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It was one of those extremely rare days when the Crows had nothing to do. Nothing to take care of, nothing to be anxious about. And it was amazing. Normally, Inej would have stayed in the Slat with the others. But today, she decided that she would go out. Where? She didn't know yet. But she was in need of fresh air. And to go out was the best solution she has in mind.
In the morning, when everyone was still sleeping because of their tiredness, she dressed herself. She was wearing, as usual, her dark hooded tunic. Even if she wasn't going in a mission, she still thought about the fact that some unexpected events might happen. This was just in case. And of course, she couldn't go out without her knives. She didn't forget Sankta Marya, nor Sankta Elizabeta. The fact is that she never forgets any of them. She also didn't forget a small purse, which she hung on her waist, where you could find enough kruge to make a small purchase.
Before going out, she wrote on a little piece of paper, for the attention of her friends who were still sleeping, that she was going outside, near the University District. But why near this district particularly? Simply because she felt like smelling the students' coffees, some old books as well as flowers. She just felt like discovering a new place. Then, she went out and closed the door behind her. To go to this district, she had to go through the Financial District and, after many minutes she spent walking pretty fastly, she finally crossed it entirely. She could see, from when she stood, the tall buildings of the university. But before entering the university to go to the library where she would breathe in the smell of the many books, she decided to pass through a small neighborhood where students would buy coffee before the long day they spent at the university studying. And she told herself, why wouldn't i take a coffe?
She headed towards a coffeeshop, a thin smile on her lips. She heard the tinkling of bells hanging above the door when she opened it, as some students waited for her to enter before going out themselves, looking rather hurried, a bag in one of their hands, the cup of coffee in the other. A man was standing behind the counter, looking at her thoughtfully.
- I don't think I've ever seen you around, he said while cleaning a glass.
- It's the first time, I'm just passing by, the Suli girl answered, confidently.
The man hummed, putting the glass down.
- So, what do you want? Students mostly ask me for coffee to forget their tiredness. But I also have tea, or stronger drinks...
She thought for a moment before answering.
- I'm going to have a coffee, please.
- Busy days? Tiring days? I get that. Please wait a moment while I prepare your coffee.
While he prepared her coffee, she observed him. He must have been in his sixties. Most of his hair was still black even though she could see some white hair. His hands seemed damaged and rough, as if he had not always worked as a bartender. He looked tired and, with enough imagination, she could hear his joints cracking from fatigue. He turned back to her after a moment, a coffee from which steam was coming out in his hand.
- There you go, ma'am. Here is your coffee. It's going to be 1 kruge for you, please.
- Thank you Mister. Here is your kruge.
- I hope you will spend a good time in the area.
She answered by a little smile while mutturing a little "thank you". Then, she took the steaming coffee. It was not only steaming, but also almost burning her hand. But it was a comforting warmth, not a painful one. And when she walked out of the coffeeshop, she felt even more the difference in temperature between the cold wind and her hot coffee. When she took her first sip, she felt like her tongue was melting, so she decided to wait a little bit before continuing it. She walked through the streets at random, letting herself be carried by the wind. She wasn't stressed: she felt good.
After a while, she saw a little bench where no one was sitting on. And she decided that she would be the one sitting on it. She was sat in front of the Boekcanal and, from where she was, she could see students almost running, probably because they were late. This district was alive for now, but maybe it wouldn't be for long when every students would be inside the university. She observed her surroundings: many pretty flowers were near the edge of the canal ; a few bicycles were placed against the railing ; some garbage on the ground, some of which were flying in the wind ; two women embracing before one of them headed straight for the university, while the other turned back. She smiled, looked at her coffee which was no longer steaming and took a sip. It was better now, and her tongue could no longer melt. She drank her coffee while looking at the Boekcanal, before standing up and putting her cup in a trash can.
Her next and final step was to go inside the university and, more particularly, inside one of the four libraries. There, she would probably take a book in her hands, she would flip through the book, tracing with her thin fingers the different letters before smelling the pages. It was after several minutes of walking that she finally arrived at the entrance of the university. She entered in a confident way, as if she had always been a student here. She could easily find her way to one of the libraries thanks to the notice board at the entrance.
When she finally arrived in front of a massive wooden door, she took a deep breath before opening it. And then, she was starry-eyed. Hundreds and hundreds of books were stacked on shelves that must have been at least four times the size of Inej. There were so many that she didn't know where to look. However, she went to a random shelf and read the inscription "history and mythologies". The titles of the books were written, mostly in calligraphy, on the spine of the book. "History of Ketterdam during the two first centuries", "The very first Grishas" and even "The Saints: Legend or Reality". When she read the last title, Inej huffed, clearly annoyed. She moved away from this shelf and approached another one, which dealt with nature. She took the first book she saw, which was entitled "Poisonous plants: Risks and Properties". She took this one and began to leaf through the book. On each right page, you could see the drawing of a plant and, on the left, its properties and the different risks, as it was indicated in the title. She stopped at a random page: the one about the cowbane. She skimmed the page, but came up with some interesting information, such as the fact that the cowbone contains cicutoxin, which can cause nausea, emesis and even abdominal pain. She thought for a second that this kind of information could be really useful for some missions.
She put the book down and flipped through many, many others. But then, when she lifted her head to see if there was a clock hanging on a wall, she saw what time it was. And she should have been back at the Slat a long time ago. And she began to panic. Because what if the Crows were worried about her?
She closed the book she was reading and left the university in a hurry. She had to cross the Financial District again and headed towards the Slat. When she opened the door, she saw directly the other Crows, sitting at a table, talking to each other. She smiled because it was so good to go home after a amazing day.
She pulled out a chair and sat down, watching the others' smiles and listening to their conversations, as well as their laughter. She was eager to tell them about her unforgettable day.