a book, and she closed the door automatically behind her without looking up from the page in front of her. She paid no attention to Lee or Susan but, still reading, walked to a comfortable chair beside a bright light, sank into it and continued to read,
Lee and Susan glanced at each other significantly. Lee shrugged. ‘Good night, mother,’ he said, ‘I’m taking Susan home.’
‘Good night, Susan/ said Mrs David without looking up.
‘ ’Night, Mrs David/ said Susan from the door.
Out in the hall, after Lee had joined her there and closed the door, Susan continued. ‘When is your father due home?’
‘Another year or so/ was the reply.
‘Oh/ said Susan. She was silent as they walked to the nearest elevator. The others had already gone, and so they were alone in the big cage as it went noiselessly down, and the girl asked, ‘Are you going to be in the space force, Lee?’
Lee shrugged irritably. ‘Now, you know it doesn’t work that way/ he said. ‘You know as well as I that each generation of officers has been a brand new group. They come volunteering into Spaceport not for a minute suspecting what they’re coming to. On the way in, they meet the children of the last generation of officers. And do you know where those children are going, Susan?’ His eyes were big and round and humorous as they
gazed into hers.
‘I can guess,’ said Susan.
‘They’re on their way out, Susan. They don’t say anything to the newcomers. They don’t want to discourage anybody, and they keep their peace whenever they’re outside. But, Susan, do you know that they don’t even like to come back for a visit.’ ‘Isn’t there some hope,’ said Susan, ‘that the outfits will change all that? In fact, haven’t they already a little bit?’ She added, ‘ 1 heard.’
‘It’s hard to tell,’ said Lee, ‘what the facts are and what the propaganda. A booter thinks nothing of twisting a truth into a half truth to fit his argument. And I hate to say it but I’ve heard outfit supporters among adults distort the picture when they’re dealing with people who are hostile to outfits.’
‘But why lie? What’s the point? The outfits are, well, just the outfits — that’s all. We exist principally because our fathers have gone off to other stars, and so we had to take care of ourselves; only now we do it in an orderly fashion. It shouldn’t amount to anything more than that. But somebody has got it into his head that it will also solve -other problems, and I guess they’ll be disappointed if that doesn’t happen.’
‘I guess we’d better start to think about that,’ said Lee. ‘Or pretty soon there’ll be an idea going around that the outfits have failed. This won’t be concerning me much longer, because I’ve only got a year and a month to go before I’m nineteen. But it’ll come up more and more if that’s what people are expecting. What we’ve got to promote,’ he analysed, ‘is what you said. We are what we are: we bring ourselves up through the difficult years. Nothing else. Nothing more.’
The elevator had come to a stop on the ground floor. The door opened, and they emerged from it and walked out into the night beyond the big plate glass doors. Outside, Lee went on, "All this is true, Susan, except once in a while a girl, a daughter of an officer, marries a particular attractive volunteer, who somehow made her forget which generation she belongs to.’
Susan made an impatient movement with her body. ‘If that remark is for my benefit, Lee David,’ she said, ‘you’re no friend of mine.’
You were the one that brought up the subject,’ he retorted. ‘Am I going to be in the space corps?’ He shook his head. ‘No, Susan, I am not. ’
They walked on into the darkness.
On the street ahead, the unseen watcher had joined Bud Jaeger, who presently turned off onto another street. The father 1 -le- pathed: As I understand it, it is forbidden for the facial orifice of a jabber to make
Lee and Susan glanced at each other significantly. Lee shrugged. ‘Good night, mother,’ he said, ‘I’m taking Susan home.’
‘Good night, Susan/ said Mrs David without looking up.
‘ ’Night, Mrs David/ said Susan from the door.
Out in the hall, after Lee had joined her there and closed the door, Susan continued. ‘When is your father due home?’
‘Another year or so/ was the reply.
‘Oh/ said Susan. She was silent as they walked to the nearest elevator. The others had already gone, and so they were alone in the big cage as it went noiselessly down, and the girl asked, ‘Are you going to be in the space force, Lee?’
Lee shrugged irritably. ‘Now, you know it doesn’t work that way/ he said. ‘You know as well as I that each generation of officers has been a brand new group. They come volunteering into Spaceport not for a minute suspecting what they’re coming to. On the way in, they meet the children of the last generation of officers. And do you know where those children are going, Susan?’ His eyes were big and round and humorous as they
gazed into hers.
‘I can guess,’ said Susan.
‘They’re on their way out, Susan. They don’t say anything to the newcomers. They don’t want to discourage anybody, and they keep their peace whenever they’re outside. But, Susan, do you know that they don’t even like to come back for a visit.’ ‘Isn’t there some hope,’ said Susan, ‘that the outfits will change all that? In fact, haven’t they already a little bit?’ She added, ‘ 1 heard.’
‘It’s hard to tell,’ said Lee, ‘what the facts are and what the propaganda. A booter thinks nothing of twisting a truth into a half truth to fit his argument. And I hate to say it but I’ve heard outfit supporters among adults distort the picture when they’re dealing with people who are hostile to outfits.’
‘But why lie? What’s the point? The outfits are, well, just the outfits — that’s all. We exist principally because our fathers have gone off to other stars, and so we had to take care of ourselves; only now we do it in an orderly fashion. It shouldn’t amount to anything more than that. But somebody has got it into his head that it will also solve -other problems, and I guess they’ll be disappointed if that doesn’t happen.’
‘I guess we’d better start to think about that,’ said Lee. ‘Or pretty soon there’ll be an idea going around that the outfits have failed. This won’t be concerning me much longer, because I’ve only got a year and a month to go before I’m nineteen. But it’ll come up more and more if that’s what people are expecting. What we’ve got to promote,’ he analysed, ‘is what you said. We are what we are: we bring ourselves up through the difficult years. Nothing else. Nothing more.’
The elevator had come to a stop on the ground floor. The door opened, and they emerged from it and walked out into the night beyond the big plate glass doors. Outside, Lee went on, "All this is true, Susan, except once in a while a girl, a daughter of an officer, marries a particular attractive volunteer, who somehow made her forget which generation she belongs to.’
Susan made an impatient movement with her body. ‘If that remark is for my benefit, Lee David,’ she said, ‘you’re no friend of mine.’
You were the one that brought up the subject,’ he retorted. ‘Am I going to be in the space corps?’ He shook his head. ‘No, Susan, I am not. ’
They walked on into the darkness.
On the street ahead, the unseen watcher had joined Bud Jaeger, who presently turned off onto another street. The father 1 -le- pathed: As I understand it, it is forbidden for the facial orifice of a jabber to make
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