Working the Long Con, Tuesday, First Period

[talentforlying]

It was a grumpy, rumpled librarian that stomped his way into class after the students had arrived, bonelessly dropping into his chair and kicking his feet up on to his desk as he fished about in his coat for some cigarettes.

The school board might make him teach -- again -- but they couldn't make him behave.

"Right, I'm Constantine, and you're most likely here because you're gullible and thinking this is going to be an easy 'A', a delinquent, or for some strange reason thought this was an academic class with philosophical value," he said, lighting up. "More the fools you, but I can work with it."

"So, let's start with the basics. A con is a game, one where hopefully you're the one writing the rules and the people around you are the pieces you're moving. It's a scam, a grift, a hustle, all those words designed to make it sound as shady as possible, although the number of reasons you could be running a con are infinite, at least when you're justifying it to yourself. It usually just boils down to one, very simple motivation: You want something," he continued bluntly. "So give me your name - or whatever the hell you want to be called for the purposes of this class, I don't care - and tell me one time you ran a scam on someone. Give me an idea of what you already know, kids, then we'll get on to Arts and Crafts."

...yes, that actually was as ominous as it sounded.

[OOC: Wait for the OCD! Up early as I am at a conference all-day Tuesday and will be SP until 6pm CST.]

Comments

Sign-In

[talentforlying]

With an ulterior motive.

Re: Sign-In

[good_for_six]

Isabela

Re: Sign-In

[vrajna_kralis]

Hyacinthe

During the "Lecture"

[talentforlying]

If you can call it that... take notes, pass notes, boggle at whom they let teach...

Re: During the "Lecture"

[vrajna_kralis]

Hyacinthe was intrigued by the lecture and no little amused. Teaching a Tsingani to con was like teaching a fish to swim. But Delaunay had signed him up for this and Hya was interested in hearing what a gadje had to say on the topic.

Re: During the "Lecture"

[halfaclink.livejournal.com]

Frank poured himself a drink even more brazenly than usual. Look, if the teacher was going to smoke, Frank was going to drink.

Of course, if the teacher wasn't going to smoke, Frank was also going to drink, but that was hardly the point.

Talk and Stuff

[talentforlying]

Name, and one time you conned someone(s) into something. Feel free to bounce off each other, John doesn't care.

Re: Talk and Stuff

[good_for_six]

"Isabela, and I've never even thought about tricking someone, honestly I have no idea how I even ended up in this class."

Isabela, the innocent act worked better when you didn't look every inch the charming rogue.

Re: Talk and Stuff

[vrajna_kralis]

This girl was getting a broad smile. She was lovely, looked almost Tsingani, and started the class off by lying. Hyacinthe was practically in love.

Or, well, some emotion. One felt a lot lower on his anatomy. It sounded a lot like love, however.

"Truly an oversight," he said, amused. "I hope this class will not harm your...maidenly sensibilities."

Re: Talk and Stuff

[notamascot]

"I'm Kaylin Neya and well, there are a lot of things you pick up when you live in the fiefs. I guess one of the earliest ones was where you do the poor starving child bit while someone else steals food while the shopkeeper's back is turned." kaylin hesitated. "But I'm a Hawk now," or as good as one she hoped, "so I don't do that sort of stuff anymore."

Re: Talk and Stuff

[vrajna_kralis]

"I am Hyacinthe," he said in D'Angeline-accented Cruithne. "And I tell the fortunes of silly nobles who find it amusing to slum in Night's Doorstep for a few hours to soak of up the bad wine and risque atmosphere. Perhaps the better question would be who don't I con? I am Tsingani, we have been parting the gadje from their coin for as long as we have walked the Lungo Drom."

Re: Talk and Stuff

[thewrathofkaan]

"Hey, I'm Roscoe Kaan. That's K-A-A-N, not like 'working the con,' but how funny is that?" He'd only just thought of that. "And I came up with an idea to do a kind of risque group act at my school talent show by practicing a fake act at rehearsals when the principal was around." He grinned. "It was pretty awesome."

Re: Talk and Stuff

[kenselvren.livejournal.com]

"Jalian d'Arsennette." Jalian shrugged. "I make males give me money."

She lured them into private and mugged them. It counted, right?

Re: Talk and Stuff

[halfaclink.livejournal.com]

"Frank Doyle, and I joined the Student Council to increase the quality of spiked drink at school functions," Frank said. "It's worked like a charm!"

Granted, he essentially ran on that platform and got in without a vote being necessary. That just meant that he picked his targets well!

Arts & Crafts! (Kinda)

[talentforlying]

"Right then," he said, pulling a laptop out of his desk once everyone was through introductions. "We're starting with the first and most basic con, the fake ID."

"I want each of you to take a few moments coming up with a new name and identity, something you can remember easily in a pinch -- especially the birthday, that's the one they always ask while they're holding your ID -- then get your asses up here to place an order through the wonders of the internet."

Look, he was pretty sure half these kids didn't have any kind of ID in the first place. They might as well have something to have with them if they wanted to go do anything off-island, where people demanded ID for shite as ridiculous as a PG-13 movie.

Anything else the kids did with them was not his problem.

Re: Arts & Crafts! (Kinda)

[good_for_six]

Constantine, no, why?

"What's the ridiculous age they think you need to be to drink again?" Beyond, old.

Re: Arts & Crafts! (Kinda)

[talentforlying]

"In the States? 21," Constantine said, rolling his eyes in disgust. "We're a bit more civilized about it in England."

Re: Arts & Crafts! (Kinda)

[vrajna_kralis]

"What is an ID and why do I need one?" Hyacinthe asked.

Re: Arts & Crafts! (Kinda)

[talentforlying]

"Basically, the American government thinks you're all too young and pure and innocent to see violence or sex or go drinking." CONSTANTINE NO.

"So, if you want to go to an R movie or grab a pint, you need a little card like this--" he fished his passport card out of his pocket and slapped it on the desk, "--to prove you're old enough that you're not going to be corrupted or something."

Re: Arts & Crafts! (Kinda)

[thewrathofkaan]

Oh, Roscoe liked this class a lot.

He raised his hand. "What would be the pros and cons of using your real name? Since it's easy to remember and then you wouldn't have a bouncer potentially overhearing someone call you a name that's not on your ID."

Re: Arts & Crafts! (Kinda)

[notamascot]

Kaylin pulled out the ID another teacher had gotten for her and looked it over to see what it was supposed to say.

Re: Arts & Crafts! (Kinda)

[halfaclink.livejournal.com]

Frank had his done in no time. You didn't devote your life to a habit like being a drunk without knowing a thing or seventy about how to make a good fake ID.

Talk to the Teacher

[talentforlying]

Before or after class.

OOC

[talentforlying]

To keep the OCD in check.

Re: OOC

[cracksmostly]

So much "CONSTANTINE, NO" in the narrative already. ILU.