(( you think you're cooler than me ))

[Centrinity]

Alright, kiddies. Quick hacker history lesson. Who here's heard of Shadowwalker?

The man didn't look up from the doodle of a kitten on his shoe, which he was doing in whiteout, when he spoke. He paused for a moment to glance up, but no longer. He was still getting strange looks. No wonder. He was sitting cross-legged on top of his desk, the one foot resting on top of his knee, and he was scrutinizing his doodle rather fully. Still, beyond the strange looks, he spotted most of the hands up. He looked back down and continued.

Shadowwalker was caught five years back. What about Terabyte?

The same result. He paused for a moment, frowning and tipping his head sideways, tongue between his teeth and poking out from between his lips for a moment, his teeth almost drawing blood as he focused on getting the whiskers just right. Finally, he was done, and he put the whiteout pen down, giving his sophomore class his full attention now.

Also caught. Are we noticing a pattern yet, children?

There was an annoyed murmur of 'yes' and he grinned, looking a little like a fool. He spotted one girl, brown hair and brown eyes, sitting off in the corner, rolling her eyes at him. He recognized her as Alexx Kerry, "Ace". He ignored it.

Alright, now what about Phantom?

There was silence. The government didn't like to spread news that a ten year old kid had hacked their system, so, although he had been caught (once, eight years later), not a single hand went up. His ego got the best of him. He didn't say it was him, though.

Exactly. So, what's the lesson here?

Don't get caught.

A bored voice from Ace at the back. Rory shook his head, laughing softly as he hopped off the desk.

Nope. That's the lesson this school is trying to teach you. I'm trying to teach you to choose cool hacker names like those. Now, scurry off. It's lunch time, and I hear there's cheeseburgers today. I, for one, intend to be near the front of that very long lineup.

He hopped off the desk, walking out of the computer lab, hands in the pockets of his loose, too-big black hoodie and he whistled a soft little tune as he strutted down the hallway. His two sophomore classes had gone well. Now, for lunch, then his next class, he wasn't sure what level, though it would be junior or senior. He was teaching senior at some point, but it might be next semester. He wasn't sure. Either way, this was going better than planned. He slipped into the dining hall, managing to start the line just before someone else by literally jogging a few steps. He had to stop himself from rubbing it in and sticking out his tongue.

[Flame]

A short woman, with dark brown hair and green eyes was walking next to a much taller boy, with blond hair that was very dark at the roots. He had a back pack on, a long tan trench coat, jeans, and a blue t-shirt on. She was in a purple t-shirt with the words ‘bite me’ on it. Her black leather coat, and jeans made her look like a tom-boy. ”It’s about being quiet Hunter. You need to move carefully. I mean that Mr McKinsy.” she said as they slipped in behind the man who’d jogged to get ahead of them. Hunter bristled. ”Hunter!” she snapped at him, and he relaxed instantly.

She eyed the new teacher. ”Good Day Mr. Landcaster. How has your first classes gone?” she asked politly. She was working on making sure no one got in or out of the school with out her knowing… well her or one of her lackies (Aka, other students like Hunter), so she knew he was tech support. Hunter rolled his eyes at his teacher’s words. ”Good day? Wot, ar’ yah ah br’t, M’Lahdy?” he asked dropping into his thick accent. She chuckled. ”I could, be good sir.” she slipped into her own british accent as they got their food.

[Centrinity]

Rory grabbed a burger with a rather large portion of french fries, moving down to practically drown the cheese on the burger with ketchup, but nothing else, putting the top of the bun back on and then dumping some salt on the fries. Certainly not elegant in any fashion, but he never claimed to be. Then, the people he had cut off spoke, and he glanced up at them, recognizing the woman, but not the boy. He offered them both a smile anyway.

Good, good. Drew something new on my right shoe during the last one, actually...

He hopped on his left foot for a moment, holding his right foot up and peering down at it, very nearly spilling his plate and falling flat on his ass, but managing, by some miracle, to stay upright, regain his balance and take a closer look before putting his foot back down with a rather disappointed exclamation.

Oh, and it smudged! Darn! Stupid whiteout doesn't dry fast enough.

He moved off to a nearby table, pulling the chair out with his foot as his other hand snatched a can of coke. He settled down, cracking the can open and taking a sip, head bobbing to a soft beat he was humming as he slipped a french fry in his mouth. Yes, today was a good day so far, despite the smudged kitten on his shoe.

[Flame]

Lilly and Hunter eyed him. ”You drew on your shoe? Your sapposed to TEACH the students Rory, not doodle.” she said incredulously. Hunter frowned. ”Is he really my new Practical Encryption teacher? I have to learn from someone who acts like… well one of the kids my age?” hunter asked looking at his favorite teacher. She shrugged. ”Don’t ask ME. I’m not Practical Intellegence. Just because I’m good at cover ops doesn’t mean much Hunt.” she said as they both started doctoring their food.

Hunter snorted. ”Surves you right for playing when you should be teaching.” he said with a slight smirk. No hunter wans’t always polite. Lilly sighed, rolling her eyes. At twenty eight she liked being responsible. Hell she had to be. With a two year old, and lots of students to teach, like the one busy putting marmalade on his fries.

[Centrinity]

I was! You don't have to look at them to talk to them. They seemed to be having fun, anyway. People learn better when they enjoy it.

He retorted, sounding vaguely insulted, though he wasn't really. However, Hunter's comment did offend him rather thoroughly and he stared over at the junior student, smile falling away, looking... well, serious for once.

Kid. I hacked the pentagon weekly for seven and a half years without getting caught starting when I was ten. I'm pretty sure I'm qualified for the job.

He gave Hunter a sarcastic-looking smirk that indicated he was not necessarily pleased, labeling that as an insult to his skills as a hacker and programmer, something he simply wouldn't stand for. He took a large bite out of his cheeseburger, the deliciousness of it taking away the annoyance. He chewed and swallowed(probably one of his only manners), before continuing.

And teaching is playing. Or, at least, it can be. It doesn't have to be all twenty page assignments.

And the funny thing was, there was sense to his words. Sure, he wasn't the most serious guy around, but there was nothing wrong with that, as long as the students still learned, and they would.

[Flame]

Lilly sighed. ”That is still to be seen. If they PASS their tests THEN you are a good teacher.” she said simply, ”And kids enjoy my class. They get to pretend to be spys. What kid hasn’t ever wanted to be a spy?” Hunter chuckled. ”All of us in your class greatly appreaciate your willingness to put up with our antics you know.” he said thoughtfully, as he finished and moved off a bit. He shrugged. ”Then all I have to do is hack into the pentagon and the white house and not get caught for nine years.” Lilly eyed him. ”WHAT? It’s true!” he said simply. He was impressed, but he was sixteen year old boy. Do you really expect him to not make it a challenge?

”Teaching is playing when you’ve got good students. Not when most of them are here because their parents say they should be.” she said simply a little smirk on her face as she bit into her own burger.

[Centrinity]

Good luck with that one. They've had me beef up their security already, and trust me, I'm not teaching you my hacking style or my programming style. Just generic styles. I'm not stupid enough to teach you how I hack, cause that makes me vulnerable. Makes any hacker vulnerable if someone else knows their style.

He replied with a shrug, eating a few more bites and choosing not to reply to Lily's comment. All the kids, on some level, had to want to be here. After all, they were going through so much just to get in. He had no doubt that it would have been far easier for their parents to get them into an equally prestigious school that was a regular school and therefore had no excess of background checks and polygraph tests. Not to mention, he didn't have a freshman class this semester, which meant that all the students had to have chosen his class. Yet another reason to make them decent.

Honestly, if they want to challenge me, I'd just dare them to outhack me. They wouldn't be able to. Challenge gone. Simple progression of cause to effect. If they don't like me, they don't like me. I've had lots of people who didn't like me. I'll get over it. It's a sad reality of the world that not everyone is going to get along, and that's all there is to it.

There was something in his voice by the end of that, but it wasn't the cocky, know-it-all attitude he'd had starting into his little speech. It was more... a sadness. A knowledge of reality. Of pain. One wouldn't think he knew a thing about pain and sorrow and sadness, not considering his happy-go-lucky attitude, but he did. He knew all too well. For his actions, three people had died. And although he never let it show, that weight rested squarely on his shoulders, dragging him down into the ground indefinitely and his personality was his way of fighting against it in order to fly.

[Flame]

Hunter shrugged. ”I’d figure something out. And really if I can do other stuff why don’t I just let you do the hacking and I get to do the fun stuff.” he snapped some of the bitterness at loosing his family coming through. He moved away from Lilly and them, walking through the throng of kids to a table that no one was sitting at. Lilly sighed. ”I’m someone will be able to do it. After all we’ve got extremely smart kids here.” Some more brilliant than other’s but still. If they are good hackers with you as a teacher I’m sure they’ll figure it out.”[/b] She said simply. ”And win the challenge. Which could be a problem. Please don’t challagen anyone. We have enough troubles as it is.” She said simply, watching the tall blonde walk away.

His last words made her look at him. ”The world is a cruel place. We know that, but they don’t. Let them learn their own way.”

[Centrinity]

Just saying I don't care if they hate me.

He grumbled, filling his mouth with the rest of his cheeseburger, happy mood gone for at least a little while. He chewed slowly, using it as an excuse to not talk, to not really do anything, elbows on the table with his arms crossed, leaning forward over them, looking down at his plate, not meeting her eyes as she looked over. If she wanted to know, she could figure it all out on her own, he knew that. But the one that haunted him most wasn't even his parents, which he had efficiently caused. It was the same one that always haunted him. His eyes slid shut.

"Watch your brother, Rory. I'll be back in a few minutes."

The voice was soft, hardly heard over the happy squeals and screams of children splashing each other. He'd been silent, only nodding, not tearing his eyes away from the page. He understood what he was supposed to do, even though he'd hardly heard her. This page, he'd said. He'd finish this page and he'd be done the chapter and then he'd look up. And that was what he had done. Bookmark in place, he'd closed the covers and glanced up, eyes scanning the water for the eight year old red head. But there was no mop of red hair dotting the surface. He waited a minute more, Eric couldn't hold his breath longer than that, he'd had Rory count one day to see, not long ago. No red hair appeared and the fear gripped him. Hoping he just hadn't spotted him, he'd stood, going for a better vantage point, book down on the beach chair.

Eric?

There was a few moments of what seemed like silence, all the sounds and splashes faded away as his ears strained to hear that voice, the one he knew so well. It didn't come, and then the fear turned to blind panic. He hadn't thought. Not really. He'd just run to the water, screaming, like he'd be able to find Eric if he tried hard enough, never mind the fact he couldn't swim. A lifeguard had caught hold of him before he made it into the pool, heard the strangled cries.

ERIC!

Then, all hell had broken loose. But he hadn't even noticed, and he certainly hadn't cared.

His eyes snapped open before the memory brought back that look in his mother's eyes, the one where she looked distraught, afraid, and terribly disappointed at the same time. He never relived that part, not if he could help it. Among all the chaos, that was the single moment he couldn't stand. The broken heart he'd caused in a stupid, split second, selfish decision. And, no matter how much she told him it wasn't his fault, that she didn't blame him, all it took was remembering that look and he knew that, somewhere, deep down, although she denied it, she had. Even if only for the briefest of seconds, his mother had blamed him, and he had agreed that he deserved that blame.

But he didn't cry. He didn't even tear up. Instead, he took a sip of his Coca Cola, swallowed, and glancing over at her with a smile. The pain, the blame, they both slipped away, hidden under the mask he'd learned to wear so very well, and the smile slipped to a grin.

But, really, who hates the teacher who plays music in class?

[Flame]

She sighed. ”If they hate you, they don’t learn.” she said simply. Her eyes wandering around the area, looking for students acting stupidly. None right then. She glanced at him and saw the eyes were closed and turned away again, watching around her carefully. Everyone had their secrets. Hers? She fell for her mark, and had his baby. Like an idiot. She still remembered when she’d had to kill Malcolm. She had to tell him who she really was. She could see the pain in his eyes, and yet she had to continue. He pushed her away and ran. She followed and got him cornered. ”You gonna shoot me Lilly?” He asked her his hands raised. Then he’d lunged at her, and she’d shot, three times, and watched him fall. No everyone had their bad stories.

She glanced at him. ”Depends on the music.” she said softly, watching him, then her green eyes flicked too Hunter leaving the Cafeteiria. Quickly to. She usually would have said something, but she knew about his parents. She was surprised he was even cognicent, but of course he had to be if he wanted to survive in this school.

[Centrinity]

He shrugged, no comment to that. Not even one. He probably could have come up with one of course, he'd always been quick to speak before he thought, but he didn't really find the need. She could think what she wanted of him, they all could, but the point was they had wanted him here and no one could argue with that. No one could tell him he didn't deserve to be here, even if he deserved it the least. He was good at one thing, and one thing alone. They were good at lots of things. But, still, he was good enough at that one thing to be deemed not just wanted, but necessary, or they wouldn't have called him in off his years of vacation time he'd taken and they had freely given. He just finished off his french fries and stood up to take his plate to the dish racks, dropping it in. He had a good hour left before lunch was over.

I think I'm going to go get lost trying to figure out where everything is in this school. You're welcome to join and laugh at me, if you want.

He wasn't stupid. When you spend your life cowering in the corner, watching people to determine who was going to beat you up for your lunch money next, you learned to read people. There was something dark in her past too, though he didn't know how recent. He wasn't that good. He just knew there was something. And everyone needed a friend. Sure, any friend could hurt you in the end by leaving, or dying, but the good ones? They made the hurt worth it. Eric had. Yeah, it hurt like hell that he was gone, even now, but just one photograph of him getting a piggyback from Rory, and the man knew he wouldn't have traded knowing his brother for the world, and that was the most important part.

So, he did what any normal, self-sacrificing idiot would do, and he offered her a chance to come along. If it was a movie, he'd probably hold out his hand for her. As it was, he figured that was probably way too cheesy and instead he just offered her one of his goofy grins, hand raising to brush the bangs out of his eyes, swearing silently to himself for the billionth time this year that he'd get them trimmed someday. It would never happen, he knew. He was too fond of his hair.

[Flame]

The brunet smiled, her green eyes sparkling as she finished her fries. ”Hm. Sure. And I don’t laugh unless you do something extreamly stupid.” she said simply standing up easily. She thought for a second about her son, who was at the sitter’s, playing. He was inncent of the crimes of his father, that she knew, but she wondered if the CIA was going to watch her son like a hawk until he proved himself? Probably. But she still loved him. The little boy was tall for his age, and getting taller. She glanced at him.

”I’m not all that old here. I still get lost in the underground.” of course that was rarely, but it was known to happen. ”Mainly when the Principle tries to lead me in circles.” she said with a slight grin, as she took her tray and put it away, with a nod to the people in the back.

[Centrinity]

Ah. The Underground. Never been down there. Not sure I want to go down there. But, I suppose I'll have to someday. Upgrade the cameras, cause they're shit compared to what they could be. If what I've heard about the last time they were replaced is true.

He replied, spinning to walk backwards for a bit, hands in his hoodie pockets again, houlders hunched just that slight bit that made him look just like he had in grade nine, albeit taller, with longer hair. But, he was grinning. Most people, he'd decided, were way too serious. What was the point? You lived, then you died, so you may as well make the best of it and have some fun, or lots of it, whichever struck your fancy. He paused outside the dining hall.

Alright, so, I know there's classrooms that way, with my computer lab and the spare one at the very end. It's... COW, C and A, and a couple of the languages. But, besides there and Sheridan, I've been nowhere else. Sooooooooo..... this way it is!

He was like a kid in a candy store almost, grinning as he talked himself through the plan, though it didn't exactly need to be verbalized. As he headed down the other hall, his head began bobbing again to silent music that played only in his head. Then, he was humming along softly before he jumped in to sing softly under hi breath as he so often did. He supposed it was a good thing he actually had a pretty good singing voice, or he may have been strangled by now and therefore dead.

If I could write you a song to make you fall in love I would already have you up under my arm, I used up all of my tricks, I hope that you like this, but you probably won't, you think you're cooler than me!

He chuckled softly, falling back to humming, a little skip to his walk, though he wasn't actually skipping. Just... walking with a rather obvious beat, a little double step here and there as the song continued on his head, then he was done with a little three-sixty-degree spin on his left heel and he was back to walking normally, no head bobbing or humming involved.

And yes, this was entirely normal.

[Flame]

She shrugged. ”It’s not all that great. A lot of my classes happen down there. It’s great for teaching the young un’s how to be sneaky.” she said with a laugh. ”And it is, I’m pretty sure. I can almost tell how old they are. At least as old as me. Which is sad.” She said with a slight grin. She eyed him, as he now looked like a freshman. ”Should I start calling you by your last name and calling you on slouching?” she asked walking normally. Like always. She only acted when she had to. Which it was going to be amusing when she taught her class how to go from sneaky to perfectly composted. Because she doubted any of them was going to be able to pull it off. She made games. Huge ‘parties’ where people had to sneak in. It was lots of fun for everyone.

She shook her head as she followed fully amused. She had an hour before she was needed anywhere, so it was fine. ”That way is slightly boring.” she said with a slight laugh. She followed easily behind him, and then next to him as he started to well dance. Then he sang. She eyed him for a long time, quite confused, and rather amused at the same time. Then he stopped and went backto normal.

[Centrinity]

Well, see, you could, but I'd totally just ignore you like I ignored Mrs. Harrison all the way through high school.

He replied with an innocent grin. He'd seen a lot, yes, and he'd done a lot, and there was a whole whack of things he blamed himself for, but, when you got down to the bottom of it, he was still that innocent kid and he'd never quite grown out of it. He knew the world was cruel, that it was bad, but he didn't let it bring him down if he could help it, and he still saw the best in everyone, just like a child. He just didn't let things phase him and, to a degree, it was actually quite an admirable quality.

Well, at least, until it carried on into his mannerisms and behavior rather than his outlook on life.

Yes, well, I've got to head through the boring parts some time or another. What if I have to venture in this direction to, god forbid, find another teacher? Then I get lost, confused, and end up a hobo on the street. I mean, that would be just downright terrible. It's best to just sort it all out now.

Okay, yeah, over-exaggerating, just a bit(okay, a lot), but that was the point, clearly, since he was grinning and trying(rather unsuccessfully) to stop himself from laughing. Then a draft blew his bangs in his eyes again and he scowled, carefully sweeping them to the side again, fingers running over his hair to pat down any that had stubbornly stayed up after the unruly draft of wind had messed with them. Oh, yeah, he was sort of majorly self conscious in regards to his hair. But, as far as he was concerned, there was nothing wrong with that.