by Viola Grace
“How often do the men send them? Do they take insult if they aren’t accepted?”
“No, they know that they will have to wait their turn with a new arrival.” She patted Miranda’s knee comfortingly. “It is normal for all of the undecided males to try to win your favor.”
“So, what you are telling me is that men I haven’t even met are going to make a bid for my attention? They don’t even know me.”
An understanding smile lit Karmiti’s features. “That is the point of the white gift. To interest you enough to meet them. If you suit each other, the gifts will progress.” She shook out her skirts as she rose to her feet once again. “Shall we continue to your quarters?”
“Oh, by all means.” Playing with the drape of the pallu, she followed her guide through the common areas and off to the private quarters.
The common quarters were simply draped alcoves off the main rooms, which held vids, bathing pools and tables holding various types of food. Fairly comfortable, but not much privacy.
The private quarters were guarded by two female Vrgal. They were a highly poisonous species, and the seven eyes that were distributed throughout their bodies made them efficient guards.
A lengthy hallway stretched before her and Miranda wondered how she would find her room by herself, when a door swung open at her approach.
“Go ahead, Miranda. These are your quarters for your time here with us.” A graceful sweep of her arm enticed Miranda to explore her new surroundings.
She gasped in pleasure at the beautiful draperies on the walls and the bed. Two doors opened to a balcony that faced the city in the distance.
The closet stood open and tears came to her eyes as she saw her ‘things’ for the first time.
Sari, kimono, under-robes, tunics and loose trousers of every imagined hue hung there. The shelves on the floor held slippers of various fabric and color combinations covered with embroidery and beadwork.
At the far end of the closet was a chest. The lid swung open as she approached. Jewels set into earrings, bracelets and necklaces caused her eyes to widen. “Where did these come from?”
“Captain Ilo had them brought. They are yours. The chest is keyed to your DNA.” Karmiti was leaning in the doorway, watching her lift a necklace to her throat and check her reflection in a mirror. “No one else can open it.”
She raised an eyebrow at the Duena. “If everything is keyed to my DNA, then why do we need the guards?”
“The guests here expect privacy and security. The Vrgal make for a tangible expression of that.”
There was something that the Duena wasn’t telling her. “Are there women who are here voluntarily?”
“Over ninety percent. It is very rare for a male to pick up a female on a voyage and bring her back with him. It is an occurrence that adds to your allure, I am afraid.” Karmiti seemed unhappy about that.
Miranda tried to bring the conversation back to a more mundane topic. “Is there a tea set in my quarters?”
“There is a communicator, and a data pad. Simply put in your order, and it will be delivered in a few minutes. That includes breakfast, lunch and dinner. You can use the data pad while in classes or common areas.”
“Does the communicator do off-world transmissions?” She was just curious.
“It does, but there is a payment required.” She gave Miranda a level look. “That particular service was not included in the agreement for your quarters. You will need to find another patron to pay for any additional items that you need.”
“Another patron?”
“Yes, Lord Aron has paid for your room and board, as well as whatever education you should choose to pursue. It would be ridiculous to ask for more.” She walked her out onto the balcony that overlooked the great city. Her wings flared and caught the breeze. “You should be grateful to him. These apartments are highly prized for their views and the balcony. It allows your patron to visit as he chooses, provided that you authorize it. If you wish for security, simply tap your com unit or raise your voice.”
“So he doesn’t have to do the gift thing?” This was confusing.
Karmiti gave her another motherly smile. “To court you, he does. To visit you, he only needs to gain your permission. You have associated with men casually on your world, haven’t you? That is what the visits are. No sexual activity is permitted within your quarters.”
“Do I have to choose a dinner companion every evening?”
“It is recommended, but not necessary. You may attend the dinners and entertainment on your own, but be prepared for verbal advances to be made if you are unattended.”
Whew. This was a lot to take in. The social restrictions of another culture had never been her strong suit. Apparently, Osias hadn’t made it easier for himself by putting her here. He had, in fact, made it more difficult for himself to get to her. Odd. Not a gesture that most males of her acquaintance would make.
“Is it all right for me to take a few days to get used to the routine? To introduce myself to the others?”
“Yes, of course. You may take as much time as you wish. But the Enjel women will not be too friendly to you. Several of them have been trying to make a permanent alliance with Lord Aron, but none have been successful.” She reached out a hand to stroke Miranda’s cheek. “Until you. He has a fondness for you that I haven’t seen him exhibit before.”
She continued as she turned back to look at the city, “He has communicated with me every day for the last ten days, making sure that everything was perfect for you. Right down to the view of the Sherval mountain where he makes his home. The details were precise, and the previous tenant of these apartments was not happy to go.”
“The bed is new, the furnishings designed to his specifications. He wanted you to be at home here. That much was clear.” She shook her head for a moment, smiling slightly. “Now then, you expressed an urge to learn to read and write our language?”
She swallowed past the lump in her throat. That was more than anyone had done for her in a long, long time. “Yes. Yes, I want to learn all that I can while I am here.”
“Then take a seat at the console and I will guide you through class selection, and how to access the maps of the building.” They moved inside and the lattice doors to the balcony swung shut as they passed.
Karmiti brought up a menu and selected Alliance Common as language of choice. She then swiftly walked through the selections for food, beverage and classes. The classes covered everything from dance, deportment, tea ceremonies of the Alliance, and self-defense. It was like the ultimate in annex-learning.
“Did you want to see the first offerings that have arrived for you?”
Presents! There was nothing she could say but, “Yes. Please, Karmiti.”
“Then follow me.”
She once again led the way, but this time, only to a small room at the end of a nearby corridor that Miranda knew she could find on her own. It swung open at her approach, and she saw other females in the room putting their palms on ID pads, and waiting.
Some were already opening gifts and giggling with their neighbors, but Miranda noticed that none of the gigglers were Enjel. They were all deadly serious as they opened the gifts one by one and either returned them to the pile, or kept them aside for comparison.
The women finding pleasure in comparing the gifts were off-worlders. Aliens to the planet Jela.
She watched closely as they made their choices and took them to the center of the room. An attendant smiled, entered the ID from the gift-wrapping itself and handed it back to the woman, who then left with a nod to Karmiti.
The Duena steered her over to a station and sat her down. She showed her how to work the identification selection and watched as the mound of gifts were delivered by hand, one after the other. They piled high on the table, and Miranda blushed as she realized that her mound of gifts was drawing an audience.
“Well, go on! Open one!” A giggling Selna spoke from her right side and jostled her shoulder with one
finely-downed hand. The soft black fur had a warm sheen in the daylight streaming in from the skylight.
With trembling fingers, she grasped the first package. Fortunately they were all white, as she didn’t know what she would do if any of the gifts had called for more intimacy.
It was an exquisite piece of jewelry. An anklet of woven metal and gems.
The ohs and ahs behind her took some of the embarrassment out of her predicament, and she plowed on through the pile of gifts. Her hands still shook before opening every package, waiting for one that she could know was from Osias.
Chapter Ten
Jewels, flowers, clothing, even some fruit (which made her audience laugh), the pile of opened gifts grew and nothing caught her eye as being from Osias.
Two-thirds of the way through the forty gifts, she found it. As the wrappings fell away and revealed the gift inside, a laugh was startled from deep within her. It changed to hoots of mirth as she hugged the present to her breast.
Boots. It was a pair of women’s boots. The scent of leather was unmistakable and she gasped anew when she saw that it bore an Earth label. They had come all the way from her home, just as she had, and now they were cradled to her with fierce desperation.
The Duena smiled. “Then you accept the gift?”
Oh, crap. That was right. She had only wanted to see what the opening of gifts was like, never thinking that it would be something so dear that she would rent out her soul to have it. She sighed deeply, “Yes, I accept the gift.”
“Then take it to the Registry, and she will alert the giver to your acceptance of his invitation to dinner.” A pathway through the crowd opened and she moved slowly and carefully to the Registry, another elder Enjel woman. She placed the boots and wrapping on the counter and almost cried out as they were taken to be scanned.
“Lord Aron will meet you for dinner at the foot of the main staircase. He looks forward to seeing you again.” The formal statement was accompanied by an inclination of the head and as she took the boots back, a cheer went up from the women in the room.
“See, that wasn’t so hard.”
“It’ll get easier, once you have met a few.”
“Why did you pick those? The dress was much nicer.”
The voices blended together and it was only when she looked around that she noticed that not one of the female Enjel had stayed to cheer her on. Only the aliens were left. Her people.
“It is a private joke between myself and Lord Aron.” She smiled and hugged the boots tightly. A thought came to her. “What do I wear?”
The room burst into laughter once again. She smiled sheepishly and looked to the Duena for advice. Apparently, leaving one’s homeworld didn’t make dating easier.
Karmiti caressed her shoulder, “What you have on is fine. Anything is fine, really. The men want your company on a white gift. If he had intended a more formal event, a different color would have been proffered, and instructions given to Registry.”
“What do I do for the rest of the afternoon?” She asked the Duena, but the Selna answered.
Karmiti faded into the background as the Selna continued. “You come and enjoy the day with us, and tell us about your world, and Lord Aron.” She winked, drew Miranda’s arm through hers and led the way to the common area, chatting about some of the odder things that had caught her attention in a white gift. The Selna were dark in shade and feline, so her favorite item had been a liver treat in a silver box.
The women showed her the common room, the vid screen and various games that they played.
It was quite the fun orientation, and Miranda had no concept of time until a delicate chime sounded. Immediately, all of the women who had been in the Registry office scattered. The Selna, whose name was VaiLin, told her quickly to go to her rooms and prepare. The next chime would sound their departure to the main hall in one hour.
“Shit!” Miranda quickly moved through the halls, frantically trying to remember her way to her chamber.
Three quarters of the hour had passed before she found the guards and scuttled past them to the door that opened at her approach.
It took her five more minutes to find the panel that opened the facility chamber, and she only had moments to drag a brush through her hair and relieve herself before the next chime rang.
Taking a shaky but deep breath, she left her precious boots in her closet and walked into the hall. Over a dozen Enjel women were proceeding gracefully to the main hall, and she was relieved to be able to follow them. Miranda noted their clothing, jewelry and hairstyles that showed quite a bit of neck.
They, on the other hand, did not even look at the new creature in their midst. She was beneath their notice, an alien that was bidding for one of the highest caste of Enjel. It mattered not a bit that he was pursuing her.
As they reached the stairway, she noted the two lines that formed up, one on each side of the stairs. The Enjel women mixed with the others, and the distaste in their faces showed their displeasure.
Each pair of women would stand until their escorts emerged from the crowd at the base of the stairs, then they would descend. VaiLin cut behind Miranda and whispered to her as the chime sounded once again. “The men have to be there, or the woman goes alone to dinner, and he is not allowed to send another gift to any female for six weeks. One male skipped out on three different women in one year, and had to relocate to a different city where he wasn’t known.”
“It is that serious?”
“With a birthrate of more than five males to one female, yes, it is that serious.”
The line was moving swiftly, the women only pausing for moments before they began their descent. When Miranda stood and looked below, her heart leapt in her chest as she saw Osias waiting for her.
He looked amazing. Her hands flexed at the memory of his skin under her palms, and she felt heat in her veins.
A hissed whisper in her ear startled her. “What are you waiting for? Go to him!” VaiLin was not subtle as she prodded Miranda in the back, but it did cause her to stumble forward and then begin a slow promenade down the steps.
Osias bowed low and straightened slowly, his gaze roving over every inch of her body, hunger and heat blazing through.
“Thank you for accepting my invitation to dinner.”
“Thank you for offering.”
“Shall we go in?”
“I thought you would never ask.” She took the arm that he proffered and they wandered into the dining area, oblivious to the jealous gazes that pierced their flesh. They had eyes only for each other, and if they had noted the hostility, they may have been spared much pain.
To see more Terrans in space, visit
www.violagrace.com
Viola Grace
Viola Grace is a proud Winnipeger, living in Manitoba, Canada. She has written all her life, but only recently begun to show her work in public.
Her favorite things are sci-fi/fantasy and avoiding housework.
