Baru wrenched her eyes away. The thrill felt better than a long meal with her family, a day’s joy in an instant, but it passed as quickly. She—she knew what she was and wanted what she wanted. But there were bigger things to consider, her career and her contributions to the sciences, her chances of teaching bright young girls. She would use her discipline to focus on those goals. And anyway, what could she do with Lao? Whatever they began would only end in hurt and hardship for both of them. If she cared for Lao, she would protect Lao by avoiding her.

So resolved, Baru went on to class.

But when she looked back down that corridor of koa and books, she saw Lao’s chin in Tain Hu’s hands, those dark gold eyes daring Lao, daring her, to look away, to pretend she didn’t want: and Lao laughed and laughed and yelped as Hu lifted her against the bookshelf and kissed her and the books came tumbling down like dead birds over Lao’s slim shoulders and long arms, over Hu’s bare muscle and lazy self-satisfied smile as she bent to kiss again.

A Story About Ash 2

A STORY ABOUT ASH 2

FEDERATION YEAR 910:
25 YEARS EARLIER

JEALOUSY grew out of the wound Tau had opened, the wound between themself and their friends. Jealousy skimmed over Lake Jaro like green scum.

On the north shore, in the city, they looked south and muttered resentment at the rich estates under cypress shade. Sometimes people wished, spitefully, that the rich would drink Jaro’s shit out of the lake and get sick.

Tau-indi did get sick.

They’d made an awful mistake when they let the mourning ash turn to mud. For this insincerity their trim fell open like a badly tied khanga. And the principles of the lake, listening to the wishes of the people, gave Tau the snail sickness.

It began with an itch. “It’s just a swimmer’s rash,” Abdumasi said, inspecting Tau’s naked belly. But the itch made Tau irritable, which made them impatient with Abdumasi, which made Tau-indi find excuses to go to Kindalana’s compound. And her father, Padrigan, recognized the rash on their belly.

Do you see the operation of trim? Trim drew Tau to Kindalana out of loneliness, and thus led Tau to Kindalana’s father, who perhaps saved Tau’s life.

If Tau had died everything afterward would be different. Trim makes small things like friendship important to large things like war.

“Go to your sweatroom,” Padrigan snapped. Tau knew he was afraid, for what if Tau-indi died while Tahr was away? She would never forgive Padrigan. “Go tell your housekeep that you have snails growing in you. I’ll get the antimony cup.”