``Thou art God.'' He was closer to understanding it in English now, although it could never have the inevitability of the Martian concept it stood for. In his mind he spoke simultaneously the English sentence and the Martian word and felt closer grokking. Repeating it like a student telling himself that the jewel is in the lotus he sank into nirvana.

Before midnight he speeded his heart, resumed normal breathing, ran down his check list, uncurled and sat up. He had been weary; now he felt light and gay and clear-headed, ready for the many actions he saw spreading out before him.

He felt a puppyish need for company as strong as his earlier necessity for quiet. He stepped out into the hall, was delighted to encounter a water brother. ``Hi!''

``Oh. Hello, Mike. My, you look chipper.''

``I feel fine! Where is everybody?''

``Asleep. Ben and Stinky went home an hour ago and people started going to bed.''

``Oh.'' Mike felt disappointed that Mahmoud had left; he wanted to explain his new grokking.

``I ought to be asleep, too, but I felt like a snack. Are you hungry?''

``Sure, I'm hungry!''

``Come on, there's some cold chicken and we'll see what else.'' They went downstairs, loaded a tray lavishly. ``Let's take it outside. It's plenty warm.''

``A fine idea,'' Mike agreed.

``Warm enough to swim -- real Indian summer. I'll switch on the floods.''

``Don't bother,'' Mike answered. ``I'll carry the tray.'' He could see in almost total darkness. Jubal said that his night-sight probably came from the conditions in which he had grown up, and Mike grokked this was true but grokked that there was more to it; his foster parents had taught him to see. As for the night being warm, he would have been comfortable naked on Mount Everest but his water brothers had little tolerance for changes in temperature and pressure; he was considerate of their weakness, once he learned of it. But he was looking forward to snow -- seeing for himself that each tiny crystal of the water of life was a unique individual, as he had read -- walking barefoot, rolling in it.