(question, does koda have his ipod on him today)

Declan smiled genuinely at the teen; he was obviously trying which was great. So he looked down at the study guide and sighed, at least it seemed pretty simple. "Okay, so let's just kinda go through each section and see what you know and then we can discuss what you don't. So what are the main causes of the Civil War?"

(here's the study guide I'm using: http://www.greatneck.k12.ny.us/gnps/...vilWar_000.pdf
Koda's just won't have the answers filled in on it. obviously)

(probably in his pocket, but not currently on. I actually forgot about the ipod)

Koda nodded to himself. At least the first question was easy. He didn't have to go to class to know that one. "Slavery of course!" koda said with a roll of his eyes. "Next question please."

Declan chuckled at Koda's confidence; it really was nice to see him like this instead of as the disgruntled and almost hostile kid he'd been at first. It was good being friends with him and to see him come out of his shell. Declan blinked noticing something that was decidedly missing from the session: the soft sound of Koda's music. He raised an eyebrow, "No music today?" he blurted out.

Koda's eyes widened and he stuttered for a moment before his composure came back and he raised an eyebrow. "No..So what if I'm not listening to no music?" he said a bit defensively. He could feel his ipod still in his pocket from school, but the headphones were long forgotten, on the floor in his room probably. He didn't even think about listening to music during the lesson today and this surprised him quite a bit.

Declan chuckled, but didn't comment further not wanting to raise Koda's hackles farther. Instead he turned back to the study guide and asked the next question, "When did the civil war start?"

"When it started," Koda muttered under his breath before attempting to answer the question seriously. "Like, when they shot at Fort Summer, or whatever it was called." He grinned like that might somehow make his crappy answer better.

Declan chuckled, "Fort Sumter," he said making sure to stress the 't' in the word "but yes you are correct that is where fighting began and in 1861" he pushed the study guide towards Koda, indicating he should write this down.

"There's a 't' in it?" Koda muttered. "I coulda sworn it was 'summer'..." He sighed and scribbled the information down barely legibly. They were only on question two and he was already bored.

(then change the subject koda please. XD)

"Yes there's a t, but it's not usually pronounced very clearly so it sounds like 'summer," Declan stated pushing his glasses up the bridge of his nose before reading the next question to himself. Oh, to be in high school again, when history was straightforward. He sighed softly to himself before asking, "So the strengths of each side?"

Koda's head dropped onto the table, face first, his arms reaching out in front of him. "I hate history...!" he moaned. "I really hate tests!" He didn't know the answer to the question and probably wouldn't know the rest of them either. "I just wanna skip the test," he muttered into the table, hopefully not loud enough to be heard.

"Skipping the test would be counterproductive to what we're attempting to do here." Declan sighed, "And I know this is boring. But this is what they teach you in high school. It's straightforward there's no areas of grey, which isn't necessarily an accurate depiction of history, but it makes testing you simpler. When you define a right answer when there could be a shade of grey." he shrugged, "Either way, you can't get out of this test. Not if you want to pass history and this grade."

Koda sighed. He did want to pass this grade. "Hisory'd be easier without dates," he said finally, still flopped over on top of the table. "I don't like memorizing things."

"Well dates luckily for this era aren't the biggest concern since it's such a brief period of time. Just four years." Declan looked at Koda and, before he could resist the urge, reached out and poked him in the side of the head.

Koda lifted his head slightly and glared at Declan's finger with the most venom he could manage. "did you just poke me?" He rolled his head on its side to look at Declan and raised an eyebrow.

Declan bit his lip, why did Koda always have to mange to look so cute? Before raising an eyebrow in return, "What if I did?"

(because he's temptation! *waggles eyebrows*)

"What'd I do to deserve a poke?" Koda asked. "I was being totally serious!"

(channeling gary there?)

"Just checking to make sure you weren't suffocating yourself," Declan stated, maybe a bit too matter-of-factly. He honesly didn't know why he poked Koda, just that he'd wanted to do it. So he did. "Obviously it worked."

(I wonder...)

Koda rolled his eyes. "Who'd suffocate themself....on a table? That's just weird...." He gave Declan a look like he wondered if he was okay.

"Hey weirder things have happened." Declan said, raising his hands up in defense. "You can't deny me that. I mean how else do you explain much of history or really just. Life is just weird."

Koda reluctantly sat up, though his arms remained on the table. "People are very weird," he said with conviction, nodding. "But still, don't go expecting me to suffocate on a table."

"Mmm, but it got you to sit back up now didn't it?" Declan asked, smirking at Koda. "I figure mission accomplished. Even if you think me stranger than normal."

Koda scratched his head. "But I already thought you were strange," he said with a simple shrug of his shoulders.

"Well I meant stranger than you already did." he grinned slightly at Koda, "No back to that study guide. What are the strengths of each side?"

(and declan is sounding british in my head today. i have no clue why)

(british? that can't be right...)

Koda groaned. He was hoping that Declan had forgotten about the study guide. Why was today of all days the one where the tutor was on topic?

"Like, one side had this smart guy and the other had more money, was that the north? Yeah, so the South had the smart guy."

(yeah it's not. I don't even know)

"Oh come on now it's not that bad, and see you do no this stuff. In maybe a rather unorthodox way but you do know it. Yes, the south had Robert. E. Lee and better leaders for the most part; they were also fighting on home turf. The north had more money and thus everything that goes with it like supplies, factories, railroads, and men." Declan said. He leaned back in his chair, so far being focused seemed to be working; this was good. Even if it left Koda a little bit disgruntled with him.