Tal is our roommate. Although he can be defined as a nice guy, I hate him. I don't hate him for any one thing alone; it's mainly the small things that irritate me. I hate him for being glued down to his desk for his entire life, working on some "project," only leaving for short naps, quick meals, and bathroom breaks. When he uses the computer, he's completely oblivious to everything taking place around him. I can't understand what could be so mesmerizing about The Internet. He also rarely attends classes, and the masters don't even care. It makes me wonder sometimes why we bother to go at all. Then again, the lessons are more important than he realizes, so I have to pay attention for his sake. Well, I suppose it's for my sake too. He really is an idiot for assuming he's such a genius.

The assistant led us out of the room to receive details on the assignment. Tal whispered to me innocently, "Don't forget to bring a camera and film. I heard there's a beach near the place we're going."

As much as I hated the guy, I couldn't stop my lip from twitching disobediently in amusement. I find it unfortunate that in our entire class of about twenty people, there were about three people under twenty who could have actually understood his implication, and it wasn't even really twisted. There is such thing as not being mature enough to be immature. I suppose The Internet, with which Tal seems to be in a passionate love affair, does have some positive influence.

The thing is, although the Theatre is co-ed, it hadn't been for very long. Basically, most of the girls are between six and twelve, with few exceptions. Even though eccentricity is encouraged, I doubt pedophilia is acceptable. Some things are just a little too creepy to be tolerated, especially on a small island in closely packed dormitories.

In the Theatre, the apprentices are ten to twenty-five years old, and more and more children are coming to the island at the age of six as I did. Upon reaching twenty-five years of age, an apprentice either becomes a lecturing master with the ability to turn the most interesting subject into something tedious, joins the ranks of the Thespians after a year or two of experience as an assistant. Rumors regarding graduates who are never seen again are rather common, but there are ridiculous rumors regarding just about everything.

That month was to be our third time doing an Assignment. The frequency of Assignments and difficulty of each varies depending on the Theatre's clients. Only apprentices at least fifteen years old are allowed to participate. It was Tal's and my first year.

As we followed the assistant down the long corridors, however, I had the feeling that this time would be different from the two previous ones. My suspicion was confirmed when she led us past the door we had entered previously. Tal glanced at me, so he had probably also observed the difference. The assistant stopped suddenly and opened a small door to our left that I had never known existed. She gestured with a nod for us to enter, and left in the direction in which we came. I stepped in before Tal did.