"As many times as necessary, Ishtar. I swore it."

Ishtar patted her hand. "We'll get a good one. Galahad, Lazarus is going to have his identical twin sister, I promise you-and once it is an accomplished fact, we'll hear no more talk of termination-option switches, or leaving us, or anything-at least until she's woman tall!"

"Ishtar?"

"Yes, Hamadryad?"

"If we both show normal fetuses a month from now-"

"Then you can abort, dear; you know that."

"No, no, no! I shan't! What's wrong with twins?"

Galahad blinked at her. "Don't bother to answer, Ish. Let me give you the male angle. The man who can resist raising identical twin girls hasn't been born. And his name isn't Lazarus Long. Look, dears, is there anything, anything at all, that can improve both your chances? Now?"

"No." Ishtar repeated softly, "No. We both test pregnant, that's all we can say or do now. Except pray. And I don't know how to pray."

"Then it's time we learned!"

VARIATIONS ON A THEME-V

Voices in the Dark

After Minerva ordered his evening meal for Lazarus, then supervised its service, the computer said, "Is there anything else, sir?"

"I guess not. Yes. Will you have dinner with me, Minerva?"

"Thank you, Lazarus. I accept."

"Don't thank me; you are doing me a favor, milady. I'm moody tonight. Sit down, dear, and cheer me up."

The computer's voice repositioned so that it appeared to come from the other side of the table where Lazarus sat, as if a flesh-and-blood were seated there. "Shall I construct an image, Lazarus?"

"Don't put yourself to the trouble, dear."

"It's no trouble, Lazarus; I have ample spare capacity."

"No, Minerva. That holo you made for me one night- perfect, realistic, moved just like a flesh-and-blood. But it wasn't you. I know what you look like. Umm...lower the lights and spot enough light on my plate to let me eat. Then I'll see you in the gloom without a holo."

The lighting readjusted so that the room was almost dark save for a pool of light on chastely perfect tableware and napery in front of Lazarus. The contrast dazzled his eyes enough that he could not see across the table without peering-he did not peer. Minerva said, "What is my appearance, Lazarus?"

"Eh?" He stopped to think. "It fits your voice. Hmm, it's a picture that has grown up in my mind without thinking about it, during the time we have been together. Dear, do you realize that we have been living together more intimately than husband and wife usually manage?"

"Perhaps I don't, Lazarus, since I cannot experience being a wife. But I am happy to be close to you."

"Being a wife doesn't have too much to do with copulation, my dear. You've been a mother to my baby, Dora. Oh, I know that Ira stands first with you...but you are like that girl Olga I spoke of; you have so much to give that you can enrich more than one man. But I honor your loyalty to ha. Your love for him, dear."

"Thank you, Lazarus. But-if I know what the word means-I love you, too. And Dora."

"I know you do. Both. You and I have no need to worry over words; we'll leave that to Hamadryad. Mmm, your appearance-you are tall, about as tall as Ishtar. But slender. Not skinny, just slender-strong and well muscled without being bulgy. You are not as broad in the hips as she is. But broad enough. Womanly. You're young, but a mature young woman, not a girl. Breasts much smaller than Ishtar's, more like Hamadryad's. You are handsome rather than pretty, and you are rather solemn, except when one of your rare smiles lights up your face. Your hair is brown and straight, and you wear it long. But you don't fuss with it other than to keep it clean and neat. Your eyes are brown and match your hair. You usually don't wear cosmetics, but you almost always wear some sort of clothing-simple clothing; you are not a clothes-horse, dress does not interest you that much. But you go naked only with persons you fully trust-a short list.

"That's all, I guess. I haven't tried to imagine details; this is just what grew in my mind. Oh, yes!-you keep your nails, both hands and feet, short and clean. But you aren't fussy about it, or about anything. Neither dirt nor sweat bothers you, and you don't flinch at blood, even though you don't like it."

"I am very pleased to know how I look, Lazarus."

"Huh? Oh, fiddle, girl-that's my imagination living its own life."

"That is how I look," Minerva said firmly, "and I like it.

"All right. Although you can be as dazzingly beautiful as Hamadryad if you want to be."

"No, I look just as you described me. I am a 'Martha,' Lazarus, not her sister Mary."

Lazarus said, "You surprised me. Yes, you are. You ye read the Bible?"

"I have read everything in the Great Library. In one sense I am the Library, Lazarus."

"Mmm, yes, should've realized it. How is the twinning process coming along? Going to be ready? Say if ha gets a burr under his saddle and takes off in a hurry."

"It is essentially complete, Lazarus. All my permanents, programs and memories and logics, are twinned in Dora s number-four hold, and I run routine checks and exercise by running the twinned parts parallel with the me here under the Palace-a 'Tell me six times' instead of my normal 'Tell me three times' method. I have found and corrected some open circuits that way-minor factory defects, nothing I could not handle at once. You see, Lazarus, I treated it as a crash program and did not depend on Turing processes to build most of my new me,, as I would have had to build extensionals in Dora for that sole purpose, then remove them save for maintenance extensionals.

"That would have taken much time, of course, since I can't use computer speeds in manipulating mass. So instead I ordered all new blank memories and logic circuitry and had them installed in Dora by factory technicians. Much faster. Then I filled them and checked them."

"Any trouble, dear?"

"No, Lazarus. Oh, Dora grumbled about dirty feet in her clean compartments. But it was just grumbling, as they worked 'clean-room' style, lint-free coveralls and masks and gloves, and I required them to change in the air lock, not just before they entered her number-four." He felt her quick smile. "Temporary sanitary facilities outside the ship-which caused the project engineer to grumble, as well as the shop steward."

"Should think so. Wouldn't have hurt Dora to activate a head."

"Lazarus, as you pointed out, I will be-I hope-a passenger in Dora someday. So I have tried to become her friend-and we are friends, and I love her, and she is the only friend I have who is a computer. I don't want to jeopardize that by making a mess, or permitting one to be made, in my moving into her ship. She is, as you said, a neat housekeeper; I am trying to be just as neat and show thereby that I respect her and appreciate the privilege of being a passenger in her. The engineer in charge and that talky shop steward had no reason to grumble; I specified all this in the contract-change clothes at the lock, leg urinals for all personnel inside, no eating, expectorating, or smoking in the ship, go by the shortest route to number-four, no snooping elsewhere in the ship-which they could not, anyhow, as I asked Dora to keep all doors locked save that direct route-and I paid to have it done this way."

"A pretty penny, I'm certain. Did Ira comment?"

"Ira does not bother with such matters. But I did not report costs to him; I charged it all to you, Lazarus."

"Whee' Am I bankrupt?"

"No, sir; I paid it from the Senior's unlimited drawing account. That seemed best to me, Lazarus, as the work was done in your ship. Perhaps they wonder why the Senior wants a second computer, of high capacity, installed in his ship. I know the project engineer wondered; I snubbed him firmly. But wonder is all they can do; the Senior is not accountable to anyone. I hinted quite broadly that Mr. Chairman Pro Tem would be annoyed if anyone attempted to snoop into your affairs. Not that anyone can tell what a computer really is, just from looking at it-even the manufacturer."