[Oh good*g* He's not in the category of 'principal's (in a Close Protection sense, not a school sense!) biggest problem may be himself right now' then.]
"Good opinions aren't always widespread," Xiulan agrees. "Often quite the opposite." She finishes off the last bite of the curry pastry and does not reach for any other food, keeping her hands unoccupied.
His question makes her smile: both for the layers she suspects are in it and also because...well. Things were better, then and she hadn't expected to find herself thinking that, at this gathering of all things.
"Different place, different Academy. But not so different in some other ways it sounds like. We had to do something to liven things up after all." She pauses, considers. Decides to get it over with. "I'm from a timeline where there isn't a heptarchate or hexarchate - as far as I know." Her smile goes a little crooked. "But I've been in timelines that do for a few years now."
Re: less than subtle hawk hovering (paging Sasha, Hana, and Xiulan)
"Good opinions aren't always widespread," Xiulan agrees. "Often quite the opposite." She finishes off the last bite of the curry pastry and does not reach for any other food, keeping her hands unoccupied.
His question makes her smile: both for the layers she suspects are in it and also because...well. Things were better, then and she hadn't expected to find herself thinking that, at this gathering of all things.
"Different place, different Academy. But not so different in some other ways it sounds like. We had to do something to liven things up after all." She pauses, considers. Decides to get it over with. "I'm from a timeline where there isn't a heptarchate or hexarchate - as far as I know." Her smile goes a little crooked. "But I've been in timelines that do for a few years now."