"Parents aren't supposed to hit kids, 'least not hard enough to leave bruises, it's considered abuse and a reason to take you away from your parents and put you in foster care." 

"Maybe hit no mean what I think? Parents no should hit child the way you hit slave."

"Look, I don't make the CPS rules. But I had a friend who ended up in foster care 'cause his teacher saw bruises when he was changing for gym, he hadn't even said anything. Maybe just don't mention anything about your parents in school?" Shrug. "It, like, probably doesn't matter, they'd care a lot more if you were still living with them. But if the teacher told Diel, it might get her to come out and try to ask you about it, and I think you'd rather avoid that." 

Taldane. "- would you be willing to hit me right now like anyone in Undarin would hit a small child who wandered off or stole food."

"...Later when there are not other people here? I am worried that this person seems to be on our side but maybe will not keep being on our side if we do anything too surprising, and it sounds like maybe hitting is surprising? I am not saying her name or any words in the language they speak here because they might be recognized."

"- I want to ask her if that kind of hitting is the thing social services steals children and enslaves them over or not, but we can warn her first if you are willing to do it."

"Okay. I can do that."

"I am very confused now about what 'hit' means in English, so I asked Alfirin to hit me, and then you can tell us if that the thing you is talking about."

Alfirin stands on tip-toes and swats Iomedae in the back of the head. Probably not as hard as adults do, because she is not very strong and it's a bad angle, but she tries.

...You know what, that's actually a pretty reasonable thing for them to want to test, and - well, Evelyn isn't here, and if Alfirin does leave bruises then Iomedae can probably say she fell off her bike or something. (Man. America must seem completely insane to them.) 

"Yeah, okay.

- hmm. That'd definitely count as hitting. I think that's, like, reasonable people wouldn't call it abuse, if it wasn't very often and didn't make you scared of your parents? But I think if you told your teacher that happened, they'd - wonder if something worse was happening - and they might well make a report to CPS and send a social worker to your house to ask your parents questions. If CPS didn't find any other issues, they probably wouldn't put you in foster care over it. But there's, like, not actually a good reason to bring it up? And sometimes people aren't reasonable about what counts as abuse, or once they're paying attention they decide something else is an issue. ...I think rich fancy people don't hit their kids even like that, they're supposed to, like, have kinder parenting strategies, and they'd say it sets a bad example and makes kids think it's okay to hit other kids." 

"In ten America children, how many the government steal?"

"....Uh, it's less than one in ten, but - I think not that much less, if you count 'was ever in foster care', sometimes they take the kids for a bit and then end up sending them back home, or to grandparents or whatever. ...That's what happened with me, I eventually ended up living with my aunt. Anyway, I'd have to Google it to be sure. I do know it's really skewed, it'd - be super rare for people like Evelyn, who own a house and stuff, but - it was more than one in ten in my neighborhood, where everyone was really poor. The government judges poor parents a lot harder." 

"Of course. That is how it is even in normal places that no steal children. - my family own a house. No one make us slaves, the law care if someone rape me. I do not know if being poor in Taldor is better. No one steal your children but other things more bad I think."

"...Yeah, I don't know. I think it's - trying to help with real problems?" Shrug. "And, man, if it worked better, they'd have taken me into care when I was three, and that might've been better than the childhood I actually had, you know? Just. I think maybe you can't make a system that's - good for kids to have to interact with - or at least we haven't figured out how." 

Iomedae is very tired of everyone asserting that she is a child even when they're being helpful about concealing her origins from the social workers without being subjected to 'therapy'. However, picking fights with your allies over the way that they think of you is always unwise, and especially in this case. "I understand. Thank you."

(Emily isn't mostly thinking about Iomedae, right now, she's thinking about the kids in her childhood neighborhood. Though Iomedae does come across as very...fifteen...and young for it in some ways. Probably it's the barely speaking English and not knowing anything about anything, but it's also the - lack of cynicism? Being filled with righteous indignance over the unfairness of reality, as though this ever accomplishes anything? ...This is not useful advice to give Iomedae and she's not going to try.) 

"You'll get better at staying under the radar," she says, after a moment. "- Uh, not being noticed or standing out, 'under the radar' is a figure of speech."

Sigh. "I think you - I'm sure you're not doing this on purpose, but you kinda have a tendency to - say things really confidently, like someone would have to be very stupid or evil to disagree with you, and they're not things everyone agrees with here? It comes across as judgy. Especially about religion, I - really don't like feeling judged for not being religious, and I think it's super reasonable to not be religious in America." 

(In hindsight, Emily is realizing that she's been feeling kind of defensive and prickly for a while, like she's just trying to help and the reward is Iomedae being indignant at her like it's her fault that CPS is like this. Which is obviously unfair of her, and she's kind of embarrassed now, but - apparently Iomedae doesn't bring out the best in her.)

"You have English words make saying a thing sound not judgy? I do not care if other people - religious? except that I wish they knew I was holy warrior, and it sounds like this not really possible even if they is religious."

"- Yeah, I don't think there's a - thing you could convince Evelyn or the social worker of - that would make them be like, yeah okay you're chosen by God and that makes you automatically an adult. I really don't think you should try to push any harder on that, in case they just decide you're crazy." 

Sigh. "Okay, so, one, it's kind of rude to argue with people about religion in America. I bet that's why Evelyn didn't ask the right questions to end up being as confused as we are now. Two, it's - I mean, I realize I'm not unbiased here, but I don't think going around being super religious puts you in good company? America has some super religious people and they kinda suck, because a lot of Christian beliefs kinda suck? ...Evelyn wouldn't agree but Evelyn lives in this weird imaginary world where everyone is a nice person who's trying their best to help. I mean, I'm actually not judging her for it, it seems to work out really well for her, but it's true." 

"I do not understand America politics, and I no going discuss where I from any more, but it would be a very very big lie to pretend I not 'super religious'."

Also, the people she met in America who trusted God were kind and good and generous and helpful and her friends, until she failed them, and the people she's met in America who treat God as a game of make-believe have been at best accidentally enormously damaging and cruel to her, or have been Emily who is helpful but whose advice is mostly that Iomedae should give up on Law and honor and smile and lie and smile and lie until she rots inside. 

She doesn't say this. She is learning.

Claudette has been hanging back for a while - this seems like Foster Kid Stuff and not something she has anything useful to say about - but she clears her throat.

"I think you aren't Christian, though, since a lot of the things you believe are definitely not Christian things. So it's kind of a bit lying to let people keep assuming the god you're a holy warrior of is Jesus. And they'll assume you're way less cool than you actually are. I think it might actually be heretical for Christians to want to fight Hell? 'Cause it's, like, part of God's plan and all. I am pretty sure it's definitely not a Christian thing that God wants other people to be gods too and do it better. It's really fucking cool, unlike Christianity in America, which is not very cool. I'd be religious too if a god like that were around and also gave people magic powers. - not that you should tell people about the magic powers." 

"Jesus fighted Hell. That one of the first things that make me think same God. When I say about Aroden, one of the people I travel with say, oh yeah after He die on cross He go save people Hell. And the sermons in the churches I no understand very good but they about - Jesus want Heaven for everyone even if very evil. No one so evil Jesus not want them in Heaven.

Even if no same God, I plan pray to Jesus every night for stand with people at judgment and take their evils so they are safe. I do not know if He is a dead god or what is going on but if He might be real, I His ally. Saving people from Hell really important. The god who decided to do that is a good god even if He is not Aroden. And if He is dead or pretend, no bad from pray to Him.

I - understand - you both have bad time with church. I am sorry that you did. I do not know enough to say more about it. And I have no guess if Jesus alive or no. But I think Christians good and cool. I believe you that my life easier if I pretend this. I no going pretend it."

"...Okay, fair, if all Christians were like you about it then churches would probably not suck." 

"I think probably a lot of Christians are lovely people who don't suck at all and don't want anyone to go to Hell? I mean, Evelyn's Christian. It's just, like, the obnoxious ones are louder." Shrug. "Also a lot of Christians, like, don't want their kids learning real science in school, or don't believe in modern medicine, whereas I feel like your god would be all in favor of technology and understanding the world better." 

"Technology and Costco and space and understand the world very good and important and the job of all people. I believe you many Christians say or do bad things, but the ones I have knowed were good to me when they have very little to share, and my life was so much better with them, and things very bad for them now and it my fault, so I no going to - pretend I have no thing to do with them for life easier. And I think Jesus have right idea and I bet He does want me grow up be like Him, if He is real."

This is intensely upsetting. Why is this so upsetting. Probably because she does not have many allies, and she needs allies, and you have to make compromises to keep allies, but - she was not actually expecting 'denounce Jesus and the people who follow him' to be her new allies' first demand. She would not really have imagined that as in the range of demands allies made of each other; she hasn't asked anyone else to pray, or to pause before meals for her to pray, or even to allow her time in her day for it. She is trying to keep in mind that 'how to appease Americans' is valuable information even when the choice she makes is that it is not worth it to her to appease Americans, but it turns out it's still deeply unpleasant to navigate demands with that in mind.