CHAPTER 51
Andie
Like Dakleth, I decided it would be best if I stayed away from the Palace for a few days. I missed Leo and Kashtinela, but I didn’t want to be the cause of any further “incidents” with the Charonu.
An invitation arrived for the ball in the Charonu’s honor, and I wasn’t sure if I should actually go, or if it was just a formality. I decided to give Kashtinela a call. I wondered if she was leading the talks as we had discussed.
“Greetings, Andie. Blessings upon your house,” she said. She seemed in a pleasant mood. “Blessings upon yours, Kashtinela, I hope you are well,” I replied.
“I am well, yes. To what do I owe this communication?” she asked. Straight to the point. It was unusual for us to call each other. We saw one another frequently enough, and if we needed to get in touch, a text message was usually sufficient.
“I received an invitation to the Charonu ball, and I wasn’t sure if I should come,” I said.
“Yes, of course!” she said. “You would not have been invited if you were not welcome. Why do you even ask such a thing?”
“Well, my last meeting with the Charonu ended in disaster, so I wasn’t sure if I should go.”
“Pshhh,” Kashtinela hissed. “The Charonu’s poor manners are certainly not your fault. If anything, we should be wary of permitting Dakleth to attend, but he is the King-in-Waiting, so we have no choice but to allow him as well.”
“I guess that’s true. Anyway, has your father allowed you to sit in on the negotiations?”
“Ha! He loved your suggestion and tapped me to lead. The Charonu have been most perturbed. It is very satisfying,” she grinned. “As a matter of fact, we are meeting in a few moments, so I will need to leave our conversation.”
“No problem,” I said as I heard a chime at the door. “Someone is ringing the doorbell. Good luck! I’ll see you at the ball next week.”
“Do not be a stranger. You are welcome at the Palace any time. If the Charonu are made uncomfortable with this, even better,” she said mischievously, waving goodbye.
I opened the front door and found a crew of Ptexari males milling around outside. “Umm, can I help you?” I asked the one on my doorstep.
“Morning, Lumanela,” he bobbed his head. “Prince Dakleth sent us to plant these in your garden.”
“I’m sorry, what?” I asked, perplexed.
“These bushes,” he said, pointing at a pallet full of potted plants behind him. “The Prince said they are for your garden.”
“I don’t know anything about this,” I hedged.
“They are all flowering plants,” the head gardener said, as if that would shed any light on what was going on.
“Can you hang on a sec?” I asked.
“Yes, Lumanela. The Prince was most insistent that we are at your service.”
“Uh huh, I’ll be back,” I said, and closed the door in his face. I went back to the comms panel and asked to be connected to Dakleth.
“Greetings, mate,” he said, smiling. “You have already received my gifts?”
I dispensed with the formalities. “First, it’s Andie. Second, why is there a group of gardeners on my doorstep?” I demanded.
“I am giving you flowers. It is a traditional human courtship gift, yes? Leo informed me.”
“Wait, so planting bushes is the Ptexari equivalent of giving a human woman flowers?”
“I do not understand. There is no equivalent. Ptexari do not exchange flowers. I am giving flowers to you to declare my courtship intentions in the human way.”
Ohhhhhh. I couldn’t help it. I started giggling, then broke out into peals of laughter.
Flowering bushes. So ridiculous, this man.
He really was trying hard to learn our customs. Should I tell him?
I didn’t want him to be upset with himself for getting it wrong, but I also didn’t want any more “flower” deliveries.
“Why are you laughing, mate?” He narrowed his eyes at me.
“For the love of all things holy, stop calling me that,” I said, irritated.
“For the record, humans will cut the stems of flowers from plants that are in bloom. We will give the cut flowers to our friends or a date as a bouquet. Twelve is the traditional number of flowers. Sometimes we wrap a ribbon around the bouquet. Whatever…. the point is, we stick the flowers in a vase of water to brighten up a room. We don’t usually give each other a pallet full of live plants. ” He was silent for a moment.
“That makes no sense,” he said. “Cut flowers would only last a few days. They would die and have to be thrown out. That is wasteful. Bushes will flower in your garden every year. They will also attract pollinators to help your garden flourish.”
I rolled my eyes. He got it wrong, and now he was going to shit on the custom?
“Human courting gifts aren’t meant to be practical.
They are little things that a woman wouldn’t usually buy for herself.
Ugh! Why am I even explaining this to you?
I’ve got to go let the gardeners in the back gate, I guess.
Thank you for the weird-ass gift. Get further clarification from Leo before you try to surprise me with anything else,” I huffed as I cut the call.
Sighing, I led the troupe of gardeners to my backyard and told them not to mess up any of the other plants.
A bit later there was another chime, and I opened up to find Camavel at my door.
“Greetings, Andie, and blessings upon your house,” she said.
“Thank you, Camavel, and on yours as well. Would you like some Oonag?” I asked.
“That would be welcome. I am curious to know why there is a small army in your garden,” she said.
“A bit of a miscommunication,” I said irritably.
“Prince Dakleth wanted to send me flowers, which is a human custom. We send cut flowers to put in vases. He misunderstood and has sent me a bunch of flowering bushes. And gardeners to plant them, evidently.” I looked toward the back door.
I wondered if M’Pak was back there, but I hadn’t heard any shouts of alarm, so I guess he was making himself scarce.
“Why do humans send flowers to one another?” Camavel asked.
“Oh, well, it can be for many reasons. Someone’s birthday, or to celebrate a special occasion,” I explained.
“Is there an occasion to celebrate?” she asked.
“Um, well, men also send flowers to women they are dating,” I mumbled.
“Dating? What is this word?”
“It’s, ah, like courting.”
“Is Prince Dakleth courting you?” she asked with obvious glee.
“Calm down, woman,” I said and sighed. “He did declare that was his intention, yes.”
“And he attempted a human courting custom?” she pressed.
“Attempted and failed,” I snarked.
“It is a thoughtful gesture,” she mused. “Not many Ptexari males would be so keen to honor your human customs, I think.”
“You’re right,” I grumbled. “I’m just feeling out of sorts about the whole thing. I’m not sure I want to be courted.”
“That is exactly what the courting period is for,” Camavel said.
“To ensure that the male you eventually choose is compatible. Ideally, you would be courted by several males and choose the one you find most suitable. The Ptexari courtship period lasts many months, giving you plenty of time to get to know your suitors. You have had many males declare their interest, and you have spurned them all.”
I didn’t think being harassed on the street really counted as a good-faith declaration of interest, not that I wanted it, but I kept that thought to myself.
“Now that you have accepted Prince Dakleth’s courtship, expect others to follow suit,” she said.
“What? I never accepted anything,” I said.
“The bushes planted in your garden say differently,” she replied, amusement dancing in her eyes. “Expect to be bombarded with suitors,” she continued. “Although the Prince is a rather intimidating male. He may scare them off.”
Well, crap on toast, I couldn’t handle any more male attention than I’d already gotten.
The doorbell chimed, and when I opened it, a nervous Manoko practically vibrated on my step. “G-greetings Lumanela,” he sputtered.
“Blessings and all that,” I said shortly. Manoko had never been my favorite male. “Can I help you?” No way was I inviting him in for Oonag, courtesies be damned.
He bowed to me formally and extended a basket of smoked sunac to me. “I see that you are finally accepting courtship, and I wish to declare my intentions,” he said stiffly.
“Ah, just a moment,” I said, and quickly closed the door. “Camavel!” I whisper-shouted. “What do I do?”
“What do you mean?” she asked.
“Manoko wants to court me, and I 100% know I do not want that. No way. I wouldn’t choose him if he were the last man on Earth… well, last male on Ptekennan, whatever. It’s a hard pass. HARD PASS,” I said.
“I will handle this,” she said. She breezed past me and opened the door.
“Manoko, you have no business courting Andie. You know she is already mated to Prince Dakleth. He is courting her as a courtesy because he skipped the formalities, and wishes to honor his mate, nothing more. Go home.”
Manoko’s wings wilted, and he hung his head. If I didn’t dislike him so much, I might actually feel sorry for him. He handed the basket to Camavel. “Here, you can have this Camavel,” he said dejectedly as he turned away.
“Ugh, thank you,” I said when she shut the door.
“Perhaps you are not immune to the Prince’s charms after all,” Camavel smirked at me.
”What do you mean?” I asked.
“Your reactions are very telling. You dither about the Prince’s courtship, but you are clear that Manoko is not even under consideration. Perhaps you are more open to the Prince than you realize.”
I sighed. “My feelings about the Prince are…complicated.”
“Just so,” she replied. “You were right to turn away Manoko. He is not a strong enough male for you. Others may come, though, and you should consider them.”
“Why?”
“Do not be won so easily, Andie!” she laughed. “Even a Prince needs competition.”
I thought about Dakleth’s reactions to Leo and to Gafand’s comments. “I don’t think that’s a good idea,” I said. “He has a jealous streak. A violent one.”
“The best males usually do,” she grinned at me.
I rolled my eyes at her. “Come on, walk me to Robnar’s,” I said. “I need a new gown for the Charonu ball.”