THE SHELTERS OF STONE

If the space had seemed crowded before, it felt absolutely crammed with the addition of the big woman, but no one seemed to mind. To be at a meeting with both the mate of the leader and the First Among Those Who Served The Mother made the women feel important. Ayla got a sense of their feeling, but she hadn't lived among them long enough to understand the full sense of the occasion for the women. She thought of Proleva and Zelandoni as a relative and a friend of Jondalar. The donier looked at Ayla, encouraging her to continue.

"Proleva told me that among the Zelandonii, all food is shared. I asked her if Zelandonii women would be willing to share their milk. She told me they often do with relatives and close friends, but Tremeda has no kin that anyone knows of, and definitely not a sister or cousin who is nursing," Ayla said, not even mentioning close friends. She beckoned to Lanoga, who got up and came slowly toward her, carrying the baby.

"Though a ten-year may be able to care for a baby, she can't nurse her. I have started to show Lanoga how to make other foods that a baby can eat besides mashed roots. She is quite capable, she just needs someone to teach her, but that's not enough." Ayla stopped and looked at each one of the women.

"Are you the one who cleaned them up, too?" Stelona, the older woman, asked.

"Yes. We went to The River and bathed, just as you do," Ayla said, then she added, "I have come to know that Tremeda is not always looked upon with favor, and perhaps with reason, but this baby is not Tremeda. She is just an infant who needs milk, at least some milk."

"I will tell you frankly," Stelona said. She had become, in effect, a spokeswoman for the group. "I wouldn't mind feeding her once in a while, but I do not want to go into that dwelling, and I'm not terribly interested in visiting with Tremeda."

Proleva turned aside to hide a smile. Ayla did it, she thought. She's got one commitment, the rest will come through, or at least most of them.

"You won't have to go to extra effort. I have already talked to Lanoga. She will carry her sister to you, we can work out a routine. With many to help, it won't be much drain on any one woman," Ayla said.

"Well, bring her here," the woman said. "Let's see if she still knows how to nurse. How long has it been?"

"Since sometime in spring," Ayla said. "Lanoga, take the baby to Stelona."

Lanoga avoided looking directly at the other women as she headed toward the older woman, who had given the baby sleeping in her lap to the pregnant woman beside her. With experienced ease, Stelona presented her breast to the baby. She nuzzled around for a while, seemingly eager, but no longer familiar with the position, but when Lorala opened her mouth, the woman put her nipple in. She mouthed it for a while, then finally began to suckle.

"Well, she took hold," Stelona said. There was a general sigh of relief and smiles all around.

"Thank you, Stelona," Ayla said.

"I suppose it's the least one can do. She does, after all, belong to the Ninth Cave," Stelona said.

"She didn't exactly shame them into it," Proleva said, "but she made them feel that if they didn't help, they would be worse than flatheads. Now, they can all feel virtuous about doing what is right."

Joharran got up on an elbow and looked at his mate. "Would you feed Tremeda's baby?" he asked.

Proleva rolled onto her side and pulled a cover up over her shoulder. "Of course I would," she said, "if someone asked, but I admit, I might not have thought of working out a routine for everyone to share the task, and I'm ashamed that I didn't know that Tremeda had gone dry. Ayla said Lanoga was capable, she just needs someone to teach her. Ayla's right, the girl is capable. She kept that baby going, and she is more mother to the rest of those children than their mother, but a girl who can count only ten years should not have to be mother to that brood. She hasn't even had her First Rites yet. The best thing would be if someone would adopt that baby. And maybe some of the other young ones, too," Proleva said.

"Maybe you can find someone who'll take them at the Summer Meeting," Joharran said.

"I thought I would try, but I don't think Tremeda is through having babies. The Mother tends to give more to those women who have had children, but She usually waits until a woman is through nursing one before giving her another. Now that she's not nursing, Zelandoni says Tremeda will probably be pregnant again within a year."

"Speaking of pregnant, how are you feeling?" Joharran asked, smiling at her with love and a look of delight.

"Good," she said. "I seem to be past the sickness, and I won't be too big during the heat of summer. I think I will start telling people. Ayla already guessed."

"I can't see any sign yet, except you're more beautiful," he said, "if that's possible."