“Now I appreciate why Aliena designated me to succeed her,” Star concluded. “If she could not have her male, she wanted me to have him. And perhaps she is correct: however less qualified I may be by the listings, there are social factors that compensate. You, Brom, lost your girlfriend, perhaps being part of the chain of causation that killed her. I suffered loss of my boyfriend, with similar guilt. Lucy had personality traits that echo mine; you might find me compatible. I know you would not choose me on your own, but perhaps you will respect Aliena’s choice. I will do my best to satisfy you. I know I can do that intellectually and sexually; I am uncertain about socially and emotionally.”
Brom was having difficulty digesting this. “Your intellect is far beyond mine and I’m not hot for you sexually. Frankly I don’t see myself falling love with you as I did with Aliena.”
“Perhaps it is time to have that discussion about mating.”
“Maybe now it’s time for us to leave you two alone,” Johnson said.
“Give us fifteen minutes, please,” Star told him. “Thereafter our understanding will be complete.”
“I don’t want that time,” Brom protested.
“Give her a chance,” Johnson reminded him. The grandparents carried Maple, who had fallen asleep, to a bedroom. Sam and Martha faded out.
Brom rounded on Star. “I know you are a stranger in a strange land, and need support, but you are pushing it. Here on Earth we do not generally dive into sex or love incidentally.”
“Nor do we,” she said, approaching him. “In fact we do not have love relationships, only compatible matings. But this is an extraordinary situation, with the fate of worlds in the balance. We must perform. We can not afford to dislike each other. I am not more eager to be with you than you are with me, but neither of us has a choice. We are like actors in a play, compelled to put on a show regardless of our private sentiments. I wish Aliena could have remained with you; I know she truly joyed in your company. She recognized the harsh reality. She left a message for me too, which was this: ‘The first child was mine; the second must be yours.’ I must mate with you, sooner or later. It seems more efficient to establish the rules of the game at the outset, and have no further friction about it. Embrace me.”
“Star, this is preposterous!”
She put her arms about him. “I would prefer that you do it, but if you do not, then I must do it. We do not have time for diffidence. Kiss me.”
“Star--”
She kissed him. She was phenomenally good at it; she must have studied the form. He couldn’t help responding.
She ended the kiss and drew her head back slightly. “Mate me.”
Brom wanted to resist, but it was apparent she had his number. She occupied the body of the woman he loved, and knew how to use it. His member was rampant. He had never believed that there was such a thing as seduction by force, but it was apparent that she was capable of it. She was the dominant personality. He was over-matched.
What was it Sam had said when Brom had run afoul of Aliena? Complete utter capitulation.
“Star, please, I beg you, no. I concede you the victory; you can seduce me when you choose. But not this way. Let it come more naturally. I promise I will do it before long. Just not right now, so soon after I lost Aliena. I would feel degraded.”
“At the beach?”
“Yes.” There, he had committed.
“Thank you.” She let him go.
He sank into a chair, relieved. “Thank you.”
“I did not like doing that,” she said. “I prefer your way.”
“My way probably wouldn’t work. It takes time to get over love, and I love Aliena. We don’t have that time. We shall have to be a public family, and lovers. Maybe, in time, love will come, unrushed.”
“I will learn it from you, when you find it.”
“Maybe so,” he agreed wryly.
“Now may I dissolve, before the others return?”
He did not pretend to misunderstand. “Come here, Star. Sit on my lap. Dissolve. We all need to let go sometimes.”
She came and sat on his lap, and he put his arms around her. Then she curled up, put her face against his chest, and dissolved into tears, sobbing softly. He knew this was not an act, but a genuine surrender. She depended on him to comfort her when the going became too hard. In the confused depths of a complicated situation, he liked that. She was after all a woman.
And, holding her like this, he knew that he could, in time, love her. He would never lose his love for Aliena, or for that matter, Lucy, but he could love Star too. She desperately needed his support, and yes, his love, and it was bound to come. Not today, not next week, but in time.
Her sobbing eased. She lifted her head and wiped off her face with her hand. “Thank you. I needed that.” She was a quick study even in this respect.
He kissed her. It was not a conscious decision; he had not known he was going to do it. It had simply emerged from the moment.
When it ended, she looked at him with faint confusion. “I do not understand.”
“When you were busy being dominant, requiring me to perform, I resisted. When you let down your hair, so to speak, you reached me on another level. You are a person too, in a ferociously challenging situation. I respect that, but it also invokes my compassion and yes, perhaps, my dawning love. I kissed you because I wanted to. We are not there yet, by a long shot, but now I appreciate the potential.”
“I am grateful for that. I see already that you are a better male than the one I lost. I too see the potential, and hope it comes to be realized.”
The others returned. “We have an understanding,” Brom said before they could ask. “We can play the roles.”
“I am tired,” Star said. “I think I should sleep. But I will be unable to sleep alone. When I relax my control weakens and my horror of my situation dominates.” Then she caught herself. “I should not have said that.”
Johnson stepped in again. “You should not say that in public, Star. But we are not the public. We are Family. We try to be honest with each other. We can say things that we do not share outside. We would have as much trouble in a starfish body as you do in a human one. I think it would be claustrophobic and frightening.”
“Aliena could not sleep alone either,” Brom said. “I held her hand at night, every night.”
“If you would?” she asked.
Brom considered. “There could be awkwardness. You have the body of the woman I love, and with whom I have shared love many times. If I woke in the night and saw or felt that body I might be severely conflicted.”
“Whatever you want of this body you may have.”
“And that’s part of the conflict. I want to desire you knowing it’s you, and knowing that you wish it rather than merely obliging me. It was that way at first with Aliena too.”
“I think I do not properly understand that. As I said, the nuances of emotion do not come readily to me. That was Aliena’s strength. I will be guided by you.”
“And I don’t fully trust myself. There is a song ‘When I’m not near the one I love, I love the one I’m near.’ Men tend to be that way. I don’t want to be near you when I’m groggy or dreaming.”
“Please, I will be unable to sleep alone, and I ought to sleep. My brain is I believe similar to yours in this respect: during its downtime it consolidates experience and memories. My continued health depends on this.”
Rebecca stepped in. “Could you sleep with Maple? She is your host’s daughter, and should love to be with you instead of alone. Children too have issues with separation and night.”
“But she knows I am alien, and not her mother.”
“She knows her mother was similarly alien, and that the body is the same,” Rebecca said. “Why don’t we give it a try?”
They guided Star to a bedroom, and brought Maple, who remained sleepy. “Maple,” Rebecca said. “Star is nervous about darkness and does not want to be alone. Would you sleep with her, keeping her company as she
sleeps?”
“Sure.”
Just like that. The child did understand this sort of thing.
Star lay down on the bed in her nightie, and Maple lay beside her. They held hands. In a moment both were asleep.
They dimmed the light, leaving just enough to see by if necessary, and closed the door.
“Thank you!” Brom said to Rebecca.
“It’s what grandmothers are for.”
“I know I’ll make it with Star in time. It’s just too soon, and meanwhile she’s an alluring stranger. I’m uncomfortable with that.”
“We do understand,” Johnson said. “We went through it with Aliena.”
“Actually we went through it with Becky,” Rebecca reminded him. “When she came down with the malady she became a stranger.”
“But Aliena turned out to be a worthy successor,” Johnson agreed. “As I’m sure Star will be. We’ll never stop loving the others, but we can love Star too.”
“As I loved Aliena, after Lucy,” Brom said. “I guess I do have similar experience.”
Johnson glanced at Sam. “You and Martha never comment.”
“We’re bodyguards,” Sam said. “We try to stay in the background. It is not smart to develop any personal attachment.”
“But to answer your question,” Martha said, “We did like Aliena. She was special. We’re glad she’s not really dead. But we do miss her.”
They settled down to an interactive computer game, then turned in themselves. Brom remained thankful for the support of all of them.
Thereafter Star and Maple were constantly together. They had bonded. One down, Brom thought. One to go.
In due course the train arrived at its hidden station, and they reentered the bustling global society. Star was openly intrigued by the sights, and that was all right, because she was taken for a tourist. The airplane flight too: “It is amazing what you can do without what you call anti-gravity,” she murmured.
“That gift alone will transform our society,” Brom said. “I remain amazed by starfish generosity.”
“We want you to be technologically parallel to us. It is easier for equals to interact fairly.”
“I think you are a better species than we are.”
She squeezed his hand. “We have had more time to mature.”
She had not debated him or been condescending. Instead she had been reassuring. He liked that.
Star slept beside him during the long flight, holding his hand. Maple slept on her other side, holding Star’s other hand. He liked that too. In fact, Star was a fully worthy replacement. He was coming to know her better during the long journey. She interacted well with the officials along the way, and the support staff. He knew that Sam and Martha, seated inconspicuously close by, approved of her.
But she wasn’t Aliena.
As they approached America, Star whispered in his ear. “How should I react to this other land?”
“You are nominally familiar with it,” he replied. “So it should be routine. You may be bored.”
“I will feign boredom.” And she did.
She inquired again as the limo delivered them home. “You should be delighted to be back at last, after a two week absence,” he said. “You can relax and let down your hair.”
Star did that literally. She caught Martha’s smile. “Did I misinterpret?”
“A little,” Brom said. “It is a figure of speech, meaning to be at ease, as is the case when you are home and out of public view.”
“Thank you.” Never again did she make an error of that nature.
The first day home they both relaxed. Star seemed to sleep almost as much as Maple, always with company, perhaps because her brain was still zeroing in on things that were routine to Brom, like the layout of the house, schedule of meals, and TV shows. The morning of the second day she dressed out for the exercise run, as rigorous about maintaining the body as Aliena had been. Brom ran with her, privately noting that she was every bit as lovely in motion as Aliena, though that was hardly a surprise.
In the afternoon she asked to meet the neighbors. The grandparents took Maple out for ice cream, so it was just the two of them, with Sam nearby. They crossed yards to knock on Mrs. Green’s door. “Please, we are your neighbors,” Star said.
“Of course, dear,” Mrs. Green said. “Come in; I’m glad to have company.”
“I have been ill,” Star said.
“I know, dear.”
“It was encephalitis. My body attacked my brain. I suffered hallucinations and other complications. Finally they had to do surgery; that was why I was away. It is healing now, with continuing medication, but I may have misplaced some memories.” She smiled. “Maybe they replaced my brain.”
Mrs. Green laughed. “Oh, I hope they didn’t go that far, dear.”
“Since the surgery, I am more comfortable being called Star. It is perhaps a signal of my new outlook.”
“Star,” Mrs. Green agreed tolerantly.
They talked, comparing memories. Brom knew that Star was getting her knowledge of Mrs. Green straight, in the guise of refreshing foggy memories. She was also incidentally charming the older woman. Aliena had been friends with Mrs. Green; now so was Star.
Then Star got serious. “As you know, I am from very far away. I have been learning your American culture so that in due course I can be an effective Envoy representing my people. This contact is important to both our cultures. In about six months we shall have what we call the Unveiling, wherein I will be officially presented to the public. It will be a rather fancy occasion. News reporters may come to the neighborhood to learn more.”
“Paparazzi,” Mrs. Green said knowingly. “They’re obnoxious.”
“So I understand. I want you to know that you have no need to share any information with them if they try to question you about me. But you are free to say whatever you want; I will have no secrets.” She glanced at Brom suggestively. “At least not of that nature. Our windows are shaded.”
Mrs. Green laughed. “Fair warning, Star.” They hugged as Brom and Star departed.
It was similar with the Roberts on the other side. Star was making sure they were prepared, and cementing their friendship. She was a born diplomat, by no coincidence.
Each second morning they ran, and Brom could not help noticing what a fit woman she was, in shorts and halter with her air in a ponytail, the bandage resembling a sweatband. Just like Aliena, of course, yet her expression and carriage differed, subtly. He tried to identify exactly what the difference was, for his work on cartoons, but it eluded him.
Then, seemingly suddenly, it was a week. “Brom,” she said earnestly. “The beach.”
Was he ready? Did it matter? He had agreed. In the week, coming to know her as he had come to know Aliena, he had built up a solid core of respect. She might be alien, but she was some woman. “I guess it is time,” he agreed, feeling guilty for looking forward to it.
They made a picnic excursion of it, with three cars: the two of them in his car, Sam and Martha in theirs, and the Smythes with Maple in theirs. They all knew what this meant.
“Brom,” she said softly as she rode beside him. She knew how to drive, but deferred to him. “We can wear suits and swim if you prefer.”
“But that would mean—no singing.”
“I made you agree to do this. That was unkind, and I regret it. I will not hold you to it.”
He shook his head. “I made a deal and I’ll honor it. We both know we have to do it sometime. Aliena won’t speak to me again if I don’t.”
“You may pretend I am her, if you wish.”
“That would not be fair to you, Star. But tell me: is it something you really want to do, or are you too bound by Aliena’s wish?”
“It is both.”
That set him back slightly. “We must maintain the semblance of the happy marriage that Aliena and I had. We both know that. That includes sex. But that does not require you to pretend to like it.”
“I have never
deceived you, and never will. I am aware of the distinction between the shell and the reality. I know that you love Aliena and not me. But you have been supportive and decent throughout, and I am learning to like you. I have not yet learned love, but am trying. Aliena is reticent; I am not. I would like to have this interaction with you, if you allowed it. I would come into your bed at night, if you allowed it. I would seduce you. But I do not want to annoy you by being too forward.”
He knew she was telling the truth. Suddenly he was sorely tempted, but he held himself back. “Let’s go to the beach and see what happens. If you wish to do it then, tell me, and I will. Then later we can consider how we both feel about it.”
“That is fair,” she agreed.
The three cars pulled up at the beach. It was a hot summer day, and there were a number of people there. Star stared, enraptured. “Oh! I did not know it would be so compelling!”
Sam drew Brom aside. “There is a private inlet adjacent to this public beach. We have reserved it, and will guard it. No one is there. Go.”
“Maple, let’s go find some cotton candy,” Johnson said, picking the child up. “We’ll join them in a little while.”
“Yes!” Star cried, running toward it, fully clothed.
Brom followed, and soon they were at the private beach. Star tore off her clothing and ran naked to the water, exactly as Aliena had. The sight of her bouncing nude body turned him on, as before. Brom stripped and ran after her.
“May we sing?” she asked breathlessly.
“My soul’s going to shine like a star,” he sang.
“Mate me!” She plunged into the water, singing her Note. She splashed down in the shallow surf.
He followed, and in a moment they were in the the throes of it, still singing together. “My soul’s going to shine like a STAR!” he concluded as he plunged into her and climaxed instantly. She climaxed with him, as Aliena had, overcome by the moment and the surging waves.
Then they collapsed together. They had done it, gloriously.
“And at home, now that our ice is broken?”
“Anytime,” he agreed.
“May I initiate?”
“Anytime,” he repeated. “When we are alone.”