Hm. Interesting.

When she sits he approaches her. "Meng Yao," he says in heavily accented English. "Maintenance track. Do you speak Mandarin?"

"Hi-" She blinks at him, is that one of the guys who was with the crying kid earlier?  Maintenance track for Shanghai, then, probably- she switches languages and scoots over to make room. "Mostly- I can understand you fine but my accent is embarrassing."  It's tolerable, especially for an American who missed the critical window, but there's a slightly flattened quality to the sentence that suggests she memorized it.  "I'm Connie Donovan."

"I should speak English and you should speak Mandarin. Then we'll both be sure not to use a word the other one doesn't know. And get an opportunity to practice."

"That makes sense."  Unfortunately so- but she needs to think of it as sensible or at least annoying rather than stressful or she's going to make everything worse- "I saw you with Shanghai earlier?"

"I'm maintenance track for Shanghai." He's going to elide his actual position. The last thing he needs is another freshman sucking up so he can't get a sense of their actual potential. "I was impressed by your-- what's the word-- hand... sock..."

" 'Glove', and thank you."  Connie gives him a small smile.  "I'm still working on it.  Forces is my affinity."

"That's powerful."

"I hope so."  She switches to English briefly to reassure her glove that it's doing its very best and she's very proud of it.  "I'm planning to study artificer track, I want to give her some nice upgrades for- moving smaller things."

"Which will come in handy when you want to fight mals less... dramatically."

"Mmhmm."  Is he hinting at her, it can't have made it all the way to Shanghai, what would a Shanghai upperclassman even be hinting at her for.  "I mostly open cupboards now, so that my hand is not where they think it is.  And I have a knife."  She pats it.  It's a very good knife and it keeps her safe, yes it is.

"Knives are good! They don't need to be reloaded. I use mine a lot when I'm doing my shifts."

"I've heard they're very dangerous."  Come on Connie this is why you brought it out in the first place.  "If you know people who want a glove like mine-"  Oh hell.  Two ways to finish that sentence and now neither of them is happening.  Breathe, say something that isn't the thing you're stuck on, he probably just thinks you're nervous...  "But I'm going to first upgrade mine before I work on another one."

"I'm sure there are many people who could find something like that useful."

"Did you hear that?  He says you're going to be popular," Connie murmurs, for lack of anything to spit out in Mandarin.

There's a short awkward pause, and then Connie shoves the largest brussels sprout on her plate in her mouth whole and there's a much longer awkward pause.  By the time she gets the last of it down, she's managed to compile:  "I hope I will make friends who she works well together with, but if people like her when I'm better at artificing I can make her some little sisters.  But for right now I can do senior level math."

"I'm not sure that the Shanghai enclave would find math tutoring interesting-- most people there are poor at English."

"Yes, I can only do tutoring in English and Spanish.  Sorry about that."  Two more of her stock phrases, that gets her some breathing room.  "Anyone who needs homework help has someone already, probably."

"Still. I for one would like to be able to grab things when doing maintenance shifts without risking my hand."

She nods.  "I could work on a little sister at the same time as the upgrades, maybe.  If faster is better than smaller."

"I'd personally prefer smaller because I need my hands now."

Connie blinks at him.  "I- think I said it wrong?"  She glances away and starts pulling her kebab apart.  "I could do one just like her sooner or I could do one that holds smaller things later."

"Oh, I'm sorry, ma'am. I think I got it mixed up. Sooner is better for me."

Why is an upperclassman apologizing and calling her ma'am.  Nothing about this interaction is going the way she expected. 

"Not to worry.  Language barrier is complicated."   

"What sorts of things are you interested in in trade?"

"Someday mana storage, or good long wards sooner?  But we should not pick a price until I know better how long it takes."

"I may be able to trade something with someone from Shanghai enclave for wards. It'll be expensive, of course."

Ah, okay, they are in the haggling part.  Connie has scripts for the haggling part.  Except she hasn't practiced them in Mandarin nearly enough and also she increasingly wants to run away and hide.  Which is not a strategy. 

"Mm, I want to be fair, but- one glove is one glove?  Fractions of a glove are not anything. Do you want- the American slang is 'first dibs'.  To claim a spot.  I wouldn't make anyone else one until we agreed or decided we couldn't agree."

"I'd be happy to claim dibs."

Tiny smile.  "Then if you know an upperclassman who brings freshmen- to take things- yell at me?"

"Sorry, didn't parse that."

Heckkk she knows the word for 'supply run' and it has fallen completely out of her head.  "To take things- from the place where they- sit on shelves"  thank you brain, she does not want the Modern Greek or the Amharic for 'closet'-  "Things like paper and wire and erasers and mercury.  Only one time, not every week."

"Supply run. I can get you in on the Shanghai enclave maintenance track supply run."

...right.  She could have swapped in the English word.  "Good.  It's a deal."  And now she looks like an idiot in two languages don't think about that breathe.  "I'll find you in a week or two when I have the things and know better how long it takes."

"Pleasure doing business with you."

"Likewise a pleasure."  And Connie does not shove her rolls in her pockets and flee, which by rights ought to get her a tiny smidgen of mana all on its own.