Otter Creek Outside tripping in the broken city

If there was one thing Pallas appreciated, it was transparency. As she lapped the water she heard a chuff: sharply her eyes fixated on the agouti male that had uttered it. He was saved any verbal whiplash, for it was obvious he had strained to make his presence noticed. He even offered a helpful direction -- for this, Pallas afforded him a rare and fleeting smile. She dipped her muzzle into the water and when she lifted her head a torrent of water rushed from her slack jaws. "Thanks, but I'm no match for a muskrat in its element." It was true -- if the muskrat was close to water, her chances of success were slim. She was content to lap at the water until she heard very faintly the voice of another; she could not smell him, but the ripple and splash of water betrayed his presence in the pond. Before long he appeared, soggy and sodden. Pallas had little patience for the timorous, and she looked at Koda pointedly to see if this was a companion of his.