lasher leant back, paws still within the earth, as fox approached, and her high spirits buoyed him. eartips pricked as she uprooted a scant few of his blossoms, but he did not fault her for it. laughter, the delta murmured, pausing to plant the flower for which his depression had been intended. patting the earth with a loamy forepaw, he regarded fox fondly. you are settling in, yes?
perhaps she needed a tour, or whatever bits of history taltos was able to salvage. his mind floated toward the recall of peregrine's intentions for the ruby and for his murky-eyed servant, and he pondered it curiously. for some time, fox and the panther would be wrapped in each other, though he trusted peregrine to seek him out for their own interludes. it was the natural order of things, and while fox was beautiful, and her inner spark a lovely thing to lasher, he would not press the union of their souls unless he found an opening in her heart for him.
but that would require time, which he was happy to grant her. he was quiet, awaiting her reply, while his eyes fell half-lidded at the gentle zephyr which swept suddenly through the still trees.