Big-living-things . . . way too close. Not responding to my threat noises. Better bite them.
The snake had only two rules for dealing with animals that weren't food. 1) Shake your tail until they go away without stepping on you. 2) If they don't go away, strike.
Thea the person kept her hands steady and tried to pound a new thought into the small reptile brain. Smell me. Taste me. I don't smell like a human. I'm a daughter of Hellewise.
The snake's tongue brushed her palm. Its tips were so thin and delicate that Thea could hardly feel them flicker against her skin.
But she could feel the snake drop down from maximum alert. It was relaxing, ready to retreat. In another minute it would listen when she told it to slither away.
Behind her, she heard a new disturbance in the crowd.
'There's Eric!"
"Hey, Eric-rattlesnake!"
Block it out, Thea thought.
A new voice, distant but coming closer. "Leave it alone, guys. It's probably just a bull snake."
There was a swell of excited denial. Thea could feel her connection slipping. Stay focused. . . .
But nobody could have stayed focused during what happened next. She heard a quick footstep. A shadow fell from the east. Then she heard a gasp.
"Mojave rattler!"
And then something hit her, sending her flying sideways. It happened so fast that she didn't have time to twist. She landed painfully on her arm. She lost control of the snake.
All she could see as she looked east was a scaly olive-green head driving forward so fast it was a blur. Its jaws were wide open-amazingly wide-and its fangs sank into the blue-jeaned leg of the boy who had knocked Thea out of the way.