“Well, whatever ze is!” said Smistria. “The bout is done, and I believe we had something else planned between the bout and dinner. Or shall I just bathe?”

“Perhaps,” Grobbard said, “as the meal will soon be—”

“No,” said Frill, getting up, “you should not just bathe. Lead the way—to your room, Smi. Don’t worry, Grobbard: based on past experience, this won’t take long . . .”

Smi glared at vem, taking vir hand, and then at Ellix, who was chuckling. Thrimon looked mortified, and Grobbard mildly annoyed.

There was a hand on Fift’s shoulder. For a moment ze didn’t know which body’s shoulder it was. Then the confusion passed: it was a dreaming body. In the skywhale of the dream, or in the dreamed blue mist? No, it was heavy and warm and real, pushing through the mists of dream, reminding zir that ze had a body, lying in bed . . .

Ze opened zir eyes.

Shria was there. Singlebodied, golden-skinned, vir unruly black eyebrows curling above vir golden-irised eyes. Earlier, the conversation with Dobroc had reminded Fift of Shria’s fifteen-year-old face. This was the same face, if in a different color scheme, and the cheekbones a little broader with Second Childhood’s growth. Though ve was no child anymore, either.

Fift sat bolt upright, flinching away from Shria’s hand. Cemerid must have already awoken and left; they were alone in the nest room.

Shria sat back. Ve was wearing, yes, a Conversationalist’s white shift. It didn’t look pretentious or pretend. It suited vem; ve was capable of anything. Zir heart throbbed.

“Hi,” ve said.

“What in Kumru’s barren genitals, Shria—do you ever knock?”

“I knocked,” ve said.

“Where’s Dobroc?” Fift said, fumbling to check the house feed. Dobroc was downstairs, of course, with Shria’s other body. Ve’d brought two! Ze dropped the connection, ze didn’t want to watch them. “Oh.”

“I miss you,” ve said.

Just like that, Fift’s breath was gone. Ze looked away. Why was ve in zir room? Because ve was Shria, of course; ve ignored—ve didn’t—ve wouldn’t—! This body’s heart, the house feed told zir, was throbbing at 134 beats per minute. Up from 64, eight seconds ago; impressive. Ze should have woken zirself up when Dobroc said that ve was coming and cleared out of here in all three bodies!

Ze closed zir eyes, slowed zir breathing, recovered zirself. Opened zir eyes again. Ve was waiting. “How’s the training with Dobroc?” ze asked.

“Amazing,” Shria said. Ve put vir hands on vir ankles, leaned forward. “I won’t say I feel the flow yet. But it’s a lot different than just watching footage, or even being in silent attendance. It’s . . . I can feel the beauty, just out of reach.”