Earthseed

“Sometimes I think they hang around together because each one is afraid to let the other out of his sight. They’re always daring each other into things. I used to run into Ho a lot in the library when we were younger.”
    Zoheret raised her eyebrows. “You never told me that,” she said. Anoki lowered himself into a chair.
    “It isn’t what you think. We’d talk about our parents. We were both kind of interested in the history of their part of Earth, so we’d study it and talk about it. Ship was helping us learn some Japanese—that was my parents’ language.” Kagami folded her hands. “Ho’s parents were from the southeast part of the Asian continent—that great big land mass. Their country and Japan were part of a group called the New Co-prosperity Association.”
    “Ship told us about that in history lessons,” Anoki said.
    “I know. But what it didn’t go into very much was how much some of the members hated the Japanese. Japan really ran the Association, it seems. After a while, Ho said he didn’t care about studying Japanese, and I didn’t see him much anymore. It was like he took it personally.”
    Anoki lifted his head. “I can understand his feelings. Look at my ancestors—they were practically wiped out before the resource crisis began. That was the only thing that saved them—everyone else in North America was too busy fighting to worry about Indians, and by the time they formed new nations, we had a nation of our own.”
    “Nations,” Zoheret said, exasperated. “That was Earth. Who cares about it now? It makes me wonder how they ever agreed on the Project. Sometimes I wish Ship hadn’t told us anything about it. What good is knowing all that going to do us?”
    “You might be right,” Kagami said. “Anyway, Ho used to talk about Manuel sometimes. He was always competing with him—who was stronger, who was smarter, who was better at everything.”
    “Who was meaner, who was more stupid,” Anoki muttered. “They’re probably tied on those things.”
    Kagami yawned and then moaned a little, holding her side. “You’re tired,” Zoheret said. Kagami nodded. “We’ll come back later.”

    They stopped at the door to Anoki’s room. As Zoheret entered, a small black cat leaped onto Anoki’s bed. The boy sat down and scratched it behind the ears. The cat began to purr.
    Anoki’s side of the room was a workshop. Bits of equipment—wires, circuits, boards, and tools—lay on a wooden table and hung from shelves on the wall. Two models of gliders dangled from the ceiling. Zoheret sniffed; the room, as usual, smelled a little of ammonia.
    She sat down while Anoki crooned to the cat. “I don’t know what to do with Mimsy when we start living in the Hollow,” the boy said.
    “She’ll be all right there. Roxana’ll bring her cat, and Serena’s probably going to take that big dog of hers.”
    “Mimsy hates that dog.” The cat jumped off the bed and scratched in the box under it. “How’d your team do?”
    “Better than Red,” she said accusingly. “We got across the river, no thanks to you.”
    “You’re in a wonderful mood.” Anoki bit his lip, as if trying to make a decision. He suddenly reached for her. She sat still, then pulled her head away abruptly as his lips brushed hers.
    She jumped up. “What’s the matter with you? What did you do that for?”
    “Why do you think?”
    “I don’t know.” Embarrassed, she looked away from him.
    “I thought you had some feelings for me.”
    “I do.”
    “Then why’d you pull away?”
    She raised her eyes. His coppery face was stony; his high cheekbones and strong chin made him look harsh. “Listen, Anoki. I like you. You’re my friend.”
    “I see. Your friend, and that’s all.” His eyes were cold. “You never even noticed. You couldn’t see how I felt. You pity me. I’m not supposed to be like other boys.”
    “That isn’t what I meant. It’s just …” She gestured helplessly with her hands. “I like you. It isn’t that. It’s just that I always got along with you because I knew you wouldn’t act the way some of the other boys do sometimes. You know. We could always be the way we were when we were little kids.”
    “All right, Zoheret. I’m sorry. It won’t happen again, I promise. I don’t want you to feel uncomfortable or anything. I made a mistake, that’s all.”
    “Anoki,” she began, but there was little to say. “I’ll see you at supper. All right?”
    “Sure.”
    She