008 - Pecan

[deadly_ned]

So.

As a first time Warden more or less mentoring a first time Inmate, there's this very important question that's been hovering menacingly near my head for the last few days like a demonic little helicopter and I would be remiss if I didn't at least ask it, even if I'm sure it's obvious to the more seasoned Wardens, Inmates, what have you.


...Is an Inmate's happiness more important than their graduation?

If you had to choose one, I mean.


And I think I should also ask to Inmates because I don't...like the unspoken divide and communication is usually an effective bridge over most divides..


What do you need from your warden to be happier?



[Private to Claire Bennet, Jesse Pinkman, the Marquis de Sade, and Megamind as a group]

Someone happened to tell me you're a dog person.

I'm trying to..rehome my dog, Digby. My Inmate is scared of them and it's probably best if Digby and I separated until my Inmate graduates. And I'd like to find someone to...borrow him, or take him, but if I don't find someone he'll have to go home and we've never been separated and I'm feeling a little...clingy.

Comments

[surrenders]

...so then I think we got to talk. There's two different kinds of happy, right?

[deadly_ned]

I don't know. I'm not usually happy.

private

[surrenders]

[All right, then, she'll start from the beginning.]

Not too good at it either, but you got the kind of happy you think you want and then what's really good for you.

private

[deadly_ned]

So what you're saying is that asking my inmate what he needs is different from what he actually needs.

private

[surrenders]

[An encouraging noise, like he gets it even if he doesn't think he does.] What people say they want isn't always what's good for them.

private

[deadly_ned]

Like too much pie.

private

[surrenders]

A little.

[If Ned thinks in cooking terms, she's starting to discover a good language for him.]

So what you do is you look at someone and see what they tell you, but see what they do.

private

[deadly_ned]

I'm not the best at analyzing other people's behavior.

private

[surrenders]

It takes practice.

I know the guy, he signed up to work for me. Tell me what you're thinking.

private

[deadly_ned]

I'm thinking I need to talk to graduated inmates and find out what they needed versus what they wanted.

private

[surrenders]

...think it's a good idea, if what they wanted put them here.

I needed to know keeping people happy wasn't worth more than what really mattered.

private

[deadly_ned]

Giving them and yourself what you needed instead of what made you happy?

Re: private

[surrenders]

[She still doesn't like using that kind of language to talk about it; it implies a selfishness she's really afraid of showing people.]

Giving them what they really needed. Long term.

private

[deadly_ned]

What about you? Didn't you need anything?

private

[surrenders]

That wasn't the problem. [Yes it was, Lua.]

He tells me he's here for one thing, but I don't think it's that.

private

[deadly_ned]

Do you think it's a secret he's keeping from you, or that he himself doesn't actually know what it is?

Re: private

[surrenders]

I think it's the first one. Like he's scared of what someone would say to him.

private

[deadly_ned]

This is the Barge. We're a little past judging other people for crimes they committed prior to dying.

private

[surrenders]

Some people think about this place like it's real prison. Some things, you don't want to share.

private

[deadly_ned]

I've been in 'real' prison. There are similarities, and then...not so much.