The same thing that made her uneasy about telling Mr. Bates what had happened. Then the ridges were close and she could see the rocks and the place the doorway should be. The door was closed and Biddy guessed that Joe didn't get up very early either. She rode as close as she could and was just about to call out his name when a pair of hands lifted her and swung her off Buck and set her on her feet. And Joe was saying, "Hello there, youngster. Up pretty early aren't you?" Biddy wasn't even frightened at his appearing that way from nowhere. At least that was how he had seemed to appear. She said, "I woke up and I wanted to come out and thank you for fixing my leg." "That wasn't necessary." "Have you had breakfast?" "Not yet. I was up early too and I was just sitting out here doing some thinking." "Are you expecting to eat breakfast soon?" "Right now as a matter of fact. You wait. I'll bring it out." Joe touched the small thing on his shirt. The cave door opened and he went inside and came out very shortly with a tray that he set down on a rock. Biddy looked at the tray and said, "That's awfully funny food." "Funny?" "Uh-huh. It doesn't look like any kind I ever saw before." "Well you just try it and see if you don't like it." Biddy picked up one of the little white sticks and bit off an end. She chewed it warily, then with relish. "It's very good. Where did you get it?" "I brought it with me." They ate in silence for a while, then Joe said, "Biddy, what do your mother and father think of the Eastern Bloc?" Biddy looked up in surprise. "Why they hate it of course. Everybody hates the Eastern Bloc because they're mean and cruel." "What do the people of your town expect to happen?" "With the Eastern Bloc?" "Yes." "Everybody knows we'll have to fight them someday. We built a space station and so they had to go and build one too and they want to wreck our station so they'll have the only one. And when they do the big war will start." "And I suppose the Eastern Bloc knows you want to wreck their space station?" "Why they can't think that because we had one first and we could have stopped them from building one but we didn't because we aren't mean like they are." "I see." Joe thought that over very carefully for a long time and then all the food on the tray was gone and Biddy said, "What's the sky bloc like, Joe?" "The sky bloc?" "That's where you said you came from." "Oh, yes. Well, it's a little hard to describe. It's very big and I think probably you'd like it if you ever went there." "Did they send you away?" "Not exactly. They sent me down here to do something." "What do you have to do?" "I have to talk to some people." "What people do you have to talk to?" "I'm not quite sure yet. I haven't made up my mind." "When will you make up your mind?" * * * * *