>>Might be worth adding that 'to stone' is in-universe slang meaning "to petrify," as the other meanings ('high on marijuana' or 'execution via thrown rocks') make an ambiguous amount of sense.<<
Changed to "petrifies."
>>Er... might not work well. The Puritans /despised/ the Quakers, in part due to the egalitarianism and direct communion with God being considered heretical and in part due to the fact that the Puritans were the sort of religious fanatics who believed it was moral to punish nonbelievers even though it wouldn't even save the nonbeliever's souls.<<
Hence using the meeting house for genocidal arson. After all, Crackstone doesn't seem the type to burn down his own church.
>> I did wonder at the dance scene, [Bianca expresses insecurity due to never knowing if her powers are compelling people to like her] if using sign language would work. <<
It could set up a great friendship between Bianca and Thing.
>>Siren powers are usually held to be vocally or musically activated, rather than pheromone powers or various telepath abilities, which are more likely to be always-on.<<
True.
>>Things like writing notes, premade notecards, a speechboard or whatever the in-universe version of a voice app is would be other options. Then again, a popular teenage girl might be resistant to certain types of adaptive equipment...<<
I don't think Bianca would want to use most of those in public, but she might have a preference for texting over talking, or be more willing to use alternatives in private.
>>Probably the usual 'do not engage in behavior harmful to the group' that is common across all societies, possibly with benefits skewing to higher-status members. Of course, this still allows a lot of variation; just look at how "thou shall not kill" is expressed across and outside various human societies.<<
Basically I'm wondering if the outlier is Bianca or her mother. Are most sirens responsible about using their powers and her mother is a fluke? Or are most of them shysters and Bianca is the exception? If the sirens use their powers pretty freely, they could make excellent con artists, politicians, prostitutes, actors, etc. But if most of them don't use their powers that way, then it's less likely to produce a tight cluster of behavior. Which is the fluke will have a huge influence on the plot going forward.
>>Someday it would be nice to see a Magical Academy setting where students aren't the ones solving all the problems and being in mortal peril on a bimonthly basis.<<
The closest I've seen is RWBY. It's very dangerous because the world is threatened by monsters and the students are learning how to fight them. But when the shit hits the fan, the adults are fighting right alongside the students.
Thoughts
Changed to "petrifies."
>>Er... might not work well. The Puritans /despised/ the Quakers, in part due to the egalitarianism and direct communion with God being considered heretical and in part due to the fact that the Puritans were the sort of religious fanatics who believed it was moral to punish nonbelievers even though it wouldn't even save the nonbeliever's souls.<<
Hence using the meeting house for genocidal arson. After all, Crackstone doesn't seem the type to burn down his own church.
>> I did wonder at the dance scene, [Bianca expresses insecurity due to never knowing if her powers are compelling people to like her] if using sign language would work. <<
It could set up a great friendship between Bianca and Thing.
>>Siren powers are usually held to be vocally or musically activated, rather than pheromone powers or various telepath abilities, which are more likely to be always-on.<<
True.
>>Things like writing notes, premade notecards, a speechboard or whatever the in-universe version of a voice app is would be other options. Then again, a popular teenage girl might be resistant to certain types of adaptive equipment...<<
I don't think Bianca would want to use most of those in public, but she might have a preference for texting over talking, or be more willing to use alternatives in private.
>>Probably the usual 'do not engage in behavior harmful to the group' that is common across all societies, possibly with benefits skewing to higher-status members. Of course, this still allows a lot of variation; just look at how "thou shall not kill" is expressed across and outside various human societies.<<
Basically I'm wondering if the outlier is Bianca or her mother. Are most sirens responsible about using their powers and her mother is a fluke? Or are most of them shysters and Bianca is the exception? If the sirens use their powers pretty freely, they could make excellent con artists, politicians, prostitutes, actors, etc. But if most of them don't use their powers that way, then it's less likely to produce a tight cluster of behavior. Which is the fluke will have a huge influence on the plot going forward.
>>Someday it would be nice to see a Magical Academy setting where students aren't the ones solving all the problems and being in mortal peril on a bimonthly basis.<<
The closest I've seen is RWBY. It's very dangerous because the world is threatened by monsters and the students are learning how to fight them. But when the shit hits the fan, the adults are fighting right alongside the students.