FOR US THE LIVING BY ROBERT A. HEINLEIN

“May it please the Court?”

“May it what? Oh yes, surely. Go ahead.”

“What is the alternative to taking treatment?”

“The alternative is Coventry, by which I mean that you will be delivered to the gate of a reservation set aside for non-cooperative individuals, along with your credit turned into any chattels you choose. Or, if you prefer, you may emigrate to any country willing to receive you.”

“What happens if I enter Coventry?”

“You must enter the gate. What happens thereafter is no concern of the state.”

“How long must I stay in the reservation?”

The judge shrugged his shoulders and did not reply.

“I’ll take treatment. I was simply curious about the other.”

“Very good. I see from the report that certain typical moral reactions may be expected from you with a general classification of aristocratic. Do you recognize my authority?”

“Yes, Your Honor.”

“I am going to ask you to make me a promise. You need not if you prefer not to. I want you to promise that you will refrain from doing any violence to any person whatsoever including yourself for any reason whatsoever until you are pronounced cured or until you come to me and tell me that you withdraw your word. Will you do it?”

“That’s fair enough. I promise.”

“Good. I want to parole you to someone not in need of treatment himself. Who is your next friend?”

Perry looked disconcerted. “Why, I don’t believe I have any.” As he spoke, Diana stepped forward. The judge smiled.

“Is she your next friend?” They both nodded. “Very well then, you must understand that she is responsible to me that the instructions of this court are carried out.” He turned to Diana. “Take him to the State Correction Hospital at Tahoe. The Chief Clerk will help you with the details. That’s all. Goodbye and good luck.”

In the air car Diana set the controls and turned to Perry with anxious concern in her eyes. “Well, darling, how do you feel?”

Perry considered this. “I don’t know. I was braced for a pretty unpleasant outcome, but I’ve been treated very decently. On the other hand I have to go off someplace away from you and submit to treatment of indefinite duration and unknown sort. It’s humiliating and I don’t feel happy about it. I don’t like to be regarded as crazy because I know that I am not.”

Diana patted his hand. “Nobody thinks you are crazy, darling. They think that you are suffering from bad emotional reactions through faulty training. Now they will attempt to re-train you so that you can be happy.”

He grasped her fiercely. “Do those fools think that they can train me out of loving you with a bunch of fancy phrases?”

She kissed him tenderly before she answered. “Not at all, darling. You’ll love me just as much or more, but you’ll be happier in it, because you won’t be all cluttered up with a bunch of false reflexes and wrong identifications.”

“You may be right but I can’t see it. I don’t see how you can change human nature.”

“You’ll understand that better in a few days. Relax and don’t worry about it now. Come here and let me hold you.” She took him in her arms, cradling his lean young shoulders like a baby. She smoothed the wrinkles from his brow and closed his eyes. Presently the little stubborn lines about his mouth ironed out and he breathed more slowly. Diana suspected that he was sleeping and was still. The miles slipped by underneath. Then she roused him gently. “Perry. Perry, dearest. It’s time to land.”

“I wasn’t asleep.”

“No, but it is time to land. See below—that flat over there to the left. Put her down as close to the buildings as you can find room.”

“Right-O.”

Inside the administration wing, Diana gave Perry his instructions. “Ask for Master Hedrick and tell them who you are. They’ll tell you what to do.” They were asked to wait for a few minutes. When Master Hedrick appeared, he turned out to be an unimpressive little man, rather thin, with scanty grey hair and a quick bird-like manner. He trotted up, hand outstretched.