Pirate Prince
Nimdok had been on Monastery for no more than ten minutes before he heard someone say, “Excuse me. You look familiar. Have we met before?”
He looked up. An elderly woman in faded clothes, her face and hands weathered from decades’ worth of exposure to the sun and salty air of the planet’s atmosphere, had walked over to where he sat on a bench, floating her luggage with her. The spaceport around them was small, cramped, and crowded, though it was mostly travellers merely using Sanctuary as a layover or rest stop along the way to other destinations.
With a suitcase on the floor in front of him and Miri sitting beside him, Nimdok gave the old woman a polite smile even as he grimaced internally. He had expected something like this might happen, but he hadn’t thought it would happen right out of the gate. Literally—they had just disembarked from their ship. Nimdok tried to let her down gently. “Sorry to disappoint you, m’am, but I’m afraid I don’t recognize you.”
The old woman smiled down at Miri. “Oh, well—are you two visiting Monastery, or is this just a layover?” she asked, continuing to study him with interest, her gaze keen and focused. “I ask because I’ve lived here my whole life. In fact, this will be my first trip away from home.” She gestured to her luggage.
“The three of us are visiting,” he explained. “We’re waiting for… someone else.” He managed to hide the flush that automatically rose to his cheeks. It was silly to be bashful over Elise’s presence, like a teenage boy with a crush, but he hadn’t quite gotten used to having her around yet.
Luckily the old woman didn’t seem to notice. She was too busy experiencing a sudden revelation. “I know!” she exclaimed, snapping her fingers. “...But no, you can’t be. He’d be much older than you by now, as old as I am. Unless... Tell me, are you related to a man named Deronda?”
Nimdok’s heart sank. Hesitating, he replied, “Yes. I’m afraid he passed away, about ten years ago.”
“Oh.” She pursed her lips. “But you are related to him?”
“My father,” Nimdok admitted, his eyes darting as he searched the crowds for Elise. “He was my father.”
“That’s what I thought!” The old woman’s graying eyebrows rose. “He and I went to school together. We even dated at one point. My word, you look so much alike. The resemblance is very strong, I can see it.”
Somewhere inside Nimdok, the shapeshifter congratulated himself on a mimicry well done. The rest of him continued to desperately look for a way out of this situation. Should he blurt out that he needed to use the bathroom, and make a run for it? But then he might risk losing Miri in these crowds. Maybe he could try and hypnotize her? But what good would that do? He’d already admitted to being Deronda’s son...
“I don’t mean to put you on the spot like this, but you’ll find that everyone knows everybody on a planet like ours.” She glanced at her chrono, saw that she had plenty of time to chitchat, and looked up at him again. “What’s your mother’s name, if you don’t mind me asking? Is she from here as well?”
“Erm, yes. Her name was Nimue.”
“He married her?!”
Nimdok’s wandering eyes immediately snapped back onto the old woman at this sudden outburst. He raised an eyebrow and opened his mouth, only to close it again as he couldn’t think of anything to say. It was just his luck that the first encounter he would have with a Sanctuary native would be a loony old lady who had some sort of grudge against his late mother.
“I’m terribly sorry,” she said, pressing her wrinkled hand to her chest. “I just have a hard time believing it. A nice guy like Deronda marrying a… well, I better not say anything more. I don’t mean to offend you. Perhaps we better change the subject—”
But Nimdok had finally spotted Elise. “I’m sorry, I have to go,” he said, standing up and gesturing for Miri, who had her nose buried in a book, to do the same. “I hope you have a nice trip.”
If the old woman said anything else, he didn’t hear it. Slinging his bag over one shoulder and taking Miri’s hand, he marched them both over to his salvation. “Phew, I was starting to get worried. What took you so long?” Placing his free hand on her back, he started to steer his no-doubt bewildered (or perhaps bemused, depending on how much of his conversation with the old woman she had witnessed) lover out of the starport. “There’s way too many people around. Let’s get out of here…”
He looked up. An elderly woman in faded clothes, her face and hands weathered from decades’ worth of exposure to the sun and salty air of the planet’s atmosphere, had walked over to where he sat on a bench, floating her luggage with her. The spaceport around them was small, cramped, and crowded, though it was mostly travellers merely using Sanctuary as a layover or rest stop along the way to other destinations.
With a suitcase on the floor in front of him and Miri sitting beside him, Nimdok gave the old woman a polite smile even as he grimaced internally. He had expected something like this might happen, but he hadn’t thought it would happen right out of the gate. Literally—they had just disembarked from their ship. Nimdok tried to let her down gently. “Sorry to disappoint you, m’am, but I’m afraid I don’t recognize you.”
The old woman smiled down at Miri. “Oh, well—are you two visiting Monastery, or is this just a layover?” she asked, continuing to study him with interest, her gaze keen and focused. “I ask because I’ve lived here my whole life. In fact, this will be my first trip away from home.” She gestured to her luggage.
“The three of us are visiting,” he explained. “We’re waiting for… someone else.” He managed to hide the flush that automatically rose to his cheeks. It was silly to be bashful over Elise’s presence, like a teenage boy with a crush, but he hadn’t quite gotten used to having her around yet.
Luckily the old woman didn’t seem to notice. She was too busy experiencing a sudden revelation. “I know!” she exclaimed, snapping her fingers. “...But no, you can’t be. He’d be much older than you by now, as old as I am. Unless... Tell me, are you related to a man named Deronda?”
Nimdok’s heart sank. Hesitating, he replied, “Yes. I’m afraid he passed away, about ten years ago.”
“Oh.” She pursed her lips. “But you are related to him?”
“My father,” Nimdok admitted, his eyes darting as he searched the crowds for Elise. “He was my father.”
“That’s what I thought!” The old woman’s graying eyebrows rose. “He and I went to school together. We even dated at one point. My word, you look so much alike. The resemblance is very strong, I can see it.”
Somewhere inside Nimdok, the shapeshifter congratulated himself on a mimicry well done. The rest of him continued to desperately look for a way out of this situation. Should he blurt out that he needed to use the bathroom, and make a run for it? But then he might risk losing Miri in these crowds. Maybe he could try and hypnotize her? But what good would that do? He’d already admitted to being Deronda’s son...
“I don’t mean to put you on the spot like this, but you’ll find that everyone knows everybody on a planet like ours.” She glanced at her chrono, saw that she had plenty of time to chitchat, and looked up at him again. “What’s your mother’s name, if you don’t mind me asking? Is she from here as well?”
“Erm, yes. Her name was Nimue.”
“He married her?!”
Nimdok’s wandering eyes immediately snapped back onto the old woman at this sudden outburst. He raised an eyebrow and opened his mouth, only to close it again as he couldn’t think of anything to say. It was just his luck that the first encounter he would have with a Sanctuary native would be a loony old lady who had some sort of grudge against his late mother.
“I’m terribly sorry,” she said, pressing her wrinkled hand to her chest. “I just have a hard time believing it. A nice guy like Deronda marrying a… well, I better not say anything more. I don’t mean to offend you. Perhaps we better change the subject—”
But Nimdok had finally spotted Elise. “I’m sorry, I have to go,” he said, standing up and gesturing for Miri, who had her nose buried in a book, to do the same. “I hope you have a nice trip.”
If the old woman said anything else, he didn’t hear it. Slinging his bag over one shoulder and taking Miri’s hand, he marched them both over to his salvation. “Phew, I was starting to get worried. What took you so long?” Placing his free hand on her back, he started to steer his no-doubt bewildered (or perhaps bemused, depending on how much of his conversation with the old woman she had witnessed) lover out of the starport. “There’s way too many people around. Let’s get out of here…”
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