Jupiter was a very odd planet. In fact, Nephrite had seen little like Jupiter in his interplanetary adventures. He sighed as he continued walking.
It seemed completely natural. It scared him. There were so few buildings, little protection from the elements. Almost everyone was clothed in animal skins, instead of formal clothing. The higher class citizens seemed only to have animal hides that had been dyed to appear in different colours. Shoes were very uncommon he thought that Jovian feet must be very rough, or lack feeling to be able to run across rough terrain so easily.
In a way, they seemed to have so much more freedom then the people of Earth.
The men and women wasted little. They reminded him of the early natives of Earth except more content with their lives, and they did not seem to be nomadic. They only covered what was cold though genitals were always covered by both genders, he had seen quite a few bare breasts on the warmer days. He found it odd.
The first three days on Jupiter were bright and sunny, and beautiful. The plants were prettier, the grass was longer, and the trees were larger. Life was everywhere on Jupiter. He found it odd that his planet was called Earth when clearly this planet embodied the element of earth much better then his own.
At night, the men, and women all retreated into the forests. The forests had grown in such ways that the men, women and children in fact lived in trees. The trees seemed to be hollow inside and to extend deep into the ground and into the sky. As a diplomatic figure, he was not required to sleep in a tree, but in one of the precious few tree 'houses' that had been built for those who did not sleep in trees. His bed was very soft as though he was sleeping on grass itself. On his second day, he found out that in fact, his sheets were atop grass that had grown so thick it held up his body weight, and the King of North America was very impressed.
Nothing, however, prepared him for the true beauty of Jupiter.
It was on his fourth day on the green planet, when rain started to drip down slowly. The citizens all smiled to one other curiously. Children ran to their mothers, smiles plastered to their faces.
Nephrite followed his instinct and headed back to his resident tree. Unfortunately, due to the vastness of the forest and the similarity of the trees, he soon found himself wandering aimlessly, his long chocolate curls being pressed against his face and neck by the rain.
He soon came upon a group of trees that had seemed to merge and grow as one living entity. This monstrous being seemed to form some sort of castle. He surmised that this was the Jovian palace, where the royal family of Jupiter resided. He had yet to meet them, as though he was on Jupiter for diplomatic purposes, he was given the first week to himself to explore, for which he was grateful. He rarely got the opportunity to go where the stars told him instead of people.
Outside the colossal fortress of trees, the rain thundered down around him. Thunder clashed, and he winced as he saw lightning that was nearby. He imagined a tree had gone up in flames somewhere close, but he couldn't see smoke.
He was too entranced to look around, for outside the tree-castle, was the most beautiful thing he had ever seen in his short life.
A woman was dancing in the rain.
She was twisting and turning. Her brown hair cascaded around her shoulders like waves of golden brown...something. Nephrite lacked the vocabulary to describe the beauty of the creature in front of him. Her eyes were closed, but he imagined if they were as bright as she was, he'd find himself staring into them and dreaming of them later.
A light seemed to emanate from her. She was clothed in a simple animal skin that wrapped around her middle, starting just above her breasts and ending just before her knees. She bore no jewelry, no makeup, and seemed incredibly natural. It was enchanting to see her twist and turn in the rain, and she began to glow brighter.
He thought it was his imagination, her glow. But the more she twirled, the brighter she became. Suddenly, lightning ripped through the sky (how had he missed the thunder?) and struck her dead on.
He let out a soft cry and started running towards the magnificent female as she fell to the ground, lightning vanished. Smoke rose from the burnt grass that she now lay on top of. He was horrified to think that as accidentally as he had found her, she was ripped from him.
He was at her side instantly, kneeling next to her. She was unconscious and miraculously, unburnt. There were no marks anywhere on her skin. He would never have thought she had just been electrocuted.
From the ground, she stretched her body and yawned, eyes still closed. Nephrite's eyes bulged to see that she was still moving, and seemingly completely unharmed. She opened her eyes and her nose wrinkled (in the cutest way..) when she saw him leaning over her, concerned.
Are you....alright? He managed to gurgle out, horrified with how disgusting and choppy his first words to this Jovian goddess.
You're not Jovian, are you? She stood without his help and stretched again.
Uhm...no, I'm not.. He stuttered. Nephrite was in complete awe at how this Jovian could easily speak the Earth standard language with such flow and grace, where as he sounded like a barbaric caveman.
I assure you, I am completely unharmed. Thank you for your concern. She nodded. If you'll excuse me, my father will want to see me. Good day. She flashed the most gorgeous smile and then walked into the castle, where three women ran out with towels and started fussing over her.
Nephrite stood their for hours, trying to figure out how it was that he had fallen in love in such a short time.
