Elder Scar walks Teresa to the entrance of her cabin. Gently turning the former doctor to face him, Scar kisses her goodnight.

  "I will see you again. Once the suns have risen. Sleep well, Teresa."

  "And you the same."

  Scar offers Teresa a thin smile before turning and strolling quietly away. Teresa watches him leave with a heavy heart. The yautja warrior means well. He has a good heart. So why is she so conflicted? It should be a no-brainer. Be alone, and spend her life pining for a love which will never be again? Or be with someone who loves her?

  Spinning towards the front door, Teresa struggles to compose herself, fresh tears running down her face. She adjusts her clothes, the bodice of her sleeveless dress having slid lower than would be considered appropriate for smaller eyes. With a loud exhale, Teresa pushes open the door to the cabin and steps inside.

  She is surprised to find Mifbon sitting up, obviously waiting for her to return home. A lone lamp burns beside the hybrid babysitter and she appears to be sewing something which is spread out on her lap.

  "Mifbon? Why are you still awake? How are the childlings? Are they in their rooms?"

  "They are well," Mifbon says mysteriously, not lifting her head. "They are still with Yau-tala. However, I was hoping I could speak with you alone."

  "Of course. What is it? Is something wrong?"

  Mifbon finally looks up from her sewing and smiles in Teresa's direction.

  "I am quite well. Wonderful, in fact."

  The matronly yautja gingerly climbs to her feet. She places the item she was sewing on the nearby table.

  "It appears...I am not as old as I believed myself to be," Mifbon says with a sly chuckle.

  "Huh? What do you mean? Not as old as you believed yourself to be? I'm not following you, Mifbon."

  "I have made a small error in judgment, Teresa. I am heavy with Halyiis' descendant."

  "What?!" Teresa hollers in surprise. "You're pregnant, Mifbon? Wow. That's great! I mean, if you're happy—? Wow!"

  "I have mixed feelings," Mifbon admits. "Halyiis does as well. Based on my ooman lineage and physiology, we did not believe I could become heavy at such an advanced age. Therefore, we did not take the necessary precautions. I did not make use of Yau-tala's L'so Elixir. I want a childling. But I also know this will take me away from the young ones of the settlement. I will miss them once the childling inside me makes it difficult to move around easily."

  "This settlement is really getting a population boost lately. I'm so happy for you, Mifbon. You deserve this. You deserve a childling of your own. After everything you have done to help all of the other mothers here on V’Daha."

  "I suppose so. That is what Halyiis continues to tell me. He worries that I may strain myself too much. Haha."

  "Not anymore you won't. I'm going to spend more time at home, and less time at the archival library and the med cabin. Yau-tala will just have to understand. You're going to be a mother, Mifbon. Your priorities are going to have to change. Your baby comes first. Now, off to bed. Use the guest bed. Come on. Don't argue. Let's go. To bed. It's my turn to mother you."

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  Mifbon chuckles and goes to stand in front of Teresa. She hugs the smaller female tightly and grins.

  "I'm going to be a mother," she sighs happily.

  "Yes you are, Mifbon. You're going to be a mother. Welcome to the club."

  -

  -

  The Next Morning

  Halyiis is all smiles when Teresa slips into the archival library. The older male hybrid glances over a broad shoulder and then goes back to studying the handheld device he is holding. Images scroll across the screen faster than Teresa's eyes can follow. However, one yautja symbol flashes onto the screen in a semi-regular pattern. The yautja word for 'father'.

  Teresa stops on Halyiis' right side and places a hand gently on his forearm. Their eyes meet and Teresa can almost feel the emotion radiating off of the archival historian.

  "Mifbon told me last night. Congratulations, Halyiis. You're going to be a father. You deserve it. Now, you'll have someone besides stuffy old settlement leaders and flighty ooman females to share your expansive knowledge with."

  Halyiis allows a deep chuckle to escape. He peers slyly at Teresa from the side of his eye.

  "Don't let Elder Scar hear you call him that. I am many ooman years his senior. Although, he is better preserved. No ooman genes to grapple with."

  "I think I should be insulted by that remark, but I'll let it pass. This time. What are you studying? I glimpsed the word for 'father'. Believe me, Halyiis...You have nothing to worry about. You'll be a great father."

  "I was reading the ancient story of Jgiktu and Vilhudi...The first yautja to ever perform the ritual of Everlasting Love."

  "Oh yes, you've told me that story. It was before Darcy and Settlement Leader Vildif's joining. If I remember correctly...Vilhudi is the reason the big red and green goat thing is named a Vildif. He fought the fierce hunt beast...Unarmed...On a narrow cliff. He battled to prove his love to Jgiktu. Afterward, the two of them performed the ritual of Everlasting Love and became the first vil'par joined in such a way."

  Halyiis nods approvingly and his grin grows wider. He lowers the device in his hand to the table and places both large hands on Teresa's shoulders. His round eyes soften as he observes her proud face.

  "Very good. I'm impressed, Teresa. Your understanding of our stories and traditions is quite humbling. I'm afraid, I understand very little of ooman narratives and traditions. Despite being half ooman myself. Perhaps, it is because of the false hope instilled in all of us hybrids from birth. For many hybrids, our mothers desperately wanted to believe that we would be allowed to rejoin yautja society one day. They would not let us forget our progenitors. Oftentimes, they too would forget where it is they came from. They completely assimilated to yautja society. If only in their minds."

  "Don't feel bad, Halyiis. Human history is full of such stories as well. After pretty much every major war on Earth, there were hundreds...If not thousands of children left in foreign lands when their fathers returned home. The abandoned children's mothers were often ostracized. For having slept with the enemy. That was hardly the case. Many women were simply victims of circumstance. Their husbands having been killed in war...They turned to the streets to provide for their families. Or worse, they were ravaged by soldiers who saw them as little more than spoils of war. To me, V’Daha is no different. We are all refugees from a different kind of war. A war of love and indifference."

  Halyiis further scrutinizes Teresa, his expression growing solemn.

  "Are you sure...You are not a historian, Teresa? You speak as one."

  "I'm no historian, Halyiis. But, I know a thing or two about the coarser side of human history. We're a hard species to figure out and get along with. We have no qualms about killing, maiming, and torturing each other. Maybe that's why everything I know about the yautja...Doesn't seem so terrible. If it wasn't your kind blowing us out of space, we'd probably be doing the same to each other."

  "But they are not only my kind. They are your kind now. Your childlings are not ooman. Not as you are. They do not even look ooman. What will you tell them? Will you do as our mothers did? Will you hide the coarser side of their natures from them?"

  "No. Together, we will teach our childlings all the things they need to know. They must know the truth."

  Halyiis nods affirmation.