“Nevertheless, no animal has.”
“I’m sorry,” said Oscar, “but I was specifically assigned there in the previous book. You can’t tell me that no animal’s been there if I was specifically asked to go there.”
“But you didn’t.”
“Well, no. Not exactly. I got distracted. But I intended to, which means something.”
“It means nothing.”
They stared at him.
“I am the only animal to have made it to that land.”
Oscar frowned. “I find that even harder to believe!”
“Then tell me, how did you intend to get to the Great Grasslands of Vra?”
Oscar glanced at Vaasi-Vee, but she had little more to offer. He swallowed and said, “Well, I flew down to Par Beguine, for a start.”
“And then?”
“And then I got distracted.”
“But if you hadn’t?”
“I intended to catch a train south to Talsik-Kerr.” He expected
