Time Warp: What Are the Odds of That?

[Ricky O'Cassidy]

As far as first days went, things had actually been going surprisingly well. Granted, of course, this was coming from a man who was used to having ridiculously bad luck all day, everyday.

Ricky O'Cassidy had finally landed a steady job working as an administrative accountant at a private school in Vermont. He wasn't going to be the only one, of course - not right away, at least. Not until they could see what he could do. But he was confident in his numerical aptitude and understanding of Vermont and federal tax codes to help overlook any random luck swings that came his way.

So, after waking up late, giving himself a shaving nick along his jaw, helping change a flat tire for a student in the parking lot, spilling coffee on his already scuffed slacks, and almost splitting his spare set when he slipped leaving the restroom... well, it actually wasn't that bad. He was actually even early for his appointment with Headmaster Harris. Some days, it really payed off to account for bad luck.

The blonde man walked from the hall into the main office, straightening his tie and holding his briefcase shut by the case itself. He wasn't a very tall man, nor very imposing, but he had laugh lines already starting to form in his boyish face around his green eyes and his smile was wide and excited. So this was the school he'd almost been brought to as a kid. Wow. What a place.

Finally, Ricky's gaze landed on the only other person in the room, someone who looked pretty close to his own age (if a little younger), and the Irish-American walked over with a bright greeting and a wave. "Good morning!"

Might as well get to know another member of the staff while he waited for his appointment.

[Dr. James Campbell]

The average amount of time for a Hammel student to receive training was four to seven years. Even when they were enrolled in college and returned to the campus only for training, seven years was usually the max.

James was nearing that mark, and no one had an estimate of when he would finally be allowed to graduate. At 28, he was the oldest student there by a long shot. Sometimes he felt like a cautionary tale; this was what happened if someone wasn't recruited and started training promptly after manifestation. They would be at Hammel forever.

So it wasn't that unusual for someone to assume he was a staff member. After all, he was older than quite a few. It wasn't the first thing that came to his mind though when the man greeted him. With a glance, James knew he had never seen him around Hammel before. Likely, he was a new teacher. James just smiled back at the newcomer and responded, "Morning! It must be your first day, because I don't think I've seen you around here before."

He was in the main office to try to talk to someone about rescheduling his training sessions. He had long since given up on just not attending them, and they actually did help him, to an extent. But he had just received his schedule for his first semester of his Masters, and there was a conflict. Hopefully, the office would cooperate with him and not just assume he was trying to get out of things.

James had given that up. Really. The only time it had actually worked was when he had refused to attend the sex ed assembly a few months after he had arrived at Hammel. At the time, he had been 22, married, and a father.

[Ricky O'Cassidy]

"Perceptive!" Ricky laughed, having no idea that the younger man was a student here. Because, really, he didn't have any idea (yet) how the recruiting thing worked outside of his own fluke. "I start today, newest member of the accounting department. Pretty excited, if I say so myself - it's my first contract." And yes, he felt totally okay admitting that.

Holding out a hand for a shake, he grinned his bright, genial smile. "Patrick O'Cassidy, but everyone calls me Ricky."

Really, he had no idea that he was talking to a student. From everything he knew, most boarding schools kept an average student body age range of six to twenty at the outside; why should Hammel be any different? Having never attended and only knowing the most basic information about metas from his folks and their causes, it seemed a reasonable assumption. Even if, of course, it didn't always apply. Like college students being 18-25 when sometimes kids as young as eleven attended.

You know, the really outside variables.

"You know if the Headmaster's office is nearby?" he asked, glancing around the main office at the various doors. He'd walked past the Infirmary on his way here from the bathroom (and marked it to memory - it was always one of the first things he looked for in a new place, and the other was first-aid kits), but he hadn't seen many other offices. Just classrooms. Which made sense, since this was a school and not an office building. But still, he had to wonder where exactly all the administrative rooms were. "I've got an appointment with Mr. Harris in... fifteen minutes."

This was said after checking his watch, then after glancing at the analog on the wall to double-check. They were the same, so his time couldn't be too far off, right?

[Dr. James Campbell]

Ricky's surprise made James smile. Yeah, he was perceptive. That was kind of his thing. 

"Nice to meet you. James Campbell." One of the first things he had worked on when he had started his training was controlling his overactive brain to ignore how disgusting handshakes were. Sure, the guy seemed clean enough, but James didn't know if he had washed his hands recently. Why on earth this became a custom was beyond him, but James managed to reach out and shake the other man's hand without flinching.

James didn't bother mentioning that he was a student. It didn't occur to him, and even if it had, it was just nice to talk to someone who didn't think that he was the most unfortunate series of events that could befall someone who manifested young.

"His office is at the end of that hallway." James pointed to the small corridor off the main office. "Don't bother with the other doors you pass. One is the staff lounge and one is the conference room. Are you doing your orientation today? If you need a tour of the campus, I don't have a class until three."

Retrospectively, that did sound like he might have been teaching the class, not that he had to attend it with a group of 16-year-olds.

[Ricky O'Cassidy]

The smile probably meant he was off to a good start. Which was great - once Ricky was talking and not terribly active, his bad luck tended to be reduced the normal levels of human miscommunication rather than the ridiculous levels of potential bodily harm it usually was. It helped, he supposed, that he was cheery and outgoing; unusual traits for someone who'd chosen to work in his field.

"Great to meetcha, James." Having just come from the restroom (though for a different reason than the room was normally intended for), Ricky's hands were freshly washed and dry. Of course, he didn't register that this might matter, as there weren't any germaphobes in his house growing up. Hard to be, when surrounded in tight quarters with ten other people daily. Still, he did give a brief if firm shake before letting go - not everyone liked being touched, after all.

Looking down the hall with a shift of his shoulders and a dip of his head, Ricky nodded in understanding. Teacher's lounge and conference room, with the Headmaster's office at the end. Got it. That shouldn't be hard to remember. "After my papers are filed officially," he replied with a smile. "But I'd be glad for the tour. Tend to get hopelessly lost if I'm left to wander too long."

"So, how long have you been here?" Inquisitive and eager as always, the question was out of his mouth before it could even really register. "Aside from the specialty teachers, what's so different here than a normal boarding school?" Asked from an accounting perspective, this was an inquiry into the staff and administrative structure; payroll, time off, vacations, leave-of-absence, medical coverage... all sorts of things could change between contracts. He'd need to know as much as he could get his hands on.

[Dr. James Campbell]

"Six years, just about. I probably have a few more coming." James's smile wavered. He was uncomfortable talking about how long he'd been stuck at Hammel, and how he didn't know when he'd be leaving. The fact that he could shake a stranger's hand was a big deal for him, but that was proof he needed more training. If the best thing that could be said was that he could manage the bare minimum of normal human interaction, then he still had quite a way to go.

Thankfully, Ricky had more questions, and the student could easily answer. "Probably the nature of the school. It's privately run, but publicly funded. The class sizes depend on how many metas manifest each year. And, of course, attendance is mandatory."

He couldn't help but frown at the end. The mandatory requirement had caused trouble for him. But in a way, it had forced a conversation that would have happened anyway; James and Lucy just weren't right for each other. He knew they were better off divorced, and though he wasn't exactly out yet, James was dating a nice man he worked with. "That's the hardest thing, I think. Students don't get a choice on whether to come."

[Ricky O'Cassidy]

Six years was an impressive amount of time for a teacher to be in a school, especially one that looked as young as James Campbell. Granted, the fact that he was a student didn't even register to the Irishman, and he went with the transition easily enough. "So, every student here is a metahuman, then?" he asked, intrigued. "Even when the classes are too small for normal schools? That's pretty dedicated! And with public funding, that'd mean stipends and grants rather than tuition... so even kids from poorer families won't have to worry about sending their kid to a good school."

This was sounding better and better (if more complicated for him) by the minute.

Of course, forced attendance did have that drawback. Rick'y expression immediately became sympathetic. "Yeah, that's true. I heard that from a recruiter when I was a kid. It'd been kind of a scary idea, leaving all my family behind to go somewhere I'd never been and completely surrounded by people I didn't know."

Granted, he had't been a meta, but that didn't make him any less empathetic. College applications were like that, too, after all. Just because he'd skirted that once didn't mean he could have done it forever. Not with his luck.

"Are most of the teachers here alumni?" he asked, perking up the conversation again. "I'd imagine you don't get many outsiders, since the school isn't public."

[Dr. James Campbell]

"Yeah, everyone here is meta. Except for a few staff." James included himself in that count, because he was, after all, a student. He had to nod, because it had been awful for him to be recruited. The whole story was too ugly to just tell, so the man just shrugged. "And yes, it is terrifying. At least it was for me. I had my whole life there, and then I got uprooted. I didn't have any choice in the matter."

With his power, James was able to tell that Ricky was not a meta-human. It was interesting that he talked to a recruiter as a kid, then. He had to have made contact with Hammel somehow in order to apply, though. "Do you have meta siblings? I'm assuming, because of the recruiter."

That would be a better topic. At least better than the story of James's first day at the school. Or he could answer the other question Ricky had. Despite not being a teacher himself, he could answer that one. "Well, most of them. Some of the other metas are from all over the world, and graduated from that school in Switzerland or something."

Yes, at the time James knew very little about the other meta schools in the world. He wasn't a recruiter yet, and he had spent a good chunk of the past four years trying to get out of Hammel, not get in anywhere else.

[Ricky O'Cassidy]

"Actually, that's a funny story." Ricky chuckled, shaking his head as he remembered it. "None of my siblings are metas, and as far as I know no one else in the direct family is either. Maybe some back across the water, but I haven't heard anything about that. No, ya see, I... well, you guys kind of made a mistake when I was a kid."

He laughed again, rubbing the back of his neck. "I've always had some pretty bad luck," he explained. "No reason; wasn't any more reckless than my brothers or sisters. Just if someone was gonna take the fall for something, nine times out of ten it was me. So, when I was twelve and got hit by a city bus, my parents were kind of surprised to see someone pop up on their doorstep a few days later asking to talk to me. Poor guy was convinced I was a meta, but after three tests and calling a friend of his out to the city, they found out I was plain unlucky."

It was a hilarious story, at least to him. "So they apologized, said their goodbyes, and went on their way. My folks got really into the metahuman rights thing after that, and I never heard the end of it."

Hearing about there being other schools, though... that was interesting. The Irishman's eyes widened in surprise, and one hand cupped his jaw in thought. "Switzerland, huh? Guess that'd be the safest place for it, what with being a neutral country and all. Wonder how many others there are."

Shaking off that train of thought, he waved his hand. "Well, whatever it is, I'm glad we have schools like this. Everyone's been so friendly, it's almost got me suspicious!" (A joke, of course, but his luck still never ran that well.) "I've seen how good this place is for graduates - roomed with one in college. 'S how I found out about the opening, to be honest. Was really worried that me being non-powered might be a concern, but it looks like everything's square on that front."

[Dr. James Campbell]

James couldn't help but be interested in Ricky's story about his almost-recruitment. He of all people knew that Hammel's recruiters could screw up, and badly. But he had never heard of sending a recruiter out on accident. He would have to ask Aristea about it. (Despite the awful first impression he'd had of her, over his six years at Hammel, they'd become pretty good friends. She had interceded on his behalf after his escape attempts and had helped him secure a weekend trip home to patch things up with Lucy. It hadn't worked, but she had at least helped him.)

"My recruitment was the exact opposite of yours. When I manifested, there wasn't a physical change, and so no one noticed. I didn't get recruited for years." He'd lived half his life with his power untrained, and that was why he was still there as a student in his late twenties. 

He nodded as the other man continued. Hammel was a good school, apparently. Most of the students went on to college of some sort, and they had support for students who were at the college level academically, but needed extra training. (And he wasn't the only one to fall into that group, though all of the others were closer to 18 than 28.) "All the baseline humans on staff have some sort of family connection to this place, as far as I can tell. They're married to someone or a sibling or child attends. Some of the meta staff have kids enrolled here too."

James often wondered what he and Lucy would do if Ginny turned out to be meta as well. She'd end up at Hammel, but he wondered if his ex would move to Pilot Ridge in that case. "Do you have any kids? I have a daughter, but she's too young for us to know if she'll be attending here yet."

[Ricky O'Cassidy]

"Years?" That was kind of shocking, and the Irishman's face showed it clearly. "They told my folks it was always within a few weeks, days if something got into the paper or on television." It was one of the reasons why he was here, technically - with all the flying out and paid travel time, it was sure to sap the budget for the school. He'd been told records were a little on the backdated side, but if it sometimes took years to notice a kid... well, that would explain why a bunch of these kids seemed older and still new.

He smiled at the idea of a whole family attending here, or even just one or two while their parents worked here for their sake. It was kind of cool. "A whole family affair, then, huh?" he asked, chuckling. "Think my generation's just about out for all our family, but with how many kids there are floating around, it might crop up sooner or later."

The question brought with it an unintentional sting - Alex had only just vanished a short time ago, and while Ricky understood... well, it was still a painful subject. One piece of bad luck that didn't really have an upside. But he smiled anyway, shaking his head. "No, not yet. Had a chance and blew it somewhere along the way. But, if it happens then it happens. How old are kids when they're usually brought in?"

[Dr. James Campbell]

"Yeah, years. But with most kids it is a few days or a week." James blushed a little, though it really wasn't his fault that Hammel had failed to locate him. His family had also failed to realize how weird the changes he went through were. They had all assumed that he'd just developed OCD, and it took another eleven years before the cause was uncovered.

The student stayed pretty quiet, thinking. Meta-humanism did appear to run in families, though James didn't know any extended family members to have powers or have spent a good deal of childhood away at a boarding school. But if he was the first of his family to have powers, it was more likely that his daughter would to. And at least she'd be ready for them.

James felt bad that he apparently hit a nerve. Even though Ricky was smiling, James noticed things. "Oh, uh sorry. For bringing it up. And to answer your question, most kids get recruited during middle school, around eleven to fifteen. Sometimes they're a little older, like seventeen, but that's rare. And then there's me. They found me when I was twenty-two."

[Ricky O'Cassidy]

While he was a standard male in the fact that subtle nuances of conversation and body language tended to be overlooked without intention, Ricky could still notice some things. The fact that James blushed at his outburst made him a little sheepish in his own right, and the blonde rubbed the back of his neck in embarrassment. "Oh, I didn't mean anything by it," he apologized. "It just... surprised me, that's all. Sorry for any offense."

"Hey it's not a big deal," he assured the younger man, laughing it off as much as he could. It hurt, yeah, but it wasn't the end of the world. He'd get by somehow. Still, as he listened further to get off the subject, there came another piece of startling news.

"Wait... you're a student?"

That was the most shocking thing he'd found out all day, to be honest. James looked a few years younger than him, sure, but... still a student? Well, if eleven year olds had to stay students until eighteen and some students even longer than that, that would make some sense. But still.

Hold on.

Glancing at his watch again, Ricky frowned - hadn't he had fifteen minutes at the beginning of this conversation? And the clock on the wall said he still had five, but that couldn't be right. It'd been a while since two timepieces had failed on him at once, but he wouldn't put it past his luck. "Do you happen to have the time?" he asked, a little worried. "I think my watch stopped."

[Dr. James Campbell]

Ah, there it was. The shock that someone as old as James was still technically enrolled in a High School. And though he'd told Ricky that his daughter was young, he was still old enough to have a daughter. "Yes. Technically. All I do is my training here. I work in town."

James noticed when the other man looked over at the clock, and he reflexively checked his watch. He frowned when he realized how behind the clock was. This was the office, they were supposed to be keeping track of things better than this. "It's almost ten after. I think the clock on the wall is wrong too."

The young man looked up again when someone else walked into the office, through the short corridor to the Headmaster's office. In fact, it was the man himself, Claude Harris. "Oh, Ricky. That's Mr. Harris."

In a few years, James would be on first-name basis with the headmaster, but he wasn't there yet. Once he joined the recruitment team, that would come.