Seventy-Four
Sylis
Ifigured out the trick to understanding Vestrian. As soon as I got the hang of how the letters had been twisted, the rest came easily. And seeing Omden look soproudof me? It made me feel things only those sweet looks from Tobias had stirred before. Combined with the gentle touches Omden liked so much, I was sure I had a perpetual smile stuck on my face.
Even better was seeing the men with Meri in the kitchen. Cooking had always been women's work, but Omden was usually the one teaching Meri how to do it properly. The man would shift behind her, reaching around her body to make sure she understood things like "whisking," and now I wanted to learn how to cook. In my daydreams, that man's arms would wrap around me like that. I'd lean back - and my mind always stopped there.
Sadly, I just didn't know how to create the closeness Meri had with everyone. Drozel looked at her as if she was precious. Lessa giggled with her in the way girls did when young. Omden leaned in to share whispers, and even if I only caught the looks they shared, I was convinced Merienne was the luckiest woman alive.
And I was jealous.
I didn't resent her for it, but I wanted that ease of familiarity with these people. In truth, I wanted it withsomeone. Anyone. Instead, I felt like I didn't quite fit in. The better I spoke Vestrian, the easier things got, but there was still a distance these people kept around me, and while I couldn't blame them for it, I longed for something more. I always had.
But eventually Omden headed off with Lessa - which I still didn't understand. Drozel was asleep, having been up early to do things for the town and the "militia," which was their version of hunters. Granted, they didn't hunt, so that name made more sense. Alone on the couch, I was doing my best to read a story Meri had given me. It was in Vestrian, and I had my translation book on the table, but I wanted to be able to do this on my own.
"Meri?" I asked finally, "what does 'walrus' mean?"
Giggling, she left the kitchen and came into the living room. "It's an animal, Sylis. They breathe air, but swim in water. I didn't know that one either. All that matters for the story is that it's an animal."
"That talks?"
"It's a made-up story," she pointed out.
I nodded. "And a carpenter is someone who makes things from wood?"
She moved to claim a cushion beside me. "It is. I don't think we have a skill like it in the compound."
"Not enough wood," I pointed out, flicking a finger at the structure around us. "You know, everything up here is so similar, but also so very different."
"And confusing at first," she agreed. "I was so lost, and I was sure the things Ayla told me couldn't be true, but it all was."
"Yeah," I muttered, "it was."
"And it isn't your fault," she said, rubbing my shoulder. "All I'm saying is it's okay to ask, and I understand that sometimes the question might feel foolish, but it's really not."
"Okay, then I have a question," I decided. "Is it improper to ask why Omden took Lessa out today instead of his husband?"
She wrinkled up her nose. "They aren't husbands, Sylis. Omden and Drozel are partners."
"I don't understand the difference," I admitted. "Is it because they're both men?"
"No, it's a Dragon thing." And she rocked her head from side to side as if thinking about that. "So, the way I understand it, their relationships are different up here because women with tails can't bear children."
"Why not?"
"It has something to do with why some people have tails," she explained. "The women with them can't have babies. They're barren. The men with tails can, with a tailless woman."
"Okay?" I hadn't seen enough of this world to completely understand what she could be talking about, but the description seemed simple enough.
"Women like me," she clarified. "In the compound, we called them wild women and wild men. Up here, they call them tailless. Some are Dragons. Some are Reapers. That depends on where they live, not how they look."
"But..." That didn't make sense.
"See!" she exclaimed. "It's confusing! But all Dragon men are born from a woman like me. Women like Lessa can only have children if they're in a multi-person relationship. Dragons call that a family. Oh, they can also adopt. The women who are raising my baby? They both have tails. Their boyfriend does not."
"Okay," I said. "So, Omden and Lessa?"
"Friends," she assured me.
