There she sat on her bed reading a book to two volplas.
One of the volplas grinned and said in English, "Hello there, King
Arthur."
"What's going on here?" I demanded of all three.
"Nothing, Daddy. We're just reading like we always do."
"Like _always_? How long has this been going on?"
"Oh, weeks and weeks. How long has it been since you came here that
first time to visit me, Fuzzy?"
The impolite volpla who had addressed me as King Arthur grinned at her
and calculated. "Oh, weeks and weeks."
"But you're teaching them to read English."
"Of course. They're such good pupils and so grateful. Daddy, you won't
make them go away, will you? We love each other, don't we?"
Both volplas nodded vigorously.
She turned back to me. "Daddy, did you know they can fly? They can fly
right out of the window and way up in the sky."
"Is that a fact?" I said testily. I looked coldly at the two volplas.
"I'm going to speak to your chief."
* * * * *
Back downstairs again, I raved at my wife. "Why didn't you tell me a
thing like this was going on? How could you let such an unusual thing
go on and not discuss it with me?"
My wife got a look on her face that I don't see very often. "Now you
listen to me, mister. Your whole life is a secret from us. Just what
makes you think your daughter can't have a little secret of her own?"
She got right up close to me and her blue eyes snapped little sparks
all over me. "The fact is that I was wrong to tell you at all. I
promised her I wouldn't tell _anyone_. Look what happened when I did.
You go leaping around the house like a raving maniac just because a
little girl has a secret."
"A fine secret!" I yelled. "Didn't it occur to you this might be
dangerous? Those creatures are over-sexed and...." I stumbled into an
awful silence while she gave me the dirtiest smile since the days of
the Malatestas.
"How did _you_ ... suddenly get to _be_ ... the palace eunuch? Those
are sweet lovable little creatures without a harm in their furry little
bodies. But don't think I don't realize what's been going on. You
created them yourself. So, if they have any dirty ideas, I know where
they got them."
I stormed out of the house. I spun the jeep out of the yard and ripped
off through the woods.
The chief was sitting at home as comfortable as you please. He was
leaning back against the great oak that hid his tree house. He had a
little fire going and one of the women was roasting a sparrow for him.
He greeted me in volpla language.
"Do you realize," I blurted angrily, "that there are two volplas in my
daughter's bedroom?"
"Why, yes," he answered calmly. "They go there every day. Is there
anything wrong with that?"
"She's teaching them the words of men."
"You told us some men may be our enemies. We are anxious to know their
words, the better to protect ourselves."
He reached around behind the tree and, right there in broad daylight,
that volpla pulled a copy of the San Francisco _Chronicle_ out of
hiding. He held it up apologetically. "We have been taking it for some
time from the box in front of your house."
He spread the paper on the ground between us. I saw by the date that it
was yesterday's. He said proudly, "From the two who go to your house, I
have learned the words of men. As men say, I can 'read' most of this."
* * * * *
I just stood there gaping at him. How could I possibly recoup this
situation so that the stunning joke of the volplas wouldn't be lost?
Would it seem reasonable that the volplas, by observing and listening
to men, had learned their language? Or had they been taught it by a
human friend?
That was it--I would just have to sacrifice anonymity. My family and I
had found a colony of them on our ranch and taught them English. I was
stuck with it because it was the truth.
The volpla waved his long thin arm over the front page. "Men are
dangerous. They will shoot us with their guns if we leave here."
I hastened to reassure him. "It will not be like that. When men
have learned about you, they will leave you alone." I stated this
emphatically, but for the first time I was beginning to see this might
not be a joke to the volplas. Nevertheless, I went on. "You must
disperse the families at once. You stay here with your family so we
remain in contact, but send the other families to other places."