Theodore (19 page)

“Why did you have us run into a field?” asked Theodore as
they sat in the canteen.  “Didn't offer cover at all!”

Tim nodded, “Well, the goal was to have you be seen
heading there, and then move you over to the large gardens further south.  It
seems you were spotted a bit earlier than we hoped.  We were trying to make
sure that if they opened up with the main guns that there wouldn't be a whole
lot of people about.”

Theodore could definitely get behind the last point.  A
brief mental image of the craft strafing the dorms sent shivers down his
spine.  “How did they spot us?  They have people watching?”

Tim frowned, “Yes.  Yes, unfortunately.  Four that we can
confirm.  All from the
Earth Forever
group.  Nasty hateful bunch.  Good
side of that is they were ratted out by some of their own.  It seems that when
xenophobia and mental images of someone saving a young family collide,
sometimes people make the better choice.”

“A further credit to those that turned in the group: they
declined the reward offered,” smiled Bill.

Theodore permitted himself a brief smile at that; it was
always good when people chose to finally look beyond their own bigotry.  “It
was tense out there, but Bill and I got by...”  

“I have not seen anything that cool since watching the
vids of Edward Rose stand down a 2x25mm Satyr Systems auto-cannon,” beamed
Tim.  “But that was about
soaking
the rounds, not fighting back!”

“Well, I didn't have to soak any of those, thank you very
much.  I just wanted them to go away,” replied Theodore as he nursed his
lemonade.  “I'm sure I'll get to hear all sorts of wild stories from him when I
marry Meagan,” Theodore laughed.  “Although quite honestly, the few times I've
met him, he's not much brought up those early years when he served alongside
the Shukurae.  He's much happier talking about all the wonderful livewires in
his house!”

“Mr. Rose was barely a year older than you when he did
that, and he was a Silver.  I now appreciate what your father said about
Silvers not being that special and anyone can become truly incredible with Live
Steel,” grinned Tim.

Theodore laughed and grinned, “I've trained long and hard
with my father.”

Bill's eyebrows furrowed, “Okay, I read that part of the
report: what is a Silver and what makes that different from a High Silver?”

Theodore grinned, “Silvers are the generic name for male
Taiks that can change the color of their fur.  They also tend to be fast learners
with Live Steel, hence my father's comments, and they can also do this weird
'growl' thing.  This growl... well... it's hard to explain but they can pass
concepts, whole conversations in one very creepy sounding roar.  It seems only
Silvers, Aurorans and Dawns can understand the growl.  Quite strange.”

“Ask one question, get two more,” grumbled Bill.  “And
what is an Auroran or Dawn?”

Theodore laughed, “Sorry, you are getting a whole lot of
obscure Highland culture all at once.  Aurorans are solid white female Taiks,
hair and fur both white.  Fairly rare.  They get their name from the first
solid white Taik about five hundred years ago, a girl called...”

“Aurora?” grinned Bill.

“Exactly,” smiled Theodore.  “Dawns are
screaming
rare; they've only showed up this last generation.  They are solid black
females.  Meagan has a sister who is a Dawn.  There are less than ten of them
known and all in the last thirty years or so.  They also...”  Theodore wasn't
sure how to put it politely, “they have wings.  Wings they can summon and
dismiss in a cloud of blue sparks just like Live Steel.”

“Compared to what I saw you do yesterday, wings are a
hiccup!” laughed Bill.  “So that leaves High Silvers.  I take it they can
change colors, too?”

Theodore let out a nervous laugh, “There's not a lot
really known about High Silvers... they just seem to sleep, eat, drink and
breathe Live Steel.  Rather than change colors, they just sort of fade out of
view... they... wow... In combat, there is this thing they can do called a 'Forest
Wall.'  Somehow they can harness the stress and strain caused by things moving
back and forth between realms with Live Steel and set off a shock-wave.  This
shock-wave creates an EMP like burst comparable to a small thermonuclear blast,
but the
physical
manifestation is far more bizarre.”

“It makes trees?” guessed Bill.

“Lots and lots of them!  A small forest just seems to
erupt out of the ground.  You have concrete roads and buildings?  Not for
long!  Grass, bushes and trees just tear the place up.  Walking down an
industrial street and then whoosh!  Five seconds later you are walking in a
forest with trees twenty meters over your head!”

“The best documented case of that you'll find is from the
Radimar government some twenty-odd years ago,” interjected Tim.

“That, I will have to look up!” remarked Bill with some
awe.

“You do realize, Theodore,” began Tim with a broad grin,
“That two of your uncle-in-laws, or however that is put, are High Silvers.”

Theodore's fur spiked, “No way!”

Tim nodded, “The other clan Silverglade boys, Penn
Merryfield and Llewellyn Stratford are both High Silvers.”

Theodore was blown away, “I've... well....” He finally
just laughed, “How about that!  There is nothing there to give them away.  They
are both just rather calm family men.”  He grinned as he looked at Tim, “You
find all this out researching my fiancées?”

Tim grinned, “Connecting the dots, yes.  But I served one
rotation with the Shukurae already.  Highlanders are a bit of a cult thing
among them and those two brothers stuck out well in their modern collective
psyche.”

Theodore just laughed, “Makes me glad I'm marrying a Rose
girl and not a Stratford or Merryfield girl!”

“'Glad I'm marrying,'” Bill shuddered.  “You won't hear
those words coming from me!”

“Boredom getting to you?” teased Theodore.

Bill just shook his head, “Nope.  In my spare time, I get
to go down and glare at the
Earth Forever
bozos and try and figure out
who the actual threats are and who the hollow braggarts are.”  He just laughed,
“I think they like me less than you now.”

“Well, you are sticking up for me.  That must really put
their tail in a knot.  I do thank you, you and your whole team for what they
are doing,” replied Theodore earnestly.

“You're welcome,” grinned Bill.  “We do have one ulcer
coming up, of course.”

“Midterms?”

“Midterms and you going to visit Anna.”

“That big of a risk?”

“That much paperwork!  We're cleared to work in their
system, but that doesn't mean the locals aren't grumpy about us!”

Tim smiled as he sat down next to the two in the canteen,
“Ready for a
real
ulcer?”

Bill looked at him confused, “Petty complaints aside, I
thought things were pretty well squared away.”

“Meagan Rose is coming to visit Anna at the same time.”

“Well, that will be great fun!” brightened Theodore.  “I
didn't know they were going to be able to arrange that.”  He beamed, much to
the annoyance of Bill.  “It'll be great having them both around.  Oh!” 
Theodore gritted his teeth, “Is there some problem with Thomas Westmore?”

Tim shook his head and grinned, “Not that I'm aware of. 
I'm just worried about Meagan getting there safely.”

Theodore cringed at the obvious concern, “Um, is she
traveling with family by any chance?  Her father?”

“Not her father, but her older brother is showing up just
long enough to drop her off and pick her up.  You know anything about him? 
Ross, I think.”

Theodore nodded.  “Ross.  He's a big lad... okay, not as
big as Bill!” laughed Theodore.  “He's married now.  Um, my dad says he parries
wide when using his off hand but otherwise has very good things to say about
his martial skills.  Granted, that was three years ago... Um!  If you listen to
my Second Mother Emily, there is some gossip about the Second Mother in their
family marrying 'in a hurry!'” 

“So, do you think if push comes to shove that Ross can
protect Meagan?”

“Oh, definitely!  Maybe not with as much style or attitude
as if it was his own House, but he'd still make things horribly unpleasant in
order to protect his little sister.”

“Good, good.  The way things are scheduled now, we'll get
there half a day before Meagan.  That means we can meet them at the port and
change off custody.”

“It sounds like you have everything under control.”

Tim laughed, “Sounds that way, doesn't it?  Ask me again
in eight days!”

Theodore's smile could probably be seen from orbit as he
scooped up Anna and spun her around.  She giggled delightfully as he playfully
nuzzled the top of her head.  They were making a bit of a scene going through
the customs checkpoint, but neither of them cared. 

“Nine whole weeks!” groused Anna.  “Seemed much longer
than that!” as she hugged him warmly.

Janice Westmore just beamed at the pair.  The only one
that seemed out of sorts was Bill Burges as he blushed horribly.  “Um, can that
wait you two?  We've got paperwork to finish.”

“Hey, you said you had it all taken care of,” grinned
Theodore.

“I didn't know you were going to make a scene of it...”
groused Bill.

“A young man and his fiancée? 
Of course
they were
going to make a scene!” laughed Tim.

“Why is this paperwork still not clearing?” groused Bill.

“Did you remove Peter from the list?  He arrived
yesterday...”

Tim left Bill to deal with the paperwork while he
approached the beaming form of Janice Westmore.  “Dr. Westmore,  Commander Tim
Richardson, 231
^st
Open Escort of the Unified Treaty Diplomatic
Security Service.”

“Delighted to meet you,” she grinned as she shook his
hand.  “Do just call me Janice.  I do apologize for my husband not being here.”

“I understand, ma'am.  We'll do our best not to be... overbearing,
but when they are out and about, we will be in plain sight.”

“I understand and do greatly appreciate the effort and
risk you people are taking.”

“Part of our job, ma'am!”

“Did I understand correctly that things had drastically
calmed down at the university?”

“That is correct, the Federal Police made
huge
progress under Agent Tamilton and we've not had an incident in over six weeks.”

“I understand that the last incident was quite dramatic!”

“Yes, oh yes!” laughed Tim.  “Our biggest concern now is
while the Bella-Shoana are crippled back there, they are still quite active
here.  Our hope is that with everything else that has happened that they
realize any other actions are just petty revenge and petty revenge is bad for
their bottom line.”

Janice grimaced, “Here is hoping that greed is stronger
than revenge.”

Tim nodded, “We aren't exactly dealing with humanity’s
finest...”

She grinned, “I understand, just do what you can for those
two!”

“Soon to be three.”

Janice's shocked look all but leapt off her face before
she broke out laughing, “Right!  Meagan!  Tomorrow!”  She turned a bright red
to the amusement of all.

 Theodore's biological clock was off by four hours, but
the thought of being 'stuck' eating lunch twice in one day was a footnote to an
otherwise happy reunion.  Anna was as bubbly as ever, almost as if there had
been no break at all!  Janice was delighted to be with them and was speaking
almost exclusively in the Highland Old Tongue to the amusement of Theodore. 
The DSS team escorted them down to transport hub and they were soon rocketing
across the city on a high speed monorail.  Anna had places to show Theodore and
their schedule was tight.

“Oughtn't we wait for Meagan before we set out on
sightseeing?” asked Theodore.

“Mom and I sorted out the places where we think Meagan
would have a better chance of enjoying things, bit of a language barrier.  The
city is
huge;
there is no way we could see everything in this one short
week anyway!”

Theodore just laughed and hugged Anna.  She had a plan and
he was happy to just ride along and enjoy her company no matter where they
went.  They were catching their fair share of looks and stares, but after
everything that had happened, Theodore just let it roll off his fur.  Theodore
had to laugh a little bit at poor Bill, he was catching almost as much
attention and the local language was not in his comfort zone.  Theodore looked
around and couldn't find any of the others in the unit.

Bill grinned as he watched Theodore looking around, “The
word you are looking for is 'incognito.'  As opposed to me, I'm the shining
distraction.”

“And quite the distraction!” grinned Anna.  “Have you been
following what those girls have been saying about you?”

Bill rolled his eyes, “Didn't catch a word of it...”

They stopped to eat lunch at a wonderful outdoor café
across from the largest print library Theodore had ever seen.

“Um, that building is insanely large,” offered Theodore as
he let Anna order lunch for him.

“Almost 4000 hectares of floor space,” grinned Janice over
her tea.

“It has its own weather patterns,” laughed Anna.

“That's bigger than the university campus,” he laughed. 
“Do you walk the floors or do they bring you books?”

“Either.  There are usually three copies of every book. 
One for archive that is stored off site.  One for reading and one available for
checkout.  Red spine for reading, blue spine for checkout.”

“So there's another off site branch, too?”

“Yes, indeed!”

Theodore laughed as his food arrived, “Deep fried and
covered in gravy!  That sounds familiar!”  He reached across the table and
kissed Anna much to the shock of the already curious café patrons.

“Let'm gawk!” grinned Anna.  “Do that again!”

Theodore obliged the grinning Anna while Janice just
laughed at the bright red form of Bill Burges.

The group made an afternoon of one tiny,
tiny
section of the library and soon caught the monorail back across town towards
the Westmore residence.

“If Thomas says anything, anything at all, that offends
you, please let me know,” offered Janice.  “He's promised to be on his best
behavior, but...”

Theodore frowned, “I'm sorry for the stress I'm causing
your marriage, ma'am.”

Janice laughed and beeped him playfully on the nose, “No! 
You are not causing
any
problems. 
He's
the one causing
problems.  Besides, right now I have a different reason to be grumpy at you...”
she grinned broadly.

Theodore's mind raced, “Oh!  Sorry,
Janice!
”

“That's better,” she beamed. 

“You could call her 'Mom,'” teased Anna.

“Wait until summer, dear,” grinned Janice, “and then
gladly!
”

Tim swapped places with Bill as they exited the monorail
station and started the short walk home.  It was a pleasant evening, bright
with a fresh air to it.

“Is it Spring here?” asked Theodore.

Anna nodded and laughed, “Yep!”

“So you missed most of your winter term then?”

“There are four academic terms.  You get to pick which
three.”

“That's kind of convenient.”

“Yeah,” frowned Anna.  “But you have to be careful or you
get out of sync with the rest of your friends.”

Theodore nodded but was mildly curious how many truly good
friends she had.  She had spent so much time previously volunteering for so
many things.  She had made friends very quickly back at his town at least... 
Suddenly his brain clicked, “Um, so when is your academic year over?”

“Right at Mid-Winters for you,” she grinned.

“So, what are you doing after that is over?” His brain was
in a twirl, it was only by luck that
his
normal schedule was aligned
with the university, there was no reason he should have expected that Anna's
would line up as well.

Anna pouted, “And now we have to let the secret out
early!”  With a quick laugh and kiss to Theodore, she continued, “Mom and I are
renting out the upper floor of Deidre's place for
your
Spring semester. 
Fiona and Emily's suggestion in fact!”

Theodore laughed and hugged Anna warmly before turning to
Janice, “Um, you will be gone from the University entirely?”

“I am a tenured professor in both departments and have
never taken sabbatical.  Heck, my leave time keeps rolling over at the maximum,
too!  Don't worry about it, we've already taken care of things!”

“Dare I ask what lady Deidre is charging for rent?”
laughed Theodore.

“I think we are cooking her meals,” grinned Anna.  “Mom
and I are going to be spending most of our time with the Firemeadows'.”

“Big surprise on the last part,” grinned Theodore.  He
paused and took a big breath as he realized they were now standing at the front
door of the Westmore's residence.  What of Thomas?

Anna took his hand and they entered the house and moved
upstairs leaving Tim outside.  Thomas Westmore was up there, sitting in a
chair.  To his credit he politely shook Theodore's hand before hugging his
daughter and wife.  “I'm not much of a cook,” he offered as a feeble joke, “so
I had things ordered out.  They should be here in half an hour.”

“Dad does a mean BBQ though,” offered Anna with a broad
grin.  “Maybe on a different trip.”

A small smile flashed across Thomas’ face.  That was going
to have to do.

Janice smiled as she pointed at Theodore's room and he
ditched his small backpack.  Megan's room was going to be down the hall, just
next to Anna's.  All nice and tidy.

The evening wasn't nearly as tense as any of them had
feared; Thomas, for the most part, kept to himself reading a book.