CHAPTER SIX
Margot had a decent ear for Earth languages. She’d studied several in high school and university, but this was something quite different. Alien, in the most literal sense, and as a result she was learning the language slowly, akin to a baby taking its first steps.
Sure, they’d only been at it a few hours, and Braxxos had to keep his lessons constrained to the simplest of things for now, but at least there was a little progress. Her tutor stuck to simple things. Nouns, for the most part. Names of things he could point to rather than complex ideas.
Water, tree, sky, these were just a few of the first alien words in Margot’s tiny vocabulary. She still had no idea what fraghazi meant, but the glimmer of amusement in his eyes whenever she asked gave her a pretty good inkling he was taking the piss.
Let him enjoy himself, she reasoned.He did save your ass, after all.
Not only that, but he’d gone above and beyond, feeding her well and treating her as though his home was hers. Except for his few precious things in his little storage compartment, that is. But she kind of understood how it must be living alone likethis. It was a simple life, and the few treasures he had must have had some kind of significance for him to keep them when they served no utilitarian purpose. The rest of his possessions were functional. Only those few bits of shiny were not.
Braxxos spent a short time teaching her the names of things in his hidden treehouse, and Margot was actually picking up words pretty quickly.
“I’ve always been good with languages,” she said with a grin, enjoying his surprise at how fast she was able to learn his alien tongue. “My Spanish is solid, though it’s mostly swearing from my first job in a restaurant. I’ve got a few others rattling around in the old noggin as well, though I have to admit, I didn’t havealienon my language bingo card.”
He looked at her with a perplexed expression, tapping his ear.
“Yeah, that probably wouldn’t translate. Bingo is a game, and I’d be really surprised if you had the same thing out here. Though, that would be a total mind-fuck if you did. Like, blue-haired grandmas across the galaxy all love bingo. That would be a trip.”
Braxxos’s look of confusion deepened, his fingers pointing to his hair with a shrug.
“Oh, the blue hair bit? It’s just a figure of speech. No one actually has blue hair on my planet. I mean, they do, but it’s not natural. People color their hair all sorts of colors. But the joke is, old people would use a blue dye to try to tone down their gray hair and it would sometimes come out with a really blue tint after the rinse by accident.”
The man chuckled and shook his head. She could almost hear his expression.Your people are weird,was the most likely one on her list, though.And you thoughtmyworld was strange,was a close second.
Whatever was running through his head, Braxxos had apparently decided they’d had enough of the naming things game. At least, inside his treehouse. He moved to the sturdy door and unfastened it, sliding it open. Margot noted that there was a very robust set of branches used to lock it. If he wanted security, that would do the trick. No one would get through that door without a lot of effort. But then, that was partly why she’d slept so well. It felt safe in here.
He scrambled out, dropping his rolled ladder as he moved, then gestured for her to follow.
“Guess we’re going for a walk,” she mused, following him to the ground.
As soon as her feet touched soil, Margot felt her adrenaline surge, the memory of yesterday flashing hot in her mind’s eye. She listened intently, only a little relieved that the woods around them were still full of the sounds of nature.
He noted her expression and stopped walking, looking at her with a concerned look in his eyes. She couldn’t understand his words, as was par for the course, but she was getting pretty good at figuring out his intent. And in this case it was kind of obvious.
“I’m just a little freaked out, is all,” she told him. “I mean, is it safe out here?”
He nodded, relaxed.
“Are you sure? That monster… thatthing… it tore those Raxxians apart. It was horrifying.”
He processed her words, mulling them over a moment, then shook his head, gesturing that it was okay. She didn’t know why, but he was such a calming presence, and he’d already saved her once, taking her in at her lowest point, that she decided to trust his instincts.
“Okay. But if it pops up and eats us, I’ll never forgive you.”
Her tiny grin informed him of the sarcastic nature of her comment and the little upward curve of his lips showed that hewas amused by it. Apparently, a little bit of well-placed snark was universal regardless of the language.
Margot’s vocabulary grew exponentially as they walked, Braxxos taking his time, strolling at a leisurely pace, pointing out myriad plants as they made their way through the lush woods. It was a magical sort of environment, full of colors and patterns the likes of which she had never fathomed belonging to plants. The burgundy leaves, the purple vines, the turquoise shrubbery branches, all were amazing to her virgin eyes. It was unlike anything back home. And it was fantastic.
Braxxos made a point to identify the edible things first and foremost, picking berries for her to eat and showing her which parts of the plants that weren’t fruit-bearing were safe for consumption. At one point, however, he did stop, a serious look on his face, holding up his hand and shaking his head vigorously as he then pointed to a small plant with waxy white flowers.
“I take it those are poison?” she asked, already surmising the truth.
He nodded, clearly glad she’d picked up on that so quickly. It was all fun and games until someone went and ate a toxic plant. That could turn a pleasant outing into a deadly one, and fast.
They trekked for a while longer, a weaving, winding path that she’d have been hard-pressed to retrace on her own. But her guide moved with smooth confidence, his lithe musculature flowing easily under his ratty clothes.
She smelled the water from a distance, and the faint sound of rushing water soon joined her senses.
