Page 37 of Whoops-A-Mate From Outer Space
“That is good to hear.”
We’d no sooner stepped from the capsule when the din of a busy terminal assaulted my ears. Men of every pastel hue imaginable hustled through the building. Many used the same levitating carts that I’d seen above—laden with bins. Off to one side, a woman with four arms appeared to be tending some sort of bar.
I blinked. “I thought women weren’t allowed on Lyll.”
Eashai paused where he’d already taken several steps. “No, that is not the case. It is only human women, and only until we can guarantee that they will be safe to visit. It is our hope that one day there will be free travel for all between our planets.”
He chuckled. “However, there were many years during which females from other species were carefully vetted before being allowed to visit, as we did not want to be the source of another catastrophe.”
“Ah, I understand now.”
I glanced over to see him smiling at me.
A child’s voice called out what sounded like, “Mapo, mapo!”
Eashai’s head snapped toward the sound, and a grin split his face. “Naduq!”
He dropped to his knees, arms wide, as a sunshine-yellow toddler shuffled toward him. Two men followed closely behind, also smiling.
Eashai hoisted the boy into the air as soon as he reached him and spun around before pulling him to his chest and kissing his face.
I tried to hide my smile behind my hand, but a look from one of the other men told me I was failing.
Eashai listened intently for a moment to what sounded to be a mix of real words and baby chatter—nodding along—and while I didn’t know the words, the tone made me think he was responding like anybody would with a child that age: “Is that so?”, “Really?”, and “Tell me more.”
One of the men—dusty lilac in color—edged closer to me. “You are Bapo’s friend from Earth?”
“Bapo?” I blinked.
“That is our term for the non-birthing father.”
“Ah, I get it now,” I laughed. “You must be Eashai’s son.”
“I have been rude!” Eashai exclaimed. “Gene, this is my son Tolai,” he said, motioning to the lilac man with his chin, “and his mate Veeshen.” He nodded toward a man brighter yellow than the boy in Eashai’s arms.
Then he smiled down at the toddler. “And this is my grandson, Naduq.”
He looked up again and made eye contact with the other men. “Tolai, Veeshen, this is my friend, Gene.”
I stuck out a hand. “Pleased to meet you both.”
They stared at my hand, unsure what to do.
“It is a human custom,” Eashai explained quickly. “They clasp hands and move them up-and-down a couple of times during introductions.”
Tolai was the first to attempt a handshake. It was clumsy, but passable considering he’d apparently never done one before. Then Veeshen stepped forward and tried it as well.
“Humans do that when meeting?” Tolai asked as his mate stepped back.
“Introductions, important business agreements. It’s used in several situations.”
“All humans do this?” Veeshen asked.
I laughed. “All humans understand it, but it can vary by region. Where I’m from, it’s the norm, but, in some Asian countries, a polite bow is customary.”
“So much to learn,” Tolai laughed.
“How do you normally handle introductions?” I asked.
