"Well, if you'd lissssten to me you could take a quick route." Ciara had become used to the voice in her head on the way back up the mountain. This time her legs though worked so much more slowly.

Ciara's heart pounded for rest as she talked to herself. She dragged out the map for the hundredth time to check it again. I knew I'd have to do this.

"If you'd just go to your right—"

"I'm lost enough."

"But this is so ssssimple."

"I'm not listening to you—" Ciara breathed hard. "You're just my mind helping me reason." She looked for a place to sit down.

"Harrak! I'm not your mind! Sssee, here. Look!

Ciara felt the wind whistle past her and roar to the right. She watched a huge swath of leaves pick up off the ground with the wind, lift into the sky—all in quick procession. It's like the tail of a kite.

"Watch," roared her mind-voice. "Could your mind do thisss?"

Ciara watched as the clouds, too, whirled and began to take shape. Her brow furrowed. Then she noticed the clouds began to form words. The clouds read, "—not—your—mind."

Ciara sat where she was, quite suddenly. "How did you do that?"

"A friend, I thought I knew once, taught me that humans like to use letters and words written out, so I studied and now I make signals. But—nobody sees."

"Who are you?"

"I am told I am Skye-voice."

"I think I need water, again." Ciara felt the name meant something to her, but she didn't know what. Her coconut juice, in the mug Liv had given her, had run out halfway up the mountain. She felt even more dizzy than just from her head.

"You just need to look at what's obvioussss—in front of your face. And you just need to listen. And sssee."

"That is kind of exciting—" Ciara could still make out the words in misshapen clouds, disappearing.

"Excccccited—you are—really?"

"Can I learn to do that?"

"Would you help me, in rrrre-turn?"

"I guess it would be fair— In colors?"

"Let me think. Try... practice... guidance... hints... corrections... hazards. Hmmm. Goof ups... definitely. Yes." Skye-voice decided. "It would take me time. How much do you want to know?"

"All of it. Big. A lot of it." The last wisp of the cloud that had said, "mind", was just disappearing. "How would I do that?"

"Wouldn't you want to know what I need you to do, first?"

"How hard is the thing?"

"Not hard at all. I just need you to ssspeak."

"Okay, then. Can I try—?"

"Try to speak or try clouds?"

"Practice."

"Sssimple. Visualize a nice way to spend time—"

Ciara thought of the sun on the mountain, the flowers in the fields.

"Now think of your favourite thing about whiteness— and drifting—"

Ciara breathed in the sunlight. She expanded her lungs. She imagined the air sparkled like rainbows inside her. She watched the clouds in her vision drifting and she reached with her mind to almost touch the sense of her clouds—wisps so pretty, moisture so real. She could feel the mist of the clouds drifting around her.

Then, she remembered what she was doing. Kaboom! She was suddenly back in her body with her eyes wide open and the cold of the mountain beneath her. She looked up at the sky.

"Good firssst try," consoled the voice in her head.

Ciara looked all around. She didn't see words, but she could see colours. Far in the distance the faintest rainbow had formed on the edge of the sun's rays in a far away valley.

"Did I do that?"

"No. I thought I would help you."

"Oh."

"But, efforts pay off! Look. See—" The rainbow grew bright— The colour bands drew vivid expansion. As the image got clearer, a second faint rainbow appeared almost beside it. Then a third, as Skye-voice demonstrated more of his talents for her.

Trying is awesome! "I want to try it again."

"Perhaps you can practiccce up at the top—? There are others to cooperate with in practice—several different kinds of tryssss maybe— We might go there—?"

Dejected, Ciara felt sad for a moment.

"You'll rally if you have more input from friends, I hear—" Skye-voice suggested, almost hopefully. "It's your turn to help."

Would Skye really help her?

"Of course. I will not rest till I help you," she agreed. "How might I do that, Skye? Might I call you, Skye?"

"Harark! Hmmm. This is a pleasing surprise. Not all humans are easily beaten, I sssee. Yesss. Call me whatever you like. I will be honoured."

The winds whipped happily around her. She got up and she climbed, feeling newness and pleasure—and rainbows inside.

≈≈≈/