"So are we gonna wait 'til Hannah gets here, or what?"

"Well" said Rona, "we'll wait at least until the pizza gets here. If Hannah's not here by then then bugger it. We'll start without here."

Brent sniggered. "Interesting turn of phrase, Rona, all things considered."

"Oh, shut up."

Alain walked across the room to Brent: "So Brent, how d'you like your chances this season?"

"Well . . . Don't ask, just don't ask."

Mal pointed the neck of his beer bottle towards Brent. "So, why exacly do you support the Hawks?"

"It's a family thing."

"But you're from Albury!"

"Hey, it's my team, all right?"

Rona groaned theatrically and turned to Sacha. "Oohh. Sorry Sacha, this is just something you're gonna have to learn to live in Melbourne. It's all football, football, football, you know?"

Brent overheard this. "Hey, don't get too flippant about it Rona! You've got a team too."

"Only 'cause you made me!"

"Doesn't explain why you chose Sydney, though" said Alain.

"Hello?" replied Rona, suddenly defensive. "From Sydney, remember?"

Brent spoke up in her defence: "Anyway, nothing wrong with Sydney. Proud history, South Melbourne Football Club and all that."

Rona rolled her eyes and turned them towards Sacha apologetically. Sacha laughed. "Don't worry about it. If I get sick of it I'll just start talking Canberran."

Rona tilted her head inquisitively. "What's that?"

Sacha smiled. "Let me give you an employment history. Naturally, even these days, I've done my share of public service work. Canberra's still an industry town, after all. So while I was at uni I got little odd jobs, just bits of data entry, receptionist work, that kind of thing. I started off -" she began to count the names on her fingers - "in D.A.F.F., which was still A.F.F.A. then. I worked with them for a while, first in A.Q.I.S. then in R.P.I. Next I was a 2 in E.A. Then Health -"

"So," said Brent, a little confused, "you were a healthcare worker? I thought you did history?"

Sacha smiled. "Department of Health. To continue: oohh . . . Next I was in D.E.S.T. I tried to get some work in the National Archives, but that didn't happen. Otherwise I might have stayed in Canberra. But my family's still there. Mum's in D.F.A.T., working for the Dep. Sec. And my sister's a 2 in Defence, of all places." She stopped abruptly. "So how do you like that?" she said, smiling at them all.

"Wow" said Rona. "I have no fucking idea what you were just talking about."