If nothing else, Hermione appreciated the respect Iskandar showed towards an animal so much smaller than himself, and she rather liked the pleased purr the little kitten made. Now that it was no longer skittish, she gingerly reached out, meaning to gently scratch behind its ears if it would let her.

"A mabari and a kitten? You'd have to watch this poor little thing, in that case; even a mabari puppy is liable to crush him and think he was only playing."

Of course, another bit of what he said stuck out at her, especially when she was still of two minds regarding whether or not Iskandar was who he said he was. "You have a son?" The question came out softly, just in the event that it was something of a sore topic for him; after all, one can never tell how some rifters might react to talking about certain details of their lives before the rifts.