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Quoth’s breath quickened. “That would be amazing. It will be easier to show you than to explain.”
With my arms still around him, Quoth transformed into his raven. There was this beautiful moment as he shifted where the black feathers poked through his skin and he was still mostly human but coated in the smoothest, silky feathers. I loved to touch him as he shifted – he liked the reassurance of my presence and I liked to feel his bones breaking and reshaping into a whole new creature who was still completely, intrinsically Quoth.
He was remarkable because he was so impossible. But Quoth was real. He was here. And he wasmine.
Quoth perched on top of the safe. I felt his fire-rimmed eyes follow me around the room as I pulled on jeans, a Patti Smith t-shirt, and a hoodie. I grabbed the room key and stirred Oscar awake, placing his harness in front of him and directing him to step into it. The three of us made our way downstairs, with Oscar trotting happily toward the main doors, excited to relieve himself and head out on a walk. Quoth hopped along on the floor behind us, carrying something under his wing and occasionally letting out a croak of excitement.
I threw open the heavy wooden front door of the hotel, and the cold air blasted my face. It wasn’t raining, but the promise of a downpour clung to the frigid air. The clouds overhead were grey and low. I thought of Morrie’s exploded car and reminded myself that we were trapped here, and at least the castle was warm and dry.
“Croak,” Quoth called, hurrying in front of us as we made our way across the lawn, stopping near an overgrown fountain so Oscar could relieve himself. When he was done, Quoth led us across the lawn toward the aviary.
Oscar navigated around the worst of the puddles. He must remember that I yelled at him yesterday.
Mina, look!Quoth’s voice landed inside my head. Our telepathic connection hummed with his excitement and…and distress. Quoth was anxious and upset, and I was about to find out why.
Oscar stopped at a long, mesh fence. It was too dim on the other side for me to make out anything except the dark shapes of trees and perches, but I could hear the voices of ravens croaking in greeting. Quoth walked tentatively up to the fence. He dropped his object through the window. I recognized it as one of Morrie’s watches from his hoard in the safe.
“Quoth, did you take Morrie’s watch from the safe?”
He won’t miss it.
“I’m sorry – have youmetMorrie?”
They’ll enjoy it much more than he will, trust me.
I could hear the ravens prising off the back of the watch and breaking the links apart. I caught the flash of light as the first rays of sunlight peeking over the horizon picked up the glittering metal and row of diamonds around the bezel.
They say that my gift is acceptable,Quoth tells me.I can be their friend.
“Morrie will be pleased to hear it when he’s late for his seaweed wrap because some ravens ate his Rolex,” I murmured.
While Quoth swooped up to chatter to his new friends, Oscar and I walked along the length of the mesh fence, Quoth hopping along on top of it, talking in raven language to the birds inside. His thoughts in my head became a jumble of English and a language I didn’t understand.
Only when we made our way back to where we began did I realize that we weren’t at a fence at all, but on the outside of a large aviary. And the birds inside were growing agitated. I staggered back as one of them threw its body against the mesh.
“What’s the matter with them?” I asked.
They want me to set them free,he told me.They don’t like being trapped in the aviary. They said that they used to be allowed to roam the estate freely, but since Donna took over, she didn’t want them pooping on guests so she had Jonathan lock them away.
“To be fair, that is a real problem.” I grinned at Quoth, remembering all the times he’d left a ‘surprise’ on the heads of people who quoted ‘The Raven’ by Edgar Allen Poe. “It seems like a pretty big space for them…”
I trailed off as I thought about Quoth being trapped behind a mesh fence. I did not like that thought.
And I remembered Jonathan grabbing him last night and mentioning putting him back ‘with the others.’ Quothcouldhave been trapped in this cage if he hadn’t escaped.
I didn’t like that at all.
They can’t fly more than six feet in the air. They can’t soar. Their wings get ragged from hitting the fence all the time. They don’t get to hunt unless an unfortunate mouse wanders into the cage. Did you know that a group of ravens is called an unkindness?
“That seems a bit mean,” I say. “All the ravens I know are perfectly lovely.”
What’s unkind is keeping them trapped here like this.Quoth landed on my shoulder. The rising sun caught the glimmer of righteous fire in his irises.Can we help them?
“I don’t think there’s anything we can do. We’re guests at the castle. We can’t just go around letting the wildlife roam free. And besides, I wouldn’t even know how we could do that. This fence must be pretty strong and the lock pretty secure if it can withstand ravens tampering with it.”
They said that Jonathan installed a combination lock at first, but they figured out the combination and set themselves free. So Donna’s installed a new electronic lock system that’s supposed to be raven-proof. Mina, they’recrying. They’re not made for being in cages.
Quoth’s words rang with passion and quiet anger. I remembered the art exhibit he created back in Argleton – the one that got destroyed when he tried to suck my blood after Dracula made him into his vampire servant. (I’ve had quite the year. Maybe one day I’ll even write a book about it.) Quoth created an installation of bird cages, some with doors open, some with objects trapped inside. Walking through that exhibit was a glimpse inside his heart.
