"Such a gentleman," she said, jokingly fluttering her eyelashes and taking his arm. "I might have slipped and fallen in the three feet to the fireplace." Noticing his tongue, she giggled behind a hand. "Well, I suppose that's one way to do it. Would you like me to attempt to locate some water? That might be a bit less silly."

She sat down, attempting to dry out her skirt in the most modest way possible.

"Don't mind me, this thing is just so heavy when it's soaked through. What do you mean, pressure? I, erm...I don't really study for exams, you see, and I always do well. My brother was never good at getting the same results out of the same process, but then it's not like it ever mattered much to him. I'm just very glad that after exams will be my last semester, at least for this branch of schooling. I'm considering teaching very thoroughly, so you'll most likely still see me around. What would you go into if you could leave school right now and get a job, Angus?" She sipped her tea thoughtfully and looked up at him, still slightly flapping her skirt in the warm, dry air from the fireplace.

Angus resisted the urge to make a face and raise his hand to make little 'blah, blah, blah' movements with it. Angus didn't try superbly hard but he needed to work before exams to maintain a reasonable standard. Skipping classes didn't help, except to keep him sane enough that he could study otherwise. He supposed it was fair to show off in your own fields of expertise. When he wasn't trying to foster a team spirit, Angus could be found running laps at high speed and turning cartwheels across the sports oval. His shame was largely lacking and if not that, it was probably anorexic.

What would he do out of school?

"I would do everything, Laur." He said, for once his voice slipping down into something hungry and true.

He wanted to leave and see and be seen. He wanted more experience than their little world at school could provide. Theory could go fornicate with itself. Angus wanted to see with his own eyes, feel with his own hands. He was a tactile learner.

"I want to travel, experience everything that is out of our reach here. We're so stuck in our ways, I may as well go see some others before I'm too old to." He continued.

He liked the school, most of the time. He liked his friends and the sports and some of the time he even liked class. He just wanted more than that. It was why he liked to run. He could pretend he was running to somewhere else, over the hills and off to somewhere better.

"Ha, I'm sorry, Angus...I'm quite the bore. I would love to travel the world, however. There's so much out there we've never seen, and as much store as I put in books, it's just better to see it for yourself. If you go traveling, you'd better send me postcards. With pictures. I'm completely serious." She sipped her tea. Still wasn't bad milk, as far as she could tell.

"What's new with you, anyway? Anything good in your life? I haven't been up to much of lately, but I'm sure you have. You are that sort of up-to-lots person. If I'm not mistaken." She was largely rambling to herself now. Conversation for Laur was still awkward and chancy. Still, she dearly hoped he wouldn't mind and would deign to answer an awkward nerdy girl. She rather liked Angus and secretly hoped they could be friends, though she'd have to find new ways to avoid Bruthgrave. Eugh.

Angus had noticed that Laur seemed to be feeling a bit awkward and decided that it was about time that he should at least try to be an entirely attentive conversation partner. His mother would have been appalled at his casual approach although his father would not have noticed. Angus loved his dad but the man was not always in the room, even when his body was.

"Oh, going around and around, you know how it is. I saw a play the other day, it was rubbish. Loved every second. It was about a galdor kidnapped by wicks that became their queen." Truly there had never been such entertainingly bad theatre. "Sadly my dance card has been empty lately. My last paramour graduated not long ago and left me alone and lonely."

Well, it hadn't been that bad. They'd parted amicably. Angus did miss his company from time to time but what was he to do? What was done, was done.