A Lesson in Aristocracy

VII - Brick

Arden hummed as he slid one of the pieces of salmon into his mouth, savoring its flavor. It pretty much melted on his tongue. Quetsan looked at him like he was a madman when he did so.

"What?" Arden asked after swallowing, Quetsan shaking his head.

"It's just - that's - raw fish, right? Won't it make you sick?"

Arden chuckled, shoving another piece into his mouth. Quetsan had barely touched his fried squid bits.

"It's very clean. Besides, I grew up eating this stuff. If it was gonna kill me, it would've done it already." He reasoned, Quetsan shaking his head once more.

"You're strange."

"No stranger than you," Arden replied, taking mental note that Quetsan was the only Seralfi in the restaurant.

Quetsan shrugged, picking up one of the pieces of calamari and dipping it into the sauce it came with. He put it hesitantly in his mouth, chewing it for about ten seconds before his face began to light up.

"See what I mean? Fish is where it's at!"

"I mean, it's not a steak, but it's pretty good."

Arden waved his hand dismissively, continuing to chow down on his æthel. He always liked æthel - it was what he would eat when he and his dad went fishing.

Without much time passing at all, both of the Handlers had finished their food - after that first bite, Quetsan began shoveling it down like there was no tomorrow. They'd gained a few spectators thanks to him.

The waitress returned, this time with the paper she'd written their orders on, and placed it on the table.

"You're expensive," Arden noted when he looked at the bill, pulling out his wallet.

"Am not. How much was I?"

"Fifteen Crests," Arden noted. "Five for the soup, ten for the calamari."

"I didn't order the soup, that was you."

"You ate it, though."

"Whatever."

Arden grinned, pulling a few bills out of his wallet and leaving them on the table - not without a hearty tip, of course.

"We should be off." Arden announced, standing up from his chair. Quetsan was very happy to get out of his own seat, stretching his legs out and standing up. He almost reached the ceiling - though, in fairness, it wasn't a very tall ceiling.

The two walked side by side back to the Colosseum, a small group of protesters already beginning to gather outside of the gates. Arden grumbled something, rolling his eyes.

"Handler Reinbach!" He heard someone yell, his ears piquing.

"Oh no."

"Handler Reinbach! A word, please!"

He turned, a rather unpleasant smile twisting on his face.

"Ms. Tre'anne. What a surprise." He said, the Seralfi pulling her notebook out. Quetsan turned, waving lightly at her.

"The same to you," she replied passive-aggressively, her tail flicking behind her.

"Ms. Tre'anne? Aren't you that reporter from The Velaris Times? I love your articles!" Quetsan gushed, his tail lightly swishing back and forth.

"Oh!" Ms. Tre'anne replied, pleasantly surprised by the notion. "Why, I am. It's always a joy to meet a reader," she smiled, holding her hand out for him to shake. Quetsan did so, his cheeks blossoming in a deep maroon shade. Arden looked at him in alarm, eyes darting back and forth between them.