Énouement

Chapter Forty Nine

Graff was waiting for her after school. He stood leaning on his car. He was in civilian clothes, and he had gained weight, so she didn't recognize him at first. Valentine remembered the last time she had seen him.

Valentine waited nervously outside the principal's office until Dr. Lineberry opened the door and beckoned her inside. Her last doubt was removed when she saw the soft-bellied man in the uniform of an IF colonel sitting in the one comfortable chair in the room. "You're Valentine Wiggin," he said.

"Yes," she whisnered.
"I'm Colonel Graff. We've met before." Before? When had she had any dealings with the IF? "I've come to talk to you in confidence, about your brother." It's not just me, then, she thought. They have Peter. Or is this something new? Has he done something crazy? I thought he stopped doing crazy things.

"Valentine, you seem frightened. There's no need to be. Please, sit down. I assure you that your brother is well. He has more than fulfilled our expectations." And now, with a great inward gush of relief, she realized that it was Ender they had come about. Ender. It wasn't punishment at all, it was little Ender, who had disappeared so long ago, who was no part of Peter's plots now. You were the lucky one, Ender. You got away before Peter could trap you into his conspiracy.
"Valentine, we need your help for Ender." "What kind of help?"

"We aren't even sure of that. We need you to help us figure out how you can help us."
"Well, what's wrong?"
"That's part of the problem. We don't know." Valentine couldn't help but laugh.

"I haven't seen him in three years! You've got him up there with you all the time!"

"Valentine, it costs more money than your father will make in his lifetime for me to fly to Earth and back to the Battle School again. I don't commute casually."

"The king had a dream," said Valentine, "but he forgot what it was, so he told his wise men to interpret it for him."
"You read the bible?" Graf asked confused.
"We're doing classics in advanced lit."

"Why would he see Peter in our fantasy game?  Why would he be afraid of him?"
"Peter —can be hateful sometimes."

"Hateful in what way?"
"Mean. Just mean, that's all."

"Valentine, for Ender's sake, tell me what he does when he's being mean."

"He threatens to kill people a lot. He doesn't mean it. But when we were little, Ender, Torie, and I were all afraid of him. He told us he'd kill us. Actually, he told us he'd kill Ender, and Torie he'd..." Valentine trailed off and looked away, as if remembering.

"We monitored some of that."
"It was because of the monitor."
"Is that all? Tell me more about Peter."

So she told him about the children in every school that Peter attended. He never hit them, but he tortured them just the same. Found what they were most ashamed of and told it to the person whose respect they most wanted. Found what they most feared and made sure they faced it often.

"Did he do this with Ender?" Valentine shook her head. "Are you sure? Didn't Ender have a weak place? A thing he feared most, or that he was ashamed of?"

"Ender only feared Peter hurting Torie, but she would protect him! Ender never did anything to be ashamed of." And suddenly, deep in her own shame for having forgotten and betrayed Ender, she started to cry.

"Why are you crying?" She shook her head. She couldn't explain what it was like to think of her little brother, who was so good, whom she had protected for so long, and then remember that now she was Peter's ally, Peter's helper, Peter's slave in a scheme that was completely out of her control. Ender never surrendered to Peter, but I have turned, I've become part of him, as Ender never was.