Page 66 of No Strings Attached

She grabbed the Trallian’s arm before he could skitter away and said, “Don’t be frightened. None of us will hurt any Trallians.” He just regarded her with wide eyes, as she plucked the other glass from his hand, and backed away. She knocked the first one back in a single gulp, then set the glass down, and held onto the second. It was light, slightly sweet, and mildly alcoholic.

Before Mister Beastly had stepped forward, there had been at least five alien males of unknown species making their way toward her from different directions in the room. She looked around to see that they had all frozen and were staring at Mister Beastly warily. She smiled over her shoulder at him again and said, “Thank you, I was about to be overrun. But we better mingle.”

Vi picked the most innocuous looking of her flash-frozen welcoming party—a tall, muscular, humanoid male that looked slightly elfin, with pointed ears and a shock of electric blue hair—and made eye contact, then offered a small smile. He started forward and, upon reaching Vi, gave her a low bow. She responded with a slight dip of her head, taking in his loose-fitting brown linen tunic and trousers, bare feet, and gold bangles at his wrists and ankles. He was handsome, in an 80s-hair-band-meets-warrior-elf-monk sort of way.

“Queen Violet,” he said, in a deep, sonorous voice that seemed to resonate inside her, “it is my honor to meet you. I am Valis of the Melinor.”

He held firm eye contact, never once allowing his gaze to drift down her almost naked body. She started liking him right away for that.

“Hello Valis, it is a pleasure to meet you. I am not familiar with the Melinor.” They’d decided in advance to not even try to hidetheir ignorance. This was Oz’s coming out party, for fuck’s sake, they didn’t have to know about every little thing in the galaxy. Then she added a joke for her own entertainment, “But I see we have the same taste in shoes.”

He laughed loudly and warmly, then said, “Yes, I understand that Oz is just now entering the galactic community. May I?” He indicated a pair of vacant chairs nearby and held out his hand for hers, palm up.

Vi nodded, placed her hand on his, and allowed herself to be led to the seat. She wanted to look around for Bobby, to give him a reassuring smile, but she knew she wouldn’t be able to do that all night. They had discussed her need to mingle like this, and that it would almost certainly include close conversations and occasional touches. She hoped he wasn’t feeling too anxious.

Valis waited for her to seat herself, waited for Mister Beastly to take up a defensive position behind her chair, and then sat with his body angled in toward hers. He showed no anxiety at all from Mister Beastly’s presence.

“The Melinor is a society of warriors who spend their entire lives training on Kran until they are ready to pledge themselves to a house or a cause. Any species may train to become a warrior of the Melinor, but they must dedicate their lives to the training and precepts, and they must pass a series of trials before being allowed to go out into the galaxy and find a house or a cause. I have recently finished my trials and am searching for where I belong.”

“Congratulations, Valis, you must be very proud to have completed your training and bested the trials. Where has your search taken you?”

He looked down, “Several places that were poor fits for me.” He looked back up at Vi and smiled, “When I heard there was a meeting of two royal houses here, I came to see if I might find a better fit with Serpentia or Oz.”

Vi looked at him for several moments. He was serious, but…light, as if he carried no heavy weights in his heart or soul. “Can you tell me why those other places were poor fits for you? You needn’t reveal the places or the houses, just tell me why you felt like you could not belong.”

He thought for a few seconds and Vi looked up to see Bobby walking over to her. She was seated on a low, wide, armless chair that could easily fit both of them, so she scooted over to one side and patted the empty side. Bobby sat beside her, crossed his legs, and put his arm across the back of the chair, looking up at Mister Beastly and smiling.

Vi turned back to Valis to introduce Bobby, but she saw a surprised expression on his face.Oh shit, she thought,forgetting and fucking up already. She decided to bluster through it, “Valis, I’d like you to meet Bobby, our royal designer. Bobby, this is Valis of the Melinor. Valis was just explaining to me about the Melinor and his search for a house.”

The males nodded at each other.

Valis leaned in and said, “Forgive me, but did you say that Bobby is your royal designer? He holds such a prominent position as a slave?”

Vi shook her head, “We don’t have slaves. We don’t condone slavery in any form and are actively looking to end its practice in the galaxy.”

Valis leaned back and regarded them, seated side by side, and smiled. He looked up at Mister Beastly, then around at the other members of the party, all engaged in various conversations with the reception invitees. Vi took the opportunity to check if the Ophidian royals had returned. They hadn’t. She hoped Steve wasn’t getting his ass chewed too badly.

Valis said, “Then I have found my place. It is with you, Queen Violet.”

Vi nearly did a spit take on the last swallow of her second glass of the fizzy stuff. Bobby put a hand on her back until she pulled herself back together. She said, “We’re not exactly recruiting warrior elves at the moment, Valis. Why do you believe we would simply accept you in our house?”

He laughed, “You may trial me for as long as you like. The only thing I require in exchange is the basics for life: food, water, a place to sleep. You may reject my placement at any time you wish, and I may retract my offer at any time I wish, until I swear to you. What’s the risk?”

Vi shook her head, “This needs a longer, not-so-public conversation, with more of my advisors present. But I will say, I am intrigued enough to bring it up for consideration. Where are you staying?”

“I’m currently sleeping in a shop on the lower decks. I offered my protective services to a shopkeeper who was having serious difficulties with the criminal elements down there, in exchange for a place to sleep and a meal each day.”

“Let me speak with some of my party. I also need to spend some time with Ophidians. Please don’t leave this reception tonight without finding and speaking to me again. Will you?”

He grinned a charming, boyish grin, “Yes, Queen Violet.” He stood, bowed low, and was absorbed into the mingling crowd.

Vi turned to Bobby, “Do you know anything about the Melinor?”

Bobby leaned in and said, “Yes, they are honorable warriors. I watched a series on the Ogo, ‘A Day in the Life of a Melinor Warrior.’ They train for years and go through awful tests. Then they choose a place to serve for life, one that matches what’s in their hearts. It is considered very prestigious to have a Melinor warrior attached to your house. They vow to never mate.”

“Hmm, he made the offer to join us right after I mentioned our position on slavery.”

“Yeah, I noticed that, too.”

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