Redsand Canyon Wheat like waves.

The instant Germanicus materialized beside her, Towhee’s thoughts began whirling even faster. We need to talk her out of it, she wanted to say, though she’d resisted this impulse with Rue and did the same with the Imperator. Rue was a grown woman at the end of her rope, could anyone blame her for seeking relief? It would be selfish to ask her to stay, and Towhee had worked so hard to learn to let people go.

We should definitely spar out our feelings, was another tempting—and certainly more constructive—thought. They couldn’t quite see the sparring pit through the trees ahead, though they both knew it was there. Towhee didn’t even bother voicing the thought, simply hastening her step so she and Germanicus would get there sooner.

Life had thrown quite the wrench today, yet it seemed it wasn’t quite done with them. Towhee didn’t hear the hiss that came from somewhere overhead, where a lynx had dragged a stolen carcass into a tree to feed. But between Germanicus’s inevitable reaction and the sudden stench of feline, she dropped into a bristling crouch, ready to fight.

You’re more than welcome to copilot the lynx!