Leaders and Followers

[icebearforpresident]

[It's been a long time since Ice Bear visited the forum side of the Nexus, so today he's actually here to talk with other people and creatures. The polar bear is seated at a Nexus couch, cutting out coupons with a small hand ax. Yes, it look strange, but the bear cuts each piece of paper with an exceptional amount of accuracy. He looks up occasionally from his work to address the Nexus proper.]

Hierarchy. Ice Bear knows the definition of the word, however...

[Without unintentionally trying to scare anyone, he brings the ax down, embedding it into the indestructible? Nexus table.]

Ice Bear wants to know what you think hierarchy is and how it can be obtained. Power? Courage? Good Looks? Ice Bear is curious to hear your thoughts.

...

Ice Bear would also like advice on Nexus portals.

Comments

[icebearforpresident]

[Ice Bear looks up from his extreme couponing task to lock eyes with Amelia. He recognizes her from many weeks ago, which causes him to stand up. He actually brings both paws together and bows politely to her.]

Ice Bear is pleased to see you again and hopes all is well. As for the question, Ice Bear is interested in all forms and groups of hierarchy. Ice Bear's family is a type of hierarchy as well, so learning about it will help Ice Bear be a better brother and teammate.

[rogueinladysclothing]

"Let's start with family first, then, since you asked about it." She pulls up a chair to a close, but respectable distance away. "Family hierarchy starts with the oldest generation. The father or mother who runs the household - because it could very well be either - can choose to be... "in charge" of the others if they wish." This isn't the case in her family, but she can see very well how it might be. "They have wishes for their family that can't be disregarded and strive to help or encourage the younger generations to do their best. Everyone "under" them falls in descending order of power, from their children to their grandchildren and so on. And then, when their children are grown and they require being taken care of, they pass on the head of household title to the next generation and it begins again."

She pauses for a moment, frowning thoughtfully. "Perhaps that's a bit vague. Would you like more details?"

[icebearforpresident]

Family. Yes. [Ice Bear sits down on the couch once more, giving his undivided attention to her. He's very interested in what she has to say. Upon hearing her explanation, the bear nods lightly to confirm that he does understand what she meant.]

Ice Bear sees the similarity to his own family. Ice Bear doesn't have parents anymore, just two brothers, but the oldest takes care of Ice Bear. Hierarchy has never been a issue until just recently.

[He pauses, uncertain if he wants to burden Amelia with his recent family troubles. Instead, the bear turns his gaze away a little, looking down at the table.]

[rogueinladysclothing]

She's not usually one for being interested in a stranger's personal business, but Ice Bear's response gets a raised eyebrow. "If you knew this, then why would you ask about it? Unless... you think something's wrong with this structure and are looking for ways to circumvent it?"

If Amelia's good at anything, it's breaking rules set down by society.

[icebearforpresident]

Ice Bear likes talking with people in the Nexus. Hearing other options is good. [He raises his head a little, looking at her once more. He shuffles a bit on the sofa, trying to think about how to put the words together in the best way.]

Ice Bear watched the hierarchy of his family fall apart for a time. Ice Bear didn't do much and things got bad. Ice Bear has never tried to step in and be a leader for his brothers before, so Ice Bear is hoping people in the Nexus can offer advice on how to contribute to the hierarchy better.

[rogueinladysclothing]

Now that's something she understands completely. If anyone were to take a close look at who is actually the head of her family back in her world, they might be surprised to find her father has less to do with everything than she does. Unless they knew about Amelia's extra curricular activities, of course.

"You're trying to become the head of the family now that things are bad?" She wants to make sure she completely understand what he wants before offering any advice. "Has any of your brothers been trying to be the "leader" up until this point? Or has it been a kind of free-for-all?"

[icebearforpresident]

Sort of. Ice Bear will explain.

[The bear reaches for a blank piece of paper and a pen, taking a few minutes to sketch out three bears, all stacked on top of each other. The top bear looks like a grizzly bear, the middle represents a panda, and the bottom bear is Ice Bear.

He turns the image so Amelia can see his 'art'.]

This is Ice Bear's family. On top, Grizz, the leader. The middle, Panda. Ice Bear is the bottom of the stack. [He points at each bear drawing with his pen.]

Grizz is the leader. Always has been. Ice Bear and Panda haven't been able to contribute much to the hierarchy. Recently, Panda became the top bear. [And Ice draws two arrows near the top and middle bears, indicating a swap.]

But things went bad. Grizz had to take over the hierarchy again. Ice Bear wants to learn skills in order to contribute to the hierarchy better next time. Or to take over. Ice Bear hasn't decided on the last one yet.

[rogueinladysclothing]

"The circumstances leading to both of the changes are important. What happened to cause Panda to take over, and then for Grizz to have to take over again? Perhaps that will shed some light on what you can do to change your status in your family." The devil is in the details and if Amelia's good at anything with other people, it's finding the devil.

[icebearforpresident]

Wolves showed up in the forest one day. Threatened to hurt Ice Bear and his brothers. Panda jumped in and scared them away. Panda became the decision-maker at that moment, moving Grizz to a lower position.

[A pause, then Ice Bear continues on with his tale.]

The wolves returned later that night. Panda and Ice Bear couldn't fend them off. Grizz returned and scared the wolves away once more. Things seemed to return to normal after that.

[rogueinladysclothing]

"All of this happened in a single day?" She's honestly surprised by that. "I'm curious as to why you want to change things. Is "normal" bad for you and your brothers? Or are you simply looking for ways to make sure this short interruption in what is considered normal doesn't happen again, perhaps by creating a new normal?"

It doesn't make a lot of sense to Amelia, but she's not about to tell him that. If Ice Bear is determined to change things, then she'll offer whatever advice she can. She only hopes it'll mean something, given she's never dealt with a situation like this before.