Virtual Quill

Ms. Eyeshine’s relationship with the mouse ran off the road when he discovered that his parents had become prey several years ago during a Caliban Academy hunting match in which her brother Sam was the coach.
One can hardly blame him. It was a tragic episode, but legal under the rules of our society. The action was anonymous, and the field of play was clearly marked. Within its boundaries, anything is fair game. That doesn’t make it any less painful for the families of the victims, of course.
Still, I would hope that the mouse would find some forgiveness in his heart. Aby didn’t kill them, nor did her brother. He was the coach; not the actual predator. (Who was? It’s possible, of course, that it was Rudy. Or Fiona. I don’t have that information and I don’t want to ask.)
Last night Dad went to the mouse’s residence with a plan. I’ll report next week on how that went.
Meanwhile, here at Beige University the sad news was made official that our poisoned oak trees will not survive and will have to be replaced. The plan is to replant new trees. As part of that process, we were visited by university representatives this week, who know that we had recently replanted a living tree in the area, with success. They just wanted to know how the process went, and if there were any unexpected details that arose. We were able to answer everything to their satisfaction and they left feeling upbeat.

While back at home Kell struggles with the prospect of losing her best friend (or at least having to share her), I’ve been given access to everything the birds know about instinct loss and how humans affect it.
All along I’ve been researching it from a genetic standpoint, while the bird scientists saw it as a “disease” requiring a “cure.” It certainly seemed serious when the portal was thrown out of balance around the time of Danielle’s wedding, and species all over the world began losing their instincts.
Thing is, no disease spreads that fast, and there was no vector to explain it. It had to be something that all creatures already shared on a genetic level, and the presence of humans was simply a trigger.
Here at Beige I’m given free lab time as part of my master’s degree studies, so I’m able to pursue this line of research. The birds did accumulate a lot of data that I’m able to apply to my findings which are leading in some promising directions. Hopefully (for both worlds) I’ll be able to pin down to exact mechanisms in play.

While all this stuff is going on with dimensional portals and such, life goes on back in Domain. The news there concerns Kell’s feline friend Aby Eyeshine, who seems to have fallen for a mouse. Another possible pair for the Inter-Species Relationship Support Group!
It started back in October when Mark Meadowvole repeatedly brought his Camaro to Aby with suspension problems. Aby, out of professional pride, couldn’t figure out why her repairs kept failing. She followed him one night and found the reason: he and other mice were racing their vehicles around corn mazes.
This fired her competitive juices, and she offered her services to transform his machine into vehicle capable of making 90-degree turns in tight confines. She’s spent the last three months giving the car a radical makeover, and in the process she and Mark fell in love.
Last night was the big race, and Mark won after his rival Sam Sewerrat was DQ’ed for using a GPS to guide him through the maze to the cheese. Aby and Mark...celebrated.
As you may recall, Aby is officially married to her career. Some have wondered if this constitutes infidelity, but I happen to believe it complements her relationship to her auto repair business. It may, in fact, raise it to another level. At the very least it opens up a whole new client base: mice who would have never previously considered seeking help from a cat.

I must admit that I was surprised by the squirrel’s choice. Before dawn when Fenton and I were about to go to bed there was a soft knock at the door. It was the squirrel, and he said he was choosing to stay in the Wild. And here I had a name and identity all picked out for him.
Still, it was his wish so we’re abiding by it. Even so, I explained that being allowed to stay on this side of the portal comes with certain responsibilities. He understood that; he knows he doesn’t belong here and that his presence is a privilege.
The first responsibility is a homing tag. It’s embedded in his ear, and it’s unobtrusive. You have to be looking for it to see it, and then it appears to be jewelry. We strongly suggested that he stay in the vicinity of the university and he said he had no problem with that.
The other responsibility is to be on call when Ms. Aura or other human has to visit our world. He would cross over to provide balance, and stay on their ship as a human until it was time to return. That’s it. Other than that he’s free to live the life of a tree rodent.
He left, visibly happy. I was perplexed, but then Fenton reminded me about what he said about hanging around the university. I then realized how many squirrels we see all over the place. Perhaps...he’s found a pretty young she-squirrel with a lovely bushy tail?
After his departure I checked our bank account. I was surprised to see a significant deposit made by the Group, and I assumed it was for the year, but when I asked my condor contact he said we’d be getting one every month.

Fortunately Fenton and I aren’t big party goers, so neither of us were hung over when a five-bird delegation showed up on our doorstep. They were led by my previous NASA mentor, the condor, and presented us with our first assignment as members of their Group.
They started by saying they prefer the term Group over other labels. Apparently some refer to them as a conspiracy, which seems to wound them. While secretive, they certainly don’t see themselves as having nefarious designs. (And judging by the condition of their vehicles they don’t seem to be in it for the money.)
Our initial job seems well suited for us. The squirrel that I harbored for years with my two mice turned out to be a former human. They’ve confirmed his former identity, and are allowing him to stay here. (Apparently someone else is balancing his presence on the other side of the portal.) They’d like to keep tabs on him, so that when a member of the human Group comes over for some reason, he can make a temporary trip over to provide balance during that time.
I lost track of him after he asked to be released a while back, but he’s currently living wild in the vicinity of the college. Our job is to contact him and ask if he’s like to join civilization. He’d be much easier to track that way.
After the delegation left, Fenton and I went directly to the hollow tree he was using as a home/storage unit. He was suspicious to see us again, but then he was always like that. (Now I know why.) We gave him the offer; he’d just have to report to the Species Registry and the bureaucrats would do the rest. The Group has arranged for a job for him if he desires.
Like us, he has one week to decide.