Partly Cloudy, 64°
Though you do not know the appearance of Alice Harper ’13, she promises that you will identify her easily when you arrive at the Cable Car Cinema and Cafe for your date tomorrow night, from the large quantities of animal blood that will be splattered across her blouse.
“The animal blood will be red, as blood always is,” wrote Harper in an email on Monday. “As for the blouse, you’ll have to wait and see! Anyway, its color will not make it difficult for you to spot the blood.”
“And if for some reason you don’t see it,” she continued, “You’ll definitely smell it :).”
Harper was reluctant to reveal much else before the two of you meet, but said she would be happy to answer all of your questions during the date. “These questions will help you get to know me,” she wrote in a follow-up text.
“What religion do I practice? Do the rituals associated with my religion feature animal blood? Or are the things I do with animal blood totally separate from my religious beliefs?" she wrote. "I bet you are excited to find out, and I’m just as excited to tell you!”
When you suggested that Harper identify herself with a rose or a novel instead, she replied that the current plan was more convenient. “I will be coming straight from a place where I will get absolutely drenched in animal blood, and I really can’t cancel because people are counting on me to be there,” she wrote in a third message. “I can bring something else along if you’d like, but I guarantee that the blood will be enough.”
At press time, you had just received a final text message from Harper containing additional information about the date.
“Just dawned on me that meeting a perfect stranger at night might be unsafe, so do you mind if I bring a friend?” she asked. “With all these crazies out there, you can never be too careful.”
