The Book of Magic by T. A. Barron

dead—including the village healer, Arc-kaya , and Hawkeen's mother, whose heart had been pierced by an arrow. At the clan's burial mound, the eagleboy sang in memory of his mother, in a voice that blended the plaintive call of a child with the screeching cry of an eagle: "O Mother, my ship, my vessel on high! You have flown beyond sight, beyond fears. I miss you beyond any tears."
    As he finished, his gaze met that of the eagleman Scree , who had once lost his own mother to a murderer's arrow. In Scree's strength, Hawkeen found a touch of hope. And in the eagleboy, Scree found a reflection of his younger self. He recognized this sad but sturdy youth; he knew this mixture of anguish and resolve. The bond between Hawkeen and Scree would grow, so much that they would one day fight together at Avalon 's Battle of Isenwy.
    Helvin
    This bard is beloved by the Ayanowyn fire angels. Although he was born blind, his other senses were so acute and his descriptions were so vivid that Helvin's rich, entrancing tales inspired the fire angels' first storypaintings, the spectacular murals that now cover the walls of caverns and tunnels throughout the Middle Realm of the Great Tree . Tamwyn 's friend Gwirion , himself a storypainter, is most fond of Helvin's tales of Ogallad the Worthy . For those tales carry the hope that the fire angels might someday burn bright again—and possibly fulfill their dream of soaring up to the stars .
    Henni Hoolah
    Henni, whose full name is Henniwashinachtifig, stands half the height of Tamwyn . But he has more than double the young man's capacity for making mischief. As a hoolah, he has no sense of caution, no sense of honor, and no sense of dignity—basically no sense at all. To Henni, life is just a game. Any mischief is good fun; any danger is irrelevant. As he tells Tamwyn soon after they meet, "I've never met a death trap I didn't like."
    Like other hoolahs, Henni has very large hands (good for climbing trees or hurling fruit) and silver eyes surrounded by circular eyebrows. He laughs easily—especially at Tamwyn's clumsiness—and releases a raucous "eehee, eehee, hoohoohoohahaha" that can be heard from one end of a forest to another. In the custom of his people, he dresses simply, wearing only a baggy tunic and a red headband, and carries a slingshot in his belt.
    Something about Henni may be changing, however. Gradually, he seems more conscious of his actions, and he may actually be showing signs of concern for others. It may even be true that he is more aware of the value of life (including his own). Yet these changes may not last. And for now, at least, none of this is as meaningful to Henni as the simple fun of pelting Tamwyn with fruit—or pushing him into the Spiral Cascades .
    Hywel
    As the oldest of the Drumadian Elders, Hywel has lived in the compound longer than anyone else—including High Priestess Coerria , who is nearly two hundred years old. Hywel was a leader of the Society of the Whole before some of the current Elders were even born. As such, she takes very seriously her role as the keeper of the Society's traditions, through her responsibilities as the Dean of Timeliness and Decorum. After all, many of those traditions reach back to the days of the first priestesses, Elen and Rhiannon .
    When Hywel stands beside the clanging Buckle Bell—which was made from the belt buckle of a giant, melted down by the breath of a fire dragon, molded by dwarves, and decorated by faery artisans—she wears woolen earmuffs to protect her hearing. But there is precious little hearing left to protect. Hywel's eyes, however, remain sharp. As she scans the newest crop of young apprentices, who are about to begin their formal prayers, she looks for any signs of disarray. What she does not expect is that one apprentice has skipped formal prayers altogether—for in all her years, she has never met anyone quite like Elli .
    Ilyakk
    No member of the eagle people, except possibly Hac Yarrow , loved to fly