Editing DRYH: Mortal Coils - Alexander (section)

==Five Questions==
'''WHAT'S BEEN KEEPING YOU AWAKE?''' My nephew. The boy reminds me of myself, and I had a miserable childhood. He’s small for his age, like I was. He’s terribly nonathletic, like I was. He’s bookish and unpopular with other children, like I was. He’s bullied terribly in school, like I was.
And at the end of every day he has to go back home to my brother—like I did. Only he obviously has power over the child he never had over me. And his wife is, if anything, worse; the woman is feral.

I don’t know how to help him.


'''WHAT JUST HAPPENED TO YOU?''' The walls started to crumble. They smelled of damp and mold and rot, when they’d been fine before. They bulged and began to collapse, but while my attention was on them it was the floor that gave way.

I sank, more than fell, into this dark room of damp earth. This is not my basement. And... there’s someone, something, down here.


'''WHAT'S ON THE SURFACE?''' Calm, collected, even cold. Professor Carlyle is a very competent teacher, but few of his students’ favorite. He’s fair, but very... logical. Not known for his compassion or his passion about his subject. “Dispassionate” is a good word.


'''WHAT LIES BENEATH?''' Alexander cares a great deal. He listens too much and empathizes too much and thinks too much about things he has no ability to influence. If he can't help everybody, it's better to use a stoic facade and pretend there are no things that he needs to change but can't.


'''WHAT IS YOUR PATH?''' Alexander needs to learn to relate to people better. Not all questions can be answered by pure reason, and ignoring them isn't exactly a solution--and it's entirely illogical.
He is capable of being a protector, a friend, a fierce advocate, and other people may depend on him figuring that out.

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