“Boys are like that,” Ayla said with a smile. “Someone told him there were horses at our camp. He came to see. I happened to be there at the time.”

“I hope he didn’t bother you,” Mardena said.

“No, not at all. In fact, he could be a help to me. I am trying to keep the horses out of the way, for their own safety, until everyone gets used to them and knows they are not horses to be hunted. I plan to build an enclosure for them, but I haven’t had time, so for now, I just have them on long ropes fastened to a tree. The ropes drag the ground and get caught in grass and brush, and then the horses can’t move around as well. I’ve asked Lanidar if he would check on them when I have to be gone for some time, and come and tell me if there is a problem. I just want to make sure they are all right,” Ayla said.

“He’s just a boy, and horses are rather big, aren’t they?” the boy’s mother asked.

“Yes, they are, and if they are crowded, or in an unknown situation, they sometimes get frightened. Then they might rear or kick out, but they took to Lanidar quite well. They are very gentle with children and people they know. You are welcome to come and see for yourself. But if it troubles you, I’ll find someone else,” Ayla said.

“Don’t say no, mother!” Lanidar implored, rushing up. “I want to do it. She let me touch them, and they ate out of my hands, both hands! And she showed me how to throw a spear with that spear-thrower. All the boys throw spears, and I never threw a spear before.”

Mardena knew that her son longed to be like the other boys, but she felt that he had to learn that he never would be. It had hurt when the man who had been her mate left after Lanidar was born. She was sure that he was ashamed of the child, and she thought everyone felt the same way. In addition to the handicap, Lanidar was small for his age, and she tried to protect him. Spear-throwing didn’t mean anything to her. She had come to watch the demonstration only because everyone else was and she thought Lanidar might enjoy watching. But when she looked for him, she couldn’t find him. No one was more surprised than Lanidar’s mother when the foreign woman called on him to demonstrate the new weapon, and she had to find out how Ayla came to know him.

Ayla could see her hesitation. “If you are not busy, why don’t you come to the camp of the Ninth Cave tomorrow morning with Lanidar. You can see the boy with the horses and judge for yourself,” Ayla said.

“Mother, I can do it. I know I can do it,” Lanidar pleaded.

26

I need to think about it,” Mardena said. “My son is not like other boys. He can’t do the same things they do.”

Ayla looked at the woman. “I’m not sure I understand.”

“Certainly you can see that his arm limits him,” the woman said.

“Somewhat, but many people learn to overcome those kinds of limitations,” Ayla said.

“How much can he overcome? You must know he’ll never be a hunter, and he can’t make things with his hands. That doesn’t leave much,” Mardena said.

“Why can’t he be a hunter or learn to make things?” Ayla said. “He’s intelligent. He can see well. He has one perfectly good arm and some use of the other. He can walk, he can even run. I’ve seen far worse problems overcome. He just needs someone to teach him.”

“Who would teach him?” Mardena said. “Even the man of his hearth didn’t want to.”

Ayla thought she was begining to understand. “I would be happy to teach him, and I think Jondalar would be willing to help. Lanidar’s left arm is strong. He might have to learn to compensate for the right arm, balance mostly, for accuracy, but I’m sure he could learn to throw a spear, especially with a spear-thrower.”

“Why should you bother? We don’t live at your Cave. You don’t even know him,” the woman said.

Ayla didn’t think the woman would believe that she would do it because she liked the boy, though she had just met him. “I think we all have an obligation to teach children whatever we can,” she said, “and I have just become Zelandonii. I need to make a contribution to my new people to show that I am worthy. Besides, if he helps me with the horses, I would owe him a debt, and I would want to give him something of like value in return. That is what I was taught when I was a girl.”

“Even if you try to teach him, what if he can’t learn to hunt? I hate to get his hopes up,” the boy’s mother said.

“He needs to learn some skills, Mardena. What will he do when he grows up, and you become too old to protect him? You don’t want him to be a burden on the Zelandonii. Neither do I, no matter where he lives.”

“He knows how to gather food with the women,” Mardena said.

“Yes, and that is a worthwhile contribution, but he should learn some other skills. At least he should try,” Ayla said.

“I suppose you’re right, but what can he do? I’m not sure he could really hunt,” Lanidar’s mother said.

“You saw him throw a spear, didn’t you? Even if he doesn’t become an excellent hunter—though I think he could—if he learns to hunt, it could lead to other things.”

“Like what?”

Ayla tried to think of something in a hurry. “He’s a good whistler, Mardena. I’ve heard him,” she said. “A p

erson who knows how to whistle can often learn to imitate the sounds that animals make. If he can, then he could learn to be a Caller, and entice them to where the hunters are waiting. You don’t need arms for that, but he would need to be where animals are so he could hear them, and learn how they sound.”

“It’s true, he is a good whistler,” Mardena said, considering something she hadn’t thought of. “Do you really think he could do something with that?”

Tags: Jean M. Auel Earth's Children Fantasy
Source: readsnovelonline.net