"It's not exactly surprising, just..." Sigh.

" - it seems really important to have a very exact model of your ethics and I still only have a vague one. Being specific about what you are sighing about is really helpful."

"My home planet also used to have the death penalty, I wouldn't be surprised if that were the sort of thing they used it for in some places even during my lifetime, it was a long time ago and now people don't even eat meat that used to be an animal let alone execute people."

"How long?"

"I died a little over a hundred and fifty years ago."

"That's a while." Sigh. "Nice to think it'll get there eventually, though."

"Abolishing the death penalty did not take that entire time. Also my years are your seasons in length."

"There are countries that just have the death penalty for desertion and treason - and pollution violations - and who'd abolish it pretty expeditiously if they heard the aliens really wanted. Anitam just isn't one of them."

"And pollution violations, of course."

"Everybody kills reds more-or-less when they feel like it, that's for clean castes who commit pollution violations."

"Ugh."

"Yeah."

"You were listing who you wanted to bring in -"

"If we're sitting here for years until we can safely transform my whole universe I want Kan and his sister and my parents and siblings and Makel's serious girlfriend and her daughter and if it's going to be more than two years the lesbian couple Kan and I were going to raise children with. And a couple people on my policy staff."

"Are they going to want people too?"

"I was going to pick staff who wouldn't. Our prospective co-parents will but they'll be persuadable."

"Well, the place'll hold them and the bar takes counterfeit."

"After long enough Telkam and Kantil'll be unhappy without kids also but I think not for four, five years."

"They can always step out if they prefer."

"Yeah. Does this place have seasons -"

"The backyard looks vaguely like Scotland. I don't know if it has seasons or how long they take if so."

"I can ask on my way out."

"Bar'll know."

He stands up. "Thank you."

"You're welcome."