The Outer Moon (A Sapphic Sci Fi Adventure)

Chapter 22

A/N – Just as an FYI, any conversation within the [ ] symbols will be in the fox language.

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"Are you sure about this?" Vanessa asked Pepper. They were both nervous about meeting the foxes but were hoping that this was the first step towards a future where the two species could live together as equals.

"Extremely sure." Pepper stood up from the controls of their ship, which had a nice sized group on it. "We're ready. I think ever since we got here, I have been looking forward to this day, even if I'm still nervous about their reactions."

Everyone stared back at her, including the two little girls in front. "We're meeting aliens?" Rosie asked. "Furry ones?"

"We're meeting some new friends. Friends that talk in the language you learned, and hopefully we can be very good neighbors together. We want them to like us, and I think you being with us will help that, okay?" Pepper crouched down at the two girls and hoped that the little peanut inside her would turn out just as precious as they were. "You two are great friends, and I think they'll like that."

"Yes!" said Bree quickly. "Can we play with them?"

"We'll see. They may have children too, and then you could play. But at first, we just want to make sure they know that we want to be their friends and neighbors."

The two girls looked at each other excitedly, then nodded back. "We'll be their best friends," Rosie promised. It was cute, but all the adults realized that it might be very necessary that Bree and Rosie win over the foxes until they could talk more openly.

"They might not be friendly at first, so stay with your parents, okay? We might look scary to them." Vanessa reminded them. "And don't feel bad if they are scared, or don't want to meet us right away."

"It's okay," assured Bree. "Sometimes Finn isn't friendly too, but then the next day he is. We will still be nice."

"Perfect!" Pepper stood up, taking the girls by the hand. "Are you ready for a little walk then? Zay, you stay by the controls, we'll let you know if we need you."

"You got it," Zay replied with a smile. "Check in either way, so I know you're safe."

"Will do. Let's go, everyone!"

Miles led the way, with Lena, Pepper, and Vanessa by his side. Lily was on the ship with Zay just because she didn't want to stay too far away, and they might need a doctor. Emma carried Bree on her shoulders, flanked by both Lexi and Viv, and Rosie's mom Macey was carrying her too. The last person along with them was Aubree, a Social Anthropologist from Canada who was in her 50s but had almost begged to come on the trip just because she wanted to meet and help figure out the foxes. Pepper and Vanessa felt good about the team and hoped that they would have the chance to interact with their neighbors.

They had landed the ship on the coast of the shallow channel that was the boundary between the island and the mainland. There was a river here that led inland, and they knew that the fox town was next to the river, a little over a mile upstream. Right on the coast though, was a set of ruins that were similar to the ones that were found near their own town, though they hadn't explored them yet, as they didn't want to desecrate anything in case the foxes had beliefs about them.

Even after a few months, the moon was still a marvel to them, and being here on the mainland just offered new wonders. Yes, seeing the bulk of the blue gas giant in the sky would always be one of the highlights, but the trees here were already something to stare at too. From a distance, they looked just like towering spruce trees in shape, but as they got closer, they could see that the pine needles that they would have expected were actually more like the fronds of a delicate fern.