Hybrid

We called it a night and Rupert wrapped himself in his blankets. Serisi and I retired to the tent and she pulled off her clothes and put on her nightgown. She pulled her pad over close against mine and didn't use it. "I like to sleep where I can feel you," she explained. That usually meant snuggled into my chest with my arms around her and I didn't complain. Her little body put off an enormous amount of heat and she felt soft. She smelled good, too.

"I don't like that man," she whispered.

"Why not, baby?"

"He thinks that his job makes him something he's not."

"Explain," I told her.

"He thinks he's different than other people because he's a constable. He thinks that he can do horrible things because his position means that he doesn't live by the same rules other people live by."

"You're very perceptive, Serisi. He uses force against his fellows. There's never any excuse to behave violently toward people that aren't behaving violently toward you. Remember that. He's human, too, he's just forgotten that. We'll remind him. You already did that when you questioned him. He's not used to being questioned."

"He's afraid of you," she said. "He's afraid of me, too, but not like you. He doesn't know what to think about me and he's not used to that. He knows he's no match for you, though."

She stretched and yawned and it was contagious. She kissed me and told me she loved me and she was asleep. When we got up he was rolling up his blankets. We toasted bread and cheese and he was on his way.

"Thanks for sharing your fire," he said. "Don't meet a lot of friendly travelers."

"Good luck to you, Rupert." We shook hands. I picked Serisi up and we disappeared into shadow. He looked around for a minute and hurried on his way. She was laughing as I set her down, and we packed our gear, collected our horses and went on our way. The first snow fell when we were still a night away, and it was her first sight of it. It didn't snow much at this latitude, and she played in it until she was shivering. She came and warmed herself by the fire and then went back. She hit me with a snowball when I came out of the tent and we had a war. I caught her and scrubbed her face with the snow while she laughed helplessly. We warmed ourselves at the fire again and she came and sat on my lap.

"Guerin, why does it snow?"

"It would be rain if it wasn't so cold," I told her. "The cold freezes the rain and it falls as snow."

She thought about it for a while. "I could make it warm," she said.

"How?" I asked her.

"Don't know, but I could," she said.

"How big an area would be warm?"

"Don't know. From here to the cliff there?"

It was a quarter mile away. "Gods, Serisi; can you really do that?"

"Yes, I could make it travel along with us, too, if I didn't have to do too big a place."

"How do you know?"

"I can't tell you, I just know."

"How warm can you make it?"

"Burning, if it's the size of the camp. Maybe just melt the snow if it was bigger."

"We'll have to ask Jynn about this. I wonder if it's just you, or all the Shai can do that?"

"Don't know. Let's go to bed."

I lay awake for a while. This little baby was immensely powerful. I didn't think she knew just what an amazing girl she was. I thanked the Gods she was mine. We entered Cliff Keep in the early afternoon, and Trina was there to greet us. She took us to the kitchen and fed us. Jynn came in and I gave her the money for the contract. We talked for a bit and life went back to normal for a while.

We started teaching Serisi to read the next week. We all took turns with her education and it went well. She worked hard at her learning and she was scary smart. She was reading simple books in no time, and she quickly graduated to harder ones. She read to me constantly, and I read to her while her little finger followed the words on the page. I kept her active, too. We fought with wooden swords and she threw knives and stars. We ran the obstacle courses and she had amazing agility and balance. Marrat was quite an acrobat, and he taught her tumbling. She could juggle four apples and she got very good with knives.

Corwin came back from a job somewhere in the north and brought her a present. He had acquired two long, slender Shai daggers of some strange silvery metal. They didn't rust and held an edge better than anything I had ever seen. They had ornate sheaths and he gave them to Serisi. She practiced with them constantly, and became so quick and dangerous with either hand that Hal was quite satisfied that she could take nearly anyone in a fight. She was very quick, even by my standards. Maybe she couldn't take a seasoned fighter yet, but in a few years she was going to be one tough girl. Jynn had taken her under her wing and they were trying to find out the extent of her abilities to do Shai kinds of things. The problem was, Serisi really had no idea what she could do. Everything was a surprise to her. When she encountered a situation, she suddenly became aware that she could do something like communicate with horses. It was very frustrating for her, and she talked to me about it.

"Guerin, can I ask you something?"

"Of course, tiger; what do you want?"

Since she was snuggled up against me in bed, the 'tiger' reference made her giggle. "I wonder if we could find a Shai and ask them some questions about me?"

"That sounds like a bad idea to me. What if they attack us or try to snatch you?"

"Couldn't you do a sign and make them help us and then forget?"

"Maybe, I've never tried a calef sign on a Shai. If it didn't work we would have to kill them. I don't like to use that sign, Serisi. It seems like raping someone's mind."

"What is 'raping?'" she asked.

"Something like what Zee and I did when you watched us, except one of the people is unwilling and the other one forces them."

"Why would anyone do that?" she blushed a little. "How could they do that? You can't force someone to love you."

"It has nothing to do with love, baby. Some people want power over other people. That's one way they show their power. It's evil and disgusting. Some people are evil."

She thought about it for a while. "I see why you said that. You mean you force people to do things they don't want to do."

"Yes, that's it."

"What if they're evil people? We wouldn't mind making evil people do things, would we?"

"How would we know?"

"We could watch them for a while. If they do bad things, we would know."

"Maybe that would work. We'll think about it and if we run across any Shai we'll see. They rarely come this far south. It could be a long time."

"Can't we go north?"

"We could, but I'm afraid to take you where they might be."

"Why?" she asked.

"I'm afraid they might try to take you away from me."

She kissed me. "You do love me, don't you Guerin?"

"More than I can ever tell you."

"How do we know that I'm not supposed to be with them?" she asked. "Maybe what they want is something I should do."

"Serisi, have you forgotten what they did to the Sisters?"

"No, but what if they're desperate? What if they need me to do something so badly that they will do anything?"

"Killing the Sisters can never be justified. If we were desperate, would we kill Uncle Corwin or Jynn?"

"No, I would rather die myself."

"Exactly; that's how we know that the people who want you are evil. There is no good reason to do evil things."

"I suppose you're right. But we'll still try to find a Shai, right?"

"Yes, honey; we'll try."

"Thank you Guerin. It's hard to be me. I'm very strange, aren't I?"

I laughed. "Yes, there's no one else like you. I know how hard it is, baby. I'm sorry I'm not wiser. I wish you had a mother and father to teach you things. I know how frustrated it makes you. I know it's hard to be patient. Growing up is very hard and you're doing well. I love you, little girl, and I'm proud of you."

She turned her back to me and scooched up against me. "I don't need anyone but you," she said. "Night Guerin, I love you, too."

I held her tight and we drifted off.

Chapter Four

The arrow punched into the ground at my feet. I looked up and Serisi was laughing down at me from the top of the wall. She danced with joy.

"You're dead, Guerin! I killed you again."

"Careful, child; you'll fall and break your neck and then you'll be the one that's dead."

She dived off the wall and I sucked in my breath. She landed on her feet and did a roll, coming up to stand directly in front of me. She pressed herself against me and put her arms around my waist. I wrapped her up and squeezed her until she groaned.

"Well done," I told her. "You scare me to death, girl. That was a very high jump. I didn't look for you to be up there."

"Yes, it was very clever of me, wasn't it? I've killed you three times today, Guerin."

"What if I had been cloaked?"

"That's cheating," she objected. "You aren't to do that. No one that is chasing me will be able to do that."

"We don't know what the Shai can do. Could you sense me cloaked?"

She cocked her head and thought. "No, but if I knew you were coming I could make a trap."

"What kind of a trap?"

"Light, to drive away the shadows?"

"Can you do that?"

"Yes, but I would have to make sure you were coming the right way." She rested her head on my chest.

She was growing very tall. She was thirteen, and she was so beautiful she took my breath away. Her hair had grown to a silky white mane that floated around her and those eyes were glacier blue pools that could drown a man. She took my hand and we walked up the steps to the library. She would have her lesson with Jynn before supper, and I had things to do. I left her exploring some tome and went to find Corwin. When I came into the hall for supper she was whispering with Trina and they stopped talking when I came in. I felt like they had been talking about me, but I didn't say anything. We went to our rooms after the meal and she changed into a dress like she always did. We played a game of cards and talked for a while. She began to yawn after a bit and told me she was going to bed. For the first time since we had been together she went to her room to sleep. She kept all her stuff in there, but so far as I knew, she had never taken anything other than a nap in her bed. I wondered what was going on. She didn't seem mad at me, but there was something wrong. I went to bed and had a difficult time falling asleep. There was no warm little girl to snuggle up against me and I felt desolate. I finally slept fitfully and when I went to collect her for her morning run she came out in a dress.

"I'm feeling indisposed today," she told me.

"Are you sick, baby?" I asked her.

She flushed. "No Guerin, don't ask me any questions. I love you and you must trust me."

I hugged her and she kissed me and went back into her bedroom. I went looking for Trina. She was on the archery range and we loosed a few shafts together.

"Is something bothering you, Guerin?" she asked.

"Something's wrong with Serisi," I told her. "I think she's sick. She told me she wasn't going to run this morning,

and when I asked her about it she wouldn't tell me. She said she was 'indisposed'."

She laughed. "You're an idiot, Guerin."

"I know, but what am I being an idiot about this time?"

She laughed again. "You're such a man! She's growing up, Guerin. Do you know what happens to girls when they grow up?"

"They grow breasts?"

"Yes, that, too. She's going to be indisposed every month about this time. Do you understand?"

"Oh," comprehension dawned on me. "Gods Trina, is she really that old?"

"Yes, Guerin; she's becoming a woman. You need to adjust the way you see her. She isn't a little girl anymore. She's a young woman."

"I guess I am an idiot, Thanks, Trina. I've got some thinking to do."

"You're a very nice idiot," she laughed.

I went and looked after the horses and then went back to our rooms. Serisi was reading on the sofa and I brought her some cider and had an ale myself. She smiled at me and scooted over so she could lean against me. I put my arm around her and petted her hair. I looked her over and she was something new I hadn't noticed. There was a swelling in the bodice of her dress and I could see the top of cleavage peeking out. Her waist was as thin as ever, but there was now a swelling at her hips as well. She was developing an hourglass shape. Her lips looked fuller than ever and I noticed how long her hair was. She must have felt my eyes on her because she peeked up at me. I could still see that mischievous little girl glint to her eyes.

"What?" she asked.

"Nothing," I told her. "I was just noticing how beautiful you are."

She flushed and wouldn't meet my eyes. "Thank you Guerin. I'm just the same as I was last week."

"Yes, but you're not the same as you were last year," I told her. "My baby is getting big."

She giggled. "I'll always be your baby, Guerin."

"You know you can talk about things to me."

She sighed. "Yes, I know, but sometimes I just need to talk to girls. I would talk to you about anything important."

"Thank you, Serisi."

"For what?"

"For being so sweet. I'm so proud of you, kitten. I'm so lucky to be your father."

"I'm glad you are," she said, "but you're not really, you know."

"Yes, I know, but I'm lucky anyway."

"Guerin, have you ever heard of the Shoroku?"

"Yes, is that what you're reading about?"

"Yes, tell me what you know."

I had only seen one in my life. They were here before the Shai, and human scholars believed that they were native to this world. The Shai legends tell of great battles fought between themselves and the Shoroku. They are very secretive and there was reason to suppose they resented the presence of both races on their world. They had abilities that no one else shared, and no one I had ever met knew much about them. I told her about what I knew and she was silent for a while, staring into the fire.

"I think they're important to us, Guerin."

"How do you know?"

"It's one of those things. I can't tell you, but I know. Do you know where to find them?"

"I know where to find one," I told her. "I did know where to find one. It was years ago."

"Can we go there?"

"It's a long way, baby. I have a job next week."

"Is it in the right direction?" she asked.

"Yes. Do you want to go there?"

"Yes, I'll go with you on your job and then we'll find the Shoroku. Can we?"

"We can if you think it's important."

We planned it out all week and when the weekend approached she was back in my bed. "I missed you," she said.

"Yes, me, too," I told her. "Do you want to sleep in your bed now? It's okay, Serisi, if you do."

"No, this is my bed," she said. "I was just there temporarily."

"Are you sure? I know you're growing up."

"What do you mean?" she asked.

"Well, you're changing, baby. Your chest is growing and your shape is becoming different. If it makes you uncomfortable, I understand."

"The only thing that will make me uncomfortable is you talking like that," she said. "I know I'm changing. I'm going to look like Zee or Trina. You don't mind being in bed with Zee."

"I don't mind being in bed with you," I told her. "That's not what I'm saying."

"You know how I feel about you," she told me. "I plan to be in this bed the rest of your life."

"Yes, I know. I didn't know if that was something you'd grow out of."

"No, I love you more every day," she said. "I'll never grow out of that."

"Okay, we won't talk about it anymore until you want to," I told her. "Remember, I love you and I want you to be happy."

"I am happy," she wiggled back against me. "Hold me and I'll be even happier."

I wrapped her up and everything was okay.

Chapter Five

We had beasts to kill. I wasn't sure yet what they were, but two children had been attacked. One had been killed and dragged off and one got away. We talked to her and she wasn't much help. It had been nearly dark and she could only tell us that it had claws, red eyes and teeth. The claws must have been pretty big, based on the size of the slash on her leg. It was suppurating, and evidently there were some nasty bacteria on those claws. I told her parents she was infected and that I could help her. They were a superstitious lot and I heard them whisper about "magic" and "devil." In the end they agreed and I put her into a trance with a maleph sign.

I cleaned away the infected flesh and poured in alcohol and then wine. Serisi was looking a little queasy, but she wouldn't leave.

"I can help her, Guerin," she said.

"What do you mean? How can you help her?"

"I can make her blood clean," she said.

"How?"

"I don't know. I just can. It's like how I can burn things, except different."

"Will it hurt you or her?"

"No, but it's going to make me tired. I can tell."

"Do you want to do it?"

"Yes, I can help her. It would be... wrong not to."

"Go ahead," I told her.

She got a cute little frown on her face and her little white eyebrows drew together. She seemed to concentrate briefly and then her knees started to buckle. I sprang and caught her before she could collapse.

"I'm okay," she said. "I need to sit down for a minute."

I eased her into a chair and she didn't move for several minutes.

"I'm okay, now. Let's leave, Guerin. I don't like her parents. They think we're evil."

"I know. Don't worry about it, Serisi. They're ignorant."

"They're not just ignorant," she said. "They're malevolent. If we weren't able to protect ourselves they would harm us."

"That's a big word," I laughed. "I know what you mean, though. It's superstition risen to the level of malice. They're going to pay us. We'll get the job done and leave. I'm glad we were able to help the girl. You're a nice person, Serisi."

"It isn't her fault," she said.

We spent the night a few miles away from town. In the morning we went to where the children were attacked. The ground was torn up pretty good and the townspeople had milled around, obscuring the signs. I picked up a blood trail and we ran down it. I could smell it now. The rich, iron smell of blood drew us along and we were climbing steadily through the trees. We came to a stone outcropping and the body was there. Serisi turned quickly and vomited. It was an ugly scene. The child was half eaten and I quickly led her away. I went back and saw some footprints, clearly outlined in the dirt around the outcropping.

I went back to Serisi and she was recovered. She was rinsing her mouth out with water and she spat. "What did that, Guerin?" she asked.

"It's called a vorca. It's a large lizard sort of thing. I think there are three of them. They're not fast, but they ambush. We're going to have to be careful. I need to carry you."

"Why?" she asked. "I can help you."

"I want to cloak," I told her. "Once we find them, we'll shaft them. I don't want to get close. They have nasty things on their claws and teeth. If they cut us or scratch us we'll be like that girl back there. It's almost like poison."

We strung our bows and she climbed onto my back. I drew in the shadows and we moved through the trees down the trail. We had gone perhaps a mile when she punched me. I looked back at her and she pointed to her ears. I listened and I could hear it. There was the sound of whistling breath ahead about twenty yards. There was a large deadfall and I could see them. I pointed and she nodded. We backed off ten yards and I let the shadows slip away. The beasts roared and shuffled toward us. There were four shafts in the air before they had gone ten feet. Two more followed and they were down.

Serisi had cast her shafts well. Two were buried in eyes, and the third was a near miss. The beasts thrashed, reflexes animating them even though they were dead.