Chapter 2: Family Time

Maggie was, as he feared, less than impressed, although he didn't mention the planetary uniform just yet. Spica II was a curiosity in space, not on any of the major trade routes, and therefore was not really in the public consciousness. There were plenty of more important star systems out there.

His 12-year-old daughter Millie and 8-year-old son Micah were listening in. All were sitting around the dining room table.

"It's just ... I was hoping to settle down for awhile," Maggie was moaning. "We've done so much for the Solar Federation, isn't it time the Solar Federation did something for US for a change?"

"It's four years," Mike responded. "And it's a quiet posting. And the President is a hard woman to turn down. There's just one thing."

"Oh?" Her eyebrow rose up in that way that Mike found so appealing. "What would that be?"

Millie broke in with, "Dad! I wanna go!" As Micah stared at her, startled, she started to snicker to herself. "The Nude Planet!! Oh, this is going to be FUN!" She looked at her horrified mother, and put a hand over her mouth to hide the grin.

"Nude. Planet." Maggie swung her gaze back at Mike, who was scratching the bridge of his nose. Her voice rose a couple of octaves. "Nude. Planet?"

"Yes, that would be the 'one thing'. They went in for this nudist, naturist ... er ... thing ... a while ago. A few generations back, I think."

"You mean that all of us will have to walk around buck naked?" Maggie was beginning to freak.

"Well, that's the idea." Mike was looking sheepish.

"They can forget THAT idea!! No way am I going to land on any planet where I'm supposed to run around in my birthday suit all day!!" She stomped her foot. "If we were supposed to run around like that, we'd have been BORN naked!"

Millie, puzzled at the lack of logic from her usually level-headed mother, ventured, "Mom ... we were..." Micah giggled.

"You're not helping, young lady," Mike growled.

"No, I mean, the Hardaways' daughter, Linda, we've been corresponding for years. She told me all about the place. She loves it there. She's planning on attending university there."

"In the nude?" gasped Maggie.

"Well, that's the idea." Millie flashed a conspiratorial smirk at her dad.

"And they want us to decide by when?" Maggie turned back to her husband.

"Within the hour. The ship sails at 07:50 tomorrow, IF we're going. Otherwise, they'll have to choose another family."

"There are plenty of other families that can take this trip. Why families, anyway? What's so family friendly about being naked all the time?" Maggie demanded.

"Family vote!" Micah yelled. "Family vote!! Family vote!!"

Mike looked questioningly at his wife. "OK," she said. "Family vote. Who wants to go to Spica II?"

Mike and the kids held their hands up.

Maggie glared at the kids. "OK. I'm outvoted. We're going to go skinny-dipping for the next four years."

Micah pondered that sentence. "Daddy, what's 'skinny-dipping'?"

"Swimming in the nude."

"Well, that's the idea," added Maggie, who was beginning to see the humour in the situation.

"You'll like it, I think. Most kids your age prefer swimming that way," Mike advised his son.

Maggie was still unhappy. "I'll go along. But I want to make it clear that the only reason why I'm going along is because when we married, I said I'd go along to any spot that the Ministry said was OK for families, and they're notoriously careful not to send families in harm's way. They, and you, had better not be wrong."

Mike looked at the love of his life right in her eyes. "You have always gone with me when you could, and to some really grungy postings. This one is described as a 'retirement posting', one of the places they send veteran diplomats to as a reward for years of hard work, as a sort of long-term vacation before they retire. It's an honour that I'm even considered for this post." What he didn't add was that a retirement posting was also one where due either to the unpopularity or the peculiarity of the culture involved, it was difficult to get another diplomat to act as anything other than temporary relief. The ambassadors at those posts tended to remain there for the rest of their careers.