:Yes, he replied. She is a friend.

But he knew she was more than that. She was the child he had once taught, who had grown into a powerful, beautiful woman…

:You think she’s beautiful, Jayim stated. His amusement deepened. You fancy her!

:No! Her face came into his thoughts and he felt a familiar admiration suddenly sharpen into longing. Shocked, he pulled away from Jayim’s mind, breaking the link.

The boy said nothing. Leiard sensed smugness again. He ignored it.

I don’t desire Auraya, he told himself.

I’m afraid you do, another voice in his mind disagreed.

But she is young.

Not so young anymore.

She is a White.

All the more reason to desire her. The attraction of the forbidden is a powerful force.

No. Jayim has put the idea into my head. I do not desire her. Next time I meet Auraya I will feel just as I did before.

We’ll see.

Opening his eyes, Leiard saw that Jayim was watching him expectantly.

“Your secret is mine,” the boy said.

“There is no secret,” Leiard said firmly. “You proposed an idea I hadn’t considered. Now I have, and I believe you are wrong.”

The boy looked away and nodded, but he was obviously holding back a smile. Leiard sighed.

“Why don’t you fetch some hot drinks from your mother. We’ll have a rest, then begin again.”

Jayim nodded, then scrambled to his feet. Leiard watched him hurry away.

They say to teach a student is to be taught yourself. I only hope Jayim’s lesson proves to be wrong.

If I had known how soon the next Gathering was going to be, Tryss thought, I would never have made Drilli that promise.

The day after the trei-trei, the Speakers had announced that a Gathering would be held in four days. Drilli believed that they wanted to warn everyone about the birds, and Tryss figured she was probably right. That had left him little time to ready himself for presenting his harness. Now that the day of the Gathering had arrived, he could think of a thousand things he still needed to do, and another thousand that could go wrong.

He’d done all he could do in the short time he’d had. He’d practiced using the harness and blowpipe every day, avoiding duties at home and ignoring the scolding he’d received in return. His father’s disapproval lacked conviction, however, since Tryss always brought back meat for their dinner.

He could not bring back all of the animals he’d killed, however. It would have drawn too much attention to himself too early. Though he had managed to bring down another yern, he hadn’t dared carry back meat from such a large beast. Leaving it to the scavengers was the only option, and that had dampened his elation at his success.