Kai listened attentively as Elira described her country and the beaches he had mentioned with obvious delight and some surprise. His father's pod liked their privacy for obvious reasons, so it was vaguely disappointing to learn that the tourists were more frequent visitors to one of the spots that had been rarely disturbed by humans in the past. There were fewer places by the day, it seemed, that were considered free and safe for anything that lived in the ocean.
“I don't think they've been there recently, no,” he said, having no idea if that was true. If the pod was aware of the increased activity, then certainly, they would have been cautious about visiting.
She was good at directing the conversation away from her, asking perfectly reasonable questions about him and apparently interested in the answers. He wouldn't push any of his questions forward at the moment and was comfortable answering hers.
“New Zealand is beautiful.” He pulled his phone back and flicked through a few images that Google provided. Turning the phone back to her, he smiled. “My mother lives on Te Ika-a-Māui, the North Island. She's Māori and an artist. I grew up there. So much of the island is... breathtaking.” Kai dragged his finger across the screen, flipping through more images for Elira to see.
“I don't think they've been there recently, no,” he said, having no idea if that was true. If the pod was aware of the increased activity, then certainly, they would have been cautious about visiting.
She was good at directing the conversation away from her, asking perfectly reasonable questions about him and apparently interested in the answers. He wouldn't push any of his questions forward at the moment and was comfortable answering hers.
“New Zealand is beautiful.” He pulled his phone back and flicked through a few images that Google provided. Turning the phone back to her, he smiled. “My mother lives on Te Ika-a-Māui, the North Island. She's Māori and an artist. I grew up there. So much of the island is... breathtaking.” Kai dragged his finger across the screen, flipping through more images for Elira to see.