Chapter Twenty-Eight:Getting to Know Hazel
Later that evening.
Shalila had Cletos put to bed, and Gracina, Bajal, Natala, and
Raakon offered to stay with him. Shalila and Dirkan paced the halls outside of
the Cletos Chloe family's door relentlessly, alternating between meditating and
debating what to do about Jaypros and Farla.
Shalila sighed wearily, as she and Dirkan finally sat down next to
each other. "Perhaps I was too hasty in declaring that Jaypros and Farla be
banished. But the hurt they have caused Cletos! I understand those two loved
each other when they were children, but it was Farla that left Jaypros for
Cletos. And Farla is married to Cletos! She even abandoned her own children,
and that alone is inexcusable!"
"Farla has always been a bit flighty and irresponsible," Dirkan
reflected. "And Jaypros has always been rash and impulsive, but their
characters do not excuse their actions. Shalila, you are doing the right thing
by not tolerating this."
"I understand that," Shalila moaned miserably, resting her head on
Dirkan's shoulder. "But I still love them, no matter what horrid things they
have done. I hate to banish any of my grandchildren, but I can't condone their
actions."
"No, you can't," Dirkan told her firmly, placing his green hand
gently on her red hair. "Jaypros and Farla must understand that the great wrong
they have done Cletos, Petalia, and Dedron. And the only way to make them see
that is to be tough on them. Jaypros no longer has parents, and Farla's parents
have indulged her every whim, from the time she was a child. I understand that
we indulge Tayla quite a bit ourselves, but Tayla is taught right from wrong,
and she knows exactly what she can and cannot get away with. Farla's parents
have let that woman get away with murder."
"Not the last time," Shalila told him wearily. She briefly
described to Dirkan Aijal's nasty reaction to the news that his daughter was an
adulteress.
"Aijal tried to raise a hand against her?" Dirkan asked, amazed.
"I've never known him to do so much as raise his voice against his favorite
daughter."
"He was embarrassed and furious, and I couldn't blame him; such a
thing would embarrass any parent. If one of my own children acted that way, I
probably would be very angry too," Shalila stated, her voice tired.
Tayla appeared into the corridor, on the way to her own room. She
looked Shalila and Dirkan directly in the eyes and whispered that she was sorry
for causing so much trouble.
Shalila patted her lap and told Tayla to sit in it, and Tayla
reluctantly did. "Tayla, what has happened had nothing to do with you. You
take things too much to heart, child. You are not to blame for what has
occurred. "
"I should have refused to tell," Tayla told her, "Then Jaypros and
Farla would have stayed on Chloe, and Cletos would not be so miserable."
"You should never refuse to tell your grandmother anything, Tayla,"
Dirkan told her sternly. "It is never good to keep something like that to
yourself. If you had covered up what you knew, you would have been enabling
Jaypros and Farla. You would have been allowing them to continue doing wrong,
which would be a wrong in itself. And you should know that you needn't keep
secrets from your grandmother, ever."
"Tayla, if you had not told me, I would have wondered what else you
were hiding from me," Shalila added. "Deception destroys trust, and I want to
know that I can always trust you. I don't want to think that you would ever
hide anything from me. You should always tell the truth, like you did earlier."
"I did, and people got hurt because of it," Tayla snapped bitterly.
"If telling the truth hurts, I don't think it's such a good thing, after all!"
She was holding back tears.
"No one has ever told you that telling the truth would always be
pleasant," Dirkan said, "Telling the truth is not meant to please people; it is
to be doing the right thing. We understand that you didn't want to get Jaypros
and Farla in trouble, but they were doing wrong, and they need to be corrected.
There will be many unpleasant things in life that you will have to do, and
telling the truth will sometimes be one of them."
"Maybe, if I had told them to stop on their own and agree not to
tell anyone, they would have stopped committing adultery, and Farla would have
stayed with Cletos." Tayla offered this as a possibility.
Shalila sighed and shook her head. "It wouldn't have been that
simple, Tayla. Jaypros and Farla are deeply attached to each other, and no
amount of persuasion or warnings would have made them stop. I am sorry that I
had to refuse Farla a divorce from Cletos, but she had no real reason to leave
him."
"What is a divorce, Nama?" Tayla asked; she was confused by the
strange word that she had been hearing a lot lately.
Shalila closed her eyes and meditated for a few moments, trying to
think of the best and honest way to answer Tayla's question without going into
gritty details. Finally, she opened her eyes and said simply, "A divorce
dissolves a marriage, making it nonexistent. A divorced couple is no longer
married, and they may marry other people."
"Why would anyone divorce?" Tayla asked softly.
Shalila explained quietly, "In Jaypros and Farla's case, Farla
wanted to leave Cletos and marry Jaypros because she thought that she loved
Jaypros more, but I could not grant her a divorce. You see, little dandelion,
Astorian law states that divorce may only be granted in cases of adultery or
abuse-that means beating your spouse or treating him or her very badly. Cletos
did not commit adultery against Farla, nor did he abuse her. So I could not
grant a divorce."
"But if Farla thought that she didn't love Cletos anymore, then why
you were making her stay with him?"
"Because, Tayla, wives cannot just divorce their husbands because
they happen to fall in love with someone else, and it is the same for husbands.
You cannot divorce your mate just because your love has changed. When you marry
someone, it is to be for life, until death do you part. That is why you must be
very selective about whom you choose to spend the rest of your life with. You
must be sure that you are willing to love, support and protect your mate, no
matter what happens. Marriage is for life, an eternal commitment that should
end only with death."
"And, if I allowed everyone to divorce their mates just because they
happen to fall in love with someone new, so many people would wind up doing
that, many lives would fall apart, and many families would be broken up. Let me
put a test to you: how would you feel if Dirkan and I decided to divorce each
other tomorrow and never see each other again? Be honest now."
Tayla frowned. "I'd be very mad and hurt 'cause you two didn't love
each other enough to stay together and take care of all of us. I want you two
to stay together forever!"
Shalila nodded approvingly. She smoothed Tayla's hair with her
hand. "Exactly. And that is how children of divorce wind up feeling: angry and
hurt. That is what Dedron and Petalia are feeling right now because they think
that their mother didn't care enough to be with them. Their mother has
abandoned them for their uncle, leaving them behind forever. Farla has hurt her
children tremendously."
"How can a mother abandon her children?"
Shalila and Dirkan were quiet then, although it was not an unusual
question for a young child to ask. Dirkan finally spoke, "Farla was not
thinking straight when she left her family to run off with Jaypros. She did not
stop and consider the consequences of her actions, nor did Jaypros consider the
consequences of his actions. They were wrong to do what they did, and because
of their cruel actions, Cletos will hurt for a long time, and his children will
be wounded for a lifetime. Farla and Jaypros have left deep scars on all of
them. And they have also disgraced your Clan and your family, marring the Clan
of Chloe name."
"What will you do, if they come back someday?"
Shalila and Dirkan sighed. "We will decide that, if that should
happen. Right now, we have no pat answers." Shalila ruffled Tayla's dark hair
and said, "Time for bed, now. Give us a kiss and a hug good-night."
Tayla did so gratefully, kissing them both soundly on their cheeks
and squeezing them so tightly that Shalila and Dirkan could barely breathe.
Both of them hugged and kissed her and patted her back, and they sent her off to
bed.
"Wait!" Tayla cried, as she was leaving, "Couldn't I see if Cletos
is okay?"
"We'll let him know that you were concerned," Shalila told her. "If
he wishes, you may see him in the morning. Good-night, dandelion."
"'Night, Nama! 'Night Dirkan!" Tayla flew off to her room.
But she did not go straight to her room right away. She would have,
but then she passed the entryway to the guest room wing of the Palace. She
noticed Hazel, soon to be her aunt, wearing a strange pink, filmy, lacy garment
that resembled a slip. The garment was only thigh-length and sheer. Hazel wore
a sheer, lacy robe over the flimsy slip. Hazel was out in the hallway,
standing, with her stiff, wiry hair down to her back. Tayla thought that she
was one of the prettiest, strangest creatures that she had ever seen, with her
coffee-colored skin and eyes, small bosom and trim waist.
Tayla had never seen a nightgown like the one Hazel was wearing.
She was still too young to understand that most of the women in her family would
have considered such a garment indecent, at least to wear outside of the
bedroom. Astorian nightwear was elegant and lovely, but modest and
conservative, and Tayla had never seen anyone expose as much skin as Hazel did.
Astorian women did not usually expose their legs in public, and their dresses
were almost always ankle-length. Tayla looked down at her own nightgown which
was pale-blue, ankle-length and lacy, but very modest.
Being the curious child that she was, she approached Hazel, who was
now sitting down in the hallway, in quiet thought. Tayla noticed her strange
pink satin mules that were trimmed with pink marabou feathers.
"I like your slippers," Tayla told her softly.
Hazel favored her with a small smile. "Thanks, kid."
"I've never seen a nightgown like yours before. I didn't know there
were clothes that you could see through." Tayla was not saying this to condemn
Hazel for her clothing; she was merely making an observation.
Hazel laughed softly. She knew that Tayla was not criticizing her.
She understood that Tayla had never seen a garment like hers before. "This is a
normal Earth nightgown, although a couple of your relatives got on my case for
it. They called it indecent and said it exposed too much skin."
"I like the color of your skin," Tayla told her honestly. "I've
never seen anyone with brown skin before. You look like a brown-skinned
Astorian. Is your hair as soft as ours?"
Hazel chuckled. "I'm afraid not, kid. My hair's stiff compared to
yours. You want to touch it?"
Tayla nodded and touched Hazel's hair. Hazel was right; her hair
was stiff and wiry compared to her own.
"We have hair-softening oils to make your hair softer," Tayla told
her after touching Hazel's hair.
Hazel nodded. "Thanks, I'll keep that in mind. I heard Astorian
hair is really soft, softer than rabbit's fur. I know Gohan's was. Is all
Astorian hair the same way?"
Tayla nodded. "You can touch mine, if you like. Normally I don't let people
touch my hair unless I know them well, but I think I can trust you."
Hazel tentatively touched Tayla's hair. She knew that Astorian
women were particular about who touched their hair, and that their hair was
considered an intimate part of their bodies, much like their breasts or bottom.
She had learned this the hard way when she playfully ruffled the hair of one of
the little Astorian princesses at the ball, and the child had ran crying to her
mother. The mother, one of Princess Felinda Chloe's daughters, had ran over to
Hazel and snapped at her for touching the child's hair without permission.
Thankfully Felinda had intervened and explained to her daughter that Hazel was a
Human, and she did not know that it had been improper to touch the child's hair.
Felinda's daughter, Andrya, had calmed down, but she and her small daughter,
Porta, kept giving Hazel wary looks for the rest of that evening.
Tayla's hair was soft and down, much softer than an Angora sweater,
and yet as strong and durable as spider silk. Hazel was amazed.
"When it gets too long, my hair gets cut down to shoulder-length and
made into cloth," Tayla explained. "This nightgown is made out of my own hair
and silk." She let Hazel touch her nightgown, and Tayla's nightgown was softer
than silk alone.
Hazel smiled. "My nightgown is soft, but it's just made out of
polyester and rayon."
"What's polyester and rayon?"
Ahh, Hazel thought, I really am not on Earth anymore. No one here
has heard of polyester or rayon. I wonder what else they never heard of.
"Man-made fabrics. The fabrics are made in factories on Earth,"
Hazel informed her. She stood up and went towards her room. "Want to come real
quick?"
"Sure," Tayla told her, "I can't stay too long though 'cause I'm
really supposed to be going to bed."
"Ah, I see," Hazel told her with a grin. "Burning the midnight oil,
huh?"
"What?"
"Earth expression, never mind," Hazel said quickly, as she and Tayla
entered her room.
Hazel loved her room; it was actually a suite decorated in pine green and gold
with wide bay windows and a large bed with a quilted bedspread and canopy decked
in a green background with gold oak leaves. The wood furnishings were made out
of mahogany and cherry, and the carpet was thick and deep, deep enough to cover
Hazel's ankles. The suite had a sitting room, a bathroom, and a dressing room
with two gigantic closets. Hazel's childhood house could have fitted into the
entire suite.
She went over to her suitcase and opened it, removing a small
capsule. She threw the capsule on the ground, and to Tayla's shock, it
exploded. When the smoke cleared, there was suddenly a small white
refrigerator. Hazel opened the refrigerator and offered Tayla a strange can
colored red, white and blue. Tayla took it and read the logo on the can, and
the logo had a strange word that she had never seen before.
"Pepsi?" she asked. "What's Pepsi?"
"Cola, a soda," Hazel told her. "We drink them all the time on
Earth. It's a popular drink."
"Is it safe?"
"Sure is," Hazel assured her. "You shouldn't drink too much of it
though at bedtime because it can keep you awake all night, but one can probably
won't hurt."
Tayla kept turning the can about and staring at it until Hazel
realized that Tayla did not know how to open it. So she showed the little
princess how to open the can by popping the top. (Tayla liked hearing the sound
of the can opening.) The child took a small sip, letting the bubbles settle on
her tongue.
"I like this," she decided finally, as she finished the drink within
minutes.
Hazel allowed Tayla to peek in the refrigerator, and Tayla noticed several
strange wrapped bars inside. Hazel told her they were chocolate bars and Tayla
was delighted, especially when she heard there were nuts in each of them. Hazel
opened one of the chocolate bars and gave it to Tayla.
Tayla cautiously took a bite, even though she had eaten chocolate
and nuts before. "Delicious!" she declared.
"That one is called a Snickers bar," Hazel explained to her.
"That's my personal favorite."
"I wish they made this stuff here," Tayla said, after finishing her
chocolate bar.
Hazel ate a Snickers bar herself, and Tayla thanked her for the soda
and candy bar.
"Have you ever eaten a chocolate sugarplum?" Tayla asked her.
"Your uncle gave me one before; I've never had anything like
it...that was pretty good," Hazel acknowledged.
"I have some in my room, if you want some later."
"Thanks, kid, I'll keep that in mind."
The next morning, Tayla awoke earlier than usual, even earlier than
Mykia, who was naturally an early riser. Tayla hastily dressed herself without
her maid's help; she decided to let Mykia sleep, but when the maid awoke, she
panicked at finding Tayla gone.
"Princess Tayla?" Mykia called worriedly. Tayla had never awakened
before her; Mykia usually had to usher her small mistress out of bed each
morning.
"Princess?"
Mykia dashed out of Tayla's suite, and she hurried down to the
bathhouse. She asked Saudra and Aydra if Tayla had taken her morning bath yet.
Both Bathing Laborers told her no.
Shalila had come to the women's bathhouse this morning because Dirkan had
decided to go into the wilderness for extra training and meditation. He did
this every so often, and Shalila was used to it. She and Dirkan usually bathed
together these days, but since Dirkan was gone, she decided to bath in the
women's bathhouse again. Dalantra was with her.
"Mykia? Where is Tayla?" Shalila asked worriedly, as Dalantra
slowly washed her mistress's hair.
"I-I don't know, Your Highness," Mykia stammered. "She woke up
before me and was gone!"
"Princess Tayla up that early! The child must be ill!" Dalantra
exclaimed, for she and Shalila knew that Tayla was not naturally the early riser
that her maid was.
Shalila tried not to panic. It was possible that Tayla had gone off
to play with one of her cousins or nieces and nephews, or decided to have
breakfast early, or visit Gracina or Raakon, or...
"You don't think that she went out into the wilderness to look for
Dirkan, do you?" she asked both maids. Shalila's heart began to pound.
The maids and the Bathing Laborers looked at each other worriedly.
Tayla was a strong, capable child, but even she did not need to be wandering
about in the Chloe wilderness by herself.
Fortunately, Tayla herself came into the bathhouse, a little late
for her early morning bath. She called out cheerfully to the servant women and
her grandmother. The women were relieved to see her.
"Tayla Chloe, where have you been?" Shalila exclaimed.
"I just went to visit Hazel." Tayla quickly stripped and gave her
clothes to Aydra before jumping into the bathing pool. She jubilantly did a
cannonball dive and made a loud splash, wetting Shalila and Dalantra further.
Dalantra covered her dull green eyes a few moments too late, as the
tidal wave that Tayla created with her cannonball dive nearly engulfed her and
Shalila. Shalila sighed and narrowed her silver-gray eyes at her mischievous
granddaughter in both disapproval and amusement.
"Tayla," she said sternly, trying to keep a straight face. "You
were told before not to jump into the pool like that. The bathing pool is too
shallow for you to practice your diving stunts; you could hit your head or knees
on the bottom. And you splashed Dalantra and I."
"Sorry, Nama, Dalantra," Tayla said quickly. She smiled broadly
again and began to swim around in excitement, relishing the water. She did all
sorts of crazy stunts and tricks in the water, standing on her head in the water
and acting clownishly. Poor Mykia could not get her to stay still long enough
to bath her; Princess Tayla was so unusually hyper this morning.
Shalila and Dalantra permitted themselves to smile at Tayla's
antics, then they grew wistful, for in two days, Tayla would be leaving for
Chloe Orchida for two years. Shalila sighed again, sadder than ever, for what
would she do without her favorite darling around? Of course there were the
other grandchildren and great-grandchildren, and she loved them all dearly, but
they weren't Tayla. She would only get to see her little dandelion only once a
month after Tayla left.
Tayla happily swam over to her grandmother and hugged her tightly.
Shalila returned her embrace, holding her, as if she never wanted to let her go.
Ah, things would not be the same without Tayla around.
Tayla called out to Aydra from her grandmother's embrace, "Aydra,
would you bring me my bag, please? I have treats for everyone."
Aydra obeyed, and she gave Tayla her small satchel. Tayla reached
into the leather bag with her wet paws and pulled out two of the cans of soda
that Hazel had given her this morning. She offered a can to her Nama, and she
opened the can of cola for herself.
Dalantra panicked when she saw Tayla start to drink the cola, and
she quickly snatched the can out of Tayla's hand. Tayla was shocked at this and
cried out in protest.
"Dalantra! Why'd you do that?"
Dalantra turned her worried eyes on Shalila, and Shalila looked down at her own
can of soda. "Pardon me, mistress, but where did Tayla get these cans from?"
Shalila did not answer, for she did not know. She knew what soda
was, of course, but the only soda that she had drunk in her life was on planet
Earth was a can of orange soda just before she left Earth permanently for King
Kai's planet. Astoria had no soda at all; Astorians only drank milk, tea,
juice, coffee, and water, mainly saltwater.
Shalila could understand Dalantra's concern, for she did not know if
this kind of soda was safe for Astorian consumption. She looked at Tayla.
"Tayla, where did you get these from?"
Tayla piped up, unaware of her grandmother's worry, "Hazel gave them
to me."
Shalila frowned then. "Tayla, I do not want you to drink any more
of these until I know that these liquids are safe to drink." Shalila was
troubled now, for any consumable items brought by aliens to Astoria were always
supposed to be confiscated first for safety tests. Aliens landing on Astorian
soil were required to turn over any food or drinks that they had brought with
them to be tested for harmful germs and chemicals. What was edible and safe to
other aliens could be deadly to Astorians. If the consumable items passed the
safety tests, they were given back to the visitors that had brought them. Hazel
should have turned over the sodas when she had landed on Astoria with Gohan.
How had these strange drinks passed customs inspections? The Customs Laborers
were supposed to thoroughly examine and inspect any luggage or packages that
aliens brought with them. Any questionable items were automatically
confiscated.
"I drank one last night in Hazel's room, and it did nothing to me."
Shalila sighed; Tayla should have gone straight to bed last night,
but she refrained from scolding Tayla about it, for after all, the child was
leaving in two days. "Tayla, does Hazel have any other food or drinks in her
room that you know are not from this planet?"
"Why yes!" Tayla chirped, "She has all sorts of goodies, Nama! She
gave me a thing called a chocolate bar with nuts and stuff, and this morning she
gave me a bag of cheesy puffs. They were wrapped in shiny, pretty paper, Nama."
"How was she storing these?"
"Oh, that's the really neat part, Nama! Hazel threw a capsule on
the floor last night, and it exploded, and it turned into a refrigerator. All
this stuff came out of the refrigerator! She says that capsules are the best
way to preserve food like that."
Hazel entered the bathhouse just then. The slender, beautiful black
woman wished that she could have bathed with her fiancé, but she was not married
to him yet, so she had to bath with the other women. She was a bit shy and
nervous when she entered the bathhouse; she had not bathed with other people
since she had been a child in East St. Louis.
"Hello, Hazel!" Tayla called to her cheerfully. Hazel greeted her
back.
"Hey kid, decided to take your bath after all?" Hazel grinned.
"Sure did! I offered Nama a soda, but-" Tayla was interrupted when
Shalila put a finger on her small lips to silence her.
"Tayla, I need to speak to Hazel for a moment." Shalila nodded
towards Hazel's direction. "Hazel, may I see you on the other end of the
bathing pool, please? I need to talk to you in private."
Hazel grew uncomfortable then. Had she breached another Astorian
custom again? This morning, she had worn another one of her sheer negligees,
this time with a heavy robe covering it, and she had gone downstairs to the
Chloe tearoom for breakfast. The other occupants had given her strange looks,
and finally Jesynthia, Felinda's twin sister and Shalila's second oldest
daughter, had told her why.
Astorians always bathed and dressed before breakfast. No one wore
his or her nightclothes to breakfast.
Hazel had been extremely embarrassed, and although Jesynthia had
assured her that things would be okay, Hazel had fled to her room and decided to
skip breakfast. Tayla had come to her room early, and she and Hazel had shared
a bag of cheesy puffs for breakfast. Tayla had not eaten anything else today
besides that.
Hazel walked slowly to the other end of the bathing pool, and
Shalila had already beaten her there, for Shalila was a good, fast swimmer.
"Sit down, Hazel," Shalila told her, and Hazel did so reluctantly,
sitting on the edge of the pool, with her feet in the water. Shalila leaned her
muscular back against the wall of the bathing pool and looked up at Hazel.
"Hazel," Shalila began quietly. "Did the Customs Laborers know
about these sodas and snacks that you have in your room?"
"I don't think so, ma'am," Hazel told her briefly, "They just looked
at the capsules and put them thorough the scanners. Nothing came up that
alarmed them. They just let me keep them."
"Hazel," Shalila said, "I understand that you were being generous
with my granddaughter in sharing your goods with her, but those snacks and
drinks could be dangerous for her health. Any consumable items should have been
confiscated to be inspected for harmful germs and chemicals. What is safe and
healthy for Humans could be deadly to Astorians and vice versa. We don't know
the effect that the chemicals in your products could have on Astorians and other
species."
"I will have to have you turn over all drinks and snacks to me, so
that I may have them tested. If they are considered to be safe for consumption,
you may have them back, but I have to ensure their safety before any other
Astorian consumes them. Have you offered these products to anyone else?"
"No, ma'am," Hazel told her truthfully, "Tayla was going to offer
sodas to some of her friends and family. Mrs. Chloe, I meant no harm,
honestly."
Shalila nodded understandingly. "I understand that, but I don't
want you to offer Tayla or anyone else any more Earth treats until I know that
they are safe for Astorian consumption. Hazel, you will have to take any
consumable items that you have to the Science Wing to be inspected. And I will
have to have Tayla examined to ensure that the Earth products that she has
consumed has not harmed her."
Hazel nodded worriedly. She had forgotten that little Tayla was not
a Human child, but Tayla had seemed so much like a little Human girl that Hazel
had not been thinking. Astorian children and Human children didn't seem to be
that much different from each other, although of course Human children couldn't
fly and shoot lasers out of their hands and swing swords around and electrocute
people...
...Astorians sure were a funny breed, and although Hazel was having
trouble keeping from breaching their customs, she was actually starting to like
Gohan's people. Astorians lived in a restrictive society compared to her
society back home, but their society was a safe one. Crime was rare among the
Astorian people, and perpetrators who did commit crimes were swiftly and
properly punished. Hazel had learned that Astoria had only one prison for the
entire planet, and that large prison was located on the moon of Eustachia. That
prison was only half-full. Usually fear of Clan and planet banishment and
public disgrace and shame were usually enough to keep criminals in line.
Astorians did not fear each other as much as they did outside races, because
their greatest danger came from forces outside of Astoria, such as the Saiyans
and Frieza.
There were no bars, taverns, or whorehouses anywhere on Astoria, and
homeless people or vagrants did not inhabit the streets of Astorian cities.
Homelessness did not exist among the Astorian people, for the Clans always took
care of their own people; it was considered shameful and disgraceful to let your
fellow Clan members or family members to go without basic needs and essentials.
The Clans were paternalistic groups, taking care of their own and regulating
conduct of their members. Recreation drugs, alcohol, smoking and gambling were
strictly forbidden, for Astorians considered these things to be evil and
reprehensible. When Hazel had described an old friend who had been using crack
cocaine before she had died to Gracina and Natala four days before, both
princesses had been horrified and they had wondered how Hazel, who was not a
warrior, had managed to survive such a savage planet like Earth.
Hazel had been having lunch with some of Gohan's family members that
day, and neither they nor their fellow Clan of Chloe members could understand
why anyone would want to inject harmful drugs into their systems or snort
strange powders up their noses or get drunk. They also could not comprehend why
anyone would want to smoke cigarettes that not only caused great harm to the
smoker, but also harmed anyone who breathed the smoke.
The Clan of Chloe people, or any other Astorian for that matter,
were also shocked and angered to hear that elderly people were shut away in
nursing homes and children who could not live with their parents were turned
over to the government to be shuttled about from home to home until they became
of an age to care for themselves.
"Why aren't their families taking care of them?" Raakon had asked
furiously, and many of his relatives had wondered the same thing.
When Hazel had explained that some families did not care enough
about their own kind to want to take better care of themselves and their own,
the Astorians with her had just shaken their heads.
"Shameful," Gracina had said disapprovingly.
Astorians were even more adamant about alcohol. Alcohol was
forbidden because the Astorians believed that it clouded judgment and good sense
and was one of the roots of evil. Hazel missed not being able to have a beer,
but she could understand the Astorians' point. She thought that Humans could
learn many things from Astorians.
Astorians were a close-knit people who kept close tabs on each other
and their enemies. Everyone knew everyone else's business, even in such a large
family...
...Hazel hoped that she would make Gohan happy and fit into his
large and complicated royal family. She looked briefly at her future
mother-in-law and wondered how well they would get along. Shalila Chloe was an
imposing woman, a woman that no one would ever dare to defy or oppose. She was
not someone that Hazel would want for an enemy. Shalila was enormously
protective of her large family, sometimes to the point of being domineering, but
her intentions were always good. She had definitely earned her place as the
Clan of Chloe Gran and Matriarch.
And yet Shalila had a soft and kind heart under her authoritative
demeanor; Hazel had seen how she had comforted Cletos, and Shalila was always
affectionate and loving towards the little Tayla. Shalila would never let her
family go without, and Hazel knew that any children that she had with Gohan
would receive the best from Shalila and the rest of the Clan of Chloe.
Hazel noticed a spark of understanding and sympathy in Shalila's eyes before
Shalila returned to Dalantra to finish her bath, and Hazel realized that Shalila
did know where she was coming from.
Later that evening.
Shalila had Cletos put to bed, and Gracina, Bajal, Natala, and
Raakon offered to stay with him. Shalila and Dirkan paced the halls outside of
the Cletos Chloe family's door relentlessly, alternating between meditating and
debating what to do about Jaypros and Farla.
Shalila sighed wearily, as she and Dirkan finally sat down next to
each other. "Perhaps I was too hasty in declaring that Jaypros and Farla be
banished. But the hurt they have caused Cletos! I understand those two loved
each other when they were children, but it was Farla that left Jaypros for
Cletos. And Farla is married to Cletos! She even abandoned her own children,
and that alone is inexcusable!"
"Farla has always been a bit flighty and irresponsible," Dirkan
reflected. "And Jaypros has always been rash and impulsive, but their
characters do not excuse their actions. Shalila, you are doing the right thing
by not tolerating this."
"I understand that," Shalila moaned miserably, resting her head on
Dirkan's shoulder. "But I still love them, no matter what horrid things they
have done. I hate to banish any of my grandchildren, but I can't condone their
actions."
"No, you can't," Dirkan told her firmly, placing his green hand
gently on her red hair. "Jaypros and Farla must understand that the great wrong
they have done Cletos, Petalia, and Dedron. And the only way to make them see
that is to be tough on them. Jaypros no longer has parents, and Farla's parents
have indulged her every whim, from the time she was a child. I understand that
we indulge Tayla quite a bit ourselves, but Tayla is taught right from wrong,
and she knows exactly what she can and cannot get away with. Farla's parents
have let that woman get away with murder."
"Not the last time," Shalila told him wearily. She briefly
described to Dirkan Aijal's nasty reaction to the news that his daughter was an
adulteress.
"Aijal tried to raise a hand against her?" Dirkan asked, amazed.
"I've never known him to do so much as raise his voice against his favorite
daughter."
"He was embarrassed and furious, and I couldn't blame him; such a
thing would embarrass any parent. If one of my own children acted that way, I
probably would be very angry too," Shalila stated, her voice tired.
Tayla appeared into the corridor, on the way to her own room. She
looked Shalila and Dirkan directly in the eyes and whispered that she was sorry
for causing so much trouble.
Shalila patted her lap and told Tayla to sit in it, and Tayla
reluctantly did. "Tayla, what has happened had nothing to do with you. You
take things too much to heart, child. You are not to blame for what has
occurred. "
"I should have refused to tell," Tayla told her, "Then Jaypros and
Farla would have stayed on Chloe, and Cletos would not be so miserable."
"You should never refuse to tell your grandmother anything, Tayla,"
Dirkan told her sternly. "It is never good to keep something like that to
yourself. If you had covered up what you knew, you would have been enabling
Jaypros and Farla. You would have been allowing them to continue doing wrong,
which would be a wrong in itself. And you should know that you needn't keep
secrets from your grandmother, ever."
"Tayla, if you had not told me, I would have wondered what else you
were hiding from me," Shalila added. "Deception destroys trust, and I want to
know that I can always trust you. I don't want to think that you would ever
hide anything from me. You should always tell the truth, like you did earlier."
"I did, and people got hurt because of it," Tayla snapped bitterly.
"If telling the truth hurts, I don't think it's such a good thing, after all!"
She was holding back tears.
"No one has ever told you that telling the truth would always be
pleasant," Dirkan said, "Telling the truth is not meant to please people; it is
to be doing the right thing. We understand that you didn't want to get Jaypros
and Farla in trouble, but they were doing wrong, and they need to be corrected.
There will be many unpleasant things in life that you will have to do, and
telling the truth will sometimes be one of them."
"Maybe, if I had told them to stop on their own and agree not to
tell anyone, they would have stopped committing adultery, and Farla would have
stayed with Cletos." Tayla offered this as a possibility.
Shalila sighed and shook her head. "It wouldn't have been that
simple, Tayla. Jaypros and Farla are deeply attached to each other, and no
amount of persuasion or warnings would have made them stop. I am sorry that I
had to refuse Farla a divorce from Cletos, but she had no real reason to leave
him."
"What is a divorce, Nama?" Tayla asked; she was confused by the
strange word that she had been hearing a lot lately.
Shalila closed her eyes and meditated for a few moments, trying to
think of the best and honest way to answer Tayla's question without going into
gritty details. Finally, she opened her eyes and said simply, "A divorce
dissolves a marriage, making it nonexistent. A divorced couple is no longer
married, and they may marry other people."
"Why would anyone divorce?" Tayla asked softly.
Shalila explained quietly, "In Jaypros and Farla's case, Farla
wanted to leave Cletos and marry Jaypros because she thought that she loved
Jaypros more, but I could not grant her a divorce. You see, little dandelion,
Astorian law states that divorce may only be granted in cases of adultery or
abuse-that means beating your spouse or treating him or her very badly. Cletos
did not commit adultery against Farla, nor did he abuse her. So I could not
grant a divorce."
"But if Farla thought that she didn't love Cletos anymore, then why
you were making her stay with him?"
"Because, Tayla, wives cannot just divorce their husbands because
they happen to fall in love with someone else, and it is the same for husbands.
You cannot divorce your mate just because your love has changed. When you marry
someone, it is to be for life, until death do you part. That is why you must be
very selective about whom you choose to spend the rest of your life with. You
must be sure that you are willing to love, support and protect your mate, no
matter what happens. Marriage is for life, an eternal commitment that should
end only with death."
"And, if I allowed everyone to divorce their mates just because they
happen to fall in love with someone new, so many people would wind up doing
that, many lives would fall apart, and many families would be broken up. Let me
put a test to you: how would you feel if Dirkan and I decided to divorce each
other tomorrow and never see each other again? Be honest now."
Tayla frowned. "I'd be very mad and hurt 'cause you two didn't love
each other enough to stay together and take care of all of us. I want you two
to stay together forever!"
Shalila nodded approvingly. She smoothed Tayla's hair with her
hand. "Exactly. And that is how children of divorce wind up feeling: angry and
hurt. That is what Dedron and Petalia are feeling right now because they think
that their mother didn't care enough to be with them. Their mother has
abandoned them for their uncle, leaving them behind forever. Farla has hurt her
children tremendously."
"How can a mother abandon her children?"
Shalila and Dirkan were quiet then, although it was not an unusual
question for a young child to ask. Dirkan finally spoke, "Farla was not
thinking straight when she left her family to run off with Jaypros. She did not
stop and consider the consequences of her actions, nor did Jaypros consider the
consequences of his actions. They were wrong to do what they did, and because
of their cruel actions, Cletos will hurt for a long time, and his children will
be wounded for a lifetime. Farla and Jaypros have left deep scars on all of
them. And they have also disgraced your Clan and your family, marring the Clan
of Chloe name."
"What will you do, if they come back someday?"
Shalila and Dirkan sighed. "We will decide that, if that should
happen. Right now, we have no pat answers." Shalila ruffled Tayla's dark hair
and said, "Time for bed, now. Give us a kiss and a hug good-night."
Tayla did so gratefully, kissing them both soundly on their cheeks
and squeezing them so tightly that Shalila and Dirkan could barely breathe.
Both of them hugged and kissed her and patted her back, and they sent her off to
bed.
"Wait!" Tayla cried, as she was leaving, "Couldn't I see if Cletos
is okay?"
"We'll let him know that you were concerned," Shalila told her. "If
he wishes, you may see him in the morning. Good-night, dandelion."
"'Night, Nama! 'Night Dirkan!" Tayla flew off to her room.
But she did not go straight to her room right away. She would have,
but then she passed the entryway to the guest room wing of the Palace. She
noticed Hazel, soon to be her aunt, wearing a strange pink, filmy, lacy garment
that resembled a slip. The garment was only thigh-length and sheer. Hazel wore
a sheer, lacy robe over the flimsy slip. Hazel was out in the hallway,
standing, with her stiff, wiry hair down to her back. Tayla thought that she
was one of the prettiest, strangest creatures that she had ever seen, with her
coffee-colored skin and eyes, small bosom and trim waist.
Tayla had never seen a nightgown like the one Hazel was wearing.
She was still too young to understand that most of the women in her family would
have considered such a garment indecent, at least to wear outside of the
bedroom. Astorian nightwear was elegant and lovely, but modest and
conservative, and Tayla had never seen anyone expose as much skin as Hazel did.
Astorian women did not usually expose their legs in public, and their dresses
were almost always ankle-length. Tayla looked down at her own nightgown which
was pale-blue, ankle-length and lacy, but very modest.
Being the curious child that she was, she approached Hazel, who was
now sitting down in the hallway, in quiet thought. Tayla noticed her strange
pink satin mules that were trimmed with pink marabou feathers.
"I like your slippers," Tayla told her softly.
Hazel favored her with a small smile. "Thanks, kid."
"I've never seen a nightgown like yours before. I didn't know there
were clothes that you could see through." Tayla was not saying this to condemn
Hazel for her clothing; she was merely making an observation.
Hazel laughed softly. She knew that Tayla was not criticizing her.
She understood that Tayla had never seen a garment like hers before. "This is a
normal Earth nightgown, although a couple of your relatives got on my case for
it. They called it indecent and said it exposed too much skin."
"I like the color of your skin," Tayla told her honestly. "I've
never seen anyone with brown skin before. You look like a brown-skinned
Astorian. Is your hair as soft as ours?"
Hazel chuckled. "I'm afraid not, kid. My hair's stiff compared to
yours. You want to touch it?"
Tayla nodded and touched Hazel's hair. Hazel was right; her hair
was stiff and wiry compared to her own.
"We have hair-softening oils to make your hair softer," Tayla told
her after touching Hazel's hair.
Hazel nodded. "Thanks, I'll keep that in mind. I heard Astorian
hair is really soft, softer than rabbit's fur. I know Gohan's was. Is all
Astorian hair the same way?"
Tayla nodded. "You can touch mine, if you like. Normally I don't let people
touch my hair unless I know them well, but I think I can trust you."
Hazel tentatively touched Tayla's hair. She knew that Astorian
women were particular about who touched their hair, and that their hair was
considered an intimate part of their bodies, much like their breasts or bottom.
She had learned this the hard way when she playfully ruffled the hair of one of
the little Astorian princesses at the ball, and the child had ran crying to her
mother. The mother, one of Princess Felinda Chloe's daughters, had ran over to
Hazel and snapped at her for touching the child's hair without permission.
Thankfully Felinda had intervened and explained to her daughter that Hazel was a
Human, and she did not know that it had been improper to touch the child's hair.
Felinda's daughter, Andrya, had calmed down, but she and her small daughter,
Porta, kept giving Hazel wary looks for the rest of that evening.
Tayla's hair was soft and down, much softer than an Angora sweater,
and yet as strong and durable as spider silk. Hazel was amazed.
"When it gets too long, my hair gets cut down to shoulder-length and
made into cloth," Tayla explained. "This nightgown is made out of my own hair
and silk." She let Hazel touch her nightgown, and Tayla's nightgown was softer
than silk alone.
Hazel smiled. "My nightgown is soft, but it's just made out of
polyester and rayon."
"What's polyester and rayon?"
Ahh, Hazel thought, I really am not on Earth anymore. No one here
has heard of polyester or rayon. I wonder what else they never heard of.
"Man-made fabrics. The fabrics are made in factories on Earth,"
Hazel informed her. She stood up and went towards her room. "Want to come real
quick?"
"Sure," Tayla told her, "I can't stay too long though 'cause I'm
really supposed to be going to bed."
"Ah, I see," Hazel told her with a grin. "Burning the midnight oil,
huh?"
"What?"
"Earth expression, never mind," Hazel said quickly, as she and Tayla
entered her room.
Hazel loved her room; it was actually a suite decorated in pine green and gold
with wide bay windows and a large bed with a quilted bedspread and canopy decked
in a green background with gold oak leaves. The wood furnishings were made out
of mahogany and cherry, and the carpet was thick and deep, deep enough to cover
Hazel's ankles. The suite had a sitting room, a bathroom, and a dressing room
with two gigantic closets. Hazel's childhood house could have fitted into the
entire suite.
She went over to her suitcase and opened it, removing a small
capsule. She threw the capsule on the ground, and to Tayla's shock, it
exploded. When the smoke cleared, there was suddenly a small white
refrigerator. Hazel opened the refrigerator and offered Tayla a strange can
colored red, white and blue. Tayla took it and read the logo on the can, and
the logo had a strange word that she had never seen before.
"Pepsi?" she asked. "What's Pepsi?"
"Cola, a soda," Hazel told her. "We drink them all the time on
Earth. It's a popular drink."
"Is it safe?"
"Sure is," Hazel assured her. "You shouldn't drink too much of it
though at bedtime because it can keep you awake all night, but one can probably
won't hurt."
Tayla kept turning the can about and staring at it until Hazel
realized that Tayla did not know how to open it. So she showed the little
princess how to open the can by popping the top. (Tayla liked hearing the sound
of the can opening.) The child took a small sip, letting the bubbles settle on
her tongue.
"I like this," she decided finally, as she finished the drink within
minutes.
Hazel allowed Tayla to peek in the refrigerator, and Tayla noticed several
strange wrapped bars inside. Hazel told her they were chocolate bars and Tayla
was delighted, especially when she heard there were nuts in each of them. Hazel
opened one of the chocolate bars and gave it to Tayla.
Tayla cautiously took a bite, even though she had eaten chocolate
and nuts before. "Delicious!" she declared.
"That one is called a Snickers bar," Hazel explained to her.
"That's my personal favorite."
"I wish they made this stuff here," Tayla said, after finishing her
chocolate bar.
Hazel ate a Snickers bar herself, and Tayla thanked her for the soda
and candy bar.
"Have you ever eaten a chocolate sugarplum?" Tayla asked her.
"Your uncle gave me one before; I've never had anything like
it...that was pretty good," Hazel acknowledged.
"I have some in my room, if you want some later."
"Thanks, kid, I'll keep that in mind."
The next morning, Tayla awoke earlier than usual, even earlier than
Mykia, who was naturally an early riser. Tayla hastily dressed herself without
her maid's help; she decided to let Mykia sleep, but when the maid awoke, she
panicked at finding Tayla gone.
"Princess Tayla?" Mykia called worriedly. Tayla had never awakened
before her; Mykia usually had to usher her small mistress out of bed each
morning.
"Princess?"
Mykia dashed out of Tayla's suite, and she hurried down to the
bathhouse. She asked Saudra and Aydra if Tayla had taken her morning bath yet.
Both Bathing Laborers told her no.
Shalila had come to the women's bathhouse this morning because Dirkan had
decided to go into the wilderness for extra training and meditation. He did
this every so often, and Shalila was used to it. She and Dirkan usually bathed
together these days, but since Dirkan was gone, she decided to bath in the
women's bathhouse again. Dalantra was with her.
"Mykia? Where is Tayla?" Shalila asked worriedly, as Dalantra
slowly washed her mistress's hair.
"I-I don't know, Your Highness," Mykia stammered. "She woke up
before me and was gone!"
"Princess Tayla up that early! The child must be ill!" Dalantra
exclaimed, for she and Shalila knew that Tayla was not naturally the early riser
that her maid was.
Shalila tried not to panic. It was possible that Tayla had gone off
to play with one of her cousins or nieces and nephews, or decided to have
breakfast early, or visit Gracina or Raakon, or...
"You don't think that she went out into the wilderness to look for
Dirkan, do you?" she asked both maids. Shalila's heart began to pound.
The maids and the Bathing Laborers looked at each other worriedly.
Tayla was a strong, capable child, but even she did not need to be wandering
about in the Chloe wilderness by herself.
Fortunately, Tayla herself came into the bathhouse, a little late
for her early morning bath. She called out cheerfully to the servant women and
her grandmother. The women were relieved to see her.
"Tayla Chloe, where have you been?" Shalila exclaimed.
"I just went to visit Hazel." Tayla quickly stripped and gave her
clothes to Aydra before jumping into the bathing pool. She jubilantly did a
cannonball dive and made a loud splash, wetting Shalila and Dalantra further.
Dalantra covered her dull green eyes a few moments too late, as the
tidal wave that Tayla created with her cannonball dive nearly engulfed her and
Shalila. Shalila sighed and narrowed her silver-gray eyes at her mischievous
granddaughter in both disapproval and amusement.
"Tayla," she said sternly, trying to keep a straight face. "You
were told before not to jump into the pool like that. The bathing pool is too
shallow for you to practice your diving stunts; you could hit your head or knees
on the bottom. And you splashed Dalantra and I."
"Sorry, Nama, Dalantra," Tayla said quickly. She smiled broadly
again and began to swim around in excitement, relishing the water. She did all
sorts of crazy stunts and tricks in the water, standing on her head in the water
and acting clownishly. Poor Mykia could not get her to stay still long enough
to bath her; Princess Tayla was so unusually hyper this morning.
Shalila and Dalantra permitted themselves to smile at Tayla's
antics, then they grew wistful, for in two days, Tayla would be leaving for
Chloe Orchida for two years. Shalila sighed again, sadder than ever, for what
would she do without her favorite darling around? Of course there were the
other grandchildren and great-grandchildren, and she loved them all dearly, but
they weren't Tayla. She would only get to see her little dandelion only once a
month after Tayla left.
Tayla happily swam over to her grandmother and hugged her tightly.
Shalila returned her embrace, holding her, as if she never wanted to let her go.
Ah, things would not be the same without Tayla around.
Tayla called out to Aydra from her grandmother's embrace, "Aydra,
would you bring me my bag, please? I have treats for everyone."
Aydra obeyed, and she gave Tayla her small satchel. Tayla reached
into the leather bag with her wet paws and pulled out two of the cans of soda
that Hazel had given her this morning. She offered a can to her Nama, and she
opened the can of cola for herself.
Dalantra panicked when she saw Tayla start to drink the cola, and
she quickly snatched the can out of Tayla's hand. Tayla was shocked at this and
cried out in protest.
"Dalantra! Why'd you do that?"
Dalantra turned her worried eyes on Shalila, and Shalila looked down at her own
can of soda. "Pardon me, mistress, but where did Tayla get these cans from?"
Shalila did not answer, for she did not know. She knew what soda
was, of course, but the only soda that she had drunk in her life was on planet
Earth was a can of orange soda just before she left Earth permanently for King
Kai's planet. Astoria had no soda at all; Astorians only drank milk, tea,
juice, coffee, and water, mainly saltwater.
Shalila could understand Dalantra's concern, for she did not know if
this kind of soda was safe for Astorian consumption. She looked at Tayla.
"Tayla, where did you get these from?"
Tayla piped up, unaware of her grandmother's worry, "Hazel gave them
to me."
Shalila frowned then. "Tayla, I do not want you to drink any more
of these until I know that these liquids are safe to drink." Shalila was
troubled now, for any consumable items brought by aliens to Astoria were always
supposed to be confiscated first for safety tests. Aliens landing on Astorian
soil were required to turn over any food or drinks that they had brought with
them to be tested for harmful germs and chemicals. What was edible and safe to
other aliens could be deadly to Astorians. If the consumable items passed the
safety tests, they were given back to the visitors that had brought them. Hazel
should have turned over the sodas when she had landed on Astoria with Gohan.
How had these strange drinks passed customs inspections? The Customs Laborers
were supposed to thoroughly examine and inspect any luggage or packages that
aliens brought with them. Any questionable items were automatically
confiscated.
"I drank one last night in Hazel's room, and it did nothing to me."
Shalila sighed; Tayla should have gone straight to bed last night,
but she refrained from scolding Tayla about it, for after all, the child was
leaving in two days. "Tayla, does Hazel have any other food or drinks in her
room that you know are not from this planet?"
"Why yes!" Tayla chirped, "She has all sorts of goodies, Nama! She
gave me a thing called a chocolate bar with nuts and stuff, and this morning she
gave me a bag of cheesy puffs. They were wrapped in shiny, pretty paper, Nama."
"How was she storing these?"
"Oh, that's the really neat part, Nama! Hazel threw a capsule on
the floor last night, and it exploded, and it turned into a refrigerator. All
this stuff came out of the refrigerator! She says that capsules are the best
way to preserve food like that."
Hazel entered the bathhouse just then. The slender, beautiful black
woman wished that she could have bathed with her fiancé, but she was not married
to him yet, so she had to bath with the other women. She was a bit shy and
nervous when she entered the bathhouse; she had not bathed with other people
since she had been a child in East St. Louis.
"Hello, Hazel!" Tayla called to her cheerfully. Hazel greeted her
back.
"Hey kid, decided to take your bath after all?" Hazel grinned.
"Sure did! I offered Nama a soda, but-" Tayla was interrupted when
Shalila put a finger on her small lips to silence her.
"Tayla, I need to speak to Hazel for a moment." Shalila nodded
towards Hazel's direction. "Hazel, may I see you on the other end of the
bathing pool, please? I need to talk to you in private."
Hazel grew uncomfortable then. Had she breached another Astorian
custom again? This morning, she had worn another one of her sheer negligees,
this time with a heavy robe covering it, and she had gone downstairs to the
Chloe tearoom for breakfast. The other occupants had given her strange looks,
and finally Jesynthia, Felinda's twin sister and Shalila's second oldest
daughter, had told her why.
Astorians always bathed and dressed before breakfast. No one wore
his or her nightclothes to breakfast.
Hazel had been extremely embarrassed, and although Jesynthia had
assured her that things would be okay, Hazel had fled to her room and decided to
skip breakfast. Tayla had come to her room early, and she and Hazel had shared
a bag of cheesy puffs for breakfast. Tayla had not eaten anything else today
besides that.
Hazel walked slowly to the other end of the bathing pool, and
Shalila had already beaten her there, for Shalila was a good, fast swimmer.
"Sit down, Hazel," Shalila told her, and Hazel did so reluctantly,
sitting on the edge of the pool, with her feet in the water. Shalila leaned her
muscular back against the wall of the bathing pool and looked up at Hazel.
"Hazel," Shalila began quietly. "Did the Customs Laborers know
about these sodas and snacks that you have in your room?"
"I don't think so, ma'am," Hazel told her briefly, "They just looked
at the capsules and put them thorough the scanners. Nothing came up that
alarmed them. They just let me keep them."
"Hazel," Shalila said, "I understand that you were being generous
with my granddaughter in sharing your goods with her, but those snacks and
drinks could be dangerous for her health. Any consumable items should have been
confiscated to be inspected for harmful germs and chemicals. What is safe and
healthy for Humans could be deadly to Astorians and vice versa. We don't know
the effect that the chemicals in your products could have on Astorians and other
species."
"I will have to have you turn over all drinks and snacks to me, so
that I may have them tested. If they are considered to be safe for consumption,
you may have them back, but I have to ensure their safety before any other
Astorian consumes them. Have you offered these products to anyone else?"
"No, ma'am," Hazel told her truthfully, "Tayla was going to offer
sodas to some of her friends and family. Mrs. Chloe, I meant no harm,
honestly."
Shalila nodded understandingly. "I understand that, but I don't
want you to offer Tayla or anyone else any more Earth treats until I know that
they are safe for Astorian consumption. Hazel, you will have to take any
consumable items that you have to the Science Wing to be inspected. And I will
have to have Tayla examined to ensure that the Earth products that she has
consumed has not harmed her."
Hazel nodded worriedly. She had forgotten that little Tayla was not
a Human child, but Tayla had seemed so much like a little Human girl that Hazel
had not been thinking. Astorian children and Human children didn't seem to be
that much different from each other, although of course Human children couldn't
fly and shoot lasers out of their hands and swing swords around and electrocute
people...
...Astorians sure were a funny breed, and although Hazel was having
trouble keeping from breaching their customs, she was actually starting to like
Gohan's people. Astorians lived in a restrictive society compared to her
society back home, but their society was a safe one. Crime was rare among the
Astorian people, and perpetrators who did commit crimes were swiftly and
properly punished. Hazel had learned that Astoria had only one prison for the
entire planet, and that large prison was located on the moon of Eustachia. That
prison was only half-full. Usually fear of Clan and planet banishment and
public disgrace and shame were usually enough to keep criminals in line.
Astorians did not fear each other as much as they did outside races, because
their greatest danger came from forces outside of Astoria, such as the Saiyans
and Frieza.
There were no bars, taverns, or whorehouses anywhere on Astoria, and
homeless people or vagrants did not inhabit the streets of Astorian cities.
Homelessness did not exist among the Astorian people, for the Clans always took
care of their own people; it was considered shameful and disgraceful to let your
fellow Clan members or family members to go without basic needs and essentials.
The Clans were paternalistic groups, taking care of their own and regulating
conduct of their members. Recreation drugs, alcohol, smoking and gambling were
strictly forbidden, for Astorians considered these things to be evil and
reprehensible. When Hazel had described an old friend who had been using crack
cocaine before she had died to Gracina and Natala four days before, both
princesses had been horrified and they had wondered how Hazel, who was not a
warrior, had managed to survive such a savage planet like Earth.
Hazel had been having lunch with some of Gohan's family members that
day, and neither they nor their fellow Clan of Chloe members could understand
why anyone would want to inject harmful drugs into their systems or snort
strange powders up their noses or get drunk. They also could not comprehend why
anyone would want to smoke cigarettes that not only caused great harm to the
smoker, but also harmed anyone who breathed the smoke.
The Clan of Chloe people, or any other Astorian for that matter,
were also shocked and angered to hear that elderly people were shut away in
nursing homes and children who could not live with their parents were turned
over to the government to be shuttled about from home to home until they became
of an age to care for themselves.
"Why aren't their families taking care of them?" Raakon had asked
furiously, and many of his relatives had wondered the same thing.
When Hazel had explained that some families did not care enough
about their own kind to want to take better care of themselves and their own,
the Astorians with her had just shaken their heads.
"Shameful," Gracina had said disapprovingly.
Astorians were even more adamant about alcohol. Alcohol was
forbidden because the Astorians believed that it clouded judgment and good sense
and was one of the roots of evil. Hazel missed not being able to have a beer,
but she could understand the Astorians' point. She thought that Humans could
learn many things from Astorians.
Astorians were a close-knit people who kept close tabs on each other
and their enemies. Everyone knew everyone else's business, even in such a large
family...
...Hazel hoped that she would make Gohan happy and fit into his
large and complicated royal family. She looked briefly at her future
mother-in-law and wondered how well they would get along. Shalila Chloe was an
imposing woman, a woman that no one would ever dare to defy or oppose. She was
not someone that Hazel would want for an enemy. Shalila was enormously
protective of her large family, sometimes to the point of being domineering, but
her intentions were always good. She had definitely earned her place as the
Clan of Chloe Gran and Matriarch.
And yet Shalila had a soft and kind heart under her authoritative
demeanor; Hazel had seen how she had comforted Cletos, and Shalila was always
affectionate and loving towards the little Tayla. Shalila would never let her
family go without, and Hazel knew that any children that she had with Gohan
would receive the best from Shalila and the rest of the Clan of Chloe.
Hazel noticed a spark of understanding and sympathy in Shalila's eyes before
Shalila returned to Dalantra to finish her bath, and Hazel realized that Shalila
did know where she was coming from.
