Comment:

It's satisfying, isn't it, when you can stop a bad person from doing a bad thing by catching them on an unrelated technicality? Imagine what it must have felt like, to be the first fed to think of arresting Capone for tax evasion. Something so simple, falling perfectly into place. Poetic, almost.

I wrote a similar sort of trap in Leftover Soup (over a decade ago, where does the time go?) for Jamie Halliganiv. Of course, that was a police officer who believed Jamie was a murderer who had escaped justice, attempting to goad him into brandishing a loaded firearm in the middle of a police station, so the stakes are a tad lower here (as befits a more civilized era) but the principle and the emotions involved are the same.

Some people believe in rules, and some people use rules to get what they want. (I could comment here on my experiences coming to terms with my position on the autism spectrum, but that's a discussion for another comment file.) You can usually tell the difference between these two types of humans by they way they use the word "reasonable". I'm sure Mezzer Hightower would be a lot more "reasonable" with a barefoot student who they didn't believe to be a freeloading con artist who is overselling their psychological problems in order to continue their con of siphoning thousands of creds from the school system.

Patricia Hightower, like Cheryla, isn't really a bad person. They think they've thought of a clever way to right a wrong, and they're pressing their advantage. Of course, Lee, unlike Jamie, has two friends with them to help them navigate this situation. It remains to be seen if this will help or hinder, but at least it's more visually interesting for the panel composition.

I have learned a few things in the past ten years.

Transcript:

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0323 – 2167/07/07/09:39 – Lee Caldavera’s apartment, living room.
Doc [data connection]: ...and grab the shoes using what, exactly?
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[Rosenthal College hex]
Zoa: Doc’s a no-go. Just as well, its top hover speed is only three kilometers per hour anyway.
LC (sitting on bench, barefoot): I can’t believe I’m going to get expelled and evicted because I was too stupid to grab my own shoes on the way out the door.
CP: This isn’t… they w-wouldn’t… they c-c-c-can’t…
PH: Are you having difficulty, Second Major? Is your neural implant malfunctioning? Do we need to call someone?
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CP: NO!
CP: N-n-no, I’m… I’m f-f-f-fine. I j-just h-h-have a p-p-perfectly n-n-n-normal st-st-stutt-
PH: Glad to hear it. You, of course, may feel free to attend your classes as normal.
LC (face in hands): Oh God… Am I hyperventilating? I feel like I’m hyperventilating.
Zoa: Actually, Lee, your pulse and respiration rate aren’t too far off from normal.
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Zoa: Of course, my metrics are based on observations from the past day, so...
LC: So panic attacks are my baseline. Great. Thanks for that.
PH: You know, Mezzer Caldavera, if you’re not going to be attending class, I would have to ask you to cease loitering and remove yourself from the school’s property.
PH: Just from the hex to start, at least...
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