A Night on the Town
It was quiet. The only sound that Henry Patton could hear was the thrum of the shuttle engines as it propeled them across the ocean towards Blue Blossom Estate. Mistress Maevin Maer was sitting across from him, her blue eyes staring out the window peacefully watching the clouds and the deep azure colored water below. She shifted in her seat a few times as if trying to get comfortable and Henry knew why. His hand could still feel her soft skin even if he was doing something his mother would murder him for.
“You okay?” Henry asked with guilt in his voice. The woman turned back to him and gave one of those smiles he had begun to appreciate. It was a mixture of understand, amusement and a hint of mischevious. The young Terran was pretty sure that Maevin found herself entertained by his predicaments. There also was a strong sense of relief discovering that he hadn't actually had sex with the Crowned Princess of the Xaltean Empire.
That was the wildest party I have ever been too...not like I've been to a lot.
“Of course. You were very effective in my discipline.” Maevin emphasized the last part of her sentence by squirming in her seat. She did that on purpose.
“Maevin—”
The Mistress of Blue Blossom waved her hand in dismissal. “You have not done anything wrong. I am the one who did. If you were Xaltean, my punishment would have been much more severe and thorough.”
“Still, I don't like that idea of hitting anyone, especially you.” Henry said sullenly.
What was that look? Maevin had an expression of surprise and delight? It was nice to see her relaxed. The maid that had accompanied them had been dismissed to the back of the shuttle for her dinner so there was no act that had to be put on. Henry liked seeing this soft side of her which was rare. Most of the time, around the servants, he saw the majestic and ruthless leader of the Blue Blossom Legions. Henry wanted to see that smile a bit more so when the idea came to him, the young man decided to go for it.
“So Maevin...” Henry started and immediately she got the look of caution.
“Yes, my lord?”
“Since I'm the Lord of the Estate, I can make any choices I want, right?”
“Yes,” Maevin responded, the hesitation in her voice. Henry grinned at her and he could see in her eyes she was now extremely suspicious. Henry depressed the crystal switch on his seat's armrest pinging the pilot.
“Yes, my lord?” The pilot's voice came through official and ready to respond.
“I want to change our course. Can you take us to Belentine?”
“As you will, Lord.”
The look of alarm crossed the Mistress' face but he could see the battle within her to demand what he was doing and respecting his decision. The swat must have been more chastising than Henry realized. He didn't want her nervous.
“I was talking to Burdak yesterday about food and he said that there was a restaurant in Belentine that had the best dishes he thinks that my palette could handle. At least till I can acclimate. It's a place called Smetamae, the Royal?”
Mistress Maevin's eyes grew wide as they both felt the momentum of the shuttle changing direction. “My Master, smetamae is a civilian restaurant. Though it is a place for those of status, I worry about your safty.”
Henry nodded. “I know but I looked it up. It's a high rise building on the top floor. That seems pretty safe to me?”
“But Master—”
Henry was excited now. Maybe still giddy and full of adrenalin thanks to the tekiasetel only a few hours earlier but he was going to be insistent. “Not only that, there is a sky bridge four floors down that lead to one of those floating parks, you know the ones that have the sky bridges from different buildings supporting it? Gisar's grove I believe it's called.”
There was a horror that crossed Maevin's face that caused him to stop.
“What is it?”
Maevin shifted in her seat and this time it wasn't from a sore butt. “Are...are you wanting me to accompany you to dinner?”
“Yes? I thought that was obvious.”
“My master...I'm...I'm a full bond servant to your estate. It would be extremely inappropriate for me to dine with you outside of the estate.”
“Why?”
She shifted again, a dusting of pink coming to Maevin's cheeks. “As a servant of the master and the Mistress of his estate, I being seen as an equal and with casual behavior can lead to...rumors of impropriety.”
Alright. Henry was confused and it was probably written all over is face. “I don't understand.”
Maevin cleared her throat, the pink getting deeper into a shade of red. “As I had said. I am a full bond which prohibits me from having a relationship outside of a transaction encounter. That is when you use my body for your needs.”
Yeah, he knew what she meant. Maevin didn't have to say it. Now it was Henry's turn to blush but he forced himself to keep his wits about him and not melt like some prude. “You are worried about being seen as a vtedeega.”
The Mistress of Blue Blossom visibly started, her eyes growing wide with a hint of fear. She leaned in dropping her voice low after making sure the other maid hadn't heard. “You know that word?”
“Yeah. I learned it last week.”
“Please do not say it so loud, my master. It is a humiliating word.”
Henry nodded but straightened. “I want you to accompany me as I want to dine outside. We will make a point to discuss business so everyone understand and then we shall see Gisar's grove as I have not been there before,” He softened. “I want to thank you in more than just words for how much you have taken care of me.”
Any will Maevin had to resist him seemed to melt and she slumped in her chair. “I obey your will, my master.”
When the shuttle landed at the Belentine space port, a personal vehicle was already waiting. Even with short notice, everyone was prepared. The walk through the concourse was quick and simple as it appeared their escort took them through the back channels to avoid the crowds. Belentine’s spaceport was a cathedral of glass and light, its ceiling a transparent arc that revealed the planet’s moon that had risen.
“Wow. This place is pretty amazing,” Henry said as they followed the skywalk that wrapped around the contours of the skyscraper. The Terran made sure not to look over the edge of the waist high guard wall that was on the other side. “Though that doesn't look safe,” He said referencing said guard wall.
Maevin let out the slightest chuckle, took a step towards it and lightly tapped. A shimmer of a forcefield appeared like a disturbed puddle before vanishing. “There is security up here. All open walkways have these forcefields to keep accidents from happening. They're powered by our footsteps and the movement of the wind and a secondary power source from the buildings. They are quite safe.”
The restaurant occupied the second-to-top floor. The skywalk delivered them into a wide antechamber where the air subtly shifted to a cooler, perfumed with something floral and faintly metallic. Walls of dark wood curved inward, threaded with slow-moving veins of light that gave the place a warm feeling. The floor was a single seamless pane, translucent rather than transparent, giving an illusion of softness.
Beyond the entry, the dining hall opened into a vast crescent overlooking the city. Panoramic windows rose from floor to ceiling, layered with adaptive filters that softened the glare of towers and streaming sky-lanes into a painterly glow. Tables hovered a few inches above the floor on silent gravitic mounts, spaced generously for privacy, each surrounded by satin cushion chairs. Soft holographic constellations drifted lazily above. It was something subtle, tasteful, never intruding while distant music hummed just below the threshold of notice, more vibration than sound.
This was Henry's first time to see how people who were not of the house's dressed. His gaze drifted while he waited. Maevin had stepped away to talk to the person who wore a very nice looking suit of black and gold.
Maybe the floor manager? Henry had no clue how it worked at places like this.
At one table sat a woman in a cropped black wrap-jacket, gold seams catching the light whenever she moved her wrist, her posture composed in the way of someone used to being deferred to. Nearby, a pair of younger patrons laughed softly over drinks, one of them dressed in a soft mauve wrap that showed just enough midriff to feel intentional rather than careless. Further back a man wearing a long, dark asymmetrical coat over tailored inner layers. A Vertical wrap seam reinforced with metallic piping on the coat and underneath he wore a type of slacks. The trimming was gold against the dark. It struck Henry what he would have expected a businessman to look like among the Xalteans.
“Our table is ready,” Maevin said at his arm. The woman's eyes were soft blue, almost an indigo in the warm lights around them. They searched his face, the nervousness still deep.
Got to keep this looking official, Henry told himself. The man who Maevin had been speaking to earlier was waiting patiently a step ahead. The Terran began to follow as he was lead through the open concept dining room with Maevin two steps behind, head slightly bowed and hands folded in front of her. It was so disconcerting seeing his Mistress so submissive and demure. A few eyes glanced in their way, some longer recognizing who he was.
“eta beti gavive ki,” The man said motioning to the chairs. Here you go.
“Oh...uh...eta isa mi tave“
Without thinking about it, Henry went around to one of the chairs and pulled it out for Maevin. He looked up to see her frozen, eyes wide and then darting around to the others who were still paying attention.
“It's a human tradition, Mistress,” He said a bit louder.
“Oh...of course...Master,” she said sitting quickly.
Henry sat down himself across from Maevin. She had completely transformed from the authoritative, leader that ran things when he was not to this very quiet, submissive, polite woman. A lot like the lower level maids he had met.
“Do you know what you wish to order?” the man asked as Henry got comfortable. The young Terran already had an idea what to get thanks to that conversation with Burdak. “I'll have the Kabelet Steak, cooked medium, with machuva.”
“Would you like to pair that with a Winter Rose? A nice five year as it is out of season at the moment.” the waiter offered.
“Yes, please. And—” Henry started to ask what Maevin wanted but saw her watching very closely. Shit. That's right. She can't order food on her own. I have to order for her. That's what Maela had explained once. Thank god he remembered it. What did Maevin like again? He thought back to the few meals he had seen her eat.
“For my Mistress, bring her spiced machuva with eflen. Also the same wine. Thank you.”
The waiter bowed, left and Maevin shoulders slumped as the stress left them.
“I remembered!” Henry whispered excitedly.
Gisar’s Grove unfolded beneath them like some sort of fantasy novel that Henry used to read as a kid.
The sky bridge let them out onto a broad, floating terrace suspended between three towers, its edges dissolving into open air and soft light. Below, the city stretched as far as the eye could see with ribbons of traffic, and the slow pulse of Belentine’s night. The grove itself felt insulated, wrapped in a hush that muted the world beyond.
Bioluminescent trees arched overhead, their bark a pale silver veined with slow moving light. Leaves the size of cloaks drifted lazily on invisible currents, shedding motes that glowed like embers before fading. Pathways of polished stone curved gently through gardens of flora with blossoms that opened only in darkness, releasing a faint, sweet fragrance. Henry stopped without meaning to.
“Okay,” he said quietly. “This might be the most beautiful place I’ve ever seen.”
Maevin was at this side with the grove hiding them, the woman he was familiar with more present.
“It is a civic sanctuary,” she said. “Gisar was a philosopher-steward who believed that cities must remember how to breathe. The grove was built in his honor.”
They began to walk.
The path responded subtly to their steps, light blooming beneath Henry’s boots before dimming again. He resisted the urge to stare over the edge. There were no railings here, only the suggestion of boundaries marked by gently hovering lights. He was glad Maevin showed him the forcefields earlier.
“I’m glad you came with me,” he said after a moment.
Maevin’s stride faltered, just slightly. “You commanded it.”
Henry winced. “That’s… not what I meant.”
She looked at him then, really looked, her blue eyes catching reflections of the drifting lights. “I know,” she said quietly. “That is why it is difficult.”
They walked in silence for a few steps. Somewhere nearby, water trickled, an artificial stream threading its way between roots and stone, disappearing into mist before it could fall.
“I do apologize,” Maevin continued, choosing each word with care, “I have learned about how your culture approaches friendship and it is hard to explain how that is not possible.”
“Why?”
“Because it blurs lines that keep people safe.”
Henry frowned. “Safe for who?”
“For everyone,” she answered, then hesitated. “For servants most of all.”
He stopped again, turning to face her fully. The lights along the path brightened in response, casting them in a soft halo.
“Maevin,” he said, gently but firmly, “you’re not just some servant to me. You run my estate. You keep me from making a hundred stupid mistakes a day. You’ve protected me more times than I can count, even when you didn’t have to.”
“That doesn’t mean I don’t understand the rules,” he went on. “Or that I want to break things without thinking. But I don’t want to pretend you’re invisible just because we stepped outside the gates.”
Maevin looked away, her jaw tightening. “I am to be invisible outside as the Lord of the Estate is who matters. The servants are there to make everything run smoothly. That is all. ”
“Should you not get credit?”
“We do. By our hard work,” Maevin continued but softened her voice. “I understand the lines you want to cross. To treat me as an equal and as a teammate but I cannot cross it. I am Xaltean, I am a servant of the house. It is not a line for me but a wall.”
Silence reigned between the two as they continued deeper into the grove, the sound of traffic now almost inaudible.
“For what it is worth,” Henry said. “You are more important than me.”
Maevin's intake of air cause him to turn to see her eyes dark with unease and anger simmering underneath so he quickly continued. “I won't repeat that outside of this moment, I promise, but when I say that I mean as to keeping the entire estate from slipping. If I was gone tomorrow, there would barely be a hiccup. If I lost you, the whole place would fall apart.”
“There will always be another Mistress,” Maevin said quietly.
“But not another one of you.”
Maevin went silent, her face unreadible but she did take a step or two faster to stand by his side.
“I just wanted you to know when nobody was listening. Even if I can't say it again.”
“This servant accepts your generosity,” Maevin intoned with a curtsy but there was a smile playing at the corner of her mouth and that sparkle had come back to her eyes.
Right now. Her company was enough.