Fire Season

Chapter Four

Anders was the only one from the anthropological team who was in when Stephanie Harrington commed the next day.

For someone who had been so cool and controlled speaking in front of a big group, she seemed more than a little nervous.

“I was wondering,” she said, “if you-any of you, I mean-would like to come by our freehold. Dad thinks our patients are going to be moving on any day now, so this would be pretty much the last chance to see them. We could go for a hike, later, if you’d like.”

“To where treecats live?” Anders asked excitedly.

Stephanie’s expression grew stern. “No. None live near our freehold. A hike would be a good way to get a feeling for the local ecosystem.”

“I’d like that,” Anders replied, and was rewarded by seeing the stern expression melt away.

“Well, if you’d settle for just me,” he continued, “I’d really like to come see the ’cats and go for a hike. My dad and the rest of his crew are with Dr. Hobbard.”

“That would be great!” Stephanie replied, her brown eyes shining.

They made arrangements for Anders to be picked up. On Urako, his home planet, he had a provisional air car license, but that didn’t extend to Sphinx. Anyhow, his dad and the team had taken the air van they’d rented, so he didn’t have anything he could take.

It turned out, however, that Dr. Richard Harrington traveled all over this part of Sphinx as a result of his job. He was going to be in the vicinity of Twin Forks to see some sick herbivores and was happy to give Anders a lift back to the Harrington freehold in what he called the “Vet Van.”

Dr. Richard-the form of address they compromised on when Anders admitted his dad would kill him if he addressed an adult he hardly knew by his first name-proved to be a relaxed and easy-going individual. Richard Harrington was of about average height. Like his daughter, his hair and eyes were brown, but several shades darker-except for those places where his hair was starting to show silver.

When he picked up Anders, Dr. Richard admitted to being in a particularly good mood because his patients were recovering quite nicely.

“We don’t have many problems with parasites,” he explained when Anders expressed interest. “Even within a terrestrial ecosystem, parasites rarely jump host species. However, as the Plague demonstrates all too well, microorganisms aren’t nearly so picky. I think we’ve got this one beat. The infestation was the result of the owners cutting corners with dietary supplements and leaving the animals weaker than they should have been. Once I figured that out, they started to mend.”

He went on for a bit about how poor diet created vulnerabilities. Anders liked how Dr. Richard assumed Anders would understand him-and how when Anders did ask a question, he answered it as a specialist to a nonspecialist, rather than a grown-up to a kid. Anders was beginning to understand how Stephanie had gotten so comfortable talking to adults.

Eventually, Dr. Richard changed the subject. “I’m really glad you were free to come by, Anders. Stephanie has been in a foul mood ever since the SFS released that the fire a couple of days ago-the one where Right-Striped and Left-Striped were injured-was human-caused.”

“It was?”

“Yeah. Some colonists by the name of Franchitti were behind it. Since they’re First Wave descendants and one of the first groups to settle Sphinx, they own quite a lot of land. Apparently, one of the owners was doing some quick undergrowth clearance-the area’s part of a large island in the Makara River, so he figured it was safe. Anyhow, the winds shifted when a front came in faster than expected and that’s all she wrote.”

Dr. Richard shrugged, the gesture eloquent as any words.

“Anyhow, Stephanie is completely pissed off. She can have a bit of a temper, especially when she thinks someone is a complete ‘null’-‘zorky,’ as she would have said a few months ago. I think that term’s out of favor now.”

He chuckled, but the sound was affectionate, not in the least mocking.

Anders had noticed a few things. Now he decided to ask what could be an uncomfortable question.

“Dr. Richard, I noticed that although Stephanie was wearing a counter-grav unit at yesterday’s meeting, she didn’t have it turned on. She moved easily enough, though, even carrying Lionheart around.”

Dr. Richard sighed. “I keep telling her that ’cat doesn’t need to be carried and she’s going to give herself scoliosis.”

Anders forged ahead. He knew that asking someone straight out if he and his family were “genies” could be considered rude, but from his mother’s political work he had also learned that “genie” did not immediately mean “monster,” that, in fact, in some environments coming from a genetically modified background was a distinct advantage.

“I noticed you’re wearing a counter-grav unit, but that it’s also on ‘off’…How do you handle this gravity? I tried to go to sleep last night without my unit on and I felt like someone was sitting on my chest.”

“So you’re wondering how Steph and I manage,” Dr. Richard said. He paused for thought, then gave another of those eloquent shrugs. “Well, if you decided to poke around, it would be easy enough to find out. All the members of our family have the genetic modifications designed for the Meyerdahl first wave. The greater bone density and more efficient muscle mass makes handling the higher gravity a lot easier for us. There are a couple of other changes that make it easier for us to handle the greater atmospheric pressure, too. In fact, the Meyerdahl modifications, combined with the fact that we paid our own way in, were two of the deciding factors in our application to colonize here on Sphinx being accepted. The other was that both my and Marjorie’s specializations are in high demand on a colony world.”

Anders nodded. “I was just curious. I mean, if there was a way I could get around without wearing this cursed counter-grav unit, I’d do it in a heartbeat. Why do you wear one if you don’t need it?”

“The same reason Stephanie does when she’s out. It’s too late to go find one when you’re about to have an accident. The counter-grav unit doesn’t let me fly, but when one of my patients has decided to hide in an awkward place-like on top of a roof-it sure makes it easier to get to it.”

Anders laughed, curiosity satisfied. He decided that good manners demanded he change the subject. “Tell me about your weirdest case-maybe one of those ones that ended up on a rooftop.”

The answer came with a chuckle. “Just the weirdest one?”

Dr. Richard’s stories entertained them the rest of the way to the Harrington freehold. Stephanie and Karl immediately came out to meet the arriving vehicle. Stephanie was carrying Lionheart, but put him down as soon as she saw her father raise a reprimanding eyebrow.

Anders thought, She certainly doesn’t look as if she’s in a bad mood. Maybe Karl cheered her up, or maybe she gets over her moods as quickly as they hit her. If anyone looks grumpy, it’s Karl.

Ever the politician’s son, he greeted his hosts with his warmest smile.

“Hi, Karl. Hi, Stephanie. Thanks for settling for me rather than the rest of the team.”

A odd look flitted over Karl’s face, but he settled into stoic impassivity so quickly Anders wondered if he’d imagined it.

Stephanie had given her dad a quick hug. Now she turned to Anders.

“You do realize this visit is all on the treecats’ terms. If they seem nervous, or if Lionheart signals we shouldn’t go any closer, then we stay back.”

Anders nodded. “I understand. Absolutely.”

Dr. Richard had grabbed a large case from the Vet Van. “Let me go out to the gazebo first. I checked Right-Striped’s feet out this morning, but I might as well give them another going over. Like I said, I have a feeling the twins are going to move on pretty soon.”

Stephanie nodded. “That’s why I decided to call the anthropologists now, not wait.”

Again an odd, sidelong look from Karl, a look that vanished as soon as he realized Anders had noticed, but which was decidedly unfriendly.

Usually, Stephanie had to resist an urge to skip ahead of her dad, but today she found it easy to let him take the lead. Even her bad mood about the Franchitti fire seemed to have vanished when the Vet Van had touched down and she had seen for herself that Anders had really come.

The only thing blighting her good mood was Karl. Had he figured out that she had manipulated the situation so that Anders would be their only visitor from the anthropological expedition? He might well have.

After all, she thought, Karl was there when Frank Jedrusinski happened to mention that Dr. Hobbard was taking the whole team to her local office in Yawata so that they could see some newer videos and examine her collection of treecat artifacts. It was a gamble calling, I know, but I did clear it with Mom and Dad first. I wonder why Karl is so annoyed? Maybe he doesn’t think it’s fair to take advantage of Right-Striped and Left-Striped like this.

If she let herself, Stephanie had to admit that if the visitor had been anyone but Anders, she would have felt a bit uncomfortable about making the offer herself.

But Anders seems to really be interested in treecats. Unlike the rest of them, he doesn’t have papers to publish or academic honors to win. His interest is pure.

Right-Striped was indeed doing much better. Stephanie felt her heart swell with pride for her dad as he carefully examined each of the treecat’s six paws, paying particular attention to the rear two pairs. Stephanie, Karl, and Anders had stayed back about ten meters, but Lionheart had gone ahead with her dad. Stephanie knew Lionheart was offering comfort and reassurance to the two visiting ’cats, although she also thought that by now this was more routine than necessary.

“How are they, Dad?” Stephanie asked.

“I’ll confirm my earlier assessment and say that I think these two are fully healed. They’ll be a bit pink about the pads for a while, but the new skin is good and strong.”

“So,” Anders asked, “will you be giving them a lift back to where you found them?”

Stephanie shook her head. “We talked about it, but there’s no real way to explain to them what we’re doing, so, unless they ask, we’ll let them do things their way.”

Dad had been packing up his gear while they were talking and now left the gazebo. “I’m heading in. Let me know if you go anywhere, okay?”

Stephanie nodded. “I don’t think we will for a while. As long as they’ll put up with us, we want to spend some time with the treecats.”

After Dad left, Lionheart reared up on his backmost pair of legs and signaled that the human visitors could come forward. Stephanie and Lionheart had worked out simple hand gestures for such situations within the first six T-months of their association. The signals were no more complicated than the commands that might be used in directing a herding dog-come on, stop, right, left, back up. The big difference was that in this case the “dog” used the gestures as often as did the “shepherd.”

Stephanie thought that the ease with which Lionheart and Fisher had picked up and used these gestures was proof of their intelligence, but the hard-heads kept making comparisons to how dogs, horses, and other “companion animals” could learn to respond to human commands.

The three advanced, slowing when Lionheart signaled, moving to the right so that the wind would be at their backs and give Right-Striped and Left-Striped ample opportunity to take their scents. At last, about three meters from the gazebo, Lionheart signaled for them to stop.

“That was cool!” Anders said. “I saw some of the videos that Dr. Hobbard sent my dad but it’s different to be up close and personal. Even if you-and Karl-hadn’t been here to tell me what to do, I think I could have understood what Lionheart wanted.”

Stephanie felt disproportionately pleased. She knew it was silly of her. Lionheart had worked out most of the signals himself, picking them up from her own body language, but somehow Anders’ praise felt better than anything any of the rangers or scientists had said.

They stayed in the gazebo visiting with the treecats for quite a long time. Stephanie had thought Anders might get bored. After all, it wasn’t like the three treecats were doing tricks or anything. They were just sitting watching the humans while the humans watched them. She suspected a lively conversation was going on between the ’cats, but if there was, no human would ever “hear” it.

After a while, Lionheart signaled that the humans should move on.

“I don’t blame them,” Karl said. “I mean, just how long would you want to be stared at?”

Stephanie suppressed a fleeting comment that if Anders was doing the staring, she could handle quite a bit of it.

Instead she said, “You guys want to go hiking? We could go back to the house and pack a picnic. I’m starved. Celery might be okay for the ’cats, but I want cake.”

For a moment, Stephanie thought Karl was going to decline her offer. She felt guilty that her heart actually leapt at the possibility of having Anders to herself.

But after he glanced at his uni-link, Karl said, “I’ve got lots of time. Are we going to skip target practice? This is one of our usual days.”

“We have a guest today,” Stephanie countered, aware her voice sounded a little sharp.

Anders saved the day. “No problem. I read about how Stephanie used her handgun to deal with the hexapuma that went after Bolgeo. I’ve never fired one. Maybe you could teach me, Karl. You were the one who taught Stephanie, right?”

Karl nodded. “Me and Frank Lethbridge. How about we have that picnic first? You haven’t seen how mean Stephanie gets when she misses a meal.”

Karl grinned at her and she had to fight an urge to stick out her tongue. That certainly wouldn’t impress Anders.

Karl went on. “After we eat and hike for a bit, then we could go to the shooting range we’ve set up here. That way Steph won’t skip her lessons. Dr. Marjorie says she’s gotten more and more undisciplined since she met Lionheart. She actually got an A-minus last term.”

“Hey!” Stephanie protested. “That was in advanced spatial calculus.”

The two boys laughed, but it wasn’t an unfriendly sound. Stephanie found herself coloring, but she didn’t feel bad at all.

Climbs Quickly understood the utility of the thunder barkers with which Death Fang’s Bane and Shadowed Sunlight regularly practiced, but that didn’t mean he had to like them. Not only were they loud-even with the sound-blockers Death Fang’s Bane carefully inserted into his ears-but they smelled bad.

Therefore, when there were signs that another such session was about to happen, Climbs Quickly absented himself and scampered over to the gazebo, where he found Left-Striped poking at Right-Striped’s feet.

‹ I tell you,› Right-Striped protested indignantly, ‹ my feet feel fine. I am not hiding anything from you.›

‹ Healer does seem to have done a very good job,› Left-Striped agreed.

Taking advantage of his brother’s relative helplessness, he tickled his fingers along where the new skin remained tender and uncalloused. Right-Striped wriggled free, snorting with laughter, then pounced on his twin. The two wrestled for a few minutes, then sat up and gave Climbs Quickly their full attention.

‹ I think you will be leaving soon, › Climbs Quickly said. He carefully hid his disappointment. He was very happy living with Death Fang’s Bane and her family, but he had very much enjoyed having other People nearby these last several days.

‹ Yes. We think the time has come, › Right-Striped agreed. ‹ My over-protective brother is finally convinced that I can walk on my own six feet again. It is a long journey, but with the supplies you have so kindly given us, we will be able to stay up in the trees and avoid the death fangs.›

‹ We are very grateful,› Left-Striped added.

Climbs Quickly knew that by the standards of the two-legs, the twins were departing with hardly anything. However, each had a carry-net in which was wrapped some light, nourishing food-including sun-dried meat. In addition, they each had a few long pieces of cluster stalk. Despite the drought, there was ample water in the direction in which they were headed.

‹ The Damp Ground clan needs us,› Left-Striped said. ‹ There is always so much to do when a clan relocates. With the recent fire cutting us off from one area of hunting, the more hunters and scouts, the better.›

Climbs Quickly could not disagree. Although he was sorry to see his new friends leave, he encouraged their intention, going with them for a ways, turning back only when he might otherwise be late for dinner. It wasn’t as if he couldn’t feed himself, or that Death Fang’s Bane didn’t know through their shared link that he was well, but he knew she would worry until he was back home.

He arrived to find that both Shadowed Sunlight and the new human-Bleached Fur, as he thought of him, not knowing his qualities well enough to give him a real name-had departed. Death Fang’s Bane’s mind-glow held a curious swirl of conflicting impulses. On the one hand, Climbs Quickly sensed a sorrow bordering on despondency. Mingled with this were contradictory spurts and sparks of what felt like joy or excitement. To further confuse the matter, outwardly, Death Fang’s Bane was much her usual self.

That is, until Healer said something and Death Fang’s Bane’s wild emotional state exploded into something one step short of fury.

Despite invitations to stay for dinner, both Karl and Anders said they had to get back home. Karl offered to drop Anders off. Since this meant Karl would have a longer trip home, the two boys left earlier than they otherwise might have done.

As Stephanie watched Karl’s air car becoming a vanishing dot, she found herself wishing she was going with them. Well, not really with them. She wished she was going off with Anders.

If I had my provisional license, she thought as she trailed despondently in to do some of the lessons she’d let slide, then I could have taken Anders to Twin Forks. We could have talked some more. Given how Karl kept snapping at him, I wonder if Anders will even want to hang out with me again. He might want to avoid any chance of seeing Karl.

The thought made Stephanie so miserable that she actually messed up a couple of steps in a complicated calculus problem she was working on and had to go back and re-do them.

Of course, Karl was right, Stephanie thought, trying to be fair. Anders was handling that gun unsafely-even if he had just seen it unloaded. I’ve never forgotten the story about that guy who shot a hole in his own wall while cleaning a gun he was sure was completely unloaded. Still…Karl was pretty harsh.

Thankfully, Mom called Stephanie down to dinner soon after. Stephanie hurried down, determined that at least one of her obsessions would finally be addressed. Since she wasn’t ready to talk about Anders, that meant asking her folks to schedule her for her provisional license test.

Climbs Quickly had returned and was waiting on his stool by the table, eagerly eyeing the platter of roast that Mom had just set down. Since the gazebo had been empty of treecats on her return from the firing range, Stephanie had a pretty good idea where he had been. She thought he looked a little down, so she gave him an extra large helping of the roast, taking it from the rare center.

As Stephanie spooned a very large helping of mashed potatoes onto her plate and topped them with a sea of gravy, she waited impatiently for her parents to stop discussing some bit of local politics. Interrupting was not permitted in the Harrington household, maybe because Richard Harrington’s job provided interruptions enough.

“And how was your day, Stephanie?” Mom asked. “It sounds as if it was rather busy.”

Stephanie heard the subtext. Don’t forget. You promised when we let you sign up as a provisional ranger you wouldn’t let your studies slide.

She ignored this by answering the actual question.

“It was great! Anders Whittaker turned out to be the only one of the visiting anthropological team free, but he came out and saw the mirror twins. They left today, by the way.”

Both her parents nodded and Stephanie went on. “I was thinking, my birthday is next week. To celebrate, I’d really love to go into town and get my provisional air car license.”

Unsaid was that while learner’s permits could be acquired over the net, provisional licenses required a hands-on test. The provisional license only allowed for flying only in visually safe conditions, but that was better than a learner’s permit that required a licensed pilot in the vehicle.

Dad grinned. “Can’t wait to get a bit more freedom, I see. As if hang gliding isn’t enough. Well, you’ll have to wait an extra day.”

Mom nodded, also smiling. “Your dad is right. We’ve planned a birthday party for you. We were going to bring it up after dinner. We’ve already invited Scot, Irina, and, of course, Karl. Frank Lethbridge and Ainsley Jedrusinski are also going to drop by if they can. It’s fire season, so they may not be able to get free. And we thought it would be nice if you invited some friends closer to your own age.”

They waited a moment, as if expecting Stephanie to say something. When she didn’t, Dad took over.

“The hang-gliding club meets tomorrow, so you can invite a few of the kids from that you like best. You don’t have to invite all of them, but if you choose not to, be polite about how you do issue invitations.”

“Maybe you could invite the boy who was here today,” Mom added. “Andre, was it?”

“Anders!” Stephanie corrected.

She knew she sounded too severe, but she couldn’t believe what she was hearing-and that they sounded so happy.

How could they be smiling like they’d just told her they were giving her a big treat, when they’d just told her that she couldn’t get her provisional license on her birthday? Even if they didn’t know about her jaunts with Karl, they had to know she’d been spending lots of simulator time to get ready.

Did this mean they weren’t going to agree to the provisional license after all? Both of them thought she was spending too little time on her studies lately anyhow, never mind that she still got straight A’s. Okay. An A minus. So her standing in the chess club had dropped a little, but did that matter when she was doing stuff so much more important than playing games?

Lionheart looked up from where he’d been messily devouring his slice of roast and “bleeked” very softly. Both Mom and Dad were staring at her. Stephanie strove to keep her temper.

“Anders,” she said carefully, “probably wouldn’t be able to come. He told me and Karl that his dad had set up some field tours over the next week or so.”

In her head her thoughts swirled like things of their own: That’s right. Plan a party without telling me. Make me invite a bunch of blackholes when the one person I’d really like to be there is going to be off with a bunch of grown up scientists. His dad understands that Anders is nearly grown-up. Why are you suddenly treating me like a kid?

She didn’t say any of this, but maybe something of it showed in her eyes or the set of her chin. She felt Lionheart trying to get her to calm down, but while she usually welcomed his help, this time she found herself resenting it. Here was another person trying to keep her from having her own goals and opinions!

Mom said very gently. “Well, I’m sorry Anders won’t be able to come, but there are still other people your age you could ask. We’d really like you to do this.”

Dad added. “Stephanie, you know we know you’re a remarkable young lady, but-and I admit it’s partially our fault for bringing you to Sphinx just when you were ready to get involved with group programs back on Meyerdahl-since we’ve been here, other than Karl, you don’t seem to have made any friends your own age.”

“Even Karl’s over a year older,” Mom added. “And that’s only the difference in years. Emotionally, what Karl has been through has made him much older.”

Normally, Stephanie would have jumped on this opportunity to learn more about Karl’s background, but right now she just couldn’t seem to care.

“I don’t,” she said, spacing the words so each came out like a slap, “like people my own age. They’re boring. It’s okay when we have something to do, like hang gliding, but having them over here would be horrible. Standing around talking would be hopeless. You don’t expect us to play pin-the-tail-on-the-donkey do you?”

Dad looked at Stephanie sternly. “Stephanie, don’t you see? You’re making our point for us. You’re going to need to learn to get along with people-not only of your own age, but people you find boring or annoying or whatever. You can’t go and be a hermit in the forest, not if you expect to do any good for anyone.”

Stephanie shoved her plate away, appetite suddenly gone.

“Some birthday celebration,” she said. “Instead of what I’ve been dreaming about, I get a socialization lesson.”

Mom looked very sad. On some level, Stephanie regretted what she’d said, but she couldn’t quite apologize. Dad still looked stern, which probably meant he was angry, but keeping his temper-he had one, too-under control.

“I can see,” Dad said, “that we’re past the point of discussion. We’ll talk about both the party and learner’s permit later.”

“May I be excused?” Stephanie asked, stiffly polite. “I have studying to do.”

“Of course.”

As she pushed herself back from the table and hurried to her room, her dad’s last words haunted her. He said “learner’s permit,” not “provisional license.” I can’t get a license without their permission. Is he going to stop me, after all my hard work?

Stephanie stormed into her room, stopping just short of slamming the door behind her. Instead of going to her computer, she flung herself on her bed. What’s wrong with them? Don’t they like me anymore?

She heard the door open and the soft pad-pad as Lionheart came in, shutting the door behind him. He thumped up on the bed next to her, but made no effort to touch her mood. She found herself wishing he would, even though a few minutes before the very idea had made her furious.

What’s wrong, Stephanie thought forlornly, with me?

Still troubled by the difficulties he had experienced when he had tried to help Death Fang’s Bane earlier, when his two-leg settled into her studies and some of her emotional turmoil quieted, Climbs Quickly reached across the distance to see if he could touch the mind voice of his sister, Sings Truly.

Even before he had included cluster stalk as a routine element of his diet, Climbs Quickly had possessed a powerful mind voice for a male. Despite these advantages, he still needed the help of relays from roving hunters to send his message and receive the reply.

‹ You sound troubled, Climbs Quickly. You say Death Fang’s Bane will soon be asleep? Come and meet me near the blue point trees close to where the lace leaf grows. Twig Weaver is coming to protect me. He has not forgotten that were it not for Death Fang’s Bane he would be dead-or worse.›

With this reply, Climbs Quickly had to be content. He let Death Fang’s Bane know he was going out. She hugged him tight and made mouth sounds in which he caught “Right-Striped” and “Left-Striped.” Good, then. If she thought he was going to check on the twins, she would not worry.

Bleeking gentle reminder, he pointed toward her bed and was rewarded with a laugh-and a bright flicker in her mind-glow as well. She made more mouth sounds at him, none of which he understood, but the fussing tone was clear enough. She wanted him to go enjoy himself and not worry about her. She was fine.

The long summer nights were shortening, although the sky would hold an evening glow for a long while to come. Climbs Quickly scampered up the trunk of a nearby net-wood and worked his way through a route he had traveled many times before. Even as he kept alert for possible dangers-for although death fangs did not go up into the trees, a rotten branch could be as hazardous-he was aware of Death Fang’s Bane’s mind-glow. He knew when she stopped working and felt as she drifted off to sleep.

Eventually, Climbs Quickly came to the stand of blue point trees. Soon after, Sings Truly and Twig Weaver arrived. Both had brought carry nets with them. The seeds of the blue point tree were considered a delicacy among the People. Although it was early for many to be ripe, at this late stage the cones could be picked and stored. The seeds would continue ripening.

True-hands and hand-feet busy picking the cones, the three People fell into discussion. Twig Weaver offered to close himself from the discussion, but the siblings asked him to take part.

‹ If you do not mind, that is, › Climbs Quickly added. ‹ Your different experiences may give us some new wisdom.›

Sings Truly, who as a memory singer had access to a huge volume of the shared experiences of the People, did not contradict her brother. Climbs Quickly had noticed that since she had become the clan’s senior memory singer she had been more, rather than less, likely to invite the insights of others.

Perhaps, Climbs Quickly thought, having seen the thoughts and stored memories of so many People, memories grown faint with distance and time, she has come to value the new more, rather than less.

That was an interesting thought, and he tucked it away for further consideration. For now, he needed to get what advice he could and then return to Death Fang’s Bane. Now, of all times, he did not wish to be away from her.

It was very easy to explain to the others the source of his confusion. Although Climbs Quickly was becoming convinced that the two-legs were capable of communicating complicated ideas with their mouth sounds and the markings they made, still he pitied them. Mouth sounds must come in sequence. It had taken him some time to realize that the same sounds in a different order did not mean the same thing. He despaired of ever really understanding them.

Mind-speech, however, took many forms. Although one could “talk,” framing thoughts in sequence, when an experience needed to be shared, there was no need to resort to this cumbersome form.

Now he showed Sings Truly and Twig Weaver what he had experienced from Death Fang’s Bane that evening, presenting not only the impulses he had read from her mind-glow but the larger context of her interaction with her parents. He was even able to include his own interpretations of some of the mouth noises. These were mostly names, but he felt that even this little bit would clarify that the two-legs were intelligently communicating, not bellowing as the lake builders did when warning each other across the water.

For all the complexity, this sharing took very little time. He felt Sings Truly and Twig Weaver considering, weighing against their own experiences-and in the case of Sings Truly, against the experiences of many others.

Sings Truly said, ‹ I think that because your first meeting with Death Fang’s Bane impressed you with her intelligence…›

Twig Weaver did not so much interrupt as intersperse an image of how-despite his care-Climbs Quickly had found himself discovered by the young two-leg. Certainly, Death Fang’s Bane (although, of course, she had been given no name then) had been clever to figure out how to set a snare he could not detect although he (and others of the People) had always been able to step over and around those set by her elders…

Sings Truly’s thoughts went on, ‹ Because you have always thought her intelligent and resourceful, I think you often forget that she is very young. From what we can tell, she has not reached full maturity. Although her scent is close to that of an adult, there are differences. Indeed, when I look into the memories, I see that her scent now differs from her scent when you first met her. I think she is changing.›

The thought startled Climbs Quickly. He was no memory singer, but he could summon some of his older memories. He compared them, tasted the memories that Sings Truly offered for his and Twig Weaver’s inspection. The evidence was interesting. He offered them samples of his experiences with Death Fang’s Bane over these last few days, choosing times when he had found her mind glow particularly confusing.

Twig Weaver said, ‹ I think what is happening is clear-although I do not fault you, since those who are closest do not always notice such things. Death Fang’s Bane is changing from a child into an adult. Her scent shows that certain events-such as her encounter with Bleached Fur-makes certain scents change more wildly. Perhaps two-legs are like those creatures with seasonal breeding patterns. These often become very irrational when the need to breed is upon them.›

Climbs Quickly considered. Certainly the interactions of Death Fang’s Bane and those of her peer group-especially some of the more aggressive ones-made sense if these were not only the results of hierarchical competition, but also maneuvering to breed. Didn’t the female two-leg Death Fang’s Bane disliked the most have a male who followed her attentively?

‹ You give me a great deal to consider, › Climbs Quickly said, filling the thought with gratitude. ‹ Sings Truly is correct. I do more often think of Death Fang’s Bane as a long-time adult. Many of her actions of late make sense if I reconsider them as those of an almost-adult, testing her limits. Even her anger at her parents-who I know she loves and trusts-makes sense if she is not certain whether her impulses or theirs are wisest.›

When Sings Truly replied, her mind-voice was shaded with the rueful notes of one who regularly tested established limits, sometimes limits that no one else even saw as limits until she pressed against them.

‹ So Death Fang’s Bane will need more than comfort from you. I think she rejected the soothing you offered not because she did not need it, but because she needed to find out what was the right path even more. If you are to continue as her partner, you will also need to find new ways, permit her to err, even if those errors may cause her harm.›

Twig Weaver-who alone among them was pair-bonded and whose partner, Water Dancer, was nearly as strong-willed and innovative in her own way as Sings Truly-flirted his tail in a chuckle.

‹ As someday you may learn, permitting error is the way of any close partnership. However, you, Climbs Quickly, have challenges before you that none of the People has ever known. At least People can mind-speak, but for all the brightness of her mind-glow, Death Fang’s Bane is mute and nearly deaf. You are the elder and, in this, must be the wiser as well.›