Kya returns to the stump hoping for another feather but finds it empty, so she leaves a rare immature bald eagle feather. Comforted by the idea that someone chooses to come to her world, she relaxes her guard and considers the gentle intent behind the gifts.

At home, Kya deep-cleans, cuts her long hair, and briefly tries lipstick, then recalls Ma’s Barely Pink nail polish and a joyous boat outing with her sisters that ended stuck in mud. Ma framed it as a lesson about sticking together, a memory that sharpens Kya’s ache over Ma’s abandonment.

The next afternoon, Kya discovers a milk carton on the stump holding a night heron crest feather, seed packets, and a spark plug, plus a note she cannot read. Grateful for the surplus, she plans to reciprocate with a tundra swan feather. She spends the night harvesting mussels for gas money and returns by the clearing.

There, Kya meets the gift giver: Tate, the boy who once guided her home through the marsh. Startled yet drawn, Kya offers the swan feather and thanks him as Tate explains the note and his intentions. He says he may drop by and finally offers to teach her to read, signaling a turn from anonymous exchanges to a budding relationship that could ease Kya’s isolation.