From: elf@halcyon.com (Elf Sternberg)
Newsgroups: alt.sex,alt.sex.stories,alt.prose
Subject: Journal Entry 188 / 0916  [ Travellogue, Day 6 ] (part 2)
Date: 22 Apr 1993 09:29:36 -0700
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     Travellogue 188 / 0916  (continued...)

     They walked back to find the Lagoon a mass of activity; about two
dozen people of all shapes, sizes, colors and species splashed in the
lagoon enthusiastically.  "Nickolai!  Jofuran!" a voice called from the
water.  "Hi!  Come on in!"  Nickolai recognized it as Skii.  He walked
to the edge of the lagoon and said "How cold is it?"

     "It's not bad.  Come on in!"

     Nickolai looked over at Furry, who smiled and shrugged.  He nodded,
stripped off his clothes and jumped in.  "Don't go too close to the
SDisk," Skii warned as he swam over.  "You could appear in the Castle,
dry and naked."  Skii glanced Nickolai over and said, "Then again, that
might not be such a bad thing."

     Nickolai blushed at the uncommon compliment and said, "Sorry, Skii,
but I'm pretty taken right now."

     "Yes, I see.  You both seem rather taken with each other.  Are you
enjoying your visit to Pendor?"

     Nickolai nodded, grinning wide.  "A lot," he offered.

     "Good!" the Felinzi replied.  "Oh, by the way, if you were to jump
into the SDisk down under right now, it would take you to the Castle
pool on the roof."

     Nickolai waved at him as a pair of arms wrapped around his
shoulders and legs about his waist.  "Hi," said a sultry but familiar
voice behind him.

     "Hi," he replied, reaching back under the water to run his fingers
along Furry's thigh.

     "What was that all about?" she asked.

     "I think he made a pass at me," he replied.

     "Really?  Did you take him up on it?"

     "No; I want to spend my time with you."  A sudden thought struck
him and he said, "Is there something wrong with that?"

     "No, no.  I'm glad you want me."

     "I'm also not into men that much," Nickolai replied thoughtfully.

     "So, if Skii had been a femFel you would've accepted?" she asked.

     "No," he replied.  "Just sorting out a few things."

     She cuddled him closer and said, "Am I one of those things?"

     "Yeah," he admitted.  "Sometimes I still think I'm in over my head.
This whole trip has been one long dream, and I worry I'm going to wake
up soon."

     "You're really going to hurt when you leave for Terra, aren't you?"

     "Yeah," he admitted.

     "Me too.  I'm getting cold.  Wanna get out?"

     "You're only cold because you aren't exercising," he said.

     "I did enough of that about an hour ago," she joked.  A sudden
bright orange flash distracted both of them; someone had lit a large
fire on the shore, apparently for cooking.  "Dinner," she said.

     "This is the part I really don't believe," he said.

     "What?"

     "I'm really going to sit down with Ken Shardik at a family picnic?"

     "You really are," she said.  "I don't believe it much, either."

     "I feel like I'm in a Greek play, or a Norm Henderson novel."

     "You mean the kind of story where the main character is sitting at
a bar or something and a god walks in and changes the course of his
life?"

     "Yeah."

     "Well, it apparently is going to happen," she said, gently nipping
on his ear.  The sensations made him shiver worse than the cold water.
"I'm getting out."

     "Me too," he said, following her to the shore.  "Hi!" said a golden
femFelinzi standing on the sand.  Nickolai watched her carefully,
surprised by how calm and assured she seemed to be, as if nothing could
perturb her.  "Need a towel?" she asked.

     "Please," Furry said.  As if from nowhere, the femFel tossed two
towels from behind her back and said, "Here you are.  I'm M'Ress, by the
way."

     "Jofuran Shigokai," Furry said as she toweled off.  Nickolai seized
the towel from her and proceeded to dry her off himself.  "And Mr.
Subtle here is Nickolai Dittrich."

     "Hello," Nickolai managed to say, still racking in his brain the
number of dei he had met so far.

     "Well, I've got to get moving," M'Ress said, "More people coming
out from the cold.  Don't let Paul make your hamburgers."

     "Paul?" Furry asked.

     "Big Centaur over there.  He likes horseradish- started the
tradition in fact."  The Felinzi stuck out her tongue, completely out of
character with the nine-century of age Nickolai knew her to have.  He
followed her with his eyes as she walked along the beach.

     "Let's go eat," Furry said.  They wandered over to the barbecue,
where the "big Centaur" M'Ress had pointed out to them was serving
dinner.  "What'll ya have?"

     "A hamburger," Furry said.

     "And you?" Paul asked.

     "The same.  With no horseradish," Nickolai replied, not quite sure
what a "hamburger" was.

     "Ress!" Paul shouted over his shoulder.  The Felinzi wandered over
from the shoreline and waited.  The Centaur looked down at her and with
a voice as if he were a teacher correcting a student said, "Are you
telling lies about me, dear heart?"

     "Only in your best interest, Paul."

     "My best interest does not include implying that I would poison
friends of the Castle."

     "Paul, horseradish is a vile substance, but it is hardly a poison. 
We're not discussing putting chocolate on the open table.  Besides," she
smiled, "You're going to burn Nickolai's burger."

     "Yikes!" the Centaur exclaimed, grabbing the piece of meat with a
wide-paddled pair of tongs and sliding it between two bits of bread.
"Here ya go," he said, "Vegetables and stuff over there."  He pointed
with the tongs.

     Nickolai wandered over to the table Paul had indicated and watched
what Furry put on hers, to make sure he put the right things on his.
"Furry," he asked as they met at the end of the table, "What is this I'm
going to be eating?"

     "Hamburger.  Ground beef."

     "Beef?" he asked.  "As in cows?"

     "Yeah, as in cows," she replied.  "Why, haven't you ever had beef
before?"

     "Not often," he admitted.  "It's too expensive."

     "Really?" she asked.  "Wow.  Never thought of it that way.  Not a
big fan of meat myself, but it'll do in this case."  She smiled and
said, "There is some meat I've grown fond of recently."

     "What's that-" Nickolai asked before catching the joke.  "Very
funny."

     She grinned wide.  "So, where do you want to sit?"

     "What's that over there?"

     "Looks like a chess game," she said.  "Let's go see."  They
wandered over to where Shardik and a femVulpin sat at opposite ends of
chess board dyed into a large blanket; despite the soft and variable
quality of the sand the blanket sat on, none of the pieces on the board
seemed inclined to tip over.  Nickolai guessed that the board was about
two metres on a side.

     "Hi, kids," Shardik said.  "Meet my opponent and daughter, the
lovely Molinar Shardik.  Molly, this is Furry, and this is Kolya.
They're visiting."

     The Vulpin looked up just long enough to smile and wave, then went
back to examining the chess set.  Shardik said, "She's a Cyon Fox; you
can tell by the width of the head and the slant of the eyes.  It's very
distracting."  He smiled for a second, then said, "It doesn't help that
she's not wearing anything.  Sorry, sometimes I get a little egotistical
about my work, and like to point out the subtleties.  She seems to have
me in a bind, kids.  Her delay's just for show; she knows she has me in
three moves."

     "Your move was a little unexpected, Dad," the fox replied.  "I
still have checkmate in three moves.  You can consult with your friends
if you want."

     "Nickolai?  Are you from Russia, then?" Shardik asked.  "I
understand it's very chic to resurrect traditional names nowadays."

     "That fad hadn't quite hit when I was born..." Again, he bit down
on a 'sir.'  "Ken.  I'm afraid I was born of American parents at Saman
Facility number eleven in Kansas."

     "Oh, well.  I was hoping you might also be a fan of their
traditional sport.  And you, Miss Shigokai?"

     "I was born at Tangent Arcology," she smiled.  "But I do know a
good bit of chess; an Israeli gardener named Imahd and I used to play
quite often."

     "You've been to Israel, then?"

     "Yes..."  Nickolai laughed as he watched her do the same thing he
had.  "I spent ten years there."

     "How old are you, if you don't mind my asking?"

     "Sixteen."

     "Then you moved there when you were six, seven, right?"

     "Uh-huh."

     "Wow.  Welcome home, my dear."  His whole demeanor seemed to soften
in Nickolai's eyes.  There was something profound in the way he treated
Furry, in the way he treated everyone.  "How do you like it?"

     "I know I'm never going back to Terra again."

     "Don't say that.  Maybe you'll want to go back someday.  It won't
be so bad then, after the bad memories have faded.  Then again, maybe
they won't.  Childhood cruelties are the worst to forget."

     Furry nodded.

     "Sit, sit down.  You're burgers are getting cold."  They sat down
in the sand, and Furry leaned over and whispered something into
Shardik's ear.  He looked a little startled for a moment, then said,
"You think so?"

     "It'll at least defuse her present strategy."

     The fox looked up from the blanket and said, "Queen to King's
Bishop six."  The black queen lifted as if of it's own violition and
moved to the suggested square.

     Shardik paused for a second, countered the move, apparently with
Furry's suggestion because the calm composure of the fox seemed to
crumble.  "Didn't see that move, did ya, Molly?"

     The fox looked over at him and said, "No, I didn't.  Furry, was it?
Are you going to be here tomorrow?"

     "I'm afraid not," Furry replied.  "We're walking back to Rocchodain
tomorrow morning."

     "If you stay long enough for a round of Chess, I'll fly you there
on Dragonback."

     Furry looked over at Nickolai, who gave a wide-eyed "I don't know"
gesture.  "Very well," Furry said, "I accept."

     "Quite a challenge there," Shardik said to Furry.  "Molly's been
know to defeat AI's with surprise strategies."

     "I'll take that as a dare," Furry said, smiling to the fox.
Molly's return smile was open, yet self-assured.

     The game progressed, and Shardik eventually won, with Furry's help.
"Thank you," he said afterwards.  "That was the first game I've won in
nearly a decade."

     "Then why do you play?" Furry asked around a mouthful of potato
salad.

     "To provide amusement for other people.  Besides, incompetent
people like me often come up with unpredictable results."

     After they had eaten, Shardik piled all the chess pieces and the
blanket into a denim sack and threw it over his shoulder.  "Come on,
let's all go inside.  It's getting a little chilly."  As they began
walking towards the lagoon and the SDisk, a femTindal walked up from
over by the barbecue and said "Ken!  Molly!"

     "Mom!" Molly replied, turning.

     "P'nyssa!" Ken shouted back.  "Just a second," he told the three he
had been talking to.  "Where've you been?"

     "I'm sorry, beloved," she said, walking up and wrapping her
tentacles around him.  "But I've been wrist-deep in a case all
afternoon, and I couldn't close until just about an hour ago."

     "So, how's the case?"

     "He'll live," she offered, giving Molly a tight hug.  "Just won't
be able to sit down comfortably for a few days, maybe a week.  I did
good today.  Who are your friends?"

     "P'nyssa, these are Furry and Kolya.  They walked up the 'March
this afternoon."

     "Really?" she asked.  "Nice to meet you."  She extended a mitt,
which Nickolai shook calmly.  He was almost getting used to meeting all
these people who had just been names in history books.  "I'm dead,
beloved," she said, turning back to Shardik.  "Do you think you or Aaden
could give me a rub?"

     "Probably," he said, smiling.  "Come on."  The five of them dove
into the water, and they re-appeared in the Castle, warm and dry.
"Dave, can you find a room for the kids here?"

     "Of course," a voice that seemed to come from nowhere replied.
Nickolai realized he was hearing David Majors, the AI of Castle Shardik.
"The room across hallway Y is open."

     "The one next to mine on the North wall?"

     "Yes," the AI replied.  "Is that a problem?"

     "Not at all," Shardik replied.  "Come on, I'll show you where it
is."  He lead them down the hallway, made a right, down another hallway,
and they came to a 'T' in the hallway.  At the end of the hallway they
were walking down was a large window that faced out over Marbletop
ridge; to the left was a single door, to the right the hallway stretched
down apparently the length of the castle.  To Nickolai's immediate right
was a heavy steel door of airlock construction.  There were two symbols
on it; a five-square checkerboard, and a yellow triangle.  The nameplate
by the side read "David Majors."  Shardik pointed down the long hallway
and said, "First door there on the left is yours.  That door there is
mine.  Once you get settled in, feel free to stop by.  I'm sure Molly
will want to talk chess."

     "Dad," the fox said quietly.

     "Okay, sweetheart, I'll stop teasing you.  It's just that that's
the first time I've ever beaten you."

     "With help," she reminded him playfully.  "I can't wait to face her
off.  We'll use the big board."

     "You mean the one we were using on the beach?" Furry asked.

     "That's the medium one," Shardik said.  "The big one uses as big a
chunk of Marbletop as we can fit a square on."

     "Wow," Furry said, her eyes lighting up.  "I think we'll go settle
into our room now."

     "Stop by," Shardik said.

     "We will," Furry promised.  They walked down the hallway and took
the room Shardik had pointed out to them.

     They walked into what looked like a comfortable guest-room.  "I
don't believe this," Nickolai said, sitting down on the couch and
holding his head between his hands.

     "Don't believe what?" Furry asked.

     "I don't believe that I'm spending the night in Shardik Castle.  I
have to call my mother."

     "Do you?"

     "Yeah, I do.  Mr. Majors?"

     "Please call me Dave," the mellifluous voice replied.  "What can I
do for you?"

     "Can you locate my mother?"

     "I can; she is presently in her cabin at Arc Tangent.  Would you
like me to place a visual call?"

     "Please."

     A screen appeared, hanging in the air before him.  It cleared after
a moment, and his mother appeared on it.  "Kolya!" she said.

     "Hello, Mother."

     "Where are you, Kolya?  I have been worrying about you all day.
You did not show up for the tour.  I was sick!"

     "I'm okay Mom.  I'm spending the day with friends."

     "What kind of friends do you have on Pendor?" she asked
suspiciously.

     "I'm at Shardik Castle, Mom."

     "Do not joke with me, Kolya.  We were told at the travel agency
that Shardik Castle was private property; we weren't allowed to go near
it."

     "Unless we were invited, Mom."

     "Invited?  By whom?"

     "Excuse me," Dave said quietly, "But I invited them here."

     "And who are you, that you do not appear on the screen?"

     "My name is David Majors Shardik, Mrs. Dittrich, and I am the AI of
Shardik Castle."

     Apparently, invoking Shardik's name had a great effect on his
mother.  She calmed visibly.  "You be careful, Kolya.  Be very careful
there.  Is that girl with you?"

     Nickolai decided not to lie.  "Yes, Mom, she's here.  Want to speak
to her?"

     "No!  Just reminding you to take care."

     "I will, Mom.  I just wanted to make sure you knew I was okay."

     "Well, now I know how okay you are.  Take care, Nickolai."

     "I will, Mom.  G'night."  The screen went dark.  He felt quite sure
that she didn't think he was "okay."  And for some reason, he had
similar feelings.

     "Furry?" he asked.

     She looked up from the terminal she had been staring at.  "Yeah?"
she said quietly.

     "Why are we here?"

     She looked around for a moment.  "I don't know," she admitted.
"I've been trying to figure that out myself.  Lex didn't stop us, Dave
didn't stop us.  Shardik has been a lot friendlier than I would have
expected.  Molly... She invites us on a Dragonride.  Skii seemed to be
nice to you.  And that was Paul Lewis who served us dinner!"  She shook
her head.  "Maybe the press has got it wrong."

     "Or maybe we're a special case?" he asked.

     "There is one solution.  David."

     "Dave, please, Jofuran.  May I call you Furry?"

     She smiled.  "Of course, Dave.  You know, I'm starting to really
like that nickname again.  Dave, why are we here?"

     "Because you walked here from Rocchodain."

     "That's not what I meant."

     "I know.  As an AI, I can't tell you many of the details; I warned
Ken that you would be attempting to reach Shardik Castle by the Spinward
March and that Sean Majors had requested that you be permitted to visit
the Castle.  Ken and I had nearly half an hour of conversation, much of
it facilitated by biocybernetics, so even if I were permitted to reveal
the particulars much of it would be meaningless.  The end result was
that Ken said 'It would be nice to have visitors,' and arrangements were
made for you.  Arrangements that were conditional on your not disrupting
household events.  So no special conditions were made on the evening
dinner, or the swim, and no one went out of their way to occupy your
time prior to the evening meal.  I take it your walk down the beach was
refreshing?"

     Furry shot a look at Nickolai, who tried and failed to suppress a
smile.  "It was enjoyable," she told the computer.

     "Good," Dave said.  "I'd also like to repeat that Ken's offer that
you visit him tonight is mostly unconditional.  He doesn't want you to
come over if you don't feel up to it.  He does want you to visit if you
want, at least before most of the household goes to bed.  He usually
does around six."

     "Late sleeper," Furry commented.  "So," she said, turning to
Nickolai, "Want to go visit Ken Shardik in his home?"

     A dozen reasons why he shouldn't ran through his mind before he
said, "Sure."  Even as he said it, he felt the weight of decision
removed from him.  To be replaced with the weight of responsibility.

     "I've taken the liberty, if you don't mind, of providing you with
suitable clothing," David interrupted their conversation.  "The clothing
you've been wearing is a little dirty."

     Nickolai sniffed himself and agreed.  "Where?" he asked the air,
not sure where to look.

     "They are in the dresser next to the bed."

     "Great," Nickolai said.  "Where's the bed?"

     "Downstairs, silly," Furry said.  "Come on.  And Dave, while were
here, please open the window."

     "How's this?" the AI answered as the window seemed to vanish,
replaced with the gleaming view of Marbletop.  Looking to his left,
Nickolai could see the ocean; to his right the forest of Rocchodain
stretched, the mountain range being mostly what he could see.  The less
topographical part of the forest, he knew, was to the south of the
Castle.

     "Perfect," Furry said.  "Come on," she said to Nickolai, jumping
down the hole in the floor.  He followed her to the bedroom, which had a
large bed of wooden construction, a dresser, a desk, and a door leading
to the bathroom.  Furry disappeared into the bathroom for a moment, and
as she came out, she was holding a small grey sphere with a handgrip
extending tangentially from it.  "Look what I found," she said with a
mischievous tone.

     "What is it?"

     "The famous Shardik Castle showerhead."  She blushed suddenly and
returned to the bathroom.  While she was in there, he dug through the
dresser to find the clothes Dave had indicated.  He found a pair of
cotton pants, slippers that enclosed his entire foot, a t-shirt and a
grey overshirt.  He shrugged and put them on; he was no longer surprised
that they fit perfectly.  With AI's watching his every move, he figured
they had his every measure.  His choices were to become paranoid about
it or ignore it, and everybody around him seemed comfortable with the
second choice.

     Furry returned from the bathroom and dressed quietly.  "Furry?" he
asked.  "Something wrong?"

     "No," she said, shaking her head and lying to him.

     "What's wrong?"

     "Nothing," she insisted.

     He stepped over to her and hugged her close.  "Tell me what's
wrong."

     "I..." She hesitated.  "I almost asked you to watch me use the
showerhead."

     "That sounds like fun," he said with enthusiasm.

     "Kolya, I've never... masturbated in front of anyone.  I was
embarrassed.  Isn't that silly of me?"

     "I've never done it when anyone was watching either.  Want to try
it later?"

     "I don't know," she said quietly.  "I don't think I could."

     "Never know until we try," he said.

     "You're really interested, aren't you?" she asked.

     "Of course.  Furry, you're beautiful.  Why would I be upset
watching you masturbate, especially for me?"

     She smiled and said, "You wouldn't be upset?"

     "At what?" he asked, laughing.  He kissed her on the forehead and
said "You worry too much, sweetheart."

     She looked up at him with wide, open eyes and said, "Call me that
again."

     "What?"

     "Sweetheart.  That's the first time you've ever called me that.  Do
it again."

     "Okay, sweetheart," he said, kissing her forehead again, then her
nose, her chin.  He shifted to the left and kissed the inside of her
ear; she shivered.  "How's that, sweetheart?" he whispered.  She sighed.

     "Perfect," she whispered back, her eyes closed.  "Come on, let's go
visit Shardik."

     "It all seems so easy," he said as they separated and he pulled the
t-shirt on.

     "What?" she asked.  "Nice shirt, by the way."

     "Huh?"  He looked down.  The shirt was blue, printed with what
appeared to be a grid on it.  Across the top and down the side were the
names of the Pendorian Species; at the far right and at the bottom were
the words "Terran Human."  Each cell of the grid held a number
represented as a percent.  At the top of the shirt were the words
"Genetic Diversity" and at the bottom "Discrimination doesn't stand up
to the numbers."  The percentages were all in the 90%-100% range.  The
lowest percentage rate was 94%, and _that_ one was comparing a Dragon
to a Dolphin.  The back of the shirt read, "If you prick us, do we not
bleed?  If you tickle us, do we not laugh? - Wm. Shakespeare, The
Merchant of Venice, Act III, scene i, line 60"

     "This is a neat shirt," Nickolai admitted.  "I wonder if I'd be
allowed to keep it."

     "You may," Dave replied.

     "Really?" Nickolai asked.  "Thanks.  I meant, being here.  I still
feel like I was supposed to go through some sort of trial to get to
Shardik Castle.  We walked through the back door."

     She smiled and hugged him; her t-shirt, he noted, was rather more
mundane: a concert shirt from the Madhsenger Consort, one of the few
musical groups to be popular on both Pendor and Terra.  "Come on," she
said.  "Let's go."

     They walked together to Shardik's door.  "Do we knock?" Nickolai
asked.  Furry rolled her eyes and said, "Dave, we're here."

     The door opened.  "Come in, come in," they heard from within.  They
walked in to find Shardik and Molly staring at each other over a holo
game.  "Just a sec," Shardik said.  He held a joystick in each hand;
Nickolai couldn't see what it was they were playing, but it ended
quickly with Shardik cheering.  "Gotcha," he said to the Vulpin across
the table.

     "Hiya, kids, come in, sit down.  Can I get you anything?  I've even
got icecream."  He smiled wide; Nickolai's anxiety level was screaming
into the ceiling.  He felt very uncomfortable.  He shook his head.  "Not
even an iced tea or something?"

     Furry finally relented and said, "I wouldn't mind some icecream."

     "How about a float?"

     "That'll do," she said, grinning.  He rose and wandered into a
kitchen set behind a bar on the innermost wall.  "Nickolai, Molly?"

     "I need to preserve my foxy figure," the Vulpin replied.  Shardik
laughed.  "Oh, hell with it, Dad.  Give me a Shardik special."

     "You're sure?"

     "Yeah."  He smiled and disappeared behind the counter, returning
with two glass bottles, then again with cardboard cylinders.  He
proceeded to mix and match sodas and icecreams, coming out a few minutes
later with glasses for Furry and Molly, then returning for the others
for himself and Nickolai.  He sat down in a large leather chair to the
right of the large couch, and offered the couch to the two.  "You're
probably wondering what you're doing here."

     "I was," Furry offered.

     "I'm sure you're friend there was as well."

     Nickolai nodded.

     "Good.  You're curious... that's a survival trait, you know.
Curiosity may well have killed the cat, but it was satisfaction that
brought him back.  Okay, here's the scoop.  No, wait, I think I'm going
to reveal a secret of the universe to you first.

     "You know you how think?" he asked.  "You know how, when you want
to judge how someone else will do something, anything, and you have no
data on how they've acted in that situation before, what do you fall
back on?"

     There was a pause.  Furry spoke finally, saying, "What other people
did in that situation?"

     "That works for historically familiar situations, like battlefield
conditions.  Sure you can fall back on statistics, but what do you
really do?"

     Nickolai racked his brains, trying to figure the answer and what
Shardik was driving at.  Finally, something clicked.  "What you would
do."

     "What I would do?" Shardik asked, surprised.

     "No, what, well, what I would do."

     "Good!  Right!  Okay, I bet you two assumed that I get lots of
potential visitors every day."  They both nodded.  "I don't," he said.
"Humans are told that, one, they don't know how to use the SDisksystem
and two, I don't want visitors.  Pendorians are told the second anyway. 
So I don't get many uninvited visitors.  You're the first ones to try in
about eight months.  The last time I had visitors, I treated them the
way I'm treating you.  But there's a difference this time.

     "You see, you made that assumption because your brain's operating
system said 'everybody else would be trying too.'  But they're not.
This is going to sound kind of silly, but there are two kinds of people.
There are people who give a damn, and there's everybody else.  You know,
Furry, your father made the trek here a couple of centuries back."
Nickolai saw Furry's look of surprise.  "Yes, he did.  I'm glad to see
his daughter has the same drives.

     "Basically, I'm just glad you two are here; it shows me that both
Terra and Pendor have people out to make a difference, who want to get
offworld and see the sights, who want to go places nobody else is
supposed to go.  So I'll tell you what... You can keep that room across
the hall for the next week or so."

     "Sir?" Furry said, surprised.

     "I believe you heard me.  You're welcome to stay in my home for the
next six days.  Both of you.  Come and go as you please.  Visit with the
family.  Play with the kids.  I hope you don't mind if we draft you one
night for babysitting?"

     Neither one moved.  Nickolai was still stunned by the offer.
"Good," Shardik continued.  "Dave, make it so."

     "Already done.  SDisk lockout is off for both of them."

     "Which means," Shardik continued, "That you have access to the
Castle, to Monastery Island... that's about it.  Two SDisks you couldn't
use before."  He smiled.  "Hey, don't worry.  You're safer here than
almost anywhere else on the Ring.  Well?"

     "I... I don't understand," Nickolai hesitated.

     "What's not to understand?" Shardik asked.

     "I think, father," Molly interrupted, "That you've stunned both of
them."

     Shardik turned back to the fox.  "Think so?"

     "Ken," Furry said slowly, "Can I call my father?"

     "Sure," Shardik replied.  "Dave?"

     A Screen came up in front of Furry; she paused a second until her
mother's image resolved on the screen.  "Mom?"

     "Jofuran!  Hello, dear, how've you been?"

     "Mom, I'm at Shardik Castle."

     Furry's mother blinked for a second.  "Really?"

     "Yes, Miss Shigokai," Shardik said, stepping behind Furry.  "I've
invited the two of them to be my guests for the next two weeks, with
your permission."

     Furry's mother looked up and said, "If you can assure their
safety," she said.

     "I can as long as they're on my property."

     "That's fair.  Very well.  I'll inform my mate when he awakes.
Thank you for calling."

     "It was my pleasure," Shardik replied.  "Good night."

     "Good night, Father."  The screen went dark.

     "Dave," Shardik said, "Is Miss Dittrich available?"

     "She is," the AI responded.

     "Connect me with her, if she would allow."

     The screen tilted slightly; the image resolved into his mother.
"Good evening, Miss Dittrich.  I am Kennet Shardik."

     "Good evening... sir," she replied slowly.  "How can I help you?"

     "I wanted to call you to assure you that Nickolai is quite alright;
I have invited him to be my guest for a short while, if you don't mind."

     "For how long?" she asked, still not recovered from her surprise.

     "Until you board the cruise liner back to Terra.  Until then he has
free use of both the SDisk system and my house.  I must ask, however,
that you not reveal this to any of your fellow travel guests."

     "Uh, uh, yes, I will do that.  Thank you."

     Shardik smiled slightly and said, "You're welcome.  Good night."
He waved his hand and the screen dissolved.  He muttered something under
his breath; Nickolai thought it sounded like "sheep."

     "So," he said, quietly, looking up, "What can I do for you two
until tomorrow?  Need anything?  I'm afraid my mates have gone to bed;
both were very tired."  He shrugged and said, "So?"

     Nickolai and Furry turned towards each other.  Nickolai thought she
looked like he felt; 'stunned.'  He turned back to Shardik and said,
"There isn't anything we need..."  And _again_ he bit down on a 'sir.'
"We'd just like to go to bed."

     "Well, feel free," he said, with a small smile.  "I'll see you
tomorrow.  And if not, well... whenever."

     They both stood and walked out of the room quickly, leaving their
untouched milkshakes on the table.  As the door shut behind them,
Nickolai turned to Furry and said, "I've said this before, but... I
don't believe this!"

     "You're not the only one," Furry said, her eyebrows inching up
towards her ears.

     "Something's up," Nickolai said.  "What was all that about there
being two kinds of people?"

     "I don't know," she said.  "I wish I did.  Do you think, maybe,
it's a test?"

     "What do you mean?"

     "Well, how often do you hear about Terran/Pendorian love affairs?"

     "A lot."

     "Not lust.  Love.  Remember, on Terra, people fall in love because
they want to have kids, but they can't have kids with Pendorians.  When
was the last time _this_ happened," she said, gesturing between them as
they walked into their room.

     "Oh.  Not a lot, really."

     "Do you love me?"

     "Yes.  What kind of question is that?" he asked.

     "It's important.  I think... I think he's watching us."

     "For what?"

     "To see if it works.  To see if Humans and Pendorians are really
ready to get along."

     "Terrans hate Pendor today more than ever," he pointed out.

     "You don't" she said, shyly.  Nickolai worried he may have
frightened her.  "What if..." she continued.  "What if he's ready to
give Terra what it really wants."

     "What?"

     "In vivo Saman transfer."

     Nickolai blinked and said, "You think so?"

     "It's possible.  Why not?  What else could he offer?"

     "And we're to prove that it can work?" he asked.

     She nodded her head.

     Nickolai thought about it for a second, then reached out for her
hands, took them.  "Furry, I'm not a test animal.  If he wants me to
stay in his house, fine.  Babysit his kids once, fine.  But I'm not
going to act any differently towards you because of what he wants."

     "I don't think he wants you to act any differently.  That's the
point," she said.

     "But I would anyway if I cared.  I don't.  Look, in vivo Saman
transfer isn't going to do me any good, I'm already born.  I want you."

     She blushed gently; her nose darkened, her ear tips lowered gently.
"I was hoping you'd say that," she said, kissing him.  "Nickolai, I love
you."

     "Furry," he said, swallowing hard.  "If I had the right, I'd walk
the Hall for you."

     "No," she said sharply.  "I don't want you to.  I want you just the
way you are."

     He nodded, pulling her close.  "Let's go downstairs."  They floated
down to the bedroom, where they began a slow, almost magickal ritual of
taking off each other's clothing; as their fingers crossed over each
other's body their eyes would lock momentarily; Nickolai felt like his
heart was made of light, and tears formed in his eyes as they tumbled
gently down into the bed and he slid inside her.

     Her gasp of pleasure was joined by one of his own; they made love
slowly, gently, in the huge bed in what some people thought of as the
center of the universe.  His climax followed hers with a soft and loving
moan, and as he dropped by her side, exhausted, she snuggled close to
him, rubbing her nose against his with a smile, even as their tears
mixed on the pillow.

--
"Travellogue, Day 6"
The Journal Entries of Kennet R'yal Shardik, et. al., And Related Tales
are (c) 1989, 1992 Elf Matheiu Sternberg.  May be freely distributed by
cybernetic media; hardcopies are limited to single printings for
personal use.