10. Stella

Chapter 10

Stella

I 'm dumbfounded by how much food these Hyrrokin brought.

An extremely yummy breakfast is spread out on the counter. Meat sticks flame on a platter. There are mugs of fire ale, which seem to be a perennial favorite amongst the Hyrrokin, no matter the time of day. There are side dishes of mushy food that looks good and there's even some sweet bread I recognize from last night.

And they brought plates, utensils and cups. And there are pop-up chairs grouped in front of the lit fireplace, enough for everyone and there are even some pop-up tables with attached bench seating.

Rake introduces me to his brother Thorn and his younger brother Sten. Then I'm introduced to Burl, who is Thorn's ranch manager. And I meet Erid again and discover he's the local sheriff, which makes sense. Four tall, imposing Hyrrokin who I suppose aren't trying to be scary in any way but are failing miserably. I'm learning to tell these beings apart by the size of their bodies and the height of their horns and the slight differences in their features. It's difficult though, when the beings you're speaking to all have barbed tails flicking behind them and tell-tale puffs of smoke escaping from their red nostrils.

The five of them start talking amongst themselves about ranching issues and we all move toward the food. I follow the rest of the group to get my own plate.

"Welcome."

I glance over and see both women are now next to me in line. And my shoulders soften.

"Hi, I'm Lucy and this one over here is Mica, we're both so happy that there's another human in our midst."

Lucy is the young redhead and the other one, who is so beautiful as to be intimidating, is Mica. Both hold small, squirming babies that they pass off to their husbands. I gaze in fascination and longing at these adorable infants that are half Hyrrokin and half human, both with tiny starter horns and a peek of barbed tail from their diapers.

This is possibly my future.

"That dish is my favorite."

Both the women help me pick Hyrrokin food that they think I'll like the best, which is wonderful. We chat about cats, the weather and their babies. And we make plans to get together soon.

Finally, I sit down and see that everyone else is seated too.

Everyone looks like they're basically waiting for me to talk, so I talk. Rake is next to me and he grabs my hand and gives it a squeeze. I take a deep breath and begin. "I'm just going to start. Hopefully you can all hear me because I can talk loud." I laugh, thinking how oral presentation in front of others is nothing to me. "I'm going to tell you absolutely everything, even things that Rake hasn't heard yet but I want to be transparent and start off with nothing hidden."

I explain how I was a teacher on New Earth and admit that I was also known as an activist in my town. And then I tell the story of how I did make that fatal error, where I tripped and fell and splashed red paint around, which was permanent, but I had no idea it was in my bag.

"Was that paint planted in your bag?" Erid asks.

I blink, surprised he made such an immediate leap and thrilled that his mind went there, since no one where I left wanted to entertain that idea. "I'm not sure, but why else would it be in my bag and I didn't know? I tried to tell them, but no one listened. They thought I was lying. Although I did not feel bad about the mess because the mayor is literally a criminal and was committing fraud and I was trying to expose him. But they were all focused on the red paint."

"Did someone in your group trip you, causing you to drop that bag of paint?"

I pause and meet his gaze. "I never thought of that part, but that could've totally happened, which makes me sad because that would mean one of the people I was with wasn't really my friend. Thank you for pointing that out." I pause for a moment, because that's terrible, the thought that possibly Ted or Victorya could have done that…and then I take a deep breath and continue with the story and get to the most important part…

"And that was when I found out I was pregnant."

The room goes quiet.

I glance over at Lucy and Mica, who are staring at me with mouths wide open. They are literally the only ones in the room who didn't know because I'm not showing yet, obviously.

I look at both now as I talk. "I had a one-night stand that I did not expect to be anything. The biological father of my baby is not around and never will be. I am about three months along."

"So, it's fully human," Mica blurts out. "Your baby is fully human. And it won't be…" She glances over at Rake.

"Yes, I am carrying a fully human baby. If Rake decides to stay with me, he is not the biological father."

Rakes parents both look at him with confused expressions.

"Both Stella and her child are mine." Rake says firmly. "Stella is human and does not understand, she can't help but still apply human motives to what I tell her. I am adopting this child. This child is mine. And when we go to the courthouse, this human infant will be a Flagstone and raised as if it were mine."

His father nods. "Good." He waves a claw at me. "Continue."

"When they found out I was pregnant out of wedlock, which is illegal in that town, they were then allowed under their law to make sure I got married. I was fired from my teaching position and kicked out of my apartment and everything packed and sent to my mother. Then they immediately set me up with this mail-order bride service and the next thing I know I'm here."

"Oh wow," Lucy exclaims. "That's pretty nutty."

"I agree," growls Erid. "It is entirely inappropriate and should in fact be illegal."

"Thank you, of course I thought it was wrong too. But the real problem here is what has happened to Rake because of my being forced to arrive here against my will. Rake thought he'd purchased a real mail-order bride who really wanted to marry someone and was looking for a change, ready to arrive and work hard. Someone who wanted to start a family too right away. I feel bad because I feel like he's getting a bad deal. I am obviously already carrying a baby that isn't of his species. And I was sort of shoved onto a disk and then I'm here. And to be truthful I have my own accounts and I don't really need to stay. If I could get access to my currency I could pay for my own trip back to New Earth and maybe he could get a refund."

I glance over at Rake and see a muscle twitch in his jaw. Gray smoke puffs from his nostrils. Uh oh.

"I'm just trying to be honest. I want what's best for Rake. And if I'm not what's best then I don't have to stay."

"I understand your worries," his mother says, "but the problem with what you're saying is that you arrived and learned that you are attracted to my son and want to be his mate now that you've met him."

I look at her with surprise.

She taps her nose. "I can scent how you feel about him."

Mica laughs. "It happens to me too. You just get used to it."

"Son, what are you going to do about this?" his father questions with a deep voice of authority.

"I met Stella and soon after realized that she was my future bound," Rake answers. "I've already explained that I consider both mine." He turns to meet my gaze. "You have already told me all your concerns about wanting me to have the ability of a refund and I explained that I don't want that. I want you and the child you carry, if you'll have me." He looks back at his parents and then around at the table. "I have one moon cycle to talk this female into staying and walking with me to the courthouse."

Sten lets out a snort. "I think that's the most I've heard Rake speak at a family meeting in the last five years. I like her simply because she makes him livelier. She must truly be his future bound. I understand why he would take on a female not of our species, who carries a child already that he will have to adopt. He'd only think that way for a female who is his."

There are rumbles of agreement and they're all staring at me.

His mother asks. "So what are you going to do now, Stella? Are you staying or are you leaving?"

I open my mouth and then shut it again.

"My future bound has one moon cycle to decide," Rake repeats. He takes my hand in his. "Stella will not be rushed. She must know this is a good and safe place to stay and raise her offspring, so I will give her the time to show her that this is where she belongs."

My eyes grow hot and watery. "I've told you every bad thing about me and none of the things I've said so far make you want to run in the opposite direction?"

"I want you as you are."

I start to choke up. "It's just that I came from a place where I was discarded for being who I am. And I can't change. This is me." I point at myself. "I'm this weight. This is the way my hair looks. The way my voice sounds. I talk kind of loud. I like to organize people and fight for people's rights, but I also like to teach and I love children."

"There is nothing wrong with that," he says. "These are all admirable qualities."

"I just want to land somewhere where I'll know that my child, even though he or she will be fully human, won't be raised and treated as less than for not being the same species as the majority of beings on the planet." I sniff and take a deep breath. "Okay, I'm done. I'll shut up now."

And I look up and they're all smiling.

Erid leans forward. "I don't like the way you were treated on your home planet. I don't know if it's worth it to try and go backwards and get any of that fixed considering I hope you're not returning, but I want you to know that on Tarvos, we have none of those same laws. But you have to understand that when you decide to walk to the courthouse with Rake, you will legally become his mate until one of you dies from natural causes, hopefully very far in the future. There is no human divorce on Tarvos. And if any children you have, including the human child that he's adopting, if you then decide later that you want to leave and return to New Earth while still bound to Rake, those children stay on Tarvos."

"Rake already told me all of that," I confirm. "But I appreciate you telling me again and making sure I understand what I'm getting into and will be able to give my genuine consent."

"Good, if there's anything else you ever want to know about the laws here on Tarvos, if you want to read up on them and educate yourself, I can help you with that and send you the information."

"I'd like that," I answer with genuine enthusiasm. "I enjoy studying law. I always think that if I weren't a teacher, I probably would have been a lawyer."

Erid smiles. "I like her."

"I like her too," Gryce says. "And I think that I can speak for everyone in saying that we appreciate your transparency. You have nothing to worry about, you will see that our laws, even in the most remote villages, would never allow such a thing to happen, where you were forced into a mating for instance and then forced off planet."

"Well," Erid says, "she could be forced off planet in one moon cycle, unless she chooses to walk to the courthouse with Rake. After that date I will indeed have to escort her to the transporter station for her return trip to New Earth."

"Yes, but I think there's the distinct possibility that you might like it here on Tarvos," Lucy pipes up from across the room. She points over at Mica. "We're both happy here. Mica and I are treated as equals, even though we're female and human. There hasn't been a single problem and there's lots of other women who live here too and they're happy. I think you'll like it. You should give it a chance."

"Okay," I nod. "Okay."

"Well, I think now is a good time to deliver your gift to Stella," Sten remarks, handing a thin package to Rake, who then hands it to me.

"What is this?"

"Open it."

I carefully remove the wrapping and find the most beautiful, sleek, thin glass tablet. The type I've always coveted but never thought I could afford.

"This is your new tablet so you can communicate with me, or anyone else here on Tarvos, but so you can speak with your mother and also access your accounts."

Mica points to a small box by the front door. "And I brought along a starter pack of Hyrrokin clothes. I hadn't met you yet, but after speaking with Martina and with Rake, I hope I was able to guess at your size. Later, you can go into town with us and we can show you how to get a whole new wardrobe that will be custom made for you. You can even get shoes, or as they call them here ‘human foot coverings.'"

I hug the tablet to my chest. "Thank you, all of you. Thank you very much."

Rake rubs my back and then pulls me into a hug.