Page 24 of Family Found

Inkiri smiled at the kid and then at me. “You mean it? That I may decide his application?”

Well, that sounded formal. “Sure thing.”

I felt good about this. This was what a trophy mate would say, although with this new information about decision-making, becoming the trophy mate I wanted to be might require a good deal more work than I had initially thought. Darn it.

Inkiri squatted so that he was closer to Sonyo’s eye level and handed him the notebook back. After the first sentence out of Weirdo Husband’s mouth, the little bagu jumped, squeaked, and looked back at me again.

“Thang-you-sh,” the little bagu said. “Al-lesh, al-lesh!” He followed that up with a lot more talking I couldn’t follow. The kid had a future in whatever the Raiken version of the debate club was.

Inkiri said a few things back, and Sonyo made a serious face all of a sudden, nodded, and dashed off just as fast as he’d ambushed us.

I looked after him. “That was something.”

Inkiri looked up at me before straightening. “Yes. He’s eager. His school records are very promising, but I told him there isn’t going to be any excuse you’ll accept for his performance dropping. He understands that.”

That didn’t sound like me at all, but okay. Inkiri clicked and pushed my scarf aside so he could lick my neck.

That felt so good. It seemed like it had been a long time since he’d licked my neck, but of course that was just my imagination, probably as a result of us going on a dangerous rescue mission that had somehow worked out for everyone. Except the Koa Esher trying to get us, of course.

A group of three bagu teens looked at us and ooh-ed. I blushed, but I wasn’t even sure it was because of them. It was because of my sexy bagu mate who, apparently, had just hired a page.

I grinned. The land did like to call my guys knights, so that fit, but I wouldn’t let Sonyo clean anyone’s armor or whatever. Maybe I could get Charles to teach him about astronomy so the kid would actually learn something when he went to Earth. That would be good. Earth had lost so much, so many people, when the apocalypse happened. This felt like a way to make sure we didn’t lose anything else by sharing what knowledge and traditions were left.

I smiled. Yes, Earth was going to gain one tiny, enthusiastic bagu.

Chapter 9

After our encounter with Sonyo, Inkiri said he wanted a quick word with Hove and led me to what would be the administrative wing in an Earth building. We went into a room at the end of a more ornate corridor. It was an open-concept office with connecting doors to other offices in the back.

There were several desks, and a few bagua—Raikengana—in black and taupe who appeared very busy with their individual tasks. I couldn’t begin to understand what all the tasks that were being completed here were. Some Raikengana noticed me and gave me polite nods that I did my best to return. I was still sort of worried they’d throw rotten eggs at me or cuss at me since the attack on Esaka had happened because of me, but none of them seemed to see it that way.

I spotted Hove at his desk, which was just like everyone else’s.

On one side of the room, by a wall with a window, a large table held plenty of maps and piles of documents. It reminded me of scenes in movies where people planned out troop movements over a map table and moved little figures around to make it easier to understand what was happening.

I didn’t see any of that here, but with Esaka being a border town and with the Koa Esher crossing that border for attacks, this was probably a normal part of their job here.

Inkiri steered me to the opposite side of the room. A bagu at a desk there looked up from his paperwork, and he and Inkiri exchanged a few words.

“Sadir, will you wait a moment? You can relax here.”

He tugged me along by my wrist to a low table by the window behind the bagu’s desk. Floor cushions were laid out around it, and Inkiri being Inkiri piled three one atop the other before he decided it was good enough for me.

“I’m fine, really.” I sank down on the cushions while Inkiri clicked.

“Yes, and Gesango said to make sure you rest, and rest comfortably. Here, have some of these.” He pulled a plate of vinné that sat in the center of the table toward me. “You can have all of them. The Raiken makes them fresh every day.”

As if on cue, my stomach grumbled, and I picked out one of them. “Okay.”

My eyes widened when I realized this was a sweet version. There was a floral taste to them as well, and just like every vinné I’d had so far, I really liked them and was munching on a second before I knew it.

Inkiri looked as if he approved. “Good. I won’t be long.”

He left me munching away while the Raikengana in the room went about their work. I felt like I should be talking to them, saying hi at least, but Kinnek hadn’t taught me what to say in a situation like this, and I didn’t want to end up confusing anyone.

So vinné it was.

Inkiri went up to Hove’s desk and started talking to him.