Meanwhile, Mona was welcoming Larry similarly. In fact she embraced him and kissed his cheek. Squid suppressed an irrational surge of jealousy, instead focusing on a rational understanding, because the woman was amply endowed in all the right places and her embrace put them all up flat against the target. But of course the horse woman had no real interest in a visiting child; it was just part of her manner with tourists. She was very good at making visitors feel wanted.
Soon the other members of their party were welcomed, and they were ushered into the giant ballroom where folk of every type congregated. They were the only children there; the others were crossbreeds and tourists, not only adult but showing it with their low blouses and high skirts. Squid suppressed more jealousy; she would get there in time.
“There you are!” It was Ion, on his feet. Squid was startled despite having seen his introduction to Vinia. And of course Vinia was right beside him, shyly smiling. Neither could have been there without the other.
Squid took charge. “Folks, this is Vinia, Ion’s companion. She enables him to stand, and he enables her to breathe. They are clearly meant for each other.” She named each of the ones from the fire boat so that Vinia could identify them, though of course Ion would keep her current.
“It’s so nice to meet you,” Vinia said faintly. She plainly felt out of her depth. Squid realized that social events like this one had simply been beyond her reach before. Yet she was delighted to be here.
Then Hilda and her goat boyfriend appeared. “And with Hilda is her companion Benny,” Squid said smoothly, and introduced the others again.
Refreshments were freely available, boot rear for the children, stronger stuff for the adults, with abundant cookies.
The dance began. Squid saw that many couples consisted of one attractive crossbreed with one ordinary human tourist. They held each other close, and between dances a number of them adjourned to other rooms. It seemed that there was more than dancing going on here. That was of course one of the main attractions of this castle, and this world.
They joined the dancing, and Squid was not the only one impressed by how well Ion and Vinia coordinated theirs.
Santo and Noe appeared, suitably garbed. “We should do a dance demonstration,” Santo murmured to Squid. “That will efficiently introduce us to all of them.” It seemed he had something in mind.
Squid and Larry went to Hero and Mona. “We happen to be a dance group, among other things,” Squid said. “We would like to do an exhibition square dance for you, in appreciation for your hospitality. We have our own music.”
“A children’s dance,” Mona said appreciatively. “I will put it on the schedule. It should be a nice contrast.”
So it was that easy. But of course these folk catered to the tourists in whatever ways they could, and what children could do was limited.
Before long it happened. “We have special guests from beyond Caprine Castle tonight,” Hero said grandly. “They will now perform an exhibition square dance, for your pleasure.”
There was token applause. It was plain that the adults were humoring the children and did not expect much from them.
Squid caught Santo’s eye. He quirked a smile. This audience might be surprised.
They lined up with four couples: Squid with Larry, Santo with Noe, Piton with Myst, and Firenze with Ula. They were all suitably dressed, and the girls had flaring double-circle skirts.
“Sets in order,” Win said, though there was just the one set. She was not dancing this time, so was available as the caller. The dancers were already in order, of course. “Honor to your partner. Honor to your corner. Swing your partner. Promenade.” They followed her instructions perfectly. Squid knew she was not the only one loving this. It was good to be back in the square.
They went through the full dance, perfectly timed, their steps aligned as they sashayed to the music. They were good, and knew it.
When they finished, the applause was hardly token. It rocked the hall.
Hero and Mona strode forward. “We had no idea!” he said. “You are expert! Could we prevail on you to do another dance? The people are truly intrigued.”
Thus encouraged, they performed a circle dance, then the Triangle, which evoked a roar of laughter. Their show was definitely a success.
After that they were deluged by others wishing to dance with the children. Squid danced with several young men in turn, and actually enjoyed it. She saw Larry with Mona, of all things, and that woman could really make her skirt flare. Firenze wound up with a cowgirl who was just as flashy. All of it was fun.
Hero came to dance with her. “We know of square and round dances,” he said. “And of course couple dances. But you children amazed us, and we appreciate that.”
“We may amaze you more,” Squid said, bringing up something Santo had mentioned to her. “Four of us would like to meet privately with you and Mona while the dance remains in progress, so that it is not evident. We have a serious matter to discuss.”
“If it is as serious as your dancing, we are more than ready.”
“But off the record. We trust you can keep secrets.”
“We are good at that, yes.” Probably an understatement.
“Then usher Santo and his companions Noe, Ion, and Vinia into a private chamber when you can do so without attracting attention. I will not join you.”
“Not you? There is an intriguing mystery about you, Squid, more than the oddity of your name.”
“I am odd. I am an alien cuttlefish in human form, somewhat the way you are a horse in human form.”
He laughed. “Our ancestry is equine, and the majority of our heritage is that of the horse, but we are unable to change shape. We are essentially human in body and mind, merely not universally recognized as such.”
“I am recognized as such, but am not. Observe my hand.” She split it into two green limbs with suckers just long enough for him to see before she reverted it to a human hand.
“You amaze me again! Are the others of your group like you?”
“No, I am the only cuttlefish and the only alien. But two of our number have skeleton ancestry, and they can change between forms. Others have other secrets.”
“It should be an interesting dialogue.”
“We hope so.” Then another man cut in, and Hero departed. She tracked him with her mind, and saw that in due course he did discreetly usher Santo and Noe out of the hall, while Mona did the same with Ion and Vinia. So they were on.
Squid excused herself and went to rescue Larry from flashy women he surely had little real interest in. They got boot rear and cookies and sat at the edge of the hall. Larry would run interference for her while she tuned into Santo.
She was just in time. “Your associate Squid tells me that you have an important private matter to discuss,” Hero said.
“Yes,” Santo agreed as they took seats. “But in the interest of fairness, I must tell you that our friend Ion here is diffusing truth elixir into mist. We will all be speaking with absolute candor. If this is not your preference, you should break off this dialogue now.”
Hero glanced at Ion and nodded. “Squid surprised me in more than one manner.” He glanced at Mona. “Squid is an alien cuttlefish in the form of a human girl, and I suspect that is only part of the mystery of her. These children are significantly beyond what they may seem.”
“I was gathering that,” Mona agreed.
Hero returned his attention to Santo. “Which I think is that truth mist in operation. I am normally more circumspect. My role as host requires it.”
“We are on a serious mission which must remain private,” Santo said.
“We do honor confidences. That is to a fair extent our business.”
“There are secrets some of our clients would kill to protect,” Mona said. “But they know that we would never betray them. Our given word is absolute
.”
“That was our impression,” Santo said. “We hope you are able to help us.”
“We do what we can for our guests, not all of it for general news.”
“So we gather. We are trying to rescue parents and friends who have been abducted, we think by a Demon, along with their castle known as Caprice. This is one that travels softly and silently to any location desired by its proprietors. We came to Castle Caprine by accident, confusing the name, but think we may be able to make something of this.”
“A Demon! You are in deeper trouble than we can help with.”
“Two of our number were residents of that castle, and know how to operate it. We hope that if we reach it by surprise, they can move it out of the trap before the Demon can interfere. At that point the Demon would risk exposure of his machination, as it is in the territory of another Demon, and may have to give up his ill-gotten item.”
Hero whistled. “You are in a league beyond ours! Demons are dangerous.”
“Yes. What we would like from you, if it is feasible, is a hidden avenue or route to Caprice Castle, so that we can not only get there, but do it swiftly and by surprise. We may be able to deliver something in exchange that is worth your while.”
Hero considered. “There may be an avenue, though it could be more challenging than you care for. But I should provide the background, as it is devious. Our suite of castles were set up some time ago by an interplanetary consortium interested in hidden power. They obtained volunteers who desired a good life, to unite with assorted breeds of animals to produce crossbreeds who looked and seemed human, but who were more than half animal. I for example, am about two thirds equine, one third human. The human form and mind dominates, but I am not recognized as human. I am an animal, just as your associate Squid is. All our associates are similar, with their respective breeds. This was done to enable us to be obliging hosts without the limitations of humans, such as age.”
“There is no Adult Conspiracy for us,” Mona said. “We can have relations with children, or provide children for tourists who wish to have relations.”
“You are a—” Noe started.
“Please don’t say it,” Mona said. “We are not proud of it. But this is the nature of our assignment. That is not the only way we cater to tourists with specialized tastes. We hate it, but we do it.”
Squid realized that animals did not have the rights humans did. Human tourists could do anything they wanted with human-looking animals, and the animals were obliged to cooperate. Specialized tastes indeed! It was a devious form of slavery.
Ion and Vinia were silent, staying out of the dialogue, but Squid could see Vinia react to the term “specialized tastes.” She had to have a notion what these folk were enduring.
“It is our fondest ambition,” Hero said, “to increase our human component to the point where we are more than half human. Then we will qualify as human, and become protected by human standards.”
“That’s why you’re angling for more settlers!” Noe exclaimed. “To get more human as a community. A half human crossbreed who marries a full human person would have children two thirds human.”
“That is why,” Hero agreed. “The rest of our life here is good. We simply would rather cater to a higher class clientele.”
“Now we more fully appreciate your motive,” Santo said. “We were concerned that it could be something more nefarious.”
“You would have to join the Adult Conspiracy to appreciate the details of what we do. But I think that, even as children, you can understand that we are obliged to do things that would normally revolt us, and would be forbidden elsewhere. Things that you would not care to do even in exchange for an otherwise virtually perfect life. We can’t revolt or even protest; we have no standing as humans. But if we achieved a human majority, then we would be in a position to bargain for improvement.”
“I believe we can help you,” Santo said.
Hero and Mona gazed at him with muted hope. It seemed that they had been disappointed many times before. “We understand that you are a very intelligent person, and a remarkably powerful Magician, though your expertise is not in our area,” Mona said.
“My talent is physical rather than social,” Santo agreed.
“And that you are capable of bargaining,” Hero said.
“Yes,” Santo said. “It is not that we bear you any malice, but our situation is difficult, and we are desperate.”
“You sound like us,” Mona said.
Hero nodded. “Make your offer.”
“We want, I think, three things from you,” Santo said. “The portable portals, Vinia for Ion, with her staying with us, not he with you. And a safe secret route to Caprice Castle.”
“The first two are feasible: the third is a challenge, as I mentioned, but perhaps possible,” Hero said. “What do you offer in return?”
“Just one thing. A direct physical connection to Portal Village and its neighbors, where they have many residents and tourists eager for new things. I believe a fair number of them would be interested in coming here to Animalia to mix with your people, perchance to stay and join with your men and women to form families.” Santo quirked a smile. “They may have some tourist appetites, but they are settlers ultimately interested in establishing worthwhile lives, if they find the right partners. I doubt that they are prejudiced about crossbreeds.”
“Ooh,” Mona breathed. “We could give them such a time, and we have the partners when they want to settle.”
“They are completely human,” Noe said. “Their crossbreed children would be more than half human, as I mentioned.”
“Would any of them be interested in connecting with more than one of us, so that there would be more children?” Hero asked. “Our assorted castles would be quite ready to adopt such children. Foster homes can be good homes.”
Amen! Squid thought. The siblings had found wonderful homes and families.
“I suspect some would,” Santo said. “To them it might seem like multiple romances without the attendant responsibilities. They would, of course, want to be sure that the children were well cared for.”
Squid thought of Ruby. She was adventurous, and might find Animalia fascinating. There were surely many others.
“The children would be honored as elites, because of their plus-human heritage,” Mona said. “They would be the hope for our future.”
Exactly, Squid thought. Santo’s real offer to the Animalia was the chance to have such children. Not one or two, or six or seven, but maybe hundreds or even thousands. All of them with full human rights.
“We are interested,” Mona breathed. “I believe that in this respect I can speak for all of Animalia.”
“Let’s rejoin the dance,” Hero said. “So that our absence is not noticed. We will see if we can find a guide for the trail you desire.” It was his way of agreeing to the deal, off the record. All of this was unofficial, but highly meaningful.
“It may be best if we do not meet again,” Mona said. “Someone at Caprine Castle will talk to you in a few hours.”
“Understood,” Santo said.
Mona came and kissed Santo with such feeling that he couldn’t help responding. He put his arms around her and kissed her back. Noe, far from being jealous, was observing the technique the horsewoman employed. Santo was gay, but evidently could be moved by a skilled and lovely adult woman. Noe clearly meant to learn such skill herself.
Without further ado, they left the chamber, and rejoined the dance as two couples who had perhaps needed to freshen up between efforts.
Squid was impressed and hopeful. Had they quietly forged the deal that would give both parties the things they most wanted? After coming to the wrong castle because of the confusion of names? That might be the most wonderful surprise.
An hour later a cowgirl approached Squid in the dance. “We have your guide,” she m
urmured. “His name is Fox. He is from Castle Vulpine.” She moved on without further explanation. It was as though they hadn’t talked.
The dance night ended and the dancers dispersed, a number of new couples having formed. That was of course much of the point of such a gathering, to facilitate many meetings by many people. The tourists evidently liked the novelty.
Squid and Larry joined with Ion and Vinia, then Santo and Noe. They walked out to locate Fibot.
There in the courtyard was a disheveled young man. “I’m Fox,” he said.
“Join us,” Santo said, without otherwise seeming to react. He lifted a hand, and Fibot appeared. They climbed over the rail, Fox included, and went below decks. It happened in part of a moment, without any commotion.
“Within this craft it is private,” Santo said. “We can speak freely. Will you tell us something about yourself?”
“I’m synesthesiac. I see sounds as colors, and so forth.”
The other children formed a silent circle around them. “How does this enable you to follow a path?” Noe asked.
“I see things in ways others don’t, so can pick out a path they don’t see.”
“Ah. The way some folk can see a picture others can’t, because they perceive colors differently.”
“Something like that, yes.”
“And can you select the path to a particular destination?” Santo asked.
“To a degree. I need a sound or sight or smell to go by. It gets faint away from its source, but I can tune in and follow it.”
“The way dogs do?”
“Not exactly. It has to be my kind of essence. Dogs smell what’s there. I smell the sound, or feel the sight, or hear the texture, which is a different thing. All things give off these alternate signals, which aren’t apparent to ordinary folk.”
“So you can perceive a signal that others can’t,” Noe said. “And if we gave you one of Caprice Castle, you might be able to follow it there.”
“Yes. But such routes can be devious, sometimes dangerous.”
Skeleton Key Page 27
