GKND: Operation FAMILY

[Renee]

At the sound of Masurao's quiet entrance, the four Orgamians looked up at the blue teenager.

"Good morning, sir." he bowed respectfully. "Welcome to Base Command. I hope your long travel was comfortable."

King Tanjio smiled at the wolf-like alien, "Ah, Masurao. It's good to see you again." He smiled down at the boy giving him a small nod of greeting. "I must say, you've done a fine job at keeping my little Niji safe and sound, well done."

Tahj snorted at the 'little' part causing the Princess to give her older friend a light nudge of annoyance, before looking up at her father. "Papa, Masurao and I make a great team together while we are on our missions and if I may add that--"

"Speaking of missions..." The King interrupted. "It's been almost a month since your last report, Masurao." He reminded with a stern look, "Is there anything I should know about?" He asked, looking down at his daughter.

Niji's arm dropped from Twix's back and dropped limply at her side, as her breath caught in her throat and her hearts pounded rapidly in her chest as if she had just rain a marathon. She threw her blue fuzzy friend a look, a look that clearly said 'be careful of what you say'.

The Orgamian King was never one to ignore the obvious, as he glanced down at Niji and back toward Masurao, he narrowed his eyes. "Niji, why don't you take Tahj and Twix for something to eat, I'm sure the long trip has left both of them famished. We'll join you for a proper meeting with your friends and their families momentarily."

Niji's eyes widened at the suggestion and looked up at her father, "B-but, Pa--"

Her father cleared his throat. "I'd like you to take them today, Niji."

Niji thought it best not to argue. "Yes, Papa..." She sighed defeated, as she led Twix and Tahj away but not without giving Masurao one last glance as she led her family around the corner.

Once reassuring himself that his daughter was no longer in hearing range, he reverted his attention toward her bodyguard. "Niji tells me that you two have formed quite the friendship..." He said calmly. "Of which I am relieved." He nodded, he paused for a brief moment, as if he was trying to formulate what he was about to say, then cleared his throat. "Because of this friendship the two of you have formed, you may have mixed feelings about revealing details of Niji's activities during her stay here. I understand." His demeanor was calm and sincere, however that changed slightly as he raised his chin to a regal level, "Now, I'll ask this question again, and I'd like for you to be completely honest with me, is there anything you'd like to inform me about Niji as of late? As I said before, a month has passed since your last report and things could have changed since then. Has she been behaving? Gotten into any trouble?" He eyed the green-eyed alien with a gaze that was serious and direct.

xxxx

As Niji led them to the cafeteria, she hardly noticed the delicious smells wafting from the place of dining, nor did she register the slight rumbling of her stomach as it informed her that she had not finished her breakfast. The only thing she was aware of was the slight panic she felt when her mind constantly drifted the conversation Masurao and her father were having.

"Okay, what's up with you?" Tahj suddenly said, causing the Princess to snap out of her worries,

She blinked rapidly, "Wh-what's up?" She echoed as if the question he asked was in some kind of language she couldn't understand. She looked up at the taller boy with streaks of rainbow in his hair. "What do you mean?"

Tahj jabbed his thumb behind him. "That." He said flatly, "Back there. You looked as if you were suffering from a heart attack." He rolled his eyes and cast as skeptical glance at her, "What's up with you? Why are you acting so peculiar?" He wondered with folded arms.

Niji scoffed, turning her attention to the animal of whom was a bit taller she was, that walked in long even paces beside her. "N-nothing is up..." She denied quickly as she ran her fingers through Twix's thick beige coat who responded with a gentle lick to her face. "Now come on." She opened the cafeteria doors. "I'm eager to introduce you to my friends and their families."

----
(Twix is about the size of a small horse, and he looks similar to a German Shepard or Husky dog. ^^ Just giving a vague image of him)

[Sadie]

The lowered ears of the younger Telarian were very attuned to the situation around her. In her years of training, she had often reminded herself of the importance of being attuned to her surroundings, and had excelled in the area in her later teenager years after many painstaking years of being taken by surprise. Now she made it a regular practice, most simply because she like being aware of the space around her.

Thus, it wasn't a surprise that she picked up on the reunion of the Mombie family, some distance away. Although her ears were not as fitting to the situation as she would have liked, even she could see the tension between the older brother and the younger brother, and her brow furrowed a little in annoyance. She considered Lester a friend, and such a display was certainly not one that she would put up with.

Still sitting on the back of her ever-patient father, she knew that she couldn't do much without starting a scene, and doing that would likely just make it worse for Lester, which she didn't want. No, a large display simply wouldn't do.

Reaching out a few invisible reaches of telekinesis, she snaked her power through the crowd of reuniting aliens and toward the place where Lester's brother was situated in the mass of people, trying to decide how to best execute her unpleasant feelings upon the male. She knew that Lester's ears were sensitive and figured that the same would hold true for his brother, but she wasn't technical enough in her telekinesis to be able to manipulate the air to create a sonic boom in his ear, which she would have liked to do.

Instead, she figured that simple pain would do the trick. Her power soaked into the fur of his tail, twined around the individual strands. She let it wash over a wide area of his tail and get a grip on each individual hair before tensing, waiting. When she figured that she had gotten enough, she yanked her power inward once more, pooling it back into the dwellings of her hearts and pulling sharply at the hairs that she had grasped. Making sure that she didn't pull any out, for that would cause more trouble than it was worth, she kept a discreet glance on Lester's brother to see if pulling at over a million of his hairs at once had caused any kind of reaction whatsoever. This way, she thought smugly to herself, he can't possibly blame Lester. He would notice if Lester was pulling on his tail hairs.

"Tala." The deep voice of her father caught her attention, and she glanced down at him to find his gaze looking calmly up at her. "What are you doing?"

"Nothing." Her lips curved into a smile that he was sure to recognize, one of secrecy and mischief, and then she simply tightened her arms in a hug around his neck while Mortimer peered at them from above. "I missed you, daddy."

"And I, you, myn una'ya."

But her father's gaze quickly pulled away to fall upon the Chiz girl that was now standing before them, having introduced herself politely. Etoile, pleased to see her interacting so well with his family, had wrapped a loose arm around her waist and was holding her to him as they faced his family; the wide, pooled eyes of his mother, and the steady, warm glance of his father. Tala, to give them at least some privacy since she was too lazy to move, was having a full-on conversation with the bird on her shoulder, consisting of entirely whistles and noises from both of them.

His father spoke first, most likely because he knew that his wife would soon run away with the conversation at the first opportunity. "So you are the one that our son has told us so much about." His smile, framed by the warm violet lenses that seemed bright even in the dim room, was wide and friendly, as though to welcome Nalo already. "It is a pleasure to finally meet you, as well, what with all the good things that we've heard about you."

The Telarian boy flushed a little, looking embarrassed, as though he would have rather let the conversation about his letters about Nalo remain unspoken. His arm tightened a little around her waist, although his eyes were on his toes as his mother apparently decided that it was her turn to speak.

"Oh, look at her, Dal, she's so polite!" The calmness and sensibility that Etoile had been hoping on from his mother now seemed a distant dream, fluttering away in the fierce bellows of reality. The small woman was practically gushing. "And lovely, too, dear, my son wasn't exaggerating at all." This she directed at Nalo now, positively beaming.

"Mo-om," Etoile muttered, now looking even more embarrassed. He was no doubt contemplating the desire to sink into the floor and vanish.

But Tsuki continued as if he hadn't spoken whatsoever, probably not even hearing him. "Quun ai'lae! Cnuh loena wei'nas!" How beautiful! Such pretty eyes! Her hands clasped together, her eyes dancing beneath the thick frame of her lashes. "I am so happy to have finally met you, Miss Nalo. You seem like a wonderful young lady; I've never seen Etoile so smitten."

"Moa!" The boy hid his eyes behind his curly mop of red hair, a purple flush shooting across his cheeks with the speed of a comet. Nalo knew how he felt, this was not news to her, but there was something about having your mother voice it out loud that made it much more embarrassing than it should have been.

Taking pity on his son, Dal put a gentle hand on his wife's shoulder, and the woman met his gaze and understood what he wanted, immediately falling quiet and simply turning her soft, motherly smile back at the girl that his son was holding, her eyes warm and endearing as she gave Nalo the opportunity to respond.

[Paula]

"Well, that breakfast is long gone." Zoelin muttered to herself, before drinking the rest of the milk that was left. A few drips of it fell on her nose, making her cringe a bit, before shaking it off. When she looked up, the blonde noticed that Etoile and Tala were coming back with two more telarians--which she could only guess were their parents.

Which they were.

"Hiya." She waved, taking a napkin and rubbing it on her face, hoping there weren't remains of milk on her fur. Mr. and Mrs. Ganmade seemed like a nice pair of parents, and they looked pretty happy too. As they seemed to be in conversation with Etoile, Zoelin's eyes made their way over towards their Hi'ota, Mortimer.

"Hey there, blue-guy." She smiled at it, tilting her head to the side as an eyebrow rose slightly. Like the others, she had heard some stories of him, but he definitely looked a lot bigger than she had originally thought. He was a pretty shade of blue, and he seemed pretty sweet, intimidating, but sweet. Turning to Tala for a brief moment, she asked, "hey, do you mind if I pet him?"

She raised another eyebrow, seeing that the green-haired girl's attention was somewhere else, and she followed the gaze, but couldn't exactly see what was going on in the midst of the crowds. It might've been something going on, or probably mustard-related, the Whiskite didn't have a clue, so she only shrugged, her eyes trailing back to the Mortimer through her bangs.

------

"...Mom?"

"Hmm?"

"....you're crushing me. " Lunira's voice came out in a muffle as the hug they were sharing, which had now turned into a full "bear hug" was starting to take the wind out of her lungs. It seemed like only a few minutes ago that she was just telling about an instance where she and a few of her friends from her sector were playing a game, when she found it to be harder and harder to talk.

"I don't think that's me, dear..." Halora pulled back, letting her daughter go. Lunira raised an eyebrow, but looked down towards her brother, who's arms were still wrapped tightly around her middle. Both girls chuckled at this before the older woman went on. "He really missed you, you know."

"He always does," Lunira replied, as she tried very gently to pry the light auburn arms a little looser. "Moxi?" Moxi replied by only tilting his head, staring at her with his mismatched eyes. "You don't want a suffocated sister, right?" A shake of the head was his response, which made Lunira smile, despite the growing loss of air. "That's good...um...could you loosen up a bit, now?"

The younger boy finally released, letting his arms hang fully down at his sides as a modest blush grew on his fur, turning a dark red; an embarrassed look for him. Lunira sighed and shook her head a bit.

"Well...you didn't have to let go all the way--Ah!" She couldn't even finished her sentence as he hugged her once again with full force, but had eased on the grip.

Patting his head, Lunira turned to look up at Halora. "So, how has he been acting?"

"Mmm, he was pretty scared when we arrived. I have to admit, I didn't think the base would be this large, let alone all of the aliens in here. However, he didn't really settle down much, especially when a very large alien greeted us at the loading docks...." Her mother placed a paw to her mouth in thought.

"Was it Giaak?"

"Er....Ti'a aod ama hiaij aj oto'sai?" Her mother asked, not quite sure how to say it in english, which meant "Is he the one with the very large nose?", which caused the panda-girl to giggle.

"Yes. He's nice, though. Wouldn't hurt a fly."

"Actually...."

"He did squish something." Moxi whined a little, his eyes growing wide.

"Oh." Lunira blinked. "Well, I think it was a game or something, okay?" The boy's face didn't seem to fade into glee as it was when he first greeted her, but at least it was past his usual blank stare.

"Did you guys eat yet?"

"We did. Your brother actually woke me up this morning so we could eat early enough before getting onto the ships." Halora chuckled, which made Moxi only grin sheepishly. "He was too excited to come; seeing his sister and all of her friends--"

Lunira's eyes grew a bit wide as the woman had said the word. She looked back towards where she had come from, the direction of the table, before back to her mother. "Um..."

"Speaking of which, where are they? I want to meet them." Her mother finished, placing her hands behind her back, giving a smile. Seeing a small look of anxiety on her daughter's face, she stepped a little closer.

"Lunira....wiai swa mi'nong?" (Lunira, what's wrong?) The girl in question placed a hand above her brother's ears, before repling.

"Er... Ish n'aman lie jia'we malve." (I just don't want him freaking out.) Lunira responded. She felt Moxi squirming a bit from her, letting go of her completely while looking at her with narrowed eyes.

"Hey! I'm not gonna freak out." He said, nodding his head in emphasis as he went to go foreward, proving his bravery. Both girls looked at each other before watching the younger lad make his way towards where he had thought his sister's table would be located. The Ursa only made it a few steps before running back to his sister, grabbing her by the hand. "....um..You can lead."

Lunira giggled and sighed. "Sure....and Moxi, I don't want to sound mean..but you were going the wrong way." The boy blinked, again, a little embarrassed before shrugging.

"Just testing you!"

As the three bearish aliens walked, making their pace very quick as to make sure neither of them were stepped on, Lunira had stopped in her tracks, almost making her brother trip--since he was still holding onto her hand, and her mother stop as well, since she hadn't heard either one of their footsteps. The woman looked behind her, seeing that her cub's face was turned towards a different direction, where she could feel a faint light coming from said direction.

Walking over to her, Halora noticed that the light was getting a bit brighter, though most of it was concealed by the shadows of taller operatives' legs and bodies all together. "Something wrong dear?"

"Um...no, but. One of my friends is over there." Lunira looked back at her mother, grinning before a faint pink blush grew on her cheeks. This didn't go unnoticed by Halora as she raised an eyebrow.

"Oh?" The mother gave a wide smile, which only caused Lunira's blush to grow in tone. "And just how much of a friend is he?" She asked playfully.

As the older girls were talking, Moxi had turned his head towards the light as well, curious as to what was causing it. He wasn't paying much attention to what his mother and sister were saying, so he figured that maybe if he'd slip away to go find it, he would figure out what it was really quick, and then come right back, taking his sister's hand again and go onto her table as if he hadn't left. The young Ursa smiled at this; A very good plan.

It wasn't hard to let go of her hand, as it was him that gave the stronger grip, so when he had let loose, Lunira hadn't even noticed. Moxi smiled at himself, feeling that he was quite the spy, before sneaking off towards the glowing lights.

He wasn't as afraid of all the legs like was from before, since his sister reassured him that the aliens were friendly, and he trusted his sister; so it seemed safe enough for him. Like he had guessed, it didn't take him very long to reach the source, but when he came upon it, the sight had confused him greatly.

There, all laughing and giggling while trying to speak were five? No, six glowing aliens. All of them had white hair, though some where curlier than others, and they also were all blue--slightly different in shades, but still the same blue nonetheless. Besides the fact that they were glowing, which was the first thing that confused him, the other thing that left Moxi a bit baffled was that they were all around his height. Well, they were actually taller, but not as much, which Moxi figured could be because they were all older than him.

Giving a quick glance back to where he left his sister and mother, Moxi decided to sneak on a little closer to the blue ones, now curious as to what they were doing.
-------------------------------------------

Not only is he clingy, but he's also sneaky. X33333

wow....that was long too. TT^TT

[RohaHat]

In the middle of his sentence, Rameron's azure eyes widened almost impossibly quickly as a wave of intense pain washed across his tail, a yelp of pain leaping from his throat before he could stop it. He spun around on the spot, trying to find the culprit for the crime, but there was no one close by or suspicious enough for him to point a finger. He would have dearly loved to blame his brother but as he had been watching the boy the whole time, it clearly wasn't directly his fault, and his thoughts had become a little hazy with the sudden sensation, too hazy for him to come up with a reason that could place the blame on the boy.

The initial sharp pain had vanished as quickly as it had arrived, but a dull ache remained across the affected areas, and he glanced down at the large appendage, scanning it for visible damage. But aside from the way his fur was sticking up entirely the wrong way, there was certainly no blood, but he couldn't help but imagine the way the follicles would bruise if something really had tugged at the hairs.

"Rameron?" Lester's confused voice rose from the other side of his father, who turned to observe his eldest son. They had been mid-conversation, catching up, when they had caught the yell from the Mombie. Rameron scowled.

"It's 'brother' remember?" was the growl of a response from the irritated boy. Considering the clearly rocky relationship between the pair, it would be a surprise to the casual observer that the older boy would insist on the biological relationship between them being enforced. But while they were stuck as siblings, the eldest wanted it to be made clear to others that he was the older brother, and thus demanded respect.

The younger boy sighed, rephrasing his question with the use of the correct word, and Rameron's reaction to his sibling's concerns was less than pleased. "What?" he snapped, and Lester just mumbled a "nevermind" before returning to conversation with his father, feeling it better not to ask. Disgruntled, the afflicted boy quietened down for the moment, listening carefully to their conversation, and waiting for the right moment to jump in with a crude comment. He didn't need to wait long.

"Where are these friends of yours you mentioned?" their father asked, casting his own blue eyes about the room at the other aliens. The man was clearly one of businesses and order; the clothes he wore were obviously his best, and not a clump of fur was out of place on his body.

"I bet he doesn't have any," came Rameron's voice again, mocking. "I bet he lied."

"Shut up, I have more than you do," was the boy’s retort as he lifted himself up on his tail, looking around the room to find his friends, most of which had wandered off. “Well... most of them have gone with their own parents, but there’s Tala, Etoile, Nebulos, Niji, Nalo, Lunira, … Zoelin, Milo-Lee, Finnick, Masurao…”

“What daft names!” the eldest chortled, looking around the room purposefully, as if expecting to be able to identify the aliens based on just their names. The brief glare that Lester shot the boy went unnoticed by both brother and father, and he sighed, lowering himself back onto the floor again. But he did notice his brother absentmindedly brushing a paw over the body of his tail, and he couldn’t help but wonder why. It looked fine.

On the other side of the room, a modest, bashful smile seemed to be permanently curved on the Chiz girl’s face as Etoile’s parents spoke to her, amusement flickering in the depths of her eyes whenever the boy beside her became embarrassed, which was often. Her arm had found its way around him at some point, her arm hung loosely against his back, her hand hooked onto his far shoulder, and the notebook and pen remained poised in front of her as she awaited the appropriate time to respond.

But when given the opportunity, the first thing she did wasn’t writing, but leaning over to nuzzle lightly at the blazing purple cheek of her boyfriend, a soft, clearly happy noise trilling softly in her throat. But she did soon turn her attention back to the parents, the pen moving fluidly across the paper as it always did. “I’m glad you approve of your son’s choice” was the neatly written comment she presented them with, but as she pulled the notebook back to write again, something else caught her eye.

The pen hovered above the page, a few disconnected words having already escaped the nib and onto the paper, but she wasn’t even looking at the paper, her focus completely on something across the room. Forcing her gaze away from whatever was taking up so much of her attention, the message she showed them next was “If you’ll please excuse me a moment,” accompanied by a light kiss on Etoile’s cheek before she slipped from his arm, moving gracefully as always away from the Ganmade family.

But she was barely a few paces away from them when her usual careful gait was abandoned for a much more enthusiastic one, and anyone who had watched her leave would have immediately noticed what had distracted her so successfully; her parents.

The girl positively barrelled into their arms, trills of excited chatter rising from the older silvery beings immediately. The image of Nalo, her mother - dark haired like her daughter but with much more mature features - and her father - bespectacled and laid-back with a lighter crop of lopsided hair - was difficult to separate, the three beings indistinguishable from one another due to their closeness, floating a short distance above the ground.

It wasn’t long before they pulled away though, the conversation continuing, Nalo’s pen running across the paper nearly twice as fast as it did in English, writing efficiently in the symbols of her native tongue. It was barely half, maybe a quarter of a minute before a bright flush highlighted her embarrassed expression, a response to something in their Revian conversation, and, judging by the way her gaze flickered across the cafeteria towards a certain family, it was about a specific boy.

It was some minutes before Nalo returned to the Ganmade family, looking more sheepish than before, immediately floating to Etoile’s side once more, her eyes avoiding those of her parents - her father’s gold ones, and the silvery blue ones of her mother. Apparently their very reason for coming over was to evaluate her choice of man, and as much as she wanted to spend time with her parents, she felt it more important to be close to her man while they passed judgement.

“So this is the great Etoile?” her father inquired, smiling faintly, but the unamused, sceptical expression his daughter gave her suggested that his father knew more than he was letting on. Her mother remained quiet for the moment, simply letting her man speak, but her expression held no traces of disapproval. Kilou turned his gaze towards the couple who he had been informed were the parents, the knowing smile remaining. “I’ve heard great things about your son,” he informed them, and the embarrassed, flushed expression that Nalo hastily shadowed with her fringe hinted that maybe they knew more than they should be allowed to. She couldn’t help but worry about what they were going to say over the course of the conversation.

“Oh, where are my manners, I’m Kilou Havo’Aviyah,” the man presented himself, nodding his head in what could almost pass as a bow. His wife moved forward to introduce herself as well, “Theto Tera’Aviyah,” this time the words accompanied by a light curtsey, not unlike the one Nalo had greeted Etoile’s parents with earlier. But now Nalo was much less composed than she had been, her somewhat flustered expression still carefully concealed behind her dark fringe.

[Sadie]

"Hey, do you mind if I pet him?"

Amused, pleased orange eyes had watched Rameron's reaction from a distance, using as much discretion as possible and masked over completely by an expression of innocence. The stroking of the tail and the utter confusion should not have made her feel as smug as it did, but nevertheless, the girl smiled just a little to herself until Zoelin's question snapped her back into her closer surroundings, and she glanced downward at the girl with an expression that seemed almost perplexed.

"Why are you asking me?" Her tone was not angry, sarcastic, nor did it hold even the smallest bit of irony inside of it. She was genuinely confused. "You should ask him." Her head jerked to indicate the bird on her shoulder, who was eying the newcomer with sharp silver eyes that didn't miss a thing.

"Oh, but I guess you don't know how," she added as an afterthought, lazily, and then shrugged a little. "I'll ask for you." Craning her head up, she pursed her lips a little and let out a series of complicated whistles, trilling them with a skill that she didn't often show, and pointed at Zoelin about halfway through the melody without taking her eyes off of Mortimer, who had tilted his head and was watching her intently.

When she had finished her whistles, the bird let a low note sound in response, and Tala's attention never wavered from him as she listened to his whistling, her ears not missing a single change in pitch or volume so that she could analyze his answer. When he was done, she glanced back at Zoelin and answered plainly, as though she hadn't just had an entirely whistled conversation with a large bird, "He says you can pet him, but be careful of his left wing. It's a little sore."

Climbing down from her father's back, almost reluctantly, the Telarian girl stood on her own feet so that her feathered friend was not so high off of the ground, standing there and stroking the feathers lazily. She had found his left wing herself and was gently massaging it with a skill that she surprisingly had not forgotten, and her eyes strayed to Zoelin, watching the girl cautiously in the event that the girl did something to upset her Hi'ota.

The bird ducked down and nuzzled at his green-haired friend's cheek a little, before leaning down to fix his eyes on Zoelin, almost curiously now. It was clear that he didn't have any intention of leaving the Telarian's girl shoulder unless he absolutely had to, but his large mass was shifted downward so that he was much closer to Zoelin's reach, long blue feathers waving lazily as he offered his head and neck to her with something of a wary look reflected in his blue eyes. His beak whistled a note of a greeting at her, but nothing more as he didn't expect her to be able to respond.

Now that his back had been freed from the weight of both his daughter and the Hi'ota, Dal straightened and now appeared even taller next to his smaller wife, a quiet presence that was somehow large even in its silence. He was the more observant of the pair and watched the smallest changes in body language that his son was unknowingly preforming, not missing the small smile that curved on his lips as he returned the nuzzle that his girlfriend bestowed, or the slight leaning of his frame against the girl's lithe body.

He also did not miss the slightly startled look that flashed across his son's face when the girl left, only to be replaced with an amused smile when he was able to witness the girl's enthusiastic meeting with her parents. But just as fast, his expression continued to change, morphing now from amusement to worry as it seemed the conversation had suddenly turned to him. Inwardly, Dal chuckled, although his expression never changed as the girl returned to Etoile with her parents in tow.

When her parents had halted in front of them, Etoile dipped immediately into a smooth bow, and his parents followed suit, all of them mirroring almost the exact same motion. If the boy was nervous, it wasn't visible in his polite bow, a movement that he had practiced so many times that it was an automatic motion, no thoughts required whatsoever.

But when the boy's arm once again wound itself around his girlfriend's waist, holding her close, the motion was slightly less confident than it had been before, although that was probably only noticeable to a select few, including his intently observant father. His mouth was pulled into a light smile that was framed by a faint flush of purple fire on his cheeks, one that he was trying to hide, although he was not succeeding much at all.

"I would not say 'great,'" he said, a little quieter than usual, looking almost embarrassed by her father's inquiry and trying to fight the urge to turn his gaze down to his toes. "But I am Etoile. And my parents, Dal Okata Ganmade and Tsuki Enoa Ganmade." His clear blue gaze shifted from Kilou's face to Theto's as they introduced themselves, quietly paying attention and noting the similarities between them and his girlfriend, much more visible than those between him and his very color-varied parents. "It's very nice to meet you," he added with another smile that faintly curved on his lips. "I hope your journey was comfortable."

Dal, watching the scene from beneath his thick blue hair, much thicker than Etoile's although a bit shorter, inclined his head a little to acknowledge and express gratitude for the comment made about his son, his musical voice coming from deep in this throat as he responded. "We have likewise heard many good things about your daughter. And even from our brief meeting, they seem to hold true."

"She's absolutely charming," Tsuki added with a warm smile, her own curls spilling over her shoulder as her head tilted to the side. The overexcited woman had finally gotten rid of her excess energy and was now significantly more subdued, although her eyes still flickered brightly with inward energy.

While their parents conversed, Etoile turned his nose lightly against Nalo's cheek, grazing against her skin and nuzzling her gently. Although he was still squirming inwardly now that the process of meeting Nalo's parents had arrived, his exterior was much more calm in the presence of his thr'rin, especially when he could focus on her alone. His mouth still held that quiet smile, and his arm tightened ever-so-slightly around her waist. "I can see where you get your good looks," he told her, blue eyes dancing just a little as they flicked toward her parents and then back to her face, filled with a pool of affection like an ocean on a calm summer's day.

[Renee]

Tahj looked around at the large cafeteria in slight awe, "...Wow! Check out all of this food!" The teenager gasped as his eyes were immediately draw to the area where the different alien foods laid out.

Niji rolled her eyes, grabbing a large bowl of colorful fruits for her pets, "You are in a base filled with highly skilled operatives of a well known organization and their families, and all you can think about now is food?" She asked incredulously.

Her friend shrugged, "What? I'm hungry, and I'm going to need all the energy I can possibly get before you give us a tour around this place, now where are the drinks?"

The colorful princess shook her head, and pointed into a direction where the boy quickly followed. "While he stuffs his face Twix, lets go introduce you to everyone else. I think Tala has her pet too!" She said excitedly, tugging the large fuzzy animal's golden collar, but the creature refused to move. Instead, he looked down at the bowl of fruit she had in her hands, Niji took notice of this and grinned at him sheepishly. "I guess you want to eat first, huh?" She chuckled lightly and placed the bowl of the floor, and patted his nose as he knelt down to consume the food.

"Oh! My sweet baby, I'm so happy to see you!"

"...I-It's nice to see you too, m-mom"

"Cheryl, I think the boy is turning blue, dear."

Niji turned her head and smiled at one of the familiar accent of one of the voices, she looked around for her boyfriend and found him in the middle of a tight hug with whom she assumed the curly haired lady in the yellow dress was his mother and the man patting Jamal's head was most likely his father. She giggled a bit at the scene. It was something the colorful found sweet and was happy that the reunion was a joyous one. Not wanting to intrude she continued to watch the family.

When Jamal finally managed to pull away from his mother's tight embrace, he turned to his father and who gave him a hug as well, though his was constricting. "It's good to see you again, son." He released Jamal with a light pat on his shoulder, "Look at you! You're almost as tall as I am." The older human commented.

Jamal shrugged modestly, "D-Did I? I honestly haven't paid much attention to it." He rubbed the nape of his neck feeling slightly awkward.

Cheryl's eyes teared up at the sight of her son all grown up, "Y-you've grown to be such a handsome young man." She whispered, taking her boy's chin in her hand. "You must be chasing the girls here of with a stick?" She laughed wiping the remaining tears with a hankerchief, "Oh, speaking of girls. Your father tells me that you have a girlfriend."

His parents smirked at their son knowingly.

Jamal nodded slowly, "O-oh, um, y-yes...Yes, I do." He adjusted his sunglasses and adjusted his tie.

"Well, lets meet the girl, Jamal. Where is she?" Her father looked around, "She isn't the shy type is she?"

Jamal looked down at his shoes, "Uhhh..." He too looked around for his colorful girlfriend, and although the cafeteria was filled with aliens of all shapes and colors, Niji had a way of standing out in a crowd. He finally found her wavy timidly at him. He smiled warmly at her and waved back. "She's over there." He nodded in her direction as it was rude to point, especially at her. His parents followed the nod and both smiled.

Cheryl gasped. "Oh, David, look at how colorful she is. Let's go meet her shall we?" She already hurried over, making her way through the crowd. Leaving the males in her family, a bit bewildered.

His father cleared his throat. "Uh, your mother has been awaiting this day for a long time." He glanced at his son. "She's even bought her camera along."

Jamal blushed a deep crimson, and followed his mother. This was going to be a long day.

[RohaHat]

“I should hope so,” a light laugh in his voice as he spoke, Kilou observed his daughter, her arm around Etoile’s shoulder again, her head moving slightly to nuzzle back at the boy, smiling in response to his comment. “Your son seems like quite the charmer himself.”

“From what we’ve been told,” came Theto’s voice from behind her partner, “Nalo’s first friend on the base was Etoile, and they’ve been close since.” As the woman spoke, Nalo ducked her head further embarrassedly, not happy with her conversations with her parents about her boyfriend being brought up. “I think the boy will have done wonders for her development.”

“She’s always struggled to show what she’s feeling when not using a notebook, back when she was younger,” Kilou took over to explain, and Nalo’s head jerked upwards a little to shoot her father a displeased look, which he dismissed if he even noticed it at all. “But, look at her! And it’s not just the affection, she’s really improved, and I think your son is to thank for that.” An objectional scribble quietened her father and he was presented with the message: “All my other friends had lots to do with it as well.”

“I’m sure, but you spoke of him the most.” The girl’s head ducked embarrassedly again, the notebook lowering as she deciding that arguing was probably the worst course of action.

“We are… honoured, that your son has chosen to court our daughter,” Theto’s voice rose again from beside her husband, a small smile present on her features, narrower eyes than her partner’s observing with a soft expression. “She seems to be incredibly happy with him.” Another disgruntled look from the girl in question.

“That’s an understatement.”

[Sadie]

A deep, rich laughter seemed to echo in the throat of the tall Telarian male, nodding in agreement with Kilou's words and adding his own to the tale that had begun, "Etoile's very first letter detailed his friends, and we received almost an entire page about your daughter, right off the bat. I could have painted a picture of her, to the extent that he described her for us."

Violet seared heavily across Etoile's cheek again, his arm tightening around Nalo's waist in embarrassment, mumbling something about having described everyone else, too. He had simply been overenthusiastic about his friends, that's all, and Nalo had been a close one from the start.

"Nalo has been such a good friend to him," Tsuki added, her eyes darkening a little. "We hear a lot of good things about her helping him through some of his rougher times, I think she's been very good for him."

Swallowing a little, the Telarian boy simply listened for a few moments longer, staying silent, and then his voice came quietly after Theto's last statement, as if asking permission to speak.

"Mr. and Mrs. Tera'Aviyah, if I may say something?" It was a struggle to keep from ducking his eyes, but somehow he was able to focus his blue depths on their own brilliant eyes, meeting them with a very quiet kind of courage.

He paused for a few moments, as if gathering his thoughts or trying to find the words that he needed. When he spoke, it was still quiet, although his voice had grown considerably less nervous and a touch of warmth had been dripped into the edges of his tone. "I. . . am the one who is honored. I know that we have just met, but I can already tell that you are a close, wonderful family, and I no longer wonder how Nalo was raised to be so amazing. I know now, having met you."

Falling silent again, it was a few seconds before he spoke again, his eyes careful in their open warmth. "I, uhm. . . I'm still not sure why she chose me, I wonder about that a lot, but. . . I very, very honored, grateful even, to have the chance to court Nalo, she's made my years here very happy. And I . . . am very thankful that I have the chance to do so. . . and I promise you that I will take care of her, as best I can, and continue to make her happy. That's all I ever wanted to do, anyway."

His voice trailed off a little in a mumble and his head ducked a little awkwardly, but he had voiced what he had wanted to voice, and so he fell silent, simply holding Nalo to him while his sky blue eyes, touched with the light smile on his lips, lifted to fall steadily on her parents again, the violet flush on his cheeks gently, slowly ebbing away.

[RohaHat]

(aha this post fails but I wanted to post /something/ but really I've got some stuff I want to draw already! so I kind just made some stuff up ANYWAY WHATEVER I'M PROBABLY EXAGGERATING I DON'T KNOW)

As she listened to Etoile’s small speech, a warm smile spread across Nalo’s face, gently pulling herself closer to him as he finished speaking. A light hint of a modest flush from some of Tsuki’s comments remained on her cheeks, but despite the soft tone of the conversation, she couldn’t help herself from making a somewhat thingyy comment. “I made the first move,” she remarked almost confidently, her words directed at the boy’s parents. “So I hope he hasn’t been making anything up about sweeping me off my feet.”

The light hearted comment was met with a knowing look from her father, which immediately flushed the confidence from the younger girl’s expression. “It still took you well over two years to actually make that move,” he spoke with a grin, “But judging by the way you talked about Etoile even when you were just friends, it’s clear why you didn’t want to risk ruining a friendship like that.”

The Aviyah parents turned to look at Etoile, after smiling at his parents, impressed by the politeness and honesty that radiated from their son. But now they were looking at the boy, and Theto trilled something in Revian to her husband, who just nodded lightly before speaking to the Telarian. “We’re… very, very glad to hear that, and we only hope that our daughter makes you as happy as you make her. She’s expressed this worry herself many times before.”

“But I think you’re both doing a great job,” the woman piped up, smiling fondly at the pair. “And I wish you many happy years together.” Theto spoke again in their native tongue, “Nd deu jiao wui trijia upiacians,” but the words she spoke seemed to embarrass Nalo immensely, as the white flush dominated most of her face and she scribbled symbols of objection on the paper in response, to which her mother just chuckled.

[Paula]

Zoelin shifted her gaze from the Hi'toa back to Tala, as the girl had finally responded to her question.

"Why are you asking me?" Tala asked, before urging with her head towards Mortimer and adding, "You should ask him." The girl blinked, looking towards Mortimer again as he kept his eyes fixated on the newcomer. Raising a hand to her head, she scratched it, now a little embarrassed but also a little confused.

"Well, I'm not sure how to ask him, exactly..." She trailed off, hoping that she didn't insult the creature.

But then Tala had turned to the bird, saying she would ask for her, and proceeded in whistling some sort of tune. This made Zoelin tilt her head to the other side, in slight amusement but mostly in curiousity as to what they were saying. She wondered if maybe she could try whistling to the bird, but decided against it, probably saying the wrong things or possibly go off-key in tune.

"He says you can pet him, but be careful of his left wing. It's a little sore," Tala told her, now finished asking Mortimer. As she came closer with the Hi'toa, Zoelin's smile grew a little, noting that the bird's curiousity was now directed on her, but was willing to be stroked.

"Hey there." She smiled, reaching out a hand to stroke the feathers upon his head. They felt as smooth as they looked but very light. "He's pretty," she said to Tala as she continued stroking him. "What happened to his left wing?" Zoelin asked, now curious as to what happened with the sore appendage.
--------

Short post is shooort. XP

[Sadie]

"Isn't he?" Tala's voice was puffed with a bit of pride at Zoelin's claim that Mortimer was pretty. Not that she had anything to do with it, but she seemed happy that her giant blue friend was getting some positive attention, especially since the bird's silver eyes were happy. "Oh, I think he told me why, but I forget. I'll ask."

It was the same procedure as before; the girl let out another melody of complex whistles and Mortimer listened quiet politely before responding with his own tune, one that sounded like music to the untrained ear. Only a few people in the huge room full of people would have guessed that he was trying to communicate something to his green-haired carrier.

"Awwh, really?" Tala looked sympathetic when he had finished, frowning a little. "Mortimer, I told you to stop fighting over the mint tree. Da'oka's Hi'ota may have only hurt your wing this time, but next time he'll end up eating you, silly bird! I'll get you some mint leaves myself, okay? Will that make you happy?"

A sharp note was the response, and Tala only rolled her eyes, completely forgetting that she was supposed to translate the response to Zoelin, although the girl would probably figure it out anyway. Mortimer, meanwhile, was simply enjoying the affection, his eyes half-closed as he lazily enjoyed the stroking on his feathers.

The boy some distance away was laughing meanwhile, surprised by his girlfriend's sudden need to clarify to his parents. "I didn't!" he said, mockingly indignant, "I told them the truth." His expression of false offense was instantly replaced with a teasing grin. "I told them that you made the first move because I swept you off your feet. Obviously."

His cheeks flushed a little at her parents' words, especially the end, and he inclined another quick bow at them as best he could with his arm still around their daughter. "Thank you," he murmured quietly, inwardly thrilled that her parents seemed to like him, something that he had been worried about. "Nalo doesn't need to worry." His glance at her was nothing but a little amused, as he thought it silly that she should worry about that. "She makes me very happy, every single day." He kind of wanted to know what her mother had said in their native tongue, but judging by Nalo's expression, it was probably best that he didn't know.

"The same goes for us," Dal intoned a little, softly. "We wish nothing but happiness on you both."

Unable to help teasing his father a little, Etoile let out a little relieved noise, something of a whistle, and began to speak. "Well, good, I had hoped so, seeing as you're my dad and a-"

He was interrupted when a blue mass suddenly came crashing down on his shoulder. Mortimer had heard his slight whistle and assumed that his male owner had wanted him and had acted accordingly, launching off of Tala's shoulder suddenly and landing on Etoile's only a few seconds later. Crooning at the boy a little, he peeked into his face, trying to see what his red-haired friend wanted of him.

"Mortimer? Hey, buddy. Wh- oh." Looking amused, Etoile shook his head. "I wasn't calling you, bud, I'm sorry."

The bird's head drooped a little before he realized that he was in a group of people, and suddenly he began to preen a little, scraping his beak along his feathers almost nonchalantly, the utter essence of innocence. "Yeah, you think you're a stud, don't you?" Etoile murmured to the bird, grinning a little as the bird nuzzled him lightly, the boy nuzzling back. "Yes, you're handsome, the finest of all Hi'otas. Tala!" His head craned over his shoulder at his sister. "You can take your bird back, if you want!"

The green-haired girl popped up beside him and Mortimer eagerly climbed onto her shoulders, perching there exactly as he had before while the girl offered Nalo's parents a pleasant smile. Normally she would have made some kind of sarcastic remark, but she figured her brother was nervous enough and didn't need her influence. "Greetings, Mr. and Mrs. Tera'Aviyah. Or, two people who look a lot like Nalo who I'm guessing are Mr. and Mrs. Tera'Aviyah. If you're not then I totally apologize. Yeah. Oh, I'm Tala. Etoile's sister. I'd curtsy for you, but Mortimer would get mad at me, so maybe we could pretend I curtsied? Oh, and I'd probably fall over. I wish I could stay longer and get to know my brother's girlfriend's parents all properly, but Mortimer is starving and he keeps trying to eat my hair." Assuming that Nalo's poor parents had kept up with all of that, the girl gave them a sharp salute. "But you seem like very nice people and it was nice to have this very brief interaction with you. Mortimer, please stop that!" The girl hurried away as Mortimer started chewing on her hair again, making her way for the table of food before the bird managed to actually eat any of it.

Etoile, unsure of what to make of his sister as usual, simply turned back to Nalo and pecked her cheek lightly with another affectionate look, deciding not to say anything and letting everyone make of Tala what they may. He probably couldn't explain it any better than they could decide for themselves, anyway.

[Jas]

*run -pant- run-limp* Okay, I'm catching up! ;;

- - - -

"I must say, you've done a fine job at keeping my little Niji safe and sound, well done."

Given the compliment, Masurao bestowed another bow upon the liege, eyes closing momentarily as he faced the floor. "Thank you, sir," he spoke, articulating clearly, "I am content you approve." As he swooped up again, Niji decided to add something to her father's statement.

"Papa, Masurao and I make a great team together while we are on our missions and if I may add that--"

But she was cut off.

"Speaking of missions... It's been almost a month since your last report, Masurao."

The boy didn't falter, at least not outwardly, but stared up at the tall man in front of him. He did not look him straight in the eye, as this was something you did not do with a King, but let his gaze hover somewhere on the gray forehead. As usual, Masurao's exterior was cool and collected, as if Niji's father suddenly sprouting a second head wouldn't have fazed him in the least. "Is there anything I should know about?" Tanjio continued.
The guard was quite certain Niji was throwing him a cautious glance, but he did not exchange one himself, for this might as well be a handwritten confession if he did. Instead, he just continued to look up at the royal man, his expression tuned into its regular neutralness.

"I apologize, sir. Things have been quite hectic as of late. Especially regarding this matter of Family Day. Preparations had to be made and each operative has been quite busy. Considering your journey to our Base, I figured you might like hearing a report in person." He curved down into another smooth bow, his fist finding a way to his chest yet again. "Forgive me. I was wrong to make an assumption."

Green eyes darted to the side as the king addressed his daughter suddenly, making her leave the two of them. His mane twitched slightly, but his face remained like that of a statue, fixed on one expression, or the lack of one. His stomach gave another squirm. If there were matters to be discussed in private, he didn't think they would be particularly cheery. He did catch Niji's eye this time when she turned around to leave and twitched his mane a second time. One who has learned to identify Masurao's subtle ways of communication would notice the attempt of reassurance that shone in those vibrant eyes, which were usually closed off for further access into his thoughts.

"Niji tells me that you two have formed quite the friendship..." Tanjio began, once Niji and Tahj had rounded the corner and left. "Of which I am relieved."
The fuzzy boy inclined his head politely, closing his eyes as he did. "I am honoured she perceives me as such." he replied, not thinking it necessary to elaborate on this. His assumptions seemed to be correct, as the man in front of him seemed to be occupied with his thoughts. Masurao did not speak, but stood there; back straight and shoulder squared, a position he deemed appropriate.

"Because of this friendship the two of you have formed," The liege continued, "You may have mixed feelings about revealing details of Niji's activities during her stay here. I understand."

Masurao did not answer. But Niji's father didn't seem to expect him to. He did notice a slight shift in the colourful man's demeanor, one which made him feel inclined to brace himself for one thing or another.

"Now, I'll ask this question again, and I'd like for you to be completely honest with me, is there anything you'd like to inform me about Niji as of late? As I said before, a month has passed since your last report and things could have changed since then. Has she been behaving? Gotten into any trouble?"

As usual, it took the guard a few seconds longer than most people to reply. He stood there, unmoving and silent, as if his brain was collecting thoughts and finding a way to choose the correct words.

"She has not. She's been behaving very proper." Masurao said after another quiet minute. Of course, one could discuss the definition of "proper". If splattering the entire kitchen in dough and icing several times a week was "improper", then Masurao was telling her father a flat lie. But for some reason, seeing how this man was Niji's father, he didn't believe this would upset him a lot.
Of course, he realized, this answer was very short and the king was probably expecting him to elaborate, especially since he hadn't sent in his usual monthly report. The guard's eyes fled to the wall for just a second, the matter of 'Numbuh Infinity' quick to access his mind. Then he looked back at the tall alien in front of him. Masurao did not want to lie to this man. Frankly, he never wanted to lie to anyone, unless -perhaps- it would be for their own safe-being. He didn't see how he would in any way "save" Niji's father is he held this information back, whereas Niji might be safer for another unidentified amount of time. But truth always had a way of leaking out and the trouble only would be doubled if it did.

On the other hand, Masurao didn't feel to be in place to relay this information to his employer at all. That didn't feel right. So after a minute of silence, he looked up into the regal face again, his expression non-existent as ever.

"I have nothing to relay to you of which I believe she wouldn't rather tell yourself, sir."

He enclosed this with another bow, then straightened up again, looking quite unreadable, though he couldn't deny a certain anxiety he felt if the king wouldn't be satisfied with this vague explanation.

- -

Meanwhile, more hair was ruffled and more hugs and complicated handshakes were exchanged between the siblings. One of them, a taller boy with a fringe draped across his eyes, had even managed to get his younger brother in a headlock, giving him a noogie. The victim didn't seem to be upset or angered at this, but merely replied with eager laughter, trying to squirm out of Thales' grip, only to pull him into another brotherly hug when he had escaped. "I'm so excited to see you guys!" he called out in fluent Luminarian for which was probably the twelfth time. Elishe, the eldest of all brothers and sisters, smiled hugely and reached her hands out to straighten out Nebulos' clothes, as well as putting his hair back in place. "We're happy to see you too, fehreh-klin." she said, poking at his antennae and making it bounce. "And guess who else his here!" A boy around his height called out excitedly, throwing one of many arms around his brother and using another to point. Nebulos' followed the appointed direction and what he found there made his eyes widen and his antennae glow even brighter.

"MOM! DAD!" He yelled, almost at the top of his longs, making several taller aliens turn around in surprise, wondering where the sound had come from. Sure enough, two other Luminarians approached. The shorter of the two had elaborate curls framing her face and the rest of them were pulled up into a large bun. She looked serene and calm and almost seemed to glide towards her children, though her pale eyes reflected her immense mirth and affection as she beheld their youngest son. The man at her side, about a head taller than her, had a white beard and a shaggy haircut, not unlike that of Nebulos. Though his mouth was mostly concealed behind the facial hair, the way it went up suggested he was grinning hugely.

Nebulos detached himself from his siblings and bolted over to the couple, his brothers and sisters immediately chasing after him, laughing and grinning excitedly, their light so bright people might not be able to see them through it. The youngest brother almost threw himself in his mother's many arms, another hand simultaneously reaching out to the man at her side. The woman pulled the not-much-smaller boy close to her and swayed him around a little. "Yin'gdi, klin-yunn." she said softly, using one hand to stroke across his messy haircut. Nebulos beamed at her, then at his father, then back at her and then to his father again, as if he couldn't believe they were here. The bearded man let out a bellow-laugh, grasping his son's hand firmly, before using all his arms to pull both wife and child in a large hug. The other five children didn't seem to want to be left out and with joyful laughs and Luminarian shouts, they threw themselves upon the hug, all wanting to get their fair share of it. The youngest boy in the middle let out another full-hearted laugh, flashing huge, genuine smiles at all of them, basking in that unique warmth only family could provide.

"Interesting place here." Vah-ku, Nebulos's father remarked, his eyes wandering across the scene as the Luminarian's fell apart after a minute, some of them out of breath due all of the excitement. "I feel particularly tiny, I must say." he continued, his hands curling behind his back in a fashion very similar to Nebulos, surveying the area with interest, as if he was standing in a museum with interesting paintings. "Not all of them." Sijzi, the youngest of all pointed out, tugging on her father's shirt. "There's one smaller than us right there, look!"
The entire Luminarian family, including Nebulos, who had previously been occupied sharing stories with his mother, looked over to where the curly-haired girl was pointing.

He wasn't difficult to make out, especially because he shared the same eye-height as that of the Luminarians. However, Nebulos' eyes went huge at the sight of the very familiar appearance, the blonde hair, the brown fur and -even though he couldn't see them from here, but he was quite sure of it- the mismatched eyes. ". . . It's Moxinosh." Nebulos said, more to himself than anyone present, his voice a little higher than it normally was. He had never seen the boy before in his life, but having heard Lunira's tales, he was quite convinced that this was, indeed, her brother.

- - -

EDIT: Oh yes, forgot to mention, tomorrow I'll be gone for the entire weekend, so I probably won't log in for about three days D: *withdrawal symptoms starting* ARGH ;;

Have fun though! <3

[Renee]

Satisfied with Masurao's responses to his questions, Tanjio nodded, "...Very well then, Masurao. Your parents and instructors said that you were very trustworthy so I have no reason to doubt you. I apologize if I may come off a bit harsh toward you, I'm just concerned over my daughter's safety." He sighed before changing the subject. "Well, shall we head toward the rest of the families? I must admit that I am eager to meet your family again, Masurao." He said smiling at the teenager. "They were kind enough to allow you to come and watch over Niji..." He patted Masurao's shoulder and floated a few paces ahead of him.
-------

Niji watched slightly flabbergasted as the curvy woman rushed over toward her, she cautiously took a few steps back fearing that she'd be tackled or something, but instead the earth woman stopped right in front of her, as the rest of her family came behind her

"So, you must be the girl named Niji that we have heard so much about." Jamal's father greeted. "Well, it's a pleasure to meet you, young lady." He smiled at her.

Niji blinked curiously, as if she had to take a few moments to register that Jamal's mother and father were standing here addressing her. Niji promptly preformed a polite curtsy. "I-It's a great honor to be in your presence." She greeted kindly.

Cheryl clapped her hands together, "Our Jamal tells us you're a Princess... "

Niji nodded humbly, her antennas bouncing a bit. "Yes, Ma'am, I am." She looked at her human boyfriend and blushed. "I come from the planet Orgami." She informed them.

David spoke next, "Well, we are pleased that our son has found such a lovely, and respectful young lady. I assume he's being a gentleman."

Both teenagers blushed.

Again, Niji nodded quickly, "O-oh, yes, sir. Jamal has been very respectful and treats me very well. And I'm very glad that you approve of your son's choice in me. I was hoping you would. " She smiled at the boy again, who gently took her hand. "He makes me very happy."

"Well since you two are an item, we'd love to meet your parents Niji." Cheryl said enthusiastically.

Niji froze for a moment, "Uh, well...M-My friend Tahj is at the buffet at the moment, but... h-he'll be here shortly, as for my father..." She swallowed the lump in her throat. "He had something to take care of, but he too should be here to meet you shortly." She nodded.

[Paula]

He tilted his head to the side, watching the bolts on each head of them grow even brighter as they hugged. How they were doing this, Moxi had no idea, but it looked very interesting. He was about to step a little ways even more closer, now curious as to what they were talking about as well as who they were, but then two more figures had arrived. Moxi stopped in his tracks, noting that the two newer arrivals looked pretty much like the other six, if not somewhat even older.

They all looked pretty much like fun, and they seemed nice....that is, until he saw eight pairs of eyes all directed at him. Moxi wasn't expecting for them to see him, let alone all of them, so one couldn't blame him if his eyes widened.


"....." He wasn't really sure of what to say, or do for that matter. He was starting to think that his plan of leaving his mother and sister behind earlier wasn't such a good idea right now, and wondered if he should move at all or not.

Then his ears perked a little, as he heard his full name coming from one of them.

That sent Moxi into a state of inward panic, outward fear. He'd never seen any of these people in his life and yet they knew his name? Even if they all looked nice and welcoming, it didn't matter to the young boy; the very thought of knowing him right away scared him. If his eyes weren't wide enough now, they certainly increased in size right at that moment. Now, Moxi was definitely sure of what to do:...run.

"AAAAAAAAHHHHHH!" He quickly turned around, now running in the same direction that he had came from, but he didn't get too far, for at that point, Lunira was just walking around looking for him. Call it deja vu, but the small boy quickly ran into his sister, clinging onto her tightly once again.

"....Found him!" Lunira shouted over her shoulder, towards the woman who was now approaching them. Turning to her brother, Lunira gave a playful frown. "And where did you go off to?"

Moxi only looked back up at her, the terrified expression still marked all over his furry face, which made Lunira worried. "You okay?"

"...They knew my naaaaaaaaame." He whined.

"Who?"

"Them...over there." He pointed with a finger towards over a pair of very long legs. Lunira raised an eyebrow.

"Him?" She asked, pointing to the very large alien that owned the large legs, who was now walking away. Moxi shook his head rapidly.

"No! Past him." He pointed again and added in a whisper, "Over there..."

Both Halora and Lunira looked a little ways past the see of legs and feet, before resting upon a very glowy family of eight. Halora only raised an eyebrow, as they were all looking straight towards them--or possibly still at Moxi.

"Well, now I don't feel as small anymore," Halora smiled. She turned to her daughter, asking, "Are they friends of yours, honey?"

Lunira could only respond with a very wide smile, nodding her head rapidly. "Well, I know at least one of them. " She turned back to the group of Luminarians. "Although I need to find him in there, first." Lunira giggled. From what Nebulos had told her about his siblings, they all did look a bit alike, save for the shades of blue and styles of their hair. All of them seemed to be very bright and all smiles, which Lunira hadn't figured they'd be any different.

It took her a few minutes, but she finally pinpointed him, standing right next to who she could guess was his mother. Eyes lighting up with eagerness, Lunira turned to Moxi--who was still shivering and clinging on. "C'mon, Moxi. They're nice!" She made a motion to walk forward, over to the crowd, when Moxi had shifted his feet to where he was standing right between her and Nebulos's family.

"But they know our names." He whimpered.

"They're not scary," Lunira reassured him, trying to turn in place so she was in front as she tried to walk again. It was a little difficult trying to walk when you had a younger boy still clinging onto your middle, who was going in the opposite direction. However, in past experiences, Lunira was used to this, so she didn't hesitate when trying to move on forward.

Moxi kept his hold on the girl, while also digging his feet into the floor. "S'ani..."

"Terlo.."

The small bit of tug-and-war went on for a little while, but then Halora sighed, stepping in between the two. "Lunira, why don't you go on first, that way he'll see it's safe, all right?" The mother then took one of Moxi's hands into her own, getting him to let go of his sister.

"Okay..." Lunira gave a small disappointed sigh. She knew her brother had problems when meeting new people, but she somewhat had hoped he wouldn't be too shy at the moment. However, as she got closer and closer to the large group of Luminarians, she was starting to feel a bit uneasy.

"Uh...Hello?" She smiled, though the look of nervousness was still on her face as she gave a small wave with her paw.






Eyebrows raised again, this time in amusement in what the two were talking about, Zoelin watched Tala and Mortimer talk through their whistlings as she continued to pet him. Although she wasn't exactly translating word for word, the girl could probably tell what had happened.

"Mint leaves?" She giggled, now having the image of two Hi'toas flying around a tree, trying to take the leaves from it. It did seem a bit funny in her head, but it probably wasn't funny for the aftermath.

She was about to ask a bit more about the bird, when it soon took to the air and headed for Etoile, leaving her hand stroking nothing but air.

"....Bye bye birdie." She commented, seeing that Mortimer's attention had been directed towards the older boy. Shrugging a bit to herself, Zoelin lowered her hand and folded her arms, now wondering what she should do. Her head turned to the left, then to the right. Aside from the Etoile, Nalo, their parents, Cyril, Milo-Lee, Finnick, and herself, everyone else had practically left for something...so why shouldn't she?

Putting both hands in her pockets, the girl got up from the table. "Be right back, just looking around." She told Finnick, before walking away.

Various parents were coming in and and random operatives were running out of the cafeteria. Zoelin wondered whether or not if she would have to be one of the few that had to run out, or wait to be run into. Zoelin stood in place for a little while, placing a red paw to her mouth, trying to decide if maybe she should go find her father first, or probably re-gain some of her lost breakfast.

However, she didn't have to wait too long.

Zoelin let out a very high-pitched yelp as she felt two arms wrap themselves around her, and lifted her into the air.

"AAAAAH! I NEED AN ADULT! I NEED AN ADULT!" She flailed her arms around, not knowing who had picked her up and was hugging her from the behind.

"Zoelin."

"I HAVE TAILS AND I'M NOT AFRAID TO USE 'EM!"

"Zo.."

"JUST A WARNING, BUB, I--....oh..Hey Pop!" Zoelin craned her head backward, tilting it into a position as to where she could see her hugger's face--upside down. A dark toned purple face met her own, which made the girl squee.

"POP!" She yelled again, turning in his arms. He let go for a brief moment, but she didn't touch the floor again, as she had tackled him into a hug. The taller man chuckled and hugged the girl back as well, his two long tails curling around her to pull his daughter closer. Zoelin mimicked this with her own tails. He looked pretty much exactly how she remembered him when they last saw each other, dark purple fur, light pink eyes and shaggy-straight green hair. It was a bit easy to tell where Zoelin had picked up the habit with her bangs, as Felis Janors‘s bangs were hanging straight down into his eyes a bit. However, unlike his daugther’s, his hovered right above his eyes, allowing others a full view of them unlike her own.

"Hey there, T‘laa-mae. Sorry for scaring you."

"I wasn't scared...I have these, remember?" She let one tail uncurl itself from the man and waved it behind her.

“Right, of course.” He set her down on the floor, though Zoelin still wasn’t letting go of her father.

“So what took you so long?” She asked him.

“There was a long wait. Something about an engine malfunction or something,” He murmured, which gave him an odd look from Zoelin. “Ah, it doesn’t matter, I’m here now, right?”

“Right…Curses, my plans were foiled.”

Felis shook his head and hugged his daughter tightly once more, knowing her strange sense of humor all too well. “So, where are any of your friends, hmm?”

Zoelin pulled back, her eyes rolling up to the ceiling in thought. “Uhm..Well, some of their parents had already arrived, but I think there’s a few others over at the table. There’s….” She trailed off, as she was looking around the room if she might spot one of them. It just so happened that she had saw Lester looking around as well, and he wasn’t too far away.

At first, she was puzzled as to how he had gotten that tall, but then remembered that he might’ve been using his tail or something, since he soon lowered back to the floor. “There’s one!” She pointed.

“Zoelin…” Her father began, “It’s not polite to point.” He chided her.

“Oh yeah, I mean…there’s one, over there!” She repeated, only not pointing this time with her hand, but instead with one of her tails. Felis sighed and shook his head, before following his daughter who had already started on forward. Felis chuckled to himself, noticing that she hadn't changed much in personality since the last time he saw her, although she seemed a bit more calmer now in his opinion. Then again, if one were to look at the two of them, they might've questioned as to how a very reserved and polite man raise a somewhat-collected yet hyper girl. Then again, it could've been one of life's mysteries.

"You're getting slow, Pop. Come on." Zoelin said, now going back over to him, and grabbing one of his arms.

"All right, all right, Zoelin. Just calm down," He responded, letting her let go of his arm and continue ahead. His hands were in his pockets as Zoelin went back to her earlier pace, babbling a few thinzgs to him along the way to meet one of her friends, to which he listened very earnestly and nodded in response, not wanting to interrupt her.
-----

Long post is long again. ;D

[ChyukiPastukiSuzuki]

*rushes in* I'M HERE!!!!!!
~


Completely unaware of the events taking place in the cafeteria, two boys remained sleeping in their room, submerged in a transparent purple liquid. The communicator that they used to make long distance calls to their brother on Xanaduatama had been flickering, indicating many missed calls and messages. Eventually, the violet lenses of Unagi came into focus as he woke, trying to remember what day it was.

Immediately uttering a curse in his native tongue, he swam to the desk where the blinking device lay, yelling at his brother to wake up in the process. The small screen indicated the twenty missed calls, each left with a voicemail of the eldest Kyuurikougeki son in a frantic attempt to get a hold of his brothers. Floating over to where his twin slumbered, Unagi sent a shock through his tail and against the peaceful form’s face. Dengeki awoke with a start.

“What was that-“ He began angrily, but stopped mid-sentence when he realized why Unagi’s expression was panicked. He quickly located the dark purple cuff to fasten around his neck as his brother did the same. A long lime arm shot out to punch the button on the wall that drained the liquid they slept comfortably in. Once successfully dressed with all necessary cuffs attached, the two sprinted out of the room and to the direction of the cafeteria where the family members congregated.

Wandering through the large room, they only made short greetings to the friends approached as they searched for the one being that needed to be found. Bringing an alien from an aquatic planet to a base like this was risky business and the twins were fully aware of the consequences that would come if they couldn’t locate their brother. Suddenly, one of the boys felt a tap on his shoulder. As he whipped his head around eagerly, hoping to meet him, the eyes that stared at him were those of a security officer. He spoke with an almost monotone voice.

“Does that belong to you?” The officer pointed with a stubby finger to a tall form, appearing to be choking on air. From their view of his backside, the twins could see the man’s long teal hair, asymmetrical as half fell down his back as the other half was cut just past his shoulders. His slender body showed a slight muscular tone, as he was clad only in a spandex type material covering his legs. His bright green skin matched that of the two awestruck boys, as did the massive cyan tail that seemed to float behind him.

Without giving the officer an answer, the two rushed over to the man, quick to aid him. “MIZU!!!”, they yelled in unison, attracting the attention of the fishlike creature, still gagging on nothing. He pointed to the purple cuff that seemed to constrict his neck with the one visible pleading green eye. Immediately, the boys struggled to adjust the device to a comfortable setting for him that would allow him to breathe better. After a few agonizing minutes of pain, Mizu took a gulp of the hair, still wheezing.

“How do you two even breathe in these things? It’s still pretty hard to breathe” He muttered, pulling the two close in a hug. “I’ve missed you two so much, and you’re getting so big!” Releasing them from his embrace, he studied their heights. All three boys were exactly the same height, a Xanaduataman trait for siblings after they reach puberty. Mizu thingyed his head, observing the matching tails of the boys, and mentally compared them to his own. Though the boys were the same size in height, they difference in length between the twins’ and Mizu’s tails held a great significance.

The appendage that waved back and forth in the air behind the older man was its own entity, the tip being around the same size as the man it belonged to. In contrast, the two smaller tails belonging to Dengeki and Unagi were only half their size, though still growing. If not for that glaring feature, Mizu’s almost identical looks could allow him to pass as a triplet to his two younger brothers.

“So where are your friends? I want to meet them. Any girls? Oh, Unagi, I want to meet Vibe, where is she?” As he addressed the fish boy with the violet eyes, he patted him on the head. Mizu was perhaps the only person to be able to tell the two apart just by looking at them, hair and all. It was a gift he liked to call ‘sibling intuition’.

“Um, I don’t really know where everyone is,” Unagi responded, feeling a small tinge of shame. The chaos in the cafeteria prevented him from fully focusing on finding others that he knew and wanted to introduce his brother to.