(Untitled)

[mmquitecontrary]

Mary has mostly abandoned the idea of becoming a spy for England and sowing misinformation in Germany over the next four years. (Mostly. Not entirely

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[plays_chess]

There's a young man sitting at a table near her, working on a report. (He has a stack of others in a binder sitting next to him.)

He has a pair of earbuds in, plugged into his laptop. (He's listening to Radiohead, not that that Mary knows who they are.)

[mmquitecontrary]

It takes Mary a few minutes to notice him.

When she does, she's not shy about going to stand over him and squint at the reports. If it was a secret, after all, it would hardly be something to work on in the middle of a crowded bar.

[plays_chess]

He glances up, picks up the binder and hands it to her with his right hand as he takes out his left earbud. (He also presses ctrl+s and closes the top of his laptop.

"For you," he says, in what he hopes is a smoothly competent voice. "They're summaries of the articles I was reading; I have them organized by primary topic."

(The tabs are: bombs, guns, England, medicine, and disease.)

"I don't think anything's too specific to throw you off."

[mmquitecontrary]

Mary's widen, as John hands her the binder. Her hands close around it, and she blinks at him.

. . . this is one of the best presents she's ever received.

"Oh," she says, and then: "It is very organized. You must have gone to a deal of trouble."

She doesn't bother trying to disguise the fact that she's impressed; why should she?

[ginsu_master]

Leo was passing by with a fresh pot of tea, but the textbook title attracts his attention. He pauses, and then asks politely, "Is that for a school project or your own education?"

[mmquitecontrary]

"These are studies I have set myself," Mary answers, and glances up.

"For my preparation." The emphasis is heavy; she's not researching this purely out of her own interest, but rather from necessity.

[ginsu_master]

"Your preparation?" He repeats with just as much grave emphasis. "Now, I feel I must ask what you are preparing yourself for?"

He sits down at a nearby table and tries to not to crowd the young woman on a mission.

[mmquitecontrary]

Mary jerks her chin up, meeting Leo's gaze with a certain fierceness - just in case she's being humored.

"For a war that is coming; it will not be for a few years yet, but it is coming, and there is no use in not being ready."