We got married on Earth, and, through lengthy negotiations, in a very old medieval church near my birth place in Champagne. Melissa’s parents came, as well as my closer friends and colleagues, since my parents had left us some years back. Inga came with her husband. A cistercian monk from the nearby abbaye, an old man with a venerable white beard, married us in the old rite. A Foundation official signed the papers and gave Melissa the certificate explaining that a copy would be transmitted to Melissa’s home authority.

We then had what used to be called a honeymoon, in the region, with short trips to Rheims, Paris and Orléans. I had the pleasure of using my French to navigate. I explained to Melissa and Inga that Europe, up to the border with Eurasia, was a nature and history reserve, in fact a living museum. In the solar system, Mars and Mercury were where the heavy industries were (the Foundation administrative and legal centre, nicknamed Trantor, was located in the Mars nature reserve) and much economic and research activity had moved to places like Europa, and islands of Earth-like climate and vegetation like Aurora, our home. However people still chose to live in the now almost (back to) virgin lands of Europe, Africa and America, some in very traditional activities, housing and ways of life. The pioneers and adventurers were away, through the system, and some very far such as the explorers of the outer layer of the solar system, beyond Neptune.

Melissa was enchanted with our visits, and we extended our stay in order to see central Europe. We went to Budapest and Berlin, the main Earth-located centre of European historical and proto-historical research, and finally stayed for a few days in historical Britain, now a vast living museum of Mankind, up to Scotland where we took our return shuttle at the Aberdeen space port.

Now we were back to the cocoon of Aurora, its deep forests, its lakes and the Jupiterian light. We had to readapt to the Europa’s solar day of three and a half Earth days, and our medical guardian told us that Melissa was expecting our child. Melissa and I were astounded and delighted at the same time. We had, for some reason, expected this to take much longer. Suddenly the anxiety went away. Inga had arranged for a Arcturian, human, doctor to come and visit us. Her name was Sarah, a name I much loved. She was to stay with us until the birth of our little one, and probably longer, as she wished to continue her studies at the Mercury medical university. Sarah confirmed the robot diagnostic and installed her equipment in a room next to ours and hers.

Melissa and I settled in a perfect routine, she and Sarah exercising during the day, taking walks and developing a plan for our child, preparing a room and reading. Meantime I continued with a cycle of three lectures a (Europa’s) week, and the occasional meeting with students and colleagues. I would get a year’s sabbatical after the birth, and I was looking forward to having time with mother and child. Melissa’s parents were continuing with their tour of Earth’s continents and islands which would take all their time until the birth.

One night, about three months after Melissa first knew she was pregnant, I sensed a presence in our bed: she was asleep, and I did not know why I had woken up. Evidently we were alone in our room, Sarah was was asleep in her room next door. I sent the guardian, a small robot specialised in scanning all things around the house, in a tour of the premises. All was calm and well. I was by then awake, and I could still sense the presence, which I felt very happy about. I went back to sleep later, wondering. I got used to it, for the same happened every night from then on: I was not alone. The feeling was of an intimate companionship. There were gaps during the night. I finally concluded that our child was communicating with me, when awake. I said nothing, then spoke with Melissa, who was unsure of what it might mean, and said she would enquire with Sarah.

Shortly afterwards, Sarah told us it was a little boy. We considered at length how we would name him. Shortly afterwards we had the visit of a Foundation’s medical officer, who spent some time speaking with Sarah, and asked us lengthy questions about our health and our plans for our son’s upbringing. Melissa spoke with her parents, then on a long tour of the Chinese and Indian Federation.

After many conversations, and me spending some time meditating at the small Christian chapel at the University, we decided to name our son Eugene, which was the name of one of my ancestors. Eugene had an Arcturian equivalent, which sounded very much the same name. One night Eugene addressed me directly, that is “sent” me images of bright colours that were both elegant, puzzling and charming. I guessed that our son was communicating with me through these images, and I started responding in kind, hoping to project pictures of his parents, our home, Earth animals, and more. I tried and reproduce his pictures, helped by the powerful image generator of the house and Melissa, who admitted that Eugene appeared, so far, to restrict his artistic talent to share with his dad. I proceeded to vocally speak to our son, when he was awake, during the day. Melissa smiled, saying that Eugene was beginning to wriggle actively, and from time to time kick his mum. I replied I would talk to him about this.