“When I was still in my training, I would stay inside the Weary Inn between matches just to eat. I used to even sneak extra food from the Inn at night when they were still open,” Varesa said as she squeezed through the front door of the Wreary Inn, wondering why in the Archons you had the door open so narrow, “A warrior’s got to eat. And Coach Iansan didn’t believe in ‘second dinner.’”

She took a quick look back through the back doorway at the Natlanese carrier a dozen yards down the side street, where the back and the front were filled with different sizes of crates carrying all types of food she could get her hands on. Undoubtedly, Escoffier had bulk bought the other half of her crates that appeared to be missing — the ones which would be specifically used for her dishes back in Fontaine, once she’s released from the Fortress of Meropide.

As for the food; you ordered a simple BBQ Beef Heart Skewers with a Strength Tonic, but Varesa went nuts. Blazed Meat Stew. Grilled Fish in Mint Sauce. Tatacos. Two Grainfruits; chips, and a wrap — and don’t even start on the dessert; Volcano Cake and Saurus Crackers, with another plate of Volcano Cake.

With an empty stick of beef skewers in your mouth, you promptly went a shade of green as you stared in wide-eyed horror at the Masked Hero. Her left hand had hit the table in the Inn, causing your plate to flick up and for your beef skewers to land into her plate of Volcano Cake.

Beef-olcano Cake.

Even Varesa is brave enough to try such a food combination, you note, taking another bite of the unharmed beef skewers.

“This…this is the Natlan I mis…” Varesa trails off upon noticing your beef skewers mistakenly in her Volcano Cake. Silence falls between her and you, a confused silence where she frowns, relaxes and frowns, trying to work out how her left hand hitting the table by mere accident caused your beef skewers to be now covered in Volcano Cake and its chocolate sauce.

Varesa looked down at the food combination that she had mistakenly created, back up at you, and then back down again, before shrugging with a muffled ‘meh,’ and proceeding to destroy the Beef-olcano Cake plate. Hunger, it seemed, overrode any qualms you had as you witnessed her continue to eat the combination.

There was a brief moment of silence where she watched your facial expression when you had mercilessly not gotten around to your third beef skewer, but you looked like you would be sick from a ‘food coma’. Varesa glanced between the plates and you, her hand attached to her mouth by way of a spoon.

She hastily swallowed, “…you’re doing it again. Funny, I usually hate when people watch me eat this close, and normally I wouldn’t be this self conscious like in a food eating competition. But with you…I don’t feel like I have to pretend. I can just eat. Breathe. Be hungry and not feel judged for it.”

Another smile, another wipe of a stain on the corner of her mouth. You took one look at her and promptly burst into laughter, leaving her with the tangible urge to punch you in the face — even if your mirth was oddly pleasant to hear. Varesa gave you an expectant look as your apologies were broken in a voice by your laughter. Not to mention the red eye in the background.

“This is…” Varesa says enthusiastically behind a forkful of Grilled Fish, a healthy option undone by the food combination before it, “…this is incredible!” she pauses to stab her fork into a piece of her Tatacos and stuff it into her mouth, her eyes dancing hungrily between each plate as you curled up your nose a little at the way she was wolfing down each of her plates. “Give me six of these now! I feel like breaking a world record even Capitano would return!”