The treadmill was spinning by itself. Mark jumped out. He set the branchwood slab down. He looked up along the trunk, but he couldn't see the down cage yet. "We'll let it run for a bit."

If Karilly could talk, would she still smile at him like this? He took her hand. "Lawri wanted you with them. You were afraid to go up, weren't you?" He had known a London Tree citizen who was afraid of falling. It was instinct gone wrong. If such a woman were born in a place like Carther States, would she be afraid all the time? Until the added terror of a fire pushed her over the edge.

"Lawri wanted me up there too. I wonder what it's like. Flying."

But the silver suit caught his eye. No.

His business in London Tree had been war. Were there copsik runners in the Clump? Karilly would know. "I wish you could talk. The Scientists can't marry us till you can say the words. The key word is yes. Will you try? Yes."

"Mark!"

He jumped. "Debby?"

She called from below. "Yeah. Shall we relieve you?"

Mark swallowed his irritation. "The empty's coming down. You want to brake when the sun's at about eleven."

"We'll do it." Debby and Jeffer climbed up to join them. "Hello, Karilly."

Jeffer said, "You didn't go flying? You should try it."

"Not me. I'm the Silver Man. I fly with the silver suit. Come on, Karilly." Maybe somebody would need muscle at the cookpot platform.

The tunnels ran through the tuft like wormholes in an apple. Unused tunnels tended to close up; but passersby ate from the foliage as they passed, so the tunnels in normal use stayed open. One such tunnel ran past Rather's home.

At its west end Rather could have circled the hut with his legs. This was the oldest section. As the spine branches migrated west along the branch, eventually to be swallowed by the treemouth, enclosures tended to shrink. The newest sections were the largest.

This disappearing section had been small when new. It had housed only Gavving and Minya and the baby Rather. Other children had come, and Gavving wove new rooms eastward, faster than the treemouth could swallow them. By now there were seven children, and a new wife for Gavving, and a far bigger common room; for the Citizens Tree populace was growing too. The original rooms had disappeared into the treemouth. These that he was passing now, wicker cages alongside the tunnel, were still less than Rather's height. The children tended to claim these for their own.

Rather found a deformed door. As he crawled inside he heard Minya saying, "Keep going, Carlot. Go to the common room and get my old matchet off the wall and bring it back. Hurry."

Harry, eight years old and Rather's height, was crying into Mishael's chest. Rather nodded to Mishael. "Second Mother. Which way did he go? Straight west?"