"Okay." She gives him a smile and slips her arms around him for a quick hug. "I won't be gone long," she promises.

And she really isn't. In part because she's running there and back once she's around a corner and he can't see her. She'll have to remember to thank Samus for pushing her so hard these past few months. She's barely winded when she gets back.

"You have a choice: steak, shiitake, and snow pea; or pork, tangerine, and bok choi in chili sauce. There's also some pork and cabbage gyoza, and Pu-erh tea."