Heron Lake Plateau awaiting your mistake

The look in her eye was startling (although it should not have been), and reminded him of the way the wolves of Moonspear stared at him - intense and dangerous. Two things that, before now, Screech would have never linked to his passive sister. He knew what he said was crossing an obvious line. As stupid as he seemed, Screech wasn't a total idiot, he was just loud and emotional. Even before she spoke her reply he knew it had been wrong; yet hearing her threaten to kick him out seemed to prove something to the boy - maybe he finally knew his limits.

He wanted to play it off as a casual bluff and for the most part that was easy, he just sighed and broke eye contact with her, shrugging but deferring with the shift of his vision to the dirt like a scolded child (not far off base with that). He murmured, Obviously I'm not serious. Nobody would believe me. But even Screech didn't know what he was capable of. He just wanted to be treated the same as everyone else - and prove he was just as capable as his handicapped sister, if not more so. Clearly the adversity in Towhee's life had strengthened her while the turmoil of Screech's various adventures had the opposite effect.

Finally he turned to watch her, but couldn't match her gaze, letting his ears stay flat against his head and curling his tail across his paws. I... I want to be better. Maybe I can't be, and maybe... Maybe I should just give up and fuck off. I don't belong -- anywhere He didn't expect her to commiserate with him or offer any comfort. This time he was speaking plainly, from the heart, and making it clear that he was just a fucked up kid with nowhere to go. What was he supposed to do? Work hard and earn the trust of people he didn't care about? Stick around a family that still thought he was a living dumpster fire of a person? But he was quiet now, his eyes glistening, and looked at her as if for a final verdict.