As the Wheel Turns

[Loklorien s'Ilancy]

"When can we see Wyl???"

It was a question that the elder Lupine had become very well acquainted with, as well as the answer that was constantly repeated.

"Soon, Ss'esa'eda. Soon."

Teagan s'Ilancy gave a huffed breath from one side of her mouth, but otherwise kept her hand firmly locked within the comfortable confines of her mother's firm grip. It was the girl's first time visiting the Wheel, and s'Il had to wonder if it was truly a good idea. Her daughter had begged and pleaded to come, relentless in her quest to win consent from both mother and father. In the end, both had given in.

And now s'Il and Tak were with the small, rag-tag fleet of Jedi ships and their Alliance escorts. A quick stop to her office aboard the Challenger allowed the Lupine to retrieve the requisition datapads that she'd no doubt need when she'd arrived on the Whaladon, as it was a rare occasion when she did not have fewer than ten official supply requests on any given visit.

That particular errand had only lasted a few minutes, and it wasn't long until they were both stepping off the shuttle into Whaladon's receiving hold, and Teagan was anxious to be reunited with Wyl, her eyes roving about the compact bay for the boy.

s'Il kept a wary eye out as well, though not out of any excitement. More to the point, she was making sure that her presence here would go as unnoticed as possible - at least as far as one of the Wheel's doctors was concerned. And it wasn't Barton Henning that her wariness stemmed from.

"Does he know I'm coming??"

"He doesn't. I made sure to not say a word," s'Il took that moment to scoop the girl up into her arms - she was nearly too big to carry now, but that never stopped the elder Lupine from desiring to hold her.

"I've made sure it's a surprise like you asked."

"Good."

[Wyl Staedtler]

"I still don't understand why I should learn this. Pshew! Pshew!"

Sprawled on his belly on the floor, Wyl Staedtler eagerly prepared his fleet of starfighters - a ragged crew he'd fashioned himself with cast off bits and pieces from the tech deck - to meet the threat of the advancing krayt dragon army. Who were also mutants. And hungry.

The little common room that ran between the set of living quarters was meant to be just that: a shared space where occupants could relax and enjoy the company of one another, if they so desired. But with the oblivious persistence of youth, the Jedi padawan had gradually begun to seize control of the furnished space, his belongings drifting out from his own designated room and encroaching upon the shared territory. Everywhere one looked, jury-rigged armies were strewn in various states of battle - Wyl's personal favourite being the electrical wire Wookiee about to be savaged by a very familiar looking vornskr.

"I'm a Jedi, we're supposed to concentrate on finding unity with the Force, not on material wealth," the boy glanced up as the door that he'd been directing his words to slid open with a muted hiss. Studying the figure carefully, Wyl shook his head.

"I like the red one better."

[Taataani Meorrrei]

It was, in some strange way, like years past. The sound of children nearby made Taataani feel more alive than anything, and even though she'd had to train herself to tiptoe around the ever-repositioning minefield of toys in the common area, she had embraced the opportunity to play rent-a-mom. After all, she was probably better at it than anyone.

At Wyl's assessment of her clothing, Taa naturally ran a hand down her side as she looked across the way in the porthole mirror.

"Oh do jyou?"

Easing to the floor, she propped herself up on an elbow as she surveyed some of the toys between her and him. It was easy to admire the loving care he'd used to fashion them.

"Sso, jyourr Jedji trrajinjing makess jyou a fasshjion crrjitjic too?"

Setting one of the toys down, she reached for another, inspecting it.

"Asss forr learrnjing about monejy, therre arre verrjy good rreassonss that even a Jedji sshould know about jit."

She glanced around.

"How manjy tojyss do jyou have?"

[Wyl Staedtler]

If this was a test, then he was going to ace it. Any commander worth his weight in galactic credits knew exactly how many soldiers he had at his disposal.

"Thirty-two," Wyl answered, hissing loudly as a bold pilot executed a reverse pull and swooped around to drop behind the enemy. "I had to disassemble the command ship because Morgan needed his hydrospanner back."

[Taataani Meorrrei]

Taa found a particularly intricate looking toy, and held it up.

"How long djid thjiss one take to make?"

[Wyl Staedtler]

Ahh, his Fang replica. That one had been a painstaking project of devotion and anal-retentive attention to detail. He still had a scab from where a bit of hydrocoil had skewered his arm during the framing process.

"A pretty long time," Wyl said, eyes narrowing thoughtfully. "Maybe a whole week."

[Taataani Meorrrei]

Taataani searched the pile, and found another toy, this one wasn't nearly as complex.

"And thjiss one? How long?"

Her tail lazily flopped at her side as she set up an argument for cost-benefit analysis that even an eight year old could certainly comprehend.

[Wyl Staedtler]

"Psh, that's a droid. They're easy to make."

Bright eyes met Taa's gaze and Wyl grinned. "You want one? I can totally make one for you. I absolutely can."

[Taataani Meorrrei]

"Well, majybe laterr..."

She smiled sweetly, and turned the little droid over in her hand. She gave the Fang figurine to Wyl, and proceeded to construct her hypothetical.

"Let'ss ssajy jI have the drrojid, and jyou have thjiss one. Now, jI want to trrade jyou. Would jyou trrade?"

[Wyl Staedtler]

The boy gave a vehement shake of his head. To think of engaging in such a barter was ridiculous. Besides the obvious labour invested in the vornskr reproduction, he had a personal attachment to the model. It was special.

"No way," Wyl said, his fingers twining tighter around the toy. "That's a lousy deal."

[Taataani Meorrrei]

He knew it was a bad deal, and Taa pressed him to come out and say why.

"No? No deal? jIt'ss one fjigurre forr anotherr. Whjy wouldn't jyou trrade?"

She held up the droid, as if by showing it off, he'd reconsider taking the foolish trade up.

[Wyl Staedtler]

He had the vague sense of being as a bantha led to water but such scenarios were usually beneficial and always interesting. An eager grin spread across Wyl's face and he pushed his hair out of his eyes with the heel of a hand.

"Because it's not an equal trade," he said. "That's just spare washers and copper wire soldered together. It didn't take any time at all. But this," brandishing the vornskr in the air, Wyl continued. "This one was a lot of work and I had to search for exactly the right pieces to make it look right."

[Taataani Meorrrei]

"Sso, jit matterrss how manjy parrtss and how much tjime goess jinto each? Now, letss ssajy jI had morre drrojidss than thjiss one. How manjy would jI need to offerr jyou beforre jyou would trrade?"

She set the droid next to the vornskyr and her ears pitched upward.

"Fjive? Ten? Twentjy?"

[Wyl Staedtler]

There was comfort in the fact that this was a purely hypothetical negotiation. Wyl traced the lines of the toy in his hand, fingertips settling on the grooves along it's bottom where a seam was concealed.

"I... I don't want to trade it," he said. Droids were of little interest by comparison. "It's my favorite one. A hundred couldn't match it. Not even a million."

[Taataani Meorrrei]

Now this was a new wrinkle. Taataani took the vornskyr up, and examined it. It was lovingly made, but exactly what made it the kid equivalent of priceless?

"Wouldn't trrade at all, huh? Whjy'ss that?"

[Wyl Staedtler]

"Because it's Tak," Wyl said, his face filling with a tender radiance that looked out of place on the boy's face, a sweater too big for small limbs. He watched intently as Taataani inspected the model and wondered if she appreciated the depths of power that the trinket possessed. No, that was an insult; it wasn't a trinket, or a toy, it was a... a talisman.

A forlorn curl of breath escaped the boy and he propped his chin up in his hands. "Tak's my wife. She doesn't live here, though. That's why I made it. To remind me of her."

[Taataani Meorrrei]

And just like that, they were on to completely different life lessons. Taataani's face beamed into a smile.

"Ahhh...iala nai na tethai jyou neverr told me jyou werre alrreadjy chossen, how ssweet."

She was certainly no stranger to these innocent little infatuations, although they played out perhaps a bit differently in a Cizerack context. Nevermind that she knew exactly who little Wyl was carrying a torch over.

[Wyl Staedtler]

"Iala what?"

There was no mistaking the high colour in the boy's cheeks. He was embarrassed for the simple reason that the fact remained that Tak was a girl and he was a boy and they liked each other and that would always be weird. Taa's sparkling eyes drove him to look away, one small hand rubbing the back of his neck sheepishly.

"Aw, it's no big deal. I mean," Wyl's shoulders tugged upward in a matter-of-fact way. "We're worlds apart. She's never even been here before."

[Taataani Meorrrei]

"An old ssajyjing jin Cizeri, love. The fjirrsst love jiss the ssweetesst. And sstarr-crrosssed love?"

She sighed nostalgically.

"When jI wass jyourr age, jI adorred a bojy named Aandaarriu. We met at a ssummerr camp, but sspent mosst of ourr tjime farr awajy on djifferrent worrldss."

She paused, ready to dispense a bit of wisdom.

"Don't let anjyone tell jyou that jyou can't be togetherr becausse of djisstance. jYourr hearrt wjill fjind jit'ss wajy wherreverr jit wantss to go."

[Wyl Staedtler]

Curiosity piqued, the boy propped himself a little higher on his elbows. It went without saying that Fang was his - what had Taa called it? His star-crossed love. Wyl liked that, the feel of it as it rolled around in his mouth all round and smooth and the vague sensation of tumbling through the glittering depths of space with a through-line that it left at the edges of his mind.

"What happened to you and..." Wyl's brow creased diplomatically. "Aan... the boy you liked?"

[Taataani Meorrrei]

"When jI wass 14, he became mjy fjirrsst hussband."

Taa smiled wistfully as she picked up another toy and turned it over in her hands as her tail lazily flipped.

"Sstjill jiss, and one of mjy favorrjitess. He alwajyss knowss what jI'm thjinkjing."

[Wyl Staedtler]

It was good to know that love still had the capacity to be a lasting force in the galaxy. So many were cynical and jaded, gave those thin, humoring smiles that didn't reach their eyes whenever Wyl mentioned matrimonial endeavors. So it was -

Hang on a minute.

"Your first husband?" Wyl frowned. "How many do you have?"

[Taataani Meorrrei]

She realized she'd probably overextended herself, and there was always a bit of her own experience that was lost in translation when relating to forrda.

"jI have thjirrteen, but jI djidn't get them all at once, ouiha. jI've had a long tjime forr that."

She grimaced a little.

"But a Cizeri famjiljy jiss, ah...well, djifferrent."

[Wyl Staedtler]

"Thirteen?!" He sat up, voice echoing in the small chambers and ringed with such a prodigious amount of shock and awe that a few twisted wire-soldiers toppled over from their coffee table stakeout. Belatedly, Wyl recalled how Taa felt about needless shouting and his face slipped into sheepish apology.

But still: thirteen husbands. Wyl tried to imagine a baker's dozen worth of Tak and found himself growing faint with the effort.

"But what do you do with 'em all?" he asked incredulously. "I mean, isn't it confusing?"

[Taataani Meorrrei]

She thought about it.

"jIt can be, but that'ss jusst ljike anjy otherr larrge famjiljy. Orr majybe a betterr example, take herre."

She gestured to the door, as it was obvious she was talking about the community at large in the Wheel.

"Everrjyone hass ssomethjing to do, and jyou all know what jit jiss, but when jit'ss all ssajid and done jyou morre orr lesss worrk asss one, no?"

She could still tell the bombshell she'd dropped on poor Wyl was probably still rattling his ears, so she broke it down.

"Aandaarriu and Taurrifarr prrobabljy arre mjy mosst rressponssjible men, jin terrmss of how much thejy do and how much of mjy mjind thejy ssharre. Fasshieerro jiss a naturral fatherr fjigurre forr the cubss, and he'ss ussualljy the one to deal wjith that."

[Wyl Staedtler]

"Is it sort of like having a cabinet, then?" Wyl wondered, his words coming at a slow, thoughtful pace as he mulled over the maintenance required to keep so many relationships running. "Where delegation and diplomacy keep everything from getting all mixed up?"

But before Taa could answer he switched lines. "How many cubs do you have?"

[Taataani Meorrrei]

Wyl's comment on bureaucracy and diplomacy elicited a mirthful laugh, but before she could wholeheartedly agree that it was a good analogy, he had pushed on to other questions.

"All togetherr jI have fjifteen. Mosst arre all grrown up. Majybe jyou've met mjy sson Cirrsseeto? He'ss one of mjy jyoungerr oness, but jI alsso have a few arround jyourr age too."

[Wyl Staedtler]

"Cirr's your son? He knows practically everything about ships!" The admiration was high in Wyl's tone but he was troubled by a secondary thought. Cirrsseeto was old. He was old by anyone's standards; if he was one of the glamorous madam's younger offspring, like she said...

And so, though he was well aware it bordered on a cardinal sin, the boy asked, "How old are you, Taa?"

[Taataani Meorrrei]

Taa took on a look of mock surprise, and gave Wyl enough of a prod with a clawed fingertip to elicit a surprised yip from him.

"jYou don't assk all ladjiess that quesstjion, do jyou? Ssome mjight take offensse!"

Her surprise melted into a conspiratortial smile as she mellowed.

"But forrtunateljy, jI'm not one of them. jI'm sseventjy ssjix."

With a wink, she continued.

"Don't look a dajy overr sseventjy fjive, do jI?"

[Wyl Staedtler]

There was only one answer to that particular question.

"No, ma'am," Wyl said with a grin. He made sure to say it with real emphasis, too, so Taa would know he meant it. Women appreciated men who were genuine.

"I'd like to meet your cubs one day," he remarked, sweeping the wire army over and then standing up to brush them aside with his foot. "All of 'em. We could have a party, it would be great! Fang and I never did have a reception."

[Taataani Meorrrei]

"A rreceptjion?"

Well this was adorable. Taa sat up fully cross-legged now, straightening up the toys in between her and Wyl.

"You'rre alrreadjy marrjied? Wherre'ss jyourr kaa'rri?"

With emphasis, Taataani traced around her neck in a loop, emulating a necklace.

"jYou'll have to assk jyourr wjife forr one, elsse jyou'll be chassjing off hopeful jyoung gjirrlss forr the rresst of jyourr ljife."

[Wyl Staedtler]

Wyl's face brightened as his palm pressed against the bumpy outline of the cord around his neck, hidden beneath his robes. The sandpanther charm that Tak had given him bumped against his probing fingers, it's sloping lines an elegant display of tribal ferocity. The gift had been a simple exchange between friends but now it seemed to take on greater meaning and the boy was pleased. What fortune, to have a kaa'rri before the knowledge of them!

"Like this?" Wyl asked eagerly, pulling the twisted cord from his collar and lifting it up for Taa's inspection. The jagged tooth was polished smooth and it's tapered end glinted meanly in the low light. Whoever had fashioned it into a charm had set an ornate copper ring into the enamel, a knot of artfully twisted bands that allowed the treasure to be strung onto a fastening.

"Tak - oh, um, that's Fang - said that whoever wears this absorbs the spirit of the sandpanther it came from," the boy explained. It was true, too: he always felt a shoring up of strength when he put the trinket on. "And I gave her a really special rock from the praxeum ruins on Arkania. That's just a fancy way of saying a Jedi Academy."

[Taataani Meorrrei]

"Well, jI sstand corrected."

Taa leaned in to examine the necklace.

"And a fjine kaa'rri jit jiss too. Jusst be ssurre to wearr jit on the outssjide forr everrjyone to ssee."

She patted it against his chest for good measure.

"That wajy, jyou don't go brreakjing hearrtss."

A smile still teasing her face, she laced her fingers together in her lap.

"Sso Wjyl, arre jyou a good hussband then?"

[Wyl Staedtler]

"I... I think so," Wyl said after a pause. "I mean, mostly it's just a lot of listening. And making sure that we've got a new endeavor - we're explorers, you see. Explorers without new territory die an intellectual death."

[Taataani Meorrrei]

It was amusing to hear children try on words too big for them. It usually resulted in a complete misunderstanding of them, but occasionally they stumbled upon wisdom they hadn't even realized.

"jI'm ssurre jyou have no sshorrtage of adventurress, bejing a Jedji and all. Sstjill, eventualljy jit'ss njice to ssettle down, and even jif therre'ss nothjing at all to do, jyou'll have the besst of tjimess togetherr."

[Wyl Staedtler]

There was a circular thought. Wyl didn't think that he and Tak would have a very good time doing nothing, but there was never nothing to do when he and Tak were together. Therefore they would never be bored, always stumbling across one mystery or another by the kind hand of fate, and they would indeed have the best of times. Which was basically what Taa had just said, wasn't it?

"We're going to live on our very own ship," he confessed. The Plan (always referred to in portentous whispers) was a future that the young Jedi very much looked forward to. It was simple, uncomplicated, free. "And travel all over the galaxy. Hey!"

Wyl looked up at Taa with earnest excitement. "Maybe you can help us decorate!"

[Taataani Meorrrei]

"Jusst asss long asss jyou don't go trravelljing arround jin a Correlljian sshjip."

She glanced up in a look of disgust.

"Onljy sso much to be done wjith ssuch ugljy thjingss."

With a wink, she pressed on.

"No, jyou'd do much betterr wjith a Koenssajyrr-Meorrrei. Majybe jin exchange forr bejing mjy Jedji prrotectorr jI could get jyou a djisscount when jyou'rre olderr."

With a laugh at the absurdity of it, she shrugged.

"jYou wouldn't be the fjirrsst perrsson jin thjiss convojy who'ss taken me up on that."

Changing tact, a mischievious grin crossed her face.

"Everr put on anjy makeup forr jyourr wjife?"

[Wyl Staedtler]

The conversation went from one worthy of salivating over to gag-inducing.

"Makeup?!" Wyl gaped at the horrifying idea. "But... I..."

Belatedly he remembered his last diplomacy lesson. Daria had explained that there were a great many ways in the galaxy and that no one idea was right. Tempering his personal opinions to this encompassing view - even if he didn't agree with or accept the cultural peculiarities that he would invariably encounter - was a vital life skill and one that would be necessary in procuring favourable negotiations.

Wyl tried to keep the distaste from bleeding into his expression and shook his head. "No. M'pretty sure she doesn't care for it."

[Taataani Meorrrei]

"jYou'd be ssurrprrjissed."

Taa smiled, and gestured to her face with a slight shake of her head.

"Not ljike mjine, no. That'ss anotherr thjing entjirreljy, but the rrjight amount of ejyeljinerr and a ssubtle colorr on jyourr ljipss, jI bet sshe'd change herr tune."

Without another word, Taataani was on her feet and in her room. In whatever time Wyl might be able to stammer an excuse not to, she had returned with her own makeup bag.

"jI ussed to do jit forr mjy jyoungerr brrotherrss, jit'ss fun."

[Wyl Staedtler]

Taa was speared with a dubious look. Wyl narrowed his eyes and glanced at the makeup bag as though he were expecting poisonous snakes to slither out and attack him.

"Nothing glittery, right?" he asked.

[Taataani Meorrrei]

Taa looked shocked at the boy's expectation of the worst, and placed a hand to her chest.

"jI wouldn't darre."

Her eyes narrowed a little as she gave a confident smile.

"No, that wouldn't do forr a jyoung man. jYou'll want darrk, ssjimple colorrss. Ssomethjing to contrrasst the blue jin jyourr ejyess sso that when sshe lookss at jyou, thejy appearr even morre handssome. Ssomethjing that tellss herr that jyou'rre dependable and wjill follow herr wherreverr sshe leadss."

Choosing a suitable eyeliner, Taa uncapped it, held the felt tip up, and extended her other hand as an invitation for Wyl to rest his cheek against it.

[Wyl Staedtler]

Well. He did have nice eyes. Besides, makeup could be washed off in the end anyway and Taa was a wise, matronly figure. Wyl was fairly positive she wouldn't steer him in any wrong direction.

Like a champ the boy scooted forward and leaned into her gentle grip, eyes scrunching up involuntarily as the brush neared his face.

"Careful, don't poke 'em out!" He gasped. Allowing someone to prod a pointy pencil at ones ocular organs without flinching went against all natural instinct. Women were insane.

Drawing a deep breath, Wyl looked at Taa imploringly. "Not that I think you would," the boy amended. "But just in case."

[Taataani Meorrrei]

"Rrelax..."

She paused, giving his cheek a tap with a finger, and exhaled, imploring him to not hold his breath.

"...all of mjy cubss sstjill have thejirr ejyess and jI'm jintent on keepjing that rrecorrd perrfect."

She started with a few strokes that would cause least offense, the ones furthest from the eyes, Pausing to let Wyl see there was no harm, she continued.

"jYou look sso much ljike Cirrsseeto djid when he wass jyourr age. He had to keep hjiss ssjissterrss arround hjim at all tjimess to keep the gjirrlss awajy."

[Wyl Staedtler]

The pencil felt slick against his skin, not unpleasantly so. It was a strange sensation but as Taa carried on and no grave tragedy befell them, Wyl slowly let loose his nervous tension. For once the boy managed to remain nearly still, a feat that had escaped even his meditation sessions; the concentration required to keep his eyes open and listen at the same time demanded too much of his energy to spare any for muscle twitches.

"Did Cirr wear this stuff when he was my age?" Wyl was trying to imagine the hulking mechanic in the same position. It was decidedly difficult to picture.

[Taataani Meorrrei]

"He djid, and he wass verrjy handssome when he djid sso."

Taa thought about this and made a little face.

"Not that he jissn't now, but jI jimagjine worrkjing jin an engjine rroom doessn't afforrd the optjion to do that ssorrt of thjing. He alsso ussed to be qujite the ssjingerr, djid jyou know?"

Continuing to gently work the countours of his face, she edged toward his eyes with a sure hand.

"Do jyou ssjing? That'ss an eassjy wajy jinto a gjirrl'ss hearrt."

[Wyl Staedtler]

If picturing Cirrsseeto wearing cosmetics was a challenge, projecting him tarted up and singing like some holovid sweetheart in a musical production was insurmountably impossible. Unless maybe it was engine grease and space rock they were talking about, the two concepts just didn't jive.

The little boy went to shake his head and then remembered that moving was a shortcut to disaster.

"Uh-uh," he said. "But, um, I like music. Especially Wyl Leber and The Crash (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kuq7RYQ8Wa0&feature=related) because that's who'm named after and also because they're possibly the greatest band in the history of life. Have you heard them before?"

[Taataani Meorrrei]

Musical trends were a game for the young, and Taataani cluelessly shook her head.

"Can't ssajy jI have, arre thejy a popularr band?"

Finishing up the eye job, she retrieved a tissue to wipe away at a messy line at the outskirts, finishing up the look. With that done, she retrieved a case of small cyllinders. Giving Wyl's lips a glance, she retrieved the appropriate one, threading it until a tapered bit of color eased from the tube.

"Next...do thjiss."

She pursed her lips out a bit.

[Wyl Staedtler]

"Are they popular?!" Wyl repeated incredulously, lips obediently smooshing together in an overstated pucker. "Thew orie th' 'est 'and ewer, Taa!"

Something rich and creamy was smeared on his lips and Taataani rubbed her own together, demonstrated a smacking motion that Wyl imitated.

"You can borrow my recordings, if you want," Wyl nodded, eyes round and filled with earnest encouragement.

[Taataani Meorrrei]

"That'll be fun! La heiia nee jarrarra even!"

She winked at him, inspecting the job she'd done on his lips. Satisfied, she capped the lipstick.

"jIf jI can dance to jit, jit'ss good mussjic to me."

Finishing up, she tilted Wyl's dolled-up face upwards toward better light, for her to get a final appraisal.

"Well, jI thjink that about doess jit. Ssometjimess jI'd usse powderr, but jyou've got loveljy sskjin."

Taking the boy by the hand, she led him to a nearby mirror, waiting for his verdict.

[Wyl Staedtler]

The difference was startling. When Taa had convinced him that no ill would come of her artful ministrations and that they would be an asset to his masculine attributes, Wyl had imagined something a little more... dramatic. Perhaps a gruesome mask of painted scars and diseased scabs that would strike fear into the hearts of all who had the misfortune of looking upon his face. Or maybe camouflage like a shriek-hawk flutterbies (http://www.mothscount.org/images/sub/EYED_HAWK_MOTHS_1.jpg) to make it look like his mother had gotten radiation poisoning when she was pregnant with him resulting in a mutation of sorts, all-seeing eyes all over his head.

The true result was a bit more subtle. Rather than hiding his features, the makeup instead emphasized them. Wyl's kohl-rimmed eyes seemed to glow unnaturally beneath his dark hair, his lips striking a dangerous curl against pale skin.

The boy blinked and turned in the mirror to inspect his profile thoughtfully. "It looks quite fierce, doesn't it? Like a real wild space frontiersman, almost."

[Taataani Meorrrei]

"Verrjy handssome."

She ran a hand through his hair, unconsciously straightening the part as she withdrew her hand. Tidying up was automatic to her.

"Do jyou talk wjith jyourr wjife vjia holo? jYou ought to arrrange a chat wjith herr and gjive herr a ssurrprrjisse!"

[Wyl Staedtler]

Wyl leaned into the touch, the rough rasp of it soothing in a distinct way that was both instantly recognizable to him and yet achingly unfamiliar. Dama s'Il had a way of doing the same thing - turning an innocent look or a touch into something that made his chest tighten and unravel all at the same time.

At the mention of a holochat, that wonderful beacon of technology that had been such a cruel tormentor these past weeks, the boy's face flickered with a pained grimace. It looked rather spectacular with the makeup to highlight the discomfort printed across his face.

"We do." Wyl answered, his voice a flat plane of regret. "But we had a misunderstanding and then I talked to Morgan and we got it sorted out. Except I haven't heard from her again and this time m'really not sure why. There's no possible reason for her to be upset or anything. I told her that I didn't actually mean that I liked her better as a... well, better in a different way than she usually is. I like her in any way just as equally as any other way."

[Taataani Meorrrei]

Ah, the lover's quarrel. Taataani looked down to the boy's face which emoted his conflicted feelings that much more clearly with the aid of the small amounts of makeup.

"Trrjy agajin. And agajin. And agajin. When jyou'rre jin love, jyou sshouldn't have to wajit forr anotherr dajy orr ssome ssjign. jYou have to be a bjit sstubborrn. The mosst jimporrtant thjing jI everr learrned jin bejing marrrjied jiss to neverr let the ssun sset on anjythjing. A mjissunderrsstandjing that'ss left to ssjimmerr wjill causse rressentment."

[Wyl Staedtler]

The idea that anyone could give up on Teagan was as as nonsensical an idea as ever there had been. She was the sort of girl that warranted exclusive devotion and, like a dizzying slingshot run at a gravity field, once one was committed there was nothing else to do but hold on as tightly as possible and never close one's eyes for fear of missing some crucial, beautiful detail.

Wyl solemnly stowed away the bit of imparted wisdom and offered Taa a nod. "You would like her. Dama s'Il always says she's just like her father but Fang's a lot like her, too, and that means that she's practically the most interesting girl ever. Do you know, once she knocked her tooth out trying to do a backflip off her bed and she didn't even cry, Taa! Not even a little."

The boy approximated a breathy noise that was as close to a low whistle as he could manage and shook his head in admiration of the testament to his beloved's strength and daring.

[Taataani Meorrrei]

"jIt'ss a ssmallerr galaxjy than jyou thjink."

She teased at him with a little tail flop at his side.

"jI do beljieve jI've met jyourr wjife beforre Mrr. Sstaedtlerr, and jI can confjirrm sshe'ss jusst asss jinterresstjing asss jyou sssajy. Sshe and one of mjy jyoungesst cubss, Daanarri, plajyed togetherr brrjiefljy on Muunjiljinsst."