Bonus Chapter III

Night of Creation, Night Ten

Heginium

The canvas was covered in circles of different colors, all overlapping each other to the point where the canvas itself was no longer visible. Heginium had been studying the canvas for half a mark and found no discernible pattern to the circles or colors.

“What does it mean?” Haliam asked as he stepped up to stand next to Heginium.

“I haven’t figured it out yet,” Heginium admitted. “I thought at first the colors and sizes of the circles might be a code, but if that’s so, then it must be too advanced for me.”

“I like that one better,” Haliam said, pointing to the drawing next to the painted circles.

“What is it?” Heginium asked, tilting his head as he regarded it.

“I think that’s a Talin,” Haliam said, pointing to the figure on the right. Then he moved his finger to indicate the figure on the left. “And that’s a human.”

Heginium wasn’t sure Haliam was correct. “What are the spikes coming out of the human’s head?”

“Those aren’t spikes, thats hair,” Jiya said with a laugh as she stepped up to stand next to Heginium. “One of the kids drew that. I think it’s supposed to be Zia and Palforma.”

“I see the resemblance now,” Heginium lied.

“Night of Creation isn’t about being accurate or perfect, it’s about having fun and being creative,” Jiya explained as she swept an arm out to indicate all the paintings, drawings, and sculptures on display. Almost every human contributed something, so the place was full of items to look at.

“Thank you for your insight,” Haliam said as he looked past Heginium. “I see Sandorium, I need to speak to him.” He hurried away, leaving Jiya and Heginium alone.

“It’s okay if you don’t like the art,” Jiya continued. “It’s not for everyone.”

“I can understand this,” Heginium said, pointing to the child’s drawing. “But I admit, I can’t seem to comprehend the meaning behind these circles.”

Jiya’s smile got wider. “That’s mine. It’s not the type of art you think about. It’s the kind of art you feel. What do you feel when you look at it?”

“Confused.”

The moment the word was out of his mouth he wanted to call it back. It would be easy for Jiya to take his comment as an insult and the last thing he wanted to do was upset the pretty human.

Instead of getting angry, she laughed. “Then I guess I did my job.”

“You wanted to confuse me?” he asked, sounding a rumble of amusement.

“I wanted to make you feel something, and confusion works,” she replied. “I could talk about what the painting represents to me, but in the end, what matters is that you experienced something while looking at it.”

Her words caused a small revelation for him. Talins tended to value practical art. A well-crafted bowl or an exquisitely built domicile. This new way of looking at art made him want to go through and reevaluate his response to the rest of the displays.

“Will you walk with me?” he asked. “I’d like to get a human perspective on all these pieces of art.”

“Sure, but only if you share what you're thinking and feeling with me,” Jiya agreed and held out her hand. Heginium sounded an excited rattle as he wrapped her hand in his. The humans were so much more open to touch that he shouldn’t read anything into her offer. Still, he was determined to enjoy their time together.

“Sharing my inner thoughts is new to me, but I’ll do my best,” he said.

She gave him a solemn look. “That’s all any of us can ever offer. Maybe tomorrow we could sit next to each other to watch the Night of Shadows performances.”

Heginium’s heart leapt. She was singling him out! “I would enjoy that.”

“Good,” she said, walking him to a sculpture of a spaceship emerging from an egg. She started talking about what she thought the sculpture meant, and Heginium hung on every word as if she might quiz him later. He knew it was important that humans felt heard and respected. He was determined to do anything to make Jiya happy.

Tomorrow he’d bring blankets, pillows, and food for Jiya so she could watch the Night of Shadows performances in comfort. He’d make sure she never regretted asking to hold his hand.