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Katalina didn't seem in the least fazed by having her thoughts repeated. "Exactly," she replied cheerfully. "So, do you have any other words in mind that you want to learn?"

((OOC: Short post, gotta take the dogs out. >.<))

Katalina smiled. "Well, there are two that you would be using on a regular basis - a friendly goodbye and a first-time-meeting goodbye." She glanced at Nezik, who waved her on. He seemed to have more interest in watching her teach than in teaching himself. "Okay," she continued, "so the friendly goodbye goes like this." She made a soft, liquid sigh that ended in a light, bubbly clicking. "And the first-time-meeting goes like this." Nezik popped in on that to make the sound - a short, almost formal purring sound interspersed with brisk clicks.

"Yes, like what Nezik did," Katalina finished, giving her brother a pointed look.

"Yes," Katalina agreed when Joshua made his observation about the clicking. "There's a lot of clicking and a lot of trills." She shrugged. "We don't really think of it as strange." She listened through the two attempts without any change of expression. Once he was finished, though, she broke into a smile. "The first one was very, very good," she told Joshua. "Anyone would know what you were saying there. The second one could use a bit of work, but if you were to address someone who knew that this was a second language for you, they would understand."

With a dancing little grin, she said, "Now you get to practice. A whole first conversation. With m-- no, with Nezik. Pretend you've never met him before. Talk to him."

Nezik blinked over at her, and she grinned at him. With a little shrug, Nezik turned to look at Joshua.

Nezik waited for a minute or two after Joshua stopped, then also looked at Katalina. She nodded to him, then turned her attention to Joshua. "This isn't something you would know, but it is considered proper etiquette to ask for the other person's name first. They'll tell you, and if they're interested they'll ask for your name." She smiled. "But you're doing all right. Answer him, Nezik. We'll start again later."

Nezik turned back to Joshua and repeated the sound, adding the velvety purr and click that was his name. Then he made a soft whistling noise, with a gentle swishing sound at the end. "Nice to meet you," Katalina translated.

Katalina lifted a brow. "It's okay. You wouldn't have known, like I said. To answer your question, the one he just did is the one that people who don't expect you to know much of the language will use," she replied cheerfully. "In essence, it's the dumbed-down version. Yes, it's sort of meant as an insult, but I asked Nezik to use it because you're going to hear it - probably more than once - and the only way to deal with it is to ignore the implication that you aren't worth wasting their time on and keep talking. They'll learn to respect you eventually."

She made a face. "I've heard it. So has Nezik. Probably Narcis has too. It's generally used by elders towards children - whoever thinks they have more knowledge than you."

((OOC: I don't actually remember what we've covered anymore. I need to read through again. >.<))

"Yes, pretty much," said Katalina with a sly smile. "But you know more than they do about the land, after all. You might even have the right to be offended." She listened to the goodbyes as Nezik responded in kind. Then she nodded. "Good. It's a good start." She tilted her head. "And then what would you do, Joshua?" It seemed like a mixture of a test and an honest question.

Katalina tilted her head calmly. "Not exactly. Tell him what you would do, Nezik," she said.

Nezik flushed, but said uncomfortably, "Well, it's sort of a status thing. Since most of the people you have a first conversation with will be above you in hierarchy, what you would do is...Sorry, do I have to?"

When Katalina nodded, the boy sighed. "You have to wait for them to dismiss you, pretty much. Either they'll say goodbye and leave, or they'll say goodbye and sort of..." He gently flicked his fingers in the universal 'shoo' gesture. "And then you leave."

Katalina smiled. "Yes, now you know what to do," she agreed. "So do you want to practice with Nezik again, or shall we throw you into the ocean to see if you can swim?" Personally, she hoped he took the latter option - there were a couple of other mermaid clans that she had friends in. He could practice with them without knowing that they were willing to be gentle with him. It would boost his confidence before he actually tried to take on someone who wasn't willing to take him on his own terms right away.