Feathers and Glue [Midori]

[Devon Wentsworth]

Devon had at least been possessed with the common sense to make sure he had covered the floor with an old bed sheet before he had started painting the owl totem figurine that currently stood in the middle of the art studio. The first semester of the new school year would be focussing on sculptural symbolism and he figured that the history and art of totem poles would be a good starting point. Something that would hopefully be familiar to the students but still interesting and promoting variety. Of course, having some examples in the room to show to the students wouldn't hurt and would hopefully give them some inspiration when they came to designing and creating their own pieces.

Plus, it was killing what otherwise promised to be a very boring afternoon.

Sitting cross-legged on the floor, Devon held one paintbrush between his teeth as another was being used to add feathering around the owl's beak. He was using earthen tones for the most part, accented with touches of orange and red to add some interest and shading to the wooden bird. It had been a while since he had just switched off and worked on a piece like this, and with the warm sun streaming through the window but a fan on the desk keeping the air pleasant, he was very much in his element. Covered in paint yes, but in his element.

Using his right thumb to scratch at an itch behind his ear, Devon succeeded only in managing to get an orange smudge there. Added to the crimson blot on his cheek from where the end of the brush held between his teeth kept making contact with his face, one would be forgiven for wondering whether the art teacher was more interested in painting the wooden bird or painting himself. That was the state he was in when he heard hurried footfalls pattering down the hall, and he swivelled to face the door, surprised when he saw a young toddler grinning back at him. “Oh, hello!” Devon gave the youngster a surprised smile and a wave. “Who've you run away from, little fella?”

[Midori Hawkins]

Midori really didn’t have to be at work today. It was one of her odd weekdays off in lieu of having to do a weekend trip the past week. While it was nice to be home with Tory, it was also difficult to get paperwork done at home with him bouncing around underfoot. Though she’d tried to placate the toddler with one of his Thomas the Tank Engine DVDs, he’d quickly grown bored. Toys were also a no-go, and it had become clear that paperwork wasn’t happening. At least not at home.

Tory was a familiar fixture in the recruiting office. He often came with his mother on her days off when dropping paperwork off, and everyone liked seeing him. He was usually good if he stayed near her desk with markers or crayons and paper.

Problem was, she was pretty sure his art supplies had been exhausted last time he was in the office.

So, off to the art room they’d gone. Tory was steady enough to be trusted to walk on his own, provided he stayed close. But with the excitement of the art room looming, he’d taken off at a dead run.

Two year olds were fast when they wanted to be.

“Tory!” She mentally groaned as she ran after him, semi stooped over in an attempt to catch him. Every time he slipped from her fingers, giggling as he turned the corner and dove into the art room. It only took him a moment to realize someone was there.

And that someone had paint. Plus a giant birdie, but paint.

“Hi!” Tory chirped, waving happily while taking in the wooden bird. Pointing, he grinned. “Birdie!” This was not an answer to his question, but clearly Tory didn’t care. He was fascinated.

The question was answered soon enough as Midori finally caught up with him. What she didn’t expect was the new art teacher to be sitting right there. She gave him her best deer in the headlights expression before moving forward to scoop Tory up. She really hadn’t expected to run into anyone beyond her team, so this was... sort of awkward, really. She hadn’t even dressed for the office, being that she’d planned on staying home most of the day. Sigh.

“I’m sorry,” she blurted out now that Tory was safely on her hip and not causing trouble. “He got away from me. Um. Do you think that we could borrow some markers and paper for a bit? This little monkey needs something to entertain himself with.”

Of course, Tory took that as his cue to reach for the art teacher and grin. “Birdie! Paint! Please?” Midori gave him a look and took his hand, gently shaking her head.

“No, Tor. No painting today.” Because knowing him, he would turn what looked like a work of art into... well... a mess.

[Devon Wentsworth]

Devon didn't really have a whole world of experience with very young kids. He'd been the youngest himself in his family, and though he had younger cousins and such getting moved over to Switzerland as a young teen had meant he hadn't really been around them growing up. By the time he had got back to England they were all growing up themselves, and then he was off to university and hadn't really seen them anyway.

However, that didn't blunt his curiosity or enthusiasm at the young sir that had appeared in the art studio, and he grinned brightly when his wave was returned. Having not spent much time at all around the recruiters Devon had never seen Tory before, and he was genuinely surprised to see one so young running around Hammel. This was a huge building filled with people who could, if they wanted, easily do a lot of harm to one so small. He wasn't sure where it came from, but suddenly Devon had an urge to look after this little one until it's rightful owner appeared.

Smiling at the tiny newcomer, Devon nodded enthusiastically. “Yes, it's an owl. A very big birdie.” Then the child's protective mother-bear arrived, and Devon gave her a polite smile as she scooped up her wayward cub. Compared to the paint-clad band-shirt-wearing art teacher she was dressed up for a night out, and Devon spun around where he was sat on the floor so he could face them properly. With his clothing and painted... everything, he probably looked more like a student than half the students did. Putting down both paintbrushes, he reached up and brushed his hair away from his forehead. Which of course did little more than transfer paint flakes into his dark spikes.

“Oh, please don't apologise! He's causing no harm at all. You're welcome to whatever you need, it's all in the cupboards at the back.” Devon unfolded his lanky legs and stood, balancing himself on a desk for a moment while he waited for the pins and needles in his foot to calm down. He wasn't exactly well suited to sitting on the ground any more. “I've done a bit of rearranging, I'll show you where everything is now.”

Devon couldn't keep the smile off his lips as the toddler reached out and wanted to paint. He gave a small tilt of his head, speaking to the mother. “Got a future Salvador Dali, hey?” As fun as he thought it might have been to paint with the youngster, Devon wasn't going to go against what the mother had said. He had better manners than that... and he fancied keeping his head on top of his shoulders. He then spoke to the toddler. “Your mum says no painting today, you don't want to get your nice clothes all mucky. If you'd like I can draw a picture of a birdie for you to colour in?”

[Midori Hawkins]

Midori had been the baby in her family as well, though she’d always loved kids. She’d just figured she’d be, well... on the traditional family path before having one herself. Married, house, pets. Security. Instead, she’d gotten the house part right. The rest was a mess, but Tory was the greatest thing that had ever come into her life. Regardless of how he had happened, he had happened.

Speaking of, Tory had never been shy. Not like his less than outgoing mother. He had no issues running to strangers and offering hugs and adorable toddler greetings. Apparently, the art teacher on the floor would be no different. (Stranger Danger talks really needed to be expedited, apparently.) At least Hammel was a safe enough place, if you discounted any of the troublesome students.

“Owl,” Tory repeated gleefully before he was scooped into safety. New words were always finding a way into his vocabulary, and now he knew what giant wooden birdies were. Owl. While this might have pleased Midori, she was still flustered from his escape, not to mention his run in with a teacher.

“No, no, he shouldn’t be running around. He knows better, don’t you Tor?” Tory just giggled and continued to reach out for the owl in the centre of the room. “... Well, he does. And that would be fantastic, if you don’t mind. I know all the teachers have their own ways to set things up.” At least Tory hadn’t been that far ahead. He knew where the last teacher had kept things, and he might have helped himself to something pointy rather than paper.

The recruiter shifted as Tory continued to reach for the owl. “Apparently,” she said with a shy smile. “Though if his uncle has anything to say about it, he’s a future Shakespeare.” At least she’d finally gotten Eli off of the idea that they made good bedtime stories. As Tory was spoken to, his eyes went wide and sad, at least until coloring was mentioned. “Colors!”

Midori just gave him a look that was a cross between exasperation with Tory and genuine amazement. “You don’t have to do that for him, really. And I only said no because I don’t want him to wreck what you’re doing over there. It’s incredible.” Even from afar she could see that.

And then manners clued in slightly. She smiled at him as he headed off the cupboards. “I’m Midori, by the way. One of the recruiters. And this is Tory.” The toddler waved again, grinning. He liked Devon.

[Devon Wentsworth]

Kids and family life had never really been much of a consideration for Devon. Sure there had been a time with Katie when the notion had briefly occurred to him, but their relationship had been anything but smooth sailing and by the time he had ended it (much as that decision had hurt), he had managed to convince himself that relationships just weren't for him. He was too impulsive and impatient, refusing to grow up and accept that maybe, just maybe, it was time to stop with the mischief and start to take life seriously. He struggled committing to one hair style for more than a week, he would never have had a chance in hell at handling a family.

However, this allowed him to have all the respect in the world for those that were able to juggle a family, a career and a social life.

Smiling brightly as the young boy copied the word 'owl', Devon nodded enthusiastically. “That's right! They can be very big birdies, and they eat mice for dinner.” The art teacher gave a quiet laugh and a dismissive wave of his hand as the mummy bear spoke. “I'm sure he does know better, but little boys rarely listen to mum when there's adventure to be had!” He spoke from genuine experience; much to Lorraine Wentsworth's dismay, 'don't do that' was usually taken to mean 'wait until I'm looking the other way'.

It had taken him a long while to rearrange the art studio but it all made more sense now. The equipment they would need most often was easily grabbable, and the pointy and more toxic items were safely locked away out of harms reach. “I keep the room locked when I'm not in it now, there was far too much stuff growing legs and walking off, but you're welcome to come in and grab whatever you need when you need it. The receptionist has a spare key. If you could just leave a quick note so I know what's gone where I'd really appreciate it.”

Smiling as the woman explained about his uncle wanting the boy to be the next Shakespeare, Devon nodded his head. “Ahhh, a polymath in training, I am impressed! He'll be the envy of everyone.” The art teacher's smile only brightened as the lady dismissed his offer to draw a bird for the boy to colour in. “I don't mind, really. I'm in no rush with this at all” he said, indicating to the wooden bird. His smile brightened at her compliment. “Oh, thank you so much! I like to think it's coming on okay, considering I've not done one of these before.”

Grinning back and waving once more to Tory, Devon introduced himself. “I'm Devon, the new-ish art teacher. It's good to meet you both.” After reaching the main supply cupboard Devon reached inside and pulled out a new A4 sketch pad and a box of non-toxic coloured markers. Devon's tone was light and friendly, and he handed the markers and sketch pad over to the boy for him to hold. “You know, if you don't mind him painting I really don't mind him helping me out for a bit, if you'd like? No offence meant, but you seem like you could use a bit of a breather.”

[Midori Hawkins]

Midori had always been surrounded by family. She and her brothers were close with one another, even if her middle brother was a general pain in the butt at the best of times. She’d always known she’d wanted a family, and had liked nothing more as a child than roping her brothers into playing house, and babysitting as she got older. Maybe things hadn’t quite gone according to plan, but she had Tory, and she had her best friend around when she needed him for help. Things were fairly good.

Tory was fascinated by the wooden bird. He knew better than to just run up and touch it, of course, but his little fingers flexed by his sides in restrained desire to do just that. Birdies and paints would be fantastic to play with, but he knew he needed levels of permission to do most things. Maybe he’d be lucky and his mother would let him touch it. Devon’s description of it made his eyes wide. He’d never thought of mice for dinner. “Mousies,” he simply said with a head tilt, eyes still on the wooden creation, even when he was scooped into Midori’s arms. “He thinks the school is one big adventure,” she admitted with a little smile. “But I promise he does have some semblance of manners. When he wants to.” It was hard to keep things like manners straight when you were two and a half.

“Oh, we normally have our own art supplies. I promise we don’t make a habit of this. He’s just worn all of his markers out.” She already had a mental note to pick him up some more for the office. “But if we need them, we’ll leave a note.” It was bad enough when things were misplaced in the recruitment bullpen. She couldn’t image trying to keep track of things in the art room with mischievous students all around.

“He’s always the envy of everyone.” She grinned as she bounced him slightly on her hip. Mother’s pride. It was hard to ignore. “Well... if you honestly don’t mind. I don’t want to take away from your work up time, especially if you’re doing a project.” Tory had seemed excited about the coloring idea, and she was all for keeping him happy. “I think it’s going to turn out great. Is this something you’ll have the kids do, or just your own special project?” She’d always liked art class when she was a student, and they’d never done anything fun like that.

As soon as Tory was handed the items he hugged them tight, beaming at Devon. “Tank you!” He would have waved again if his hands weren’t occupied, so he settled for a grin. Midori was more surprised by the offer. “I was actually on my way to finish up and file some paperwork,” she admitted, a slightly sheepish look creeping up on her face. “He’ll probably make a mess of your poor owl.” Toddlers and painting rarely went well together. An idea did come forward, though. “If you’re honestly okay with him helping, and you don’t mind the company, I could do the paperwork here...” Was that inviting herself? It sounded like it was. “I’ll make it up to you?” How, she wasn’t sure. She could figure something out, though.

[Devon Wentsworth]

The young lad's strong interest in the wooden owl made Devon smile; it was so refreshing to see one so young being so keen about something. Sure he knew that at that age they could quite often develop infatuations about the smallest things, but it was normally flaky focus and caused them to become irritable if they couldn't get to it. He was impressed by how well the youngster was behaving considering how badly he seemed to want to get at the half-painted owl.

Devon smiled brightly, nodding as Midori spoke of how Tory viewed the school. “He's right, too. This place is one big adventure. You can never be sure what's coming next.” In a place like Hammel no one could ever be certain about what would be around the next corner. Mostly it was just another empty corridor, but there could just as easily be a wall of water, a hovering cake or a student made of stone or fire. Even after five years at Kocher Devon was still massively fascinated by all aspects of the weird and wonderful that the world possessed. He could only imagine just how magical it must seem to Tory.

The art teacher's smile was soft and unceasing, as it often was when he was relaxed in company. Devon had always been a very social creature and thrived in the company of others, a fact that often worked in his favour when meeting someone new for the first time. Warm and open tended to encourage warmth and openness. He gave another small dismissive wave of his hand. “Please feel free to grab what you need whenever; I know just how frustrating it is to have a favourite colour dry out mid-project.” He gave the pair a slightly cheeky smile. “I think I can trust you to not run away with everything.”

Midori's pride in her child was a pleasure to see, and Devon gave a nod of his head in agreement. “I'm sure he is. He seems like a real good kid.” Selecting the hand that was least covered in paint, Devon brushed his hair off his forehead. He still had to get it cut, it was starting to get ridiculous. “If all goes to plan, the kids will sculpt and paint their own mini totems for their end of term projects. This is just to hopefully give them some ideas and inspiration... And to keep me busy until classes start again.” He gave a breath of a laugh; he'd never coped very well with sitting around at home over the holidays. Or at any time, for that matter. “Should be more interesting for them than just copying pictures of sunflowers, don't you think?”

When Tory beamed at him and said his thanks Devon grinned right back, giving a little bow. “You're very welcome, little sir.” For all of Midori's quiet bashfulness Devon was bright and cheery, and he gave a shake of his head at her concern for the wooden owl. “I could probably work his additions into the design in some way, and even if not” he gave a small shrug “they're never supposed to be perfect anyway. It'll make it more authentic.” The smile only enlivened as Midori semi-invited herself to do her paperwork in the art studio. “You're more than welcome here, but please don't feel you need to make up for anything. Your company is as big a favour to me as distracting the little 'un for a bit would be to you.”

[Midori Hawkins]

Tory liked a lot of things at this point. While his favorite thing in the world had been dogs since he was very, very small, he had a keen interest in things like colors, cars, dinosaurs... his interests were so broad at this point that Midori honestly didn’t know what to expect from him as he grew up. A small part of her (the more selfish part) hoped that he was a little less like his father than he already looked. She’d always love him, no matter what, but having a mini-Darryl running around filled her with an odd sense of dread. At this point she did consider him slightly better behaved than him. That was a bonus.

“It was for me,” she said brightly. Being a shy shapeshifter in the middle of the Hammel Institute had been an interesting experience. For a long time, she hadn’t considered her power to be very special at all. Not when there were students making ice cubes out of desks, or were telepathic. In the grand scheme of things, shapeshifting, while fun (when it didn’t hurt), had seemed rather... useless. At least she’d met her best friend out of it. “He’s pretty used to metahumans already. I use my power for him all the time.” It was an interesting experience to see the world through, say, canine eyes, but getting to play with her son in a unique way was something she could never give up.

Midori was very much the opposite of Devon. She had always been shy and reserved, a stark contrast to her brothers, who were both social in different ways. Corbin had always been congenial and more likely to make friends through conversation and finding common interests. Zachary, on the other hand... was more likely to tackle a prospective friend and drag them off into mischief. Tory had aided in upping her social skills, though, as had her job. With her son more active now he was walking and running around, she often found herself meeting new people through him. It was a nice change, honestly. “All right, but if you find an easel and half the supplies gone one day, it probably wasn’t us.” Devon was actually quite easy to talk to, much to her surprise.

“He’s pretty amazing,” she replied with a little smile, brushing her fingers through his thick, dark hair. “Of course, I’m sure all moms say that.” Now if only he could stay this good. Tory just twisted around in her arms and beamed at her before hugging and snuggling. “I wish my art teacher had been as fun as you. It sounds like a great project.” She’d gotten away with doing a lot of horse sketches in class, but with the projects set out, there hadn’t been much flexibility. As such, she’d somewhat floundered in class and hadn’t done as well as she could have. “Definitely more interesting. I always hated those assignments. ‘Here’s a bowl of fruit. Draw it.’ If it had been ‘here’s a horse, draw it’, I’ve have done way better.” It was easier to get excited about a project when you had interest in what you were doing.

Devon really was a nice guy. Midori couldn’t think of many that would let a toddler put their sticky, messy hands on an art project. With that in mind, she cautiously set him on his feet and let him go. Tory ran to Devon and threw his little arms at him in a hug. Midori just shook her head and smiled. “Tory likes everyone,” she said in a gentle warning. “And hugs.” Still, if he was okay, she pulled out the folder of papers and set them at one of the tables. “Let me know if he gets to be a pain in the butt, okay? I can entertain him.” How much work she’d actually get done in the art room was up in the air, but this way they all had company, and Tory was entertained.

[Devon Wentsworth]

As they spoke and Midori seemed to brighten a little, Devon too relaxed and settled into his usual quiet but gently bubbling happy enthusiasm. That was one thing that he could always say he had in his favour; he was usually in a state of quiet happiness. Unlike a lot of people the only times Devon ever seemed to have any sadness within him or a chip on his shoulder was when there was a close cause for it; he seemed to tend not to dwell on memories of the past or worries of the future. Once the immediate concern was gone, so too was the burden of it on him. In many respects that was true; only those very close to him knew just quite how much grey dejection was buried under the brightly coloured holiday postcard that made up the art teacher.

“It still is for me, too. Been here just over a month and still learning more about the place every day.” Devon was still finding his feet at Hammel, and he could only imagine just how it must have been to be a student here. Possibly not much different to being a student at Kocher, but that had proven to be a massive learning curve for him. All the magical madness and wonder under one roof. Even to this day he found the concept of it utterly thrilling.

When Midori spoke of using her power for Tory, Devon gave a curious little head-tilt. “Please don't feel you have to answer this if you don't want to, but can I ask what your ability is? I don't think I've ever heard anyone using their power for their kids before.” His mind scurried, trying to work out what it could be. Summoning butterflies or something similar, maybe? Judging by Tory's obvious love of colours it could be something arty in some way. He gave a soft laugh. “Feel free to tell me to keep my nose out of it, if you'd like.”

Watching Midori and Tory interact was rather a joy to see, much to Devon's surprise, and he smiled easily and gave an amused shake of his head. “Not at all. I can't repeat the things my mum said about me. Not in front of Tory, anyway. My brother, on the other hand; she could talk for days about how wonderful and well behaved and quiet he was.” The smile didn't falter as Tory twisted and hugged his mum. “I'm sure he is great, though. He seems like a good kid.”

Smiling as Midori spoke of her own experiences at art, he gave a nod of his head. “Honestly? I still hate those assignments. There's only so much that can be learned from copying, it's far better to teach the students to use their own imaginations and develop their own techniques, I've always found. Keep it to the curriculum, but let them incorporate their own styles. I'm sorry you got stuck in the old school 'by the book' system.” It was the same system Devon had been caught in, but luckily he'd had enough passion in the subject to push through the staleness and boredom of endless flowers and portraits. Of course, it had helped that his teacher had been rather hot.

As Midori set Tory down, the art teacher beamed and laughed brightly as the little one ran at him for a hug. Devon knelt down quickly and embraced the boy in his lanky arms, cuddling him gently. “That's fine by me, hugs are awesome.” Devon had never had much of a personal space bubble and loved physical affection in all its forms, and hugs were amongst his most favourite things. Gently easing out of the hug and standing again, he spoke to Tory and indicated towards the rack where the aprons were hanging. “Come on, little man. Let's see if we can figure out a way to try to keep your nice clothes clean.”

[Midori Hawkins]

After the fiasco with Tory’s father, Midori was often cautious around men. Especially men that worked at the school. It wasn’t that she thought she was in for a repeat, or even that she was particularly looking to be involved with someone. It just seemed a good idea. She wouldn’t trade Tory for anything, but how he had come about? That, she might have changed, had she had a chance to do so. Still, it was hard to be leary around Devon. He was friendly, relaxed, and he wasn’t flirting. Of course, when she had Tory in tow it wasn’t often she was flirted with in general, but it was nice. She could relax and be herself, which at this point in time was a mother and recruiter trying to do two things at once.

She smiled up at Devon and nodded her agreement. “It was an amazing place to grow up,” she admitted. “And going out and recruiting kids here now makes it even more magic, I suppose.” She was their first point of contact for the school, and she tried to make it a good one. “Tory’s chances of not being meta are pretty low, so he’ll probably be here before too long.” At least he’d be used to the idea of it, and his parents would have no issue with sending him to the school.

“Hmm? Oh, of course.” Unlike some powers, shapeshifting was rarely a source of discomfort when it came to discussion. Well, unless you had Vincent Verax in your face demanding you turn into a badger for his entertainment. “I shapeshift,” she explained with a little smile. “Just small mammals, nothing exciting, but Tory loves it.” As did a few of her recruits, when they were nervous, or their parents needed convincing. She would just discuss the side effects of powers, and how they lessened with training. Though she still ached after a shift, it wasn’t the excruciating muscle and bone pain she’d had in the beginning.

On second thought, Devon was right. She had to laugh at what he said about his own mother. “All right, all right, not all of them. My mom could say nice things about my oldest brother and me, but our middle brother? He was a nightmare. Always off doing his own thing and not listening, and generally being a gigantic pain in everyone’s butt.” It was why she’d always loved playing more with Corbin than Zach. “Tory’s been pretty amazing so far. I’m hoping he stays that way.” If she had anything to do with it, he would.

Despite some rather less than choice assignments, art always had been a fun class for Midori. The projects she had liked had been a real outlet for her, and she’d ended up with a lot of projects she’d kept around for a while. “You’re a better teacher than I had, then,” she assured with a little grin. “If I had the time, I might have to redo art. It must be fun to test out the projects you’re going to give the kids.” Like now, with the totem. Hell, maybe she’d just do her work later and draw. No, it wasn’t exactly responsible, but it seemed like more fun.

Tory snuggled against Devon happily, clearly thrilled to be making a new friend. The toddler gave him a serious nod in the direction of the aprons, which made Midori smile as she perched at the table. “It honestly doesn’t matter if he gets paint on him. He’ll wash.” She didn’t mind dealing with the aftermath if Tory had fun.

[Devon Wentsworth]

Devon withheld his thoughts about the meta-schools and their recruitment of students. He had burnothing against the people themselves; the recruiter who had picked him up to take him to Kocher had been nothing but polite and understanding, but the process itself was something he still held a deep grudge about. Sure his life in England hadn't been great before he'd snapped and shredded that kids leg, but he'd had family and a couple of friends he'd been close to, and just like that everything he knew had been snatched away from under him. He, his brother and their mum had been whisked away to Switzerland with no choice in the matter, while they were all still in shock and disbelief over exactly what had happened. It was an ugly, cruel process and one he still had no love for.

Nodding as Midori spoke about the chances being high for Tory being meta, he gave a small smile. “At least he'll already know the place and the people, that'll make it a lot easier for him. It'd be the simplest recruitment on record. Who knows, maybe I'll get to teach him some day.” Devon gave a quiet laugh and a soft shrug of his shoulders. “Maybe I'll have a real clue what I'm doing by then.”

When Midori explained her power, Devon's smile turned into an enthusiastic beam. “Oh wow, really? Me too! There's everything exciting about small mammals. I can only do mustelids: weasels, otters, badgers and the like. But yeah, I can see why that'd appeal to Tory. Must be great, being able to play with him and interact like that. No wonder he's already so creative and adventurous.”

Devon gave a small shake of his head. “Sounds like I'd have got on well with your middle brother. It must be a thing, all the youngest boys being the difficult ones. Never anything harmful, not in my case anyway, just naughty and irritating as hell.” He smiled gently, a quiet laugh in his voice. “I'm sure Tory'll be just fine. It's any future baby brother of his that you'll have to keep an eye on.”

Listening carefully as Midori spoke of her liking of art, Devon's smile was genuine and bright. The gentle little ego-stroke helped, of course. He had never been particularly modest and had a quiet love of being praised. All part of that inability to grown up and accept his age. “If you do decide to re-do it I'd be happy to help you out. I don't have much experience teaching people other than high-schoolers but I'm sure I could work something out. Even if it's just an hour once a week or something, to get you loving it again.”

Devon was clearly equally thrilled to be making a new friend (and to be getting a hug, it was his first one in quite some time), and he led the way to the apron rack. He knew Midori said it didn't overly matter if the toddler got paint on him, but Devon wanted to at least try to show some sense of respect and standards, even if that was a little difficult considering he himself still had a rather multi-coloured face. Selecting the smallest apron he folded and tied it to make it as small as he could, carefully tying it around Tory's waist so at the very least his trousers were covered. “There ya are, all ready now!”

[Midori Hawkins]

For a long time, Midori had had a real love/hate feeling for the recruitment system. When she had been recruited as a teenager, she’d been scared, especially because she was the only meta human in her immediate family. However, in being at Hammel and going through the training process, she knew what it was to need training, and improve under the watch of the Hammel staff. Shapeshifter, while painful, at least didn’t tend to be dangerous. Pyrokinetics and the like absolutely needed to be at the school and trained. At least she tried to make the process as easy on both the student and the parents as possible. Sometimes it felt like being a mother herself really helped ease their fears about it.

“Yes, he seems to know just about all the staff now. Most of the recruiters love him.” Though she was biased, what wasn’t to love about the toddler? He was adorable, well behaved, and fun. “I’m sure he’d love for you to teach him. If he had his way, he’d be in classes right now.” She had to laugh and shake her head. “Not that he’d actually listen at this point. He’d be more likely to attack someone else’s hard work with a paintbrush. He’s a great helper.” At least, if you liked kids and didn’t mind them intruding on projects. She did her best to mind him and keep him from doing exactly that, but it seemed like Devon had other ideas.

Devon’s happy beam was met with an equally happy smile when she realized she was speaking to another shapeshifter. She hadn’t really known another well since... well, since Willow when she was still training. “That’s fantastic! Otters are so cute.” She glanced down at her son and nodded. “It’s really different, playing with him when I’m smaller than him. I’ve taught him to be very gentle, though, so there isn’t a big danger in it. We’ve tried different things, but he’s like me, I guess. We’re both partial to a dog form.” It had always been her comfort shift when she was still learning. Whether that was because it was her first shifted form, or just because she loved dogs, it was hard to tell. “What’s your favorite form to take?” It was a question that would probably be rather odd to anyone other than a shifter, but she was curious.

She rolled her eyes at the idea of Devon being anywhere near her troublesome sibling. “Zack is the biggest pain in the butt, even now. He’s got this insane idea that he’s still a college fratboy, even though he’s almost thirty.” Yes, that included drinking, messing around with his friends, and generally being immature. Hell, he didn’t even have a steady job, choosing to play instead. “He’s lucky he’s entertaining, when he’s not being a jerk, or trying to teach Tory awful things.” Like certain words she was working so hard to keep out of his vocabulary. No easy task when he liked coming to Hammel and was routinely exposed to the students. “Well, he’s staying an only child for the foreseeable future, so let’s hope he stays behaving.” There was no chance of him having a full brother or sister, no matter what.

Devon’s offer honestly surprised her. She knew how busy the teachers were during the school year. Even if they were on a bit of a break right now... a light dusting of pink settled on her cheeks as she shook her head. “Thank you, really, but I’m sure you have your hands full with the kids.” She could always practice art at home with Tory. Being taught now as an adult.... it would be a little weird. Even if Devon was a really nice guy. The easiest way to win points with her was to be good with her son, and Devon seemed to have that down no problem. His offer was just too nice, and she didn’t want to take up his time.

As Tory got organized, Midori began flipping through her file, making a little face at the paperwork inside. Now she’d been distracted, it was hard to get back into the business mindset. In the corner of one of her blank incident report sheets, she began doodling the smallest little flower, mostly because she was stalling. Even with Tory occupied, she knew she’d want to watch him. She positioned herself at the table so that she could keep an eye on him and at least make it look like she was working on her forms. If she didn’t get something done, it would just be taking advantage of Devon, and that wasn’t going to do. Tory, on the other hand, cooperated for the apron and beamed up at Devon when he was ready. “Painting now?” His dark eyes sparked with a pleading look. All he wanted was to get his hands on those colors and help paint the birdie.

[Devon Wentsworth]

It was pleasant listening to Midori speaking so openly and positively about her son. Most of the mothers he'd encountered in his time had speeches along the lines of 'oh he's so cute but he's a nightmare'. Mothers were always biased in favour of their offspring, but rarely were they so consistently full of praise. It made a refreshing change. He laughed softly. “Well, we all have to start somewhere. You gotta learn to be a good helper before you can be a good leader. We can't all be Van Gough right off the bat.”

It had been a long time since Devon himself had met another shifter, and his beaming smile was utterly genuine as they spoke about it. Devon was of course utterly biased, but he always thought that shapeshifting was by far one of the coolest Meta abilities. Being able to make ice or fire or whatever was all well and good, but to be able to completely change your physical shape into that of a completely different species? Now that was awesome. Even if he had drawn a rather short straw with his range, he still tended to get a little giddy about his ability. Sure a bird or lion would probably be more impressive, but a stoat can get places a lion never could, and otters drew more awwww's than a pigeon ever would.

Giving a soft laugh, Devon nodded. “Otters always have that effect on everyone. Especially the noises.” Not that he'd ever used that cute factor to his advantage to win the attention of a lady. Oh noooo, he'd never done that at all! “It's awesome that you've found a way to be able to play with him like that. I think I'd be too afraid of squashing them or gettin' my tail pulled or something.” The art teacher had to actually think about his answer to the question, as it wasn't really something he thought about all that much. “Ummm... ferret, I guess. It's the easiest and least painful, for some reason. Plus, still cute.” He laughed softly. “I kinda like Tayra form, too. There's something exhilarating about being able to run up and down trees that easily. Plus when I'm in that shape any cats I come across tend to leave me well enough alone.” Having been chased before several times, he knew all too well the value of a rather more intimidating appearance.

Listening as Midori spoke about her younger brother, Devon gave a soft breath of a laugh. “You and my brother should talk some time, sounds like you'd get on well. Though, thankfully, the fratboy thing wasn't my scene.” Even if fraternities and such did exist in Europe Devon highly doubted he'd have wanted any part in them. As hugely social as he was, Devon was someone who had spent a large amount of his school career on the receiving end of bullies abuse he had no love for those who were overly loud or obnoxious, nor those who got pleasure out of the teasing and torment and 'hazing' of others. Devon smiled and nodded. “Possibly for the best. With how adorable and well behaved Tory is, his brother would be an absolute nightmare.”

Devon gave a soft shrug of his shoulders and an easy smile when Midori dismissed his offer of help should she want it. “Okay, it's no worry. Feel free to gimme a yell if you ever change your mind, though.” Giving a quiet laugh, he added “it's not like I've got much else going on in my spare time.” That was, sadly, mostly true. It was still a few weeks before his basement was ready to be soundproofed, which meant no drum kit in the house yet, and there was only so much panting and tinkering even he could do in the day. Having a good friend as a neighbour was awesome but Devon didn't want to have to keep relying on Ferris for his socialisation and amusement, especially when they kept such very different time schedules. As a result it meant Devon was spending long periods of time alone, sat watching TV or browsing on the internet; things that didn't suit him well at all.

After tying the apron in place, Devon beamed a smile at Tory. “Yes, painting time now.” Leading the way back to the owl, Devon sat beside it and picked up one of the tubs of paint. After checking to make sure they were non-toxic (they were an American brand he was still a little unfamiliar with, and even though he doubted Tory would try to eat any of it, it was always better to be safe than sorry), Devon squeezed a few blobs of different colours out onto a small plastic palette for the toddler. Placing it on the floor between them, the art teacher passed a brush over to Tory. “There ya go! Lead the way!”

[Midori Hawkins]

Tory rarely seemed to act up. Sure, he was the typical baby and toddler and had a tantrum now and again, but overall she found him easy to deal with. He had been a quiet baby for the most part, and he was a good toddler so far. He listened most of the time, and now he was talking it was easier for her to figure out what he wanted before tantrums got out of hand. He was mellow, and she just hoped he stayed that way. She couldn’t handle the theatrics if he was anything like his father. “That’s very true,” she admitted with fond smile at her son. That was the neat thing about him. He was a ball of potential.

Once she had gotten over the extreme pain of her first shifts, and trying new forms, Midori had grown to love her power. It wasn’t overly useful at times, beyond tormenting her brother Zach with tiny teeth and faster legs than he could run with. It was nice sometimes to curl up on a windowsill as a cat and just sleep, soaking up the sun. It was a good way to de-stress at times, and Tory loved the different shapes and sizes his mother could turn into. In the early days she might have traded her power for anything more useful, but now? Never.

“Otters are pretty great,” she admitted. “I’ve never heard them make noise, though. Really, we’ve just seen them at the zoo.” Tory liked waving at them as they swam by, and had a habit of calling them kitties. Which was an improvement on calling all animals ‘Zero,’ after his pseudo-uncle’s dog at home. Kitty and otter were close enough in his mind. “He’s thankfully really gentle, but he’s also grown up with a dog at home. She’d never do anything if he did pull her tail, but he’s been taught from day one to be gentle.” His favorite form brought out a bright smile. She’d only seen ferrets in pet stores, and she’d never actually tried that kind of form, but they were so... joyful. Always running and hopping and being lovely. “Dogs are the least painful for me. I usually stick to dogs or cats size-wise. I’ve never actually attempted anything like an otter or a ferret.” Now she was wondering if she even could. It had been a long time since she’d tried something new. “I’d have to admit I have no idea what a tayra is, but if I ever come across one in cat form, I promise to leave it alone.” She’d been chased by one or two dogs in her time in feline form, and it was no fun, so she knew where he was coming from.

“Coming from an older brother’s standpoint, he’d probably get along with our oldest brother. I think he’s still of the opinion that Zach could do with a babysitter.” It was embarrassing that he still acted like a fratboy, even though he hadn’t been one for years. He’d dropped out of college, and just skated by with jobs that didn’t care, and luck. And his so called ‘charm.’ He’d take anything as a challenge, and drink just about anyone under the table that would take him on. She still didn’t get how he wasn’t the one with an unplanned child around. ... Or maybe he was, but he didn’t know it. Should wouldn’t put it past him. He really needed to stop acting like an idiot. “That’s not a bad thing. Fratboys are, well, morons.” Most of them, anyway. And mean. “Maybe it’s different for girls. I can always hope for a sister for him down the road.” Way, way down the road.

“Mn, I’ll keep that in mind.” Art lessons as an adult was... was it weird? She wasn’t sure. Well. Maybe she’d think about it. It could be a way to occupy time, especially if Tory was invited. Devon was nice enough, and it might be nice to get back into it without being forced to draw a ridiculous fruit bowl or something equally uninteresting.

Tory beamed as he trotted after Devon, mimicking the teacher by sitting beside him and staring up at the owl. Midori internally winced over the fact that he was probably going to ruin Devon’s hard work. Looking very serious, Tory took the brush and stared at the colors before selecting his favorite – blue. With a bright smile he looked the owl over, finding a space on the wings that was yet untouched by paint and began stroking it on. He got to play with paint in preschool and loved it, so this had absolutely made his day.

Midori went back to actually looking at her work, and got two of the forms done as the boys painted before she deemed them too much of a distraction to continue. The rest could be done at home, once Tory was in bed and the only distractions around were her best friend, his dog, and the television. The pages Tory had initially been given were still sitting on the table, and after a moment they were pulled towards her. All she had were his now abandoned markers and her pen, but that would work for now. While the boys dealt with the owl, she started a brief, rusty drawing of a horse. It wasn’t Van Gogh, nor was it in the leagues of stick figures. ... Okay, maybe she needed to take Devon up on those lessons after all.

[Devon Wentsworth]

Whilst Devon did sometimes wish his power had been different, or that he'd simply been able to shift into a wider range of animals, now that he'd had enough experience of life he knew he wouldn't change it for the world. He could be super-sneaky when needed, intimidating when needed and, let's face it, he had a rather huge advantage over most men when it came to attracting a lady. You can keep your muscles and sports cars. I'll just turn into an otter and they'll fight over who gets to carry me home in their handbag. His had not been a band in which the lead singer scored all the women. Granted he resorted to that less and less often nowadays, but it was always nice to know that potential was there.

Devon paid a high price for his ability but he figured that at the end of the day it still worked out in his favour. Joint pain and general weakness were a small price to pay for what he could do, and even in the worst of his aching bouts in winter he knew that there were some whose powers left them in a far worse state than his left him. In a way, he was very lucky. Though admittedly he did sometimes struggle to think that way in mid-winter when every step seemed to hurt.

“Maybe some day you'll get to hear what they sound like” Devon said with a soft laugh in his voice. It was remarkably pleasant to be able to talk to another shifter again after so long, knowing that he could be open and honest and not have the woman think he was insane. He gave a small nod of his head as Midori explained that Tori had been taught to be gentle. “That makes sense, and I guess it helps that he's used to real animals too. Ones so tolerant, anyway.” Devon fondly remembered the family dog the Wentsworth's had owned when he was a child, a big beefy mongrel that would roll the kids over and pin them down if they got too rough with their play. He had quickly learned to hold a great respect for animals, especially ones that could knock him over with one well-timed shove at his legs.

Head tilting slightly to the side, Devon gave a gentle smile. “Maybe you should try it sometime. Swimming as an otter is awesome, and you don't feel the cold as much.” Which was a huge benefit for him, and the reason he generally spent more time in his shifted form in winter than he did in the summer. Otters, wolverines and badgers were all far, far better adapted to the cold than humans were. He gave a quiet laugh as Midori admitted she didn't know what a tayra was. “It's fine, most people don't. Imagine what you'd get if you crossed a ferret with a cat. Boom, tayra. And thanks, I'd appreciate that.” Non-shifters sometimes found it hard to understand why being chased by real animals was sometimes such an issue. 'You can just change back' was much easier said than done when you were fleeing from an animal twice the size of you that fancied a snack.

Nodding quickly as Midori spoke, Devon had to agree with her. “Definitely your older brother, then. Cade, my bro, still tries to babysit me now. And I'm thirty and there's an ocean between us.” He was laughing and joking, but saying that out loud caused a sudden pang of homesickness that momentarily clouded the Brit's face. He missed his home and his family desperately, but Cade more so than anyone or anything else. For their whole lives they had been inseparable, and Devon was still struggling to get used to the fact that he couldn't just pop into his big brother's house for a cuppa or a movie and pizza night.

Folding long legs under him, Devon sat beside the owl and watched Tory select one of the most unusual colours possible for the owl. But that was fine, Devon had known this was hardly going to be realistic once he'd invited a toddler to help. At the end of the day art in any form was about expression, and there was no expression more honest and pure than that of someone as yet untarnished by the issues of adult life. Tory wasn't judging what he was doing, showed no sign of any self doubt or uncertainty, and it was very refreshing to see. Deciding it would be easiest (and more fun) to follow Tory's lead, the art teacher selected the purple paint and began highlighting the details on the feathers on the owl's back. “Hey, you're doing really well there.”

[OOC: Tayra!]