Academy
There was a long, breathless silence. Then the applause began.
Zaheen, sitting to one side of the semi-circular performance area, watched Zha'tiisaan turn gracefully from side to side, bowing from the waist, arms held wide. He paused for a moment, then beckoned forwards the group of zn'hre who'd sung and played the accompaniment to the first performance of StarBorn, the dance that Mahrayne, Jeice and 'tiisaan had choreographed between them to celebrate the opening of Bri'seiyis' Academy of Arts…
The Hyou had been almost tongue-tied at that first meeting with the gracious, solemn zn'hre, and a little envious of 'tiisaan, who'd hissed with joy and flung himself into his mentor's arms. Zha'viirel had returned with the musician - so had Ti'kaanan and his two siblings, and the reunion between all the hostlings had been a joy to watch. If astonishingly quiet. Of course, Zaheen knew that both the Saiya-jin and the zn'hre were telepathic, but it still came as something of a shock to not-hear it in operation…
'viirel had been obviously curious about her, but equally as obviously too shy to do anything about it. Zaheen squatted down and beckoned to him, smiling gently with her lips together, and after a moment or two's hesitation, the youngster joined her, dropping to sit cross-legged in front of her.
"Hello."
He lowered his eyes.
"Hello Zaheen."
"Leteetza told me that you sing…"
It had obviously been the right thing to say. The pretty little zn'hre had looked up at her, pale turquoise skin darkening fractionally as his light golden eyes gleamed, sweet musical voice and dancing slender hands somehow managing to express that singing was everything to him, the most important thing there was…
And he couldn't praise his mentor highly enough - a deep chuckle from behind the Hyou stopped him before he could get too carried away, and he blushed and smiled shyly. Zaheen rose elegantly to her feet, turning to greet the musician, momentarily stunned by the richest blue eyes she had ever seen. Bri'seiyis inclined his head gravely.
"The Ssii'iin tells me you are partial to my music."
She nodded, not trusting herself to speak for a moment. His voice was caressingly low and beautiful. She swallowed and smiled, bowing her head.
"Indeed. I am honoured to meet you, Ssii'iir Bri'seiyis."
He frowned very slightly.
"I am not familiar with the Hyoujin. Perhaps we may take some time to speak together. I would be most interested to hear about native forms of music and dance."
Zaheen waved her hand gracefully, tail twitching nervously.
"I would be delighted, Ssii'iir. Though there is little to tell."
He shook his head, smiling.
"Ah, Mmeer Zaheen, that is never true. Even the Saiya-jin have a form of dance, and music - though they would rather die than admit it!" He glanced over his shoulder - Zha'haabron stood a little distance away, gazing in their direction - and bowed his head to the Hyou.
"I trust you will forgive me…"
"Of course, Ssii'iir Bri'seiyis."
"I hope to speak with you later…"
The musician had loped gracefully away to speak to the king, and Zaheen resigned herself to never having the opportunity to speak to him again. Ti'nienan, who had been privy to the brief exchange, touched her hand gently.
"He'll seek you out, when he has time - maybe even ask you to give us a demonstration. But at the moment, his mind is taken up with the Academy…"
Zha'haarak had been largely responsible for finding it, and that was quite by accident. Once he'd recovered from 'jau's birth (a somewhat protracted affair as Vinas insisted on his moving as little as possible until his re-set hip had properly healed, and even with Tane and Dari tending to him twice daily, it was still nearly twenty days before Vinas declared him fit) the first thing he did was to resume his mid-day meals with his bondmate, at the Guard messhall. And he took 'jau with him.
The first time he'd limped in, the curious little hostling in his arms, tail around his upper arm and gazing about quite unfazed by the noise and stir, the whole room had risen to its feet and cheered! Blushing furiously, Zha'haarak had lowered his head and, followed by the smirking Jagung, hastened to their usual table, where Hijau was grinning fit to burst.
*They missed you, zk'vissin…*
Kyuri was also at the table, and to Hijau's complete astonishment she took one look at the little hostling and melted, cooing at him in a most unwarrior-like way. She'd smiled at the gentle zn'hre.
"Do you mind if I hold him?"
Zha'haarak blinked, then tentatively held out the infant. 'jau hesitated for a moment, glancing at his parents, then warily went to the warrior, who cuddled him gently, scenting him and nuzzling his brightly streaked hair.
"Aren't you just the loveliest thing?"
'jau eyed her, head on one side, then giggled and flicked his tail up to tickle her face. She laughed and kissed his nose, smirking at the captain.
"Heh, right little flirt you have here!"
Zha'haarak smiled, dewy-eyed, and Hijau grinned broadly. Kyuri sighed, then - somewhat reluctantly - handed the giggling hostling back to his maazi and rose to her feet.
"What does everyone want to eat?"
It had been a wonderfully relaxed, happy meal. Throughout its duration various warriors had stopped at the table to admire the child and congratulate Zha'haarak, but not so often or for so long it made the zn'hre feel uncomfortable. At the end, as Hijau sighed and prepared to return to his office, he glanced at Jagung, speaking too quietly for Zha'haarak - who'd been collared by Iiva, who also wanted to see the newest hybrid - to hear.
"Do you feel that you are sufficient to guard them both?"
Jagung inclined his head.
"Within the palace grounds, I believe so, sir. Outside them - no."
Hijau nodded.
"I'll consider teaming you with someone. Do you have any preference?"
The elder guard frowned slightly.
"May I give it some thought, sir?"
"Of course. Let me know as soon as possible though."
Jagung saluted, then grinned at Zha'haarak.
"Ready to head back, your highness?"
The prince nodded and brushed a kiss across his bondmate's lips.
**We will see you later, zk'vissin**
Outside Guard headquarters the suns were still high: the day was cloudless and hot. High-summer had come and gone unnoticed in all the recent excitement, but the hot season continued, blissfully comfortable for the zn'hre. Zha'haarak sighed contentedly and raised his face to the sky.
"Happy, your highness?"
"Oh, yes… Jagung, I never dared imagine life could be so good…" He gazed at his guard, then chuckled.
"Come with me…"
He rose gracefully from the ground, hovering high above the complex, the wary Jagung close by, and pointed out the landmarks he recognised to his hostling. 'jau followed the prince's finger, gazing solemnly at everything, enjoying the experience: he'd flown with papa, of course, but this was the first time with maazi. He snuggled into his host's arms, one small hand gripping the zn'hre's plait, and surveyed his home…
Something winked at him, something white and shiny, down on the ground away to the sunsside of the palace. Eyes fixed on the thing, he tugged Zha'haarak's plait and pointed wordlessly.
**Maazi? What that?**
Zha'haarak peered, then shook his head. It was a little too far away, and seemingly obscured by trees, for him to make it out. He glanced at Jagung.
"Do you know what that is?"
The guard gazed for a moment, then shrugged.
"A building of some kind. Ancient by the look of it. Set in some sort of park. It's not an area I know."
"Can we find out what it is?"
He nodded.
"There'll be some sort of record somewhere. We can try the library when we get back."
Zha'haarak bit his lip.
"I don't suppose… could we go there?"
Jagung shook his head.
"Not without an escort, hoseki. Hijau would rip my tail off."
No-one had told Jagung about Zha'haarak's well-hidden stubborn streak.
"He will not, not if I insisted…"
Jagung blinked, then growled and took off after the receding streak of green that was the prince…
The Saiyan caught up after only a moment or two, of course - Zha'haarak wasn't a strong flier - and tried to halt his flight, but the prince flipped under, or over, or to the side each time in a tricky little manoeuvre that Jagung had never seen before. There was no way he could stop the zn'hre without physically grabbing hold of him - and that he was simply not prepared to do, it could hurt Zha'haarak or 'jau. So, gritting his teeth and trying hard not to think of what Hijau would say, he flew close to the prince, landing at his side, hands glowing as he gathered ki in preparation for any potential attack, before a large white building surrounded by trees.
Zha'haarak stood and stared, lips parted. The place was huge, and beautiful, two storeys high and - he thought - roughly H shaped, the wings curving gracefully to either side. Low broad steps led up to a huge double door, and there were what looked like pools with the spikes of long-dead fountains in the middle to either side of the overgrown path leading up to the front…
On closer inspection it was apparently deserted, most of the windows broken, the white stone that faced the walls badly in need of cleaning, but from what he could see the place seemed to be structurally sound. He walked a little closer, climbing the steps, 'jau making intrigued cooing noises as he looked around, Jagung anxiously following behind.
The front doors were slightly ajar; Zha'haarak slid between them into a spacious foyer, the roof a glassed dome - miraculously unbroken - far above. It was cool, but not excessively so, and smelt of faded flowers and sunwarmed dust. Zha'haarak turned to Jagung, golden eyes wide, a look of wonder on his face. His voice was hushed.
"This is wonderful. This is perfect…"
Hijau had not been happy when he'd found out, but since no harm had been done, and he knew how stubborn his zkai'da could be, and since Zha'haarak was prettily remorseful and insisted it was all his own fault, he let Jagung off with a snarled comment about relative strengths and duty, and flashed a stern glare at his bondmate (which Zha'haarak quietly ignored).
And indeed, a lot of good had come from the… excursion. Zha'haarak had contacted Leteetza on their return to the palace, giving her as much detail as he could and asking if there were any records. Half an hour later she'd grinned at him from the comm unit screen.
"You couldn't have found anywhere better if you'd tried! It used to be a school for the performing arts, back in Tsufuru-jin days."
Zn'hre and Saiyan stared at each other, identical grins on their faces, and Leteetza chuckled.
"I'll have a word with Manzano, get him to have it assessed for damage and check its ownership - but I think you've found the perfect place for Bri'seiyis' Academy…"
Bri'seiyis thought so too.
He'd spent the day after his arrival on Vejiitasei exploring the building. Manzano had, with his customary efficiency, had the whole place thoroughly checked, cleaned, the windows replaced and the odd spot of internal damage fixed within days, figuring that even if the Ssii'iir Bri'seiyis wasn't happy with the building, someone would find a use for it…
Zaheen had watched Bri'seiyis as he sat with the family at the evening meal, his beautiful voice describing what he'd seen, what he wanted to do… She could almost see the dreams behind those lovely eyes. And Leteetza had noted it all down, and she and Manzano and the unnamed unseen artisans who actually did the work set things in motion according to the musician's requirements.
Fifteen days later, after constant, unceasing toil, the Academy was ready to open. Even Vejiita was present at the opening ceremony, aware of the prestige such an institution would bring to the Alliance and to Vejiitasei even if he was less than enthusiastic about what actually happened there. (Though rather to his surprise he'd thoroughly enjoyed the performance of StarBorn. Zha'haabron thought to himself that perhaps there was hope for the Saiya-jin-no-Ou yet…)
Mahrayne stretched and rubbed at her abdomen, yawning, as Kinu, after his customary hug, raced out of the door to get back to his little bondmate as quickly as he could. She still couldn't quite understand what it was that her son and 'jau had, but it seemed to make them both very happy…
She sighed, then jumped at the quiet tap on the door.
"May we speak?"
She stood and gestured Bri'seiyis into the small language classroom, eyeing him enquiringly.
"Please, be seated."
He smiled and seated himself nearby, regarding her gravely for a moment.
"Mahrayne, I am here to put a proposition to you. Please understand that I will not be offended or the least annoyed if you feel unable to agree to what I am going to ask."
That sounded ominous. She gripped her hands tightly together below the level of the desk and smiled as best she could.
"Please, Ssii'iir Bri'seiyis, ask."
He touched her shoulder gently.
"I would like to ask that you consider teaching at the Academy. Not just Hassinan dance, but the art of storytelling as well. Possibly a little language too, but that can come later. We would structure the hours to suit your own desires and other commitments, and of course we wouldn't expect you to start until after the birth of your hostling."
Mahrayne stared, her mouth open.
Teach? In the Academy?
Oh…
……..
She could feel tears gathering and bit her lip hard to stop them. Taking several deep breaths she regained some self-control - and beamed at the zn'hre.
"I would be honoured to teach, Ssii'iir."
He nodded.
"I am glad. Your skills and talents would be a great benefit to us." He chuckled, a low, musical sound. "We are already receiving requests for places at the Academy from a widely divergent mix of alien… hopefuls… who saw the broadcast of StarBorn."
Mahrayne could well believe it. 'tiisaan had been in his element, gathering up the audience and somehow making them live the story as he danced it. She blinked back tears of pride and grinned.
"I will need to sort out my schedule, Ssii'iir. But… Oh, thank you!"
He shook his head.
"Thank you, shi'iista'iin. You will be a most welcome addition to our… 'family'."
It wasn't until the following day that she discovered Bri'seiyis had also asked Jeice - who'd happily agreed, with the proviso that his official, and adopted family, duties had to come first - and, to the Hassinan's startled surprise, Jagung.
Merica sighed into his bondmate's neck, stroking his inkei firmly.
"I'd like you to."
Jagung gasped and tried to concentrate on the matter - not easy when he was impaled on his aijin's shaft and awash with lust and love and arousal.
*Aijin… But… it's…*
*Intimate, I know. Lets strangers get too close.*
Jagung whimpered as Merica fondled him.
*You… never… never… had to… be… on display… like that… For… for any… anyone… to buy for a night…*
Merica paused, then sighed and nuzzled his koi's neck.
*You're right. I'm sorry, I shouldn't ask it of you. I wouldn't, except I can never forget the first time I saw you… you danced my dreams for me. I fell in love with you right then.* He chuckled quietly and hugged Jagung closely. *It's just a pity that no-one knows how… eloquent?... the Saiya-jin - we - can be, with our bodies.*
Jagung whimpered and twisted to nip his bondmate's jaw.
*And what happens when I dance and everyone wants me? You think you could bear that?*
Merica cuddled his love close, thrusting smoothly as his hands teased and fondled and finally brought Jagung to a gasping climax, his own almost an afterthought.
Yes, he realised with a sudden profound shock, he could bear it.
As Jagung lay back against him, warm and glowing and sated and his, he absently kissed along a creamy-golden shoulder and frowned to himself. Where and when had that come from? Then he blinked.
Ti'aasaan.
Of course.
He hadn't wanted the little zn'hre to invade the… the sanctity of their bond. But he'd accepted the necessity - only to find that it wasn't an invasion at all, but a broadening, a widening, of what they already had.
He thought back, suddenly understanding that Ti'a-chan had somehow subtly changed them, changed their bond. Deepened it, he realised, eyes wide and wondering, and at the same time strengthened it.
How? How had he done that?
*Beloved?*
Merica dragged himself from reverie and sighed contentedly.
*Have I told you recently how much I love you? Adore you? Worship every curve and hollow and delicious fingers-breadth of you?*
Jagung stiffened, then swivelled to face his bondmate, hands cupping the strong golden face, eyes worried.
"Merica?"
Merica gazed at his love's beautiful face, very gently stroking a finger across a high cheekbone, smiling and pressing a kiss to a warm slender palm.
*You are so precious to me. I love you, and I trust you, and I'm so proud of you… I'd like to see you dance again. But there's no way on this planet or any other I'd insist on you doing something you don't want to do.*
Jagung stared, his grip on his bondmate's face instinctively tightening for a moment, disbelievingly. But Saiya-jin couldn't *lie*. And Merica's scent was deep and loving and trusting… He bit back a sob and collapsed into strong protective arms.
*Gods I love you!*
Merica held him tightly, purring. And after a few minutes Jagung nuzzled his jaw and asked, tentatively,
*Are you sure? You wouldn't mind?*
Merica chuckled, amusement and relief bubbling up from within.
*Oh, I'm sure, love. You've missed dancing, haven't you?*
And Jagung, tears streaming down his face, *whispered*,
*So much, aijin. I've missed it so much…*
© 2003 March 22nd Joules Taylor
