A Beautiful Friendship

recognized the approval in his voice, but she only nodded impatiently. 'The painkiller I used is probably making him look a little groggy too,' he went on, 'but we've been using it on Sphinxian species for over forty T-years without any dangerous side effects.'

'But will he be all right?' his daughter demanded insistently, and he gave a tiny shrug.

'He's going to live, Steph,' he promised. 'I don't think we'll be able to save his forelimb, and he'll have some scars — maybe some that show even through his fur — but he should recover completely except for that. I can't guarantee it, baby, but you know I wouldn't lie to you about something like this.'

Stephanie stared at the back of his head for a moment, then swiveled her eyes to her mother. Marjorie gazed back and nodded firmly, backing up Richard's prognosis, and a frozen boulder seemed to thaw in Stephanie's middle.

'You're sure, Daddy?' she demanded, but her voice was no longer desperate, and he nodded again.

'Sure as I can be, honey,' he told her, and she sighed and stroked the treecat's head again. It blinked wide, unfocused green eyes at her, and she bent to brush a kiss between its triangular ears.

'Hear that?' she whispered to it. 'You're gonna be all right. Daddy said so.'

* * *

Yes, Climbs Quickly thought fuzzily, he really did have to start learning what the two-leg sounds meant. But not tonight. Tonight he was simply too tired, and it didn't matter right now, anyway. What mattered was the mind glow of his two-leg, and the knowledge that she was safe.

He blinked up at her and managed to pat her leg weakly with his good arm. Then he closed his eyes with a sigh, snuggled his nose more firmly against her, and let the welcome and love of her mind glow sing him to sleep.