The Heartwood roof of the world

The female thanked him, and he swung his narrow muzzle toward her with a smile that revealed the tips of pointed fangs from beneath his dark lip. To him, the gratitude was not needed; he had no real set path in mind for his day, so she was a welcome distraction. Turning to lead her in the direction of the hot springs, the crow moved in light steps with a swishing tail.
 
Do you live in the vicinity? The question caused him to cast a glance over his shoulder and peer at her. It took him a moment to piece together the verbiage and to assume that she was asking where he might live. The spindly creature had never heard of a vicinity, and while that particular term perplexed him, he focused instead on the words he could decipher. “This one does not live in vicinity. Tadec lives in bear valley with Indra,” he told her pleasantly. Of course, the remark on his red-furred companion was not something that had needed to be shared.
 
“Does stranger live in vicinity?”