Similarly long name with a similar attitude to it; that earns him a nod of solidarity from her. 'Mulcahy,' she echoes, because she'll remember for sure if she says it aloud.

As he explains the honorific she leans in a little closer, curious. 'You aren't the first person I've heard use familial terms when there's no relation by blood or contract. It's not something that really happened in my sector, but I see what you're trying to evoke.' It's no betrayal of her Tradeline principles to admit that she could easily see the potential for a fatherly manner in him.

'What do you do in the community, beyond leading religious rites and prayers?' Tayrey uses the present tense for his work, just as she does for her own. The intervening captivity doesn't have to take that from either of them.