Good cop/Bad cop

Zayd, Zach, Paul and I were sitting around after dinner talking tonight.

Zayd: My teacher is really scary.

Me: How so?

Zayd: She just is. She freaks me out.

Zach: Yeah - She has a reputation.

Me: Oh my gosh! Well... what does she do?

Zayd: She just... just... if someone talks in class she just stares at you really scary.

Me: Does she say anything or just stare?

Zayd: She stares. Well.. sometimes she says something. Like today she said, (he imitates her scary stare)"You don't want to know what I'm going to do to you if you don't stop talking."

eww. That does sound kinda freaky.

Me: Has she ever done anything?

Zayd: Yeah. She moves you to level blue. That's really bad.

Me: Okay - but besides moving you to level blue... does she do anything? Like smack you?

pause

Zayd stares at me like I'm from another planet.

Zayd: Nooo-h. She doesn't smack us. Gad mom.

Ah... those were different times...

Me: So she's essentially controlling you all through fear. Highly effective. Your dad does that too.

Zayd: Ya.

Me: And I keep thinking I should start.

Zayd: NO!

Zach: No. No. No.

Zayd: We need the scary one... balanced with the... hum.... with the... nice one.

Paul: Are you saying I'm the scary one?

Zach: Zayd. Don't look him in the eye when you answer that. You'll turn to stone.