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“Oh,hunters knohat’s been seen They are soathers, or so”
“But how does someone knohat the fire means?”
“It’s usually arranged in advance, especially when it’s the season for certain herds to nals that mean so there, they know to take notice If they don’t knohat it means, they will send a runner to find out”
“That’s a very clever idea,” she said, then added a thought “It’s sonals, isn’t it? Co without words”
“I never thought of it that way, but I suppose you’re right,” he said
Jondalar went back a different way from the one they had co a switchback trail that traversed a zigzag down the steeper incline near the top, then turned right through grass and brush on the e of the flat lowlands of the right bank of The River and cut directly across Wood River Valley to the horse’s meadow
On the way back, Ayla felt relaxed, but she didn’t have the exhilarating sense of freedoh she liked everyone she hadfeast, and she was not anticipating ht She wasn’t used to so many people all at once
They left Whinney and Racer in the grassy lea and found the place where the soap plant grew, but Jondalar had to point it out It was one Ayla was not familiar with She studied it carefully, noted similarities and differences, and ot her pouch of dried ceanothus flowers
Wolf ju after they stopped paying attention to hiri, they crushed the root of the plant and some water in a depression of a flat rock with a rounded stone to release the saponin-rich foa, on each other, then dove under to rinse off She gave some ceanothus to Jondalar, then applied some directly to her wet hair The plant was not as soapy, foa up only a little, but it sain, the young woet out
After drying with the soft skins, they spread the the teeth that had been carved out of ie, but when she started co her hair, Jondalar stopped her
“Letthe co her hair after she washed it, taking pleasurable delight in feeling the thick y tresses And it made her feel unaccustomedly pampered
“I like yourwith her back to him while he combed, “and Willamar, too”
“They like you, too”
“And Joharran seeood leader Do you know you and your brother have the same frown lines?” she asked “I had to like him, he looks so familiar”
“He was smitten by that beautiful smile of yours,” Jondalar said “Just as I am”