Arva Carin, Dean of Students (sign up OOC open to all)

[Saurisisia]

Elisae soon got up and went to get some food, sighing as she felt the emptiness in her stomach. She took whatever meats looked good to her and returned to her spot. Eager to eat, she proceeded to dine on her lunch while taking the time to read in-between bites.

[Gehenna Tartarus]

Amy walked alongside Alar, as they made their way to the dining room, listening with interest about what he had to say about Macureus. The remark about the nation being like a crazy aunt made her giggle a little and she was so focused on it that she had almost missed the next part, but the penny dropped as to what he said and she looked a little surprised, the laughter gone from her voice.

“Wait, New Macureans don’t approve of love?” She said, the incredulousness evident in her voice. Her brow was heavily furrowed as she tried to get her head around that statement. “You get married but you don’t love? How does that work exactly? I mean, I know people get married without being in love, but, wow, I can’t imagine living somewhere you couldn’t love something. I love my dog, I love my parents, I love chocolate. I’d feel deprived,” she added with a little laugh, trying not to sound like she was running down his nation too much, people tended to dislike that and she was trying to make friends.

She could see some benefits to not having love, it meant that when you got bored of someone you could just move along, but how did a person stop themselves falling in love? She looked at Alar, he was kind of cute, she could see herself dating someone like him, as long as he had no crazy habits like boiling rabbits alive or eating live worms, as a couple of examples, but what if she got to a point when she blurted out ‘I love you’, maybe after some amazing making out or even sex if things got that far, she wondered what would he do then? Would he run a mile? It was certain intriguing and maybe a question she could find out sometime.

“We don’t have many laws regarding love and marriage, just the usual ones,” she replied. “You can’t marry your pet or your brother – not that I’d want to – for example, but you meet someone, you tell them you love them, you get married and a few years later you get a divorce, because you realise you were a fool for thinking he was great and then you hopefully hook up with someone who will rock your world.” She laughed at the idea. Tartarus was not that bad, most people stayed happily married, probably the same percentage as other nations. “Everyone wants someone to rock their world, right? Even if you don't love them.”

[Late Roman Empire]

"Religion, to be honest. I am a former Mormon missionary, and I want to know more about this country, with a view toward helping missionaries of my church know what to say and do toward making converts. At least that's the proper reason. I confess, between you and me, that it gives me a chance to cut loose and relax, away from the prying eyes of my family. That's the sinful, carnal ulterior motive. Maybe God will forgive me for that," Junius blushed.

"Business sounds like a very good reason. Tell me, what do you think of the self-important blue-eyed comrade over there? I get the impression that she doesn't approve of us, probably because neither of us are good Party members," he added with a smirk born of exasperation, having given up on being nice to someone who clearly copped an ungrateful attitude.

[Damak Var]

Jack Knox

"Religion, to be honest. I am a former Mormon missionary, and I want to know more about this country, with a view toward helping missionaries of my church know what to say and do toward making converts. At least that's the proper reason. I confess, between you and me, that it gives me a chance to cut loose and relax, away from the prying eyes of my family. That's the sinful, carnal ulterior motive. Maybe God will forgive me for that," Junius blushed.

"Business sounds like a very good reason. Tell me, what do you think of the self-important blue-eyed comrade over there? I get the impression that she doesn't approve of us, probably because neither of us are good Party members," he added with a smirk born of exasperation, having given up on being nice to someone who clearly copped an ungrateful attitude.

Jack was taken aback when he learned the man in front of him as a Mormon and his eyes widened a bit.Oh great, another religious type. As if there wasn't enough in this country. He thought to himself. But Jack wasn't the prejudicial type who would dismiss him right away. Being too quick to judge without doing your due diligence was bad business practice. There was the thing about "sin" that he scoffed at. Jack believed that being focused on your work was important. But he certainly didn't have any qualms about engaging in mindless debauchery once in a while and felt that neither should anybody else. The Mormon would probably be aghast if he knew about the sort of hedonistic activities Jack participated in back home.

"Religion huh? Well I wouldn't know anything about that, except that religion never put a cigar in my hand and a dollar in my pocket." Jack grinned. He looked the guy in front of him over. A Mormon and a former missionary, he probably never had good time in his life. Jack began concocting a devious scheme. If there was one thing Jack loved, it was being a corrupter. Plus he sort of liked the guy and wanted to show him the other side of things.

He looked around for the blue eyed girl the Mormon was talking about. Getting a look at her, Jack found her attractive. But if she was what the Mormon said she was, then he was going to have fun getting a reaction out of her.

"As for the girl over there, she probably thought you were taking a run at her and didn't find it amusing." Jack stated jokingly.

"Ms. Blue Eyes probably wouldn't approve of me either. But we'll see about that." He stated just loud enough so the girl could overhear him.

"But she didn't disapprove of you because you're a man, or not a member of the party. You need to loosen up friend. Tell you what...I don't see any other Mormons around here. Let's have a drink." Jack said as he pulled out a flask filled with fine scotch and took a sip. He received a bottle as a going away gift. Jack held out the flask for the Mormon to take.

"It's good shit.Go ahead, I won't tell the Church." He said with a devious grin.

[The Cookish States]

Carla brought her hand up to the table to escape Vanessa's, she seemed clingy and they weren't even a thing yet. She still liked her, but was still confused as to how to handle her.

She looked back to see two sharp dressed guys drinking and laughing, they were fairly close to her too. She wanted to wave them over while there was still chatter going on, but she figured she'd talk to them after the dinner. She gave one last admiring glance at the two of them and looked forward again. Carla fixed her bra a little while no one looked, and tugged her skirt down again, it kept riding up. She noticed Vanessa's eyes looking at her once more. Miss Dominguez didn't mean to be so seductive, she still denied that she was seductive. She looked in the mirror and saw a blob of fat, she saw blank, boring eyes instead of the vibrant blue ones everyone talked about. She saw a yellowing, cavity filled smile instead of her bright and shiny one. Her hair was always a mess in her mind, but never to anyone else. Self consciousness ran Carla's life sometimes, she couldn't help it.

Now her food was in front of her. It looked delicious, but she was allergic to shellfish. It was only minor though, so she popped an asprin from her purse and started to eat. It tasted like it looked. She could live in a place like this. After swallowing a mouth full of food, she turned to Carlotta and said...

"Wanna invite those guys over tonight? I was thinking we make a small party out of it. Very chill. Darkish, with music, alcohol, movies playing. Just like, what, five or six people? But yeah, the rooms yours too, so its your decision."

Carla set two pieces of gum next to Carlotta and Vanessa's plates, anticipating the shellfish breath that was upcoming. Her phone vibrated, she checked her purse slyly and saw that it was from her mom. She chuckled a bit, and said to herself silently..

"Too late to start caring now ma."

[Cicunda]

"S-sorry... I'm just nervous around lots of people I don't know..." Vanessa said fidgeting around with her now free hand. She turned back to the plate in front of her, filled with food that looked like it was drawn straight from the sea to the plate. She sighed and looked down at the plate, knowing that if she didn't look at anyone, noone could think anything or judge her. She had noticed the person sitting on the opposite side of the table had finished his meal in one swoop, and tapped him on the foot. "Ya want this buddy?" she said pointing at her food. After a quick confirmation, she switched the plates around. Thank goodness she had brought her own food.

[New Macureus]

"New Macurean society is based on the twin pillars of science and reason. Emotions are always viewed with suspicion, though it is not as consistent as that. I can see a contradiction or two, though most seem to dismiss that. Too much sentimentality can get you reported for a special psych review, which can harm your career. Yet despite this, germophobia is rampant, to the point of extreme measures to prevent the spread of disease. Not that it prevents people from having casual partners. Again, another oxymoron, though one that is justified by the use of showers and protection, not to mention the emphasis on sexuality as an aide to social harmony.

"Sorry, didn't mean to lecture. I am fascinated by such paradoxes, though don't tell anyone that I admitted to any kind of fascination. That would be disapproved as well. To be honest, at the risk of being a traitor by contradicting State propaganda, people still have passions. They are just very discreet about them. It's ironic, I suppose. The very detachment and logic that are prized by my society enable me to see its flaws and oddities plain as day. Just don't tell anyone I said so. It can be our little secret," Alar spoke in a faux whisper, obviously feeling freer to be candid, since he wasn't in New Macureus.

He didn't know why he felt THAT free to talk this way around Amy, however. Maybe because he got the impression that she would listen and wouldn't blab, though he could be wrong, of course.

[Late Roman Empire]

Here it was, the moment of truth....he wanted to try it, but could he....

"Sure, why not? Just don't tell anyone. I wanted to try something bad, at least once in my life, before I settle down to being a good Mormon family man for good," he took the proffered sip, hoping it wouldn't get him in too much trouble with his father and others in the church if they heard about it.

It burned his throat like mad....for a second, it made him shiver with fear and pain, thinking of the idea of hellfire and damnation. Guilt followed the pain through his body, but he finished his share. Then the feeling of warmth and a slight buzz hit him, as it was his first drink and he had a rather poor threshold.

"Thank you, that was....different....I just hope God and the Church won't get too upset. Too err is human, right?" he smiled, nervously trying to cope with the guilty pleasure and shame of touching the demon liquor.

[Damak Var]

Jack Knox

The Mormon took a sip and that incited Jack to start laughing. For a second Jack thought he wouldn't do it. In the corner of his eye he saw a girl with a group of others eye them down. By the way she was dressed Jack assumed she might just be a like minded individual looking for others who weren't so conservative as the rest of the this nation. He brought his attention back to the matter at hand.

"Ha! That's it! Just remember, you don't drink it for the taste." Jack exclaimed. Maybe there was hope for him yet. He saw that the Mormon felt a bit guilty about doing it. "You look like you just made a deal with the devil." Jack said to tease him. He took back the flask and put it back in his pocket. "That's enough for now though. Don't want you going overboard yet."

Jack decided it was time to dig into his meal. He ate quickly as was his fashion. The food was tasty and it was seafood which Jack was familiar with. Damak Var had very little land that was suitable for farming making seafood a significant part of their traditional cuisine. Not that getting agricultural products was a problem anymore as Damak Var imported vast quantities. "Probably best you stay out of Damak Var. You'd forget all about the your Church and spend your days drinking and gambling until you're broke." Jack said jokingly.

[Gehenna Tartarus]

Amy was intrigued, mostly because she had not the slightest idea of what New Macureus was like, at least not until she had begun to speak with Alar. Being a teenager and not someone who spent a lot of time watching documentaries or even the news, the world outside Tartarus was a bit of a blur. She knew there were other people out there, that they had different traditions and rules, but she had never really focused on what differences that had made to those people. As far as she was concerned all teenagers were like her, did the same things, hated their parents for having too many rules and generally lived to have as much fun as possible before they got old and turned into their parents. Perhaps the reason her father had suggested going to school outside of the Empire was not because he thought it was a place that would be able to teach the subjects better, but a chance to actually learn more about other people.

“Wow,” she said, as his words filtered into her brain and she began to process what he had said. “I didn’t realise that your people were like that. Not that I think there is anything wrong with that, by the way. We’re all different right?” Up until a few minutes ago that really had not been her belief. “So, if you show too much sentimentally you get reviewed? Damn, I would have been stamped with a major ‘fail’ by now. And you don’t like germs, so I guess you don’t hold hands with people you are dating and stuff? That is if you do date. Do you date?”

Like most teenagers, her focus was kind of centred on relationships, sex and getting through the year with good grades so that her parents would pay for her to come back the next year. “And I promise, whatever you say is entirely between you and me.” She crossed her heart to prove her point. “I’m fascinated by lots of things and it’s probably a good thing that I don’t come from New Macureus.” She pointed to one of the band members on her t-shirt. “I love this band and this guy – Chad – in particular. He’s kind of hot.”

She looked at Alar and grinned. “So, getting back to what you were saying, as long as you have a shower and use protection, you can have sex with anyone…as long as you didn’t love them. That is kind of interesting, because my parents are always telling me to wait until I find that special person. They are kind of old and romantic, fell in love, got married, had my brother and me and have lived happily ever after. But you know, what happens if you never meet that special someone?” She was waffling but she was having fun. She had never spoken so openly to a guy before, it was probably due to him being foreign or something.

[New Macureus]

"Well, the State is very ambivalent about sex. On the one hand, it is just considered a biological function, like eating, drinking, sleeping, etc. Yet the State regards emotional bonding as irrational and potentially harmful to one's mental health, and it foresees a high risk of such bonding through sex. They want to keep it a purely biological function instead of a path to emotional bonding, as it were.

"In this, however, as in all things, the rules are often honored in the breach. Since people need to have children, and those children must be raised by someone, it is more cost-efficient and practical to have parents raise them. Hence marriage exists, but as a partnership for raising children and pooling financial resources. Respect is certainly important, but the State seeks to de-emphasize romantic love in particular. Stopping filial love, however, is a lost cause, and I think that even the most die-hard technocrat knows it. Not to mention that it is the one form of love that might be indispensable, at least according to recent research. They might wrinkle their noses at the messiness of real life vs. their scientific utopia, but they have privately conceded defeat on that point.

"Pets, however, are unheard-of. No one keeps them in the whole country. They are instead exported to countries that do. And, of course, our art is suffering. Art is about passion, after all, so what can possibly inspire a society of the dispassionate? Most artists these days must either produce soulless State propaganda or leave, because anything else is shunned.

"Not, mind you, that I am a political activist, reformer, or revolutionary. I am just a man who thinks for himself, and that can be dangerous at times. New Macureus has a lot of good traits, as seen as its high quality of hard sciences, technology, etc. But there are things that are imperfect, that was my point. I don't labor under the delusion that it is a perfect nation and way of life. I am proud of the good that my country does, but I am also aware of the darker side of the ruthless push to obliterate or suppress all passions.

"Sorry, didn't mean to lecture. It is a bad habit of mine. Then again, I have been told that it is a national vice, the inclination to teach rather than converse," Alar shrugged and realized that he was embarrassed, an emotion that was violently repressed in New Macureus. People did their best to break one of any sense of shame, yet here it was.

[Late Roman Empire]

"Warning duly noted, my friend. I can see that we come from very different worlds," Proculus observed, before he, too began devouring his food.

Much of it was condemned in the Word of Wisdom as too much fat and not enough fruit and vegetables. He didn't care. Proculus was tired of such constraints at the moment. He needed a relief from the bland, austere diet of many a practicing Mormon.

In for a penny, in for a pound, is that the saying?

[Macureus]

Somewhat intrigued by the Roman and Varian both, Lana Sorin finally grabbed her own plate and joined both him and Jack at their eating spot.

"So, do you mind some company? I've never had whiskey before. What's it like?" Lana asked Jack.

"What are you guys talking about, by the way?" she smiled as she inquired of Proculus.

Each man had his charms. Since Macureans were typically monogamous, Lana felt a bit guilty over even flirting with two different men at once, but still....she was just flirting. No harm there, right? She didn't have a boyfriend or husband, after all.

[Makaivellia]

Maria looked over at the two men. Hearing them say she was a "comrade" didn't go over lightly. She wasn't involved with politics at all. Much suprise to many, her brother being the guy who ended communism in Makaivellia and established an "unbiased" republic. Also suprising cause she was looking for a major in political economics. She looked over Knox.
Typical badass and a religious guy. What a great combo.
Noticing the girl sitting down next to them asking for whiskey. She decided not move over there. But, in a strange way. She thought the Mormon was kinda of cute. Piercing were those deep blue eyes, she looked at the Mormon and motioned him to come over to where she was sitting.

[Damak Var]

Jack Knox

Jack smiled at the newcomer. "It's a good time in a bottle. Just don't mind the taste" He replied. Jack was in a good mood so he took his flask and slid it over to her.

"We we're discussing our different backgrounds. The Mormon here is Roman, which is from what I hear a somewhat religious society like Old Mac. I'm Varian, you know...capitalism, hedonism and stock markets is the best way to explain it. So what's your story?"

[Late Roman Empire]

Proculus was really annoyed by now. Maria didn't give him the time of day before, and suddenly, when he lost patience, she eyed him.....yeah, that ship had sailed.

"Jack, meet Maria. Jack is a capitalist. You might find him a bit to your liking, perhaps," he hinted strongly that he was done, blue eyes or not.

Lana was intriguing in a way, though he didn't know what to say to someone from a matriarchy like hers.

"So, what is it really like for men here?" he chose to ask a rather pointed question to break the ice.

In vino veritas, after all....

[Gehenna Tartarus]

“I wonder if I could sell it to my parents that sex is just the same as eating, drinking or sleeping,” Amy replied, with a little laugh. She did not think the concept was silly, but she could certainly imagine her father’s reaction to her saying something like that and her mother would be telling her that she should not be sleeping with someone that she had no feelings for. She could see why her father had not suggested a university in New Macureus. Not that she had not had sex, she had fallen in love with a guy at school or so she thought, and one thing had led to another. When she discovered that she was not his only girlfriend, she had slapped him hard and walked away, but not before wriggling her little finger at him in front of all of his friends. “I think I’d have more chance of persuading them that the Earth was flat.”

She paused for a moment, as she thought of a life without her dog and it made her miserable that Alar had not had the companionship of a loving pet. “I cannot believe you don’t have pets,” she said, frowning heavily. “I’ve had hamsters, guinea pigs, cat, dog – the dog being my favourite. Jambo is waiting for me at home and I miss him already. Listen to me sounding like a sappy girl,” she added with a laugh, as she got out her phone and showed Alar a picture of her chocolate Labrador.

“I’m glad you told me about your nation,” she said, lowering her voice again. “Whatever you tell me stays between us. I know that some places are really funny about not saying bad things about the homeland, but no one’s homeland is perfect. If only, right?” She reached for her glass and poured herself some water.

[Saurisisia]

Elisae paused in her eating, overhearing some of the other students talking about various things, boys, sex, the state of the nation they were currently in, that sort of thing. It would've been something her classmates would have talked about back home. Of course, it wasn't really her thing, she generally preferred just eating and occasionally reading while eating. Didn't really help that she was the only draconian in this school by the looks of it. Yeah, that really helped with the self-confidence of an awkward young Dragoness, she snorted to herself.

[Damak Var]

"Pawning her off on me are you? Alright, I'll bite." Jack answered the Roman.

Jack gave Maria a grin and confidently walked over to her. He sat down at the table she was at. "Seems like our mutual friend over there is offended by your style, but I'm not so judgmental. Jack Knox." He said introducing himself. Jack was not trying to be flirtatious. It would be amusing to talk to people of different backgrounds. This was an opportunity he couldn't miss out on.

"So what landed you here?" He asked.

[New Edom]

Carlotta blinked. "Sorry Carla, I was totally daydreaming. I guess I'm a little bit homesick." In truth she was very homesick. Carlotta had come over the last year to love her country deeply. Of course part of this was having to have some justification for having become a spy on her own movement for the Council Police. It was that or deportation to TurtleShroom for waterboarding and stoning to death or something. She shuddered inwardly. Part of why she had come was to escape all of that. But she had received a 'suggestion' by email (from an email account that she was of course unable to reply to and no longer existed) that she start nosing out possibilities for a radical movement among the students at the university.

"Yeah, a party sounds fun," Carlotta said with a smile. She wondered at all the hand holding going on from the new girl, Vanessa was her name? She hoped she wasn't some kind of disgusting lesbo or something. Gay people gave her the creeps, it was unnatural, and besides she had seen those educational films on how predatory they were.

[New Macureus]

Amy had a point, of course. Indeed, New Macureus had flaws, as did Old Macureus, and no doubt Tartarus, the Late Roman Empire, Cookish States, and New Edom. Different flaws, of course. Those of New Macureus were mostly due to misguided zeal for reason, as paradoxical as that was.

"You have said it better than I did. More succinctly, anyway. I don't expect to marry anytime soon, so it doesn't affect me. As for pets, well, I will never know if I would like one or not. I've never had a say in the matter. I will be perhaps more frank than some guys in your country. I find you attractive, but I understand now that your country is maybe a little more restricted about sex, though less so about love.

"Perhaps be friends for now, and then see what comes of that? We are foreigners to each other and strangers, and even in New Macureus, we don't just jump into people we've barely met. It might sound like a contradiction to what I said earlier, but just consider that there are also physical safety issues at stake, such as serial killers and the like. Not that you're one of those, nor am I, but even our state-approved sexual license has limits of some kind. Those of sanity and sense, of course.

"Sorry if I assumed anything or sounded like it. It is just that when the topic is raised, one must anticipate and prepare for all possible reasons and motives for discussing, not just the obvious ones. I wanted to avoid any confusion, you see," Darin explained, feeling a bit presumptuous for discussing this with a girl from a country believed to be more conservative on those points, at least in some quarters. He didn't want to push her too far, but he had to weigh all possible outcomes.

[Gehenna Tartarus]

Amy had begun to chew on a piece of food as Alar spoke, or she might have grinned at some of the points that he had made. She had never met someone from New Macureus before and she found it interesting listening what he had to say about his country, but more so the way he actually said things. She had met boys that she knew thought she was attractive, but getting some of them to actually admit it was like trying to get blood out of a stone. They would rather pout away in a corner turning the colour of a beetroot, rather than admit how they felt and see if they had a chance of being more than friends.

“Well, sex in Tartarus is more based on the individual, or in my case, the individual’s parents,” she said, once she had cleared her mouth. Not that they would be able to stop her if she wanted to have sex with someone, but they were both of the opinion that sleeping around was not in her best interest. Her father would then add that if she wanted to, then she should make sure that they took precautions as he was far too young to be called granddad. “But I would say we were agreed on the physical safety issues, though I have to say that I did not think serial killer when I saw you, so that’s a good start, right?”

She nodded her head. “I would like us to be friends,” she added, as she dug her fork into another piece of food. “And yeah, wait and see if something comes of our friendship and if not, well, we still made a friend out of it. Which is better than not having a friend, especially in a new country.” She had not been too worried about people making assumptions, she actually found it quite refreshing having someone speak plainly rather than hide their feelings in a riddle. She knew exactly where she stood with Alar and she got the impression that even if they did not get into a relationship, he would be a good friend that she could have honest conversations with.

[New Macureus]

"Glad to see it's mutual, though I must confess to killing a few cereal boxes now and then," Alar joked.

That was refreshing, to be allowed to crack an actual joke. Back home, that sort of thing would be seen as silly, frivolous, and irrational. Humor was seen as a vice, not simply a fact of life. Yet, when the Man wasn't looking, everyone joked anyway. How do you fight something as basic as humor? Now that he wasn't pretending to be a model New Mac, he could own up to the fact that humor existed, even non-political humor, in New Macureus. Prior to that, to be safe, he denied that.

"Okay, so we do tell jokes back in New Macureus. We just don't admit that openly to foreigners at first, especially since we don't even admit it to our leaders. Never mind the hypocrisy, we'd likely get a sudden psych review. I hope that the new leader tells them to get a life. Some things I can see restricting, but jokes and humor should be seen as healthy, not frivolous or a sign of weakness," Alar snorted.

Then he grabbed himself a mouthful of leguin and practically inhaled it. Manners didn't really exist in New Macureus and he was hungry as a horse.

[Macureus]

Proculus was really annoyed by now. Maria didn't give him the time of day before, and suddenly, when he lost patience, she eyed him.....yeah, that ship had sailed.

"Jack, meet Maria. Jack is a capitalist. You might find him a bit to your liking, perhaps," he hinted strongly that he was done, blue eyes or not.

Lana was intriguing in a way, though he didn't know what to say to someone from a matriarchy like hers.

"So, what is it really like for men here?" he chose to ask a rather pointed question to break the ice.

In vino veritas, after all....

"Mostly okay, unless they're very ambitious in the political sense. And unless they get a divorce. Then again, most men seem to simply escape by visiting New Macureus and other nearby countries when they feel too stifled. They can do most things, just not some things that men in other countries do, like run for office or keep more than 40% of their stuff. There is, by the way, a real tendency by Old Macs and New Macs to avoid marriage to each other like the plague. We might be the same people, but intermarriage rarely works between us. Our ideas are too far too different.

"But generally, in every day life, it is no worse for men here than for men in Shrailleen, for example, and in some ways it's better, I think. They have more freedom of religion, for example, and now they can cohabit, from what I've heard, even practice polyamory. Not that I would go along with that. Monogamy is the way to go, at least from where I sit. I even felt guilty a moment flirting with both of you, though I'm not dating either of you.

"Please understand, I love my country and agree with much of what it stands for, but not one-hundred percent. I want us to go back to the way it was before the Liberation, when men had their power and women had theirs, rather than men being shut out altogether of the councils of government at the high levels. And the divorce laws could be refined to clarify what 'emotional and verbal abuse' are. It's too easy to twist, after all."

"What is it like for women in the Empire? Is it really that patriarchal, as I've heard?" Lana put the ball back in Proculus's court.

She kind of liked him, but didn't know if it could ever work with a Mormon from the Late Roman Empire, no less. She believed in the Oracles, not Christianity.

And she heard that Mormons didn't drink tea. Their loss, she thought, drinking hers.

[The Cookish States]

Carlotta blinked. "Sorry Carla, I was totally daydreaming. I guess I'm a little bit homesick." In truth she was very homesick. Carlotta had come over the last year to love her country deeply. Of course part of this was having to have some justification for having become a spy on her own movement for the Council Police. It was that or deportation to TurtleShroom for waterboarding and stoning to death or something. She shuddered inwardly. Part of why she had come was to escape all of that. But she had received a 'suggestion' by email (from an email account that she was of course unable to reply to and no longer existed) that she start nosing out possibilities for a radical movement among the students at the university.

"Yeah, a party sounds fun," Carlotta said with a smile. She wondered at all the hand holding going on from the new girl, Vanessa was her name? She hoped she wasn't some kind of disgusting lesbo or something. Gay people gave her the creeps, it was unnatural, and besides she had seen those educational films on how predatory they were.

"Awesome. Can't wait then, when can we leave? Ha, I don't want to be the first to get up, y'know?"

Carla looked up and to the left for no particular reason. With her head turned where Vanessa couldn't see, she mouthed to Carlotta...

"What the fuck is her problem.."

Carla didn't mind having a little gay urge, but she wasn't that kind of girl, she couldn't let that happen. Back home, no one would care, but here? She'd be a laughingstock. So, Vanessa was comfortably in the friend zone now where she belonged. For now at least.