Porcupine Ridge All my life, I was never there

He awaited an offense response of some sort. He expected the forward thrust of Capriccio's ears as she exerted her dominance over him, reminding him that she and only she could decide when her subordinates touched her, even accidentally. That he had played too rough and gotten carried away and should be more careful in the future. He expected her to stare him down with those powdery blue eyes of hers, to send his own true blue gaze to the ground below in acknowledgement of his wrongdoing. He even wriggled his tail faster in anticipation of ritualized admonishment, an occurrence he would readily accept from the Alpha female.

Strangely, none of that happened. He dared to lift his gaze when she didn't sling her muzzle dominantly over his neck or above his lowered head, and noticed that her ears, rather than pointing forward and up, were pulled back. She reached for him, causing an instinctual wince, but rather than clamping his muzzle between her jaws as a reminder of their respective statuses, she nudged his cheek in a manner that was far more reassuring.

His expectations, born of the behaviour witnessed while growing up in his natal pack, were shaken. His tongue swept nervously over his lips and his ears pulled up a little as confusion blanketed his features. He dared not return to a neutral posture in the event that this was a test or that she was at least a little offended and forgave him because he was so quick to admit his fault by showing apologetic submission behaviour, but his paws did shift uncertainly and his brows drew together questioningly.

He would've remained like that, but at that moment, an itch clawed its way up through his muzzle and out his nose in a quick and surprisingly quiet sneeze.