Chapter Five
Klista
When Hoshi was gone, Trip turned to Tia, taking in the image she made. Her long golden hair hung back off her shoulders more than halfway down her back, her complexion a startling blend of golden tones he never tired of. She wore a blue blouse and light blue skirt, and her golden legs were bare, as were her feet. All together, it was a very fetching sight. "So, how was class?"
"Class?"
"The lesson? In English? What did you two talk about?"
She looked away. "It required I you tell is, Shar-les?" She had waited all day to see him, but suddenly she was confused and uncomfortable.
"No, of course it's not 'required'? I was just askin'."
She looked back at him, even more confused. "You ask a question, and it is one I must answer not?"
"Let's … let's start over. How are you?"
"Do you … ask about my health? About my…" She shook her head. "I know what you do ask not."
"Tia, what's wrong?"
She looked at him, but then had to turn away, unable to face him any longer. "I cormatal - frustrated am!"
"Why?"
"I to learn your English ask so speak you I may. But the more I learn, the more I confused become."
"Happens to me all the time, and I was born to speak it."
"I think you joke, bit I do not. I to Hoshi speak, she my words learn as do I hers. We in Auran and English talk both. I understand do her always nyasi … 'not', but I … figure it out?"
He nodded encouragingly. "You'll get the hang of it. You've been at it less than a day, that's phenomenal success in my book. I don't know how you do it."
"I speak to the UT, it your words give me. Memorize them do I, but them use wrong."
"As I said, you'll get the hang -."
"I do want hang not!" she snapped, turning away. "I want…. What I … what I want…" She sighed, turning back. "I want Klista."
He could hear the longing she put into the word. Whatever it was, it was vitally important to her.
x
"Klista?" She opened her mouth to speak, but stopped, tried again, but got nowhere. "Can you demonstrate klista?" She shook her head sadly, frustration welling up in her voice.
"Your UT says what it in English is, but makes it sense nyas – 'no'. It is … it is …" She sighed. The harder she tried, the less it worked. After a few moments, she turned to face him directly. "If show you I what UT Klista says is, you understand will?"
"I hope so."
x
She stepped closer, reaching out to touch his chest. She felt about for a moment, finally found the soft beat of his heart. She took his hand, placed his fingers at her own heart, which he was surprised to find quite low in her chest, where in a human would be low down to the base of her lungs, just below her diaphragm. He noticed her ribs continued down quite low, realizing there must be more than would be normal for a human. She reached up to his shoulders, tugging on him. She stood only 5'1" as opposed to his nearly 6', so she pulled him down until he knelt on one knee, and pressed the two spots on their bodies together.
"Klista."
He looked up at her. "Heart to heart?"
She nodded, turning away in sad frustration. "Sense make nyasi."
He stood up. "On the contrary, it makes perfect sense." When she did not turn, he gently took her shoulders until she gave in to the gentle pressure of his touch and turned back to him. "To humans. It means to communicate so the other person knows what you mean … what you really mean, how you really feel. To tell everything and have it clear."
"Yes! Klista!"
"It'll come. Soon you'll be speaking like a native. For now, just say it; I'll work it out. I have so far."
x
She looked away, embarrassed. "I shamed am." She stole a glance at him, but could not keep it, not when the far bulkhead was a safer choice. "Much shamed, before you and your Captain. Offended you I did, and cannot undo."
"Offended me?" Trip asked, monumentally surprised. "When did you offend me? Or the Cap'n, for that matter?"
"When … you saw … when the Captain Archer at the door was … Fringat, I the words forget. Taught Hoshi me, but when upset I am, 'tied tongue' I get."
He stepped up to her, taking her shoulders again and gently turning her against her own resistance, until she was looking up at him. "Well, whatever happened, I can assure you that you have never offended me. Ever. As to Cap'n Archer; well, I can't say, not knowing what happened, but he's pretty open-minded. I'm sure that even if you actually tried to insult him, he wouldn't –"
"Oh, I do 'tried to insult him' not! I was …. I was stand …. He my …. I …" She stopped, frustrated, and broke away from his light grip, taking a step back, her hands clenched and eyes blazing in fury. "Words, words, WORDS, I can remember the welsdnark words not." Her golden eyes blazed in frustrated fury. "I want to have Klista but I can remember the English pringlee not. She me told pringlee, she me told minlu, she me told sulyas, she me told ourlak; and do I now even such words simple order keep in not!"
"Well then listen." He reached out and took her hands in his, trying to stem her tirade. "I am not, and never have been, offended by anything you said or did, and I am pretty certain I speak for the Cap'n as well. He's gettin' to be quite a space traveler and we both know there are a lot of different cultures and a lot of different customs out here. That's what this ship is all about, getting out here and learning. We're likely to be runnin' into a lot of things that confuse the hell out of both of us, but that's part of learning about each other. Understand?"
She was staring at him wide eyed, and finally had to admit: "I sure am not."
"Well, some day you will be."
xxx
The Bridge of the Enterprise was normally a hub of activity but, when Tia Anlor entered it the following morning, attention seemed to gravitate to her. She supposed that it was because there were normally not a lot of civilians who came up here, but she could take no comfort in that conclusion. She had embarrassed herself before the Captain yesterday. Actually, she had not been embarrassed until later, when she learned from Hoshi that he had been, but that did not help.
It had been three days now since she had stood on this deck and watched this man face down a Silurian warship and bargain for her freedom. Since then, she had had little contact with him, and now with considerable trepidation she approached his command chair. She had wanted to speak of this before, but had not gotten up the nerve, but now she had to. If only she could keep up her courage, because she was sure that if she did not she could have no hope of a happy answer, even if she could ask the question.
She passed Malcolm Reed on her right, saw the faintly disapproving glare from the Vulcan woman T'Pol on her left, briefly met Hoshi's questioning expression, but she kept her mind focused on the Captain. He had not yet seen her, but with some subtle sense she supposed was innate to humans he turned to her a moment before he could possibly have seen her approaching.
"Good morning, Miss Anlor." He greeted her in a manner she had learned was common to humans, though whatever the 'miss' was she still had no idea. She knew what she wanted to say, she had planned it all, and now as she looked at him, and then at the men and women watching her expectantly, she completely forgot what it was. She looked back at Archer, tried to block out of her attention all the others in the room.
"Good morning, Miss Captain." She imitated the words with great care, and saw with some distress a carefully restrained smile on his lips. She'd gotten it wrong, she knew. If only she knew what she had gotten wrong. She only knew that she had made yet another mistake!
x
She fought for the right words, and then tried to begin again. Perhaps if she put the flib, no, 'flub' behind her, she could do it right. Determinedly she reached out and took his hand, turning it over and bringing it upward, bowing slightly to touch her lips to his wrist in proper greeting. Maybe if she did things right, she could do this right.
She released his hand, looked up into his eyes, straightened, opened her mouth, and absolutely nothing came out.
She knew what she wanted to say, in Auran. And she knew she should ask for the UT to be turned on. Hoshi would do it in a second. But she had her pride; she would deal with these people in their own language. If only she could stop her heart from pounding so hard. Looking at the Captain, she couldn't help herself.
"May I help you?" he finally asked as the silence dragged on. She opened her mouth again to speak the English words, but they were gone. She simply could not remember. She tried again, but all she could utter was a gasping silence. Trying a fourth time, she at least got out:
"Wrenaouq, um, 'Captain' Archer?"
"Yes?"
Finally some of the words came to her. They were not the words she had rehearsed, but they sounded just about similar enough. "May place I your private on my tongue?"
The astonished look on his face told her all too clearly that she had gotten them wrong again.
x
In the utter silence of abject shock that froze the bridge, Hoshi's voice cut through like a knife. Archer stared speechless as Tia turned to the Linguist in monumental relief, and a short but intense series of clipped phrases shot between them. Finally Hoshi addressed him with a carefully restrained smile. "She means; 'may she speak to you privately?'"
Archer was not quite sure, but decided to risk it. "In my Ready Room. And come with us, Ensign."
"Yes sir." Hoshi was astute enough to know that Archer wanted more than a Linguist's assistance. After that outrageous entrance, coupled with the unexpected greeting last evening, he wanted a woman with him if he was going to be alone with Tia.
Archer saw that Tia was blushing; her face a strikingly bright gold; and she was keeping her eyes averted from him, her fingers hiding them. He figured this was going to be an interesting conversation.
x
When the three of them were in the ready room, Tia spoke first. "Anston li kir. Um, nyas; is right nyasi." She thought for a moment, then said very carefully. "Apologize I do, Miss Captain, I trying am."
"No one is faulting you, Tia."
"I am. Seems it the more to understand I try be, the niqcat … the worse things I make."
"We'll get by."
"Would you like me to translate for you?" Hoshi asked, but Archer held up his hand. He could see that it was particularly important to Tia that she continue to speak on her own.
"That won't be necessary, Hoshi." He could see in the restrained grateful look in Tia's eyes that he had made the right choice. "Please, sit down." She did so, in one of the large formed chairs, and he took his usual seat at his desk. Hoshi stood where she could see them both.
"Wrenaouq –." She bit it off. "I mean –."
"That's fine." He assured her.
She took a deep breath and tried again.
"Wrenaouq, when you me the Silurians from bought … yes …" She struggled to find the word. They would not embarrass her further by interjecting it. "Yesterday … you said I 'was not a slave any more'."
"No, you're not a slave. You're a free woman; though I had one interesting time trying to explain it to Admiral Forrest."
"Trinasli, um, do … understand I not, but something I you ask may?"
"Of course."
"If I property am nyasi … am not, may do I what I choose. I aboard Enterprise stay because place is there for me to go not. But feel 'pull my mass' I must."
"Your weight?"
She nodded. "'Weight', daai, I mean 'yes'. Sorry I am. I as a gisnart feel."
"Don't. You have been speaking English for, what, a day? Your progress has been absolutely remarkable. You've no need to feel embarrassed."
"Gratitude. Miss Captain…" Archer could see Hoshi about to correct her, but with a look he signaled the woman to resist. He did not want Tia's thoughts derailed now over something that could be corrected later. "I a Glistni, um, sorry, Bio-logist, am. That is … I … Trained I have, for many palyis … years. Can you … can I …." She stopped, and after a few seconds looked at him imploringly. It was clear she had reached the limit of her English.
"You want to work as a Biologist aboard Enterprise." Archer finished.
"Daai!" She breathed in monumental relief. "Yes."
"I'm certain that can be arranged. Hoshi?" He turned to the Linguist. "Would you take her down to the Life Sciences lab and see she is settled in? She can work with Ensign Cutler." The unvoiced implication came through clearly. He would like Cutler to become Tia's new 'best friend' in indoctrinating her into life among humans.
"An excellent choice, sir."
He turned back to the startled former slave. "I'll let Lieutenant Abrams know to expect you immediately."
Tia was astounded. "That it is?" she breathed, unable to believe what had just happened. "It been done has?"
"That's it. Why? What did you expect?"
"Klanstu – weeks!"
Archer smiled. "We do things a little faster aboard Enterprise." He held out his hand, indicating the door. "Ensign?"
x
Hoshi started to lead the flabbergasted girl out, but she turned back to Archer. She placed each hand to her chest, above her breasts, fingers upward and pressed briefly to her chest near her shoulders. "Gratitude I am, Miss Captain. Faithfully will I you serve."
He held up a hand to stop her. "We'll work together; you will not be 'serving' us."
She hesitated, confused. "But hear I the men and women speak of 'serving on Enterprise'."
"Hoshi will explain the distinction. But for the time being, I think it best that you reactivate the UT, at least until your new associates get used to you, and you to them."
"Wise you are, Miss Captain." Then she was gone, as if hurrying lest he change his mind, leaving the officers alone.
"I have the feeling," Archer mused, "that things down in Life Sciences are going to get pretty interesting."
"Yes, ma'am." Hoshi said with a grin, and exited rapidly.