Ah. Hadama nodded slowly in acceptance of the information, neither reassuring Evie nor condoning her for it. It was not his place even if he had known of the complexities and nuances that had led her to take and then relinquish such a position. It was simply another aspect of the red-haired woman that he added to the other things he had learned, giving more color and detail to the picture of her that was slowly filling out in his mind.
"It is... troubling," he agreed. Hence his unwillingness to recommend the Refuge to his own people. "I have a task to complete before I see Safrin again. But once I do... I will ask what she thinks." He just hoped he would be able to fulfill Her requests before the War began.
For now, though, the dishes were of great interest and the mermanta's eyes gleamed as the scents were freed to waft across the small stretch of sand that separated them. With a glance he widened his control over the nearby waters to push them back farther to keep the precious feast safe before he began to unveil his own offerings for the day. Small, choice filleted cuts of raw fish both white and red were wrapped in plump kelp like miniature sandwiches; a different variety of green seaweed had been prepared as a salad, dotted with finely diced shrimp and seaweed grapes; mixed scallops and octopus filled another bowl, also raw but already cut into bite-sized chunks. And beside each dish were two or three small containers of thick, flavorful pastes in flavors ranging from spicy to tangy to sweet. "You may put some of this on you food right before you eat it," he explained, demonstrating by dipping a thin, flat bone spatula into a red paste (a tangy citrus flavor) and spreading it deftly across a fish sandwich before offering it to Evie.
"It is... troubling," he agreed. Hence his unwillingness to recommend the Refuge to his own people. "I have a task to complete before I see Safrin again. But once I do... I will ask what she thinks." He just hoped he would be able to fulfill Her requests before the War began.
For now, though, the dishes were of great interest and the mermanta's eyes gleamed as the scents were freed to waft across the small stretch of sand that separated them. With a glance he widened his control over the nearby waters to push them back farther to keep the precious feast safe before he began to unveil his own offerings for the day. Small, choice filleted cuts of raw fish both white and red were wrapped in plump kelp like miniature sandwiches; a different variety of green seaweed had been prepared as a salad, dotted with finely diced shrimp and seaweed grapes; mixed scallops and octopus filled another bowl, also raw but already cut into bite-sized chunks. And beside each dish were two or three small containers of thick, flavorful pastes in flavors ranging from spicy to tangy to sweet. "You may put some of this on you food right before you eat it," he explained, demonstrating by dipping a thin, flat bone spatula into a red paste (a tangy citrus flavor) and spreading it deftly across a fish sandwich before offering it to Evie.
