ArchivedLogs:Useless Brown Water

Useless Brown Water
Dramatis Personae Jack, Rictor
In Absentia	2015-06-24 Jack and Rictor discuss the caffeine crisis.
Location <XS> Classroom One
Desks arranged into neat rows make up this, a fairly typical classroom. Chalkboard in front, teacher's desk in front of that. Windows along one wall look out on the grounds, providing plenty of opportunity for distraction for daydreaming students. With classes beginning at the end of the week, Rictor has been a busy man. He has four classes to prep for and very little teaching experience, but he’s giving it his all and, if asked, he’d say things are looking pretty darn good. Right now, as some students are arriving early and the population at Xavier’s is slowly growing, Rictor has placed himself in one of the classrooms to get a bit of work done in relative peace. Though this may be the case, he leaves the door open and can be found easily if anyone puts in the effort to ask around. Having been asked to come see Rictor, Jack's one of those people who's put effort into asking around. In baggy cargo shorts and a t-shirt bearing Nightwing's logo, it doesn't take him too long to track the older mutant down. When he finally finds Rictor, Jack offers an unseen smile and shifts his backpack on his shoulder before knocking on the doorframe. "You wanted me to come see you, Professor?" A quick, guttural noise of curiosity emerges over the furious sound of Rictor’s fingers dancing across his laptop keyboard. He doesn’t look up right away, instead finishing whatever thought he was trying to put through to the machine first. When he does, he looks over at the open frame and Jack. A thin smile breaks across his face. “Jack, it’s nice to see you,” he says, standing and motioning for the student to grab a chair. “And you really don’t have to call me professor. I’m a lecturer at best and prefer to go by Julio.” "It is, huh? Most people don't say that," Jack replies, sounding amused. Joking about the invisible thing is part of how he deals with it. Stepping farther into the room, he sets his bag down and drops into a chair. "Lo siento, I've just gotten into the habit of calling all the teachers here Professor," he says, rubbing the back of his neck. “Esta bien, Jack. I’m just more comfortable without the title at the moment,” Rictor tells him, crossing the room to shut the door, but leaving it cracked just enough for people passing by to see that the two are in conference. Crossing back over to Jack, he says, “I wanted to talk about the other night at Evolve. You and your friends were discussing something, well, abnormal going on, and you presented some interesting ideas. I’d like to hear more about what you think on the subject.” Jack watches Rictor, shifting a little in his chair to get more comfortable. "Well, Dusk's my friend but Micah's a teacher here too...I'm not sure about that woman though. The others didn't seem bothered by her but she was hanging around someone that's...never mind. Can worry about that another time," he says. Clearing his throat, he focuses on the topic at hand. "You mean whatever is messing with everyone's caffeine? Sure, I don't know much but what do you want to know?" Rictor shows little interest in the names of the people at the café, probably because he won’t be able to match them to their faces and it all doesn’t matter /so/ much at the moment (though the name Dusk sounds familiar and he remembers Micah’s from a faculty list he read). What he wants to know, instead, are, “Your thoughts, Jack. You asked some good questions that night. Do you think this is something caused by a mutant?” Jack is quiet for a few moments, thinking. He leans back, sleeve lifting as he lifts a hand to tap his chin. "I think it’s possible it is," he says. "I mean, I can't think of anything else that would be doing it," he adds. "But it might not be something being done on purpose. Or willingly." Rictor places himself in front of the desk, leaning back onto it and grabbing the edge to settle himself. He looks thoughtful as well. “Right, there are clearly a few different possibilities if mutant abilities are involved. I’ve been thinking about it, and at first the whole ordeal seemed to just be exaggerated by people who really like caffeine, but I’m thinking now that this might be more important. If a mutant really is involved with this in some way, how do you think the situation should be handled?” "I do think some people are blowing things out of proportion with how it’s affecting them," Jack replies with an unseen roll of the eyes. "I mean I like a coffee too but some people are just addicts," he shrugs and waves it off. "Well," he takes a deep breath before answering. "I'm not sure. I mean we don't know enough yet. If it’s someone who's got new powers and can't control them then we need to help them." “Or at least make that person aware of what’s going on, in case he isn’t. Can you imagine if one of the angry addicts is actually the cause of it? How embarrassing,” Rictor says with a grin, which fades slowly before he adds, “And if it’s caused by someone with an awareness and it’s being done on purpose, then we should probably know about it as well. Don’t you think?” "Yeah, that would suck," Jack agrees, chuckling a little. He sighs a bit when the subject of someone doing it on purpose comes up. "Yeah...but it depends on why they were doing it if it is on purpose. And if they can be talked into stopping. Don't want to get into anything violent if we don't have to..." “No, absolutely not. The last thing anyone wants is violence, except for maybe some of the more extreme addicts,” Rictor says with a chuckle, not sure if it’s too far off from the truth, though. “I do think the situation warrants looking into, and your friends seem to have the drive, at least, to figure out who or what is behind this. I don’t know how much time I’ll have once the new term starts, but I’m hoping you’ll keep me in the loop if you hear anything from them. Especially the one with the trippy tech.” "Hopefully it won't have to be a fight," Jack sighs. He's got a feeling it might end up being one but he still hopes. "We should definitely look into it. I mean...even if it was just an annoying thing, if it is a mutant causing it, we should stop it before the usual people in the media try to spin it into a reason to make things worse for all mutants," he says with a shrug. He smiles a bit at the mention of the tech. "Dusk and B came up with some really cool stuff. I mean those dragonflies freaked me out a little the first time I saw them but those holograms were awesome." Rictor nods in agreement about the fighting and the media. “I think you understand things pretty well, so I trust you’ll also keep my interest on the DL, at least among the other students.” He offers a smile and pushes himself away from the desk. “That’s really all I wanted to talk to you about. Will I have you in any of my classes over the summer?” "Oh, sure," Jack replies, sounding a little surprised at that request. He considers Rictor carefully for a moment before standing as well. "I think I have one of your classes this summer, yeah," he replies. "I have to check my classes again when I get back to my dorm," the invisible teen remarks, pulling his backpack on. “Don’t worry, it’s not a huge secret or anything, I just know how rumors can spread, especially involving new teachers.” Rictor walks back over to the door and opens it before heading over to Jack. “And that’s good to hear, I look forward to it.” He extends his hand for a shake and smiles at the younger man. Jack gives the offered hand a firm shake, his hand unable to be seen but definitely able to be felt. "I wouldn't know, honestly," Jack laughs a bit. "First new teacher here since I arrived. That I know of anyway," he says. "Have a good day," he offers as he heads out. It’s still a little strange to feel Jack’s phantom handshake, but Rictor does his best no to let it be shown. He releases the grip and steps aside so Jack can move past him. “You have a nice day as well. I’ll see you soon.” Once Jack is gone, Rictor walks back to his desk, takes a seat, and goes back to that furious pace of typing he’s so fond of.