Page 50 of Uprooted

Elowen

I watch Aro and Tai move around the mat. Like a choreographed dance with fluid and graceful movements, but also with flares of violence. Tai makes his move first. He lunges low and grabs at Aro’s legs. Aro catches his arms and tosses him to the ground. Tai somersaults away before he can be pinned.

Aro snags Tai’s leg and brings them both down. They grapple around and Tai slams his forehead into Aro’s face with a sickening crack. Aro holds his thumb under his nose and brings it away with a dot of blood.

Aro sits back on his heels and Tai pushes up on his elbows. “If that didn’t summon your battleform, I don’t know what will.”

“Maybe I’m just used to you fighting dirty,” Aro says and wipes away more blood from his face.

Every time they say “battleform,” all I hear is “mate.” The word is on repeat in my head, like a song that won’t stop.

It still feels foreign on my lips. It’ll take me a while to fully grasp what is happening.

Aro made some really good points. We are opposites in so many ways, in ways that actually complement each other.

Logically it doesn’t make any sense. And that’s what I’m struggling with.

How can this scientifically even be possible?

Science and the natural world rely on a foundation of order.

There are natural laws, laws that throughout time have never been broken.

I don’t know how being Aro’s mate fits in with that cosmic order.

How do you take a human and a Tilak and pair them up forever? How does that even work? How will it work when I go back to Earth ?

They’ve been trying to trigger Aro’s battleform for hours.

He struggled on his own for a while, then Tai jumped in to see if he could help.

The tension was high when they first began wrestling on the mats.

There seems to be more going on than just bringing out Aro’s new ability.

It looks like they are finally clearing the air from before.

I feel a twinge of guilt, knowing I’ve made things more complicated for Aro.

I remind myself a few times that they wouldn’t knowingly hurt each other, especially when Tai gets Aro in a headlock and his blue skin goes pale. That knot in my stomach refuses to follow directions. It won’t go away no matter what I tell myself.

Bri on the other hand loves it. She’s especially happy when Aro knocks Tai to the ground.

I’m impressed at her ability to hold a grudge.

I don’t think he’ll ever be able to redeem himself in her eyes.

Tai has grown on me. His grumpy attitude isn’t directed at anyone in particular, and I appreciate someone who doesn’t pretend to be something they’re not.

It’s a while before Aro and Tai slow down. The deliberate stances and footwork from earlier is gone. And still nothing. Aro’s frustration is evident from all the way over here.

I jump down from my spot and walk over a canteen of water and a towel when they stop for a break. Aro gratefully accepts and flashes an apologetic smile.

“I’m sorry this has taken so long.”

“It’s okay. It makes sense that this is something you’d need to figure out how to control.”

“This is a hard seed to break,” Aro says.

“You messed that up on purpose… You know it’s ‘tough nut to crack.’” I admitted to him a while ago that it’s cute when he messes up the idioms, and now he does it on purpose to get a smile out of me.

Aro tosses his sweaty towel at me, and I swat it away before it can hit my face. His grin turns my insides to mush.

“Maybe if this arrogant bastard had to work for something in his life he would know discipline,” Tai jokes and grabs the canteen from Aro.

“Maybe if you hit the weight room a little harder, I’d have to actually defend myself.” Aro snatches the canteen with a glint in his eye and downs the rest of the water .

“Are you saying I should stop pulling my punches?”

I can see that they’re winding each other up again, and I’m over it. I want to go check on Andi and see how she’s doing.

“I’m going to head out. You don’t need me cringing from the sidelines every time someone lands a punch,” I say.

Aro leans down and kisses me lightly. I can taste the salty sweat on his face. Surprisingly, I don’t hate it.

“I’ll come find you when I’m done.”

“I’m going to go check on Andi,” I tell Bri.

“Tell her I said hi. I’m going to stay here until someone loses consciousness,” she says and laughs sadistically as the two Tilaks go back to the mats.

* * *

I grab my yuriOS and prop it up on the desk in our room. I link to Andi and a holographic image of her sitting up in her hospital bed projects in the room with me.

“You’re looking good!” I say.

“Thanks. I feel great.”

“Have they said when you can be released?”

“Not yet. They want to do some more tests. We’re still waiting to see how my immune system reacts to the treatment. I’m the first human they have ever seen, so they aren’t in a rush to discharge me.”

“As long as they’re treating you well. Think of it as an extended stay at a spa!” My suggestion gets a laugh out of her.

“I’ve been meaning to ask—have you heard from the EGA lately?” she asks.

“No, I haven’t.”

“I hadn’t either until yesterday. I tried to pull up my files and the folder required a passkey for access. I reached out to the EGA and they said that they had taken possession of their ‘intellectual property.’”

“That’s weird.” I scroll through my yuriOS to locate the files. Sure enough, a passkey is required to access my research and notes. “This can’t be right. There must be some mistake.”

“They were very clear that all our research is theirs and we don’t have access to it anymore,” Andi says .

“We’re going to need that data when we get back to Earth.” I continue swiping through, trying to find a way into my files.

“I’ll work on getting our access back. I might know some people who can help.”

I smile. I have faith she’ll be able to work her connections and get us access again. This is just a misunderstanding. We were the ones that did the research. They need us.

Now that I have a few minutes to myself, I have a chance to do some other research. I want to know all the information out there about mating bonds. The biological reasons are indisputable, but the emotional or spiritual explanations aren’t as conclusive.

Aro's words from days ago echo in my mind: The universal truth that there is something beyond science, something that we don’t fully understand but we feel it in our bones. I don't know if I believe in a higher force, but I do believe in balance.

I find hundreds of stories from across the universe.

I pour through each one. Some people feel complete once they accept their mate.

Others say it’s like finding another who shares the same soul or spirit.

One culture believes mates were born from the same star.

The answer is here, somewhere. I've always looked to nature for the answers. There is a purpose for everything.

I feel myself slip into a comfortable habit of “refute first, understand after.” Look at things with the most objective lens possible with critical thinking and a healthy dose of skepticism at the forefront.

It’s what has gotten me here. I pause and repeat that same thought over in my head. It's what has gotten me here.

I’ve worked my ass off to get here professionally. I’ve distracted myself from feeling like an outsider by planning and plotting for the future. And utterly alone. These skills have served me in one aspect of my life and nearly destroyed another.

Maybe I've returned to nature for all the answers because I'm searching for something deeper, under the surface—the roots that hold everything together.