Larksong Grotto bitter sweat and circumstance

Smokepuff seemed happy. Taikon couldn't see her expression. She was facing away from him. Her ears from far away however, they told some kind of a story as they turned and focused.
The birds. They held her interest for a long time. They lie in silence in this serene and beautiful place, each taking a break from the thrills of their life on the mountain. The birds did not know anything of the wolves on the brink of a war with no meaning. Whatever society the winged beasts had, it was far away from the corrupt, emotional lives of their predatory neighbours.
Taikon knew that he would have to do his own digging to figure out what was really going on. He did not trust the judgment of his leaders. He was not willing to blindly follow when everything around them seemed clouded.
The girl rose with a gentle huff, and as she did so did he. Once again, he was wordless, glancing at her and knowing that she was ready. Smokepuff turned from the water, and the prince of nothing followed her back to the peak. The break from disaster felt good and pleasant, but he knew that there was work to be done and none to do it but him.