Jade War

Eyni rushed to the door as it opened. A trim Stepenish man with reddish hair stepped inside. Seeing Hilo and Tar, he stopped in surprise and confusion. Hilo rose from his seat and Tar stood with him. Eyni took her boyfriend’s arm and said in Kekonese, so everyone could understand, “Lors, this is Hilo, my ex-husband’s brother from Janloon. He and his friend were visiting Lybon and dropped in to say hello. I forgot to mention they were coming.”

The man’s posture relaxed slightly. Hilo realized that Eyni was afraid for Lors’s safety. She was trying to put him at ease, to prevent him from trying to challenge the strange men in his house. “Hello,” Lors said warily, in accented but reasonably fluent Kekonese. “We haven’t had any of Eyni’s friends from Kekon visit us before. How long are you here?”

“Not long,” Hilo said. “I came to meet my nephew. Until a few months ago, I didn’t know I had one. It’s unfortunate you live so far away; the rest of my family would like to meet him too.”

“Yes, well, it’s a rather awkward situation, it is,” said the man, smiling nervously and running a hand through his coppery hair. “We figured there might be some hard feelings, after all.”

“None that can’t be put aside,” Hilo replied. He glanced at Eyni, who stood stiffly by her boyfriend’s side. “I was just talking to Eyni about how much we wish you’d all return to Janloon. But she seems to prefer it here. You must’ve done a good sales job, to be able to lure a Kekonese woman so far from home.”

Lors chuckled, put at ease by Hilo’s casual and complimentary tone. “I must say, before I lived in Kekon, I’d no idea how beautiful the women were there. I don’t know how I was so lucky as to get one.” He gave Eyni’s bottom an affectionate pat. “I’ve traveled to my fair share of exotic places, and I dare say she’s the best souvenir I’ve brought back from any of them. Isn’t that right, flower?” Eyni smiled in a faintly uncomfortable way, still looking at Hilo. Lors said, “Listen, Hilo—I did say your name right, didn’t I? You seem like a good fellow. I just want to say that I never meant anything against your brother. I didn’t even know him. It’s just that Eyni and I, well…” He put his arm around Eyni, who stiffened a little more, “We were—are—in love. Do you have a woman at home that you love?”

Hilo gave a nod.

“Well, then, you can understand, can’t you? In my country, we have a saying.” Lors spoke a phrase in Stepenish, then translated it into Kekonese. “‘Flowers grow even in the desert; so too there is nowhere love cannot happen.’”

Hilo’s lips twitched upward. “It’s nice to see that the two of you are happy together, even after such a big move and the addition of a child that you must’ve hoped was yours.”

The man’s smile wavered. “Well… families can be messy, can’t they? We plan to give Nikolas plenty of brothers and sisters. He’ll fit right in and it’ll all work out.”

“I’m sure it will,” Hilo said. “But it’s a shame for my nephew to be so far from his relatives and not know anything of his Kekonese heritage. So we should compromise. In a few years, when Niko’s older, he can split his time between Stepenland and Kekon. Half the year here in Lybon, half the year in Janloon.” Hilo was honestly pleased with the solution that had just occurred to him, and felt that it could not possibly be objectionable. It was not a perfect arrangement, not what he’d hoped for, but he’d come here knowing that Eyni was difficult. This would be acceptable to everyone. “When he’s in Janloon, he’ll live with me and my wife and we’ll treat him like our own son. There are international schools in Janloon now, even ones that teach Stepenish and other languages. He can attend one of those until he’s ten; then he can go to Kaul Dushuron Academy during the school year and return to Lybon during the holidays. He’ll grow up to appreciate both countries and both cultures. A global citizen. Everyone says that’s the way of the future; it’ll be an advantage for him.”

“That sounds like an excellent idea,” said Lors. “Don’t you think so, flower? Especially after we have kids of our own, it’ll be awfully helpful for Nikolas’s Kekonese relatives to raise him some of the time.” To Hilo, “You might take your offer back if you knew how much of a colicky little monster he can be! I think it was rather hard on Eyni the first six months.”

Eyni’s face was rigid; she nudged her boyfriend in the ribs in an attempt to make him stop talking. Hilo said, “Tar and I will be in Lybon for a few more days. We’ve never been here before and want to look around and enjoy the city. Why don’t we all get together for a proper dinner on Fifthday evening—I’ll pay, of course—and talk about this some more, so I can tell the family the good news. Bring Niko along; we’ll go somewhere casual.”