Thirty-Four

"So I have to hear that you are unfaithful to me." Threll exuded wounded pride. "Whatever you find in that old bore?"

"The calm and aplomb of age," I told the young man not the least bit contrite. "He also tells me all the embarrassing stories about my husband that he would rather not have me hear."

"Apology accepted." He shrugged elaborately. There was no argument you could make against getting to hear the silly secrets of somebody's past. "Your social life is coming along well otherwise?"

"Only too well." I sighed. Some of the curiosity had abated but many of the contacts were likely there to stay. Not that I could complain because I had wanted that, but for somebody who preferred to hole up and watch the world through a screen all this socialising was extremely exhausting.

"I think it will go even better if you call me again in two days time." The Chiss equivalent of a wink seemed to be brief dimming of the eyes. What they could do with that glow. I must look very inarticulate to them with my blunt blue eyes.

"Then I will be certain to call. So much can happen in just two days."

"I will want all the details, especially of the new play of Chaf'ena'lemrok. He's said to be the next big thing. As far as anybody can tell that for somebody as young."

I did not point out that Fenal was actually a few years older than Threll. But I promised to keep my eyes and ears open. Threll was also a dramatist and sometimes it bothered him that he could not be in the centre of creativity. Unfortunately, there was no way we could swap places. And trying to find a preschool on a military ship was not even the greatest obstacle.

"Ah, the unbridled vigour of youth," Storm commented on Threll respectively. "Great times; you feel invincible, and are we not? Time did not yet claw at our lives and make us feel its sting."

He lived in a flat in the Kres district, the third to our left and a bit too far to walk for a lazy person like me. And though his place was in the third section, it was also in the eighth circle, so I did not have to walk through the whole district.

The house was nice with three storeys, small balconies and a patch of garden in front of it. The back opened to the local park, so it was almost like having a big garden, too. The flat was bigger than anything I had even lived in, still it seemed tiny after the luscious waste of space in the anero.

"It's what you get for living in Csaplar," he said off-handedly. "I have a nice house all to myself with a patch of garden on Noris. Maybe I'll show it to you one day."

If I ever got permission to leave this place. Not that I knew if I was actually grounded. And for the time being it didn't even matter because the last thing I was thinking about was getting off the planet again. "What is it about Csaplar, that everybody wants to live here?" I wondered out loud.

"It's the capital of civilised space," Storm explained. "The bright and shining beacon of order and culture in a tumultuous sea of black and empty space."

"I have never been fond of capitals." I apologised slightly by indicating to move my hand in front of my mouth. "I prefer fewer people and more nature."

"But then you are a savage alien barbarian and such things are to be expected."

"Yeah, you can take the barbarian out of the sky, but you can't take the sky out of the barbarian. Or at least the longing for it." I sighed and decided it was time for a different topic.

"Our sky is a cold and cruel mistress," Strom said before I could change the subject, though. "She takes out children and though the most of them return, not all do. And those whose careers lie out there are ever in danger of a sudden – skyfall."

It was not a topic for polite conversation among acquaintances. I did not know how to react. Of course I had done my research and official records told me that he had two adult children and one deceased wife. Since I'd rather have the details from him personally, and only in case he wanted to share, I had not dug any deeper.

"I know nothing about this," I had to admit. "Time has been kind to me so far."

"On what an enviably peaceful planet you must have grown up." His curiosity was obvious.

Again I didn't know what to say. I wouldn't call Earth a peaceful planet by a long stretch, but there was no denying that I had grown up privileged and far away from any real conflict. I realised that sooner or later I would have to come up with a consistent version of my past. Might as well start now.

"It was peaceful," I agreed. "At least where I grew up. Armed conflicts were what I knew from the news. There was not a single gun in my environment and all knives were meant for the kitchen." The intensity of his gaze made me uneasy. "I started taking self-defence classes for fun."

He shook his head. "Unthinkable. Not unimaginable, though."

"It is a different world," I said. "My place wouldn't last a day here, my people wouldn't, I-" I broke off. "I had some time to adapt."

"I assume that time has not been that kind to you after all."

"No. And yes." My hands fluttered a little. "It was deemed necessary that I get acquainted with the workings of time. Some of our run-ins turned out to be false. It didn't make them any easier, though."

"I hope you let him have it for that." Storm sounded honestly put out. He also knew my absentee Admiralship better than I had expected. Off-hand comments like these were normal.

"I don't know." I let my shoulders sag for a moment. "I guess not."

For whatever reason it surprised Storm mightily, that Thrawn had been walking all over me. It was interesting to see, because right now what everybody was doing, was practically walking all over me. Nothing had changed at all. Maybe it was the idea of an equal relationship that he had. Though where he got that idea from I wouldn't know. Certainly not from me.

I managed to turn the conversation towards his children, both still alive. His daughter had gone into medical science and had married a Sabosen who had promised to make all of her discoveries legal. His son had become a 'normal' doctor on Sarvchi, not last because he had married a Chaf woman living there.

I asked him why he was still living on Csilla.

"Because this is my life." I was not sure he understood my question. "My children are grown up, have children of their own. I have a part in their life, but that is one of a welcome guest and visitor. But what I want and what I do is all here, on Csilla, in Csaplar."

"I doubt you are an army doctor here, Kres'tor'manad." I glanced at the black of his tunic.

"You would be amazed at the amount of paperwork that military doctoring produces."

I couldn't envision him behind some desk sorting papers and filing things and I told him so.

"Quite right," he agreed. "I am telling everybody how they should do their paperwork. Organising field tests and checking on the testing vessels. It is not as action packed as patching up your crew, but on the up side, you do not have to patch up your crew."

"Can't argue with that," I said. And so we chatted amiably until it was time for me to leave.

"Have you seen Kres'ove'nelkad's exhibition already?" He asked as he escorted me to the door. "Oh you have to," he insisted when I replied that I hadn't. "He is quite an amazing micro-colourist, you have to go. No, better yet, I'll call you and you better have some appointments ready to dish out. I won't accept a no."

"Then I won't even try." I had no idea what micro colouring was and already wondered if I wanted to be surprised or if that would be another faux pas.

"Good. Enjoy the time with your daughter, Lanna."

"That I will, Kres'tor'manad." I couldn't help smiling at the thought of Sarah. "Until we meet again."

It felt good to know that there would actually be a next time and that it would be fun. I regretted the fact that he had no children in Sarah's age. Though that would not have been working very well for any length of time. I decided to look into the micro-colouring thing. I would make a fool out of myself anyway, no need to add extra occasions to my repertoire.

And that is the reason I didn't update here.