Soon it will be time to read about things long-dead people wrote.
"I... I don't..." He trails off, exhales shakily—looks up at her with a flash of a wry, haunted smile. "Uh, in case you were wondering, it's not my usual practice to unload all my private griefs on the third conversation with a new acquaintance. You just. Caught me at a bad time, let's say."
"Darn, I was waiting in rapt anticipation for what conversation four would be like," says Yvette, dry. "... But no, seriously, you seemed to need it, and if I can help -" She shrugs, looking amused. "I think you've heard my opinion there. Happy to be of service."
"I want you to know that I deeply appreciate and admire your commitment to making the world a better place," he says, his voice soft but intense. "I—when I'm being my best self, when I live up to my own ideals, I feel very similarly."
She smiles a tiny slightly shy smile, and inspects her hands because she cannot meet that gaze right now.
"Well, thank you. I uh. Am glad that it's not just me that wants to save the galaxy."
"But sometimes... it just isn't in me to believe I can be helped, or that I should be. It's—I guess it really does come back to what I was trying to say about poor Richard. About... feeling like something in the fundamental nature of my physical and spiritual being is corrupt, broken, impure." He pauses a moment, then adds, "I judge my odds of reducing Frank to tears pretty high if I can just manage to get that out onto a vidscreen in a comprehensible essay format."
"Reducing him to tears is important, I see." Pause, a complicated expression. "And I don't think you're - corrupt, broken, or impure. I realize that probably doesn't help, but." She waves a hand awkwardly.
"It... I don't know," he sighs. "It's... better than nothing? That sounds so inadequate, and any way I can think of to try to make it sound more positive fails catastrophically at that task. Um. It's better than nothing and I swear that's actually meaningful?"
"I will take you at your word," she agrees. Pause. "So, want to be friends, only other Barrayaran at this school?"
He looks her in the face again with a broad, friendly, genuine smile that only carries a little pain around the edges.
"Yes, I will absolutely be your friend, Yvette Vorlaine."
"Hey, I had to be sure! Good, I have someone to trash talk Betans with, that's important."
"Unfortunately lacking in participants on Beta Colony itself. Pity, there are so many Betans to trash talk."
"God help me, there are some Betans I would dearly love to trash-talk, but so far I have avoided literally crying on you and I'd like to keep that up," he snorts.
"Okay, well, in that case, you are hereby approved for crying on the individual known as Yvette Vorlaine. Congratulations."