"Can you make a ward elsewhere and summon me there?"

"It'd be a different spell to get a specific person and we used this one because it wouldn't be noticed if we got the book out of the library, it would be if we got a regular summoning book," says Korulen.

Pause. "Can you make a moving ward or something?"

(Still studying the ward.)

"No..."

"I'm a bit limited in how much I understand your magic system, can you, I don't know, knock me out and then move me elsewhere and put a ward there?"

"You're from a totally different world and we don't know how you work, we can't be sure anything like that is safe," says Korulen.

"Isn't there any identifying magic or something you could use to figure that out?"

"My mom could check you but we don't want to tell her we were even doing this."

"...I don't, ah... it's potentially a pretty huge deal if you could call your mum."

"...uh, why?"

"'Cause you just contacted a world you know nothing about. If I'm lying, then your mum figuring that out will put all of this to an end, and you might get scolded or grounded. If I'm telling the truth, there are all kinds of potential trades our worlds would probably greatly benefit from, and several hundred thousands, perhaps millions of lives—on my side, don't know your population—could be improved beyond their dreams."

"I could get expelled," says Saasnil, alarmed.

"Or you could save several people from starvation and preventable diseases."

Saasnil whirls on Korulen - "Don't tell her I can't get expelled it can't be that important anyway or people would do this all the time -"

"Maybe they would, or maybe there are protocols people follow and they do this all the time in a more controlled manner. Do you think your mum would really get you expelled over this...?"

"Korulen wouldn't get expelled her dad is the headmaster, I would get expelled!" says Saasnil.

"So you could tell just her mum and ask her not to tell her dad. Or she could ask her dad not to get you expelled. It would seem... very unfair, to me, for you to get expelled over this."

"Nobody's going to ask you if you think it's fair or if Korulen doesn't want me expelled!" exclaims Saasnil. "And her mom can't not tell her dad they're mindlinked -"

"...and is there literally no one else you could ask to check?"

"Not like Mom could," says Korulen, shaking her head, frowning, "not safe enough that we could just plain let you out, lie detection by itself isn't good enough..."

"Why not? I could tell you everything I have said in this conversation is true to the best of my knowledge and I have not attempted nor do I plan to attempt any form of subterfuge or misdirection."

"We're not, like, professional interrogators," says Korulen.

"You could come up with any phrasing you liked, perhaps ask a teacher for a better set of questions and say it's for a book or research, perhaps look for a book? You could leave this lie detection spell or artefact on while we talk, and ask me whatever questions you liked."

"Except we don't know how to do that because we're wizard students not professional interrogators and the safe thing to do is not let you out," Korulen says.

He runs a hand through his hair, looking frustrated. "I'm not sure how many more shows of good faith I need. It's a good rule that you shouldn't let me out, but I'm pretty sure it was also a rule that you shouldn't have summoned me at all, and given that you have, it's a better rule to verify."