Elayra smirked at Ghent’s cluelessness about what he was about to put into his mouth. His willingness to try it without an answer only enhanced the effect.
	“Not exactly.” She bit off another bit of her jerky, chewing slowly as she watched Ghent, wondering what his reaction to it would be. From what little she had experienced, the food on Earth was far different from what she was use to.  
	Her smirk turned into a mischievous grin when he finally took a bite, his reaction priceless.
	Drust, uninterested in what the boy thought of the meat, returned to his knees and reached into his pack once more.
	Elayra opened her mouth, all too eager to answer Ghent as he eagerly sipped at one of his strange beverages.
	Drust raised his hand to silence her. He cocked his head toward Ghent, not quite looking at the boy. “It won’t kill you,” he growled. “Or poison you. So in this case, eat first. [i]Then[/i] worry about what it is.”
	Elayra looked overly dejected, her lip curling in a mock pout at being denied the pleasure of informing the boy.
	Drust turned back to his pack. “We’ll take watch tonight in shifts. Since I’ve gotten the most sleep,” he added with a glower, “I’ll take first watch. Ghent,” he glanced to the boy, “second, and you,” he looked to Elayra, “third.”
	Elayra shifted uncomfortably. She hated the idea of leaving a watch shift to Ghent. Either they would all be eaten in their sleep, or be woken at every rustle.
	“Since it’s his first time,” she began slowly, trying—but failing—to keep her distaste from her voice, “maybe he should take a shift [i]with[/i] one of us?”
	Drust paused, his katana half way out of his pack. He considered her for a moment, then shook his head. He looked over his shoulder to Ghent as he fully removed his sheathed sword, its length greater than the average katana.
	“It’s a simple task. Stay awake,” he began laconically. As he spoke, he placed his katana on the ground beside him, then reached for the pile of wood nearby. “Keep the fire fed.” He tossed the log with into the flames. The fire flared up in a burst of thankful sparks. “Wake us if anything enters the clearing. You’ll know if anything living tries to get in. The Safe Zone’s walls will shift. Think you can handle that, boy?”