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We walk into the now-revealed village. It is going to be a bit awkward. Some of the Zvori, I have not seen in many years since I left the village to go on my own.
And there are still some who view that as treasonous.
“If I can offer you one piece of advice, Zephiro. Don’t forget about the heart of it all.”
I nod, not quite understanding his meaning.
As I approach the huts, which line the side of the mountain, nested in a quiet fog, immediately Gradius steps out.
“You’ve got some nerve,” Gradius says. “I told you to stay hidden, and you’ve come right to our doorstep.”
He turns to look around me.
“Relax, Gradius,” Lorganus says. “We are still well hidden behind the veil. They will not find us.”
But Gradius pays no heed to Lorganus.
“Where is your woman, Zephiro? I smell her on you, but I don’t see her.”
“That’s actually why I’ve come,” I reply. I look at Lorganus, who nods his affirmation.
“I’ve come to talk to the village about a pressing matter.”
“You lost your right to speak here when you abandoned us, Zephiro,” Gradius says.
“I’ll be the judge of that.” A voice booms from out of one of the neighboring huts.
I crane my neck over Gradius to see a hunched male form approaching.
“You look a little worse for wear, Zephiro,” Zkovia says as he joins us. “Why don’t you tell us what’s on your mind?”
He gathers the Zvori in the center of the village, near the drinking well. Dozens of Zvori I haven’t seen, and some cubs I’ve never met, all circle around me and Lorganus.
Lorganus shuffles off into the crowd.
I realize I actually miss his calming presence.
“Now what is the matter?” Gradius asks.
Zkovia wags his gnarled finger. “You are still far from the elder, Gradius,” he says. “You will let him speak.”
I nod, smiling down at Zkovia.
I think I see him wink back.
“As you know, I left you many years ago to go off on my own,” I say, standing fully upright.
I can see the scornful expression on Gradius’s face, but he doesn’t interject.
“I was finding myself outside of the tribe. I won’t justify what I did, but I need you to hear me.”
Some of the cubs have gotten restless. Their mothers play with their branchlike arms, doing what they can to entertain them.
“I have fallen for a human.”
The crowd gasps, Zkovia included.
“I hope you will hold your judgments.”
