Some motion on the other side of the settlement caught their attention. On a footpath leading into the settlement, a group of five felines approached. One was a female walking in the middle of the males. They waved their spears and seemed to be shouting something. A male, perhaps the village elder, approached them, gesticulating and probably talking, although the spacecraft occupants could hear nothing. The arrivals followed the elder to the village center, where they presented the female in what seemed to be a ceremonious manner. A male appeared from a teepee, and he and the female embraced while the visitors waved their spears in apparent joy. After that, everyone entered the town hall.
“So, what do you think?” Kenred asked. “A bride? A runaway girl? I would love to see what is happenin
