The Galactic Bride
Chapter 33: The Other Woman

The Tyrian Bride arrived on Turr, the Tarfulles home world, before Aki and the others had. He hadn't seen what she looked like yet, but images of how imposing Rondo look flashed in his mind. Secretly he was terrified of the prospect of marrying an alien that was so different than the others, but he thought Maat made the better choice in picking Kahwool as her wife. He was a murderer and an alien. A delicate girl like Maat would be overwhelmed dealing with all that.

Because the nobles had sent their marriage-age daughters into the contest both Maat and his soon to be bride from Tyro were young. Both of them just barely meeting the requirements for getting married. He knew this because Sehk had told him as much when she learned of the Tyro's candidate, Kono.

During the journey from Oclantis to Turr, Lani had officially broke their kal'mar with him. There was no beating around the bush now, she was heart broken and she made no bones telling him about it. Before she had broke it off though, she asked for one night to be together as a goodbye. He granted that, feeling that even that wasn't enough for what he was making her do.

Hana, on the other hand, was just plain angry. Now that all of this was set in stone, she was back to her forced life as a concubine. She took it out on him, which he understood completely. He was the reason they couldn't be together the way they wanted to be. And now, not only did she have to deal with Kahwool lording over her, but two other wives.

After his night with Lani, Aki thought it would be best to try and make peace with Hana. But she wasn't having it. She was beyond angry at this point.

"Aki-chan… I want to go home." She finally spoke to him, after giving him the silent treatment for about an hour. It was in Japanese, even though they were alone.

Aki felt his heart pinch. She had said this before, and it hurt then too. But now that he was forced into this situation, he could understand how she felt more. He had to play the politics game. He had no life that was his own. Hana must have felt this way the whole time, and stuck with it for his sake. But now with a possible future of always being his slave, she couldn't take it anymore.

"You want to return to Earth?"

"Yes." Hana said, not even bothering to take his feelings into account like the previous times. "I used to love you, Aki-chan, I really did. But I can't do this anymore. Lani was one thing… but these others? If you have any clout, after all is said and done I want to go back to Earth. I want to forget about all this and have a normal life."

"Used to love me…"

"I don't hate you. I really don't. I just don't love you anymore." Hana paused and looked way. "It's hard to stay in love when you're treated like garbage, Aki-chan."

"But I can't-"

"I know the situation. I know you care for me and don't want to do this. But we both had to follow these dumb rules these stupid aliens made up. But after the wedding I don't have to follow them anymore… just you. And if you care for me, you'll send me back to Earth so I can move on."

"So… we're breaking up…"

"We were broke up the moment you married Kahwool, Aki-chan. You know that. We were just kidding ourselves." Hana returned her gaze back to his. "I know I'm being selfish, and forcing you to do this alone, but you don't know what it's like…"

"Fine." Aki swallowed the lump in his throat, feeling slightly angry. "If I can, I'll figure out a way for you to go home."

"Aki-chan." Hana spoke after a moment. "Please don't hate me."

He didn't know how he felt after being dumped, but he pretended he didn't hate her, and left. Lani and Hana were gone. The two people in the galaxy that actually cared for him had to either had to give him up or wanted to give him up. He really was stuck with the snobby Mari and the unknown element that was Kono the Tyrian.

Once on Planet Turr, Hana and Lani stayed away from him. So when he could get away from Kahwool, Aki made the excuses to meet with Anura. The night before the wedding, and Aki still hadn't met the bride. It didn't matter though, it was all political anyway. The only person he had left now was Anura, and he had yet to figure out a way to keep her with him.

They sat on a ledge of a balcony together, not really speaking, just watching a sunset glisten across a dew filled meadow. She had grown distant to him as well, but that was more out of necessity. Since he had made the proposal he had been busy recording feeds to be broadcast during the wedding that explained the thing, or else getting involved in the arrangement for the wedding.

"I'm sorry that something I said had made you do something like this." Anura spoke after a long silence.

"You would have done the same thing in my situation."

"Probably. But I can still be sorry." Anura smirked. "I guess I can't call you Princess anymore. Queen is more like it."

"Oh shut up."

Anura laughed a bit. There was more silence between them until she spoke again. "Is it strange that sometimes I wish it was just you and I in that cave again?"

"Not really. At least on Musa Minor we knew where we stood. No political crap, it was just us and trying to find food."

"And now all your friends are gone." Anura pointed out. "I heard about Hana's request to go back to Terran-3."

"Yeah." Aki didn't want to think about it. "If I can arrange it, I'll send her back with a Feedster so she can still contract us… I doubt she will…"

"Did you love her?"

"What an odd question coming from you."

"I can be a girl sometimes." Anura pointed at her sister's face. "Plus this younger body is all a glow with girly sentiment."

"Excuses, excuses." Aki teased her.

"Well, did you?"

"I don't know. I did once. But after the Contest things haven't been the same between us. It was like I was living out Akihiko's promises out when I'm Aki now. I care for her… and Lani… but I guess it was more out of obligation more than anything. After the actual break up, I started to think maybe sending Hana back to Earth is the right thing to do. It's selfish of me to cling on to her when I can't give her what she wants."

"Geez, I just ask if you loved the girl, I didn't ask for a speech."

"Right." Aki coughed slightly in laugher. "Well, what about us?"

"There's nothing to tell." Anura shrugged. "I can stay on as your bodyguard or something…"

"I don't mean that." Aki glanced at her. "We haven't talked about it, but I know how you feel."

Anura was silent for a moment, then gave another shrug. "So what."

Aki knew that was the closest he'd get to a confession from her. "Perhaps its wrong of me to keep you around as well. It must hurt having to watch me be with other people."

"I'm not like Hana." Anura said, then whispered. "I don't drop my friends when they need me the most."

"S-She's not doing that." Aki tried to defend her, but really Anura was speaking to his heart.

"Whatever. Regardless of everything, I'm sticking close to you until you tell me not too."

"But why, it's got to be painful for you."

"It would be more painful to be awa-" Anura started then closed her mouth. She was about to say something girly again, and had stopped herself. "I just mean that you're so pathetic you need someone to watch your back."

Aki smirked at her, even though he knew it was an internal struggle on her end. Somehow it was slightly cute. "If I could marry you as well, then everything would be great."

"Only four per marriage, Aki." Anura reminded him. "Your lower-wives have to give up any possibilities of marrying someone they love. That's why concubines were created, afterall."

"Still, it'd be nice-"

"Don't say that." Anura chuckled. "I don't want to be involved with any of that. Can you picture me having to hang around Kahwool all the time?"

Aki sighed and jumped off the balcony ledge after the sun had almost finished setting. "Well at least she has Pono. Her concubine isn't running out on her."

Anura eyes suggested she wanted to say something, but she didn't. Instead she spun around and leaped off the ledge with him and walked back inside without a word. He followed her in, watching her readjust her ponytail. While Amuri looked similar to Anura, she didn't have the same curves as her sister. Sometimes he missed looking at them.

She turned around and caught him looking at her behind. She didn't blush, like a normal girl would, she just gave him a coy smile allowing him to know that she caught him looking. She went to her bed, then pulled the blankets off of it and threw it on the ground.

"I'm going to bed. You can hang around here if you want, but don't make any noise, okay?"

He sat on the bed and watched her cuddle into the blankets on the floor at his feet. She didn't close her eyes, though, she lay there staring at him. He looked back, and the mood in the room changed. There was a romantic atmosphere about them. Both of them felt it, and both of them wouldn't act on it. Then as if by the will of the gods she turn her gaze from him, rolled over and exposed her back in his direction.

He smirked. Lightly with his foot he pushed her upper back with his toe. She reach over and waved him off. He did it again. He could hear her chuckle, but she wave him off again.

"You shouldn't show your back to a possible enemy, you know." Aki nudged her again.

"I wouldn't if I were scared you'd do something." Anura spoke in a teasing voice.

Aki was tempt to get on the floor next to her and attempt a sleeper hold, or a at least tickle her. But that would be too much for him to take. He couldn't string her along like he had with Lani and Hana. It was more than enough that she was staying by him by choice. He didn't need to flirt with her as well.

"You can choose another concubine, you know."

Aki was completely taken off guard when she said that. The room had been silent for a while so it seem to come out louder than it was. All the same, hearing Anura say something like that was just as jarring. She wasn't suggesting what he should she was, was she? He didn't have the courage to ask. He wanted her to elaborate on her own.

"Yeah, because two wives aren't enough." Aki finally said, trying to play off the comment as a joke. But the break between Anura saying her piece and his come back was way to long. She knew full well he understood her meaning.

"That's why your new concubine should be someone strong willed and loyal."

"Hmm… I don't know if I know anyone like that."

There was a long pause. Anura still didn't turn around. "Must I say it?"

Aki shook his head and stood up from the bed. He didn't move though, he still was looking down at her back. "You shouldn't. I shouldn't. We can't talk about this. It'll just be too painful later on. I saw what Hana had to go through and-"

"Hana is a primitive creature from Terra-3." Anura corrected him, then rolled over on her back and looked at him. "I used to be a General for the Nimbonian army. Don't compare me to her weakness."

He didn't like the way she worded that. "She's not weak."

Anura rolled her eyes. "She can't even love you when it's not to her way of doing things. She's a bigot."

"What?" Aki looked down at her in surprise. "No way. You're the one who calls Earthlings animals and such."

She pointed at him from her laid out position. "You call me prejudice. But when it comes to our culture, both of you balk at us the same way I balk as your customs. How are we any different?"

"We're different." Aki said lamely.

Anura shook her head. "You think I'm a supremacist, but at the same time, you're being one too."

"How am I being one? I'm marrying two other girls, both different aliens…"

"Do you want a metal or something?" Anura laughed sarcastically. "Some noble person you are, sacrificing yourself to save us poor backwards aliens from ourselves."

"It's not like that! You know that."

Anura paused, then sighed. "All I'm saying is that Hana and I are both opinionated. The only differences is that I have the courage to accept your cultural strangeness, while she can't accept ours. That's why she's weak. She can't adapt." Aki must of looked confused as Anura went on further, more out of frustration more than anything. "That's why I'd make a better concubine than her."

So it was out in the open. She must have not of wanted to say that, as after she did, she turned around again, refusing to look him in the eyes. She would never ask to be his concubine. She would never say she loved him. She wanted him to be the one. He thought about it, wondering if he should even consider dragging her through all of this when she used to be a general. He thought of how humiliated Hana got every time she was called a concubine. Could he really do the same to Anura?

"You don't want to be my concubine…" Aki whispered, sitting down next to her. "You're such a great person, a leader. I'm just alien from an backwater planet…"

"I'm not that person anymore, and neither are you." Anura rolled over again. "Why must you force me to say girly things? Can't you just-"

"If you're willing, be my new concubine." Aki interrupted her.Relief flooded her faced. "Once Hana is back on Earth, I'll consider it." She was just saying it to save face, but she answered so quickly it was obviously a yes.

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