Chapter Eleven

It would be fair to say, with a long time looking back on that night, that I covered myself completely with the covers not because I didn’t want to chance Fauve coming down and realizing I was awake, thus forcing me to talk. That was very unlikely, since the failed human’s incarceration and the string of legal actions against his flying monkeys she’d returned to much of her online world.

She was herself again, and I was glad about that, but of course as a consequence her night owl habit returned and she would likely only inform her parents on her way to her room.

Which meant the true reason I was hidden beneath the covers was that I didn’t want to face what was outside of them, even if that consequence was lightyears away on world so far distant that the light of it’s star would not kiss the ground of Earth until even the youngest of the Walker family had died of old age or nearly. ‘Here they used to call it ‘the loneliest planet’ and I never really knew what they meant by that until I had to fear leaving this one.’

That was my thinking when I woke up in the morning, I moved like a ghost out human stories, going through the motions of preparing for my day while I mentally prepared myself for everything I would have to cope with. The ambassador hadn’t told me when the freighter would arrive, but if dlamisa are anything, we’re efficient, and our ships are somewhat faster than those of humans. It wouldn’t be long. Days, maybe weeks depending on how far away they were. I knew that the pulpultion technology combined with our gate technology would have widespread applications… much as the scientists at University howled about the need for urgent implementation, how could I not know that?

But it also hadn’t yet been combined. Which meant with only the gate tech if the freighter was far away then they would be faced with as much as two months travel if they both followed the usual trade lines, which they would, and were a fair distance from us.

That bought me time to come up with what I needed, a study, some kind of study that would convince the academic boards on the planet humans referred to as ‘Tomass’, that I was an asset here despite the indiscretions.

But I was in no shape for that at just that moment. I was leaning up against the shower wall while hot water pounded through my fur to wash away something of the smell… and because I’d heard that humans sometimes use hot showers to treat hangovers. I touched my right hand to my head, it felt like I was being smacked there by Zenti cannon fire.

“I’ll never drink again.” I muttered under my breath and stuck my face into the many little jetstreams of water. I was briefly blinded by the spray, but even if it didn’t help my hangover, it did make me feel a little more awake.

Drying myself off took the expected amount of time, multiplied by the number of shots that I had. Suffice it to say it took some time to get ready to join everybody upstairs. As I expected I would be very busy today, I chose to use one of the clothing sets the Walkers provided to me with my room, a pair of simple jean shorts and a button down shirt embroidered with the University of Louisville name and logo.

The only thing that really caused me to move any faster than a trudge up the stairs was that I could smell bacon and coffee. While the diets of each Earth region differed considerably, perhaps because it was my first impression, or perhaps it was attached to the people themselves, I loved their breakfasts best.

The bacon was crispy, my nose told me that much, and I could hear Rebecca talking while she opened the oven. I could hear Michael babbling nonsense in his chair as he tried to master human words.

I noticed that he smiled a lot at me, and as I settled into life with the Walkers, I regularly sat beside him, he seemed to like the black and orangish fur a great deal. His head was a little oversized relative to the rest of his body, leaving him unbalanced, and on occasion I’d taken to watching over him. It was for this reason that Rebecca said, “Could you mind Michael for a little, just let him play with you for a few minutes while I get the biscuits done and everything plated?”

Rebecca was clearly where Fauve got her sense of order, everything had to be just so for her, and in this case that meant that breakfast was not a free for all, she would plate out the first serving, providing a practical measure to each person. After that, she ignored all second helpings.

Strangely, she’d never asked me to do this during breakfast before. I wanted to take a look, but as soon as I got up and tried to look at what she was doing, she put her back to the food and motioned away with her hands.

“Shoo, shoo. Out of the kitchen, go play for a bit, you’ll see what I’ve made, soon enough.” She insisted.

“Alright, if you like.” I answered and picked Michael up. This was a task I had to handle with care as human infants are shockingly delicate creatures. William once explained to me that for the first few years of their life, your job as a parent can be summed up as, ‘Just keep them alive.’ I found it difficult to disagree with his assessment.

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Carrying Michael in one arm was as easy as it was hard. It was ‘easy’ in the sense that he weighed very little, but it was ‘hard’ in that he was a wiggly little creature who was also prone to tugging at my fur when being carried.

Wrangling him properly to the point where he would let go… well I can sum that up by saying that he left me with a few little bald spots on my fur on more than one occasion.

I spread out a small blanket over the hardwood floor, it was only three or four paces across for me in either direction, but it was enough room for him to play on.

I had to be grateful to my Teacher for his advice, it made me look at the tiny wiggling specimen with a more critical eye instead of just amusing myself, and it made me more conscious about my own responses as well. Studying ‘how’ other races respond to this particularly dangerous predatory species at all stages of life was, in my mind, absolutely vital.

Given the affection I have when I speak of them, it is jarring I’m sure to also hear me speak of their dangerous nature, but this is part of what sets them apart from so many others.

This difference begins in infancy. Michael was at an age when he was mobile, but still needed intensive care. He couldn’t say much, but I could see in his eyes the way he absorbed everything around him. Perhaps it was that which made our little game possible.

I began circling the outside of the blanket while he toddled around on it, coming after me, only for me to dodge by jumping from one side or the other, or even jumping over him.

His little hands flailed and little pudgy fingers grasped, but keeping just out of reach was still not at all difficult. However I must add that this ‘active play’ in species around the known galaxy is exceptionally rare. It is found only in apex predators or in prey that specializes in survival via retreat.

Equally noteworthy, he just didn’t stop. Young Michael continued to chase me around the blanket, giggling all the while… and going after my tail. The way he giggled and stared was almost enchanting, he reminded me of that Maxili species who also create large headed young. Incidentally, as of the time of this writing, the survival rate of their young has gone from ten percent to closer to ninety percent in areas where human pioneers have settled. It seems the pioneer women have turned gaxa serpent hunting into rite of passage. No woman may guard or bear children until she has proven her ability to protect them by exterminating a gaxa nest. It seems the timid race took Professor Sxlith’s words to heart and human females have become the most treasured allies of that once unfortunate world. Yes, I do keep an eye on my professor’s research… I suppose in human terms I could sometimes be called a ‘teacher’s pet’. But I genuinely revered his research and contributions to our collective future.

As for Michael, his tireless motion led me to study human bodies more, and I learned that from his age through toddlerhood he could be expected to move a minimum of roughly three hours per day. Astonishingly, it was conceivable for him to move much, much more when spread out into sessions.

It was no wonder that he eventually caught my tail… and gave it a good yank. I jumped a meter into the air and whirled around to see him giggling and holding some of my fur in his hands, sitting down with a thud and waving his tiny fist around in triumph.

“Bailey! Fauve! William! Byron! Boatswain! George! Cullan! Breakfast!” Rebecca was not a very large woman, if anything she could be described as rather petite by human norms, but she had a powerful set of lungs and was not afraid to use them. You may have noticed two additional names, ‘George’ and ‘Cullan’ on the list of those called out. George was Byron’s human comrade, one of the two Earth guards set to mind the house, while ‘Cullan’ was the dlamisa counterpart. I barely knew either of them, though both were giants of their respective kinds. Not unlike Byron and Boatswain, and both were quiet sorts and rotated shifts regularly with their colleagues.

However at breakfast, all four were sure to be present as it was when the shifts would change over. Of course I had to wonder about my professor and my colleagues, but as the door opened and the stampede of behemoths rushed in, I was not going to miss out on the plating. So I scooped up Michael and raced to my spot at the table just in time for Fauve to descend and to see her go straight for the coffee pot.

I felt William’s eyes on me, and then as Rebecca began to set plates down at spot after spot, I felt hers bore into me in turn. The question didn’t need to be spoken.

I darted my eyes away from husband and wife and toward their daughter, Fauve was already chattering away while she added creamer to her steaming cup. “...So the internship pays twenty-percent above market rate, plus when I turn sixteen Teresa says that if I’m still there I’ll get to travel with her as her personal assistant! If I stay till eighteen I’ll get a full time job and college credit!”

Her enthusiasm was so high that she was bouncing up and down on the balls of her feet. A tiny bit of hot coffee spilled out and landed on the counter, but either she didn’t see it, or she ignored it. “I can’t wait to start!”

With her beaming bright smile, flushed red cheeks and bouncy demeanor, I couldn’t bring up something like that. I didn’t meet the eyes of either the patriarch or matriarch of the Walker household. It was answer enough for them, I wouldn’t be telling anyone anything today.

Instead I said, “Great, I got a job too! I don’t know what I look forward to it!” I covered my own sense of dread with a wagging tail that wasn’t entirely faked, and I was at least sure that even if I hadn’t fooled myself with some of that enthusiasm, I had entirely fooled Fauve.

The trouble would have to wait.

For now, I just wanted her to be happy. Now, just as then, I hope I made the right choice.