Chapter 32 #2
Quvi gave her a sardonic smile. “Honored Vora Vakara. I thank you, but no. I see you've been feeding the tritski birds. You know, they're pests.”
“Cute though,” Peony beamed, picking up a slice of a fruit she didn't recognize off the top of her head but was pretty sure she had eaten before. Immediately, one of the jewel birds landed on her hand and started eating it from between her fingers.
“Quite,” Quvi agreed, obviously not really agreeing. “I hear my sister has been taking care of you. I apologize for not giving you more attention, but I had a great deal of important matters to attend.”
Peony honestly wasn't sure if Quvi thought the implied insult of her and the others being unimportant was subtle or if she believed Peony was too stupid to pick up on it or if she just didn't care if she did, but she smiled back at her, choosing to be unaffected.
“I get it. You're an important person. Third Guardian. That's very nearly second.” Peony had to work not laugh outright at the wide-eyed horror on Tilii's face as her upper eye stayed on Quvi but her lower eyes focused on Peony through her hair.
“Indeed.” The skin around Quvi's eyes tightened, telling Peony she hadn't missed the return insult. But she still managed to smile at her. “I was hoping to make it up to you by taking you to the market today. Help you purchase personal belongings suitable to your own taste.”
“Oh, that's so nice of you!” Peony declared, voice honey sweet. “I'd love to take you up on that.”
“Wonderful.” Quvi smiled back at her, equally saccharine. “I'll go procure transport for us. I'm sure you'll want to change into something more suitable. What you're wearing looks a bit too comfortable.”
With that last, unsubtle insult, Quvi turned and walked away, head held high. Since she couldn't see, Peony indulged herself by sticking her tongue out at her back.
“Peony,” Tilii leaned into her, clearly worried. “Are you sure you... I mean, my sister is...”
“Relax,” Peony chuckled, patting her arm. “I was part of the mean girl clique in high school.”
“I don't know what that means.”
“Basically, it means that my best friends in my formative social years were also my worst enemies. I'm familiar with her kind. It's nothing that bothers me anymore.”
“But...” Tilii still looked uneasy, all three eyes moving quickly from Peony to where Quvi had disappeared and back again.
“Relax. I'll be fine.” Peony stood, stretching her arms high overhead. “We'll shop. We'll trade super polite and cheery insults. It will be fun.”
“That's not...”
Peony smiled, warmed by Tilii's concern. “You want to come with? Make sure I'm okay?”
Tilii's camouflage flickered with horror. “No!”
Peony frowned at her harsh refusal. Tilii grimaced.
“I mean... No, thank you, Peony. Er, I just don't...”
Tilii dithered, trying not to say what Peony already understood.
Quvi was all false sweetness with Peony, but Peony was also higher than her on the hierarchy chain by virtue of being claimed as family by Atem.
Tilii was lower, and her younger sister besides.
That made her prime target for bullying.
And Peony didn't doubt that Tilii was bullied.
It would be fun to give Quvi some of her own medicine since Tilii was too scared to do it.
“Don't worry. You don't have to go. I think Alanna and Holly have been writing questions for you to answer. You can go spend time with them until I get back.”
Tilii didn't relax. She still looked uneasy. But Peony could brush that off. To those being bullied, their bully seemed larger than life. An unbeatable enemy. Peony wasn't scared of Quvi though.
“I'll go get changed,” she said, smiling peaceably. “I can't meet her in my lounging clothes. That's how you lose the power game. I need my little combot to buy things, right?”
Tilii grunted in affirmative. Use of the tiny robot that could either fly alongside her or remain in the pouch at her hip, where it was now, had been one of Peony's first lessons.
They didn't have purses or pockets here, just the little hip pouch that men and women wore equally.
Apparently, using their retractable claws, they could, and often did, climb up and down trees and a purse or open pockets weren't conducive to that lifestyle.
So, pretty, hip situated fanny packs it was.
“Great. I think I'll pick up a gift for Atem while I'm out.
Let him know I'm thinking of him. He should be back tomorrow.
It's day four, so- Oh! That's why Quvi is here.
Atem's coming back and she wants to be able to say that she didn't shirk her duties.
Sneaky, sneaky. Well, whatever. I've already decided to ask him to let you be our permanent helper. Hope you don't mind.”
“Wha- Me?” Tilii looked surprised. “You want me?”
“Of course!” Peony beamed her. “You're my friend, and you're doing all the work anyway. Might as well get the credit for it, right?”
“I'm your friend?” Tilii looked baffled by the idea and that near broke Peony's heart.
“Of course, you are! And if you become my full-time helper, we get to spend more time together.”
“But I'm not trained as a guardian.”
“So? I'm not trained as anything. See? You're already better than me just by being native.” Peony waved at her. “Got to go. I'll see you later. Think about it. You don't have to if you don't want to.”
She was humming as she walked back to her room.
Maybe it was crazy, but she had actually enjoyed the clicky bull that went on in high school.
It was like every conversation was playing a game.
She had come to enjoy true friendships more since she left school, but there was still something fun about the idea of having a frienemy again.
Halfway back to her room, she ran into Temnavi. He had just finished cleaning the remains of lunch from the others. She asked if he wanted to go shopping with her and, unlike Tilii, he was eager for the chance to go down, even if it meant Quvi was going with them.
So, freshly changed into flowy, spring green pants and a yellow top that actually went to a different dress – the domini seemed to prefer monochromatic looks for the sake of their camouflage – she and Temnavi went to meet up with Quvi at the landing pad.
The Third Guardian turned her nose up at the young male, but Peony just smiled at her, pushing the boy into the hover. There was a professional driver at the controls. When he took off, Quvi and Peony immediately started with their polite, hidden barbs, conversation.
And it was just as fun as she remembered.
Though she didn't know why, it was clear that Quvi definitely didn't appreciate the little group of humans coming in and messing with the status quo.
She really didn't like that Peony was considered higher ranked than her.
Being forced to be her attendant was an insult that she couldn't tolerate and that was a sore spot Peony was happy to needle the moment she found it.
She had been a mean girl, after all. Some part of her absolutely enjoyed sticking it to people. Especially people that deserved it.
Temnavi didn't seem to notice that their politeness was only a thin veneer over their hostility and, in Quvi's case, obvious disgust. Whenever he got a chance to interject into the conversation, he told Peony about all his favorite shops and the awesome things he wanted to show her in the market.
Chances that she made sure he got a lot when, after the first time he spoke, Quvi very sharply reminded him that younglings weren't supposed to talk in front of their betters without leave.
Just another sore spot for Peony to needle after reassuring Temnavi that she definitely didn't mind and she absolutely loved talking to him.
After all, she was just a poor, foreign alien, she knew so little. It was such a relief to have someone take such good care of her.
Admittedly, that jab wasn't subtle, but it drove her point home and went over Temnavi's head. She was going to buy him a present too. He might not know he was being a prop in her fun, but that didn't mean he shouldn't be appreciated for doing it.
Then, their hover slipped below the canopy and Peony gasped in awe.
This entire time, she had been above the canopy.
There was no shortage of wonders to stare at from up there.
Flowers atop the trees, birds and other creatures that lived amongst the branches, and an unbroken view of the stars and moons that were incredible and beautiful.
The buildings that poked their heads above the trees were similarly amazing and, after over a week imprisoned in a small, dingy, dark room, the slightly orange sunlight was a relief she didn't want to surrender.
But she had really done herself a disservice by not going below the canopy before.
There was a whole other city down here, and she knew from a glance that it was a much different place from the upper levels.
The thick layer of leaves above their heads from the tall trees cast the undergrowth in shadow.
And it was here that Peony saw the real benefits of the camouflage.
Most of the people they flew over were clearly average, everyday citizens.
Some might wear bright and pretty clothes, but the majority were wearing fabrics that, while not high tech camocloth, were still designed to blend in. And blend in they did.
The camouflage was so good that her eyes often only spotted someone because they moved. There was no doubt in her mind that these forests were where the domini had evolved to live.