"Yes, it was. He was blinded in one eye, too, by that attack, and his leg was hurt. He had to walk with a stick from then on."

"The poor boy. He had to be taken care of the rest of his life, I suppose," Mardena said.

"No," Ayla said. "He made a valuable contribution to his people."

"How did he manage? What did he do?"

"He became a great man, a mog-ur-that's like a Zelandoni-and he was recognized as the First. He and his sister were the ones who took care of me after my own family died. He was the man of my hearth, and I loved him very much," Ayla said.

Mardena was looking at her with jaw agape and her eyes open wide. She could hardly believe the woman, but why would someone lie about something like that?

As Ayla talked, Denoda became particularly conscious of her unusual accent, but the story made her understand why she seemed to have taken a liking to Lanidar. When she mates, she is going to be related to some very powerful people, and if she likes him, she could help him a lot. This woman might be the best thing that ever happened to the boy, she thought.

Lanidar had been listening, too. Maybe I could learn to hunt, he thought, even if I only have one good arm. Maybe I could learn to do something besides picking berries.

They were approaching a construction that was like a surround, except that it didn't seem particularly sturdy. It was made of long, thin, straight alder and willow poles lashed together in horizontal Xs with other poles across the top, attached to shorter, somewhat sturdier poles sunk into the ground. Bushes and tree branches, already drying out, loosely filled in the spaces between. If a herd of bison, for example, or even a large male-six feet six inches at the top of the hump on his shoulders, with long black horns-tried to break out, the enclosure would not have held. Even the horses could likely break it down, if they were determined.

"Do you remember how to whistle to call Racer, Lanidar?" Ayla asked.

"Yes, I think so," he said.

"Why don't you call him and see if he'll come?" she said.

The boy whistled the loud, piercing call. Very soon the two horses, the mare following the young stallion, appeared from behind some trees that lined the small waterway and came trotting toward them. They stopped at the enclosure fence and watched the humans approaching. Whinney snorted and Racer whickered at them. Ayla answered with the distinctive whinny that was the sound she had originally named her horse, and both horses neighed back.

"She does know how to make a sound like a horse," Mardena said.

"I told you she could, mother," Lanidar said.

Wolf raced ahead, easily slipping under the fence. He sat in front of the mare while she dropped her head in what appeared to be a gesture of greeting. Then Wolf approached the young stallion, dropped down on his chest and forepaws, with his hindquarters up in the air in a playful pose, and yipped at Racer. The stallion nickered back, then they touched noses. Ayla smiled at them as she ducked inside the fence. She hugged the mare around the neck, then turned and stroked the stallion, who was crowding in looking for attention, too.

"I hope you like this surround better than having to wear halters and ropes all the time. I wish I could let you run free, but I don't think it's safe when so many people are out hunting. I've brought some visitors today, and it's important for you to be very cooperative and gentle. I want the boy who whistles to check on you for me, and his mother is protective of him and nervous about you," Ayla said in the language she had invented when she lived alone in the valley.

It comprised certain sounds and gestures from the Clan, some of the nonsense sounds she and her son had made to each other when he was a baby and they were alone, and certain onomatopoeic sounds she had begun to make in imitation of the animals around her, including horse snorts and whickers. Only she knew what she meant, but she had always used her invented language when she talked to the horses. She doubted if they fully understood, though certain sounds and gestures had meaning for them, since she used them as signals and directions, but they knew it was her way of addressing them and they responded by paying attention. "What's she doing?" Mardena said to Folara. "She's talking to the horses," Folara said. "She often talks to them like that."

"What is she saying to them?" Mardena asked. "You'll have to ask her," Folara said.

"Do they know what she's saying? It doesn't make any sense to me," Denoda said.

"I don't know, but they seem to listen," Folara said.

Lanidar had crowded up close to the fence and was watching her closely. She really did treat them like friends, more like family, actually, he thought, and they treated her the same way. But he wondered where the enclosure came from. It hadn't been there the day before.

When Ayla was through talking to the horses and turned around to face the people, Lanidar asked her, "Where did the surround come from? It wasn't here yesterday."

Ayla smiled. "A lot of people got together and built it yesterday afternoon," she said.

When Ayla returned from having a meal with the Nineteenth Cave, she mentioned to Joharran after his meeting that she wanted to build an enclosure for the horses, and explained why. Joharran stood upon Zelandoni's stool and talked about Ayla's desire to create a safe place for the horses. Most of the people who were at the meeting were still there, as well as many people from the Ninth Cave. Many questions were asked, including how strong it had to be, and several suggestions were made. Before long, most of them moved up the meadow and pitched in to build the corral. The ones who were not from the Ninth Cave were curious about the horses anyway, and most of those who were didn't want to see the horses accidentally hurt or killed. They were a novelty that brought added distinction to their Cave.

Ayla was so grateful, she didn't know what to say. She thanked them but didn't think that was near enough, and felt a debt to the Zelandonii that she didn't know how to repay. Working together brought people closer together, and she felt that she got to know some people better. Joharran had mentioned wanting to include the horses in the hunt, which was planned for the following morning. Both Ayla and Jondalar rode the horses and demonstrated their control of them, which made Joharran's suggestions much more acceptable. If the hunt was successful, the Matrimonial would normally take place the next day, but since Dalanar and the Lanzadonii had not yet arrived, they were prepared to wait a few days, though some people were getting anxious.

Ayla put halters on the horses and led them out of the enclosure through a gate that Tormaden of the Nineteenth Cave had devised. He dug a hole beside one of the support posts for the base of a pole to which the gate was attached and used a loop of rope to slip over the top. Rope loops also served as hinges. She was beginning to feel a closer tie to the Nineteenth Cave. When she brought the horses up close, Mardena backed away fast. They were so much bigger up close. Folara immediately stepped into her place.

"I haven't seen the horses nearly as much as I wanted to," she said, petting Whinney's face. "Everyone has been so busy what with that bison hunt where Shevonar died, and the burial, and getting ready to come. You said once you'd let me have a ride on a horse."

"Would you like to do it now?" Ayla said.

"Could I?" she said, her eyes glowing with pleasure.

"Let me get a riding blanket for Whinney," Ayla said. "Would you and Lanidar like to give them something to eat while I get it? He has some food they like in that bowl."

"I'm not sure if Lanidar should get so close," Mardena said.

"He's already close, Mardena," Denoda said.