"We still don't actually have the best sense of what else you can do at second circle."

"If you wanted to try any of the enhancement spells, that's second circle. Tears to Wine is also."

"They sound interesting, but Wisdom is the most exciting and is maybe ill-advised when flights aren't soon, and I doubt the others are as valuable as more language."

"Understood."

Nobody interrupts Blai during spell prep, though he gets more staring than he did yesterday.

That doesn't matter. It's not like he normally prays out loud. He just notices dawn and finds somewhere out of traffic to drop to his knees for an hour.

By the time he finishes, the kitchen staff have gotten started on setting out lunch and also put empty serving trays and tongs on another table.

Great, has Chris translated the requests?

Yup. Can Blai divide the food conjuration between these precise ratios of apples, bananas, oranges, raspberries, blueberries, cherry tomatoes, pineapples, mangos, peaches, cherries, and milk? If he could conjure the larger fruits pre-sliced and not bother with the mango and pineapple peels that would be convenient but otherwise the staff can peel and slice them.

"I don't think I can bias it quite that heavily toward fruit. It wants to be nourishing enough for a certain number of people over the course of its duration and fruit isn't very filling. I think I can do about... three-quarters of it like that, maybe more if I'm guessing wrong about the milk, and the rest of it is going to have to be meat or bread or nuts or something."

"Oh, I see. I can suggest a meat selection now or we can run another poll if you're willing to wait."

"I don't mind waiting. Also I have not heard of some of those items, but if you have a picture perhaps I can get them."

"…on the subject of waiting, I am probably going to forget this language at any moment and I should introduce you to Kevin first. Kevin will be your secretary and translator during the 'day'."

"Very well, which one is Kevin?"

Chris waves to a young man,

who approaches.

"Greetings, Select Artigas", he says haltingly in very poor Taldane.

"This is Kevin."

"Greetings." Hand?

Hand!

"Share Language."

"That worked! Thank you."

"I didn't recognize all the fruit names. Pineapples, mangoes, and bananas are unfamiliar, and I don't know what kind of tomato is being specified."

"No problem! I can pull them up on Kiwix."

"...I don't know what that is either."

"It's the same thing Chris has been showing you articles and a bunch of pictures with."