"Oh- gosh, sorry!"  She grabs a rag and wipes her hands on it as she comes closer.  "Left it in my bag, no wonder."

"I can get it," Blaze says, getting to her feet. "I just-"

"Sure- net pocket inside the top.  Sorry I startled you."

She smiles back a little shyly. "I- no, it's fine. I was just..." Startled, yes, but it hadn't been a bad thing, in the end.

"Okay- uh, doing all right still?"

She nods as she fetches the charge cable for the bag, and plugs it in to the laptop. "Yes, thank you. Um, did you- need anything?"

"Nope, I just noticed it was dragging, an' I thought you might've been into it enough you didn't see the alert."

"Oh- I. Yes. I was. Um. You could tell? From-" she gestures.

"Yeah- most computer bits are too finicky for me to really get a handle on, but the battery's the- loudest, I guess?  And since I've had it for a while I kind of notice it more?"

"I- that's- that's pretty amazing, ma'am."

"Aww, thank you."  She tucks a strand of hair behind her ear, practically glowing.  "It's great, I got really lucky."

Blaze looks down, smiles. "I- that's- that's good."

Cassie miiight be blushing.  "Anyway.  I can let you get back to Bill Nye, yeah?"

"I- yes, of course, I- yes?"

"Like, unless there's something else you'd rather?  Or we can talk more if you want, I'm not in any rush."

"Oh- I- I don't- want to distract you? I'm fine, it's- nice. Interesting?"

"I just- um.  Yeah.  Science communication.  Is important."  She twists a lock of hair around her fingers, looking off at an angle.

"I've never... Had anything like this before."

"Your school didn't use the electronic babysitter when a teacher was out?"

She looks down. "I, um, never- went. To school. My guardians-" (Had always said she was too stupid, had always said it wasn't worth wasting anyone's time with.)

"Oh.  And if you're homeschooled you don't just get a new teacher next year if you wind up with one that doesn't like math, huh.  That must suck."

She just shakes her head mutely, not sure how to explain where Cassie has made the error.

"Well.  Uh.  We don't have to talk about it if you're not comfortable with it.  An' you've got plenty of time if you do want to try out the public school experience, although if it's anything like where I grew up I can't exactly recommend it."

"I just- I've never-"

"Aww, hey, d'you- would you like another hug?"