I looked down at the chunks of brown and strips of light purple. The change in topic had surprised me. I had no idea what it was, but I’d eaten it before and not been ill.


    “It’s… I don’t know. It’s food,” I said simply looking back at her and feeling frustrated.


    “Daddy and his Brothers,” Hannah said, “never taught you what the food you ate was. They served you food that was good for you, but never told you what it was or how to acquire it. In their minds there is no reason to do this. You could never live without them. They have denied you the most basic of survival skills.”


    I tried to put on a stern face, “Hannah, I love your father. I want to be with him. We can learn together.”


    “Mama,” Hannah replied patiently, “Daddy is stubborn. He won’t believe you are equal, until you prove to him you are. I don’t think you will believe it either. His view of this world must change and so must yours.”


    I made a fluttering gesture with my hands and pushed the te away.


    “So I don’t know food, Hannah, that’s no reason to separate me from my family!” I argued.


    Hannah sighed and ran a hand through her hair.


    “Do you know what the Earth equivalent of your food choices would be. Perhaps a small fruit sd and some lettuce. How long would youst eating that way? Are you trying to waste away? It is not easy for you get the right nutrients here. This is a vital lesson,” Hannah said pointing at the discarded food.


    “Well, I just didn’t know and I wasn’t hungry….” I said feeling her argument solidify.This is from N?velDrama.Org.


    I really had no idea how to take care of myself. She was right. I didn’t know where to find water or food. I had no idea what foods contained the vital vitamins and such I remembered learning about on Earth. I had only just been taught to start a firest night. If I needed shelter, I would not know where to look. I had a partial knowledge of what was dangerous here, from what I’d read, but it wasn’tplete. My studies had been guided solely on my own curiosity. A lot of what I’d read about may not even be relevant.


    “They taught me swords,” I said hopefully. “I had my own at thepound.”


    “That is not enough,” Hannah said simply, “and I think you are smart enough to know that.”


    Hannah and Ra stood picking up the tes Rose and I had. “Come with us and learn about the food offered,” shemanded. “Ratru, it pleases me to see you have made acquaintance with my female breeder,” she said politely. “It would make me very happy to see des made for the female humans to carry.”


    Ratru’s face split with a wide grin. “The lead smith has been teaching us. His family will make the best weapons for these humans,” he said sounding happy.


    “I believe,” Hannah said with authority, “it would be good practice for your family to make the des. You must begin to trust the skills you have been taught. You and your Brothers are very talented working with metal. It is well known you will be lead smiths one day yourselves.”


    My heart sunk as I watched the interaction. Hannah and Ra didn’t just bring us here casually. They were respected in this ce. The men listened to them. If Hannah didn’t want me with Damien, I would not be.


    I was angry and frustrated, but determined. In the past I’d always managed to find a “work around” for the rules on this world. Steeling myself, I decided now was no different. I would just have to figure this ce out.


    Rose and I were walked back to the buffet and tutored through it. Things we could eat were pointed out and exined to us. Things that were high in vitamins were specifically noted. Hannah made sure we understood what a serving of each would be. The measurements she used were simple enough. A handful, a slice, and so on, we were delivered back to Ratru with a meal more like what Damien would have given me.


    My friend and I were left to eat our meal as Hannah and Ra walked the dining room talking to different groups. I remembered seeing politicians on Earth. The way my daughter and her Sister approached the families and the tone they used reminded me of that. The girls were well recognized and obviously well respected as they moved about.


    “They are amazing,” Ratru said watching where I was looking. “We were rescued, but obviously did not understand what was happening. My Brothers and I were bound on the transport. When we came through the opening on this side of the mountains racks attacked. Hannah and Ra swooped in and killed the creatures before our rescuers could do anything with their weapons.”


    I ate as I listened to him and had to be proud of the awe in his voice. Hannah was very well suited for this world. Whether she liked it or not, she had obviously absorbed her father’s leadership ability, also. She was a powerful female.


    “They flew with us here,” Ratru continued, “and unbound us in the transport storage area. Hannah exined to us what was happening. We found her to be so unlike any female we had ever dealt with before. She touched us gently and spoke to us kindly. She also looks different than the other females and my Brother was curious. He noted her long hair on her head and theck of it on her face. It surprised us when she answered. She exined her Earth heritage and we were amazed.”


    “No female had ever spoken to us as they did,” Ratru’s Brother said watching Hannah and Ra. “We asked more questions and they continued to answer politely. When we became upset they soothed us and tried to rx us. When they thought we were bing rmed, they moved away from us. My Brothers and I had never met females like that.”


    “My female offspring is quite wonderful,” I agreed with him, “but I still disagree with her.”


    Rose seconded thement and wiped a tear from her face.


    “Hannah is wise,” Ratru said. “She is not an Administrator, yet, but we all know it is her goal eventually. You would do well to listen to her.”


    My toddler I thought caustically. I would do well to listen to MY toddler. My eyes narrowed, but I kept my opinion to myself.


    After the meal Hannah and Ra walked with us to atrine on the first floor. It was just arge room with about thirtycquered pots against the walls.


    “Upstairs are ones just for you and Rose,” Hannah informed us. “Use these for right now. Ra and I will not let any men in to give you privacy.”


    A line quickly started to form and I felt guilty. Rose and I quickly took care of our needs and darted back out.


    “I’m sorry we took too long,” I said seeing the line of men waiting for the room we had been using.


    “Nonsense,” Hannah said waving us to follow her, “you liked privacy on Earth. It was very important to you and having it taken away hurt. We will help you heal by giving you back what you lost.”


    Ratru and his Brothers agreed it was important. The camps made arge point to rece things the men had lost in very. It should be the same for Rose and me.


    As a group we started toward where the weapons were made. Ratru made sure to tell me he worked on swords now, but one day he hoped to work on cannons and the hand-held pistol. His words stopped me in my tracks.


    “That was English,” I told him. “Those words you used are in English.”


    Hannah grinned and Ratru smiled. “The names our weapons designers had given them wereplicated and descriptive. Hannah told us these things looked like weapons humans on Earth had. She told us the names they used. We like them, so that is what we call them.”