Moonspear Sal din hug og lat den ri og renna.

The tenderhearted redtail perceived tension in Towhee’s demeanor. It made her request feel more like an ultimatum and Njord felt that any sign of ambivalence wouldn’t go over well. But why? It played into Njord’s fear of familial discord and made his guard go up a little, which came out as a weight shift from one paw to the other. She reminded him of Rosalyn.

But Njord thought of his wife’s encouragement. They’ll like you, she had said. He had to trust in her words. Besides, not everything was about him. Any edginess he sensed could be about something completely unrelated. After all, Towhee just had her whole life uprooted.

He licked his nose, a calming signal in wolves, and passed Towhee and sincere smile. “Ptero,” he corrected, although the motion for the word went right over his head which was too preoccupied with all the big thoughts.

“Aye, I will learn it,” he committed. “T’would be what I would want for my children as well if I were you.” His head naturally drifted away and then Njord remember to keep his face targeted on Towhee so she could read him. It was clear it would take a few interactions for it to all become second nature. “If I were you,” he repeated, unsure if she had caught the last bit.

“Meerkat ‘as even learned some words from my mother tongue,” he added. “Yer daughter is quite the polygot!” he laughed. It was also a good reminder of his wife’s sacrifices throughout their relationship. Now, it was time to step up and reciprocate.