I stared at the stranger, mouth hanging open in shock.

"Devil's tower in Wyoming? Big... mothership...no?"

We just gawked at him like a new exotic type of alien.

Jamie frowned. "You're saying they abducted you?"

Roy shook his head. "I sought them out. Did they abduct you?"

"Not at first."

"It's complicated," I said.

The man chuckled. "I missed human banter like this."

The man had the kind of desperate loneliness in his eyes and face that Robinson Crusoe got on that old movie. Honestly, I found it a little scary.

He snickered at the girls' homemade costumes. "Are those supposed to be astronaut suits? Cute."

"Hey," Jamie protested. "Gertie worked a long time on these!"

She put her hands on her hips. "So how did you get here? I'm dying to know."

Roy took a deep breath. "Long story. I'd love to hear yours too, but I bet you kids would like to get out of here, right?"

Jamie smirked. "So, what, we're going back to your condo to have a barbecue?"

The man let out a laughing snort. "Oh man, you guys..." He gestured back the way he'd come. "C'mon. I'll show you around."

I took a step in that direction and froze. "Wait, what about ET?"

Roy looked puzzled. "ET?"

I pointed. "Vorxora."

He spoke to the alien in Wumpaza for a minute, then the two frowned at me.

"We kinda live in two separate parts of town," the man said. "Your friend thinks you'd be better off staying with someone of your own kind."

Noting how I and Gertie suddenly looked depressed, Roy added, "C'mon, you can still see her! We just think you might want to stay with someone more like you."

We kids looked at each other with uncertainty.

"What do you think?"

"I think we need a dose of normal." Jamie paused to stare at the man. "Or...something...close to it."

Gertie pouted. "But we came all this way to see ET! We can't just leave him again!"

The man patted her on the back. "No one's leaving anyone, sweetie. We can fly you over to see her anytime you want."

"That's kinda what Mom said about Daddy before the divorce."

"Oh Jeez." Roy sighed and rubbed his face. "I'm sorry...Where are your folks now?"

"...Complicated. Where's your family?"

"Kid, we've got a lot to talk about. I just want to get your housing situation figured out right now..."

He talked with ET for a few more minutes, their expressions and gestures rather flustered, possibly a bit aggravated.

I wrinkled my brow as I stared at ET. Why did Roy keep saying `her' and `she'? Even when I found out how ET's species reproduced, I could never keep this straight in my head. I always wanted to describe...ET...as...male.

The `doctor' and the goose thing waddled away, I guess to continue scientific business downstairs.

At last Roy threw up his hands, "Fine. Here's what we're going to do. We'll take you on a grand tour, and I'll stay with...ET for the time being, and I'm kind of by myself right now, so, I'll, sleep on the floor or something until we get things figured out."

"Yay!" Gertie cried.

The man rolled his eyes.

The look on Jamie's face seemed to say `You see what I'm dealing with?' "So now that that's settled...when can we leave?"

As Roy and Jamie walked on ahead, ET muttered something to his, um...mate.

Since I had my translator, I asked if she were coming along. The two spoke together for another moment, then my friend told me, She thinks it would be too much jostling for the infant. She is going home to brood. It will be my turn again soon."

ET's `brother,' though, seemed eager. I would greatly enjoy traveling with you. You creatures are as fascinating as you are amusing.

Charlie stayed with us too, smiling, nuzzling against my sister's neck.

ET glanced at his companions. Someone needs to escort Pabyeba and the egg home. He may tire.

I decided I'd have to discuss this confusing gender thing with my friend soon.

I'll do it, Rilquza said.

Gertie had also taken one of the ear slugs. "Please don't go!"

Rilquza's shoulders slumped. Little one, we are not leaving forever. We have Vorxora's egg. We will meet up with you later.

Tolmina decided to go with him, but Colzest said he'd stay. Gertie smiled a little, but Jamie just rolled her eyes.

My sister sighed, giving an uncertain nod. You couldn't exactly blame her, considering all we went through.

Colzest wasn't blind to the favoritism, but still put a comforting hand on her shoulder, nonverbally volunteering to come with.

"You guys coming?" Roy called from a fair distance away.

We hurriedly caught up.

Gertie lagged behind a little. "Wait, what about our stuff? What about Chewy and Wingy MacSaurus and Harry Bugbird?"

I crossed my arms. "Gertie, those are their pets. They belong to the place."

"They don't belong here any more than we do...or the bunnies or the deer."

I sighed. "Gertie, it's not the same. They're animals. They have smaller brains. They can be happy in those habitats."

"The aliyums probably think the same thing about us."

I will ask about the animals, ET said. But I have my own. I will show you. They are well cared for, as family...I am sorry, but the animals you met, must stay in the Amujru to test things we bring back from earth. We can find you other Dolcani, Nedcolku or Wokuja if you miss them.

"It won't be the same."

You can always come back here to visit them...

My sister didn't like that idea either.

I put a hand on her shoulder. "C'mon, Gertie. You can't have everything."

We took an elevator to another giant caterpillar train thing, seating ourselves in its furry interior amid a crowd of Qulpari.

"Is it really Christmas?" I asked.

Roy became thoughtful. "Honestly, I'm not sure. I've been here too long. These...aliens have a different concept of time than we do. Nobody is in a rush to do anything, nobody worries about being late. Actually, that's one of the perks of living in this place."

Jamie picked at her furry chair. "We left in November. I know they kept us in that zoo thing a long time, but I didn't think it was that freaking long!"

"I've read that time passes differently in space. There's been a few sci-fi novels where people leave the earth and a bunch of time passes while they're away. I seem to remember one where the guy comes back from space and finds out his baby daughter has become older than him."

Gertie burst into tears. "We didn't even get Hanukkah!"

Roy hugged her. "Please, kid! It's just a book! I didn't mean that's what really happened!"

ET shortened his neck. I'm sorry. I thought 'Merry Christmas was merely a cheerful greeting. I have seen many recordings where humans say this and others smile in response.

I was glad to have a translator. "It's a holiday greeting, ET. Did you notice how it's always snowing in those recordings?"

ET shrank a little more. I...thought they were just stories from a snowy country.

"What about the trees and the gifts?"

He frowned. I...did not understand that part.

"I guess that's why you also told us happy birthday."

Yes. I did think taking you out of the Amujru was a good present.

"None of us were born this month."

His eyes widened. Oh! "Birth-Day. Date of birth." I thought that's what it meant!

I glanced at Roy. "You haven't taught these guys anything?"

The man shrugged. "I thought I was the only human here."

"Yeah, but your birthday..."

"I don't have an Earth calendar. It kind of lost its meaning after awhile."

My girlfriend looked depressed. "So there aren't any other humans here?"

Roy tapped his chest. "You're looking at the total human population. They did have some air force pilots and stuff that wound up here, but they all got sent back during the Devil's Tower incident. Before I arrived. Actually, it's okay. I'm happy for them." His facial expression didn't quite agree. "They got reunited with their families and everything. You know what I say? Good for them!"

"What happened at Devil's Tower? You still haven't told us."

He opened his mouth to tell us, but at that moment ET asked, What's Thanksgiving?

I gave him a rough outline, you know, family gatherings, food, the Pilgrims and so forth. "There's a cartoon called Peanuts that explains it pretty well."

"I have an Indian friend that takes issue with that story," Roy commented.

"I don't see how. It basically shows the Pilgrims to be clueless. They would have starved without the Indians' help."

"Well, there is that..."

"What was that place we left? It was a zoo, wasn't it?"

Roy smirked. "That's just a decontamination area. They really don't have zoos here. They prefer to build nature habitats and let animals go free."

The swing doors closed on the vehicle, the fuzzy thing gurgling as it prepared to take off.

Gertie leaned forward in her seat. "ET, are you a boy or a girl?"

I stared at the alien. "I admit I'm kind of confused about that myself." I pointed to his `brother'. "And his explanation didn't help."

ET gave Roy a look like he should be telling her the answer.

The man looked uncomfortable, nervously running his fingers through his hair. "It's...a little unusual. I...kinda have to explain a few things...I don't know if your folks think you're old enough to learn where babies come from."

My sister scowled. "I'm not going to see them for a long time, so you might as well tell me."

Roy rubbed his face. "Uh...kid, you know how frogs make babies?"

Gertie wrinkled her nose. "ET lays eggs in a pond?"

He grinned. "Sort of. They don't exactly go down to the lake. They have little Jacuzzi things to put them in. And after they're fertilized, one dives in and carries them around in their mouth for awhile. Uh...and there's three of them, not just a Mom and a Dad."

Jamie scrunched her face in disgust. "Three?"

Roy shrugged. "It's a...little...more complicated than how we do things. Their parts...work differently."

I gawked at Meazquad. "Did you make Vorxora's egg?"

The brother looked embarrassed. "Savyubmi," which translates into English as "I made my contribution to the whole that is equal to that of my other two partners," or "I made my mutually balanced contribution to the egg." Both meant the same thing in their language. It sounds like a complicated, unpopular saying, but you can say the same thing about Earth expressions like "We made out last night." The word Savyubmi also finds use in business ventures and scientific projects (like "Oh yeah? How did you make out?"), but only with the prefix `Jeb.'

Jamie wrinkled her face. "I'm guessing they start out smaller. The egg I saw with...Pabyeehaw looked too big to fit in her mouth."

Roy chortled. "Right. They just don't stay in their mouths. One of them has to actually carry them to term. In a different part of their body." He cleared his throat. "Let's just say that certain things, when you see them, can't be unseen."

"How old are you, ET?" Gertie asked.

"One forty two."

"You're forty two?"

Roy groaned. "He means one hundred and forty two."

"Wow. That's old."

The hairy subway thing quickly sped us down a track, opening its swing doors on a platform featuring a fountain with sculptures of Qulpari and eggs. After hearing what Roy told us about alien babies, the statuary seemed a little...obscene.

All around the structure stood spherical vehicles (for lack of a better term). Qulpari would get in, a set of large dragonfly wings buzzing them off to somewhere else in the jungle.

Roy opened the hatch on one, ushering us inside. The interior resembled a fancy diving bell, portholes all around, a long couch that went all the way around. Up front two bug-like window bubbles stared inside out above a dashboard thing with a little book sized computer.

Roy nonchalantly pushed a button and the thing rose into the air, flying over treetops and in between buildings. "So. I haven't seen a game in awhile. Who won the last World Series? The Cubs?"

I shook my head. "Nope. The Royals."

"Really! I thought their team kinda sucked a little!"

"They've got some good guys on the team. Especially George Brett, Saberhagen, and Frank White..."

"I'll take your word on that."

"Okay. Story time." Roy took a seat, crossing his legs. "I used to work for Indianapolis Power and Light. We started getting a lot of power outage reports around Muncie, so they sent me down there to investigate." He sighed. "UFO's. One of them came flying right over my truck."

Roy gestured to his face. "Can you see any scarring? I kinda got burned."

I shook my head.

"The guys here healed most of it...Anyway, on earth I got a little obsessed about the whole UFO thing. I kept seeing...visions...of Devil's Tower. I didn't know what it was at first. My wife thought I was crazy because I kept sculpting it, over and over again, mashed potatoes, Play-Doh, dirt from the yard...It, uh...put some strain on our marriage."

A dolphin creature flitted past the window on large dragonfly wings. Roy didn't seem surprised. He coughed, looking a little sad. "...Well, to make a long story short, I eventually figured out what I was seeing and took a trip to Wyoming. The government had set up camp there, trying to communicate with the alien mothership. I helped them. Turns out they like music."

Jamie furrowed her brow. "They government didn't arrest you or anything?"

"Oh they did, but they knew I had a connection with the aliens. They actually put me with a team of people that were supposed to go as earth's representatives in space. The saucer men chose me from five other people picked for the mission."

"Saucer men? You mean Qulpari?"

"No. Asogi. They're...something else. They come from Brodo Asogi. You'll probably run into them sooner or later. They did introduce me to the Qulpari, however."

Our chieftains were very impressed with him, ET agreed. He has provided much valuable information for our research teams, especially his knowledge of your planet's conservation issues.

Jamie rolled her eyes at him. "Lucky you. We didn't have nearly as much of a fun time."

Our vehicle clanked against a sort of track on one of the trees, and it turned itself into an aerial rail car.

Aliens had a masterful skill at building things right on the sides of trees without killing anything, and I'm talking big glass and steel industrial stuff, beautiful stonework and sculptures. We were so busy gawking that we didn't talk for several minutes.

Meazquad pointed at things and taught us some vocabulary.

"So what's your story?" Roy prompted. "Where's your parents?"

We told him everything worth telling.

I'm sorry I couldn't be there with you, ET told us. But I knew you were intelligent and could understand my instructions. He turned his attention to Colzest. So they have manifested Yobzara.

Yes, but they are bad at it. It is dangerous. They killed our friend Zijbuva.

ET rubbed his chin. I have heard. Practicing with rocks was not a good idea!

We feared they were violent. We needed to test their aggressiveness somehow.

"Hmmm..." ET opened a container, taking out a squishy ball. Not sure what sport it was for, it resembled a hedge apple with rubbery hairs sticking out of it. He levitated it into the air, flung it at Gertie.

She ducked. "Did you want me to pass it back?"

ET nodded.

"Sorry. I'll try again."

The two used their powers to ping-pong it back and forth.

Roy stared in shocked disbelief. "I didn't know she could do that!"

I shrugged. "Can you?"

He shook his head. "So far my only alien superpower is making homemade pizza with stuff I find around here...and...some passable attempts at ice cream."

Meazquad grinned at Gertie, seeming to be impressed.

I frowned at ET. "I still don't get it. My sister is more powerful than I am, and I've been way closer to you."

The alien smirked. I do not play favorites. I love all three of you equally. There are many ways to manifest Yobzara. Neither one of you is more powerful than the other, you have just developed different skills. For example, your sister would not have been able to communicate with me from such a long range without you helping her. There are many other skills. We can take you to a place to have your abilities tested, see what you are capable of.

"Do you have any guesses about what I might be...good at?"

We have a ritual, the Yojdisib. It may give us an indication.

"How did Gertie get..." I avoided use of the word `powerful.' "...To have those amazing gifts anyway?"

Gertie levitated the ball around. "When we first met, me and ET sat on the floor and held hands. We looked into each other's eyes, and I started getting...ideas...seeing things. I felt I knew ET's name, but I didn't know how to say it in words, just...a picture of a purple forest, and two moons, and a bunch of pretty flowers. I guess it's a place. And then, I felt this...jolt go through me, kinda a nice, happy feeling. I felt...really good...I got this idea like I could do anything."

She wiped blood away from her nose. The ball dropped to the floor. "I should stop."

"I don't think you should mess with that stuff, Elliott," Jamie warned. "It doesn't look like it's good for you. I mean, look at her!"

Gertie gave a halfhearted nod. "Maybe not if you do it all day long...My head hurts."

Roy opened his mouth to say something, but ET replied, We have some medicine that might help you.

By the time we finished telling Roy our story, the diving bell thing had docked at another platform.

We came out in front of an enormous building shaped like a cactus with onion domes serving as its spines, strolling around rows of gurgling fountains, passing dozens of merchants of various ages, shapes and sizes selling all kinds of weird stuff. A lot of plants, glowing things, computer devices, beads, tapestries, woodcraft, textiles, and food.

"Are they still making Mork and Mindy episodes?" Roy asked me.

I nodded.

Jamie tugged on Roy's colorful sleeve. "You ever think of leaving here? You know, back to your wife?"

"Not really. She'd never understand. Like I said, she left with the kids the moment I started making sculptures." He gave her a smile that seemed a little forced. "But I moved on, found a niche for myself here. It's...a little strange...still...kinda figuring things out...but I moved on!" It sounded like he were trying to convince himself. His nervous laugh didn't convince me much either. "Got some friends here...good friends. The best!"

Roy led us up to a prefabricated concrete (I'm assuming) dome tent, talking to a grandmotherly looking old Abreya and its much younger looking friend of the same species. "These guys are great! They know just how to fit me. Never had a problem with them."

Meazquad wandered off to do some shopping elsewhere.

Jamie stared. "What are we doing here?"

Roy rolled his eyes. "Tell me something. How much clothing did you bring? Those outfits look a little dingy." He held up a display piece. "This stuff is super comfortable. No scratching, no tags, stretchy, cool in the summer, warm in the winter. You hardly notice you're wearing it."

The old creature smiled at us.

Gertie idly played with a pair of alien harem pants. "I'll take one. They look cute."

"Cute!" I groaned.

Roy gave me a look that said 'Are you kidding me?' "Who are you trying to impress, kid? Your friends at school?"

I could tell Roy regretted saying it the moment the words left his mouth.

Jamie stormed out.

"Oh Jeez," Roy groaned. "I'm sorry. I knew it was a touchy subject..."

I hurried to follow her, but the man stopped me. "Let her go. I think she needs time to cool off. I'm sure she'll come back eventually."

Out the opening, he yelled, "Look, I'm sorry! We'll be waiting for you, okay!...Don't get lost!"

He patted my shoulder consolingly. "She'll be back. I mean, where's she going to go?"

I waited for ET to say something in disagreement, but he only shrugged.

The old female shopkeep scanned Gertie with a laser, feeding the information into a computer. In response, a silkworm-like machine immediately squeezed out fabric.

The shopkeep had a child about Gertie's age, named Bacon Okrasmuc. The two played tag around the tent while the machine did its work.

ET asked me about the little demonstration I'd given him when we'd first met. Apparently he hadn't understood a few things, like the `plastic gods' I played with (He-Man and Skeletor), why I'd sullied an aquarium with a plastic scuba diver toy, and if I'd brought any more `orange sticks.'

I stared. "You want carrots?"

No, no, the ones that are crunchy and have salt.

I smiled. "Cheetos, you mean? Sorry, no..."

"What about the small multicolored sweet things?"

I suddenly felt guilty - ET certainly deserved a gift for all his help. "Reese's Pieces? Nope, sorry."

"Oh man," Roy groaned. "Please don't ever mention those again. If there's anything that makes me homesick, it's thinking about...that, or Kentucky Fried Chicken, or...beer, or...an A&W float. Granted, my body has been completely purged from impurities, but to be honest I wouldn't mind a little impurity now and then. They're the number one reason I don't volunteer for their little `Boob Tube' project. If I see one more hamburger commercial..." He gave a dramatic shudder. "I've been driving Norenio crazy with cooking experiments. I think we almost mastered the Twinkie. That and nachos with salsa. You should try them. They're to die."

Roy took a little device out of his pocket, talking to someone (well, arguing) for over five minutes. Not the same language that ET spoke, and he spoke so fast I only caught snippets. I stared impatiently at the ornately woven abstract rugs, and outfits that looked like they'd been crafted from huge insect wings. Human apparel seemed to be a side item, like egg rolls in a donut shop.

In the meantime, the machine finished, and Gertie received a vaguely kimono-like outfit, lots of wild colorful floral designs. She got underwear too, but the alien apparently didn't know the difference between male and female clothing, so it came out male. I've heard girls like to wear men's boxers sometimes, so Gertie didn't seem to mind that much. I imagined there would be some awkward conversations with our tailor when she got older.

I kept glancing outside, hoping to see Jamie come back, but she never did. I got a little worried.

Roy put his device away, forced a smile. "Hey. Did Gumvupu get your measurements yet?...You know, I could talk to her about maybe getting some skull designs or maybe the Superman logo or something, if you're really bothered by the look. Me, I kinda think about them like Hawaiian shirts...or those Indians in Florida that have the long dress things."

He noticed the face I made when he said `dress'. "Okay, maybe not that, but have you seen what Korean guys wear to weddings?"

I rolled my eyes. "Fine. Just give me a tie dye or something."

Another Abreya entered the tent, this one taller and younger than our seamstress. Furry body, aqua colored Bob haircut.

I thought her a customer at first, coming back for another bug wing halter and loincloth combo matching the one she wore, but in a different style. Instead, Roy took her in his arms, grasping her opossum-like tail as he muttered to her in the other, unfamiliar language. His fingers smoothed her squirrel brown fur.

The female smiled, kissed him on the mouth with her rodent lips.

The female's goat-like eyes widened when she noticed my staring. She pulled away from the man, gave me this look like nothing at all unusual had occurred. "Hi children," she said in clear but accented English.