Most of them had not known how to square-dance. Agnes Pulvermacher had put it over almost single-handed, in the face of kidding and resistance- training callers, training dancers, humming tunes to Caroline, cajoling Jimmy to carve and shrink a jungle drum. Now she had nine out of ten dancing.
Rod had not appreciated it at first (he was not familiar with the history of the Mormon pioneers) and had regarded it as a nuisance which interfered with work. Then he saw the colony, which had experienced a bad letdown after the loss in one night of all they had built, an apathy he had not been able to lift- he saw this same colony begin to smile and joke and work hard simply from being exposed to music and dancing.
He decided to encourage it. He had trouble keeping time and could not carry a tune, but the bug caught him, too; he danced not well but with great enthusiasm.
The village eventually limited dances to Sabbath nights, weddings, and holidays- and made them "formal"... which meant that women wore grass skirts. Leather shorts, breechclouts, and slacks (those not long since cut up for rags) were not acceptable. Sue talked about making a real square dance dress as soon as she got far enough ahead in her weaving, and a cowboy shirt for her husband... but the needs of the colony made this a distant dream.
Music stopped, principals changed, Caroline tossed her mouth organ to Shorty, and came over. "Come on, Roddie, let's kick some dust."
"I asked Sue," he said hastily and truthfully. He was careful not to ask the same girl twice, never to pay marked attention to any female; he had promised himself long ago that the day he decided to marry should be the day he resigned and he was not finding it hard to stay married to his job. He liked to dance with Caroline; she was a popular partner- except for a tendency to swing her partner instead of letting him swing her- but he was careful not to spend much social time with her because she was his right hand, his alter ego.
Rod went over and offered his arm to Sue. He did not think about it; the stylized amenities of civilization were returning and the formal politenesses of the dance made them seem natural. He led her out and assisted in making a botch of Texas Star.
Later, tired, happy, and convinced that the others in his square had made the mistakes and he had straightened them out, Rod returned Sue to Bill, bowed and thanked him, and went back to the place that was always left for him. Margery and her assistants were passing out little brown somethings on wooden skewers. He accepted one. "Smells good, Marge. What are they?"
"Mock Nile birds. Smoked baby-buck bacon wrapped around hamburger. Salt and native sage, pan broiled. You'd better like it; it took us hours."
"Mmmm! I do! How about another?"
"Wait and see. Greedy."
"But I need more. I work hardest. I have to keep up my strength."
"That was work I saw you doing this afternoon?" She handed him another.
"I was planning. The old brain was buzzing away.
"I heard the buzzing. Pretty loud, when you lie on your back."
He snagged a third as she turned away, looked up to catch Jacqueline smiling; he winked and grinned.
"Happy, Rod?"
"Yes indeedy. How about you, Jackie?"
"I've never been happier," she said seriously.
Her husband put an arm around her. "See what the love of a good man can do, Rod?" Jimmy said. "When I found this poor child she was beaten, bedraggled, doing your cooking and afraid to admit her name. Now look at her!- fat and sassy."
"I'm not that fat!"
"Pleasingly plump."
Rod glanced up at the cave. "Jackie, remember the night I showed up?"
"I'm not likely to forget."
"And the silly notion I had that this was Africa? Tell me- if you had it to do over, would you rather I had been right?"
"I never thought about it. I knew it was not."
"Yes, but 'if'? You would have been home long ago."
Her hand took her husband's. "I would not have met James."
"Oh, yes, you would. You had already met me. You could not have avoided it- my best friend."
"Possibly. But I would not change it. I have no yearning to go 'home,' Rod. This is home."
"Me neither," asserted Jimmy. "You. know what? This colony gets a little bigger- and it's getting bigger fast- Goldie and I are going to open a law office. We won't have any competition and can pick our clients. He'll handle the criminal end, I'll specialize in divorce, and we'll collaborate on corporate skulduggery. We'll make millions. I'll drive a big limousine drawn by eight spanking buck, smoking a big cigar and sneering at the peasants." He called out, "Right, Goldie?"
"Precisely, colleague. I'm making us a shingle: 'Goldstein & Throxton-Get bailed, not jailed!'"
"Keerect. But make that: 'Throxton & Goldstein.'"
"I'm senior. I've got two more years of law."
"A quibble. Rod, are you going to let this Teller U. character insult an old Patrick Henry man?"
"Probably. Jimmy, I don't see how you are going to work this. I don't think we have a divorce law. Let's ask Caroline."
"A trifle. You perform the marriages, Rod; I'll take care of the divorces."
"Ask Caroline what?" asked Caroline.
"Do we have a divorce law?"
"Huh? We don't even have a getting-married law."
"Unnecessary," explained Goldstein. "Indigenous in the culture. Besides, we ran out of paper.
"Correct, Counselor," agreed Jimmy.
"Why ask?" Caroline demanded. "Nobody is thinking about divorce or I would know before they would."
"We weren't talking about that," Rod explained. "Jackie said that she had no wish to go back to Terra and Jimmy was elaborating. Uselessly, as usual."
Caroline stared. "Why would anybody want to go back?"
"Sure," agreed Jimmy. "This is the place. No income tax. No traffic, no crowds, no commercials, no telephones. Seriously, Rod, every one here was aiming for the Outlands or we wouldn't have been taking a survival test. So what difference does it make? Except that we've got everything sooner." He squeezed his wife's hand. "I was fooling about that big cigar; I'm rich now, boy, rich!"
Agnes and Curt had drawn into the circle, listening. Agnes nodded and said, "For once you aren't joking, Jimmy. The first months we were here I cried myself to sleep every night, wondering if they would ever find us. Now I know they never will- and I don't care! I wouldn't go back if I could; the only thing I miss is lipstick."
Her husband's laugh boomed out. "There you have the truth, Rod. The fleshpots of Egypt... put a cosmetics counter across this creek and every woman here will walk on water."
"That's not fair, Curt! Anyhow, you promised to make lipstick."
"Give me time."
Bob Baxter came up and sat down by Rod. "Missed you at the meeting this morning, Rod."
"Tied up. I'll make it next week."
"Good." Bob, being of a sect which did not require ordination, had made himself chaplain as well as medical officer simply by starting to hold meetings. His undogmatic ways were such that Christian, Jew, Monist, or Moslem felt at ease; his meetings were well attended.
"Bob, would you go back?"
"Go where, Caroline?"
"Back to Terra."
"Yes"
Jimmy looked horrified. "Boil me for breakfast! Why?"
"Oh, I'd want to come back! But I need to graduate from medical school." He smiled shyly. "I may be the best surgeon in the neighborhood, but that isn't saying much."
"Well..." admitted Jimmy, "I see your point. But you already suit us. Eh, Jackie?"