Redsand Canyon seems a pity not to take a chance

we could fade here or keep going <3 im cool either way & left it open-ended for whatever purpose :D

germanicus followed ruenna's gaze toward the bed. it was surprising to somehow feel that she felt similarly. he did not know why he had expected her to press her right at once. the eagle supposed it was because she did not know it was the right of a roman wife. and more than that, he could not envision her acting in such a manner.

maybe she too did not want immediate closeness. it was new, after all. he was relieved to know that the new lady redsand would not want to undergo the rights of publicity. there he stood, a husband.

but would a husband allow his wife to sleep on a single hide? germanicus felt that now it might be easier to share the berth with her. but also now he was discovering that perhaps what he had felt she would expect was not the reality of their situation.

the eagle nodded, giving a small and polite bow. he wished her to be aware of her power here. the respect germanicus felt for ruenna could not be understated. and it was something he wished to reiterate often. it was the moment to depart and yet he did not yet turn toward the entrance. 

instead the imperator drew closer, fighting the urge to clear his throat and thus give away his shyness. a gentle gesture showed his intention to brush her cheek with his muzzle. just for a moment. one cut short but not sharply. "i am glad you are here, ruenna," he said quietly, wondering if his voice wavered. the formal dropped for the attempt at an intimacy of which he was yet unsure.

in the next moment he stepped back. this time he did harrumph lowly. a quick smile softened the solemn lines of his face, one almost boyish in its bashful mien. and then germanicus had gone away, breathing the cold air outside into his lungs as he crossed into shadow and was gone, seeking the woolly sheepskin he had stowed in some cold keep far across the canyon.