Escaping the Chaos (Open)

[wisdom]

Pete leant heavily against one of the many black four by fours that seemed to populate the Mansion’s garage. He still hadn’t worked out why the place needed so many gas guzzlers, let alone why they had to be all in one colour scheme. Bulk discount perhaps? Of course he wasn’t here to look at all the pretty automobiles, nor work out the reasoning of Xavier’s love of big cars. No, Pete Wisdom had come to the Garage for a much higher purpose. To smoke.

He couldn’t in front of the students, one of the many things he’d agreed upon with the professor. He had to set an example for all the impressionable minds... Or something along those lines. In truth Pete had tuned whatever the man had been saying after the words “no smoking” and had only resumed listening after he’d mentioned that Pete was of course allowed to indulge his habit in private.

So here he was, an already lit Benson and Hedges cigarette half hanging out of his mouth, trying to relax before he went back to the hullabaloo that would be his next class. Becoming a teacher definitely wasn’t amongst his brighter ideas, but with little other career options he’d signed his life away on that accursed dotted line.

He took another drag from the cigarette and breathed it out slowly. Still, being at the school did have its advantages. He got to keep his finger on the whole mutant issue’s pulse, admittedly in a much greatly reduced capacity as his former life, but he still felt in the game. Just that teaching had replaced espionage, and any attractive female he happened to spot were invariably, with a few exceptions, jailbait.

The Garage door slamming open jerked him from his thoughts, causing him to half-swear and drop the dog-eared remains of his cigarette to the floor where it was quickly extinguished and hidden from view courtesy of his boot.

‘So much for a relaxing smoke...’ He thought wirily to himself as he glanced towards the sound of the intrusion. Whoever it was they better have a damn good reason for bursting into the garage, otherwise Pete would just have to exercise some of that teacher power he’d heard so much about.

[Sunshine]

Penny was thinking to be nice and wash a few of the cars for people. Her homework was done and she was short on funds so she really didn't have anything more to do. Besides it would give her an idea about what kind of vehicle she'd want once she got the money to get one. Well that and she got kicked out of the kitchen by the staff at the moment. Really the girl was just bored out of her mind and the vehicles were so pretty. A good washing and waxing would be just what they needed. So she had gotten dressed in jeans and t-shirt and headed down to the garage.

When the door banged shut the girl jumped. "Oops." She hadn't meant for that to happen. Now that she thought about it, the garage was kind of spooky when you were there all alone. A slight shudder passed through her as she started to walk around. Fortunately, her sneakers didn't make the clicking sounds that heels do, so she wasn't quite as freaked out. As she rounded the corner she came face to face with one of the teachers. "Hello, Mr. Wisdom. Sorry if I'm bothering you, I was just um.... Well bored so I was going to um.... Wash some of the cars or something." Even though it was the truth it sounded lame, even to her. With a soft sigh she braced herself for whatever kind of tirade she was going to get.

[wisdom]

Whatever harsh words Pete had picked to unleash at that very moment died at the sight of Penny. It was hard being angry at the girl, she was just so... nice. Sure they other students were friendly and all “butter wouldn’t melt in their mouths”, but few actually meant it like the girl in front of him. Truth be told he found it kind of disturbing. Her sunny disposition, the reason behind her codename he was sure, was so foreign in the world that they lived in that Pete had almost written it off as a mutant power in of itself.

“Ah, that’s all right... Penny...?” He asked half casually, almost trying to hide the fact he’d forgotten the girl’s name. He couldn’t help it; student codenames were easy to remember to comparison to names. Still he’d spent a few hours trying to at least remember some of those on his class roster.
“You’re not bothering me, darling. I was just smo-“ He coughed slightly to cover his lapse, “I mean inspecting the student vehicles for safety purposes. Safety first and all that, eh?”

The lie probably sounded as feeble in the girl’s ears as it did his own, not to mention that the smell of smoke still hung heavily in the air. This is why he hated kids, they always had to pop up at the worst times. He practically leapt on her reason for being here, eager to change the subject.

“So, washing cars eh? Good way to earn a few quid I suppose, or cure boredom for that matter. Though I’d probably be inclined to seek a more interesting source of entertainment, only so much fun to be had with a sponge and a bucket outside of the bedro-“

Yet another cough finished that sentence before he dug himself any deeper. ‘Great going Pete,’[/i] a traitorous voice sparked up in the back of his mind, ‘Upside you’re really selling the whole not-an-ex-spy angle of your cover, downside is she’ll think your either a sexfiend or mentally short a few sandwhiches.’ [/i]

Yep, Pete Wisdom hated kids.

[Sunshine]

The fact that he remembered her name floored her, even though she could tell he was struggling with it. But then there were less teachers than students, so she was surprised he remembered at all. Lucky guess though it was. She couldn't stifle a giggle when he tried to convince her he really wasn't out her smoking. "Yup, safety is the utmost of importance. But then curbing a nic-fit is very important as well. I won't tell on you Mr. Wisdom, feel free to smoke if you want to." The girl shrugged. She wasn't one to judge or rat someone out unless what they were doing seriously put their's or other's life in immediate peril. Penny understood the need for a few vices, one would consider food hers. Grant it they could argue all day about who's vice was more dangerous to their health, so she wasn't going to preach to him about the perils of smoking. His body, his choice, and his life, just like hers was hers.

Penny wasn't doing it for the money. Hell most of the owners didn't even know it was her. But the girl had an extreme need to feel useful and this helped to curb that desire. Her hand covered her mouth as she giggled again when he almost slipped up. "Mr. Wisdom, you don't have to, stop being who you are. Say what you want it won't bother me." She shrugged yet again. "I'm nineteen so it's not like you are saying these things to a tweener." Virgin though she was and slightly naive at times it didn't bother her. She knew he wasn't meaning the comments in a negative way and that was all that mattered. "I'll just go over there if you want and pretend that I don't know you are here. Then you can smoke or whatever. OK?" Really she didn't want to make him uncomfortable since she seemed to have the knack for comforting and discomfitting at the same time. Maybe that was a mutant power that had yet to be tapped.....

[wisdom]

Pete visibily relaxed as she volunteered to hide his secret, the last thing he needed was to be ratted out to the Professor. Not that the man would do much, but Pete was certain he couldn’t sit through another of his lectures. He admired Xavier’s drive and passion for what he taught, but Pete was just one of those people that really couldn’t stand being told what to do and not to do. He always had to press, a fact that had undoubtedly fuelled his teenage rebellion so much.

“Really that obvious, eh?” He chuckled softly, already retrieving another cigarette from the packet stashed away in his jacket. Although he could make it through the day without touching one of those delightful death sticks, he’d found on experience that his mood suffered greatly as a result. Add the fact he had to teach a classroom full of annoying brats with super powers he’d be liable to commit murder. He clicked his fingers and generated a hot knife from the top of his thumb to light the cigarette, taking a long drag and exhaling slowly. He imagined that in some way he could already feel the effects of the nicotine relaxing him.

“Luv, some of the stuff that goes on in my head, not to mention my past, isn’t exactly the sort of thing you tell anyone regardless of their age.” He tilted his head slightly and flashed a slight grin. “’sides... One of these days you’ll probably doing half the stuff yourself with some hot guy, and I wouldn’t want to spoil the surprise now, eh?”

He took another drag from his cigarette, regarding Penny carefully as he did. “So what’s the real reason you’re out here, luv? Washing cars is all fine and that, but surely there’s gotta be something a young lass like you would rather be doing, right? Other than standing here listening to my sordid escapades and watching me smoke that is.”

[Sunshine]

Penny gently patted his shoulder and wondered why he was a teacher if it stressed him out so much. At least that was the assumption she was making. He always seemed nice though but she wondered if that was so he didn't kill the often rambunctious teens. Then she oftened wondered how any teacher could handle it and her respect for teachers grew. Even she would have trouble with teenagers. Now little ones on the other hand would be a joy, even when they went a little crazy. But then at that age even when they got into trouble they were adorable.

"That obvious. Might I suggest some Frebreeze for when you go back in? That way you won't have to worry too much about anyone noticing. But honestly, I don't see why anyone would care. It's not like you were smoking pot or something and everyone has some sort of vice. Like me, it's food." She grinned up at him. That was obvious as well. Now Penny never really cares too much about her weight though sometimes it does get her down when she gets made fun of. She was healthy just a chubby.

"I didn't mean you had to get personal. But if you have a smart comeback don't be afraid to use it. It's not like most of us won't understand the reference, whether we've actually done it or not. May get frowned upon by the other teachers, you know higher standard and all, but at least it shows you aren't that much different then us." At his next comments she blushed a bit and just shook her head. The girl wasn't stupid, with the way the other girl's looked around here she knew there was a snowballs chance. Unless of course she could totally win the guy over with her cooking it wasn't going to happen until she was older. Penny was the type of girl a guy wanted when they settled down, not the type of girl a guy wanted at this point in his life. "Looks like I'm not the only one that has big dreams." She couldn't stop the playful wink. Penny was still a flirt after all.

The young woman just shrugged and thought about his question. "It's just one of those days when my creative side doesn't want to come out and play. That and I've been banned from the kitchen while the staff is in there. Homework is done, no money really, and nothing else to do. Besides, it gives me a chance to see what kind of vehicles are out there and what kind I want. I can always come back later if you'd rather have the garage to yourself." No boyfriend, no cash, no true friends yet, and her creative muse is locked behind some barrier. What more did she really have to do at the moment?

[wisdom]

“Not too different from you lot, eh? I don’t know whether to take that as an insult or a compliment.” He flashed his slightly lopsided grin once more before turning serious, “I’m not too worried about the what the other staff think too much, it’s just I’m rather attached to getting paid on a regular basis and I’d rather not get the sack if I can help it.”

He smirked at Penny’s flirtation; the girl had potential that she probably hadn’t even realised yet. She reminded him a lot of his older sister, Romany. She certainly shared the “putting” type personality. Always putting on a cheerful face. always putting others first, always putting yourself down. He rolled his cigarette back and forth between his thumb and forefinger and silently contemplated how exactly to best help the girl break free from it, he’d seen what such a role had driven his sister too and he’d rather hope to avoid it happening to anyone, especially a student of his. Outwardly he just grinned once more and deadpanned his response to her tease, “Yes... Dreams...”

“When I was your age, when such a quiet event arose, I’d be down the local discovering the wonders of alcohol. Of course that’s largely because eighteen’s the legal drinking age back home...” Pete purposely chose not to reveal the fact that he’d been drinking a bit before he’d actually reached eighteen. While he doubted Sunny was the type to, he’d rather not give any ideas that might come back in the form of a lecture from a certain bald scholar. “You don’t have to leave, I’m only one man and the garage is certainly big enough for the two of us even with my ego.”

[Sunshine]

Her hands went on her hips in mock insult. "Would you rather be an old fuddy duddy? Or thought of as younger and cool? I just can't see you pulling off the stuffy stick up his..." She coughed a bit to stop herself from finishing that statement. It was true though, she really couldn't picture Mr. Wisdom as a square. Did anyone really ever use that word anymore? Good grief, maybe they were right in the orphanage. Maybe she should have been born back in the fifties. "Ah, yes, paychecks are good. Very important and good for you know... living." If she had thought about it, Penny would have just smacked herself upside the head for that. But fortunately, the girl was too genuine to really care if she sounded that silly or she was just burying the embarrassment.

The girl knew that people thought she was putting herself down a lot and usually that tended to annoy them. But Penny is more of a realist than people realize. She's happy with who she is, which was why she could flirt, but she knew that right now she wasn't the type of girl guys dated. She was stable and the 'settling down' kind of girl. At least that was how she was seen. Would she like to get married? Some day but not until she was older. Penny knew that she'd be happily married one day but until the boys grew up and were ready to settle down, she was more of the good friend kind of girl. At his comment she grinned a bit. "Alright, I guess fantasies would be a better term." She only blushed a little but then that was to be expected.

As soon as he started talking about alcohol she started shaking her head. "Don't get me wrong. I have nothing against it, but I'd rather remember what I did the night before. I want to be able to laugh at the person dancing naked on the table, with a lampshade on their head. I don't want to be that person. Besides I know myself well enough to know one thing, if I got drunk I wouldn't be able to look at myself in the morning, and I'd wonder who the guy snoring next to me was." The girl was just being honest, she was cautious when she was sober because she wanted to make sure she wasn't going to be a joke. So she never really falls too hard for the lines that a guy might feed her just to see what would happen. Drunk? She'd probably take on the entire bar if they just said she was cute. Nope, that is so not going to be her. Not if she could help it anyway. Penny giggled a bit. "There are bigger egos out there so don't worry too much about it. Would you mind just talking and stuff or would you rather I left you be?" At least she was giving him the option instead of just annoying him with her presence.

[wisdom]

“Fuddy duddy or young and cool... Decisions, decisions.” He too had trouble with the mental image of being a “square”, but he supposed that as you got older you saw people in different light so never realised the label had gradually slipped onto you along the way. Being young and cool certainly appealed to his ego more, but he’d always hated those older people that had trouble accepting that they were just that. Older. “Yes, living is always good. Ask anyone alive and they’ll certainly agree, well with a few exceptions here and there.”

He smirked once more as downgraded dreams to fantasies, choosing not to divulge that they were in fact reference to his well spent, or misspent depending on your point of view, youth and explorations into the mystery that was the fairer sex.

“Yes, those drunken one-night stands do make for awkward moments at the breakfast table certainly, but it’s a thing that you have to try at least once. Or twice.” ‘or a few more times,’ the traitorious voice sparked up again before being squashed by his subconscious. “And I can testify, for myself at least, there has been no naked dancing on any tables where a lampshade has been involved in any form.”

He tapped the ash from the end of his cigarette and tried to avoid any of the fractured flashback images that tried to flit past his mind’s eye. He’d done some pretty wild stuff back then, most of it while he didn’t want to repeat any time soon he wouldn’t trade for the world. It had been an experience to say the least, an experience that had led him to where he was today. ‘Hmm, so sure about not taking it back now?’

“Many would disagree with you there about the size of my ego, luv... But I suppose you’ll learn that in time.” He scratched his neck absently and glanced at his battered looking watch, again trying to avoid any trips down memory lane, this time with a whole different reason. “It’s up to you really, I’ve got time to kill and a whole packet of B&H to indulge myself in, so it’s safe to say I’m not going anywhere soon.”

[Sunshine]

A grin touched her lips as he acted like he was really mulling this over. In her mind if one truly was young in their soul then when they act as such it comes naturally. It's when the person has an old soul and tries to act different that things get a little awkward. For some reason she pictured Mr. Wisdom as being nearly a hundred and still keeping up the with kids around him. There was a small groan when he commented on her comment and hung her head. "Even I know when I'm lame, can we just forget I was so lame so fast?" The girl peeked up and had decided that it was better just to face facts then try to cover them up. She was just trying to hide her embarrassment but then figured, like a fear, it was better to just face it head on.

Again her head shook nearly violently. "If I ever get wasted it will be in my room, by myself. I really don't want to embarrass myself too much. I mean if I'm aware I've done it then it's less embarrassing then if someone surprised me with it. Knowing my luck it would end up on youtube." That thought caused the girl to shudder a bit. "I can just see it now... Tonight on Youtube, goody goody Sunshine has drunken orgy. What would her professor's say?" She really wouldn't put it past someone to do that either, especially in this day and age. "I'd be getting detention and not know why." When he said there had been no naked dancing on a table with a lampshade, a small grin tugged at her lips. "Maybe you just haven't seen the pictures." She had the decency to blush and she couldn't believe she was teasing a teacher like this.

Penny just shrugged. "Some deserve the ego." Her head tilted to the side as she watched him. When he said they could continue talking she grinned since it was much more fun than washing cars. "What kind of things do you like to do, if I may ask? Other than smoking of course." What did one talk to an instructor about? Still Penny couldn't believe she had teased him. Well what she saw as teasing might really have been flirting, but since flirting was unintentional she didn't quite realize it. If she realized it she'd be such a bright shade of red one would think she was wearing tomato sauce on her cheeks.

[wisdom]

Pete paused slightly as she mentioned drinking alone, suddenly staring intently at the end of his cigarette as if it was the most important thing in the world at this point. “Drinking alone is never a good sign, take it from someone that’s been there.” His expression briefly turned sour before he gave his head a rueful shake, tossing the butt of the now finished cigarette to the floor and extinguishing it much like its former friend. He gave sunny a wistful smile, quickly leaping on the proffered comment about pictures. “Pictures? Now I know you’re pulling my leg, I made damn sure to get them all back an- ... I mean, Pictures? What are these pictures you speak of?”

“What kind of things do I like? Hmm,” Pete paused and rubbed his chin slightly, mentally running through his list of likes and dislikes, crossing them off when not suitable for a younger audience, regardless of said audience’s claims to otherwise. Something’s just shouldn’t be said. “Oh this and that, I’m a man of simple tastes; Fast cars, fine food, expensive clothes. You know the regular stuff.” He purposely dodged giving any real answer, a habit he’d built up during his tenure with British intelligence that he’d never successfully managed to kick, much to the detriment of any relationship - platonic or otherwise. Omit the truth, never lie, and be as vague as possible. “What about you? Other than food and car washing, what goes on in the head of Penny?”

[Sunshine]

Her head tilted to the side when he went all quiet and she felt bad for mentioning something that might have upset him. "Sorry if I made you remember something bad or sad. That was never my intention, I hope you know that." A giggle escaped when he talked about the pictures and one brow went up. "Maybe you should google it then, just to make sure. Don't want any of the students to put in facebook now do you?" Again she found herself teasing him and wondered if it was a bad thing or not. She had to admire his need to stay professional but something told her it went against his nature and that saddened her a bit. No one should have to not be who they were, unless of course they were sadistic murderers, but that was for safety reasons.

It wasn't hard to tell he wasn't being honest and she really didn't expect anything less. But what did she like, that was a question. "Cooking, singing, dancing, boys of course, but not much really goes on in my head. Kind of a spur of the moment kind of girl I guess. It's not that I really enjoy car washing, it just gives me something to do. Oh and fashion, love fashion." Hate my curse. But she really couldn't say that to a professor now could she? "Do you actually enjoy teaching?" She knew some did and some didn't and was curious as to if he really was just doing it for a paycheck.

[wisdom]

Pete shook his head slightly and once more flashed a grin as the girl apologised, “It’s water under the bridge, luv, something that happened a long time ago. No need to go apologising for something that’s completely unrelated to you.” He mentally groaned that he’d let a remark of hers knock his mask slightly, he really had no intention of sharing his past with anyone, especially not a student. Of course Xavier knew about his past, not all of it mind, just the cliff notes. Enough to avoid any prying from the man at any least.

His face took on a blank expression as she brought up facebook, or even google for that matter. He wasn’t entirely behind the times, or completely computer illiterate, but he just couldn’t wrap his head around all these new technological advances they kept bringing out that just seemed so utterly... pointless. Still, he supposed it was just a generation thing and how he was brought up. “Yes, I certainly wouldn’t want to end up on that...”

He smirked as the girl rambled out a list of likes; she really was just like Romany. Of course he wasn’t sure if that was a good thing exactly, but the similarities were remarkable. Her sudden question nearly caught him off guard once more, causing his smirk to briefly be replaced by a frown as he contemplated her question. Did he really enjoy teaching? He wasn’t sure. It gave him a way of keeping tabs on the mutant issue, not to mention it helped salve his conscience for all the things he did in the name of Queen and Country. He rubbed the nape of his neck awkwardly before finally answering, “I suppose in a way.... Yeah, I do enjoy some aspects. Not all of it. No offense to you and your mates, but at times I could quite happily introduce the lot of you to the wonders of gaffer tape.”

He tilted his head to one side, regarding the shorter mutant as he retrieved yet another cigarette from his pack. He was intent on making the most of this reprieve and abundance of cigarettes he had managed to get his hands on. “What about you? You enjoying your time at this school slash mental asylum?”

[Sunshine]

Penny shrugged a bit. "It did have something to do with me if I was the one that made you remember. But look... " She closed her eyes and then opened them again. "Already forgotten." If ever a person tried to make the world a happy and better place it had to be Penny. She truly believed that all anyone needed was someone who truly cared about them and good food. But she also understood the boundary between teacher and student, and she knew that she could never really be friends with them. Not as long as she was still a student. But it didn't stop her from wanting to be friends.

A small grin touched her lips. "You have no idea what I'm talking about, do you?" For some reason that made her giggle a bit. However, if he said he got rid of all the pictures something told her, he got rid of all the pictures. Still it never hurt to check because some people were sneaky and she liked Mr. Wisdom so she didn't want anything bad to come out about him. At least nothing that would get him fired.

When he mentioned the gaffer tape she had to giggle. "Trust me there are some I'd like to put in a soundproofed, glass case for a bit. You know, break glass in case of an emergency, but only an emergency." Then she thinks about this for a second and a sheepish grin along with a blush comes into play. "There are several that probably think the same about me. Break glass in case of extreme hunger, but only in extreme hunger." That made her giggle.

Penny sat down on a crate and really thought about the question. Was she enjoying her time here? "It's better than any place I've been. I'm learning a lot, and there are some really nice people here. It's crazy at times, but it's like one big, highly dysfunctional family. So, yeah I guess I do. I mean I know that no matter what there is someone here should I need help. On any level even from physical to emotional. Someone always has your back and usually the person you least expect." She shrugged a bit and was tempted to asking him if she could have one of his cigarettes. She didn't smoke so she couldn't explain why they thought crossed her mind.

[wisdom]

Pete hmmed slightly to himself, bringing the new cigarette to his lips once more and likewise used his powers to light it. She certainly was a weird one. Then again, he was standing in a school developed to teach kids that had a genetic anomaly that gave them to powers to fart lightning bolts and sneeze fire. The term weird kind of lost value when you were faced with that kind of stuff on a daily basis. Still, he couldn’t quite peg her down exactly, something that he’d very rarely, if indeed ever, had properly come across. It irked him. He’d prided himself on being able to read people, to know their intentions. All he got off Penny was that she shared a remarkable resemblance on the surface to his sister, yet there was something else lurking beneath that. He shook his head ruefully and shifted position. He was probably just rusty, reading too much into things.

“Well, of course I...” He trailed off before starting again, “Honestly? I’ve not a bloody clue, you could of been speaking in cumbric and I’d have had better chance of understanding.” He shrugged slightly and wiggled his cigarette absently, “All this technology and junk they keep pumping out, I can’t make head or tails of half of it let alone be bothered enough to remember its name.” It was true, Pete and Technology was just one of those things that would never gel. Sure he could use it, provided it was just a simple case of hitting buttons or some other basic interface type doohicky, but when it came down to it he wouldn’t even know where to begin with half of it.

“Could be worse Luv, there probably wouldn’t even be a break glass option on mine.” He smirked and inhaled from the cigarette, exhaling it slowly as he thought about all the people that would practically leap for joy at the thought of him ‘boxed away’ for all time. No, Pete only intended to be boxed away once in his life, preferably at the end of it if at all possible. “Don’t sell yourself short though, I’m sure people around here don’t just see you for all the food you make.”

“Dysfunctional family is probably a given, I mean what family isn’t?” He chuckled softly, “Of course most families don’t have members that happened to be a furry and blue or anyone that can bench-press a small cargo train...” He took another drag on the cigarette. He hadn’t really looked at the school as a family, not like how Penny had apparently. Still he wasn’t the type to go looking for one, let alone know what to do with one when he found one. “Still once you find a place you can call home, its funny how all the little things don’t seem to matter so much.”