Page 4 of The Twelve Nights of Halloheen

“Right, so, uh, I was looking for some kind of green plant,” Isla answered. True to his word, Tisuran remained completely silent. No rattle. No rumble. No words even!

When the silence had continued for several minutes, Isla couldn’t take it any longer. “Are you fighting not to laugh at me?”

“I’m weighing my questions,” he said, standing up. Then he reversed course and crouched down on his heels, opening his arms up to her, “Let’s talk as we journey back to the settlement. I can I carry you.”

Ignoring his outstretched arms, she got to her feet. Without comment he stood up also, never taking his eyes off her. It was tempting to accept the Talin’s invitation. Not that she was incapable of walking, but she longed to be held.

But no. She still wasn’t ready to be touched yet. Or probably ever.

“I’ll walk,” she answered, even though her legs felt a little wobbly. Tisuran kept his strides short and slow, making it easy for her to match his pace. The walking-torches were quick to fall in step with them, one in front, one next to her, and the last one behind them.

“Tell me if you become fatigued at any point,” he commented.

“Just ask your questions.” Her words came out sharper than she meant them to.

His purring rumbles continued to fill the surrounding air. “I’m curious, but I don’t want to upset you.”

The comment made Isla realize she was acting childish. He’d just rescued her from certain death, and she was being an overly sensitive brat. “I’m sorry, Tisuran. Please make any noise you wish and ask your questions.”

“Why are you looking for a green plant?” he asked, casually glancing around at the purple, gold, and red foliage that made up the plant life on Sorana.

“To decorate with,” she explained. When he interrupted his purring to sound a rumble of curiosity, she elaborated. “The Twelve Nights of Halloheen start tomorrow, and the tradition for the first night is to bring plants into the house.”

“I remember you mentioned something about this celebration to Zia,” Tisuran commented with an encouraging rumble. Or it could be an understanding rumble. They sounded the same, like a bunch of people snapping their fingers. “It’s important to your group of humans.”

Isla felt a proper smile stretch her lips. “Yeah! We had so much fun during the Halloheen celebrations back on Wimol. The Twelve Nights always happened after the tooktuk harvest and before the planting, so we had free time to celebrate. Other than those days, we were always working, every day, all day.”

A deep rumble of sympathy came out of Tisuran. “Poor humans, forced to labor like beasts of burden on Wimol. I’m sorry this colony requires all of you to continue to work, but soon the infrastructure will be finished. Then everything will change.”

Isla scoffed. “Compared to Wimol, this place is a vacation.”

The progressive Talins of Sorana might not see humans as dumb, but they still considered humans far too fragile to do labor-intense jobs. Talins often tried to coddle the humans, to the extent that they often ended a work day before the task was even finished.

With the planet newly inhabited, there was always more work that needed to be done. Sorana didn’t even have half the necessary infrastructure up yet. And more humans and Talins were supposed to be arriving in a few short months. Talins and humans alike had been working frantically to make Sorana ready for the incoming group. It’d be easier if they could hire proper Talin companies to come and do some of the bigger jobs, but they had to keep the true number of humans on Sorana asecret, along with the strictly forbidden human-Talin couples. As the timeline got shorter, tempers had started to fray.

That’s why they needed a break and celebration!

“It’s been so stressful lately that everyone’s gotten a bit grumpy,” Isla continued. “And there’ve been a few fights. Tess and Ger still aren’t talking. Celebrating the Twelve Nights of Halloheen would help everyone relax, have some fun, and come together as a community.” The idea of celebrating made her want to skip a little. She resisted the urge but only because her legs felt a little shaky.

Tisuran sounded the snapping-fingers rumble of understanding again. “That’s not a bad idea. Palforma commented earlier today that he believed the humans were unhappy.”

“We aren’t truly unhappy,” Isla was quick to tell him. The last thing she wanted was any of the Talins to think the humans weren’t content.

When Zia, Palforma, Derani, and Nalia had come to Wimol and offered everyone a place on Sorana, almost all the humans jumped at the chance for a better life. Living on Sorana might mean hard work and rough times during setup, but it came with the promise of an easier future.

A few years younger than Zia, Isla didn't hesitate to follow the woman she’d always idolized to a new planet. Even when her parents refused to leave, she packed up, said a tearful goodbye, and boarded the ship, knowing she’d probably never see them again. It had been almost a year, and she still didn’t regret her decision. But she did long for the laughter and comradery of Wimol.

“Not unhappy, but perhaps not as joyful as you could be,” Tisuran murmured. “I believe your idea has a great deal of merit, and I’d like to help.”

“Yeah?” Isla said with excitement. When she’d suggested doing some of the Halloheen traditions with Zia, her good friend didn’t seem enthusiastic. The lackluster response made Isla reluctant to ask anyone for assistance. But Tisuran didn’t think she was being frivolous, and he wanted to help!

“I’d be honored to be part of creating a full Twelve Nights of Halloheen celebration,” Tisuran said with a formal tone and the single clang of a decisive rattle.

“This is going to be great,” she declared, excitement making the last remnants of her earlier terror vanish. “I want to make this the best Twelve Nights of Halloheen we’ve ever had!”

“I swear to you it will be,” Tisuran intoned.

For some reason his promise made a shiver run down her spine that had nothing to do with the cold mist coating her skin.

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