The Princess and the Human

Kiyrtin closed the text and put away his datapad. He then leaned back and closed his eyes, mentally repeating everything one final time. Learning was still as boring as ever, but now that he had a goal in mind, something to achieve with this knowledge, it was actually bearable. For a while each day, at least.

He thought about calling Nadine and challenging her to another round. It should be about morning for her by now. Over the last few days, there had been a couple of times when he had almost beaten her, he was sure of that. Then again, she seemed kind of distracted during these rounds. Was something going on over there? Being tied to this bed sucked!

Just then, his datapad beeped. Surprised, he saw that Nadine was calling and quickly accepted. The alien girl’s face came into view and yet, she looked different today. The white, on which the blue gemstones that were her eyes were usually bedded, now had a reddish hue with thin, red, branch-like lines running through it. At the same time, her skin seemed to have lost some of its hue.

“Morning. Do you have time right now?”

“Hello”, he greeted her back. “Sure, I was just wondering if you’re awake already.”

“Actually”, she began. Her voice also sounded a bit different. Rough? “I’ve already been awake for a few hours. Err, invas, sorry.”

“Really? I know you wake up early, but… what was the time difference again?” He had only bothered to remember at what time, from his perspective, Nadine was usually awake, rather than calculating the exact time difference.

“Yes, I normally sleep longer, I just… whatever, no need to concern yourself. What about you?”

“Oh, well, nothing really. Same as always, so… you know. Anyway, are you up for a game?”

“Sorry. Normally I’d love to but today… can we maybe just talk?”

The young prince was surprised. Normally she never turned down his challenges.

“I mean, we can, sure. About what?”

“It doesn’t really matter.”

“Oh. Um… do you have more stories you haven’t told me?”

“I could probably think of some more but… hah, sorry, but I’m… how about you tell me some things?”

That was also new. She had sometimes asked him specific questions about him, his family, or his people in general, but she had never been this vague. He didn’t know any stories outside the ones he got from her. And there wasn’t really a lot happening around him at the moment either.

“I, uh… do you want to hear about economics and business basics?”

“Why not? Let’s hear how you guys do it. It’s something I only know very little about anyway.”

Little. Not nothing. Was there anything she didn’t know about? He once again wondered what job she was aiming at to need this kind of spread-out knowledge, but refrained from asking since she clearly wanted to listen right now.

And, he talked. Some basic theoretical stuff, as well as topics he personally had given priority. Not that he had told his tutors why exactly founding and leading a company was important for him. They probably assumed something “befitting his status”, but he didn’t plan on correcting them.

He noticed that talking with Nadine about topics somehow made it easier for himself to understand it compared to hearing it from the teacher or reading about it. Maybe he should do this more often?

Time passed rather quickly and soon, the Human had to end the call, thanking him profoundly even though he wasn’t sure for what.

90th day after my arrival

Dear Diary,

I have never written down any of the dreams I have had, but the one from last night refuses to leave my mind. Why can’t I just forget

I feel if I don’t

Normally, just the fear lingered

It began I can’t clearly recall how it began. Or where I was. Or what I was doing. The first thing I can still remember is that I felt the filling in my right back tooth break, pretty much the same thing that happened two years ago during the sleepover with Merve. I was at first only annoyed about it, thinking that I would need to tell Papa about it and make a dentist appointment. I guess that part of the dream wasn’t lucid enough for me to realize why that was

I remember feeling the loose piece with my tongue. I tried to get it out of my mouth but couldn’t. In retrospect, I’m not sure if I opened my mouth. Well, dreams. After a while, I suddenly felt an entire tooth come loose for no reason. Which, again, only felt annoying. I don’t recall what happened next, but at some point, my mouth was full of loose teeth, and I tried spitting them out but couldn’t, and I tried again and again but still couldn’t, and my mouth was filling

I don’t recall the next part, only that I was afraid. I probably once again saw But at some point I woke up thought I woke up. Then I was in a courtroom. Not straight away but that was where it led. I don’t remember if it was because of Kiyrtin or the executed noble, but I was blamed for it. They then brought me before a crowd. The crowd was all humans for some reason. The only Vanaery were the ones from the trial. They had set up medieval gallows for me and then

why can’t I just

This isn’t

I need to

Why am I

what does this

Sil

With the expedition on the way, things had calmed down a bit. They had picked fast ships but even then, it would take a while for the first report to come in. Silgvani had given Falpiyne and Reiykin the day off, so she didn’t know what those two were doing at the moment. For the princess though, there was still a lot to do regardless. The next item on the list was Nadine’s award ceremony, scheduled to happen tomorrow.

Nadine…

Her thoughts quickly returned to the small alien. The two of them had barely spoken in the last couple of days. But as difficult as the situation was, it was far too late to reschedule. She wanted it to be a joyous occasion, and maybe it still would be, but uncertainty made her tense.

“Your Highness?” Mhita pulled her back into reality. “You have a call from Hawa Industries.”

“Put them through.”

The call was linked and soon appeared on her datapad.

“My greetings, your Highness.”

“To you as well, Lord Hawa.”

“My thanks. You wanted me to call you once we were done with your commission. It was close, but we were able to finish it in time.”

“That is good to hear. Thank you for accepting on such short notice. I would like to see it in person so you can go and install it, would that be possible?”

“Of course, I will clear my schedule for today. I will await your visit, Your Highness.”

On the following day, countless shuttles could be seen in the sky of Calhanar, each belonging to a different noble clan. Under normal circumstances, it was expected that about seventy percent of the invited clans would send somebody, usually someone further down the succession line.

On a day-to-day basis, Hohmiy’s nobility was mainly concerned with internal affairs, after all, external contact happened primarily through the royal family. As such, ceremonies involving foreign guests were generally seen as a formality that didn’t warrant clan leaders to get involved. A cousin or third child was more than enough.

Exceptions were cases when the clan in question actually wanted something from the species in question, maybe a specific product or an increased import of certain material. In such instances, ceremonies like these were a rare opportunity to flatter the ambassador in hopes of increasing the chance of meeting them personally, something that was otherwise rarely successful for anyone below the rank of a duke. As such, it was no surprise that the large hall adjacent to the Star Palace - the aptly named Star Hall - was filled to the brim. Each of the invited clans had sent their leader together with their partner and first child, with not a single one missing. Avoiding them all might prove difficult, but Silgvani already had planned for that.

With firm steps, the princess walked onto the stage. Clan Kiyron’s line crest was painted on her body in green colors, even going over her two broken arms so that the cast wouldn’t obstruct it. Letting her gaze fly over the audience once again made it clear how interested Hohmiy’s nobility was in the new contact. Seeing every single line crest present three times was, while not unprecedented, exceedingly rare. A part of her wondered how many of them cared for the award itself at all, though idle curiosity may have at least been a factor to some.

The idle chatter soon died down and the Star Hall became quiet. Before she began to speak, Silgvani spread her two remaining arms, then crossed them before her torso. The pose was a bit improvised, but that was her only option with just two arms usable. Her inner turmoil was irrelevant right now, she needed to be professional.

“Today,” she addressed the audience, “is a day of celebration. A day which I can only experience thanks to the actions of a special individual, and to whose honor we have assembled today. Repeatedly, she did our world a great service, motivated by nothing other than to do what is right. For that, I welcome in our middle, from the species of the Humans, Lady Nadine Valentina Esmeralda Anastasia von Klot of House Heydenfeldt.”

As Nadine took center stage, all Vanaery in the audience went through the same motion, spreading their lower arms while crossing their other, followed by a half-step back. It was how the pose was actually meant to look like with a complete set of limbs.

The small alien donned a special outfit, far more complex than what she usually wore. A silvery “tabard”, as she had called it, made to work together with her white protective suit rather than just going over it. Its edges were decorated with different patterns, small as to not draw too much attention but still very intricate. Additionally, black accents were placed on her arms reminiscent of the ornamental wrappings popular among Vanaery nobility. And in the center sat large the crest of Nadine’s family, her people’s version of a line crest. It was rather obvious that it drew a lot of attention, clearly making the nobles speculate. Finally, her hair wasn't open like usual, instead tied back with a black ribbon.

“Lady Nadine,” Silgvani continued. “The great service you have done to our home, and to me personally, can not possibly be overstated. And while you were never driven by the desire for a reward, both our laws and our traditions demand apt reimbursement. I hereby grant you the title of an honorary countess. A plot of land and estate of befitting size shall be given to you, as well as a ship of our own making. May these symbolize the eternal gratitude of Hohmiy.”

After a short pause, she turned back to the audience.

“As it is Human tradition, the gifts shall be given in person, which we will do posthaste once the ceremony has concluded.”

An easy lie meant to thin out the group. Coming to the Star Hall was one thing, but then following them into the outskirts? The attendance would drop significantly.

After a few moments of silence, Nadine’s hands went to her neck as she once again took off her translator.

“Your gracious gifts honor both me and my kind, Your Highness” she began, her accent even less noticeable than during her speech at the trial. “As long as they stand, they will show the ties our people have and will form.”

She paused for a moment and took a deep breath.

“And though we may not always see eye to eye…,” she continued, throwing Silgvani off. Had that been part of the rehearsed speech? No, definitely not. Nadine had gone off-script. But why?

“... it will never be something not to overcome. Just like the ability to help may constitute a duty to help, good and earnest intention shall and will not simply be discarded.”

The small alien turned away from the crowd and now faced the princess directly.

“This connection means everything means all, one might say the world. We hope for an everlasting friendship, one that will not allow strains to tear it.”

Once she was done, the hall fell quiet, and Silgvani noticed a single drop of clear liquid in the corner of Nadine’s eye. Once she overcame her surprise, she released a breath she hadn’t noticed she had been holding. Could her mouth move like the small alien’s, she would probably wear a “smile” right now. To the audience, Nadine’s speech might’ve sounded cryptic, but the princess had understood the true meaning behind the Human’s words.

“Yes. So do we.”