Page 47 of Pirate By Parrot

She grinned. “No, he’s at the Imperial court for the day. I won’t catch hell until he hears about you and the Citadel.”

“Why?”

“All of their combat specialists were ready to attack you. It wasn’t a great place for a preggo lady.”

Mel sighed. “No, and I am sorry you were in that position.”

“You have always been in the way.”

She didn’t take offense. “Yes. My mother died, and my father was a bastard until he died, and he taught my brother to be the same way. When he died, he left me his children and a swearing parrot. I got the kids through school but couldn’t do much for Marko, so I brought her with me.”

Marko lifted her head.“Pretty girl. Lovely bitch.”

Mel smiled and sipped her tea and ate her sandwich. “The food is nice.”

“Thank you. You are fairly near to our system. I would love another visit. I would offer to do it, but my husband is attached to this system.”

“I understand. Just issue an invitation, and I can do some travelling. I don’t mind it. I have a personal pilot and good friends.”

Amber chuckled. “Your shoulder-bound companions?”

“Yeah. They are great, and I feel so much better.” She was feeling relaxed. “Can Marko go for a flight? We haven’t been in the atmosphere much. She’s self-contained, so no worry about bio-contaminants.”

“Oh, certainly.”

Marko launched herself skyward, and Pohloh snuggled in and rubbed against Mel’s head. “One day, you will fly with Marko. You, too, Whee.”

The Yaluthu cuddled up next to her.

Amber smiled. “They both are affectionate toward you.”

“We all play together, interact together, and work as a group.”

“Any sign of your mate?”

“Yes, he’s holograming himself into public areas of the ship. We are chatting, and I am learning about him. It could just be an AI, but it’s company.”

I am not an AI, Melora. AIs can’t communicate on the psychic plain.

Mel smiled. “He didn’t like me saying that.”

Amber blinked. “He’s listening?”

“Yes, I have filaments for tracking and communication as well as biofeedback in my brain. He put them in himself.”

“Ouch.”

“Yeah, well, they were necessary to control my growth and get my body to alter pigment. The Vendari were the third species I was prepped for because the first two had easier growth stages.”

“Wow. So, what did you do back home?”

“Bits of anything. Waited tables, drove an ambulance, drove an ambulance in combat, back to waiting tables, and finally retired to my hometown and helped my brother’s family after his death. The cancer kind of took my career plans and trashed them. The fumbling of my transformation to giant kind of suits my track record. The attempted arrest was new.”

“Addy was upset because she wanted to keep the babies. She thought that there was no way they would take off on their own, so kidnapping was the only thing that sprang to mind, and she has a thick mama-bear streak.”

“I get it. I don’t blame her.”

“May I ask her to join us? She doesn’t get off Iratho frequently. She wanted to do something nice for her Yaluthu, but intent and execution often fumble.” Amber raised a hand, and a servant appeared out of nowhere. They nodded and scuttled away.

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