Just off the shore, where the palm trees waved in the breeze and the waves kissed the sand, a pod of dolphins played in the shallows off the bank. Trilling happy notes, they leapt gracefully in the air, a latticework of droplets streaming from their muscular tails. They sprung up with fish like crescent moons clenched in their long maws, salty mist hanging above their heads with every powerful breathe they took.
Inside the Tiki Hut on the beach, two much smaller, more landbound "dolphins" ordered hot dogs.
"I mean it!
Extra horseradish!" the larger one said. The baffled waiter held a spoonful of the thick, pungent-smelling glop aboute the hot dog, looking askance at the Bandol peering at him from across the counter.
"More!" the smaller one said. "I like lotsa it! At least... three spoonfuls! Lots!"
"Kid, you know what this stuff is gonna do to your nostrils, right?"
An icy snort blew the waiter's hat out of place. The enormous Frost Paragon, his eyes as cold as his hide, glared down at him. The top of his crown scraped the sprinkler system and the thatching on the roof. The waiter felt the ground rumble as the Paragon moved one of his enormous claws, currently tucked under the bar shelf as he sat, obedient and doglike, in front of three stools. Behind the folded glint of his crystal wings, the waiter saw a disgruntled-looking patron step over his tail in her dainty red high heels, muttering to herself.
"It's 'cuz it's a full moon," the waiter mumbled. "Full moon, it's always the crazies..."
[13, 36]