It was a relief that they found Ma'tanza as soon as they did. Sabine exchanged a glance with Peiter at the door and took the hint to proceed for herself.

Sabine stepped up quietly behind Ma'tanza and looked over her shoulder to see what was being made. It could have been one of many things, Sabine was sure, but she could not pin it down unless she observed the process more closely. More importantly, Sabine observed nothing volatile or particularly delicate at this stage, so she felt comfortable enough to make herself apparent.

In an effort not to startle Ma'tanza, Sabine slowly stepped around into her peripheral vision and leaned a smile around to catch her eye. Sabine spoke with an appropriate hush, given the lack of noise in the room, "Hello Ma'tanza. What are you making?"

[hr]
"Well..." Tzirret had to think about that question. His thoughts were interrupted by seeing the way the gardener was looking at La'khay, but he tried his best not to look awkward. As usual, he was not good at hiding his feelings. "Tzirret just doesn't want to be treated like a coward," he said, "maybe that is pride, but how else is he going to make that happen? And what if his friends do need help?"

A niggling feeling was starting to influence Tzirret, telling him to take his leave. The signals that La'tahne was sending were implying a matter of greater importance to discuss than Tzirret's feelings.