Chapter 196: Book 3: It Takes a Village
Before we leave, we check in again with the Cliffside Crows. There's a good chance this will be the last time we see any of them with their current set of memories, considering the dangers of the Intermediary. That we've escaped having to loop for as long as we have... well, it's a miracle in and of itself.
When we arrive, we find them waiting for us. Tarin, Mari, and Naru stand at the forefront of a large group of villagers, not all of whom I recognize. Virin and Rotar are there, though. The former is practically vibrating with excitement, and the latter looks... nervous.
"Ethan!" Tarin squawks. He folds his wings in front of his chest. "Where you go? We looking for you."
"We were training," I say, which is technically true.
Just like that, everything is forgiven—Tarin's expression brightens into a haughty kind of smug satisfaction. It almost makes me laugh. I'm definitely going to miss him. "Training good!" he says. "I forgive. Next time you just say you training. I send help."
I decide not to tell him that I'm not sure he could've helped in this particular instance. It'll only offend him.
"Anyway," he continues. "We make gift for you. You leaving, yes?"
A gift? I blink, feeling oddly touched. I would've expected the crows to have too much to contend with to worry about putting together some kind of farewell gift. "We're headed to the Intermediary again," I say with a nod. "Need to go there to finish our training."
"Then you take this," Tarin declares. He holds a wing out, and Virin carefully places a strange, ornately-carved box into it. It's probably the fanciest item I've ever seen from the crows—their crafting tends to favor function over form.