Chapter Text
“Thanksgiving? I thought nobody celebrated that anymore because of the subsequent you-know-what,” Penny whispered, looking out the open door. There was no law against talking about ancient history, even genocide, as far as she knew, but it wasn’t a word she wanted to unleash on this new planet. No genocide, no greed, no war, no Nathi. Pern was safe from all that - a peaceful planet with plenty of resources for everyone. “And wasn’t it in the fall, anyway?”
“Well, this is a Pern Thanksgiving. It’s about celebrating our new community and successful settlement. And using up the last of the coffee, I think.” Pete grinned, heading toward the bedroom and calling back, “Put on something nice. I heard they’ll be roasting some of those stink-chickens you love so much.”
Penny balked, heading to the tiny bathroom. “They’re not stink-chickens, they’re wherries, and they’re cute! You’re a stink-chicken.” She picked up her brush and ran it through her hair before wrangling the coppery mess into a tight, inside-out braid that fell halfway down her back. She looked in the mirror and sighed. It looked fine, other than the wispy halo of frizz that would get thicker as the evening went on. At least it would keep the hair off her neck. “Shouldn’t we be helping, if this is a big to-do? I don’t know, moving chairs or something?”
Pete came out of the bedroom in a fresh outfit, ready to go. Penny threw on her deep green sundress and matching hat - festive without being too fancy. “Have no fear, I put us on the list for clean-up duty. I have a hunch everyone’ll be silly with quickal by the end of the night, anyway. We can still be good little helpers.” His smile grew as he saw his wife’s appreciative grin. She was always determined to do her part.
She’d grabbed his hand and they were already headed out when he stopped in the doorway. “Oh! There’s going to be dancing. They’ll be wanting music.” She turned around and rushed to get her violin, more than happy for an excuse to play for someone else. “And if your playing isn’t up to snuff, they’ll still need fuel for the bonfire.”
There was no more hand-holding after that.