Debate Night
"Bring your burning questions and opinions to Britechester's Debate Guild, where the most intelligent and passionate of students will hash out an answer in front of a live audience! Are swimming pools inherently dangerous? Is comfort or health food better for you? Or have you always wanted to know whether your fellow students think gnomes are cute or creepy? This and more on Saturday morning, at the Quad!" But, of course, first Ava has to attend practice night... can't look like a fool in front of the whole university, now can she?
Tuesday passed without remark, but Wednesday brought a thick blanket of snow over Britechester. Winter had well and truly set in, and talk was beginning to circulate of holiday break and trips back home.
Leia had mentioned wanting to host Winterfest this year, but it was yet to be determined if that would be at her house in Crow's Crossing or the venue in Newcrest where they had hosted Harvestfest. But for now, Ava had classes to focus on.
Waiting for class to start that day, Ava met another student named Victoria. She was a Language and Literature major, and also in her second year. As they chatted, Ava found out that Victoria was interested in the Debate Guild.
"We're having a practice tonight." Ava told her. "You should come by, see if you want to join up with us."
"That sounds great, actually, I think I will! Thank you."
After classes were over for the day, Ava spent the early afternoon hanging out at Darby's Den. There was a guest lecture on the Law career right before practice started, and she wanted to catch that. Was she planning on going into it? Absolutely not, but it still seemed interesting.
While she waited, she decided to do some research on the history of the university. As rumor had it, Britechester University was haunted!
"Felix Psyded was the enthusiastic entrepreneur who spearheaded the construction of Britechester's first historic university. He was a jubilant man who spread laughter and joy everywhere he went. It was his laughter, tragically, that lead to his untimely death during an exceptionally raucous pep rally.
Though legend has it, he never actually left his beloved university. some say that if you listen closely you can still hear his eerie laughter echoing through the halls of Britechester. It seems that Felix Psyded is still excited about life, even in death."
Maybe that was the ghost that kept haunting her apartment complex. Laughter really wasn't such a bad way to go, as far as deaths were concerned.
The guest lecture was interesting, for sure. She could see why Aukai was pursuing a career in law- it would certainly support him and Liliana well.
She still couldn't believe that Liliana was already married, but it wasn't that surprising. Liliana was the only one to carry an active relationship out of high school, after all. It was hard to determine who would be next, but just based off of active relationships, it was looking like Carlos or Ella.
Her thoughts were interrupted, though, by the arrival of the rest of the Debate Guild. She was ready to debate!
Victoria had taken up Ava's invitation to visit, and actually stepped up to participate with Ava in a debate about healthy versus comfort foods, a topic Ava had been studying religiously for. Victoria gave it a good effort, but was no match for Ava's level of research.
"It was fun, though! I think I will join the guild."
"Welcome to the team, then!"
Partway through practice, Ava spied a familiar face sitting in the debate room. Aurelia had come to visit! She usually worked weekday nights, so Ava hadn't seen her much outside of passing each other on the way to class.
"Have you come to join the guild?" She asked Aurelia when the current debate had ended.
"Oh, no." Aurelia shook her head. "I can't because of work, since I do nights. But I figured since I had one off, I'd come join in a practice, if that's alright?"
"Are you kidding? Of course! We never get to hang out, let's go!"
The topic Ava and Aurelia were assigned was, "are gnomes cute or creepy?" Ava had always thought this topic was too silly for any serious debate, but the two of them would give it their best shot.
"Gnomes are creepy." Ava declared. "We all know it, so why beat around the bush? When one appears in your home on Harvestfest, you don't think, 'oh what an adorable gnome!' No, you think, 'dear Reaper, I hope they don't sabotage the refrigerator this year.' They strike fear into the heart of any reasonable person!"
Aurelia looked like she was having a hard time taking this conversation seriously, taking a breath and pulling a hand over her face to summon composure. "Does that negate any actual cuteness, though? Foxes are pretty adorable, I wouldn't want them on my property around my chickens! Things can be cute and destructive at the same time. And have you seen some of them? The ones with the flowers, or the one who brings a little wagon? Who can deny the cuteness of something so small?"
Both good points! But it was up to the audience: who was right? Were gnomes cute or creepy? The club was split- not bad for Aurelia's first go at a debate.
After practice was over, Ava headed back to the apartment to have some dinner and settle in for the night. As she was walking up the stairs though, who should she run into but Ella!
"Hi, Ava! I was hoping you'd be home." Ella grinned. "I thought I'd come surprise you, it's been forever and a half!"
"Ella! It really has." Ava laughed. "Come upstairs, I was about to make dinner. You can join me if you want."
"That sounds great. Dear Cupid, I've missed you."
"You too, Ella. C'mon, let's get something warm on the stove and we can catch up."
With some warm comfort food prepared and the heating cranked up to combat the cold, the two sisters sat down for a long awaited chat. They'd seen each other at family events, but hadn't really had time to talk in depth since the summer.
"How's the cafe going?" Ava asked.
"It's great, I actually just hired someone for the barista position permanently. Business is slowly growing! How's school?"
"Good! Classes are great, I'm mostly doing photography this term. I haven't made up my mind what I'll be doing with the degree, though. I think either Floral Designer or Musician."
"You'd probably do well with either of those." Ella agreed. "What instrument would you specialize in?"
"Oh, violin, obviously! I love the violin."
"How are things going with Kit?" Ava asked next, causing Ella to blush.
"Kit is great. He's a complete sweetheart, and so supportive. The distance is starting to bite a little, though. It's hard for us to go all the way from Ciudad Enamorada to San Myshuno and vice versa every time we want to see each other." Ella sighed. "I can't move because of the business, obviously, so we've gotta work something out. Maybe he can get a job in Ciudad Enamorada."
"I hope it works out." Ava agreed.
"What about you? Are you seeing anyone?"
Ava smiled. "I am, actually. It's not official yet... but do you remember Haikili Kealoha, from high school?"
Ella's smile faded. "That self-absorbed prick? Really, Ava?"
"He's not a prick!" Ava defended. "He has a lot of confidence, and it comes off as self-absorbed. He's a gentleman when you get past that."
"To you." Ella sighed. "But I guess that's what matters. So you're seeing him?"
"We've been on a few dates." Ava answered. "I'm spending the weekend with him in Mua Pel'am. We're going to see the Waterfall and the volcano."
"That does sound nice." Ella acknowledged. "As long as he's treating you right, I guess. It's gonna take more to convince me, though, he was real rude throughout high school."
"Well, maybe he's matured." Ava suggested with a shrug.
"We can hope. Long as you're happy, Ava."
Their food was long finished, and the sun was rapidly setting. Though she hated to bid Ella goodbye, Ava was also quite tired.
"You'd better get going if you want to get back to Vista Hermosa before midnight. Thank you for coming to visit, Ella!"
"Of course! I'll try and come again soon. If nothing else, I'll see you at Winterfest."
"Travel safe, I'll see you soon." Ava promised. The sisters embraced, and then Ella headed off to the train station.
Ava was glad to climb into bed once Ella had left. It had been a very busy day, and promised to be another one tomorrow. She couldn't help but ponder some of the things Ella had said- was Haikili really self-absorbed? She didn't think so...
It had been a couple years since they graduated high school, and there was plenty of time for someone to change in that time. Haikili was charming, attentive, and interesting. That was good enough for her.
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