As Haerm was led into the detainment area, Solrio went into a different hall. She sought out Dr. Inoday, who scanned her jaw with a small device. “No cracks or fractures. Open your mouth.” He waved the scanner. “No damaged teeth."

The mediator went back to Syp, “Would you please come with me?” Syp followed her into the room where Eiske was waiting. “Let’s have a discussion,” she proposed.

“Syp, you’ve been placed under the guardianship of the Protectors. Haerm Bron has been instructed to leave both of you alone, to stay off the property of the medical facility and away from Dr. Bonnema’s dwelling. If he approaches you, refuse to interact with him. Before you leave the enclave, you will be given a personal mobile communicator and taught how to use it. We want you to avoid all contact with the other members of your family, Syp.”

“Even my grandparents?” It blinked and its eyes became dark. Its hair turned black and lay flat against its skin.

“You may visit your grandparents at their home and accompany them anywhere except to Haerm and Geldou Bron’s home. If you return to school, you will not speak to your brothers. Do you understand these restrictions?”

“Yes.”

“I’d like to suggest a few things that might help you at this time.”

Eiske and Syp looked at one another. Syp bounced its legs up and down. “I need to run, Eiske.”

“I know you’re scared, Syp. Solrio has reviewed the situation and is going to help us make the best decision possible about what to do next.” Syp nodded.

“I’d like it if you’d stay here with us for a few days, Syp. I’d like to get to know you. I’d also like to have you do some tests. Some are physical. I’m sure that you’ve learned that you can jump extremely high. It’s a lot of fun, isn’t it?” Syp’s eyes brightened. “Some of the tests are to see how you learn. Not everyone learns the same way. You may learn well when you’re watching something, or you hear someone tell you something. Maybe you learn best by working independently or when you’re in a group. We’d like you to show us how smart you are, how the colors of your eyes and hair can change, and how you react when you’re asked to make decisions. I would like to hear what you like to learn about and what things you’d like to know more about here on Zuphreon. Maybe you’d like to learn about other worlds. Would you consider doing these things with us? When I say us, I mean my colleagues and I. There are four of us; a teacher, a doctor, a botanist, and an anthropologist who is also a geologist.”

“In exchange for working with us and letting us learn about you, we’ll talk about the things you think you might do if you don’t return to the Pencadick Rill school. Most importantly, our goal is to keep you safe and healthy. We’d like to make sure that you aren’t living in a tent all the time if you don’t want to, that you don’t have to search for food every day or go hungry when you can’t find anything to eat. If you choose to live in a tent, and move around, learning about different people and places, we will make sure you have the skills you need to live outside, tell you which places aren’t safe and how to protect yourself. We don’t want you to be afraid to do what you want.” Syp had given Solrio her complete attention. Small, low whistles came from the child and its body shook.

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“Are you crying because you’re afraid, Syp?” Eiske asked gently. Syp nodded its head. “Can you tell us why?”

“I don’t want to be afraid. If I can learn how to do all those things, my chest won’t hurt, and I won’t want to run away all the time.”

“Your mind can rest and you’ll feel better when you’re not worried all the time,” the mediator said.

“Yes. And hopefully, I’ll stop wanting to go home. I don’t know how to explain it, but things weren’t right there. I don’t want to go back, but sometimes I do.”

“Can you help me understand what you mean? Tell me a little more about what it was like at home.”

“I didn’t belong there. I’m a freak.”

“Your brothers teased you a lot.”

“Just sometimes. I’m a freak. My forehead has these spots,” Syp lifted its hair. I don’t look like everyone else. Everyone else has normal ears. My brothers make fun of me at recess. “They call me ‘Bug Eyes’ and ‘Ugly.’ My teachers have said things to my parents many times that I’m different, and my parents say that I'm defective. I couldn’t see the smart board in school, so sometimes the teacher had to explain things more than once. Everyone said I was stupid. At one teacher conference a teacher told my parents that I should have been aborted.”

Solrio was stunned at this information. From what she could tell, the only unusual thing about the child was the unusual bridge structure around its nose and eyes, which made its eyes appear pushed forward. Syp’s eyes changed from brown to sienna and back again to brown. Its hair slowly became brown.

“Did your parents hit you, Syp? Some people discipline their children by hitting their backsides.”

“They usually didn’t do that.” Syp hesitated. “But they didn’t want me there. I saw my mother’s face when she told my grandma to put me out in the snow the day I was born. She wanted me to die. She only wanted Kryn. I didn’t belong there.”

“You saw her? You remember what happened?”

“Of course. Doesn’t everyone remember the day they were born?”

Solrio and Eiske looked at each other. “Is there anything that stands out in your mind about that day that puzzles you? Something you overheard that you’ve never heard mentioned since then?”

“No. They argued a lot that day. Both grandpas were trying to keep the big boys away from Mom and the midwife. The grandmas were trying to sew jumpsuits for us to be laid out in the snow.”

“Laid out in the snow?” Solrio asked what this meant and Eiske explained that babies were placed outside in the elements for 24 hours before they were named.

“Families consider this ritual to be a test as to whether a baby should be allowed to live?” Solrio tried to understand.

“Some do. In this case, my understanding is that the test was initially set up so that it would determine which baby would be allowed to live. My sister did not seek medical care, only a midwife. The midwife told her that it would be a multiple birth and Geldou refused to believe it. She prepared for only one baby. She kept the first child that was handed to her and initially refused to hold the others. There was a huge argument about what to do with the younger four. She complained that five children would be too much for her to handle. This multiple birth occurred during the worst blizzard in three hundred years. All five babies were put outside. The incident was documented in the statements that are in the computer. I’ve decided to grant you access to it.”

“Thank you.” Solrio told Syp that it could return to Eiske’s to retrieve anything that it felt it needed during the next few days.

“I only need a change of clothes if I have a place to clean up. That and my electronic pad. If you would like me to read something else while I’m here, I wouldn’t need it.”

“Are you interested in what you were reading while you were waiting?” Syp nodded. “We can make another set of clothing like those you’re wearing in a replicator. I will place you in a suite with a shower.”

“Thank you.”

“Doctor, we will notify you when the testing is complete and make arrangements for you to transport back and discuss the results.”

“Very good.” He stood up.

Syp hugged him. “I’ll see you in a few days.”