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Ayla was conscious of being watched while they unhitched the pole drags and removed the rest of the loads, and when she examined both horses carefully to make sure they had not sustained any injuries or developed any sores They rubbed down and coested that they take Whinney and Racer out and let the Ayla’s beautiful slad he had Wolf leaped ahead when he saw the out; he seemed pleased, too

Joharran was a those atched the before, but this time he understood it as one more element of the care they required Horses obviously didn’t need that kind of attention when they were living with their herds, but when they did the work that people wanted, perhaps they did Yes, the potential benefit of using horses to help in various as there, but was it worth the amount of work they required? It was a question he was pondering while he watched Ayla and his brother ride off

Ayla felt herself relax almost as soon as they left There was a sense of release, of freedorown accusto Journey, and they both found respite in returning to their habit When they reached North River Valley and saw the long open grassland ahead, they looked at each other sied the horses on until they were galloping across the field full-tilt They didn’t notice when they passed a couple of people returning to the Twenty-ninth Cave fro, but the people noticed theht they had never seen before and weren’t sure they wanted to see again People racing along on the backs of horses left them uneasy

Ayla stopped beside a sreement, they both turned and followed it The source was a spring-fed pool with a largehovering over it, as though protecting its birthright of water for itself and its offspring: a collection of s basin They dis blankets off the horses, and spread theround

The horses drank froood ti at the anis in the air, feeling coood back scratch

Suddenly Ayla reached for the sling wrapped around her head, unwrapped it quickly, and glanced doard the pool for stones She grabbed a couple of rounded pebbles, fit one into the pocket of the hurling weapon, and let fly Without looking, she grabbed the leather strap again, pulled it through her hand to the end, brought both ends together, and had another stone ready to go just as a second bird was taking to the air She brought it down, then went to retrieve her t ptaran

“If it was just the two of us, and ere going to set up ca up her trophies

“But it’s not just the two of us, so what are you going to do with them?” Jondalar said

“Well, the feathers of ptars are rather nice this ti for the baby,” she said “But I’ll have tiive these to Denanna After all, this is their territory, and she seems so anxious about Whinney and Racer, and Wolf, that I think she wishes we hadn’t coift will make her feel better”

“Where did you learn to be so wise, Ayla?” Jondalar said, looking at her with love and warmth

“That’s not wisdom, that’s just sense, Jondalar” She looked up and felt herself becoic of his eyes The only place she had ever seen such a rich blue color was in the deep pools of glaciers, but his eyes were not icy They arm and filli of love

He put his arms around her, and she dropped the brace of birds to reach up and kiss hi time since he had held her like this, then she realized it had been a long time Not since he had kissed her, but since they had been alone in an open field, with the horses grazing contentedly and Wolf poking his inquiring nose into every bush and hole in the ground, and no one else around Soon they would have to go back and continue the trek to the Su, and who knehen they would have aher neck, Ayla responded eagerly

His warave herself to the the sensation overcome her He blew in her ear and nibbled her lobe, then pulled his hands forward to hold the fullness of her breasts Evennew life inside her, new life that she said was as much his as hers At the least, the life had to be of his spirit, of that he felt sure For most of their Journey, he had been the only man around for the Mother to take an elan from

She untied her waist thong, fro various objects and pouches that were secured by loops or strings, and laid it down beside the riding blanket, s that were attached to it stayed in place He sat down on the edge of the leather covering that sh not unpleasantly, of horse It was a smell he was used to and that carried with it enjoyable associations Quickly, he began untying and unwrapping the thongs of his foot coverings fros, then stood up and untied the waistband that held closed the overlapping front of his leggings and pulled them off

When he looked up, Ayla had done the same He looked at her and liked what he saw Her shape was more full, not only her breasts, but her sto He felt his manhood respond, snatched off his tunic, then helped Ayla with hers He felt a cool breeze on his bare skin, saw chill bu her war to keep her that way