Silent Dances
Page 35
of a new quilt, perhaps in the Liaison's stunning diamond pattern?
Grandfather was clutching a coffee cup, and chatting up Meg. His eyes had
that mischievous gleam Tesa was very familiar with, but Meg had one
eyebrow cocked--she was on to him already. Thorn asked Grandfather
something, and the old man laughed. Then he signed to Thorn in his rough
Grus, "Before I leave here I'll teach you how to make a really good cup of coffee!"
Thorn just grinned.
Tesa looked over at the dead tree on the cliff edge. Rain and Thunder
perched there, watching the newcomers apprehensively. The very sight of
the Mizari was usually enough to set the older avian screaming. Tesa would
be busy negotiating tenuous compromises between Taller and Rain for a
long time to come. The two species would have to work hard to strengthen
their new, uneasy peace. The young woman glanced up at the suns. It was
definitely time to get started!
Tesa felt as though she'd been dancing for hours ... but her body seemed
ready to dance for days. The Grus had watched her human family present
some of their finest traditional dances, and Tesa had rejoiced to feel the
pounding drumbeat through her feet again. When it was the Grus' turn, Taller
and Weaver had danced of their courtship. Taller had danced of his first
meeting with Scott. The entire family had danced the story of the attempted
coup. Flies-Too-Fast had danced the story of Shimmering's life.
Now Tesa and Lightning were going to dance the story of their flyaway. Tesa
started alone, her eagle feathers in hand,
273
the feathers of Water D an cer ' s wings st re tched out along her arms .
When Mahree left T ri nity, she ' d promised to take the feather shi rt an d the other remn an ts of Water D an cer's skin with her . That an d all the other Grus skins would be placed in a ro bot probe an d re leased on a course that would b ri ng them into the yellow sun's gravitational pull. In
a year they'd be swallowed by the Father Sun, an d finally , the spi ri ts of their owners would have arrived to live with the Sun Family.
But for now, Water D an cer was still with her . Imitating an eagle , Tesa beg an her Eagle Dance . Soon the shadow of Thunder's wings c ri ssc ro ssed her own , as the huge raptor flew over the d an cing wom an .
Then Lightning joined her, too, an d as she felt the silent hea rt beat of T
ri ni ty thrumming through her, she th re w herself into the dance , into the sto ry of the flyaway.
She glan ced up an d saw Szu -yi. The doctor w as staying on T ri nity , she'd told Tesa. No big expl an ation. Just that she was staying . But she ' d told Tesa of her decision in Grus sign l an guage-Closing her
eyes , Tesa re membered the cr as h of the limb, re membe re d their flight to the volc an o . She tried to match Lightning ' s leaps , his spins , but following him exactly w as n't import an t-they were telling different sides of the same sto ry .
Tesa saw the people watching an d joining in the d an ce-all the people -
hum an , Grus , Aquila -an d felt her spi ri t soaring up and up , ri ght into the suns.
274
Afterword
A b ri ef note about how this novel came to be w ritt en:
Astute readers of my books will have noticed that one name crops up re
peatedly in the acknowledgments -- Kathleen O'Malley . Kathy has been
my litera ry conscience since mid1977, when I blushingly an d
hesitantly confessed to her that I had w ritt en the f irst draft of a Star Trek novel. " Really?" she re sponded casually . " I w ri te , too. Mostly a rt icles , so far, but some fiction , too. I enjoy re ading other people ' s stuff. Maybe you could show me your book sometime."
I smiled evilly , cleared my throat modestly, re ached into my b ri efcase an d hefted several pounds of manusc ri pt into her lap. "It's so kind of you to offer! I just happen to have a copy with me...."
Thus began an association that has proved mutually beneficial ... a kind
of symbiosis , I suppose . Kathy ' s review of Yesterday ' s Son demonstrated that she's a dynamite editor and cri tic . When she takes her
red pen to one of my m an usc ri pts, the sto ry always emerges far better for her (far f ro m gentle) ministrations . When Kathy produces her own fiction, I retu rn the favor . Through the years, we've both
improved as w ri ters.
275
When I beg an envisioning the StarBridge seri es , asking Kathy to collaborate with me on one of the books seemed the most natural
thing in the world. As soon as I told her about the universe I was
creating, her mind was off and running. Tesa and T ri nity beg an to take shape . Kathy ' s unique gifts and knowledge - her work with end an ge re d whooping cranes an d eagles, her knowledge of ASL an d Deaf
culture, an d her admiration for Native Ame ri c an s an d their culture , wove together like a tapest ry. She created a truly unique protagonist an d an o ri ginal , arresting world with multiple cultu re s.
Then we worked together to integrate Tesa and Tri nity into the StarB ri
dge universe. It was a helluva lot of work an d great fun.
Reader reaction to Book One of the seri es has been most gratifying .
Many people wrote to say they had enjoyed the first book an d were
looking forward to Book Two. For those of you who also enjoyed Tesa
and T ri nity an d hate to say goodbye, I have some good news .
Another book about T ri nity , Silent Song, is currently in the works.
Until next time ...
A. C. Crispin, December 1989
276
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I smiled evilly , cleared my throat modestly, re ached into my b ri efcase an d hefted several pounds of manusc ri pt into her lap. "It's so kind of you to offer! I just happen to have a copy with me...."
Thus began an association that has proved mutually beneficial ... a kind
of symbiosis , I suppose . Kathy ' s review of Yesterday ' s Son demonstrated that she's a dynamite editor and cri tic . When she takes her
red pen to one of my m an usc ri pts, the sto ry always emerges far better for her (far f ro m gentle) ministrations . When Kathy produces her own fiction, I retu rn the favo
r . Through the years, we've both
improved as w ri ters.
274