fandomhigh | Ethics [Thursday, January 10]

Anakin walked into his classroom precisely on time and gave the students assembled there an appraising glance.

Except for how his glance lingered on a couple of faces as his eyes widened slightly, it wasn't possible to tell what he thought of them.

"I'm Master Skywalker," he said in a voice that was intended to carry, "this is Ethics, and we're going to skip the introductions--I'll figure out who you are--and move straight to our first discussion."

He paced around the room, cloak flaring out behind him, as he handed out the syllabus. "Today's topic," he said. "Self sacrifice: knowing the difference between saving people and being a pretentious twit."

"Any time I ask a a group of people what they would do to save someone they love, they all blither on about how they would set the world on fire, lie, cheat, steal, kill, die, et cetera, et cetera. I've been at this school too long to believe that half of you haven't already been put into this situation and I'm in no mood to hear adolescent ramblings about how wonderful you were or might hypothetically be. We're going to ground it in reality.

"Over the summer there was a woman who was in charge of this school. She had been placed in power legitimately, was allowed to punish in accordance with that power, and began pushing the boundaries of her authority almost immediately. She called students to her office, punished them for slights genuine or imagined, and began escalating the severity and frequency of her punishments, going over the line into what was no longer acceptable."

Anakin crossed his arms over his chest, the scars across his face very evident in the light coming through the window. "It eventually took a team of highly qualified adults to take her out. Today's topic: when do you draw the line? When do you admit to yourself that a problem cannot be solved, that to sacrifice yourself isn't a statement, it's merely pointless? How long does it take for you to check your ego?"

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Rikku bit her lip, and tried to wait for a moment when Professor Skywalker wasn't paying attention.

"Are you okay?" she asked softly. Which was a stupid question, but she didn't have better words for it.

"It is nice to hear that my love's sacrifice would be counted for so little by so many here," Romeo hissed back. "I propose that before any might answer this question, they ought to find themselves in a room where self-harm seems the door out, and see who refuses to open it."

Rikku flinched. "They don't mean like that," she said quickly. "More the people going, 'a-ha, here, I'm gonna save the world' and rushing forward to throw themselves in front of a train even if it doesn't change anything. She ... y-your wife? She ... was hurting and couldn't make it go away. That's ..."

She swallowed, hard. "I'm so sorry."

"I know how it is meant, yet still it hurts," Romeo whispered, eyes haunted. "Each of us believed the other dead, and neither wished to live without the other. I live on only because the apothecary I knew was poor indeed." He gave a wary glance to Master Skywalker. "If you wish to know more, I would tell you, but perhaps not here."

"I would," she said quickly. "Er. I mean. If it's not ... I don't want you to have to ... sit and talk about it, if you don't want. I'll stop being nosy, honest."

"'Tis good to talk, is it not?" Romeo said. "If you could go to town tomorrow after classes, I would buy you coffee as payment for hearing of my woes."

Did he just ask a girl out? As a friend, he told himself. Easy, gentle Romeo.

"It does help," she said softly. "And ... I mean, you don't have to. Buy me coffee, I mean, if you don't want to and all. But it's sweet of you to offer. I'll be working at the Wellspring Arms, do you wanna just meet me there?"

Not a date, then. Good, that was easier.

"I shall stop in after class," he promised. "And thank you."

Rikku smiled, fussing with her hair and feeling awkward. "That sounds good. Uh. I mean. Not good, 'cause we're ... you know, talking about ..." Insert flail. "You know what I mean?"

"I do, Rikku," Romeo said, with a half-smile. "Not good it happened, but good to have new friends to confide in."

"Good to talk about it. And ... yeah. Meet people and all that." She beamed. "But I'm probably gonna have something that isn't coffee. Trust me, it's not a good idea to give me caffeine."

Ethics [Thursday, January 10]

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