chances of anything bad happening on Earth were low, but the medical technology on Lakria is so much more advanced than on Earth.
We end up spending most of our time on Lakria too. There's a permanent gate opened now between Thrace and New York City, and even though I'm fully authorized to use it whenever I'd like, it's not like New York City is within spitting distance of Pittsburgh. I have to rely on Raiska to teleport me for visits. Still, we do spend a lot of time on Earth, but Lakria ended up being more comfortable for both of us.
Thrace especially is a city where no one bats an eye at a human and a Valittu together. Even though people on Earth know about aliens now, interrracial relationships—and hybrid babies—like ours are still exceedingly rare. Whenever we try to do normal things on Earth like grocery shopping, going to museums, or anything that people do as part of day-to-day life, we are gawked at. Whispered about. Pointed at.
On Lakria we can be ourselves. It's less draining, and the view cannot be beat.
We sit together on the beach. It's the same beach we landed on when we first came together to this world. The view is the same as it was, but I've never grown tired of it. Our daughter Liliana runs through the blac sand toward the crystal-clear water.
She's five now, and she's playing with another boy around her age. They are splashing water on each other. An hour ago they were building sandcastles together. Thirty minutes before that they were being too shy to even look at each other.
"This is developing quickly," Raiska says.
I smile. "It's so cute."
"If that boy tries anything," Raiska says, "I will fetch my plasma rifle."
I roll my eyes. "You sound like my Dad."
"Your Dad has a plasma rifle?"
"They are five years old, Raiska. Let them be kids. They are just playing together."
"Our daughter will be very beautiful, Muru, I have to be ready to protect her from boys."
I imagine him being as protective of Liliana as he was of me, and I start to worry for her. I needed him to be protective of me, because I had Philos and those little goblin things coming after me. I don't think that a nice little orange-skinned alien boy with a tail who likes building sandcastles is on the same level. There's such a thing as being too overbearing, especially with daughters. Still, I love my dad even when he's doing that, and I'm sure Liliana will come to appreciate where Raiska's heart is.
"I will teach her to climb," Raiska says.
"You already did."
He takes her to the climbing gym now. She can already climb better than I can. She's almost stronger than me already and she's only five. Her horns are just starting to grow, and even though her skin is much more of a pale blue, she's taking after her father more and more every day.
"I mean to really climb, Muru. To smash the records as I have. She will destroy the female records as I destroy the male ones. Between the two of us, we will hold all the records."
"As long as she's having fun."
I rest my head on his shoulder and hold his hand.
Liliana runs up to us, the alien boy behind her. "Mommy! Can Kussi come play at our house some time?"
Raiska's body goes rigid, and he sits up to face Liliana. "Boys only want one thing, sweetheart—"
"He's four—"
"I'm five," Kussi says. "Maybe Lili can come to my next birthday party though."
"See," Raiska says, "an older boy."
"He's only a few months older than me," Liliana says. "Please, Daddy, can he play at our house?"
"He may," Raiska says, "but you will play with the doors open."
Liliana looks at him in confusion. "Why would I close the door?"
"Yes," I say, cutting Raiska off. "Kussi can come play at our house. It's so nice that you made a new friend. Kussi, did you ask your parents if it's okay?"
He points over to a couple several dozen feet away from us. They wave to us.
"You can come over tomorrow," Raiska says, leaning back in his chair and putting his hands behind his head, his elbows pointing up into the air.
"Thanks, Daddy!" Liliana says, and her and Kussi run back off toward the water.
"You gave up pretty suddenly there, Raiska."
He shrugs. "I could tell it would make you happy if I just dropped it. I've been with you long enough now, Muru, to know which battles