Her Alien Protector: A Sci-fi Romance

Part 41

Ava

Kayla greets me when I arrive for the ceremony, whispering into my ear. "Sorry about everything. I made a few erroneous assumptions, applying Phoenix Borealis protocols to the Firefly, which Tarak assured me do not apply to us... I worked with Dylan to get what I hope is close to his custom."

I squeeze Kayla's hand. "No, I'm the one who is sorry. Dylan seemed enamored by the creature in the tree. If I hadn't let him keep it by his bedside overnight in the sampling container, this might never have happened, and—"

"Silence," roars Tarak. "Gather around the casket."

Casket? At the center of this empty room is a rocks sampling box, no larger than my hands.

The five of us make a small circle around the box.

"Why don't you tell us what to do," Kayla says to Dylan.

Dylan scrunches his nose.

"Bug Eyes needs to know we member him..."

"Member him," Rigel asks, tapping his translator.

The translator doesn't work right if there is a mispronunciation or if the word is not used correctly, which is highly likely when a four-year-old speaks. Fortunately, Kayla clarifies and explains what we are to do next.

"This part of the ceremony is done to remember the one who has departed, usually by painting the casket," says Kayla, bringing forward a bucket from a corner of the room. "Everyone can dip their hand or finger into this colored dye I extracted from the tree's leaves and apply it to the box."

Even with coaxing, Dylan is too shy to start the process, so Tarak goes first, dipping his fingers into the liquid and painting legs and big eyes at the side and front of the box.

"Are you okay, Dylan," I ask, putting my hands on his shoulders.

"It looks real," whispers Dylan who watches Tarak work. "It's like Bug Eyes is with us."

Tarak's tail makes a slow swish-swish sound. "The eyes are important so that Bug Eyes can find his new home in the universe."

I go next, pressing my hand into the liquid and pushing my handprint onto the box. After me, Rigel, Kayla, and Dylan add their marks to the box. Even Glow Ball joins in, dipping a paw in the green liquid and pressing it in the middle of the lid.

Kayla prods Dylan to explain the next part of the ceremony. "What do we need to do next?"

"Bug Eyes needs things for his trip," says Dylan.

"I put together a few things Bug Eyes can bring on his journey," says Kayla, indicating what looks like another small sampling container in the corner of the room.

Dylan runs to me, tugging at my hand. I crouch down and he whispers in my ear.

I repeat Dylan's request to Kayla, and she rushes out of the room, bringing back a small bit of tree bark. After examining what we are going to send off with Bug Eyes on his voyage, I unravel the bark and using the green dye, write a letter.

When I finish writing the letter, I read the words aloud.

"Dear Bug Eyes,

We are providing you with two tomato plant seeds, one leaf that fell from your favorite tree, and one feather as you set out on your journey into the universe.

Love, the crew of the Firefly."

Then I let the bark recoil like a tiny scroll and add it to the container Kayla prepared.