He also got to meet a few new Were-cats. They had drifted in late, or were just passing through, and he learned that Thean was very correct. That Were-cat females tended to act more aggressive in groups, and that Were-cat personalities were very widely spread over the spectrum. He met Nikki, Triana's youngest. To his surprise, she was only fifteen years old, but she was fully grown. He learned from Triana that a Were-cat reaches full maturity by age twelve, a full eight years or so before a human does. The Were-cat physiology made them age at a rapid rate after birth, reaching puberty around age eight or nine, and becoming a fully recognized adult at about age thirteen. But once they reached that level, they remained thus until something killed them. By the same time next year, Mist's cub would be the size of a two year old, though he'd be less than a year old. He'd be crawling one month after birth, walking at three months, and capable of running by six months.

Tarrin liked Nikki. She was quiet and unassuming, probably still feeling her very young age when surrounded by such older Were-cats, and he could relate to her in that manner. Tarrin was actually older than she was. She was the spitten image of her mother, but she had Thean's grayish striped fur. He could see Thean in her. There was no doubt who her sire was. And strangely enough, she didn't act different around him in any way. He didn't even know if she knew who her father was. That shocked Tarrin's human sensibilities, but he wasn't sure how to ask about something like that. He was positive that Nikki knew, but it was like that information meant nothing to her. Thean was different from other males only in that she couldn't take him for mate.

He also met Jale, the next eldest of the females. Jale was alot like Triana, tall and very intimidating, but her face was much more open and expressive than his stone-faced bond-mother's was. She was a gentle, kind woman, considerate and thoughtful, almost like a mother to everyone around her. Where Mist represented the worst a Were-cat could be, Jale represented the best. Everyone loved her and respected her, and Tarrin had to admit that she had a way about her that made even him feel a warm spot for her. Where Triana intimidated with bullying, Jale intimidated with subtlety. It was scary how she could make anyone do anything just by giving them the slightest of frowns.

As the days passed, the inn's patronage changed. Out of enemies to hunt down, Shirazi lost interest in staying. Her eternal burning desire to hunt was just too powerful, and she and Singer left Shoran's Fork and returned to the Frontier. Rahnee found Thean a more willing playmate than Tarrin, so after indulging herself a few times with him, she too drifted away. Shayle and Nikki remained behind to catch up with their mother, but Tarrin's absolute intolerance for Laren forced the smaller Were-cat out of the inn, and eventually out of the city. Just the scent of Laren was enough to work Tarrin up to a near fever pitch. Jale only stopped in for a couple of days, long enough to get a look at Tarrin, and then she too was gone. That left only Triana, Thean, Nikki, and Shayle, Triana's family of sorts. Triana wasn't married to Thean, but it was obvious to anyone looking at them just where Thean's loyalties lay. Thean adored Triana, and given his choice of partners, he would always choose her. For her own part, Triana was very comfortable with the elder male, and when they were together, they looked like a pair of grandparents in how they acted towards each other. That deep familiarity existed between them, just like a couple who had been together for a very, very long time. Her stony mask and utter control of everything never wavered-Thean was clearly the submissive in their relationship-but it was also clear that she had deep feelings for the red-haired male.

The day had dawned hot and cloudless, as summer grabbed the land in a fierce grip and squeezed. The lands of Arkis were used to the brutal heat, for Arkis laid far south of his village home. Tarrin could deal with the heat, but the stifling humidity was another matter. The air was so heavy, it felt like he was breathing through wet cotton, and it pressed on him like a soggy blanket. That too, he discovered, was normal. Tarrin sat in the inn's dining room, enjoying a meal of thick slices of bacon, fresh bread, and a meat pie made from the leftovers of the night before. Nikki sat with him, as did Allia. Nikki was somewhat fascinated by the lithe Selani, and they had spent a good deal of time talking with one another. Allia seemed to like Nikki, for she was bright, intelligent, and curious about all things. Her desire to learn was sincere and infectious, and Allia often found herself telling the young Were-cat female more than she really meant to say.

"If the brands are the marks of adulthood, then why does Tarrin have them?" Nikki asked in her chiming voice. Nikki had a lovely voice, a rich, clear soprano voice, a voice that could make music cry if she ever used it in song.

"Tarrin is my brother, Nikki," Allia said simply. "You know that."

"I've heard you call him that. I thought it was a Selani custom."

"No. Tarrin is my deshida, my brother in all but blood. When he accepted me as his sister, he also accepted the brands as proof of his devotion to our bond. I cannot have a brother who is not a recognized member of my people. The brands give him that recognition."

"It must have hurt," she said insightfully.

"It wasn't pleasant, but the pain is part of the rite," Tarrin replied. "You have to be willing to endure it, to prove you're worthy of them."

"Ouch."

"I screamed," Tarrin admitted. "They hurt for days afterward."

"Admitting to pain is acceptable. Flinching under it is taboo," Allia told Nikki. "Part of the rite calls for the one branded to hold completely still while the iron is applied. If one moves, he takes a bad brand, and is dishonored."

"I thought he was cast out."

"There is no law that forces it, but one who takes a bad brand often leaves, rather than bring dishonor to the rest of the clan."

"That sounds nearly cruel. To be punished for the rest of your life for one moment of weakness."

"The desert is a harsh land, Nikki. If some of our customs seem barbaric, consider the lands in which we live. We are the soul of our land."

"That's a strange thought," Nikki mused. "It makes sense, though. Mother told me you have another sister, like Tarrin."

"Not like Tarrin," Allia chuckled. "Keritanima is nothing like Tarrin."

"Kerri is definitely unique," Tarrin agreed. "She's got as much will as Triana, she's a very determined woman. She's the smartest woman I think I've ever known, and what makes her so special is that she knows how to use her brains. She's never without a plan."

"If she can stick with them," Allia smiled. "Keritanima gets impulsive when things get crazy."

"Things always seem to work out, though. I like that about her," Tarrin told his sister.

"As do I," she agreed. "Keritanima is my sister, the same way Tarrin is my brother. And they are brother and sister to each other. We are something of a family, Nikki, a very tight-knit family."

"She's branded too?"

They both nodded. "She took it alot better than I did, but at least I didn't complain for a ride afterward," Tarrin said.

"How did you meet?"

"We were all students in the Tower, in Suld," Allia replied. "We met there. Tarrin was the only reason I did not go mad there, and Keritanima's incredible mind was what got us out of the Tower alive. We have been through a great deal together."

"We didn't do it alone, though," Tarrin said. "If it hadn't been for Dolanna and Faalken, Miranda and Zak, Dar and the Vendari, Darvon, Ulger, Sevren and Tomas, we'd probably still be there."

"All are worth great honor," Allia said seriously.