A few years past since that course with M'icli-de. I saw her from time to time, in the market, and I think once in the Dto'. (Forest.) I didn't talk to her though. My father's tip was interesting, but I wasen't sure if he was right. A couple times I wondered if this is how he and my mother came to be. But I never had it in me to ask. One day, I came to the market late at night. The moons were bright. The tourches and lights lit up the place, drums and intruments played music. I was confused. It took me a while to realize that that night was when the moons align, and the spirits of fallen warriors speak to those they knew. It was tradition to have a celebration. There were dancing women, roaring warriors, and shows that would please any god. I knew my father wasen't here though. He never came to these celebrations. If I remember correctly, his own father died on this day many years before me. I'd never been to the celebration before, but that was my chance, so I walked around. Vendors in their huts where selling fruits and drinks, weapons and armor. I found deposits of women, looking for men to please. A couple followed me, but they lost interest when I didn't speak. I was not sure if I wanted to be at this celebration, but something kept me there. My instincts told me to stay for a while.

"Come get your Ct'lip, freshly made ct'lip! You wont find any ct'lip like this anywhere else!" A vendor yelled nearby over the voices of people's voices of laughter and happyness. I'd never had Ct'lip before, but heard it was very good if brewd and burned right.

"I'll take a mug." I said as I approuched. The vendor took me by the jaw and inspected my face, and my clothes.

"I'll be a Gro-tye! Taraka, you've come to celebrate?" The vendor said as he prepared my Ct'lip.

"Nye, I've never been to one of these, I just wanted to see what it was like." I said as I leaned up agents his hut.

"Well, these can be sad, but we try to make the best out of it." He said, just before lighting the Ct'lip. He blew off the Mi and handed the mug to me. "Don't drink it too fast, or you'll be as deleriouse as you would drinking more than one." He said to me as he went to another Yautja. I took a sip from the Ct'lip. It tasted like Naxa fruit with ship fuel. I continued to drink though, it was an insult to throw away something you didn't make yourself. However, in my efforts to rid of it, I drank too fast. Once I was finished, I could hardly stand. Every drum beat echoed throughout my mind. I stumbled over and slumped up agents a nearby tree, facing the celebration. Shadows danced infront of me, like demons. I couldn't see anyone's face's clearly. People would glance over at me, but continue back to whatever they were doing.

"Taraka?...raka?...ka?.." A voice said as a shadow approuched. Before I even realised someone had said my name, I passed out. When I awoke, I was on a bench, with my face down on a table. My head hurt like nonother. The only time it felt this bad was when M'icli-de slammed me into my fathers ceiling. "Taraka?...ka?..." The voice said again, but more clearly. I looked up. The celebration was conuing, but everything was blury, and every sound was still echoing in my mind. I must have been unconciouse for a few minutes, not alot changed, the moons weren't aligned yet. I felt a hand land on my bare shoulder and shook me. "Taraka?" I looked up, and saw M'icli-de staring at me! I opened my mouth to speak, but all that came out was a groan. "Drink this...is.." She said as she put a mug infront of me. I felt so bad, that I did, and moment later, I vomited over the bench. When I finished, everything was as it should be, except for my head ache.

"What was that?" I asked as I cleaned myself off.

"Water." She said as she took a cloth and whiped my mandibles off. "The juices in Ct'lip dont go well with water. Its the only thing that will clear your mind before you ingest all of the ct'lip."

"I guess thats not true, my head hurts." I said, holding it.

"That is my fault, when I picked you up, I accidently hit your head on that tree." She said with a slight giggle. She sat down next to me and rubbed my head, "Let me guess, your first time with Ct'lip?"

"That obviouse?" I asked her, I stoped rubbing and let her rub for me, they way she did it felt good. "Nye, I heard you talking to that vendor." She said.

"You were watching me?" I asked her as I looked at her.

"Not off hand, I saw you walk up to that hut and was going to greet you, but you got to the ct'lip and I dont know what you are like when your mind is clouded."

"Defenceless. You could have a Kainde' Amedha Tie'mo rampaging around here and I would have been sitting there." I said. I looked at M'icli-de, she wore a blue tunic that went around her shoulder and had a small slit that exposed one leg. I asked, "I take it you're hoping to hear from someone?"

"Actually, in one way, Aye, the other, Nye. You see, I was hoping that I would get a visist from an ancestor, perhaps one like me. Someone who knew what I was going through. Someone I could talk to and not feel like an outcast." She said as she stopped rubbing my hand and placed them on the table.

"Well...why not talk to me?" I asked. She looked at me. "I mean, I know what you're going through, you've told me, and I understand." Her expression did not change, it stayed blank. It looked at the table. "I take it you've not forgiven me for that hunt, huh?"

"Nye, its not that. You're just...."She drifted off.

"A Yautja." I said, not looking at her.

"Nye, You're just never there..." She said. Now I looked at her. She continued, "Yo haven't spoken to me in years."

"I thought you were angry at me!" I said, suprised.

"Heh, nye..." She said with a giggle. "If I were angry, it isn't likely I would have saved you from 2 days of pain!"

The music stopped, and a Yautja wearing expensive armor stood up on a small stage in the center of the market court. He said, "Before the moon align, we are going to have time for those of you whom have loved ones, and will be playing music for you. If you dont...then find one!" He said, laughing as he moved off stage. The music turned to soft flutes and wired instuments, and a female yautja, singing. I looked at the court and watched only 8 yautja stand up with their mate and slowly move with them. Yautja with multple wives say down and held his women close.

I shook my head and said, "I think I'd better leave."

"Why?" M'icli-de asked as she looked at me.

"I don't have a mate. This would make me uncomfortable." I said as I stood. I woubled, but kept my balance.

"Wait!" She said as I turned to leave. She stood and held me. "You still need to relax from the Ct'lip. If you go running off it's likely you'll lose yourself." She took my face and turned it to her own. "Please?"

I stared into her eyes. They looked beautiful in the blue fire's light. I smiled at her and said, "Alright. But I'm only doing this for you." I said as I lowered myself down onto the bench. The singing Yautja-de sang, "The spirits within", the most well known song of love. (Well, that I knew of. I don't know about the other villages.) I looked up at the Yautja's in the court, they seemed to be in total happyness. I started to feel uncomfortable. I imagined my father and mother moving to this song. I layed my head facedown on the table. I didn't want to watch anymore.

"What's wrong?" M'icli-de asked, placing a hand on my back.

"Nothing." I said to her.

"Taraka, you're a good hunter, and I'll bet you're going to be a great teacher, but you're not good at hiding your emotions." She said. She added, "And it's likely that this wont be the last time I say that either."

"This song makes me think about my mother." I said. I closed my eyes, and fought the urge to just leave.

"Oh...I understand." She said. She gently scratched my back. I could tell she was trying to get my mind off it.

It didn't work. I finally stopped fighting it and said, "I think I should leave now." as I got up and turned to leave. M'icli-de got up and came to my side. I tripped on a lifted stone and she caught me. As I stood all the way up, I looked at her in the face again. I saw worry in them this time. I remembered the words my father said last time I saw her, "If she looks back, she forgives you. She looks back again, she's interested." She did look back once, and again when she thought I wasen't looking. As I looked at her, I choked a little as I said, "You uh...want me to dance. Don't you?" I said.

Her expession turned to shyness, she looked away from me to the ground, and glanced at me a couple of times. For all I knew, she was just as deleriouse as I was with the Ct'lip, but she did say, "uh...a...Aye." She blushed.

"Well, why did you not say so?" I asked her as I placed my hand on her shoulder.

"I..thought you were angry with me." She looking at my face.

"If I were angry at you, I wouldn't speak to you." I said with a smile. We lead each other to the court, and started moving. I had my arms around her, with hers around me. I blushed a little since I'd never danced with a Yautja-de. She did too, telling me this was her first too. The uncomfortable feeling left me as I moved with her. I thought to myself, "This must be what it was like with father and mother." I looked at her face. She was nervouse, trying not to step on my feet apparently. I noticed that we were doing just fine. Maybe the gods wanted for me to dance with her. (Or maybe it was because she wasen't as tall as most Yautja-de's and we had even steps.)

"Don't look down M'icli-de." I said to her. When she looked at me I said, "We wont embarass each other. It seems you and I know how to dance better than we thought."

She smiled and said, "I beleive so." I noticed how beautiful she was when she smiled. I blushed and looked away towards the crowd...and spotted my father!

He was smiling. He only waved his hand once and continued to watch me and M'icli-de dance. I felt honor with his approval. I began to think he WANTED me to be with her. The question was...why?

The song was ending. M'icli-de and I didn't step on each other the entire time. Once it stopped, the crowd clapped and pounded their chests. I looked at M'icli-de, who was already looking at me. I said, "Thank you."

"For what?" She asked, confused.

"For giving me a new memory. Something else to think about with that song. Someone else..." I said looking deeply into her. I felt her face get close, but we stopped and looked out at the crowd that was still cheering.

"Well...I'd better leave if there's a vision waiting for me tonight." She said. She openned her mought again to speak, and stopped. She didn't say anything for a few breathes, but then she said, "Will you come with me? Just to get me home?"

"Uh..Aye!" I said. She smiled and took my arm as we walked off the court. I saw my father smiling again as he watched us walk. M'icli-de was very quiet on the way to her home. It wasen't very far from my own. She hummed Spirits within, while holding my arm. To me, this felt.....right.

When we reached her home. She turned to me and said, "Will I see you again soon?"

"I'm not sure. I'm going to help my father with another hunt. We should be back in a month. But...I'll come to you when I come back." I said. I was getting very shy. I'd never been with a Yautja-de, not like this. She was much different from the ones I knew as a suckling.

"I look forward to it." She said with a smile. She got close to my face, and after a long pause, she kissed me on my upper mandible. (well, in our case, she licked me. We have no lips.) I held that spot and watched her as she went inside her home, she looked at me one more time before closing the door. I turned around, and slowly walked home, humming the song I'd always think of her with...

****