Changelings

A few hours later, the twins watched Petaybee diminish into a blue and white ball and then just another distant dot in the cosmos.

This must be what it's like to swim in the sea, Murel said. Through the fantastic transparent hull of the view deck, they watched as the ship wove through a beaded curtain of star systems, suns with their planets, planets with their moons, all against the deepest blackness.

Yeah, the ship is kind of like a star seal. It's the only thing out here that moves wherever it wants to. Everything else is anchored to an orbit- well, except meteors, I guess. They're kind of wild.

Marmion stood behind them, a hand on each small shoulder. For the time being, the children seemed to have forgotten to be sad at what they saw as their banishment from Petaybee and abandonment by their parents.

Ronan turned suddenly and looked up into her face. "Marmie, do meteors decide where they want to go, do you think, or are they just falling all the time?"

"I don't know that they have a plan exactly-I don't think every random bit of rock is as aware as Petaybee-but they do seem to wander about randomly, getting bits knocked off them here and there."

"But asteroids have orbits, right?" he asked. "And belts. They have belts."

"They travel in belts with lots of other asteroids."

"So the belts are like flocks of asteroids or herds," Murel said.

"Only in the sense that a belt is composed of many asteroids. They aren't animals."

"I know that,'' Murel said.

The trip was not a long one. Marmie's ship was very powerful and very fast. Meanwhile, when she wasn't on the com unit conducting business, she did her best to entertain them.

When they grew a little dizzy on the view deck, she took them to a large quiet room with a lot of cabinets and a big screen. "This is the ship's library," she told them. "My crew and I pick from the main library on the space station the various media we wish to take on our travels. I pulled some things I thought you two might be interested in before I left."

"Marmie?"

"Yes, Murel?"

"You sent our suits with Johnny and we were gone for a night, but the next day when we came home after swimming with Father, you were there. We've already been on this ship two nights and we aren't at your house yet. When did you leave?"

"About a week ago. I had business to conduct along the way. I think I understand what you're getting at. You think I came to take you away because you got into trouble, don't you?"

The twins exchanged knowing looks, then nodded.

"That's not correct. I have, as I said, been hoping you would come and visit me for some time.

As we explained at the hot spring, if you are going to travel, now is the time you must do it.

Later you will be so completely adapted to Petaybee that you won't be able to leave safely. Your parents have been worried since you were born that people such as the men who took your otter friend's family might try to kidnap you for study to see what makes you able to change into seals and back again. When your mother contacted me about the suits, I sent them on the next ship, but both she and I realized that the time was coming when your natural wish to explore your environment might lead you into harm."

"You could have come with Johnny, couldn't you?"

"Captain Green's ship was conducting other business for me in other places along the way than what I needed to do myself. Besides, his is a transport vessel and mine is a luxury liner.

Much nicer, don't you think?"

They shrugged. "I guess so," Ronan said. The ship had less people and was more spacious while not being much bigger, but he felt like they all sort of rattled around in it. "Any word from Da about the otters?"