Proposing Space
Apr03
on 2018-04-03
at 18:00
Running a little short of time, so, text wall.
↓ Transcript
Columbia
Has anyone told you about how welcome Terrans are in The Empire? It’s not just because we need the genetic diversity, but we’re also a little nuts for your culture. Being Korean and Japanese, I think the academies and universities would clamor to have you as an Education Consultant. I know it’s rushing things, but you could stay with me. I’ve never met anyone else I would want to pair-bond with.
Kimi
Pair bond?
Columbia
Two people agreeing to be together, pool resources, maybe rear children…
Kimi
Like marriage?
Columbia
Not exactly, but then I understand that Terrans don’t have an exact interpretation of what constitutes marriage. A pair or group bond is a contract that spells out the legal responsibilities of its participants.
Kimi
Oh!
So flattering. But I am not into girls.
Columbia
Right. I forgot. Terrans think marriage, love, sex, and starting a family are all tied together. For what it’s worth, while I do find you attractive, I’m not really “into girls” either. It’s generally thought that a good bond does include at least a few of those elements, but it’s not required.
I like men, but the good ones really are taken, or not interested in settling down. If I don’t want to spend my life alone, it means finding a compatible partner, regardless of gender. Intimacy between bondmates isn’t unusual. And what happens, happens. We love whom we will. And the few of us that can have children usually barely know the other parent. The rest of us foster children for a relative or friend, if we’re lucky, and have a stable bonding.
I’m completely sterile. I admit that your likely fertility, and relationship with Just Ace, did cross my mind. Being a bond-mother in the near future is my dream.
Well, and making full Commander soon, too
Has anyone told you about how welcome Terrans are in The Empire? It’s not just because we need the genetic diversity, but we’re also a little nuts for your culture. Being Korean and Japanese, I think the academies and universities would clamor to have you as an Education Consultant. I know it’s rushing things, but you could stay with me. I’ve never met anyone else I would want to pair-bond with.
Kimi
Pair bond?
Columbia
Two people agreeing to be together, pool resources, maybe rear children…
Kimi
Like marriage?
Columbia
Not exactly, but then I understand that Terrans don’t have an exact interpretation of what constitutes marriage. A pair or group bond is a contract that spells out the legal responsibilities of its participants.
Kimi
Oh!
So flattering. But I am not into girls.
Columbia
Right. I forgot. Terrans think marriage, love, sex, and starting a family are all tied together. For what it’s worth, while I do find you attractive, I’m not really “into girls” either. It’s generally thought that a good bond does include at least a few of those elements, but it’s not required.
I like men, but the good ones really are taken, or not interested in settling down. If I don’t want to spend my life alone, it means finding a compatible partner, regardless of gender. Intimacy between bondmates isn’t unusual. And what happens, happens. We love whom we will. And the few of us that can have children usually barely know the other parent. The rest of us foster children for a relative or friend, if we’re lucky, and have a stable bonding.
I’m completely sterile. I admit that your likely fertility, and relationship with Just Ace, did cross my mind. Being a bond-mother in the near future is my dream.
Well, and making full Commander soon, too
So forward! Well as a former military brat I can understand grasping the opportunity before it gets snatched from your hands.
I foresee a broken heart in the future: Either Columbia’s if Kimi says no, or mine if Kimi is dropped from the strip. Andy, she’s not being ‘Put on a Bus’ is she?
Small tweak. “I admit that your likely fertility” should be “I admit that you’re likely fertile.”
No, Columbia is referring to Kimi’s fertility, and the possibility of mating with Ace, or some other male donor, resulting in a child that Columbia can not have of her own
Can see how it would be confusing as “your” and “you’re” are often mixed up 😀
I’m going to stick with mine, tho “probable” might work better than “likely.”
I didn’t have any difficulty grasping the context of what was said the way you phrased it.
How romantic.
It’s not at all romantic the way Columbia presents this. Though, Columbia was not trying to be. And it sounds like Pair Bonding is – first and foremost – a contract. Perhaps it’s all about presentation? I can imagine someone presenting this more romantically. Perhaps they have a very optional tradition similar to Terra, like going down on one knee and presenting a piece of jewelry when they propose this?
She’s just posing the practicalities first.
TBH, it sounds like an updated version of Mr. Darcy’s first proposal to Elizabeth Bennett, with her reply first instead of as a reply.
That was my point, it’s not at all romantic, I just forgot to use my usual ellipsis…
As romantic as things often get in my family where the usual proposal is “you’re what?”
This is kind of interesting. I like these glimpses into Orion culture. Andy does a great job of making different from our own, but, at the same time, similar enough that we can relate. You will also note that Columbia does not say “sex between bondmates” but “intimacy between bondmates.” Sex is just something physical. Intimacy is about emotional support and mutual vulnerability, sharing things with them you would never share with someone else. In some ways, you could argue that Luna and Kimi would be good candidates for pair-bonding because of how close they are in a purely platonic way.
Basicly, it seems that Pair-bonding is almost more like a formalized “Best friends forever” than what we would consider “marriage.”
In a way, it is a ‘marriage’, just not a ‘romantic’ one
Problem is, churches have turned a ‘contract between partners’ into a ‘religious-only sham’