This took longer than I thought to post. I had a migraine at the beginning of the month, so I got behind in everything!


The friend who stays to share a meal is worth twice the cost of the food he's given. The one who stays to share your work is worth your blood.

Collected Wisdom of the Ka'andesi Peoples, as told to Inalia Kenobi, Chronicler of the Ch'lliear

I was surprised that Ierei stuck around after lunch. Usually, as soon as the dishes were cleared, she headed back out, either to play or to go home and study. I had chores to do in the afternoon, and after we'd been so late today, I didn't think it would be a good idea to rush through them the way I sometimes did when I knew she was waiting for me.

"Aren't you going home?" I asked over my shoulder as I did the dishes.

"No, my father's visiting the mountain den, so I can do what I want as long as I get all my assignments done by the time he gets back," she shrugged, fishing through the pockets of her violet jumpsuit.

"Are you going to help me dry these or just sit there?" I asked.

"You really want me to get my fur wet again?" she countered.

"I'm used to it," I told her.

She had just pulled a handful of brightly colored marbles out of her pocket, and she gave a loud sigh at my comment. I rolled my eyes. Ierei stared mournfully at the glossy glass spheres, but after a few seconds, she shoved them back into her pocket and got up to help me.

We didn't say much at first. She must have known that I was still mulling over the news that my parents had given me and the family's odd reaction to our hawk sighting. I liked to work things out in my head for a while before I talked about them, even with Ierei. She tended to just say whatever came into her head, and I could tell by the way she kept looking over at me that she was getting impatient.

Finally, she exploded, "Owen, are you going to tell me what you think about this baby thing or not?"

I glanced over my shoulder again to make sure that none of the adults were in earshot. When I was sure that no one else could hear us, I whispered, "I don't know yet."
"What do you mean you don't know?" she cocked her head.

"Shhh!" I urged.

She wrinkled her nose at me. "What?"

"My parents think this a good thing," I replied, still whispering.

"So?" Ierei took the cue and lowered her voice.

"So, I'm probably s'posed to be all happy and stuff too," I explained.

"You're not?" she asked.

"I haven't decided yet," I told her.

Ierei thunked her head down on the counter in exasperation. "You're the only person I know who has to decide if he's happy."

"Well, I'm used to things the way they are," I said, shaking my head at her theatrics. "But all the other clan kids around have sibs, so it might be good. At least I'd be less weird."

"You'd still be weird."

"Thanks a lot," I said, splashing my hand into the sink to fling some of the soapy water at her.

She yipped and ducked out of the way. "Hey! This is the thanks I get for helping you?"

"I'm practicing for having a kid brother," I smirked.

"It could be a girl."

I wrinkled my nose. "Oh yeah."

"What's wrong with girls?" Ierei demanded.

"Nothing, as long as they're not your sister," I replied.

"That makes no sense," declared Ierei.

"Everybody I know says sisters are a pain," I said.

"Well, you should wait and make up your own mind!" she grumbled as I handed her the last plate.

"I may have to," I sighed. Then I turned back to the sink and pulled out the drain plug.

"Is there some clan rule about dishwashers, too?" Ierei asked as the water gurgled its way down the pipes.

I opened my mouth to say no, then I closed it again and frowned, confessing, "I don't know. I never heard of one, but almost nobody has one out here. Aunt Bee says they waste water."

"More than filling up the sink?" Ierei squinted as she slid the plate into the drying rack.

"I guess so. Never really thought about it," I said ponderously.

"You could have a sonic one…or is that like the 'we wash with water because we're not desert clan' thing?" she asked.

"I don't know," I repeated. "Anyway, it's not because we're not desert clan."

"Why then?" asked Ierei.

I took the damp towel from her and moved to hang it back on the bar beside the sink. Then I realized it was covered in fur and let out a long sigh. Tossing it down the chute, I climbed onto the counter and started rooting around in the cupboards for another one. I was short for my age, and I couldn't quite see what I was doing, so I had to rely mostly on my memory and sense of touch for anything I wanted up there.

In answer to Ierei's question, I repeated what I'd heard from my mother a million times. "It's because the more machines and stuff that you bring into a place, the more it changes the land everything that lives there."

"Plains clan has droids and farm equipment and stuff," remarked Ierei. "The towels are on your left."

"Thanks," I said, moving my hand further left. I touched towel and then fingered my way to the top of the pile, explaining as I went. "Well, machines are fine to have if you need them, like in the desert they have sonic stuff because water is scarce, and here we have farming stuff to help the work. But you can't just bring whatever you want to a place because it's easier. You have to think about how it affects everything first."

"Miri has one," Ierei commented.

"See what I mean about them?" I shook my head and leapt back to the kitchen floor. "Practically outclan."

"Why do you say it that way?" she asked. "I'm outclan, Owen."

"You're supposed to be outclan," I said, giving her shoulder a little pat to show that I didn't hold it against her. Then I hung up the towel and ran for the courtyard. "C'mon, I have to finish the rest of my chores."

"Your dad and Uncle Dannik were outclan once too, you know," she yelled, after me.

"Doesn't matter what they were before," I called back. "Once you're clan, you're all clan."

"How can the Deccols be practically outclan then?" argued Ierei.

I stopped short in the doorway, startled by the question. Ierei blindly kept going and ploughed into my back. Both of us flew forward and tumbled into the grass.

"Ow…" I groaned. "Watch where you're going!"

"Well, what did you stop for?" she huffed.

"I stopped to think!" I said, shoving her off me.

"You can't think and walk at the same time?" she asked, rolling onto all fours.

"Shut up, Ierei," I sighed, suddenly feeling a little grumpy.

"So what about the Deccols?" she asked.

"I don't know," I admitted grudgingly. Then I pushed myself to my feet and started around the path that led to the rear of the compound. Ierei trotted after me, not speaking, and after a minute or two of silence, I felt a small niggle of guilt. As much as she might annoy me, she had stayed today. She knew that sooner or later, I'd want to talk about this baby situation.

"So, um, what do you think about the baby?" I asked awkwardly.

"What do you mean what do I think? It's your sister, not mine."

"Brother."

"Whatever."

"Well, do you think I should be happy?" I persisted.

"No," she said emphatically.

"Why not…?"

"Because human babies stink. They don't know how to use a 'fresher for years."

"We're not exactly human," I pointed out hopefully. Ka'andesi were a lot like humans, but each of the four clans had its own slight differences. Maybe one of the differences was better toilet training…

"Your dad is human," Ierei reminded me. "You don't even have normal spots. And you sure don't remember like a Ch'lliear."

I sighed. Ch'lliear, the plains clan, was known for its people having patterns of crescent-shaped spots on our skin, and my mother said that, compared to humans, we had much better memories. I looked like I had a bad case of freckles from the sides of my neck down to my ankles, but they didn't look anything like clan spot patterns. Most of the clan kids I knew could hear a story or learn a lesson once and remember it forever. I had to recite things over and over to myself, and sometimes I still mixed them up.

"Well, maybe I got more of my dad. This time, the Force will make up for it and the baby will get lots of spots and a good memory. And go to the 'fresher," I theorized.

"I…don't think it works that way, Owen," Ierei said slowly.

"Oh. Great."