and my ears will listen

[truthwright]

Time goes by. Shura's mother lets her cut a cloudpine branch, and she and Helen go flying together.

Helen celebrates her eighth birthday by baking all her favourite people a cake again. And then she goes away with Kas, to Iceland and Russia and back by way of Alaska.

When they fly in, Kas on Petaal's cloudpine and Helen on her own, Helen is wearing blue jeans and a pink T-shirt.

Comments

[truthwright]

[Yeah. I just don't know when.]

[alicornucopia]

[How are you going to tell her?]

[truthwright]

[What do you mean?]

[alicornucopia]

[What are you going to start with - are you just going to drop in bits and pieces or sit her down like the talk about how sex works or something - what are you going to do?]

[truthwright]

[There's a talk about how sex works?]

[alicornucopia]

[...Most people get one, at about her age, sometimes a little younger. I can do it if you haven't and don't want to.]

[truthwright]

[No, information has changed hands there, it just hasn't been a big sit-her-down conversation. Whatever. I don't know. I've got time to think of something.]

[alicornucopia]

[Okay.]

[truthwright]

He sighs.

[alicornucopia]

Ranata hugs him again.

[truthwright]

He leans on her.

[carillons]

After she has gone flying with Shura, Helen looks for Inkeri.

[alicornucopia]

Inkeri is on her cloudpine, sitting in the sky among some treetops, watching clouds; Veravia is a crane at the moment, perched beside her.

[carillons]

Helen pulls up next to her and says, "Hi," somewhat uncertainly.

[alicornucopia]

Inkeri looks at her.

"Hi," she says.

[carillons]

That is encouraging. Helen brightens a little.

"Whatcha doing?"

[alicornucopia]

"Thinking about stuff," says Inkeri, shrugging.

[carillons]

"What kind of stuff?" wonders Helen.

[alicornucopia]

"I was thinking about people, especially my dad, but now you're here and I'm thinking about you instead."

[carillons]

"What are you thinking?" she says curiously. She's never bothered asking before.

[alicornucopia]

"Well, you're dressed differently, so I'm thinking about that because it's new and I haven't thought about it before."

[carillons]

"Yeah," says Helen. "Kaydi got mad and Shura got really weirded out and you're not doing either of those. I think I like your way better."

[alicornucopia]

"You aren't brandishing a bloody dagger or reaching for Veravia or trying to knock me off my cloudpine or announcing that you are the bearer of a prophecy about the end of the world," says Inkeri, "or doing anything else that would make that happen."

[carillons]

Helen laughs.

"Those don't sound like fun things to do. Well, maybe the prophecy about the end of the world. I could make one up and tell my spinach and he'd laugh."

[alicornucopia]

"Well, sometimes there are actual prophecies. I don't think I would like it if there were one about the world ending. Because then the world would end."