"We believe that is what it means,” Gopher thought. “We feel you should have some experience of our realm before you decide to remain here."
"That makes sense. But there's nothing for me back in my own world, so I'd better like it here. I know I will, as long as I'm with you folk of the burrow.” But there was an undercurrent of regret; Gopher realized that it was not entirely easy for her to leave the realm she had known all her life. She might have serious doubts, once she realized just how different things were here.
But he did not think that to her. “We will arrange for a howdah, and see what we can do with the nearest tree to the burrow. Sleep with the bears tonight, and we will find another place for you in the morning."
"Good enough. Mama Bear is okay, once you get to know her. She treats me like a cub.” She stroked the cubs, who liked her touch. They had become good friends.
"That is her way.” But Gopher did not add that this was safe only while the bears were not hungry. The mother bear would protect her cubs against all threats without limit, but Rowan was not a cub, however it might seem at the moment. They needed to get her out of the bear cave before the other bears got any awkward notions. “Then it is decided; tomorrow we will act."
"Tomorrow, the new world,” Rowan agreed.
Gopher hoped it would be that easy.
Chapter 9
Treehouse
Rowan was ready at dawn. Indigo had alerted her, and she had eaten more berries and straightened herself out as well as she could. “I must look a sight,” she thought. “I haven't been able to wash in two days."
"We will take you to a stream,” Indigo replied. He understood from her mind that she really did prefer to be clean, unlike regular humans. “Now we must go to join the burrow mates."
"Bye, Mama Bear,” she said to the bear who had been her companion for the past day and night. On occasion one of the others had looked toward her, licking chops, but Mama Bear had growled warningly, making them back off. It was clear enough; she needed to get out of here before they got any hungrier. Indigo could have stopped a bear if he had to, with a mind blast relayed from her mind, but preferred to keep things amicable if possible. She understood and agreed: they might need to exchange favors again some time.
They left the cave and walked to the mouth of the burrow. The others were there: Gopher Tortoise, Burrowing Owl, Peba Armadillo, and Cottontail Rabbit. She was glad to see them all again, though she had been in mind touch all along.
"Oh, I could just hug all of you!” she exclaimed.
"Do not do this,” Owl thought gruffly.
"Peba and I do not hug well,” Gopher thought.
"Hug me,” Cottontail thought. “Except for my leg."
Rowan bent down, picked the rabbit up carefully, and hugged him gently. “I should carry you anyway, until your leg is better.” She set him on her shoulder.
"We must get you a howdah, so you can carry any of us,” Gopher thought. “So no one will suspect your nature."
"That's right: I've got to play stupid. I can do that."
"Carry me also,” Gopher thought. “Follow Peba."
She made a place in one of her bags, and set the tortoise in it. Then she walked after the armadillo, who scooted along a path through the forest. Owl took off and soon disappeared, and Indigo was gone in the brush.
They came to a stream. “Here you can wash,” Gopher thought.
"Oh, good!” She set down the bag, put Cottontail down, and got out of her clothing. She waded into the stream. “Ooo, it's cold!"
"We can numb you to the cold,” Cottontail thought.
"You can? Make me so I can't feel it? Okay, since I've got to wash anyway, I might as well be comfortable. Do it."
Then the water around her calves seemed to warm. The stream was only knee deep, but flowing firmly. She squatted, then sat, and it was like a lukewarm bath. This was weird!
She splashed water all over herself, and saw the grime soiling the river and being borne away. She dipped her hair in it, rinsing out more dirt. That long crawl through the tunnel had really coated her body.
When she was clean, she brought her filthy clothing in with her and rinsed it out as well as she could. “But it will be hours before I can wear this again,” she thought.
"You will wear the bearer costume,” Indigo thought, appearing from the brush. “So it is better you go unclothed, lest your unusual apparel arouse suspicion."
"That's right! I didn't think of that. It's a good thing the bears didn't catch on."
"The bears are not fully sapient,” Gopher reminded her. “The raccoons are."
Rowan emerged from the stream, trying to shake herself dry. “We're going to see raccoons?"
"They have the howdah,” Gopher thought.
"Okay. I feel funny walking outside naked, but I guess it won't be for long."
"Not for long,” Gopher agreed.
She hung her wet clothing up on bushes to dry, knowing she could return for them later. She still felt comfortable, but saw goose pimples on her arms and legs, so knew she was really cold. The animals kept coming up with mind tricks she had never thought of.
"It is part of being sapient,” Cottontail explained. “At times we need to keep ourselves or our bearers comfortable when the weather is wrong."
They moved on beyond the stream. Rowan felt her body warming as she walked; the air was not cold, just the water, and after a while she no longer needed the numbing. That was a relief, because she did not want to mistreat her body.
They came to a stone structure like a wall. A raccoon sat on it. “What do you offer, burrower?” his thought came. He was directing it to Gopher, but the tortoise was sharing it with Rowan.
Gopher poked his head out of the bag. “A secret."
"We have many secrets already."
"This one is rare, known only to our burrow."
The raccoon peered down at the tortoise. “What you think is rare may not seem so to us."
"We will let you judge. If you find it worthy, you will set our human bearer up with costume and howdah. You will not reveal it beyond your group."
The raccoon looked at Rowan with disconcerting appraisal. She felt his mind probing hers, and immediately dumbed down her thoughts. This creature was smarter than any of the borrow-mates! “We can do this. What is your secret?"
Gopher addressed Rowan. “Open your mind to him, with your origin strongest."
Oh. She reversed course, and opened her mind, thinking of her home realm and their recent crawl through the tunnel.
The raccoon fell off the wall.
Rowan laughed. She couldn't help it.
The raccoon climbed back onto the wall. “May we see the portal?"
"I will take you there,” Peba thought.
"Deal accepted.” The raccoon glanced at Rowan again. “Go with our kind.” Then he bounded off the wall and followed Peba back along the path.
Another raccoon appeared on the wall. “Come with me,” she thought. Rowan could not tell male from female by appearance, but the mind was definitely feminine.
"Go with her,” Gopher thought. “We will wait here."
Rowan closed most of her mind, then stepped up to the wall, and over it, following the raccoon. In a moment they came to a cloth costume hanging from a branch. It was dull brown, resembling a parka. “Don this."
Rowan took the parka and put it on. It fell comfortably around her, with holes for her arms and a hood for her head, reaching to her knees. The raccoons must have known she was coming, because this had been set out for her.
"I like it,” she said.
The lady raccoon was startled. “You really do vocalize!"
"Oops—I'm not supposed to do that here. I'll try to keep my mouth shut."
"And you really are sapient!"
"Yes, incredibly,” Rowan agreed, amused.
"We have never before encountered a sapient human animal. How is this possible?"
"In my realm, humans are smart and animals a
re stupid,” Rowan explained. “And no one has telepathy."
"Amazing! The tortoise was right: this is a truly worthy secret.” She looked at Rowan again. “All humans are sapient in your realm?"
"Yes. And no animals. It's topsy turvy."
The raccoon got her meaning from her mind. “It is. I see why the burrow denizens want to conceal your nature. There would be alarm if it were generally known."
"Just as there would be in my realm, if people learned of smart telepathic animals. So we kept the secret there, and will keep it here."
"And no raccoon will reveal it.” The lady paused. “If you should ever need other refuge, come to us. We are the smartest animal, and value intelligence. I see that you are even smarter than we are."
"I didn't say that,” Rowan protested, not wanting to upset the creature.
"When you opened your mind to us, we saw. The rest of us did not really believe it, but now we do. You are the smartest creature in this realm."
"I'm just an ordinary human girl. I don't even make top grades."
"In your own realm. We must see that others of your kind do not come here. It would be dangerous to us."
"Maybe not. I'm the only one who is telepathic, and I'm not very good at it."
The raccoon considered. “Yes, this makes a difference. But it is still better that your kind does not come here; it would be severely disruptive."
"That's what I think. I want me to be the only one. And it's not safe for your kind in my realm."
"True. Now come to the howdah."
Rowan followed the lady raccoon to another wall. There sat an object like a huge helmet made of wooden spokes, with a flat platform above, surrounded by a rail and covered by a cloth canopy. It looked cumbersome. “I'm supposed to wear that?"
"It is more comfortable than it seems, and it will conceal your nature completely. Set it over your head, on your shoulders."
Rowan was dubious, but she picked up the contraption. It was much lighter than it looked, as the wood struts were thin and so was the platform. She lifted it over her head, then brought it slowly down until the supports touched her shoulders. They had padded U-shaped ends that fit around her shoulder bones and held the main part of it upright. The platform was just over her head, not touching it, so she could look around or down without disturbing it. “I feel like an alien from Mars!"
"You feel strange,” the raccoon agreed, not comprehending much of the reference. “But you will get used to it. No sapient creature will pay any attention to you as long as you wear the howdah and keep your mind closed. This is how it protects you. Now squat low so I can conveniently board."
Rowan slowly squatted, until the platform was almost level with the top of the wall. The raccoon jumped to it. “Now rise slowly. A good bearer never shakes up the riders."
Rowan stood as smoothly as she could. She could not see the raccoon now, but could feel her weight on her shoulders. It was bearable.
"Now follow the path back to where the tortoise waits. Make your face dull. You may look around, so as to see your way clearly, but do not show any real interest in others."
"I'm stupid,” Rowan agreed. “Duh."
"Keep your mind closed,” the raccoon reminded her. “That will betray your nature fastest of all. Tune in only to your rider. Only when you are alone may you reach out with your mind."
"Got it.” Rowan walked slowly back along the path, concentrating on keeping the howdah level and unshaken.
"That is good. You will learn to walk very smoothly, and never misstep. When you encounter other human beings, ignore them. You have interest only in your rider. That is the way of the bearer."
"Right.” Rowan would have been annoyed, but realized that this was indeed her best concealment. If she acted dumb and kept her mind closed, she would seem just like a beast of burden. No sapient animal would ever suspect her of being smart.
They came to the first wall. “Squat low,” the raccoon thought.
Rowan squatted, and the raccoon jumped from the howdah to the top of the wall. “Here is your bearer,” she thought to the burrow mates. “We have fulfilled our part of the bargain."
"And we have fulfilled ours,” Gopher thought. “We have shown you our secret, and your representative is down in our burrow seeing it for himself."
"We have offered your alien human sanctuary if she ever needs it."
"She will not need if it she remains concealed.” Then Gopher sent a thought directly to Rowan. “Pick me up. Put me on the howdah."
"Yes, massa,” Rowan thought. She reached down, picked him up, and lifted him to the platform over her head. She set him down somewhat awkwardly, because the canopy and little railing got in the way.
"We must practice that,” Gopher thought. “Now rise."
She stood up. Now the tortoise was over her head, out of her sight, but his mind made it quite clear he was there.
"Our business is done,” the lady raccoon thought, and jumped off the wall, disappearing into the brush.
"Now get down and put Cottontail on the howdah,” Gopher thought.
Rowan did so, making a better job of it this time, though she felt a twinge from the rabbit's hurt leg. The howdah transferred the weight directly to her shoulders, and it wasn't bad. No worse than a knapsack.
"Follow Indigo,” Gopher thought.
She saw the snake slither onto the path. She walked after him. He moved at a brisk pace. She made sure to walk evenly, so as not to shake up the howdah, and knew she was getting better as she went. Then she picked up her bags and carried them with her free hands. The howdah did make it easier to carry both animals and bags.
"Is it okay to talk now?"
"As long as no sapient animal is close,” Gopher agreed.
"How come neither you nor the raccoon said thank you?"
"This is a concept relevant to your realm rather than ours. We know each other's minds, so are satisfied with formal agreement that the terms of a deal have been met."
"I guess that makes sense. We non-telepaths need to state more things openly."
They reached the burrow. She tucked her bags into a nook formed by a low branch of the tree near it, then resumed walking in a new direction. Indigo remained at the burrow, and so did Cottontail, so now she was alone with Gopher.
They came to a fork in the path. Rowan took the right fork without even thinking to inquire, though it was new to her. Then she realized that Gopher had directed her, so that she knew without having to ask. That was the way it was, with a bearer.
They came to a region of the forest where there were a number of dead trees. She collected several dry bare branches and carried them in her arms. They were heavy, but she could manage. She took them to the tree beside the burrow.
Their next trip was to fetch some strong grape vines. These had died the season before, but remained hanging from trees. She had to set down the howdah, climb up those trees, and use her pocket knife to cut them from the top, because even dead they would not let go. She got a number of long rope-like stretches that were flexible enough to serve.
"Now we must fetch something from below,” Gopher thought. Peba had returned by this time, having shown the raccoon the deepest depth of the tunnel to the other realm. He disappeared into the burrow, and returned hauling a bundle of stringy roots. They put these in one of Rowan's bags, and she carried it with her.
Then they traveled to a tree where several birds were supervising dull humans in weaving cloth. She did not recognize the species, so thought of them as weaver birds. The birds knew how to make secure nests, and could tell when a piece was proper; the humans had the finger dexterity to do it, when properly directed. Of course the burrow had to make a deal, and in this case Gopher proffered a special kind of root that was found mainly in lightless caves. Tortoise burrows had access to such caves, but most birds did not; Owl's loyalty was to the burrow, so he would not provide such roots for other birds unless in trade for something the burrow needed. The birds needed the roots f
or special types of cloth. They were a standard trading item for any burrow. Rowan opened her bag and brought out the bundle of roots, and the deal was made. The roots didn't look special, but the birds knew what was what, and these were the right type.
Rowan couldn't help noticing the humans, covertly. They were adult men and woman, wearing parkas of different dull colors, and their expressions were moronic. They seemed to have no interest in anything but what their hands were working on. She tried to feel their minds a little, but all she found was dullness. They were not very clean, physically, either; they did not seem to care that they were dirty. The hair of both males and females grew dully down their backs. In fact there was not much to distinguish the genders; the men were not handsome, the women not attractive. She did not like them at all. It was true: the human beings of this realm were stupid.
"They are not your kind,” Gopher thought when they were alone again.
"They sure aren't!” She had known it, but not fully believed it; now she believed. She had far more in common with the animals of this realm than with the humans, despite her human body. “Maybe I should get dirty again, so my cleanness doesn't give me away."
"No need. Different animals have different preferences, and different types of labor have different standards. Some riders prefer to ride in style, with everything clean. We can be that type, if you wish. The humans you saw were not bearers, but workers; it doesn't matter how they look, as long as they work well."
"I do wish. I was never much for fancy clothing, but I've always been clean. It's healthier."
"We will have a healthy bearer,” Gopher agreed.
Now she had the materials to make her tree house. She set Gopher on the ground and removed the howdah. It was a relief; it had not been too heavy, but she wasn't used to it, and her shoulders and back were getting tired.
"This is something you must do for yourself,” Gopher thought. “We are not clever with trees or above-ground construction. But you should be able to fashion something suitable, and we can get other supplies you need for it."
"Thanks; I'll be fine,” she thought. “I'll climb this tree and find the best place for my treehouse, and make it. I'm not used to vines instead of a hammer and nails, but I'll make do."