They had found a place to shelter, a natural overhang of rock at the edge of the city's sprawl, where construction crews were digging and blasting to make more of their incomprehensible structures. For one night, it had seemed safe, the workers having gone away as darkness fell.
But in the morning, the Tall Ones returned and set off their explosives. The shock waves traveled through the ground like the footfalls of a giant, shaking the earth itself. The small folk fled in panic, scrambling up the stream that flowed down from the hills, seeking the safety of the wild places they understood.
And it was there, exhausted and frightened, that they encountered a group of Tall Ones who had been searching for them. Not the bad ones—these carried the scent of wonder and kindness. One among them, a female with a gentle manner, seemed particularly concerned for their welfare. She made soothing sounds and offered food.
But the small folk were wary now. They had learned that not all Tall Ones could be trusted. They watched and waited, trying to understand these new giants' intentions. When the female took out strange objects—metal tools that gleamed in the sunlight—and offered to trade them for the worn wooden sticks the small folk carried, it sparked a memory of that first day in the Wonderful Place, when Pappy Jack had shared and given without demanding anything in return.
One of the males among them—Strong-Arm, whom the Tall Ones would call Ko-Ko—made a decision that would echo through their entire history. He approached the female, examined the metal tool she offered, and accepted the trade. In that moment, he signaled that perhaps, just perhaps, trust might be possible again.
And then something extraordinary happened. The group of Tall Ones made sounds among themselves, sounds that carried emotional content the small folk could recognize even if they couldn't understand the words. There was disagreement, then resolution. And in the end, three of the males and one of the females of the small folk chose to go with these new Tall Ones, while the others fled back to the wild.
What they couldn't know—couldn't possibly understand—was that they had just participated in what the Tall Ones called a "marriage ceremony" of sorts. Ko-Ko had found mates, and in choosing to go with them, he was beginning a new family group, following an instinct as old as the forest itself.
But for Seeker and the others, the saga continued. They remained free, moving through the edges of civilization, surviving day by day, always remembering the Wonderful Place but never quite finding the courage to seek it out. What if Pappy Jack no longer wanted them? What if he had found new small folk to care for? The fear of rejection kept them moving, kept them hidden.
Until the day they heard the Voice.
It came from one of the floating machines the Tall Ones used, amplified and echoing across the landscape. But it wasn't just any voice—it was Baby's voice, Little-Little's voice, the smallest and most precious member of their family. The voice called to them in their own tongue, the high-frequency speech that rode the wind. And mixed with it were the deep, rumbling sounds that could only be Pappy Jack.
They were being called home.