72 Hours of Immersion Pt. 06

There was a rapping on my door. I shut off the blow dryer and answered.

"Ms. Garrikoet," I said. "What can I do for you?"

She said, "Dyannj, please. May I come in for a minute to talk?"

"Of course!"

She bustled inside and sat in the armchair across from the bed. She looked at me. The silence grew. I was starting to feel uneasy, like I had been called in to the principal's office. As I was about to speak, she shook her head solemnly. "You are a person who studies other people," she said. "I am this village's spokeswoman.

"I must ask you to remember who we are; we are people just like you and your family.

"You came to learn about our speech. Maybe you will write about us. If so, maybe you will also write about the many ways our lives differ from yours.

"Even though we are different, we have souls. We have minds and emotions. We can be hurt."

Several seconds passed. Neither of us blinked as we regarded each other. "I know," I whispered at last.

"Our village will not be overlooked forever," Ms. Garrikoet said softly. "But if people talk or write about us thoughtlessly, carelessly...we will be destroyed."

I stepped forward and laid my hands on her shoulders. As best I could in her dialect, I declared, "I love your village. I will not sensationalize you. I will remember your humanity and say nothing that could lead to harm."

She stood and leaned forward, touching her brow to mine. "I believe you. Thank you, Xi-Lin." She went to the door. "Good night," she said.

oOOOo

People were going about their business. In the low light of predawn, I glanced at the western sky every minute or so. My personal pack was on my shoulders; my wheeled suitcase was near my feet. Harkje and Qenefvere were chatting with me.

"What are the Fothnira?" I asked as casually as I could. My two friends had been expecting this topic.

"They are colossal lichen," Harkje told me. "The species doesn't need light, despite looking like a plant. So it can live in caves with no trouble."

"Maybe herders did discovering it eight to ten thousand years ago," Qenefvere said in her flawed but cute plain Icelandic language. "Reindeer eat it; even humans in hard times to eat it. But never more than needed-and lichen has getting genetic diversity and spreading colonies because humans and reindeer spread 'fry' to other caves."

Symbiosis of that type usually existed between insects or birds and plants or fungi. It made sense, actually. The climate was too cold for insects except in summer, but winter was when the Fothnira reproduced.

"Do these lichen have anything to do with the Psi-chromosome?" I asked.

Harkje said, "Oh, no. Dr. Tomassov ruled out that possibility years ago. You know that creatures fit their environments. The Fothnira were widespread during the last glacial age. Fossils have been found on most continents."

"They have?" I asked, quite startled.

"Fossils did can not tell behaviors," Qenefvere said, smiling at my expression. "Fossils just did show large big lichens, but is that interest to people? Maybe not: only except scientists."

The three of us heard distant sounds made by helicopter rotors. The noise grew quickly. There were only thin, low clouds, but in the dim, frosty air, they could obscure aircraft. I looked up. The tour helicopter appeared, descending carefully to afford a better view to the pilot.

I looked at my new friends. "Please stay in touch," I said to them. "If nothing goes wrong, I will see you in August!" I put one of my arms around each of them for a quick hug. They hugged me back. Qenefvere and Harkje each gave me kisses on the cheek.

The tour pilot helped me with my luggage. I blinked to clear my teary eyes and got into my seat. A minute after takeoff, I lost sight of the village.

oOOOo

End of Part Six

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