pure sweet violent hearts

I have been naming characters in this family Bhreac for a literal decade and it has never once occurred to me that I was naming them spot, my god.

Bhreac watched him silently as he waded into the water, trying not to be too pushy or disparaging. She was somewhat comfortable with him now, at least insofar as making glib remarks went, but luckily her general reticence with strangers made prevented her from throwing her weight at him and forcing him into the deeper water, as she would've done with Eshe, or another relative. He back-peddled a few steps after getting in up to his shoulders, and Bhreac couldn't resist snorting slightly, turning out into the water to walk up to his side.

"Very convincing, thank you," she said. In lieu of shoving him into the deep water — swimming was mostly instinctual, after all — she butted her head somewhat gently against his shoulder, taking a few steps out ahead of him so that she was in up to the middle of her neck. It would likely be a bit lower on him, though. "Off you pop," Bhreac said, "c'mon, get in a little deeper." She gave her tail a hearty wag, intending to splash him a bit where he lingered behind her.