"Hey, that ain't bad! Maybe he even taught you how to fence. You see your mom or anyone else there? I bet you'd be a good older brother type." Granted, any younger siblings might end up walking all over their brother's good intentions, but...

"And Clive seems fine to me. A little down about his missing beer, but still nursin' that grudge like always." Unlike Clive, Heiji rarely stayed angry for long, so the sheer power and stamina of Clive's continuing hateboner for Hershel was a little awe-inspiring. "Didn't look like he was fainting from hunger, either, so I think he's getting by okay."

Heiji lowered his breath to a conspiratorial whisper. "Say, uh... kinda off topic, but... you wouldn't happen to have any spare coins, would you?"