Origins

In his world, everything begins with the page and the lectern. Grading can wait, an afternoon class can be cancelled at a moment’s notice, and term papers are a tide he is forever drowning in; and still he worries about missing the faculty meeting. He speaks of these small chores wearily, and contentedly.

“Grading can wait…”

“批改作业可以等等…”TL

His scholarship has not stayed in the classroom. Seven once told him to his face that he was a fan of the Professor’s work. The Professor was flattered and horrified in equal measure; and when he heard that his research into the Astral Gate had paved the way for the other man’s own, he was just horrified. His learning had become the stepping stone for another man’s transgression against nature.

Then came that day. A rift in space and time opened up in Central Park, and he was the first on the scene. His own account is more succinct: his body was obliterated by an Astral Gate. The colder account is that he was atomized and reduced to a tiny dying star, the iron no more than an outer shell. He told Bebop that he wasn’t made by anyone; the two of them were just a couple of floating souls in iron bodies.

“Listen, we're both just a couple floating souls in iron bodies I think there's plenty of common ground.”

“听着，我们都只是寄居在钢铁躯壳里的漂浮灵魂，我想我们有很多共同点”

That star has not brought only ruin. He once thought his condition a curse, but he has learned how to use it to help people: its starlight heals his companions, and its singularity can trap an entire enemy force.

“I thought my condition a curse, but I've learned how to use it to help people…”

“我曾以为我的病情是一种诅咒，但我现在学会了如何利用它来帮助别人…”

“Bask in starlight!”

“沐浴在星光中！”

It has been years now. Since then he has chosen to keep his distance from Astral Gates. When Grey Talon asked whether he had been to Ixia, he admitted that after what happened he had stayed clear of the gates, though he hears that South Ixia is beautiful. The curiosity is still there; it has only learned to flinch.

“I won't lie - after what happened to my body I decided to stay clear of Astral Gates, but I hear that South Ixia is beautiful.”

“我不会撒谎——在我身体发生那件事之后，我决定远离异界之门，但我听说南伊克斯亚很美。”

When he speaks of his own learning there is always a note of uncertainty in his voice, and a sigh: who’s to say where science ends and magic begins.

“Who's to say where science ends and magic begins…”

“谁又能说清科学的终点和魔法的起点在哪里呢…”

People have asked him, too, why someone so smart is a teacher instead of making real money. Mina asked exactly that, and he answered: because some things are more important than money.

“Because some things are more important than money.”

“因为有些东西比钱更重要。”TL

He has old ties to the Black Chateau as well. Kelvin says he hasn’t seen him since the Black Chateau; and he mentioned to Venator that a few years ago, at the Black Chateau, he had spoken with Father Julian. The answer came back that the Father was possessed currently, in a tone that found nothing strange in it.

“Possessed currently, but you know Julian.”

“目前被附身了，不过你也知道朱利安的。”TL

Old Friends and Foes

Marla: The Weak Spot He Won’t Speak Of

Marla is his most obvious weak spot, and his adversaries can all see it. When Drifter asked her name, the Professor answered “Marla,” and added: I’d die for her. Drifter came back with: no, Professor, fail today and she’ll die for you.

Bringing him down, Drifter also told him his wife would be joining him soon enough. The Professor’s retort was a single line: you’re a monster. Calico, too, knew Marla’s name well in advance, and told him she was safe, and to trust her. The Professor was on his guard at once, and answered only: don’t tell me what I need to worry about.

“Don't worry, Dynamo, your wife'll be joining you soon enough.”

“别担心，奇能，你妻子很快就会来和你团聚的”

Pocket: Godfather and Godchild

Pocket is of the younger generation to him: he calls himself Pocket’s godfather, who would have helped all along. He said Pocket should have told him they were alive; Pocket only answered quietly that they hadn’t been sure who they could trust.

He and Pocket’s father go back a long way; these days “friends” might be pushing it, but he would say the man has warm nostalgia for him. Pocket insists the father is not a good man; he calls him a complicated man instead. Pocket shot back: not to me.

“He's a complicated man. There's a difference.”

“他是个复杂的人。这其中是有区别的”

So when Pocket brings him down, what Pocket voices is disappointment: I should’ve known you’d take my father’s side. When he brings Pocket down, he says they couldn’t hide in that case forever, and invites Pocket to audit his class sometime.

“I should've known you'd take my father's side.”

“我早该知道你会站在我父亲那边”

Kelvin: A Kindred Spirit and an Old Acquaintance

Kelvin is an old friend and a fellow man of learning. After bringing Kelvin down he said: you are a man after my own heart, and I am so sorry; and when Kelvin brings him down, he says much the same: I’m sorry, my friend, but I can’t let you win.

“I'm sorry, my friend, but I can't let you win.”

“朋友，我很抱歉，但我不能让你赢”

Seven: Not to Be Called His Kind

With Seven he crosses swords over love. Seven cannot understand why he would throw a great gift away for nothing; he hit back: easy words to say when you’ve never loved someone. Seven coldly retorted: no, easy words to say when you have.

He once asked Seven how he had stopped his soul from being obliterated. Seven said some things may be beyond him; he replied that if he let that stop him from trying to learn, he would probably still have his body. Perhaps, said Seven, the two of them were cut from the same cloth; he answered hastily: let’s not go that far.

“Let's not go that far.”

“我们还是别走到那一步”

Even after bringing Seven down, he is still shaken: he’s even more terrifying than I thought.

Grey Talon: A Friend at His Side

Grey Talon told him: you endured something horrible, and yet you live your life like it’s going to be ok. The Professor answered: it was either that or give in to despair, and that is clearly not an option. Grey Talon said he wished he could be like him.

Abrams: Professor and Detective

He and Abrams have pledged to look out for each other. The Detective means to keep the Professor safe, and the Professor says he was about to say the same thing to the Detective. Later, on opposite sides, Abrams brought him down and actually said he seemed like a decent guy; he almost felt bad.

“He seemed like a decent guy, almost feel bad…”

“他看起来是个正派，几乎有不好的感觉…”

Ivy and Wraith: The Students He Shields

His teacherly instincts are always ready to surface. Ivy’s sister Sophia is his student; he told Ivy that Sophia was a great student, but lately she had been falling asleep in class, saying she was pulling long shifts at her job. Ivy hadn’t even known Sophia had a job. Later, when they met as opponents, he even assured Ivy that her behavior would not impact his grading of Sophia.

“Ok-ish. She's a great student, but lately she's been falling asleep in class. She says she's been pulling long shifts at her job and it's wearing her out.”

“还行吧。她是个很棒的学生，但最近上课老是打瞌睡。她说她最近工作时间很长，累坏了”

He couldn’t help overhearing one of his students mention that she frequents Wraith’s establishment. He warned Wraith that college kids don’t have fully formed brains, and that if he found out she was taking advantage of that, he would take it personally. Wraith needled him: ok, dad. Later, as opponents, all he said was: stay away from my students.

“Indeed they do. They also don't have fully formed brains, and if I find out you are taking advantage of that I will it take it personally.”

“确实如此。而且他们的大脑发育也不完全，如果我发现你利用了这一点，我会非常生气”

Haze: An Offer Politely Declined

Haze carries a message for someone: Marlowe wanted her to tell him the offer still stands. For a moment the Professor thought he had heard “Marla” and got terribly confused; then he declined: he is quite happy in the private sector. Learning that she is in the Sandman Division, and that there are enough of them to call themselves a division, he found it a rather unsettling idea.

“I'm quite happy in the private sector.”

“我在私营部门工作得很开心”

Even so, there are times they fight side by side. He warned Haze that once he opened the black hole he would be pretty exposed; she replied that his survival may not be a top priority, but it is still a priority.

“I'm not worried about you capitalizing on the opportunity, I'm worried about dying in the process.”

“我不是担心你抓住机会，而是担心你会因此失败”

Solomon: A Grating Verdict

Solomon does not believe in his motives. Bringing him down, Solomon said: this isn’t about your wife, Professor, this is about your own ego. That is Solomon’s judgment, not the Professor’s own account.

“This isn't about your wife professor, this is about your own ego”

“这不是关于你妻子的事，教授，这是你自己的自负。”TL

The Doorman and Vyper: Two Kinds of Courtesy

The Doorman is impeccably courteous. The Professor told him that when he could still eat food, one of his favorite places to go was Sunday brunch at the Baroness Hotel. Vyper, for her part, smelled key lime pie on him and asked whether his wife knew he has no mouth and so can’t eat the pie; he said only: it’s the gesture that counts.

“I just wanted to let you know, that when I could still eat food one of my favorite places to go was Sunday brunch at The Baroness.”

“我只是想让你知道，我还能吃东西的时候，最爱去的地方之一就是男爵夫人酒店的周日早午餐。”TL

Nurse Harrow: A Hope Let Down

The Professor has never had many private words for this nurse; when he mentions her to his companions, it is no more than a “Nurse”: watch out for her, let’s take her out together. It is she who holds expectations of the Professor: when he tends to her, she thanks him for his care, calling him “Professor” with solemn courtesy. Yet when at last they cross blades and she lays him low, what is on her lips is disappointment: she thought this professor was supposed to be responsible. She passed a verdict, too: that man coddles his students. It is a charge he would probably not dispute, since even in the middle of a fight his mind is still on his students.

“You can tell that man coddles his students”

“看得出来，那家伙太纵容他的学生了。”TL

Anecdotes

The Coat. He has an old sport coat. Lady Geist calls it wretched; Mina urged him to buy a halfway decent jacket, and said Marla was lying to him. His only reply: Marla loves this thing. When he wins a fight at close quarters, it is the jacket he worries about, too: Marla just sewed it.

“Marla loves this thing.”

“玛拉可喜欢这件了。”TL

The Salary. Gathering up souls, he will sigh that educators are not paid nearly enough. Choosing an anniversary gift for Marla, he told Mo & Krill: I would be very excited, then remind you that I have a teacher’s salary.

“Educators are not paid nearly enough”

“教育工作者的薪水远远不够”

A Man of Action. He was at pains to tell Warden that he is not just a man of science, but a man of action. He also says only a fool relies on a gun instead of science. To McGinnis he said he had designed the gun himself, and she promptly asked: did you patent it?

“Warden, I wanted to put your mind at ease; I'm not just a man of science, but a man of action.”

“沃督，我想让你安心；我不仅是个科学家，也是个行动派”

“Thanks, I designed it myself.”

“谢谢，我自己设计的”

The Professor in the Field. He is no warmonger. Left standing alone, he talks himself through it: what’s the worst that could happen, they kill me? That sounds pretty bad. After a string of victories, he marvels that he is surprisingly good at killing people, and thinks the class would be impressed. Or terrified.

“OK, just breathe…I'll be fine, what's the worst that could happen, they kill me? Ok that sounds pretty bad….”

“好吧，深呼吸…我会没事的，最坏的情况是什么，他们击倒我？好吧，听起来很糟糕…”

Gentle, Up to a Point. He always has an apology ready for an opponent he knows, yet he admits that Marla always did warn him about his temper. In defeat, he has his own way of putting it: he has grown used to this body, and he can wait another fifty years.

“Marla always did warn me about my temper…”

“玛拉总是提醒我注意自己的脾气…”

“It's ok…I've… I've grown used to this body. I can wait another 50 years…”

“没事…我…我已经习惯这具身体了。再等上五十年也无妨…”TL

Institutions, Right and Wrong. He admires what the Baxter Society does, but has no love for the Occult Industrial Complex. Facing someone like Haze, he remarked that when he got into education he did not expect to be fighting the US government.

Marriage Counseling. He told Sinclair: Sinclair, you don’t need the Patrons, you need marriage counseling.

“Sinclair, you don't need the Patrons, you need marriage counseling.”

“无双魔术师，你不需要守护神，你需要的是婚姻咨询。”TL

The Truant. Violet always calls him Professor, and owned up that she was skipping class to be there; she just wanted to make sure he couldn’t narc on her.

Open Questions