The Chief stood up and walked into the kitchen, retrieving a handful of rice from his pocket and sniffing it carefully. Finding no strange odor, he nodded in approval.
That was the signal of permission. The women, delighted, let out a soft cheer, pulled out their water canteens and washed the rice grains twice before finally taking out a large pot from the kitchen to add water and start cooking.
15 minutes passed, and a rich aroma of rice began to waft from the large pot; the bonfire was burning vigorously, casting everyone's faces in a ruddy glow. Ali, too, sat by the fire waiting for the rice to be thoroughly cooked, but she sat a bit away from everyone else, which is why she noticed the smoke rising from the bubbling pot had a very faint tinge of green. Ali had extraordinary senses since childhood, and even she had to struggle to make out the color in the smoke, which was invisible to the others.
