ArchivedLogs:Collaboration

Collaboration
Dramatis Personae Scott, Theo
In Absentia	2017-09-15 "The last thing we want is for a telekinetic to accidentally drop an I Beam on someone or something of that nature. That won’t help our cause."
Location <XS> Administrative Office
This office isn't large, but it /is/ private--at least as private as anywhere on this particular campus. The walls are decorated with framed art photographs of vintage cars and motorcycles, and trophies line to top of the book shelves. The desk is usually neat but never empty, though right now there are several manila folders stacked to one side, having been pushed there to make room for Scott's lunch. Scott himself, dressed in a blue-and-white plaid button-down and khakis, is not sitting just yet. "Apologies for the..." He waves a hand in the general direction of lunch and work. "First week of classes, you know. Could I get you something to drink? That machine will do coffee and tea, and I have some seltzer and juice in the minifridge." Theo smiles, dressed in the suit that so many people have come to see him in recently. “I can always use coffee lately, thanks,” he says, taking a cup and plucking a ready coffee from the stash before closing it inside the lid. The whir of the machine starts working. “I think I may have a problem, my HR director says that she is going to stage an intervention.” He waits for the liquid caffeine to fill the cup before taking it out and moving to sit across from Scott. “Thanks so much for meeting with me, I hope that you don’t have any students this year as likely to take your Cobra for a joy ride as I was.” He takes a small sip of the coffee. Too hot, that burned. Scott grabs an orange seltzer from his minifridge while Theo's coffee brews and drops down into his seat. If he flinches at Theo's thanks, it's hidden behind the mirrored lenses of his glasses, his smile genuine and relaxed enough. "It's my pleasure, and...the term is still young, so that remains to be seen. Probably not /quite/ as likely, no." He opens his seltzer and takes a sip. "So, your email wasn't too specific, but I hope all is going smoothly with your company? I've heard about the job fair you're running this evening. Probably hectic, setting up for that." “It is a bit,” Theo admits, “I don’t have a staff in place for the office in the City yet, so a lot of it falls on my shoulders. I have a few of my Michigan staff coming in for the event. I just wish I knew exactly how many people would be showing up for it. More people seem to have heard about it than I thought, so I hope we won’t be overwhelmed. Ironically, I used another staffing company to get some help for the event. It’s not easy to find low wage help when you are screening for mutant prejudice discreetly. The last thing I want is for Friends of Humanity to show up and crash the party.” He blows on the coffee a little. “I’m sorry if the email was too vague, I was hoping to see if I could partner with the school to help some mutants in the city. I know that it is important to maintain the security of the school, but I am trying to find a way to get mutants proper wages for their abilities. The problem is that no one has really tried this before, and so I need a way to internally rate the control that mutants have over their powers before I put them in the field. The last thing we want is for a telekinetic to accidentally drop an I Beam on someone or something of that nature. That won’t help our cause.” He shrugs with his free hand. “Some powers are easy to test the skills of, others might require a more secure location for the protection of the candidate and the testers. At the same time, I think that it might be a good way for my company to help the students that are graduating from Xavier’s.” Scott nods as Theo speaks, working on his pasta salad all the while. Then he lays down his fork. "I think what you're trying to do will be a great boon. Helping our graduates integrate into society is vital and, honestly, one of our most enduring challenges here." He laces his fingers together, brows furrowing. "That said, keeping campus safe is both more important and more difficult, especially since we went public. Even if we had absolute confidence in the judgment and discretion of the personnel you want to bring here--which is a pretty big if--we can ill-afford any more negative attention." He spreads his hands, the gesture vaguely helpless. "No matter how careful you are with your language, it /will/ come out that your company is more or less literally seeking to displace human labor with mutant abilities. People /already/ think we are a training ground for the mutant insurgency, without us providing them any evidence, flimsy or not. That stack right there?" He nods at the tower of folders. "Are reports on the threats we've received this week. I would love to help you, but I don't think we can justify the risk to our students." “To be more accurate, I am looking to displace machine labor with mutant labor most frequently, but the point is taken,” Theo agrees. “I would not want to do anything that would jeopardize the students here. Hell, I was a student here. I am not certain what, if any, of the danger room resources can relocate, or where they came from. If I could afford to build it, I would. I have a feeling that whoever was used for the construction of Xavier’s is not frequently advertised to build such things.” He takes another sip of his coffee. “The integration of mutant powers into the standard workforce is the key to recognition. When things become common, when they fail to be unique, then they are treated with greater indifference. It sounds strange to say, but in some sense, indifference can be a great ally in mutant rights. People don’t fight against things that are ordinary to them, or if they do, they don’t fight very hard.” "I'm afraid the original combination of abilities that created the Danger Room are..." Scott frowns, then shakes his head. "It's a long and convoluted story, but suffice to say that I do not think it can be replicated at this point in time. I do agree with you on general principle, even if I do not quite share your optimism that people will stop opposing us merely because we seem more familiar or common. I would wager that most humans would fear me, personally, a lot more if they knew what I could do. In any event, perhaps..." He strokes his chin thoughtfully. "You might make creating something that suits that purpose an early project for your company? Between your particular talents and the people you recruit, it might not be nearly as extreme an expense as you expect." “Perhaps. The fear will increase initially to be certain,” Theo admits. “It is an unfortunate first step that needs to be taken, just as I’m sure you decided when the school went public. That can hardly be viewed as in the best interest of the students’ safety, though it could be in the best interests of the students’ future. It will be many years before this project of mine produces quantifiable results, if at all. Still, it’s better than watching the news and complaining about it.” He sighs when Scott tells him about the Danger Room scenario. “We will see what talent we acquire at the job fair. That brings me to another problem. The problem of mutants who have properly been trained regarding their abilities. Outside of Xavier’s, most mutants have very little understanding of what they are capable of doing, or how to control it responsibly. I have been fortunate to have found Xavier’s when I did, if I hadn’t, I would not have such a refined control over what I can do. How would you feel about some of the staff teaching adult evening classes in the city? I could provide a location for that. I could, of course, compensate any of the staff who might be willing to take part.” Scott's eyebrows raise up, up above the rim of his glasses. "I'm aware you're very smart, but I will thank you not tell us what is in the best interests of our students' safety when you do not know what our considerations were in going public," he says very evenly...maybe excessively so, "what the alternatives were, or the care and preparation that went into carrying it out." He takes a deep breath. "And I sure as heck hope you're not suggesting /we're/ just watching the news and complaining about it." He picks up the seltzer, takes a long drink from it, and seems to calm somewhat. "Our faculty and staff are of course free to take on additional work, so long as it does not interfere with their duties here. If you have some kind of proposal put together, I can make sure it gets distributed. In fact, I think several are planning to attend your job fair tonight, though perhaps more out of interest to get information for their students than themselves." “I most certainly am not suggesting that you do nothing about what’s on the news,” Theo answers, seeming not to notice Scott’s change in tone. “I have had my youthful complaints about the way the school handles things, you know that. But I have had opportunity to consider a great many things regarding how this world operates, and I know that Xavier’s is putting forth probably the best foot that anyone has in regard to mutant/human relations. I want my organization to be able to join with you and help in any way we can.” He does not comment on whether he thought the part about going public was the best idea. He leans back in the seat a little. “Mr. Summers, you know that I have always thought you were one of the more intelligent at the school. I know you have to deal with many people who want to question your judgment, and usually they are people who have little better to offer in its place.” Of course he’s referring to Logan. “Please rest assured that I think very highly of how you have run this school and the X-men. I’m not a warrior, that’s no surprise. The influence that you and the other teachers had on me is very much a part of why my company exists today.” He seems to divert his attention for a brief moment. “I just emailed you the details for the adults. Make certain if they come to support the students, they know that I can’t employ people under 18. I am happy to come and speak to the students if you would like. I’d even be happy to do some adjunct business or technology classes for you as a courtesy.” "Look." Scott sighs, pushing his glasses more securely into place even though they look in no danger of sliding off. "I don't really care what you think of my intelligence or leadership, and I actually respect what my team members bring to the table." The corner of his mouth gives a wry, irritated twist. "Even when they can't keep their feet off of it. But whatever our shortcomings and disagreements, we put our students' safety first." He starts to reach for his phone as it vibrates audibly in his pocket, but aborts the action when Theo explains the email came from him. "Gracias. I doubt anyone was going with a mind to persuade underage students into the workforce, but it's good to know what options we can recommend to our seniors. Hopefully your company can provide an additional path to college, for students who cannot count on financial support from family." His fingers drum restlessly on his desk. "Regardless, any kind of formal collaboration between the school and your company--any company--will require the approval of the board. As for guest lecturing and adjunct classes, I'll have to run that by Jean, at least. God knows we're always short-staffed here, these days." Here, at least, his exasperation seems pretty generalized. "Is there anything else you wanted to discuss?" Theo takes in a breath and holds it for a moment when his compliment somehow seems to take a southward turn. He seems to be turning some things over in his mind before he speaks again, focused on the edge of the desk. “I think that covers it,” he finally answers, looking back up to meet his reflection in Scott’s glasses. “I don’t mean to make your life more challenging,” he offers. “I know you have enough of that. And you know if you ever need my help for anything, I’m just a phone call away. If the board wants any information, I’m happy to drive back up.” He stands up, and reaches out a hand to Scott. “You want to check out the Ferrari before I go? I don’t know enough car enthusiasts these days to share it with, you look like you could do with a break.” Theo takes in a breath and holds it for a moment when his compliment somehow seems to take a southward turn. He seems to be turning some things over in his mind before he speaks again, focused on the edge of the desk. “I think that covers it,” he finally answers, looking back up to meet his reflection in Scott’s glasses. “I don’t mean to make your life more challenging,” he offers. “I know you have enough of that. And you know if you ever need my help for anything, I’m just a phone call away. If the board wants any information, I’m happy to drive back up.” He stands up, and reaches out a hand to Scott. “You want to check out the Ferrari before I go? I don’t know enough car enthusiasts these days to share it with, you look like you could do with a break.” "I know," Scott says with a quiet sigh. "You're trying to get a business off the ground, one that pioneers a new market, no less. That's plenty challenging, too. I suspect the board will have questions, but probably most of it can be sorted out electronically, busy as you are." He also rises, shakes Theo's hand firmly. "I gotta admit, I did a little staring when you pulled in." He sounds somewhat mollified by the offer. And tempted. "I really ought to get through these reports, but...screw it, it's Friday and I'm on my lunch break. Let's go take a look."