Westrons Pt. 31

- "Did she know ... that we were going to have this talk?"

- "Did she know? It was her idea."

***

Esyle let me enjoy a good meal, and a drink after dinner. She wasn't about to raise the subject until I was ready - which meant that it was up to me to start the conversation.

- "Tallia asked to speak with me today. Privately. With Senau." I said.

- "I know. How did it go?"

I described the whole thing to her. She listened, nodding attentively. She didn't interrupt. When I finished, she gently took my hand.

- "Have we really been that bad, Esyle?" I asked.

- "I think so." she said. "Tallia and I had several long talks. After the last one - a week ago - we were both in tears. She opened my eyes to what we've been doing."

"We blame her for not coming home very often, for not acting like a member of the family - but we haven't treated her like one for a long time, now."

- "And Senau."

- "Yes. I've always thought of him as distant, too. It just never occurred to me that he might be shy. But it's understandable. How could he possibly compete with Isa?"

"You should speak to her, Cook."

- "Isa?"

- "She may know more about Senau than we do. And she could certainly help us to make Tallia and Senau feel more comfortable when they're here."

- "That's not the biggest issue, though, is it?" I said.

- "No. That's you and me. And then my parents."

- "How do you suggest that we handle them?"

- "You just help me with my Mother. She'll take care of my father."

- "I bet she will."

***

Tisucha spent many days at the Belere, helping to look after her grandchildren, while Talley most often stayed at their house, working on his maps.

When Esyle volunteered to go over and make supper for her father, Tisucha knew that something was in the air.

- "So you want me to stay here, is that it?"

- "Yes, please." said Esyle. "Cook and Isa would like to speak to you, Mother."

- "Alright." Curiosity won out over suspicion. Either that, or a night off from looking after Talley might have appealed to her. The moment Esyle left the room, with Koroba in tow, Tisucha was ready to begin.

"What's this about?"

I nodded to Isa. "Go ahead."

Isa and I had had a long talk about ... everything. Tallia, Senau, Esyle ... the family environment, the future ... everything. Some of the things she'd said came as revelations to me.

She'd readily agreed to help us improve the atmosphere in the Belere.

So she proceeded to describe, for Tisucha, what the Change felt like: the pain, the physical sensations, and the emotional transformation that went with it.

I'd heard it before, but it still moved me to hear what Isa had experienced - what she'd suffered - so that she could be with me.

- "You must know, then, that Senau went through the same thing. For Tallia."

- "Mmmph." Tisucha frowned. She couldn't help it.

- "Cook changed, too. Not physically, of course. But the Change always works both ways."

- "You know all about Westron hemmers." I said. She was a doctor, after all, as well as a wife and mother. "The female experiences it, but it affects the male equally powerfully. Well, the Penchen Change works on both partners."

- "But the effects aren't only physical." said Isa. "The bond that's created ... lasts well beyond the physical manifestations."

"I will never leave Cook." she said. Her hand opened for mine as I reached for it. "Never. You know this."

- "I know." said Tisucha. "Is this your way of telling me that Senau will never leave Tallia?"

- "Mother." I said (I really did think of her as my mother-in-law, in many ways). "I'm never going to leave Isa. We haven't told anyone this, except for Esyle. We ourselves didn't realize it until now - but if Isa had asked me to go with her - back to Penchen lands, or wherever - I would have seriously considered it."

That got Tisucha's attention.

"That's right." I continued. "It would have broken my heart to leave Esyle, the children, the army, everything ... if Isa had asked. But it would have killed me to be away from Isa. That's how powerful the Change is."

- "I would never have done that." said Isa. "I couldn't. It would have hurt Cook. It would have hurt Esyle - and that would have hurt Cook even more."

Tisucha was no fool. She was a very intelligent and perceptive woman.

- "You're saying that ... Tallia could have run off with Senau? That he never asked her to?"

- "He knew that her home, her family, were more important to her."

Tisucha didn't answer.

- "There's more." I said. "I didn't realize, until this week, that Senau isn't really aloof, or stand-offish. Distant, yes. But there's a reason for that."

- "He's really quite shy." said Isa. "That may be why we never became friends. I'm very outgoing. He isn't. Quite the opposite."

- "Yet he had the courage to speak me the other day." I said. I told Tisucha what Senau had said to me.

I can't say that Tisucha was wavering. But she was listening. She'd heard us.

"There's one more thing." I said. "Isa?"

- "It may be three years from now. Or four. It could be as long as seven years. But Senau will change for Tallia again."

"And if she bore a child before ..."

Tisucha loved her grandchildren. She adored her namesake, little Tisucha, but she also doted on Talley junior - and little Berand, Tallia's son by Senau. Who can get angry at a baby? Even while she frowned at Tallia, and ignored Senau, Tisucha cared for their child.

Now she contemplated the possibility of another grandchild. Of course she would love it. And care for it, and nurture it.

***

It didn't happen overnight, of course. Tisucha and her elder daughter had a private conversation, that went on for a very long time.

I can't say that Tisucha warmed to Senau - but she did thaw considerably.

Talley was still a bit of a dick, on occasion. He immediately heard about it, though, from the rest of us, so that he was left in no doubt that no one else shared his opinions. I have a feeling, too, that Tisucha gave him an earful, afterwards, because his comments grew fewer and farther between.

My life settled into a remarkable pattern. After the alarms and perils of the past decade, a little more predictable routine made for a pleasant change.

I worked on weapons and army reform, with a group of talented and intelligent women, Kanitz, Themis and Tallia foremost among them.

Tallia and I could smile at each other again, and share the warmth and support of our 'family'. Senau might never be loved, but he was more accepted, and the welcome we now extended to him was genuine.

Koroba remained a member of the extended family. I continued to enjoy her company, her irreverent sense of humour - and the fact that she was still watching my back.

But my life really revolved around three women. Esyle was my partner at home, the core of my family, and mother to Tallia's children as well as ours.

Tudino was my colleague, my friend, and my lover (once every year or so). Those intimate moments were still passionate and intense. We'd built an incredible degree of trust between the bedroom and the battlefield.

And Isa was my companion, my best friend. She could share in the most technical military discussions with Tudino and me; she could also provide me with an emotional sounding board, just as I did for her. She knew all of my secrets - including the Pylosian mystery, which Kanitz only guessed at.

I loved three women: one Westron, one hybrid and one Penchen. I hadn't exactly planned it that way, but there was a certain symmetry to it. Like a circle, as Esyle had suggested.

***

Some months after Tallia's reconciliation with her mother and sister, Isa and I had a brief conversation. Only a few words were spoken, but they stayed with me.

- "Isa," I said, "when you were talking to Tisucha about Senau ..."

- "Yes?"

- "You said that he would ... that in three years, or ..."

- "Or four, or seven ... that he would change again, for Tallia. Yes, I said that. He will."

- "And -"

- "Yes, Cook." she said. Her eyes were bright.

"Yes. I will change for you again."

*****

Thank you, for reading this far.

Thank you, too, if you've posted comments that were supportive, or criticism that was constructive, or if you sent me feedback privately. Those are the main reasons I continue to post stories on this site.

I've learned a great deal from you - about military matters, and writing, and human nature.

I wasn't fishing for compliments (I really do need to develop a thicker skin), but the outpouring of positive comments after Part 27 was quite astonishing, and very encouraging. Thank you all, very much.

My greatest thanks, however, are reserved for Alianath Iriad, who has been editing for me from the very beginning, and pointing out whenever I hit a false note (which was fairly often). Thank you, Iriad, for making this a much better story than it would have been.

THE END

There are bound to be many people who are unhappy with this ending. Feel free to imagine your own. Please trust me, though, when I say that if I had kept writing, that wouldn't have made the story any better.

I will submit a Part 32 - not a continuation, but an appendix, if you will, with added information about the story, including some of the feedback I received.