Learning Rihan

[Jylliene 0]

(Events happen about a day before Mollais Hfeh'rhe. Not a joint log, but involving to some degree the relationship between Jylliene and Nijil)

 

hwaveyiir - executive center/flight bridge oira - bridge/battle bridge

th'ann'rhe - brig haerht - cargo hold

aeh'lla-ifv - cloaking device aaenhr - colony/base

awaenndraev - computer hyaa-aifv - disruptor

dohtor - force field taeron, bvoeh'rhe/hifvai'rhe - infirmary, sickbay

aikhos - memory banks ahrrein'firh - observe caution

hfeh'rhe - quarters yhfi'etrehh - turbolift

 

Jylliene scanned through the rudimentary listing. She noticed that she was focusing on what she considered possibly “useful” words, though it occurred to her that she couldn’t really think of how she would actually find duty-related words useful. She wasn’t on a Romulan vessel. Nor was that why she had delved into the list.

 

faedhe - relax, rest aoi - forever ihir - to be/to do

kraep - sad viduus - happy oelh - excited, joyful

kuoku - child shikaen - family hfihar - House

heis'he - love e'lev - love (my love) h'levreinnye - love/lust-devil (term of endearment)

 

Jylliene blinked at THAT term.

 

aehallh - nightmare aefvadh - welcome, you're welcome, be welcome

imirrhlhhse - F---

 

Well, she figured she might actually hear that last one. Perhaps if something went badly in Engineering.

 

Eitreih'hveinn - Farmers' Festival

 

Nijil did say that his family had been in agriculture. Those were the types of terms she wanted. Meaningful to him beyond his duty here.

Jylliene’s parents were in academia back on their home world. Her mother studied linguistics, and had often shared points with Jylliene. One of the most fascinating things to both of them was the development of language; how they changed with invasions, exposure to new peoples and vocabulary. Jylliene had found it interesting to see how, despite the adoption (whether under force or through simple utility) of new vocabulary (and sometimes, new language as a whole), people tended to prefer to maintain their original words for intimate relationships. Whether they were terms for family members, friends, lovers, or related verbs or pronouns, they held on to their original vocabulary. New words didn’t have the familiarity of the old. The old words themselves came to feel intimate in relation to the strange new terms.

Here on Aegis, Federation standard was, well, the standard. Very useful, and indeed, Jylliene and other Trill learned it very early, as soon as formal instruction began (and often, even before). Regardless, though, it wasn’t that first home language, babbled by infants to their parents, excitedly awaited by their parents’ ears, or words whispered between lovers under the enfolding blankets of night. And this led to Jylliene perusing lists of Romulan vocabulary. Nijil, and all Romulans, had lost so much as of late. If she could use at least a little of his native language, even if he’d never see home again, perhaps she could bring him that small comfort of home.

 

dinglha - hungry draemn - liquor

 

Really? As Jylliene scanned the list, she could find no reference to the well-known Romulan Ale. Nor even just “ale”. She’d have to ask Nijil about that one.

 

ellaer - meal tie-hh'ellaer - breakfast miite'ellaer - lunch kuhaos'ellaer - dinner

Arhem rruieh … (I want...) ...soah (chocolate) ...hwavhel (you [singular dative])

 

Jylliene grinned inwardly, and turned off the console.