Allison stood in front of the smart mirror of the dress shop at the Commerce Center on Eden Prime.  Aryna, Zuri and Robin were with her.  The current projection was a black strapless dress with a cris-cross pattern of ribbon at the back.  It was very short and showed off every single curve Allison possessed.  In the four weeks since she’d started her leave of absence her extremely toned muscles had softened, leaving her looking more feminine the she had since she had joined the military.  Her aunt, and adopted sister all made faces and shook their heads.  Zuri said.


    “No, not unless you want your mom to have a heart attack.”


    Robin giggled.


    “Her boobies look like they’d pop out!”


    Aryna looked at Robin.


    “Okay we don’t say things like that in public.”


    Allison swept to the next dress.  This one was another form fitting red dress reminiscent of the one she’d worn to the Syndicate party at Pleasure Dome 3.  She didn’t even wait for her sister’s reaction she did not want to revisit that particular memory.  Zuri was the outspoken one yet again.


    “Hey that was pretty.”


    Allison shook her head.


    “Nah, red hair, red dress, eew.”


    Allison swept through several more then went through a simple ruffle dress that showed her knee on one side it was flat mustard color.  She turned around in it and smiled.  It had straps and not spaghetti straps.  Zuri looked it up and down.  She motioned her hand over the mirror.


    “You planning on dripping mustard on yourself?  Because that’s they only reason I could see anyone in that.”


    Allison stuck her tongue out at Zuri then swept her finger over to a different color and material. The dress shifted into a chocolate charmeuse which made it shiny.  It went perfectly with Allison’s golden eyes and auburn hair. Aryna and Zuri both started nodding.  Robin bounced.


    “You look like a princess.”


    Allison smiled at her little sister and swept her hand through the accessories and added a diamond tiara set with deep champagne topaz.  She saw the price and shook her head.  Robin’s eyes went wide.


    “Oh, you should get that!”


    Allison grabbed the crown on her reflection and tossed it away after shaking her head.


    “I am not spending two million credits on that.  If the Imperial Council wanted me to have a tiara, they’d have given me one.  So, verdict?  This is getting exhausting.”


    Aryna looked at the reflection up and down.


    “No, no it has straps and it’s a bit high on the back there, you should be showing your lower back off.”


    Allison looked at Aryna.


    “Yeah, no I want to be comfortable, already spent enough time feeling like a sausage in my armor.”


    Aryna looked like she might argue the point.  Allison held up her hand.


    “Nope.  It’s this dress or nothing and I don’t think they want me showing up to the summer formal naked.”


    Aryna sighed and relented without pushing further.  Zuri smiled.


    “So has your boy asked you yet?”


    Allison sighed and shook her head.


    “No, the last time we went somewhere we needed to dress up for we ended up shooting each other, I think maybe he’s nervous.”


    Aryna gently pushed Allison out of the way.


    “My turn, sister.”


    Allison curtsied.


    “Of course, your highness.”


    Aryna made a face and started swiping through dresses.  Robin looked up at Allison.


    “I want to go to a summer formal too.”


    Allison stroked the eight year old’s hair.


    “One day you will and every boy at the high school will be begging to take you.”


    Robin smiled.  Zuri wasn’t done with her interrogation of her niece.  The two had grown close since the fourteen year old had arrived on Eden Prime.


    “Well has anyone asked you?”


    Allison blushed and gave a small shrug.


    “I don’t want to brag.”


    Zuri shoved her playfully.


    “Who?”


    “Edward, Vaedrick, my disgusting ex-boyfriend, half the soccer team, Trixie…”


    Zuri looked very interested now.


    “Ex-boyfriend?  Why is he an ex?”


    Allison shrugged.


    “Well, he told me women shouldn’t be in the military and should know their place, I told him to do something with his junk and his face, he slapped me… it got worse from there.  We never formally broke up, but I think his broken jaw kind of should have been a hint that we’re done.”


    Zuri shook her head and wagged her finger.


    “Any boy lays their hand on me; They’re going to lose it.”


    Allison held up her hands.


    “Preach it Auntie Zuri.”


    Zuri laughed and slapped her palms against Allison’s.  The pair had caught the giggles, and the group was getting dirty looks from other shoppers.  Specifically, Besho and her cronies.  Besho was glaring at Allison.  Allison jumped slightly in her direction and Besho tripped over a bench giving everyone a good view of the underwear she had on under her skirt.  Allison shook her head and laughed.  Aryna cleared her throat and motioned to the mirror.  Allison jumped up behind her and wrapped her arm around her sister’s shoulder.  She looked at the pair of them in the mirror.  Aryna in her deep blue strapless dress with the deep v at the back and Allison in her selected dress.  Allison smiled at their reflection.


    “The boys at summer formal are doomed.  Someone is gonna get slapped.”


    Aryna laughed musically and leaned her head against Allison.


    “My sister, how I have missed the light in your eyes.”


    Allison reached up and swiped the two dresses into her digital shopping bag then tapped her ident chit on the mirror and swept the shopping bag into it she looked at her sisters and aunt.


    “All this shopping is making me hungry.  Lunch at the food court?  My treat?”


    Everyone agreed.  The group headed to the food court.  She bought everyone what they wanted.  She felt like butter chicken, so she went and placed her order.  She was feeling on top of the world then as she was looking over the people around her, she saw Reggie and her father.  Her smile vanished suddenly as she saw a reminder of what the war with the Sal’nash had cost the System’s Alliance.  She was pulled out of the unwelcome memories by someone talking to her.  She looked around and saw it was the young security officer who had pulled her over for speeding.


    “Hi, I just wanted to say I’m sorry again for that whole ticket thing.”


    Allison shook her head.


    “You were just doing your job, and I was speeding.”


    Stolen story; please report.


    “Still, it was one more thing when you already had so much… just so much.”


    Allison shook her head.


    “It’s really fine.  Like I said, you not knowing who I was really made my day.”


    He smiled.


    “You’ve been being more careful on the motorcycle right?”


    Allison rolled her eyes.


    “I haven’t had a chance mom found out about how fast I was going and she used her parental lockout on my license.  She told me she’d consider giving me access back when I turned fifty.”


    He shook his head.


    “Wait, you fly a starfighter, you were on the front lines of the biggest battle in human history and your mom grounded you from your motorcycle for one warning from security for speeding?”


    Allison shrugged.


    “I’m still seventeen and she’s still my mom.”


    One of the employees of the curry restaurant called her name and held up her butter chicken.  She gave the officer a small wave and headed back to her family.  Her brief brush with the uncomfortable reality of what she’d had to do this year was forgotten as Robin held her head after she drank her slushy.  She was still not used to things like brain freeze.


    “Ow!”


    The rest of the girls at the table giggled.  The rest of the day went about the same.  Allison doing her best to put the last year behind her and move on with her life only to be reminded of it when she saw the loved one of someone killed in action.  There were a lot of those lately.  She’d sworn off social media it was safer for her sanity that way.  Eventually she found herself alone sitting on a bench in the park at the center of what was now called New Alexandria, formerly just Colony One, Eden Prime.  She saw Tyler and his sister walking by they noticed her.  She watched as Tyler’s sister shove him in Allison’s direction.


    Tyler hadn’t said more than two words to her since she had gotten back from what was now being called the Battle of Z’tor’na’s star.  Apparently the first League scientist to chart it was named Z’tor’na.  So, it made sense.  Tyler gave up resisting his sister and walked up to Allison.


    “Hey… um how are you?”


    Allison shrugged.


    “I’m fine just enjoying the sunset.  How are you?”


    He rubbed the back of his neck.  She liked his neck.  She liked a whole lot about him.  He motioned to the bench Allison was sitting on.  Allison nodded.  He sat beside her and folded his hands.  He kept bouncing his knees nervously.  After fifteen false starts he finally managed to get a few words out.


    “I know this is last minute… and a bunch of guys have already asked you…  uh.. do you have a date for the formal?”


    Allison shrugged.


    “I haven’t said yes to anyone.  I was waiting for the right guy.”


    Tyler’s knees kept bouncing.


    “Oh…  I… I just wanted to say I’m sorry for what I said in the library…  You were under a lot…  I understand.  I’ll let you get back to your sunset.”


    Allison gave him a look of shock.


    “Seriously?  I laid it right out there for you.  Like it was literally a perfect pass and you’re leaving without asking?”


    His knees started bouncing faster and he wringed his hands for a bit.  Allison rolled her eyes.


    “By the Dark Mother you are… Tyler, you’re the right guy.  If you ask me to the formal, I’m going to say yes.”


    He looked at her.


    “I thought you were… I… umm, could… would you be my date for the winter formal?”


    Allison hit him gently with her elbow.


    “Yes. But isn’t the summer formal before that?”


    His ears grew a little darker.


    “Uh, summer formal… sorry.”


    He smiled shyly.  He looked at the grass.


    “We… I… I said some things to you in the library and then… we argued after school.  I thought you…  Allison you’re so beautiful and you saved the galaxy…  I’m just me.  And I’m still not sure if we can do whatever it is we do together.”


    Allison put her hand on his bare forearm.


    “Tyler, I’m just Allison.  I’m trying to put all of that behind me.  Let’s just pretend the last year never happened.  Okay?  Start over?  I really liked being your girlfriend.”


    He smiled and looked very bashful.   Allison knew him well enough she could tell he was blushing even with his dark skin tone.  She elbowed him gently.


    “I am sorry, I know I said hurtful things, things I will not make excuses for.  They came from somewhere in me.  I…  You know, why don’t we just go to the formal together see how it goes.  See if we can have a normal night together.  One step at a time.”


    He nodded.


    “Yeah.  Yeah.  Let’s do that.”


    He got up and waved.  He rushed over to his sister who did a little cheer and waved at Allison.


    *****


    It was the night of the summer formal and there was a flurry of activity at the Wanjala residence as Allison and Aryna got themselves ready for the evening.  This would have once been called a prom, but it was for everyone at the high school and not just the graduating class.  Allison had actually skipped it for the last two years but this year she actually wanted to go.  Perhaps it was because she desperately wanted to pretend that she was just a normal teenage girl.  The universal reality of a soldier’s life had not dawned on her: War’s end but never completely for the people who fought them.


    Perhaps it is seeing the daughter of a woman who died beside her.  Perhaps it is three in the morning, and she woke in a cold sweat because she was back on the Agamemnon when the ship was dead in space and venting atmosphere.  She never knew when the memories would interrupt the blissful illusion of a normal life that she was trying to weave for herself.  War never changes, but it always changes those who fight them.


    Her thoughts were far from war tonight.  She was pondering if she could win Tyler’s heart back.  If they would ever kiss again, if they would kiss tonight.  Her mother knocked on the bathroom door and opened it.  Allison was used to her mother’s invasions of her privacy, so the only sign of annoyance was a small sigh.


    “Allison the LSR embassy is calling for you.”


    Allison frowned.


    “Tell them I’m busy.”


    Apiyo grabbed Allison’s shoulder.


    “Allison Wanjala, you’re leaving for their capital world in less than two days, they’re hosting you and they trusted you with their entire fleet the least you can do is answer their calls!  Put that lip gloss down and go to the comm unit immediately. Where is your holo-phone?  Your translator? Your contacts?”


    Allison looked at her mother.


    “I am taking a break from everything except for school.”


    Apiyo put her hands on her hips.


    “This is why they seem so desperate to reach you?  How many of their calls have you ignored.”


    Allison shrugged.


    “Don’t know, I told Bit that unless it was a hot scramble Eden defense to ignore everyone.”


    Apiyo was speechless for several moments.


    “Allison people are depending on you.  People look up to you.  You started something and now you’re just going to leave it unfinished?  You were raised better than that.”


    Allison turned to her mother.


    “I won their war.  I avenged Babu.  I’m done.  I want to be a normal seventeen year old girl mom.  I want a boyfriend.  I want to go to a dance that isn’t interrupted by a terrorist attack!  I want to forget the last year.”


    Apiyo put her hand on Allison’s upper back.


    “You love flying.  You fought so hard to join the military.”


    Allison closed her eyes she was fighting back tears.


    “That was before I realized what it would cost me.  It was too much.  It is too much.  I should go answer the call.”


    Allison gently nudged her mother out of her way and went to the comm unit.  It was a Yorleer she did not recognize.


    “Hello, are you Allison?”


    Allison raised an eyebrow.


    “Yes, that’s me.  What is it?  I’m on my way to an event.”


    “I do apologize for the interruption, one of our citizens has been trying to reach you, her name is Ember.  I assume it is important as the request came through the Grand Eminence.”


    Allison closed her eyes and swore under her breath.


    “I’ll be by soon.”


    The Yorleer bowed her head.


    “I am grateful for your attention in this matter.”


    Allison nodded and disconnected the call.  She sighed heavily.  Aryna called out.


    “The boys are here!”


    Allison smiled as she came out of the comm room.  Aryna’s date was a very handsome football player named Braden, he was standing beside Tyler.  Braden was almost six feet tall and Tyler wasn’t a tall or a big guy so he looked very small next to him.  Allison rushed over to where the group of teenagers were standing.  Braden motioned to the limo.


    “Shall we?”


    Allison bit her lower lip.  She shook her head.


    “Sorry, I need to stop somewhere first.  I will catch up to you guys there.”


    Tyler looked a bit hurt and concerned.  Aryna gave her sister a look.  Allison held up her hands in a slowdown gesture.


    “It is nothing bad.  Just need to return a call.”


    She waved to her friends as they got into their limo.  Allison went into the garage and got into her pickup after pulling her high heels off.  She pulled out of the garage and headed to the embassy.  She had no trouble navigating the gauntlet to get to the hyper wave.  She called Ember.  The matronly red Silwrath’s wings perked up when she saw it was Allison on her screen.


    “Allison, you look beautiful.  What is the occasion?”


    Allison smiled.


    “It’s called a formal, it’s a dance, social thing at school to celebrate the end of the school year.  I’m sorry I haven’t received any of your messages.  I’ve been busy with school it has been hard to keep my marks up with all that has happened this year.  The woman at the embassy made this sound urgent.”


    Ember nodded.


    “It is, sort of, you hadn’t answered any of our messages and you are coming here in a couple of days.  We are in need of several things for baby Allison.  It has been a challenge to get them from the System’s Alliance.  We have been getting a lot of resistance from an organization called Colonial Social Services.  They’ve been interfering with our requests and preventing access to medical professionals.”


    Allison frowned.  She sighed.


    “That is probably partially my fault.  I gave them a really big black eye in the media. Tell me what you need, and I’ll talk to someone tomorrow.  I am sure they do not want any more scrutiny and the niece of the president inferring that her next call was to her auntie will probably make things move very quickly afterwards.”


    Ember’s wings twitched.  Allison knew that meant the Silwrath was angry.


    “They would dare endanger the life of a child for petty revenge?”


    Allison shrugged.


    “We humans can be a vindictive lot.  Some humans get a little bit of power and just need to hold it over whomever they can.  I’m sorry you and Allie got caught in the middle.  I really should be getting going or I’m going to be late for the formal.  Is there anything else?”


    Ember shook her head.


    “No, no, go have fun, you’ve earned it.”


    Allison waved before closing off the connection.  She cursed herself for not bringing her holo-phone with her.  She got in her pickup and the first thing she did was look up the personal info for the wicked witch of Eden Prime Colonial Social Services.  She called her.  The woman looked shocked to see Allison appear on her comm screen.  Allison didn’t let her speak before unleashing her annoyance at her.


    “Look you useless waste of human flesh.  I just got a call from the Grand Eminence of the League of Sentient Races informing me that someone at your stupid agency is messing with official requests.  Are you idiots trying to cause a diplomatic incident?  I’m going to make this very simple for you, if they don’t have what they need for their human baby by tomorrow morning I’ll be calling my Aunt Maria, you know the President and I’m going to tell her that you were the one who started the whole mess.  You’ll be fired, thrown in prison and I’ll even make sure that we find out about everyone you care about and destroy them too, even if you’re not guilty.  We Aurelius’s can be a vindictive lot.  So, even if it’s not you, you better figure out who it is and make sure they resign because now that you have been notified, if you don’t then you are complicit in every single one of their crimes.  You have twelve hours from now to fix this shit.”


    The woman looked terrified.


    “I… I have had nothing to do with this.  I wouldn’t risk a child’s health!”


    Allison glared at the image in her pickup’s HUD.


    “Do I look like I care?  You’ve been screwing with me and my family since the day I met you.  It is a pattern of behavior and frankly more then enough for us Aurelius’s to destroy you and everything you love.  I’ve been merciful with you up to this point.  I haven’t involved my family, but this was the last straw.”


    The woman stammered a few times.  The connection flickered and derezed.  The woman came back.  Allison missed most of what she said.  Allison looked up when there was a flash on the horizon.  Then several more.  She saw something was burning up in the atmosphere.  Her pickup’s power fluctuated.  She looked at the woman.


    “Get to a shelter, warn as many people as you can!”