"I think your language has more in common with the Valan tongue than it does Sharer," Merwen says. "I know Valans have trouble with our sharing verbs. Valans divide 'learnshare' into 'teach' and 'learn,' and 'share speech' into 'talk' and 'listen.' It took me some time to understand the difference, when I learned Valan."

She offers him a small smile. "I am a wordweaver, though, and it is good to know that even translated, I hold some strength in my words."