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[laruetheday]

[ The video feed clicks on and reveals an extreme close up of an extremely pissed off Clarisse, who scowls down at her communicator, messing with the various buttons. After a couple seconds, she figures out how to zoom out. ]

This is how people are communicating now? Seems like more trouble than it's worth, if you ask me.

[ Which nobody did, but too bad! She has bigger fish to fry, so to speak. ]

Whatever. Listen, if there are any teachers watching this, I'm just letting you know that I'm not going to be attending your stupid mortal school. So don't bother sending someone after me about that. You think I'm scared of your truant officers? Yeah, right.

[ The feed clicks off! … Then immediately back on. ]

Oh, but I'll do the job you gave me, though. Probably.

[ The feed clicks off! … And then on again! She's getting the hang of this thing! Kind of. ]

One more thing. Let me know where the best sword fighting arena is. If there isn't one, I guess I can hit up a gym, but an arena is better.

[ A FINAL CLICK, and she's gone again. Not even a thank you. ]

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[quaerit]

[ Mortal school, indeed? ]

You know, the schools here aren't so bad. Xavier's includes power training, for example. So, if you're interested in training, it's a good place to be.

Gyms will depend on which city you're in.

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[laruetheday]

[ Oh, yeah. No mortal schools for her. ]

Maurtia Falls. That's where they're making me live.

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[quaerit]

Technically speaking, you can live wherever you like. It's just a good deal easier to take what they give you.

[ Gansey looks friendly. He also looks like your average all-American prep school nerd, complete with wire frame glasses and brightly coloured polo shirt. He definitely seems interested in her, though. ]

So. If mortal schools aren't right for you, what do you prefer?

[laruetheday]

[ Gansey looks more or less like an Athena kid, in Clarisse's opinion, but that's not a bad thing when you're stuck in a new place and don't know much of anything. ]

I go to a special camp in New York. It's not exactly a school, but we do some classes.

[ She's not sure how much Luke and Nico have already told people about their home, so she tries to leave things vague-ish. ]

[quaerit]

[ At least one of them has already had words with Gansey on the subject.

It makes him smile, because that's more or less what he was hoping she'd say. ]

I know a boy in the same boat. We're from a lot of different backgrounds here. Are you sure you can't be tempted?

It might be better than nothing at all.

[laruetheday]

What's that supposed to mean? You know a boy in the same boat.

[quaerit]

A boy who went to camp instead of school. I think you're actually talking to him.

Luke Castellan?

[laruetheday]

[ All the (semi)openness in her expression dies away as suddenly as if he'd flipped a switch. ]

You know Luke?

[ When she says his name, it's more like a curse. ]

What, are you friends or something?

[quaerit]

[ That's an interesting reaction. It's not what he expected, and his eyebrows lift slightly as a result. ]

So you do know him.

We're friends. We arrived around the same time, a couple of months ago. Is there something wrong with that?

[laruetheday]

Yeah. There is.

[ She tilts her head, watching him and trying to assess how much he knows. ]

Luke's a traitor. Did he just give you some stupid sob story about that, or just pretend it never happened?

[quaerit]

[ Gansey's expression suddenly clouds. Luke had mentioned nothing of the sort, and he's quick to shake his head. ]

I didn't know.

What are you talking about, who did he betray?

[laruetheday]

Luke started a war against the gods. Lots of people died. Kids, mostly.

[ Her jaw is set, but she seems to believe him when he says he didn't know. ]

[quaerit]

[ He genuinely didn't. This shock is real, and Gansey's face works instinctively hard to hide it.

Kids? ]

I knew he didn't like his father. I didn't know about a war, I promise you.

What happened? Was this stopped?

[laruetheday]

Yeah, it was stopped. Just a few weeks before I came here. Ask him about it sometime. I bet he'll give you a real sob story about how his dad didn't pay enough attention to him, like that makes him special.

[quaerit]

And you, you fought on the side of the gods, did you?

[ She must have. She's angry enough, even though it all seems under the surface. She reminds him of Ronan. ]

[laruetheday]

[ She's so pissed, and doubly so that Luke's been going around making friends. He doesn't deserve them. ]

There was no other choice.

[ By this she means that making any other choice would be going against everything that makes her her. ]

[quaerit]

[ But everyone deserves them. There must be another side to this story. Luke must have had his reasons.

But betraying his friends, the gods he came from...

He'll need to hear it from Luke. ]

I would have thought there were many choices. You're obviously loyal. You weren't angry with the gods, like he was?

[laruetheday]

Look, everyone's godly parent has some issues. Doesn't mean you go and resurrect Kronos over it.

[quaerit]

Kronos.

[ Give him a minute. He knows that he knows that name. ]

Kronos the Titan? That's what he did?

[laruetheday]

[ She gives him a nod. He knows some about Greek mythology. That's good. ]

Long story short, yeah.

[quaerit]

[ Mythology combines history with the paranormal. Those are two of Gansey’s favorite topics. Ronan would be better at this, though. He’ll ask him. ]

He told me he was sick of war. That he didn’t want to get involved in it again.

He said it like he meant it. I believe him.