An expression of relief crossed the Shou's face. He started to lower his sword, then glanced at the barred gate and raised it again.

"Do not think of crying out," Ruha warned. She had reached the edge of the courtyard, where the stones gave way to sand. "I have no wish to harm you. Perhaps I can even be of service, if you wish to know why the spiny iguanas will not eat your ants."

"Come no closer." The Shou pointed his sword more or less in Ruha's direction, holding it with both hands so there would be no question of disarming him with a quick strike. "Deliver your message and go."

Ruha stopped at the base of a miniature sand dune.

"What of the iguanas?"

"I take care ofThornbacks myself." The man's eyes turned cold and angry, as though he blamed his unseen visitor for the condition of his lizards. "Your message?"

"Why do you think I have come to deliver a message?"

The Shou's jaw dropped, and the anger in his eyes changed to puzzlement. "Perhaps you show yourself, wu- jen." The man took the precaution of retreating a step, then lowered his sword. "And I do not call guards."

Ruha hesitated to do as he asked. Having seen him in a mirage from the future, she was determined not to leave the park without learning more about him, but her curiosity did not translate into trust. Once she showed herself, she would be at the mercy of his sword-a

weapon that, from all appearances, he was quite capable of handling.

As if sensing her thoughts, the Shou retrieved a scab- bard from the ground and sheathed his weapon. "Show yourself, wu-jen, or I draw sword and call guards."

"As you wish."

Ruha raised her hand as though to strike, and her spell evaporated in a curtain of shimmering air. The

Shou's gaze ran up her the entire length of the witch's aba, over her orange silk veil, then lingered on her dark eyes. Slowly, his expression changed from wary to pleased to covetous, leaving Ruha uncertain as to whether she was meeting an unexpected friend or an incorrigible lecher.

"Who-who are you?" The Shou paused a moment, then continued to gaze into her eyes as he asked the sec- ond part of his question, "And who sends you to spy on

Ginger Palace-Vaerana Hawklyn?"

Though Ruha was startled by the man's deduction, she tried not to let it show. She walked toward the Thorn- backs' basking stone, being careful to hold her hands in plain sight. Then, recalling how he had originally mis- taken her for a messenger and remembering how his face had changed to that of a dragon in her vision, she decided to answer his question with a deduction of her own.

"I was not sent by Cypress, if that is what you fear."

The Shou allowed a gracious smile to cross his lips, then prudently stepped away from the basking stone.

"We play at same game." The Thornbacks followed his lead, clambering over the side to bury themselves beneath the sand. "But who is Cypress?"

Ruha locked gazes with the Shou. "He is the dragon, of course-the one I saw you with."

"You are… mistaken." The Shou looked away, and, for the first time, seemed in danger of losing his composure.

"What you claim is impossible."

Ruha glanced at the throng of dead ants lying upon the basking stone, then shook her head. "You have

watched, but you have not considered."

She grabbed several lacquered boxes and leaned over the basking stone, then began emptying the contents onto the sand. A cascade of ants of all sizes and three dif- ferent colors-red, black, and brown-poured onto the sand. Close to a dozen of the insects bounced up on their six legs and began to scurry away. The lizards came instantly alive, scrambling from their hiding places to devour the fugitives in a flurry of whipping heads and darting tongues.

"Ants must be alive!" the Shou gasped, looking back to

Ruha. "But why?"

"You have never lived in the desert, or you would know. Small creatures like lizards often pass their entire lives without seeing water," Ruha explained. "They must take their fluids from their prey-but only from living prey. Dead bodies dry out swiftly in hot temperatures, and water is too precious to waste digesting parched car- casses."

The Shou watched his lizards catch the last of the moving ants, then he opened another box and dumped the contents onto the sand. Again, the lizards gobbled up the live insects and left the dead ones undisturbed.

Across the little courtyard came the clatter of someone trying to open the barred gates. When the portals did not swing apart, Wei Dao's muted voice rolled over the wall, speaking excitedly in Shou.

Ruha's hand dropped toward herjambiya, but the

Shou raised his hand to reassure her.

"Yes, the wu-jen is here with me." He spoke in Com- mon, so Ruha could understand him. "Not to worry. I am safe."

There was a confused murmur outside the gates, then all fell silent beneath the Arch ofMany-Hued Scales. The

Shou, whom the witch now felt certain to be Prince Tang, turned back to Ruha.

"They do not disturb us. Please to accept my gratitude for saving of Thornbacks." Though the prince's tone was

warm, he did not meet Ruha's eyes as he spoke. "But I do not understand how feeding habits of lizards concern this dragon Cypress."

"Is it not true that Lady Feng's kidnappers need her alive, just as the Thornbacks need the ants alive?" asked

Ruha, implying that she knew for a fact what she was only guessing at. "What will they do once she has fin ished enslaving Yanseldara's spirit for them?"

Tang looked up, his eyes both betraying his astonish- ment and veiling something more. "You are accomplished wu-jen." The prince spread his palms and smiled warmly.

"Household of Ginger Palace has need for someone like you."

Ruha scowled, taken aback by the directness of the prince's approach. "We both know I am here on behalf of someone else."

Tang shook his head emphatically. "Oh, no! I do not speak of hiring. I mean to make you Virtuous Concu- bine."

"Concubine!" Ruha cried, both stunned and affronted by the offer.

Tang stumbled an uncertain step backward. A con- cerned murmur began to build outside the gate; then the prince squared his shoulders and stepped back to the basking stone.

"You do not understand, wu-jen." Now he was speaking between clenched teeth. "Virtuous Concubine is honored position in house of Shou prince. Lady Feng is Third Vir- tuous Concubine, and you become Worthy Daughter to

Third Virtuous Concubine to Emperor of Shou Lung. It is position more worthy than queen of any realm in Heart- lands!"