sampippy | Outside Voorhees Hall, Columbia University, New York, Thursday

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Outside Voorhees Hall, Columbia University, New York, Thursday

What was a girl to do when her first year of college was about a week away from being over and she was desperate for one last boost in coolness in the eyes of her peers (namely, her three roommates)? Why, obviously the answer was to invite a guy over! Specifically, a guy she'd slept with like a year ago and who she - let's face it - barely knew aside from that. But he was impressive! Or at least impressively hot, and, also he was nice even if Xanthippe was loathe to admit that was a positive quality in anyone.

So she'd invited Hyacinthe over for a visit. And she'd gone and picked him up on the edge of campus and walked him through it and now they were here, right outside her dorm. It was one of those imposing brown brick buildings, old as rocks and heavy with history.

The sign outside said VOORHEES HALL.

"So, yeah," she said, looking up at the building. At her side, her fingers were fidgeting with the edge of her overly lengthy sleeve. "This is where I live now."

In a building with her last name on it.

[ooc: NFB due to distance, and for the boy mentioned!]

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Xanthippe shrugged, vaguely. As much as she could without moving too much, anyway. She was pretty comfortable where she was.

"I just thought you probably had, like, easier company around." She didn't even mean that in a slang sense of 'easy'. Just people who were on the island or near it, and who he probably knew better. "Like maybe you'd be too busy."

"Most of those I cared for graduated with you," Hyacinthe said softly, shifting out of her. He took care of the condom, disposing of it carefully, then eased back alongside her.

Then, after a split second of thought, pulled her closer and tucking his arm around her. "The only one who did not was Dante and he practically moved out of the dorms last summer. Your invitation was timely, cherie. Gave me aught to look forward to."

Xanthippe curled up against him some. Cuddling was, funnily enough, yet another thing she didn't get enough of.

"I'm happy you came here," she murmured. Just in case there was any doubt about that. "Today's already pretty much better than the whole year here's been." Slight exaggeration, but sex-wise, definitely. "I don't think you should leave."

"All right," Hyacinthe said, amused. "But you shall have to explain it to my mother and Phedre both why they are there and I am not."

"Do they read emoji?" she asked. "Because I could probably explain it in emoji." As opposed to any human words, because that way lay mortification. "There'd probably be a lot of eggplants. Also, maybe a horse..."

She was enough of a nerd that even though she was obviously joking, she also halfway looked like she was trying to figure out which emoji she'd use, regardless.

Hyacinthe burst out laughing. "I don't even speak this 'emoji,'" he said. "Though that sounds like something I ought be thanking you for saying."

Xanthippe paused, her lips parted and her brow furrowed as she parsed that. Because she hadn't even thought of it like that.

But now she did. So her eyes widened a little.

"Oh! Oh, that was supposed to be a play on 'riding'." Because that would be a part of why he should stay, clearly. Still, she her expression turned into a smirk. Kind of a vague one, like she wanted to hide the urge to. "But, that other thing -- I could, I think, see myself saying that? I mean, you're not small."

"I am fine not being 'gargantuan,' either." Haycinthe said, still highly amused. "So long as my partner is deriving pleasure, I am satisfied." Ba-dum tsh. "And so you wish to inform my mother that you're too busy riding me to let me attend my graduation? Why, Xanthippe, I'd no idea you were so bold."

Xanthippe blushed. Guess they'd discovered the limit in her joking boldness.

At least she didn't stanmer, though. "Well, only if she couldn't, like, actually read emoji."

"She cannot," Hyacinthe said with a small grin. "Nor can she read English, for that matter, nore speak more than a few words. But Phedre can, so she is the one you'd have to worry about."

"I don't know who that is."

She... didn't actually know a whole ton about him to begin with, did she?

"My best friend," Hyacinthe said simply. It was a true answer, if not the whole truth, but even Hya couldn't quite explain the relationship being himself and Phedre. "I have known her since we were small children, the first time she escaped House Cereus. Our friendship has flourished for over a decade: the Prince of Travellers and the Queen of Courtesans. Or, at least, that's how we imagined ourselves when we were small, hiding from merchants who saw us steal fruit from their carts or pies from their stalls."

Xanthippe's head tilted just slightly (against the arm it was pillowed on), one eyebrow quirking. "Wait, so, you were like... Aladdin?"

Look, she was a child of her time: brought up on Disney more than anything else. But, at least she exhibited some self-awareness just a beat after.

"Oh. You probably don't know what that is."

"Not even a little," Hyacinthe agreed with a warm chuckle. "Is he a dashingly handsome prince with a silver tongue and a flair for the dramatic?"

"Well, he wasn't a prince before he pretended to be one," Xanthippe mused. "But, he was like, hot. For a cartoon."

"Well, I assure you, I am a prince," Hyacinthe declared. "At least as my people figure as such."

Probably? At least, if what his mother said was true. Hyacinthe wasn't always sure.

"Really?"

This was news to her!

Her eyebrows bounced. "Oh my god, my mom can never find out about that." You know, as if there was any real, immident danger of her finding out he even existed.

"Oh aye." Probably. "My grandfather, Manoj, is the Tsingan kralis, the king of the Tsingano. His kumpania is the largest and most prosperous of even the four baro kumpai. By blood, I am a prince of the Tsingani."

Just...not by practice. For reasons.

Okay, that sounded impressive, even if she didn't understand like half of those words.

Also: "Wait, by blood?" she asked, the impressed look on her face giving way to confusion. "But not otherwise?"

Most of them didn't have easy translations into English, sadly.

"But not otherwise," Hyacinthe confirmed. "My mother is...no longer part of Manoj's kumpania." He spoke slowly, trying to choose his words with care. "And their road no longer leads to the City of Elua, in grief over losing their most beloved daughter there."

Yeah, Xanthippe was confused. "So, what, there was like a scandal?"

Because she knew all about those.

"...That's one way of putting it," Hyacinthe said quietly. "'Tis an unpleasant story. Due to the nature of my conception. I'd not force you to listen if 'twould upset you."

"You don't have to tell me." Even Xanthippe had enough awareness of things outside her frame of reference to figure out things were serious. Like, capital S Serious.

She brought her hand up and gingerly brushed her fingers over his chin. "But, like, you can."

Hyacinthe caught her hand and brought it up to his lips to kiss. It gave him something to do while he figured out the easiest way to explain it. "I do not know my father," he said at last. "Nor does my mother."

Which probably explained most of what happened, though hardly all. Still, it was enough, for now.

"Oh," Xanthippe said, her brow furrowing. That didn't seem so bad, lots of people in the New York social scene had dubious parentage --

Except then she put this information together with what he'd said just before, and her eyes widened some. "Oh." Yeah. "I'm sorry."

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