Silverlight Terrace And if I'd stare too long

There was no bear. His attempts to seem manly and so very strong were fizzling out. The girl seemed surprised, a little flustered, but mostly confused - and Tit tried to shake off his own nerves, to stand tall and return to the persona he had started the conversation with. He swallowed a lump in his throat and stood tall behind her, slinking out from his hiding place as if nothing was amiss.

Pfft! No! I don't even know what that means, he grumbled hastily, only to shoot her a scowl when she mentioned fleas. That was going a bit far - so he didn't even respond to the accusation. Fleas! On him? Never! You just said there was a bear behind me! I was -- I was just repositioning. To get a good angle of attack! But you lied, you liar! It wasn't even there! Tit snorted softly in the manner of an irritated Thoroughbred (and to be honest, he was just as high-strung as any racehorse); he began to pace a little, looking around for clues just in case she was tricking him -- if there was a bear, he wanted to be ready (to run).