Lion Head Mesa a prayer for rain

when the queen sat so did belen, close but not pervading the royal space around satsu. she listened, glassblue eyes filling with a strange and wan longing. or maybe it was not so strange. "do you miss her?" the girl blurted, ears folding for a moment. "i mean —" but there was no way to save it. she only hoped that the queen would not be angry with her pushiness. "at times i miss mine. but — not always. i like it here."