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When the city she was heading for glowed as they approached, she got excited. She had a small bag for the five days the visa was good for.

The shuttle landed, and Aya quietly picked up her bag, heading for public transport to the hotel nearest the Terran party.

She checked in and snorted when she saw the expansive room Devran had booked for her. He was worried about her sleeping alone, so he got her the largest room he could to avoid her claustrophobia. If she had a panic attack, she was to return to him immediately.

Aya sighed and pulled out her fiddle. She was going to see if she could play it at the party.

She checked her com and smiled. If she left now, she would be there when the party started.

You are feeling well?

She smiled and answered Devran. I am at the hotel. Nice space.

It has two coms and three entertainment units. I had a body pillow ordered for you to snuggle with.

But it won’t rub my back.

I will have to make up for it when you return.

She smiled and felt a bit better. You had better.

There was soft laughter in her mind, and she grinned.

It was time to party.

After playing, she sat in the pub and hugged her nieces and brother. Thunder kept looking at her in amazement. “Aya, I didn’t think I would ever see you again.”

She smiled. “Right back at you.”

Cloudy said, “You are looking good.”

“Oh, yeah. It’s amazing what two hundred million credits of tech will do for you.”

“What do you mean?”

“Oh, I was really skinny. Super skinny. Like, three days from death skinny.”

Cloudy frowned. “Why?”

Sipping some weird cider, Aya explained the soothing, the confinement, and the issue with rations.

“Whoa. I didn’t know that was a thing.”

“It isn’t as uncommon as I thought. At least I know how to describe where I need to eat.”

“What is the description?”

“Live eater.”

“That sounds a little... aggressive.”

“If I am going to eat, something has to die, whether it is plant or animal or weird jelly thing that I ate once and am not going to put in my mouth again.”

Cloudy glanced over at her personal superhero. “Yeah, some things deserve a repeat, and some things don’t.”

Aya chuckled, and she looked at her brother. “I am so happy that everyone has found a good place to settle.”

“Do you want to settle somewhere?”