Family Matters

[Nijil tr'Korjata 0]

Family Matters

Jylliene, Annisha, and Prani

 

No matter if you were a Rihan or a Yith from a long time ago, keeping a space station running takes a lot of effort. Thousands of people depend on a smoothly operating set of systems to protect them from without and from within. Prani knew these responsibilities, but until she had to practice them for a few days she did not understand the scope. Keeping the station going was more about putting the right people in the right places than about the technology. Even this comes to a temporary end, at least until the next shift. The day in engineering came to a close and Prani made her way home. Nijil's home.

Prani stood at the door, but was it the right door? Aegis must have thousands of doors, all looking exactly alike. The computer helped her get there, but until she tried to get in she just did not know. She scrunched her forehead as she read the alien script, the level, and room number. Sighing, she rang the chime. Nothing happened. No one came.

The door hissed open.

"Father?"

Prani looked down. "Oh, hello there," she said with a grin. A short Rihan girl stood at the threshold, her hands on her hips.

"I thought the father just walked in. Au okay?" Annisha asked, her eyes piercing through her father's confusion. She moved aside to let him in.

"I, err, it's been a long day and I just did not want to walk in on the wrong family."

"Making house calls father?" She joked, skipping back to her desk. Papers were scattered all over its surface. Pencils and pens standing in a tall cup. Annisha sat back down and continued her sketches. Prani walked over to see what mess she made on the pages but was pleasantly surprised.

Annisha looked up. "What do au think?" A drawing of a tall feline-like creature stood over what looked like herself. "Those people from the loud music all over the station, remember?"

"Yes, it's a Yith." Prani said, turning her head to see the skewed picture. For some reason, everyone was leaning to the right.

"Yith? They never said who they were. How do au know?"

"I, well, new research, people listening...clues." Prani stumbled over her answer." Annisha gave her father a 'what au talking about' look.

"Yith it is. Au know what that means in Rihan?"

Prani shook her head. Annisha stood up and her father bend down to her. The girl whispered into her father's ear. Prani's mouth was agape, and she understood and why the girl did not say it out loud. Before Prani could think more about what her people's name means in the Rihan language, a sound came from another room.

“Finally home?” Jylliene asked as she approached Prani. 

"Yes, they kept me busy today, meetings..arguments," Prani answered. She walked towards Jylliene to give her an embrace, not knowing if the couple did this sort of thing.

Though it did feel somewhat strange, Jyll willingly hugged Prani, then turned to Annisha. “In the mood for anything specific for dinner?”

"Oh," she exclaimed with mild forgetfulness. "I forgot to gather the ingredients to make a fresh dinner. At the outpost, err, I mean here I try to fix as much non-processed as I can." She looked Jylliene over. She likely had a long day as she did. Prani sat down at the kitchen table, trying to conjure up just the right meal.

“We have the replicator for a reason. There’s no harm in using it for dinner now and then,” Jyll reassured.

Annisha piped up. "Not like your cooking was bad. Say, how did au get so good all of the sudden father?"

Prani turned to her. "Well, lots of lessons and classes at the holosuites...and my mother."

“What are we in the mood for?” Jyll asked, cutting off the discussion in hopes of helping refocus attention away from Prani and the differences Annisha had noticed.

"I read in the station's database," Prani said with a loud clap, "about a round flat dinner called pizza." 

“Sounds worthwhile.” Searching the term in the replicator’s menu, Jylliene related to the others the potential choices, with different sauces, meats, and vegetables. Prani went to the replicator and read the choices.

"So many toppings. What are anchovies?"

“Small strongly-flavored fish." 

Prani's mouth watered at the prospect of fish. She whispered into Jyll's ear. "Does Nijil like fish?"

Jylliene nodded to Prani. “Anchovies it is. Let’s see...cheese, capers, and olives are all recommended with them.” She entered the order.

***

Prani and Jylliene sat at the dinner table, a mostly eaten pizza lay in the middle. Annisha went to bed an hour ago after protests and yawns. Prani swirled the yellow liquid around in the clear glass in her hand. The bottle the liquid came from was almost empty.

"Say, what is that stuff in the bottle again? It's making me feel funn, funnier."

“Wine. Typically I would have had a bit more, but with the baby, I didn’t want to have more than a half glass or so.”

Prani looked shocked. "Oh no, I've poisoned this body. I am so sorry. Will it recover?" She asked with an unsteady grin.

Jyll chuckled. “He’ll be fine. Do the Yith not have any intoxicants they ingest?”

"Oh we do, but alcohol really works us over." She held up the bottle. "This would have put me out for many hours, hic, and still might."

“Well, you have Nijil’s physiology right now, not your own, and you can see he doesn’t react that dissimilarly. You’ll sleep pretty solidly.”

"Oh oh oh, I, uhm...that reminds me. Annisha, and what a doll she is. She asked me if I was sleeping on the couch again and thought I was in trouble last night." Prani contemplated how to ask her next question. "She's a smart girl and I don't want to give her a reason to suspect anything, but perhaps I could sleep on the floor in your room, or on a bunch of pillows?"

“Prani, you’re fine. I want you as well-rested as possible. For your sake and Nijil’s. Unless you’d prefer the floor.”

"Oh, that's good news. I would love my own bed. It's a big round affair that would not fit through the door." She gestured with her hands just how round it was. "Oh, these arms are too small. You know you are all short...to me."

She shrugged. “I imagine that’s why your bed is larger, then. I can see about getting something set up in here, but the more permanent changes we make, the more Annisha will suspect.”

"Tell her it's for the baby. What baby does not have a bed two meters in diameter?"

“It’s more customary for an infant to have one that’s perhaps one meter long by a half-meter or so in width, though it does vary. There can be even smaller ones, but the baby would outgrow it much faster.”

Prani looked a mixture of happy and sad. "Oh, the baby. How far along are you? I don't know the gestation period for you."

“About seven weeks now. Gestation is between 35 and 45 weeks; it’s a bit tricky to know for certain with a mixed-species pregnancy. Probably close to 38, though.”

Prani started to tear up. "I will promise to get Nijl back well before then. He should not miss the first child's birth. You being supportive, and me being in his body, helps a lot." She took a final drink from her glass. "I had expected to be put in some kind of holding after revealing what happened." She looked at the glass. "Aww. no more drinky."

“Come on. Sleepy time,” Jylliene said with a chuckle. “We could both use a good night’s sleep.”

Prani nodded intently and started to get up out of her chair. "Oh my," and fell with a thud to the floor.