Alien in the Family

the man, move it.” Poof growls emanated, beings moved their butts. “Paul, make sure they’re right, okay?”
    “Sure, Kitty.”
    While they were moving about, a question nagged. “Greg, why did you bring the Poofs along?”
    He sighed. “Because they’re customary.”
    “Do they really only mate when a royal wedding’s on the horizon.”
    “Yes.”
    “Mister White?”
    “Yes, Miss Katt, from what I recall, that’s the case.”
    “And they’re really rare?”
    “Yes,” Greg and White said in unison.
    “Interesting. So, you brought a rare, royal-family-only animal—seven of them, really. Enough for all the potential royals on Earth and Jeff’s intended.”
    “Yes. Protocol. Maybe you’ve heard of it.” Gregory was almost as snarky as Christopher.
    “What position in the royal court do you hold?”
    Gregory was silent and wouldn’t look at me.
    I noticed the other A-C wasn’t looking at me, either. He was looking at his feet. “You, what’s your name?”
    He looked up. “Alexander.”
    “What positions do you and Greg here actually hold, Alex?”
    He winced at the nickname. “Alexander.”
    “Best of luck with that. Welcome to Earth, Alex. What positions do you and Greg hold within the Alpha Four royal court?”
    He didn’t answer. I got up closer to him and took a good, long look. Same with Gregory. They were both about my age, so younger than Martini and Christopher. Physically they fell between those two as well, but were about Christopher’s height and leaned more toward the wiry side as well. Hair like Christopher’s. Facial structure like Christopher’s. And at least one of them snarked like Christopher.
    “So, Alex, who’s older, you or Greg? I mean, he is your brother, right?”
    Alexander swallowed hard. “Yes. My older brother.” He wasn’t lying.
    I got closer to him. Eyes were green, but you could see the blue flecks in them this close. Christopher’s eyes, nose, and mouth were his father’s, but not his eye color. Went to Gregory. One eye was pretty well shut, but the other was the same, green flecked with blue. He glared at me. Christopher’s Glare #2, as a matter-of-fact.
    I did one last comparison. I thought about my mother, since she, and I, looked like Christopher’s late mother, and I tried to see if they could look a bit like her. Or me. I got a reasonable yes. Not a lot, but enough.
    “Jeff, are you seeing what I’m seeing?”
    “Not so much, baby. What are you seeing?”
    I turned around and started to laugh. Christopher was glaring. Glare #2.
    “Look at Greg here . . . then look at Christopher.”
    He did. “Oh, are you kidding me?” Martini sounded beyond annoyed.
    “What?” Christopher was still glaring, but it had shifted to #5.
    Martini rubbed his forehead. “Why are they here ?”
    “I don’t know.” I turned back. “Greg, Alex? This just seems like an incredibly complex plot merely to get to vacation with the distant relatives.”
    They both looked hugely guilty. Chuckie came over and took a look. “Amazing. Genetics are really something.”
    “Yeah.”
    “What?” Christopher snapped. “I’m not clear on what you’re driving at, Kitty.”
    “Greg and Alex here are your cousins, Christopher. Possibly as close to you as Jeff is. On your mother’s side, of course.”
    “Are you kidding me? What are they doing here?” Christopher sounded exactly like Martini, only a bit less bellowy.
    “Well, boys? Both Jeff and Christopher have asked you the same question. Why the hell are you here?”
    They didn’t answer. Chuckie did. “Let’s list our options. There’s been a coup of some kind on Alpha Four. The royal family has been overthrown or is fighting to retain power. The ruling monarch is dead or dying. The people are not accepting whoever is supposed to take over. They’re going outside the norm to bring in Martini so that he can act as a messiah. Or, more likely, they’ve come here to drag Martini back so he can be their martyr. You take your pick from those options.”
    The two A-Cs were quiet, but they also weren’t looking at us. The other delegates were quiet, and all looked nervous. I could tell that Chuckie had hit the real reason in his list of options, but I couldn’t tell which one had been our winner.
    Chuckie’s voice was low and very menacing. “But know this—Martini, White, all the others? They report to me now. And I don’t let terrorists steal my people. You try to take anyone by force or coercion?