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 Posted: Tue Aug 05, 2008 6:27 pm
There was no real bookstore on the Island, but Aurelie Delacroix and a few like-minded people - that is, people who enjoy reading - had begun to set up a group which functioned kind of like a lending library. They had all catalogued the books they had brought with them to the Island and they kept lists so that the others could peruse them and borrow any books they might want to read that the others had in their collections. It was the best they could manage. A library was not high on the Islanders' To-Do list. They were still excited over the coming of a teacher. Aurelie didn't blame them, but she desperately missed her books, and being in the middle of an ocean made it difficult to get things through the usual means. Amazon.com didn't guarantee its estimated shipping dates, nor did eBay. It was incredibly frustrating.
So she ventured into town on a weekly basis and sat outside a cafe while sipping icy margaritas and discussing books with her fellow lovers of literacy. This week's meeting had concluded and she was lingering, flipping casually through one of her borrowed Tom Clancy books. It had come from a retired Navy SEAL, and although it wasn't her usual reading material, she had been thinking of branching out in her writings. Maybe she could make her way in the political thriller realm.
Her palui, Sascher-tort was curled around her feet, purring happily.
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Posted: Wed Aug 06, 2008 12:47 pm
After a long day of working in the office, Aubrey liked to go home, take it easy, then head out to walk around town for a bit. One of his favorite spots was the library coming up into town... Just a place where people exchanged and checked out books. He himself hadn't added any books to his collection. Aubrey's Palu, Abacus, had been taught to read human language, and now poked his head out of Aubrey's bookbag as he headed into the coffee shop.
Aubrey walked to the counter and ordered a double espresso and a saucer of milk for the Palu. He had always treated the Palu like a housecat, and always picked on him for being nothiing more than a fluffy tabby cat. He always meant the best, and tried his best to give everything he could to Abbie. This was, after all, Abbie's first day out. And the Palu seemed exstatic, bobbing his head in and out and back and forth out of the backpack, taking in everything and purring loudly.
Once he got his drink, Aubrey set down the backpack at an empty table and set the saucer on the floor. He left the table, knowing that Abacus would behave to go search for a book.
Abacus jumped out of the backpack and looked around him. The shop was large to his small eyes, and so full of new things and smells. He tried to contain himself and stay near the table, and took a sip of his milk. What a wondrous place the world was! Abbie had been purring all day, and tried to purr quietly as he continued to look around.
Someone else had brought their Palu into the shop, and it sat quietly under the table. Abbie didn't know what the code of conduct was about approaching other Palu in public places, so he sat quietly, enjoying his milk and looking around, sure that Aubrey would bring a book back for him.
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Posted: Wed Aug 06, 2008 1:11 pm
Aurelie glanced up from her casual perusal of Mr. Clancy to take note of the person who had just come in. She didn't recognize him, but that didn't mean anything. There were a lot of people on the Island that she didn't recognize, even though she had lived there for two years. Her lifestyle was fairly reclusive, at first because she had been one of the very first people to move to the Island and had little in common with the locals, but then it simply became habit. Besides, she had her computer with its incredibly expensive wireless connection and the palui she had been gifted with upon arrival. She didn't really need anything else. Except books, of course. A quotation of Thomas Jefferson's came to mind: "I cannot live without books." It was very simple and straightforward, lacking the flowery language most people used when talking about books for posterity's sake, but she loved it. She very much admired Thomas Jefferson, though. He was a brilliant man.
Her footwarmer, better known as Sasha, got up when the new person came in and stretched luxuriously, looking for all the world like a large, fluffy cat. She blinked and yawned until the tips of her tufted ears seemed to meet behind her wide skull. When she was done she walked over to the other palui who was enjoying a saucer of milk. She wondered if, maybe, she could convince Aurelie to get her some milk. She would only throw it up, of course, but it would be a nice gesture on her human's part. She sat down a short distance from the grey tabby.
"You've got a very thoughtful human," she remarked.
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Posted: Wed Aug 06, 2008 1:50 pm
Aubrey perused the books, picking for himself a book he had enjoyed often- Interview with a Vampire by Anne Rice. He was in the mood for something a little fantastical. He himself didn't know what he would ever do without books for entertainment. He had a laptop. but hardly ever got reception. He didn't mind. He had transferred his job from home and was not working part time with computers at an office down the street. He ventured over to another section, to the dusty outdated old encyclopedias someone had brought. He ran his finger over the dusty covers, trying to think of which ones Abacus might like the best. He stopped on C- He could use this as a joke.
He picked up the heavy volume and carried it over to his table. There was a small step-down, and he nearly tripped, but he righted himself, blushing, and set the volume down on the floor, opening it to "Cat" for Abacus.
"There you go, bud. I found you in the encyclopedia." He chuckled to himself, scritching Abbie on the head before sitting down to his own book.
Abacus looked up from his milk to see the strange new Palu sitting beside him. He licked his lips and sat up. "Oh, hello. Yes. Aubrey is very thoughtful. I can't drink much of this stuff, but he tries to make me happy. He's worked very hard to figure out what I am. Of course, I know I'm a Palu. But he doesn't know that..."
Abbie caught the other Palu's eyes. "Would you like some?" He nudged the bowl towards her. "I can't finish it all..." It was then that Abbie saw Aubrey head back towards him with a large book. Abacus's tail flicked with excitement. He loved books himself,and could read at about the same level as a fifth grade human child. When Aubrey set the book down, opened on "Cat" Aubrey glared at it and gave a brunt "Pu-Palu..." with displeasure at Aubrey's joke.
"I don't know why he plays these games, he knows I'm not a housecat..." The volume smelled like dust and mildew, and the pictures were black and white and outdated. Abacus set a paw on the page and looked at the new Palu. "I'm Abacus- do you like to read?" He tilted his head to the side and smiled at what he hoped would be a new friend.
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Posted: Thu Aug 07, 2008 10:38 am
Aurelie was relatively oblivious to the actions of the cafe's only other human patron. She had already begun to immerse herself in a world of somewhat out-dated political intrigue. This book was clearly written during the Clinton administration, and it was showing its age. She couldn't help being amused by the way the language dated the book, and wondering if, later on down the road, others would read her books and be able to tell when they were written just by her word choice. When she was writing fantasy she never used slang because the slang she used would be out of place in her worlds. When she wrote erotica, she used an entirely different vocabulary. At any rate, her attention wasn't really on the other human being, or his palui, though it did register dimly in the back of her mind that Sascher-tort was conversing with another palui, as she heard a different voice answering Sasha's.
Sasch looked at the book and her nose wrinkled at the musty odor and dust which rose from it as it was placed on the floor. She had been about to accept Abacus' generous and thoughtful offer to share, but the scent of the dusty tome and put her temporarily off her appetite. It took most of her concentration not to sneeze. She recognized the picture of the cat for what it was, a cat, though she had never seen a live cat. Aurelie had movies with cats in them. And books with pictures of cats on the cover. None of the books or movies had palui in them.
"My Aurelie-human likes to tease me, too. I think it's just what humans do. Maybe it's how they show affection among their own kind?" She wasn't sure. She watched movies with Aurelie, and she knew how humans who were attracted to each other acted from those, but that was a different kind of affection. She would not be comfortable if Aurelie felt like that about her.
"My name's Sascher-tort. Sasha. I'm afraid I don't read. My human does, though. She reads very well." She could resist the urge to brag about her human.
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Posted: Thu Aug 07, 2008 3:06 pm
Aubrey always enjoyed the language and sophistication in Anne Rice's writing. He loved the way she described things- so lifelike. Like you were right in the scene. When he wrote, he tried to use eloquent writing, so that he didn't sound like a teenager trying too hard. He had never thought about publishing his books, but maybe his poetry. He sipped his espresso, which had cooled for quite awhile, but was still scalding hot. He could feel the pounding in his throat as the hot liquid seeped down his throat. He hadn't really taken the time to look at the other people in the cafe, but knew that Abbie was socializing.
In the back of his mind, Aubrey was proud. He had always wondered if Abbie would be able to socialize correctly, and it seemed he was doing so, sharing a saucer of milk and a book with his new buddy. Aubrey couldn't hold back a smile, and for a moment, he totally forgot that he had been reading the same sentence over and over. Finally, he was shaken back to the words that began to once again make sense.
Abacus smiled at the other Palu. "I'm Abacus, but Aubrey likes to call me Abbie. It's kind of a stupid nickname. I read in a book of names that Abbie is usually the an abbreviation to the female name Abagail." He blushed. "I'm sorry. But you see, most of my life has been spent inside, reading. That's where I get all my information. Aubrey loves to read too- he and I spend a lot of time reading together. Maybe they should meet! I bet they would get along, and they MAY even be friends." He swished his tail happily.
He pawed at a page, to turn it. The page revealed many different breeds of domestic feline. Some of them very strange looking- A hairless cat, called a Rex, perked his interest. "Take a look at this, Sasha! It's a cat without hair! How funny!" He purred a bit, smiling at the funny looking animal on the page.
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Posted: Thu Aug 07, 2008 5:38 pm
Sasha shuddered as she stared partly in horror and partly in revulsion at the picture of the hairless feline in the picture. She felt overwhelmed with pity, thinking of her own, plumy tail and fluffy chest ruff. The hairless creature in the book looked like some sort of prey-creature, hardly fit even to be called a cat. It would certainly never pass for something as magnificent as a palui. She had met a palui recently who seemed like he would make the poor, pathetic sphynx into lunch.
"It would be nice if they became friends," Sasha agreed. "There are very few people here that my Aurelie-human talks to. She comes here once a week to exchange books with the group of people who left shortly before you came in with your Aubrey-human, but they are not really her friends, I think. Sometimes I wonder if she gets lonely. I try to amuse, of course..." She trailed off uncertainly. Maybe if she learned to read, too, she could be a better companion for Aurelie. But she was certain the ability was beyond her. It hurt her eyes to even think about focusing on the tiny squiggles on the pages.
"I like the name Abacus," she said, changing the subject. "And Abbie's no worse a name than some of the nick-names my Aurelie-human has for me." She wasn't going to go into those. She didn't understand why all of them were funny because she didn't understand human speech perfectly, just certain words and voice tones, but Aurelie always seemed amused when she used these names for Sasha.
Aurelie had flipped to the back of the title page to check the publishing date for the book, unable to stand the period jargon any more without the vindication of knowing she had guessed its era correctly. As she turned the pages back she glanced up in time to hear an imperious "pao-RU" from Sasha. She frowned very slightly and tried to figure out what it was her palui wanted from her. As she was looking in that direction her gaze fell for the first time on the person who must be the other palui's owner. She was too near-sighted to read the title of his book, but she recognized the colors of the cover art. Anne Rice, a huge influence in her own writing.
She stared longer than was polite, surprised to see someone male reading Anne Rice's Vampire Chronicles, which were not generally marketed to a male demographic. It always intrigued her to see people who refused to stay in the categories into which the publishing story liked to place them. Her male readers always startled and amused her - she wrote for a female fan base, usually. She looked quickly back at Sasha, who was staring fixedly at the other human. Well, that was no help.
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Posted: Fri Aug 08, 2008 7:36 am
Aubrey was deeply engrossed in his book when he heard a strange "pao-RU" comeing from under the table. He had completely forgotten about the other Palu that was socializing with Abacus. Abbie was use to the quiet time, and maybe this new Palu needed more attention. For a second, Aubrey felt a pang of guilt at the fact that he had not always been the most attentive of owners, having to leave Abbie on his own all day for work, and then wanting quiet time to read at home. He wondered if Abacus would ever feel resentment for it.
He glimpsed under the table at the new friend, and offered her a hand to sniff. "Well, hello there, little one. Are you okay? I hope I didn't kick you or anything. Your owner must be around here some..." He began looking around and accidently made eye contact with the obvious owner of the Palu. She was a younger girl, sitting at a table by herself some feet away, and she was looking his way. Aubrey blushed as his eyes met hers again.
"Oh, I'm sorry. She just made a noise and I figured she may need something." He said, hoping she knew from the awkward angle he now bent that she knew that he was talking about the Palu. "Maybe she needs you?" He put his book down and looked her way, trying not to make eye contact again.
Abacus, seeing that the joke was not at all pleasing Sasha, turned the page to a large fluffy persian cat. "Now this one looks like it's very proud and regal. It's almost as fluffy as us Palu- without the powers of attunement and all, of course."
"Thank you. I think my name is alright. I like yours. It's pretty and fun to say. It almost dances on the tongue." But he stopped when he heard her calling to her Aurelie-human. The human looked up and around, and Aubrey had reached under the table to reassure Sasha and see if she was okay. "Uh oh, They've discovered each other. This could either be really good... or really bad...." The furr on Abbie's back stuck on end a little in anticipation. He could spring into the backpack at any moment if he needed to. But deep in his chest, he hoped that things would be okay, and that maybe this time would be different and Aubrey would meet other human friends.
From his readings, Abacus knew how important having friends and companions was to a human, especially a young human male. And since he had been around, Aubrey had had a few failed relationships and a few failed friendships because of his busy work habits and needing his quiet time. Abbie padded over and sat by Sasha, feeling himself twitch when the end of his tail touched hers. He sent out a faint "Paaaaa.... lu" to Aubrey.
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Posted: Fri Aug 08, 2008 8:09 am
"I know," she said smugly. Sasha looked pleased with herself. It had been her design to make the humans look up and notice each other. Abacus had suggested that they might get along, be friends, and that was something she was trying to facilitate. She wanted to make her Aurelie happy, and maybe having a human friend could do that for her. "I meant for them to discover each other."
So saying, she stepped forward and rubbed her chin against Aubrey's fingers, making a soft purring noise deep in her throat. Then she stepped back a little, giving him the choice of going back to his reading or pursuing her. Most humans chose to pursue her, but she had learned that those with books were less likely to do so, and would feel herself in no way diminished if she couldn't succeed in luring him away from his book. She was actually very skilled at manipulating human beings.
She had more experience with humans than she did with palui, really, thanks to Aurelie's occasional need for company. She allowed Sasha to accompany her wherever she went, and on these errands Sasha encountered more humans than she did palui. A few of Aurelie's acquaintances had palui, but they did not take them out and about, preferring to keep them indoors for whatever reason. There were also those who left their palui Out all the time, so that they were part wild. Sasha was allowed to go Out, but she always came home when Aurelie called her, and she was usually glad to do so. Wild palui made her nervous, especially recently.
Aurelie doubted that Sasha had any pressing need of anything, except to remind her, Aurelie, that she, Sasha, existed. The charming little minx reminded her of a siamese cat more than anything else, despite the long, thick luxury of her silken fur. She cast an affectionate scowl at her palui, knowing that Sasha was up to something. Her voice only hit that demanding pitch when she had an ulterior motive, and as she did not seem to be in pain or afraid, and she had no earthly reason to be hungry, considering how much food she had already consumed that morning, so Aurelie was forced to conclude that the palui was plotting.
"I wouldn't worry myself unduly about her. Sasha's a demanding little wretch. She only needs everything under the sun, and maybe the sun, too." Despite the potential for cruelty in her words, there was none. She was genuinely fond of the lynx-point palui. "Yours seems much better behaved.
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Posted: Fri Aug 08, 2008 8:26 am
At feeling the nudge to his hand, Aubrey scritched the little Palu's head affectionately, just as he would have done had it been Abacus. He listened to Aurelie's words, hoping that she didn't speak of her little companion that way all the time, but he thought that maybe she didn't mean it. "Oh... well, she doesn't seem that bad. Maybe she just wanted to let you know where she was?"He gave a slight smirk. He retracted his hand and put them both on his book, gazing at the girl for a little too long.
"Yes, Abacus is very well behaved. But he's also highly intellegent. He knows how to read. I'm afraid that's attributed to my long stints of reading at home, and him sitting on my shoulder. Eventually he wanted me to read to him because he didn't know what was so exciting about staring at the pages. He really is very good with words, though I doubt he'll ever learn to speak English. He prefers his usual little purrs and 'palus'." Aubrey reached under the table and clicked his fingers, then pointed over to Aurelie, bidding Abacus to go visit her.
Abacus watched as Aubrey scritched Sasha's head, only a little jealous. He got this treatment all the time. Surely she did to, from her human? "He's really nice. See?" Abbie offered to Sasha, as she seemed to enjoy the attention.
Abbie was a little surprised that Aubrey would bid him to go to someone else. Aubrey never clicked and pointed like that unless he wanted Abbie to go away and leave him alone, so he knew that Aubrey meant business. Slowly, the Palu got up, and taking cues from Sasha, waddled slowly over to Aurelie's table, sitting properly beside her chair, and offering up a "Pa-Palu!" in greeting. He was nervous about approaching another Palui's human, and you could tell, he had a slight nervous shimmer around his furr that he tried to shake off by holding perfecly straight an still. Was this human going to be nice to him? He pawed at the leg of her chair.
Aubrey was pleased that Abbie had been so obedient. "His name is Abacus, but I tend to call him Abbie. You'll have to forgive his nervousness. This is his first day in the outside world. I'm afraid I've been a little overprotective of him, once I read that young Palu can be very fragile and easy prey." Aubrey continued to scritch Sasha as long as he would let her. He enjoyed being affectionate to the Palu, as their fur made his palms tingle and gave him a joy in his heart.
"And I'm Aubrey..." He offered, nonchalantly.
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Posted: Fri Aug 08, 2008 8:44 am
"He is," Sasha agreed, her eyes half-shut with pleasure as Aubrey skritched just the right spot. She didn't like to be held, but if a person could be contented just to pet her, she would stay indefinitely. She really was a very demanding creature, and she knew it and reveled in it, because she was almost always indulged.
"My Aurelie's nice, too. She's like one of those turtles that come up on the beach - kind of thick-skinned, but worth the effort because of the tasty. Well. You get the idea." She hoped he did, or else he would get the idea that she ate her human, which, aside from being obviously untrue, was unthinkable. No palui would willingly harm their human, or, through inaction, allow their human to come to harm.
"You've got him very well-trained," Aurelie remarked, dangling her fingers a little way in front of Abacus' nose. "I didn't know palui could learn to read, though. I'd always been told their intelligence was on par with that of your average housecat. Your Abacus must be quite the clever boy."
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Posted: Fri Aug 08, 2008 12:30 pm
Aubrey nodded. "He certainly is the exception to the rule. I actually didn't get him from the Islander who hands out Palu when people get off of the plain. A homeless woman dropped him in the market, and I could never find her, and I couldn't just leave him there. So who knows what sort of special talents and capabilities he has. He'll never be able to speak, which is okay, we don't want a chatty Palu running around. That would just look strange. I don't even know if he really CAN read, but he loves to look at the pictures, especially maps and atlases." Aubrey continued scritch Sasha's head.
Aubrey changed the subject, as he thought the Palu may feel a little weird. "So do you come here often? I've been here a few times, but I never see anyone else." The truth was that he always came in right before closing time after he got off work, and that's when the books were hardest to pick through. The number of books were limited, and he sometimes had to end up reading the same books over and over.
Abacus nuzzled Aurelie's hand, pawing at it and purring. He was happy that the human was being nice to him. Maybe she and Aubrey would be friends, and they could hang out more often. That would give him more time with Sasha. He glimpsed over as she described the sea turtle. Abbie had to think a minute before he could remember what a sea turtle was. "Ah, yes. They have a hard exterior skin that's tough, and then their insides... well, yes. I understand what you mean." He had read it in the dictionary. Yes. Abacus had read the dictionary, but only certain words. When he saw a picture and wanted to know more, he would look up the picture in the dictionary.
Abacus smiled and looked at Sasha. "You think they'll want to spend more time together?" He flicked his tail. "We could be friends- what do you think?" He tilted his head. "I would like that..."
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Posted: Fri Aug 08, 2008 1:40 pm
Sasha moved so that Aubrey's hand was on her back and arched into his caresses. She was always shedding, and he was doing an excellent job dislodging the loose fur. She glanced over at Aurelie, who had one finger marking her place in her book, and with the other hand was rubbing Abacus' ears.
I don't see why we couldn't be friends, Sasha replied, perfectly all right with the idea of making a friend for herself, too. Abruptly she switched subjects, returning to her favorite subject, Aurelie. Aurelie's really wonderful. She moves her fingers very quickly over the keys on a computer and makes lots and lots of words appear. Sometimes she does that for hours.
Aurelie had come over when they still had to arrive by boat, before there was a landing strip for the small aircraft which came to the island, usually carrying books she had ordered online. It was one of the few luxuries she indulged in on the Island. She needed her books, despite the expense of shipping them to an island in the middle of nowhere. It was, after all, tax deductible, since she claimed all book purchases as research and a work expense. She was an American citizen, in the end, though she barely spent any time in the United States, only going over to do signings or to talk with a producer in Hollywood who wanted to mutilate one of her books. She was ambivalent.
"Either way, it's an interesting talent to find in a palui: reading or pretending to read." She exhaled on a long, silent breath.
"I come here every week. The majority of the science fiction and fantasy you'll find here actually belongs to me. I have a somewhat enormous collection. Books take up more space in my cabin than anything else." This was true. "The book club, or lending library, or whatever you want to call it, meets in the afternoon and we do a book swap and stuff. If there's anything you're looking for, we can try to find it in our private collections. What's here is mostly duplicates."
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Posted: Fri Aug 08, 2008 1:59 pm
Aubrey took his hand off of Sasha's back and opened the book to look at the front inside cover. Sure enough, in scrawled handwriting was written "Aurelie Delacroix (sp)". "Oh, so it is yours. I've been wondering who this book belongs to. I have a copy that I left over in the states when my mom suggested I take a holiday here. It's really one of my favorite books. I was wondering who it belonged to. I think I've read a number of your books since I've been here. Science Fiction and Fantasy are my favorites, aside from the ones I use for research." He folded the book back over, and turned his chair to more easily talk to the new acquaintance.
"I'm waiting for my books to ship from the US myself, but my library back home was pretty expansive too. But mostly from the Encyclopedias. Of course, mine were up to date and weren't published in the 70's." He smirked, picking up the one Abacus had been reading off the floor. "I don't know what it is, if Abbie can read or not, but it's the look he gets in his eyes when he does it, as if he really does understand. There's a want there. I hope one day he can visit all those places that he loves to learn about. I'll let you know if there's anything I or Abbie may want to read. He's quite outgrown all the children's books here. He was just a baby when he decided those were too simple for him."
Abacus listened to Sasha and smiled. "Great. You're my first ever friend. Besides Aubrey. But he's a human and my owner, so I don't know if that really counts..." Abacus purred as Aurelie continued to pet him. He looked out the window. The sun was beginning to go down. "Wow, it's getting late. I wonder when we'll be heading back to the apartment. I'm in no hurry, of course. But Aubrey DOES have work in the morning." Abbie left Aurelie's side and sidled back over to Aubrey, jumping into his lap and putting a paw on his chest, announcing with a "Pao-Pao-Luuu." That it was getting late, and he looked out the window to show Aubrey what he was talking about.
Aubrey patted Abbie's head and yawned. "Wow, you're right Abbie, it's getting late. We need to head home for some dinner and bed."' He looked over to Aurelie. "Would you, maybe, want to join us somewhere for a bite to eat?"
Abbie's fur stood on end. They had a schedule to keep up. Things always went the same. Dinner, shower, read, bed. Every night. But tonight would be different. They were going to eat.... Out? His ears perked up. This could be new and exciting. He jumped down to where Sasha was still sitting. "What's there to eat around here? We've never been out to eat before. At least, I don't think so... So strange... Aubrey usually always comes home and then we do our thing and the day starts over again... I just don't know what to think of this." He said, looking from Aubrey to Aurelie and back. This was very confusing human behavior.
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Posted: Fri Aug 08, 2008 6:20 pm
"Really? What kind of research?" she asked. She wondered if he had come across any of the spare author copies of her own books she'd slipped into the shared, "public" collection. She had not written her name in them, because that would be something like signing them, and might encourage people to steal them, which was not the point, but her name was on them regardless. She hoped he had not. She'd always found it awkward to converse with people who'd read her books. Even with her parents, conversations became strained once she'd found out that they'd bought and read her first book. "Do you plan on staying long, if you're on holiday?
A little put-out, Sasha backed away from Aubrey, who had finished petting her, it seemed. But she brightened when she remembered that she was supposed to be making friends, and that was a good thing, and it was ridiculous for her to be disappointed. Aurelie petted her all the time, to the point where she wondered if she would go bald in patches. Well, not really, but if she could talk to Aurelie and tease her back in the same way Aurelie teased her, she would say something like that.
Of course he counts. But it's good to have other friends, too, Sasha said. Aurelie is my favorite person in the whole world, of course. What does your human do when he works? Aurelie... She trailed off, listening to what the humans said. There was a possibility they would be leaving, and she wanted to make sure she wouldn't be left out of the loop.
Sasha cocked one ear back, considering, not exactly ignoring Abacus, but tuning him out a little to concentrate. She'd watched enough movies with Aurelie that she had some ideas what might be going through Aubrey's head, but she was also confused when Aurelie tilted her head to one side, appearing to consider the question. Aurelie had received similar offers of dinner before from various people, but she never accepted, or even pretended to think about accepting. This was something new for Aurelie.
Aurelie was not aware that the thoughts of her palui were going down similar tracks to her own. She was trying not to read anything into Aubrey's invitation, because it was inconceivable that he would be that interested in her based on a few moments' acquaintance. And so it was to everyone's surprise that Aurelie found herself saying, "All right. Food would be good. I...don't know if I've eaten today."
That much was true. She was good about keeping Sasch fed, but not so good about feeding herself. When she was working or distracted or depressed, all of which occurred with some regularity, she usually neglected to eat. She hadn't been depressed lately, but she had been doing some pretty intense research. The only reason she'd ventured out of her cabin at all was because she'd promised a member of the book club that she'd bring him a specific book, and she didn't like to break promises or disappoint people.
"Thank you," she added.
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