Gifting

[Elsa Bellefonte]

Elsa had a package in one hand, wrapped up and roughly the size of a book. It wasn't, technically speaking, a book, though you couldn't tell that simply from looking at the neat packaging. Elsa had purchased the item with the appropriate gift box, and it looked quite stylish, which, of course, had been the point. Since Elsa wasn't entirely sure when the recipient, Dr. Tyler Malone, actually celebrated his birthday, she was counting on the package to help get it across. Dr. Malone was one of the few teachers here that Elsa held in the highest esteem. Sure, several of the others were respectable, perfectly respectable as far as educators went, but Dr. Malone had several qualities going for him: a sense of style, rugged good looks, a doctoral degree, and, most importantly, a completely encyclopedic brain.

So it wasn't just about giving a gift to a favorite teacher, obviously. Otherwise Elsa would have attempted to pull up Dr. Malone's file and found out the correct date instead of just guessing. But she did want to give it to him and it had to be in person. So she checked in on the teacher lounge, paying someone to let her know when Dr. Malone was in there. As soon as she had that confirmed, Elsa invited herself in.

Which in itself wasn't that unusual. she entered, smiled at Dr. Malone, and extended the package. "Happy Birthday," she said, pausing for a moment before adding, "whenever that was."

[Dr. Tyler Malone]

For obvious reasons Dr. Tyler Malone always seemed to be the first teacher to complete the after class work most instructors, save for maybe that shorn ape that taught physical education, needed finished before the next day's class. Having every answer to every quiz, test, exam, assignment, or project already stored in your mind worked wonders in trimming the time spent on grading. Today, Tyler had intended on inviting one of his colleagues out for coffee once they'd completed the day's tasks, giving him some time to kill before he would leave for home. So, today, Tyler found himself sitting in the teacher's lounge reading the latest science periodical available.

The doctor's eyes shifted upward toward the door as it opened. The girl who stepped inside gave the teacher pause and his head tiled just faintly as he instantly recognized the Elsa as such. Although she was the spitting image of her more socially prominent sister, there were subtle differences Tyler could pick out with ease. "Good afternoon Miss Bellefonte." He said evenly, closing the magazine and setting it aside. "What can I do for you?" Politely Tyler got to his feet, he was a gentleman, after all. He was curious as to why the girl had wandered into the teacher's lounge. He suspected her to be far too intelligent to not be exactly where she wished to be.

Tyler's brow furrowed some as he looked to the package. "January." He said, although he did find a touch of amusement in the girl's actions, curious as though they may be. "You truly shouldn't have." He said, reaching out to take the package. It would be rude of him not to. "Should I wait until my next birthday to open it?" He said with a faint chuckle.

[Elsa Bellefonte]

It did impress Elsa that Tyler immediately guessed which twin she was, impressed her and gave her something to note for later times. If she needed to pass as her sister, she'd have to work especially hard around the astute doctor. Just what she didn't need. Though she did immediately begin skimming Dr. Malone's thoughts, knowing that it would be too rich a stream not to pan. She knew he would be okay with it, and she'd certainly ask permission before "clicking" any deeper.

"January," she repeated, smiling a little, "I'll keep that in mind. But no, you can open it now," she said, nodding to it. A bribe delayed wouldn't be all that useful to her. Though she wasn't entirely certain that Tyler was going to be overly impressed with what lay in the box. Oh, Elsa's hopes were high: she'd thought this out and selected the item carefully. She just wasn't completely certain that Dr. Malone would appreciate the most top of the line e-reader available, already pre-loaded with several books, including a few of Stephen Hawking's finer pieces.

"Besides, I didn't exactly get you anything then, and I clearly need to be playing catchup."

[Dr. Tyler Malone]

"Ah, Miss Bellefonte you've outdone yourself." The older teacher smiled a little as he unveiled the contents of the package. "Although I must ask." His eyes shifted from the device to the girl standing before him. "What has caused such an auspicious, and wholly unexpected gift?" Tyler wasn't so old and stuffy that he didn't know when to suspect a students' intentions weren't entirely as they had presented him. He was also aware of the girl's genetic mutation. Perhaps her desire was to simply poke and prod around in his mind. If that was the case he merely hoped for permission before accessing certain parts of his memories. It wasn't as if she'd be able to cycle through the ludicrous amount of information contained in the old teacher's mind.

"I do have to question your motives, Miss Bellefonte." Tyler said as he placed the e-reader on the table beside him. It was a fitting gift, one he'd surely get much used out of but he was more interested in the the twin's intent. "Surely if you merely wished to deliver a belated birthday gift it could've waited until class instead of involving you sneaking into the teacher's lounge."

[Elsa Bellefonte]

"It really is in part because I believe that you deserve it. This is hardly something you're going to take at face value, considering what I'm going to follow it up with, but you really are one of my favorite faculty members here," admitted Elsa. She, of course, let the information slide at least in part because she knew that it would put Tyler into an even more agreeable mood, which would make sifting through his mind all the easier. Someone as intelligent and knowledgeable as Dr. Malone could make that difficult.

"You are right to question my motives though," said Elsa, nodding. She moved to the table, dusting it a bit before taking a seat. "I could have just had the gift delivered if I solely wanted to show my appreciation for the time and effort you dedicate to our fine establishment. But I was also hoping that I might pick your brain for a bit, quite literally. I'm sure you know that I'm a mind reader, and it will be easier for me to sift through your thoughts than attempt to go through other channels. I want to check your opinion of an old student's research as well as do some note comparisons on a few events that happened in the Academy's history.

"Recent events," Elsa clarified, licking her lips, "though not too recent. I mostly wish to gain some insight into some dicier situations that we've dealt with in the past..."

That seemed to be enough. It wasn't like Dr. Malone wouldn't know what Elsa was digging for while she did her digging. She didn't believe he could with as deep as she hoped to go...

[Dr. Tyler Malone]

"Novel idea, Miss Bellefonte." The Doctor replied with a nod, although something still didn't sit right about it. "But you'll have to elaborate further in order to explain why you would need to enter my mind in order to do so." Tyler looked up to the girl. "Why wouldn't my verbal account of such events be suitable?" A think smirk played at the older man's lips. "Do you not trust my capacity to recall the past?"

Curiously, the teacher regarded his pupil. This was most certainly a strange development, indeed. The sheer number of questions her proposition brought up was almost mind boggling. He'd get to them in time, of that he was sure. For now, he would simply continue digging into the girl's motives while hoping she already wasn't carrying out her mind-reading tasks.

[Elsa Bellefonte]

"Because I can only ask you based on what I already know,' replied Elsa smoothly. She had to admit that she could understand Tyler's reluctance. When your powers were wholly based in your mind, the thought of allowing someone in could be quite terrifying. If anyone understand that fear all too well, it was Elsa Bellefonte. "See, if I look around in your mind, it's, well, I've explained it to you before. But I can essentially just look through your past thoughts and breeze through the information you've stored there, and I can do it at least as fast as we could talk about it, if not a little faster," Elsa paused for a moment, tapping her finger. "Though I'm willing to at least begin with discussing things. I do hold you in the highest respect, after all."

The implication being that she wouldn't have asked had this been nearly anyone else. In point of fact, when it came to most people, Elsa would have already been rummaging through their thoughts. Now she wasn't even skimming the surface of Tyler's mind. Manners mattered, particularly when someone had done excellent work in the past and you hoped that they would continue to do so in the future. For all Elsa knew, Tyler could become very, very important sooner than any of them thought.

[Dr. Tyler Malone]

The old teacher process the girl's information. It made sense, yes. He was well aware of how Elsa's power worked and would be lying if he said she hadn't appealed a bit to his ego. Tyler's mind was a powerful tool, among the most powerful at the Academy if you were to talk to him. That she humbly requested use of such a thing wasn't something he took lightly. It wasn't as if the doctor had many secrets tucked away she could find anyway. Not that he'd give her the chance to spend enough time scrounging around the immense database of his mind to find them, after all.

"Very well." Tyler reluctantly agreed with a bit of a sigh. His love for the Academy and all that it served overrode his personal reservations about willing letting someone dig around in the dark recesses of his mind. And that the girl had asked instead of simply going ahead with it wasn't lost either. The mutual respect they shared went a long way in his decision. "I do request we keep the 'session' as short as possible. I've much work to do and I hope you'll understand my reservations about allowing someone access to my consciousness."

[Elsa Bellefonte]

Elsa heard that sigh, though no sooner had the words left his lips than she began reading Tyler's mind. Normally Elsa would skim the surface thoughts, picking them apart and determining which ones would of most use to her in determining things. Thus she could move gradually deeper, causing less notice for the person involved and a little less discomfort for both of them. That discomfort wasn't a side effect of her power, of course, but more an emotional feeling that happened when you invaded someone as Elsa was now doing. She dove into Tyler's brain with abandon, pulling up various "links" and skimming information. It was hard, hard not to simply be awash in it all. In fact, Elsa took a deep breath, simply letting it all wash over her.

"Your mind never ceases to amaze me,' she admitted, meeting Tyler's eyes. She smiled slightly, nodding. "Let's begin at the top, SPECTRE, how do you feel about it? Does it remind you of anything in the past? I thought I heard something about scares earlier, but it's all rumors," she waved a hand. She'd found some information tucked away, but nothing solid, nothing to prove where this had all started from. It had to start from somewhere though, and Elsa wanted to see if the smartest man at the Academy had any suspicions, and if those suspicions were eerily similar to her own.

[Dr. Tyler Malone]

"I do believe SPECTRE has been around as long as they claim." One of the few things that could rattle the stoic teacher was the idea of someone fooling with his most precious commodity. His mind was not just his lifeblood, and the constant flood of new memories could, on occasion, be construed as a curse, but it also enabled him to becoming one of of the smartest beings in existence. That was a trait that simultaneously served as a source of pride and humbled him.

"But to think this is the only incarnation of such a project is foolish." He'd long theorized mutants weren't a new development. Most mutations were subtle and their possessors could rarely be identified as such to the naked eye. He felt it entirely possible that mutants in some shape of form could have manifested throughout human history. There was a great deal of mythology (both modern and historical) that supported this theory. "The United States Government has officially known of the presence of our kind for over a century. I believe as long as there have been mutants, there has been some clandestine organization watching."

[Elsa Bellefonte]

Elsa paused to think about that, staring at Tyler and tapping her fingers. He was right; she'd suspected something very similar, though she hadn't delved deep enough into it. The government had been supporting them to some degree; Elsa knew that, benefit of being close to everything. So they had to know. Which means they had to have built something. Over a century...

"Of course they have," said Elsa, sighing and rubbing at her face, "and we were foolish if we thought otherwise. It wouldn't surprise me to find that there's actually information more directly stating that somewhere..." she trailed off for a moment, wondering. The most logical location for such information was, well, the Headmaster's office, which Elsa didn't have direct access too (which struck her as foolish), but there were other possibilities, one of which sat before her.

"It would be too much to suppose that you would have any of that information?" she asked, looking into his eyes. She was tempted to browse his surface thoughts, wondering if she could pick out something to help support. Felt a little wrong, but she could deal with that.