XERIS' POV

Walking back to our chambers, I wondered what I would do to occupy my time.

Why did I leave the greenery?

Going back there would be awkward.

I had no one to talk to, nothing to keep me company. I didn't feel like going back into the training room. I had already exhausted out my guilt for now.

"What do I do now?"

I couldn't leave this area. This truly was a prison.

I entered our apartment and went to stand by the viewing glass. I had no idea what system we were going through. No one had ever bothered to study this far into space. I looked at the different stars, planets and moons we passed by. They were all so captivating. I stood there lost in my own head, and the beauty of the world before me, I didn't notice her walk in and stand next to me.

"Back so soon?" I asked without turning to face her.

"What do you mean? I've been gone for forever. Well, at least I think so. I have no idea what the time is. Plus, I don't have a very reliable internal clock. Everything is just guesswork for me."

I turned around and walked to the table on her side of the bed. I came back and held the device out to her. "Here," she looked at it hesitantly before finally accepting it.

"What is it?"

"Your people would call it a watch."

She narrowed her eyes slightly. "What do you call it?"

"A time teller."

She pulled her lips into her mouth and bit down on them. She looked like she was trying to hold in her laughter.

"Really? A time teller? That's what it's really called?"

I was confused by her question. "Its purpose is to tell the time, that is why it is called a time teller. I do not see anything funny about that."

She let out a little laugh and looked down at the time teller. "How do I use it?"

"You place it flat against your wrist and the wrist bands wrap around your wrist."

She did as I said but still gasped a little when the wrist bands were wrapping around her wrist. "That's so cool."

Her facial expression right at that moment reminded me of how much of a child she still was. I went back to looking at the stars.

We stood there in silence for a while. "Do you ever get tired of this view?" she asked.

"Why would I ever get tired of enjoying God's creations?"

"You're a strong believer I see." She commented. I just turned to look at her then back.

"What is life on Thanzor like?"

How do I answer that?

"I wouldn't know." That was the most honest answer I could ever give.

I could feel her gaze upon my person. I sighed a little and headed towards the sitting area. She got the gist and followed.

Once she was settled, I leaned back in my seat, letting my body fully relax.

"What do you mean? Don't you live on Thanzor?"

Was that really living?

"I spent most of my time in classrooms, learning about Thanzor and about the world. I didn't get many opportunities to actually go out and experience it."

I waited to hear what she would say. I didn't particularly feel like revealing to her what my status was on Thanzor. I was tired of how people acted around me because of it. As much as her attitude towards me was annoying, it was...refreshing. I didn't want that to change. As much as I hated it, I liked it, confusing as that was. It was rare to have people speak their minds around me or be completely at ease.

"What did you learn?"

Again, she didn't do what I expected of her. She didn't ask me why immediately.

"It must have either been really interesting or really hard to keep you in so much."

The corner of my mouth lifted a little.

"Sometimes it was interesting. Sometimes it was hard. And sometimes it was both interesting and hard." She looked at me expectantly.

"I was taught.... everything." she scoffed.

"Really? So, you know everything?"

"No, that is not what I meant. I was taught everything there is to know. Sciences, language, geography, astrology, politics, martial arts, survival tactics, agriculture, animals, you name it. Everything that could be learnt, I was taught."

Her mouth was hanging open. Just like it did when we first met. I looked back into her eyes. She blinked a couple of times, opened and closed her mouth a couple of times as well, lost for words. I wondered what she thought of that.

"Was it by choice?" she finally found her voice.

"In the beginning, no," I remembered the time before Nala was taken, "But after some time, it was. I wanted to know everything I possibly could."

"Why?"

Because I wanted to gain mother's recognition.

"Who wouldn't want to know everything?" I tried to avoid answering.

"Haven't you heard of the saying, ignorance is bliss. We have the classic example of Adam and Eve. The desire of knowledge led to our downfall."

I smiled at this but quickly squashed it. "That may be true, but the past is unchangeable. In the times we live in now, ignorance is death."

We continued our conversation until it was time to get to sleep and repeat this day again.

Bulba came on the seventh day and looked at Victoria. After she was done, she gave me a summarised report.

"She is doing much better than the last time I saw her. She has lost quite the amount of fat. If you continue with her as you have been doing, everything will go smoothly." She said this just before leaving.