Sept 5th - Mandatory Ethics

by **Jennifer Newgate** » Fri Oct 17, 2014 2:41 pm

Jennifer had not been happy when she'd learned that her special tutoring would be coming all the way from the top, so she's wearing the slightest hint of a frown on her otherwise kind of vacant expression when knocks on the door to the head-mistress' office.

by **Samantha McManus** » Fri Oct 17, 2014 5:28 pm

"Come in, Miss Newgate."

by **Jennifer Newgate** » Fri Oct 17, 2014 5:46 pm

"Hi. I was told to come here for some kinda brain thing?" she says as she steps into the room.

by **Samantha McManus** » Fri Oct 17, 2014 5:53 pm

As with her earlier encounter with the headmistress, Jennifer gets the vague impression of something else being in the room with them, perching atop the bookshelves.

"We've found that students with telepathic talents generally require more personal training than our usual power control classes can offer."

by **Jennifer Newgate** » Fri Oct 17, 2014 6:16 pm

Jennifer is listening, but she's staring at the shelves.

"Why does everyone I meet today have invisible things watching them?"

by **Samantha McManus** » Fri Oct 17, 2014 6:22 pm

"Ah, I suppose it would figure that you'd notice that."

"My mental presence extends out a bit from my physical body."

by **Jennifer Newgate** » Fri Oct 17, 2014 6:43 pm

"Like a tulpa?" she says, never one to turn down the opportunity to sound smart over something she just learned about a couple hours ago.

by **Samantha McManus** » Fri Oct 17, 2014 7:05 pm

"Insofar as a tulpa is a thoughtform, that's partly correct, but a tulpa would take on a life of its own. What you're sensing around you is just my mind."

by **Jennifer Newgate** » Fri Oct 17, 2014 7:08 pm

"Wow..." she breathes.

by **Samantha McManus** » Fri Oct 17, 2014 7:15 pm

"The way a telepathic mind expresses itself is highly individualistic, very personal. Some people are more contained. It's more an indication of who the person is, not how powerful they are."

by **Jennifer Newgate** » Fri Oct 17, 2014 7:20 pm

"Oh. Okay. Are those birds?" she asks, squinting at the shelf.

by **Samantha McManus** » Fri Oct 17, 2014 7:39 pm

She nods.

"Ravens. Unless I choose to hide my presence, they're everywhere in the Astral that my mind wanders."

by **Jennifer Newgate** » Fri Oct 17, 2014 7:49 pm

"That's awesome... I love ravens."

by **Samantha McManus** » Fri Oct 17, 2014 8:01 pm

"Comes with the territory, somewhat. The Astral is the collective subconscious of all sentient beings. Certain themes, things that are symbolic or mythic, tend to resonate."

by **Jennifer Newgate** » Fri Oct 17, 2014 8:07 pm

"Don't ravens stand for misfortune and stuff?"

by **Samantha McManus** » Fri Oct 17, 2014 8:11 pm

"They're harbingers of death, often present on battlefields, considered tricksters by some, and so forth."

"They've a great variety of myths about them."

by **Jennifer Newgate** » Fri Oct 17, 2014 8:17 pm

"Which one do you like best?"

by **Samantha McManus** » Fri Oct 17, 2014 8:22 pm

"As you might have guessed by my codename when I was on active duty, I've a bit of a personal tie to one myth in particular."

by **Jennifer Newgate** » Fri Oct 17, 2014 8:25 pm

Jennifer just looks at Sam, seeming super embarrassed all of a sudden.

"Was there something I should have read up on beforehand?"

by **Samantha McManus** » Fri Oct 17, 2014 8:30 pm

"No, no, it's alright. It was years ago. Sometimes gets brought up."

"Nothing you'd need to know, really. I've an affinity for the Morrigan."

by **Jennifer Newgate** » Fri Oct 17, 2014 8:32 pm

"Oh, okay." she says, making a mental note to look that name up later because no way is her teacher talking about a video-game character, right?

by **Samantha McManus** » Fri Oct 17, 2014 8:37 pm

"No, not that Morrigan."

by **Jennifer Newgate** » Fri Oct 17, 2014 8:38 pm

"Oh! Yeah, I figured..."

by **Samantha McManus** » Fri Oct 17, 2014 9:14 pm

"But that's just me. There's as many ways to play it as there are telepaths."

by **Jennifer Newgate** » Fri Oct 17, 2014 9:15 pm

"Do I have a presence like that and I just don't know it?"

by **Samantha McManus** » Fri Oct 17, 2014 9:24 pm

"It's likely undeveloped as of yet. I didn't have much of one when I was younger, but it tends to take shape once you do things like visualize an avatar."

by **Jennifer Newgate** » Fri Oct 17, 2014 9:34 pm

"Oh cool... Do I get to pick what it looks like?"

by **Samantha McManus** » Fri Oct 17, 2014 9:41 pm

"For the most part, aye. It's about shaping your strengths in a fashion that they form your defenses, and using them to shield your weaknesses."

by **Jennifer Newgate** » Fri Oct 17, 2014 9:43 pm

"Defenses? Against what?"

by **Samantha McManus** » Fri Oct 17, 2014 9:50 pm

"Other telepaths for one."

"But in a more immediate sense, it helps you establish boundaries. It's what helps you keep your thoughts straight from other people's."

by **Jennifer Newgate** » Fri Oct 17, 2014 9:52 pm

"Oh." she says, then after a short pause, "Oh! You mean like knowing when something's coming from somebody else?"

by **Samantha McManus** » Fri Oct 17, 2014 10:08 pm

"Aye. It all blends together sometimes, doesn't it?"

by **Jennifer Newgate** » Fri Oct 17, 2014 10:09 pm

"Sometimes, yeah. Sometimes it's fun and sometimes... well... not."

by **Samantha McManus** » Fri Oct 17, 2014 10:17 pm

"I used to have real problems with crowds. My shapeshifting and telepathy were too closely tied together."

by **Jennifer Newgate** » Fri Oct 17, 2014 11:00 pm

"Crowds are okay. But sometimes a person just kind of tunes in too much."

by **Samantha McManus** » Mon Oct 20, 2014 2:32 pm

"As in you tend to accidentally fixate?"

by **Jennifer Newgate** » Fri Oct 24, 2014 12:49 pm

"Yeah, I guess you could call it that... Just stuff from somebody else getting in my head. Like I'd suddenly want a peanut butter sandwich. I hate peanuts."

by **Samantha McManus** » Fri Oct 24, 2014 1:00 pm

"Strengthening your ability to differentiate yourself from others is something telepaths often have to work on."

"In many cases it's psychological. Understanding yourself, bolstering your self-image."

by **Jennifer Newgate** » Fri Oct 24, 2014 1:02 pm

"Like... what? Meditating on finding myself?" she says, clearly not too enamored with the idea.

by **Samantha McManus** » Fri Oct 24, 2014 1:07 pm

"I've never been much for meditation, and I find younger students don't care for it either."

"Rather, we'll start you with journal writing. At the end of each session you'll have a prompt. We'll start the next session by discussing what you wrote, and why."

"That's part of forming a strategy. Ultimately it will help inform the session we first practice manifesting an avatar."

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