"You see that kish there with her fotin?" Watts asked. "Lemme show you something, you probably wouldn't believe this if I told you, these grayskins are just like animals, they got no decency at all." He stood up and waved an arm in a beckoning gesture. "Hey, you kish, come over here," he called.
The female Centauran paused uncertainly, looking at him with frightened eyes out of a small triangular noseless face.
"Yes, you," Watts barked. "Come here!"
She glanced at the males ahead of her, who had also stopped and were looking at Watts from the corners of their eyes. One mumbled something to her. She began to shuffle slowly across the yard toward Watts, looking at her feet. Watts took a steel five-dollar piece from his pocket and held it out toward her.
"Here, you kish," he said, "feed baby, viptiv fotin, get money."
The native took the coin and looked doubtfully at the three men. "Viptiv?" she asked in a light high voice.
"That's right," Watts said. "Viptiv fotin." He grinned at Tallant. "Watch this, kid, you want to see your noble Centauran do something'll really make you gag."
"Oh, for Pete's sake," Tallant said. "I know these people feed their young by regurgitation. So it's disgusting to mammals? So what?" He jumped down from the stoop and took the Centauran mother's arm and turned her gently around. "No viptiv," he said. "Run along."
Watts' face was almost purple now. "What the hell you think you're doing?" he shouted. He grasped the female's other arm. "Viptiv," he gritted in her face. "You took my money, now viptiv!"
"Let go that woman," Tallant said, "or I'll push your face in." He turned toward the group of males, who still stood stupidly staring. "Come on over here," he called. "Take your woman and get out." One of them started reluctantly across the yard. Tallant dropped the native woman's arm and stepped past her to face Watts. "I told you to let go," he said.