# Lady May — Short Fiction character guide

> Lady May in Short Fiction by Cordwainer Smith.

**Role:** supporting

**Also known as:** The Lady May

**First appearance:** 0001-scanners-live-in-vain

## Snapshot

A telepathic cat Partner who reads danger before her human does, she thinks in warm affectionate babble and flings herself at threats with a warrior's speed.

## Who they are

Lady May is Underhill's Partner in the Fighting Room, a cat whose mind brushes his with images of a golden-faced son and soft downy fur even as she scans space for enemies. She perceives faster than he can, and when the little girl named West finds something immense and greedy in the dark, it is Lady May who is already in line, already firing. Her tenderness and her ferocity are the same instinct, and that doubleness is what makes the early battle scenes feel both loving and lethal.

## Relationships

### [Father Moontree](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/short_fiction_11_se/characters/father_moontree)

_friendship_

Father Moontree and Lady May share a close, trusting bond, possibly as confidants or spiritual advisor and patron.

### [Underhill](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/short_fiction_11_se/characters/underhill)

_social_

Lady May and Underhill are acquainted, possibly through social circles or shared interests.

### [Underhill](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/short_fiction_11_se/characters/underhill)

_social_

Lady May and Underhill are acquainted, possibly through social circles or shared interests.

### [Father Moontree](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/short_fiction_11_se/characters/father_moontree)

_friendship_

Father Moontree and Lady May share a close, trusting bond, possibly as confidants or spiritual advisor and patron.

## In the story

### [The Game of Rat and Dragon](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/short_fiction_11_se/chapters/the-game-of-rat-and-dragon)

Underhill's cat partner, a telepathic feline who helps him hunt dragons.

### [The Shuffle](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/short_fiction_11_se/chapters/the-shuffle)

The most thoughtful Persian cat Partner, drawn by Underhill; has a complex emotional mind.

### [The Deal](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/short_fiction_11_se/chapters/the-deal)

Underhill's cat partner, placed in a projectile and connected telepathically; her consciousness merges with Underhill's.

### [The Play](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/short_fiction_11_se/chapters/the-play)

Underhill's cat partner, who perceives the enemy as a giant Rat and fights with feral elation, though she is left exhausted after the battle.

### [The Score](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/short_fiction_11_se/chapters/the-score)

Underhill's Partner; he anxiously inquires about her condition and remembers her as quick, graceful, and beautiful.

## Links

- HTML: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/short_fiction_11_se/characters/lady_may
- Book: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/short_fiction_11_se
- All characters: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/short_fiction_11_se/characters