I nod a little, clamping down on the instinct, sudden and grossly inappropriate, to reach over and take one of the hands folded so carefully in her lap.

"You can always find me here, around class time. My house is easy to hunt down, too, once you learn where the streams are. Have you thought about your living arrangements? The compound's a little... well," I say, smiling slightly, "military. There are standing structures available, usually, small homes, but I can introduce you to a man, Duck MacDonald. He helped me put my place up, he's a wonderful carpenter."

I may or may not sound like a rambling idiot, it's hard to tell, objectively, from this side of things.