Fire Season-eARC by David Weber, Jane Lindskold Page A

get along with people—not only of your own age, but people you find boring or annoying or whatever. You can’t go and be a hermit in the forest, not if you expect to do any good for anyone.”
    Stephanie shoved her plate away, appetite suddenly gone.
    “Some birthday celebration,” she said. “Instead of what I’ve been dreaming about, I get a socialization lesson.”
    Mom looked very sad. On some level, Stephanie regretted what she’d said, but she couldn’t quite apologize. Dad still looked stern, which probably meant he was angry, but keeping his temper—he had one, too—under control.
    “I can see,” Dad said, “that we’re past the point of discussion. We’ll talk about both the party and learner’s permit later.”
    “May I be excused?” Stephanie asked, stiffly polite. “I have studying to do.”
    “Of course.”
    As she pushed herself back from the table and hurried to her room, her dad’s last words haunted her. He said “learner’s permit,” not “provisional license.” I can’t get a license without their permission. Is he going to stop me, after all my hard work?
    Stephanie stormed into her room, stopping just short of slamming the door behind her. Instead of going to her computer, she flung herself on her bed. What’s wrong with them? Don’t they like me anymore?
    She heard the door open and the soft pad-pad as Lionheart came in, shutting the door behind him. He thumped up on the bed next to her, but made no effort to touch her mood. She found herself wishing he would, even though a few minutes before the very idea had made her furious.
    What’s wrong, Stephanie thought forlornly, with me?
    *   *   *
    Still troubled by the difficulties he had experienced when he had tried to help Death Fang’s Bane earlier, when his two-leg settled into her studies and some of her emotional turmoil quieted, Climbs Quickly reached across the distance to see if he could touch the mind voice of his sister, Sings Truly.
    Even before he had included cluster stalk as a routine element of his diet, Climbs Quickly had possessed a powerful mind voice for a male. Despite these advantages, he still needed the help of relays from roving hunters to send his message and receive the reply.
    < You sound troubled, Climbs Quickly. You say Death Fang’s Bane will soon be asleep? Come and meet me near the blue point trees close to where the lace leaf grows. Twig Weaver is coming to protect me. He has not forgotten that were it not for Death Fang’s Bane he would be dead—or worse. >
    With this reply, Climbs Quickly had to be content. He let Death Fang’s Bane know he was going out. She hugged him tight and made mouth sounds in which he caught “Right-Striped” and “Left-Striped.” Good, then. If she thought he was going to check on the twins, she would not worry.
    Bleeking gentle reminder, he pointed toward her bed and was rewarded with a laugh—and a bright flicker in her mind-glow as well. She made more mouth sounds at him, none of which he understood, but the fussing tone was clear enough. She wanted him to go enjoy himself and not worry about her. She was fine.
    The long summer nights were shortening, although the sky would hold an evening glow for a long while to come. Climbs Quickly scampered up the trunk of a nearby net-wood and worked his way through a route he had traveled many times before. Even as he kept alert for possible dangers—for although death fangs did not go up into the trees, a rotten branch could be as hazardous—he was aware of Death Fang’s Bane’s mind-glow. He knew when she stopped working and felt as she drifted off to sleep.
    Eventually, Climbs Quickly came to the stand of blue point trees. Soon after, Sings Truly and Twig Weaver arrived. Both had brought carry nets with them. The seeds of the blue point tree were considered a delicacy among the People. Although it was early for many to be ripe, at this late stage the cones could be picked and stored. The seeds would