No, no no no no no no-- [Again, Val twitches the wild carrot, more forcefully, and still without looking up from what he is reading--] I am nearly finished, I will receive you in a moment, this is a crucial passage but so badly written it takes longer to read, and so inane that I can carry on at least half a conversation while still reading it, but not a conversation entire, which is a disservice to you--

[The fringe beneath the chair parts for Veronique's antennae. She has grown a little. Not enough to be truly terrifying, yet, especially when one has beheld her before. Her head is now the size of a small bucket, if small buckets glittered chitinously and had large compound eyes and glistening mandibles.

She makes a skrrk noise. Maybe a greeting.]