Author's Note: Animorphgirl has kindly let me use her Yeerkish word tamli in this chapter, the meaning of which I'll explain next time although you can probably work it out approximately from context. Hope you enjoy!

Alniss was silent for a full minute after Kalran told her what was going on. She could feel her fists clenching and her teeth gritting together as she stared at her roommate in disbelief. By the Kandrona, she'd always known Kalran was foolish, easily swayed; any Yeerk in the movement had to be, to be so easily manipulated by Andalites and humans into turning against their own race. But Alniss would never have guessed she was as stupid and careless as this.

"You-" she spat, rage interrupting her speech. "You took her to the Pool?"

Kalran nodded. "Yes. Carla- er, wanted to meet Oglud."

"What in Kandrona's name possessed you, Kalran! There are Andalites there. Do you know what the Andalite penalty was for any of their own that worked with a Yeerk, let alone chose to host one? They despise voluntaries, almost as much as they hate us. How could you have known she'd come back alive?"

"They didn't hurt me," Carla murmured from beside Alniss.

Alniss struggled to make her tone more gentle as she addressed Carla. "They hurt your neck."

"That was an accident!" Kalran exclaimed. "Alniss, do you not think they want to kill us every time we go down there? But they don't, because it's part of their agreement with the humans. They wouldn't get away with harming someone, particularly not someone that's actually human themselves."

"Oh, I'm sorry, I didn't realise it was an accident," Alniss sneered sarcastically. "That'll make it a great comfort if they accidentally slice open an artery!"

Alniss felt a gentle touch on her arm, and looked across at Carla.

"Kalran was really upset about my neck at the time," Carla said softly, her eyes looking appeasingly into Alniss' own. "Far more than she needed to be. It was only a little scratch."

"And did she tell you to say it was a thorn?" Alniss tried to make her tone as gentle as possible.

Carla shifted uncomfortably. "No. She didn't even know that was what I'd told you."

"You lied to me," Alniss breathed in disbelief. She'd been certain that the answer to her question would be 'yes', that Carla would never have willingly deceived her without pressure from someone else, so she was too shocked and hurt to keep the accusation back.

Carla looked away, nodding guiltily. "I'm so sorry, Alniss, I really am. I don't even know why I did… I suppose I thought you might react like this."

Alniss stared at her, shocked to her very core. "Carla, what… what do you mean? I- I'm trying to protect you."

She felt Carla take her hand, her touch hesitant. "I know. And I'm so grateful for everything you've done for me, but… this is really important to me, Alniss. I miss having a Yeerk so much, and I know no-one can ever replace Silrin, but this is something I have to at least try."

Alniss couldn't speak for a few minutes, assaulted by emotion. She'd bonded so closely with Carla that it was hard to deny the human anything, especially when she asked for it so strongly, but Alniss was certain that getting embroiled in Oglud and the others' situation couldn't help her. It was at best a false hope: there was no way infestation would ever be allowed in Carla's lifetime, if ever. At worst, it might expose Carla's voluntary status to Andalites, or vengeful humans, especially if she was to get involved in campaigning for hosting Yeerks to be made legal, which it sounded very much like she was.

"This is all your fault," Alniss snapped eventually at Kalran, the only outlet for her frustration. "You put the idea in her head."

Kalran sighed. "Alniss…"

"And where were you today?" she continued, ignoring Carla's pleading look, Kalran's clear exhaustion. "It can't have been the Pool again, it's too soon. Where did you take her that made her cry?"

"We went to see Illim," Carla answered. "He's another Yeerk from the movement: he's working with a group of humans who want to campaign for voluntary infestation to be made legal. They thought I might want to work with them: Illim's agreed to pass information between us."

"And who are these humans?" Alniss was immediately suspicious. "Do you even know, Kalran? How do you know you can trust them?"

"I've met them all," Kalran said. "Not with Carla," she added hastily, "alone. And one of them is Sara, so at least in her case I know better than anyone except Sara herself how much she can be trusted. Don't ever tell her I said that, though."

Alniss could feel her breathing coming in rapid hisses. "Perhaps, although she clearly hates Carla. It's not exactly going to be easy for them to work together, is it? Who are the others?"

Kalran hesitated, exchanging a look with Carla. "I'd rather not say."

What little was left of Alniss' patience finally snapped. "This is my host!" She pushed herself to her feet and strode over to Kalran. "Or as good as. I have a right to know!"

"Alniss!"

Alniss turned: it was Carla who had spoken, her voice much louder than normal.

"Alniss, please, just calm down. We'll tell you, if you promise not to go nuts about it. You're… you're starting to scare me."

That hurt. Alniss turned towards her. "Carla… you don't need to be afraid of me, surely?"

"I don't mean it like that," Carla said quickly. "I just… I don't understand why you're so angry."

Alniss stared at her for a few minutes, her breathing fast and her stomach twisted with fear. Carla's expression became more and more anxious, occasionally glancing across at Kalran before returning to meet her eyes.

"Alniss? Alniss, say something!"

"Fine! I'm terrified, Carla! Every day when you get on the bus, when you go anywhere, I wonder if you'll ever come back, or if someone will recognise you and… and…" Alniss broke off, looking down at the floor. She couldn't finish that sentence, or she'd cry. "Don't you understand? I can't lose you… not you, too."

There was a long silence. Alniss didn't dare look up, keeping her eyes on a piece of fluff on the carpet. She barely registered footsteps moving towards her, so she jumped a little as she felt arms wrap around her tightly. Alniss reached blindly for Carla's shoulders.

"I'm safe, Alniss. I'm right here."

Hot tears began to make their way down Alniss' cheeks. She tried to force them back, ashamed of her weakness. She couldn't help feeling that she should be looking after Carla, not the other way around.

"Schrellatie," Kalran said uncertainly from somewhere near Alniss' shoulder.

"You can't help," Alniss muttered. "Most of this is your fault in the first place."

There was silence for a while, then Alniss heard Kalran's footsteps withdraw, heading towards the door. With effort, Alniss forced herself to pull back from Carla.

"Don't leave yet, Kalran. I want to know exactly who these humans are."

"I can tell you," Carla said quietly, glancing uncertainly between the pair of them. "Sara, Illim's host Adam and some people called Huan, Alma and Kelly, who I don't really know, and…" Carla trailed off for a few seconds, twisting her hands together anxiously. "And Elsa."

Alniss stumbled over nothing, her legs feeling like they had suddenly failed her. Her first instinct was to think it was her host contesting control, to clamp down on the movement, before she realised this was her own true body. "Elsa?"

A slow nod was her only answer.

"How… what… how can you even consider… Carla, in the name of the Kandrona, what can you possibly be thinking?"

"Actually, Elsa's the one who most wanted to work with Carla," Kalran muttered.

By all the great Pools, was she completely mad? How could any Yeerk be such a fool? "Yes, I'm sure she did, Kalran, because she clearly wants to get her alone and murder her! How can you not see that?"

"Alniss, I really don't think she wants that."

"You don't think? You don't think? Oh, you sound very certain, clearly certain enough to risk Carla's life!"

"I haven't met any of the humans," Carla said quietly from next to Alniss' shoulder. She'd come closer again without Alniss even noticing, taking the Yeerk's hand as though to calm her down. "Only a peace movement Yeerk. I've been quite safe, Alniss, I promise."

"And is he as utterly witless as this peace movement Yeerk?" Alniss snapped, glaring at Kalran. "No. This isn't happening any more, do you understand me? Carla's having no more meetings with any of them, Yeerk or human, and if you take her to the Pool again then I'm coming with you."

Alniss had hoped her tone would be enough to make the other Yeerk back down, but clearly not.

"You can't speak for Carla," Kalran said softly. "It's her decision, not yours."

"Now is hardly the time to be discussing politics, Kalran," Alniss retorted.

"Excuse me, but I am right here." Alniss felt Carla release her hand, and there was a hard edge in the human's tone that she'd never heard directed at her. "And I'm not politics."

Alniss turned to look at her, her body feeling slow to move, lethargic, as though she was moving through the rapidly-thickening sludge of a Pool that was drying out. Carla's jaw was set, her expression far harder than Alniss was used to seeing, but there was something deeply miserable in her eyes that tugged at Alniss' heart.

"Carla… Carla, tamli… I didn't mean it like that."

Alniss' focus was entirely on Carla, so she didn't see Kalran's eyes widen in surprise at her use of the Yeerkish endearment.

"Then how did you mean it, exactly?"

"It's… why does she have to bring all of that peace movement stuff into every conversation? All I'm doing is trying to protect you, I'm not hurting you, am I? And she still has to remind us all what a saint she is."

Carla hesitated for a long time before she answered. Alniss could see her lips beginning to form words, only to stop before any sound came through them. Eventually, she whispered: "you… you are hurting me. A little."

Sickness flared in Alniss' stomach, and she felt her face flush with distress and shame. If Silrin could see this… Alniss had promised herself she'd take care of her sister's host as though she were her own, and now…

"Tell me what you want me to do," Alniss managed eventually. "I'm so sorry, I…"

"Hey," Carla said quickly, her expression alarmed. "it's okay. It's nothing important, I just… I just want you to listen, to hear me out."

"Okay," Alniss whispered, surprised at herself, at how easily the fight had been taken out of her. There was a voice inside her mind whispering that she was weak, that she shouldn't let a host affect her like this, but Alniss pushed it away, recognising it as the ghost of Empire propaganda. She could no more refuse to hear Carla than cut off her own arm. She sunk back onto the sofa, and watched as Carla followed suit, lowering herself into a squashy armchair.

"Alniss, I… this is something I can do that's worthwhile, you know? It must be hard for the Yeerks down there, especially when so many of their siblings, mates, their friends can't properly talk to them. And… and I really miss having another mind in my own. My thoughts… sometimes they get very dark, and Silrin used to be able to help."

Empathy twisted like a knife inside Alniss' heart. "Isn't there anything I can do?"

"Hell, yes! Alniss, you do so much everyday, I don't think you realise what just having you around does to help, let alone everything you've done to keep me fed and warm and safe. But I… I would like to be a host again. And even if this doesn't work out, it would give me something useful to do."

"You are useful," Alniss protested. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Kalran nodding in agreement.

"Thanks. Anyway, I really want to do this… but I don't want to frighten you."

Alniss nodded. "It's so dangerous…"

"Is there anything that would convince you it was safe?" Kalran asked.

Alniss felt her irritation returning and rolled her eyes, a human gesture she'd slowly picked up over the last year. "Is there anything that would convince me it is safe for Carla to meet a bunch of hostile involuntaries, and probably announce herself as a voluntary host to a load of other humans through campaigning? Is that seriously a question you are asking?"

Kalran sighed deeply, glancing across hopelessly at Carla. "Will you at least think about it?"

"I don't need to think about it. The answer's no."

Kalran gave her a despairing look. Much more worryingly, Alniss felt Carla slump down beside her, and could see the human's miserable expression when she looked at her.

"You can carry on visiting the Pool," Alniss said quickly, desperate to cheer her up. "I'll come with you. And… and I suppose you can campaign anonymously; writing to people or something. But I can't risk you meeting any humans who might hurt you. You understand that, don't you?"

Carla nodded, but didn't meet Alniss' eyes. Alniss watched her concernedly in the long silence that followed; her instructions seemed to have distressed Carla more than she was expecting, but her first priority was to keep Carla safe, even if Carla disagreed with the measures she took to do that.

"Have you been to the Pool since you morphed?" Carla asked eventually, breaking the tense silence that had developed in the room.

The question surprised Alniss, who had begun to expect an argument against her decision. "No. I suppose I was lucky; none of my siblings were allergic to the technology. Perhaps it's genetic in some way; you said there were quite a few of Oglud's spawning who had the same problem, Kalran?"

Kalran nodded. "Yes. That's some comfort to them, at least."

"They need it," Carla muttered. "It's awful down there, Alniss, you'll see when you come. The Andalites were horrible to Kalran and Ilkiss, and they won't even let…" she trailed off, rephrasing what she was about to say. "They only get twenty minutes every two weeks. It's… it's ridiculous."

Alniss wanted to say she had little sympathy for Yeerks who had chosen to betray their species to the Andalites and Animorphs in the war, but it wasn't helpful for Carla to hear the tension between her and Kalran… well, between all of them and Kalran, really. Tafnik and Hallim got on with Kalran reasonably well, Tafnik because he was the sort of person who liked everyone, and Hallim… well, Alniss wasn't quite sure why. But Alniss had hardly been able to bear Kalran's presence in a room when she'd first found out she was a traitor, and Menhal had struggled too.

Instead of saying any of this, Alniss simply nodded.

"It's just through a computer terminal, too," Carla added, her voice gradually getting louder as she warmed to the theme. "It's just not enough."

Kalran shifted uncomfortably. "I- I'm luckier than many," she murmured, glancing across fearfully at Alniss.

Her words made a sharp pang of pain shoot through Alniss' gut.

"Oh," Carla said softly. "I'm sorry, Alniss, I didn't mean…"

Carla's hesitant touch on her hand calmed her somewhat. "I'm okay," Alniss managed. "And I agree, it doesn't sound like enough time. My role in the Empire was separate from my mates' for quite a while; we fed together every cycle, but it still seemed like far too little contact. For schrelna, too… it wasn't enough time. I don't know how you manage with twenty minutes."

"So… don't you think we should try and change it?" Carla asked, looking up at her hopefully.

Oh. There it was, then. Alniss had been sure the sudden change of subject was too good to be true. "Yes, if we can, but not at risk to you, Carla. How could I live with myself if you got hurt, or worse?"

Carla looked down at the floor. "I understand," she whispered dejectedly.