Eleri was on the other side of the door when she opened it. “I have some good news. There’s a new educator starting lessons next standard week once all the flood waters recede. If you want, maybe you can attend his class? I don’t know exactly what the curriculum is, but reading and writing is almost definitely part of it for the younger students. If you need any help asking about the reading lessons, I’d be happy to talk to him for you.”
If he was willing, she was ready to learn. Someone who could definitely teach her how to read. She’d never been inside a classroom before, but the sooner she picked up the skill, the sooner she could try to get in contact with the others.
“I’m so grateful!”
Eleri smiled softly. “For today, I thought we could take you to Indras and see about shopping for some new clothing.”
This gave Cassie pause. “I’m sorry, I think I missed that.” She didn’t want anyone’s charity. Besides, the idea of shopping for new clothing was too eerily similar to the way the Aviarist would shower them with gifts every time he returned from traveling. They’d all gather around him, smiling and cheering as he showed off each new piece for them to share. There was no fighting in the Aviary. Only joy.
“I would cover the credits, if that’s what you’re worried about.” Eleri shifted her weight from one hip to the other. “We don’t have to go either, if you don’t feel like you’re ready.”
Cassie tugged at her oversized jumpsuit with an attempt at a satisfied expression. “Can I help you with something else?”
Eleri took a few steps back away from the door. “I’m going to Indras for some errands anyway. I’ll get some things that might be your size.” She passed her gaze over Cassie, who resisted the instinct to stand up taller like she might when introducing herself to a new client. After all, no one was going to select Cassowary for their glow session ever again. At least, not if the IA made good on their promises.
“Maybe you can take today to explore the town a bit instead? If you get lost, anyone can point you back to the clinic.”
It wasn’t a terrible idea. If she was going to be stuck here, it made sense to get a better sense of her surroundings. Hiding in the room above the clinic for the rest of her life wasn’t going to help her get back in touch with her fledglings. She needed allies. She needed to find something to do with herself, or she was going to lose her mind while she waited and waited to learn reading.
“It would be my pleasure!” This time, she did straighten. Eleri’s posture relaxed slightly.
“Great! I think getting out will be good for you now that it’s mostly dried up out there. It’s a small town, so people are obviously interested, but if anyone gives you trouble, you can tell them to knock it off…” Eleri stopped, realizing her mistake. “Sorry. I mean, humans aren’t as much of a novelty anymore now that I’ve been here for a few years. You can go find S’samph if anyone bothers you.”
Asking the intimidating latil’e male for help was the last thing she wanted to do. She waited until Eleri had left before venturing out of the room on her own. This was her life now. She had to figure out the best way to survive, and survival meant understanding her new environment.
She stepped out into the sunshine. Mud squelched under her heavy boots as she walked down the main road of town. Cassie kept her gaze forward as she moved, but it didn’t prevent her from feeling the weight of eyes on her as everyone in the area seemed to be staring.
No one ever stared at her in the Aviary, not like this. She was just one of many nameless passeri, or she was a flock leader, a friend, a prop. Whatever it was, she knew her role, and everyone there knew it too. Here, she was a curiosity.
A familiar anxiety of being gawked at sent her moving faster, leaving the town center behind her in her hurry to get away from all the eyes. She took note of dark corners as she walked. Spaces between buildings. Places she could hide if things became too overwhelming. A dock came into view as she hurried forward. Overturned boats from flooding season lay drying in the sun. Cassie climbed a ladder leading up to the elevated wooden dock and almost fell off the highest rung when she noticed a large latil’e male sitting on the edge with a fishing pole.
He grabbed her by the front of her jumpsuit before she fell, pulling her onto the platform. At first, she almost thought it was S’samph, but his coloring was different. Where S’samph was huge and dusky yellow, this male was rangy and dusty crimson.
“Well, I guess you’re the human my sister has been making a fuss over. You’re a tiny thing, aren’t you?”
Her arms folded instinctively over her chest. She wasn’t a child. “Thank you for asking! I’m a mature adult for my species.”
His frill rippled. “I didn’t ask, but I assumed you were. Cassie. That’s your name, right? I’m K’kaen, Eleri’s brother.” He set his pole down in a bucket. “Technically, I’m supposed to be out on patrol, but what S’samph doesn’t know won’t hurt him.”
Cassie regarded him with a mixture of confusion and annoyance. Eleri’s brother?
But she had to say something, so she settled for a parting phrase. “Our time is up! Please come again soon.” Cassie took a few cautious paces back toward the ladder.
“Why don’t your words make sense for our conversation?” K’kaen prowled forward with interest. “Eleri said there was something wrong with your voice, but it sounds fine to me, even if the words don’t make a whole lot of sense.”
Her teeth found her lower lip as she willed herself not to cry. This wasn’t the Aviary. No one understood her hand signs orthe double meaning in her encoded phrases. “I’m sorry, I think I missed that.”
“Don’t cry, human Cassie.” K’kaen patted her on the head with a massive, clawed hand. “I don’t have any hydropods with me.”
She blinked back tears and shook her head, not understanding what hydropods had to do with anything, but using the opportunity to descend the ladder back down to the bank of the canal. There was more of the town she hadn’t explored, but after her failed attempts at communication, she found herself reluctant to go anywhere else. Staying out here would likely result in more miscommunication.
It was an easy choice to return to the safety of the familiar clinic. At least there no one expected her to be able to have a conversation like a normal person. If nothing else, it firmly cemented the importance of reading and writing lessons. If she was going to survive here, she needed to be able to choose her own words to communicate.
CHAPTER 4
Örim
He found himself standing at the front of the classroom with twelve pairs of bright eyes trained on him. Even his first year as a lab tech at the Imperial Institute of Sciences hadn’t felt so overwhelming. Now, he was overdressed in one of his starchy black robes while the younglings waited for him to speak. He suspected they were sizing him up just as much as he was them.
