"Looking for me? I do not understand," Juliette whispered, despite T'Mar and herself being the only two in the terrace garden. Her arrival at the monastery had always felt secret - hidden under the cover of an electrical storm.

"Two days before you arrived, Master Surot talked to a man. I had not seen him at the monastery before. He was an older Vulcan, dressed like someone from the cities. They met in a side corridor, late in the evening."

Juliette frowned. "You were out of your room that late?" She remembered P'Mera's words: Perhaps this will be a lesson to her that she should not be wandering about when she's supposed to be resting.

"That time I was looking for signs of the secret levels. There is an old operations center on the fifth floor. From there, you can look at old maintenance records, but I haven't been able to get further than the basic commands - and most of those reference mountains that were destroyed. That means-"

"What about the man and Surot?" Juliette asked before T'Mar wandered too far off topic.

"They were talking in the hallway just outside the operations center. The air doesn't work well in there so I leave the door cracked and dim the console so I could hear them nearby. He told Master Surot that an alien would be staying at the monastery and that she would be for quite some time."

Juliette continued to work the next row in parallel with T'Mar. "An alien? Not Betazoid?"

"They spoke in vague terms like that - 'alien' and 'arrangements' and 'will be useful.' They talked about many things - you, and the monastery. He mentioned closing the monastery for a while, but Master Surot was refused quite firmly."

"Close the monastery? Why?"

"I do not know. They spoke very quietly. I could not hear it all, and I could not get any closer - if I had been caught, the consequences would have been severe, and my mother would insist I be schooled at home - or maybe with my father in uzh-Gol."

"Could he have been from the Vulcan Science Academy?"

"I don't think so. He did not wear robes from the Academy."

They completed the gardening in silence. Between them, the rows were done with enough time to clean up before morning meditation. Not that she'd be able to mediate, but she had to try. Juliette yawned.

"Let's work on the projector tomorrow."

"Your project will fall behind."

"My project has no deadline. But the garden will not wait." And you need rest. Juliette looked across the terrace. The sun was just beginning to pick over the ledge and spill into the cavern, washing the carefully manicured rows in gold. "It's so beautiful here, T'Mar. Let me help you with the gardening? I miss the gardens back home."

"The Initiates should let us split the time, and work on each other's projects. It would be good to not wake so early. I have not been as efficient as I could be, and not a very useful assistant."

"I hope I can be as helpful with your tasks as you have been with mine."

T'Mar who stopped by the orchids and stared at the ground. Juliette felt the struggle boiling within her, contending with words and sensations that to her Vulcan mind were not just undisciplined, but unbalanced. The kindest thing Juliette could do was ignore it. T'Mar forced herself into motion - an abrupt nod and determined stride out of the garden.

They arrived slightly early for morning meditation, though Juliette had to leave her dirt-covered gloves behind. After meditation, the morning meal, and then classes. After the mid-meal there would be more classes, and time for projects. She hoped T'Mar could hang on that long and get to sleep after the after-midday classes. But Juliette had no intention of sleeping.

She'd ask Master Surot about her hair. Someone would ask questions if her hair miraculously styled itself. But she still needed to get out, prowl the evening sands and get to know her territory, dig for zattre bladders in the Kli'mari mounds, see if she can make the Ur-worms think it's storming and dig for the surface. She was a Scion of the 433rd House of Betazed, part of a delicate web of obligation and patronage that was the cornerstone of Betazoid society.

And she had obligations.

#

With T'Mar well-rested, their progress with the console improved. Juliette herself found a new clarity in gardening and exploring the base of the mountain, as if those elusive FthinraKathi words were not just in the computer's memory, but hidden among the twilight crags and trails on the mountain slope, or nestled between the warm, moist roots of Plomeek.

The deciphering of the console became a meditation, a mantra of desert sands and memory core interrupted by evening chimes and aloof dismissed by Pylkau. Papa still attended their work and sipped his tea and took notes of his own - talking to the PADD with the volume of his holo projector turned down so his words remained his own in the Alpha quadrant. He shrugged off Juliette's desire to see his notes with an easy smile and declared his ramblings unimportant. Still, in those moments when she emerged from the fugue of symbols and words, she would look up and study him - his face lined with thought as he spoke to the PADD - his lips tracing out terse words.

When the schematics for the for the projector appeared and did a slow pirouette in the center of the projection ring, it took them a second to realize what they were looking at. Then, Juliette cheered so loudly, Pylkau looked up from his work in alarm. Thankfully, she stopped short of hugging T'Mar, who leaned away at the possibility. Instead, she steadied her emotions and suggested tea which they took in the dining area.

"Before we send the information to Betazed, we must prepare a presentation," Juliette said, pouring T'Mar's tea.

T'Mar blew across the top of her steaming cup. "We could just send the information to Betazed."

"But on Betazed, all great discoveries have a presentation. A presentation, a celebration, and cake," Juliette said, adding her third dollop of zattre to her tea.

"It is just the blueprint. We have so much work ahead of us. If we have cake for every minor success, we'll be waddling down the hallways."

"But we worked for weeks on this. Didn't you say your mother would be pleased with all the translation you've done?"

"It would be gratifying to see mother pleased," T'Mar said.

"She is not normally-"

"No." and after a moment, said, "Juliette, if your family would enjoy a presentation, then I agree."

Juliette tried to keep her face neutral but smiled despite herself. "Thank you. We can go over the primary sections of the blueprint and use holos of sparkleflies to highlight-"

"Sparkleflies?"

"Well yes. They all over Betazed. They're insects with bodies that are bright green, and they have these huge wings that glow when they flap them. And, since you have to point out things on the blueprint so you could have a sparklefly hover over - You don't like the idea."

T'Mar looked down and sipped her tea. "Maybe just one sparklefly."

"Great. And you can pick the music that will start the presentation."

T'Mar frowned.

"Oh, if you'd rather leave it plain-"

"Yes."

"Okay." Juliette sipped her tea and grimaced.

"You should use less zattre," T'Mar said, adding more tea to Juliette's cup.

Juliette leaned forward on the table, her voice just above a whisper as she looked at the small groups scattered amongst the dining area. "T'Mar. I must ask you a question. I am concerned that you will be off-umm, not offended exactly but-"

T'Mar leaned close enough or Juliette to count the fine hairs along her eyebrows. "I will regret this, but ask. I will not take offense, though I will tell you where you have breached etiquette, and there will be no further repercussions. Is that satisfactory?"

Juliette braced her hands on the table and took a deep breath. "When you touched me, why was Danek injured as well?"

T'Mar sat back on the bench, contemplating her tea. She appeared calm, but Juliette could feel her inner struggle, and she worried T'Mar would not be able to keep her promise loomed.

"It's nothing. Forget I asked," Juliette said quickly.

"You ask me for impossible things. Start over. Forget."

"They're expressions-"

"Danek and I are bound."

"-thewhat?" She scrambled to recall what she had learned about Vulcans and family when Danek had mentioned his parents were bound.

T'Mar leaned forward toward Juliette. "When we were younger, it was decided that Danek and I would be-"

"Mates?"

T'Mar winced slightly. "Bound."

"Like P'nem and Lorot?"

"A similar function, but yes, though they were bound later in life."

Juliette looked around, "Is it a secret?"

T'Mar shook her head. "Everyone knows, but it is never discussed. It is very, very-"

"Personal?"

"Very personal. One discusses this with family and closest friends."

"I see. I guess I do live with Danek's family, so I could be considered-"

"Perhaps you could be considered family, but that is not why I told you."

"Oh then - oh."

They sipped their tea in silence.

Juliette asked, "You do not seem hap-this arrangement does not please you."

T'Mar shrugged. "I am neither pleased nor displeased-"

"Oh."

"-but I do have to make a decision."

"What kind of decision?"

"This - while my binding is well-known, this part is not common knowledge. I feel I can trust you."

"Of course."

"And, no one else talks to you."

Juliette frowned. "There is that." She cast an expectant look toward T'Mar. "Well?"

"I am not sure I want Danek."

"You can only have one?"

T'Mar tilted her head. "I-I do not understand."

"My mother has three consorts."

"My condolences."

Juliette tilted her head at T'Mar. "What do you mean?"

"Hasn't your mother lost two husbands?"

"No, no, no. I mean, Kanara's father - Prelep - he died during the Dominion War. I never got to meet him. But the rest are still around. I think she likes Lars best, but that might be because he's my father - you've met him, he's funny, and very smart. Soren is nice too, but I think he likes the boost my mother gives his house more and Atros, well, he's just a trivial, but Kanara thinks he's cute, but he's kind of dumb. What?"

T'Mar stared, wide-eyed and sat back, as if to hide behind her teacup. "Yes. I suppose the answer is that I can only have one,"

"And you do not want Danek?"

"I do not know."

"Can the bond be-"

"One does not break these binds lightly; they're only broken when there is something wrong with one or the other in the couple."

"What is wrong with Danek? I won't tell anyone."

"Nothing. But-"

"But what?"

T'Mar reached for the pot, but Juliette snatched it and filled T'Mar's cup - as was polite. "My parents - are not like P'nem and Lorot. They live apart and only get together once every seven years."

"Seven years, like a ceremony? Or-"

"No."

"No, then wh- oh."

"Yes. I do not wish to be in such a situation."

"Of course."

T'Mar swallowed more tea before she asked, "Perhaps, a change of subject?"

Juliette nodded. "I thought the plomeek in the garden looked a little yellow-"

"I think I have determined how to find out more about the man Master Surot spoke to that night."

Juliette blinked, her attempt at a topic forgotten. She leaned in, a conspirator. "You win. How do we do that?"

T'Mar cradled her teacup on the table. "I was not trying to win."

"It's just a phrase," Juliette said with a sigh. "Go on."

"I have determined from the entry and exit logs that he did not come in through the lower parts of the monastery, but from the top, like any other pilgrim."

"Do they keep track of visitors to the top?"

"There are sensors that record who come into the monastery and visit the Kolinahr masters. Those logs do not show anyone who resembles the visitor from that night. But, they may have been cleared. However, there are long range sensors to detect those who call for help while trying to cross the Plain of Blood. Those are on a separate system, so to access them, I would have to be on the summit of the monastery."

"You mean we would have to be on the summit," Juliette said then paused. Master Surot told her she couldn't go to the upper levels until she was stronger. At least, she felt stronger. Besides, that was to stay away from undisciplined minds. No one would be there at night.

"Tomorrow night then," T'Mar said.

"The night after? I have to go out."

"You have been going out a lot. What are you doing out there?"

Juliette shrugged and sipped her tea."

T'Mar leaned close. "I understand if it is personal. But please be careful. Many pilgrims get seriously hurt on the Plain of Blood. And the electrical storms are coming back."

#

The sparklefly didn't render quite right and appeared more like a hazy, multi-colored blob that flitted from section to section of the blueprint. Afterward, T'Mar went over the words that she had discovered and translated from the console - Juliette had persuaded her that reading down the entire list would take too long and that perhaps to only go over the more difficult ones. Nonetheless, her face remained buried in her PADD as she carefully pronounced FthinraKathi words for nearly fifteen minutes without pause to look up.

From the Sri side of the projection ring, Kanara idly fingered her long hair and feigned a yawn. Lara crossed her eyes and stuck her tongue out when Juliette glared at her.

On the other side, a group of Vulcans listened attentively. P'nem, Lorot, Danek, Master Surot, and a broad-shouldered Vulcan woman as thin and dry as the desert scrub. T'Mar got her ears from her mother. And her frown.

Juliette's family clapped when it was over. The Vulcans did not, which did not deter Juliette's family a bit and left her in the abyss between mortification and pride.

All in all, perfectly wonderful. The twin audiences met in the center, though the sides remained.

T'Mar stood stoic as her mother flipped through the PADDs contents. "Your work is thorough, daughter. You have done well."

T'Mar bowed. "I am gratified my mother is pleased. Novice Sri was of considerable assistance. This would not be so thorough without her." She switched to the formal. "Juliette Sri, mine mother P'arama."

Juliette made her bow respectfully low. P'arama's eyes Her gaze flicked over before returning to T'Mar. "I am pleased with your work, daughter."

Juliette sighed. On Betazed, a whole quadrant away, there was Uttaberry cake, but the projector was in no way capable of handling food. But there were some pastries with layers of zattre-soaked kov-saya and spiced tea.

Lorot was talked calligraphy with Papa. She could tell by the broad, sweeping gestures he made with his arms. Mother carried on a pleasant interrogation of Master Surot and P'Nem. Kanara chatted with Danek. She watched her family and saw the signs; the occasional glances and pauses as they kept each other informed and shared notes of their separate conversations. Things seemed almost normal.

She felt a tug on her ear and Lara's voice. "You know, I think they are getting longer." Juliette hugged her sister. All the tactile sensations were off, but she wanted to anyway.

"Everyone seems to get along," Juliette said.

Lara laughed and said, "One is nicest to one's enemies, sister." and added at Juliette's wide-eyed stare, "The Vulcans aren't stupid. They already know. Just play along. Sorry that the sparklefly didn't render right. It looked great on our end. I'm surprised you settled on just one."

"T'Mar would only tolerate one. She's-"

"Boring?"

That earned her sister a quick glare. "Austere. It means she just doesn't like a lot of decoration."

"I know what it means, sand-mite."

Juliette sniffed. "Most Vulcans are like that. Is Kanara still mad about Starfleet prep?"

"She's gotten over it - mostly because she thinks it's just a stepping stone to the Vulcan Science Academy, and to keep an eye on you.

"What about House obligations?" Juliette asked. "As Second Scion, you're supposed to attend the Matron."

Lara scowled. "I'll leave that duty to my younger sister." She grinned and pinched Juliette's nose. "Don't look at me like that. I love Kanara, and any second that attends her house will be fortunate. But sister - me? Attending? Liaison to the House?" She switched topic. "Do you know how jealous I am of you?"

"Of me?"

"You're on Vulcan. There are a whole line of people waiting to study sciences on Vulcan, and you're here, even if you're in a broken-down monastery. I begged Papa to let me help with the holographic systems and that dictionary!"

"He said yes, right?" Juliette asked, but spied T'Mar following her mother to the entrance of the room. Were they leaving already? Lara waved off her hasty excuse and let her dart over to Kanara and Danek.

"The presentation was very informative," Danek said, pulling his attention from Kanara, who leaned back behind Danek's vision and smirked at Juliette.

"Thank you. Most of the work was T'Mar's. She gave up a lot of time working in the garden to translate."

"That was generous of her."

"Yes, it was. Perhaps you should tell her that." Juliette looked pointedly toward T'Mar and her mother and back to Danek. "Wouldn't that be nice, Kanara?"

Telepathic or not, Kanara smiled at Juliette. "Yes, it would. Oh, Lara's messing with your blueprint. I should keep her out of trouble."

Juliette smiled. One day she would be a formidable matron.

"Will you not join me?" Danek asked Juliette after a few steps toward T'Mar and her mother.

Juliette shook her head. "I think the less T'Mar's mother sees of me, the better."

"I fear you are right. I will tell her later."

Juliette felt a surge of annoyance. "Tell her now."

Danek's brows arched high. "I fail to see the urgency."

"I fail to see your hesitation," Juliette said with authority. "Is it perhaps you're-" But Danek had already turned and strode toward the T'Mar and her mother.

"One should be careful playing matchmaker, daughter."

Juliette hadn't even noticed her mother approach - all serenity and smiles in a russet and plum sheath dress that flattered both her mother and the house colors. Juliette felt her explanation die in her throat- there was no use. Mother would catch the lie. But changing the subject was fair game.

"Mother, if you could only mate seven years, would you choose Papa?"

Sedna smoothed an errant raven curl of hair back into place "Seven years daughter? And what have I done to deserve such a curse?"

"Nothing, Mother. I just ask because Vulcans-"

"Oh, that's right. Pon Farr."

Juliette struggled not to choke on pastry, "Mother!"

"Daughter, if I could only be with someone once every seven years, I'd have turned my home planet into a Godsforsaken wasteland too. But that seven year thing is not entirely true, daughter. Don't look at me like that! Your father is dean of the research academies. What good is having unfettered access to the research stacks if I do not use them? Vulcans can and do have normal relations, just like us, and are only compelled once every seven years. Their binding process keeps things at least a little less frenzied, and pairs...synchronized."

Juliette stared at T'Mar and Danek, standing a respectful distance apart, his hands clasped behind his back, hers in front. It seemed impossible they could ever lose control of themselves.

Her mother's voice was close to her ear. "Yes daughter, even them. Though he spends more time looking at you than her, but some things take time. For Vulcans, a very long time."

"He does not," Juliette said, feeling a cool chill along her arms.

"All through the presentation, he-"

Mother had stolen the conversation back; Juliette struggled to recover it. "T'Mar says her parents only are together once in seven years."

"That might explain her mother's expression. We are not Vulcans daughter, and especially in that area, I thank all the gods. Tell me, Scion, how do you expect me to choose only one? Do you think I cared for Kanara's father any less than yours? Do you think she wants me to choose her father over yours?"

"No Matron," Juliette said, a heavy pit of shame forming in her stomach.

Her mother's voice warmed as her fingers smoothed Juliette's hair. "You are not in trouble, daughter. You haven't found your first yet. You will, and when you do, you'll find out holos can only explain so much."

Juliette let her gaze drift across the room. The projections of her family were hazy and overbright - artifacts of the projector. Only the Vulcans, locked in their pairs - Lorot and P'nem, T'Mar and Danek - seemed real. Real. Distinct. Separate. But she felt so alien among them. She felt her mother tap her head, and she looked up at the fine lines that radiated from the corners of her smile.

"Daughter, those that hold to the Gods tell us that everything that and will be started as a single thought, and each of the gods thought they could catch that thought and hold it for themselves. One at a time, they tried to do so, and each became so full, they shattered. The gods gathered the broken pieces of themselves and made each of us a vessel to help hold all that is creation because no one being, god or otherwise, can do it alone.

"But mother, we don't hold to the gods."

"Of course not. Most of it is claptrap. But that doesn't mean their poetry does not have meaning. It's unfair to someone to expect them to be everything for you, and you will not be everything for them. Only by sharing the universe can we even begin to bear it. I will tell you what my Matron told me, daughter:

When you find your second, tell me your first is enough."

"It sounds like a curse, Mother."

"A curse; a promise; a blessing. The gods are fickle that way."