Debriefing

As they exited the Post Office, Maizy could see the library on the other side of the courtyard and got excited.  I'm going to look at the woodworking section this time!

She wanted to run but decided that would be rude, so she continued walking beside Branch.  Just as the two were about halfway across the courtyard, a loud chirping sound flooded their ears.

"Maizy!  Climb onto my back!  Quickly!"  Branch sat up on all fours, and she jumped on.  "We have incoming!"  He scanned the skies.  "Hold on TIGHT!  Don't be afraid to dig your claws right into my back.  It won't hurt me, I promise.  Strong grip!"

What is happening?  Maizy was starting to feel scared.

"From the west!" a booming voice shouted from above, and Branch spun to face that direction.  Maizy noticed kads all around the courtyard running for cover.

Then she saw it—over Branch's shoulder—a storm-colored hawk rocketing down from the sky.  Maizy began shaking, terrified.  She did not like scary birds!

Tree frogs dropped from the canopy, trying to intercept the hawk, but it was too fast.  It twisted between them, still locked on to Branch and Maizy.

Branch crouched low.  His tail began glowing bright green.  Maizy could feel his muscles tighten as his whole posture shifted.  She dug her claws in a little deeper.

The hawk spread its wings wide, extending its razor-sharp talons for the grab.  Maizy thought this was the end.

Then—CRACK!  A wooden spike shot up from the tree below and impaled the hawk mid-dive.  The bird froze in place, then fell limp, lifeless.

Branch stood up.  "ALL CLEAR, EVERYBODY!  I took care of it!" he shouted, prancing about and giving a thumbs-up in several directions.

MY HERO!  Maizy was suddenly very impressed with Branch—maybe even a little too much, somewhere deep in her tiny heart.

A tree frog hopped over.  "Nice job, Branch!  Wow!  You kads never cease to amaze me.  Oh hello there, little kaydee.  I bet that was very scary."  He then noticed the two tails.  "Oh!  You must be Maizy!  The Proscribrarian's kaydee.  You're the talk of the canopy!"

"Yes, she's the demon slayer," Branch said with a grin.  "And together, WE ARE INVINCIBLE!"  He smiled, spun around, and started hopping on one leg—hoping it would cheer her up and get her to stop shaking.

The tree frog—in complete seriousness—simply stated, "Indeed."  He then stood up and gestured toward Maizy.  "I am Mr. Un, in charge of tree security.  Nice to meet you."  Maizy nodded and smiled from over Branch's shoulder.  She wasn't ready to let go just yet.

"This sort of thing is exceptionally rare," Mr. Un said, gesturing at the dead bird.  "Why, it's been at least twenty—no, thirty—wobbles since a raptor made it this far into the tree."  He paused, then added thoughtfully, "Two major security events in just a few days... and you were at the center of both, Maizy Debugger."

Maizy wasn't quite sure what to make of that statement, so she simply tried to look as cute as possible.

"Oh my, you're so cute!" Mr. Un fell straight into Maizy's trap.  He walked over and reached to pat her head.  She bit him, and one of his fingers started bleeding—just a little.

She pried one hand free from Branch's back and signed, "Sorry!"

"Ah!  Hah hah!" Mr. Un bellowed.  "GREAT bite, kaydee!  No matter how many times I get bitten, I never learn my lesson!  Oh, don't look so apologetic, sweetgum.  It's my fault—I know you can't help it."

Just then, another tree frog dropped from the canopy beside them and grabbed Mr. Un's hand.  "Hah!  Look everybody!  He's bleeding!"  This frog seemed to think it was the funniest thing ever.  She rolled onto her back and started making chirping sounds, which Maizy assumed was laughter.

"Yes, yes, very funny, Miss Bee."  Mr. Un turned to Branch and Maizy, who were watching the scene unfold.  "The entire canopy—especially the young hoppers—have been trying to make me bleed since, well, forever."  He laughed.  "Hah!  I'm as tough as an anvil, but apparently I go soft when faced with this much cuteness!"

Maizy decided it was safe and slid down from Branch’s back.  As she did, Branch’s tail glowed green and the spike retracted, restoring the courtyard to its previous state.  The bird dropped to the ground, and Branch grinned at Maizy.

“Shall we continue to the library?”

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"Branch!" Willow exclaimed as soon as he and Maizy entered the library.  She ran around the counter and stopped in front of him, practically bouncing with excitement.  "I watched you kill that hawk!  Amazing!"  Her grin stretched from ear to ear.

Maizy smiled, watching the two.

"Yeah, it was nothin'," Branch said, waving a hand dismissively.  "It's every kad's duty to keep the tree safe."  He said it like he did this sort of thing every day.

Willow didn't even seem to notice Maizy and asked, "So...  What brings you to the library today?"  Her tone was flawlessly polite.

"You, of course."  Branch smiled and leaned just a little closer to her.

Oooh!  This kad is so smooth!  Maizy was impressed.  I should leave these two alone.

Then she tried to slink off into the library, thinking about woodworking and that magic weaponry book, but was stopped by a familiar voice.

"Oh, it's my niece!"  The Head Librarian glided down from a high shelf and scooped Maizy up into a hug.

"Hi, Branch.  Come to bother my apprentice again?" Blossom gave him a stern look.

"Oh!  He doesn't bother me at all, Head Librarian!" Willow bowed slightly, then took a respectful step back from Branch.

Blossom set Maizy down and crossed her arms.  "You're not supposed to court a kaydee until after she participates in the fertility festival."

"Of course, of course!"  Branch waved a hand dismissively.  "I wouldn't dream of dashing away with this beautiful kaydee while you weren't looking.  Never!"

Willow blushed—as much as a kad could blush.

Blossom stepped between Branch and Willow, arms still crossed.

Oooh!  This is getting fun!  Maizy thought.

"So why are you here today, Branch?  Have something to deliver?"  The Head Librarian asked.

"Yes, actually!" he grinned and winked at Maizy.  "I'm here to deliver your niece to some books.  Woodworking, specifically.  She needs to learn about uppees and other magic devices."  He said it like it was all part of an official mission.

"Oh?  Did the Postmaster approve of this?  Did her mom?"  Skepticism oozed from Blossom's face, posture, and even her fur.

"Yes they did!  I was told to show Maizy how the Post Office works and bring her here—as part of that."  Branch was so cool, Maizy thought he might actually be lowering the temperature of the room.  "She needs to be back by lunch, though.  So what if we kill a few hawks and snake monsters on the way?"  He smiled at Willow after that last part.

"Willow, please show Maizy to the woodworking section.  I will entertain Branch until lunch."  She then turned to Branch.  "The building is in need of maintenance and you're here just at the right time.  Let's go."

The Head Librarian then crawled right up the wall, and Branch followed after her.  Maizy could hear him sigh.

Willow frowned, then turned to Maizy.  "Thank you for giving Branch the courage to fight that hawk."

Maizy was taken aback by the statement.  She signed, "I no do anything," then gave an exaggerated shrug.

"Oh my gosh, you're too cute."  Willow scooped Maizy up—Maizy went to bite, but Willow was too quick—and held her over her shoulder, intending for Maizy to climb on her back.  Maizy instinctively switched into backpack mode.

"You did give him courage, silly.  If Branch was alone, he would've built a strong wooden shelter around himself, and that hawk would've taken some other kad.  It's because he was with you—the little kaydee that killed the snake monster all on her own—that he felt brave enough to take on the hawk."

She smiled.  "I guarantee it."

I didn't even think of that!  Wait—why didn't he just make a shelter for both of us?

They arrived at what must be the biggest section of the library:  Woodworking.

Willow asked, "Anything in particular you want to read?"

Maizy signed, "Up left," then, "Read all."

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"Thank you, Branch.  That was actually very helpful," the Head Librarian stated as they walked up to Willow.  She was working her way through a towering stack of books that Maizy had finished reading, putting them back on the shelves.

Maizy was flipping through the pages of a book when the Head Librarian asked, "Wow, how many books did you get through?"

"That's the last one, Head Librarian," Willow replied on Maizy's behalf.

"YOU READ ALL THE BOOKS IN THE WOODWORKING SECTION!?"  The Head Librarian was shocked, amazed, and suddenly very concerned about how much trouble she might be in with her sister.

Branch, who was unfamiliar with Maizy's memory gift, asked, "What?  That's not possible, right?"

Willow beamed, clearly excited to see Branch again.  "Maizy has a memory tail!  She did read all the books.  It's amazing!  Ask her something from a book you know."

Branch, still skeptical, picked up a book he was intimately familiar with—The Cork Chronicles by Beach Cutter—and gave it a try.  "Okay...  Maizy, what does this book say about corkre... cuddlepipes?"

Maizy's tail glowed blue and she giggled.  Then she signed, "if need help making circle wood not for you."

Branch dropped the book in shock, then turned to the Head Librarian with a Did that just happen? look.  She simply smiled and nodded.

Still processing the depth of Maizy's gift, Branch decided to go deeper.  "Do you know how the big uppees work now?"

Maizy's tail lit up again.  She grimaced and wiggled her hands before signing, "Little?  Hard."

Branch's shock began to fade into admiration.  "They are hard to understand.  It took me half a wobble of studying and I still don't get all the parts."  Then a thought grew in his mind.  "Can you share memories?"

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Branch raced into the Post Office with Maizy on his back, the Head Librarian not far behind.  As they passed the carving in the entryway, Maizy noticed that some new elements had been added:  It now depicted her slaying the armed serpent—and riding on Branch's back while he defeated the hawk.

Oh, I look cool! she thought as they zoomed past and into the conference room.  Hehe, someone finished changing that 1 to a 0.

The room was empty, so Branch turned around, walked out the door, and shouted, "MOM!"

"What?  I'm right here.  It's not lunch yet."  The Postmaster was only a few steps away.

Maizy giggled.  Like mother, like son.

"Mom, Maizy is... incredible!"  Branch was about to elaborate when the Head Librarian interjected, "Shh!  Don't say anything about it out here.  Inside..."  She motioned for them to enter the conference room.

"Where's my sister and mom... Miss Floor?" Blossom asked.

"They're both out... trying to obtain grapes," the Postmaster replied, throwing her hands in the air like she was surrendering to the absurdity of it all.  Of course, that's what Floor would be doing.

Blossom gave the Postmaster a strange look, then closed the door once everyone was inside.  "Maizy, show the Postmaster what you showed me—the memory of your encounter with the armed serpent."

"She can share memories!?" the Postmaster asked in shock, as Maizy walked up, jumped onto her back, and wrapped her tails around her.  One of them began to glow a soft blue.

In the time it takes a kaydee to survive a deadly encounter with an armed serpent, the Postmaster stood, eyes glowing blue.

"GODS!"  She just stood there, stunned—then turned to Maizy with a slow, sinister grin.  "You can glide."

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Floor and Bloom could hear an intense argument as they entered the conference room, bags of grapes hanging around their necks.

"She's too young!"  Blossom shouted.  "She's only been out of the pouch for four days, Petal!  FOUR DAYS!"

The Postmaster replied sternly, "You know the rules.  If she can glide, she can deliver!"  She sang the words like a well-practiced tune—with just a hint of delight.

"I'm so sorry, Maizy," Branch was nearly in tears.  I should've known sharing that with Mom was a bad idea!

Mom caught the meaning of the conversation in an instant.  "Don't you DARE think about sending my kaydee out on deliveries!  She's too young!  Even if she was playing with an uppee!"

"Oh, she wasn't playing with an uppee," the Postmaster said smugly, "but I know she could use one juuust fine."  She folded her arms triumphantly.  "Call a lawyer bird!  They'll agree with me!"

A lawyer bird?  What!?

Floor decided it was time to intervene, "It should be fine.  I was on my mom's back while she did deliveries.  I'm sure there's plenty of kads who would be happy to let Maizy tag along and deliver a letter here and there.  Branch, for instance."  She then gave Branch a pleading look, and he understood instantly.

"Right!  Of course!" Branch collected himself, then sat up.  "I'd be thrilled to take Maizy out on my deliveries."  He saluted to Floor, which made the Postmaster slightly upset.  He never saluted at me before!

Floor continued, "Nobody in their right mind would expect a four-day-old to be able to climb all over the tree.  She'd have to stop halfway on her first delivery to take a nap!"

The Postmaster considered this.  "I suppose that's true."  Then she looked at Branch.  "It wouldn't be fair to the other kads, though, if she got away with napping on someone else's back during her two wobbles of mandatory service."

They DO exploit child labor!

Branch nodded, "No worries, Mom.  I'll make sure she delivers."  Then a thought struck him, "Local deliveries only, though.  She's definitely still too small to leave the tree."  He was ready to fight the Postmaster on that point, and the Postmaster knew it.

The Postmaster thought that was acceptable, so she turned to Bloom.  "That's fine.  I'll only use her for local deliveries—when Branch is around—and sorting, until she's 60 days emerged.  After that, I'll treat her like any other kaydee or keedo."

She then turned to Branch.  "Speaking of which, you're done here.  You can go back to reworking the pipes."  She pointed at the door, and he complied—walking without confidence, still feeling guilty.  Just after he passed the threshold, the Postmaster yelled, "I love you!"

Floor placed her grapes down on the conference table, then said, "I'll go get Path.  Be right back."

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Floor returned with Pathy, who was still looking quite tired, with Path poking his head out of her pouch.  He saw Maizy, smiled, and hopped out—ready to pounce on her again.

"Oh no you don't."  Floor jumped in front of Path.  "You're going to have to wait until this is over."  She didn't want to risk another sudden nap.

Path frowned, then waved at Maizy, who was thinking, Poor thing.  He actually died.  I'll hold him all he wants.

The Head Librarian closed the door, then spoke.  "Mom, Maizy can share her memories!"

Floor didn't seem very surprised.  "I thought that might be the case.  My grandfather had the same ability, and he shared some memories with me once—about 250 wobbles ago."

WHAT!?  Just how old is Grandma?  Maizy blinked.  Also, who was this ancestor with the memory tail?

Floor motioned for Maizy to come closer.  "Maizy, come here and share your memories of fighting the armed serpent with your mom and me.  As long as we're all touching, it should work—and save some time."

Maizy ran up and gave Grandma a big hug while Mom held her hand.  Then she shared the memory.

"GODS!"  Both Mom and Grandma shouted at the same time.  Several times.

When it was over, Mom couldn't stop herself.  "So that's how you got your ribbon off!  Clever."

Of all the things to say.

The Postmaster then asked, "That was the one thing I didn't understand.  Why is Maizy's ribbon so... strong?  I want one like that for my next kaydee!"  She started eating a grape.

Mom was about to reply, but Grandma interrupted her.  "Proscribrarian secret, sorry, Petal."

Is it really, though?  Maizy squinted.  Probably just Grandma messing with the Postmaster the same way Mom messed with Grandma.

Then Maizy had a great idea.  I'll use that information to get out of doing deliveries or something later.  She gave herself a mental thumbs-up.

"What about me?  Do I get to see what happened?"  Pathy asked.

"Oh, right!  Sorry, Pathy."  Grandma felt bad.  "Maizy, go ahead and show Pathy too.  We'll wait."

Maizy walked up to Pathy, climbed on her in a hug, and just as her tail started glowing—

"NO WAIT!  Pathy's cursed!" Grandma shouted.