Word: Edutainment

edutainment

  American  

  [ej-oo-tayn-muhnt] / ˌɛdʒ ʊˈteɪn mənt /

noun

1. television programs, movies, books, etc., that are both educational and entertaining, especially those intended primarily for children in the elementary grades.

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                Greg had no idea what he was doing. Kids were running around and yelling. Some of them were poking at the bars of the class pet, a small and very panicked hamster. Others were doing their best to turn toys into weapons of some kind. And Greg had long since lost control of the class.

                Luckily Greg was only the substitute teacher. He could not imagine what the actual teacher went through on a daily basis. He could not think about that for now. He needed to get some kind of control over the class. Otherwise he would have failed in the one job he was here to do.

                He went around, trying to bring on some sense of order. He failed at every turn. The kids simply had no interest in listening to him. Most of them ignored everything he said, no matter how much he raised his voice. A few actively went against him. When he said to put away toys, they tossed more around. When he said to stop running around, they ran faster.

                Greg was about to give up any hope of getting the kids to calm down. At this point, he was starting to think that maybe just preventing any damage to property or child was as much as he was going to get. And then he saw it. Tucked away in a corner. His saving grace. The one thing that could get a classroom full of overly energetic children to sit still. A TV. Now he just needed to figure out how to capitalize.

                He could not just put on a random show and expect it to fly with the other faculty members. No, he had to choose the right one. Obviously, it had to be an educational show. An edutainment then. He did not know much about the shows currently on the air, just the ones from his childhood. Maybe one of those would be enough? Sure, some of them were a bit out of date, but they should be close enough.

                But which one to pick? There were so many. He looked around and sighed. He chose the first one he could think of that would immediately grab the attention of the kids. It was a cartoon, so would be of immediate interest for them. And it was educational enough that nobody would complain.

                Greg went and called the episodes onto his phone. Then he went and retrieved the TV. The kids saw what he was doing and the reaction was immediate. Every single kid went to see what he was going to play. Luckily for Greg, this was a newer TV, so he was able to get his phone to play the episodes. Had it been an older model he would have been sunk.

                He made a call for the kids to sit in their seats. And for once, they did so, young eyes glued to the TV that had not even been turned on yet. For a moment, Greg wondered what that meant for the future. But that was not his business. For now, he had their attention. And a trip on a certain school bus would ensure he kept it. For a little while, anyway. And that was good enough for him.

Word: Condign

condign

  American   

kuhn-dahyn] / kənˈdaɪn /

adjective

1. well-deserved; fitting; adequate.

   condign punishment.

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The was going wild. That was understandable. The fight had been quite the spectacle, after all. Especially because of the upset victory. Who would have expected the arena champion to lose to a woman? A champion losing was nothing new. It was practically expected that a champion would eventually fall to a new fighter. But to a woman? That was unheard of.

                The noble’s box had a much more subdued reaction. The people there were dead silent. To them, what they had just witnessed was a complete impossibility.

                “She must have cheated.” One of them said, breaking the silence.

                “Agreed.” Another replied. “I bet she seduced him into losing.

                Many others gave their own ideas as to how she won. All of them involved underhanded or sneaky tactics. Several of them even thought the now former champion had simply gone easy on her. Only one man stood silent amidst the chatter.

                “What about you, Marcus?” one of the nobles asked the silent man. “You can probably tell better than any of us. What tricks did the woman pull?”

                Marcus slowly looked around the room. Most of them had ignored the question, and were engrossed in their own wild speculations and conversations.

                “Her trick? Easy. It’s an old one called being better than her opponent.”

                “What?”

                “It’s simple. She was the more skilled fighter, so she won. It’s as simple as that.”

                “That’s impossible. There’s no way a woman can win in a martial contest.” The man scoffed. Marcus did not remember his name. Nor did he care to be reminded.

                “Why not?”

                “Why? It’s obvious. Men are easily twice as strong and capable as a woman.”

                “Even if that was true, which it isn’t, then the solution is simple. All she had to do was train twice as hard.”

                “But that’s—”

                “I guarantee you whatever you’re about to say has absolutely no merit. When you look at her, I imagine you see some delicate little thing playing with a sword. I see a warrior who has dedicated herself to the blade. If you look at her, really look at her, even you should be able to see it. See the scars along her arms? Wounds from fights she’s been through. And beyond that, I dare say she has more muscle than you, just trained to be compact and efficient. A warrior’s build if I ever saw one. She earned her victory through blood and sweat. I can’t even begin to imagine how long she spent training.”

                “Oh please. No woman would have the temperament to undergo that amount of training.”

                “I disagree. I’ve met many a woman who have more of a warrior’s spirit than any ten men.”

                “But that’s—”

                “Enough.” Marcus said, firmly cutting off the other man. “The fact is she used no tricks. No underhanded methods. She fought well and earned her victory through her skill and efforts. Nothing more, nothing less. Your misplaced beliefs in the capability of women won’t change that. Now, I have better places to be.”

                Without waiting for any further comments from the unpleasant man, Marcus left the noble’s box. He had a very interesting lady to meet. He was very eager to test the results of her efforts with his own blade. And maybe he would have a new retainer on hand, if things went well for both of them.

Word: Thaumaturgy

thaumaturgy

American  

 [thaw-muh-tur-jee] / ˈθɔ məˌtɜr dʒi /

noun

1. the working of wonders or miracles; magic.

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                Jessie knocked on the door. Her small hands barely made a sound against the old wood. She felt her eye twitch. She hated that her normal knocking was so unimpressive. She was not even sure the person inside had heard her. Maybe it was for the best, really. Considering the state of the hallway, could she really trust someone who would live in such run-down conditions?

                The hallway was covered with dust and cobwebs. The floor was splintered and cracked. The walls were peeling and dented. The lights were either broken or dim. The door she knocked on was in fair condition, but even that was faded and warped in places. She felt more like she was in a haunted house than an apartment building.

                Before Jessie could reconsider her course of action, the door opened. A ratty looking man stood in the doorway. His hair and beard were greasy and untamed. His clothes were torn and filthy. He was definitely unwashed, considering the dirt on his hands. And the smell. It made Jessie wince and recoil slightly. But there was something off about him.

                Something Jessie could not quite place. If she looked beyond the dirt and mess, she swore she could see something more. Something better than what her eyes told her.

                “I ain’t giving out candy, kid.” The man said.

                “I’m not looking for candy.” Jessie said. “I’m looking for something more specific.”

                The man slowly blinked, then let out a long sigh. “Look, I don’t know what you heard, but this ain’t a place for brats. Get lost and go find someone to give you chocolate or something.”

                “No.” Jessie said firmly. “I came here because I heard rumors that the guy here is a wizard or something. Normally, I wouldn’t believe them, but given my circumstances, I can’t afford to discount rumors like that.”

                “Fancy words for a kid.” The man muttered. “The rumors weren’t right. I ain’t a wizard.”

                Jessie sighed. “Yeah. Yeah, that’s what I thought.”

                “I’m a thaumaturge. Seriously, a wizard. Folks could at least get it right.” He said with a huff.

                Jessie paused. “What?”

                “Thaumaturge. Not a wizard. There’s a difference.”

                “Uh…”

                “Look, kid, there’s a bunch of different kinds of magic, but they all fall into two big categories. Divine and Arcane. I won’t go into the details, since you won’t get any of it. But us thaumaturges? We thread the needle between the two. Not quite one or the other but has parts of both.”

                “So…can you help me?” Jessie asked, not sure what he was talking about.

                “No. Sorry, kid, but like I said, I ain’t giving you candy.”

                “I don’t want candy. I need magic.”

                The man groaned. “Fine, kid. Tell me what the problem is.”

                “The fact that you said kid is the problem.”

                He leaned against the door frame and crossed his arms. He did not seem impressed.

                “Look, how old do you think I am?” She asked.

                “Seven or eight.”

                “I’m 29.”

                He looked at her and blinked. “Ah. What was it? Curse? Poorly worded wish? Something with the fae, maybe?”

                Jessie rolled up her sleeve, showing him the odd mark that had appeared on her upper arm right before she de-aged. The man looked at it critically.

                “Well, shit. That’s gonna be rough to deal with. You’d better come inside.”

                “Is it that bad? Can you get rid of this thing?”

                “Oh yeah, it’s bad. I can get rid of it, but it’s gonna take a lot of doing. So the sooner I get started the sooner I finish. Now get in here.”

                Jessie hesitated only slightly as the man entered his apartment. She just hoped this visit would be worth it.