A/N: All takes place in Wizards at War by Diane Duane. Not my universe, or my characters. Or my quotes either. All rights to Diane Duane. I don't own anything, or I would definitely not be using a website for fanfiction. POV is Dairine.
"Too close?" He still didn't look at her, but somehow Dairine thought he was still, somehow, considering her very closely. "How close is to close? Neither of us are thinking about doing anything… inappropriate"
"Huh," Dairine said. She moved the lollipop from right to left in her mouth, and then from left to right again, and finally said, "I don't know how 'inappropriate' looks to your people"
"You should read the manual more," Roshaun said.
"Seemed simpler to ask you."
"And possibly more embarrassing" (190, Wizards at War) A/N: no more quotes from book, this part is the fanfiction part from now on
They lapsed into a silence. Finally, just when it was beginning to feel kind of strained Roshaun spoke.
"Well, I suppose it can't hurt to learn what people have presumed we are doing."
Dairine blushed a fierce red, "No, that's okay. I know my own people's biologies, and that was scarring enough. Well, I don't know all of it, but I've had some classes on the matter, and from cultural references and the manual has details on the subject, but I've never read more than some spells that make you getting impregnated easier, not that I was thinking about that I stumbled upon it-" she cut off realizing that she was rambling. Roshaun looked amused. She went a shade darker red.
"You asked" Roshaun said, bemused.
"Yeah," she said.
"Well, I can at least tell you some of our… traditions… that are not all that more reproductively focused, and perhaps you can honor me with yours."
"All right. If I visit your world again anytime soon some of those things might be smart to know about, both so that I don't give off any wrong signs and that I can assess relationships more easily between people, to know how to approach them. And if you're asking me you haven't looked at the manual either" Dairine agreed.
"Well in the most basic stages of relationship, just above being friends, people genuinely do simple things such as greet one another by taking the others hands and placing them right below the neck, near to where your necklace is lying."
"That makes sense, more intimate than the forehead, but not overly so."
"Yes," agreed Roshaun, " As relationships progress more, you would greet one another by placing the others hands on your lips."
Dairine nodded.
"As relationship progresses further still, you greet each other by contact of lips."
At this Dairine smiled, "Yeah, we have that on Earth as well, though I've never partaken in such greetings, Nita has."
Roshaun put up his eyebrows, "With Kit?!"
"Oh, no. They are both still to blind to see that, although it's only a matter of time. Truth be told I have only guesses at who, but no actual evidence yet."
"Ah, yes. Well anyways, there are other gestures, such as holding hands whilst walking, dancing, and giving out hstimbs," Roshaun further explained.
"What is that?"
"Oh, a hstimb? They are small rocks or gems engraved with words. Tokens of affection."
"Ah. Like a Valentine."
Roshaun frowned, "I am not familiar with this particular object"
Dairine groaned, "Lucky you. Valentine's Day is a holiday meant for expressing love. Usually people give someone they are romantically interested in a gift, sometimes anonymously, sometimes not. The gifts are usually chocolate hearts or cards or stuffed animals. Stuff like that. If you already are together, the gifts are more elaborate, candlelight dinners, picnics, special days out, that kind of thing."
"Sounds… Interesting. But more about your culture." Roshaun said.
"Ah well… Ours is kinda similar. To show someone you like them, which by the way, you never explained, we have this thing called flirting. Basically you try to show someone you like them by showing off, playful arguments, physical contact, like brushing against someone more than necessary. Then, usually what happens is that you get a note in your locker asking you to go somewhere with this other person and you have to say yes or no. Well, that's mostly what happens in school anyways. People are also asked out in person to go do stuff. You go out for say ice cream, or the movies, sometimes after or during people, ah greet each other with your lips… or possibly more. We call it kissing," Dairine explained.
"Our own process is somewhat similar, minus the notes thing." Roshaun looked pretty calm so Dairine continued.
"We also hold hands while walking, or lean up against each other. Hugs are usually involved, though a more romantic version of a hug is more prolonged usually with heads resting on each other, verses friendship which is shorter and doesn't involve quite as much contact, but the lines are blurry, hugs are kinda for friends and people who are more than friends."
"Our world is similar that way, but in a romantic hug people entwine their hands," Roshaun said.
"Hmm… Earth too. Although the similarities make sense since both our species are hominid," Dairine mused, "people come up with nicknames for each other as well, and they dance together. We try to embarrass each other. And once you're in a relationship, there is this form of kissing that involves… tongues, sometimes," Dairine had gone red again.
"My people do that as well, I am told. Sometimes after that stage they even do this routine where you lay on the ground side by side and entwine one of each of your legs and one of each of your arms. This shows that you are contemplating possibly seeking unibond with the other person."
"Hmm… we don't really have anything quite like that. Do you do proposals?" Dairine asked
"Well, you can give another person a gem on a golden necklace, usually with the intent of unibond expressed in golden words on the chain," Roshaun replied.
"Yeah that's similar to Earth as well, except we have rings, small circles with small gems that fit on your finger," Dairine attempted to explain.
"Then there is the more reproductive side…" Roshaun began hesitantly.
"Yeah… maybe I'll stick to the manual for that part if I ever feel like I need to know," Dairine blushed.
Roshaun too, looked uncomfortable. This topic had never really come up between them, they really were just friends. Although, Dairine couldn't say in the speech that Roshaun had never crossed her mind as a potential for more than a friend. That thought was a small one, and one she repressed, especially now that they had been becoming able to hear each other's thoughts. But everyone seemed to think there was something there that really was friendship. Dairine had known Nita long enough to know that Nita thought that Dairine and Roshaun were more than friends, indeed the moon was a tad bit confusing. How she had taken him up there, alone, and they had sat touching shoulders and enjoyed each others company. Carmela thought that Roshaun liked Dairine, which was absolutely not true. Neliad had thought that they had- well she wasn't a hundred percent sure what he had thought, but it probably wasn't that innocent. Even Gigo had looked at them in that way. Ronan too come to think of it. Pretty much everyone actually. Not her father though, Thank the Powers. Who knows what would happen then.
Dairine broke out of her quick reverie and found Roshaun studying one of the huge buildings.
"Well… um… I suppose every relationship is different though," she said to break the silence, "I've obviously never had one."
"Yes," Roshaun said, " all relationships are different. I also have never experienced one. In fact, I've never really had many friends, you never know who you can trust or not. And the divide between the Sunborn and the rest of Wellakh is so great that no one would have wanted to become close enough to have the possibility," Roshaun mumbled the last part.
"Hey," Dairine said, "I'm your friend. Sker' and Filf are your friends. Heck you might as well count Carmela. While we're on it throw in Nita and Kit."
He glanced over at her, amused, and she wasn't quite sure what she said that was amusing so she said nothing and waited for him to speak. As it turned out they were interrupted by Logo who told them that the Mobiles were ready. And as the spell was prepared she couldn't help but notice how many of the things on both their lists applied to the ways they spoke and acted towards each other. She refused to let it mean anything. Often when people were friends they did many things considered flirting and it really meant nothing. One of the girls who accompanied her at the table for lunch, Fi, was sure her crush had liked her, but when she asked him out he didn't actually like her, in fact he had liked one of the other girls at the table, Kari. That just went to show that the signs didn't always mean what you thought they did. It probably went doubly so when you were dealing with an alien with different customs that your own.
Not that he's such an alien anymore Dairine thought, careful not to let the person in question hear.
In the future, Dairine thought to Roshaun, let's have discussions like those in a place where everything you say isn't ingrained into a computer file.
You asked Roshaun thought back.
Dairine rolled her eyes at him and went to her circle for the spell.