Eleven
Catherina
“And you think that’s all the Aquallians need?” Farthu asked. “That we take the lead?”
I nodded slowly. “To be honest, Farthu, I don’t know. But are you willing to try?”
I could see the Estaan woman thinking it over. I was meeting with them alone, explaining my new idea. They seemed to be receptive, if not exactly thrilled with the idea. Mythological Earth women aside, the prevailing attitude throughout the universe was that the men did the pursuing off the women. There were exceptions, of course, but like on Earth, most women wanted to be won. Not surprising, I suppose, since we were all decided from the Ancient Ones.
“It might be fun,” Gurthu piped up. “It will be an interesting to be in charge for a change.”
I noticed a couple of others nodding slowly as they thought it over.
“That’s the spirit! While I think most men appreciate a woman that knows what she wants and isn’t afraid to go after it, you’re going to have to most of the work with the Aquallians.”
“And if they reject us?” Jhilu asked.
I shrugged. “And nothing. It will be no different than now when they reject your, in my opinion, rather obvious advances. If this doesn’t work, there are plenty of men out there that would love to mate and bond with you, but before we give up on the Aquallians, I thought you might enjoy the experience of being in control.”
Gurthu smiled. “Quorin is so handsome and is such a delight. I’m tired of waiting on him to do something. I want children, and I’m willing to try what Lady Catherina suggests.”
“Atta girl,” I cheered.
Jhilu nodded and then smiled. “Me too. Quosson is very charming if a little slow. Perhaps all he needs is the proper motivation.”
The rest of the group began to nod and I grinned. Now, if the damned Aquallians will just do their part.
An hour later, the Aquallians arrived and started in on my lecture. I tried to be subtle with the changes I made to my instruction, but always encouraging the women to be ever bolder.
The hardest part was convincing the Aquallians that it was okay if a pretty woman was forward and spoke plainly about what she wanted. As I expected, the Aquallians were put off by the brashness of the Estaans as they fumbled around, unsure of what to do or how to act, but the women kept the pressure on. The Estaans weren’t nearly as aggressive as the Fires, but the role reversal was stark. They were no longer content to sit and wait for the Aquallians to decide to make the first move, they were making it for them.
Not all of the Estaans were totally committed to taking the lead, but Jhilu had certainly embraced the idea. Poor Quosson was in over his head as she kept tightening the screws on him. On Earth, if a woman had acted like she did, she and her date would be banging in the alley behind the pub in moments. Since she was blazing the trail, I kept encouraging Quosson to respond to her advances and stop trying to back away.
The rest of the woman, to one degree or another, followed Jhilu’s lead. I hadn’t warned the Waters what was coming, and it would have been comical if it hadn’t been so sad, watching them glancing around the room as if looking for an escape.
I’d called a break and stepped into the hall to give the Estaans and Aquallians some time alone. I had discovered when working with the Waters and the Fires, most of the progress was made after I’d introduced some new ideas and then left the room for them to digest it. Often one or more would approach me on their own for clarification or help. I was applying the same technique here, and now that the Estaans were doing the heavy lifting, we were making progress. Admittedly, it was slow progress, but at least there was some.
“The Aquallians are useless,” Peval sneered when she saw me. “I have come to admire the Aquallian women, but their men...,” she pursed her lips and shook her head. “The women, they deserve better. It’s a wonder that any of the Aquallians have survived this long.”
I wanted to agree with her, but I had a reputation to maintain. In public, no matter how frustrated or annoyed I became, I kept it bottled up inside. Only Stevan saw the negative side of me, the side where my doubts and frustrations lived. When I couldn’t take it anymore and it spilled out, he was there to hold and reassure me until I was ready to face the challenges again.
“We all have our place among the Peoples, Peval,” I scolded gently. “Their gentleness and caring are what makes them such good healers and caretakers.”
She lowered her head. “As you say, my Lady.” She looked up and smiled. “But still, they make me want to…,”
She drew an imaginary blade and plunged it into her heart, staggering around comically with both fists clutched to her chest. I shouldn’t have laughed, especially after the mild rebuke I’d given her, but I did.
“On your honor, don’t repeat what I’m about to say… but me too.”
She smiled at me. “Any progress today? I heard far less shouting from you than normal when you are around the Aquallians.”
“Some,” I replied. “We’re trying something different today. I’m not sure it’s going to work, but so far, so good.”
“If you can find mates for those frightened haths, and they actually produce children, then I’m certain the Peoples will survive.”
I dipped my head slightly. A hath was a small, softly furred animal the Fires raised to produce their bed linens. It was their equivalent of a rabbit, though it was the size of a Terrier and trilled like a bird.
“Have faith, Peval. There is someone for everyone. We just have to find them.” Peval wouldn’t dishonor herself by questioning the word of her Lady, but I could tell she wasn’t convinced. “Where’s Tokalas?”
“He’s on station at the entrance.”
I knew if I tried to leave the protection of the building to speak with Tokalas, Peval would be duty bound to follow. So… “Ask him to report to me in my office, immediately.”
“Right away, my Lady.”
I’d barely arrived in my office when Tokalas stepped into the door and lowered his head. He was slightly out of breath as if he’d been running. “Yes, my Lady. You summoned me?”
“Come in. I’m following up. How are you and Paulten getting along?”
After the failure of Lurell, I’d introduced Tokalas to Paulten, a Thath.
“She is a wonderful woman, Catherina, but I don’t think we’re compatible.”
“Oh? Why?”
“She nearly drowned me.”
“What?” I squawked.
He smiled. “When we mated, she didn’t realize how much longer she could hold her breath than me. We were on Thath, using her mating pool, and, well, she forgot herself and pulled under and held me down on the bottom as we… mated. She mistook my attempts to break free of her so I could get some air as me trying to prevent her from causing me to… finish. By the time she realized what was happening, she had to help me to the surface. She was obviously very upset and very apologetic afterward, but…” He shrugged.
“For her to get that into it and forget herself like that, you must have been doing something right. Did you enjoy the experience, other than the drowning part?” I asked with a grin.
“To be honest, my Lady, no, not really. Paulten is beautiful, graceful, and funny, but I’m not as comfortable in the water as she is. Especially now. Nobody on Firaspatciti swims for pleasure. That’s clearly a problem for her.”
I nodded in understanding. Fire was a dry planet and water was far too precious a thing to waste on swimming pools. They didn’t even use water for bathing, but that seemed like a silly thing to lose a beautiful, funny, graceful woman over.
“She apologized, Tokalas. Perhaps you should give her another chance.”
“I would, Catherina, but she isn’t willing. I think she is embarrassed by what happened. I’ve tried speaking to her, but she’s blocked my communication portal.” He paused. “I don’t want to force myself on her, or embarrass her further, so I’ve stopped trying to contact her.”
I grunted in annoyance. Every relationship had their bumps, especially at the beginning, but for Paulten to cut Tokalas out like that over a simple misunderstanding didn’t speak highly of her character. On the other hand, she had nearly, literally, fucked him to death, and I could certainly see how she would be embarrassed by that.
I’d failed Tokalas twice. “Okay. No matter,” I said, trying to sound upbeat. “On Earth, there is a saying, ‘third time’s the charm,’ and surprisingly, that often holds true.”
“Plenty of fish in the sea.”
I grinned. “That’s right. When we get back to Fire tonight, I’ll dig through the files again.”
“Thank you, my Lady.”
-oOo-
I smiled with satisfaction as I surveyed the men and women in front of me. Not every Hedordian and Firaspatciti had paired off. Those that remained were honest enough with me to say they weren’t going to, but each also said they would be willing to try with another. That was understandable and expected. I would make sure the unattached eight from this pilot group were in the next, much larger, group.
This was clearly going to work. The chemistry between them was visible to all, and I wasn’t even talking about the scrapes and bruises.
“Anything we should talk about today?” I asked.
“How am I going to explain this to my mother?” Geller asked with a grin. “She was dead set on me joining with Rendel Krethan, and now I’ve become enamored with a Firaspatciti.”
I snickered along with the rest of the room. “I’m sure you’ll figure something out.”
“You don’t know my mother!”
Peralut leaned in a bit closer and my smile grew. If Geller’s mother knew what was good for her, she’d accept her new, potential, daughter-in-law with open arms. Peralut was clearly smitten with Geller as well, and being a Fire, she would fight to the death for him.
“Other than Geller’s mother, does anyone else have any questions? Comments?”
“I’m with child,” Vularra said softly.
There were a few clicks of silence before the room came alive with hearty congratulations. Nobody got pregnant by accident, the nanites saw to that, so this had to be planned. I stood to the side as everyone, Hedordian and Firaspatciti alike, crowded around Torruy and Vularra. I didn’t cry, though I wanted to. The real test would be could Vularra carry the child to term. There’d been three other successful pairings of a Fire woman to another of the Peoples, one-offs that had happened spontaneously after I’d gotten the ball rolling with the Fires and Waters. Children were the universe’s most precious item, and each pregnancy was carefully monitored to give the woman the best possible chance to deliver. All three had been able to bear children, and each had been met with great celebration. Vularra’s chances were good that she could carry the child to term.
It was the same on all the other worlds where the birth rates had fallen to dangerously low levels. Each child was celebrated and announced with great fanfare for all to hear. Thousands of children had been born, and hundreds of thousands more had been conceived. I smiled. The universe wasn’t out of danger yet, but the Peoples were making progress. Slow, steady, progress.
Torruy and Vularra broke from the crowd and approached me, their arms intertwined. Vularra went to her knee, pulling Torruy down with her. They hadn’t dishonored me or themselves, so it was a breach in protocol for them to kneel before me. That was an honor reserved for Stevan alone, but I smiled at the gesture.
“Rise, and speak freely,” I said.
They rose and Vularra met my gaze. “You have honored me with your guidance and wisdom,” she said. “Because of that, I am now with child. We have discussed it, and we agree. You would honor us if you’d allow us to name our child Catherina.”
The ‘Savior of the Universe’ blubbered as my tears began to fall. “The honor would be mine,” I sniffed, trying to hold it together and not cry in front of everyone.
They both bowed low then straightened. “Thank you, Lady Catherina,” Torruy said. “Would you do us the additional honor of joining us on Hedordia to celebrate our bonding?”
“Again, the honor would be mine, Torruy.”
At some point, I would have to talk to them and make sure they knew that Catherina was a girl’s name on Earth, in case their child was male and if that made any difference to them, but that was for another time. Right now, I just wanted to bask in the reflected glory of their new-found love.