Sun Mote Copse time is a revelator;

how selfish arcturus was, to not realize by placing his emotions baldly on the table, he might be rejecting towhee's own. much like kukutux, the sovereign was not granted the full attention of arcturus' introspective thoughts. he was so blinded by the predicament he was in with wraen, he scarcely even registered towhee might feel dejected by his admission.

she looked surprised, which arcturus had difficulty reading. towhee's next question lacked the nakedness of her first, and was followed by a grin arcturus had not been expecting. he wanted to lean in and ask what?, but the conversation was already moving -- and arcturus' head was spinning with the possibility his affections might not be unrequited.

how very much like a man he was, to be thinking then mostly of himself. he shook his head abstractly, trying to rid himself of his selfish thoughts. no -- this was not supposed to be about him and his future paramour -- it was supposed to be about how he knew he was leaving towhee in the reeds.

even if she was accepting of it, and even encouraging of it, it didn't make arcturus' guilt any less pervasive. he gave a smile in return that did not reach his eyes, for that road with wraen was unknown and daunting. but the road, the road he and towhee were on, was coming to a swift conclusion arcturus did not want to see end.

"i will." arcturus promised, to all of that: to romantic notions, to "wifing" her (if wraen agreed), to spending their last days together -- but that was in the future, and he and towhee were in the now. "will firebirds be okay if we leave? will you?"