There were cupcakes, which immediately drew attention to the activity. There were also the ship's humans, both of them, sitting quietly and sipping from fancifully patterned drinking vessels, despite usually becoming a shrieking maelstrom of highly active competition when interacting with one another. There was a small container with a spoon in it that, upon inspection, contained sugar.
...there were more cupcakes than two humans could reasonably eat on their own. There were extra cups. There was, it turned out, an open invitation to sit down and join them to anyone who was interested, until all the seats were taken. -- Anon Guest
Humans will drink anything. Worse, they'll make a culture out of it. Ceremonies. Rituals. Establishments. As pack creatures, they involved the sharing of food and drink as part of their bonding process. This just had to be one of the more involved rituals.
The table had been laid over with an ornate cloth. There was fine china, paper-thin and delicate. There was cutlery made out of silver. Not so extraordinary in the current age, but the craftsmanship visible told any observer that they were old. Older, perhaps, than space travel. This is a special occurrence, said the layout, but the empty places and settings said, We are waiting for people.
The fare available on tiered platters scanned as harmless to all crew. So, too, did the liquid inside the ornate teapot. Which said, You are welcome. Companion Hrik still approached with caution. As soon as the Humans noticed her approached, they looked... anticipatory. It was hard not to feel like she had decorative vegetation behind her ears.
"Come and sit," said Human Enn, she moved a seat nearby, just a little. "Join us. Everything is friendly."
Oh. They were hungry for company. Humans could eat anything, they said, but they developed food terms for other phenomena. Touch starved was a common example in the discussions. Hrik found it hard to trust these dangerous predators, but they were apparently trying to be welcoming towards the rest of the crew.
...and since the crew were looking to the Companions for cues... someone had to take the first step.
Hrik tried not to think about wooden ducks on lakes and camouflaged concealment where hunters lurked and nervously took a place with an easy escape route.
Enn poured a slightly-tinted liquid into one of the delicate cups. "It's raspberry tea. Perfectly safe for everyone aboard. We have cupcakes, we have sweeties... we even have what you guys think are savoury treats."
Human Sol stifled a laugh. Ze was always the first to offer comedy based on Havenworlder sensitivities. Humans had a lot of opinions about food. The continuing cold war about pineapple on pizza was another common topic. "Come sit and be welcome. We can eat and talk."
Instinct more than training made her say, "You are not fattening me up?"
"Dude!"
"We have taboos against eating cogniscent life."
"We share food with our friends, Hrik. It's a pack thing."
"We went all out for you guys." Sol gestured towards the display. "This is full fancy. Pinkies out and everything."
They were even wearing their best clothing. This was a special occasion, and the occasion was Let's make friends. They were attempting a full diplomatic bonding session with everything they had.
Hrik shrank in her seat, feeling ashamed of herself. It was her job to meet these Deathworlders halfway, and yet they had clearly done all the work. "I have not been doing my job," she confessed. "I should not have let it get this far." The tea was hot, but not too hot. Fragrant and sweet. The treat food was small and though of Deathworlder origin, was all Havenworlder friendly. Very carefully Havenworlder friendly.
They had avoided anything at all that could possibly cause harm to any single member of the crew. Therefore, it was just a little on the bland side.
Hrik was not going to complain. Complaints would not fit the effort they had made. Hrik would have to do a lot of work before she would not hurt any feelings by offering constructive suggestions.
Hrik had been wondering about the Humans' delicacy known as scones...
[Image (c) Can Stock Photo / RuthBlack]
If you like my stories, please Check out my blog and Follow me. Or share them with your friends!
Send me a prompt [51 remaining prompts!]
