"Well Night-Wind, pleased to meet you. I admit I didn't do much research upfront on you or your species, I thought I'd experience it first-hand myself. Maybe I should have been a little more cautious. I want to make sure we get off on the right foot. I am here to learn and make friends so I hope you will help me understand how to interact with you according to your preferences."

"It is fine. This is my first separation, and I admit I am a bit nervous." I decided I should guard my feelings and try to project more boldness. "That is my purpose here too. Please do not worry. I certainly am not!" I laughed, proud of my ability to sound authentically bold.

The human seemed unsure. "Okay, if you say so. Well, anyway, how was your trip? Have you come far?"

As we traded notes, Cal began talking over his shoulder, rapidly searching through the entire living quarters.

"What are you looking for?" Surely this human couldn't have misplaced something so quickly.

"Oh, I'm just exploring. I've been to a lot of space stations but never really stayed in one. This is pretty nice!" He darted over to the window, a large oval in the outer bulkhead and gazed out at Longva-III, the planet we were orbiting. "I can't wait to explore the planet and this station. I'm so curious as to what I might find. I hear the flora is fascinating and some of it is extremely dangerous!" "Hmm, I wonder if anyone Well Dives here. I'd love to jump from here down to planetside."

I was slightly horrified. Was this human deranged? Did he perhaps have a recent head injury? I cleared my throat. "Well, I'm sure the Institute has a plan in place for structured, sensible, safe field trips so that we can learn about our surroundings."

"Hah, sounds boring! But I'm sure we'll find some time to have fun." Cal returned to the sleeping area and looked over at my belongings. "Wow, what is that? That's amazing!"

I swiveled an eye to see what Cal was referring to. "Oh, that is a memory stone, one of my parting gifts."

"It's so shiny! The way it scatters the light -- so many colors!"

"Well, I suppose it does catch the light in a pleasant way." He seemed fixated on the mundane object. "Do you not have any possessions?"

"Oh, yeah. I got here ahead of my luggage, but I was told it should arrive by the station-evening. Listen, I'm not sure what your feeding cycle is like but I'm kind of hungry."

My fear spiked for a moment.

"I mean, I was thinking about going to the he nutrition center and getting some food. Are you hungry? I thought maybe we could go together."

"Oh. Yes Cal, that sounds good. Lead the way." He flashed his teeth again as I followed him out of the room. It was remarkable to watch him stride boldly down the corridor, practically acting as if it was his station. But as I brought up the rear, I realized something had shifted with him. He kept glancing back to make sure I was still near. In his eyes, he and I were already part of a group. The "roomie" collective. I relaxed further and felt better. What a strange creature; occasionally terrifying but somehow, his presence was reassuring.