Closed Divining Questions

[Elliot Briar]

Elliot had still been mulling over his options for his runes assignment when he passed the History of Magic classroom, pausing thoughtfully. There were few professors in the school that were less imposing than Professor Ward, especially since Elliot knew both the professor's daughter and cousin pretty well. It'd also be slightly less awkward to do a reading for Professor Ward, considering Elliot wouldn't have class with him until next semester. If he did a bad reading, that gave him a few months to recover, he figured tentatively, stepping forward to knock on Professor Ward's office door.

"Excuse me, Professor, do you have a minute?" Elliot asked, poking his head inside the door and trying not to get distracted by the scatter of papers and books around Professor Ward's office. "I have an assignment from Professor Josephs and was hoping maybe I could do a quick rune reading for you? Maybe you have a question or something for next year?" Elliot asked hopefully, trailing off hopefully. It'd been a lot easier to ask Lily, but at least Elliot could feel secure that Professor Ward wouldn't yell or tell him off for wasting his time.

 

[Professor Matt Alcott-Ward]

Matt was sitting at his desk, grading the latest homework assignment the sixth years had turned in, when he heard a knock on his door. "Come in!" He called, recognizing the voice right before the head boy poked his head in. Matt gave him a smile, waving him inside. He nodded as Elliot spoke about the assignment, remembering vaguely that Kahurangi always assigned her students to do readings with a bunch of people. "Let me think," he said, his mind going to his family first. He had noticed October had been sad lately, and he guessed he could ask a question about that. Though he wondered if he could do it in a way that protected her privacy. "I know someone who is going through a rough time with their relationship. Could I ask if that will work out soon?"

 

[Elliot Briar]

Elliot was glad Professor Ward didn't seem too busy, trying to find a good spot to make himself comfortable that wouldn't result in him knocking anything over. He didn't consider himself a neat freak, but just being in the professor's office made him feel anxious with all the bits and pieces scattered around. He wondered how Professor Ward found anything.

He nodded when Professor Ward posited his question, grabbing his rune bag and mulling the question over. "I don't think it'd be a problem, though the result might be more geared towards what you could do about the issue than what your um. Friend. Should do," he said, deciding to do a Thor's Cross reading for the professor and drawing the runes. Elliot had to wonder if maybe Professor Ward was talking about Clifton, or maybe even April, but dismissed the idea. Professor Ward probably knew a lot of people Elliot didn't.

"Okay, so the first rune we have is Algiz, which represents the general influences on the problem your friend is facing. It suggests a new positive influence has entered their life, possibly something new that's affected their relationship perhaps? Next, Inguz is representing the obstacles they're facing. It means there's loose ends they need to resolve before they can grow and prosper. So perhaps if there's any issues they've been avoiding, that's what's causing the problem..." It was hard to do a reading for someone he didn't know, about an issue he didn't have a lot of insight in, but Elliot hoped he was at least saying something close to the issue. "They have Wunjo as a favourable influence on the circumstance though, which is a great rune. It implies there's a lot of love and good fortune around them. So if they can focus on that, they should have a solid chance of weathering whatever's troubling them. Next is hm.. Eihwaz. That could mean-" Elliot took a moment to scratch his cheek, trying to figure it out, "- I think it's saying they need to have trust in their own convictions and strength to get through their relationship troubles. But it's also the death rune so um. It might be saying it's time to let the relationship die..." Elliot gave Professor Ward a sheepish look, quickly looking at the last rune. "This last rune represents the lasting effects of these troubles. It seems regardless of how the relationship ends, they'll learn to be more in tune with their own emotional needs, especially if they can rely on the happiness and love of those around them... I hope that helps professor, I know it's not a straight yes or no," Elliot finished up, clearing his throat. He hoped he hadn't just foretold Professor Ward's friends getting divorced or something, but he felt it hadn't been all that bad. "Any uh, any questions? Otherwise I really appreciate your time, Professor."

 

[Professor Matt Alcott-Ward]

Matt didn't have much time to wonder if it was the right thing to do, ask indirectly about his daughter's romance problems like this. The head boy got started, and Matt watched, interested in the process. He recognized the Thor's Cross the boy used, even if he didn't know a ton about Ancient Runes. He had picked up a bit from Kahurangi over the years. He listened as Elliot explained his reading, interested in how he interpreted the runes. He tried to apply it to October, finding the reading to be oddly fitting for the situation. He sort of wished October could actually hear this, he knew he couldn't really tell her about this reading easily. Not only would he forget the exact runes Elliot had used, but October wouldn't put much stock in it regardless. He just hoped that Elliot wasn't right about it being the end of the relationship. He hadn't seen October this happy in a long time. But he could definitely pick a few things from this reading he could use as advice for his daughter. "I don't really have any questions, Elliot. You were very clear." He said, giving him a slight smile. "Thank you. I'll tell Professor Josephs how well you did this."