Zoe's Office Hours - August 1

[bigdamnprincipal]

While Zoe was waiting for certain wayward students to arrive, she sat at her desk, attempting to compose a letter to Mal, to update him on how the summer sessions were going.

She had to admit, it was amazingly difficult to try to explain jello dragons in a way that didn't make it seem as though the school had driven her to further lengths of insanity.

[open like an open thing, except for the thread with Sam.]

Comments

[bigdamnprincipal]

"Really?" Zoe asked, managing to sound intrigued. "That sounds like a very unfortunate accident. In a 'wrong place at the wrong time' sort of way."

[saltandammo.livejournal.com]

"Oh absolutely," Dean agreed whole heartedly. "If you've seen the video of it, you'll know that Sammy was so upset about it, that he ran off. I wouldn't be surprised if he even tried to take the blame as if it's on purpose." He shurgged. "He's just that kind of guy."

[bigdamnprincipal]

"Well, I suppose that explains why Sam came in here and didn't really try to deny having done anything wrong. But that doesn't quite explain why he went on about how much he and Alec dislike each other. It almost sounded like he thought Alec deserved to get hit. Perhaps it wasn't as much of an accident as you think," Zoe said.

[saltandammo.livejournal.com]

Dean made a mental note to sit Sammy down and go over how not to sabotage your brother who's trying to save your ass. "Well, he had to come up with some reason for him to take the blame," he said, shaking his head in what he hoped looked like fond exasperation. "Kid's got a bit of a martyr thing going. Truth is, if you hadn't called him down, he probably would've shown up and 'confessed' anyway."

[bigdamnprincipal]

"Are you sure? I think if I hadn't called him down here, that just would have given you two time to make sure your stories matched. Which, by the way, is something you might want to look into in the future," Zoe said seriously. "You also might want to make sure that your story matches the video feed, such as including the fact that your brother was clearly arguing with Alec before he hit him. Or was that something else you think he would have just 'confessed' to?"

[saltandammo.livejournal.com]

"It was... uh... a very animated conversation," Dean said, faltering a little.

[bigdamnprincipal]

Zoe was doing her best not to smirk. "Dean, if you don't mind me asking, how close are you and Sam?"

[saltandammo.livejournal.com]

Dean blinked. "He's my brother."

[bigdamnprincipal]

"Yes, I'm aware of that. What I meant was, you must be fairly close if you're willing to come in here on your own to try to come to his defense, right? Because, while the effort is admirable, lying to my face is not the way to go about helping him."

[saltandammo.livejournal.com]

"Lying?" Dean did his best to look shocked. "Me? I can assure you Principal Washburn, that-"

[bigdamnprincipal]

"You'd better just stop right there," Zoe said, putting her hand up. "I don't know if your brother put you up to this or not, but either way, I'm sure he'll appreciate having you there with him in detention on Saturday."

[saltandammo.livejournal.com]

Dean stared at her. "Detention?" he said weakly.

[bigdamnprincipal]

Zoe nodded. "I enjoy a good story as much as the next person, but not when the storyteller's trying to fool me."

[saltandammo.livejournal.com]

Dean sputtered for a moment, trying to come up with a defense, but eventually just gave in with a sigh, knowing when he was beat.

"For the record, Sammy didn't put me up to anything -- he doesn't even know I'm here. And he doesn't deserve to be punished so much as he probably deserves a medal for not punching Alec earlier. Alec's been stepping over the line with him for months now. And I'm saying that as someone who likes Alec."

[bigdamnprincipal]

"Well, no matter how far Alec has stepped over the line, that still doesn't excuse hitting him. There are other ways to deal with a problem besides violence." Not that Zoe really knew what any of them were, but she knew that they existed. "If you like Alec, you might want to try convincing him to be a little less abrasive in the future. That could clear this whole issue up."

[saltandammo.livejournal.com]

Dean actually laughed. "Yeah, because that's worked really well so far. Alec? Not so big on the taking advice."

[bigdamnprincipal]

"Would it help if the advice came from someone other than a student?" If Zoe had been talking to another adult, there might have been an evil grin there.

[saltandammo.livejournal.com]

Dean privately didn't think it would, but he owed Alec something for all this crap coming down on Sammy and himself. "I don't know, but it might be worth a try," he said. "It's got to a really bad level if Sammy's actually throwing punches." He pasted on his most hopeful expression. "I don't suppose, m'am that you'd... talk to him?"

[bigdamnprincipal]

With all the trouble he seemed to be causing, it didn't make much sense to not agree to speak to Alec. "Yes, I think I will. Surely, some of the tension here can be fixed, and if it results in all of you getting into less trouble, then everyone wins."

[saltandammo.livejournal.com]

"I'm just trying to look out for my brother," Dean protested, trying to look as innocent as he could.

[bigdamnprincipal]

Zoe gave Dean an amused look. "Well, I suppose I can believe that, seeing as how that's what you've been trying to do since you walked in here. I'll be sure to talk to Alec."

[saltandammo.livejournal.com]

"Thank you," Dean said. He stood and headed for the door, pausing only where he reached it. "I don't suppose we can just forget the whole detention thing for me and Sammy, given the extenuating circumstances of extreme duress?"

[bigdamnprincipal]

"Nope," Zoe said simply. "But nice try."

[saltandammo.livejournal.com]

"Didn't think so." He grinned suddenly as he opened the door. "But you never know if you don't try."