Boji

Boji is Cajeiri’s Parid’ja companion, a rare black-furred animal whose escape-prone mischief makes him a logistical burden and whose presence becomes part of Cajeiri’s daily life. He is not merely carried along as an unusual pet: his flight at Tirnamardi has consequences that Cajeiri later recognizes could have been grave, and his recurring attempts to steal, climb, and seize papers give Cajeiri opportunities to show care and control.

Identity and Household Place

Boji is described as a small, black-furred Parid’ja, a species fairly rare on the continent outside Taiben and the foothills of the continental divide. The description places him among a distinctive, uncommon kind of animal, but the household knows him less by rarity than by the practical demands he creates. He is noisy, prone to escaping, and difficult to catch. His reputation for trouble is balanced by the fact that he has also been useful, so his keepers treat him as more than an inconvenience.

When the party travels by train, Boji receives unusually careful accommodation. He is carried in an ornate antique cage as large as a small dining set, placed in the car ahead with staff baggage and members of the Dowager’s party. His keepers have brought substantial equipment and baggage, and they are moving people and supplies under security constraints; even so, they make room for him. The arrangement conveys the practical scale of his care: Boji cannot simply be taken along on a leash, and his cage occupies space comparable to a piece of furniture.

Escape at Tirnamardi and Its Consequences

Boji’s most consequential act of escape begins with a thin leather leash. He chews through it without Cajeiri and the others noticing, and an open window gives him a way out. Cajeiri later accepts responsibility for the failure, identifying the leash and the unobserved escape as their mistake. The episode makes Boji’s ordinary troublesome habits matter beyond household inconvenience: Cajeiri concludes that if Boji had not escaped, people might have been killed. The outcome is therefore fortunate, but not because Boji’s keepers had planned for it.

Afterward, Madam Saidin proposes a light chain as a more dependable restraint. Cajeiri immediately sees why it is better than the leather leash and reflects that, had she been in charge at Tirnamardi, Boji would not have gotten away. That practical lesson does not erase the strange result of the escape. Cajeiri understands that the same lapse in care was linked to an outcome that may have prevented deaths, and he regards their good fortune as something not to expect a second time. Boji’s escape thus becomes a lesson in the difference between a lucky consequence and a sound precaution.

A Restless Presence in the Apartment

When Cajeiri and his human guests arrive unexpectedly at his great-uncle’s apartment, Madam Saidin has to find room for them and manage the household during a high security alert. She handles the unusual combination of guests and a large Parid’ja cage without visible alarm. Boji’s care is incorporated into the household arrangements rather than treated as a reason to separate him from Cajeiri’s party. The visitors are placed together in the guest suite, while Cajeiri’s aishid volunteer to sleep in the sitting room beyond it.

Boji remains active even in confinement. In the guest bedroom, he clings to the cage bars and rattles his water bottle; Cajeiri quietly warns him not to screech in the apartment. The small episode shows how closely Cajeiri’s attention is divided between his guest responsibilities and the animal’s habits. He has been taught to avoid inconveniencing household staff, and he recognizes that his guests’ presence makes that responsibility more pressing, but Boji still demands his attention.

His mischief also extends beyond escaping. Cajeiri knows that Parid’ji can become attached to people, though Jegari distinguishes this from man’chi, and says that some learn clever actions such as retrieving a ball. They are sociable among themselves, and, when kept among Atevi, some form attachments to their caretakers. Boji’s cleverness has a less convenient side: he steals objects, including Cajeiri’s treasured penknife, and chews through a new hair ribbon. The ribbon’s destruction also frees his hands for a jump, turning theft and escape into parts of the same resourceful behavior.

Cajeiri’s Care and Growing Command

Boji’s relationship with Cajeiri is marked by familiarity, patience, and repeated negotiation. Cajeiri scratches his cheek where he likes it and uses clicks that imitate him; Boji responds by climbing up Cajeiri’s arm and settling behind him on the couch. In another moment, Cajeiri passes the end of Boji’s chain to Artur. Boji leaps toward Artur and catches at the chain in midair. These actions show both his sociability and the attention Cajeiri gives to handling him: the chain is a necessary restraint, but Cajeiri uses it actively to guide Boji among the people around him.

During preparations for Cajeiri’s official festivity, Boji is loose on the chain while Gene holds it. Cajeiri is distressed by the long list of names attached to the event and by the prospect that his guests may be excluded from the official celebration. Boji bounds over and sits on the couch arm as Cajeiri studies the list. Later, while Cajeiri is thinking about the formal obligations ahead, Boji climbs onto his shoulder and tries to take the papers. He then scrambles along the couch and makes an unsuccessful attempt to reach a bowl of fruit. Cajeiri shortens the chain, calls him back, and imitates his clicks. The episode gives Boji room to act on his own impulses while showing Cajeiri managing him without losing track of the papers or the people nearby.

A later incident tests that competence more directly. As Cajeiri reviews what he has memorized about his family’s descent from the War of the Landing, Boji shrieks, takes a paper, and carries it to the top of a bureau. Cajeiri asks the others not to startle him, calls Boji, and waits until the animal fixes its attention on him. Boji leaps onto Cajeiri’s arm with the paper still in his teeth. Cajeiri asks for it, gives a small tug, and is surprised when the mangled sheet comes free. Holding the chain himself, he lets Boji perch on his shoulder before handing him to Liedi. The guests are amazed and amused, and Gene praises Cajeiri’s handling of the situation. Boji has not become reliably obedient; rather, Cajeiri has learned how to regain his attention and recover what he has taken. Across these episodes, Boji’s restless presence makes care a practical skill, and his antics help reveal Cajeiri’s increasing ability to combine affection with responsibility.