“Look, I know what you’re doing and I understand why you feel you have to be a little harder on everyone, but go easy on her, okay? She meant well,” Bedra said as she watched Tapp apply her makeup in the tiny desktop mirror in front of her.

Tapp paused a moment, pulling her lip stain away from her lips. “Oh, you understand, do you?” Tapp responded with salty brine in her voice.

“Please don’t take that tone with me, I’m on your side, all right? And so is she,” Bedra said pointedly. She had grown skilled over the past few months when it came to defusing Tapp’s temper. 

Tapp took a moment to breathe, and eyed Bedra out of the corner of her eye. “Sorry,” she muttered softly. Trust, it would always be an issue, regardless of how high she managed to climb the ladder, or how far she managed to distance herself from the former lifestyle she had been fortunate enough to escape. In fact, the more successful she managed to become, the harder it was to trust anyone at all, and the more insulated she felt she had to become. Titans, after all were responsible for so much injustice, heartache and pain inflicted upon her species. Sometimes it was hard to deal with that, sometimes it was hard to remember that some of them were on her side. 

“She thought she was doing you a favor, and in her defense the added revenue form the client she landed will add to our bottom line. Creds are creds Tapp, and this will put our product in more homes.” Bedra said, with a more upbeat and encouraging tone this time.

“The wrong homes.” Tapp reminded, and went back to adjusting her lip stain. She was about to step into a very important meeting, and part of her success hinged upon her acting the part, but with that came Looking the part as well. For Tapp, the former was much more difficult than the later. Acting the part of a confident young woman was easy, and since she was wearing clothing she herself had designed, dressing the part was also easy. But she wasn’t here to play the part of the savvy young business owner, or even the tactful and clever sales representative. That was why Loø was here – sometimes Loø, sometimes Bedra, or one of a few others, a select, trusted few. Tapp was to be present for a far more important reason. 

While the sales representatives always wore clothing picked from the company line, Tapp, the silly, quirky, loveable little human accompanying the sales representative, was secretly modeling the real product. 

How to market a fashion line to humans, who had no money, no influence, and couldn’t buy anything because they had no money? That was the big question, and the solution a result of Tapp’s own clever marketing. 

Titans were easy to sell things to, they had lots of money, lots of time and predicting up-and-coming trends in style and fashion was actually something Tapp had a natural gift for. It had been her idea to target the very social clique she had been born and raised in, and later expelled from when she was abandoned at the HoS shelter for adoption. But the rest, the rest was a stroke of pure genius.

“Be nice to her, she doesn’t have to be here, remember,” Bedra sighed.

“I never asked her to, she asked me,” Tapp spat, though much of the ire had been drained form her already.

Bedra rolled her eyes and made a face behind her friend, and business partner’s back. “You have to work on your people skills you know,” Bedra said in jest, though that didn’t make it any less true.

“Heh,” Tapp’s dry response was accented by her less than impressed facial impression. “Says the one who doesn’t have to dumb herself down, muck up her speech and play the role of the happy little savage?” 

Bedra had no response for that; there was nothing she could say. “It’s not fair, I know.”

Tapp went back to applying her makeup. The new trend for the wealthy elite was dolling their pets up to look like cute furry animals, dressing them in funny-looking costumes and showing them off as if they were nothing more than fancy accessories. That was a life Tapp was fortunate enough to escape, so revisiting it, even with the intention of tearing it apart from the inside out was as painful as reliving it.

“You’ve done amazing things Tapp. Titan’s all around the empire are wearing your designs. Shelves are empty in stores all over the galaxy, sales have never been better, you’re on your way to the top. That’s something to be proud of, right?” Bedra said, in hopes of pulling her friend out of her funk.

“Oh, sure I suppose that would be fantastic. That is of course if anyone had a gorram idea I had anything to do with it. Tannith Ley’s name is on those labels Bedra, not mine. A fictitious name, an identity lent to me, a woman who does not even exist, and what’s worse? A Titan name, because everyone is willing to line the pockets of some reclusive billionaire, but nobody wants to buy a thing that may have come from the brain of a human being. Regardless of how much they like that product, regardless of how amazing it is.” Tapp sighed.

Bedra was silent.

“Besides, all of those people wearing my clothes? They’re the wrong people, the wrong people altogether.” Tapp put her lip stain down rather roughly, she didn’t catch it as it slid off her table onto the larger titan sized desk below, she was visibly shaken now, as she always was when this topic came up.

“I know.” Bedra said softly.

“I don’t give a crap what the latest trends are in the titan world. I’m not trying to clothe Dunnermaac and Avartles, or Titans, or even the Ler. We’re the ones who ‘don’t wear clothing’, humans are the ones who have to wear what they are given, walk around nude, or dress up in funny costumes that make people giggle and laugh.” Tapp, in a moment of frustration, reached for the blush that she was going use to stain her face, she missed of course and knocked it over, which caused her to sweep her arm across the desk in a fit of rage, knocking everything off it.

Bedra watched in silence as Tapp buried her face in her hands. She moved close to comfort her friend, but stepped back as Tapp rose a hand in caution to ward her off.

“Avalon has you to thank….”

“If I was satisfied with Avalon don’t you think I’d be living there myself?” Tapp straightened herself in her chair and took a few deep, calming breaths. “Avalonians can make their own clothing, they can fend for themselves.”

Bedra nodded.

“She meant well, I know. But she had no right to make a business deal without checking with me first.” Tapp said, she appeared much more calm now. 

“I know.”

“Just because Jorm is her brother, that doesn’t mean she has any say in how this company is run. That’s bold for Jorm even, let along Loø!” Tapp said, with a cold but professional clap in her voice.

“She wasn’t trying to undermine you, she was trying to help.”

“I know.” Tapp said sharply. “I prefer to know every transaction this company makes, I insist on it. Nothing happens without my approval; nobody makes any deals, transactions or secures any buyers without my approval.” Tapp Looked to the side, she took a few moments to compose herself, before starting up once again, this time with a little more poise.

“I have a plan, we have a plan, Bedra. We market to the right people, at the right time, that is an important step.” Tapp began, with surprising elegance. “I can turn this silly costume trend around in my favor.” Tapp reached into her pocket and pulled out a pocket datapad, one that had been perfectly scaled down just for courtesy of a contact  she had a Tanhouser Gate University, a young human friend of Dr. Niall Freeman, who was good with things like that. “Did you read the tabloids last night, Bedra?” Tapp said, Looking down at her pad.

“Do I ever?” Bedra rolled her eyes.

“You should.” Tapp insisted. “There is a lot of useful information there.”

“Just the rich and famous doing what they do best.” Bedra chuckled.

“And what they do, is every bit our concern, remember, Madam Ley always keeps up to date with the latest up and coming trends.” Tapp chuckled; shaking her head almost whimsically she motioned to her pad. “That ditz Pryvani Tarsus and her little sister were spotted in Lordale, carrying the cutest little humans around with them, dressed of course identically to their owners.” Tapp grinned; she couldn’t buy publicity that awesome with all the creds in the galaxy.

Bedra held back a grin. “Those sorts will make their humans wear just about anything. Honestly, humans wearing fancy clothes? What’s next?” Bedra winked.

“Loø meant well, I know…but she also needs to trust that I know what I am doing.” Tapp said, slipping her pad back into her pocket.

“You don’t have to do this alone, we are not trying to undermine you, were here to help.” Bedra said, though Bedra and Jorm owned the company on paper, it was understood that this was only because a human being couldn’t own a business. Tapp was the brains behind the fashion line, and while Bedra and Jorm advised her from time to time, it was Tapp who ran the show.

“Is she ready?” Tapp said, insistent.

“She’s waiting outside.” Bedra responded softly. “Be nice, she’s only trying to help. We all are.”

Tapp walked to the edge of the titan sized desk and waited patiently. 

“She’s ready Loø.” Bedra spoke into the intercom.

“Bedra, I know.” Tapp said at last, breaking the uncomfortable silence.

Bedra smiled.

“Sometimes, I have to work harder, fight harder, and hold on tighter than any of you do to get a fraction of the respect. If it seems like I’m not grateful for all you’ve done for me…well…” Tapp cleared her throat. “I am thankful, ok?”

Bedra smiled, a little wider. “I never doubted it, remember…I said I understand.” Bedra winked. “Now…be nice. Loø’s the best sales rep you have, you need her.”

Tapp rolled her eyes.

“And just because you’re sleeping with her brother doesn’t mean she won’t drop you down a garbage chute if you’re acting like an ass!” Bedra said with a mocking grin.

“She’d never do that.” Tapp said with a smile. “Jorm would send her down there after me!”
Tapp Looked to the door as it slid open, Loø Uksahkka stepped in, dressed identically to Tapp, right down to their hairstyle and makeup. “Sorry I’m late. I had to drop Kiki off, her tutor was running late and she had an assignment due, it’s hard to find a tutor who will teach her…I’m sorry…you’re not mad are you?” Loø smiled as she nodded politely to Bedra, and then to Tapp.

A lot had changed between the two, since their first meeting. Loø had not exactly welcomed Tapp with open arms when she eventually found out Jorm and she were seeing one another. Human and titans as equals was a hard enough pill to swallow, but humans and titans in love? That was going to take some time indeed. Still, Tapp had done amazing things with the money Jorm had invested in her, it was hard to deny the woman had business savvy, and the more Loø got to know her, the more she liked her.

“No, but we’re going to be late.” Tapp said, with a cordial smile. “Do you have everything I told you to bring?” Tapp asked, stepping onto Loø’s offered palm.

Loø tapped her hand bag and nodded. “I do, all set?”

Tapp nodded.

“Let’s go. Where would you like to ride?” Loø asked, which was a step up from just shoving her in her hand bag and heading out the door.

“On your shoulder, there is something I want to talk to you about.” Tapp hesitated. “Don’t worry…I won’t bite.”

Bedra chuckled as she watched the two exit the office. It was a small rented office for now, in an apartment complex in the city. Bedra had a feeling they wouldn’t be here for long. Her eyes drifted across the desk to her own data pad, which Tapp had cleverly left open to the tabloid article she had mentioned. They wouldn’t be renting office space for long, not with publicity like that.

***

‎”He’s here for you, you know.” Luke groaned, his face buried in his pillow.

“Shhh, don’t talk…maybe he will think we’re not here.” Quendra the Elder Huntress, Wife of Luke the Teacher pulled the soft shaarskin pelt over her head and sunk down in bed, this was an intrusion she would never forgive. After all, everybody knew it was strictly forbidden to wake Elder Huntress’ before the end of the time of rest.

There were a few more knocks at the door directly following Quendra’s hopeful plea. “C’mon guys! It’s time! Get up!”

Quendra, who was far too annoyed at the prospect of losing a few hours’ sleep to bother being angry at the intrusion into her personal quarters, opted to remain silent, hoping the intruder would take the hint and leave.

“He’s not going to leave,” Luke whispered into Quendra’s ear.

“Who does this? Honestly, aren’t there laws against this out there?” Quendra snapped quietly under the sheets. “I’ve skinned men alive for less!”

“Oh, you have not. He’s just excited is all,” Luke said, as he flipped the covers off himself and sat up, quickly, as it was the only means to assure he did in fact get up.

“You don’t know that, I may have.” Quendra mumbled, sleepily.

“Right. Come on, you did promise,” Luke shook his wife, which was a bold move indeed, though not quite as bold as the firm slap to her naked uncovered rear that followed.

“Lemme’lone….OWW!” Quendra barked, and turned quickly to face Luke, cocooning herself in the thick, warm hide cover.

The knocking persisted, the voice on the other end grew more impatient. “How can you sleep this long, we’re gonna be late!”

“He is aware the Looking Tree isn’t actually going anywhere…right…I mean…it’s a tree…it will be there all day…and night too.” Quendra muttered bitterly as she burrowed herself in deeper.

Luke rolled his eyes as he slipped on his pants, with a yawn he scratched his side and with one fluid movement tore the covers off his sleeping wife. “Swift like wind…the huntress never sleeps…always vigilant, like the Kipp, she sees through the darkest night….”

“Just not before the start of the waking time!” Quendra whined, and withered on the bed, eventually accepting the removal of her warm cover, and with a heavy heart she sat up. “I hate you, Luke the Teacher, your students are right, you are mean!”

“They say that because they love me, and so do you…now let’s go before Rock Head knocks down the door?”

“Ya up yet? Hurry up!” the voice insisted. 

“Why’s he so excited anyhow? Hasn’t the man ever seen a tree before?” Quendra mumbled as she pulled her robe off the wall and slipped it on.

“Maybe he hasn’t.” Luke said plainly. He knew what it was like to live in captivity, maybe not as well as Degu, but Luke understood the excitement that came with discovering your independence for the first time, all over again. 

“He’s excited…can you blame him? I was the same way…and I believe you were more than a little starry eyed when you saw the city for the first time too! This is new for him.”

Quendra half smiled, some of her sleepiness was starting to wear off, Luke had a point, he always had a way of looking at things she never seemed to grasp. He was smart like that, a true asset to the Tribe. 

“Come on guys….”

“If you knock on that door one more time I will tear your arm off and beat you with it!” Quendra snapped, eyeing the door with a icy glare.

There was silence on the other side.

“So…you’re awake then?” the voice replied, curiously.

* * *

‎”From here, we can see in all four directions farther than we can from any other point on the property. It is the highest peak in the forest,” Quendra began, hardly giving the small entourage behind her a chance to catch their breath. The trek up the Lookout Tree was not for the faint of heart. It was a treacherous climb, even under the low gravity conditions of the planet. Of course, there was an easier way up the large tree, but Degu was new, and he had woken Quendra up far too early, causing her to choose the long climb over the simple rope and pulley system that generally assisted the defenders and watchers to the top. 

“I’ve never been up this high! This is amazing! I can see the whole world from here!” Degu said, with such excitement he damn well near ran right off the edge of the long thick branch they stood on.

“Careful Rock head!” Luke gasped and grabbed Degu by the shoulder. “That’s a long way down buddy.”

Degu remained unperturbed as he looked out over the vast landscape below. 

“This is a height that would make Aehzay weak at the knees.” Luke suggested, pointing down at the blurry ground below. 

“Wow!” Was the only reply out of Degu.

“In the north, we have the Maris homestead.” Quendra pointed. Sure enough the farm house could be easily seen in the distance, though from this height, and from so far away, it looked tiny. 

“On a clear day we can see them coming, and going. We always have a Watcher posted here, until recently it was a top priority…though now…well…”

“Since they’re not the three evil witches you all thought they are, the North Watch has a lot less to do nowadays.” Luke chuckled.

Quenda rolled her eyes. “To the east, you can see the path that leads to the road and the road that leads down to the next lands.”

As Quendra went on, explaining everything to Degu, Luke shook his head and whispered in a deep low voice. “Everything the light touches is our kingdom, Simba!”

Degu and Quendra blinked, looking at Luke blankly. 

“Awww, you guys never get any of my jokes!”

“Look, over there, it’s Aisell!” Degu pointed, again leaning far to close to the edge of the branch for his own good.

“How can you tell?” Luke squinted, to him she looked like a tiny dot in the distance, a tiny moving dot.

“Good eye, Degu Rockfist.” Quendra grinned. “I can see why Grim requested you for the Watchers.” The Watchers were of course Defenders, who as the name suggested, kept watch in the Looking Tree over all the tribe lands. A job that, even under the protection of the Maris sisters, still held an important role to the safety of the tribe. 

“Hi Aisell!” Degu screamed, but of course there was no way for her to hear him so far away.

“The sisters however are not the only thing you are to keep a lookout for. A Looker’s job is also to watch for intruders on Tribe land, predators, as well as assure the Maris/Tribe crops are safe from poachers and thieves.” Quendra asserted, motioning to the fields where a majority of the crops were, and then off in the direction where the precious Royal Berry bushes were, which also happened to be of course where the tribe itself lived. 

“P..p..predators?” Degu said, swallowing nervously.

“Avian, klippik, and shaar mostly, Grimm will teach you how to discern between them, you’ll need to train your eyes to see what matters, and ignore what does not. It won’t come easy, but you’ll adapt.” Quendra nodded.

Degu took a deep breath, then nodded in return. Predators, invaders, thieves, a job, all of this was new, exciting, and terrifying for Degu. A few weeks ago he lived a sheltered life, all of his needs were met, everything was a lot more familiar, everything was safer. Every once in a while, he had to remind himself this was something he had asked for, this was something he had wanted. 

“You ok, Rock Head?” Luke came up beside Degu, resting his hand on Degu’s shoulder.

Degu nodded.

“Lot to take in, eh? It’s a huge world.”

Degu nodded. 

“Come, I’ll show you the east Lookout, and introduce you to Fien, who you’ll be working with while you get used to your lookout.” Quendra said, heading back down the branch.Luke began to follow.

“Luke…do you ever…regret this?” Degu asked, causing Luke to stop and turn around.

“What’s that Degu?”

Degu swallowed. “It’s easier to live with them…isn’t it? Do you ever…regret choosing this?”

 Luke shook his head. “Not for a second Degu.”

“But…this world, it doesn’t seem like it was built for us. I don’t know…it just seems so…big.”

Luke nodded. “Yeah, but we humans have a tendency to carve out a place for ourselves no matter where we are. Back home, Human beings found a way to survive in some of the harshest conditions on our planet. There were people who lived where there was almost no water, and people who lived where the land was covered in ice. Even back home, we are small, relatively weak, unremarkable creatures. We don’t have sharp claws, eagle eyes, tusks, fangs and were not all that fast. But we made it there, and we can make it here.”

Degu nodded. “How?”

Luke shrugged. “I dunknow, I guess we’re just stubborn?” Luke chuckled and rubbed Degu’s shoulder. “Nah, but really, we survive because we have each other. Humans band together in communities, we are stronger together than we are apart. Also, we’re smart, I guess were just really good at manipulating the world around us to fit our needs.”

Degu nodded. 

“We’d better catch up to Quendra.” Luke began after her.

“Luke?” Degu asked, following after.

“Hmmm?”

“I miss her.” Degu, of course was referring to Bedra.

“No reason she can’t come visit.” Luke shrugged. “Living here, on our own doesn’t ban us from being friends with them, from seeing them. The tribe has come a long way as far as that goes.”

Degu nodded. “I know. Just had to say it.”

“Ah, I see.”

“Luke?”

“Yup?”

“Sorry I beat you up…you know…when you were new.”

Luke chuckled. He had almost forgot that, it seemed almost a lifetime ago. So much had happened to both of them since then, it almost seemed like that Luke was a whole other person entirely. 

Putting his arm around Degu’s shoulder, Luke chuckled, how was he to know back then, that the two of them would be standing, side by side, what he considered miles above the ground, Looking out at the world, the very prison he had confined himself to, Looking so tiny and insignificant. 

“Water under the bridge Rock Head.”

“Huh?” Degu furrowed his brow.

“Goddamn I need to make a dictionary of catch phrases for you guys, seriously, you’re killing me…water…it goes under a bridge…and then…you know it’s gone…you know what…never mind…”