below. Not daring the rest of the noisy climb, she froze half way up. She hoped they wouldn’t wonder why no light came through the hole. Fortunately, they seemed concerned with other matters.
“You can’t seriously think to keep me by your side day and night, all the time,” the slave, Rthan, said.
“Why not?” Brena opened the cage and released six pixies, who fluttered up to the ceiling and entered the airshaft. Seeing Dindi, they exclaimed in delight. “Hello! Hello!”
“Shhhh!” Dindi nearly dislodged herself trying to signal the winged blabbermouths to shut up.
“Oh, don’t worry Dindi,” said a Purple pixie. “Those two can’t see me .”
“Me either,” laughed a Red, landing on Dindi’s thigh, which was beginning to cramp.
“Will you come dance tonight?” asked a Yellow pixie.
“Yes, come tonight and dance by moonlight!” said the Blue pixie.
“What?” Rthan, below, sounded shocked. Brena stiffened.
Dindi smacked her hand over her face. Doomed by pixies. I might have known .
Brena accused Rthan. “Did you just ask me to dance with you?”
He looked as suspicious as she incredulous. “ You asked me to dance with you!”
“I certainly did not.”
“In the moonlight.” He grinned slyly, stepping close enough to trap her between himself and the wall. “You really do plan to stay by me day and night, hmm?”
“Just because I have to bring you with me while I instruct the Tavaedies doesn’t mean I intend to perform fertility dances with you.”
“That’s right. Blue and Yellow make Green, that’s how you dance fertility, is it? We do it differently.”
“How do you do it?” she asked, sounding almost more Initiate than widow.
Rthan leaned over her, now so close that all Dindi could see were the tops of two heads touching. “Give the word and I’ll show you.”
“Don’t forget you’re a slave,” she said. She shoved free of the wall and left the room, and he trailed after, with a deep, sexy chuckle.
Kavio
With Zumo dogging his heels, Kavio met his new charges at dawn on an open plain by the river. The men had arrived before sunrise, to bath e in the river, and then paint themselves. He himself wore no paint, nor his Zavaedi costume, just simple legwals and a leather strap for his quiver, dagger and sling. His mind already tur ned on the problem of how to re organize Yellow Bear’s army, various schemes whirling like petals on a windwheel. For all of his life, he had watched his father, as War Chief of the Rainbow Labyrinth, train and lead an army. He couldn’t help feeling like a boy with a new toy. At the same time, something bothered him about the gathered men, though he couldn’t say what.
Kavio glanced at his cousin, who had shadowed his steps down to the kraal and now stood wi th arms crossed, by his side.
Unlike Kavio, Zumo wore his full Zavaedi costume, even a headdress of feathers and otter-fur. He gestured with pleased contempt to the Yellow Bear men milling in clumps around the kraal. “Not much to fear from that lot.”
Kavio had to agree . Except for the Bear Shields, most of the men were sloppy, fat and unalert. A few were drunk. Yellow Bear warriors organized themselves the usual way, by clan and age-group . War paint on a man’s bare chest identified his clan and tribe, so it was obvious just from a glance that married men stood together with their brothers-in-law and cousins-in-law. Most of the men were at least seven years older than he. Their stares of sullen distain felt familiar to him. All his life, people had questioned his abilities. He flexed his shoulders back, perversely pleased with the challenge.
“Let’s get started,” Kavio said to the men before him. He walked down the center of the group, dragging the butt of his spear as he did. The line in the dirt divided the group in twain. “Two teams, one to either side of this line . Let me see what you’ve got. Fight.”
“Vulth o invited me to a jug of corn beer and some
“You can’t seriously think to keep me by your side day and night, all the time,” the slave, Rthan, said.
“Why not?” Brena opened the cage and released six pixies, who fluttered up to the ceiling and entered the airshaft. Seeing Dindi, they exclaimed in delight. “Hello! Hello!”
“Shhhh!” Dindi nearly dislodged herself trying to signal the winged blabbermouths to shut up.
“Oh, don’t worry Dindi,” said a Purple pixie. “Those two can’t see me .”
“Me either,” laughed a Red, landing on Dindi’s thigh, which was beginning to cramp.
“Will you come dance tonight?” asked a Yellow pixie.
“Yes, come tonight and dance by moonlight!” said the Blue pixie.
“What?” Rthan, below, sounded shocked. Brena stiffened.
Dindi smacked her hand over her face. Doomed by pixies. I might have known .
Brena accused Rthan. “Did you just ask me to dance with you?”
He looked as suspicious as she incredulous. “ You asked me to dance with you!”
“I certainly did not.”
“In the moonlight.” He grinned slyly, stepping close enough to trap her between himself and the wall. “You really do plan to stay by me day and night, hmm?”
“Just because I have to bring you with me while I instruct the Tavaedies doesn’t mean I intend to perform fertility dances with you.”
“That’s right. Blue and Yellow make Green, that’s how you dance fertility, is it? We do it differently.”
“How do you do it?” she asked, sounding almost more Initiate than widow.
Rthan leaned over her, now so close that all Dindi could see were the tops of two heads touching. “Give the word and I’ll show you.”
“Don’t forget you’re a slave,” she said. She shoved free of the wall and left the room, and he trailed after, with a deep, sexy chuckle.
Kavio
With Zumo dogging his heels, Kavio met his new charges at dawn on an open plain by the river. The men had arrived before sunrise, to bath e in the river, and then paint themselves. He himself wore no paint, nor his Zavaedi costume, just simple legwals and a leather strap for his quiver, dagger and sling. His mind already tur ned on the problem of how to re organize Yellow Bear’s army, various schemes whirling like petals on a windwheel. For all of his life, he had watched his father, as War Chief of the Rainbow Labyrinth, train and lead an army. He couldn’t help feeling like a boy with a new toy. At the same time, something bothered him about the gathered men, though he couldn’t say what.
Kavio glanced at his cousin, who had shadowed his steps down to the kraal and now stood wi th arms crossed, by his side.
Unlike Kavio, Zumo wore his full Zavaedi costume, even a headdress of feathers and otter-fur. He gestured with pleased contempt to the Yellow Bear men milling in clumps around the kraal. “Not much to fear from that lot.”
Kavio had to agree . Except for the Bear Shields, most of the men were sloppy, fat and unalert. A few were drunk. Yellow Bear warriors organized themselves the usual way, by clan and age-group . War paint on a man’s bare chest identified his clan and tribe, so it was obvious just from a glance that married men stood together with their brothers-in-law and cousins-in-law. Most of the men were at least seven years older than he. Their stares of sullen distain felt familiar to him. All his life, people had questioned his abilities. He flexed his shoulders back, perversely pleased with the challenge.
“Let’s get started,” Kavio said to the men before him. He walked down the center of the group, dragging the butt of his spear as he did. The line in the dirt divided the group in twain. “Two teams, one to either side of this line . Let me see what you’ve got. Fight.”
“Vulth o invited me to a jug of corn beer and some
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