Once again I found myself following the same metal hallways that Esayr had led me through yesterday, "Is this one of those 'you just learn your way around' things? Because all of these hallways look exactly the same."

He snickered at my question, "Yes, probably. All the ships are made to the same schematics, and while the hallways will get longer over time the overall layout of the ship doesn't change too drastically. Everyone on this ship is Val'Dornn born, so we've all grown up navigating --while not necessarily this ship -- a ship that was nearly exactly the same. Think of it as your small island city. Surely you know it like the back of your hand?"

I did. I certainly did. I knew the sketchy parts of town where the streetlights never seemed to work and exactly which Publix you should go to on Sunday to get free bacon that they made in the seafood department to cover up the smell of fish. I could navigate there with my eyes closed. Sounds like you should have thought of Saint Petersburg when Esayr told you to try to block him from your emotions.

"Yeah. I suppose that makes sense." I couldn't shake the worry that I'd never learn my way around and would end up lost one of these days without him with me.

"It's a relatively simple layout. This is a main hallway," Esayr stretched his arms out in the wide hall, "It's larger than the secondary halls, which means this hall travels between the outer bounds of the ship and the central navigation terminal. Transports dot the hallway at regular intervals, but you may find it easier to use the transports at the central terminal instead, as most of the areas you'll want to reach currently will likely be offshoots from the center of the ship."

"Good to know. All I have to remember is which way to walk once we come out of our door then? And what number our door is?" I looked at the inlaid doors that would represent our neighbors in the mated district. They were a slightly darker shade of the same sleek silver metal that made up the rest of the hallway.

"2262, however, if you forget you could always just touch the doors nearby where you think our room is. Ours will open for your biosignature. It's not efficient, but in a pinch, it will work."

"That is a large number. Why didn't we just get put into room 1 or something?"

Esayr just shrugged, "The Aarond Form --along with all other Searching Ships-- is nearly sentient. It does what it pleases, sometimes." Esayr pointed to an elevator transport, "This is the closest transport to our room, we've taken it a few times, but I'll take you to the central terminal.

It was a slightly longer walk, but once we stepped into what Esayr called the 'Central Navigation Terminal' I knew I would make the walk just to have a concrete point of reference for where I would be going.

The central navigation terminal was a cylindrical room, with glass transports situated at strategic points around the circular outer ring. It was a perfect circular cut into every floor of the ship allowing you to look effectively through the entirety of the vertical length of the ship. Staggered star-shaped walkways led out into the center of the circle on each floor allowing you to cut across to the other side of the terminal quickly.

It's entirely otherworldly. I can't stop the gasp as I drink in the shining view of starlight reflecting off of the glass and metal walkways that countless males are walking across as if it's nothing special. "Esayr, this is beautiful....like needlessly beautiful." I tugged my mate along out into the walkway just to look up gaze up and look at the lines and lines of star walks above us. "Like this is so enchanting."

He was quiet beside me. When I looked him I noted he wasn't staring up at the beauty of this Val'Dornn creation, but instead at me. "I'm glad it pleases you. It is commonplace to me and likely everyone else on this ship, but to see you joyful over it makes me appreciate it more." He glanced up then to look at the towering height of the ship.

Out of the corner of my eye, I saw males dodge around less efficient walkways so that we could have our space and this small intimate moment. My heart fluttered at the idea that their race was even just that considerate in general. I wouldn't have thought anything of other people walking by as us as we stood there, because that's just what humans did. Lived and breathed in the same small spaces, but these males went out of their way to allow us this small moment. "Your mothers raised you all well."

Esayr arched one questioning eyebrow.

"It's nothing a human phrase really. I just think you're all good people."

"We like to think so as well."

I laughed because that was a pretty notion, but with the Val'Dornn I was more inclined to believe it than with my own race. "Take me to your friends, Esayr. I want to spend time with them."

Esayr groaned good-naturedly, "If I take you to see them, they'll ruin you for your belief that we're good people," but he winked at me, taking the sting out of his words and assuring me he was just joking.

We found Kayle and Addric in what amounted to a low-key Val'Dornn bar probably. It was a dim building that smelled faintly of alcohol which apparently was a staple across multiple races. Laughter rang out in the room emanating from large groups of males.

Addric and Kayle stood over a game board, sipping drinks that looked like sunrises, in hues of gold, red, and orange. They seemed to anticipate our appearance because they both glanced our way as we approached them.

Huge smiles broke out on their faces, and the bounded over to pull Esayr into a large hug. The action surprised me. Maybe it was just that Esayr was an Empath, but it was always at least a little surprising to see such large men obviously emotionally invested in each other.

They started up a conversation easily in Vallan, the words quick and fluid between them. I was glad I had the implant, that allowed me to keep up with them, but I still felt almost like an interloper. I stood a few feet back and listened to their conversation for a few seconds.

"Kados and Laene?" Esayr inquired.

Kayle only shrugged in response, but Addric gave him a more concrete answer, "Kados is in the science bay, as he always seems to be of late. Laene is wherever Laene always is whenever you cannot find him. Who's to say where that ever is, though?"

"It's true." Kayle bumped shoulders with Addric and sucked down the rest of his drink before his blue-eyed gaze turned to me. "Addison!"

And suddenly I was swept into a large hug, that was just as inviting as it had been for Esayr. As soon as Kayle put me down Addric clapped a hand down on my shoulder and greeted me as well. The fact that I was immediately accepted into their niche little friend group was thrilling and entirely unexpected. I'd anticipated awkwardly following Esayr around all of today.

"Hello." I tried in Vallan and gave a little wave. I knew that, reasonably, I knew the language, but there was still a worry there that I would sound stupid.

"Got the language implant then, huh? Your Vallan" Kayle was more outgoing, while Addric was more of a calming but no less interested presence.

Esayr stepped up behind his two friends and we had a moment of eye contact with me where I could tell that he was inquiring if I were comfortable with the attention. I smiled at him, reassuring him. "Yeah, yesterday." I made a concerted effort to continue speaking in Vallan, if not only to be more accessible to his friends. I realized I liked their culture and their way of life and I wanted to be a part of it for a little while. Or for longer... a quiet, but not so sinister voice whispered in my mind this time.

"How are you adjusting to life on the Aarond Form?" Addric asked the question as Kayle disappeared back toward what I guessed was a bartender.

"It's...different. But very nice. There's a lot of space here, which is strange coming from my planet where there's very little space at all. The central area--?" I looked to Esayr to help me name that beautiful place we'd just been to.

"CNT" Esayr interjected.

"Yeah, that place. It was really beautiful!"

Addric seemed amused by my enjoyment of something so normal but gratefully allowed me to talk about all the ordinary places of theirs that were nearly matters of fantasy to me. I hadn't even realized I'd been talking long until Kayle --having come back from the bar with another drink -- smiled toward Esayr and whispered much too loudly.

"She's lovely."

"Thank you!" I quipped in and that sent them all to laughing.

"Be careful, you'll make him think you can rifle through thoughts as well." Addric laughed as we all drifted back towards the area they'd both originally been in. "You caught us at a good time. Play a game of Aule with us." He made a sweeping gesture over the table in front of them.

The setup reminded me almost of a shuffleboard, except on a smaller scale. The table was rectangular light colored wood. And one end had a triangle filled with dozens of smaller triangles in an artful motif. In the center of each of the tiny triangles, there was a small divet in the wood.

"Aule?" I watched as Kayle and Addric pulled a drawer out of the table, revealing what looked like casino chips in a variety of colors.

Esayr saddled up next to his friends and began dividing the chips into four colors: Red, Yellow, Green, and Black. "It's a game of skill. Each person takes a turn to toss a chip to the far end of the board," he nodded toward the triangle, "the aim is to have the chip land on its thin edge in the divet and rest within the triangle. You can claim spaces or knock opponents out of their spaces. The smallest triangle is worth one, the next size up is three, and the next size up is six and so on. A missed chip that stays on the table is able to be picked back up. One that falls off of the table is lost for the rest of the game. Once all chips have been played the one with the most points wins." Esayr handed me a pile of Yellow chips.

Oh, I'm apparently playing then. "That sounds....impossible."

"The chips have metal on their edges and the divets have light magnetism. It's easier. Traditionally it was played on a wooden board with wooden chips and was much more difficult."

"The only way to play!" Someone else, another male in the bar, quipped from somewhere behind us.

Esayr smiled over my head and I turned to see that we had garnered some attention.

Well, that's going to do wonders for my performance anxiety. "Who goes first?"

"Number between one and five." We'd gathered a small crowd, but despite the boisterousness of human bars, I didn't find their presence oppressive or threatening. Only curious and entertained. Maybe they handled their alcohol differently.

"Ora (Three)" Esayr spoke first.

"Neer. (Five)" Kayle guessed second.

"Kar. (One)" Addric guessed third

"Fahl. (Two)" And I guessed fourth.

"Ora (Three)." The big blond male nodded to my mate, "You go first."

I breathed a sigh of relief, at least I'd be able to watch someone else play before I got stuck trying in front of all of these bystanders. "Yeah, Esayr. You go first. Show us what you've got." I quipped in English, our own secret language for the most part.

My wicked male turned and winked at me and our cute banter sent the bar to raucous cheers.

*****A/N*****

Merry Christmas/Happy Holidays everyone. It's almost here! This is my favorite time of year because Florida finally isn't godawfully hot out. Anywho, if everything goes according to plan I should have some time to write more regularly again in the next few days, at least I'm hoping so. I've been missing this world and these characters so much and I'm ready to dive back in.

And To All A Good Night,

Layla