by Viola Grace
“I have to ask, do you mind working for the Citadel?”
“I have earned enough funds to keep me in good style for the next hundred years. I love it. I can do what my mind and body were meant to do and I get paid for it. How could that be a bad thing? If the Resicor population ever learned what we could do for them, they would be in uproar in a matter of minutes. Their quality of life could be improved so dramatically it is not even funny, but they listen to the words of the government and will not fight for us. We are not allowed to fight for ourselves without threat to our families, so what option is there? They could send us away.”
“They don’t want to, but I don’t know why.” Mora sighed.
Plink popped out of the ship and hopped over.
In reflex, Mora lifted her to the shoulder pad that appeared as she settled.
Hahvi blinked. “Is that one of those empathic healers?”
“Yaluthu. Yes. I was a little damaged when I was released, so she adopted me. Her name is Plink.”
“Hello, Plink. Can I touch her?”
“Sure. She likes scratches.” Mora smiled and watched as Plink flapped her stubby wings. She could feel the tail waggling against her shoulders.
“So, she chose you?”
“She was waiting for me. I was walking through the rain and she was hopping in the doorway, waiting for me to arrive. The moment I picked her up, she burrowed into my thoughts and we have been inseparable ever since.”
“What about your other companion?”
Mora snorted. “We got linked via an accident, but our affection is growing steadily.”
“Ah. My partner is a sleep master. We start off dreaming and end up on top of each other. The foreplay is a little hard to remember but nothing happens until we are both awake.” Hahvi smiled.
“Oh. I see.”
“You don’t and you don’t have to. That is the point. Out here, we find the path that takes us to our own destiny, not one that someone forced on us. That includes our mate.”
Mora had met dozens of men at the Citadel but none of them made her comfortable like Tranoth did. Hahvi had a point. “Thank you. I will keep that in mind.”
“Do. Now, let’s have a seat. You look exhausted.”
Mora sat on one of the boxes, and she and Hahvi were looking out at the coastline, the city that stretched back up the coast and into the delta that housed it.
Mora yawned. “It is a stupid place to put a city.”
“I have seen stupider. The middle of a lava field springs to mind.” She chuckled and told Mora the tale of the floating city.
They sat and talked quietly, shoulder to shoulder, until Tranoth and a stranger with eyes only for Hahvi, appeared on the hill.
Tranoth smiled. “We are cleared to return to Balen. Hahvi and Rackon are here for clean up as it regards the volcanic upheaval.”
Mora hugged Hahvi one more time. “Thank you for making it out of the dome.”
Hahvi returned the hug. “Thank you for surviving.”
Mora and Plink returned to the ship, and she yawned again. Plink rubbed at her head, but the empathy wasn’t making a dent. She was so very tired.
She fell asleep as she was buckling in.
* * * *
Tranoth pulled her onto his lap and held her close with Plink nestled against her ribs. They lifted off, and he kept her safe while the ship rocked and twisted upward.
Feeling her joy when she saw another one of her own kind, he had also felt a tremendous shift in how she viewed herself. She had proof that she was not the only one to make it out of confinement and that woke a strength in her that he had not imagined she possessed.
Seeing Hahvi made her whole. Something that neither he nor Plink had been able to achieve.
He kissed her temple as she slept and felt the caress of her hand against his chest. Her mind knew he was there, and it was part and parcel of why she was able to rest.
Feeling her trust and affection through their link humbled him and made him feel a thousand feet tall. Courting her was not going to be easy, but he knew that he would eventually win, so he would do it carefully.
* * * *
Mora woke in her own bed on Balen. Plink was next to her, eating a packet of seeds. A wave of scent surrounded her, and Mora sat up, a slow smile spreading while a lump formed in her throat.
Dozens of vases of flowers were all over her room. She laughed and sat up, seeing the flashing of a message on her com. “Mora, Botanist Tenyo will be up at noon to give you a private lesson on how to engage in flower arranging. You might want to get dressed because your clothing disappeared the moment your head hit the pillow.”
She blushed and looked down as her Masuo remained in sleep mode until she showered.
She checked the chrono and bolted for the shower. She was dressed and her hair brushed when the botanist arrived.
He grinned and looked at the flowers that she had taken out of her bedroom and into the main quarters. “Shall we begin?”
Plink dragged her bag of seeds in and sat on a chair to watch the procedure. Mora was no longer surprised at how agile the chubby little creature was. Plink went where she wanted to.
Mora focussed on her lesson for an hour, pleased with the result. Botanist Tenyo smiled. “Come to my next public class and I am sure you will learn a few more tricks that you will find useful. Oh, I hear your studio is ready.”
Mora blinked. “Is it? Wonderful. I think I will seek out a meal and then go in search of it. Stanik has been hiding the material requests from me.”
“It has been an experiment in requisition.” He cleaned up his cutters and equipment. “Have a good day and enjoy your meal. You have earned it.”
Mora smiled, and when he was gone, she scooped Plink onto her shoulder, put on the belt with the feed packs and she headed downstairs.
Tranoth was waiting to have a meal with her, and he was waiting patiently with all her favourites.
She hugged him and quickly pressed a kiss to his lips. “Thank you for the flower-arranging class.”
“You are welcome. If you are this excited about flowers, I can hardly wait until I show you your studio. It is large enough to have six students in it and has enough equipment for all of them. Balen has been donating materials and the students have been refining them.” He grinned and held her chair out for her.
She sighed. “You know, I now understand the phrase home is where the heart is. In my entire life, I have never felt more at home than I am at this very minute. Of course, that might change.”
A tapping on her hip brought her around, and Eska and every child under ten in the Citadel was standing with cups of juice. With a grin, she began to have the juice cavort while she ate her meal. Tranoth was grinning as well and Plink was making that rumbling sound. The tiny creatures finished their dance and jumped into the mouth of their child. Laughter and squeals abounded as the children returned to their parents.
“Yeah, this is home.” She grinned and a happy tear squeezed out of her eye. She sent it spinning upward into the air until it shattered into a thousand tiny pieces, sharing her joy with everyone in the room.
Author’s Note
I can’t resist. While there are a finite amount of Yaluthu, I do so enjoy putting them into the stories. Every heroine needs a sidekick and her guy isn’t always available.
The trick with the juice was inspired by a water park I went to once. UFO H2O. Chunks of water flew from one side to the other and landed like solid objects in a delightful choreography. That image got stuck in my mind and here it is.
Thanks for reading,
Viola Grace
About the Author
Viola Grace was born in Manitoba, Canada where she still resides today. She really likes it there. She has no pets and can barely keep sea monkeys alive for a reasonable amount of time. Her line of day job tends to be analytical which leaves her mind hopping to weave stories. No co-worker is safe from her charact
er analysis. In keeping with busy hands are happy hands, her hobbies have included cross-stitch, needlepoint, quilting, costuming, cake decorating, baking, cooking, metal work, beading, sculpting, painting, doll making, henna tattoos, chain mail, and a few others that have been forgotten. It is quite often that these hobbies make their way into her tales.
Viola’s fetishes include boots and corsetry, and her greatest weakness is her uncontrollable blush. Her writing actively pursues the Happily Ever After that so rarely occurs in nature. It is an admirable thing and something that we should all strive for. To find one that we truly like, as well as love.
