Since the accident, the herders had shunned Bundi, for they viewed his scars as a mark of the Red Tongue’s displeasure. The cub, whose awkwardness had made him shy, was becoming bitter and lonely, and the look in his eyes was that of someone much older. The only herder who would work with him now was Shoman, whose leg also bore marks of the Red Tongue’s wrath and who suffered the same hostility as Bundi.
There was little Ratha could do about the herders’ rejection of the injured pair except to demand that it not be shown in her presence.
The trail began to slope upward and Ratha followed it, listening to the sound of the waterfall as it echoed through the trees. Something made her stop and look upward, and she felt suddenly as if she were being watched.
She looked back down the trail and sniffed the breeze that ruffled her fur. No one was behind her. After waiting for a moment, she lowered her head and went on.
A rustle in the branches overhead stopped her again and she peered suspiciously up into the canopy. A small brown head with a banded muzzle appeared through the leaves a short distance above her head. It stared at her with round black eyes.
“Aree?” it said.
Ratha stared back. Her mouth opened and her jaw sagged until she was gaping. “Aree? Have I really found you?”
The treeling yawned at her and scratched himself. He leaned down to peer at Ratha, extending his long ringed tail for balance. Then, as if satisfied, he ambled along the branch and climbed down into the crotch of the tree.
At first Ratha thought she had made a mistake. This creature was a bit larger and considerably rounder than Thakur’s treeling. Then she saw the crooked rear leg. Unless another treeling had also managed to break its leg in exactly the same place, this one had to be Aree.
Ratha talked softly to the treeling, trying to coax him down, but Aree seemed shy and unsure. He would start to climb down, then hesitate and scramble back up to his perch.
“Come on, Aree. You know who I am. You used to groom my fur. It needs grooming now,” she said and started to purr.
Aree was never afraid of me once he got used to me. He used to jump all over me. I wonder what has made him so shy.
The treeling started to groom himself, nuzzling the bulge of his belly. His? Aree was obviously a female and had found a mate.
“Thakur will have to get used to thinking of you as a she,” Ratha said, grinning. “He’ll also have to get used to all your little cubs, when you have them.”
Aree cocked her head and curled her tail at Ratha, but wouldn’t budge from the tree no matter how loud she purred. Ratha was starting to worry when she remembered the command Thakur had used to call the treeling to him.
She drew in her breath, gave a short hiss and clicked her teeth twice. Aree’s eyes brightened. The treeling launched herself from the tree, bounced to the ground and then up onto Ratha’s back. She rubbed her cheek against Ratha and was answered with nuzzles and licks. The creature took her place on Ratha’s shoulder and wound her tail around Ratha’s neck.
When she was sure Aree would stay on her back, she turned around and trotted down the trail to the meadow, eager to find Thakur.
As she drew close and heard the sound of cubs’ voices, she hesitated. Carrying Aree out into the open sun of the meadow might not be the best idea. If Thakur’s young pupils saw her with the treeling on her back, they would crowd around her with eager curiosity and might frighten Aree. If the treeling panicked and ran away, she would never be able to get her back again.
She left the trail before it led into the meadow and circled through the brush at the edge of the grass until she reached a leafy thicket. Here she was close enough to see and hear everything. The wind blew toward her and she caught the sweaty smell of dapplebacks and the eager nervous scents of the youngsters.
The cubs were watching as Thakur chased two dapplebacks across the meadow. The horses pounded in front of him, their manes flying. He raced after them, lithe and slim, yet powerful. With a sudden burst of speed, he caught up with the dapplebacks and dashed between them. It seemed as though he drove right under those flying heels, and Ratha forgot to breathe until she saw the horses separate with Thakur running between them.
The cubs also stood transfixed and Ratha imagined they were doubting whether they would ever be able to cut and drive dapplebacks the way he did. As a herder in training, she had practiced endlessly before she could attempt what he had just done. An instant of indecision or a false step could bring the herder down to be trampled beneath those sharp-toed feet.
Ratha saw Thakur jog to a stop. Ahead of him, the two horses slowed, grunting and snorting. These dapplebacks were more lively than the old mare he had been using; she guessed the cubs had reached a stage in their training where they could work a beast with more spirit.
Aree shifted on her back, reminding her why she had come here. She looked for the nearest cub and recognized Fessran’s younger son who was standing in the sparse shade near the edge of the grass.
“Sst! Khushi!” Ratha called, leaning out of her hiding place. The cub jumped and turned his head back over his shoulder.
“Sst! Over here. Quickly.”
Khushi blinked as he caught sight of her. With a quick look to either side, he galloped over to her thicket.
“Clan leader!” he said, his eyes large with surprise. “What are you doing, hiding in the bushes?”
“Never mind that,” she said, trying to keep enough leaves over her head to conceal the treeling. “Go get your teacher. Tell him that I have something for him.”
Khushi eyed her doubtfully. “Clan leader, he’s really grumpy today. If I interrupt him, he’ll chew my ears and they’re already pretty ragged.”
“I have something for him that will help his temper,” she answered. At that instant Aree chose to poke her head through the leaves and Khushi’s eyes got bigger than ever. “Oooh!”
Ratha ducked farther back in the thicket. “I’ve got Thakur’s lost friend. Hurry up and get him, or I’ll chew your ears!”
With a gasp, Khushi took off and scampered across the grass to where Thakur was supervising the other cubs as they rounded up the two dapplebacks. Khushi had to tug at Thakur’s tail to get the herding teacher’s attention and Ratha saw him duck an irritated swipe. But the cub was persistent and at last Thakur left his pupils with the dapplebacks and crossed the grass to Ratha’s hiding place.
“Ratha?” he called crossly. “Khushi said you were here. Where ...?”
She was lifting her foot over a low branch when Aree gave a joyful squeal and sprang over her head. She had forgotten to unwind her tail completely from around Ratha’s neck. Suddenly unbalanced, Ratha spilled out onto the grass and landed on her front.
She looked up, dazed and half-choked. Aree hung between the two of them, suspended by the tail, with her arms around Thakur’s neck. She was rubbing her cheek against his and cooing as if she would never stop. Thakur looked as taken aback as Ratha was. His jaw sagged open against the tree-ling’s arm and he stared at Ratha in complete bewilderment for an instant.
Then his drooping whiskers sprang up and his ears perked. His disbelief quickly gave way to delight.
“Aree!” he cried as the treeling loosed her tail from Ratha’s neck and hugged him with her legs and arms. “Aree, you’re really back! Oh how I’ve missed you, you little flea-picker! You can eat fruit on my back all day long and dribble and I’ll never complain, just as long as you stay.”
Ratha picked herself up and smoothed the rumpled fur on her breast. “And not a word of thanks to the brave clan leader who risked paws and tail to bring this unpredictable creature back to you?” she said hoarsely, adding a cough for effect.