"Wow, no wonder my brother thinks I'm going to marry her sometime this week."

"Oh?"

"I believe his exact words were 'I'm going to wake up tomorrow to a postcard from Vegas soliciting my congratulations on your elopement. It will have mysterious bloodstains on it and you will protest innocence when I ask who you shot at your wedding.' This when we'd known Edie for about two minutes."

"I'm sure if Edie shoots someone it'll be justified."

"I do get that impression!"

She gets a brief wistful look and then shakes her head slightly. "So what're you like to merit your half of the marriage? And the password?"

"It actually does normally take me longer than two minutes to convince people they should let me join their secret spy rings. And I prefer to let my twin be the one to talk me up because I sound less egotistical that way. But if you insist, I'm a frighteningly charismatic, slightly manic-depressive overachiever who will settle for being the first Asian-American President if being the next Steve Jobs doesn't pan out."

"Edie doesn't actually have a secret spy ring. I'm less sure about her mother. So what are you going to do if being the next Steve Jobs doesn't work out and another Asian-American gets elected President before you're old enough to be eligible?"

"I'm sure I'll think of something," he says cheerfully.

"Alright then. If you're seriously considering President maybe ask Edie to tell you all of her political opinions sometime you have a few hours going free, if you're not the type to be scared off by unendorsed vitriol."

"Asking Edie her political opinions results in unendorsed vitriol?"

"Edie has a temper, and while she's gotten pretty good at not blowing up at people she's trying to argue around, if you ask her to tell you about all of her political opinions, there are policymakers she'll call things like 'homophobic pox-mucous' and 'problem-solving abilities of a banana slug in a bucket of pretzels'."

"I'd think a banana slug in a bucket of pretzels would be highly motivated to solve problems!"

"And yet, I imagine that if you put one there, it's probably not going to end up with its newfound problems solved."

"Depends on the slug, I guess."

"I think enough slugs are like that to make it a valid insult."

"Okay, that much I'll grant you."

"So, yeah, she has a temper. I've only seen it like once, though, she's good about--stuff like that."

"Ah. Yeah." He looks like he's considering saying more than that, but class seems like it's right about to start.

Yep. Class! Afterwards Anna-Sophia would like to know if he wants directions to his next one.

"Yeah, thanks -" He consults his timetable. "AP Calculus?"

Directions!

AP Calculus!

AP Calculus and AP English are relatively far away from each other; several other students have arrived by the time he shows up. One of them is probably familiar!

"My future wife! Hello!" he says, sitting next to her.