Silver Creek cocoa

she thought him different -- an opinion she would come to find was shared among many. iliksis shrugged the assessment off with a roll of his thin shoulders, finding little to say in response. was not every wolf different? each life unique?

he was not one for such philosophical ponderings, and his mind went no further than to search for a reply that would not rouse suspicion. "must be because i'm northern." he replied - an answer that was not untrue -- his birthplace, himminrond, was on the northern cusp of the great bristleback range -- the last frontier before the world dipped into arctic tundra, impassable due to the constantly shifting snow and unbroken arctic landscape. not even trees could withstand the shrieking wind past the himminrond, and with no prey to be sustained on that last frontier, there was little to be had past his homeland.

he did not expand -- and if pressed, would say nothing further on his homeland. it was not fit for even coarse table talk, and had daivya been aware of the horrors he had grown up alongside and been desensitized to (and even accepted as commonplace among his kind), she might have understood just what about him was different.

she was testing his resolve, just sitting there -- the coy way she dipped her ivory chin, the soft, svelte plush of his fur. he was feeling his resistance ebb away, and knowing better than to stay, the man rose, dipped his muzzle silently, and then made to fashion his leave.