"It's not that it's rude to have a conversation, it's that it's rude to start one--like, if a New Yorker starts talking to you, you can respond, and it's not like starting a conversation with an enclaver is never a good idea, but inviting yourself along to an older New Yorker's room steps way over the invisible line."

"....That's really strange but I guess I can remember that's a rule here. It - makes more sense why they were so weird about it?" 

"Yeah. Um. Does Shanghai know you almost got in a fight with New York because you didn't know anything about the social situation inside the school."

".....I don't think so? Should I tell them?" He looks confused. "I - don't think I did anything that different when I talked to Shanghai? There were some kids looking for someone's room, he forgot to write the number down, and I asked if I could help them. I guess I would've gone away if they'd said no because by then I was less scared that someone was going to die for not being careful enough. There were ten times as many mals as this where I come from." 

"Okay. I don't know why that went better, particularly, it could just be that you ran into more easy-going kids from Shanghai than from New York. But you should absolutely tell Shanghai what happened with New York, because Shanghai is the most powerful enclave in the Sinosphere and so they and New York are sort of--rivals--and anything that complicates relations between the two is important and they should know about it."

"..........Oh." He says it in a very small voice, and sort of hunches up smaller as well. "I - I didn't mean to make a problem for him?"

What if he's angry. What if he decides that actually Masozi is a liability and shouldn't get any help from Shanghai after all, even if his affinity is useful? It's not like he actually knows almost anything, yet. 

"I know you didn't. But--it'll be a smaller problem if they hear it from you, now, than from New York, later."

"Thank you." 

He's really really really scared, but Lucy's right; it won't make anything better if he tries to delay this. 

He nods to her and then heads back toward the Shanghai table, with the empty rinsed container that he has to return anyway.