Treaties and Compromise

Professor Alvarado interrupted the murmurs of the classroom as the students straggling in took their seats.

"Well, I hope you enjoyed your character assignments these past couple of weeks because your first assignment begins today," he pulled a handful of papers from his backpack and began distributing them to the class.

"You have two weeks to figure it out. This packet gives you everything you need to know about the other countries, or in your case, the other classes. You have China, Germany, Mexico, and Guatamala as countries you will have to work with. A word of advice, don't rely solely on the internet, news, or other sources such as these to make your decisions. These scenarios are completely hypothetical and your classmates have different backgrounds, motives, and personalities than the actual people in their positions.

You're assignment is to read over what your country knows about the others and decide what treaties or compromises if any you'd like to make. In your case, the Prime Minister must speak with every representative of the society before making a decision. Bring your answers two weeks from now. we meet that Monday night, not during our normal class time. you'll have surprise guests at this meeting. So, if you can't make it, see me after class. Good luck. If you have any questions, I'll be checking my e-mail regularly. Have a great weekend," the professor jumped from his desk as the students disbursed.

"What was your position again?" Ashling settled into the only cafeteria table available. It was busy for a Friday afternoon, quite a contrast to the rest of Ashling's week which seemed to pass quickly and uneventfully. After the meetings she had with other classmates, Ashling knew it was going to be a long lunch.

"Pub owner...for the fourth time," Anna smiled as she threw her books across from Ashling.

"Sorry, bad memory," Ashling pointed to herself.

"No kidding," Anna pulled out her international studies notebook, "So, here's what I'm thinking, from my standpoint anyway..."

Ashling had already stopped listening as her thoughts instead drifted to the two boys talking at the table diagonal from them. The sitting boy had just finished his food and judging by the advanced physics book occupying half of his tray, spent more time on campus than off. The standing boy, on the other hand, had just purchased his food. Judging by the way he gestured with his tray, he had clearly never looked at a physics book.

"Ashling, are you paying attention to me?" Anna reached across the table to hit her roommat'e arm.

"What?" Ashling jolted her attention back to her roommate.

"Did you hear anything I just said?" Anna demanded.

"No, sorry, I was distracted by..." Ashling pushed herself away from the table as food flew across Anna and all their school materials. The boy who had once been standing now lay flat on his back with his tray and the remainder of his food on top of him.

"Pub owner...for the fourth time," Anna smiled, but her face quickly turned serious, "Are you okay? You have a weird expression on your face."

"What? Yeah, sorry, bad memory," Ashling pointed to herself.

"No kidding," Anna looked skeptically at Ashling as she pulled out her international studies notebook," so here's what I'm thinking, from my standpoint anyway..."

Once again Ashling's mind drifted, but this time it was looking for something different.

"Ashling are you paying attention to me?" Anna reached across the table and hit her roommate's arm.

"Yeah, yeah, yeah...hey, move away from the table," Ashling ordered as the standing boy began walking towards their table.

"What?" but Anna did not have time to think let alone react before Ashling kicked her roommate's chair into the person sitting behind her and pulled the table along with herself away from its original position. The boy slipped on the wet floor, fell flat on his back, and food flew where Ashling and Anna should have been.

"Woops, sorry guys," the boy pulled himself to his feet and attempted to brush off the food that had landed on his clothes, "lucky you moved."

"Yeah, lucky," Ashling replied. Anna quickly grabbed her books and pulled Ashling along with their school supplies until they reached the girl's bathroom.

"Out!" Anna yelled at the freshman washing her hands. Startled, the freshman quickly grabbed her backpack and slid from the room.

"What in the..." Ashling began.

"You're ...You're like me," Anna whispered.

"Crazy?" Ashling accused starting towards the exit.

"Different," Anna corrected while moving to block her roommate's path to the door, "What you just did is not normal."

"I saw water on the floor," Ashling defended herself.

"You spaced off," Anna accused, "and then you prevented what should have happened. Don't deny it! You've done it before...the same exact thing. You space out and then somehow prevent something that no one with a normal mind would be able to predict."

"You're delusional," Ashling pushed Anna out of her way and started for the exit for a second time.

"You have to believe me. I'm just like you," Anna tried again, "Well, not just like you. I mean, I can't see the future, but I also have an abnormal ability...I can talk to animals."

Ashling stopped immediately letting the open door slip from her hands. The door slowly closed as Ashling turned to face her roommate.