Character: Autumn
• What is your favorite food in the Cafeteria?
Sliced apples with caramel sauce! It has to be like my favorite snack ever even outside of the cafeteria. Me, Sabrina, and Mom sometimes makes our own caramel at home.
• What is your favorite subject?
Uhhhh, Gym maybe? I don't really like a lot of the subjects at school. If we did more stuff like visit that farm we did on last spring's school trip I don't think it would be so boring. Sometimes in science class we talk about plants and familiars, but most of the time we're learning about boring stuff. I can't wait to be a junior and senior! Jess a friend from school said their brother was studying herbology! When the classes interest me they're a lot easier to pay attention too.
• What is your favorite extracurricular activity?
While I'm still too young to join the hobby farm club to help care for familiars as that's for juniors and older, I was able to sign up for the gardening club. It's a lot more fun to be working outside after being in a stuffy classroom all day even if it isn't my first choice of activity. Last month we went on a trip to the old folks home and partnered up with some of the people there to make planter boxes together. I made a penpal from the trip! See this letter it's from Synthia my partner who I was paired up with! She knows all kind of cool stuff, and likes hearing about how my day is going. Sometimes I draw her pictures to go along with the letters and in return sometimes she puts stickers and stamps on her letters back to me!
• What is your most embarrassing moment in school?
What! Why do we have to talk about that! What kind of question test thingy is this?
• What is your goal for the future?
I've been working with Mom to start a Kidden herd. Their fur is really soft, and their milk can be used to make all sorts of cool things like soap! I'm learning a lot on how to care for them. My goal is to work towards getting a larger herd to care for by selling their wool and the things we make from their milk. Mom says for now we can focus on this and if things go well she'll teach me about different familiars like Fluffbugs! Everyone knows they make honey, but they also make wax which can be used with the Kidden milk to make all sorts of things. I wonder what other sorts of things other familiars can make.
• What do you like to do after school?
Well if I'm not doing activities with the gardening club, then I'm back home taking care of my kiddens, doing chores, or playing with Sabrina. Sabrina's always been too scared to try different things, so I try to get her involved with whatever I'm doing. Usually that's outside with my kiddens, but don't get me wrong they're the best sibling anyone could ask for. It's just they need me around to make them feel safe. I don't mind though that's what siblings do.
• How do you study?
Studying is so boring! I can't sit still at the table long enough to do so. I can't believe Sabrina willingly reads books when she doesn't have to. I don't know why you can't just learn things by doing them. This is why I don't mind going to the gardening club. Yeah there's some boring textbook stuff that goes along with it, but the teacher there tells you it as you're working with the plants. It makes so much more sense that way.
• What kind of people do you hang out with?
Mostly my sister Sabrina and Mom. Yeah sometimes I play with the other kids at the academy, but most of them are just . . . the woooorst. It's too wet outside, it's too cold, you play too rough. Okay I get the last one, but all it is with them is complaining. It completely spoils any chance of having fun. Sabrina doesn't like doing all things I do, but at least she tries to be a little adventurous with me. Find me someone who likes being outside, doesn't mind getting a little muddy while we play, and can take a scrape or too without running home and that's a kind of friend you hold onto forever!
• What subject do you dislike the most?
History, math, science, silent reading period! Ugh, math and science isn't so bad when you use it to learn things you'll use in real life, but I don't care about what year some long ago dead guy held off a siege at fort whocares in the mountains somewhere.
• What is your fondest memory of school?
It was Sabrina's first day of school! See Sabrina didn't always live with me and Mom, just like I always hadn't lived with Mom either. Well Sabrina moved in during the summer and went with me back to school during the fall last year. She was so shy back then! I mean she's still a little bit even now, but not with me anymore or mom anymore. But back then though she was shy with everyone! Hardly would talk or play with me, but when mom had to leave us at school Sabrina held my hand for the first time! I guess she was nervous or scared, but it meant a lot to me that she trusted me to be her sister and protect her.
• What "trends" did your character get into as a kid?
I don't want to talk about when everyone was into Coatl Tales including me! That's so embarrassing. Sometimes Mom starts singing the opening song to the show out in public and I just about die inside.
• What, if any, fashion trends inspired their school uniform?
I really like this one character from Scooty-Roo. She's the only one that isn't a big fraidy vesper cat and actually knows what to do when trying to catch the monsters. Everyone else stumbles along, gets into trouble, or worse captured. Felma even if she looses her glasses a lot is the only one with their head on straight.
• What magic classes did your character take "for fun"?
We learn the basics at school, but I haven't been able to take any specific kinds of classes for fun. I guess the closest thing would be in the gardening club. They taught us a little bit on how to encourage the growth of the plants with magic. I didn't mind it so much. If I can take a class on stuff like that as a Junior I'll definitely take it.
• Did they go to a school summer camp? If so, which one?
No I didn't get to go the last couple of years. Three summers ago I moved in with Mom, and then last summer Sabrina moved in, and this year we had another sibling move in and now I have my Kiddens to take care of. His name is Colt and just like how Sabrina was Colt is really shy. There's just too much excitement going on right now for me to go to camp this year. I hope next year the three of us can go together, but at the same time Mom told me that part of me starting my Kidden project meant that I had to take on certain responsibilities. If I go to camp next year I'll have to work out some sort of deal with mom so she can watch them while I go to camp.
• What type of student was your character? A class clown? A jock? Shy? Somewhere in-between?
Out of character Autumn is an extremely hyperactive student. She has a hard time staying still and focusing in class if it isn't some kind of hands on learning experience, or isn't a subject that she's personally interested on. Subjects that interest her are a lot easier to maintain focus on, but even then sit still for too long makes her antsy. She enjoys the outdoors, and while sports can be a great way to run off some of her energy it isn't her go to activity. She rather go off exploring somewhere in the nearby woods, but of course that often gets her into trouble because she shouldn't be sneaking off to do so. Her ADHD sometimes gets her into trouble even if she isn't setting out to be a trouble maker.
• What was your character's favorite sport in school? Were they any good at it?
Running, capture the flag, swimming, soccer were all sports she enjoyed playing. Some of the slower sports, or sports with a lot of rules that you had to pay attention too didn't suit her so well. She may have not been particularly driven at any of them, but she is an active enough freshling that she does pretty well for her age group.
• Did your character ever try to steal from the prize/sweet jar?
There was a sweet jar! If only I knew maybe I could have figured something out, but then again if Mom found out I tried to steal something. Yikes. You know I'm better off not having known about it.
• What was the worst trouble your character got into at school?
Soooo, one recess last September or October or whatever I sneaked off into the woods next to the Academy. I heard the bell for recess to be over, but I don't know I just didn't feel like going back to class. I wanted to keep exploring. Everyone keeps making up stories about the place and I was curious. It couldn't be anything like they were saying. I guess I just wanted to go somewhere I knew I wasn't supposed to be. It was really peaceful. Once everyone was back inside for class the playground was really silent. I remember it was a windy overcast day, it didn't rain, but it was cool because of the wind. The grass was really tall and yellow because it was fall and the sound the wind made when it rustled through the evergreens, pines, and into the tall grass was really . . . It makes me feel silly thinking about it, but it was really magical. I felt right, way more than I felt at school anyways. I came back . . . eventually, but when I did I was stopped in the hallways by someone, I don't even remember. All I recall after that was being in the principals office and they were contacting my Mom. She was so angry. I don't even want to talk about the kind of trouble I got in. I didn't skip class after that, but every time I walk home with Sabrina since then sometimes when we walked pass the forest I wish I wasn't responsible to take Sabrina home. Even though I got in big trouble I still really want to go back in there.
• Did your character break rules on the playground? Which ones?
Some of the sports we play on recess are meant to be no contact sports, but non of the other students listen to that rule. Sometimes I get caught up in it too and there's been a few times myself and a couple of others got in trouble for it.
• What sort of music did your character listen to in school?
Sabrina brings her walkman to school. When she does we sometimes we'll listen to it on walking to or from school, or at recess. It's more her thing than mine, but as far as listening to music while at school that's about it.
• What was your character's best excuse for a late assignment?
My Kiddens ate it.
• How did your character cope with school struggles?
Autumn's ADHD often creates problems for Autumn to deal with at school. Asides from not being able to concentrate in class it has caused some social alienation as well. Her responses to things will garner the ire of some of her classmates, and being made fun of is something that makes her feel really bad about herself. Sometimes the teachers don't know how to best respond to her when she's experiencing problems related to her ADHD which makes her feel resented or shunned. Her favorite teachers are the one's who are understanding and patient with her problems. With the support of her new family, animal and child therapy, and self reflection Autumn is doing a lot better when it comes to responding to conflict, but for a freshling there are still times when it gets the better of her emotions. Autumn is with her new mom for a reason, but with a happy healthy stable home environment that she now has she's able to identify when she starts to get upset. She continues to work with her Mom and Therapist to develop coping mechanisms and she's started to make some more friends at school as a result.
• What inspired your character to go to school? If they were not inspired, why?
Autumn didn't have the opportunity to go to school before living with her mom. It's part of the reason why she's living with her in the first place. School seemed like a very exciting thing to go to at first, but socializing with other students has been difficult, and the way lessons are taught are really tough to get through. Autumn goes to school for the days that have the kinds of lessons she actually enjoys, but mostly because she now has to be the strong, resilient, and responsible older sister for Sabrina. Sabrina's shy and if Autumn wasn't there to make things easier on her then she would have a much tougher time at school. At least that's how Autumn likes to look at it.
