Hands on her back and shoulders and a warm flank pressed against hers. Toxte cupped her face in his hands and made her look at him. He shook his head, denying the emotions he knew she was gripped by and then he kissed her, gently, almost chaste. Almost. It sent a spear of sudden want through her, and it stopped dead the treacherous whirl of her thoughts. Toxte twitched as the spirit-magic pulled him further under, and she put her hand over his on her cheek and kissed him back, fixing his spirit in his flesh by running her other hand down his chest.

Toxte sighed against her mouth and leant back and she grinned at his obvious delight. Movement opposite them and she saw Lilla sitting cross-legged and eating his breakfast. He winked and she blushed again – seemingly the only thing her face could do this morning. Which was ridiculous after the last two weeks, during which she’d spent more time kissing Toxte than she had signing with him.

‘Let me guess,’ Lilla signed with his mouth full of food, ‘you’re going to bring up yours and Tayan’s stupid plan again.’

Xessa stuck out her tongue at him. ‘It’s a good plan.’

‘It’s the stupidest thing either of you have ever come up with. And that’s saying something.’

‘This sounds promising,’ Toxte interrupted. ‘Let’s do it.’

‘You don’t even know what it is,’ Lilla protested.

Toxte waved his hand in airy dismissal. ‘Mere details,’ he signed and grinned at Xessa and there were hummingbirds charging around in her stomach. She smiled back, but then Lilla threw a stick at them and forced them to pay attention.

‘The idiot in front of you and the idiot wandering around Pechacan want to catch a Drowned for study,’ he signed. ‘They’ve got it all planned out, with just one problem: the council won’t allow it because of what happened last time it was attempted. Which shows they’re not idiots,’ he added pointedly.

‘That was ten Star cycles ago,’ Xessa protested.

‘Sixty-three people died,’ Lilla signed.

Xessa shifted, uncomfortable and suddenly aware that Toxte’s opinion of her could be about to plummet. She watched him from the corner of her eye: his mouth had dropped open and a profusion of twitches rippled through his cheek. Then he sucked his lower lip into his mouth and stared into the distance. He was thinking about it. That was his thinking face; she knew it well.

Xessa raised her eyebrows at Lilla and now it was his mouth hanging open in shock.

‘It’s past time we tried again,’ Toxte signed. ‘Every eja I’ve spoken to wants to try it. What happened in our ancestors’ time wouldn’t happen again. We’ve learnt from those mistakes.’