I know, I'm a big sissy, but I really cried then.

I rushed into the alien's arms, holding him close. "ET! I've missed you so much! We've gone through so much to get here!" I tried to tell him everything, but honestly it didn't make a lot of sense because I was talking too fast and sobbing.

ET gave me that same look he'd given me when I'd first taken him to my house and attempted to explain my planet. An unreadable expression, leaving me unsure if he understood, or if it had been productive as speaking to a dog.

The alien patted me on the back. "Merry Christmas."

I frowned. "What?" Then I panicked. "Are you saying it's been that long? I thought we were only gone a few days! It wasn't even Thanksgiving!"

ET flinched, his eyes blinking rapidly. "Mudo!" He flashed the Vulcan sign. "I come in...peace-man."

"ET?" Gertie cried.

My alien friend tipped an imaginary hat to my sister. "Howdy, ma'am."

Gertie rushed up and hugged him. She cried too, her words just as awkward.

"Merry... Christmas?" He seemed hesitant saying it now.

"It wasn't even Thanksgiving!" Gertie whimpered.

"Mudo mudo mudo!" A lump traveled down ET's long neck. He rubbed her back. "Happy... birthday?"

My sister and I exchanged confused glances. Neither one of us had a birthday coming in several months.

"I... study... your... language," he said. "Do...I... speak... good?"

I chuckled, shaking my head. "It needs work. Ocjalra tasjamab oxawabom." The phrase meant `Hello, it's really good to see you, dear old friend from another planet.' I'd picked up that one from the modules. I felt pretty confident about saying it, the inflection and everything.

ET only got a wide eyed confused dog look.

"Jalra?" I attempted again, putting stress on the syllables. "Tasmjamaab oxawa bomm?"

My friend grinned, mirrored my head shaking. "Your...Wumpaza...needs...work."

"I can't believe it," Jamie said. "He's actually here."

ET pointed a glowing finger at her. "Here's looking at...Euclid."

"Great," she groaned. "He knows just as much about English as his friends. I thought he went to earth!"

His head lowered on his neck. "Robble robble?"

I gave Jamie an apologetic look. "We're not so hot in his language either."

ET waved her closer. "Excuse-me-Lieutenant-Columbo."

Jamie stared. "Is he always this weird?"

"I don't care." My sister had practically fallen asleep on ET's shoulder. "I'm just glad to see him again."

"I love you." I wasn't sure if ET meant it or if he quoted a soap opera.

Jamie, not having the same kind of relationship with my friend, didn't touch him. "So he's finally here...Is he going to let us out?"

Although now uncertain of my language skills, I tried a basic Wumpaza version of "Us outside now".

ET slowly nodded his head. "Fol-low."

We tailed him into the outside corridor, through an open door marked by a blue light.

I squinted at its dim interior. "Well, even if we end up in another prison, it'll be a prison with ET."

We rode a little capsule shaped pneumatic elevator to an observation platform amidst the trees. Our prison had been a large cylindrical building in the center of a cluster of domed `biospheres'. Monitors all along the platform displayed different animals in their habitats, rabbits, deer, elephants, tiger cubs, stuff like that. I would have felt a little upset when I spotted our prison among these, but at least we had a welcoming reception.

Charlie flew down from a monitoring station, giving each of us a nuzzle. Rilquza, Tolmina and Colzest, who had been idly reading wampum beads in our absence, got up from the benches they sat upon, greeting us with glowing fingers. And then there was...ET's...female friend with the Jack Russell patterning.

The female had been warming a slimy purple egg on a ridiculously thick pillow, but now stood up to greet us.

Shockingly, we also found ourselves in the company of Meazquad, that stranger who had 'face chatted' with us and taught us the language. He pointed a glowing finger at me, speaking in English. "Person!"

I laughed. "Yeah! You got it right!"

Meazquad put his hands to his sides, indicating my faux pas.

I slowly complimented him on his English, in his own tongue. He and ET chuckled to each other.

Jamie stared. "Wait, those two are friends?"

Our teacher pointed to ET, then himself. "Brother, sister."

Baffled, I frowned, pointing to him. "Boy? Muecowa?"

Meazquad Nodded.

I pointed to ET. "Girl? Vurnird?"

Meazquad shook his head . "Muecowa!"

I pointed to him, then ET. "You. Brother! No sister! Sister girl! Girl Vurnird!" I pointed to Jamie and Gertie. "Girl."

Not getting my explanation, he pointed to me. "You make baby?"

I scratched my head. "Um, I can..."

Meazquad pointed to the girls. "What they do?"

I pointed to my stomach. "Baby. Here."

Meazquad grinned, nodding his head vigorously. "It is the same." He pointed to ET's female, then ET. "Pabyeba is yernar. I muecowa, I cowtebmu baby. Vorxora lay egg. When you lay egg?"

Jamie burst out laughing. "Not for a long time! We haven't tried that hard!"

Meazquad blinked rapidly, not getting the joke, but my face flushed hot with embarrassment.

"Elliot," Jamie said. "I think your friend is a she."

The Qulpari (doctor?) who had examined me earlier, joined us for some reason, this time without the blue suit. He waddled up to Meazquad, rattling off a bunch of stuff as he handed (him?) a thing resembling a bento box.

The muecowa offered it to me. Each compartment held a slug creature.

"Don't give these to Gugorma!" he joked in Wumpaza. "Bad!"

I put one in my ear. "I won't."

I wanted to ask Meazquad to clarify his comments about ET's sex and what time of year it was, but before I could say a word, I noticed the Canada goose thing strutting up to us.

The creature itself didn't shock me as much as its companion:

An adult human being.

Lanky, Caucasian, crazy unkempt curly blonde hair , wild eyes, clad in a multicolored alien jumpsuit. "Wow! Kids!"

The man rushed up to us three humans, shaking our hands. "Hi. Nice to meet you. I'm Roy Neary. Did they pick you up at Devil's Tower too?"