"Yes, um, hello." Ma'tanza said simply, and with just a hint of anxiety. She gave a quick glance towards Meesei at the back of the boat. While she did have more to say, and even a somewhat topical joke, she feared taking risks at the moment. She did not know what would happen to her if she caused trouble, but she was sure she needed to be on her best behavior. If nothing else, she did not want to embarrass herself in front of the Champion. As such, she said nothing about Uthri's comment, at least not at first. 

There was enough of a pause that Ma'tanza started to feel strange about the silence. She tended to perceive any innocuous movement or gesture from Meesei as some kind of signal of judgment. She wanted to trust Tzirret's assurances about Meesei, but the silence was simply leaving her mind with too much time to wander. Sitting on the boat with her in silence for an hour would be simply unbearable, so she had to find some way to fill the void. 

"So...why does she call you cloudy-cat?" Ma'tanza asked Tzirret.