"That is, of course, perfectly reasonable," Ranata agrees. 

"There is no hurry; agreements between immortal beings should not be rushed into. We simply felt it prudent to inform you of our intentions, in the interests of honest and open communication."

"I do appreciate the courtesy. Which ship will you be departing on?"

Ranata checks her mental itinerary.

"I had intended to travel on the ship leaving in five days' time, in the morning, and spend the intervening time travelling around your domain. If you do not wish to wait that long, I believe there is an earlier departure in the direction of Littenvale the day after tomorrow."

"There is no rush. Feel free to explore."

"Thank you, I will." 

And since it sounds like she will not be alone on her voyage home: "Will you be sending an acolyte, or an avatar?"

"An avatar, if Merilakian has no objections."

Ranata takes out her vial  of river water and looks at it. 

"I would be honoured," her vial says.

"I will let my people know to expect you."

"I will make arrangements."

And that seems to be that.

With arrangements made, Ranata spends the next few days happily exploring Ellayania's domain. She reserves the last day before her departure for another long session in the library. 

Ellayania's domain is not overly large. There is one other smaller city, several fishing villages, and a few farming communities further inland. There are no other libraries as large as the one at her main temple, but everywhere she has an altar, there is at least one shelf of books and a place to read them. The weather remains chill and misty.

And when she gets back to the library, there is an elegantly-dressed woman perusing the shelves.

This would be interesting at any other time, but they are in a library. There are books. 

There is a reason she left an entire day for this. 

That's endearing.

Merilakian has to remind her to eat again.

When the sky begins to darken, Ranata sadly replaces the last book on its shelf and starts heading for the inn to sleep, looking longingly over her shoulder and promising herself that she can return another time. 

"If you want to take one or two with you, I would not mind."

...huh. So that's - 

"Thank you, my lady," she says after a moment.

"You are very kind. But - how can I possibly choose just a few, when there are so many?" This last part is said almost to herself, as she gazes around them at the candlelit shelves. 

"You'll have to prioritize."

"I think," she decides, "that I will sleep on the matter, and return in the morning to collect the books I have chosen before our ship departs." 

That should, hopefully, give her time to decide on a shortlist of the ones she really cannot pass up the opportunity to read. 

"I'll see you then."

And so she does. 

Ranata woke early, so she could spend some time deliberating over books without being late to the docks. She managed to choose three, mostly by promising herself that she can exchange them for others at a later date, and is right on time to board the ship. 

And here's an avatar, reassuring the ship's captain that yes, she did speak with Varkalosix and there will not be any unfortunate incidents on this trip due to her presence.

"Good morning," Ranata sings out as she walks up to them.

Her luggage, slightly heavier than when she arrived given the weight of her borrowed books, is still light enough that she can carry it herself. She'll be glad to put it down, of course, but that's not enough to dent her good mood. Finally, she's heading for home, after weeks away from Littenvale. Merilakian's voice in her ear has helped, but not enough. 

The captain finally accepts Ellayania's assurances. He makes a note of Ranata's arrival, moving off to attend to other preparations.

The avatar goes over to her. "Managed to make your selection?"

"I did!" 

Ranata lists the books she chose - a biology text, one on geology, and an anthropological treatise. She may or may not be bouncing slightly. 

"Good choices. I find the anthropologist somewhat verbose, though his digressions can be entertaining at times."