fandomhigh | Ethics [Thursday, September 17, 1st period]

When the students came into the classroom, they found Anakin scrawling a quote on the board:

“In general, pride is at the bottom of all great mistakes.”--John Ruskin

He turned around with an eyebrow raised. "Is Master Ruskin correct? How about Master Lao Tzu? He said: 'Pride attaches undue importance to the superiority of one's status in the eyes of others; and shame is fear of humiliation at one's inferior status in the estimation of others. When one sets his heart on being highly esteemed, and achieves such rating, then he is automatically involved in fear of losing his status.'"

He began pacing around the room. "Does pride always go before a fall? Do we have to be humiliated before we can learn? How high do the stakes have to be before we'll admit we've made a mistake, or have been fooled?"

"In order to deal ethically with other people, we need to acknowledge this very human flaw in ourselves and others. We want to believe that we are different, better than everyone around us." His gaze sharpened. "We're not. Everything is connected. You, me, the desks, the rocks outside, the deer in the preserve, the annoying person in the dorm who plays their music too loudly. Take pride in being yourself, certainly," he concluded. "But don't for a moment believe that who you are makes you more than the person sitting next to you. Because that kind of pride is where you make your first mistake."

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Consider Katchoo utterly and completely unmoved, not to mention irritated. More irritated, that was, for reasons beyond the plenty she already had.

"Tell me somethin'," she said in an exaggeratedly slow and deliberate tone. "'cause I gotta know, is it hard work tryin' to be that dumb?"

If anything about her behavior was predatory . . . she'd been good at what she did, once.

Also, she could be and frequently was just a bastard like that.

No, all it took was a drug addiction that literally fried her brain.

"...I'm not dumb," she said, starting to cry.

You'd think Katchoo ought to feel bad about that. Wasn't like she hadn't seen the effects of that sort of thing before. Katchoo just had a blind spot a million miles wide about her own problems, allergies to most perky people, and an unfortunate inability to hold back much once she was on a tear.

. . . that, and she didn't know anyway.

"Could've fooled me. Aw, for pete's sake, would you turn down the waterworks? Geez."

"I just thought you were being extra smart," Hayley said. "Why'd you have to be like Batman?"

That made sense in Hayley's head.

Never underestimate the derailing power of an apparently nonsensical segue.

". . . because," Katchoo said, staring at her in a very who put me on a weird Candid-Camera reality show and can I kill them for this now way.

"I wasn't doin' anyone any harm," Hayley said. "And you call me stupid?"

Katchoo could've conceded she had a point there, but that would require a lower level of general misanthropy than the one at which she was currently existing.

"Called people worse. You'll live."

Mmm. Extra touch of bitterness on that last phrase, for no discernibly relevant reason.

"You know, you're awfully pretty for someone so mean," Hayley said. "You don't have to be mean for people to respect you."

She wiped her eyes with the back of her right hand.

Katchoo stuck her hands in her pockets and leaned back onto the back two legs of her chair. "I'll remember that the next time I wanna vaguely consider making the effort."

Which was pretty much never.

"...what effort?" Hayley said. "Cause you don't need much make-up, honest."

Thunk, went the front two legs of Katchoo's chair upon forceful impact with the floor again. "Never mind. Just forget it."

Hayley smiled at her. "I don't think I got your name."

"Nope," Katchoo said tonelessly, dropping her head onto her desk.

So helpful, Chewie. So helpful.

"Do I have to guess?" Hayley said, giggling.

Oh, was that a muffled growl coming from the head buried in the folded arms on the desk? Unless Katchoo had spontaneously developed and succumbed to chronic narcolepsy, yes, yes, it was.

"That's a funny name," Hayley said. Still with the giggling.

Ethics [Thursday, September 17, 1st period]

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