tvd / nysm } { the salvatore school for the young and gifted

[vampireboulevard]

Nestled just on the outskirts of the tiny town of Mystic Falls, Virginia is the Salvatore School for the Young and Gifted. As far as most of the town is concerned, the school is exactly how it's marketed - a boarding school for rich and gifted students - but a few are aware of it's real origins.

A school for young supernatural students, so that they can grow up somewhere where they didn't have to hide.

The headmaster is actually much older than she looks, having not aged a day since she was seventeen, but she's learned to dress herself up to fit the part. Her long hair is swept up into an elegant twist, her pant suit is perfect and polished, and her makeup is appropriately adult. Still, there's not a lot that can hide the youthfulness of her features no matter how hard she tries.

She's standing at the front of the school, watching as the car pulls up in front before flashing the man who arrives a bright smile and wave. Once he emerges from the car, she waves and makes her way closer to shake his hand.

"Mr. Rhodes. Welcome to the Salvatore School."

Comments

[onebehind]

"Okay, now you're just fu -- messing with me," Dylan decides, barely catching himself. Regardless, the declaration is accompanied by a frown, as he really thinks the kid's just pulling his chain, now. Vampires and werewolves and magic? Sure. Santa Claus as an actual living, breathing person? Yeah, right.

[vampireboulevard]

MG takes a deep breath, because man, breaking this to teachers is never the easy part. He reaches over, patting him on the shoulder lightly before he continues heading down the hall.

"If you're going to work here, man, you're going to have to widen your expectations."

[onebehind]

Dylan tenses a little at that touch, though for once, it's less because of what MG is or what he is, and more -- well, being told that Santa is real is a lot like being told God is real. Same omniscience, same phenomenal cosmic power, same penchant for miracles, even if Santa's a little more seasonal about his. That in mind, then, if Santa exists, then why the fuck didn't he bring him his father back, when he was a kid? He could have used a Christmas miracle, then. His mother could have. He was a good kid and his mother was a devoted wife, so where was Santa, if he really exists? It's a stupid thing to be upset about, maybe, but he's never gotten over the death of his father, not even with the coming of his revenge. So, if there was an jolly, old deus ex machina sitting around, who did nothing? It's probably easier if he just remains skeptical. It hurts less if he he just remains skeptical.

That in mind, on a breath out, he deflates that tiniest bit, and grumbles, "Yeah, I guess."

Better to keep playing the part of non-believing adult.

[vampireboulevard]

Well, the answer to that is that Santa was in Krampus' sack and then Krampus got swallowed by a magical tar pit that makes people forget the thing existed. And by the time the Legacies kids saved him ... your dad had been dead for a really long time.

Sorry, Dylan. Time was not on your side.

Also it's probably for the best there's a skeptic around. The kids probably need a reality check every once in a while.

"You'll get used to it once you get started. If you get started. Headmaster Forbes didn't mention if she'd sealed the deal, so to speak."

[onebehind]

"I think that's more on my end, than hers," he says, grateful to get away from the topic, whatever the reason that Santa didn't save his father. He thinks he did pretty well, on the interview, for what it was. "I kinda wanted to poke around a little more, before I committed to anything."

[vampireboulevard]

"Fair enough." MG nods. If he were about to commit to a new job, especially in a new and emerging business, he would want to make sure that he covered his bases too. "You want to make sure it's the right move for you."

[onebehind]

"Yep," Dylan agrees, nodding himself. A pause follows, and wryly all things considered (and Santa aside), he tells him, "I think I'm in, though."

He hasn't found anything too suspicious, after all, and the kids here seem like good ones, so why not?

[vampireboulevard]

And with that, MG beams, because it's always good when they get new teachers. "Nice. The wolves are gonna be so psyched."

They've never had a wolf teacher before. Ever.

[onebehind]

"So people keep telling me," he answers, something like amusement creeping onto his face. It doesn't last long, before, "She really have that hard a time getting one of us to take a look at this place?"

Never mind the fact that, again, he probably wouldn't have come out here, himself, if not for the Eye vetting the school beforehand.

[vampireboulevard]

"Wolves tend to be harder to find." Or, at least, that's what MG happens to have overheard. Or maybe it's just the excuse that Caroline gives the students to try and make the wolves feel better. "But it's also not like they have a lot of vamp teachers here either. It's mostly humans and witches."

Which isn't exactly well rounded in the teacher department.

[onebehind]

The distinction between humans and witches seems to suggest that there are a few non-supernatural people on the payroll, and Dylan can't say that doesn't come as a surprise. He knows a few humans that are involved in this shit, sure (like Fuller, for example, and thanks to him), but none of them would be here, teaching classes. Then again, though, he supposes they need people who can teach the standard subjects, too, and just because someone can teach you how not to be a monster, doesn't mean they can teach math class. He's not sure he could teach math class. History, maybe, but fuck whatever weird bullshit they're using to teach the order of operations, these days.

Anyway.

"Alright, fair," Dylan allows. "So we're a little cagey."

He might be able to find a few more wolves willing to come out here, though, if that's something Caroline would be interested in, once he signs on.

[vampireboulevard]

That's something Caroline would be very interested in, actually.

But MG nods. "No one would blame you. A lot of the old school vamps seemed intent to take wolves out for a while there. Which kind of leads into why we don't have vampire teachers. It's hard to ... vet their lifestyle. Especially when they start getting real old, you know?"

[onebehind]

Maybe he'll bring it up, later. For now, he just snorts in response to MG's commentary. "Yeah, it's kinda hard to vet someone when all of their character references are dead."

By virtue of the vampire having outlived them -- or having killed them. He doesn't clarify which way he means that.

[vampireboulevard]

"Exactly. Though Ms. Forbes is pretty cool. She's like ... the chillest vampire I've ever met."

And they are not exactly chill creatures. Usually the ones that pretend to be chill are actually rather scary and you don't want to be in their vicinity when they give up the ghost.

[onebehind]

"Actually chill," Dylan says, though if there's a note of question to that -- well, yeah. He's dealt with a few vampires that, while appearing calm on the surface, are anything but. None of those encounters ended well.

[vampireboulevard]

"Yeah. Like her level of vampire self-control is mythical." He's not going to say Caroline hasn't killed someone because that would be a lie, but she's no where close to dangerous ripper territory. "And she actually still cares about people. Probably because she's only in her thirties or something."

[onebehind]

"Jesus, she's a kid," Dylan breathes. He think, somewhere along the way, he was already made aware of that, but it still comes as a shock, regardless of whether it's again or not. It's a relief, either way.

"No offense," he adds, after a beat, for all that, as far as he's aware, MG is younger still.

[vampireboulevard]

He shakes his head. "None taken. I am well aware that I am a vampire infant. Which is good, because I wouldn't be allowed to go to this school if I wasn't."

[onebehind]

"Yeah, probably not," he agrees, something like amusement creeping onto his face.

It's short-lived, however, shifting back into something more serious on a breath of a sigh. He glances away, then, and when he returns his attentions to MG, he tells him, "Alright, I think I'm gonna go try and find here, again."

He thinks he's made his decision.

[vampireboulevard]

MG nods, before pointing back towards the main entrance. "Last I saw, she was in her office."

Which is where Dylan will find her, pouring over some paperwork while she tries to talk down a concerned parent.

[onebehind]

"I'll see you around, kid," Dylan promises before turning and heading in that direction.

When he reaches Caroline's office again, he catches her eye, wanting to make her aware of him without interrupting, and then steps back, to wait in the hall. The world, he knows, doesn't revolve around him and whether or not he's going to join the school. He can be patient. It's only fair, considering how patient Caroline has been with him.

[vampireboulevard]

Caroline notices and waves him in, because she's almost done, and even if she wasn't, someone stepping in would give her a reason to get off the phone with this particular challenge of a parent.

"Yes, I totally understand. I will be sure to talk with Ms. Tig. I'm sure that she was simply reading a little too much into some teenage angst. Okay. You have a lovely day. Okay. Bye bye."

She then takes a deep breath as she faces him. "Parents. Can't run a school with them, can't get through your day without one of them getting upset over nothing."

[onebehind]

"You get many mundane parents, calling in?" he asks, all at once curious how that works. He can't imagine many witches or werewolves have normal parents, for all that that sort of thing tends to run in bloodlines, but vampires on the other hand? Trying to helicopter parent a vampire kid probably gets a little -- something, and it didn't even occur to him that that might be a thing until just now.

[vampireboulevard]

"Some of them, yeah. Others are a little more hands off. But I don't think it matters whether you're supernatural or not - parents are still going to be parents."

They will still insist that nothing is wrong with their child and the teachers are plotting against them, as per usual. But she'll quickly put that topic aside before offering him a smile.

"So. What do you think?"

[onebehind]

"Yeah, alright," Dylan allows, flashing her a wry smile. Point taken.

When the look fades he rakes his tongue over his teeth, and seriously, tells her, "I think I'm in, though." And he thinks the kids sold him on the place more than the adults, though he won't tell her that.