Blackfoot Forest The simorgh sleeps on velvet tongues

I brought this up to the present, jfyi. :)

"Pied," he replied in a wispy voice that sounded as if it came from miles away. He took a step toward her, then seemed to freeze in place. Confused, Pied furrowed her brow questioningly. Finally, she caught his line of sight and glanced over her shoulder. When she saw who was standing back there, she experienced a sensation not unlike cold water being poured over her head, followed just as quickly by a wave of unpleasant heat.

Pivoting, she faced Hawkeye, her lips parting in speechless surprise at the black female's question. Immediately, she glanced over her shoulder again. Starbuck was no longer standing there. Even Mags had gone. Pied now felt her stomach grow hollow. A lump jammed in her throat. When she looked back at Hawkeye, her golden and indigo eyes were tight with restrained emotion.

"What are you talking about?" she asked quietly, almost woodenly. She felt suddenly possessive of her secret. Although she considered Hawkeye a friend, she still wasn't ready to let onto it. Furthermore, she wasn't sure how to feel about Hawkeye right now. She hadn't seen the larger she-wolf since their altercation at the Dragonwatchers' borders. Pied had tried her hardest not to think about the incident but it was hard to avoid with Hawkeye standing right in front of her. Not to mention the fact that Hawkeye had unwittingly interrupted her...

"I wasn't talking to anybody," Pied said finally, turning away lest Hawkeye see the lie in her eyes. "I was just... talking to myself." She bit back a sigh as she craned her head around, yearning to spot Starbuck again. Yet her father had vanished into the night and she had no idea if or when he might reappear.