Heron Lake Plateau Running again

As she rambles, she can see Niamh tensing.  Breathe in.  One beat, two.  Breathe out.  I can handle this. she thinks sourly to herself.  Even if Niamh hates her, even if she doesn't care that she has Ceara's blessing.  Even if —

Oh.  Phew.  Cool.  Actually, that made things a lot easier to handle.  I'm glad, she says softly, bringing her gaze up to meet the burnished gold of Niamh's.  She can see now why she'd once had a crush on her — pretty, and witty too.  Maybe that's why they disliked each other so vehemently now.  They were just too much alike.

He'd deserve it.  She couldn't see Colt — their Colt Blackthorn, the very own! — doing anything crass or stupid... but the way he'd been able to relate to that stranger? Maybe he knew something she didn't.

She settled upon the den again, and she was quite suddenly filled with something Niamh always thought Ceara held for her — jealousy.  She'd made her own pitiful scrape, because she too did not want to be caught in this desolate fucking wasteland without shelter... but it must be much warmer when you got to share it with someone.  Hurtfully, an image of herself and @Siarut curled up together by Grouse Thicket comes to mind (even though she has cast him out and they'd never visited there).  She puts on a brave face and nods.  I made one too, but it's looking pretty, um, pitiful right now.  Real shallow.  But with the snow..  She'd have to pad it out.  I helped Caiaphas make hers.  If you'd like some help sometime, if Colt's busy, anyway..  Maybe they wouldn't ever become friends, but at least they could forcibly get along?