Cal's half-started train of thought was brought to a screeching (literally) halt, when Sabs jumped up with a squeal. His wings fanned out a little in surprise, before he got the instinctual reaction under control, seeing that Sabs was just scanning the floor, clearly looking for some kind of creepy-crawly. He wasn't terribly bothered by the majority of small-things-that-make-girls-shriek but the sheer number of poisonous things he'd been at risk of sharing a sleeping bag with lately had made him cautious - he leaned over to scan the floor, too, suppressing an inward wince at the idea that it might have been something from his backpack. Though I wonder if the portals would even let you bring something like that back by accident...? He couldn't see anything, though, and when Sabs sat back down and started apologising, he relaxed and smiled reassuringly at her, shaking his head to cut off her apologies, before she returned to the pre-squeal topic.
"I don't know a lot about other cultures, to be honest. In fact, I don't know much about my own. Isn't it compulsory to choose anything...?"
Cal tilted his head to one side, thoughtful, as he considered how to reply. "It's not compulsory, exactly, it's just..." He paused for an instant before continuing, his voice soft but loaded with a certain tension, "...expected." Piper deposited his coffee and panini in front of him and he shot her a grateful smile, then lifted the coffee and inhaled the rich scent while he gathered his thoughts. "You can't really force that kind of decision onto someone if you want them to take it seriously. So, you can avoid it for a time, if you're not ready." He smiled at Sabs, feigning a lightness he didn't really feel at the subject, then turned an unfeigned smile on Piper when she returned to her seat, grateful to have her pick up the thread of the conversation. He took a sip of his coffee, half closing his eyes and reveling in the taste as he listened to Piper.
"I've been here getting on for two years and I still don't know very much, Actually, I've been living in the Cloud Palace the last few months. My boyfriend's half Anyelos, so you'd think I'd know a bit more about them, right?"
Cal raised an eyebrow in surprise at the news of Piper's current accommodation. "I don't know about that, things have changed so much lately for the Anyeli. You certainly wouldn't have found any non-Anyeli living in the Palace two years ago!" He grinned at her, but he'd really had enough of the current focus of the conversation. Time for a change. "Surely you know much more about your own people?"
As soon as the words were out of his mouth, he realised that there was every chance Piper was about to tell him that she knew plenty about her people. Americans. He hesitated, colouring ever so slightly at the realisation that he had no idea who Piper's 'people' were, beyond what her accent gave away. As much as he liked her, he didn't really know her that well. He looked down and hurriedly turned his attention to eating some of his panini, before Piper and Sabs could notice his embarrassment.