fandomhigh | Freelance Treasure Hunting, Monday, Period 5, Class #1

As the students arrived, they would probably notice a woman clad in form-fitting black leather perched on a picnic table, swinging her feet as she waited for them to arrive. Some students, if they had met her, might be shocked at the woman's resemblance to Aeryn Sun.

Not that Vala knew the girl's last name, but that wasn't the point.

"Good afternoon, class. My name is Vala Mal Doran and I'll be your instructor for this class. As you know, this class will be about how to make your living as an interdimensional space pirate."

"Now, the first question you may have is why you would want to be an interdimensional space pirate, er, treasure hunter, in the first place. Clearly, you have much to learn if this is your question--because first, it's about fun. There's excitement, and danger, and your adrenaline rushes, and it's a wonderful feeling to know that you have done your best at every step of the process, and that the money you hold in your hand at the end of the day has been if not precisely honestly earned...well, you still have it in your hand, so it hasn't been used as bribes or bail money, and that's always a bonus."

"But enough about me," she said, getting up and wandering around, "I want to know about you--your names, where you're from, how long it takes to get there, the most convenient travel route, and any valuable or mythical objects that, if you were from your universe, you would attempt to appropriate and sell. Also, if you know of any pitfalls to obtaining these objects, either mystical or legal, please feel free to elaborate."

"Don't be shy," she coaxed, after a minute, "Who would like to go first?"

[ooc: ~~Please wait for~~ OCD is up!]

[daughter of ooc: Going to run errands for a few hours, will pick up pings when I get back.]

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"Because it's not right for me to force the morals of one society onto students I'm trying to teach to think for themselves?" She offered, making it up as she went along.

He frowned. "No, that doesn't work," he said slowly. "If you believed that you would be neutral. You yourself just told me you're saying stealing is a good way to live." Which it absolutely wasn't, but he needed to know more. "Presenting it as a moral absolute, and Sunlord knows I've seen enough of those to recognise one, which means you are forcing a single moral perspective on your students." The wrong one.

"I'm not saying that everyone has to steal as a way to make a living," she told him, studying him closely, "but if you didn't want to hunt treasure, why did you sign up for this class?"

"Presenting it in a positive light is misleading, and given your position of authority it will be seen as an endorsement. You don't need to force people if you can mislead them in to believing it's right," he said earnestly, clasping his hands in front of him. "I never said I didn't wish to hunt treasure, but I know that I will never wish to steal it. Do you believe what you're saying? That stealing is good?"

"I believe that it's good for me," she stressed, "and what are you going to do with the treasure? It always belongs to someone, even if that someone is dead and long buried."

"If I were to seek treasure, I would be seeking that which was lost to the Kin, so I would be restoring it to its proper place." He paused and looked at her for a long time. "If you only believe it's right for you, then it's your duty to present a balanced perspective to your students, or failing that, at the very least a neutral one."

She sighed. "Would you be satisfied with a full explanation and discussion of the pitfalls and dangers of this line of work?"

"And where would you go about looking for items that were lost to the, er, Kin, you said? Hypothetically speaking, of course."

Karal smiled, just a little. "You must know I'm not going to answer that question," he said reproachfully. "And that would be an excellent start." He paused, knowing he was quite likely pushing her tolerance, but he had to ask. "Will that include moral pitfalls or merely practical ones?"

"It's not my job here to choose morality for students. If they want to follow my example, that's up to them," she said seriously, "and if they don't, that is also for them to decide. However, if a student were to raise the issues, I wouldn't shy away from discussing them."

"Thank you," he said sincerely, smiling a little shyly. It was more than he'd expected and he was pleasantly surprised at her answer. "Truly, I believe that's the wisest course. What is truth for one may not be truth for another."

And with his concerns assuaged, at least for the moment, he was suddenly acutely conscious of what she was wearing, and he flushed. "Thank you for listening," he said quickly and turned to go.

"You're welcome," she grinned, recognizing the blush for what it was.

Freelance Treasure Hunting, Monday, Period 5, Class #1

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