Ravensblood Forest the fat pelican

She watched as Kaertok situated himself before her, her expression growing from scrutiny to disbelief.

Was this his version of a sick joke? A stupid prank? 'Aokkatti'? It sounded made up. Her confusion melted away to anger, hardening the yellow of her gaze with mistrust. "You can't be serious."  He had to be joking. It was too much -- his words, everything that had happened in the space he had been gone.. And he didn't even have a clue how much things had changed - how much she had changed.

She wasn't the Raleska he had known when he said goodbye. That Raleska was dead and gone, smoke on the wind -- what if he found out the who Raleska had become was not the person he had expected? "That's bullshit." Raleska snorted dismissively, setting her gaze on him in a half-hopeful way that said: you're kidding, right?