"Oh," Xas says. He almost says he doesn't understand that, but then he thinks of his friends, who he didn't want to give up to time or to God, and he shuts his mouth and bites his lip instead. "I've been buying books," he says after a moment, "but I don't know what to do with them when I finish them. You can have them if you want. No promises as to quality."

The next part makes him wrinkle his nose, amused but also disappointed. If they need an address, he won't be borrowing from the library himself anytime soon. Then he shakes his head: it isn't a stupid question. "It wasn't for any specific reason. I suppose he thought anything people bothered to copy ten times must be something worth reading." A quick grin. "This was before you - " Humans, he means. " - came up with printing presses, of course."