Nori smiles back. Oh yeah, that sounds familiar. Several of her classmates love spicy food; several are also farther removed from baseline human than Noriko is.

"I would be all over that," she says, "If I knew how much caffeine there was in it." As it is, that can be shelved for a later date. But in the interest of making a new friend--or at least a hopeful non-enemy--Noriko offers out a metal-covered hand, complete with armwarmer for those people who feel weird touching metal limbs.

"I'm Nori. Ashida Noriko."