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Soren."

    "What can we do?"

    "I'm not sure. Let me think a while. Meanwhile, try to cock your head just a bit, so the moon does not shine straight down on it. And remember, when flying in full shine there is no problem. But sleeping in it is disastrous."

    "I can't fly yet," Soren said softly.

    "Well, just be sure you don't sleep."

    Soren cocked his head and while doing so tipped his beak down to look upon the little Elf Owl. How, he wondered, was such a tiny creature so smart? He hoped with all his might that Gylfie would come up with something. Some idea. Just as he was thinking this, there was a sharp bark. "12-1, head straight, beak up!" It was another sleep monitor. He felt a thwack to the side of his head. They did not fall asleep, and as soon as the patrolling owl left, they began whispering again. But then, all too soon, came the inevitable alarm for a sleep march to begin. It would be three more circuits before they could meet again under the arch.

    'Remember what I told you. Don't sleep."

    I'm so tired. How can I help it?"

    'Think of anything."

    'What?"

    "Anything --" Gylfie hesitated before a sleep monitor shoved her along. "Think of flying!"

    Flying, yes, thinking of flying would keep Soren awake. There was nothing more exciting. But in the meantime, all thoughts of flight were drowned out by the sound of his own voice repeating his own name.

    "Soren ... Soren ... Soren Soren ..." There was also the sound of thousands of talons clicking on the hard stone surface as they marched in lines. Soren was between

    Hortense and a Horned Owl whose name blended into the drone of other names. Three Snowy Owls were directly in front of him. There were perhaps twenty or more owls to each group, all arranged in loose lines, but they moved in unison as one block of owls, each owl endlessly repeating his or her name. It was impossible to sort out an individual name from the babble, and it was not long when, on the fourth sleep march, his own name began to sound odd to Soren. Within another one hundred or so times of repeating it, it seemed almost as if it was not a name at all. It was merely a noise. And he, too, was becoming a meaningless creature with no real name, no family, but... but... but maybe a friend?

    Finally, they stopped again. And it was in the silence of that moment when they stopped that Soren suddenly realized what was happening. It all made sense, particularly when he thought of what Gylfie had explained to him about moon blinking. This alone would keep him awake until he met up with her again.

    "They are moon blinking us with our names, Gylfie," Soren gasped as he edged in close to the little owl under the stone arch. Only the stars twinkled above. Gylfie understood immediately A name endlessly repeated became a meaningless sound. It completely lost its individuality, its significance. It would dissolve into nothingness. Soren continued, "Just move your beak or say your number, but don't say your name. That way it will stay your name." There would, however, be at least three more nights of full shine and then the fullness would begin to lessen until the moon was completely dwenked.

    Gylfie looked at Soren in amazement. This ordinary Barn Owl was in his own way quite extraordinary.
    This was absolutely brilliant. Gylfie felt more than ever compelled to figure out a solution to sleeping exposed to full shine.

CHAPTER SIX

    Separate Pits, One Mind

    When Soren and Gylfie parted at the end of that long night, they looked at each other and blinked, trembling with fear. If only they could be together in the same pit, then they could think together, talk, and plan. Gylfie had told Soren a little about her pit. She, too, had a pit guardian who seemed very nice, at least compared to Jatt and Jutt or Skench. Gylfie's pit guardian was called Unk, short for Uncle and, like Auntie, he tried to arrange special treats for Gylfie -- a bit of snake sometimes, often even calling Gylfie by her real name and not her