Enders In Exile

don't I hide
from
you
?"
    She wasn't sure whether
to be even more annoyed at him for turning the tables on her, or to be
a bit relieved that he considered a confrontation with her to be
emotional. She wasn't actually sure she had enough of a hold on him for
their confrontations to
be
emotional—on
his side, anyway.
    Ender glanced at the
time in the computer display and sighed. "Well, your timing, as usual,
is impeccable, even if you don't have a clue."
    "I'd have a clue if you
gave me one," said Valentine.
    Ender was standing now,
and to her surprise, he really was taller than her. She had noticed he
was getting tall, but hadn't realized that he had passed her. And it
wasn't thick shoes—he wasn't wearing any.
    "Val," he said softly.
"If you looked at what I say and do, it would be obvious to you what's
going on. But you don't analyze. You see something that doesn't look
right, and you leap past all the thinking part and go straight to
'Ender is doing something wrong and I must put a stop to it.' "
    "I think! I analyze!"
    "You analyze everything
and everybody. That's what makes your history of Battle School so
wonderful and truthful."
    "You've read it?"
    "You gave it to me
three days ago. Of course I've read it."
    "You didn't say
anything."
    "This is the first time
I've seen you since I finished it. Val, think, please."
    "Don't patronize me!"
    "
Feeling
patronized isn't
thinking,
" he said, sounding
irritated at last. That made her feel a little better. "Don't judge me
until you understand me. You can't understand me if you've already
judged me. You think I've treated Alessandra badly, but I haven't. I've
treated her extremely well. I'm about to save her life. But you can't
trust me to do the right thing. You don't even bother to think what the
right thing
is
before you decide that I'm not
doing it."
    "What is it that I
think you're not doing that you
are
doing? That
girl is pining for you—"
    "Her
feelings.
Not her
needs.
Not what's actually good for her.
You think the worst danger she faces is having her feelings hurt."
    Valentine felt the
righteous anger bleed out of her. What danger was he talking about?
What
need
did Alessandra have, beyond her need
for Ender? What was Valentine missing?
    Ender put his arms
around her, hugged her, and then moved past her, out of the room, then
out of the building. Valentine had no choice but to follow.
    He moved briskly across
the grassy square in the middle of the science
complex—really, just four one-story structures where the
handful of scientists worked on the biology and technology that kept
the colonists and the colony running. Now, though, with the newcomers
from the ship, the houses were teeming with people, and Ender had
already asked the foremen of the crews to shift their priorities and
get additional science buildings. The noise of building wasn't
deafening, because there were few power tools. But the calling out of
instructions, the shouted warnings, the pounding of axes and hammers,
it was a vigorous sound, taken all together. The sound of deliberate,
welcome change.
    Did Ender really know
exactly where the Toscanos would be? He certainly walked straight
toward the place. And now that Valentine thought about it—
analyzed,
yes, Ender—she realized that Ender must have been waiting
till the end of their visit, until the shuttle was loading up for the
return trip. Not quite the last one, but the last that wouldn't be full
of marines and crew. The last shuttle with room for nonessential
passengers.
    He cut it rather close,
even so. Alessandra was standing forlorn at the bottom of the ramp,
with her mother tugging at her sleeve, urging her to move on into the
shuttle. Then she saw Ender coming toward her and broke away from her
mother, running to Ender. Could the poor girl be any more obvious?
    She flung her arms
around Ender, and to his credit, he embraced her willingly. In fact,
Valentine was surprised at the way he held her, nuzzling her shoulder
with real affection. What did he mean by that? What was the girl going
to think he meant? Ender, are you really that insensitive?

    * * * * *
    When she practically
jumped into his arms, Ender took a step back to bear the sudden
momentum; but he made sure to get his face down close to her ear.
    "Sixteen is old enough
to join a colony without parental permission," he said softly.
    Alessandra pulled away
from him, looked searchingly in his eyes.
    "No," said Ender.
"Nothing will happen between us. I'm not asking you to