going to tuition fees. But that'll be over with soon!

[And then maybe he can dream big and get a place with a whole separate room!]

Besides if I went to work for Zodiac, I couldn't be your teacher anymore.

[cardinalrule]

[.... Oh.]

I suppose that's a good point.

[He likes having Elliot as a teacher.]

Still, this seems ridiculous to me. The Emperor's Coven provides room and board to all of its members.

[fiddlestick]

Yeah, there's jobs in the human realm that do that too.

[Elliot sure heard at great length all the things the military would cover, thanks dad]

It'd be nice if teachers got paid more, but don't worry about me. I'm living the life that I choose for myself. And if the price of that is living in a crappy apartment for a couple years, that's not so bad!

[cardinalrule]

[He'd like to ask why Elliot didn't get one of those jobs, but then again, it would mean he wouldn't be his teacher. And even though he doesn't have a particularly strong feelings towards music, he likes having Elliot as his teacher.

He's ruminating on all of this for a few moments.]

Why did you become a teacher?

[fiddlestick]

[A pause, as he considers what to say. Ultimately, he goes with the truth]

My mom was a piano teacher. A really great one. I guess I wanted to follow in her footsteps.

[cardinalrule]

Oh. That makes sense.

[Of course someone would want to follow in a parent's footsteps.]

I you must have respected her a lot.

[fiddlestick]

Yeah, I did. She was the one who started my love of music. And she was very strong minded as well.

I bet she would've liked you a lot.

[cardinalrule]

Really? Why do you think that?

[fiddlestick]

She always liked people with a strong work ethic. It's why she married my dad even though they came from very different circles.

Which your work ethic could give most people a run for their money.

[cardinalrule]

I don't think it's that remarkable. I've always worked this hard.

If that was your mother, what's your father like?

1/2

[fiddlestick]

Haha, are you kidding? You've only been in the human realm a few months, and you're already head-to-head grade wise with kids that've been here all their lives. That's an impressive feat! Keep it up and you might give the current top of the class a run for their money.

2/2

[fiddlestick]

[But ah...his dad....he's asking about his dad.

There's a long ass pause as Elliot has a war flashback (3:44-4:55ish). How...how to explain that to the kid]

My dad is an experience. Let's just say he puts his 200% into everything he does.

[cardinalrule]

Oh.

[He isn't used to getting compliments. He isn't really sure what to do here.]

I guess we'll see if I do.

[It's easier to focus on Elliot's father, even though he isn't sure what that means, either.]

That's... good?

[fiddlestick]

[This kid...honestly. Elliot sighs and shakes his head, not that Hunter can see that. It was clear this kid tried to so hard to get approval and praise. And here he is, getting some, and he doesn't know what to do with it. ]

If that's what you want, I'm sure you can.

[If that's what Hunter wants, he makes clear. It wasn't about Elliot's approval]

It's something, anyway. [So vague.] He and my sister live in another city, so I don't see them very often.

[cardinalrule]

[He's honestly just happy he's getting praise instead of scolded. Or ignored. Or hissed at. And this sounds like he'd keep on getting Elliot's approval he keeps on going, so....]

It is.

How far away are other cities? Do you ever miss them?

[fiddlestick]

[ Hunter it's almost impressive how badly you missed Elliot's point, truly.]

Far enough where I'd have to take an airplane if I didn't want to spend several days driving.

[He pauses at that second question, because that's a loaded question]

Sure, of course. My sister and I were pretty close when we were kids. I miss spending time with her.

[............no comment on his dad]

[cardinalrule]

[Oh, right. Airplanes. Hunter knows what those are now, he's read about them in books. Like airships, but much bigger and much faster.]

That's incredibly far.

[He's never been that far from Belos before -

Well. Except for right now.]

What about your father?

[fiddlestick]

[He just had to ask about his dad. Elliot's glad this is over text, because he sure lets out a unhappy cat-sounding "mrrrrrr" to himself.

Still, he had to be honest. ]

I miss him, sure. I love my dad and I know he loves me. But we're both better off with some distance between us.

[In other words, his dad was the reason he was so far from home.]

[cardinalrule]

[Sorry Elliot, he's intensely curious about mothers and fathers since he didn't grow up with any.]

Why? That seems contradictory.

[fiddlestick]

It does, doesn't it?

[You're okay Hunter, he's just not used to talking about his dad outside of therapy. Much less to one of his students. So there's another pause, as he thinks how to phrase it]

We love each other because we're family, but my Dad doesn't respect who I am. He wants me to be a soldier like him, so he kept trying to do things to push me towards that. He made me go to military school, and then during the summer I'd have to go to youth army camps. Whenever I told him I wanted to be a musician like my mom ... he'd just tell me I was being absurd. That what I did would never amount to more than a hobby.

I tried to do thing his way, and I tried to find compromises - but it never worked. I wasn't good at any of that soldier stuff, and I hated doing it. So I was unhappy, and he was unhappy that I couldn't live up to what he wanted.

Eventually, I realized it'd be better for both of us if we were far apart, so I moved out here. At least now it's harder for us to disappoint each other.

[cardinalrule]

[Elliot, this only raises more questions!!! Hunter tries to connect all the dots here, but he stops short of being able to understand Elliot's stubbornness about not doing what his father wanted.]

He must have given you a lot of freedom if he ultimately let you do what you wanted, instead of expecting you to follow the future he laid out for you.

[fiddlestick]

[It's ok Hunter he knows you're working with limited understanding here.]

Haha, well to be fair, a parent's control over their kid becomes pretty limited legally once they turn 18 here. There's not much he could've done if he wanted to stop me, not without breaking some laws. And I've never seen my dad break a law in my life, not even jaywalking.

Plus knowing my dad, he sees this as some kind of "test". See if his son can actually "be a man" and prove him wrong, or whatever.

[cardinalrule]

Oh. Those laws help you, then.

[He suppose that tracks, and if Elliot's father isn't the one making the laws, then he'd be subjected to them like everyone else. Perfectly rational.]

I know what that's like. The tests, not "being a man" specifically, that sounds specific to humans.