Page 53 of Unfinished

When they reached the dining hall, Jesthi and Villith were already there, looking into the bag Sienna had brought down the night before with equally mystified expressions. Villith pulled out a roll of glittery pink crepe paper and frowned as he shifted it from hand to hand.

“It’s for decorating the room. Don’t worry—it’s compostable, so it isn’t as wasteful as it looks. Pull out the purple roll and I’ll show you how to use it,” she said as she walked over to the main table.

Villith set down the pink crepe paper and fished out the purple. Sienna smiled at him and nodded to Jesthi. Then she took out the remaining items in the bag. She hoped Veesha would like the hologram projectors, even if she wouldn’t know what unicorns, mermaids, and butterflies were supposed to be. They were big, shimmery, and colorful, and the woman at the children’s store had promised the programs she’d chosen would be a hit with any little girl.

“R’kash and Jesthi, can you get the lights we talked about earlier and then get started on the food? I’m going to show Villith how to set up the rest of this stuff,” she said as she grabbed an end from both rolls of crepe paper.

“Come, Jesthi. I think we have the easier task,” R’kash said to his assistant priest as they headed through an archway on the opposite side of the room to gather their supplies.

“Are those small moons and stars printed on the papers?” Villith was tracing the designs on the printed crepe paper and ended up tearing it with his nail. His feathers immediately rose, wavering as he made a low noise in his throat.

“It’s fine—really, don’t worry about it. Just rip that bit off, and we’ll start again. We have plenty,” said Sienna. Then they unrolled more of the paper and Sienna pointed to a spot on the upper left corner of the wall. “Can you fasten this bit up there? We want the ends to hang down and then we’ll have it go across the wall in loops until we reach the other side.”

By the time they’d festooned crepe paper streamers around the perimeter of the room and from the center of the ceiling, R’kash and Jesthi had brought out the normal breakfast items in addition to Veesha’s birthday pie and an extra large tray of Xithilene fruit. Her present for Veesha was sitting at the end of the table, wrapped up in shiny purple striped paper.

“Faseeth is on his way with Veesha,” announced H’viss as he entered the dining hall with Neevish at his side. “Ivekth is coming in from the fields. He’s anxious about his first harvest festival at Evathi,” he said with a fond smile.

“Ivekth wasn’t here last year?” she asked as she crouched down to activate the first hologram projector. She’d need to hurry to get them all running before Veesha arrived.

“No. He was transferred to us half a year ago. This is his first posting since he earned priest status,” R’kath explained as he came up behind her. “These are like ourli’esthi,” he said as he pointed at one of the butterflies perched on a lilac branch on the last hologram.

“Will she like them, do you think?” she asked, standing back to take in the room now that everything was completed.

“How could she not?” R’kash replied with an amused hiss. “It’s wondrous. Strange, but fascinating.”

Maybe she’d gone a little overboard. Between the crepe paper, holograms, tablecloths and table decorations, it was a lot. The room hardly looked like the same place where they’d been sharing their meals for the past week.

The moment Veesha stepped through the doorway and froze, mouth open and wings outspread, Sienna knew it was all worth the effort. Veesha looked from one hologram to the next, eyes darting left and right and up and down in an attempt to take it all in.

R’kash walked over the Veesha and dropped down to one knee as he pulled something from beneath his robe. He held a delicate gold chain over his fingers, and a glimmering, flame red gem hung below his hand.

“This is for you,k’vasha. It’s your birth chain. May I put it on you?” he asked.

“Yes,” she said as she reached out to brush the stone with one finger.

R’kash fastened the chain at the back of Veesha’s neck and moved the pendant into place so that it was centered right below the hollow of her throat. Sienna saw his jaw twitch as he lowered his hands. She wouldn’t assume she knew exactly what this moment meant to him, but it was obvious it affected him deeply.

Veesha looked up and smiled, one hand wrapped around her birthstone. “It’s like yours,” she said, staring at the gemstone pendant resting on R’kash’s chest.

“Yes,k’vasha. Ours are the same.” He reached down and pulled Veesha into his arms, hugging her tight before he took her hand and stood. He turned to face the rest of them and raised his free arm. “Give thanks to the Lady for the health and happiness of myk’vasha, Veesha of Evathi!”

The priests lifted their arms and clicked their nails together, making that sharp, percussive noise like castanets while Sienna clapped her hands. Good-natured hissing accompanied the Xithilene-style applause as R’kash led Veesha over to the table.

“Lady Sienna made you a special human birthday treat withv’ahissberries, but before you can eat it, we must sing as you blow out three small flames to celebrate each of your years,” he told her as they sat down.

Sienna lifted up the full cup of chocolate at her place to hide her grin. Three skinny, tall candles rose from the pie, and Veesha tilted her head as she peered at it curiously. Sienna nodded at Jesthi, and he tipped a small device in his hand towards the candle wicks, quickly lighting one after the other.

She stood and motioned for the others to join her, and then she started singing “Happy Birthday.” The men did their best to sing along, Faseeth’s warm tenor rising above the rest. Veesha couldn’t stop looking from face to face and then back to the lit candles again. Her small feathers were still lifted up with excitement, and they hadn’t relaxed since she’d stepped into the room that morning.

When the last note of the song died away, Sienna leaned forward and pointed towards the candles. “Make a wish and blow them out, Veesha.”

“Like this,” added Jesthi, and he held up his fire-starter and blew at the flame, turning off the device to make it look like he’d blown it out.

Veesha frowned in concentration, pursed her lips, and managed to put the first candle out. The next two went faster, and she was all smiles by the end.

“What did you wish for,k’vasha?” asked R’kash.

Veesha turned to her father. “I want to stay here with you.”

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