On the planet Kriti, which is mainly populated by humans, Amara mourns the death of Gaurav, a saurian who died heroically in an explosion in the midst of an interplanetary war. She meets Chaurin, Gaurav's brother who has traveled to their planet in order to collect Gaurav's remains. Amara takes Chaurin to meet her partner, Narita, who has what is left of the body (not much because of the explosion). Narita asks if she and Amara can take part in the saurian custom of eating the remains of the dead. Chaurin is a little offended by the ask, and refuses because there isn't enough for them. Narita invites Chaurin to their house to think about it and have tea, and she explains the history of saurian cannibalism to Amara—it began as one of the most successful known forms of genetic modification, and later became a tradition. Amara is repulsed, and Chaurin senses conflict between the two, a remnant of his old profession as a matchmaker. He explains the importance of passing on his brother's soul to his children, that Gaurav's knowledge of humans might help his people, most of whom plan to hibernate in tunnels to avoid the war. He asks if Amara and Narita have children. Narita reflects on the conflict they're experiencing—they hope to have children, but since Narita is genetically modified for intelligence, beauty, and health, and Amara is not, they are worried about disagreement. They voice their concerns, and Chaurin, confused by their humanness and unsure what to do, offers to share Gaurav's remains as soup. Amara is still repulsed, but wants to honor Gaurav's memory, and Chaurin is impressed by human bravery. He decides that instead of hiding in the tunnels on his home planet, he will continue to try to understand strangers.