She’d been keeping entirely to herself ever since the fight she had with Turq. They’d broken up and gone their separate ways, leaving Rivet feeling a vast range of emotions; anger, regret, and a whole lot of loneliness. She was stubborn, though, and refused to allow herself to purposely go seeking out the woman that held the strings to her heart.

And then there she was in all her frustrating beauty just on the other side of the lake. She resisted the urge to rush around the edge of the lake and rush to Turq. Instead, she remained where she was already standing at the edge of the lake. Without taking her eyes off of the other woman, Rivet lowered her head toward the water to get the drink that she’d come to the lake for.

Knowing the other woman as well as she did, Rivet had no doubt that her own casual behavior at the moment would irritate Turq. What else was she supposed to go? Run to her, throwing herself at Turq’s paws and beg forgiveness? To just as willingly give forgiveness? To completely forget the not so nice words that they had each thrown at each other in their moment of anger? No, it wasn’t going to be that easy. Rivet was far too stubborn and hot headed for that.

Without removing her eyes from the other woman, Rivet drank a little more while Turq stormed her way around to the side the ebon female was. Lifting her head from the water, the cool liquid dripped from her chin. Holding herself proudly, she narrowed her eyes slightly as she lifted her gaze. “Wasn’t aware that you owned these parts,” she shot back, giving a gruff snort after she spoke. “Also wasn’t aware that I needed your permission to come and go as I please…”

Her ears slicked back, slightly, as Turq spat her words out at her, knowing full well the word that had gone left unsaid. That hurt, but she refused to give the other woman the satisfaction of seeing the hurt she was feeling inside at that moment. “I do believe that it is you acting like the immature one, Turq,” she replied, keeping the hurt she felt from her voice.

The young woman gave a slight shake of her head, that was quickly followed by the rest of her frame, ending with the tip of her tail. “If I’d have known you were going to be here, I would have avoided it, Your Highness.” There was more venom in her voice than she meant to have there, but if Turq was going to act like a complete jerk, then so be it. “What’s your problem, Turq? Get a splinter up your butt or something? Seriously, you act as if I knew you would be here. Well, I didn’t. I didn’t know you were going to be here, or I would have avoided coming here, letting you you’re your space that you so obviously want…”

The words that they had snarled at each other in anger, and hurt, had cut the ebon female far more than she was willing to let on. She was too hot headed to just come right out and say that she hadn’t meant the things she had said, and hoped that Turq hadn’t meant the things that she had said. It had clearly been a lovers quarrel, but some of the things each of them had said weren’t so easily forgotten, or forgiven.

And yet…

A soft whine escaped from her before she was able to swallow it when Turq spoke. “I shouldn’t have said some of the things I said either,” she replied, dropping her gaze to the ground at her own paws. She had been so angry, so very angry, when they’d had their fight, but it had been Turq’s words of needing space that had cut the ebon woman the most. “I’m sorry…” she finally managed, not lifting her gaze from her own paws.

Days prior, when she had stood there and watched the much larger woman taking off after having snarled about needing her space, Rivet had thought her heart would break into many little pieces. She’d also figured that she would never see Turq again. And she had sworn to herself that she would not apologize. Yet here she was, apologizing with a whine. Way to stick to your guns, she silently chided herself.

But she did not even remotely resist when her lover pulled her close, leaning against her much larger companion. “It was a stupid fight,” she murmured against Turq’s chest, breathing in the woman’s scent deeply. It had been a cold few nights sleeping without her companion, but not cold as in winter cold. It was cold and lonely. Not a pleasant feeling in the least, and definitely not something she was wanting to go through too often.

Even as Turq spoke her last sentence, Rivet knew that they would have their spats here and there. All lovers had their quarrels. That was not something even they could get away from. “Oh we’ll fight,” she sighed into her lover’s fur. “Just… it doesn’t need to go even half as far as it did. And don’t leave me like that again. Do you hear me?” A brief quiver ran down her spine as she remained wrapped in the embrace of the larger female.

It was a relief to hear her companion promising to never walk out on her again. Rivet would definitely work hard to make sure that promise was kept because she did not want to go through what she’d been going through the last several days all over again. Though she was hot headed and stubborn, there was no doubt in her mind that she cared very, very deeply for her larger companion. “Good because I wouldn’t want to have to hunt you down and hurt you if you leave me again,” she growled, though there was a playful note in her voice, which was followed by a light nip to Turq’s nose.

It was hard to not allow herself to move with Turq when she shifted so that they could see each other better, but she remained in place. She was sincerely glad that she’d ended up happening upon Turquoise when she did, though she would never know about the choices her lover had been contemplating. “I’d kind of like to see around this area at least a little more,” she answered, casting a glance toward the lake beside them. “We could look into whatever packs are around the area. If we like one of them, we could join it.”

Where there was a will, there was a way. If pushed hard enough, or hurt deep enough, surely Rivet really could figure out some way to hurt Turq, even if not physically or on her own. But that wasn’t something that she was even remotely thinking about, nor did she was to think about it. Rivet just wanted to be with her companion for many years to come.

The smaller female nodded her head in agreement. “First thing in the morning sounds good.” Because for the rest of whatever was left of this day, Rivet didn’t want to share her lover with anyone else. A playful growl easily escaped from her and a mischievous light was instantly in her mismatched eyes when Turq spoke.

Leaping to her paws, her tail swayed eagerly behind her. “Have to catch me first…” she teased, breaking out into a lope, moving away from the lake as well as her lover.