by Robin Roseau
"I've never seen her smile. I didn't think she knew how."
"Well. I don't want to hear you call her Hatchet Face again. She's lovely, she's kind, and she deeply wants your respect."
"And your friendship."
* * * *
Maddalyn arrived by jumper in the morning. Blaine gave her a ride. Cecilia had a list of things for him to look at while he was here, which she delegated to me. So Maddalyn and I were able to greet each other, but then we each had our duties for the day.
She descended from the jumper carrying a bag over her shoulder and another dangling from her hand. She saw me waiting and came to a stop, staring at me, then walked to me slowly. She came to a stop perhaps two steps in front of me, smiling shyly.
"Chaladine," she said.
"Hello, Maddalyn," I said, speaking slowly. "Welcome to Indartha." Then I stepped forward, took both bags from her and set them down, and pulled her into my arms. She wrapped hers around me slowly, but once she did, she held me tightly.
"I missed you," I said into her ear. I didn't care if she understood or not. I spoke carefully and knew the most important thing was just getting her used to the sounds.
Well, I thought perhaps friendship was most important. Perhaps there were several things that were important.
Finally we separated, but only a short distance, enough to look at each other. She kept her arms around my waist, and I kept my left tucked behind her arm with a hand on her shoulder. I stared into her eyes, and then with my free hand I caressed her cheek. "You're so beautiful," I said. "I bet the guys love you." I gave her a quick kiss, just a peck, the sort I might share with my sister, and then hugged her again. "Thank you for coming."
I heard Blaine approach. Maddalyn and I separated and turned to him. He came to a stop and stared.
"Hatchet Face knows how to smile?" It was said in Talmonese, and I was sure she didn't understand, but she stiffened, and I thought perhaps she knew what 'Hatchet Face' meant.
We were holding hands, and I dropped her hand and advanced on Blaine. "Don't call her that. Her name is Maddalyn. She's beautiful, and she's sweet and kind besides." I stalked right up to him. "Say her name. Now."
"Chaladine?"
"You heard me, Blaine."
"Maddalyn," he said. "So?"
I shook my head. "She's a million kilometers from home."
"She's seventy-four light years from home. So? I'm a hundred and ten light years from home. We're all far from home."
"Yes, but you have every girl in Sudden wrapped around your little finger." And I looked down at his crotch to know what I meant.
"Hey!"
"You probably don't know what it's like to have no friends, and to struggle with the language besides. Is English your first language, Blaine?"
"Yes." He looked down.
"I bet no one here speaks German as his native language, so while all of you can speak your native tongues to each other, she is forced to speak English while trying to learn Talmonese."
"Madge and the Governor both speak German," he replied.
"Do you?"
"No."
"I take it her English is poor?"
"Not poor," he said. "But I get your point." He looked past me, and he switched to English. His tone was kind. She responded, then she stepped up and set a hand on my shoulder.
"Chaladine," she said. She didn't try any other words.
"Blaine, you know where the Governor is. She's going to tell you that you belong to me today, but she might have more than that. I have a long list for you. I don't know if you can fix it all today."
"I brought my tools."
"We'll be in shortly. I want to spend a few minutes with Maddalyn, but then she has duties for the Governor and you have duties for me."
"Sure." He smiled, and I knew why all the girls swooned over him. "I'll see you in a few minutes." He stepped past me, heading towards the Governor's office, and I turned to Maddalyn. She carried a concerned expression. But I stepped up to her and smiled.
"Let me kiss you again," I said. I didn't wait for permission. I stepped into her and briefly brushed our lips in a sisterly kiss, then, laughing, hugged her. "I'm so glad you're here!"
She responded in her own language, but the tone was soft, and I was sure she was telling me the same things I was telling her.
After that, I kept an arm about her waist and picked up one of her bags, handing it to her. Then I grabbed the other, and we walked down to stand by the lake for a minute.
"Sehr schön," she whispered. She looked at me. "Talmon pretty. Indartha pretty."
"Yes," I agreed. "What is the name of your world?"
She cocked her head.
"Maddalyn home," I said simply.
"Oh. Frantzland." She smiled. "Frantz mean... Um..." She scrunched her face, and she was adorable. Then she set her bag down and took the other from me, setting it with the first. "Chaladine." She held out one arm too me, then with her other, she clasped her own wrist. She let go, then held her wrist closer. I took it, holding lightly.
"No," she said. She pulled away and used both hands on my wrist, hanging on very tightly. Then she released me and offered her wrist again. So I took it with both of my hands, holding tightly. Then she began pulling away, so I released her.
"No," she said. She offered her wrist again, so I took it, and when she pulled away, I held tightly. "Yes," she said, ceasing her struggles. "What word this?" She tapped my hands around her wrist.
"Caught? Held? Trapped?"
"Ja," she said. "Frantz mean not held. Frantz mean..." She pulled again, and with her other hand, she made a clasping motion, but then splayed her fingers. I released her, and she pulled away.
"Free," I said.
"Ja. Frantz mean free. Land mean..." She knelt down and patted the ground.
"Free land," I said. "Frantzland is Free Land.
"Ja. Yes. Freeland."
"That's a beautiful name!" I said.
"Beautiful?"
"Pretty," I offered.
"Schön," she said. "Yes. Frantzland not pretty. Frantzland very not pretty. Frantzland name pretty. Frantzland..." she tapped her head. Then she said a word in her German. "Denken. Um. English..." And she said the English word think.
"Think," I said in Talmonese. "Frantzland thinks pretty?"
"Yes. Good think."
I wasn't sure if she meant they were all very smart, or if they had good ideas. The two weren't the same. Either way, I thought it was a good attribute to have.
Then she stepped back to my side, and we wrapped arms around each other.
"Chaladine. Thank you invite."
"You are welcome. I am so happy you are here."
"I also."
We stood there another minute, and then simultaneously, we sighed.
"Governor Grace," she said.
"Yes."
And so we picked up her things, and I led her inside, walking side by side with our arms about each other.
* * * *
Blaine was waiting. We set Maddalyn's things down, and I told him I'd only be a minute. I led her the rest of the way to Cecilia. She was working with her eyes closed, so I knew she was using her implant, but she heard us and turned, opening her eyes.
"Hello, Maddalyn," she said. "Welcome to Indartha."
"Hello, Governor Grace."
Cecilia looked up at me. "I won't need you today. We'll see you at dinner."
"Do we need to come for you?" I asked.
"If Sartine doesn't come for me herself, she'll send you." She smiled and then stared for a moment, then sighed.
"She makes you very happy."
"She does," Cecilia agreed. "How she has the patience, I don't know."
I turned to Maddalyn. "Do you need anything in your bags?" I knew that was too much for her, and she frowned.
"Cecilia, will you ask her? I'll take her bags if she doesn't need them."
So Cecilia asked her, and Maddalyn shook her head. Then Cecilia said, "But after this
, the two of you work it out. I'm not a portable translator." She said something to Maddalyn, who said, "Ja. Ich verstehe Sich. Um. I... Um."
"Understand," Cecilia offered.
"Yes. I understand."
"We understand," I said. "Thank you, Cecilia." I caressed Maddalyn's cheek. "I'll see you at dinner."
I hugged Maddalyn once more, and then I left her to Cecilia. Near the front door, I grabbed Maddalyn's things and collected Blaine. As soon as we were outside, I said, "I'm sorry. Most of what I said was for Maddalyn's benefit."
"You were right," he said. "She's kind of a bitch, but that doesn't mean we should be mean to her."
"She's struggling with the language, and I bet that frustrates her."
"That might explain how she is around you, but her English is just fine."
"Just fine?" I asked. "Cecilia used to complain about headaches when she had to speak Talmonese for too long, and her Talmonese was 'just fine' too. Maybe she spends all her time with a headache, and that makes it harder for her. Especially if you all call her names. Why do you expect her to be sweet if you call her names? All Luradinine and I did was offer friendship."
"You're right," he said. "We didn't give her a chance. But she's been here for months. Her Talmonese is still terrible."
"So was yours," I said. "You can credit me for your ability to speak as well as you do."
"I think I can credit my hard study."
"First, you do know who taught Martha and Everett to speak Talmonese?"
"Oh hell," he said.
"And second, perhaps you noticed not long after you arrived, the women started treating you and Aston differently for a while."
He didn't say anything.
"Did you notice how they insisted you learn a few words before they'd give you any attention? Did you notice the other word games they played with you?"
"You did that?"
I smiled. "I went around to every unattached woman living in Sudden and told each of them the same thing. What they did with you was their business, but make you work for it. Work with words."
"Oh, no!" he said. "Do you know-"
I laughed. "I imagine some of them were very creative in their language lessons."
He began to blush. It was cute.
"If you were my type," I said throatily, "I imagine I'd get you in a very, very, very vulnerable position, and then I wouldn't give you what you wanted until you learned what I wanted you to learn."
"That's exactly what they did! Well, some of them."
"The most creative ones, I bet."
"No comment."
I laughed.
"I can't believe you architected that."
"Oh, I didn't architect it. Father did."
"Oh damn it all to hell!" he said, and the blush deepened. "The Vendart knows-"
"Blaine, I know you all think this is some backwater planet filled with ignorant savages, but we're very intelligent ignorant savages."
"Oh, hell," he said again, and I laughed.
We arrived at Sartine's house a moment later. Blaine left his tools by the door and helped me carry Maddalyn's things upstairs. I should have left them so Sartine could decide where to put her but I decided to put her in with me. There were empty rooms, but I thought slumber parties would be fun and draw us closer besides. It was a big bed, after all.
Blained eyed me when we set Maddalyn's things down. "This room looks occupied."
"It's mine," I said. "It's just a slumber party, Blaine. Don't start fantasizing about two women alone at night."
"If I want to do that, Cecilia and Sartine are all I need." He grinned at me, and I swatted him with the back of my hand.
"Men!" I smiled. "Maddalyn needs friends. Agree to give her a second chance, and I won't tell Sartine what you said."
"You wouldn't!"
"I certainly would. She'd string you up in a heartbeat, and you know it."
"She wouldn't."
"She'd demand a galatzi trade with the Governor, which would solve more problems than you can imagine, and then she'd give you to someone who is very creative in all the wrong ways."
"All right! All right! You win!" He grinned at me. "I'll try to be nice to her."
"You will be a friend," I said. "And not a lover, either. Don't you dare seduce her."
"Why not?" he asked. "You were right earlier. She's beautiful, and she's got a great pair of legs."
"You aren't going to seduce her because that's not what she needs from you. She doesn't need to think for a single second that the only reason you're being nice to her is because you want to get inside her skirt."
"Ha! She doesn't wear skirts." He cocked his head. "Instead, lately, she's been dressing in Talmonese fashion." He grinned. "Lots of leather."
"And you like that, don't you, Blaine?" I said. "Tall, shiny boots. Leather pants. Tight leather pants, perhaps. I know that's what you like."
"You're wrong."
"Am I? Blaine, thinking about Sudden, what do you think? Is it a big town?"
"Sudden? No. It's tiny."
"And what is one thing small towns are good at?"
"Gossip. Oh hell."
I grinned at him. "And you, Blaine, along with Aston, are two very, very popular targets of gossip. I probably know who you've slept with before you do."
"You're so full of it."
"Oh please. I know everything about you."
"Prove it."
"All right." I glanced down at his crotch. "You know earlier when I mentioned your little finger? Well, it's not so little, is it? In fact, the women in Sudden write poetry describing your manhood."
"They do not!"
"We have readings," I said. "At our weekly Glocktarmin."
"Your what?"
"Glocktarmin." I said it slowly, hoping I remembered it later. I'd just made it up. "Every week, or thereabouts. All the women in Sudden go. Oh, we don't each go every week. There might only be twenty or thirty of us some weeks, especially if it's held somewhere a little intimate. Mother holds the best Glocktarmin, though, and then almost everyone comes."
"You're making this up. If there were meetings like this every week, I'd have heard by now. Someone would have mentioned it."
"Oh please," I said. "We rarely tell outsiders about them, and unless you accept a galatzi trade with a woman of Sudden, you're always an outsider. Even Cecilia doesn't know about them, unless Sartine has the same tradition."
"Full of shit."
"I could invite you to the next one. We'd have to blindfold you, though. You can't know where it is. Of course, it wouldn't do you any good. You wouldn't understand a single word we said."
"Why not?"
"We don't speak Talmonese."
"Talmonese is the only language spoke on this planet."
"Wrong. It's the only language we use when speaking to outsiders. At home, we all speak Tarmini. That's why it's called a Glocktarmin."
It was all a line of bullshit a mile wide.
He stared.
"It doesn't matter. If you seduce Maddalyn, I will make sure she is the last woman on Talmon you effectively seduce."
"You don't remotely have that power. The women of Sudden all love me."
"Oh please," I said. "Three months ago, I was the second most powerful woman in Sudden, only behind my mother. We all answer to the Vendart, but the women all answer to me as well. They would do anything I told them to do. Or not do."
"That was three months ago," he said.
"Yes. Since then things have changed. Now, not only do I have the ear of one vendart, but three vendarti, and the Governor besides. I may not have the power that Sartine or my Father have, but I could argue I am the second most influential woman on all Talmon. Well, possibly the third, behind Sartine."
I smiled sweetly. "Shall we discuss the work Cecilia wants today?"
We spent the day together, and he was exceedingly polite. It was when I was helping him store his things in the lander than he asked, "Chaladine, when we talked earlier,
how much of that was teasing?"
I laughed. "A great, great deal. Almost everything except what will happen if you don't treat Maddalyn the way I want. On that, I was being one hundred percent serious."
Then I moved closer, invading his space. I slowly walked two fingers up his chest until my hand rested on his shoulder. "But Blaine, there's something else I know about you."
"What's that?"
"I know the size of your manhood, and the words the women use to describe it. But I also know something else about it."
"What?" he asked suspiciously.
"You had it enhanced, probably during your first rejuvenation."
He blushed and looked away. "I did not." Then he admitted. "Second."
I laughed. It had been a guess, but I thought a good guess.
"I wonder how the ladies will respond if they know. Blaine, if you mistreat Maddalyn, I will arrange a galatzi trade for you. I swear it. And I will give you to someone who never lets you leave. You'll need rejuvenation eventually, and when you go, it will be to the clinic here, on Talmon. Where I am the second most influential woman on the planet. What one doctor has given, another doctor can take away."
I took a half step away, patting his cheek.
"But you're a good man, so that's not going to happen. We're friends, right, Blaine."
"We were," he said, and he turned sideways to me, instinctively protecting his assets. "You wouldn't really."
"No," I said. "But I'd be angry, and the Governor would be angry. But worse, you'll feel like a complete shit. You have all the women of Sudden, but they know you're just playing, and they're fine with that. I think you like to play with them, and they like to play with you. You don't need Maddalyn, too, and she needs someone who is nice to her for the right reasons, and never, ever wonder if you were nice just to bed her."
I stepped away and was halfway out of the jumper before Blaine stopped me. "Chaladine?"
I turned.
"I'm not a cad. You know that, don't you?"
"Yeah, Blaine. You're a good one. We're just teasing. If I were into men, I'd probably be one of the women visiting your bed from time to time."
He laughed.
I turned away and took another step, then stopped.
"Blaine? Is it rude to ask how old you are?"
"How old I am?"
"Well, are you over a hundred, like Cecilia? I mean, you've had like dozens of rejuvenations, right?"