Majgen Ch. 017

"My name," explained Majgen, "or as close to it as a yijejo can pronounce."

"You never told me your name." Aejoa's emotions contained a hint of jealousy.

"You never asked, Aejoa. Besides, I like 'Eeejow Juman' too, it has a musical sound," she said, speaking the yijejoan words for Little Human.

'Jealousy,' thought Majgen, when Aejoa and the Master Tailor resumed the design of a glorious outfit.'Aejoa isn't usually prone to being jealous over small things like that. Before he was captured by humans he was a sharing person.' She had learned that from his memories.'He needs me still, because I remind him he was loved during that time. I guess with time he will grow less dependant, less demanding. Aejoa really is a loveable oaf. For as long as it takes him to get back to his former self, I can deal with his clumsy jealousy and possessive behaviour,' concluded Majgen with a naivety typical for youths of her kind.

As so many times before she cuddled to his chest, enjoying his warmth and enjoying how happy her comfort seeking movements made him. Soon she fell asleep.

While his human slept, Aejoa told the Master Tailor the story of how the little creature had sacrificed herself to save him from torture, and how she had later saved his life. By the time he was done, the tailor no longer felt any disgust towards the tiny alien resting in the Winin's hold.

----=(o)=----

Sunlight glittered in the board-game pieces, reflecting out in all colours of the rainbow.

'In reality I enjoy looking at the pieces more than I do playing the game,' Majgen admitted to herself.

Aejoa was trying to teach her the joys of playing Jeeiouma, a strategic board game favoured amongst Eieie. Many considered the deep thinking required to play it well to be mind expanding.

'I have trouble even remembering all the rules at once. But at least Aejoa seems to be having fun.' Majgen had twice as many pieces as Aejoa. In the beginning of the game she had had three times as many, playing with handicap because of difference in skill and practice.'Aejoa always go completely quiet when playing this game. He doesn't even seem to remember who he is playing with. Maybe I should call First Servant Inee and have him play for me.' Majgen giggled to herself.'Aejoa probably wouldn't notice the difference until the game ended.'

Raising her eyes from the pieces, Majgen studied Aejoa's face.

'He really is far into it. He doesn't move at all except to move a piece.' Majgen sighed.'Playing Jeeiouma is actually a lousy way to spend the daylight hours. It's even more boring than wandering around at night with nothing to do, and no one to do it with.'

A mischievous thought rose in Majgen,'I didn't promise to keep my perceptivity low when we beganthis game.' In previous games she and Aejoa had agreed that she should refrain from following his strategy through his emanations. It had become standard for them; they no longer bothered to mention it every game. Usually using empathic perceptivity was permitted while playing the game, but, since Majgen could follow just about anything through a mind shield, empathy would give her a truly unfair advantage.

'Wonder how long it will take for him to realise it if I start cheating,' she thought, and decided to test it.

For a few human weeks, a few yijejo days, Majgen had lived in Aejoa's home. Life had settled. Routines had been established. The outlook of spending the rest of her life in lazy luxury, officially being the Winin's pet, had become familiar and safe.

Majgen managed to eradicate half of Aejoa's pieces before he caught on to her.

"You are cheating!" The exclamation came right after she had removed his last Guardian Captain, from the board.

"I most certainly am, revered Winin," Majgen said in yijejoan. She had learned many words and phrases in his language now.

"How long have you been doing that?"

"Oh, quite a while, by now."

"Don't ruin the game like that. It takes all the fun out of it," complained Aejoa.

"What fun? I'm bored Aejoa. This is my last waking period before nightfall. I don't want to spend the day hours being bored."'I don't want to spend the nights being bored either, but not so much I can do about those.'

"You should let me order one of my servants to entertain you at night."

"It wouldn't be fair to them, Aejoa. They weren't hired to entertain me. It's not their job."'They wouldn't like to be reassigned from being servants to being pet-watchers. None of them.'

"They will do what I say without complaining."

"They wouldn't talk, but they would feel. I don't want you to issue such an order." Majgen was adamant.

"I could hire someone else then. Someone who does not object to the task," offered Aejoa. "Or would you object to that too?"

"No, I wouldn't. If you can find such a person that would be lovely."

----=(o)=----

"Now, I have described to you what this job is," said Aejoa, "and I need an honest answer, not a polite or dutiful one, just a completely honest one."

"As you request, I shall try to comply, Winin."

"Lower your mind shield," demanded Aejoa, and noticed the surprise in the younger yijejo's emotions.

'Can't be helped,' thought Aejoa. He had already interviewed five different people for this job. Four of them had lied and said they truly wanted the job - even though they didn't. The fifth had honestly admitted to not desire the task.

'I didn't want to ask this one to take the job,' thought Aejoa, but didn't ponder further on why he had not wanted to hire this particular person. The young man lowered his mind shield as instructed, and Aejoa asked the final question of the interview. "Do you truly want this task?"

Aejoa expected hesitation in the young man, but the answer was immediate and full truth.

"Yes, Winin."

"Can you start immediately?"

"Yes, Winin."

"You won't have trouble staying awake?"

"No, Winin. I often work all night."

'Does he have to be that eager?' Aejoa had hoped to get someone hired for the night, before going to sleep. But somehow the young man's strong desire to get the job bothered Aejoa.'Well, I guess eager is good. It means my Little Human will be more prone to accept him. Company during the nights will make her happier, and I want her to be happy.'

"Very well," said Aejoa. "I will bring you to her, so she can decide if she wants your company tonight."

"Thank you, Winin."

'What a strange thing to say with such extreme gratitude just now. I am not payingthat much for his time,' thought Aejoa, troubled yet again.

While leading Apprentice Tailor Joone through his home, Aejoa tried to understand what caused the troubled feelings.'I scanned him prior to talking about the job. I asked him multiple times if he would ever even think of harming her. I am absolutely sure he would never harm her. Why am I so troubled?'

They located Majgen in one of his living-rooms. She was on the floor, drawing images. The image pad she used was a kid's toy. Majgen had not yet learned enough yijejoan to be able to use adult versions.

Sensing their presence, she raised her head to look at them.

"Joone! It is so nice to see you again. How are you?" asked Majgen, happiness shining from her.

"I am very good - and happy to see you too, Maijien," said Joone, joy shining from him.

Majgen and Joone were so happy to see each other that neither of them noticed jealous pain shooting through Aejoa upon their happy reunion. The revered Winin himself did not recognise the jealousy, would not acknowledge it.

"You said you wanted company for the night," explained Aejoa.

"So you went ahead and brought me Joone," interpreted Majgen. "That was so considerate of you, Aejoa. You are so nice to me."

Aejoa's troubled jealousy washed away as Majgen turned her full attention to him, and he felt her love and gratitude aimed at himself.

"Pick me up!" demanded Majgen, holding her arms up to Aejoa. He complied. Hugging her he completely forgot how troubled he had felt about hiring Joone.

"I want you to be happy, Little Human," said Aejoa, lovingly.

"I know you do, Aejoa." Majgen spoke with confidence and conviction. "You are a good friend."

Joone watched the unlikely pair, wishing that Majgen would let him hold her close that way too, but not pained at all by the love she felt for the Winin.

"We can have a three-person board-game before I go to bed," suggested Aejoa. No longer semi-consciously troubled by the concept of sharing Majgen's attention now that she had shown he was still number one.

"Anything but Jeeiouma please," begged Majgen, not quite joking.

"You can pick a game for us, Little Human," promised Aejoa.

----=(o)=----

"That was a fun game," said Majgen, when Aejoa vanquished the last of Joone's standing pieces. Her pieces had been eviscerated only halfway into the game, but watching Aejoa and Joone play while they all three talked and joked had been fun too.

"It was a good game. You play well, Apprentice Tailor Joone," Aejoa praised the younger yijejo.

"Thank you, Winin," said Joone. He did not return the praise. To both him and Aejoa it seemed obvious a Winin would be a better player than a tailor, hence if Joone returned the praise it would be considered insulting rather than complimenting.

Majgen followed their interaction with interest. She was still trying her best to understand everything yijejoan, like she had earlier in her life tried to learn to understand everything human.

'They are both happy with the rules of their interactions, the roles they assume. The superior person and the inferior person. Not just that. They both truly believe it is the right way. Joone truly considers Aejoa to be a superior being. Winin, it is not just a rank, it is more than mere status.' Majgen looked at the two men.'They both believe Aejoa is a greater person than Joone, but I don't see why.'

"It is about time for me to go to sleep," said Aejoa. Actually it was well past his bedtime. He rose and picked up Majgen. "Would you like some special attention before bedtime, Little Human."

Majgen blushed at the intimate question and thought,'He shouldn't mention that while others are present.' Then she chided herself,'Stop being silly about it. Yijejos don't think about it the way humans do.'

Trying to act naturally, Majgen fought her shyness and spoke openly on the topic, "You are starting to enjoy giving me special attention, aren't you, Aejoa?"

"I enjoy it, when you enjoy it, Little Human, and you have begun to enjoy it," Aejoa replied honestly. "Except in the mornings. It is too intense and exhausting for you in the mornings after a whole night without."

"Yes, it is," admitted Majgen. "But we get past it every time."

Turning his eyes towards Joone, Aejoa got an idea. "I could teach Joone to help you with that too, Little Human. If he treats you once or twice during the night, the mornings would be gentler on you."

"Aejoa!" Majgen was outraged at the proposal.

"Old taboos bothering you again?" Aejoa asked gently, not realising that he might have had second thoughts if she had accepted the notion eagerly. He might have felt his position as her most important friend could be threatened.

"It's not just taboo, Aejoa. Sexis private."

"I understand," said Aejoa. "Let's talk about it tomorrow, when you are more familiar with him. In the meantime, will you allowme to give you some special attention?"

"Maybe just a little bit, Aejoa. To last the night."

----=(o)=----

Later in the night, Joone was helping Majgen learn to use an adult version yijejoan image pad. During a natural pause in the effort, Joone started talking of a matter not related to the device.

"I wanted to say, thank you, Maijien. For what you did for me when I was first here."

"You did already, just before you left that day."

"I know but it was so brief." Joone moved his amber eyes from the pad to Majgen's face. "What you did for me, it was... I cannot find words."

"Then show me instead, Joone," offered Majgen.

"I wouldn't be able to show the way you showed me," admitted Joone.

"I can show you how."

"I would be honoured, Maijien."

She showed him. Majgen herself did not know how special she was, did not realise what gift she carried. Yet, through that yijejoan night she shared it with Joone. She showed him how to show what he saw, and she showed him how to see more clearly -- how to sense from more sides.

Her teachings could not be translated to words, they were emotion, but sometimes she did try to use words too. Halfway through that night was one of those times.

"But how can I see the way you do without your aid, when I don't have your special abilities?" asked Joone.

"No, it's not emanations or transmissions I speak of, Joone. I speak of how much you let yourself sense with the abilities you have. It is like you will not let yourself see the emotions. You will not let them reach your heart. You need to see with your heart, Joone, to feel with your heart."

Joone lowered his face to look down at his abdomen.

"Maijien..." he hesitated, confused, "... I am a yijejo. I..." He patted his abdomen - close to where his heart was - trying to find words. "I can't see or feel with my heart. You see yijejos, we have no sensory organs placed in the heart, or at least not empathic ones."

Majgen shook her head, smiling slightly, rather embarrassed at herself.

"No, of course you don't," she said. "Silly me. No that wasn't what I meant, Joone. Humans we don't have empathic organs there, nor any brain centres for cognitive perception."

"Then why did you tell me to see with my heart?"

"I didn't mean it literally, Joone. It was a metaphor. It was a more poetic phrase."

'I can feel it was a beautiful one. It is so clear in her emotions,' thought Joone, and said, "Please explain it to me."

"Amongst humans, when we say heart, we do not just refer to the organ, which amongst us is placed in the chest," Majgen explained and held a hand to her chest, indicating where it was. "When we say heart we often refer to something deeper, something emotional. If I should fall deeply in love with someone then I would say, 'I gave him my heart'. If he then treated me badly, I would say, 'he broke my heart.' "

"So for you the word heart is like being in love?" asked Joone.

"It is more than that to me," said Majgen. "Once when I was a very young girl, a little child. This is one of my earliest memories. I asked a question, similar to what you asked me, to my mother when she was putting me to bed. I do not remember the exact question I asked, but I remember the story she told me as explanation."

Painful longing and sorrow, but also joy at the memory, went through Majgen as she remembered her mother's face and voice.

"She said to me. Once upon a time, very, very long ago, when humans still lived on earth. Far before we had even made machines that could fly. Before there was science, or doctors, or even hospitals. Humans did not know much about how their bodies functioned. They knew, of course, how to eat, and drink, and knew they needed rest and to visit the toilet. But they didn't know much more than that.

"To this day, Joone, I do not know if the use of the word heart came about the way she told me, but I like the story still.

"She told me people tried to guess what did what. It was easy to guess where food goes, she said, because a stomach hurts when it is hungry. Other things were easy too - like eyes to see and ears to hear. But emotions, that was hard for humans to figure out. Which part of their body felt emotions? Many said the stomach for that too, because it hurts when we are really sad, or really scared.

"Later on, it was decided the stomach was for food, and the heart had to be where we felt, because it can pound so heavily when we feel strongly. Also, because, when it would stop pounding, we would no longer feel."

Tears came to Majgen's eyes, sadness overtook her a moment.

"My mother's heart stopped pounding many years ago, Joone. I still miss her. My father too."

"Let me comfort you," requested Joone. In response Majgen held out her arms.

He picked her up. Holding her close, he shared her pain and her memories of her beloved parents. When sadness passed and the present once again prevailed, Majgen resumed her story.

"She told me that this was the way the word heart came to attain this special meaning. A meaning which it has kept to this very day, amongst humans. Even though millennia has passed since science found that the heart, the organ in the chest, is not where we feel."

"I like the story too, Maijien. Your mother must have been a very special person."

"I think she was," said Majgen. "I had her only so few years and it was so long ago."

"How did she die?"

"She and my father, they were killed by yijejos."

"Your parents went to the war while you were still a child?"

"No, Joone, the war came to us. The soldiers killed everyone, except the children."

"I apologise," Joone was truly ashamed.'I didn't know soldiers killed civilians. I've always been told they don't.'

"If you do not ask me to apologise for every yijejo who has been tortured and killed by humans, I will not ask you to apologise for what happened at Hawlun, Joone."

'I understand,' felt and transmitted Joone.

The night was long, and there was just the two of them. Between those two there was no boredom. They each had a youth's lifetime of memories to share with the other. Joone could not be bored with learning to see how Majgen saw, and Majgen could not be bored with showing him.

Nearing dawn Majgen slept in Joone's reaching limbs. He sat absolutely still, holding her like the most valuable treasure. Just like Aejoa so often did.

'Her teachings are unique,' thought Joone.'No Eieie could show me what she shows me, not even the Winin. Not the Ojewa either. This is not their way. This is not a way I have ever heard of, but it makes my feelings sing.'

As he watched the face of the little human, who so trustingly slept in his hold, he decided to rephrase that thought.

'No. It makes my heart sing.'

*

Copyright of Nanna Marker.

Last chapter (016), I spent a lot of words begging for public comments.

What do I have to do to get them?

(Message to those few who did give: Thank you, it was most kind of you, Sirs and Ladies.)