“You are a vision, Ms. Stick!” the shop-girl gushed as Essa turned to look at herself from all the angles in the mirrors. Other shops would have had micrometre-accurate holographic representations of herself modelling the dress so she could see precisely how she looked in it, but Essa liked this place better. It felt more real, more authentic, somehow, and she wanted so very badly to be so very authentic tonight.
It was also within her budget, according to the very nice woman at the front desk of her hostelry. Although she’d seemed disappointed when Essa shared how much she could spend. When Essa had asked if there was somewhere she could rent a fancy dress for the evening, the desk-lady’s eyebrows performed a strange dance Essa had never seen human eyebrows do before. She stared at her screen for a long time before finally suggesting Sew Joy Boutique. The moment Essa laid eyes on the old-fashioned plate-glass window and mannequins behind it showing off their work, she knew it was the perfect place.
“Stiik,” Essa whispered, hardly more than a whisper, but the shop-girl’s expression told Essa she’d been heard. Essa wondered if the shop-girl was one of those clairvoyants she read about. There was nobody like that among her people; the Koeusian didn’t have anyone who could know someone else’s thoughts or see things happening in other places, and most humans said they couldn’t do that either. But Essa wondered. There were an awful lot of humans who seemed sure some of them could hear other thoughts or see things happening far away. It’s a big, strange galaxy and Essa had barely seen any of it yet — maybe weird abilities like that really did exist.
“Sorry,” Essa added before the shop-girl had a chance to say anything. “Koeusian names are hard for humans. It’s okay,” she said, feeling her hair floofing up in an autonomic response. Sometimes it was arousal; this time it was embarrassment. She shouldn’t be correcting this poor—
“I’m very sorry, Ms. Steak,” the girl replied, obviously trying to catch the subtle pronunciation difference that Essa heard but only made it worse. Essa blushed furiously, “Goodness, no, ‘Stick’ is really good. You’d pass with that!” She then blushed even harder. What if she was being rude to the shop-girl? What if the shop-girl thought Essa was hitting on her? What if she thought Essa was some weirdo, alien … pod-monster? She racked her brain, no, pod-monsters were definitely not a real thing, they were something she’d picked up from human culture – movies, she was sure. Maybe books. No, definitely movies.
“Stick,” the girl agreed demurely, unknowingly rescuing Essa from her social-anxiety-spiral. “The dress,” she said softly, as she tried to bring the interaction back on track, “it really is stunning on you. Do you like it?”
Essa loved the dress. It was the fanciest thing she’d ever worn. The skirt was a cacophony of layers and lace and ruffles that extended out almost as far as Essa could reach! The bodice was the sort of constricting corset that would leave a human woman barely able to draw a breath, but at least she’d be encased in cream and pink all the way to her armpits. Above that there was nothing, it’s not like this dress needed any extra assistance to stay in place once it had been properly secured. It left her shoulders bare, and it squeezed and lifted her breasts in a way that made Essa wonder if she could balance a drink on them.
She did her best to tamp down her nervousness about even trying on this chiffon and lace dream. She’d cleaned all the ship-grime off herself before coming here but she was still so very nervous about getting herself a truly fancy dress. She marvelled at some of the places she’d found grease while in her room’s shower – an incredible luxury; this whole station was fancy! – but Essa was very detail-oriented about very specific things, everything else … just wouldn’t stick. Not just human stuff, either – Koeusian stuff too. What season was it? Was Utu sleeping or waking? How long until it was time to go below next?
All questions that were important to her people – questions that, as undeniably brilliant as she could be, Essa would never be able to answer without assistance. Questions that her brood-fathers could answer in a flash. Even so, they never chastened her for it, never made her feel bad or sad that some things just wouldn’t stay in her brain. They knew she tried, they knew she always threw herself fully, unreservedly into any challenge, but she simply didn’t have the capability to learn or remember certain things. She almost thought that made them love her even more. Her brood-fathers were so great that it sometimes made Essa sad that not everyone had parents as amazing as her dads.
Oh no! She’s waiting for me to say something! Essa suddenly realised, her face paling and her panic rising. Fortunately for her, Koeus skin tones ranged from ‘blue’ to ‘slate-grey’. The poor humans, who were all garish versions of pink and red – ranging all the way to very dark red (humans called it either ‘brown’ or, bewilderingly, ‘black’) could never visually identify when one of the Koeus were truly embarrassed.
Essa was thankful for that.
“Gosh, yes, I do! It’s so pretty! It’s like I’m wearing a cake!” she effused, confused by the suddenly pained expression on the shop-girl’s face. Maybe she was allergic to cake? That’d be awful. Humans had a lot of allergies, and Essa knew they could be very serious, but she also knew cakes were how humans celebrated major life events. She hoped the shop-girl wasn’t allergic to cake. “I wanna buy it. Can I buy it?”
The shop-girl looked so relieved Essa wondered if she’d been holding her breath the entire time. That wasn’t good for humans – they were extremely bad at tolerating oxygen-poor environments and Essa suddenly worried that maybe this woman had been engaging in some sort of ritual flagellation!
“Uhhha~” the girl responded, struggling to catch up with this absolutely insane alien woman who had wandered into her store nearly an hour ago. She looked like a refugee from vid-serials of centuries past, blue skin, blue-er lips that didn’t seem to be lipstick, wild, frizzy hair that almost seemed to be moving on its own, and smelling like she’d come here straight from the hangar, reeking of lubricant, fuel, and hard work.
“I can … I can … where’re you staying? On Gaxu Industrial?” FUCK! she thought, convinced she’d just set fire to her commission and any possible gratuity this absolutely baffling alien might’ve given her. Of course the weird alien woman was staying on the station! And yes, she was shopping at the cheapest modiste on the entire platform, but she was buying a dress! That meant she was going somewhere she thought was important so it was Libby’s job to support that illusion. It was also Libby’s job to make the sale, and if she accomplished that in a way that left her with a little extra cred in her account, there was no harm in that.
“I am!” Essa replied with a level of enthusiasm usually seen only in over-stimulated children at their birthday parties. “I’m staying at the Silver Twilight, room 80085!” She gasped, “Are you gonna send it to my room?” Essa was a little light-headed at the prospect. She was out buying a brand-new dress for a party this evening, and they were going to send it to her room!
“Wonderful,” the shop-girl said, rising to her feet from her spot on the floor where she had been taking various measurements. Inwardly breathing a sigh of relief now that it looked like they were nearly done. “We’ll have it altered and sent right over. Will 7pm station-standard do?”
Now she felt bad for all her brood back on Dingir-Ge, who weren’t getting to have a dress delivered to their room! She made a sound of mingled acknowledgement and approval that – one that, in retrospect, she wasn’t even sure was within the auditory range of humans – before nodding and thrusting her cred-stick at the young girl.
It had been a good run. Essa had hooked up with this crew all the way out in Fomalhaut, on Parable Terminal. She’d been stuck there for nearly a month trying to find the kind of work she actually wanted. The nice part of smuggling was all the new places she got to see and all the interesting people she got to meet. The bad part of smuggling was how many of those people weren’t exactly nice – and the stuff they were smuggling was not nice at all! At least this crew seemed to be doing the right thing. They said it was medical aid and the client didn’t want to use the official channels so they could sell the supplies at a lower cost. Essa really liked the sound of that!
Incredibly, they’d managed to deliver the cargo without even a flicker on the contact screens – so easy it was almost dull. Now, nestled deep in human space and relieved of their “humanitarian supplies”, the crew of the Opal Star had been invited to a “reception” by their client. Essa didn’t know exactly what “reception” meant, but she was sure it was just a fancy word for “party”, and – bonus! – she was invited!
She’d ended up spending almost all of her share on the dress for tonight, and honestly, she was so ridiculously happy about it she could barely contain herself.
“Deep breath,” she coached herself as she rode the lift up to the observation deck.
Her dress had arrived exactly at 7pm, delivered in a glittery box and wrapped in the gauziest tissue paper Essa had ever touched. She’d even rubbed it against her cheeks – she just couldn’t help herself. When she put it on after another, wickedly long shower, she was surprised to find it fit even better than in the store. She hadn’t asked for them to alter it for her and she certainly hadn’t paid for the alteration. It must have been some special thing they did just for her! Essa knew she’d had a good feeling about that place.
She’d noticed several people turning their heads to get a second look as she passed them in the corridors, then through the arcade and the station marketplace. She was used to odd looks and stares, her people almost never left the homeworld, but tonight she was certain it was the breathtaking dress that was stealing the show. She hadn’t realised as she tried it on in the shop that the taffeta in the back would make such a soothing sound as she walked! The dress was even better than she’d imagined!
She was alone in the lift, standing in the exact centre. A human couple were planning to take it too but after the struggle Essa had getting her dress through the lift doors, they told her she should go on ahead and they’d take the next one. Okay, the skirt was maybe a bit extravagant, but this was a big night! Frankly, she was a tiny bit sad that the humans with her had been dressed so plainly. She didn’t want to embarrass anyone by showing up in something so much prettier than they did. She resolved to be on the lookout for anyone who might be feeling out-of-place. She would make certain they didn’t feel bad about being under-dressed.
“Ms. Krista Stick, unaccompanied,” the concierge announced to the room before stepping aside to let Essa pass.
“Um, no, it’s, um – " but he was already walking away from her. That’s alright, she thought, everyone gets it wrong. She then turned to take in the room.
The reception was being held in one of the larger halls on the observation level. The floor was recessed about a metre from the rest of the level, placing Essa on something like a platform. Directly in front of her was a short staircase with shiny, gold-coloured handrails and beyond was a sight to behold! The ceiling and the far wall were one and the same – a sweeping arc of transparent material, allowing for an unobstructed view of the stars above and straight ahead. The room was bathed in the glow of system’s central star, Gliese 411, casting a warm reddish-orange tint over everyone and everything.
Along the walls, tables were set up, and behind them, men and women dressed in rather plain suits handing out food and drinks to passersby. Essa watched for a moment, trying to determine if there was some protocol to follow to get the food – with little success. Her observations were suddenly interrupted by someone clearing their throat behind her.
“Oh gosh, sorry!” she said quickly, turning to see who was behind her. Her hair poofed up slightly, an outward reflection of her rising anxiety.
“The stairs?” asked the beautiful woman with the dark brown eyes, pearlescent skin that Essa judged to be very pale and a strangely pinched expression. Essa instantly felt the need to apologise again – poor woman must have felt so out of place standing right next to her like that. The woman had her hair done up in one of those ridiculous, elaborate styles humans loved, but her dress was so plain! It was white, hugged her figure from her jaw to her hips, then only flared slightly as it covered her down to her ankles. Essa wondered if she’d bought it secondhand because, along both sides, it seemed to be held together with a strip of fabric about as wide as her palm – so thin she could see through them! The woman didn’t seem to be wearing any underwear either; maybe she couldn’t afford any? Essa almost never wore underwear, but she’d learned during her time with humans that they almost always did! Saddest of all, Essa couldn’t spot a single bit of glitter or reflective stones anywhere on the dress.
“You go down them,” the woman tried again, and this time even Essa caught the slight edge in her voice.
“You do!” she agreed enthusiastically, nodding while her hair bounced around wildly. “Oh! Do you need help getting down them?” she took a step to the side and held out both hands, offering support.
“Nescienca knabino,” the woman muttered with a roll of her eyes, then started down the stairs on her own now that Essa had moved.
She watched as the woman approached a small group, where she was immediately embraced, and they all seemed to start talking at once. Essa hadn’t understood what the woman said before descending the stairs, but that didn’t bother her. Humans had so many different languages, and she’d’ only learned the one so far.
“Okay! See you later!” she called out to the woman, who glanced over her shoulder with another expression Essa didn’t recognise.
With a sound reminiscent of flowing water, Essa made her way down the stairs and toward one of the food tables. Her eyes widened at the variety and presentation. She didn’t know what any of these things were! Could this evening get any more exciting?
“What’s that?” she asked the man in the suit standing behind one particular table. He seemed confused for a moment, his eyes widening in obvious disbelief as he looked Essa up and down.
“Cantaloupe, Miss,” he finally managed.
“Is it good?” Essa was captivated by the colour – even in the reddish-orange light of the star she was amazed at how orange it was.
The man seemed at a loss for words, finally managing, “I like them.”
“Can I eat it?”
A blank look followed by an uncertain, “Yes, Miss.”
Essa snatched up a glistening orange sphere about the size of her fingertip and popped it into her mouth. “That’s so good!” she proclaimed, then immediately scooped up two more and popped both into her mouth at the same time. “What’s that?” she asked, pointing to another spot on the same table.
“Those are strawberries, Miss,” the man said, the tiniest hint of exasperation in his voice.
“And I can eat them?” Essa could barely contain her excitement.
“Yes, Miss,” replied the attendant, and before he’d even finished speaking, Essa had grabbed a strawberry from the table and thrown it into her mouth. She chewed thoughtfully, her expression shifted as she considered, before she finally swallowed.
“I like the red part but I’m not really a fan of the green bits,” she said apologetically. “Oh! What’s that?”
There was music coming from somewhere, but Essa didn’t see a stage, speakers or really anything that could be producing it. Still, it was nice, soothing, and she found herself moving slowly in time with it. Not quite dancing, but responding to the sounds with her body. The soft swishing of the taffeta behind her made her smile as her hair floated lazily around her. She was sure she could have located the source of the music eventually – her hair wasn’t what humans thought of as hair at all but actually an organ that was uniquely suited for ‘feeling’ electromagnetic fields. Just being in this environment was sending wonderful little tingles over her scalp and all over her skin. She didn’t need to find the source of the music; she was just going to enjoy the moment.
Between the humans all around her and the music washing over her, Essa already felt like she had a mild buzz going on. She’d gorged herself on bizarre human food until she thought she might burst out of her dress, then drifted lazily around the room, smiling at everyone. Though she felt a little guilty about it, she was also utterly thrilled that she was easily the best dressed person at the whole party. All the women were wearing these dull, plain outfits – almost none were more than two colours, they were all tight and showed off a lot of skin – and she didn’t think she’d seen any lace at all! Well, except for that one woman wearing nothing but a bodysuit made of lace and knee-high boots. Seeing her only added to the dreamlike quality the evening held for Essa.
“I don’t believe we’ve been introduced,” a cool voice said from startlingly close behind her, causing Essa to yelp softly in surprise. She whirled around and yelped again at the sight of an absolutely gorgeous woman standing barely half a metre away. The woman was taller than Essa – nothing unusual for her – broader across her shoulders – quite unusual for Essa – and had lustrous black hair, all one length, straight and tucked behind her ears. She regarded Essa with eyes so brown they were almost black, an appraising expression on her face.
More startling than her closeness was the woman’s outfit. She was wearing flowing maxi-skirt that was the blackest black Essa had ever seen. Circling the skirt at regular intervals were silver loops that appeared to luminesce in the strange light of the reception room. It rose to a tight band around the woman’s waist – reminding Essa of a girdle – which was also made of the same blackest-black fabric with more of those silvery loops that looked like fish scales under water. Starting just above the woman’s ribcage the ‘dress’ gave way to a snug top made of alternating vertical strips of light and dark, each crafted from a scandalously sheer fabric. She was hiding nothing beneath that top. It was long-sleeved with a scoop neckline, but at the neck was attached a veil made solely from the lighter of the sheer fabrics, covering – but certainly not hiding – the woman’s face from her eyes down.
Essa tried not to gawk too openly at the beautiful, slightly scary woman before her. But then she noticed the other three women flanking the speaker – among them the woman from earlier – the one she had offered to help down the stairs. “Oh, hi again!” Essa called out cheerily and waved quickly before turning her attention back to the woman who practically loomed over her.
“We haven’t! I’d remember you! I’m bad with names but really good with, um, faces,” Essa stumbled, her eyes betraying her as they darted quickly down to the woman’s clearly visible chest. “Essa! Essa Stiik!” She tried to thrust a hand out in offer of a shake or … or whatever this lady might want to do, but she misjudged the distance and nearly poked the woman in the hip. “S-sorry.”
The woman looked down at Essa’s hand, then at the alien woman’s awe-inspiring dress with an expression of vague distaste. She finally accepted the gesture, but only gave Essa’s fingers the lightest of squeezes before letting go, “Sarah Ann Jaddi.”
Ms. Jaddi had started to say something more, but Essa’s eyes flew wide, her hair floofed up a little and she blurted out, “Oh that’s so funny! My invitation’s from Mr. Edwan Jaddi! D’ya know him?”
The women in Ms. Jaddi’s entourage laughed behind their obvious leader, with the woman Essa had met before giving her a pitying look. “That’s my father,” Sarah Ann replied, smiling now – but there was something about that smile that Essa didn’t quite trust. Humans sometimes said things and did things that weren’t at all what they were thinking or wanted to do, and Essa was beginning to get a faint tingling of that here. “Daddy always does like to treat the help well,” Sarah Ann offered mildly.
“Oh, um, yeah, he’s real nice!” Essa hurriedly mumbled, noticing that one of the other women in the group was now staring at her with wide-eyed wonder.
“The Opal Star, is it?” Ms. Jaddi continued, her tone was something a lot like casual conversation but Essa felt the first tingling of anxiety tickling her back. “I didn’t know they had one of you on the crew.”
“Oh I’m not regular!” Essa blurted excitedly, but then her brain latched on to the phrasing this increasingly intimidating woman had used. She lowered her eyes – this time to the floor rather than the woman’s very pleasant form. Essa wasn’t finding her quite as pretty now for some reason. “Their mechanic came down with a case of violet tongue three days before they were gonna ship out! It was a bad one, too! He had that purple, foamy drool so bad he had to change his shirt every hour and, well, you know what the smell’s like, right?”
She’d started to fall back into her comfort zone as she related the downfall of the Opal Star’s previous mechanic but the mixed looks of horror, revulsion and contempt from Ms. Jaddi’s flock put her on the back foot again.
“Ah – anyway, my friend Quarro put me in touch with Captain Endes and, um, here I am!”
“What a delightful turn of events,” Ms. Jaddi said and Essa was pretty sure her tone was unnaturally light and far louder than necessary. “Well we are absolutely charmed to be in the presence of one of your people tonight, Ms. I’m sorry, what did you say your name was again?”
“Essa Stiik,” Essa replied quietly, somewhat wishing she could disappear back to one of the food tables now. Someone had said mentioned “pine-apples” and while Essa knew what both of those were she’d never seen an apple from a pine tree. Right now she’d like nothing better than to see one.
“Ms. Stick,” Sarah Ann purred, “I must say, you have singular taste in dresses. I believe my sister has one just like it!” Tittering laughter from behind the horrible woman now. “Of course she’s only nine years old, but she does love it so much!” Essa shrank even further under the scrutinising gaze. “She doesn’t usually wear boots with it – that’s a bold choice. Maybe you’ll start a trend!” Essa suddenly wanted to somehow hide her feet inside the skirt – she’d never considered footwear as part of her ‘dress’.
“Sarah Ann Jaddi,” called a lilting but somehow commanding voice from off to their side. “As I live and breathe!” All of them – Essa, Ms. Jaddi and the flock – turned at once to see an impossibly tall woman approaching them, the other party-goers apparently parting unconsciously before her.
“Briar!” Sarah Ann called out, opening her arms wide as if to offer the approaching woman an embrace. “How wonderful to see you this evening!” The other three women seemed to subtly retreat. The one who had been so interested in Essa only a moment ago now had the look of a trapped animal.
The new arrival was somehow even taller than Ms. Jaddi. Essa racked her brain for one of the units of measurement the humans used, but everything in her head was so jumbled up at the moment that she wasn’t even sure she could speak. The woman was lean and lithe, with startlingly blue eyes – almost the colour of Essa’s skin, the thought came unbidden – and small speckles scattered across her cheeks. Her hair was a warm brown with a part on the left side only just reaching her shoulders. She wore a shimmery green dress with a high, gilt-edged collar and long sleeves. It would’ve been extremely modest, had it not featured a single sheer panel running from her right shoulder to her right hip – not even a finger’s width but showing just enough skin to be very sexy.
The skirt was the same material and it swept over the floor as the woman approached. It, too, would have been quite modest had it not had a single part on the right side that extended almost up to meet the sheer panel of the bodice. It revealed all of the woman’s right thigh, and Essa was certain she caught a glimpse of the woman’s hip bone as she drew nearer.
“Did I hear you mention little Eudora, dear?” Briar shot a quick, unreadable glance in Essa’s direction before turning her full attention to Ms. Jaddi. Essa experienced a brief moment of calm now that the spotlight seemed to be off her. “Is her mother here tonight?” the new arrival continued. “I just had a fascinating conversation with your mother over by the windows.”
Sarah Ann’s brow furrowed and her eyes narrowed. Her entourage continued to back away as subtly as they could manage. “I … don’t believe so,” Ms. Jaddi responded and Essa thought it strange how different her voice sounded all of a sudden.
“Hmm, maybe she wasn’t on the guest list,” Briar continued lightly, glancing once more at Essa before focusing on Sarah Ann once more. “I see you’ve cornered one of the guests of honour!”
Essa felt her anxiety spike again as her hair visibly wilted.
Ms. Jaddi swallowed and looked the tiniest bit renewed as she turned her head slightly and pulled back from her cool embrace with Briar. “Yes!” she agreed eagerly. “Well, it isn’t every day we have a Cygnan as a guest!”
Essa didn’t care for the word but she wasn’t about to protest. Her only goal at the moment was to get out of this horrible situation as quickly as she could. But then she noticed a flicker of something in Briar’s expression. Might it have been anger?
“Koeusian,” Briar corrected firmly, her attention once again fully on Sarah Ann. Essa was suddenly certain she was observing one of those non-verbal communications humans did so often and that she found utterly impenetrable.
“Yes, well,” Sarah Ann coughed, appearing for the first time clearly uncomfortable. “This is Ms. Stick, Ms. Stick – Briar Reinhardt.”
The tall woman in the green dress turned finally to Essa and extended her hand. “Privileged to meet you,” she said and despite Essa’s best effort to detect other nuance in her tone or the words, she found only sincerity.
“Um, Essa. Essa Stiik,” her voice quavered slightly as she took Briar’s hand, then found herself attempting a curtsy. This drew a laugh from both Briar and Sara Ann, though the latter’s sounded a little harsh to Essa. Briar’s, however, seemed warm – possibly even charmed.
“Ms. Stiik,” Briar said, nodding her head slightly, and Essa felt her hair fluff up a little. She got it right! She said my name right!
“She’s the mechanic on the Opal Star,” Sara Ann continued, her superior tone was returning to her voice. The way she said Opal Star sounded like it was something almost distasteful to discuss.
“I know, I spoke with Captain Endes a few moments ago; I believe they’re over by the windows as well,” Briar had released Essa’s hand and now turned the full weight of her attention back to Ms. Jaddi. Essa noticed that the other women were gone, melting silently into the crowd. “Will your father be joining us tonight, dear? It is his party after all.”
“No,” Sarah Ann replied coolly.
Briar nodded, her lips pressed slightly together in a sympathetic frown. “Mmm, busy with the staff, I suppose. That new assistant he’s taken on, she’s so very pretty – but not very good at her job.” Ms. Reinhardt’s lips were turning up a little now, “Or maybe it’s just a different job she was hired for?”
Ms. Jaddi’s expression darkened and she started to say something before Briar cut her off.
“Well,” she said in an almost sing-song voice, “there’s nothing wrong with each of us using our talents to the best ends, yes?” Briar’s smile was growing, but Essa thought it was very strange how the upper portion of the woman’s face seemed to have a completely different expression. “I heard you’re leaving the academy, dear! Is that true? Without even completing your studies?”
“I don’t see how that’s any–”
“Well at least you’re pretty,” Briar continued on. “Maybe your calling is assisting someone in the family business, hmm?”
Essa marvelled at the change in Ms. Jaddi’s face over the brief exchange. She had gone first very pale and now she was a rather unattractive shade of red, especially her cheeks. She stood perfectly still for a moment, the trio all silent, then made a sound that reminded Essa of an airlock opening when the pressure wasn’t quite fully equalised – a puffing, wheezing sort of thing.
“Oh, I think you’ve lost your friends, dear,” Briar nodded toward the empty space behind Sarah Ann. “You should go find them. I’m sure they’re missing your company.”
Amazingly, Sarah Ann’s eyes widened even further, her mouth falling open in an almost comical look of shocked indignation. Essa’s tension grew as she saw the woman’s hands clench into fistsm, but fortunately, that was where it ended. With a huff Ms. Jaddi whirled around and fled into the crowd of party guests, giving a very unladylike shove to an older woman in finely tailored suit on her way.
“I’m so sorry about that, Ms. Stiik,” Briar had turned to Essa after she had dismissed the other woman. “I hope I won’t offend you, but that woman truly is a bitch. I couldn’t stand by and let her carry on like that with you.”
Emotions flooded Essa’s world and, for the briefest moment, she thought she might be having difficulty breathing. She swallowed hard twice, then nodded, offering Briar a look of boundless gratitude. “She was being mean to me, wasn’t she? It’s not just me thinking she was being mean?”
Briar smiled warmly at the comparatively diminutive woman opposite her, “She was being very mean. Don’t think it’s you. She’s a harpy, rotten to the core.”
Essa blinked rapidly as she tried to understand the meaning of Briar’s words. She knew it was a metaphor – obviously Sarah Ann Jaddi wasn’t literally rotten; she seemed pretty healthy as far as Essa could tell. Her saviour must be talking about Ms. Jaddi’s personality. This sent Essa’s mind spinning off in a brand new direction. Could personalities rot? If someone was isolated too long, would their personality begin to decompose? Back on her homeworld, no one was ever truly alone; no one wanted to be alone. Even the smallest of family groups, broods, had at least a dozen members.
The human woman was talking. “Oh no, I’m sorry, what? I got … my head … wasn’t here.” She was suddenly deeply ashamed; this human had rescued her from an awful social situation and just like that Essa had stopped listening to her mid-conversation.
But Briar didn’t seem offended at all. She blinked and smiled even more kindly at Essa, the warmth practically radiating from her face. “I said I really did see your captain over by the windows. I’ll show you where they are if you’d like.”
Essa squirmed a little, the taffeta of her skirt making a shockingly loud susurrus as somehow the background noises of the party seemed to fade away from the pair. “Oh, um, y-yeah, that’d be … thank you?” She was worried now about who else she may meet in this room full of very fancy humans and their strange ideas about how to act around one another. Moreover, the crew of the Opal Star weren’t really her friends. They were nice to her, and they’d worked together for the last few weeks, but Essa was feeling fragile and thought it might be good to just go back to her room. She wished her brood-fathers were here to give her a hug and tell her everything was okay.
“I mean, that’s if you’re having fun here. I hate these things, I only came to make sure I was seen. I was just about to leave,” Briar offered, she seemed to have understood Essa’s lukewarm response for what it truly was.
“I was gonna go back to my place.” Her tone was easy, casual – without any expectation that Essa could detect. “I got the new Hyperion Tactics game, thought I’d smoke a little crush and check it out. You can come if y’want.”
Essa’s eyes opened wide, not with confusion and hurt this time, but with excitement — a stark contrast to the scanalised shock Sarah Ann had suffered moments earlier. “Holy shit, really? It’s not even out yet! Where’d you get it?”
Laughing softly, Briar gently took Essa’s arm and started leading her toward the exit. “I got connections.” She winked at Essa, sending the alien girl into another spiralling thought cycle, but that was almost immediately interrupted by the friendly human. “If you don’t smoke, that’s okay, I won’t either.”
Finally! They were firmly in the realm of topics Essa felt comfortable with, “No, wow, no, I mean, yes? If you’re offering to share…?”
Briar gave Essa a light hip-bump just as they reached the stairs, causing another soft, fabric-y whoosh to come from Essa’s dress. “Of course I am! What kind of host wouldn’t share? Besides, I’ve got some crush I’m sure you’ve never had before! You’ll love it!”