"At least you don't sound like you're trying to recruit me to this future school," Naesala commented, amusement slipping into his tone. "I'm not all that bad at public speaking, though I can't claim to have ever tried something like poetry. I feel like being so unfamiliar with the cultures here would be a bigger obstacle than memorizing something. It's not going to be much of a performance if you don't understand what you're talking about, is it?" Sure, a simpler poem or topic might work out, but there were bound to be nuances there that he'd have trouble picking up on.

Was that an excuse? Maybe. But Naesala did like being 'in' with the art crowd without too many expectations being made of him.

"Besides, I'm sure your guild will be combing through plenty of new talent once you get that school up and running. Or do you think you'll have any competition there?"